Narration

This was so well done - The Song of Lunch, a short piece streaming from NPR.  Part of its masterpiece modern collection.

Weirdo

I totally get this!  Not incapacitated, but I get completely irritable & twitchy at these kind of noises.  I've been caught not-so-subtly plugging my ears at the dinner table.  I guess its nice to know that I'm not a total weirdo.

Making due

You Know When the Men Are Gone is a collection of short stories that deals with military families.  It's so good!  The author explores the experience of deployed soldiers, families making due living on a military base with family members gone for months at a time, and the drama created by these situations.  I loved the balance of the stories; the tales felt well-rounded.  The author has a good way with words. 6/10.

No banging over the head

Jellicoe Road is one of the best YA books I've read in a long time.  The author has a great ability to write multi-dimensional characters.  She hits some hard topics in really subtle ways.  There's no banging the reader over the head.

The novel follows two sets of teenagers - set a generation apart.  Both stories intertwine round a game the first set creates - a war between the boarding school kids, the townies, and the visiting military academy students. 

The characters deal with some heavy heavy issues, but the book is also full of joy and friendship.  I love a book that makes me laugh and cry.  9/10