Category Archives: Prose

Cry, the Beloved Country, by Alan Paton

Posted on May 27, 2009 by Thistle

A parson named Kumalo from a small town in South Africa is called by another parson to Johannesburg to help his “ill” sister (meaning she’s gotten into prostitution and illegal alcohol/drug distribution). Kumalo fears Johannesburg – every member of his … Continue reading →

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Protected: Pickup Games, by Marcia Mickelson

Posted on May 25, 2009 by Thistle

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Memoirs of a Teenage Amnesiac, by Gabrielle Zevin

Posted on May 21, 2009 by Thistle

When Naomi wakes up from her bad fall down the stairs of her high school, she can’t remember the last four years of her life. She doesn’t know about her parents’ divorce, her father’s recent engagement, her mother’s remarriage, or … Continue reading →

Posted in 2009, Prose, Young Adult | Tagged | 1 Comment

Lost in a Good Book, by Jasper Fforde

Posted on May 20, 2009 by Thistle

I don’t usually use the book-jacket description, but in this case, I couldn’t explain the essence of this followup to The Eyre Affair better: If Thursday thought she could avoid the spotlight after her heroic escapades in the pages of … Continue reading →

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13 Reasons Why, by Jay Asher

Posted on May 13, 2009 by Thistle

Clay Jensen comes home to find a package waiting for him with seven cassette tapes inside. Immediately, he starts playing the first, and regrets it. The tapes are from Hannah Baker, Clay’s longtime crush, a girl who killed herself two … Continue reading →

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The Witches of Worm, by Zilpha Keatley Snyder

Posted on May 12, 2009 by Thistle

Jessica is a lonely girl of about thirteen years old. She has few friends, and her mother leaves her home alone most nights. One day Jessica finds a very ugly baby kitten and takes him home despite not really liking … Continue reading →

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One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich, by Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn

Posted on May 11, 2009 by Thistle

This book is exactly what the title suggests: a look at one day in Ivan Denisovich (Shukhov)’s life. Shukhov was arrested on baseless charges – fairly common at that time – and was sentenced to ten years in a Siberian … Continue reading →

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Liza of Lambeth, by William Somerset Maugham

Posted on May 10, 2009 by Thistle

Liza of Lambeth takes a look at life in Lambeth – a poor, working class section of London. Liza is an 18-year-old beauty who attracts a lot of suitors, but she doesn’t get smitten herself until Jim Blakestone moves onto … Continue reading →

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The Diary of Anne Frank, by Anne Frank

Posted on May 9, 2009 by Thistle

Anne Frank began this diary on her 13th birthday, June 14, 1942. A couple months later, her family went into hiding in Amsterdam with two other families. For two years, they lived in tense conditions. The diary closes on August … Continue reading →

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The Meaning of Consuelo, by Judith Ortiz Cofer

Posted on May 1, 2009 by Thistle

Set in the 1950s in rapidly-modernizing Puerto Rico, this is a coming of age story similar to A Tree Grows in Brooklyn. Consuelo Signe is growing up in a four-person home, with parents who cannot get along and a younger … Continue reading →

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