Museum of Heartbreak

Posted on by lynndellwatson

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Thanks to NetGalley and Simon and Schuster for the arc of The Museum of Heartbreak by Meg Leder! Penelope has been best friends with Eph and Audrey for several years. Now Eph and Audrey think it’s time they increase their social circle, much to Penelope’s dismay. They each grow and have different struggles and experiences of their own and try to remain friends through it all. The artwork is fun and adds life and charm to the Museum of Heartbreak idea. This high school story contains popularity problems, artistic talent and book lovers and is a touching, endearing story.

The Flip Side

Posted on by lynndellwatson

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Thanks to NetGalley and Simon & Schuster for the arc of The Flip Side by Shawn Johnson! This clean read tells the story of Charlotte (Charlie). She’s an aspiring Olympic gold medal winning gymnast plus she attends public high school where she has to do her best to reform to the daily class schedule. Charlotte has to work around her school schedule instead of her schooling working around her gymnastics schedule. She has to deal with dating, schedule restraints and schedule juggling, an injury and good and bad publicity. The Flip Side is a cute, refreshing story!

The Sound of Us

Posted on by lynndellwatson

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Thanks to Entangled Publishing for the copy of The Sound of Us by Julie Hammerle! I wasn’t sure how much I would enjoy this book about a classical musical competition and scholarships, but I am very pleasantly surprised! The Sound of Us is so much more than just music, but, at the same time, is engulfed in the musical students’ world. I like the musical and literary references throughout the book and I grew to care about the characters, who are very dynamic as they mature and learn through their struggles. I am very proud of Kiki and all that she accomplished. She learned valuable lessons about herself and others and moved forward with that knowledge. Kiki is a teenage girl that gets into the classical music summer camp that she has aspired to. The camp is cut-throat and each student is competing and fighting for one of seven scholarships (four-year, full-ride scholarships to the college). This story is engaging, fun to read, enjoyable, intelligent and has the perfect ending in which the future awaits!