Dragonbreath: Attack of the Ninja Frogs Review

Dragonbreath: Attack of the Ninja Frogs by Ursula Vernon

(from the back of the book)
Danny Dragonbreath finds school rather dull. But when ninja frogs try to kidnap the new foreign exchange student and claim she's their rightful ninja queen, things get a bit more interesting. As Danny wisely says, "We have a ninja problem!" Luckily, Danny has seen a whole lot of kung fu movies and is ready for anything. Well, almost.


Like the first Dragonbreath book this one is a mix of novel and graphic novel. The graphics are cute and expressive. You don’t have to read the first one but there are references to the first book in this one that are more fun if you know what they mean. I also like the continuity between this one and the first one. Not just the same characters but that both start with Danny’s fantasy, that there is a magic bus system that goes anywhere you need it to go (even mythical Japan), and that Danny has a relative for every occasion. The banter between Danny and his friend Wendell is fun and there is a lot of humor. This one might be even better than the first one because there is a bit more of a plot and I think there is also more action. And as cool as sea serpents are ninjas and samurai are hard to compete with. Reincarnation is mentioned and that might take some explanation but it is kind of mentioned and put aside so it might pass without notice by the reader. Once again it is a quick, fun, entertaining read and you might just learn a thing or two about ninjas.

The Friday 56, Before Versailles

Rules:
*Grab a book, any book.
*Turn to page 56.
*Find any sentence that grabs you.
*Post it.
*Link it to Freda's Voice.
*Add your (url) post to Linky on Freda’s post

The book this week is Before Versailles by Karleen Koen. It’s a good book. Which makes me wonder why I can’t seem to get anywhere with it. I’m going to finish though. I’m determined.

Guy bowed, and there was a chorus of giggles from the maids of honor, even a low laugh from the dreaded Catherine.

Theme Thursday -- Trees

Theme Thursdays is a fun weekly event that will be open from one Thursday to the next. Hosted by Reading Between Pages.

Anyone can participate in it.
The rules are simple:
•A theme will be posted each week (on Thursday’s)
•Select a conversation/snippet/sentence from the current book you are reading
•Mention the author and the title of the book along with your post
•It is important that the theme is conveyed in the sentence (you don’t necessarily need to have the word) Ex: If the theme is KISS; your sentence can have “They kissed so gently” or “Their lips touched each other” or “The smooch was so passionate”

This week’s theme is – TREES (Plants/Greenery)

This week I didn’t have any trouble finding something to fit the theme. The problem was deciding which part to use. It is a long conversation and I couldn’t put the whole thing here so I had to pick just a piece.


“Why one or two? At present, I allow, we must have forests, for the atmosphere. Presently we find a chemical substitute. And then, why any natural trees? I foresee nothing but the art tree all over the earth. In fact, we clean the planet.”

“Do you mean,” put in a man called Gould, “that we are to have no vegetation at all?”

“Exactly. You shave your face: even in the English fashion, you shave him every day. One day we shave the planet.”

“I wonder what the birds will make of it?”

-- That Hideous Strength by C.S. Lewis

Theme Thursday -- Recreation

Theme Thursdays is a fun weekly event that will be open from one Thursday to the next. Hosted by Reading Between Pages.

Anyone can participate in it.
The rules are simple:
•A theme will be posted each week (on Thursday’s)
•Select a conversation/snippet/sentence from the current book you are reading
•Mention the author and the title of the book along with your post
•It is important that the theme is conveyed in the sentence (you don’t necessarily need to have the word) Ex: If the theme is KISS; your sentence can have “They kissed so gently” or “Their lips touched each other” or “The smooch was so passionate”

This week’s theme is – RECREATION (Any spot that you would go for a break – Parks, resorts, even a library)


I had some trouble with this one. I had to browse through a couple of books just to find something I thought might fit. And it is not a perfect fit but I’m going to post it anyway. The guy is in a park. Fenway in Boston to be exact.

Locusts still proclaimed the day to be as it really was; dozing leaves drooped like limp Dali watches; iridescent dragonflies hovered effortlessly in the torpid air; dust kicked up by the kids settled back slowly and directly to its origin.

-- No Place for Gods by Gerald W. Mills

No Place For Gods Review

No Place for Gods by Gerald W. Mills
(Aka Then is the Power)

All technology in Las Vegas has been destroyed and the city is in chaos. The president of the United States is at a loss as to the cause until he is told Russia is responsible and if he does not agree to the annexation America there will be more cities destroyed.

It’s an interesting concept. All of the United States is held hostage by the threat of some unknown, unstoppable power. Mills does a good job of showing the president’s difficult situation as he is under the pressure of a deadline and he must make unpopular decisions and rely on unusual ideas to try to come up with a solution to an impossible problem. There is a real sense of suspense here. There are some interesting characters, some romance, some action, and intrigue which make it a compelling story. It is a very busy plot though. There are a myriad of groups running around here and sometimes it is hard to remember where all the individual characters belong. As everything and everyone starts to come together and names get thrown out I got a little confused about whose side everyone was on. The hero of the piece is not exactly warm but he is likeable enough and you can root for him as tries to do the right thing but still fights for his right to live his own life and to not become a victim of either side. I like the story and enjoyed how most of the plot strings concluded, especially since some of them were unexpected. It is an entertaining read but I think sometimes there was just a little too much going on with too many people involved and it could become muddled.

I want to thank Gerald Mills for providing a free copy for review.

The Friday 56 (August 11th)

Rules:
*Grab a book, any book.
*Turn to page 56.
*Find any sentence that grabs you.
*Post it.
*Link it to Freda's Voice.
*Add your (url) post to Linky on Freda’s post

The book this week is That Hideous Strength by C.S. Lewis. It’s the third in his trilogy. So far I’m left a little underwhelmed. From all I’ve heard about them I expected to be more impressed than I am. And I’m afraid that page 56 is not very interesting.


He was a bustling sort of man who was eating quickly and talking at the same time to his neighbor on the other side.

Theme Thursday -- Pathways

Theme Thursdays is a fun weekly event that will be open from one Thursday to the next. Hosted by Reading Between Pages.

Anyone can participate in it.
The rules are simple:
•A theme will be posted each week (on Thursday’s)
•Select a conversation/snippet/sentence from the current book you are reading
•Mention the author and the title of the book along with your post
•It is important that the theme is conveyed in the sentence (you don’t necessarily need to have the word) Ex: If the theme is KISS; your sentence can have “They kissed so gently” or “Their lips touched each other” or “The smooch was so passionate”

This week’s theme is – PATHWAYS (reference to roads, streets, passages)



As I plodded along the empty, unfenced road which runs across the middle of Worchester Common I tried to dispel my growing sense of malaise by analyzing it.

- Perelandra by C.S. Lewis

WWW Wednesday (August 10th)

To play along just answer the following three (3) questions...
*What are you currently reading?
*What did you recently finish reading?
*What do you think you’ll read next?

Leave a link to your post (or the answers themselves if you do not have a blog) in the comments of Should Be Reading.

What are you currently reading?

Perelandra by C.S. Lewis
Second in a trilogy. And I’m still not sure how I feel about them. Maybe I can figure it out by the third book.

Before Versailles by Karleen Koen
I really like it so far. Unfortunately I started reading it right before I went into one of my moods where I don’t read anything, So I have been reading it for a long time and haven’t gotten very far. Which doesn’t do the book justice.

What did you recently finish reading?

Barlowe’s Guide to Extraterrestrials by Wayne Barlowe
A catalog of various aliens from various books with a picture of what they would look like. Just something fun and light.

What do you think you’ll read next?

Sex on the Moon by Ben Mezrich
I got this book for review so I need to get going on it.

Books I Finished in June and July

Okay, so I’ve been gone for a while. I took an unexpected and unplanned break from things this summer. Not from work. I still had to go to work. But from reading, blogging, writing reviews and just about everything but vegging out on the sofa watching TV and playing with Facebook apps. I’ve starting reading again so I think I am over my funk or whatever it was. I’m going to start my blog back up with a list of books that I finished in June and July. I’m afraid it will be a short list.


The Accidental Werewolf by Dakota Cassidy
I should have known better. I should have known from the title and the cover that this was not my kind of book. It became a sure thing the first time the word yummy was used to describe a guy. It wasn’t a bad book. Just not my thing.

What on Earth Have I Done? By Robert Fulghum
Anecdotal stories. Short little things best read one or two at a time.

The Girl She Used to Be by David Cristofano
I’m not sure what it was about this book that I liked. The main character was a self-pitying type that I usually hate to read about but for some reason she didn’t bother me. A girl hiding from the killers she was a witness against is not a new idea but Cristofano but an interesting turn on it.

Let’s Bring Back by Lesley M.M. Blume
A list of things (words, places, foods, etc.) that have disappeared or gone out of style that the author thinks should be brought back. Some interesting stuff here. Some things I’ve never even heard of before. It’s another book best read a little at a time.

The Zombie Survival Guide by Max Brooks
It’s fun. I like that it makes it all sounds so serious but manages to have a lot of humor too. Besides, it never hurts to be prepared.

Blazin’ Barrels Vol. 2 by Min-Seo Park
It’s a fun silly manga. I think I’ll try to find the rest.

O Pioneers! By Willa Cather
I like the main character which is always a big part of liking the book for me. It spans a lot of time and so skips over chunks of years but you never feel as if you’ve missed anything. You get a nice feel for her struggles, hardships and triumphs.

Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs
Read my review here.

Tarzan and the Lion Man by Edgar Rice Burroughs
This is not one of my favorite Tarzan books. I don’t know if I wasn’t in the right mood for it or if the plot really wasn’t as good as some of the others. But whatever the reason I didn’t enjoy this one as much as I expected to.