Tuesday, March 22, 2011
Naomi & Ely's No Kiss List
by Rachel Cohn and David Levithan
Namoi and Ely. Ely and Naomi. They were like ham and eggs. Or at least they were until the ham kissed the eggs' boyfriend and the eggs thought that was the last straw in a series of small petty annoyances and decided to draw a line in the home fried... so to speak.
What made me really excited for this book was that it's written by the same dynamic duo that brought us Nick & Nora's Infinite Playlist which has to be one of my favourites, still. Different characters, but still, the chemistry! The problem is that while some of the same ups and downs and near misses are at work here, at its heart, this is the story of a breakup, while Nick & Nora was a love story, and that? Is so much more satisfying.
The writing is still tight, and the voices arch and interesting, but I must admit that I didn't love either character - neither is really someone you'd like, even if they are charismatic, and I wasn't really rooting for them the way I was for - well, you know, the other couple. So while I wouldn't say I really liked this, I would also have to say in fairness, that it was not what I was looking for either, which made me more disappointed than anything else about it.
Namoi and Ely. Ely and Naomi. They were like ham and eggs. Or at least they were until the ham kissed the eggs' boyfriend and the eggs thought that was the last straw in a series of small petty annoyances and decided to draw a line in the home fried... so to speak.
What made me really excited for this book was that it's written by the same dynamic duo that brought us Nick & Nora's Infinite Playlist which has to be one of my favourites, still. Different characters, but still, the chemistry! The problem is that while some of the same ups and downs and near misses are at work here, at its heart, this is the story of a breakup, while Nick & Nora was a love story, and that? Is so much more satisfying.
The writing is still tight, and the voices arch and interesting, but I must admit that I didn't love either character - neither is really someone you'd like, even if they are charismatic, and I wasn't really rooting for them the way I was for - well, you know, the other couple. So while I wouldn't say I really liked this, I would also have to say in fairness, that it was not what I was looking for either, which made me more disappointed than anything else about it.
Labels: 2007, family, friendship, lukewarm, teen
Tuesday, July 27, 2010
Publisher Review: Wave
by Eric Walters
Eric Walters, it seems, is finding his niche in writing sensitive takes on major disasters and making a plausible story of one family's experience in that setting. He takes that same direction here, writing the story of a family vacation in Phuket, Thailand, that is turned quite literally on its head with the massive tsunami that wreaked havoc on the Indian Ocean in December 2004.
The writing is believable, and while he does take on some difficult moments, he carefully treads the line between allowing some of the tragedy to occur, making the story truer to life, versus bringing too much to his main characters, which the reader has come to know. It's a balance, and mostly he does it well, though I do sometimes think the happy ending is not always the best for the story.
Walters' level of detail is strong, and he has clearly done his research, both in how tsunamis happen and in what it was like that day, as he writes compelling description that meshes with what video and photos of the day show, as well.
If you have a child who is fascinated by disasters or wants something with a little true-to-life action and danger, this would fit the bill nicely.
Eric Walters, it seems, is finding his niche in writing sensitive takes on major disasters and making a plausible story of one family's experience in that setting. He takes that same direction here, writing the story of a family vacation in Phuket, Thailand, that is turned quite literally on its head with the massive tsunami that wreaked havoc on the Indian Ocean in December 2004.
The writing is believable, and while he does take on some difficult moments, he carefully treads the line between allowing some of the tragedy to occur, making the story truer to life, versus bringing too much to his main characters, which the reader has come to know. It's a balance, and mostly he does it well, though I do sometimes think the happy ending is not always the best for the story.
Walters' level of detail is strong, and he has clearly done his research, both in how tsunamis happen and in what it was like that day, as he writes compelling description that meshes with what video and photos of the day show, as well.
If you have a child who is fascinated by disasters or wants something with a little true-to-life action and danger, this would fit the bill nicely.
Labels: 2009, action/adventure, Canadian, family, growing up, lukewarm, middle grades, Publisher Reviews, set abroad, siblings
Saturday, May 01, 2010
Alcatraz Versus the Scrivener's Bones
by Brandon Sanderson.
Not much is different in this book than the first, as one might expect. There is still the sense that this is a mashup of fantasy and comedy, a sort of Terry Pratchett-ish form of the fantasy genre, but maybe more so. Add, as I suggested last time, a dash of Snicket-ish asides and loops of silliness that turn back on themsleves constantly, and you get the idea.
This time, Alcatraz, Bastille, and some long-lost family members unite to try to break into the very dangerous Library of Alexandria and rescue Alcatraz's father and grandfather, whom they believe to be there. On the way, they have a nasty encounter with some Librarians, in particular a sect known as The Scrivener's Bones, who are a sort of cyborg hybrid.
It's all danger, learning to use weird "talents" more effectively, uncovering some mystical prophecies and magical lenses, and of course, a lot of narrow scrapes. In short, fun and full of adventure, if maybe a bit more busy being silly and flip than is really my own taste. Fans of Pratchett and Pinkwater, though, will love it, I'm pretty sure.
It's all danger, learning to use weird "talents" more effectively, uncovering some mystical prophecies and magical lenses, and of course, a lot of narrow scrapes. In short, fun and full of adventure, if maybe a bit more busy being silly and flip than is really my own taste. Fans of Pratchett and Pinkwater, though, will love it, I'm pretty sure.
Labels: 2008, action/adventure, humour, lukewarm, middle grades, sci fi, witches and wizards
Thursday, March 04, 2010
A Week of Alice: Oleg Lipchenko
Alice's Adventures in Wonderland
by Lewis Carroll
Illustrated by Oleg Lipchenko
I have to admit, I didn't find this edition appealing at first glance. it's illustrated all in sepias and black/white drawings and sketches, and I wasn't drawn (heh) to the Alice in it right away. But this is a classic case of not judging on first impressions.
Once I started looking at the drawings more closely, I found them fascinating, in fact, filled with details and references to both the story and the back-story of Carroll and the "real" Alice. It's clear that Lipchenko has done some reading and put some serious thought and inspiration into what seem initially like so many doodles.
This is definitely not bright enough for a child or someone looking for some bright "wow" pictures, nor for someone who is intrigued by the darker aspects of Alice's adventures, but for someone who is interested in Carroll or is likely to spend time perusing the illustrations the way children do with I Spy books, it's full of hidden treats. It would amuse someone who knows a lot about Carroll, or perhaps inspire someone to read a bit more to find out, for the little things he has dropped in are truly clever.
In the end, I like this a lot for being not only thorough, but interesting in a quiet, unflashy way.
I liked it enough to include it among six editions I spotlighted over at sweetmama.ca this week, in fact. Go check out that and a few others that I won't be reviewing in greater depth here. There are some really nice things in the bunch!
by Lewis Carroll
Illustrated by Oleg Lipchenko
I have to admit, I didn't find this edition appealing at first glance. it's illustrated all in sepias and black/white drawings and sketches, and I wasn't drawn (heh) to the Alice in it right away. But this is a classic case of not judging on first impressions.
Once I started looking at the drawings more closely, I found them fascinating, in fact, filled with details and references to both the story and the back-story of Carroll and the "real" Alice. It's clear that Lipchenko has done some reading and put some serious thought and inspiration into what seem initially like so many doodles.
This is definitely not bright enough for a child or someone looking for some bright "wow" pictures, nor for someone who is intrigued by the darker aspects of Alice's adventures, but for someone who is interested in Carroll or is likely to spend time perusing the illustrations the way children do with I Spy books, it's full of hidden treats. It would amuse someone who knows a lot about Carroll, or perhaps inspire someone to read a bit more to find out, for the little things he has dropped in are truly clever.
In the end, I like this a lot for being not only thorough, but interesting in a quiet, unflashy way.
I liked it enough to include it among six editions I spotlighted over at sweetmama.ca this week, in fact. Go check out that and a few others that I won't be reviewing in greater depth here. There are some really nice things in the bunch!
Labels: 2009, Alice, lukewarm, Publisher Reviews
Tuesday, March 02, 2010
A Week of Alice: A Compilation
Alice's Adventures in Wonderland
By Lewis Carroll
Compiled by Cooper Edens
This edition from Chronicle Books is an interesting way to go if you want to see some of the many portrayals of Alice, in that it features not one illustrator, but an extremely plentiful selection of images from of host of different artists.
From the time Alice came out of copyright in 1908, every major illustrator has had a crack at it, and many lesser-known ones, besides. It' s well-loved, a real classic, and has a massive following of collectors, so why not? This is a good sampler of some you may never have seen before, as well as old favourites like Arthur Rackham.
It's not as cohesive in look because of this, and is large and a bit floppy in format, so if you want something for just a nice straight read-through, there may be better editions, but for the curious who want to talk about illustrations and how they relate to text, to peruse lots of pictures and styles, or get a pretty solid overview of different ways Alice has been drawn, this is a really good way to get that. I even found some illustrated versions that I have never seen, and I've seen a pretty good range of them, being an Alice fan myself.
By Lewis Carroll
Compiled by Cooper Edens
This edition from Chronicle Books is an interesting way to go if you want to see some of the many portrayals of Alice, in that it features not one illustrator, but an extremely plentiful selection of images from of host of different artists.
From the time Alice came out of copyright in 1908, every major illustrator has had a crack at it, and many lesser-known ones, besides. It' s well-loved, a real classic, and has a massive following of collectors, so why not? This is a good sampler of some you may never have seen before, as well as old favourites like Arthur Rackham.
It's not as cohesive in look because of this, and is large and a bit floppy in format, so if you want something for just a nice straight read-through, there may be better editions, but for the curious who want to talk about illustrations and how they relate to text, to peruse lots of pictures and styles, or get a pretty solid overview of different ways Alice has been drawn, this is a really good way to get that. I even found some illustrated versions that I have never seen, and I've seen a pretty good range of them, being an Alice fan myself.
Labels: 2000, 2010, Alice, lukewarm, Publisher Reviews
Monday, March 01, 2010
A Week of Alice: Robert Ingpen
Alice's Adventures in Wonderland
by Lewis Carroll
Illustrated by Robert Ingpen
The first impression from this thick, large-ish hardcover is that it gives ample weight to the classic. The pages are nice, thick, matte stock, and the background is often completely tinted with the spreading of the painting's background underlaying the text. From this design standpoint, it's a lovely edition. I also like the notes at the back about the origin of the story, including a couple of reproduced pages from Carroll's original Alice's Adventures Under Ground, and about Tenniel himself and his iconic illustrations.
The choices of scenes to illustrate deviate little from Tenniel's original, as is typical, though there are extra bits here, with this being so thoroughly illustrated, some of which are quite interesting.
The overall impression from the paintings and drawings is that they are composed to tiny little strokes of pen and brush that gives them the fuzzy, hazy quality of a dream or distant memory, maybe one from a golden summer afternoon, which fits beautifully with the story's origin. The animals are all lovely, and rendered with much more loving detail than the humans, adn even the Cheshire Cat is adorably creepy, while the White Rabbit seems more worried here than scatterbrained.
And the people? The people tend to be running to fat and look rather sad, even when they also look pompous, as the Queen does, or somewhat jolly, like the Mad Hatter, who could be modeled on Gene Wilder, or perhaps bears a touch of Dudley Moore about him, too.
Alice, even, if a more sombre little girl than usual, and more little than she often is, too, more childlike. She is darker-haired, sleeveless, thin and a little scraggly-looking in many pictures. Indeed, she is something of a little ragamuffin, more than a well-scrubbed little Victorian miss. By the time the cards have turned to golden leaves in the air (a nice new touch, I thought) and she is returned to the riverbank with her sister, she looks almost as though she has been, perhaps, chasing rabbits through the fields and down their holes...
by Lewis Carroll
Illustrated by Robert Ingpen
The first impression from this thick, large-ish hardcover is that it gives ample weight to the classic. The pages are nice, thick, matte stock, and the background is often completely tinted with the spreading of the painting's background underlaying the text. From this design standpoint, it's a lovely edition. I also like the notes at the back about the origin of the story, including a couple of reproduced pages from Carroll's original Alice's Adventures Under Ground, and about Tenniel himself and his iconic illustrations.
The choices of scenes to illustrate deviate little from Tenniel's original, as is typical, though there are extra bits here, with this being so thoroughly illustrated, some of which are quite interesting.
The overall impression from the paintings and drawings is that they are composed to tiny little strokes of pen and brush that gives them the fuzzy, hazy quality of a dream or distant memory, maybe one from a golden summer afternoon, which fits beautifully with the story's origin. The animals are all lovely, and rendered with much more loving detail than the humans, adn even the Cheshire Cat is adorably creepy, while the White Rabbit seems more worried here than scatterbrained.
And the people? The people tend to be running to fat and look rather sad, even when they also look pompous, as the Queen does, or somewhat jolly, like the Mad Hatter, who could be modeled on Gene Wilder, or perhaps bears a touch of Dudley Moore about him, too.
Alice, even, if a more sombre little girl than usual, and more little than she often is, too, more childlike. She is darker-haired, sleeveless, thin and a little scraggly-looking in many pictures. Indeed, she is something of a little ragamuffin, more than a well-scrubbed little Victorian miss. By the time the cards have turned to golden leaves in the air (a nice new touch, I thought) and she is returned to the riverbank with her sister, she looks almost as though she has been, perhaps, chasing rabbits through the fields and down their holes...
Saturday, October 24, 2009
Montmorency on the Rocks
by Eleanor Updale.
#2 in the series.
I am, quite frankly, not as enamoured of this one as I was of the first book.
It starts several years later, during which time we are told Montmorency and his friend Lord George Fox-Selwyn have had quite a career as international spies for the British government. As the book opens, Montmorency has become addicted to an unnamed drug while in Turkey, and George takes him north to his brother's estate in Scotland to cure him with the help of Dr. Farcett, who had healed his wounds in prison. Events soon lead them to a small island off of Scotland, Tarimond, which will come to feature prominently in this book and later ones.
On Tarimond, Dr. Farcett begins to look into why every baby there has died for the past 8 years, while in London, the investigation into a covered-up explosion requires the investigative services of the spies Montmorency and Lord George. The three make their way back to the city, only to find an old friend of Montmorency's ahs the information they need, and they bring her into their life, increasing their circle at the same time that they uncover the bomber - but not before he strikes again.
Once again, we have tales of intrigue and suspense, and the theme of dressing as another person or class helps them find out what they need by blending with a different group of people. I felt, though, that this book is trying to do a lot more than the first book did, and loses some of the wonderful straight-forward drive and plot that made that so good. Instead, the twists and turns feel less directed on one hand, and more contrived on the other, as they clearly set up things and characters for book #3.
In sum, I didn't not like it, but felt it didn't quite live up to the standard of its predecessor, which I loved.
Labels: 2005, action/adventure, historical fiction, lukewarm, suspense, teen
Tuesday, October 13, 2009
Pure Sunshine
by Brian James
Named for the type of acid the character are tripping on over its two-night span, this book follows a small group of Philly boys getting their party on, and sticking around with the one who's narrating as his night goes a little south.
This book doesn't seem like it's just for shock value, a big issues book, though it does talk about the drugs a bit and lets the narrator ponder more than a little about who he really is, what he wants, and why he hides parts of that from certain people, even among his group of friends.
Instead, it gives strong, believable descriptions of what an acid trip is like and how your body reacts to it, how the narrator feels at different points over the night as he rides out the effects of the chemicals and some weed he adds in, and then the next day. He talks a bit about what kind of kid he is, too, which some will identify with, and others may find interesting or may just dismiss.
The second night, he is not reacting well, gets into a huge, ugly argument with friends, and takes off on his own for a night of no fun, just hanging on to survive until the drugs leave his system. By the time morning comes, he is in rough shape, and the appearance of the girl of his dreams is the only thing that lifts him out of the gutter and the beginnings of self-pity.
The thing about this bad night of his is that it's not written to be some sort of comeuppance or morality thing. It just is what happened with too much chemical and not enough positive stuff to think about - which I think is important, because there is nothing a teenager is going to want to read less than a lesson on how he asked for it and no good came of his drug use. That, they've heard. Instead, the book answers some of those questions about what it's like to use drugs without making it either glamourous and fantastic or horrible and a sure dead end. It's got balance.
The other thing about this book is that you really see a normal, not-so-bad kid not always following his best instincts because they are not cool, but wishing he could. So while he joins in the bragging about girls and such, he actually has a major crush on a nice girl for all the right reasons, and is sort of waiting for someone like her before he has sex - he just doesn't want to admit that and face potential ridicule. And while he does okay in school and all, he doesn't want to be seen to be too interested or care too much, because it's not cool to. Instead, he talks about how he and his friends keep having to up the ante, moving from one sort of harmless trouble to the next level, when sometimes he wishes they could go back to doing small, goofy things for fun instead of having to see them as boring and chasing the next little high of small-time trouble.
By the end, he has not necessarily decided to turn over a new leaf and reject all of that as a result of some epiphany, but he is finding himself longing for simpler things and more truth, and maybe a shot at making that nice girl his, cutting the b.s. It's an interesting ride because unlike many books, not much is resolved, but some possibilities of what comes after are left wide open. And while I kind of hate not knowing, I think it might play better with a teen than a tidy ending, especially since things still are wide open at that age.
Named for the type of acid the character are tripping on over its two-night span, this book follows a small group of Philly boys getting their party on, and sticking around with the one who's narrating as his night goes a little south.
This book doesn't seem like it's just for shock value, a big issues book, though it does talk about the drugs a bit and lets the narrator ponder more than a little about who he really is, what he wants, and why he hides parts of that from certain people, even among his group of friends.
Instead, it gives strong, believable descriptions of what an acid trip is like and how your body reacts to it, how the narrator feels at different points over the night as he rides out the effects of the chemicals and some weed he adds in, and then the next day. He talks a bit about what kind of kid he is, too, which some will identify with, and others may find interesting or may just dismiss.
The second night, he is not reacting well, gets into a huge, ugly argument with friends, and takes off on his own for a night of no fun, just hanging on to survive until the drugs leave his system. By the time morning comes, he is in rough shape, and the appearance of the girl of his dreams is the only thing that lifts him out of the gutter and the beginnings of self-pity.
The thing about this bad night of his is that it's not written to be some sort of comeuppance or morality thing. It just is what happened with too much chemical and not enough positive stuff to think about - which I think is important, because there is nothing a teenager is going to want to read less than a lesson on how he asked for it and no good came of his drug use. That, they've heard. Instead, the book answers some of those questions about what it's like to use drugs without making it either glamourous and fantastic or horrible and a sure dead end. It's got balance.
The other thing about this book is that you really see a normal, not-so-bad kid not always following his best instincts because they are not cool, but wishing he could. So while he joins in the bragging about girls and such, he actually has a major crush on a nice girl for all the right reasons, and is sort of waiting for someone like her before he has sex - he just doesn't want to admit that and face potential ridicule. And while he does okay in school and all, he doesn't want to be seen to be too interested or care too much, because it's not cool to. Instead, he talks about how he and his friends keep having to up the ante, moving from one sort of harmless trouble to the next level, when sometimes he wishes they could go back to doing small, goofy things for fun instead of having to see them as boring and chasing the next little high of small-time trouble.
By the end, he has not necessarily decided to turn over a new leaf and reject all of that as a result of some epiphany, but he is finding himself longing for simpler things and more truth, and maybe a shot at making that nice girl his, cutting the b.s. It's an interesting ride because unlike many books, not much is resolved, but some possibilities of what comes after are left wide open. And while I kind of hate not knowing, I think it might play better with a teen than a tidy ending, especially since things still are wide open at that age.
Labels: 2002, friendship, growing up, issues, lukewarm, teen
Tuesday, November 27, 2007
Once Upon a Curse
by E.D. Baker.
This girly fantasy revolves around a family curse that makes the girls in the family turn ugly and nasty when they touch a flower after their 16th birthday. This is a family of witches, so nasty is REALLY nasty. The youngest in the line is about to turn 16, and is betrothed to a boy she loves, but she is determined to end the curse or stay single so as not to put him through it.
So she pursues an answer, using magic, traveling back through time, and so on. Doing something with that answer when she returns is another story, because her aunt is making it difficult, not to mention throwing other wrenches in the birthday celebration that must be dealt with. She and her fiance work together and come a long way, but it looks like hope is lost until a surprise twist.
This took me a while to read, because it doesn't pull you along, the way some fantasy-type books do, with adventure. So although the character is a smart, strong young lady, and I like her relationship with Eadric, this was really just sort of lukewarm. A real fan of princess-y books might love it, though.
This girly fantasy revolves around a family curse that makes the girls in the family turn ugly and nasty when they touch a flower after their 16th birthday. This is a family of witches, so nasty is REALLY nasty. The youngest in the line is about to turn 16, and is betrothed to a boy she loves, but she is determined to end the curse or stay single so as not to put him through it.
So she pursues an answer, using magic, traveling back through time, and so on. Doing something with that answer when she returns is another story, because her aunt is making it difficult, not to mention throwing other wrenches in the birthday celebration that must be dealt with. She and her fiance work together and come a long way, but it looks like hope is lost until a surprise twist.
This took me a while to read, because it doesn't pull you along, the way some fantasy-type books do, with adventure. So although the character is a smart, strong young lady, and I like her relationship with Eadric, this was really just sort of lukewarm. A real fan of princess-y books might love it, though.
Labels: 2004, girly, lukewarm, slightly weird stuff, witches and wizards
Tuesday, October 30, 2007
The Sea of Monsters
Percy Jackson and the Olympians, bk. II
by Rick Riordan
This second installment in the Percy Jackson series starts with Percy again returning to Camp Half-Blood, but this time, against directions. he finds it under attack, as someone has poisoned the tree that protects it, adn someone must go on a quest to find the only thing that might heal it - the Golden Fleece. Yes, that golden fleece, did you know of another? The premise of this series is that Percy discovers as a young teenager that he is the son of Poseidon, and the others at the Camp are half-bloods, too, heroes in training.
The premise of the series is fun, though the storyline in this one is not great. The action still not bad, but it just fails to deliver the same kind of non-stop, gripping action and guessing about the mythology that the first one does. He does encounter plenty of the good old monsters, mostly ones that Odysseus ran into, since he has to travel to the island inhabited by the same Cyclops, and those with some knowledge of classics will likely find it as fun as I do to see wehre it's going, but still. Ultimately, while it's certainly okay, it just isn't as good as the first one. I sure hope things pick up again in book III. I will read it, just in case, because the first one was really good.
by Rick Riordan
This second installment in the Percy Jackson series starts with Percy again returning to Camp Half-Blood, but this time, against directions. he finds it under attack, as someone has poisoned the tree that protects it, adn someone must go on a quest to find the only thing that might heal it - the Golden Fleece. Yes, that golden fleece, did you know of another? The premise of this series is that Percy discovers as a young teenager that he is the son of Poseidon, and the others at the Camp are half-bloods, too, heroes in training.
The premise of the series is fun, though the storyline in this one is not great. The action still not bad, but it just fails to deliver the same kind of non-stop, gripping action and guessing about the mythology that the first one does. He does encounter plenty of the good old monsters, mostly ones that Odysseus ran into, since he has to travel to the island inhabited by the same Cyclops, and those with some knowledge of classics will likely find it as fun as I do to see wehre it's going, but still. Ultimately, while it's certainly okay, it just isn't as good as the first one. I sure hope things pick up again in book III. I will read it, just in case, because the first one was really good.
Labels: 2006, action/adventure, lukewarm, middle grades
Saturday, September 08, 2007
The Book Thief
by Markus Zusak.
This was one of the big titles for last fall, riding in on recommendations and reviews aplenty, so I had to read it, of course. I make it my business to try to catch a good range, and most of the big titles.
I started this, and was put off by the voice initially. I found it annoying, and the little sidenotes a bit overdone. I thought I'd give it a few chapters, though, and that feeling did pass once the story really got started and I got involved with the characters. I'm glad to find that, as I was a bit worried that I had not enjoyed this and one other of the big, high-hype books from last fall on the same theme, but for children.
So, once I got into it, I still found it heavy going. But the characters are drawn with love, and relationships between them grown carefully, the ups and downs drawn out and unravelled slowly. It is nice, but it is slow.
The story centres around a young girl being shipped to foster care just outside of Munich during the second world war. On the way, her brother dies, and she steals a book during the brief funeral. Left with these new people, she both suffers terrible nightmares and it is discovered that she cannot read. Her new papa sits patiently with her at night, keeping the dreams away, and eventually teaches her to read. As she find comfort in reading, she finds ways to gain access to books and slowly steals more of them, earning her name. During a bombing raid one night, she shares her comfort, reading to the other twenty-odd frightened souls huddled in a basement.
Also worked into this book are some other themes each capable of carrying a novel on its own. Firstly, the hiding of a lone jew in the basement, a shadow of a man who touches her deeply as the two become friends. Secondly, her own coming of age in a time of crisis, poverty, starvation. The way children carry on with the business of playing street soccer, of trying to steal a kiss, of running races and going to school and helping their family in ways that are necessary according to their times.
It is, I repeat, a heavy tome in many ways, but while I didn't absolutely love it, I stuck with it, and don't regret the three weeks it took me. It had some charming descriptive language, though it was getting a bit repetitive by page 450 or so. It had characters I cared about. It was something that could be taken in small morsels and savoured. It has things going for it, or I wouldn't have stuck it out - I long ago decided it was okay not to finish a book - but ultimately, I'm not sure I see many teens reading and enjoying it. It would have to be one who would in fact savour just those right few things, or one who was really intrigued with the time and place, perhaps.
Labels: 2006, historical fiction, lukewarm, set abroad, teen
Sunday, August 05, 2007
The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane
by Kate DiCamillo.
I am a big fan of DiCamillo, in general. I loved Winn-Dixie, and was wholly captivated by the magical Tale of Desperaux. I had, as such, high hopes for this, as it seemed to have that same fairy tale character about it. It was, though, not quite there. It was shorter, which is not always a problem, but I still felt like it was longer than it had to be, that it didn't really say anything the way her others did. It seemed like it might go on a real Velveteen Rabbit bent, but that wasn't it. It just didn't seem to have a point, though it does wrap back onto itself nicely at the end. And, of course, with DiCamillo, the ride is lovely anyhow, so it's not something I would avoid reading. I was just sort of lukewarm on it.
I am a big fan of DiCamillo, in general. I loved Winn-Dixie, and was wholly captivated by the magical Tale of Desperaux. I had, as such, high hopes for this, as it seemed to have that same fairy tale character about it. It was, though, not quite there. It was shorter, which is not always a problem, but I still felt like it was longer than it had to be, that it didn't really say anything the way her others did. It seemed like it might go on a real Velveteen Rabbit bent, but that wasn't it. It just didn't seem to have a point, though it does wrap back onto itself nicely at the end. And, of course, with DiCamillo, the ride is lovely anyhow, so it's not something I would avoid reading. I was just sort of lukewarm on it.
Labels: 2006, early chapters, enh, lukewarm, middle grades
Sunday, April 01, 2007
When She Hollers
Cynthia Voigt.
Tish's stepfather has been raping her for some time when something starts to push back inside her. One piece, not curled up and dying, decides to fight back, to act out, to stop it. And over the course of one day, she tells him she hs a knife and will keep it with her, prompting a huge fight, runs out of school to keep herself from losing that one piece of hope and protection, and finds an ally in her friend's father, a lawyer who she unexpectedly trusts and who helps her in the ways that she will allow. And when she returns home at the end of the day, she is ready to take him on, for now she has the protection of both a knife and a statement in evidence with a lawyer, and she is ready.
Powerful, it reads as if it would be true in emotion and feeling - Tish is conflicted and scared and ashamed and hateful and more. It avoids the simplistic solution, it shows why she doesn't feel she can take that road, it shows her testing it out a bit and finding it unsafe. The only thing that made me disliek this was that it ends as she returns home, and we have no idea how it works out. Perhaps that works, because the focus is really her struggle to come to terms and get to a place where she can take on her abuser, but I hate to get invested in a character and not be able to see it through. Because now I'm worried about her, and I'll never know. Definitely well-done, but unsatisfactory for me at the end.
Tish's stepfather has been raping her for some time when something starts to push back inside her. One piece, not curled up and dying, decides to fight back, to act out, to stop it. And over the course of one day, she tells him she hs a knife and will keep it with her, prompting a huge fight, runs out of school to keep herself from losing that one piece of hope and protection, and finds an ally in her friend's father, a lawyer who she unexpectedly trusts and who helps her in the ways that she will allow. And when she returns home at the end of the day, she is ready to take him on, for now she has the protection of both a knife and a statement in evidence with a lawyer, and she is ready.
Powerful, it reads as if it would be true in emotion and feeling - Tish is conflicted and scared and ashamed and hateful and more. It avoids the simplistic solution, it shows why she doesn't feel she can take that road, it shows her testing it out a bit and finding it unsafe. The only thing that made me disliek this was that it ends as she returns home, and we have no idea how it works out. Perhaps that works, because the focus is really her struggle to come to terms and get to a place where she can take on her abuser, but I hate to get invested in a character and not be able to see it through. Because now I'm worried about her, and I'll never know. Definitely well-done, but unsatisfactory for me at the end.
Labels: issues, lukewarm, teen
Tuesday, January 23, 2007
Playing in Traffic
by Gail Giles.
Stop me when you've heard this before...
A young girl in high school. She's a mass of contradictions - a slut, brilliant, dangerous, unstable. And she's beautiful, but goth and pierced and tattooed and clearly self-destructive. She has no friends, plays chicken with the guidance counselors and acts out in class, takes some drugs, shoplifts, and so on. Oh, you've met her in teen lit before? Yeah, me too.
The other character is more interesting, a nobody in the school who makes himself a nonpresence on purpose. He gets reeled in by her mystery, her promise of sex, her apparently vulnerable side, her stories of abuse. Despite his falling for these lures, he is on the whole a very astute fellow for his age. It works, though, because it isn't the voice of an adult looking back with the knowledge of hindsight, it's the voice of a cynical outsider looking in. He notes, for example, that the story of her taking on the entire football team right on the field is a ridiculous rumour that exists in every high school. He even starts to sense the inconsistencies in her tales, though he is still, mostly, wide open to her.
So there he is, Mr. Beige being drawn into the swirling drama of Gothgirl, and things start getting weird - surprise! Eventually, she asks him to kill her parents. Yeah. heard that story on the news? Me too. Sure, the ending is not the she-turns-out-to-have-a-heart-of-gold epiphany that you might be used to, but it's not the shocking original it seems to think it is, either.
Final assessment? Feh. Didn't hate it, didn't like it, just not really that impressed and found it not that original in the end. I believe the phrase here is "damning with faint praise."
Stop me when you've heard this before...
A young girl in high school. She's a mass of contradictions - a slut, brilliant, dangerous, unstable. And she's beautiful, but goth and pierced and tattooed and clearly self-destructive. She has no friends, plays chicken with the guidance counselors and acts out in class, takes some drugs, shoplifts, and so on. Oh, you've met her in teen lit before? Yeah, me too.
The other character is more interesting, a nobody in the school who makes himself a nonpresence on purpose. He gets reeled in by her mystery, her promise of sex, her apparently vulnerable side, her stories of abuse. Despite his falling for these lures, he is on the whole a very astute fellow for his age. It works, though, because it isn't the voice of an adult looking back with the knowledge of hindsight, it's the voice of a cynical outsider looking in. He notes, for example, that the story of her taking on the entire football team right on the field is a ridiculous rumour that exists in every high school. He even starts to sense the inconsistencies in her tales, though he is still, mostly, wide open to her.
So there he is, Mr. Beige being drawn into the swirling drama of Gothgirl, and things start getting weird - surprise! Eventually, she asks him to kill her parents. Yeah. heard that story on the news? Me too. Sure, the ending is not the she-turns-out-to-have-a-heart-of-gold epiphany that you might be used to, but it's not the shocking original it seems to think it is, either.
Final assessment? Feh. Didn't hate it, didn't like it, just not really that impressed and found it not that original in the end. I believe the phrase here is "damning with faint praise."
