Claire's Literary Lounge

1. BIBLIOGRAPHY Gaiman, Neil. (2008). Illustrated by Dave McKean. THE GRAVEYARD BOOK. HarperCollins Pub. ISBN: 9780060530921 2. PLOT SUMMARY This story follows Nobody ‘Bod’ Owens from the time he was a baby to a teenager. He escapes death from a skilled killer who believes Bod is part of a prophecy that will take down his evil organization. Bod finds safety in a graveyard where a strange caretaker and ghosts raise him. The novel follows his journey of trying to exist between the life of the living and the dead all while avoiding the killer that murdered his family. 3. CRITICAL ANALYSIS This fantasy novel revolving around ghosts, magic, and monsters involves a mystery that takes years to solve. The different aspects such as Bod learning how to fade and dream walk and being the only one from the living who is able to interact with the dead of the graveyard, follow the fantasy trope that the main character is somehow different from others. This provides a unique contrast with his name, No...

1. BIBLIOGRAPHY Ryan, Pam Munoz (2015). ECHO: A NOVEL. Scholastic Press. ISBN: 9780439874021 2. PLOT SUMMARY This story follows the path of a harmonica that is possessed by the spirits of three sisters who are trapped in a cottage in the woods until the curse that was given to them by their caretaker can be broken. The harmonica finds its way across the globe being passed to three different people over the span of ten years. Each of their story’s is about the bonds of family, the struggles of war, and deciding who to trust in the most difficult of times. 3. CRITICAL ANALYSIS This tale weaves together three unique stories in a masterful way. Three different characters, three different families, and three completely different lives, but this story binds them together through a harmonica and a mission that they didn’t even know they were participating in. In this low historical fantasy novel, the author addresses intolerance, ignorance, poverty, and war through the lives of the main chara...

1. BIBLIOGRAPHY Jamieson, Victoria, Mohamed, Omar, & Geddy, Iman (2020). WHEN STARS ARE SCATTERED. Dial Books for Young Readers. ISBN: 9780525553915 2. PLOT SUMMARY This graphic novel was about two brothers who live in a refugee camp in Kenya after having to flee Somalia. The older brother struggles with taking care of his younger brother, who has a learning disability. He learns to balance school, his social life, and chores while hoping that one day they are able to be one of the lucky few who get picked to relocate in America or Canada. 3. CRITICAL ANALYSIS The narrator is a young boy and the author does a good job of writing the story and dialogue to match his age. Their complex lives involve hard topics such as marrying as a teenager, war, drugs, and resettlement are all addressed and told in a way for teens who may have never encountered these issues to understand. The author is also able to show throughout the novel the bonds bound in blood such as Omar caring for Hassan an...

1. BIBLIOGRAPHY Hale, Nathan. (2021). ONE DEAD SPY: THE LIFE, TIMES, AND LAST WORDS OF NATHAN HALE, AMERICA’S MOST FAMOUS SPY. Amulet Books, an imprint of Abrams. ISBN: 9781419757266 2. PLOT SUMMARY This graphic novel took the real life spy Nathan Hale to tell tales of history. In this first installment in the series, he told his story and how it is tied in with the revolutionary war. Nathan Hale was to be hanged for spy crimes, but was swallowed up by the Big Book of History instead, and then he told an English Soldier and the Hangman what he had seen, thus putting off his execution. 3. CRITICAL ANALYSIS The author breaks down the facts of the revolutionary war through a failed American spy in this graphic novel. He is able to fit in real drawings, maps, and diagrams while still making way for humorous dialogue and pictures including a few fourth wall breaks. By focusing on Nathan Hale as a level headed trustworthy narrator, the author is able to make the Hangmen act as a simple-mind...

1. BIBLIOGRAPHY Wolk, Lauren. (2018). BEYOND THE BRIGHT SEA. Puffin Books. ISBN: 9781101994870 2. PLOT SUMMARY Crow is an orphan found and raised by Osh and Maggie on a tiny island. As she grows up, she wonders where she came from and who her parents were. With Osh and Maggie’s help, this starts her on a journey of discovery and learning where she belongs. A greedy thief antagonizes them throughout the journey, but they ultimately triumph, and though some mysteries are left unsolved, Crow accepts the loss of the life she could have had and strengthens her bond with her adoptive father Osh. 3. CRITICAL ANALYSIS Set in the 1920s, the story focuses on the life of a twelve year old orphaned girl. Though race is not explicitly mentioned, the author gives enough hints to the reader that the characters are all different. With Osh’s “sing songy language” and accent, and then Crow’s skin that was “like Osh’s after six months in the sun". She notes their differences to plant the seed of cu...

1. BIBLIOGRAPHY Gantos, Jack. (2011). DEAD END IN NORVELT (Audible). Narrated by Jack Gantos. Macmillan Publishing Group LLC. Harrisonburg, Virginia. ISBN: 9781250010230 2. PLOT SUMMARY In this story, the main character Jack gets grounded for the whole summer and ends up helping his elderly neighbor Ms.Volker. She writes for the town’s newspaper and gets Jack to type up the obituary columns for her. The summer turns into a hilarity of adventures including being the middle-man between his feuding parents and reveals a mystery: all the elderly people in the town are dying. Jack and Ms. Volker uncovered the mystery all while dealing with Jack’s frequent nosebleeds. 3. CRITICAL ANALYSIS The audiobook for this story was narrated by the author himself Jack Gantos. The cadence and persona he brought to the voice of Jack sounded natural. Gantos displayed Jack’s mischievous character, his disgust at the embalming process, and his curiosity during the fires that any twelve year old exhibits, all...

1. BIBLIOGRAPHY Vawter, Vince. (2013). PAPERBOY. Random House USA Inc., New York. ISBN: 9780307931511 2. PLOT SUMMARY An eleven year old boy referred to as “Little Man” takes up a paper route for his friend for a month one summer in the 1950s. The story follows his interactions with the people he meets, his family, and a meddlesome thief. Along with navigating these newly formed relationships and changes in his life, he works on communicating with others and accepting his stutter as a part of himself. 3. CRITICAL ANALYSIS The structure of the story is a boy typing on his typewriter and the author follows through with this theme. There are no indentations for the paragraphs, no quotations around dialogue, and is written in a stream of consciousness style. One of the main focuses is on the narrator’s stutter, which he writes out as well with a series of “s-s-s-s” before his hard to say words. This may be repetitive or become annoying after a while, but reflects the true feelings of livin...