Monthly Archives: March 2019

The Quiet at the End of the World: YA Review

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32716442The Quiet at the End of the World by Lauren James
Genre: YA Sci-Fi
Publication: March 7th 2019
Publisher: Walker Books
Source: Review copy from Publisher – Thank You
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Rating: ✵✵✵✵

How far would you go to save those you love?

Lowrie and Shen are the youngest people on the planet after a virus caused global infertility. Closeted in a pocket of London and doted upon by a small, ageing community, the pair spend their days mudlarking for artefacts from history and looking for treasure in their once-opulent mansion.

Their idyllic life is torn apart when a secret is uncovered that threatens not only their family but humanity’s entire existence. Lowrie and Shen face an impossible choice: in the quiet at the end of the world, they must decide who to save and who to sacrifice . . .

Oh, Lauren James you’ve done it again. “A boy and a girl, living on the outskirts of a collapsed civilization, watching their species go extinct.”

The Quiet at the End of the World is a YA Sci-Fi mystery that follows Lowrie and Shen, the last teenagers on earth, as they live in the aftermath of a virus that caused global infertility.

I love that Lauren’s leading ladies are always strong, smart and sciencey. Lowire is an adventurous and spirited young lady with her engineering mind always whirling and a backpack full of tools always ready to go. Lowire identifies as bisexual and there are also Bisexual and Transgender side characters, so yay for representation. Ultimately Lowire ends up with her childhood bestie, a boy and the only other teen, the intelligent and thoughtful Shen. It’s more than a romance of convenience though, as the two complement each other’s strengths and weaknesses magnificently.

A highlight for me was the interlaced life of Maya in the past with Lowrie’s present, via Lowrie reading Maya’s posts on old social media servers – It really created a depth, relatability and realness to the story. AND Mitch the robot was awesome! a handy pal and he made for a little humorous relief at times.

The Quiet at the End of the World has plenty of twists and turns, plenty of moments that make you ponder life, the future of the human race and what it means to be alive, what it means to truly live!

I thoroughly enjoyed it. Bravo Lauren James.

 

Lauren’s links: Web | Twitter | Amazon | Booktopia | Bookdepository | Walker Books

Thanks for visiting The Adventures of SacaKat.
Until next time, enjoy your shelves :-).

Clackety Track, Poems about Trains: Review

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41110368Clackety Track: Poems about Trains by Skila Brown (Author) & Jamey Christoph (Illustrator)

Genre: Children’s picture book, Poetry

Publication: March 12th 2019
Publisher: Walker Books (Candlewick imprint)

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Rating: ✵✵✵✵✵

Source: Review copy from publisher, THANK YOU.

Queue up for a whistle-stop tour of trains of all kinds, narrated in lively verse and featuring dynamic retro artwork.

Rows of grooves, cables, and bars.
Graffiti rockin’ out the cars.
A badge of rust. A proud oil stain.
There’s nothin’ plain about a train.

Trains of all shapes and sizes are coming down the track — bullet train, sleeper train, underground train, zoo train, and more. All aboard! Skila Brown’s first-class poems, as varied as the trains themselves, reflect the excitement of train travel, while Jamey Christoph’s vintage-style illustrations provide a wealth of authentic detail to pore over.

The five-year-old: Riley sat through a read through with me, and was even asking questions while I was reading the train facts at the end of the book.

Once we’d finished the first read though I asked him if he liked the book. He replied Yes, then immediately ran off and dragged out some train toys and started playing with them.

The two-year-old: Upon seeing the book for first the first time Ethan stated that it was “my Thomas, my train” and his grabby little hands snatched the book up. Ethan was wowed by the images on the pages and sat rather mesmerised in my lap through the first read thought with his brother, then a second on his own. After the second read through Ethan ran off to joined his brother playing with their trains.

I’ve had the book sitting on my desk for about a week, the time between reading it the boys for the first time and sitting down to write this review. Multiple times I’ve found Ethan sitting at my desk thumbing through the book, just looking at the pictures of the trains, waiting for someone to come along and read it to him.

My thoughts:

The artwork is beautifully drawn and the images are eye-catching, yet soft and romantic in a way.

The words are rhythmic and flowing and a pleasure to read.

Clackety Track: Poems about Trains is a must read for any train loving littlies and train/poetry enthusiasts of all ages – so yeah, the perfect book for my boys and me. And one I can see us reading many more times, for many years to come.

LINKS: Skila’s Website | Jamey’s Website | Walker Books
Goodreads | Booktopia | Bookdepository

Thanks for visiting The Adventures of SacaKat.
Until next time, enjoy your shelves :-).

February 2019 Bookish Summary

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Total books read in February: 8

Comics/ Graphic Novels = 2  |  #LoveOzYA / #LoveNzYA = 3 |  the remainder = 3

I Had Such Friends by Meg Gatland-Veness #LoveOzYa [Full Review Here].
The story follows Hamish during his last year of high school. We journey with him as he discovers his sexuality and self-identity. This story is filled with grief, hate, and heartbreaking sadness.
Published August 1st 2018 by Pantera Press [View on Goodreads].

Songs That Sound Like Blood by Jared Thomas #LoveOzYa [Full Review Here].
A beautiful coming of age tale about a young aboriginal girl coming out and discovering herself. This story is filled with courage, love and music. A heartfelt yarn that I highly recommend you read.
Published August 1st 2016 by Magabala Books [View on Goodreads].

Aurealis #99 by Michael Pryor, Alan Baxter, Michael Earp, Aaron Emmel, Gillian Polack, Chris Large & Russell Kirkpatrick.
I’d never read an issue of Aussie Sci-fi zine Aurealis before and I picked this one up because I wanted to read Michael Earp’s short story. I’m glad I did. Michael’s short story was brilliant, and I enjoyed the other shorts & articles.
Published April 9th, 2017 by Chimaera Publications [View on Goodreads].

The Bell Jar by Sylvia Plath [Full Review Here].
Should I be worried about how much I saw of myself in Esther Greenwood, a character that Plath based on herself?
This was one of the darkest and most beautiful things I’ve ever read. It was compulsive reading. The story, the writing, the words, the girl, it sucked me in.
Published 2006 by Harper Perennial Modern Classics (first published January 1963) [View on Goodreads].

Defensive Play (Boys on the Brink) by Jamie Deacon [Full Review Here].
A boy meets boy tale. We follow Davey as he gets his first boyfriend and comes out to his family and friends. It was a quick and cute read that I really enjoyed.
Published November 30th, 2018 by Beaten Track Publishing [View on Goodreads].

Runaways, Vol. 2: Teenage Wasteland by Brian K. Vaughan & Adrian Alphona.
Collects Runaways vol. 1, issues #7-12.
All the things I loved about Pride and Joy (issues #1-6) continue in this engrossing teen tale.
Published July 19th, 2006 by Marvel Comics [View on Goodreads].

Runaways, Vol. 3: The Good Die Young by Brian K. Vaughan & Adrian Alphona.
Collects Runaways vol. 1, issues #13-18.
And so the first story arc ends, but we are left with an opening for another and set up for the rest of the series – which I’m looking forward to reading 😊
Published June 7th, 2006 by Marvel Comics [View on Goodreads].

Freedom Swimmer by Wai Chim #LoveOzYa.
Based on the real-life events of the authors father and set in 1960’s China, Freedom Swimmer is a story of oppression, survival, friendship, hope and freedom. It is beautiful and powerful, and I implore you to read it.
I was in the water with Ming, willing him to keep moving forward.
Published September 1st, 2016 by Allen & Unwin [View on Goodreads].

Conclusion: How the heck is it march already? Where did February go?!
I had to DNF a book in february, my first for 2019 and my first in years! I’m still bummed about it, but life’s too short and my time’s too valuable (obviously this book does not appear above). While I enjoyed all my completed reads this month, Defensive Play was a highlight for me – it was a super cute and quick queer read.

Past Monthly Summaries: Oct 18 ∣ Nov 18 ∣ Dec 18 ∣ Jan 19

Thanks for visiting The Adventures of SacaKat.
Until next time, enjoy your shelves :-).