You need to sign in or sign up before continuing.

jensen1's reviews
428 reviews

The Midnight Library by Matt Haig

Go to review page

2.5

Street without a Name: Childhood and Other Misadventures in Bulgaria by Kapka Kassabova

Go to review page

slow-paced

2.5

Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH by Robert C. O'Brien

Go to review page

adventurous inspiring lighthearted fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.5

I read this book years ago and have had it stuck in my child memory for years now! Upon re-read, I enjoyed the descriptive tone O'Brien used - it continued my love of all things tiny, cozy, and secretive. I want to live in the middle of a rose bush, too.

I found it wanting in the end, though, and I'm thinking I may have to read his daughter's follow up books.
East of the West: A Country in Stories by Miroslav Penkov

Go to review page

adventurous challenging dark emotional funny hopeful informative inspiring mysterious reflective sad medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.75

Strange Sally Diamond by Liz Nugent

Go to review page

dark emotional funny fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

Montmorency: Thief, Liar, Gentleman? by Eleanor Updale

Go to review page

adventurous fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

1.5

The Poisonwood Bible by Barbara Kingsolver

Go to review page

challenging dark emotional hopeful reflective sad tense slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

A House with Good Bones by T. Kingfisher

Go to review page

dark mysterious fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.25

The Last Slave Ship: The True Story of How Clotilda Was Found, Her Descendants, and an Extraordinary Reckoning by Ben Raines

Go to review page

hopeful reflective sad fast-paced

4.0

When I first started this book, I couldn’t believe the statistic that only 13 slave ships have been recovered after 10s of thousands sailed across the Atlantic. However, by the end of the book, the destruction of the remarkable Africatown, Alabama, gives insight into exactly what happens when Black individuals thrive and show their resilience while also uncovering the egregious acts against them. They’re systemically destroyed. 

The Meaher family, to this day, ought to be ashamed of themselves - it breaks me that the remnants of Africatown are nearly gone from physical history. The nearly complete destruction by the Meahers of Africatown to hide their own wrongdoing and guilt culminated in a great loss of historical sites which should have been preserved for generations. Instead, the cancer-causing pollution is what’s left of their legacy. 

The US really needs to re-evaluate what is taught in schools and what we hold in high esteem. Though Cudjo and his kin painfully dreamed of going back to Africa his whole life, I think it’s safe to say he and the founders of Africatown are the best US history has to offer. 
The Wishing Game by Meg Shaffer

Go to review page

medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Plot
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

1.0

So contrived, unbelievable and tried to be profound but fell flat.