Hygge Reads

Book Cover ANNOTATION When seven-year-old Elsa's grandmother dies, she soon learns her adventure is just beginning. SUMMARY At school, Elsa is an outcast who is constantly made fun of and bullied by the other children. At home, Elsa lives with her mother and step-father whom she doesn't quite see eye to eye with. Every other weekend, Elsa visits her father and step mother where again, she feels left out. Elsa has two things that make her feel that life is worth living: Harry Potter and her  greatest, most adventurous best friend in the world: her grandmother.  When her grandmother dies, Elsa feels completely lost. That is until she learns that her grandmother had another life that Elsa did not know about.  The fairytales Elsa grew up hearing from her grandmother suddenly seem to become real as Elsa learns more about her life and the life of her grandmother.  Her grandmother prepares letters with clues that she asks Elsa to deliver. This takes Elsa on her...

Book Cover ANNOTATION Vladek share his story of survival during the Holocaust in Poland to his so, Art.  SUMMARY This graphic novel is the biography of Vladek Spiegelman which was written by his son, Art Spiegelman. Art brings the story to life through illustration and metaphors using animals to portray those in the story. Jews are mice, German Nazis are cats, and Poles are pigs.  There are two stories going on at the same time. Present day, which follows the relationship of Vladek with his son, Art. The two are still reeling and trying to recover from the suicide of Anna, Vladek's wife and Art's mother. They are trying to figure out how it has affected their own relationship. The Holocaust and the Nazi Germany occupation of Poland. The story begins when Vladek was a young man before the war began. Vladek and Anja (Anna) were young Jews living in Poland. He was a poor man living alone, and she came from a rich Jewish family. When they married Anja'...

Book Cover ANNOTATION Jane, a poor, neglected girl, is thrust into a world of wealth and dark secrets.  SUMMARY Jane Eyre is an orphan who lives with her abusive aunt, Mrs. Reed, and her cruel cousins Eliza, Georgiana, and John. She is eventually sent to a poor girls boarding school where many of the teachers and the headmaster are just and brutal as Mrs. Reed. It is here that Jane makes her first friend, Helen Burns, and is love by Miss Temple, the only kind teacher at the school. It is here that Jane comes to love learning and excels in her talent of drawing.  Due to the neglect and dirtiness of the school the girls are struck with a severe illness which results in Helen's death. Jane is devastated by this loss. Jane becomes a teacher at the school, but decides to leave to be a governess for a Mr. Rochester at Thornfield Hall. She is to teach and mentor his daughter, Adele. Mysterious events keep occurring in the manor such as ghostly laughs and a mysterious...

Book Cover ANNOTATION Paul struggles to survive and describe the horrors of a war he doesn't understand.  SUMMARY Paul is a young twenty-year old who has been sent to the front lines of the German army in WW I. The story is told through is perspective. He and his friends enlisted at the age of eighteen with excitement and enthusiasm. They are put through cruel and brutal training where they are oppressed and bullied by Corporal Himmelstoss. After several weeks they are sent to the front lines. They are quickly introduced to the horrors of the war when they are bombarded as they come to the trenches. They watch as many of their comrades fall and are killed in horrific ways. The trench battles are grinding and humanity is something of the past causes many of the soldiers to go made. Food is scarce, hunger is commonplace, and death is a constant companion. Even with all of this Paul and his comrades/friends find ways to keep their humanity through humor and the simple com...

BIBLIOGRAPHIC INFORMATION Dickens, C. (2016). A christmas carol. Cape Cod, MA/USA. Paraclete Press. PAGES 125 PURCHASING OPTIONS Barnes&Noble Paperback $5.99 Amazon.com Kindle $.99 Paperback $6.29 ANNOTATION The heartless Ebenezer Scrooge is about to get a second chance and learn life's meaning. SUMMARY A Christmas Carol tells of a cruel and selfish man named Ebenezer Scrooge. He has cut off every relationship he has had and focuses completely on his business. He is prideful, compassionless, and seeks only after wealth. Even though he has a successful business, he hoards his money, hardly spending any on himself. He blames the poor and needy for their misfortune believing that it would be better for them to die. As Scrooge settles into his empty, dark, and cold home on Christmas Eve, he is given the gift of a lifetime; a second chance at life. He is visited by the spirit of his deceased business partner, Jacob T. Marley, who warns him of the ...

BIBLIOGRAPHIC INFORMATION Sanderson, B. (2013). Steelheart . New York, NY/USA. Delacorte Press. PAGES 386 PURCHASING OPTIONS Barnes&Noble BN Exclusive $17.09 Hardcover $18.77 Paperback $9.99 NOOK $7.99 Audiobook $9.99 Amazon.com Kindle $1.99 Hardcover $11.47 Paperback $9.99 Audio CD $9.99 ANNOTATION David wants revenge on Steelheart, and he holds the only clue to his weakness. SUMMARY The day Calamity appeared in the sky the world changed forever. Normal humans began exhibiting extraordinary powers. David, an eight year old boy, witnesses the murder of his father and many others at the hand of Steelheart, an epic with seemingly invincible powers. He makes Chicago his kingdom, and other epics make other cities their personal kingdoms. A few years later and the governments of the world are all but collapsed and anarchy reigns. There are no good epics, and Steelheart is one of the worst.  David is the only survivor of that first mas...