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Infinite Country by Patricia Engel | Thoughts

   Published : 2021   ||    Format : print   ||    Location : Colombia ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆ ☆   What was it about the country that kept everyone hostage to its fantasy? The previous month, on its own soil, an American man went to his job at a plant and gunned down fourteen coworkers, and last spring alone there were four different school shootings. A nation at war with itself, yet people still spoke of it as some kind of paradise.. Thoughts : Infinite Country follows two characters - young Talia, who at the beginning of this book, escapes a girl’s reform school in North Colombia so that she can make her previously booked flight to the US. Before she can do that, she needs to travel many miles to reach her father and get her ticket to the rest of her family. As we follow Talia’s treacherous journey south, we learn about how she ended up in the reform school in the first place and why half her family resides in the US. Infinite Country tells the story of her family through the other protagonist, El

Breezing through with some quick reviews (Kira-Kira, Coraline, Wherever Nina Lies)


In April, I started squeezing in some short reads or books worthy of being branded guilt-pleasure by the likes of me who see mainly huge or deep tomes on my nightstand every day. I often feel a craving for something light, but I rarely give in to it because, I would already have about 10+ books on my to-read-next list. I quite enjoyed this branching out, besides it did put me sooner on track for the next big book! But since they are mostly light reads, I figured a quick short review would suffice.

Kira-Kira by Cynthia Kadohata  (WOW!): I first heard of this book on Candace's Beth Fish Reads. I already loved the sound of this book when I saw it a few days later at my library. And I think it's highly unfair of me to write a mini review for this one, since I absolutely LOVED this book. The main character, Katie, is probably one of my favorites among young bookish characters. Her innocence is so characteristic of children her age, which essentially means that for grownups like me, she is too funny without even trying. You know how that goes? A kid comes and asks this seemingly challenging question about monsters because the kid really wants to know the answer, and all we can do is try not to laugh because we haven't heard something funnier in our life! That said, Kira-Kira is not a funny book, nor is it meant to be. Katie is finding her life slipping away - her sister, Lynn, is very sick. Her parents are trying to do everything for Lynn and working harder and longer to pay the medical bills, leaving Katie feel uncared for. She also has a younger brother who has to be looked after. But, she doesn't have a selfish bone in her body and wants to do all she can to help Lynn recover soon.

Kira-Kira (which means glittering in Japanese) spans a few years in little Katie's life, showing her troubles and challenges. Moreover, Katie's family is of Japanese descent. And in post-WW2, that means being at the very bottom of the social ladder. The Japanese families mostly stick among themselves, but we still see a lot of prejudice through Katie's eyes. Even though I mentioned earlier how much I laughed, her innocence is such that I felt truly indignant, helpless and angry at all the bad stuff this girl had to see. I loved this book a lot and although I'm not dedicating a full review to this book, I hope you'll all pick it up.

Kira-Kira won the Newbery medal in 2005.


Coraline by Neil Gaiman: I've never read a Neil Gaiman book before this, though I'd had plenty of opportunity for it. I picked a couple of his books from the library a few weeks back and this was the first one I decided to read. Possibly because it's reeeaally small? Which it is, and it reads real fast too. Coraline finds a locked door in her new home which leads to nowhere. There's just a blank wall behind it. But one day when her parents were away, she opened the door and what do you know, there's a whole passageway behind. So off she goes and discovers that the place looks just like her real home and that there are people there. People who are not really people but people-like people with button eyes. They also happen to have the same appearance as her mother, her father and her neighbors. There is even a talking cat that looks just like the cat back in the real world. She calls them other people (other-mother, other-father, etc). When she comes back to the real world, her parents are gone and she knows that the other people in the other world have hidden her real parents.

Coraline was a cute read and I know why Neil Gaiman's books sell. He writes about a magical world in a very intriguing way. There is some darkness but there is some innocence too. But, it didn't really hold my attention much - I guess because I always knew it was going to be a happy ending and the magical world didn't attract me much. Still, I do plan to read on more of Gaiman's works, because I quite enjoyed his witty writing.


Wherever Nina Lies by Lynn Weingarten: I had read some good reviews about this one, and since I had a copy of it on my shelf and was looking for a light read, I thought this was perfect! Ellie's sister, Nina, has been missing for two years. Nina just didn't come home one day. In the present day, Ellie is hanging out with her best friend when she comes across a giveaway box in which there's a picture that's clearly drawn by Nina. In this picture, there's a clue hidden, and from there, Ellie starts an adventure to look for her sister. At the very start, she is accompanied by a guy she met at a party and along the way, she meets some really quirky characters.

Wherever Nina Lies was a fun light read, but it didn't hook my interest much. I probably was looking at it through grown-up lens, but no matter how much I willingly suspended my belief, there was a lot that seemed improbable to me. I'm sure that my teen-self would have enjoyed this. There are some classic teen-favored elements (without being stereotypical) in here - a strong teen girl character, some nice romance, an adventure road trip, a mystery to spur the storyline, and this handsome mysterious guy. I did like the way the mystery played out and I liked the characters in it, especially the guy who works with Ellie at the coffee shop. But it felt a little too sappy for me.

Comments

Great reviews!  You need to watch the movie version of Coraline.  They changed some things, but the movie is still great.
hcmurdoch said…
 I've added Kira-Kira to my list, it just sounds so good!
Bailey (Window Seat Reader) said…
It has been a couple of years, but I read Kira-Kira and really enjoyed it too.  I know what you mean about Katie's character  being funny without actually trying, but you are right when saying it isn't a funny book by any means.  Anyway, good mini review! 
Your comment on the u\young character in Kira-Kira reminded me of Turtle in Barbara Kingsolver's novels. Turtle is not so innocent and hardly speaks but somehow she had the same effect as Katie had on you.
Juju at Tales of Whimsy.com said…
 I've been meaning to try Coraline. Great reviews.
Lena said…
What interesting choices. Kira-Kira sounds like an intriguing book. I would buy it. The cover design is nicely done, engaging and interesting. I have never read any of the three books. But Kira-Kira appeals to me the most. Thanks for the quick book reviews.  Your blog is nice as well.
Misha said…
 I bought Wherever Nina Lies a year ago and still haven't read it! Your review made me think that even I might view this book through a grown-up perspective, so I might not enjoy it so much either.
I haven't tried a Neil Gaiman book before. Coraline doesn't seem like the best book to start with - I think The Graveyard book by the author sounds more interesting.
ashbrux said…
 I have two of Neil Gaiman's books but haven't gotten to them yet. I'd really like to read Coraline but since I've seen the movie several times I keep putting it off. Have you seen the movie?
softdrink said…
 I'm a big Gaiman fan, although I haven't read everything he's written. The Graveyard Book is fun, but my favorite is American Gods. It tends to be a love it or hate it book, though.
Athira / Aths said…
I plan to check out the movie soon! Thanks for recommending!
Athira / Aths said…
It is! It's amazing!
Athira / Aths said…
 Thanks! I'm glad that I got that right. I was initially writing about how funny it was, and then I thought - this isn't right, it's not supposed to be funny in a funny way.
Athira / Aths said…
Omg.. now I need to check that book. That's just what I meant about Katie - funny in an innocent way, but also still a child in a cruel world.
Athira / Aths said…
 Kira-Kira is amazing. I hope you get to read it and I would love to hear your thoughts!
Athira / Aths said…
Coraline sure was the wrong book to start with. I'm hoping still to pick another Gaiman book before the year is out.
Athira / Aths said…
Nope. But I hope to. Many have been recommending it. It's the animated one, right?
Athira / Aths said…
I can't wait to read America Gods! My brother has been sleeping, eating, bathing, dancing with the book for a while and now I can't wait to see what he's talking about.
Athira / Aths said…
Aww... Thank you so much, Lena! ((HUGS))