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Review: A Midsummer Tight’s Dream
A Midsummer Tights Dream, by Louise Rennison Reviewed by: Lori Twichell Genre: YA Comedy Publisher: HarperTeen Publishing Date: June 26, 2012 Tallulah Casey is back at Dother Hall studying performing arts and she’s not a newbie anymore. She knows most of the people, the layout of the school and understands (for the most part) how things run. So this time, she’s ready and there’s a lot more at stake. One of the girls has gotten discovered by a Hollywood producer and is off to find fame and glory. A couple of the other girls have boyfriends and Tallulah has gained some of her own “additions” that look like they’ll make this semester…
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Review: Withering Tights
Withering Tights, by Louise Rennison Reviewed by: Lori Twichell Genre: YA/Comedy Publisher: HarperTeen Publication Date: June 26, 2012 Tallulah Casey is ready for the rest of her life to begin. At fourteen and a half she feels she’s stumbled through the opening lines and now she’s on the track to become a brilliant actress, or dancer, or something theatrical. That’s why she’ll be spending six weeks at a performance theater college saying goodbye to Tallulah and hello LULAH! There are some dicey moments when she arrives that lead her to believe it might not be nearly as perfect as she imagined. First, she finds out that she doesn’t have a bed…
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Why I’m Not a Fan of Twilight Anymore – Part Two
(See Part One here.) Vampires have no choice: The Twilight books started a trend that I find utterly disturbing. You see, the vampires in this series had no choice about whether they should live or die. Many of them don’t want to really be vampires and they live this horrible tortured existence, but they are unable to do anything about it. The choice is out of their hands. They must live this way and for the most part, they’re emo and tortured about it. But Bella makes their lives better. She’s everything that they needed. She rescued them from a difficult and miserable existence. She gave them a baby and peace and hope…
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Why I’m Not a Fan of Twilight Anymore – Part One
Recently, in one of our articles about 50 Shades of Grey, I mentioned in passing that I’m no longer a fan of Twilight. This one sentence got an interesting response with several emails and comments asking me if I’d go into why I made that decision. Before I start, let me say that this was something sent to my heart. I’m not out here beating a drum and telling everyone that they need to heed these words. I’m only sharing what I know and what I’ve learned and asking that people make their own choices once they’ve read what I have to say. A little over a year ago, I was very…
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Review: The Mother Road by Jennifer AlLee
The Mother Road by Jennifer AlLee Reviewed by: Lori Twichell Genre: Fiction/Drama/Humor Publisher: Abingdon Press Publication Date: March 6, 2012 Natalie is a professional on marriage. She’s written several books on how to keep your marriage alive and she has speaking engagements all over her calendar to prove her worth in that arena. Unfortunately, this doesn’t stop her from having marital difficulties. When her husband leaves her for another woman, Natalie is devastated. And not only does it destroy her marriage, it takes her career down with it. It’s not exactly what Natalie was planning, but when her father calls to tell her that her mother is slipping further and…
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Review: The Selection by Kiera Cass
The Selection, by Kiera Cass Reviewed by: Lori Twichell Genre: Young Adult Fiction Publisher: HarperTeen Publication Date: April 24, 2012 America Singer is a Five. That means she’s right about in the middle of the caste system for her homeland of Ile’a. Living as a member of the artist caste, she sings to earn money for her family to be able to live. Her greatest hope is to marry a four and move up one caste. Fives never marry up more than that. She understands that and she’s content with the man she loves, Aspen. Unfortunately, he’s a six. So if America were to marry him, she would be…