Book Reviews

I need to finish up my reviews for Annie's challenge so here they are. It has been some time since I read some of these, but I will do my best to remember what happened!

For the "profession" category I read Princess Academy by Shannon Hale. "Princess" is a profession, right? This was one of my favorite reads of the year (although I must admit I had quite a few of those this year). The story begins in a small village and with a 14 year old girl, Miri, who is struggling to find her place in her world. When the prince announces he will choose a bride from the quarry town, the eligible girls are sent to "princess academy" to learn how to impress the prince and act like a princess. As the girls endure isolation and hardships, their true characters emerge and we find Miri to be a true leader. This is a sweet story that I think would be a particularly good read for any girl who has ever faced the hardships of being "different" and growing up - just about every female on the planet, I think!

For the "building" category I read "The Enchanted Castle" by Edith Nesbit, written in 1907. Another good book, although I must admit that parts of it seemed strange and a little creepy - the cardboard cut out people come-to-life, for example. Three children happen across an enchanted castle and a magic ring and have many adventures in the process of attempting to sort out the magic of the castle. I originally thought I would read this book with Bryn, but I think I will let it wait a few years - although very cleverly written, it was not one of those children's books I will revisit again and again.

The last book I read for this challenge was "Echo in the Bone" by Diana Gabaldon for the "body part" category. This is the 7th book (I think) in the Outlander series about a woman who time travels to 1700's Scotland. I have been waiting for this book to come out for years (literally) to see what would happen next to Claire and her family. The Outlander series is addictive and LONG. All of the books are somewhere in the 700-1000 page range and they take a while to read. And I have admittedly forgotten much of what I read in the other books, so there is quite a bit of research and rereading that has to go on to make sure I am keeping all of the characters and their complex stories and relationships straight in my mind! So when this one ended with so many stories and characters hanging, I just about wanted to hurl the bulk of the book through the window. I am trying not to think about the fact that it will likely be another 4 to 5 years before the next book comes out. I am really hoping it is the last as I am not sure I can handle any more unfinished business in the Fraser family!