The One and Only Ivan

  

The One and Only Ivan by Katherine Applegate.

• Publisher : HarperCollins; 1st edition (January 6, 2015)
• Paperback : 336 pages
• ISBN-10 : 0061992275

Amazon Review

This unforgettable novel from renowned author Katherine Applegate celebrates the transformative power of unexpected friendship. Inspired by the true story of a captive gorilla known as Ivan, this illustrated book is told from the point of view of Ivan himself.

Having spent twenty-seven years behind the glass walls of his enclosure in a shopping mall, Ivan has grown accustomed to humans watching him. He hardly ever thinks about his life in the jungle. Instead, Ivan occupies himself with television, his friends Stella and Bob, and painting. But when he meets Ruby, a baby elephant taken from the wild, he is forced to see their home, and his art, through new eyes.

In the tradition of timeless stories like Charlotte's Web and Stuart Little, Katherine Applegate blends humor and poignancy to create an unforgettable story of friendship, art, and hope.

The One and Only Ivan features first-person narrative; author's use of literary devices (personification, imagery); and story elements (plot, character development, perspective).

Sometimes, without even realizing it, you need something different.

Sometimes it might be as simple as reading a book that you wouldn't think is for you.

Sometimes, it could be a book for a child.. or a young adult. Just so you don't really have to even thing of what you are reading.

And sometimes that book is so good you can't put it down.

Sometimes, you just need simplicity in you mind for a while because you are stressed with everyday life.

May I recommend "The One and Only Ivan" ?

I promise..it's a book about animals, and... it's a feel good book.

The Gaslight Stalker

  

The Gaslight Stalker by David Field.

 

Publisher : Sapere Books (March 1, 2018)
Publication date : March 1, 2018
Print length : 198 pages

 

 

Amazon Review

 

London, 1888

Whitechapel is full of the noise of August Bank Holiday celebrations. Everyone is in high spirits until a woman – Martha Turner – is discovered brutally murdered.

Her friend, Esther, a lowly seamstress turned female sleuth, is determined to find the killer.
A young police officer, Jack Enright, takes the lead on the case, and he and Esther soon embark on a professional – and personal – relationship.

When another murder is committed and whispers of a slasher calling himself Jack the Ripper start flowing through the London streets, the search becomes even more desperate.

The police are on the wrong track and the young couple take matters into their own hands, and soon find themselves navigating through London’s dark underbelly.

Can they find the murderer before he kills again? Will anyone listen to their suspicions?
Or will this dark presence continue to haunt Whitechapel…?

 

A smaller book that was quite enjoyable.  I've read a number of books about Jack the Ripper but this one is different, which makes it a break from all the others.

When I got this book I did not realize that there were more books in the series.  I am interested in reading the others but am so far behind in all the books I have that I have not read, that I think for now they will just go on "ye ol' wish list"!

It's fast reading and only 198 pages so easy to carry to the beach or any restful place you might go.  It's also available as an E book.

The Sinister Mystery of the Mesmerizing Girl

  

The Sinister Mystery of the Mesmerizing Girl by Theodora Goss.

 

Publisher : Gallery / Saga Press (June 30, 2020)
Paperback : 464 pages
ISBN-10 : 1534427880

 

Amazon Review:

 

Mary Jekyll and the Athena Club foil a plot to unseat the Queen and race to save one of their own in this electrifying conclusion to the Locus Award winning trilogy that began with The Strange Case of the Alchemist’s Daughter.

Life’s always an adventure for the Athena Club...especially when one of their own has been kidnapped! After their thrilling European escapades rescuing Lucina van Helsing, Mary Jekyll, and her friends return home to discover that their friend and kitchen maid Alice has vanished—and so has their friend and employer Sherlock Holmes!

As they race to find Alice and bring her home safely, they discover that Alice and Sherlock’s kidnapping are only one small part of a plot that threatens Queen Victoria, and the very future of the British Empire. Can Mary, Diana, Beatrice, Catherine, and Justine save their friends—and the Empire?

In the final volume of the trilogy that Publishers Weekly called “a tour de force of reclaiming the narrative, executed with impressive wit and insight” in a starred review, the women of the Athena Club will embrace their monstrous pasts to create their own destinies.

 

This is the final book of the adventures of "The Athena Club", using the same main characters , and adding yet another to the menagerie .

After book 2, which was quite large, I wasn't sure I wanted to read more, but, she drew me in making much of it about Egypt and Mummies. I enjoy watching shows on Egypt and Archeologists , so this book put me in the same frame of mind.

Of the 3 books I think book one was my favorite.  The author used characters that I had not read about before and as the book moved along (all 3) there would be conversations between the "girls" that were not going to be part of the book that was being written about their adventures. I found that quite original.

Over all I liked this trilogy. I think a big part is I like when names are used in a book that I already know.."like Sherlock Holmes?"... "but of course! "

I know I am reading slower each year because I need surgery on my eyes.. but I will never just stop reading!

Virginia Dare and the Ratcatcher

 Virginia Dare and the Ratcatcher by Michael Scott

ASIN : B08CD3P745
Publisher : Delacorte Press (March 30, 2021)
Publication date : March 30, 2021
File size : 3709 KB
Print length : 64 pages

Amazon Review:

Nicholas Flamel appeared in J. K. Rowling’s Harry Potter series—but did you know he really lived? And he might still be alive today! Discover the truth behind Michael Scott’s New York Times  bestselling series the Secrets of the Immortal Nicholas Flamel with “Virginia Dare and the Rat Catcher,” an ebook original short story.

Long before she ever met Josh and Sophie Newman, the immortal human Virginia Dare faced down an ancient evil on the soil of the New World colonies. And without her strength, the Twins of Legend might never have had a world to save at all.

Now, that lost story is told. .

The infamous Rattenfnager, the Pied Piper of Hamlin, has come to the East Coast of the Americas. But while in Europe he earned his living as a ratcatcher, he now carries with him an ancient and incredibly powerful flute—one that he plans to use to seize control of the new colonies, and eventually the entire continent. Only, Virginia Dare stands in his way, and she has a flute of her own.

Another great short story from my favorite author Michael Scott!!

This one was quite the adventure! I doubt, no matter who I was, I would NOT have volunteered to help!  A quite scary and unpredictable story.  But, each of these short stories that Michael Scott writes gives you more insight into the different characters of his books .... The Secrets of the Immortal Nicholas Flamel Series, which I loved and have read more than once.

I do hope if you have never read them that you at least look them up on Amazon and see their reviews and find interest in them.  They are listed for Young Adults... but at 77 they STILL keep me reading them.  Most likely because the author is such a good writer!