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-Super Kitty and Piranha T.
-Super Kitty and Piranha T.
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By Super Kitty
After nine years in America, Clare Macleod and her father are returning Ireland, the place of Clare’s birth. Ever since her mother died, they have wandered, moving from place to place, searching for a home away from the sea of painful memories. Clare has learned to disbelieve, to roll her eyes at the idea of fairies and magic. She has learned that fourteen-almost-fifteen is far too old for that sort of thing. But it wasn’t always that way. And now that she and her father are returning to their house at the edge of the sea, she begins to remember, remember the stories her mother used to tell, remember her younger self drawing and writing and dreaming fantastical dreams. She may have forgotten, for a time, but Clare is no ordinary girl. She is watched over by the sea and the sky and the wind itself, is guarded by places of ancient magic and power. And as a shadow rises in this first place she can really call home, she finds she has a destiny that could change the path of the world. Beautifully told and intricately created, Katherine Catmull’s story skillfully combines Celtic myth with the modern day world. Clare is a strong and believable main character, and the supporting cast is also well done. While it came out recently, in some ways this book has the feel of one much older, and I mean that in a very good way! The author creates such vivid images, the haunting beauty of Celtic tales clearly coming through. Katherine Catmull weaves ancient stories and folklore into her own story without seeming to lose the essence of what those stories are: the magic, the strangeness, the wonder of them. Lyrically written and luminously magical, I would recommend The Radiant Road to fantasy lovers ages 11 and up.  By Piranha T.
Aventurine is a fierce dragon who longs to go out into the world. But she’s still young by dragon standards, her scales not yet hard enough to dare to venture out into the world. When she finally gets fed up with staying in her family’s caves, she leaves in an attempt to prove that she’s able to take care of herself in the outside world. But instead, she gets duped by the first human she meets into drinking a pot of enchanted hot chocolate. She’s transformed into a twelve-year-old human girl, helpless without her fire and scales. One thing, however, keeps her from despair. She’s finally found her passion--chocolate. Aventurine leaves for the city to find an apprenticeship at a chocolate house. But when she finds one, she discovers that the business is in danger. Can Aventurine save the chocolate house, follow her passion, and at the same time be reunited with her family? The Dragon with a Chocolate Heart was a fun read. Aventurine was an entertaining main character who was extremely funny, particularly because she saw everything in a medieval-type world through a dragon’s eyes and looked at things in a very different way. I love dragons, and I love chocolate too, but you don’t have to love either to love this book! This book reminded me of The Girl in the Tower and The Language of Spells, so if you like either of those books, check this one out! I would highly recommend The Dragon with a Chocolate Heart to readers ages eight and up. Look under our 'Nonfiction: Crafts and More' tab to see our newest historical review!
-Piranha T. and Super Kitty |
Book Reviews By & For TeensEveryone knows that Rapunzel spent her early years locked up in a tower. We like to think she read plenty of books to while away the time, and that she’d appreciate our favorites. 
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