the lion's deceit by mpho otukile

Title: The Lion's Deceit
Author: Mpho Otukile

Illustrator: S.B. Bow
Pages: 16
Rating: 5/5
Recommended Age: 3-5

Source: Won from LibraryThing

Summary:

The Lion's Deceit is about a lazy lion who goes against his real nature by tricking other animals so he can get some food without hunting. Will the lion get away with his plot?

My Two Cents:

My little cousins (Azim and Aqil) and I love it! I read it last night with them for bedtime stories. Funny thing was, I don't think my mom ever read about animals to me when I was little. What I ever remember is Cinderella and few other princesses and fairy tales. Since my two cousins are boys, this book is perfect for them. It's a great story with a valuable lesson for children to put some efforts to gain something we want to the children. The lion's action to lie his sickness to the rest of the animals in the jungle so that he can get his prey for food regularly. This is totally not a lion's nature as he should hunt and as a result it was ultimately discovered by other animals.

With beautiful colours and fine illustrations, this book is totally enlightening and very entertaining to be shared with little kids as well as adults and parents. Kids will enjoy reading and learn a great thing of putting effort and know that every actions we take will lead to different consequences.

Some illustrations from the book;

About the Author

Mpho Otukile comes from Botswana, in the Southern part of Africa where she grew up listening to stories told by the village elders at night while sitting around an open fire. As much as she was entertained, these stories also instilled some moral lessons about life. The author now lives in Winnipeg, Canada and is writing these stories to pass them to her daughter and other children.

For more info, visit http://www.villagelifebooks.com

the last will of moira leahy by therese walsh

Title: The Last Will of Moira Leahy
Author: Therese Walsh
Pages: 288
Series: Stand alone
Published: October 19th, 2009
Rating: 5/5
Source: Received from author

Buy at: Amazon | IndieBound | Barnes & Noble

Summary (Website):

“I lost my twin to a harsh November nine years ago. Ever since, I’ve felt the span of that month like no other, as if each of the calendar’s thirty perfect little squares split in two on the page.”

Maeve Leahy is a busy professor of languages at a university in upstate New York. So busy that she leaves little time for memories—the memory of her lost twin, Moira, and of her many lost opportunities. Until a childhood relic and a series of anonymous notes changes everything—resurrects her long-dead dreams, a lost language, her most painful recollections, and prompts her to cross an ocean in search of ancient history. There, Maeve will learn new truths about her past, and come face to face with the one thing she truly fears. Only then can she choose between the safe yet lonely life she's built for herself and one of risk, with bonds she knows can be both heart-breakingly delicate and more enduring than time.

My Two Cents:

The Last Will of Moira Leahy for me is quite a difficult read, in a good way. I was easily immersed in the story, intrigued and the whole summary really got me intrigued. It started quite slow though, with Maeve keep herself so tight and avoiding to tell us what's going on with her. She's mysterious, which made me don't understand her but it kind of weird when I think she's so connected with me as the story goes on. Walsh deserves credit for writing a character whose personality leaps off the page. There were so many times in this novel that I thought I knew exactly what action Maeve was going to make, and eventually twisting the book's journey. I got surprised a lot by Maeve, which always turned me down when I was wrong.

So when she got the keris, everything went back to her and she wants to discover the truth behind it. I don't think I ever read something like this before; a mix of mystical and mysteries in a contemporary fiction. I was fascinated by the keris itself, because I myself has Javanese blood (even my fiancee is Javanese). Keris for real has mystical power which holds thousands mysteries to the owner of one. As that being said, I kind of truly understand the connection of the keris and Maeve's past. If you don't know this, when you read the book, there will be the part where you will learn the truth of the keris function in the story. You maybe think it's nothing but I got the chill on my spine. So this book got me an impact.

There's some flash backs of Moira and Maeve that told us how close they were and how they became apart. It tells a lot even though it's less than two pages each time. The bond of twins fascinated me, which I truly adored their relationship, mostly when they can read or block their mind on each other. However, because of some tragedy, Maeve became the Maeve we know right now in the book; well-kept, mysterious, hurt, and pessimistic. I wish she could enjoy her life because she really deserves it. Not to waste it for nearly a decade after her sister's death.

And I love Noel! (thank God there's some romance in it!). I thought the book would be a heavy and depressing read after all. Noel is tender, gentle and a great guy. He waited for Maeve for as long as he knows her. And funny too. In this, I was glad for Maeve, Noel is someone who will complete her. Teenage Moira was the best. I don't know why, but I think I love her wittiness and how she wants to do what she wants despite of being so different from Maeve like their mother wants. I dislike her mother for separating their likeness into something so-called identities just because she can't tell which is which between the twin.

That being said, I like the book so much. Walsh really did an excellent job bringing the mysteries of keris and a woman's past that we keep pondering until Walsh ties the two threads together beautifully at the end of the book. There's a bit of suspense elements, but it kind of worked okay to me. But I cried when I learned the truth and how she and Moira let go the worst past in their life and forgave the person who come between them. This book was ultimately about healing from grief, siblings relationships, and about remembering past and yet letting it go forever. Highly recommended.

matched by ally condie (arc)

Title: Matched
Author: Ally Condie
Pages: 366
Series: Matched#1
Published: November 30th, 2010
Rating: 3.5/5
Source: Won
Buy at: Amazon | IndieBound | Barnes & Noble

Summary (Goodreads):

Cassia has always trusted the Society to make the right choices for her: what to read, what to watch, what to believe. So when Xander's face appears on-screen at her Matching ceremony, Cassia knows with complete certainty that he is her ideal mate . . . until she sees Ky Markham's face flash for an instant before the screen fades to black.

The Society tells her it's a glitch, a rare malfunction, and that she should focus on the happy life she's destined to lead with Xander. But Cassia can't stop thinking about Ky, and as they slowly fall in love, Cassia begins to doubt the Society's infallibility and is faced with an impossible choice: between Xander and Ky, between the only life she's known and a path that no one else has dared to follow.

My Say:

This book is totally some books that I don't know how to feel. I have a mix feeling of it and have to admit that I'm quite frustrated because it doesn't work for me so much. Don't get me wrong. The idea of the story is very original since I never read anything like it before. I don't usually pick any dystopian novel until last January for The End of Marking Time, which I quite like it (maybe it's a thriller).

When I say it doesn't work for me, it's more related to my feeling of the world the author have created. I like the idea of being matched though. When I read first quarter of the book, it was so good that I'm totally hooked but it decreased my anticipation right before the middle of the story. I was like so suffocated to live in that world and I believe I would understand how stress the citizens of that future were in. The character of Cassia, I totally can't feel any connections with her, like something is lacking. She was intriguing, somehow sometimes I felt like she was asking too much of what the place would give. I know they have very limited freedom and kind of bounded with The Society, but just because of Ky appeared on the screen, she just wavered. Other than that, I totally can't understand why they can't write long hand and can't really recite poems too. But I like it when she and Ky recited one together. I found it very sweet. Condie should really explain it at least in a brief. I know it's in future or like not the same time as ours but, I can only accept 50% of that world she created.

Nonetheless, I'm glad I read the book. It's my first time reading a YA Romance Dystopian, feel quite impressed with the author writing style and plot. I did enjoy her passion of creating different world, a fresh spill of matching couples, different colour of pills with different purposes, human dies at 80 and so many things to explore. Even though this book has only an okay type development, I'm actually looking forward to read the sequel, Crossed. I hope to found who's Cassia's choice either Ky or Xander, but I really hope Xander. Personally, I think Ky is just a distraction (BOO!)

I will recommend it to whoever love Dystopians. It's a worth try to read something out of your comfort zone sometimes. But I totally love the book cover!