Remembering Raquel

This novel is a departure from Vivian Vande Velde's usual supernaturally themed fare. A very brief read, (honestly, it can be read in an hour or less) it switches points of view from high school student to teacher to father and more as all try to come to terms with the presumably accidental death of fourteen-year-old Raquel Falcone. One minute Raquel was alive, joking around, excited from having just seen a movie. The next she stepped off a curb into the path of an oncoming car, and she was gone. Whose fault was it? Did Raquel do it on purpose? Her few friends, her suddenly interested classmates, her family, and witnesses to the accident each get their say, and each of them wonders about his or her role in the death. Through these assorted recollections, the reader gets the brief story of Raquel, and the reader knows more than all of the others.

I liked this. The author managed to give a broad range of reactions and it was pretty clever how she wove together the disparate ideas to give the reader the full picture. When the reader finds out why Raquel had a DNR (do not resusicate) order in her purse and how the ambulance crew reacted to it, it's one of the most poignant parts of the book. There wasn't a whole lot that VVV could do with the plot--her main character is dead, after all--and yet she manages to tell an arresting story, one that ended a bit abruptly for me, but a good story nonetheless. And although I wondered if Raquel would get her say--a voice from the dead wouldn't be unusual for VVV--the author didn't tread that ground. This is a straightforward reality based book. It isn't until you reach the last page that you understand the meaning of the cover, and I really liked how the author used that last page to make a final emotional impact.

Uzumaki

Uzumaki: Spiral into Horror 1 is an account of the gruesome events that take place in a Japanese town that is cursed by horrific manifestations of spirals. If you’re asking yourself: “What the heck is so horrific about a shape?!”…Trust me when I tell you that after reading this book, you’ll never look at spirals in the same way again. The story is told from the point of view of Kirie Goshima, an inhabitant of the town who watches in dismay as spirals wreak havoc on the lives of those around her including her boyfriend (Shuichi) and his family.

In the first chapter, Shuichi becomes concerned when his father suddenly develops an odd fascination with spiral-shaped objects (i.e., snails, pottery, water spirals, etc.). This obsession gradually blossoms into an uncontrollable mania that expresses itself physically in some pretty disturbing ways. For instance, when Kirie visits Shuichi’s home to deliver a spiral bowl, Shuichi’s father shows her how he is able to stick out his tongue and roll it into an obscenely large and juicy spiral. Shuichi’s father eventually meets a ghastly demise that would make him the envy of carnival contortionists everywhere.

Each subsequent chapter features yet another tale of an unfortunate soul haunted by spirals…A mentally disturbed woman who tries to rid herself of the spiral in her inner ear (her cochlea) with a pair of scissors…A potter whose work suddenly begins to take on strange spiral patterns and the faces of dead people…and so on.

Author Junji Ito is a masterful horror storyteller with a knack for creating creepy atmosphere and bizarre plotlines. Other popular works by Ito include: Tomie…the story of an eternally youthful and beautiful high school girl whose admirers are obsessed to the point of murdering her; and GYO…fish and other sea creatures with mechanical legs attack Japan.

Night Road

Ever thought being a vampire would be cool? Read A.M. Jenkins's Night Road and you're likely to change your mind. The undead characters in this book actually despise the term "vampire" and all of the horror movie connotations it carries. They prefer to call themselves hemovores, or blood drinkers. The hemes have been around for centuries and over the years have established The Colony, a safe house in New York City where they live protected from the sun and surrounded by doting omnis (short for omnivores, or humans) who have become addicted to giving their blood. The hemes don't take too much from their victims because if they drain an omni, it creates another heme. And the hemes know all to well that their lives aren't glamorous. They're basically parasites who suffer from a disease. They don't have superpowers, they suffer from the Thirst, and they can't die, not even if they want to. They can, however, feel pain. The pain is real and vicious. They just heal faster than the average bear.

Cole, eternally eighteen-years-old, hasn't been back to the Colony in years. He left after he turned the girl he loved into a creature like himself, and the end result was, well. . . not good. In fact, finding out what happened to Bess is one of the creepiest parts of this novel. Ever since the disaster with his girlfriend, Cole has been careful, living a life of the utmost control, blending into his surroundings, never standing out, never getting attached to anyone. What's the point of loving anyone when they will only age and die, leaving Cole alone and bitter? So Cole wanders. But he is summoned back to the Colony one day and when he gets there, he learns that an old friend has unintentionally created a new heme. Gordon's his name but the other hemes call him "the Accident." Gordon is young, immature, and out of control. It becomes Cole's responsibility to take Gordon on the road and teach him the ropes of being a heme, but Gordon is focused on getting back to his home town and seeing the girlfriend he attacked after he turned.

I have loved everything I've ever read by A.M. Jenkins and Night Road is no exception. I loved seeing a new take on the vampire tale. Vampires seem to be exploding all over teen literature these days and this is a fresh idea in an over clogged genre. This book really makes you consider the drawbacks and the limitations that some other novels tend to gloss over, favoring the pomp and glamour of the undead story line instead. Jenkins makes you think: What does it mean not to be fully human any longer? What would it be never to feel the sun on your face? To watch everyone you ever loved age and die? Never to be able to drink anything but blood? To have to hide? What would it really be like to be immortal with all of these limitations placed upon you? And most of all, how do you get over the guilt of destroying the person you once loved?

This isn't really the book for readers who liked Stephenie Meyer's Twilight, even if they both are about vampires. This is a book about guilt, bitterness, and responsibility, from a male point of view. There are quite a few shuddery moments--especially when Cole encounters a "stray," or a heme not from the Colony. The reader shivers, thinking on one level, "Oh, this is just a story," while on the other level. . . "But what if something like these creatures existed, unknown, in our world?" Very, very creepy. This book has quite a different feel from Twilight or Claudia Gray's Evernight. It hits on a deeper level and seems to ask deeper questions. I think the Meyers series might be edging toward some of the conclusions Jenkins makes in Night Road, conclusions about the beauty of being mortal and the sacrifice entailed in becoming other than mortal. Jenkins beat her to the punch. The only small quibble I have with Night Road is that I kept expecting it to reach a bigger climactic plot moment than it ever did. But this is a book about a journey, both a physical one and a metaphorical one as Cole is forced to confront the mistakes of his past. I liked it a lot, and I definitely recommend it.

The Printz Award

On Monday, I went to the Printz Award reception. There the honorees and winner of the Printz Award presented their acceptance speeches. A variety of book genres and accents were represented with the winners. The honorees were from New Zealand, Australia, and two from America (one with a Southern accent). The winner was from the United Kingdom. The honorees were a nonfiction title, a fantasy, a black comedy, and a realistic fiction book. The winner was a survival story. What a variety! There's something for everyone in this year's list of winners!

The first honoree of the evening was Judith Clarke. She was honored for her book, One Whole and Perfect Day. This book focuses on families. Lily has an eccentric family and when preparing for her grandfather's 80th birthday celebration, she just wants them to be normal for one day. But of course, that's really too much to ask for! Ms. Clarke was unable to attend the reception, but she sent a video that I hope will be available later on for other people to view.

The fantasy winner was Elizabeth Knox for her second book in the Dreamhunter Duet called Dreamquake. This New Zealander has a fabulous accent. Seriously, I just wanted to listen to her talk nonstop! I don't know many people who have read this book or the first one in the series, but hopefully this award will grab some people's attention! This fantasy delves into dream worlds which has always fascinated me...

The next author who won a Printz honor award was Stephanie Hemphill. She won for Your Own, Syvlia. The author writes a wonderful nonfiction book about the life of the famous and tragic poet, Sylvia Plath. And she does it in verse. When Ms. Hemphill spoke she began her speech in verse which made me want to listen to her so much more! Karen wrote about this book when it first came out, so after you read this post, make sure to read Karen's take on this book! I have a soft spot for Sylvia Plath, so I'm always happy that there are writers who love her too.

The final honor book was awarded to A.M. Jenkins for Repossessed. Out of all the books that won this evening, this is the title I was most excited about. Repossessed is the type of book that no one really ever thinks has a chance to win a literary award (or an Oscar if it was a movie for that matter). Funny books simply aren't taken as seriously as those realistic fiction titles. Ms. Jenkins' last three books have had a supernatural slant to them --ghost story, vampires, and this one, fallen angels. Kiernan is a demon--working in the depths of hell, day in, day out for years--so he leaves hell. A vacation of sorts and inhabits the body of a 17 year old boy and learns all the little things about life. Karen also wrote about this one, so go check out her thoughts!

The winner of the Michael L. Printz Award for 2008 was Geraldine McCaughrean for White Darkness. This survival story is set in Antarctica as teenager, Symone, discovers that the man she thought was her uncle is obsessed. Karen wrote about this one too. Karen finished this book and nominated it for our Mock Printz award and told me that this was the book that was going to win. Some years we really have a good as to what book will win or at least get an honor. This year, I don't know of a single mock Printz group that called it. Except Karen. That's pretty impressive. Karen reads a lot and loves literary books, so if you're looking for book suggestions on that level--check out her posts. Not that the rest of us aren't as good as Karen! I don't want you (or her) to think that. We don't need to feed Karen's ego! ;)

Anyway, those were the winners that were announced in January. But I just heard their acceptance speeches last night at the ALA conference. I was told that they were going to be putting the acceptance speeches on YALSA's website at www.ala.org/yalsa. So keep an eye on that site and hopefully they'll be up soon!

American Library Association Annual Conference

So I'm currently at the American Library Association's Annual Conference in Anaheim. I'm always exhausted when I get back from a conference, but this time it's been a little different. I think I've grown used to going on 4-6 hours of sleep instead of my usual 8-10; being gone from 8 am until midnight or later each day; and tyring to remember all the meetings I'm supposed to attend. When I first began participating in the Young Adult Library Association (YALSA), I was able to attend author signings, professional development programs, and meetings about the best books written for teens. This year I have only been able to attend my assigned committees (intellectual freedom --three of them; and popular paperbacks for young adults). But I have been able to meet loads of authors at dinners and receptions!

I adore meeting authors and hear them speak. Their passion about writing and their books make me want to go out and read them even more! Plus, I get their books signed for people...

So I thought I'd mention some of the authors I met this time around.

Probably my favorite was Neal Shusterman. When I first heard of his new book Unwind, I immediately was reminded of the argument my mother would say whenever we were fighting. "It's not too late to abort you!" This book is set after the second Civil War. Before the age of reason--thirteen, life is precious and untouchable. But those between the ages of thirteen and eighteen can have their lives "unwound" and their body parts harvested for use by others. Unwind follows three teens who aer trying not to be unwound. With my mom's threat in my mind, I find this book fascinatingly creepy. Mr. Shusterman was very kind and listened to people gush to him about his writing and signed my book with a personalization!

At the same dinner, I spoke about Ellen Hopkins' books' popularity with our teens in Phoenix. I am always amazed that teens will read not only these massive tomes of books, but also about such gritty and edgy topics in VERSE! But they do and they love her honesty in the books. Her newest book, Identical, delves into the topic of sexual abuse. The library hasn't ordered this yet, but look for this fall.

At another reception, I met Melissa de la Cruz. You know, the lady who writes the massively popular Blue Bloods series! She was nothing like i imagined her to be. A teen asked me to look for an advanced copy of book three in the series. I am sorry to say that they only had a preview of an excerpt of it. I did get it so that the teen would be able to have at least that!

The last author I'm going to mention in this post is the winner of the Margaret Edwards Award. This award is for the life time achievement of writing for young adults (you know, teens!). This year's winner is Orson Scott Card. I was really interested in what he would talk about since he doesn't really like to discuss his books as well as the fact that there was some controversy over having him as the winner. His book Ender's Game is one of the best coming of age science fiction story I've ever had the opportunity to read. But besides that, he is an extremely gracious man. I spoke with him when I had a book signed by him. I had him sign it for my nephew who is a teen. He and his father read the series together and over Thanksgiving, he told his grandfather that he thought he would enjoy them. So my father-in-law asks me for the whole series so he can discuss them with my nephew. Here is three generations reading the same book and each finding valuable things within it to discuss with one another. How amazing is that! I'd love to hear about more experiences like that. I love how books can reach different aged readers!

So, there were some of the authors I met at the conference. I also received many advanced copies of books that I think people are going to love! But since I'm going to be on vacation soon, Karen will most likely beat me to reading those!

Newes from the Dead

The last thing Anne Green remembers is being hanged for murder. Now she's lying in the dark, unable to move a muscle. Where is she? Has she been buried alive, or is she in Purgatory? Terrified, Anne recalls the events that led to her sorry state. . . whatever that happens to be.

At the same time, a roomful of medical students waits to dissect the corpse of a newly hanged woman. Robert, a student at his first dissection, is stricken by the sight of the recently deceased. Is it his imagination or did he just see movement behind the "corpse's" closed eyes?

Set in 1650, Newes from the Dead, is a thrilling novel. Is Anne dead or alive? Has she somehow survived her hanging only to be dissected while the blood still runs through her veins? And why exactly has young Anne come to be accused of murder? As her back story unfolds, the reader comes to sympathize with the naive servant girl who has found herself in this nightmarish situation, through a series of unjust events.

Highly recommended! A terrific read with wonderful language from the era. Based on a real story, the 17th century description of this "amazing newes" is given at the end of the book. This one was a fast, shivery read.

Blood Roses

I absolutely love Francesca Lia Block. Every time a new book is set to come out, I await it with the greatest of anticipation. The moment it's in my hot little hands, I devour the new book within a matter of hours, and often re-read it several times. I just love being in the world FLB (as I like to call her) has created. FLB is all about magical realism--stories set in the "real world" with fantastic or magical elements imbuing them. Combining the beautiful and the fantastic, FLB also writes of heartbreak and loss (often the death of a loved one, very often the loss of a love). Her stories are mixtures of elation and despair, usually set in L.A. and featuring kids who aren't mainstream but tend to favor bright pink hair, combat boots, and lace. In 2005 FLB won the Margaret A. Edwards Award from the American Library Association for lifetime contribution to young adult literature. I can't say enough good things about her work.

Her newest book is Blood Roses, a slim collection of nine very short, very beautifully written stories. At first I was dismayed to see the shortness of the collection, knowing I would inhale it in an hour or less. (This proved to be true.) But FLB does so much with so few pages. These stories, several featuring characters that appear in more than one tale, are all about transformation. In fact, FLB has dedicated Blood Roses "for all of you. . .willing to transform." My favorite story was "Skin Art" about a girl who falls in love with an older tattoo artist and wakes up one day to find herself mysteriously tattooed, visual evidence of her passion for the artist. In another story, a girl discovers an angel with his wings ripped off, takes him home, and becomes dependent on him as a fixture in her life.

What was clear about FLB's most current book is how much metaphor magical realism contains. Some readers won't get this. I think you either love FLB or you don't get her at all. Her new collection is full of subtleties, the lines between reality and fantasy blurring all the time. I had to read "My Haunted House" twice before I understood that a death in the narrator's family had occurred, and that when she speaks of "my" haunted house, she means not just the doll house in her bedroom but her full-sized house, her home, her family. This loss, the haunting feeling that death leaves in its wake manifests itself as a haunting in the narrator's childhood dollhouse. But FLB is telling more than a straight-forward ghost story; she is talking about the ramifications of loss on an entire family. In another, a girl's mother is a "vampire." But how literal is this? What exactly happens in this story--and in several--are a matter of interpretation. It will bug some readers that the stories appear to end abruptly and aren't always black and white. I loved it. It gave me room to think about what FLB was saying and to imagine beyond the story.

Read for yourself and see. Enter the beautiful, poignant, and hopeful world of FLB. This collection is a good place to start.

Alfred stole the Sword Excalibur...

And all he got for it was the murder of his uncle and this blog post.

All sillyness aside, The Extraordinary Adventures of Alfred Kropp by Rick Yancey is all about Alfred, a "normal" teen boy who has had a run of misfortunes. First his father ran out before he was even born; he's a BIG boy with a BIG head; his mom has died of cancer leaving him alone with his uncle who has big dreams that leave him susceptible to bad men. His uncle has made a deal with a man to retrieve a sword from the office building he guards as its night watchman in exchange for 1 million dollars. Alfred gets involved, even though he thinks something is fishy about the whole thing, but what can he do when his uncle threatens him with foster care?

Little does Alfred know that this one small moment of thievery will cause possibly the world's destruction. The sword is Excalibur--the legendary sword of King Arthur--and whoever uses it can control men and be unbeatable in combat. After his uncle is killed and Alfred is introduced to the descendants of the Knights of the Round Table, he realizes the consequences of his action and feels that he needs to do something to set things right--which include his death (this isn't a spoiler--he tells you in the first paragraph!); high speed chases in amazing sports cars; secret government organizations; and fights against AODs (Agents of Darkness). When I started reading the book, I asked my husband what he thought of the book and he said, that this is the most realistic book of how a normal teen is put into spy/action situations. And he was right. Alfred isn't trained in fighting techniques like Alex Rider; he doesn't have parents who are spies; or is a genius with unusual skills. He's just an ordinary boy who is big for his size and a little slow to comprehend things...

And that's what makes this a fun book to read. It's action packed and full of unbelievable scenes that make this a book that should be made into a movie. It would be a great teen action flick!

Action Adventure Thieves

So another theme for the popular paperbacks committee I'm on is Spies & Intrigue. I don't talk about those books as often because I'm REALLY behind on my reading of the nominated titles. Shame on me, I know. So I'm catching up a bit. On Friday, I read Thieves like Us by Stephen Cole.

Jonah is up at 3 am in his prison cell thinking that it sounds pretty quiet in the prison--that is until he hears someone coming up to his cell and breaking him out. He's been given a chance to leave prison that comes with a price. His price? Use his skill in hacking and deciphering codes in crimes. Sure, he's already a criminal, but he had a reason for that crime--this one is just thievery, right? But with Patch, the one-eyed lockpicker; Motti, the systems expert; Con, the mesmerizer; and Tye, the driver/pilot extraordinaire, Jonah has found something he has always wanted--a family. Their backer, Mr. Coldhardt, has a new project for them--one that has ties to Ancient Egypt and could lead to eternal life.

As I started reading this book, I immediately thought of the Mod Squad--genius teens who were criminals join forces with the good guys--except they are still criminals in this book. As they justify it, the ones they steal from don't call the police. They call in mercenaries to steal it back and then kill you for stealing! But as I continued to read it became a mixture of Mission Impossible--who's on their side?; who's going to betray them?; and who can they trust? are all questions that popped in my head while reading--and Indiana Jones--grave robbing, ancient history lessons. It was loads of fun! Jonah and Tye are the narrators for the most part and I liked how both sounded jaded but willing to trust the other teens.

If you're looking for a fun action packed story for the summer, look no further. This is the one you need to read!

Palace Intrigue

The theme of my post today is palace intrigue. The wicked excesses of royalty. The back stabbings (sometimes literally) that happen in court. The power, or lack thereof, that drive characters to dark deeds. . .

In Aurelia by Anne Osterland, an assassin is after Aurelia, the crown princess of Tyralt. But the object of the assassin's sword has no idea her life is in danger. She's weary of court, weary of the rules, weary of the class distinctions, weary of all of it because she's a fiery, free-spirited young woman who wants more than confinement. Enter Robert, the son of the court spy, who has been sent to keep Aurelia safe. They've always been friends but now perhaps their relationship can change to romance. . . if Aurelia isn't murdered first.

I started Aurelia but didn't get far. Somehow though I suspect that the things I found lukewarm, such as a so-so writing style and characters that I felt were hackneyed, won't matter as much to many readers as they did to me. The story seems fun, and take a look at that cover. That is a good cover, which as everyone knows is a great way to judge a book. Give it a try. Maybe I was too harsh on it.

A book I can highly and enthusiastically recommend is The Blood Confession by Alisa M. Libby. I think I blogged this one long, long ago but it deserves a mention here among the palace intrigue lot. The Blood Confession is a highly fictionalized account of Elizabeth of Bathory, the crazy countess whose claim to fame was bathing in the blood of virgins, believing this would restore her youth. Libby's character is Erzebet, who believes she has been cursed from birth when a comet tore across the sky, an obviously unlucky sign that led astrologers to make a grim prophecy for the young child. As she grows older, Erzebet becomes obsessed with the terrible idea that she will die young. . . and she begins searching for any way to keep herself from her fate. Her mother is stark raving mad, her father is always away, and her only friend is a peasant girl who stands as Erzebet's one chance not to fall into darkness. Oh, there is one other influence, a huge one, on the young royal. He is a shadowy man who appears to Erzebet, who seems to know her own mind, and who whispers alarming and seductive suggestions. And he may not be entirely mortal. . .

I love, love, love this book. It's a dark one, but Libby deftly writes Erzebet as a character one can understand, even feel compassion for. There is a chilling gothic feel to this novel. Lots of ladies in extraordinary dresses sweeping through the frigid halls of stone castles with blood on their hands. Too good to be missed.

And finally, The Curse of the Romanovs by Staton Rabin, a fictional tale of the royal Romanovs, focusing on the son with the "curse" that threatens his ascension to become the Tsar, and the religious mystic, Rasputin, who wields a frightening power. I haven't read this yet, but I like the cover (always a plus) and I like the premise. Warning: neither this nor The Blood Confession should be read as historically accurate. According to the flap of Curse of the Romanovs, the young prince Alexei, heir to the throne, travels through time to the twenty-first centuy in order to escape an assassination attempt by the mad monk. I cheated and looked ahead at the scene in which Alexei meets a contemporary girl (who happens to be a descendant of the Romanovs) and babbles to her in Russian, which of course she does not understand. Alexei is equally perplexed when the girl pulls a "small metal square" out of her back pocket and begins to speak to it. . .

This one looks good. And the male point of view is an interesting switch from the typical palace intrigue story. Go forth and be intrigued.

Ghostly Romance

I don't know why I enjoy supernatural relationship stories so much. Maybe it's the forbidden love aspect--maybe it's the supernatural aspect, I don't know. All I know is that every time I read one, I thoroughly enjoy it! This one that I just finished, is one that Karen has always recommended, but I had never gotten around to reading. A Certain Slant of Light by Laura Whitcomb is about Helen--a ghost who haunts hosts--people--for their lifetime. Her hosts of choice are literature fans. Her current host is Mr. Brown, a high school English teacher. No one has ever been able to see her until one day when a teen boy stares at her in his class. The boy, Billy, terrifies her and entices her to discover how he can see her when no one has ever seen her in the 130+ years she had been a ghost. Billy is actually James, a ghost of 85 years who has taken over Billy's body when he overdoses on drugs. James and Helen learn about possession and love in this lovely written tale of ghost romance.

There are wonderful bits about literature and the ackward attempt at living a teenage life in current times while having the mentality of a 20-something from the 1800s. There's a hilarious scene when James tries to convince Helen to drive so she can get her license. He tells her that it hasn't changed since they had been alive and she has to inform him that she wasn't alive when the automobile had been invented. This for some reason, cracks James (and myself) up, causing Helen to ask primly "Are you making fun of my age?" So there's romance, relationships, trying to adjust to a new life with no memories of that body's life, and most importantly their past life and what happened to them to cause them to die.

Older teens who like Twilight by Stephenie Meyer as well as the Mediator series by Meg Cabot, which I also adored, will enjoy this ghost story!