Saturday, June 19, 2010

Mini Reviews: Diary of a Wimpy Kid, Wench, and Pride and Prejudice

Title: Diary of a Wimpy Kid Dog Days
Author: Jeff Kinney
Genre: Children's Realistic Fiction
Publisher: Amulet Books, 2009
Source: Local elementary library book fair (love it!)
Summary: Greg Heffley recounts his daily experiences during summer vacation as he tries to live out his ultimate fantasy of spending the days indoors playing video games with no responsibilities and no rules, despite his mother's attempts to pack the summer with outdoor activities and family fun.

So, when I was student teaching in an elementary school library, we literally could not keep this series on the shelf. I knew I needed to read this and be a part of the hype. I get it now. This stuff is hilariously wonderful.



Title: Wench
Author: Dolen Perkins-Valdez
Genre: Historical Fiction
Publisher: Amistad, 2010
Source: Local library
Summary: Lizzie, Reenie, and Sweet, three enslaved African-American mistresses who are regularly brought to a resort called the Tawawa House prior to the Civil War, contemplate running for freedom after a fire sets off a series of tragedies.

I'm a sucker for historical fiction, so this book was a pleasure to read, indeed. Lizzie, Reenie, and Sweet are all house slaves, which sets them apart from all the field slaves or their plantations and isolates them from both the white and black populations. There's so much to think about in this story: the impending Civil War and the state of slavery in the 1850s, the strange relationships of white masters and their black slaves, the status of these couples' children, and the very fact that a place like Tawawa House actually existed. For those of you who have already read and enjoyed this one, try out Copper Sun by Sharon Draper.



Title: Pride and Prejudice
Author: Jane Austen
Genre: Classic; novel of manners
Publisher: T. Egerton, Whitehall, 1813
Source: Personal Copy
Summary: In early nineteenth-century England, a spirited young woman copes with the courtship of a snobbish gentleman as well as the romantic entanglements of her four sisters.

"Is not incivility the very essence of love?"

What can I say? I love it. This was a third reading, and I enjoyed it just as much as I thought I would. Oh, and if you haven't read it yet, consider yourself cyber-smacked on the hand.


6 comments:

Kristi said...

No cyber-smacking here - I loved Pride and Prejudice! Have had Wench on my list for quite a while. Glad that you enjoyed it!

Bybee said...

I like P&P, and I'm a new fan of the Wimpy Kid series.

Liz @ Cleverly Inked said...

I'm finally reading Pride and Prejudice.

Anonymous said...

You can never read Pride and Prejudice too often :)

Andi said...

I really need to re-read P&P. I just adore it!

Zibilee said...

My kids love the Wimpy Kid books, and I really want to read Wench. I love Pride and Prejudice as well, so these are all good choices for me!

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