TeenLit Book Reviews

Garden Of Angels is a touching and inspiring story about the Quinlin family. The story is set in 1974 in the small town of Conners, Georgia. It is a time when the United States was engaged in the Vietnam War and when few people knew and talked openly about breast cancer. The story is told from the point of view of Darcy, a straight A high school freshman who is not as popular or as pretty as her older sister, but is a very endearing character due to her strength, wisdom and courage. As the story unfolds, Darcy’s mom is diagnosed with breast cancer. While the Quinlin family struggles to accept this sad news, Darcy also struggles with the powerful feelings she has for Jason, the new boy in school. Amidst all the conflict in her life, she finds solace in her mother’s beautiful garden. Garden Of Angels has touched me so deeply that I was literally teary-eyed while reading the book. It has brought back memories from my own life, back to the time when my sister-in-law was diagnosed with cancer and I was one of the people who helped care for her. The story affirms the fact that regardless of time, setting or race, the emotional effects of cancer to the person diagnosed with it, as well as to the people who surrounds her, is basically the same. The pain of witnessing the one you love suffer, the emotional struggle, the hardship of letting go and finding the courage to move on is so skillfully and realistically portrayed in the story. If you like to read a story about the strength of a family, the beautiful relationship between mother and daughter, the ravages of war, falling in love for the first time and an unwavering faith in God, then Garden Of Angels is the book for you. Author Lurlene McDaniel really is a profound writer. I look forward to reading more of her work. I would rate this book a 4. I recommend it for any young adults or older.

I read the fiction novel Hawksong by Amelia Atwater-Rhodes. Danica Shardae is the heir to the avian throne, the Tuuli Thea is the title she will inherit soon. Her guards tell her that she must be careful, as the only remaining heir, and that the serpiente, the culture her people have been at war with for longer than anyone can remember, are evil. No one can remember why they are fighting, how the war was started, or even what peace is, besides what is in songs. The only reason they are still at war, is because both cultures wont stop until someone has won, or they are just fighting to avenge all of those who were killed in the innumerable battles. After the loss of too many family members, friends, and people, Danica will do anything to stop this war, and maybe create a peace with the enemy she has never known anything other than lies an fear. Zane Cobriana is the heir to the serpiente throne, Diente is the title he will inherit when he chooses his mate. He has been raised in this bloody war fare, and is just as determined as Danica to end the war, if not more so. When they are both proposed with a plan that could end this war, but what they need is for them to be able to trust each other, and therefore have their people trust each other, but is trust more than they can give? I recommend this book to both boys and girls ages eleven and up. I would rate it a 4, on a scale of 1-4 with 4 being the best. This book is a wonderful book that embraces what teenagers feel like, and what war can cause. All in all a wonderful book full of descriptions and emotion.