Last Apprentice: Lure of the Dead

Lure of the Dead Joseph Delaney

In the 10th book of the Last Apprentice series, we take a break from dealing with the Fiend do deal with an issue closer to home. Apparently, a large number of Romanian dark creatures have settled just over the county border. With the destruction of the Spook's library, they're at more of a loss in how to deal with them, as the Spook's notes and research into these spirits is long gone.

Yes, finally, we have a vampire, but these aren't sparkly hot guys. These are horrible, disgusting creatures that provide some the biggest danger we've seen so far.

We also get some horrible information about what Tom has to do next.

In ways, it's a place holder book. I do like that we get non-English creatures and there's the interesting twist of not having to travel to get them. We also really see how much the Spook has aged, and how Tom's apprenticeship is starting to come to an end, how he will soon be a Spook in his own right.

I still love this series (even if I'm a book behind) and OMG YOU GUYS!!! Did you see the movie comes out next fall? With JEFF BRIDGES as the spook? I'm excited, but getting nervous. Mother Malkin's a bit too pretty. And WTF is with this: "Based on the young-adult novel The Spook's Apprentice by Joseph Delaney,Seventh Son casts Bridges as Master John Gregory, a "Spook" who imprisoned the evil witch Mother Malkin (Julianne Moore) centuries before." CENTURIES? Um, no. Spook's not THAT old! We'll see.

In the meantime, I'm going to curl up with the next book, Slither, which looks like an interesting departure. And, of course, counting down the days until September's release of I Am Alice.

Book Provided by... my local library

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Grimalkin the Witch Assassin

Grimalkin the Witch Assassin Joseph Delaney

Now I am ready--ready to kill. Ready to kill them all. I have become the mother of death. She trots at my heels, hanging onto my skirt, giggling with glee, leaving wet footprints of red blood on the green grass. Can you hear her laughter? Listen for it in the cries of my victims. p 372

For the ninth book in the Last Apprentice series (not counting the companion novels) we get a change of narrator.

Tom only appears briefly in this tale, as this book follows Grimmalkin. At the end of Rage of the Fallen, Tom had sliced off the Fiend's head. Grimalkin took it to keep it safe, and so we follow her as the Fiend's allies (including a terrifying new creature) hunt her down.

Lots of adventure, lots of death, less blathering on about right and wrong and shades of gray.

A different apprentice, too, this time, Grimalkin's apprentice.

I missed Tom, the Spook, and Alice, but I loved Grimalkin's voice. I think giving her a book to carry the plot forward really helps keep the series fresh. I loved seeing how she saw the world and her job. I loved learning her backstory, but it was often woven into the narrative a bit clumsily. On the other hand, we get a lot of background information on witches, witch-lore, and witch politics without the usual info-dump by Gregory or Alice.

This is one of my favorite books in the series.

I need to reread it as a final copy though. While there was A LOT of white space and notes of art to come, only the opening pages were illustrated. I didn't realize how much Patarick Aeeasmith's work really adds to the overall feeling of this series until it was missing. It was like a giant hole in my reading experience.

Some worship dark gods, others serve the light;
but I walk alone.
I am Grimalkin p 156

*All quotations are from the ARC and therefore are not final

ARC Provided by... the publisher, at ALA

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The Spook's Bestiary

The Last Apprentice: The Spook's Bestiary: The Guide to Creatures of the Dark Joseph Delaney

When the library at Chippenden burned, this was the only book left. A companion book to the Last Apprentice series, it explains all the creatures of the dark that the Spook and Tom have encountered, complete with annotations of further information learned by the Spook, Tom, and other apprentices. We also get some new background stories, such as what happened the first time Morgan tried to raise Golgoth.

What’s most interesting is there is a lot of information on Romanian old gods, witches, demons and elementals. We haven’t seen Delaney’s Romania yet, but my curiously is definitely piqued and I’m guessing (hoping) that this means the next book will take place in Romania. I wonder why and how??

I really like Delaney's in-between books in this series and how they really flesh out other characters and give background information--some of which is vital and some of which is just rather interesting.

ROMANIA!

Book Provided by... my local library

Links to Amazon are an affiliate link. You can help support Biblio File by purchasing any item (not just the one linked to!) through these links. Read my full disclosure statement.

Rage of the Fallen

The Last Apprentice: Rage of the Fallen Joseph Delaney

Tom, Alice, and the Spook have made it to Ireland, where they get a much better reception than they did on the Island of Mona. In Ireland, they encounter new creatures of the dark that they've never faced before, such as Jibbers. But, even darker, it looks like the Celtic witch that Bill Arkwright killed back in Wrath of the Bloodeye isn't dead, and is intent on seeking her revenge on Tom. He can't concentrate too hard on that, though, because he and the Spook are quickly enlisted in a battle between land owners and the goat mages-- dark magicians who draw power from Pan.

There's a lot more going on, but I can't say too much because it gets spoiler-y. One word-- Alice. Holy cow, that girl, how do I love her. She remains the unknown throughout this series and throughout this book, woah.

Lots and lots of action, not just for the plot of this book, but also in some over-reaching plot arcs. Lots of resolution, lots of answers, and a whole new batch of problems and questions.

I liked the Irish setting-- there were new creatures and locations to explore, even things the Spook was unaware of, which was cool. I also liked the concept of the Otherworld and how it was drawn and used. I'm ready for our characters to return to the County, but I like how they explore new places every few books, I like how they interact and learn from new experiences and other Spooks. It adds nice dimensions to their fight against the dark, but also them as characters, the world Delaney has built.

This is one of the stronger books in the series, so fans need to go get it NOW.


Book Provided by... my local library

Links to Amazon are an affiliate link. You can help support Biblio File by purchasing any item (not just the one linked to!) through these links. Read my full disclosure statement.

Last Apprentice: Rise of the Huntress

The Last Apprentice: Rise of the Huntress Joseph Delaney

Ok, so I was under the impression that this was a 7-book series, making this the LAST book.

But I was wrong. This is definitely not the last one.*

The war that has always been in the background of this series has finally come to the county. Chipenden is a burned-out shell and the Spook's house, and library, are gone. As is Bony Lizzie.

The Spook, Tom, and Alice flee to Mona, an island between the County and Ireland. Mona's being overrun by refugees and they are cold people-- if you're lucky, you'll be sent back to the County. If you're not, the old are fed to the fishes, the young are pressed into labor, and many are tried as witches. And when Bony Lizzie also shows up on the island... it goes from bad to worse.

The people of Mona chilled me-- more than any of the supernatural creatures and Dark Magic that we've come across. In this book, it wasn't the buggane that creeped me out, it was the citizens of Mona-- their extreme cruelty. Also, the savageness of the invading army.

And, once I realized I wasn't getting all of my answers or a final resolution, I was actually really happy I don't have to say good-bye yet. I like the fact that this series never sucker-punches you at the end. There is an over-arching plot with unresolved issues, but you can stop reading at any time. I don't continue to read because I must know what happens next, I keep reading because Delaney tells such a good, creepy story. I keep reading because it's so good, not because a major bombshell is dropped in the final pages.

I have some thoughts I'm mulling through on the title of the book, but they're kinda spoiler-y, so I've hidden them here.

*In addition to talking about doing edits on Book 8, Delaney's website mentions that he's writing a separate book about Alice, and a separate one about Grimalkin. SWEET.

Book Provided by... my wallet. I couldn't wait for my library to get it in. I am impatient.

Links to Amazon are an affiliate link. You can help support Biblio File by purchasing any item (not just the one linked to!) through these links. Read my full disclosure statement.

Hour 47

Hours Spent Reading: 32
Books Read: 10
Pages Read: 2756
Money Raised: $ 723.54
What I'm listening to: Maria

Please remember that I'm reading to raise money for Room to Read, which builds libraries, stocks them with books, and trains people to become their librarians.

The Last Apprentice: A Coven of Witches Joseph Delaney

Much like The Spook's Tale: And Other Horrors, this is a book of background material, to hold us over until the next book in the series, Rise of the Huntress comes out in September.

In this volume, we have the Spook's story of how he met and fell in love with Meg Skelton, and how it went wrong. It sheds further light on why he distrusts witches, especially relationships with witches. We have Alice's story of her first days with Bony Lizzie, we have remembrances of one of the dead witches buried in Witch Dell, and we have a story told by Tom of when he and Bill Arkwright found a Celtic Witch Assassin (rather different than the English witches.) AND! We get the first two chapters of Rise of the Huntress-- upon their return from Greece, Tom, Alice, and the Spook discover that the War has finally come to the County. The Spook's house, and more importantly, his library, have been burned and destroyed. Bony Lizzie has escaped and the Fiend is still loose... CAN NOT WAIT!

If you're a fan of the series, this is a fun book to hold you over until we get to find out what happens next. I like that it's actual stories with characters we know well and characters that are only on our periphery instead of something like an encyclopedia of facts...

Book Provided by... my local library

Links to Amazon are an affiliate link. You can help support Biblio File by purchasing any item (not just the one linked to!) through these links. Read my full disclosure statement.

Spook Field Trip

The Last Apprentice: Clash of the Demons Joseph Delaney

Ok, some REALLY big things going on here. Mam's returned and needs help in her homeland of Greece. The Ordeen is an old and powerful witch and returns to Earth every seven years and kills everything in her way. She's usually contained by the prayers of the monks in the monasteries around the plain where she appears. This year, with the Fiend on Earth, the prayers won't be enough. Mam needs all the help she can get if she's going to stop the Ordeen. In addition to Tom, the Spook, and Bill Arkwright, Mam's also enlisted the witches.

The Spook's black-and-white way of seeing the world, good, and evil, continues to cause rifts between him and his apprentice. They are driven even further apart at a time when they most need to be together. This series continues to explore some big ideas of good and evil while staying an exciting adventure story that ups the ante with every new addition. In this particular volume, I really enjoyed the new setting and how the Greek views of how to make a good Spook differ from the British ones. Also, you thought you knew the truth about Mam? Yeah, I thought I did too. Apparently not. Delaney blew my mind with that one!

Book Provided by... my local library

Links to Amazon are an affiliate link. You can help support Biblio File by purchasing any item (not just the one linked to!) through these links. Read my full disclosure statement.

Short Story Companions

Next up from the archives, we have two books that are collections of short stories and act as companion books to popular series.

The Last Apprentice: The Spook's Tale: And Other Horrors Joseph Delaney

A nice slim volume to keep us happy (by which I mean scared) until the next Last Apprentice Book, Clash of the Demons, comes out (Which it has! Huzzah!)

The majority of this book is made up of three short stories. The first is the eponymous Spook's Tale, the longest of the three. It tells us of an adventure John Gregory had when he left home to become a priest. Along the way he met the Spook he would eventually train with and had to face a bone-snatching boggart and a witch.

Then comes Alice's story of what happened in Attack of the Fiend, when she goes to Pendle alone.

The third tells of how and why Grimalkin became the witch assassin and also offers reasons as to why she's willing to partner in Tom Ward's quest to rid the world of the fiend.

The last bit is filler-- a run down of the major villains we've seen so far and excerpts from the previous books that illustrate their villainry.

This is a great one for fans and the reader is left with some very big (but enigmatic) clues as to what will happen next in the series!

The Tales of Beedle the Bard, Standard Edition J. K. Rowling

This is a collection of fairy tales from the world of Harry Potter. These are the tales that wizarding children grow up on. A copy of this was rather important during Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows.

They contain all sorts of morals that you usually find in such things and are illustrated by Rowling herself. It doesn't add much to the Harry Potter story, not in the same way Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them did. (If you haven't read it, you should. You'll find out that there's much more to Crookshanks than meets the eye.) But, it is still enjoyable and super-fans will probably really like it. I know I did.

I Squeal for Sequels!

Happy Saturday to you all! How's life treating you? I am anxiously counting down the days to my vacation. (Where will I be next Saturday? MANCHESTER!) And, before vacation Dan's going to Guatemala, Seder, and some friends are coming from out of town. It'll be a busy week, but an AWESOME one.

Anyway, for books today, I bring you some series titles!

The Last Apprentice: Wrath of the Bloodeye Joseph Delaney

In the fifth book of the series, Thomas has been sent to spent time with a different spook. Studying under John Gregory was a walk in the park compared to what Bill Arkwright has in store, and Gregory's secrets are nothing compared to Arkwright's. But the study Tom must, for the Fiend is alive and well, and his children, including the evil witch Bloodeye are out to get Tom.

Exciting and scary, fans of the series will definitely want to pick this one up. New revelations about Alice, a different look at what a spook needs to know, and lots of scary water witches. PLUS! An examination of good and evil and if it's ever ok to use dark magic, and if the ends ever justify the means. I love the way this series looks at BIG ISSUES without it being like "Hi! We're discussing BIG ISSUES now!"

This series just keeps getting better and better.

The Last Apprentice: Clash of the Demons comes in August!

Alcatraz Versus The Scrivener's Bones Brandon Sanderson

Alcatraz is back, this time looking for Grandpa Smedry and his father, who seem to be hiding out in the Library of Alexandria, which is just full of the evilest of all librarians.

I liked this one better than the first. We have several of the same characters, plus some new Smedrys to hang out with. I really enjoy the way Alcatraz talks directly to the reader and the general meta-ness of it. I know this annoys some people. If you liked that aspect of the first one, be sure to pick it up. If it annoyed, stay far away, because there's even more of it in this book. I saw that as a good thing, some people I know disagree.

I'm looking forward to the next one!

Super Awesome Sequels I Can't Sit Still For

I changed the poll over the sidebar, because I left a few things off. I revoted for everyone that had voted, so your votes are still counted. If that makes sense. ANYWAY! Check out my sidebar (yes, JacketFlap and GoogleReaders, you will have to visit my blog... :) And vote on what you want to see me read/read me review during MotherReader's 48 Hour Challenge in June. I can't make a decision, so I'm passing the buck. HA!

Anyway, Thursday night, I went to class, I went out to dinner with a friend, and then I came home, curled up on the couch with Sasskerdoodle (aka, Sassy, aka my dog, or, as I call her, my puppy friend) and read

Tales from the Hood Michael Buckley

This the the 6th and latest installment in the Sisters Grimm series. In this one, the Grimms are the only non-Ever Afters left in Ferryport Landing after Mayor Heart and the Sheriff of Nottingham have run everyone else out of town.

Mr. Canis has been arrested and is struggling ever more to keep the wolf at bay.

Bluebeard is presenting the prosecution (and trying desperately to win Snow White) so who better to hire for the defense than Robin Hood and his band of Merry Men. They're not sure they can win (the Mad Hatter, is, after all, the judge) but are happy to one again be a thorn in Nottingham's side.

Of course, Sabrina's not so sure they should even try, especially since Daphne won't go get the secret weapon. When Sabrina steals the key and sneaks out, even Puck is disappointed in her, and Daphne won't even look at her anymore...

There is the bright lining though, as it appears that finding Goldilocks might be closer than ever...

I feel this is more of a place-holder novel in the series. It wasn't as heart-pounding exciting as Magic and Other Misdemeanors but rather one of those books to get you to the next exciting one. If that makes sense.

Despite the lack of tension (as compared to the last book) you still get the (now dark) zaniness of Ferryport Landing, I mean, the whole scene with the Scarecrow as the town's librarian? I also loved Puck's take on the situation-- Oz is a swindler, so the Scarecrow's brain must have been second hand. A good one for fans of the series, but you definitely won't get what's going on if you haven't read the previous ones.

UPDATE Dude, I can't believe I forgot to tell you that we really get into the story of Little Red Riding Hood-- you never thought of it like this before!!!!

Also, in March, the new Last Apprentice book came out and it was taking my library too long to order it, so finally I just went to the bookstore and bought my own copy.

Attack of the Fiend Joseph Delaney

The Spook knows that the witch clans at Pendle are banding together, which can only mean evil. He's taking his time to carefully plan to counter it, but then when Tom goes home to see what was in Mam's trunks, he finds the farm destroyed and the trunks missing...

So, it's off to Pendle immediately to save Tom's inheritance, not to mention Jack, Ellie, and the baby who are being held hostage.

The Pendle clans have joined forces to raise the Devil himself. If they succeed, they won't be able to control him after a day or two and it'll be bad for everyone.

Unfortunately for Tom and the Spook, the witches have created a monsterous creature that can see in mirrors to spy on people. A creature that lives off human blood.

But, Tom and the Spook have Alice, as long as she stays on their side...

I read recently that this is a 7 book series, so, Book 4 is the pivotal book of such things. It ends much darker than the others and we can tell something bigger is looming. It's also creepier yet. They're making a movie of this series and on one hand, I'm really excited, but on the other hand, I don't think I would be able to actually watch it. The books are scary enough!

But, on a lighter note, Ingrid Michaelson opened last night's show with this. PRICELESS.

Scary, Cold Winters

The Last Apprentice: Night of the Soul Stealer by Joseph Delaney

After Revenge of the Witch, I wondered how quickly the premise would get old and these books start to all read the same. Three books in, this hasn't happened yet, and I'm starting to think it won't.

The weather is cooling and it's time for Tom and the Spook to move to his winter house. It promises to be a long, cold winter and Anglezarke is nowhere near as nice as Chippenden. There's no garden-- the witches and boggarts are buried in the basement. The Spook's past is coming back to haunt Tom with dire consequences. It's going to be a bitter winter, and when the Spook is taken out of comission, it's up to Tom to make sure that spring will eventually come.

The dark is gathering forces and it's starting to become obvious that these first few volumes in the series are just the warm-up for what's about to come. I can't wait.

(Reviews of Revenge of the Witch here, Curse of the Bane here)

Sequels I've Neglected--Kid Lit

So, you know how when you are totally in love with a series and you pre-order the next volume as soon as possible and then just kinda drop everything to read it when it comes through the door? Please tell me I am not the only person like this.

Anyway, here are some books that fall in that category. I read these most of these day they came out. I'm just slow to talk about them.

The Last Apprentice: Curse of the Bane by Joseph Delaney.

Ok, I didn't preorder this. But I totally pre-reserved it at the library. If anything, this book is scarier, creepier, and grosser than the first one. And possibly even better.

Thomas Ward and the Spook are off to Priestown (which, as you can imagine, is a town full of Priests, and they're never fans of Spooks). The Bane is an evil thing that crushes its victims flat and is starting to control the minds of the people living near its prison, in the catacombs underneath the church. Thomas and the Spook need to finish it once and for all, but the Spook has tried, and failed before.

Oh, and they're going to be hanged for being Spooks. All in a days work!

Regarding the Bathrooms: A Privy to the Pastby Kate Klise

Ok, once again, something I pre-reserved. I only have so much bookshelf space people!

The kid's in Sam N's class are back. It's summer, and they've all found jobs. Marriages are on the rocks, international crime rings seemingly have ties to Geyser Creek and deep secrets of the past are uncovered. Probably the best book in this series since the first one.

The Sisters Grimm: Once Upon a Crime by Michael Buckley

When we last saw Sabrina, Daphne, Puck & Co., Puck's wings had been torn off and he was dying. SO! The family makes its way to New York City, the heart of the Faerie Kingdom so Puck can get well...

It turns out that Veronica Grimm (before she went missing) was a hero here. Sabrina is NOT HAPPY to find this out. She is angrier than ever. Then, King Oberon is found poisoned and an innocent Faerie is blamed. Sabrina wants out of the game, and Grandma Grimm lets her quit, but now Daphne won't talk to her...

This is one of my favorites in the series. The change of locale and new cast of characters keeps the scenario from getting repetitive and old. Also, it's not often that you see the cast of A Midsummer Night's Dream making fractured appearances in children's literature. Where it's funnier if you're familiar with the play, it still works for people who haven't read or seen it (and I think most of the target audience falls into this category).

I also love the introduction of the Godfathers. More Mafia than turning pumpkins into coaches, they're brilliant. As is Bluebeard as a Wall Street financier. Once again, all jokes that younger readers aren't going to fully understand, but it's not only for adults.

The changing and evolving relationship between Sabrina and Daphne is one of the best, and most subtle, parts of this series, and this is a good volume (if less subtle) in that regard.

And yes, I've already pre-ordered Magic and Other Misdemeanors

Clarice Bean, Don't Look Now by Lauren Child

This hasn't even been published in the US yet, but Amazon will obtain a UK copy for you.

Clarice has some bigger worries in this latest installment (and more pages in which to explore them! yippee!) It's still zany and fun and silly and everything you love about Clarice, but also deeper and older. Betty moves away and everyone's cranky and she's so worried and anxious about everything that she's not sleeping anymore, which isn't helping with school. There's a new girl, Clem, and everyone seems to love her, but Clarice doesn't trust her at all.

There's still a lot of Ruby, a lot more of Marcie (as she's back from France) and less of Minal Cricket. A must read for Clarice fans.

And even more stuff...

I swear, when the children's notable book discussion is done on Wednesday, I'm reading the fattest, most complicated, most adult-type novel I can find. I love children's lit. I love YA lit, but man. That's all I've read for the past month and a half! War and Peace here I come! I think. The problem is, in my library, all classics are classified as YA anyway. Gah. I don't know. Ideas?

Anyway... more stuff I've read recently (and this is all in the week. Gah. I've been busy reading. I want to be busy knitting. le sigh

A Dance of Sisters Tracy Porter

Y'all know I love ballet books. This is a young YA/old children's book. A good bridge book between the two age classifications... and I liked most of it. Porter knows her ballet. She knows her crazy Russian ballet teachers. She knows the struggle of it. Delia is the younger sister in a messed-up family (Dead mother, distant father, rebellious witch-craft practicing older sister) and a promising young ballet dancer. This is the story about the relationship between the sisters, which was nice, but not as well done as Delia's struggle with ballet. Overall I liked it... kinda. The ending seemed really quick. To the point where I think Porter must have gone: "Holy crap! this is already 200 pages long! Must end now!" My other caveats are here. Where I totally give away the ending.

Godless Pete Hautman

Basically, one boring summer, Jason wonders what if the water tower were God? And so he starts a church worshipping the water tower and it's fun and then gets totally out of hand. His friend Shin takes it way too far (and is a true believer?). The local bully tries to subvert it to make them go along with his reckless ways and in the end, it all blows up in Jason's face. As you know it must. Well written and award winning, I loved this book excpet for this one thing. It asks tough questions about the church and organized religion, but never really questions whether or not there is a god, but just what his/her form is and the proper way to worship.

Who Am I Without Him? : Short Stories About Girls and the Boys in Their LivesSharon Flake

Despite the title, this is actually a good book for boys and girls. A collection of short stories about teenage looooooove and relationships, it's a fast read and some of the girls are really really really stupid over their boys in ways that only 15 year olds can be. I will say that this is about mainly urban, black teens (but a range of classes) and it didn't speak to me much as someone who grew up white in a small city. Parts of teenage stupid loooooooove are the same the world over though and those parts really got me thinking about how stupid we used to be.

Body Bags: A Body of Evidence Thriller #1Christopher Golden

This is a forensic thriller. Pulpy. Not great literature. I couldn't put it down. I may or may not go on and read some of the other titles in the series. I'm not sure yet. Basically, freshman in college Jenna Blake gets a job as a pathology assistant in the morgue. People are dying from some weird disease that turns their brains into mush, and makes them go on murderous rampages before dropping dead, including her advisor on the first day of class. Conspiracies that only Jenna can see and figure out ensure. My main problem with the book is that it got some details really really wrong. These are small details. For instnace, at one point Jenna puts on a "baby doll tee with spaghetti straps". Um, baby doll tees don't come with spagetti straps. That's a tank top, not a baby doll. Not a big deal, but if he can't get a t-shirt right, I wonder about the science. That and she has dial-up in her dorm. No one in the late 90s had dial up in the dorms. T1 baby! Woo!

When We Were SaintsHan Nolan

This is a beautifully written and moving novel. Archie lives in the country on a farm in rural Appalachia, is home schooled, and never gotten along well with his bible-thumping grandfather and is a bit taken aback when his grandfather's last words are "you are a saint". Is it prophecy? Or a curse? Enter Claire, who has visions on the Virgin Mary and a plan for them to become saints. Powerful stuff that questions the true believers, the estatics, and what it means to be a saint. Could be good teaching stuff if paired with the writings of St Clare and St Francis of Assisi. Could also be seen as really offensive and sacriligeous by the more sensitive.

The Last Apprentice: Revenge of the Witch Joseph Delaney

This is the first book in a promising new children's series. Tom is the seventh son of a seventh son and is apprenticed to the Spook, a lonely job of protecting people from super natural trouble. So Tom begins learning about Boggarts and Witches, Ghasts and Ghosts and how to bind them and talk to them and whether they are good or bad... spooky, kinda scary, well-written and just plain good, I look forward to the next installments!

The Old African Julius Lester, illustrated by Jerry Pinkney

A beautiful, subtle, moving, and magical tale about slavery and the strength of the human spirit and collective memory. And the pictures by Pinkney make this a book to be savored and poured over time and again.

Maritcha : A Nineteenth-Century American GirlTonya Bolden.

God, this book sucked. There's no way around it. Maritcha is a middle-class free-born black girl in Manhatten that was born in 1848. Although she did eventually sue Rhode Island for the right to attend public school, she was not overly remarkable and this could have just been a nice book that looks into a segment of America in history that we don't really ever see or talk about. But! It is poorly written. It reads like Bolden doesn't know how to write for children (which is weird, because she does) and so just dumped down the story. Take the case of the New York draft riots in 1863:

A march on the draft office followed the rally and before long--mayhem! Telegraph poles--hacked down! Rail tracks--yanked up! Wooden fences--ripped apart!

Instead of fully coneying the destruction and horror, it sounds almost silly and does a great injustice to the reader. That and the font is really hard to read. More than once I read 1863 and 1868.