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books

Protagonists of Color in YA SFF

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One of my goals for this year in my blogging life is to highlight books featuring people of color, especially in science fiction and fantasy. I don’t need to rehash what a problem the whiteness of SFF is for the genre – if you’re reading Stacked, you’re probably aware of it already. I know a lot of our readers are on the lookout for titles with characters that reflect the diverse racial makeup of our world, and I haven’t always been great at mentioning this facet specifically in my past reviews, so I thought it might be helpful if I collected them all in one place here. These are all titles I’ve read since I started blogging. They’re also all titles I recommend (some more highly than others) and I hope if you haven’t already read them, your to be read pile grows a little.

I’ve summarized my reviews in a paragraph or two beneath each title, but if you’d like to read the full reviews, they’re linked as well.

While We Run by Karen Healey
This is the sequel to Healey’s “pre-dystopia” When We Wake, which is also fantastic. While We Run focuses on Abdi, a black teenager from Djibouti who moved to Australia to attend school and got caught up in Tegan’s story. Both he and Tegan begin this story in captivity, but they’re separated both by space and by experience.

From a thematic standpoint, this book rocks it. From a craft standpoint,
it’s terrific as well. Abdi’s narrative is heartbreaking at times. I
feel like sometimes writers of dystopias will have their characters go
through really horrible stuff and then gloss over any sort of lasting
effects it may have. Healey refuses to do this – it’s obvious Abdi is
traumatized by his time in captivity and Healey lets him go through it.
She makes us as readers feel it, too. And of course, the plot, which
features cryonics and lots of government secrets, is exciting and
well-paced, too.

The Summer Prince by Alaya Dawn Johnson
Johnson’s beautiful writing tells the story of June Costa, who lives in a futuristic Brazil in a city called Palmares Tres. It’s a story about art and power and the many ways we love – and destroy – each other. The world-building is fascinating and its cast of characters is entirely people of color. I never reviewed this one in full at Stacked, but we did choose it as our winner for the Cybils last year. Read why here.

Prophecy by Ellen Oh
Kira is a demon fighter, blessed (or cursed) with the ability to see the
demons that have killed humans and overtaken their bodies for their own
evil ends. To everyone else, though, it just seems like Kira is
attacking innocent people, especially since the king, Kira’s uncle, has
commanded her to keep the presence of the demons secret.

The book is set in a version of Korea, which is interesting and makes it
pretty unique in this aspect. Unfortunately, it still seemed a bit too
much like the world of Graceling, a similarity that was enhanced
by the plot parallels (warrior girl with strange eyes and special
abilities must work for her uncle the king). I also felt the writing was a bit young for the intended audience, but that shouldn’t stop readers hungry for high fantasy from enjoying this one, even if it won’t be their favorite.

Vessel by Sarah Beth Durst
Liyana has trained her whole life to be the vessel for her tribe’s
goddess, Bayla. When Liyana dances and a magician speaks the correct
words, Bayla will be called and inhabit Liyana’s body, displacing
Liyana’s soul.
Liyana is prepared to sacrifice herself to save her tribe, but although
the ritual is performed flawlessly, Bayla doesn’t come. Her tribe
decides that Bayla decreed Liyana unworthy of her, and they abandon her
to the desert. Then a young man approaches her, claiming to be the trickster god Korbyn, and they set off on a quest that gives Liyana’s life purpose once more.

It’s clear from the gorgeous cover that Liyana is of Asian ancestry. The desert setting is one of the best parts of this book and is completely realized with beautiful descriptions that never bog down the forward momentum of the story. The magic system and religion are unique, Liyana is a fascinating and complex character, and the story never led me exactly where I expected. This is a well-executed, engrossing novel.

Shadows on the Moon by Zoe Marriott
Fairy tale re-tellings are a dime dozen, but this is a standout in a crowded field. The setting is feudal Japan – if feudal Japan were a place where a young
woman like Suzume, our protagonist, could transform her appearance with
a thought. The book is divided into three parts: the first is violent, where almost all of Suzume’s family is killed on the emperor’s orders, and her mother re-marries a man who will become the story’s evil stepfather. Parts two and three delve into Suzume’s newfound ability as a shadow weaver, which enables her to change her appearance. This ability comes in handy
when she’s on the run from those who mean to do her harm, and it paves the way for her plan for revenge.

There’s so much of interest here that sets it apart from a standard
re-telling. Marriott has created a unique culture in Suzume’s world as
well as that of Otieno, her love interest from Africa. It was lovely to read a story
that was not only NOT set in a Western locale, but that also featured
two non-Western leads.

Rot and Ruin by Jonathan Maberry
Zombies are people, too. Or at least, they were. That’s the lesson Benny Imura learns the first time he goes out zombie
hunting with his older brother Tom. Tom’s a zombie bounty hunter (he
prefers to call himself a “closure specialist”) and has agreed to take
Benny on as an apprentice when Benny’s other attempts at holding down a
job fail. Benny’s just turned fifteen, and in the post-apocalyptic world
he inhabits, where zombies outnumber humans, all fifteen year olds must
work a part-time job or have their rations cut in half. Hunting zombies isn’t all this book is about, though – the real conflict is with other living, non-rotting humans. When Benny’s friend and possible love interest is abducted by a gang of bad guys, Benny and Tom set out to rescue her.

If a zombie book can be fun and terrifying at the same time, this one is it. It’s funny, too, and Benny – whose father was Japanese-American – has a terrific voice. This was another Cybils winner, though it was before my time as a judge.

Tankborn by Karen Sandler
Kayla and Mishalla are GENs, genetically engineered non-humans. Unlike
other people who were born to mothers naturally, Kayla and Mishalla were
gestated in a tank. Not even considered human by the trueborns, GENs are created for a specific Assignment, which they take at age 15 and from then on are treated as slaves. The book alternates between their perspectives, but most attention is given to Kayla, who is pictured on the cover.

Sandler has created a unique society (set on an entirely new planet
called Loka) ruled by a strict caste system: trueborns at the top,
lowborns at the bottom, and GENs beneath even them. The
trueborns themselves are divided into castes. The ideal skin color is
what most would consider medium-brown. The farther away from this color a
person’s skin deviates (darker AND lighter), the lower caste they hold. (Kayla’s skin is light brown and Mishalla’s is pale white,
so even if they were trueborn, they would both be low trueborns.) It’s a
unique take on the caste systems in our own past and present worlds,
and Sandler makes it believable. 

This is a science fiction story for readers who like science fiction. What I mean by that is it
most likely won’t hold the interest of casual science fiction readers.
Sandler’s world-building is complex, involving a string of new
vocabulary, complicated social structures, a completely new religion,
and a giant backstory that unfolds over the course of the book. It’s
necessary for the reader to understand all of this world-building to
comprehend the story, and it’s too easy for casual SF readers to give up
when they stumble across yet another unfamiliar element. Readers who
enjoy SF naturally, though, will relish this aspect.

The Shattering by Karen Healey
Keri’s beloved older brother Jake has just committed suicide. Jake had
always seemed like a happy young man, and the suicide is both unexpected
and traumatizing for Keri and her family. Because of Jake’s suicide,
Keri reconnects with her old friend Janna, whose brother had also
committed suicide some years ago. Only Janna doesn’t believe the deaths were suicides. She introduces Keri
to her friend Sione, whose brother had also committed suicide recently.
Janna and Sione have been researching the suicides that occurred in
their New Zealand town of Summerton, and they determined that there was
one suicide per year, always around the same time. They are also curious
about the fact that Summerton is always prosperous, always sunny at the
turn of the year, and no one ever really seems to leave. Janna believes there is magic at work; the other two aren’t so sure.

The book tells the story from all three characters’ alternating points of view, though only Keri’s is written in first person. Keri and Sione are both non-white: Keri is half-Maori and identifies as such, while Sione is Samoan visiting New Zealand for the summer. The story is mainly a mystery with some fantasy elements, and the ending – the big reveal of the whodunnit and why – was such a punch to my gut in the best possible way. Even after the main thrust of the book has been resolved, Healey has
more to say about life and love and death and grief. It’s moving, and
despite the fantasy elements of the novel, it’s also true.

Bonus Middle Grade: The True Meaning of Smekday by Adam Rex
If you haven’t read this book or listened to it on audio, please do yourself a favor and check it out from your local library as soon as possible. It’s so funny, so poignant, so good. It has an alien race called the Boov and one of them is named J. Lo. It has phrases like “pink squishable gaputty” and funny little drawings throughout. It features a brave black girl named Tip who has a huge sense of humor and an even huger heart. This may the best book about an alien invasion you’ll ever read. (Haven’t actually read any books about an alien invasion? Now is a good time to start.)

Nonfiction on Audio

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It might not seem like it, but I do read adult books occasionally – even adult nonfiction! It’s rare, but when I do read adult nonfiction, I find that I enjoy it a lot on audio. Nonfiction is easy to listen to in pieces without losing the thread of the narrative, making it great for commutes or workouts or cleaning frenzies. Below are a few nonfiction books I’ve listened to in recent years that I’ve enjoyed. Do you find that you enjoy a certain type of book more on audio?

A Short History of Nearly Everything by Bill Bryson
The basic concept of the book is this: Bill Bryson describes how the universe, and everything in it, came to be. This is a pretty tall order, but it’s precisely because he covers so much in so little space that he manages to keep the lay reader (or listener) interested. He covers the big bang, evolution, plate tectonics, ice ages, and volcanoes, among a dozen other subjects. He also talks a lot about the people behind the major discoveries and includes a few funny stories that show just how odd (or just plain human, really) scientists can be. The book is never dry or boring, but it also doesn’t give the reader a full picture on any one subject. It’s a fascinating look at science for non-scientists and would be especially great paired with the the recent tv series Cosmos. Bryson’s narration is fantastic, bringing out the humor in book. The experience is also tailored to the listener, not the reader. By this I mean that whenever the text read “If you’re reading this,” it was changed to “If you’re listening to this.” It’s a nice touch that iced the experience for me.

On Writing by Stephen King
King’s well-known writing memoir is part autobiography, part meditation on the craft. By marrying these two concepts within the book, King makes the act of writing both personal to himself and accessible to his readers. King’s life is interesting but also ordinary in many ways – much like his fiction writing, which usually addresses how ordinary people react to extraordinary events. He narrates the book himself and does a wonderful job. I’ve read a few other books on writing (Bird By Bird, Crafting a Life) and this is by far the best.

When You Are Engulfed in Flames by David Sedaris
Sedaris’ books are (almost) always winners. I first listened to his books while in library school and have been hooked ever since. Sedaris’ essays are funny, often raunchy slice-of-life stories that frequently put me in stitches. Sedaris himself is perfectly suited as the narrator. He relates his stories with a dry, almost deadpan tone, which enhances their humor. I know the veracity of his stories has been called into question, but they’re funny and thematically true even if the events themselves didn’t strictly happen in the way described. This volume is his sixth and may be my favorite.

Lean In by Sheryl Sandberg
I can’t say I thought this was the feminist manifesto of our times, but I’m glad I read it. It’s definitely part of our cultural conversation, which means I can now converse intelligently about it with others. I agree with a lot of the common criticisms. It focuses almost entirely on the white, privileged, middle to upper class experience, and its central premise – that women can and should alter their behavior in order to get ahead or level the playing field – smacks of sexism itself. I particularly disliked the part where she counseled women to refer to us ourselves as “we” rather than “I” so we don’t come across as self-centered when in meetings or negotiations. Um, what? I’ll avoid that suggestion, thanks. She also calls for solidarity among women near the end of the book, seemingly at the expense of honest discussion and criticism. The problem isn’t women disagreeing with each other, the problem is institutional sexism – which also includes institutional racism, heterosexism, and so on. It’s all connected, and by avoiding discussing these connections, Sandberg’s book is only truly helpful to a few.

All that said, I did find parts of this useful or insightful. The one thing that really stuck out to me was how Sandberg encourages girls (and I mean those under 18) to be ambitious. I felt this very personally. I grew up without much ambition, I think. It’s pretty common in my field for the women to say they don’t want to be managers and the men to say that’s their ultimate goal, even while still in library school. This starts from a young age – boys are encouraged to reach for higher and higher goals, while girls are encouraged to hang back, told that ambition makes them unattractive or unlikeable. As a result, I do think it’s helpful for girls and women to be given “permission” in a way to be ambitious, to want more, to be confident they can achieve more, and to go for it completely. After reading this, I’ve found myself being much more open about my own goals (which are ambitious!) and encouraging other women to reach for more as well.

The narration, done by Elisa Donovan, isn’t great. Donovan speaks clearly and carefully, but she overemphasizes a lot of the points, making them come across as great revelations rather than just perfunctory statements. For example, Sandberg writes that women are more successful when their romantic partners are supportive. Well, obviously. This is not new. The way Donovan tells it, though, you’d think she were announcing a miracle.

On Books Changing Titles

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Cover changes can be hit or miss for me. Sometimes, the redesigns are worlds better than the original and other times, the change doesn’t seem to make a lot of sense. That’s why I love thinking about and writing about those changes — who will the new look appeal to? Does it better reflect the story? 

But one thing I can say I almost universally dislike is a title change. 
Titles are a marketing tool in YA. It’s what can grab a reader immediately. If you spend any time looking through author Q&As, you’ll see many of them talk about title changes that happened well before the book went to press. A number of authors have mentioned they’ve never once named a book themselves. 
So when a title changes, it’s most likely because it wasn’t selling well. The change in title, like the change in cover image, is an attempt to grab new reader attention in a way the original concept did not. 
But for anyone who works in a library or who works with readers in a bookstore, classroom, or similar situation, a title change is a big pain in the ass. Did you order the book already? Will readers be asking for one title and then be disappointed when they’re handed a book with a different one? While there are ways to indicate a title change — you see it on the cover itself and in most library catalog systems, there’s a line you can add for it — it’s not a change that’s necessarily beneficial to readers themselves. 
I know sometimes when an older title comes back into print, the title change can spark a new interest (especially with combined with a fresh cover). But over the last couple of years, it seems there have been a number of YA books getting the title change treatment when a book goes from its original hardcover to paperback. It’s getting sort of challenging to keep track of them at this point, especially when those title changes are paired with a cover change. Are you supposed to keep track? I suspect it’s not an issue to double order books, but it’s certainly not going to make confusion less of a problem. 
Here’s a look at some of the recent YA title changes. I’d love to know of others that you have seen or know about, so feel free to let me know in the comments. I’d also be curious what you think of this: pain in the ass or something you’re willing to deal with? Which of these changes do you think benefit readers better? And more, have you seen this happen much in adult fiction? While it’s not an arena I’m as familiar with, I can’t come up with any examples as I’m thinking about it. 
All descriptions are from WorldCat. I’m putting the original title and cover on the left, with the redesign and renamed book on the right.

Better Than Perfect is the renamed Wild Cards by Simone Elkeles. Interesting, this one is going to keep the idea of “Wild Cards” as the series name. 

Derek Fitzpatrick is kicked out of boarding school and must move with his stepmother to her childhood home in Illinois, where he meets Ashtyn Parker, who may be able to achieve her dream with Derek’s help.

Level 2 by Lenore Appelhans has been renamed The Memory of After. The same model who was on the original cover graces the redesign, too. 

Seventeen-year-old Felicia Ward is dead and spending her time in the hive reliving her happy memories–but when Julian, a dark memory from her past, breaks into the hive and demands that she come with him, she discovers that even the afterlife is more complicated and dangerous then she dreamed.

I Am The Weapon by Allen Zadoff is the renamed Boy Nobody in paperback. The cover changed a tiny bit and I actually think it made the retitling more confusing since they’re so similar. 

Teen assassin Boy Nobody is sent on a mission to assassinate the head of a domestic terrorism cell, but his mission turns up more questions about his job than answers.

Ketchup Clouds by Annabel Pitcher will be renamed Yours Truly when it comes out in paperback in October. This one’s keeping the same cover. 

Zoe, a teenager in Bath, England, writes letters to a death-row inmate in Texas, hoping to find comfort in sharing her guilty secret over the death of a friend with someone who can never tell her family.

Christopher Pike’s Witch World was renamed and repackaged as Red Queen. But the “Witch World” phrase sticks around as the title of the series. 

On a high school graduation road trip to Las Vegas, Jessie, still in love with ex-boyfriend Jimmy, discovers that she possesses extraordinary powers and the ability to exist in both the real world and an alternate one.

Here are some backlist books that have gotten ye old title change: 

Nova Ren Suma’s Dani Noir was originally published as a middle grade title and was updated and repackaged/titled as a YA novel, Fade Out.

Imaginative thirteen-year-old Dani feels trapped in her small mountain town with only film noir at the local art theater and her depressed mother for company, but while trying to solve a real mystery she learns much about herself and life.

The Babysitter Murders by Janet Ruth Young was retitled and repackaged as Things I Shouldn’t Think.

Imaginative Massachusetts seventeen-year-old Dani Solomon confesses she has been troubled by thoughts of harming Alex, the little boy she loves to babysit, triggering gossip and a media frenzy that makes “Dani Death” the target of an extremist vigilante group.

Maureen Johnson’s The Bermudez Triangle was rereleased as On The Count of Three. 

The friendship of three high school girls and their relationships with their friends and families are tested when two of them fall in love with each other.

It Happens: Available Today

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My book, It Happens: A Guide to Contemporary Realistic Fiction for the YA Reader, is available today.

You can purchase it through VOYA (with a $10 discount to subscribers), Book Depository (which means free delivery world wide), Barnes & Noble, Amazon, and various indie bookstores.

This week, Jen Robinson reviewed it over at her blog, and what she had to say started my week off on a good note. This is my favorite part:


[W]here It Happens really shines is in Part 2. In this section, Kelly provides fifteen book “annotations” for each of ten separate topics, thus profiling 150 books in detail. Her selections are all relatively current titles (from the past 10 years), and do not include the obvious, huge print run titles, which people already know about. 
Each annotation includes a cover image, a brief summary of the book, a link to the book’s trailer, if available, and a list of “Appeal Factors” (e.g. “female main character”, “moving”, “deafness”, etc.). The appeal factors are very useful (and an index of the factors is available at the end of the book). Kelly goes beyond the genres to get into real specifics, like books set in particular locations, books with people of color or non-traditional families, books about filmmaking or fishing, etc.  
Below that, Kelly also includes a brief section on “Read Alikes” for each book. These Read Alikes were what impressed me the most about It Happens. Rather than just including a list of similar books, Kelly discusses just what it is about this book that might appeal to readers who liked some other title. And then she’ll also discuss other books that might make a good follow-on read, and WHY. These references, these connections between the books, really showcase Kelly’s deep knowledge of the field. 

That was my goal.
In addition to that really thoughtful review, I’m excited to also share an interview I did with Little Willow about the book. I’ve been reading her blog forever — even before Stacked began — so when she approached me, I was more than flattered. She asked me some really great questions, including this:

When you read a book summary, what are the magic words? What immediately makes you think, “I’ve got to read this book!”?

Dark, gritty, and edgy are three words I love. They don’t have to be in relation to realistic fiction. I’ll read most genres, especially when those words are involved.

Other things that grab me: dancing, a midwest setting outside of Chicago, anything feminist or that sounds like it’s going to focus on navigating girlhood.

The words “magical realism” can catch my eye, but I approach those a little more cautiously/critically.

You can read the entire interview here, where I talk about my top 10 favorite books, the “Jessica Darling” series, about my untraditional college education, the time I almost died giving a presentation, and more. 

And if you want to win a copy of It Happens, the amazingly kind and generous Courtney Summers is giving away two (!) copies this weekend. You just have to follow the super simple instructions on Twitter. 

Thank you to everyone who helped make this book happen and to those who have supported it along the way. Thank you to blog readers who made it clear there was an interest and a need for a resource dedicated to contemporary realistic YA fiction. 

I’m going to enjoy an ice cream cone to celebrate today.