"The One and Only Ivan" by Katherine Applegate (UPDATED)

The One and Only Ivan by Katherine Applegate tells the story of Ivan, a Silverback gorilla, and his friends: Stella, an old elephant and Bob, a stray dog. They perform three shows every day at Exit 8 Big Top Mall. When business slows, Ruby, a baby elephant, is brought on board and things change.

This is a lovely story, funny for sure, and it will get and keep your interest. I think this is a book for all ages. It will touch your heart and put a smile on your face! I enjoyed it very much and the ending is so, so good!
(Gerard's review)

Karen's review--my rating 5 stars
I really enjoyed The One And Only Ivan by Katherine Applegate even though it is children’s fiction.  It is based on a true story about Ivan, a Silverback gorilla who was captured and put in a cage for 27 years without any contact with any other gorillas.  In this book, Ivan is the narrator and his owner sells Ivan’s drawings and paintings.  Ivan is quite an artist.  Ivan has a stray dog named Bob who comes into his “domain” and sleeps on Ivan’s stomach.  In the next cage is Stella, an elephant, who is a good storyteller but who had a hard life at a circus.  When a baby elephant, Ruby, joins her, she is very protective of her and when she knows she is dying, gets Ivan to promise to protect Ruby for her.  He comes up with a great plan to get Ruby moved to a zoo.  This is such a cute book that has a happy ending.  It is a quick read but very enjoyable!  If you like animals and are looking for a heartwarming story, I recommend this one!  I loved it! 

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. Happy Reading!

We are donating 50 cents for each legitimate comment we receive on all our blogs during April to Paralyzed Veterans of America.

"The Story of Edgar Sawtelle" by David Wrobiewski" (UPDATED)

The Story of Edgar Sawtelle by David Wrobiewski is a book that Gerard and I have completely different reactions toward. We'd love to hear what you think of it.

I read a lot about this book before reading it. USA TODAY called it the must read book of '08. Sometimes a book does not live up to that hype like Kite Runner and We Need To Talk About Kevin. This book does. Edgar Sawtelle is born mute into a family that trains dogs. The best part of this book to me was his interaction with the dogs. The ending is so good you will want more! The Story of Edgar Sawtelle by David Wrobiewski lives up to the hype! Read this book!
(Gerard's review 7/30/08, My rating: 5 stars)

(Karen's review 4/9/12: my rating: 2 stars)

Well, I finally got to The Story of Edgar Sawtelle by David Wrobiewski and must say I did not like it. Gerard and I see this one very differently. He thinks it's a must read but I do not recommend this one at all. It is 562 pages that seemed like forever to get through. Although there were some parts of the book I did enjoy, like when Edgar ran away with three of his dogs and found a kind old man who let him stay with him for awhile; however, most of the book was boring or made no sense to me. I liked Edgar, the main character for the most part, but didn't like when he was mean to his favorite dog, Almondine.

I do not understand why Gerard thought the ending was good other than it was suspenseful. I did not like the ending at all but don't want to spoil it if you haven't read it yet so won't say anymore about that unless you wish to discuss it in an email.

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. Happy Reading! We are donating 50 cents for each legitimate comment we receive on all our blogs during April to Paralyzed Veterans of America.

"Laugh at Life" by Jane Seabrook

Laugh at Life by Jane Seabrook is a small collection of funny sayings with great animal illustrations to go with them, one saying or picture per page.  The author has a whole series of these cute little books.  In the back she lists the names of all the animals she illustrated in the book.  Some are very exotic.  Here is one of my favorite sayings from this book:  As you get older, your secrets are safe with your friends because they can't remember them either. This would make a perfect little gift for any animal lover.

I got this one for my personal library from paperbackswap.com for free.  If you are not aware of this site, you might like to check it out.  You post books that you are willing to give away and pay the postage for mailing, then when someone requests one of your books, once they receive it you get a credit which can be used to get a book of your choice for free (since the one sending the book pays the postage). 

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. Happy Reading!

Hope you will visit our other blog, "Right Where We Belong" to see our Happy Easter Everyone post!

We are donating 50 cents for each legitimate comment we receive on all our blogs during April to Paralyzed Veterans of America.

"The Best of Me" by Nicholas Sparks

The Best of Me by Nicholas Sparks is the sad love story of Dawson and Amanda, two high school sweethearts who went separate ways.  Dawson was from an abusive family and had bullies for brothers but was not like them.  Amanda was from a well-to-do family who did not want her seeing Dawson.  They had a common friend, Tuck who was an old widower but who could see their love for each other so made arrangements for them to cross paths years later through his will,  Over the years, they still thought about each other and wondered what would have happened if they stayed together.  Dawson never married, but Amanda did, although she never had the passion with her husband that she had experienced with Dawson. 

The mixture of some fighting, a couple of ghosts and Tuck’s sweet memories all work to make this an interesting read.  I liked this one because it didn’t drag along.  I think it would have been better though if the author let the reader know Amanda’s family better.  It seemed he just threw them in at the end to wrap up the book with a neat little ending. 

 (Karen's review)

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. Happy Reading!

Hope you will visit our other blog, "Right Where We Belong" to see our Happy Easter Everyone post!

 We are donating 50 cents for each legitimate comment we receive on all our blogs during April to Paralyzed Veterans of America.

"Kill Switch" by Neal Baer and Jonathan Greene

In Kill Switch by Neal Baer and Jonathan Greene, Claire Waters, a forensic psychiatrist, has to deal with a serial killer and then has to face a danger that she faced years ago as a child. This book is awesome, a page turner for sure with an ending I did not see coming.  This one is a winner!
(Gerard's review)

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. Happy Reading!

We are donating 50 cents for each legitimate comment we receive on all our blogs during April to Paralyzed Veterans of America.