National Book Award Finalists!

As much as I'd like to announce myself as one of the 2015 National Book Award finalists in the Young People's Literature category, alas, I cannot. But I'm still excited about the fantastic books up for the prize this year! Here's a quick roundup. Click and add to your TBR list:

The Thing About Jellyfish by Ali Benjamin
Little, Brown Books for Young Readers; 352 pp
middle grade contemporary
Goodreads summary:
After her best friend dies in a drowning accident, Suzy is convinced that the true cause of the tragedy was a rare jellyfish sting. Retreating into a silent world of imagination, she crafts a plan to prove her theory--even if it means traveling the globe, alone. Suzy's achingly heartfelt journey explores life, death, the astonishing wonder of the universe...and the potential for love and hope right next door.

Bone Gap by Laura Ruby
Baltzer +  Bray; 268 pp
young adult contemporary
Goodreads summary:
Everyone knows Bone Gap is full of gaps—gaps to trip you up, gaps to slide through so you can disappear forever. So when young, beautiful Roza went missing, the people of Bone Gap weren’t surprised. After all, it wasn’t the first time that someone had slipped away and left Finn and Sean O’Sullivan on their own. Just a few years before, their mother had high-tailed it to Oregon for a brand new guy, a brand new life. That’s just how things go, the people said. Who are you going to blame?

Finn knows that’s not what happened with Roza. He knows she was kidnapped, ripped from the cornfields by a dangerous man whose face he cannot remember. But the searches turned up nothing, and no one believes him anymore. Not even Sean, who has more reason to find Roza than anyone, and every reason to blame Finn for letting her go. 

Challenger Deep by Neal Shusterman
HarperTeen; 320 pp
young adult contemporary
Goodreads summary:
Caden Bosch is on a ship that's headed for the deepest point on Earth: Challenger Deep, the southern part of the Marianas Trench.

Caden Bosch is a brilliant high school student whose friends are starting to notice his odd behavior.

Caden Bosch is designated the ship's artist in residence, to document the journey with images.

Caden Bosch pretends to join the school track team but spends his days walking for miles, absorbed by the thoughts in his head.

Caden Bosch is split between his allegiance to the captain and the allure of mutiny.

Caden Bosch is torn.

Most Dangerous: Daniel Ellsberg and the Secret History of the Vietnam War by Steve Sheinkin
Roaring Brook Press; 384 pp
young adult nonfiction/historical
Goodreads summary:
On June 13, 1971, the front page of the New York Times announced the existence of a 7,000-page collection of documents containing a secret history of the Vietnam War. Known as The Pentagon Papers, these documents had been comissioned by Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara. Chronicling every action the government had taken in the Vietnam War, they revealed a pattern of deception spanning over twenty years and four presidencies, and forever changed the relationship between American citizens and the politicans claiming to represent their interests. 

Nimona by Noelle Stevenson
HarperTeen; 266 pp
young adult fantasy (graphic novel)
Goodreads summary:
Nemeses! Dragons! Science! Symbolism! All these and more await in this brilliantly subversive, sharply irreverent epic from Noelle Stevenson. Featuring an exclusive epilogue not seen in the web comic, along with bonus conceptual sketches and revised pages throughout, this gorgeous full-color graphic novel is perfect for the legions of fans of the web comic and is sure to win Noelle many new ones.

Nimona is an impulsive young shapeshifter with a knack for villainy. Lord Ballister Blackheart is a villain with a vendetta. As sidekick and supervillain, Nimona and Lord Blackheart are about to wreak some serious havoc. Their mission: prove to the kingdom that Sir Ambrosius Goldenloin and his buddies at the Institution of Law Enforcement and Heroics aren't the heroes everyone thinks they are. 


For more information on the award, including the finalists and longlisted titles in other categories, visit the National  Book Awards website here. 

Reading Right Now Wednesday: THE GLASS SENTENCE

Trying out this idea of reporting in on what I'm reading this week. Bit of a disclaimer: I usually post about children's books, but with this particular series, there will be some adult reads thrown in too.

This Week: 

The Glass Sentence

author: S.E. Grove
pub info: Viking Books for Young Readers, 2014; 493 pp
audience: young adult (ages 12+)
genre: fantasy
why I'm reading it: The premise sounded so fantastic, and everyone seems to love it
Goodreads link

Quick summary:
It's a topsy-turvy world when in 1799 the Great Disruption occurs--different parts of the world are suddenly thrust into different time periods. This new world needs someone to map it, and Sophia's uncle is the foremost cartologer in the world. But when he goes missing, it's up to Sophia to find him.

So Far:
I am so completely hooked just by the prologue of this book. This is one that I know will suck me in and let the dinner burn (er ... cook itself?). Great writing and a luscious storyline combine for a book that's impossible to put down. Also: I'm promised pirates! I'm so in!

Fun Fact:
S.E. Grove's sequel, The Golden Specific, was published in July. The series has one more book to go. You can learn more about the author at her website here and in this interview by The Washington Post.

Reading Right Now Wednesday

Trying out this idea of reporting in on what I'm reading this week. Bit of a disclaimer: I usually post about children's books, but with this particular series, there will be some adult reads thrown in too.

This Week: 

The Strangers

author: Jacqueline West
pub info: Dial Books, 2013; 320 pp
audience: middle grade (ages 9+)
genre: fantasy
why I'm reading it: I've read Books #1-#3 in the Books of Elsewhere series, and they're all marvelous; this is Book #4
Goodreads link

Quick summary:
Olive faces new dangers and mysteries as autumn approaches and strangers arrive to the house on Linden Street on Halloween night.

So Far:
Jacqueline West's detailed, delightful writing always keeps me turning pages, and this book is no exception. Although this series encompasses only months, not years, of Olive's life, it's interesting to see how she's changing as she tiptoes toward adolescence. The creeps in this book are pretty scary without causing nightmares. Unless this ends on some kind of weird, wrong note (not the author's style), I'm sure I'll end up loving the finished book as much as I do now, at the beginning.

Fun Fact:
Author Jacqueline West has completed the Books of Elsewhere series (a total of five) and has turned her talents to YA fiction. Her "eerie Shakespearan" novel will be released in April 2016. Entertainment Weekly gives you a peek at the first pages of Dreamers Often Lie here. For an introduction to the Books of Elsewhere, check out the book trailer below.

Review: GOODBYE STRANGER by Rebecca Stead

title & author: Goodbye Stranger by Rebecca Stead
pub info: Wendy Lamb Books, August 2015; 304 pp
audience: middle grade (10+)
genre: MG contemporary
caveats: nothing much, but the themes are definitely middle school to early high school
review excerpt: "Sensitively explores togetherness, aloneness, betrayal and love." --The New York Times Book Review
Goodreads summary:

Bridge is an accident survivor who's wondering why she's still alive. Emily has new curves and an almost-boyfriend who wants a certain kind of picture. Tabitha sees through everybody's games--or so she tells the world. The three girls are best friends with one rule: No fighting. Can it get them through seventh grade?
This year everything is different for Sherm Russo as he gets to know Bridge Barsamian. What does it mean to fall for a girl--as a friend?
On Valentine's Day, an unnamed high school girl struggles with a betrayal. How long can she hide in plain sight?

my thoughts:
Rebecca Stead is one of the few authors whose books I buy on preorder--before they've been reviewed, before I know anything about them, before any hype has time to gather. I've read all four of her novels, and I've rejoiced at seeing her grow and deepen as a writer. Goodbye Stranger combines several standby Stead elements: multiple points of view; a bit of a mystery; the complexity of friendships as children approach all the changes that adolescence brings. One of the wonderful things about this book is that it introduces some mature themes (not sexual, just mature) that readers will discover in YA (ages 12+) fiction, but in a somewhat "safer" environment. Bridge's character, her struggles to keep her old friendships and make new ones, will resonate with middle schoolers, while the unnamed high school girl's issues speak of what may lie ahead in years to come. My favorite part of the book is the relationship between Bridge and Sherm--not really boyfriend/girlfriend, but leaning ever so slowly in that direction. And as always, Stead's writing is crisp, never wordy, and very, very real. A great addition to her canon.

find Rebecca:
Rebecca's website, here, showcases her upcoming events and her three other books--First Light; the Newbery Award winner When You Reach Me; and Liar & Spy. Her blog includes infrequent posts on news and events. She also hangs out on Twitter.

Be sure to visit Shannon Messenger's blog to see more fun links to great middle-grade reads and giveaways!

Reading Right Now Wednesday

Good idea? Bad idea? Post about books I'm reading and what I think of them? Well, I'll give it a try for a while. I'm not the fastest reader on the planet, but I try to spend at least an hour a day doing it, so I do get through a fair number of books in a year. And, as you may be aware, I often give away brand-new copies of my particular faves. Bit of a disclaimer: I usually post about children's books, but with this particular series, there will be some adult reads thrown in too.

This Week: 

The First Fifteen Lives of Harry August

author: Claire North
pub info: Redhook, 2014; 432 pp
audience: adult
genre: time travel / science fiction
why I'm reading it: It's this month's selection for one of my book clubs, though I already had it on my to-read list because it looked so good
Goodreads link

Quick summary:
Harry is cursed (if you like) with a repetitive life--that is, when he dies, he is immediately reborn into exactly the same body at the same time, and his life begins again. Forever. When Harry learns that others like him may be responsible for bringing about the world's end, he decides to act--and that changes everything.

So Far:
So yeah, I'm aware that the premise is very like Life After Life by Kate Atkinson, which is a stunningly great book--probably the best I read last year. The story, though, couldn't be more different. The style is less literary, which I don't mean as a bad thing; the author just takes a very different voice from the Atkinson book. In both novels, the main characters ponder what it means to have foreknowledge of the future, and whether that compels one to "fix" things. This book is a real page turner, with a strong main character and fascinating storyline. I'm loving it.

Fun Fact:
Author Claire North has also written under the name Catherine Webb, which she used when writing YA fiction, as well as Kate Griffin. She wrote her first novel when she was 14, for which I have forgiven her. Pretty much.

Great Upcoming MG Reads

This fall is shaping up to be a fantastic season for MG (middle-grade) novels. In the publishing biz, MG is typically geared to ages 8-12, the upper end leaning toward age 14. It's my favorite audience to write for, and MG books have the greatest heart and variety in all of publishing. These are the ones I'm most looking forward to this week. They're landing on your bookshop's shelves tomorrow! Review quotes come from Kirkus Reviews.

The Blackthorn Key by Kevin Sands
pub info: Aladdin, 384 pp
genre: MG historical thriller/mystery
In 1665 London, a 14-year-old apothecary's apprentice breaks codes and eludes the mysterious Cult of the Archangel to find his master's killer.
"A spectacular debut."

The Entirely True Story of the Unbelievable FIB by Adam Shaughnessy
pub info: Algonquin, 272 pp
genre: MG fantasy / real-world magic
11-year-old Pru joins the Fantasy Investigation Bureau to learn why Norse gods are suddenly appearing in her town.
"[The] puzzles and plot twists will absorb and intrigue younger readers as they consider the book’s central questions about truth, magic, and adventure."

Full Cicada Moon by Marilyn Hilton
pub info: Dial, 400 pp
genre: MG historical
Mimi, a biracial girl, struggles to fit in at her new school in 1969 Vermont.
"Readers will be moved by the empathetic lyricism of Mimi’s maturing voice."

A Nearer Moon by Melanie Crowder
pub info: Atheneum, 160 pp
genre: MG fantasy
Alternating chapters tell the stories of two girls, one human and one a water sprite, and their quest to save their sisters.
"Exquisitely written with words and images that demand savoring."

A Pocket Full of Murder by R.J. Anderson
pub info: Atheneum, 352 pp
genre: MG fantasy mystery
Four sisters living in a Victorianesque fantasy world use magic and investigation to acquit their wrongfully accused father.
"Thoroughly entertaining."

Redeemed by Margaret Peterson Haddix
pub info: Simon & Schuster, 416 pp
genre: MG science fiction
In the eighth and final installment of the wildly popular Missing series, the Skidmore kids travel to the future to try to repair time and save the world.
"A satisfying end to a long-running series."

Seven Dead Pirates by Linda Bailey
pub info: Tundra, 320 pp
genre: MG humorous ghost story
A boy named Lewis discovers his bedroom is haunted by seven pirates who need to find their way home.
"Piratical fun well-stocked with colorful cast members living and arrghh."







Head over to Shannon Messenger's blog for more Marvelous Middle Grade Monday fun!

May Giveaway & More Great Reads

Apologies, blogfrogs, since I could've given these away last month. But as long as you're getting free stuff, who can complain? Here are my latest middle-grade recs from the wealth of great material on my TBR list:

title & author: Horten's Miraculous Mechanisms: Magic, Mystery, and a Very Strange Adventure by Lissa Evans
pub info: Sterling Children's Books, 2012; 272 pp
audience: middle grade (8+)
genre: real-world magic & mystery
caveats: none
Goodreads summary:

As if being small for his age and also having S. Horten as his name isn't bad enough, now 10-year-old Stuart is forced to move far away from all his friends. But on his very first day in his new home, Stuart's swept up in an extraordinary adventure: the quest to find his great-uncle Tony--a famous magician who literally disappeared off the face of the earth--and Tony's marvelous, long-lost workshop.  Along the way, Stuart reluctantly accepts help from the annoying triplets next door… and encounters trouble from another magician who's also desperate to get hold of Tony's treasures.

my thoughts:

I'm hardly going to dislike a book featuring a smart, spunky narrator who, while exploring his new village in England, discovers that his family bears a remarkable secret. I kind of love stories about magicians, and the possibility that they're holding out on us--they know magic really does exist, and yet they're selling us this bill of goods about illusions. Stuart is a likeable character, as is his eventual helpmate, next-door neighbor April. My only complaint is that the book is deceptively short. It looks long, but the chapters are short and the print is large, and suddenly, just as the adventure seems to be taking off in a new direction, the reader stares woefully at the words THE END. However, more is to come in the next installment, so don't despair. Kids who love adventure will enjoy the marvelous writing and story, and they'll continue to nurture the wild hope that even in the most boring of lives, a bit of magic may lurk.

find Lissa:

Lissa has written several books, both for adults and children. The next one in the Stuart Horten series is Horten's Incredible Illusions: Magic, Mystery, and Another Very Strange Adventure (Sterling, 2012). While I'm anxious to get my hands on that one, I'm equally intrigued with Evans's Crooked Heart, a novel for adults about a boy and a woman who team up in a wartime scheme to profit from the London Blitz (I know--wha???). Connect with Lissa via her Twitter account here.

title & author: Iron Hearted Violet by Kelly Barnhill; illus. by Iacopo Bruno

pub info: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers, 2012; 424 pp

audience: middle grade (9+)

genre:  fantasy

caveats: none

Goodreads summary:

Princess Violet is plain, reckless, and quite possibly too clever for her own good. Particularly when it comes to telling stories. One day she and her best friend, Demetrius, stumble upon a hidden room and find a peculiar book. A forbidden book. It tells a story of an evil being—called the Nybbas—imprisoned in their world. The story cannot be true—not really. But then the whispers start. Violet and Demetrius, along with an ancient, scarred dragon, may hold the key to the Nybbas’s triumph . . . or its demise. It all depends on how they tell the story. After all, stories make their own rules.

Iron Hearted Violet is a story of a princess unlike any other. It is a story of the last dragon in existence, deathly afraid of its own reflection. Above all, it is a story about the power of stories, our belief in them, and how one enchanted tale changed the course of an entire kingdom.

my thoughts:

Kelly Barnhill is the marvelous author of The Mostly True Story of Jack, which was one of my favorite books of 2011. In Violet, she brings her spot-on narrative voice to the story of a girl who's not just plain--come on, she's ugly, and everyone knows it. Haunted by the idea that she is not a real princess, Violet pushes the boundaries at every turn and winds up charged with saving her world through a series of events partly of her own making. The character of Violet is so beautifully rendered that the fantasy aspect pales beside her, though the world is stunning and well constructed. If the story went on a little long, I wasn't sorry, to be honest. Gorgeous.

find Kelly:

Kelly's website is here, and you can also find her on Twitter. Her latest novel for middle-grade readers is The Witch's Boy (Algonquin, 2014).

title & author: Splendors & Glooms by Laura Amy Schlitz

pub info: Candlewick Press, 2012; 384 pp

audience: middle grade (10+)

genre:  historical fantasy / supernatural

caveats: better for strong readers (see below)

Goodreads summary:

The master puppeteer Gaspare Grisini is so expert at manipulating his stringed puppets that they appear alive. Clara Wintermute, the only child of a wealthy doctor, is spellbound by Grisini’s act and invites him to entertain at her birthday party. Seeing his chance to make a fortune, Grisini accepts and makes a splendidly gaudy entrance with caravan, puppets, and his two orphaned assistants.

Lizzie Rose and Parsefall are dazzled by the Wintermute home. Clara seems to have everything they lack — adoring parents, warmth, and plenty to eat. In fact, Clara’s life is shadowed by grief, guilt, and secrets. When Clara vanishes that night, suspicion of kidnapping falls upon the puppeteer and, by association, Lizzie Rose and Parsefall. 

As they seek to puzzle out Clara’s whereabouts, Lizzie and Parse uncover Grisini’s criminal past and wake up to his evil intentions. Fleeing London, they find themselves caught in a trap set by Grisini’s ancient rival, a witch with a deadly inheritance to shed before it’s too late. 

my thoughts:
This is a marvelous, gothic novel that takes place in 1860s London (and environs). The period detail places the reader right there, from Parsefall's Cockney slang to the costumes and mores of the time. The story is pretty creepy, which I love, and the characters endearing. I wouldn't call it a dense novel, exactly, but it would be a challenge for the reluctant reader trying to juggle a different time period as well as a sophisticated plot. Nothing too horrific for an 8-year-old, but better suited to the older set. Laura Amy Schlitz is a fantastic writer who won the Newbery Medal in 2008 for Good Masters, Sweet Ladies! This book won a well-deserved Newbery Honor.

find Laura:
Laura Amy Schlitz doesn't maintain much of an online presence, but you can visit her Penguin Random House page here. Candlewick Press maintains an author bio page here.

AND NOW FOR THE GIVEAWAY ...

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January Reads & Giveaway!

Welcome to February! I have to say that my 2015 got off to a roaring reading start with some wonderful young adult and middle-grade titles. Here's the ones I'd recommend to all of you. Scroll down to the bottom to enter a giveaway for any of the above, and I'll send the winner a brand-new copy of his/her favorite. (Hey, the sun is shining and I'm counting the days till spring. I'm feeling generous today. Take advantage.)

YOUNG ADULT

title & author: RUSH by Eve Silver
pub info: Katherine Tegen Books / HarperCollins, 2013; 361 pp
audience: 12+ / YA
genre: science fiction
caveats: no sex, but the story is violent, and there is one teen death in this book, which the author handles very sensitively.
Goodreads summary:

When Miki Jones is pulled from her life, pulled through time and space into some kind of game — her carefully controlled life spirals into chaos.

In the game, she and a team of other teens are sent on missions to eliminate the Drau, terrifying and beautiful alien creatures. There are no practice runs, no training, and no way out. Miki has only the guidance of secretive but maddeningly attractive team leader Jackson Tate, who says the game isn’t really a game, that what Miki and her new teammates do now determines their survival, and the survival of every other person on this planet. She laughs. He doesn’t. And then the game takes a deadly and terrifying turn.

my thoughts:
A smart, well-paced sci-fi story with well-drawn characters. I like Miki especially; both her family life and her game life are complex. The writing is not flowery, but good and solid. It's an interesting story concept, especially as Miki begins to question her role and the nature of reality. There's nothing too heavy here, though, and the novel zips right along. For those who like a nice romance, the elusive Jackson Tate provides a good bit of intrigue. CAUTION: This book doesn't so much end as stop. It's the first of a three-part series (known as the Game), and if you want the rest of the story, you'll need to go on to PUSH (2014) and CRASH (due out in June).

find Eve:
Learn more about award-winning and best-selling author Eve Silver at her website, Twitter account, and Facebook page.

title & author: Graceling by Kristin Cashore
pub info: Harcourt, 2008; 471 pp
audience: 12+ / YA
genre: fantasy
caveats: a pretty bloody book--not all that graphic, but there's a lot of killing; some sex, but more implied than described
Goodreads summary:

Katsa has been able to kill a man with her bare hands since she was eight--she's a Graceling, one of the rare people in her land born with an extreme skill. As niece of the king, she should be able to live a life of privilege, but Graced as she is with killing, she is forced to work as the king's thug.

When she first meets Prince Po, Graced with combat skills, Katsa has no hint of how her life is about to change.

She never expects to become Po's friend.

She never expects to learn a new truth about her own Grace--or about a terrible secret that lies hidden far away.

my thoughts:
If you've read a lot of tough-heroine-plus-romance YA--e.g., The Hunger Games and its many copycats--Graceling will seem a bit old hat. But remember that it was published in 2008, so it came at the beginning of this wave. Katsa is a marvelous character--interesting, sympathetic, a bit of an oddball. I love her. The romance? Eh. It will thrill those who love that stuff, but it's not my bag. Despite its length, I raced through this book because the writing is tight and marvelous, much more seasoned than you'd expect from a debut. Cashore does a wonderful job of creating her complex world, and I was immediately immersed in it. The ending was a bit abrupt, but all in all, a great read. There are two more books in the series, but they're more companion novels than sequels; Graceling is a complete story, and I don't think Katsa appears in the other two books, Fire (Dial, 2009) and Bitterblue (2012).

find Kristin:
Kristin blogs regularly here. Learn more about her through her FAQ page, and find out where she's appearing next right here.

MIDDLE GRADE

title & author: A Tangle of Knots by Lisa Graff
pub info: Philomel / Penguin, 2013; 240 pp
audience: 9+ / MG
genre: real-world fantasy
caveats: none
Goodreads summary:

Told in multiple viewpoints, A Tangle of Knots is a magnificent puzzle. In a slightly magical world where everyone has a Talent, eleven-year-old Cady is an orphan with a phenomenal Talent for cake baking. But little does she know that fate has set her on a journey from the moment she was born. And her destiny leads her to a mysterious address that houses a lost luggage emporium, an old recipe, a family of children searching for their own Talents, and a Talent Thief who will alter her life forever. However, these encounters hold the key to Cady's past and how she became an orphan. If she's lucky, fate may reunite her with her long-lost parent.

Lisa Graff adds a pinch of magic to a sharply crafted plot to create a novel that will have readers wondering about fate and the way we're all connected.

my thoughts:
I adored this book. The writing is beautiful without being difficult. The characters' interconnected lives are like one of Cady's elaborate layered cakes. While this is a world where (almost) everyone has a magical Talent, it's very much our own real world as well--children are ornery, parents disappoint, friends are made and betrayed. My only caution to readers is not to let the book sit. There's a lot going on, and if you return to the novel after leaving it alone for a few days, you'll find yourself flipping back through the chapters to maintain the thread of the different viewpoints. Do yourself a favor and just lose yourself in it for a while. You won't regret it. Shortlisted for the National Book Award for Young People's Literature in 2013.

find Lisa:
Lisa's website will tell you all about her books and latest news. Look for her on Twitter and Facebook, too. Her most recent book, Absolutely Almost (2014), earned multiple starred reviews,  landed on several "Best of" lists, and is an ALA Notable Book.

title & author: The Arrival by Shaun Tan
pub info: Lothian Books, 2007; 128 pp
audience: all ages
genre: fantastical picture book/graphic
caveats: none
Goodreads summary:

In a heartbreaking parting, a man gives his wife and daughter a last kiss and boards a steamship to cross the ocean. He's embarking on the most painful yet important journey of his life--he's leaving home to build a better future for his family.

Shaun Tan evokes universal aspects of an immigrant's experience through a singular work of the imagination. He does so using brilliantly clear and mesmerizing images. Because the main character can't communicate in words, the book forgoes them too. But while the reader experiences the main character's isolation, he also shares his ultimate joy.

my thoughts:
I'd been wanting this book for years, and when I finally saw it in the bookshop (while Christmas shopping for other people), I snapped it up. It is simply amazing. I've labeled it "for all ages," though it isn't a picture book for a toddler. It's a complex story of an immigrant man who leaves everything he knows to venture off into a new life. What he finds there is both familiar and fantastical. The story is told entirely through Tan's amazing illustrations--no text--but it is endearing and utterly captivating. I'm a words person, yes, but I wouldn't have added a single one to this beautiful book. It made me cry and laugh and "read" it--absorb it--again and again. Everyone needs this book!  That means you.

find Shaun:
Shaun's superfun website can be found here (don't illustrators have the best sites?). He is the author of many graphic novels and picture books and even an Oscar-winning animated short (The Lost Thing, 2011). His blog is gorgeous, too.  

And now for the giveaway ... 
Let me know which of these wonderful books YOU'D like to win! U.S. entries only, please.

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Scare of the Week: WAIT TILL HELEN COMES

Title: Wait Till Helen Comes
Author: Mary Downing Hahn
Pub info: HarperCollins, 1987; 192 pp
Genre / Audience: horror/ ghost story / MG ages 8+
Caveats for Younger Readers: Precocious readers will have no trouble with the length or language in this book, but it's pretty scary

Goodreads summary:

Heather is such a whiny little brat. Always getting Michael and me into trouble. But since our mother married her father, we're stuck with her ... our "poor stepsister" who lost her real mother in a mysterious fire.

But now something terrible has happened. Heather has found a new friend, out in the graveyard behind our home--a girl named Helen who died with her family in a mysterious fire over a hundred years ago. Now her ghost returns to lure children into the pond...to drown! I don't want to believe in ghosts, but I've followed Heather into the graveyard and watch her talk to Helen. And I'm terrified. Not for myself, but for Heather ... 

Status: finished

My impressions:
This isn't one of those books I read as a kid. I read it as an adult, just recently, to see if it's as scary as other readers think. I can't say that as an adult, I was very frightened, but if I'd read this as a kid, I'd have been pretty creeped out. The idea of a ghost that lures children into danger--a kid ghost, no less!--is properly scary, and Hahn does a nice job of creating a spooky atmosphere with the isolated church that becomes their home, the stepfather who never believes what protagonist Molly has to say, and the truly terrible stepsister. Nothing gory here, but there are chills aplenty for the 12-and-under set.

About Mary:
A former children's librarian, Mary has been writing children's books for over thirty years and is a perennial favorite with readers. Her books have sold more than two million copies and consistently win state children's choice awards. Mary's work spans a variety of genres—historical fiction, contemporary fiction, and fantasy—but she is best known for her ghost stories and mysteries. Wait Till Helen Comes was her first novel. Her most recent book is Mister Death's Blue-Eyed Girls (Clarion Books, 2012), a YA novel based on the true story of the murder of two girls in 1955. Kirkus's starred review of Mister Death called it "an engrossing exploration of how murder affects a community."

Online:
Read about Mary and her many books for middle-grade and YA readers here, on her website. Librarian Annaline Johnson from Laredo, Texas, created a deliciously creepy trailer for Wait Till Helen Comes. Watch it here.

Need more scares? Every Friday in October I'll serve up a new one. Search for the tag Scare of the Week to see them all.

Scare of the Week: SCARY STORIES TO TELL IN THE DARK

There's nothing I like better than a chill October day full of swirling leaves, ominous skies, and scares aplenty. I don't know why humans love to be frightened, but I count myself among those who do. It was the same when I was a kid. In that spirit, I'm going to bring you some of my favorite scares every Friday. Today's is the classic Alvin Schwartz collection, Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark.

Title: Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark
Author: Alvin Schwartz
Pub info: HarperCollins, 2011 (orig Scholastic 1981); 128 pages
Genre / Audience: horror anthology / ages 10+ 
Caveat to Younger Readers: Well, it's horror--there are dead people doing things dead people oughtn't. But it's nothing terribly graphic. However, read on for more info ...

Goodreads summary:

Some boys and girls were at a party one night. There was a graveyard down the street, and they were talking about how scary it was.
"Don't ever stand on a grave after dark," one of the boys said. "The person inside will grab you."
"A grave doesn't scare me," said one of the girls. "I'll do it right now. . . ."

Welcome to the macabre world of Scary Stories, where folklorist Alvin Schwartz offers up the most alarming collection of horror, dark revenge, and supernatural events of all time. Here is a selection of extraordinarily chilling tales along with spine-tingling illustrations by renowned artist Stephen Gammell.

My impressions:
These stories scared me silly when I was a kid. I must have read this collection over many times, because it's stuck with me. Recently I checked it out of the library to see if the scares still held.

Well, yes and no. The stories are genuinely creepy--though a large section of the book is dedicated to silly/funny "scary" tales--but the writing is not terrifying. The stories are told in a straightforward, unadorned style, and are quite short. Schwartz took his inspiration from urban legends and folktales from different countries. (As an adult, I was most interested in the bibliography he supplies in the back.)

But here's the kicker: The illustrations, depending on which edition you get, can be truly frightening. The original edition featured black-and-white drawings by Caldecott Medal winner Stephen Gammell, and I realize now that it was the drawings coupled with the stories that kept me up nights as a kid. Indeed, it's been theorized that the drawings are what's landed this book on the radar of banned-book enthusiasts, along with its two sequels. When HarperCollins released a 30th anniversary edition, however, Gammell's controversial artwork was gone, replaced by illustrations by Brett Helquist (A Series of Unfortunate Events). While Helquist is a talented artist, his depictions don't have the haunting, unearthly, and frankly terrifying quality of the Gammell illustrations. The Horn Book praised the new edition, calling it "handsome and accessible; now young readers have a choice of how scared they want to be—just a little, or a whole lot." Take your pick according to your comfort level, but when I was a kid, I wanted to be scared a whole lot--always. Click here to read an interesting comparison (with illustrations) between these two editions.

About Alvin (from Amazon):

Alvin Schwartz is known for a body of work of more than two dozen books of folklore for young readers that explore everything from wordplay and humor to tales and legends of all kinds. His collections of scary stories--Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark, More Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark, Scary Stories 3, and two I Can Read Books, In a Dark, Dark Room and Ghosts!--are just part of his matchless folklore collection. Schwartz died in 1992.

About Stephen:
Stephen Gammell, who won the 1989 Caldecott Medal for Song and Dance Man (written by Karen Ackerman), also won the Caldecott Honor Medal for The Relatives Came (written by Cynthia Rylant). He lives with his wife in St. Paul, Minnesota.

Online:
Read more about Alvin Schwartz in this New York Times obituary. Click here for yet another take on Gammell's eerie artwork for Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark.

Need more scares? Every Friday in October I'll serve up a new one. Search for the tag Scare of the Week to see them all.

Review: INKSPELL by Cornelia Funke

Title: Inkspell
Author: Cornelia Funke (translated from the German by Anthea Bell)
Pub info: Chicken House / Scholastic, 2005; 635 pp
Genre / Audience: fantasy / ages 9+
Caveats for Younger Readers: a fair bit of death by swordpoint, but not too graphic; book will be too long for some

Goodreads summary:

The captivating sequel to Inkheart, the critically acclaimed, international bestseller by Cornelia Funke, an author who is emerging as a truly modern classic writer for children.

Although a year has passed, not a day goes by without Meggie thinking of Inkheart, the book whose characters became real. But for Dustfinger, the fire-eater brought into being from words, the need to return to the tale has become desperate. When he finds a crooked storyteller with the ability to read him back, Dustfinger leaves behind his young apprentice Farid and plunges into the medieval world of his past. Distraught, Farid goes in search of Meggie, and before long, both are caught inside the book, too. But the story is threatening to evolve in ways neither of them could ever have imagined.

My impressions:
The marvelous characters that Cornelia Funke brought to life in Inkheart continue to captivate the reader of Inkspell. This book does a very handy thing that other authors/publishers should take note of: It provides a cheat sheet in the front to reintroduce the characters. Since it had been several years since I'd read the first book in the series, I found this indispensable.

My only complaint with the book is its length. Despite Harry Potter--those doorstop tomes we wordy writers always like to bring up--it's a lot to ask of, say, a fourth grader to wade through 635 pages. At times I was thoroughly engrossed in the story; at other times, I was frustrated and wanted it to move along more quickly. Part of this was just my own bias. Sometimes a marvelous book that you've been looking forward to for months--in my case, Lauren Oliver's Rooms--arrives in your mailbox and you just want to put down Inkspell and have at it. But even discounting that bias, I would say that shaving 100 pages off of this book wouldn't have been a bad idea.

Still, that said, the story is marvelous, the world building complex and fantastical, and anyone who loved Inkheart will be pleased with Inkspell. Caution: It does end on a doozy of a cliffhanger, but no worries; Funke has completed the series and you can pick up a copy of Inkdeath to complete the story. 

About Cornelia:
Cornelia Caroline Funke is a multiple award-winning German author of fantasy/adventure children's and YA fiction. Praised as the "German J. K. Rowling," she has written 24 books and is best known for her Inkheart trilogy. She is also the author of Dragon Rider  and a new YA series, Mirrorworld. She currently lives in Los Angeles, California.

Online: 
Cornelia maintains a fun, interactive website here, in English (also available in German and Spanish). Her Facebook page is a mixture of German and English postings, and she also has a Twitter account at this link. Read a preview of Inkspell here.
 
 
Want to win a free copy of this book? The first Monday of each month features a giveaway of any of the titles I've reviewed the previous month. Pick your fave, enter, and win! Next giveaway: October 6.  SIGN UP HERE TO RECEIVE A BRIEF EMAIL WHENEVER A NEW GIVEAWAY BEGINS.

To follow my progress as I bulldoze my way through a stack of 51 to-be-reads this year, search for the tag 2014 TBR Shelf. Read all the reviews here. 

Review: THE RED PYRAMID by Rick Riordan

Title: The Red Pyramid
Author: Rick Riordan
Pub info: Disney-Hyperion, 2010; 516 pp
Genre / Audience: fantasy adventure / ages 10+
Caveats for Younger Readers: none, though it's a long read for the under 10 set, and the plot gets pretty complicated

Rick Riordan gained fame from his Percy Jackson series, which focused on kids descended from Greek gods. Here, he takes on Egyptian mythology.

Goodreads summary:

Since their mother's death, Carter and Sadie have become near strangers. While Sadie has lived with her grandparents in London, her brother has traveled the world with their father, the brilliant Egyptologist, Dr. Julius Kane.

One night, Dr. Kane brings the siblings together for a "research experiment" at the British Museum, where he hopes to set things right for his family. Instead, he unleashes the Egyptian god Set, who banishes him to oblivion and forces the children to flee for their lives.

Soon, Sadie and Carter discover that the gods of Egypt are waking, and the worst of them—Set—has his sights on the Kanes. To stop him, the siblings embark on a dangerous journey across the globe—a quest that brings them ever closer to the truth about their family and their links to a secret order that has existed since the time of the pharaohs.

Status: finished 9/17/14

My impressions:
Rick Riordan is a master of middle-grade adventure, and in The Red Pyramid he kicks off his three-volume Kane Chronicles series with a bang. Even those of us who don't know much about Egyptian gods get caught up quickly in this battle between good and evil. Like House of Secrets, which I recently reviewed on this blog, The Red Pyramid keeps the adventure coming page after page throughout its considerable length. But let's face it: Riordan is just better at writing this stuff. The novel reads like a good action film--problems crop up that seem in hindsight inevitable, and everything follows logically in this tightly woven, though complex, plot. Adding to the fun is Riordan's technique of switching off point of view between Carter and his estranged sister, Sadie. Each character brings something unique to the story, and their voices are distinct and offer varying perspectives. Even the fact that they're a mixed-race family comes into play. Characters aren't going to be covered in huge depth when you've got this much action going on, but they are developed.

Riordan is just plain funny, too. He really gets what makes middle-grade readers laugh, and Sadie especially brings a snarkiness that helps temper the book's scarier moments. The humor overall keeps the story from getting horrific, planting it square in the realm of old-fashioned, edge-of-your-seat adventure. Kids won't even realize they're learning quite a bit about Egyptian mythology in the meantime, which is a bonus. Thankfully, the series is finished, so I can launch right into Book 2 (The Throne of Fire). The only caution here is that the length of the books will intimidate some readers, but the read is lightning-quick.

About Rick:
Rick Riordan is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series, the Kane Chronicles, and the Heroes of Olympus (a spinoff of the Percy Jackson series). He is also the author of the multi-award-winning Tres Navarre mystery series for adults. His children's books have won dozens of awards.

His next book will be The Blood of Olympus, the final installment in the Heroes of Olympus series, due out October 7. He's also working on a new series featuring Norse gods, the first of which is scheduled for publication next year. For fifteen years, Rick taught English and history at public and private middle schools in the San Francisco Bay Area and in Texas. Now a fulltime writer, he lives in Boston with his wife and two sons.


Online:
Rick maintains a fantastic website here, which gives not only information on all his projects but great background on Greek and Egyptian mythology. Teachers' guides, FAQs, and all kinds of goodies are rampant on this site. You can also find Rick on Twitter and Facebook. Read a preview of The Red Pyramid here.

Want to win a free copy of this book? The first Monday of each month features a giveaway of any of the titles I've reviewed the previous month. Pick your fave, enter, and win! Next giveaway: October 6.  SIGN UP HERE TO RECEIVE A BRIEF EMAIL WHENEVER A NEW GIVEAWAY BEGINS.

To follow my progress as I bulldoze my way through a stack of 51 to-be-reads this year, search for the tag 2014 TBR Shelf. Read all the reviews here. 

And be sure to visit Shannon Messenger's blog to see more fun links to great middle-grade reads and giveaways!

Happy Talk Like a Pirate Day!

Arrr, me hearties, and a lovely Talk Like a Pirate Day to you! What? Yeah, it's a real thing. Who would make this up? If you love a good drum of grog or a fine plunder of gold, then step up and claim all the goodies coming to you. Here are some of my favorites from around the web:

Tom Mason & the Blue Buccaneers Exhort You to Talk Like a Pirate!

Krispy Kreme Doughnuts will give you a free doughnut or a FREE DOZEN DOUGHNUTS if you follow the Pirate Code outlined here. (I know--they're really more guidelines.)

Here are 50 PIRATE MOVIES to screen today. In my mind, you can't beat Johnny Depp in the very first Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl. The full list is here.

Love PIRATE BOOKS? Try these:

Treasure Island by Robert Louis Stevenson: The classic original story of Long John Silver and the young boy who sailed with him
Bloody Jack: Being an Account of the Curious Adventures of Mary "Jacky" Faber, Ship's Boy by L.A. Meyer : First of a fantastic, fun YA/MG adventure series about a girl turned pirate (well, she's pretty moral, for a pirate); plenty of boys in this story too
Magic Marks the Spot by Caroline Carlson: The Very Nearly Honorable League of Pirates has a new member: Hilary Westfield, who neglects to tell the league that she's a girl! Great magical adventure fun for middle-grade readers. Continued in The Terror of the Southlands.
Pirates! by Celia Rees: Another girl-turned-pirate yarn--a multi-award-winner
Under the Black Flag: The Romance and Reality of Life Among the Pirates by David Cordingly: a nonfiction account of pirate history--nicely done and easy reading (but written for the adult market)
The Pirate Primer: Mastering the Language of Swashbucklers & Rogues by George Choundas: All you'll need to talk like a pirate (nonfiction)!

Finally, be sure to visit the original Talk Like a Pirate Day website, which has loads more fun stuff for buccaneers old and young!


Why am I all up in your face about pirates, anyway? Because my next book, The Wand & the Sea, features a fine band of pirate ruffians! Coming to you from Margaret K. McElderry Books in 2015.

Review: IF YOU'RE READING THIS, IT'S TOO LATE by Pseudonymous Bosch

Title: If You're Reading This, It's Too Late
Author: Pseudonymous Bosch
Pub info: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers, 2008; 400 pp
Genre / Audience: mystery & magic / ages 9+
Caveats for Younger Readers: none, but the length may seem daunting

Having read Book #1 of the Secrets series, I was happy to reacquaint myself with Cass and Max-Ernest for Book #2. And who can resist the latest character addition, Yo-Yoji?

Goodreads summary:

Beware! Dangerous secrets lie between the pages of this book.

OK, I warned you. But if you think I'll give anything away, or tell you that this is the sequel to my first literary endeavor, The Name of This Book is Secret, you're wrong.

I'm not going to remind you of how we last left our heroes, Cass and Max-Ernest, as they awaited initiation into the mysterious Terces Society, or the ongoing fight against the evil Dr. L and Ms. Mauvais. I certainly won't be telling you about how the kids stumble upon the Museum of Magic, where they finally meet the amazing Pietro!

Oh, blast! I've done it again. Well, at least I didn't tell you about the missing Sound Prism, the nefarious Lord Pharaoh, or the mysterious creature born in a bottle over 500 years ago, the key to the biggest secret of all.

I really can't help myself, now can I? Let's face it---if you're reading this, it's too late.

Status: finished 9/6/14

My impressions:
Take another look at the Goodreads summary. That's the voice of the author. If you don't mind an author being intrusive--sometimes a bit in your face--then you'll be fine. If this kind of thing gets on your nerves, however, it will wear thin throughout this book. As reviewers have noted, there's more than a nod to Lemony Snicket in these pages. (Also: Be advised that the introductory chapter is not indicative of how the writer tells the rest of the story. He really does fade into the background.)

Generally, the Bosch voice intrudes in the form of footnotes, which are easy to ignore. I find these asides funny, but towards the end of the book I was skimming them because I was much more interested in Cass, Max-Ernest, and their new friend, Yo-Yoji. This is a fun, fast-paced mystery with a bit of magic and alchemy thrown in, and a nicely turned dynamic on the three friends and the decidedly preadolescent feelings that crop up between them. This is a tighter, easier to navigate tale than The Name of This Book Is Secret, and you won't be totally lost if you've not read that one, either. This volume stands on its own and just may send you back to see how the story began.

About Pseudonymous:
As you may have guessed, Pseudo (as his friends call him) likes to keep things under wraps. His official bio reads: "Pseudonymous Bosch is the anonymous pseudonymous author of the Secret Series. Not much is known about him other than that he has a passionate love of chocolate and cheese and an equally passionate hatred of mayonnaise. Rumors of Boschian sightings are just as frequent and about as reliable as reports of alien abductions. If you ever meet anyone claiming to be Pseudonymous himself he is almost certainly an impostor. The real Pseudonymous is said currently to be hiding in a cave in a remote jungle (although there are contrary reports that he is somewhere in Greenland)." The best-selling, award-winning Secret Series is complete (a total of five books), and Pseudo's newest series, Bad Magic, debuts tomorrow, September 16!

Online:
Kids and adults who love mysterious websites will get a kick out of Bosch's The Name of This Website Is Secret, which gives you news and fun info on his books and appearances, as well as his very funny Pseudo Blog. I would have been all over this site as a kid. He also maintains a Facebook page and Twitter account, though he claims to be antisocial. A superfun video about the books and two persistent young reporters out to discover Bosch's true identity can be found here.



Want to win a free copy of this book? The first Monday of each month features a giveaway of any of the titles I've reviewed the previous month. Pick your fave, enter, and win! Next giveaway: October 6.  SIGN UP HERE TO RECEIVE A BRIEF EMAIL WHENEVER A NEW GIVEAWAY BEGINS.

To follow my progress as I bulldoze my way through a stack of 51 to-be-reads this year, search for the tag 2014 TBR Shelf. Read all the reviews here. 

And be sure to visit Shannon Messenger's blog to see more fun links to great middle-grade reads and giveaways!