Peeps

Peeps by Scott Westerfeld

First off, if you're freaked out by germs, rats, or sewers or if you have vivid dreams, read with caution. I am freaked out by rats. However, I don't have vivid dreams (that I remember) and this book gave me weird dreams.

It's no secret that I love vampire stories. I also love Scott Westerfeld's books. Here, vampirism is a virus. Vampires are parasite-positives, or Peeps, and one of the symptoms is cannibalism which is where the vampire legend comes from.

I love the different take on an old theme. I enjoyed the book and it's an easy read. The Last Days is the sequel. I look forward to it.

Keep writing Mr. Westerfeld.

happy reading!

Mennonite in a Little Black Dress

Mennonite in a Little Black Dress (A Memoir of Going Home) by Rhoda Janzen

Rhoda Janzen has written her story about returning home after a couple life-altering experiences. "Home" is a Mennonite community in California.

This book actually made me laugh out loud more than once. My favorite part was a little section she referred to as "the top five Shame-Based Foods for Mennonite youth lunches." The capitalization is hers, not mine. She writes about her family in such a way that you get a real sense of all their idiosyncrasies and weirdnesses (no, that's not a word) but you can tell that she loves her family and they all accept each other the way they are. And, rather than being mean-spirited or condescending, it's endearing.

The book jumps around a bit from present-day to the past, but I didn't find it difficult to follow. As her story unfolds, you get a real sense of where she came from and what it means to her to have returned to this community after many years away.

I love memoirs. Especially those of "ordinary" people (as opposed to celebrity memoirs). I believe everyone's life has a story to be told and this is no exception. I hope to hear more from Rhoda Janzen.

Hush, Hush

Hush, Hush by Becca Fitzpatrick

Hush, Hush is the first in a series. It's an easy read with a nice flow to the story. It was easy to pick up and read quite a bit in a short period. Aside from being totally readable, I found Nora, the main character, to be completely annoying. But, most 16-year-old girls are totally annoying.

Patch shows up in her science class mid-year and is assigned to be Nora's partner. He's mysterious, totally aloof, and uncooperative. He seems bent on making Nora uncomfortable and defensive, which she is. Yet, for some reason, she's drawn to him. He feels dangerous to her and she even believes he means her harm. So why WHY does she continually seem to be seeking him out, even if only mentally? She tries to pretend indifference, yet is obviously not. Patch seems to draw her into dangerous (!) situations and she knows it but, for some reason, follows along.

Of course, there is a little mystery that comes along with the story. There are some supernatural events that begin happening once Patch shows up. Nora has weird hallucinations like totaling her best friends car on a dark rainy night, or her bedroom being ransacked. She also begins to hear a voice inside her head. Not "voices" but a voice ...

Nora's best friend, Vee, is a dolt and I don't really understand why they're friends.

The story ends kind of abruptly and it's all wrapped up with a tidy ending. The follow-up, Crescendo, should prove to be interesting how the story moves along. Am I going to read it? I'm not sure yet. But if I do, you'll hear about it here.

Happy reading!