"Holding Up the Universe" by Jennifer Niven

Holding Up the Universe by Jennifer Niven is told by Libby Strout and Jack Masselin.  They both go to the same high school, but they are very different on the status scale.  The one thing they do have in common is that they each have a health problem to deal with.

This book is much better than I expected it would be.  I really rooted for Libby and Jack.  The story flowed along well and I was always anxious to get back into it!  The ending was perfect!  If you want a feel good story, this is it!
(Gerard's review, 5++ stars)

Karen read this one too--here's her review:
Holding Up the Universe by Jennifer Nivan is a teen romance novel. Libby, an overweight girl with panic attacks, gets bullied but stands up for herself and has a big heart. Jack has Prosopagnosia, a condition that keeps him from being able to recognize faces. Libby loves to dance and Jack likes building things. Jack keeps his disability a secret and copes the best he can until one day he confides in Libby. Libby and Jack start off on rocky ground but as they get to know each other, their relationship changes.

Although this book is very predictable, it is a good story that has a good message for teens and clearly shows how bullied people feel. I never heard of “face-blindness” before reading this so it was interesting to learn about it through Jack’s experiences. Lilly was an interesting character too with the ability to forgive. The story was told by both Lilly and Jack in alternating chapters. (4 stars)


Have you read this one? What did you think of it? If you reviewed this too, feel free to share your link to your review in the comments. To find books on a specific topic, scroll to the bottom and click on the topic you want. Happy Reading!

"The Woman in Cabin 10" by Ruth Ware is One You Have to Think About

In The Woman in Cabin 10 by Ruth Ware, Lo Blacklock works for a travel magazine.  When she gets a chance to go on a cruise liner maiden voyage, she goes in hope that this will be her big break to move up at her job.  Once on board, things start to happen and she tries to make sense of it. 

There is not a lot of action until the end when it really picks up, but you are inside Lo's mind wondering just what is going on?  I loved it!  It really got me thinking trying to figure it out.  If you think you have it figured out, trust me, you don't!  I enjoyed her other book too--Dark Dark Wood.  This is a very good thinking book!
(Gerard's review, 5++ stars)

Have you read this one? What did you think of it? If you reviewed this too, feel free to share your link to your review in the comments. To find books on a specific topic, scroll to the bottom and click on the topic you want. Happy Reading!

Teasers

Gerard's:

His eyes crinkled in a way that made me think he might be smiling beneath the bandanna, and I felt the blood drain from my head and my fingers, pooling in the core of my body, ready to fight or flee, whichever it had to be.
     He took a step forwards.

From page 5 of The Woman in Cabin 10 by Ruth Ware.

But the only one who stands out from the staring, jabbering crowd of them isn't my own brother or the woman who's wrecking my parents' marriage.  It's a girl I don't even know, the largest girl here.

From page 84 of Holding Up the Universe by Jennifer Niven.

Karen's:

I tell myself to give Mick a chance, give these girls a chance, give this day a chance, give myself a chance most of all.  The way I see it, I've lost my mom, eaten myself nearly to death, been cut out of my house while the whole country watched, endured exercise regimes and diets and the nation's disappointment, and I've received hate mail from total strangers.

 From page 24 of Holding Up the Universe by Jennifer Niven.


Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Books and a Beat. Anyone can play along, so I thought  I  would play for fun! Just pick two sentences from the book you are reading.  Happy Reading!

"Small Great Things" by Jodi Picoult is Thought Provoking--A Must Read! (UPDATED)

 Small Great Things by Jodi Picoult is a contemporary fiction about racism that is absolutely very thought provoking and educational.  It is about Ruth, a black nurse, who is charged with murder and negligence because the newborn, the son of white supremacist parents, that she was watching over dies.  Ruth is a widow with a son who is a high school honor-student.  

There are so many good scenes in this book!  It started a little slow for me with all the baby deliveries at the beginning, but that just was a small part and soon moved along.  That was just to show what a good nurse Ruth was and that she really loved her job.

This is such a remarkable story that helped me look at blacks in a whole different light.  I never realized before reading this how it really is to be black.  I would love to hear a black person's views about this book!  I really did not enjoy the chapters about Turk and Brit, the parents of the baby who died because they were horrible people!  I really liked the chapters about Ruth's public defender, Kennedy and the chapters about Ruth.  In typical Picoult style, chapters are written from different characters' points of view.  I felt the characters were well developed and the plot had an unexpected twist that shocked me!  I loved this book and highly recommend it to anyone--must read.  It has lots of great lines and the author used the experiences of some real people that she interviewed to get a feel for what it's really like to be black in the United States.  I loved the surprise ending!  Must Read! 
(Karen's review, 5 stars)

My husband and I both loved this one, here's his review:

In Small Great Things by Jodi Picoult, Ruth Jefferson is a delivery nurse in a small hospital.  She has been one for 20 years and is very good at it.  One night a newborn baby is having serious problems and Ruth is left alone with the baby.  The baby is white, and Ruth is black, with orders not to touch this baby.  When the baby dies, the parents blame Ruth!  Did she do something to the baby or did she try to save it?

WOW!  This book is GOOD!  This story is true to life and the characters are well developed.  The trial part alone is worth reading for sure but I enjoyed the whole book!  A must Read!!
(Gerard's review, 5++ stars)

Have you read this one? What did you think of it? If you reviewed this too, feel free to share your link to your review in the comments. To find books on a specific topic, scroll to the bottom and click on the topic you want. Happy Reading!

Shared this with Mama Kat's Writer's Workshop - the prompt was share a book review.  I was pleased to see she is reading many of the books we have recommended and loved!

"Susie's Senior Dogs" by Erin Stanton

Susie's Senior Dogs by Erin Stanton tells the true story of senior dogs that have been given forever homes by people.  I loved reading all the joy the dogs brought the people and the people gave their dogs.  The pictures in the book are really good too!  You can follow Erin and the Senior Dogs on Facebook and Instagram at "Susie's Senior Dogs."
(Gerard's review, 5 stars)

Have you read this one? What did you think of it? If you reviewed this too, feel free to share your link to your review in the comments. To find books on a specific topic, scroll to the bottom and click on the topic you want. Happy Reading!