Boys are Dogs by Leslie Margolis

Youth fiction - 2.5 stars

April's Mother-Daughter Book Club selection was so bubble-gum/pop, I could not give it more than a 2.5. The story of Annabelle, a sixth-grader who comes home from summer camp to find that her mother has moved in with her boyfriend, Ted (or Dweeble), which causes Annabelle to leave her all-girls school and enter the world of the public middle school. She also gets a new puppy, complete with dog training book. Annabelle learns from the book how to talk so a dog will listen, and tries out her new techniques on some of the boys who torment her. She learns that self-confidence is essential when dealing with both. There is a lesson, but this book is in no way deep, and was definitely not my favorite selection.

Maximum Ride by James Patterson

Youth fiction - 3 stars

Our March Mother-Daughter Book Club pick was the first in a series about human genetic experiments trying to discover the secrets of their origins while simultaneously trying to stay alive and out of the lab. Maximum Ride delivers a good story that is definitely for the early teen crowd. It's a light "beach read" kind of book, with little character development, but a lot of action and angst. I enjoyed reading it, as did Megan because of the action, but I don't think I'll go on with the series. I've seen a lot better from James Patterson.

Ape House by Sara Gruen

Fiction - 4 stars

From the author of Water for Elephants, Ape House is the story of a group of bonobos and their caretakers from a language lab at the University of Kansas. After a series of events gives the bonobos a prime time television audience, it is up to a reporter who met the bonobos before the events to uncover a story that will change all lives involved forever. I loved this book! Gruen writes with humor and imagery, and I found myself staying up late to finish the chapter/page/etc. Warning - not for children as the bonobos love of sexual acts is a prominent part of the story.

The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society by Mary Ann Shaffer and Annie Barrows

Historical Fiction - 4.5 stars

When I first began reading this book, I'll admit I was a little skeptical. One reason was the endorsement from Elizabeth Gilbert, author of Eat, Pray, Love on the front cover. I do not think it is a secret that I thought her book was silly, unrelatable, and I didn't care for it. The second reason was that it is written completely in correspondence format - letters and wires mainly. This turned out to be a surprisingly nice change from the traditional novel format. The book itself was a glimpse into a part of history that few people know about, the German occupation of the channel islands off the coast of Britain. This was a fascinating story of a writer, Juliet, who travels to Guernsey and learns the story of a heroic young woman, Elizabeth. The star of the book is the history itself, and I would highly recommend it to anyone who loves to watch a story unfold. The perfect book club book, too!