Review: Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (Charlie Bucket #1), by Roald Dahl, Quentin Blake (Illustrator)

Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (Charlie Bucket #1)
By Roald Dahl, Quentin Blake (Illustrator)
Publication Date: June 1st, 1998 (first published 1964) (Puffin)
Paperback, 155 pages
Genre: Fantasy; Classics; Childrens
Source: Library

DESCRIPTION:

Willy Wonka's famous chocolate factory is opening at last!

But only five lucky children will be allowed inside. And the winners are: Augustus Goop, an enormously fat boy whose hobby is eating; Veruca Salt, a spoiled-rotten brat whose parents are wrapped around her little finger; Violet Beauregarde, a dim-witted gum-chewer with the fastest jaws around; Mike Teavee, a toy pistol-toting gangster-in-training who is obsessed with television; and Charlie Bucket, Our Hero, a boy who is honest and kind, brave and true, and good and ready for the wildest time of his life!

—from goodreads.com

REVEIW:

Everyone knows the story of Charlie Bucket's rag to riches and Willy Wonka's eccentric personality. Most of us have seen movie adaptations.

You'll be surprised to know that I've never read any Roald Dahl. No BFG, no Matilda (I do love the movie though!), no James and the Giant Peach (also an excellent movie).

Charlie and the Chocolate Factory (which I always want to call "Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory") was fantasically sweet. Things all throughout it made me smile, things about candy mostly, but I forget it unfortunately. It's in my memory, but barely at the edge of my memory. 

I'll read Matilda next. 

RATING:

Review: Goddess of the Night (Daughters of the Moon #1), by Lynne Ewing

Goddess of the Night (Daughters of the Moon #1)
By Lynne Ewing
Publication Date: August 1st, 2000 (Hyperion)
Hardcover, 294 pages
Genre: Fantasy; Paranormal; Urban Fantasy; Mythology; Supernatural; YA
Source: Books-A-Million! (I bought an omnibus! Yay!)

DESCRIPTION:

Vanessa is being followed. She doesn't know by whom, and she doesn't know what they want. But she knows why: Vanessa has a secret. She can become invisible, but the problem is, she can't control it. And her worst fear is being discovered. Only her best friend, Catty, knows, and Catty is different as well. She can travel back in time—and take Vanessa with her.

—from goodreads.com

DESCRPTION:

First of all, I bought the omnibus, Daughters of the Moon ($9.99), which contains the first three books in the series. I wanted to show you the separate covers of the series because I think they're sort of...pretty (strong lookin girl covered in glitter=pretty flippin' cool). This is what my omnibus looks like:

In Goddess of the Night, 15-year-old Vanessa Cleveland, who can become invisible, learns that she is a Moon Goddess, a daughter of Selene (or whatever you wish to call her, for she has many names), born to protect all from the evil force of Atrox. At first, Vanessa and her best friend, Catty, who can time-travel and is also a daughter of the moon, are trying to figure out who is stalking Vanessa. But then some stuff happens, adding to the virtually nonexistent mystery in the story.

That said, the idea of moon goddesses who fight evil was a great idea that could have been so much more, and would have attracted a mixed fan base of feminists, urban fantasy lovers, and moon lore lovers. But it was a good idea executed wrong.

"Atrox," the evil the Moon Goddesses fight sounds like a hallucinogenic illegal drug, and the detail on this supposedly-most-evil-force-in-all-the-universe was sketchy. No specific detail was really given. The great-evil-Atrox is a shadow. A suffocating, hope-sucking shadow, but still--a shadow? The only other thing that was said was that the Atrox has followers, cleverly called "The Followers." 

These "Followers" must be evil, dark lords, who kill people in cold blood, right? Nope. They're misunderstood teens who have just given up on life. They cut themselves to feel. They hang out at nightclubs where they do drugs in the parking lot. They drink booze in the dark corners. They party at punk rock concerts where there has to be signs that say, "NO MOSH PITS AND NO CROWD SURFING." But they most pit (can that be a verb?) and crowd surf anway. And their evil powers=infiltrating peoples' minds to take away the victims hope and trap the victim in the Follower's mind. Ooh. Chills (sarcasm). Sounds bad, right? But it really wasn't. Just don't look into their eyes for too long.

The climax scene was funny when I think it was suppose to be suspenseful/scary. Try getting stomped to death and not being able to fight back because the Atrox feeds off of violence.

You're saying WTH right now. But, yes. You heard right. The Moon Goddesses have to "fight" the Atrox, but they can't use violence. WTH. What do you use then? Hope and love and kindness. Works for Sailor Moon and those other girlie anime shows I like (I love moon lore and I love the magic girl genre. I read this because I expected some great magic girl story, but was disappointed), but <i>Goddess of the Night</i> could have used some combat, some blood, a dash of guts--I don't know. Just some fighting scenes like Cassandra Clare's Mortal Instrument series.

All of the characters were underdeveloped, but I liked them for some reason. Vanessa was caring, but determine to do the right thing. Catty, who was a trouble maker with quick wit, always had offered a funny solution to offer to problems, but she never solved them. Selena was mysterious and I don't really know what to make of her character. And Jimena was a former gang member, who's special power had broken her, but also made her stronger.

My favorite FAVORITE FAVORITE!!! character was Kendra, the minor character who adopted Catty and was into spirituality and abnormality, such as UFOs and aliens and such. Here's some stuff from the book directly about her: 

"[Catty's mother] found Catty walking along side of the road in the desert between Gila Bend and Yuma when Catty was six years old. She'd planned to turn her over to the authorities in Yuma, but when she saw Catty make time change, she decide Catty was an extraterrestrial, separated from her parents, like E.T., and that it was her duty to protect her from government officials who would dissect her. She brought Catty to Los Angeles, knowing that in a city where anything goes, a child from another planet could fit in." (from page 26, Chapter Two).

or what the narrator says about Kendra:

"Catty's mother had probably driven over to Griffith Observatory again this evening to see if she could spot a spaceship and wave goodbye to her daughter." (from page 153, Chapter 14).

Goddess of the Night was like a trip back to the 90s, and it reminded me vaguely of the Italian cartoon, brought to America by Disney, called W.I.T.C.H. (another magic girl genre! I loved W.I.T.C.H.!), except W.I.T.C.H was much better. It also reminds me of Sailor Moon (I love Sailor Moon!). Even though I wasn't impressed by the extremely flat plot and flat characters, I will finish the series: there is a choice that must be made and I need to know what happens in the end.

So the Daughters of the Moon series of thirteen books snagged me, even though I give it...

Two Stars.

Review: Ruby Red (Edelstein Trilogie #1), by Kerstin Gier

Ruby Red (Edelstein Trilogie #1)
By Kerstin Gier
Publication Date: In the US, May 10th, 2011 (Henry Holt and Co), originally published January 6th, 2009 (by some German Publishing House I can't find the name of)
Hardcover, 330 pages
Genre: Sci-Fi; Romance; Historical Fiction; Adventure; Fantasy; YA
Source: School Library! :)

DESCRIPTION:

Sixteen-year-old Gwen lives with her extended—and rather eccentric—family in an exclusive London neighborhood. In spite of her ancestors' peculiar history, she's had a relatively normal life so far. The time traveling gene that runs like a secret thread through the female half of the family is supposed to have skipped over Gwen, so she hasn't been introduced to "the mysteries," and can spend her time hanging out with her best friend, Lesley, watching movies and talking about boys. It comes as an unwelcome surprise then when she starts taking sudden, uncontrolled leaps into the past.

She's totally unprepared for time travel, not to mention all that comes with it: fancy clothes, archaic manners, a mysterious secret society, and Gideon, her time-traveling counter-part. He's obnoxious, a know-it-all, and possibly the best-looking guy she's seen in any century...

—from the book's dust jacket

REVIEW:

Every once and a while, it's refreshing to read something straightforward and without the extra wordage lots of writers like to put into their stories. That straightforward book was Ruby Red. Of course, the straightforwardness of the book could be because the author is German and the book was translated into English, so some meaning could be lost in translation, but I don't know. I mean, I believe Inkheart by Cornelia Funke was translated into English from German, and that book is incredibly wordy. So it could just be Kerstin Gier's style. But that's besides the point.

Gwen's best friend, Lesley, was my favorite character. The best-friend-characters tend to be more likable than the actual protagonist to me for some reason. My biggest problem with Gwen, however, was that she was completely useless. The type of useless comparable to Sleeping Beauty's uselessness. I didn't care for Charlotte, Gweneth's cousin, but I don't think the reader is suppose to feel too sympathetic towards her. Nor did I care for Gideon. He was the love interest of the story (not a spoiler due to the book description) and was characterized quite blandly, meaning that he was characterized as the sterotypical male love interest of most young adult lit.: arrogant with some hardcoming that hurts them so badly that somehow it turns their personality inside out and makes them some sensitive nice guy.

Bleck.

The way Gwen's family treated her reminded me of Harry Potter. Everyone overlooks her because she's simply ordinary. They don't think there's anything special about her. Then, when she learns that she carries the time travel gene, some people in her family treat her even worse. It's not exactly the same as Harry Potter's situtation, but it radiated vibes that reminded me of Harry Potter.

Being the first in a triology, this book was more of an exposition for the whole series. That said, there wasn't much action, not much of a climax at all. But it certainly has promise and I'm excited to read the next one.

RATING:

Review: The Diviners (The Diviners #1), by Libba Bray

The Diviners (The Diviners #1)
By: Libba Bray
Publication Date: September 18th, 2012 (Little, Brown Books for Young Readers)
Hardcover, 592 pages
Genre: Historical Fiction; Fantasy; Supernatural; Parnormal; YA
Source: Library

DESCRIPTION:

Do you believe there are ghosts and demons and Diviners among us?

Evie O'Neill has been exiled from her boring old hometown and shipped off to the bustling streets of New York City--and she is pos-i-tute-ly ecstatic. It's 1926, and New York is filled with speakeasies, Ziegfeld girls, and rakish pickpockets. The only catch is that she has to live with her uncle Will and his unhealthy obsession with the occult.

Evie worries he'll discover her darkest secret: a supernatural power that has only brought her trouble so far. But when the police find a murdered girl branded with a cryptic symbol and Will is called to the scene, Evie realizes her gift could help catch a serial killer.

As Evie jumps headlong into a dance with a murderer, other sotries unfold in the city that never seleeps. A young man named Memphis is caught between two worlds. A chorus girl named Theta is running from her past. A student named Jericho hides a shocking secret. And unknown to all, something dark and evil has awakened...

Printz Award-winning and New York Times bestselling author Libba Bray pens a brand-new historical series with The Diviners, where the glittering surface of the Roaring Twenties hides a mystical horror creeping across the country.

--from the book's dust jacket

REVIEW:

Whew! After a month of reading The Diviners, meaning after a month of living in the 1920s and picking up on the slang (more to come on the slang), I've finally finished! Five-hundred-and-ninety-two pages of evil.

And by evil, I mean a man by the name of John Hobbes. Good ol' Naughty John. He really does give me the heebie-jeebies (1920s slang!). The whistling, the click of his cane, his icy blue eyes. Twice I had to leave my hall light on as a nightlight because I was terrified of John Hobbes manifesting himself and coming to get me.

Characters. There were a bunch, and the story switches veiw points to each of the major ones. Evie O'Neill, of course. She was not very likable as I found her too shallow and selfish. But she was caring a times, which I did like. Jericho Jones, typical tall, dark, and...mysterious. He was okay. I didn't feel like I really knew him. Memphis Cambelle, Harlem's next Langson Hughes. Meh.

Mabel Rose, Evie's best friend, was relatable to me because she reminded me of myself. She was living in both the shadow of her famous politcal activist parents, and also in shadow of her glamorous best friend. It wasn't in her to exchange her frilly, long dresses for short flapper-style dresses, or bob her long curly hair. She just felt like she was second best, washed out by the New York City lights. She didn't really have many parts in the book, but she was relateable anyway.

But she wasn't my favorite.

Theta (rhymes with "beta") Knight, named after the math symbol (which is pretty sweet), was my favorite. She was so multidemensinal and her backstory was by far the best.

Oh. I almost forgot. The infectious slang of the 1920s in this book has caught me. I find myself saying "And how!" a lot, and "That music is the berries," but not as much as "And how!" Anyway, if you fancy some good old-fashion slang, here's a link to more 1920s slang.

The plot had a snail-slow build-up, but it's worth it if you power through. I mean it took me a month, but I powered through and it was ALL WORTH IT.

RATING: