Adrienne KisnerBesprekingen

How is it that I have never heard of the Mock Trial Competition! We don't have it in NZ but I am still amazed that I knew nothing about this incredibly cool activity. When I was at school I would have lived and breathed a club like this. I have even mentioned it to a teacher at the school I work at and we are contemplating how we can make this happen. Mock Trial fan-girling aside.

I loved this book. It has a large eclectic cast of women and in my opinion the author struck a perfect balance between the wonderful voices. I laughed a lot during the knitting political activist group scenes. I mean seriously, knitting female genitalia and mailing them to people who express views that stop equality and inclusion in our society. Gold! Absolute gold! I read a lot about how needle activists have been around for a long time. Again, another very cool thing to learn more about. I might have to dust off my grandmother's knitting needles! Knitting activist fan-girling aside.

I totally recommend this quirky book with it's angry but endearing cast of women to anyone who loves reading books about female empowerment and love. The dialogue is quick and witty and I loved the feminist and LGBTQIA issues the book tackles with a strong clear voice.

Well written although the sub plot involving the judge fell flat. Was the end result his revenge against their protesting? Left me wondering...

I loved the idea of a knitting club where the girls can knit out their frustrations along with fighting for what they believe in. The mock trial storyline was a great way to promote girl power and standing up for what you believe in.

Where to begin? There’s nothing I hate more than disliking a book that has so much potential, but oh well. This book was so so so basic. I like the message of the book and the themes of feminism, but that alone can’t make a book good. There needs to be more to a book than just its themes and messages. The characters were never really fleshed out they all felt like background characters except for the main two POVs and their characters just seems so interchangeable, that having them both felt unnecessary. Hence why I couldn’t connect with any of the characters. There was nothing special about the writing. And the plot left a lot to be desired. So while the book had a good message and themes of feminism that was not enough to save the book from being a simply uninteresting read.

Raina's senior year has shaped up quite perfectly. She has a handsome boyfriend of 5 years, Brandon, she is the president of the Drama Club, and all of her college applications have been submitted. That is until, Brandon suddenly breaks up with her. Raina is left reeling trying to make sense of it all. She tries to take up knitting, but when she finds her local yarn store (LYS) has been radicalized she wonders if knitting is for her.
Millie eats, lives, and breaths Mock Trial. She too is left lethargic when she is unceremoniously dumped by her love, the Mock Trial team. A chance conversation with Raina has convinced Millie to start an all-girl Mock Trial team, but will they have what it takes to beat the all-boy team and make it to Nationals?
Kisner has written a book that I wish was around when I was a teenager; a book full of strong, yet realistically human young women. This book breaks down stereotypes of high school girls and replaces it with intelligent and critically thinking young women. I look forward to recommending this book to teens - and adults - and hope it inspires them to forge their own path.

i loved this. from beginning to end, it's engaging, funny, poignant, feminist. it's near perfect.

the framing of each chapter with the court cases was fun, and a nice way to let us know whose perspective the chapter was focusing on. (i did have a little trouble keeping track of who was talking a little, but that might have been audio-specific, or my own issue.) this whole book made me wish i'd done mock trial in high school. what fun.

raina learns about herself and discovers who she wants to be and who she is, how certain things (and people) have been holding her back. she gets to explore new ways to express herself and figure out what really motivates her. millie has to evaluate her self-view as a team player and realize that sometimes she has to do things for herself - and/or because it's the right thing to do - too. each of these characters grows and changes and learns about herself and the world around her. all with a call for caring about local elections in addition to national elections, and how much of a difference they make for people in your community. it's a super queer book with both good and incidental representation, which i wasn't expecting and is always such a nice surprise. i also loved the burgeoning feminism in the characters and the town's knit shop that helps bring people together over these issues. so good.

i do wish that at the end, especially in her second to last chapter whose chapter heading indicates this will happen, that millie really confronted her dad about his treatment of her. i'm glad she realized that she deserved better, and even that her mom left because he apparently wanted more of a servant than a partner, but she never told him how she felt. at least not that we got to see. she never got to say that she felt unseen as a person and only appreciated as someone to work for him but that he never did anything for her. we also never got to see that she better understood her mother. we did hear that she overheard their fighting, and it would have been good if she'd heard her mother complain about some of the same things that bothered her about her dad, and that this helped bring them together a bit by the end. that would have been nice, i think. that's basically my only complaint about this book.

excellent book, i loved it.

I received a copy of this title from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

“I could live my life by those words. Put them on my tombstone. ‘Here lies Brynn. At least she tried.’” Brynn wrote to Rachel Maddow for an assignment, but as the worst year of her life continues, even with a crush on the new girl, so do her unsent emails.

I really enjoyed this book. I loved the main characters voice, and it made me laugh several times. However, I wished the other kids in the blue room had been more fleshed out. Overall, I would recommend it.

This is a super cute book. Brynn writes an email to Rachel Maddow for a school project and then continues to write to Rachel without actually sending the emails off. Her emails are like journal entries which take you through the ups and downs of her teenage life.½

Laurel saw her grandmother on the side of the slick road and didn't force her to come home. Soon after Gran is hit by a car. Hanging on to life in the hospital, Laurel thinks the strange bird they were searching for is Gran's spirit, come to tell her something. Laurel frantically continues to search.

Meanwhile, the nature preserve Laurel works at is being considered for the site of a new school complex. Her activism makes her a persona non grata to many residents of the area who think the project will bring jobs and revitalize the area. But, she wonders what her Gran would do and realizes she'd fight for the preserve.

the only good thing coming out of all this is that her former enemy, Risa, is now becoming more than a friend.

This is the second 'bird' book this summer, after The Meaning of Birds. I wonder whether this is becoming a trend.

The Confusion of Laurel Graham is a nice read.

Brynne's life is unraveling. Her girlfriend, Sarah, broke up with her. Her brother died of an overdose. Her dad abandoned the family and her mother married Fart Weasel. As a result, she gave up. Her grades dropped and she was relegated to the blue classroom in the basement, a room that didn't even warrant a number.

Her teacher gave the class an assignment to write to a hero. Brynne chose Rachel Maddow. What ensues is a year of emails to Rachel, some sent, some not. It chronicles the ups and downs of Brynne's life, including running for s spot on the Superintendent selection committee and President of Student Government against a sure-fire winner slash slime ball Adam Graff.

Although a novel in emails is not new, Adrienne Kisner puts a nice new touch to it. Dear Racehl Maddow is quite entertaining.½