Books for November

City of Fire by Lawrence Yep

Review

In this exciting alternate reality adventure, all the things humans have ever believed in, from Griffins to Pele, Hawaiian goddess of volcanoes, are real. And very much wrapped up in the world's politics. When a black dragons breaks into a museum exhibit with the aim of stealing an ancient artifact, Scirye's sister is killed in the fighting. Also killed is the mysterious protector of two young boys, a man named Primo, crushed while trying to protect his charges. An unlikely alliance takes place between Scirye, the two boys, Leech and Koko (who is not what he appears to be), and a dragon assassin sent to kill Leech, the reincarnated spirit of a man who killed a dragon prince. As they attempt to stop the thief, they find he has allies in high places, and the group makes their way to a new Hawaiian island that is under construction by a very rich, very evil man named Mr Roland (his first name is not discussed). In an epic battle, they storm Roland's mansion along with some new-found allies, but cannot stop him from escaping the island. How will they stop Roland, and why does he want the artifact to begin with?

Early Explorers of North America by C. Keith Wilbur

Review

In this fascinating history of the early efforts to explore and colonize North and South America (funnily enough, the book does include the Spanish inquisition of South America, even though the title specifies North America), from the vikings to the Jamestown colony, you will learn all about the early explorers and their adventures. The book starts with a look at the culture of the Native Americans, and then moves into the early explorations and colonization efforts by the vikings. After that, a big leap forward is taken to later European exploration, when the French, the Dutch and the English sought to take North America, and the Spanish cut a bloody path through South America, in search of gold and power. The book then follows the adventures of individual explorers, from Sir Francis Drake to Jacques Cartier. It finishes with the first colonies, and Jamestown is the last one in the book. I really enjoyed this look at early American exploration.

-- JackW - 11 Nov 2009