Features
The End of the Alphabet by C.S. Richardson
Commonwealth Writers’ Prize Best First Book, 2008
submitted by Vasilly
I rarely reread books. I can give you many excuses: I’m too tired, there’s not enough time, too many new books in the world… I rather not. I just don’t feel like rereading most books. The End of the Alphabet is so well-written that [click to read more]
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The Owl Service by Alan Garner
Carnegie Medal, 1967
submitted by Nymeth
The Owl Service is a partial retelling of a Welsh myth from The Mabinogion—the story of Lleu Llaw Gyffes and Blodeuwedd. A brief summary: Lleu had been placed under a curse, according to which he could never have a human bride. So his uncle, the wizard Gwydion, creates Blodeuwedd out of flowers to be his bride. But she falls in love with another man, and the story [click to read more]
A Golden Age by Tahmima Anam
Commonwealth Writers’ Prize, 2008
submitted by Teddy
In A Golden Age we see how one family copes during the Bangladesh War of Independence. With hope, passion, and heroism they help their neighbors and fellow man. Tahmima Anam writes with poetic [click to read more]
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The Old Man and the Sea by Ernest Hemingway
Pulitzer Prize, 1953
submitted by Rebecca
While I didn’t like Hemingway’s short stories when I read them, I did enjoy Ernest Hemingway’s The Old Man and the Sea. While it has an element of sadness, there is also a beauty and majesty around its short plot. The old man of the title is reaching the end of his usefulness in life. He’s a fisherman off the coast of [click to read more]
Atonement by Ian McEwan
National Book Critics Circle Award, 2002
submitted by Desert Rose
I had high expectations for this book, but I can’t say they were fulfilled! It’s a story set in England during WWII, Briony a 13- year old girl accuses her sister’s lover of a hideous crime which he pays for, and eventually ruins [click to read more]
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The Vintner’s Luck by Elizabeth Knox
Deutz Medal for Fiction, 1999
submitted by Maree
I’m not quite sure how to convey how much I loved this book. But here goes. The Vintner’s Luck is set in the French countryside of the 19th century. At the height of summer one night, Sobran Jodeau meets an angel, Xas. They agree to meet on the same night every [click to read more]
The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman
Newbery Award, 2009
submitted by Elizabeth
It’s almost difficult to put into words exactly how good this book is. I don’t hesitate to say that I’m a Neil Gaiman fan - I believe he is one of the best storytellers of our generation, and I always have high expectations for his work. So when I say this novel exceeded my expectations, what I mean is that I’m not sure I have, even yet, realized exactly how brilliant [click to read more]
From the Mixed Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler by E.L. Konigsburg
Newbery Award, 1968
submitted by Kristi
This story is about a sister and brother who run away due to the “injustice of everything..” They stay at the Metropolitan Museum of Arts in New York City. During their adventure they discover [click to read more]
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