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books

You by Charles Benoit

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You probably haven’t read a lot of books lately that have stood out. You probably are sick of vampires, of love, of needing to find yourself, of needing to find the one. You probably think that young adult literature is all the same.

You would be wrong. You wouldn’t have thought to wait for Charles Benoit’s debut release, You. You’ve probably heard or read the rave reviews of this forthcoming title, if not from other bloggers or reviews, but also right from the cover. You’ve probably heard it compared to Chris Crutcher or Robert Cormier or even a modern take on John Knowles’s A Separate Peace. But you probably didn’t realize this is also quite a great readalike for Gail Giles or even Courtney Summers with total guy appeal.

You are Kyle Chase. You have a tough shell, and you’re not very smart, mostly because you don’t care about school. You are best friends with Max, mostly out of desperation. You are excited for the start of your sophomore year of high school, only because it gives you something to do with your time (okay, it’s because you have classes with Ashley, who you think that you might finally have a chance with this year). You’re going to date her, you’re going to be with her, and you know it’s finally your time to “shine.” Oh, and you have this scar on your hand. You got it when you fell across a bus seat and put it through a window. Or so that’s what you tell people.

Then you meet Zack. He walks up to you in the library, where you hide out for a number of your classes. He seems like a cool kid, just transferred from one of the best schools in the area into your school, the one where all the dumb kids go. Things go quick with this friendship, and before you know it, you’re hanging out, and he knows about your crush on Ashley. But when you are invited to a party at his house, you start getting a little bit of a different impression. He read someone’s diary and marred her reputation. She’s crying upstairs. He introduces you to another girl, who begins asking you endless questions about people you go to school with, but you don’t know any of them. The party ends, and it’s not long before Zack’s teaching you how to break into the school and do awful things. You pee in Jake the Jock’s locker. You do it because you can.

Then one of the people the girl at the party mentioned to you finds you at school. She’s cute, but you want Ashley. Then she says something about Zack that you just can’t fathom: he wants to get your weak spot. You don’t believe her. And you’ll regret that.

You moves quickly. Benoit wrote you as an action-packed contemporary tale about you, an outsider. There’s mystery. There’s drama. There’s payback. And there’s you. It’s a story about you.

You are much different than most books on the market, making You a standout title. You earned those accolades from well-known writers, and you are daring, edgy, thought-provoking, and memorable. You will stand out from the crowd as perhaps the best debut this year, tapping into an underserved but eager readership.

You need to read You, and you can do so soon. You will published August 24. Until then, you will just need to make sure you know who you are and who your friends are, or you may find out quite harshly that you’re going to get hurt — and not from hitting a bus window (you wish it were that simple).

Twitter-view & Giveaway

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Welcome to our first Twitter-view. What’s that, you ask? It’s an author interview, done Twitter-style. Our first victim, err, guest is none other than Cybils Award winner Courtney Summers. In addition to her books, Courtney’s a pretty regular blogger on topics relating to teen lit and writing, and this week, she posted a powerful piece about unlikable characters (which, ahem, she knows a bit about writing).

You’ve seen my review of her Some Girls Are, published in January of this year, and you’ll be excited to hear she’s got a third book coming out in December titled Fall for Anything. Want to win a copy? Read to see how you can win your choice of either of her current titles or a preorder of Fall for Anything.

Tell me a bit about your end-of-year title, Fall for Anything. What should we be prepared for?
It’s an exploration of grief. Prepare for a different kind of protagonist and hopefully lots of heartache! And people falling for things.

As a reader, your unflinching details make me uncomfortable. But it doesn’t stop me. I find the honesty refreshing. How do you feel writing them?

Thanks! I feel good writing them. I like to test my limits. I want people to respond to my text, for better and for worse.

Who are your favorite writers / who do you look to for inspiration?

Robert Cormier for his fearlessness. CK Kelly Martin for her realism.

Where do your stories come from? How do you know what you want to tackle?
Usually I start out with a specific scene flashing in my head and build from there. I know what idea to pursue when I feel a “click.”

Do you have a place you go when you’re writing? Mentally or physically is fine.
I work wherever I can. Mostly in my bedroom, sometimes in the kitchen. As long as I have my headphones on, it’s all good.

What are you listening to?
Lady Gaga, of course!

Tell me a bit about the celebration you had when Cracked Up to Be was this year’s Cybils winner.

The day was a blur. I happy-danced around the house, spilled coffee on myself & it didn’t hurt one bit. Well, it hurt later. But that’s ok!

If you were to write a series, how would you make the vampire story different (since, you know, all series books are about vampires)?

It would be called JEBEDIAH & THE VEREVOLVES. A boy named Jebediah. Vampire/werewolf hybrids that must be destroyed. That is all I can say.

I’m an unabashed ice cream addict. What’s your flavor of choice?

Ice cream = beautiful. I love mint chocolate chip or just plain chocolate (with maple syrup on top!).

When you aren’t writing, what are you doing?

Looking for inspiration.

Do you GoogleStalk yourself?
Why? Who have you been talking to? If they said I had a problem they’re lying! Lying! I can stop anytime I want to! I mean–no. Never.


What advice do you have for aspiring writers?
Don’t let anyone talk you out of it.


I know you like to draw. Will you share a drawing?

My latest is a peacock (representing justice) attacking a werewolf (representing all that is wrong with the world).

You’re stuck on a deserted island. What’s the first thing you do?

Cry for many hours and build a sand castle of tears.

What’s the worst thing you ever did as a teenager?

I was the goodiest goodie-goodie that ever gooded a goodie. That sounds so wrong. I MAY have cheated on some tests…

Tell me the wildest thing about you that would be totally embarrassing for others to know. Please.
Next question, please! 😉

Thanks Courtney for visiting and talking to us!

Now on to the goods — want to win one of Courtney’s books? Fill out the form below before July 25. We’ll pick a winner at random, who will get their choice of either winning Cracked Up to Be, Some Girls Are, or a preorder of Fall for Anything.

It’s the midway point: who’re you predicting is Printz-worthy?

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Since the year is now half over, Kim and I thought we’d offer up what we think is Printz-worthy so far this year. For those unfamiliar with the Printz award, it’s the American Library Association’s big award for young adult literature, and a boiled down list of criteria is available right here. We’re going to throw a few titles each at you and our reasons why we think they’ll be contenders. Moreover, we will only mention titles published before today, so no advanced titles are mentioned here.

Please share your comments after our post. We’d love to know your thoughts on our picks or what titles you’ve been thinking are worthy that we may have missed. And make sure you head over to Janssen’s blog, too, as she’ll be posting her Printz predictions today as well.

I have to be honest: not that many titles have screamed “Printz-Worthy” to me so far this year. So, be warned that some of my picks aren’t ones I’ve read yet, but ones I’m going by on author reputation and other reviews alone. In no particular order:

Jandy Nelson’s The Sky is Everywhere is one that I didn’t much care for, but it has a lot of literary merit to it. The story is about loss and about love, and it has a timeless element to it. Yep, I’m putting a debut up for Printz consideration, and it won’t be the only one on my list.

Last year, I think Marcelo in the Real World may have had the Printz stolen from it. This year, I think it might happen for Francisco X. Stork. You can read my review of this one later this week, but I was impressed with the writing and I think, again, we have something timeless here in terms of theme. And the issue of overcoming adversity is one that the committee likes to see if it’s done well and a little differently (and it is here).

Before I Fall by Lauren Oliver has gotten a lot of praise from reviewers, librarians, booksellers, and readers. Again, it wasn’t my favorite, but it was well-written, and it has good appeal: one girl I work with told me she picked it up and read the whole thing in one night because it was so good. The writing is strong, and the story is a twist of a couple familiar literary tropes. I’d be impressed if this debut writer did snag the Printz, but I wouldn’t be surprised if she won’t honored, at least.

The Cardturner by Louis Sacher was a smart little book about Bridge. It was well written and clever, and Sacher’s move from middle grade to young adult novels was pretty successful. He paints a good main character, and I think that the writing is worthy of Printz consideration.

Revolver by Marcus Sedgwick has garnered four starred reviews this year, and it makes me think it might be worth considering (the dark horse, perhaps?). This is an adventure-survival story set in the early 1900s just after the steampunk era that librarians seem obsessed with right now. The writing has been described as gripping and compelling, and the story is one that sounds like it contains elements similar to Adam Rapp’s Punkzilla, which grabbed a Printz honor last year.

Two other titles I thought about included Finnikin of the Rock by Melina Marchetta and Incarceron by Catherine Fisher. The first I eliminated because Marchetta won for Jellicoe Road in 2009 and the second I eliminated since it was first published in 2007. I will also say I won’t be surprised if Will Grayson, Will Grayson gets considered, since John Green is a perennial librarian favorite (even though this is far from his best work and not one I’d think worthy of this honor).

When making my list, I checked out the running list of starred reviews from professional journals, which is worth looking at. I have to be honest: I’m surprised just how many starred books there are this year when quite honestly, very few have been memorable or all that good so far. But I digress.

For a bonus, I thought I’d throw a couple of my favorites I think will be considered heavily for the Cybils — a little less on the literary merit side and a little more on the teen appeal factors than those above. Some Girls Are, Dirty Little Secrets, and Harmonic Feedback all stood out to me this year as strongly written with compelling story lines and wide teen appeal.

The hallmark of the Printz award is literary excellence for teens, regardless of popularity or appeal.  This is what I kept in mind as I began to think about my Printz predictions.  Like Kelly, not all of my picks are books I have read – I’m going by authors whose quality of work I trust and also (but not as heavily) by amount of buzz generated.

Incarceron, by Catherine Fisher
While this was previously published in the UK, the American edition was published in January of this year, making it eligible for the award according to the ALA’s rules.  While I was not a huge fan of the book, I can see it winning the Printz: it’s maturely written, has a unique concept (a living prison), and is very complex.  It’s also hugely long, and judging by last year’s winner, Going Bovine, the longer the better where the Printz is concerned.

Monsters of Men, by Patrick Ness
This is a personal pick for me, very close to my heart. (It also hasn’t officially been published in the US yet, so I’m cheating a little, but it HAS been published in the UK…so it’s only half-cheating).  I loved the first book in Ness’ Chaos Walking trilogy, The Knife of Never Letting Go, and loved the second book, The Ask and the Answer, almost as much.  I’ve yet to delve more than a few pages into the third book, Monsters of Men, because I know that it will be an incredibly tense experience.  These books are not light reading.  The first two books both had fantastic plots and some of the best and most creative writing I’ve read in quite some time.  I’d be ecstatic to see Ness take home the Printz.

Fever Crumb, by Philip Reeve
I haven’t read this one, but it’s gotten rave reviews from four of the major review sources, and I’ve been very impressed with other books by Reeve.  Reeve’s concept for his “Hungry City” chronicles, to which this book is a prequel, is unique, and it is backed up by outstanding writing.  I also have a weakness for strong female protagonists, and this book has been on my to-read list since I discovered it featured one.

The Last Summer of the Death Warriors, by Francisco X. Stork
I’m in the middle of reading this one for our round-robin review (stay tuned!), and while I think the writing is good, the story just does not appeal to me.  Still, the book deals with some heavy themes (death, rape, violence), and for a lot of people, that’s an automatic plus.  While I don’t think the book’s writing is stellar enough to make it award-worthy, I know that Stork’s last book was a critical darling, so it wouldn’t surprise me to see this one win.

I think these picks really show my biases – I read a LOT of science fiction and fantasy and tend to stay away from much realistic YA literature.  Still, I’m always thrilled when a “genre” book garners awards, and I hope the books on this list aren’t overlooked.  A few other books I think might be in the running so far this year but which I did not include on the above list are:

  • A Conspiracy of Kings, Megan Whalen Turner’s newest set in the same world as her Newbery honor book The Thief, which I did not include because I’m not sure if it qualifies as a young adult novel;
  • Nothing, by Janne Teller, which I feel is a shoe-in for the Mildred L. Batchelder award; and
  • Will Grayson, Will Grayson, simply because it’s by John Green, who is a perennial librarian favorite, but an author whose work I have never read (I know, I know), so did not include.

What are your Printz picks so far this year?

Graphic novels, manwha style: The Colors Trilogy

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I purchased the three volume manwha (Korean manga) “The Color Trilogy” by Kim Dong Hwa when ALA had it listed on their initial list of best graphic novels for teens last fall. A few reviews and the super appealing art style on the cover really spoke to me, though I hadn’t really been a graphic novel reader.

I’m quite glad I took the time to read through this series, with its richly layered story.

Ehwa and her mother live in a rural town, where her mother works as a bartender at a tavern. The father had died years ago, so this was the fate of the family: mother worked hard for their money outside the home. We meet Ehwa in The Color of Earth when she is a pre-teen. She’s a definite child, intrigued and naive about the ways of the world and her culture. But as that volume progresses, we see Ehwa learn more about being a woman and the role she will play in the world. We know this will be a true coming-of-age tale from the beginning of the story, as we are introduced to rowdy and raunchy neighborhood boys.

Ehwa, in her interactions with friends and neighbors, begins to suspect that there is a lot involved in the process of becoming a woman. And Kim, in writing and illustrating this complex puzzle, introduces the reader and Ehwa to the symbolic Korean flowers — throughout all three volumes, flowers play an intricate role in romance, in development, and in social norms. It is this that helps cement what could be otherwise lewd or gratuitous aspects of the sexuality in this trilogy as cultural and sensitive.

When we have nearly concluded the first book in the series, we learn that Ehwa has fallen in love (or like, more likely) with two boys: a monk and a scholar at home from school while he nurses a broken arm. Immediately, we know the monk is out of the question, but as a reader, I really fell for him — I wanted Ehwa to pursue that opporunity. And was I lucky since he appears a few more times in the series, but in ways that aren’t necessarily what I had anticipated.

In the second installment in the series, The Color of Water, Ehwa’s mother suggests that maybe the third time is the charm when it comes to finding a life mate. And indeed, a third male comes along — Duksam. He is a field man who will later be reassigned when a trickster tries to buy off Ehwa’s mother in exchange for Ehwa herself. Luckily, Ehwa’s mother will not let this happen, but it will be Duksam who pays a price for it.

Quite honestly, I never felt much connection to Duksam as a reader. I didn’t like him, particularly with the way he is crudely introduced to Ehwa. He’s a bit presumptuous and pushy. But, he is who Ehwa begins to fall for as seasons change.

The Color of Heaven gives a satisfying conclusion to this trilogy and is just as beautifully rendered in both words and images as the prior two volumes. It is here Ehwa will be betrothed and find out the reality of being a woman. She becomes a fully realized member of Korean society, and in addition, we see a satisfying conclusion to the romance that buds between her mother and a traveling painter. Oh, and our monk will reappear, though I was certainly saddened in the end.

The Colors Trilogy is a delicate story, with marvelous art and a satisfying storyline. It is easy to identify with Ehwa and her struggles, and it is certainly not surprising that readers will find one of her potential mates as a better fit than others.

Though the book does contain nudity, sex, and some frank discussions, the sheer literary merit within the story line makes them completely appropriate and well-used for a teen audience. However, this is a series that will require a mature reader to appreciate, and I suspect it may not be an ideal introduction to manwha or a satisfying reader for diehard manga fans. Fans of graphic novels may find this a good read, particularly those who enjoy the heavy hitting literary style.

Art throughout the series is gratifying, though at times it can become confusing to distinguish among the secondary characters. Ehwa is rendered throughout her maturation quite well. In addition, each volume comes with a small concluding chapter with discussion questions, definitions of the elements of graphic novels, and even some explanation of cultural issues. I loved this, as it really helped me ensure I was getting the most out of the story.

Try this series out if you are looking for something new and different, but be particular when recommending it. This could easily become a bore or uninteresting to readers, but those who are willing to be swept up in a lush story will find this a perfect fit.

The Summer of Skinny Dipping by Amanda Howells

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A lot of books and authors get compared to Sarah Dessen, and it’s for good reason: she’s a well-respected author who develops characters with dimension, insight, distinct voices, and she can sweep a reader into her world. She has a bit of a magical touch.

I’m pretty pleased to say that debut author Amanda Howells may have just tread onto this territory, too, with her The Summer of Skinny Dipping. This will have mega Dessen appeal and beyond that comparison, it is a title that will appeal to fans of Sarah Ockler’s Twenty Boy Summer and Jenny Han’s The Summer I Turned Pretty and It’s Not Summer without You. We have the summer romance here, but there’s more depth and weight to the story, making it one that will stand out longer than just the three short months of summer.

Mia and her family are spending the summer with their cousins in Southampton, on the beach. It’s been a few years since Mia’s been there, but in the past, she and her cousin Corinne had been close. When Mia and her family arrive, though, they’re met with snobbery and pretentiousness. Corinne is now too good for Mia, and when Mia’s best friend, Gen, she charms everyone but Mia.

Mia’s worried about the summer now: it would be a show of who can outdo who and who can out drink and out party who. She wasn’t into the scene like Corinne or Gen, both of whom boasted of the best clothes, best friends, and best parties. But when Mia is tricked by them at one of the parties, she falls into the path of Simon, a boy who would help her fully come into herself over the course of the summer.

While this may sound like your typical summer romance, it’s not. There’s depth to the story: Mia struggles to accept who she is and struggles with whether or not she should act a different way to fit into the ideal mold her cousin wants her to be. In the event of each, she does things she might regret, and those things will inevitably come back to hurt her.

And Simon — the geeky guy next door — is the light that helps guide her. There’s a lot of play on The Great Gatsby here, and the use of light in the story is well-woven. He’s a fully-fleshed character, though at times I felt his entire history wasn’t as strong as Mia’s. We know his father is controlling, but some of the events that happened didn’t quite convince me.

At the end of the summer, something awful happens. I won’t spoil it, obviously, but it took me a bit by surprise as a reader. I wasn’t expecting it, and I am not sure how I felt about it. It seemed like a plot device to end the story, but at the same time, it fit the character and was entirely reasonable. I’m going to be thinking this one over for a bit.

My biggest disappointment in the book surfaces from a trend in all of these books: why is it that the guy is always what makes the girl figure out who she is? I’m a fan of a sweet romance story, but I’ve seen over and over that the girl — who was otherwise a strong, smart, and interesting character prior to meeting the boy — always seems to feel better about herself or smarter or stronger after she’s been with this guy. He’s the transforming agent, not her, even though it really could be her as the transforming agent. But rather than attribute her strength to herself, in the end, it always goes back to the guy.

The Summer of Skinny Dipping didn’t leave me wanting more at the end. This is a solid standalone novel that will hook readers any time of year. Hand this one over to your Dessen, Han, and Ockler fans without hesistation — though it’s mostly clean, beware there is drinking and drug use (though Mia is adament in her disapproval of this).

* Review copy picked up at PLA, where I got to meet Amanda Howells.