New Books Roundup

What have we been reading lately? Immersive sci-fi, delightful fantasy, alternate history, and more.

If you follow us on Instagram, you know that we try to review a new (or newish!) book every week, but since not everyone is on Instagram, we try to do an occasional roundup of those reviews here, too. Here’s what we’ve been reading this spring:

Nevers by Sara Cassidy ★★★★★

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I recommended Nevers last summer, but now that I'm reading it again for our middle school Enlightenment reading list, I'm reminded of how much I liked it. Odette has spent all fourteen years of her life taking care of her beautiful, selfish, accident-prone mother Anneline, so she’s not surprised to find herself in the back of a cheese cart jolting through the French countryside in search of yet another fresh start after her mother’s latest marriage ends with a collapsing castle. Odette knows better than to expect stability, but as she turns their shabby rented rooms into a home, cleverly contriving meals and rent payments, she discovers that the quirky village of Nevers is beginning to feel a lot like home. Odette makes her first real friend in her neighbor Nicois, and together, they discover a mysterious book that may hold the clue to Odette’s past, a Revolutionary mystery, and a very unhappy donkey’s nighttime braying. This book, set in an alternative post-Revolutionary 18th century France is full of odd characters recalibrating their lives in the wake of massive social and political change and magical realism that makes all kinds of unexpected things possible. Nevers is a charming town populated by odd people who are completely comfortable with themselves: the elderly women inventor, the town’s midwife, and the merchant who wishes he could be a chicken are particularly notable. And while some ends tie up a little too neatly, it is a fairy tale — and the effortless inclusion of not-straight-cis-people is refreshing. #minibookreview #hslmag

A post shared by home/school/life Magazine (@hsl_mag) on May 11, 2020 at 11:54am PDT

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Dragon Ops by Mari Mancusi ★ ★ ★ ½ ☆

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I'm so happy to finally get to recommend Dragon Ops (it comes out next week!) because it's one of the few books that my son actually read straight through for fun. I mean, it's right up his alley: Ian's favorite online game — in which he role-plays a valiant warrior with his mage big sister Lily by his side — has been turned into an augmented reality theme park, and thanks to his uncle's super-cool coding job, he gets to check the park out while it's still in beta. Even his annoying cousin Derek can't dampen Ian's excitement. Once his party gets into the game and starts leveling up, he knows this is going to be the greatest adventure ever. He's not wrong. But he definitely didn't predict a rouge AI in the form of an endgame superboss dragon who kidnaps Derek and has the power to make their virtual game-overs real. Ian will need all his video game knowledge, help from mysterious in-game characters (some of whom aren't as virtual as others), and all the real-life courage he's never been able to muster to save the day. It's jam-packed with references to classic and new video games (Holy Luigi's green overalls!), and while the story is predictable, that doesn't make it any less fun. Certainly my son raced through it. I'm a fan of Literature-with-a-capital-L for sure, but sometimes I think you want a book that's just sheer fun to read, and Dragon Ops definitely delivered for my gaming-loving kid. Frankly, I enjoyed it, too. Is it the best book you'll read this year? Probably not, but it's definitely a good time. #hslmag #librarychicken #minibookreview

A post shared by home/school/life Magazine (@hsl_mag) on May 5, 2020 at 7:32am PDT

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Elysium Girls by Kate Pentecost ★ ★ ★ ½ ☆

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Elysium Girls is a weird book, and I don't think that's a bad thing: The novel reimagines the Dust Bowl as an epic battle between Life and Death. The town of Elysium has survived by building walls and working together, but they know a reckoning is coming. Sal has inherited some of her late mom's witchy powers, which should secure her safety, but when a human-obsessed demon shows up in town, one mistake gets Sal and her new friend kicked out of the safety of Elysium and into the wilds beyond. As it turns out, though, there are people just like them in the wilds, including a girl gang who know what's been really happening in Elysium. Sal teams up with new allies to return to Elysium and save the town from ultimate doom. This is a little bit Westworld, a little bit Deadwood, a little bit Mad Max, and a whole lot of fun if that combo sounds appealing to you. I mean, it's a lot: witches and alternate Great Depression history, and feminism, and demons, and steampunk, and marauding girl bandits, but somehow it all comes together into a pretty satisfying story. And there are some things I love: With their futures at stake, the town lets a woman take over, and what do you know, all the racism and sexism we associate with the 1930s is gone. There's tons of foreshadowing setting up plot twists that still surprise you, and so many of the characters are genuinely likable. I dug it. Maybe you will, too? I found a lot of interesting connections between this book and some of the conversations happening around social distancing right now, which made it even more interesting. #minibookreviewmonday #hslmag #ilikedthis

A post shared by home/school/life Magazine (@hsl_mag) on Apr 27, 2020 at 6:10am PDT

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The Dark Lord of Derkholm by Diana Wynne Jones ★ ★ ★ ½ ☆

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So here's the problem: Mr. Chesney's Pilgrim Parties are ruining life for the people (and elves and dragons and griffins) in one magical land, and they're not going to take it anymore. Sure, Mr. Chesney may have the support of an extremely powerful demon, but the opposition has the affable Wizard Derk, his son Blade, Blade's human and griffin siblings, and an Oracular assurance that Chesney's time running their country as a magical theme park is coming to an end. I always love Diana Wynne Jones, and this book is no exception: It's a tongue-in-cheek fantasy novel that toys lovingly with all the conventions of the genre but still manages to stand on its own as a pretty thrilling adventure story. The one weird thing about it is that it defies reading level -- it gets shelved as YA, but I think that's the one thing it's clearly not. It's like a weird mash-up of adult fantasy and middle grades fantasy, which frankly, makes it a great family read aloud even as it gives it a weird tone. Derk is the absolute worst Dark Lord ever, Blade has no idea what he's doing, and the Pilgrim Parties ultimate D&D adventure is described in hilarious detail. It's just a lot of fun, which is honestly what I need right now. #hslmag #minibookreview

A post shared by home/school/life Magazine (@hsl_mag) on Apr 20, 2020 at 2:59pm PDT

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The Thief by Megan Whalen Turner ★ ★ ★ ★ ☆

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So I am very late to join the fan club for Megan Whalen Turner's The Thief, but let me assure you that I am now FULLY ON BOARD. I wanted something light and escapist that still felt engaging, and lots of people (including my daughter, who queued it up in my Kindle a year or two ago) have recommended the Queen's Thief series, which this book begins, so I thought, well, if not now when? And it turns out, this book is exactly what I wanted. Gen's got one last get-out-of-jail card (literally) to play: If he helps the king's magus recover a mystical ancient treasure, he can earn back his freedom, so accompanying the quest party is the obvious option. Or is it? Everyone on the adventure has secrets, and the dangers are real -- both practical, as they navigate three kingdoms teetering on the brink of war, and supernatural, as they spin the stories of the gods whose treasure they seek. In lots of ways, this is a story about a world more than about specific people or a specific adventure (though I quite liked the people and their adventure), but I feel like you kind of expect that in a fantasy series. I really enjoyed it. I can definitely see why my mythology-loving daughter recommended this so enthusiastically. And she says the sequels are even better, so quarantine series binge, here I come! #hslmag #minibookreview

A post shared by home/school/life Magazine (@hsl_mag) on Apr 14, 2020 at 6:55am PDT

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