Common Sense Reviewer

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  • Debra Bogart

About Me

As a youth services librarian, I get to recommend books to children of all ages, teens and even adults, every day. I don't have time to read on the job, though, so there is never enough time to read everything I want to.

What My Kids Love Now

My kids are both in grad school now but they still love to read. My son still loves fantasy and alternate histories; my daughter reads everything. Now they recommend books to me!

House Rules

The rules we had then would still apply: One hour of TV a day, no TV or computers in the bedrooms, no unmonitored Internet use until you're 16. The rules would be much harder to enforce today, though.

When the Kids Are Asleep…

My Biggest Challenge Is:

Titles You’ve Reviewed

  • Book: The Heartbreakers

    I rate this titleonand give it3.0

    Fun Traveling Pants-style story with fewer mature themes.

    This is fun, predictable chick lit about four sophomore girls dealing with guys, parents' divorces, keggers, and the true meaning of friendship. Although the alternating narrator structure becomes a ...

  • Book: Betsy and the Emperor

    I rate this titleonand give it2.0

    Historical fluff has teen and Napoleon as unlikely friends.

    These are cardboard characters that don't engender much emotion. Betsy is "headstrong" yet also thoughtless. And all the girl-power in the book is negated by  the short-sighted, ...

  • Book: The Forest of Hands and Teeth

    I rate this titleonand give it4.0

    Cool heroine makes this for more than zombie horror fans.

    Very well crafted with compelling narratives, this is a complex novel that reveals its secrets slowly. The post-apocalyptic setting among the undead will resonate with teens who find escape in ...

  • Book: Beastly

    I rate this titleonand give it3.0

    Contemporary Beauty-Beast tale curses shallow rich kid.

    There are no surprises for readers familar wth the Beauty and the Beast, but teens will enjoy the setting and some of the characterizations. The central theme is still transformation and ...

  • Book: When the Whistle Blows

    I rate this titleonand give it4.0

    Coming-of-age adventure will especially hook boy readers.

    It's a small town tale reminiscent of Friday Night Lights, with a historical setting and a mysterious ...

  • Book: Diego: Bigger Than Life

    I rate this titleonand give it3.0

    Lively free verse bio doesn't gloss over Rivera's appetites.

    For readers 12 and up, this is a vibrant introduction to an artist as well known for his Communist Party loyalties and convictions as for his richly colored murals. The prose poems are sophisticated ...

  • Book: A Voice of Her Own: Becoming Emily Dickinson

    I rate this titleonand give it3.0

    Lovely first-person narration helps bring Dickinson to life.

    Dane has done a wonderful job of inhabiting Dickinson's life and portraying her as an intelligent and loving young woman who did not see herself as anything special, but nonetheless faced ...

  • Book: Where the Mountain Meets the Moon

    I rate this titleonand give it5.0

    Chinese girl's Oz-like adventure begging to be read aloud.

    This is a a beautiful book that is bound to become a classic. Lin's love of Asian culture is evident in her creation of vivid new folktales that are built into the narrative in such a way that they ...

  • Book: The Evolution of Calpurnia Tate

    I rate this titleonand give it3.0

    Newbery Honor-ed story of a smart southern tomboy in 1899.

    This is a fun historical novel that is jam packed with rich details and events. Rural southern life is demonstrated when the children catch fireflies, eat their pet turkeys for Thanksgiving, ...

  • Book: Tales of the Madman Underground: An Historical Romance 1973

    I rate this titleiffyand give it3.0

    Raw, raunchy tale of survival most teens aren't ready for.

    This is high school in hell, but Karl keeps his sense of humor, and his hope. This is frenetic, fast-paced, funny, and painfully revealing about the kids that society lets slip through the cracks; ...

  • Book: Beautiful Creatures

    I rate this titleonand give it4.0

    Dreamy, lyrical supernatural Southern romance.

    There are many stock characters, both teen mean girls and powerful, intense older women alike, but the sweet romance, dark danger, and supernatural battles that sweep across a well-romantized ...

  • Book: Monstrumologist

    I rate this titleiffyand give it4.0

    Gruesomely good gothic horror too violent for younger teens.

    This is shocking, graphically gory pus-and-guts splattered all over an action-packed story with some human moments. The gore and violence are so over the top that it's hard for anyone even the ...

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