"Never Blame The Umpire" by Gene Fehler

Never Blame The Umpire by Gene Fehler is a teen book about a Kate, a 16yr.-old girl who learns her mother is dying of Cancer.  She uses poetry to express her feelings and blames God for letting her mom get Cancer.  The author was an English teacher and in this book, there is a lot about Kate’s English class.  You can pick up some techniques about writing poems by reading this book. 

 

Kate and her brother, Ken, are both on the same baseball team and I thought it would be more about baseball based on the cover.  It really only mentions a couple highlights of a couple games.  Kate’s mother helps Kate deal with her death by comparing God to an umpire.    

This is a touching story.  It may be a book that someone in this situation could learn from.  It is written using first person from Kate’s perspective and I could certainly put myself in her place and understood how she felt. 

 

Personally, I did not care for all the poems and was glad when I finished it.  It was a touching story and I cried at the end.

(Karen's review)

Have you read this one? What did you think of it?

Teaser Tuesday: One Non-fiction and Two Teen Books

Teaser Tuesdays is a weekly bookish meme, hosted by MizB of Should Be Reading. Anyone can play along! Just do the following:

• Grab your current read
• Open to a random page
• Share two (2) “teaser” sentences from somewhere on that page
• BE CAREFUL NOT TO INCLUDE SPOILERS! (make sure that what you share doesn’t give too much away! You don’t want to ruin the book for others!)
• Share the title & author, too, so that other TT participants can add the book to their TBR Lists if they like your teasers!

Click on any of the links below to see our reviews.

Karen's books:

Part of me is Mary.  I want to worship extravagantly.  I want to sit at his feet.
But part of me is Martha--and there's just so much to do!

From p. 7 of Having a Mary Heart in a Martha World by Joanna Weaver.

Mama's body seems to stiffen.  "I have cancer."
The word pounds me like a tidal wave.  I feel myself drowning.  I take a deep breath, trying to stay above the water.

From p. 51 of Never Blame the Umpire by Gene Fehler. (Teen)

Gerard's:

"He's been diagnosed so many freaken' times, I can't keep it straight.  There's the ADHD.  And they think he has attachment disorder.  And sometimes they put him on the autism spectrum."

From p. 76 of The Snowball Effect by Holly Nicole Hoxter. (Teen)

Book Club: "The Secret Life of CeeCee Wilkes" Chapters 36-50

Wow, this book keeps getting better and better.  I really like Dru and that her and Cory are so different, yet they get along well.  Tip to mothers, do not leave notes to call people where your children will see them, especially when asking favors on your child's behalf.  I thought Eve calling the play director to ask her to include Corey somehow was perfectly normal for a mother to do.  It worked too.  Corey was included in the play with her sister and she was thrilled.  Unfortunately, she saw the reminder note and figured out her mother called and set it up.  Instead of being thankful Eve did that, she was embarrassed.  

Again, CeeCee should have been more honest with Cory when she asked about tracking down her relatives on her father's side.  It's fun to see a mature CeeCee as a mother but I still think she has no right to keep Cory in the dark about her biological father and let her father think his daughter was never born or is dead.  This to me is her biggest crime.

I thought for sure Eve would get to know Irving Russell better when he became President of the college where she worked and would let him know the truth finally, but she didn't.  At least she didn't get mixed up in another mess by answering the email she received about helping another fugitive.  Score 1 point for her there.  

It's pretty ironic how Cory chose to be involved with Ken, a charming, smooth talker 12 years older with the same pretty eyes Tim had.  I don't really like him too much because of the big age difference and I agree with Marian about not trusting a man who takes a girl from her family.  Something's up with that.  Eve had a funny line though when she said to herself, at least he's not a felon.  I liked the nuances between Eve and Ken.  That whole bottled water bit was funny too.  

Right about at that point, Tim Gleason gets arrested and charged with kidnapping and the murder of Genevieve Russell and her unborn child.  From here on, after every chapter I think "This is SO good!"  Eve is glued to the TV and is obsessed with watching the trial every day and the news to hear the latest updates.  She is scared that the police will be coming for her any day but so far her luck has held out.  Tim actually lied on the stand to protect her--what a nice guy.  

See what others think at Book Beginnings and Bookends.

"Duma Key" by Stephen King

Duma Key takes awhile to really get going, but once it does, watch out!!  It is about Edgar who gets in a terrible accident which causes him lose his right arm and scrambles his mind.  He is filled with rage and begins rehab and resumes painting, something that once have him pleasure.  It's about loyalty and compassion  Very interesting characters and a good story with paranormal activity.  I've read better by him, but well worth your time.

Have you read this one? What did you think of it?

"Just After Sunset" by Stephen King

Just After Sunset by Stephen King is a collection of short stories by the "Master of Short Stories."  Most of these are very good and I wished they were longer.  I found only a couple that I didn't get into; hence 4 instead of 5 stars.  Must read for all King fans!
(Gerard's review 2009)

Have you read this one? What did you think of it?