Review | Scaredy Squirrel Goes Camping

Scaredy Squirrel Goes Camping by Mélanie Watt was the first book of the Scaredy Squirrel collection that I read, and I really enjoyed it! 

Scaredy Squirrel is afraid of going camping. Actually, he’s pretty much afraid of everything that requires having to leave the comfort of his home. That is why he doesn’t go camping. 

So Scaredy decides that instead of going camping in the wilderness, he would watch a movie about camping! Sounds like the perfect plan, right? Only he forgot one thing. He doesn’t have a power outlet in his house! The nearest is miles away at…the campground! And so, he sets on a mission to go and plug his TV. 

“Reaching the nearest electrical outlet will require major surviving skills.”

He prepares the best of plans, but of course nothing goes according to them, and he ends up learning a valuable lesson: some things are worth the trouble!

I loved this book, and even though I’m an adult, I will probably try and get my hands on the others in the series. 

I couldn’t stop laughing throughout the entire story. Especially when I read the part about the penguins:

“Wherever there are coolers, penguins rule. They are as cold as ice, and won’t warm up to you! Toss popsicles to occupy their sharp beaks.”

And then his rule:

“If all else fails, take cover and play dead.”

But not only the story was funny, the illustrations were beautiful. They reminded me a little bit of old cartoons and the colouring was gorgeous. I had as much fun looking at the pictures as I had reading the story!

I HIGHLY recommend this book to anyone. I’m sure that parents will enjoy reading this book (probably the entire series) to their kids as much as they will love the story. You might have to read it over, and over again! 

 

To buy this book you can click HERE! :)

*This book was sent to me by NetGalley in exchanged for an honest review (book ISBN: 1894786866)

A life slump?

I don't know if a lot of you follow my blog... If any, but I'm sorry I've been MIA lately. I think I've just been in a life slump... If that's a thing. It all started last Thursday when the Habs lost the game. This loss also ended the playoffs for my beloved team, and I was a mess for 2 days straight. A hockey team shouldn't have that power over me, but what can I say, I'm Canadian.

I have a few reviews lined up. Some are already written. This week I really plan on working on this blog. Adding links and widgets and stuff. I want to change the layout. I also want to find a host website. If anyone has recommandation for a good one, that'd be lovely. I have no idea where to start looking.

I'm currently reading Skulduggery Pleasant by Derek Landy and it's AMAZING. You should definitely check it out!

Review | Pour Rallumer les Étoiles par Dominique Demers

Pour Rallumer les étoiles est la suite de la trilogie Marie-Tempête. L’histoire débute 16 ans après que Marie-Lune donne son moustique en adoption. 

La série est divisée en deux volumes – à la bibliothèque il y a deux parties, bien que je crois qu’il existe une publication en un seul roman – et l’histoire est en fait une quête de réponses aux questions que se posent Marie-Lune, ainsi que Grabriel.

Marie-Lune ressent un besoin grandissant de savoir ce que son fils est devenu, s’il est bien et heureux. Il y a un vide en elle, et ne sait comment le combler. Elle a fait des démarches pour entrer en contact avec les parents adoptifs avec qui elle s’était si bien entendue 16 ans plus tôt, mais est surprise lorsqu’elle reçoit une réponse négative de la part de Claire, lui demandant de ne plus les contacter.

De son côté, Gabriel (son fils) vit une phase très émotionnelle et comprend qu’il ne pourra jamais savoir qui il est vraiment sans rencontrer ses parents biologiques. Il entreprend donc  des démarches pour les retrouver et sa détermination le pousse vers l’haltérophilie et une « princesse chiante ». 

«  Gabriel avait eu le temps de plonger dans ses yeux et il s’y était amarré »

Le roman est écrit pour les adolescents, mais puisque la série Marie-Tempête fut parue un bon 10 ans plus tôt il aurait été bien qu’elle soit écrite pour les adultes. J’ai lu la trilogie alors que j’avais 13 ans et donc, je suppose que la majorité des lecteurs sont maintenant adultes. 

Le style d’écriture est très simple, mais poétique. J’adore le fait que l’auteur utilise un langage distingué, mais de « chez nous ». 

« Alors seulement, il osa lever les yeux. Une forêt l’attendait »

L’histoire se lie trop vite à mon goût. C’est dommage dans un sens, car j’aurais aimé qu’elle dure plus longtemps. J’avais l’impression d’embarquer dans leur vie quand tout d’un coup c’est déjà terminé.

En bref, c’est une belle conclusion à la trilogie Marie-Tempête, mais j’ai trouvé la fin précipitée comme c’est souvent le cas dans la littérature jeunesse. 

Review | Swallow by Theanna Bischoff

I found this book sitting on the new arrival shelf at the National Library and Archives of Quebec on one gorgeous Sunday. I was taking my sister there; another one of my attempts to try and get her to like books… (Mission failed, but I won’t give up.) The beautiful cover caught my eye, and then the title, so simple, Swallow. 

I had never heard of the author, Theanna Bischoff, but when I saw she was a Canadian author, I couldn’t resist and check it out from the library, even though I have a mountain of books on my nightstand. It’s nice to read books about places you know.

Swallow is, as the cover mentions, “a touching and poignant tribute to sisterhood”. With an absent father and their mother constantly ill, sisters Darcy and Carly Nolan were forced to rely on each other growing up. While unpredictable Carly bounced around, her life's direction uncertain, Darcy fell in love, went to University, and moved to another province. When nineteen-year-old Carly unexpectedly kills herself, Darcy is left to carry the burden of their childhood memories forward alone. The pain of these memories overwhelms Darcy as she struggles to unravel her own feelings of guilt, and to make sense of her sister's death--as an act of destruction, of misery, but also of love.

The writing style was absolutely delightful. I had read a few YA novels before this one, and the elegance of the writing was welcome. The story is told in one of those sad and nostalgic tons, with a tinge of regret. Something I really enjoy. 

“If swallows mate for life, where was its partner? Would it mourn forever, like Papi? What happened when part of you was gone forever?”

Darcy goes back and forth into her memories, sometimes she’s in the present, sometimes in the past. The pace of the book isn’t slow, even though you could feel it is. It’s just laden with sadness (in a good way) and it flows really well. I can’t remember any long and unnecessary descriptions.

I could relate a lot to her life, and so this book brought back a lot of memories. It was definitely an emotional read and I enjoyed every pages of it. The length was also perfect. Not too heavy, not to short.

“Our childhood photo albums seemed to suggest, not necessarily inaccurately, that we’d raised ourselves.”

I highly recommend Swallow to anyone who likes to read a good book about dysfunctional families. This book is a testimony of pain and loss, but also of hope. And that’s really what life is all about.

I will definitely be reading Cleavage by the same author.