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books

Recent Reads, Twitter-Style

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Yep, it’s my turn for another set of Twitter-style reviews: short, snappy reviews of some of my recent reads.


My Mos

t Exc

ellent Year: A Story of Love, Mary Poppins, and Fenway Park

Stev

e Klu

ger

I’ve bee

n meaning to read this book for ages, and finally purchased it last month. Oh, am I glad I did. In three alte

rnating narratives, the reader meets Tony Conigliaro

(T.C.), a die-hard Red Sox fan w

ho is crushing hard on the hard-to-get Ale; Ale, an ambassador’s

daughter whose real passion is

the stage; and Augie, a recently out of the closet musical theater fanatic who is developi

ng his first crush on a boy. The three come together when they stage a school variety show and become involved in the life of a young deaf boy. As a Massachusetts n

ative, the Brookline and Boston locations fascinated me and the format (a mix of narrative, journa

l entries, IM chats, and posters) pulled me quickly through the text. But it is the heart of this novel that truly grabs the reader. I fell in love with each and every one of these loving, quirky, and charming characters.

Prom and Prejudice
Elizabeth Eulberg
Lizzie Bennet is a scholarship student at Longbourn Academy, an institution where

prom is the social event of the season and wealth and privilege are prized commodities. As she is only at Longbourn because of her music abilities, Lizzie is an outcast, tormented and excluded by all except for her kindhearted roommate, Jane. Jane, who is dating the sensitive Charles Bingley, introduces Lizzie to Charles’ friend Will Darcy, a snobby, self-

righteous student at their brother school, Pemberly. Lizzie and Darcy’s eventual clashes and misunderstandings subsequently follow the plot of Jane Austen’s classic Pride and Prejudice. While this book was, of course, predictable, Eulberg does a wonderful job of modernizing this oft-redone tale. While this is a fairly short book, Lizzie becomes a three dimensional character, and the twists and turns of Lizzie and Darcy’s courtship, though predetermined by Austen’s plot, ring true to the modern time period.


Beautiful Darkness
Kami Garcia & Margaret Stohl
This sequel to Beautiful Creatures, while engrossing, suffers a bit for me under the weight of its mythology. Although Ethan and Lena evaded Lena’s potential fate as a Dark Caster at the end of Beautiful Creatures, Lena is just as confused as ever in Beautiful Darkness, suffering from the weight of her guilt over a loved one’s untimely death and fearing that her seventeenth birthday will now bring the determination of her fate. As Lena begins to avoid Ethan, hanging out instead with the eerie, inscrutable John Breed, Ethan is pulled even deeper into the Caster world beneath the town of Gatlin. Aided by Link, Ridley, and Liv, Marian’s new apprentice, Ethan must figure out how to stop Lena from leaving him–and Gatlin–forever. While the reappearance of old characters was welcome and the new characters were well-integrated into the already established universe, I felt like there was almost too much mythology in this sequel, too many details piled on to one another. Nevertheless, Garci and Stohl excel at both world-building and sensory details, creating a vivid world that leaps from the page.
NurtureShock: New Thinking About Children (audiobook)

Po Bronson & Ashley Merryman
A fascinating compilation of intriguing recent scientific studies of child development that purports to upend tradition thinking about both childhood and parenting. The authors reveal why lying is actually a good thing in children, how praising children can end up backfiring, why parents should speak to their children openly and honestly about race, and what exactly encourages optimal and advanced language development in children. Narrator and co-author Po Bronson has a warm, engaging voice that truly invites the reader in to his fascinating research, and the book itself is quite accessible. While some of the advice that claimed to be revelatory in fact seemed like plain common sense to me, NurtureShock was nevertheless an intriguing read.

Audiosynced: Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson

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My library’s collection of audiobooks for teens and tweens was practically nonexistent before I started working there, and I’ve been building it up slowly over many months.  One title I elected to purchase was Laurie Halse Anderson’s Speak, a novel which really needs no introduction.  I somehow missed out on reading it when I was a teen and it was first published in 1999, and it’s been in the spotlight once again recently, so I figured I should give it a whirl, even though I tend to stay away from contemporary YA.
In short: Melinda Sordino went to a party the summer between 8th and 9th grade.  Things got out of hand and she called the police, who arrived and broke up the party.  As a result, Melinda starts high school as a social pariah.  Her outcast status and unmentioned events that occurred at the party drive Melinda to silence.  Her former friends have ditched her, her grades drop, and she finds herself unable to talk to anyone about what’s happened – or, in most cases, talk at all.
While I think the book itself is a good one, the audio production is flawed.  The narrator speaks in a flat, monotone voice and as a result, it’s difficult to really feel for Melinda, even though what she’s experienced is incredibly traumatic.  Inflection is rare and there’s almost no vocal change between the characters.  I can understand why this choice may have been made: Melinda seems almost shell-shocked by what’s happened to her, and her reaction is to shut down rather than lash out.  It’s still not an effective narrative device for an audiobook.
Another factor that may have contributed to my dislike of the experience is my prior knowledge: I knew the midpoint twist ahead of time and thus was always anticipating when the ball would drop.  There was no mystery or “aha” moment for me. 
I did appreciate how the novel was structured, with a lot of cheeky asides and clever turns of phrase by Melinda (the cheerleaders get a group discount on abortions; her report card indicates an F in socializing and a D- in lunch).  Much of the dialogue is structured differently as well (“Mom: blahblah.  Me: silence”), an effective device for a novel about a girl who refuses to speak.
I think my mistake was listening to this novel on audio instead of reading it in print.  I never really got the impression that Melinda was silent, since I was, in fact, hearing her voice the entire time.  Thus the impact of the whole book was lessened significantly.
I listened to Speak right on the heels of Lauren Oliver’s Before I Fall, an excellent audio production of a different kind of story, but one whose intention was also to bring the reader into the head of the protagonist.  It was much more successful in this regard: I felt deeply for Sam, was completely invested in her situation, and believed wholeheartedly in her transformation.  In Speak, however, I felt more removed from Melinda than I think Halse Anderson intended.  I blame the audio production for this, since the whole point of Speak is that we don’t hear Melinda’s voice until the very end.
Speak is such an important book in the YA canon, and for good reason – it’s written well, is about an important topic, and still makes headlines more than ten years after its publication.  If you haven’t yet read it, it really should be added to your to-read list – but keep it off your to-listen-to one.

Cryer’s Cross by Lisa McMann

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Lisa McMann’s Cryer’s Cross begins with a bang: “Everything changes when Tiffany Quinn disappears.” The reader is immediately plunged into a poor, working-class, small town community where everyone knows each other and just twenty-four students make up Kendall Fletcher’s senior class. Suspicion is immediately raised when new student Jacian Obregon enters the community, as both police and students suspect him of a possible involvement in Tiffany’s death. But life goes on, and both students and adults get back to the business of living, of working the farms for their livelihood, and of returning to school in the desperate hope that they will someday escape their stifling hometown.
Kendall, who loves dance, yearns for a scholarship to Juilliard, while her best friend and kind-of-boyfriend Nico aspires to be a nurse. Yet even beyond finances and opportunity, life is always difficult for Kendall, who struggles with Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder, a condition that she keeps under wraps from everyone but her family members and Nico.
But everything changes when Nico starts acting oddly: spacing out and flaking on Kendall, not at all like his normal, supportive behavior. And then he disappears–just like Tiffany had done months earlier. As the town sends out its second search party and begins imposing strict curfew restrictions on the children and teenagers, Kendall begins an investigation of her own, finally focusing on the desk that both Tiffany and Nico had sat in in their classroom, the desk that now appears to display strange carvings. And that seems to whisper messages of persuasion and comfort when Kendall herself finally sits in the desk.
I read and devoured Lisa McMann’s Wake series last year, and thus was eagerly awaiting Cryer’s Cross. However, while McMann’s trademark build-up of tension was fully evidenced in this book, the plot itself fell flat for me.
McMann does a wonderful job of building suspense through her writing, and her choice of using the present tense to orient the reader right in the moment with Kendall was a fantastic decision. However, I’m not sure if it is because I am so used to reading first person narratives, but the use of third person slightly disoriented me, jarring me a bit and taking me out of the story when I wish I would have been sucked further in. Perhaps this was a calculated choice on McMann’s part, but it did not quite work for me.
Perhaps it was this disconnect that never quite let me into Kendall’s world fully, never fully let me connect with her as a three dimensional character. The book itself felt like a framework, waiting to be filled and shaded in more fully. Similarly, Kendall’s growing relationship with Jacian was rather predictable and sudden, and I just never quite felt the chemistry that I was meant to feel.
I also have mixed feelings at the treatment of Kendall’s Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder in the novel. While McMann does depict Kendall’s routines, compulsions, and the panic she feels when her urges are stifled, I still felt like the disorder was being given short shrift and that the author never quite showed the full effect that OCD had on Kendall’s life. The disorder’s ultimate contribution to the novel’s conclusion was a bit of a stretch, and didn’t quite match up to the way that Kendall had experienced OCD throughout the rest of Cryer’s Cross.
While the evil forces working in this book were ultimately explained, the build-up to this revelation was a tad bit confusing to me. Short, not even one page sections between chapters hinted at the supernatural forces threatening Cryer’s Cross, and although these sections made sense upon the book’s conclusion, I then had to go back to the beginning in order to fully make sense of the clues dropped earlier in the novel. I also found the concept of the desks unconvincing, as well. While I may be reading too much into the plot, but the supernatural twist was a stretch for me.
However, where McMann excels is at creating a fast-paced, page-turning narrative that really does give the reader the creeps. The eerie atmosphere permeates every word of Cryer’s Cross. I read this book in a night, eager to see exactly who kidnapped Nico and if Kendall would figure out how exactly the graffiti had a hand in the disappearances. It was also quite refreshing to see a character embrace parts of her mental illness at the end, realizing that all of her quirks and struggles aren’t world-ending, but actually aided her in parts of her life.
Despite some of the weaknesses, this would be a fantastic book for reluctant readers, as well as fans of the Wake series. Paranormal fans of Becca Fitzpatrick’s Hush, Hush, Jeri Smith-Ready’s Shade, and Kelley Armstrong’s Darkest Powers series may also enjoy this.
Cryer’s Cross will be released on February 8, 2011. Review copy received from publisher.

Life on the Cybils YA Panel

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Last year, I was lucky to be asked to be a part of the second round Cybils YA judging committee — my responsibilities involved reading 7 titles that the first round judges and picking one book of those to be winner. We looked at tons of criteria of the seven books before finally deciding on one title.

This year, I got to experience the Cybils on the opposite side. Rather than reading 7 titles and picking one winner, I had the opportunity to help read through over 180 titles and winnow down the pool to 7 titles to pass on to second round judges.

Being a part of this panel was some of the most fun I’ve had in a long time. It was completely exhausting and at times emotionally draining, but after three months of reading wildly, it all came down to a 4.5 hour discussion the day after Christmas. The day we took that gigantic list and picked the best of the best; these are the books we beg everyone who reads kid lit to read.

To help in making decisions during this single discussion (and trust me when I say we talked about these books WELL beyond one single discussion), we were asked to short list titles that stuck out to us as having high literary merit and high teen appeal — titles worth talking about and digging into. At first, our short lists could be as long as we wanted, but as the month of December moved on, we were charged with narrowing and narrowing further, until each of us brought our “fighting five” to the final discussion. Those were the titles we would be passionately making cases for and defending.

When we came to that final discussion, we had a total of 13 titles among us. So how to decide? In short, it’s part art and part science.

Jackie had a brilliant method for further narrowing this list of 13 down to 7. We were each asked to rank the list of 13 titles and add one wildcard title — this could be something we wanted to bring up for consideration again, even if it hadn’t made anyone’s final five short list. She added each of our ranks up and divided them by the number of readers (each of these titles had at least 6 of the 7 of us reading them) before announcing we had three clear front runners, three clear bottom listers, and a bunch in the middle. We chose to keep the top three titles without questioning or discussion since they came out so much higher than other titles. We did the same with the bottom three titles since they came out markedly lower than those titles in the middle.

And then there were seven titles vying for four spots, and that’s when things got ugly fun.

We talked through each of the titles, one by one, highlighting their strengths and weaknesses. This wasn’t time to simply state whether we liked it or hated it, but rather to talk specific points like character development, plot holes, and even the nitty gritty things that didn’t work (and yes, we got minute on details — at this point, these things mattered since there were so many good books being considered). Interestingly, titles that I found to be on the weaker scale on initial reads became stronger in my mind after talking about them and vice versa. A book that kept a place on my short list throughout the entirety of the reading and discussion period ended up being my bottom lister at the end (and a title that ultimately did not make the cut).

One thing I decided from the beginning was that I would hold my arguing strength toward just a couple of titles that I would be heartbroken about if they didn’t make the short list. Even though I had my “fighting five,” I really only planned to fight hard on two. And I think of the 13 titles, there was only one I would have spent any time arguing against; while I liked it, I had a number of issues with plotting and pacing and ultimately was one of the early cuts. I made my arguments, supported 100% with rational, logical, well-reasoned support (okay, okay – and some straight up words like LOVE may have entered the discussion) and was very excited my top titles, Split, Some Girls Are, and Stolen, ended up on the short list.

To be honest, a couple of the books we chose were titles I never felt anything for. But thanks to the impassioned pleas of the other panelists, I reread the titles with a bit of a different eye and saw exactly what value they would add to the short list. In fact, I reread all but one title on our final short list, taking into account the arguments and discussions brought up in emails we bounced back and forth throughout. I’m also delighted a couple of titles that were initially ranked lower when we began our discussion ended up making the final cut after lengthy discussion of plot and character points. To say I’m thrilled with the range of titles represented would be an understatement. And there are some books — Sorta Like a Rockstar being one — that I would have never picked up without the pushing of other panel members, and I cannot be happier I listened to them.

As for the wildcard titles, I was fine letting mine go. I was happy a couple other panelists read it, even though they weren’t as wild about it as me (actually, I don’t think any of them were, but it didn’t make me love them any less…mostly). There were a number of completely worthy books that many of us added and removed from our short lists multiple times that ultimately didn’t make the cut. I think I’ve said it once or twelve times already, but narrowing 180+ books down to 7? Not easy. It has been painful to keep this list quiet for almost a week.

I couldn’t have asked for more fun people to read, discuss, and argue with. Each had a wicked sense of humor, as you’ll see in the next week — we have a little fun to share with everyone through our blogs about some of the things we learned while reading. Keep your eyes peeled.

Thanks to Amanda, Ami, Cheryl, Jackie, Justina, and Melissa for a fantastic time. Once again, I was blown away with how reading and discussing books with other people changed my reading mindset and made me look at things a little bit differently. And of course, the endless laughs! Every day delivered a little smile to my inbox, be it about a book or something completely unrelated to books and reading.

There is an awesome balance to the list, quite by accident rather than purposefully planned, and we have three books featuring strong male voices (one of the things that makes my librarian heart grow large). I think if there were one word to describe what made each of these stand out for me, it would be voice. Voice even outweighed issues in plot for a couple books — I think the thing I learned most while being on this panel was that voice is my *key* component for a good book.

I’d love to tell you why you should read and promote each and every one of them, but because our panel wrote some excellent rationales for our decisions, I think I’ll let those do the talking. If you haven’t read any of these, get to it. You will not be sorry.

Without further ado, here is our short list, in alphabetical order:

Dirt Road Home by Watt Key
Fast paced, gripping, and heartfelt, Dirt Road Home was the book that we just couldn’t put down. The story follows Hal, who is looking for a clean slate inside the Hellenweiler Boys Home, a juvenile detention facility. What he finds is a jungle where the only rule is for inmates to pick a side in the brewing gang war. When Hal refuses, he becomes a target, which sets off a string of events that makes Hal’s goal of staying on the straight and narrow hard to keep. His earnest voice and straightforward point of view are world weary while still being fresh, and Watt Key has masterfully crafted a book that is not only about second chances, but about staying true to yourself even when you aren’t sure who you are.

Harmonic Feedback by Tara Kelly
One of the issues du jour seems to be main characters on the autism spectrum or those struggling with Asperger’s syndrome. What the panel loved about this book is that Drea is very much a girl any teen can relate to. Yes, she has Asperger’s, but that is not the sum total of her existence. She is also a teenager, a musician, a girl who has moved a lot and has a crotchety old grandmother to live with. All of these things contribute to a personality readers can easily connect with, and Drea’s straightforward way of looking at life is refreshingly honest.

I Now Pronounce You Someone Else by Erin McCahan
Using wit and a whole lot of charm, author Erin McCahan has created a unique coming-of-age story centering on Bronwen, an strong-minded 18-year-old in search of a place to belong. Never having felt connected to her own family, Bronwen finds herself on the verge of getting married, hopeful that a life with Jared will give her the family she’s been looking for her entire life. The complex nature of what marriage means, as well as what ultimately makes a family is addressed in a refreshing and, at times hilarious, way. The humor woven amidst a plot with a very serious topic is what ultimately led the panel to fall in love with Bronwen (a.k.a Phoebe Lilywhite) and her quest to find herself, a real family, and true love.

Scrawl by Mark Shulman
An instantly engaging voice is the first clue that there’s more to this school bully than stealing lunch money. Shulman’s expert structure maintained a delicate balance of tension and humor, while his subtle character development creates entire back stories for secondary characters in a single, artful sentence. Shulman takes a familiar technique with journaling and manages to make it fresh and unique all the way to the brilliant last page. Readers can’t help but cheer for the self-described loser, Tod Munn, as he navigates through expectations, loyalties, and aspirations.

Some Girls Are by Courtney Summers
You haven’t seen mean until you’ve seen the girls in Courtney Summers’s Some Girls Are. Picked for its strong, sparse writing, tight pacing, and gut-wrenching grit, the cast of flawed characters in this noir story will leave you gasping — and maybe hoping for mercy — through each new blow. This one begs the question: can high school kill?

Split by Swati Avasthi
Sixteen-year-old Jace hasn’t seen or spoken to his older brother Christian in five years, ever since Christian broke off all contact with their abusive father and disappeared to another state. Now Jace is the one fleeing home, bruised in both mind and body, seeking refuge with the brother who left him behind. The two scarred brothers–one emotionally closed-off and one barely able to contain the rage that churns within him–struggle to trust each other in an onslaught of painful memories and tense interactions. Jace’s voice is raw and wry and honest, drawing the reader into his pain and his fear: fear for his mother’s safety and for the person he’s afraid of becoming. Like Jace’s father, this powerful novel pulls no punches. Our panel was collectively wowed by its candor, its nuanced characters, its gut-twisting emotional impact, and its strong, authentic narrative voice.

Stolen by Lucy Christopher
Stolen is a haunting novel that explores the fine line between love, lust, and obsession and a book that generated intense, impassioned debate among the panelists. Sixteen year-old Gemma is kidnapped from the airport by Ty, a man who has been fixated on her for years. Written as a letter to her captor, Gemma begins to uncover her true feelings about what happened — feelings she hasn’t even wanted to admit to herself and feelings even the reader will question. What really happened between Ty and Gemma in the desert? Psychologically thrilling and twisted, Stolen is a breathtaking masterpiece.

What I’m Reading Now, Twitter-Style

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Welcome to another edition of reviews Twitter-style: a brief description of my current reads in 140 characters or less (sometimes I fudge a few characters, but you can forgive me).

Print Books

StarCrossed
Elizabeth Bunce

By the author of the first Morris winner, so I’m giving this one a shot, even though I didn’t really care for her first book. Magic, complex world-building, and a plucky heroine.

Half the Sky: Turning Oppression Into Opportunity for Women Worldwide
Nicholas D. Kristof and Sheryl WuDunn

Depressing but also eye-opening account of women in the poorest areas and worst situations. I look forward most to the sections on how people like us can help.

Fables Vol. 14: Witches
Bill Willingham

The latest in Willingham’s comic book series doesn’t disappoint, with a focus on a few of the more interesting characters (the witches). A bit too much exposition, but still satisfying.

Red as Blood, or Tales From the Sisters Grimmer
Tanith Lee

A collection of re-told fairy tales from one of my favorite authors. Edgy but not true horror (so far). The source material is sometimes difficult to determine, but I enjoy seeing how Lee re-works the familiar stories.

Wither
Lauren DeStefano

Another dystopia. Another trilogy. Girls die at 20, boys at 25. Girls sold into marriage and forced to pop out babies. Weak world-building and a too passive heroine weaken the tale, but it will satisfy diehard fans of the genre. 

Audiobooks

Before I Fall
Lauren Oliver

Mean girl dies and re-lives the same day over and over again, a la Groundhog Day minus the comedy. Terrific narrator, excellent writing, I’m actually enjoying a contemporary YA!

The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian
Sherman Alexie

Yes, it really is as good as everyone says. The story – Indian boy leaves reservation to attend a white school – is a bit slight at times, but the narration (by Alexie himself) is wonderful and it’s full of real humor.