Customer Reviews

Notes from a Spinning Planet--Ireland

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Madison Chase spent her first nineteen years of life on a farm so she is naïve about the world. Thus when her Aunt Sid, a reporter investigating Catholic-Protestant peace camps, invites her to tour Ireland with her, she accepts with trepidation that her lack of sophistication will show especially to her worship exciting relative.

On the trek, the godson of her aunt Ryan McIntire accompanies them. Melody is attracted to him from the start especially romanticizing his family's deep involvement with the IRA. However, as Madison places her aunt and Ryan on a pedestal, she begins to see cracks in their armor though her adulation could prove dangerous for one and all when she follows in Sid's footsteps by investigating what happened four years ago when a bomb killed Ryan's dad because someone wants the truth to remain buried.

Fans will believe that they are accompanying Aunt Sid on her trek through Ireland as Melody Carson paints a vivid background that has the senses activated. The story targets a young adult audience, but all readers will appreciate this coming of age story as the young heroine begins to see the flaws in her aunt and Ryan, but humanizing them makes her love for them so much more. The intrigue involving the death of Ryan's dad augments a novel from a spinning planet - Ireland.

Harriet Klausner

Review by Jill Williamson

Farm girl Maddie Chase has never gone anywhere. That's why she jumps at the chance to travel to Ireland with her aunt Sid and Aunt Sid's godson, Ryan. Aunt Sid worked at the peace camps in Ireland back when she was in college and is working on an article about where some of those kids she counseled years ago are today. Ryan's mother--Aunt Sid's best friend--recently passed away. Ryan's father was from Ireland and he's hoping to piece together some clues to his past. Maddie helps her new friend look into the IRA car bomb that killed his dad.

This was a fun book. I liked the idea of traveling to a new place only to find out how truly small our world is. Maddie and Ryan find his distant relatives, and Maddie stumbles onto a secret about Aunt Sid's past. The mystery of it was exciting, the history and current issues with the IRA was fascinating, and the characters were fun. Maddie also comes to discover that sometimes Christians judge people without even realizing that's what they're doing. I highly recommend this book.

Nineteen year old Maddie is traveling to Ireland with her Aunt Sid and Ryan, her aunt's godson. Her aunt is researching the peace camps affected by the Irish conflict with the Protestants and the Catholics. Meanwhile Maddie and Ryan explore the Irish countryside and discover the beautiful country while learning about the people and the culture. While there Ryan discovers his Irish roots and the story about his father and mother. Maddie and him then discover the truth about the IRA bomb that killed his father and what really happened to the man Sid loved.

I have always wanted to visit Ireland. I really want to see the green hills and listen to bagpipes and see the sheep. In fact I've already made plans to go to Ireland for my honeymoon one day. Heh. Reading this book was like taking the trip from my armchair. I learned lots about the culture and the people from reading. Little tidbits like stores not having bottled water or biking tours made the book more authentic like a guidebook. I learned quite a bit from reading this book about the IRA. I always used to get them confused with the IRS. This book made me understand more about what the conflict is going on in that country and how religion is a big factor in the fighting. It was sad to read about all those affected by the fighting. I also appreciated how the situation with drinking was portrayed. I understand how Maddie felt about seeing Ryan and her aunt drinking and being uncomfortable. But I also liked it how Maddie had to struggle with trying to explain why just having one drink is wrong. No one ever forced her to drink a beer, she did it on her own and then found out she didn't like it. I could have told Maddie that Guinness is horrible tasting, exactly how she described it! Drinking is not promoted in this book at all, it just gives a view that maybe as Christians we should find out why we say no to something before condemning others. I really enjoyed reading this book. It definitely makes me want to go to Ireland now more than ever. Teens will really enjoy reading this series.

I picked up this book because of my love of all things Irish. I really appreciate the insider look at traveling the Emerald Isle. It's a light read, perfect for the age it's targeted for. I didn't find the book too suspenseful--it was easy for me to see where it was headed--but it was well written and fun. I had a hard time believing Carlson was not 19; she nailed the young person's thoughts and mannerisms, I thought.

One thing that got old as I was reading was Maddie's annoyance with people drinking Guinness in Irish pubs. The lesson was, I think, that it's not a bad thing if not done in excess. But I got the point after the first couple of pubs. It got old after that. Also, I would have liked more exploration into the Catholic-Protestant conflict, but then again, this is a book for kids, so the light touch on that was probably enough.

Still, it's a good book for young people and a good look for anyone who wants to have a glimpse at Ireland today.

Cindy Thomson, author of Brigid of Ireland

I really enjoyed this book. Being Irish, I enjoyed the rich descriptions, and could hear the thick Irish accents of the characters. My only disappointment was the ending where the boy and girl didn't have that one special kiss. However, I see where this is a series and I look forward to reading of the next adventure!

After reading this book I actually felt as if I had visited Ireland too! (I even miss Clifton) It was funny, adventurous, and intriguing. I mean, seriously, I had no idea what is going on in Ireland right now and the constant battles between Northern Ireland (English government) and the rest of Ireland. It's sad really, the IRA started out simply fighting for freedom from the British government, but this new generation of the IRA (who now call themselves the RIRA, the Real Irish Republic Army) are just nuts with their car bombs and subway bombings. In my opioion, both sides are missing the point nowdays.
I really love Carlson's books. They have layers. The surface layer is the main idea or event in the story, the second is the complexity of the characters and what's going on with the characters besides the main event, and the third is a tinsy bit of Carlson's own Christian beliefs. Once all those layers are put together, you get a wonderful story and a colorful dash of characters. Maddie's personality was really well developed and I just love hers sense of humor. I'll really miss all the characters and places.....but hey! there's two more books!


Melody Carlson has written over a hundred books for adults, teens, and children. She is the author of The Diary of a Teenage Girl series and countless other books for teens.[...]

Genre: Realistic/Contemporary, Chick Lit
Age Group: YA, ages [...]
Recommend? Yes
Rating: 5/5

Okay, so I will be completely honest, I got this as a library book and I did not see the little taggy thing on the side that said 'Christian' until half way through the book so at first I was a little bit creeped out by this girl who kept saying all these things like I don't do that because I'm Christian. Personally I get mad when people try to push their religion on you but thats okay. Now on with my real review instead of a rant. I loved this book despite what I just said those comments were very limited and I don't really read christian type books but this one was just amazing!! It really gets into the history of Ireland's Catholic/Protestant troubles. It has a few plot twists and some obvious character hook-ups(ish). But I loved this book and I can't wait to read the next two.

Maddie's trip to Ireland with her aunt was a fun read and a mini-history lesson. I always knew Ireland had a rich history and without being dull, Maddie and the characters bring it to life

This book is somewhat poorly written, with nearly every line of dialogue containing the word "cool." But the worst part is that it is a Christian book that hides this fact by not mentioning it anywhere in the book description. If you're not interested in a thinly-disguised book of proselytizing, stay away from this book!