'The Atomic Weight of Secrets' reviewed by Ryan

Synopsis: (click here for the extremely long version)

In 1903, five truly brilliant young inventors, the children of the world's most important scientists, went about their lives and their work as they always had.

But all that changed the day the men in black arrived.

The Atomic Weight of Secrets is not the best story I've ever read, but it's not the worst either. I would compare this book to an apple tree that is not yet ripen, after awhile the tree's apples become ripe and able to eat. Well the trees unripened apples are the beginning of the book, the ripened apples are the middle and the end. I didn't like the beginning of the book because what the wrote never caught my attention. Later on in the book, I wouldn't say my mind was captured but more like tangled into the book. Also, if the writer was going for a mystery he did a horrible job of it.

Recommend? No, I wouldn't because this book has nothing a good book should have --- something to catch a reader's mind! I believe the writer tried to, but failed in doing so.  In the beginning of the book he started in the middle of events and it left me lost and confused rather than curious.

Rating: 5/10

P.S. I feel really bad asking Ryan to read this book because he really struggled to finish it!!! But he's a trooper and told me he wouldn't give up on it because it might get better. Too bad that wasn't the case! Sorry Ryan!!! I also want to add that I was glancing at the reviews of this one on Goodreads and noticed most of them were posted by adults. I think it's important to get a kid's POV on these books that are marketed to them.

 ~Mrs. T

Read and reviewed by Ryan B. Ryan wrote this review at the end of this seventh grade school year. He has since grown about 4 more inches and is currently terrorizing me on a daily basis when he comes into the library eager to find the next great book to read! Look for two more reviews from Ryan.....coming in November and December!

Author: Eden Unger Bowditch
Published: March 15, 2011
Publisher: Bancroft Press
Genre: Middle School Fantasy
* Review copy from Bancroft Press

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Ryan was not compensated for his review. His thoughts on this book were in no way influenced by the author or publicist.They are his personal reflections based solely on HIS experience while reading this novel.

© 2011, Staci of Life in the Thumb. All Rights Reserved. If you reading this on a site other than, Life in the Thumb or Staci's feed, be aware that this post has been stolen and is used without permission.

Guest Review: 'The Emerald Atlas' by John Stephens

Synopsis:

John Stephens' aptly-titled new fantasy trilogy begins auspiciously with a nimble, fast-paced tale of three siblings. Kate, Michael, and Emma have suffered through ten years of odious orphanage "care"; now they have slipped into the care of the eccentric, disturbingly mysterious Dr. Pym. While exploring their new home, the children discover a magical green book. With that discovery, a decade of tedium dissolves into cascades of dangerous time travel adventures and struggles with a beautiful witch and decidedly less attractive zombielike Screechers.

The Emerald Atlas was a thrilling book! Imagine riding a roller coaster that goes through time. I'm inpsired by Kate, Emma, and Michael's hard will to find their parents and to not forget them. In the slow moments the author could have written more detail. He seemed to have been bored. For example, when the children had been examining the house...slow and boring. But when the action hit I could feel myself there in the book running from wolves and freeing the prisoners. This book I will remember for a while. I hope I can get to the next book of Kate, Michael and Emma very soon.

Would I recommend this book? yes, I would recommend this book for those who seek action and excitement.  But to those who like slow books and blah, blah, no I wouldn't. Clearly I'm a person of action and adventure and if you are too, then you'll agree with me that The Emerald Atlas is an amazing book that will be hard to put down.

Rating: 7.5/10

Read and reviewed by Ryan B. Ryan wrote this review at the end of this seventh grade school year. He has since grown about 4 more inches and is currently terrorizing me on a daily basis when he comes into the library eager to find the next great book to read! Look for two more reviews from Ryan.....coming in November and December!

Author: John Stephens
Published: April 5, 2011
Publisher: Alfred A. Knopf Books for Young Readers
Genre: Middle School Fantasy
* Uncorrected ARC courtesy of Shelf Awareness

Ryan was not compensated for his review. His thoughts on this book were in no way influenced by the author or publicist.They are his personal reflections based solely on HIS experience while reading this novel.
© 2011, Staci of Life in the Thumb. All Rights Reserved. If you reading this on a site other than, Life in the Thumb or Staci's feed, be aware that this post has been stolen and is used without permission.

Introducing....Lily!!

The kids at my middle school know and ACCEPT the fact that I am obsessed with books. In fact, quite a few actually share my passion!! Over the years I've been blessed to get to know some great students that actually want to talk books with me. Today I'd like to introduce you to one of them. Her name is Lily and she's a doll. I've known her since fourth grade and let me tell you that she has the kindest heart I've ever seen in a young person. She's so caring about animals, people, causes....she's phenomenal. One of the traits that I love the most about her, is that she's beautiful, and she has no idea!!!!!!!! Truly people she doesn't!!!!!!! She decided that she wanted to start a book blog like mine because she loved the idea of getting books in the mail!!! Does that sound like some of us?? So, I scoured my bookshelves and gave her a ton of ARCs that I knew I wouldn't get to anytime soon and she literally devoured them!! I love her reviews because they're from her perspective and that is very refreshing indeed. She's very excited about being a guest blogger today and to show blogging love (because this is a great community of people) I would really appreciate it if you would follow her link back to her blog and become a follower. We all remember that person in our life that introduced us to the first book that we fell in love with and this is a way for each one of us to pay it forward!!!! Thanks friends!!

Lily-Books Recommended to Me

Embellish by R.L. Sloane

As a young girl, Solis Burkes is raped at the hands of ruthless school bullies-an incident that hunts her into young adulthood. Then she meets Nacio, a strikingly handsome man who seems to know everything about her-including the painful past Solis hasn’t told anyone about. But what Solis doesn’t know is that Nacio has been with her every step of the way, protecting her since that fateful episode.

It’s a destiny he’s been working up for the last 257 years.

Now, Solis enters a dark world of vampires, voodoo, and passion, she’ll need all the protection she can get. Unbeknownst to her, those responsible for Solis’s rape have returned. Connected to the evil voodoo Priestess Aldicia, they’ll stop at nothing in their plans to spew violence and mayhem throughout the city. And an old family feud dating back centuries puts Solis first on their list of targets. But not if Solis unravel the clues fast enough, and inflict her own brand of revenge.

Embellish mixes sexy romance with high-stakes paranormal intrigue for a keeps-you-guessing, fast-paced and savvy thriller, right up until the shocking finale.

I thought this was a very enjoyable book. I love stories about vampires and magic and one thing that I really appreciate about Embellish is that unlike Twilight, I really liked the lead character so when she was happy, it made me happy. I found that every time I picked it up, I was lost inside it and could feel and see what was going on in the book in my mind. It never seemed to drag on, as soon as I thought I knew what was going to happen, something else would! The author did a great job writing this book for readers who want to feel what’s happening in the story, and I can’t wait to read the sequel!

Thanks Lily for such a great review!!! As an added bonus, I'm giving away the book that Lily reviewed today. Here's how you can win Embellish.

• leave a comment here with your email address
• go to Lily's blog Books Recommended to Me and follow her
• blog about Lily, send me a link and I will add your name 2 more times!!!
  

This will give you up to 4 chances to win Embellish. This giveaway will close December 11th at midnight!!

Thanks to everyone for stopping by and lifting Lily up!!!!

Book Review: Joker One: A Marine Platoon's Story of Courage, Leadership, and Brotherhood

Guest Review

I received this book from Alyce (At Home With Books) with one condition, that I must read it and review it. I had every intention of doing this, but then I remembered my good friend Tracy's father and brother are Marines. I asked if her if she would be willing to read it and write something about her experience. Many thanks to Tracy for doing this.....



When Joker One was recommended to me by Staci, I was immediately interested because it is about a Marine platoon's time in Iraq and is written by a Marine Lieutenant. Because my Dad was a Marine who fought in the Pacific during WWII, I have always been interested in combat and what life must have really been like for my father. By page 7 the tears were flowing. These words are the explanation I've longed for most of my life as to why my father never talked about the war:

"Our time together in Iraq seems like someone else's story, for there's nothing in American even remotely similar to what we experienced overseas, nothing that remidns us of what we've suffered and achieved together. And none of us have really been able to tell htat story, not fully, not even to our families, because each small telling takes a personal toll. No one wants to suffer the pain of trying to explain the unexplainable to those who rarely have either the time or the desire to comprehend. So, many of us have simply packed away war away and tried hard to fit into normalcy by ignoring that time of our lives."

I truly believe that none of us could possibly understand what it's like to truly be in the midst of combat and to take others lives. Most shocking to me was Campbell's description of meeting with a lawyer who explained exactly what the Marines could and could not shoot at! After spending grueling weeks being trained to kill, imagine being told what you were "legally" allowed to do in combat!

The profoundness of this book isn't in the writing itself, but in the raw emotion. Even after having grown up with the military, it astounds me that these men believe so strongly in God, their country and the American ideals that they would risk their lives fighting a losing battle on foreign soil.

I believe this book is a must read! Everyone can gain a true appreciation for what these American heroes have gone through so that we can sleep safely at night.

Semper Fi


Tracy is not only my co-worker but a dearly loved friend. She puts up with my craziness and most especially when I'm ADD!! She's a wonderful friend, mother, wife, sister, and an awesome middle-school teacher!! Thanks for doing this for me!!! Please don't hurt me for using this photo!!