An Indigenous Peoples' History of the United States, by Roxanne Dunbar-Ortiz

     This is an adaptation of a book written for adults, but this version is written for you, the YA crowd! Often times I like the YA version of a book better because it's still chock full of info but with a lot of the added, super specific material taken out. So I get the good stuff without the fluff. Like the filling of the Oreo without the cookies. Or without one cookie maybe...

    Many years ago a writer named Howard Zinn wrote A People's History of the United States. It was a brilliant book that told about major events in U.S. history, but from the perspective of the regular people, like you and my human, and not from the usual perspective of those who benefited from the event in some way. In other words, rather than tell about the March on Washington during the civil rights era from the government's viewpoint, it was told from the viewpoint of people who were actually participants of the march. What readers discovered is that the same story is very different when told from these different perspectives.

    Indigenous Peoples' History by Dunbar-Ortiz tells the story of the United States, but from the viewpoint of Native Americans. Same events that you learn about in school and in textbooks, but from the perspective of those on the receiving end of hundreds of years of broken promises, lies, oppression, violence...it's not a light read, for sure. But an important one. It's important for all of us to get as many perspectives as we can about the things that have - and do - shape our world. The more information we have from different sources and voices, the better we really understand what has or is happening, and we can craft our own opinions about it. 

    This book does not read as fluidly as a Steve Sheinkin book would (perhaps my favorite non-fiction author!). And at times it seems a little textbook-y. But this will give you a perspective on the history of this nation like none other you have ever read. It mostly presents information in a non-biased way, only occasionally slipping into opinion or bias, as far as I could tell. Even though it is a lot of information, and it won't likely read like a fiction book would, I still recommend it to you, and everyone, young and old. We need this information as citizens of this country so that we continue to be an informed nation, and not one that simply believes everything we hear and see as absolute truth. In this increasingly digital age, more and more of what we see and hear is not the truth. It is our responsibility to be informed. This book is an important step in that lifelong process. Read this. 4 paws!

Steelheart, by Brandon Sanderson

     I must apologize - I finished this book a couple of weeks ago but thought I had blogged about it already...see? Even pugs need a vacation once in a while! This is the first book in a series by fantasy and sic fi writer Sanderson, also known for his Alcatraz versus the Evil Librarians series (are there such things as evil librarians...?). I believe there are now 4 books in this Reckoners series, although book 4 may not have been released yet. It seems there is also a movie of Steelheart, although that may not be out yet, either, and I can say with almost certainty that the book is going to be better...isn't it always?

    This was a pretty exciting read, even for a pug like me who doesn't go looking for sci fi and fantasy books on my own. A lot of action, adventure...even humor woven throughout.  Along the lines of Alex Rider or even Percy Jackson only slightly older. Maybe more like Maze Runner. Anyway, again - action, adventure...a page-turner, for sure! Throughout the book I found myself, when I wasn't able to be reading, wondering when I could read more to find out what happened next!

    This is also an OBOB book for this season, and one of the better ones, I think. I will say that for this genre, I liked Arlo Finch in the Valley of Fire a bit better, but Steelheart will not disappoint you, especially of the genres and books mentioned above are anywhere at all in your wheelhouse. 4 paws!

Akata Witch, by Nnedi Orokafor

     Book 1 in the Akata Witch series (or the Nsibidi Scripts Series), another OBOB book for this season, and a book being called "The Nigerian Harry Potter" in some reviews and circles. It goes without saying then that this is a fantasy story, set in Nigeria, Africa, with 12-year-old Sunny being the main protagonist. Born in New York but living back in her family's home of Nigeria, Sunny only wants what young teens want most places - to have friends, do well in school, and in this case not be bullied at school for her appearance (Sunny is albino). But Sunny's grandmother had secrets that no one wants to share with her, and she quickly discovers that those secrets have been passed onto Sunny in the form of magical powers. She becomes one of a group of four teens who are chosen to stop the pending death of the world, one she sees in the vision of a candle flame long before she knows who she truly is.

    In describing the story here the book seems better than I thought it was. I didn't dislike it, and nearer the end of the story I found myself wanting to read more to discover what was happening. But most of the time I found myself wondering why author Orokafor left out certain actions or explanations that help bridge the gap between scenes or actions. In other words, I often found myself filling in weird little gaps in the story while at the same time wondering why such an accomplished author would leave so many little gaps. 

    This book was nominated for the Nebula Award, which is an award for exceptional science fiction and fantasy books, when it was first published in 2011. So people who read a lot of books in these genres thought very highly of this story! I liked that it took place in Nigeria, and that it incorporated so much of Nigerian culture and folklore. For that I am giving it 4 paws! Also because my human asked several of the kids at school what they thought of the book, and most of them gave it enthusiastic thumbs up! But for me, probably 3 paws would have worked. I didn't want to dive right into the second book in the series, and in fact a few times I looked to see how many pages I had left so I could start a new book. Those aren't great signs of a great book. But I'd love to know what you think of it...let me know once you finish it!