Nelli Burk

WINGS TO FLY by Nelli Burk is an entertaining read. It’s well paced and has enough action to hold your interest. I was given a copy by the publisher in exchange for an honest review, so I didn’t know who its target audience was until I started reading, but it seems to be aimed at the middle grade crowd. There’s some kissing, but otherwise no sexual content, and the violence is tame. There’s some death, but it’s not overplayed. The writing style is suitable for a middle grade reader, and the story is easy to follow. My only complaints were the writing was a bit too simplistic for my taste, even for middle grade, and Ms. Burk’s action sequences were poorly described in some places. She seemed to have a problem visualizing what was going on, resulting in actions by her characters that were either unrealistic, or impossible.

Otherwise I enjoyed it. It’s not the best novel of its type I’ve read, but it’s unique enough to keep you wondering what’s going on until close to the ending.… (mehr)

Set on a planet mostly covered by water, 14 year old David is trying to build wings to fly away. Will odd, old paper books and encouragement from Doc be enough to accomplish his goal? Can he complete the wings before the Lizards, men with guns, come in the flying machine to take him away? Will asking many questions make the Lizards come before his 16th birthday like they did with Garry? Only Mac, the parrot, knows what David will find on the purple island about 10 miles away. Does David have the skills to leave and face the challenges beyond the small island that has always been his home?
This book is best for Middle Grade Students and enjoyable for all. It is well written and tells the story from David’s point of view. World building and character development are geared more toward middle grades than young adult. There is a tiny bit of romance and language, though still appropriate for young readers. The ending left some questions, but it completed the main storyline. It was a quick read at about three hours as an adult.
I received an early electronic copy in exchange for an honest review.… (mehr)

Read by myself and my 11 year old daughter, since it is targeting her age group, I will show her review.
This is a sci-fi story about a 14 year old orphan named David, who has been trying to create wings to help him fly away from the island that he has always lived on. He soon finds that there is much more going on with the island and the other orphans than they all realized. This is a creative story with good friendships, bravery, and surprises. It has good descriptive details. I thought it was appropriate for 10 or 11 year old and up. It has minimal swearing and romance. The only negative things for me was that I felt that the ending didn’t wrap everything up as well as I would have liked, but that could very well be because the author is planning a series.… (mehr)