The One and Only Ivan

Dates Read: March 2013
I don't know why, but I'm on a big Young Adult kick right now. I think it's the appeal of having quick, easy, thoughtless books to read that take my mind off of work and allow me to relax. Most of my YA books have come from recommendations from the Everyday Reading blog so when she recommended The One and Only Ivan, a recent Newbery winner, I decided to give it a try. And oh my goodness this book did not disappoint!! I read it in one sitting because I could not put it down! Ivan is wonderful and the story is gripping, and sad, and exciting, and just an overall joy to read!

Summary: (from Amazon.com)

Ivan is an easygoing gorilla. Living at the Exit 8 Big Top Mall and Video Arcade, he has grown accustomed to humans watching him through the glass walls of his domain. He rarely misses his life in the jungle. In fact, he hardly ever thinks about it at all.

Instead, Ivan thinks about TV shows he’s seen and about his friends Stella, an elderly elephant, and Bob, a stray dog. But mostly Ivan thinks about art and how to capture the taste of a mango or the sound of leaves with color and a well-placed line.

Then he meets Ruby, a baby elephant taken from her family, and she makes Ivan see their home—and his own art—through new eyes. When Ruby arrives, change comes with her, and it’s up to Ivan to make it a change for the better.

Katherine Applegate blends humor and poignancy to create Ivan’s unforgettable first-person narration in a story of friendship, art, and hope.

The Secret Prince

Dates Read: February 2013
This is the second book of the Knightley series (I read the first book earlier this month). Although it was the second book, it started a little slow. Once I got to the halfway point (about 200 pages in), I was hooked and couldn't put it down. The first book felt very Harry Potter-like. This one still had a Harry Potter feel, but it started to stand alone and take on its own non-Harry Potter storyline. The nice thing about these books is that they don't have a cliffhanger ending. So although I'm anxiously awaiting Book 3, I don't regret having read the first two books in the meantime. 

Summary: (from Amazon.com)
Knightley Academy is back in session, and Henry Grim is confident that nothing else can prevent him from earning his knighthood. But Henry and his friends quickly discover that their professors have made some troubling changes to the curriculum—and there’s an old classroom filled with forgotten weapons. It is the discovery of this classroom that prompts Henry and Valmont to become the unlikely leaders of a secret battle society. But disaster strikes as Henry, Adam, and Frankie find themselves stuck as Partisan School servants—and something is rotten in Partisan Keep. When Henry is discovered by a secret society of outlaws with a sinister purpose, he must come to terms with a great sacrifice that will take him away from everything he has ever known and wanted. The stakes get higher and tension mounts in the second installment of Violet Haberdasher’s fresh, fast-paced, and always surprising Knightley Academy books.