Ru Ban Ban itibaren 1275 Bogenšperk, Slovenya
An excellent book investigating the political climate of Kansas, and how it relates to the rest of the country. Frank tries to understand the ingenious way the Republican party has combined the laissez-faire economic interests of the wealthy with the social agenda of poor and middle class conservatives. Frank is an astute observer and provides welcome insight about politics in the US and their lack of an honest dialog on business and the economy, in favor of cultural/social "wedge" issues. (Also see One Market Under God).
*Updated review. DeStefano, L. (2012). Fever: The chemical garden #2. New York, NY: Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers. Genre: Dystopian Fiction, Young Adult Fever, is a continuation of Wither (see my review of Wither here). In this novel, Rhine and Gabriel escape from Vaughn and embark on a journey to find Rowan. The journey is rocky from the very beginning and each new obstacle is like a huge boulder determined to hold them back from achieving their goal. Reaction: Rhine has certainly grown as a person and as a character…and it is evident that DeStefano’s writing has improved also. After reading Wither, I would never have thought Rhine had the strength and depth to accomplish everything she did in this book. She’s not as dependent on others as it seems. Rhine's relationships and interactions with the other characters were noticeably more meaningful in this book too. For me the highlight of this book was Maddie. Maddie is a young child, a brilliant child (possibly with autism) who sees life more clearly than the adults around her do. I hope to see Gabriel, Maddie, and Rowan in book three…I suppose Rhine should be on that list too.