Book Review: Witch and Tell (Witch Way Librarian Mysteries, #7) by Angela M. Sanders

-
Image
Witch and Tell (Witch Way Librarian Mysteries, #7)  by Angela M. Sanders   opens with librarian Josie Way's magic being on the fritz. Josie is also in a bit of a funk since her boyfriend, Sam, ghosted her after she told him she's a witch. To top things off, Josie wakes up in the middle of the night to find a body in the atrium of the library, only to have it disappear again after calling the cops. Why is there such bad energy surrounding the town of Wilfred, and why do bad things keep happening? First and foremost, a big thank you goes out to NetGalley for approving my request for an Advanced Readers Copy (ARC) of this novel. I was thrilled to receive a digital copy for free in exchange for my honest review. Receiving an ARC always brightens my day!  To be honest, I wasn't sure what to expect in this latest edition of the Witch Way Librarian Mysteries  series, but I wasn't let down in the least. Angela M. Sanders did a great job with providing plenty of twists and tu...
Post a Comment

Book Review: Second Best (Sweet Valley Twins #16) Created by Francine Pascal

-
Middle Grade Book Review of Second Best (Sweet Valley Twins, #16) created by Francine Pascal
In an effort to meet my reading challenge on Goodreads.com, Second Best created by Francine Pascal is one of four books I read in the Sweet Valley Twins book series. It is the sixteenth book in the series. 

Growing up, these books targeted kids eight years old up to twelve years old and in third grade through seventh grade. However, I think they have changed the target ages to younger age groups because children are learning to read much earlier and growing up a lot faster than when I was kid.

Second Best (Sweet Valley Twins #16) deals with seventh grader Dylan McKay feeling like he is second best to his younger brother Tom McKay, who is in the sixth grade. Tom is the popular kid who does well at everything he does . . . making friends, playing sports, and getting good grades. When Dylan learns that he hasn't been invited to Kimberly Haver's party, but his brother has, Dylan decides to run away.

The first thing I have to mention that I never noticed until I reread Second Best is that one of the main characters in this book, Dylan McKay, shares a name with a very popular character in the television show Beverly Hills 90210, which came out only a year or two after this book was published. What makes it even more interesting to me is that the first time I read Second Best was when I was watching the popular television show, and I don't think I ever noticed this.
Something I don't understand is how Tom and Dylan's parents realize how unhappy Dylan is and how he is acting out. One of major ways Dylan acts out is by trying to fist fight his brother and ends up punching Tom in the nose causing it to bleed. The other way he acted out is by running away. I know that these things happened during and right after school, but he had to be acting out at home too. As a kid, I know I didn't give this a second thought.
sweet valley twins # 16 created by francine pascal

Usually, there is only a lesson in each book for kids to learn, but in this case, I feel like there is a lesson for parents too. The lesson for kids is not to judge people before getting to know them. The bigger lesson is for parents to pay attention to their kids acting out, getting to the bottom of the problem, and fixing it.
The kids lesson was resolved, but we don't know if the parents ever did anything on their part to rectify the situation. However, I think that solving the bigger issue would be too deep for the target audience and the reason why the author didn't get into that end of it.

All in all, I enjoyed reading this children's book, even as an adult. I recommend both kids and their parents reading it and discussing it afterwards.



Follow Us On Social Media

https://www.facebook.com/runningbibliophile/https://www.instagram.com/therunningbibliophile/https://www.pinterest.com/therunningbibliophile/youtube the running bibliophile

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Book Review: The Dare by Natasha Preston

-
Image
The Dare by Natasha Preston is a young adult horror novel about Marley and her friends Atlas, Lucia, and Jesse are seniors in high school.  The senior pranks are fun and lighthearted until Rhett starts doling out dares that are more serious.  Will Marley and her friends survive? A huge thank you to NetGalley for the Advanced Readers Copy of The Dare  by Natasha Preston.  The last book I read by this author was so well written, I knew I wanted to give her latest story a try. The first thing I noticed about the story is it's reminiscent of R.L. Stine's Fear Street series, which brought back all the feels from my childhood.  Pretty quickly, the storyline shifts and is eerily similar to the movie I Know What You Did Last Summer .  It's at this point that I became disappointed with the book and almost stopped reading it.   Additionally, there were other parts t hat reminded me of The Secret Diaries by Janice Harrell.  So, overall, The Dare wasn't ...
Read more

Book Review: Dirty Thirty (Stephanie Plum, #30) by Janet Evanovich

-
Image
Book Review: Dirty Thirty (Stephanie Plum, #30) by Janet Evanovich Dirty Thirty (Stephanie Plum, #30) by Janet Evanovich  is the latest installment in the Stephanie Plum book series and opens with Joe Morelli asking Stephanie to dog sit his dog Bob while he is out of town testifying at a trial.  The typical chaos ensues when Stephanie has to bring Bob along to apprehend all of her FTAs and has her asking herself if she wants to be married. Each book in this series typically follows the same formula and is wrapped up in a neat, tidy bow at the end.  It's because of this that I enjoy the series . . . I always know that Stephanie is going to get herself into some sort of trouble and need Ranger or Morelli to help her, and the bad guy is always caught.  Sometimes, I just need something familiar and predictable to read.  And, I don't mean that in a bad way either because it allows me to escape reality and gives me a few chuckles along the way.  It's like the ...
Read more

Book Review: The Writer by James Patterson and J.D. Barker

-
Image
The Writer by James Patterson and J.D. Barker  was published on March 17, 2025. It opens with Detective Declan Shaw at a closed subway station trying to work up the nerve to commit suicide when he receives a call from his partner about a break in and homicide at the home of a true crime author. Shaw makes his way to the crime scene to work the case, and in a turn of events, Declan comes under scrutiny in another case loosely connected to this new case. I received an Advanced Readers Copy (ARC) of The Writer  from NetGalley and Little , Brown, and Company for free in exchange for my honest review. I'm appreciative that my request for this book was approved. With this story opening with the main character trying to commit suicide, I almost didn't go any further with the book. However, I am glad I stuck with it as it took me on a fantastic ride and had my emotions all over the place. There were so many twists and turns that just when I thought I had it all figured out, there was ...
Read more