Author Archives: Victoria Waddle

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About Victoria Waddle

Victoria Waddle is a Pushcart Prize-nominated writer and has been included in Best Short Stories from The Saturday Evening Post Great American Fiction Contest. Her books include a collection of feminist short fiction, Acts of Contrition, and a chapbook on grief, The Mortality of Dogs and Humans. Her YA novel about a polygamist cult, Keep Sweet, launches in June 2025. Formerly the managing editor of the journal Inlandia: A Literary Journey and a teacher librarian, she contributes to the Southern California News Group column Literary Journeys. She discusses both writing and library book censorship on her Substack, “Be a Cactus.” Join her there for thoughts on defiant readers and writers as well as for weekly library censorship news.

“Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children”

 Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs The weird photographs placed throughout this book drew me in. They are all actual, unretouched photos from private collections. The original premise is also promising. Jacob deeply loves his grandfather, Abe, … Continue reading

Posted in Adventure Stories, Fable/Fairy Tale/Fantasy, Family Problems, Fiction, Supernatural, Young Adult Literature | Leave a comment

Gayle Brandeis, student writers, and Open Mic Night

I loved a couple of things that Gayle Brandeis, our guest author for the student writers’ conference on March 28,  had  to say about being a writer. She spoke about her toddler son, and how motherhood–walking with a child who … Continue reading

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“Cinder”

Cinder by Marissa Meyer  Poor Cinder. Not only is she Cinderella on warp speed—she slaves away as a mechanic for her step-family in a future world that has been through four World Wars—she’s also a cyborg who started out as … Continue reading

Posted in Fable/Fairy Tale/Fantasy, Family Problems, Fiction, Literary Read Alike, Romance, Sci-Fi/Futuristic, Young Adult Literature | Tagged , | Leave a comment

Bluford Series: “No Way Out” and “The Test”

  No Way Out by Peggy Kern Harold is out of shape and self-conscious. When his grandma falls and breaks her legs, Harold knows he needs to help out, but he doesn’t know what he can do. The medical bills … Continue reading

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“The Future of Us”

 The Future of Us by Jay Asher and Carolyn Mackler Guest review by Jenny Thomas, VVHS teacher and soon-to-be teacher librarian! It’s 1996; and less than half of all American high school students have ever used the Internet.  Emma, a … Continue reading

Posted in Environmental Issues, Fable/Fairy Tale/Fantasy, Fiction, Sci-Fi/Futuristic, Young Adult Literature | Tagged | 1 Comment

“Incarceron”

Incarceron by Catherine Fisher Incarceron is a vast prison—a varied landscape, created as an experiment in forever removing dangerous criminals from society, but generously placing them in an alternate world that meets all of their needs. Outside of Incarceron, no … Continue reading

Posted in Fable/Fairy Tale/Fantasy, Family Problems, Fiction, Over 375 pages, Romance, Young Adult Literature | Tagged | Leave a comment

“Delta Girls” and Wednesday’s student writers’ conference

Delta Girls by Gayle Brandeis Novelist Gayle Brandeis and poet Bob Covington will be at COHS on Wednesday after school for our student writers’ conference. The conference is open to anyone between the ages of 13 and 18. We’ll start … Continue reading

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Link to ‘what the Hunger Games movie missed.’

Article on what the Hunger Games movie missed. Still, it was really good! http://popwatch.ew.com/2012/03/24/the-hunger-games-book-movie/ I had fun at our Hunger Games event last week.  A fun way to celebrate the books before the movie. Thanks to those who came! Thanks … Continue reading

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Hunger Games at COHS in The Daily Bulletin

See the article here: Colony High Students are ‘Hungry’ for Reading Although much of the information is wrong–the book is super popular here at COHS and the city library is not working with me on the Hunger Games Event at … Continue reading

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“That Used to Be Us: Part II: The Education Challenge”

Part II: The Education Challenge Teachers who are overwhelmed should try to make time to read, at the very least, this section of the book. The global market and the IT revolution discussed in Part I means big changes for … Continue reading

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