Book cover of Summer of Monsters: The Scandalous Story of Mary Shelley

Book description

Mary's life began in shadow. Unwanted and overlooked, her desire was to make something of her existence. So how would meeting a young poet change her path forever? Scandal. Passion. Desire. Mary's choices were clear - but would she ever be free of her loneliness? Tony Thompson's enthralling novel explores…

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Why read it?

1 author picked Summer of Monsters as one of their favorite books. Why do they recommend it?

Thompson’s novel is another story about strong, intelligent, and powerful women who are manipulated and used by men. There have been numerous retellings of the birth of Mary Shelley’s novel, Frankenstein. The fact that it occurred on a dark and stormy night is literary folklore. However, Thompson’s tale is the first time it has been told for a YA audience and he puts a wicked spin on the well-known origin story. This appealed to me as an English teacher. The characters—Mary, the poet Shelley, Claire Clairmont, and Lord Byron—are given a contemporary vibe. Mary is a lonely and moody…

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Book cover of These Blue Mountains

These Blue Mountains by Sarah Loudin Thomas,

A moving story of love, betrayal, and the enduring power of hope in the face of darkness.

German pianist Hedda Schlagel's world collapsed when her fiancé, Fritz, vanished after being sent to an enemy alien camp in the United States during the Great War. Fifteen years later, in 1932, Hedda…

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