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Lenny opened one eye and looked around his room. He saw something in red pajamas rush by his bed. Was it…? It was!
“Spider-Manny!” Lenny yelled, as his little brother jumped on top of him. The tall stack of peanut butter sandwiches that Manny was carrying came tumbling down on them. They were a sticky mess!
This is how Kickin’ Lenny Saves the Day (MTS Publications, 2014) should’ve started. But it didn’t. Instead, readers are treated to a tedious narrative complete with pseudo-adult dialogue and unrealistic family dynamics. They deserve better: Something exciting. Something that will inspire a love of reading.
What is Book #1 in the Kickin’ Lenny series about? We have a workable premise: A kid’s first week of school that involves an embarrassing kickball incident and a run-in with fourth-grade bullies. The author Michael Stubben, however, is too nice to his hero. The embarrassment subsides quickly. No black eyes are involved. The hero sheds no tears, and it never even occurs to him to lock himself in his bedroom to pout. The ending is the worst. It only teaches kids that violence solves everything, and that 3 and 5-year-olds are a match for 9-year olds. (Maybe that’s so in their dreams when they’re Spiderman, but most definitely not in real life!)
I wish I could say something nice about Kickin’ Lenny Saves the Day, but I really can’t. The book is neither interesting nor age appropriate. What 6 to 9-year-old with a 3rd-grade reading level is going to want to read a book about a kindergartener? And what 4 to 5-year-old is going to sit through a book without pictures? To make it worse, Stubben seems unable to follow the basic structure of any novel: conflict, climax, and resolution.
You might think I’m being unfairly harsh, but I think the author needs a reality check. Kickin’ Lenny Saves the Day is not about to become the next big thing in children’s literature. Instead, it’s destined to sit untouched and unloved for many years to come.
Disclaimer: I received a copy of this book from the author through LibraryThing’s Early Reviewers program. I was not required to write a favorable review.
In March of 1989, my mother was diagnosed with thyroid cancer. My parents, determined to fight it out, took to reading all they could on the subject, spending an enormous amount of time at the University of California, Irvine medical library. Later that year, after my father began his Ph.D. program and could actually check out books, I remember them bringing home gigantic black volumes with long words and gross pictures. They became completely absorbed in studying this disease, the effects of chemotherapy and radiation, and the consequences of postponing the treatments (since by then it was apparent that my mother was also pregnant). It was obviously a daunting task, being pre-internet and all. And I think the only reason why my parents didn’t let themselves get too intimidated by the research was partly because the situation was desperate and partly because they both had their Masters degrees. At any rate, I’m convinced that they would’ve welcomed an easier way to start their search than with the card files on obscure academic journal articles.
This is what came to mind when I read Surviving Triple-Negative Breast Cancer: Hope, Treatment, and Recovery (Oxford University Press, 2014). The author, Patricia Prijatel, is a health journalist who, after being diagnosed with TNBC, a rare and aggressive form of breast cancer, undertook the same sort of research that my parents did years ago. Recognizing that many other patients could benefit from a concise book that guides the reader through the basics, she wrote Surviving TNBC.
In a warm tone, filled with empathy, Prijatel educates her readers on causes, treatments, risks, statistics, and other information while providing an extensive number of references for those who don’t mind delving further. You might ask why I think books like this needed. Sure, we have Wikipedia, but that doesn’t cover a whole lot. And it’s not like the average reader is going to want to go directly to the medical journals cited. Prijatel’s book does that for you. In other words, it has the potential to encourage those who never liked school to educate themselves about the disease.
Where I think the book’s chief disadvantage lies is the likelihood of it quickly becoming outdated, especially since TNBC is a “newer” disease about which more is constantly being discovered. It also is a bit technical at times, when I think an easy-read approach is warranted. In addition, I wish that it had a comprehensive bibliography at the end, rather than just the end notes after each chapter.
Is Surviving TNBC a tear jerker? Not really. While Prijatel does tell her personal story, she’s writing an informative book, not a biography. Readers looking for an emotional connection with another survivor might have to look elsewhere. Luckily though, Prijatel has a blog, Positives About Negative, that I suspect allows for more personal interaction. And from the looks of it she seems to be doing well, despite various setbacks – something in which her readers can most certainly take comfort.
Disclaimer: I received a uncorrected advance reading copy of this book through LibraryThing’s Early Reviewers program. I was not required to write a favorable review.
It’s a sign of the times that a book title is in the form of a hashtag. For many disillusioned with mainstream politics, #Newsfail: Climate Change, Feminism, Gun Control, and Other Fun Stuff We Talk About Because Nobody Else Will (Simon & Schuster, 2014) might be a welcomed treat. Authoring this humorous commentary on the American political landscape is the goofy comedian-journalist couple, Jamie Kilstein and Allison Kilkenny, best known for Citizen’s Radio, their independent online radio show that some might call “left-leaning” and others might call “radical.”
Style-wise, #Newsfail has a lot in common the work of Rush Limbaugh and Ann Coulter, although I doubt the authors would appreciate the comparison. Kilstein and Kilkenny have an opinion about nearly every current issue people are talking and arguing: climate change, “rape culture,” the “gay agenda,” gun control, drug reform, and more. They also have some strong words for the political situation and role of corporations and the media today. However, most of what they have to say boils down to strong language and weak arguments. But I don’t think the authors are really trying to convert anyone to their side. They’re here to entertain their fans, so even some allies might find it difficult to take #Newsfail too seriously. (Hence, why it’s categorized as “Humor.”)
If you have the stomach for a lot of ad hoc “it’s just so” arguments and “we represent the people” claims, then go for it. Between their rants are some hilarious and charming stories about how the couple got together, created their radio show, etc. While I’m far from being on board with their politics (a big exception being “rape culture” – disgusting it certainly is!), I found their book a nice quick read: the sort of thing that’s suitable for an airplane carry-on. I could appreciate it in spite of itself. The only thing I’m left wondering is, why – for all their ranting against corporate media and sponsors – did they go with a big-time publisher? Ironic, definitely.
Disclaimer: I received an advance uncorrected proof copy of this book as a First Reads giveaway winner on GoodReads.com. There was no obligation to write a review.
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