My Thoughts On "Where the Red Fern Grows"

Source:  Goodreads

Somehow I missed reading Where the Red Fern Grows during my childhood.  I have always heard of it, and I know lots of people, my Dad included, love the movie, yet somehow I missed it.

Where the Red Fern Grows is the story of Billy, a little boy who comes down with a serious case of "puppy love".  He wants puppies, but not just any kind of puppy.  He wants two coon dogs, and it becomes his life's mission to get them.  He breaks his back working for two years until he finally saves the fifty dollars he needs to buy his dogs.  The scene where he first meets Old Dan and Little Ann is one of the sweetest scenes I've ever read in a book.  The love between Billy and his dogs is beautiful.  Where the Red Fern Grows is a story of love, loyalty, friendship, and sacrifice.

I'd recommend this book to anyone.  It's just a good story that kids and adults both will like, so if like me, you missed this one as a child--give it a try.  I don't think you'll be disappointed.

My Thoughts On "Shiloh"

I can't believe it's August!  It seems like yesterday it was January and I was beginning The Cupcakes War Reading Challenge hosted by Brenda at Curling Up With a Good Book.  Now we're 8 months in, and I have read some really great books.  This month's genre is Animal Stories or Autobiographies, and since we read memoirs in a previous month I decided to focus on Animal Stories for this month.  Brenda is doing such a great job with this challenge, and if you have some time you should check out her blog.

Source:  Goodreads

My first animal story comes straight from my daughter's bookshelf.  She actually bought this book a while ago, and I've wanted to read it for a while.  I've read and enjoyed other works by Phyllis Reynolds Naylor, so I had high hopes for this one.  I wasn't disappointed.

In Shiloh, a little boy named Marty comes across a runaway beagle while he's out exploring the hills and woods around his home.  The beagle is very skittish and shy which leads Marty to believe he's been abused. Marty wants to keep him, but discovers that the dog he names Shiloh belongs to the meanest man Marty knows, Judd Travers.  Shiloh is all about Marty's courageous struggle to save the dog he has grown to love.

This was such a sweet story.  It was a quick, enjoyable read, and I really needed it.  Shiloh is something totally different for me, and that's one of the things I liked most about it.  I fell in love with the little beagle along with Marty, and I'd recommend this book to anyone, especially animal lovers.

My Thoughts On "Matched"

Source:  Goodreads

From the cover...

Cassia has always trusted the society's choices. 

And when her best friend appears on the Matching screen, Cassia is certain he is the one...until she sees another face flash for an instant before the screen fades to black. 

Now she is faced with impossible choices:  between Xander and Ky, between the only life she's know and a path no one dares follow...between perfection and passion.

I was talking books with a friend a couple months ago, and she happened to mention the Matched Trilogy by Ally Condie.  A few weeks ago I came across Matched, the first book in the series, in the bookstore and thought I'd get it.  I was reading New York Times Bestsellers in July, and Matched fit the bill.

I have read good and bad reviews for this one.  It seems people either love it or hate it.  I LOVED it!  It reminded me a lot of The Hunger Games, but with less action.  A lot of this story takes place in Cassia's mind through her thoughts and feelings.  I loved that about this book.

I'm looking forward to reading the next book in the series, Crossed.