Teen/YA review: Monsters of Men

I finished book 3 of the Chaos Walking series, Monsters of Men by Patrick Ness, back in December. I considered just skipping the review, since I had already reviewed book 1, The Knife of Never Letting Go, and book 2, The Ask and the Answer. Even though it took me a few months to find the time, I still want to review this third and final book of the trilogy because I found it so compelling and thought-provoking. So, I promise a short review with no spoilers…and if you’ve already read this novel, please leave your thoughts in the comments section because I am dying to discuss it!

The Chaos Walking trilogy begins in an unknown time and place where everyone can hear everyone else’s thoughts (the never-ending internal cacophony is known as Noise). In books 1 and 2, some details are slowly revealed about how and why this society developed. In this third book, Todd and Viola are back (two very endearing and strong – though young - main characters).  This final book is all about war, as you may have guessed from the title. The evil Mayor Prentiss is still seeking as much power as he can take, a group of rebels is using more and more violent methods to stop him, and a third party, the Spackle, are joining in the battle (you’ll have to read books 1 and 2 to learn more about them). Against this backdrop, the ever-present Noise continues, as Todd and Viola move toward adulthood and have to make decisions that could affect the future of all of their fellow citizens.

Like the first two books, book 3 is action-packed, filled with violence, battles, and increasing horrors. But this trilogy is so much more than action/adventure in a mysterious dystopian/science fiction environment. Ness fills the series – and especially this final book – with thoughtful and thought-provoking complications. In this case, both Todd and Viola are constantly facing serious, life-changing decisions with deep moral implications. They wrestle with issues that have plagued mankind for centuries: Does the end justify the means? Is violence for the right reasons any better than violence for the wrong reasons? If you choose the lesser of two evils, is it still evil?

The backdrop of war makes all of these issues very real and imperative for the two young heroes. Through it all is the constant stress and chaos of the Noise echoing in everyone’s heads. Like in the best dystopian fiction and science fiction, the author makes us think about our own society. Ness certainly wants us to consider the moral implications of both war and terrorism, and I think the Noise is a symbol of what’s occurring in our own world right now – the ever-present, nonstop flow of information from multiple sources every moment of every day.

I highly recommend this series to teens, young adults, and adults of all ages. It is a fast-paced, interesting, compelling story that is also thoughtful. This is my favorite kind of dystopian fiction – the kind that gives you insight into our own society and makes you think – in a similar vein as The Hunger Games trilogy (especially book 3, Mockingjay, which also focuses on war) and the Unwind series. I can’t wait to read more from Patrick Ness.

603 pages, Candlewick Press

 

Teen/YA Review: Insurgent and Allegiant

Over the past two months, I listened to both Insurgent (book 2) and Allegiant (book 3), the sequels to Veronica Roth’s hot post-apocalyptic/dystopian trilogy that began with Divergent.  If you have somehow missed this popular trilogy (been living in a cave maybe?), then you should go back and read the review of Divergent (no spoilers there or in this review) and start there.

As Insurgent opens, Tris and her friends are still reeling from the violence and loss that ended book one.  The city of Chicago erupted into chaos as conflict arose between the five different factions. Now it seems that war is the only possible outcome. Tris and each of her friends must decide where their loyalty stands and which ideology and leader they each agree with.

This follow-up novel is all about conflicts and choices. Many secrets emerge that were not obvious in the seemingly peaceful world at the beginning of Divergent. As more and more secrets are revealed, Tris must make more choices – about who to believe, who to follow, and what is right. Making matters worse, she is haunted by both grief and guilt throughout this second novel, from events that occurred in book one. Through it all, with Tobias by her side, she must also consider what it means to be divergent.

In the final book of the trilogy, Allegiant, the action moves beyond the city’s boundaries, as Tris and her companions venture outside the fence to learn more about their society.  In this book, the chapters alternate between Tris and Tobias, so for the first time, we get a glimpse into Tobias’ perspective. Conflict continues in Chicago between those who believe in the faction-approach they know and those who believe in a factionless society, as an all-out war seems inevitable. Outside of the fence, Tris and the others learn a lot of surprising truths about their own family histories, the rest of the world, and how the faction-divided society began. The question is, what is its future?

Although I enjoyed Divergent and Insurgent, Allegiant was by far my favorite book of the series. The first two books were a bit too violent for my taste, without any real explanation of how this unusual society came to be. That explanation is finally revealed in book three, which made it far more interesting for me. My favorite aspect of dystopian novels is seeing how the author takes elements of our own society and shows how those were taken to an extreme to end up with the dystopian society. I like the thoughtfulness and thought-provoking nature of that kind of story, which I finally got in Allegiant. For me, that brought the series up closer to the level of The Hunger Games trilogy or the Unwind series.

All in all, I am glad I stuck with it and read/listened to the entire trilogy. The audio books were all very well done, with talented voice actors (including two different narrators for Tris and Tobias in the final book). I tried listening to Insurgent on audio with my family last summer, but my son and husband both lost interest because it had been too long since we’d all read Divergent. And that’s an important point with this series: because of the number of characters and the complicated plot, it is best to read each book immediately after the previous one. It’s far more enjoyable that way, and you’ll save yourself a lot of time going back and asking, “Wait a minute, who was that?” I am glad I finally had a chance to listen to the entire series…and now my husband has been inspired to go back and listen to it all, too. The movie adaptation of Divergent opens today – I can’t wait to see it on the big screen!

HarperAudio

Books Read in February

Yet another snow storm...will this winter ever end?

Yes, yes, I am late again with my monthly summary. This year got off to a rough start, so I seem to be constantly playing catch-up. But here it is, finally - my February summary! It was actually an excellent reading month, both in quantity and quality, in spite of being such a short month. Here's all that I finished last month:

• Moloka'i by Alan Brennert, historical fiction (Hawaii)
• The Marriage Plot by Jeffrey Eugenides, literary fiction (Rhode Island)
• Thin Space by Jody Casella, a teen/YA novel (Massachusetts)

• The Good Sister by Wendy Corsi Staub, a thriller on audio (New York)
• The Unfinished Life of Elizabeth D. by Nichole Bernier, fiction (Massachusetts)
• 168 Hours: You Have More Time Than You Think by Laura Vanderkam, nonfiction

• Flora & Ulysses by Kate DiCamillo, middle-grade audio
  
• Insurgent by Veronica Roth, teen/YA audio (Illinois)
• Zane and the Hurricane by Rodman Philbrick, middle-grade fiction (Louisiana)

Can you believe it? I finished 9 books in February! To be fair,  I started a couple of them in January - in fact, ironically, the time management book took me a full two months to finish (I guess I really don't have more time than I think!). I liked every single book on this list, so it's hard to pick a favorite...I guess that would be a tie between Moloka'i and The Unfinished Life of Elizabeth D. - both were excellent, engaging novels. I read a nice mix - 4 adult novels, 1 nonfiction book, 2 teen/YA novels, 2 middle-grade novels, and three of the books were audios.

Update on 2014 Reading Challenges:
I added six states to my Where Are You Reading Challenge 2014 (it's easy at the beginning of the year!).  I read just one from my TBR shelves, Insurgent, for my 2014 TBR Pile Reading Challenge. At this rate, my TBR bookcase will burst! I need to stop going to the library for a while.  I listened to three audio book for my 2014 Audio Book Challenge, so that one's going well so far. I finally read one nonfiction book!  But no classics yet.

What was your favorite book read in February?

Teen/YA Review: In the After

Continuing the creepy fun in Dangerous Reads Month, I listened to the teen/YA audio book In the After by Demitria Lunetta. This suspenseful story combines both post-apocalyptic and dystopian elements into a fast-paced novel full of surprises.

Amy is fourteen when They come and change the world. Gruesome green-skinned monsters, They have a taste for human flesh and quickly take over the world. TV news coverage shows Them arriving in a ship, before all forms of media disappear. Amy is fortunate to live in a high –security house that helps keep Them away and her safe, but her parents – who were out when the attack began – are missing. The creatures seem to have a poor sense of sight and smell but excellent hearing, and Amy quickly learns to live a very silent existence, especially on those dangerous occasions when she must leave the house for supplies. On one of those excursions, Amy discovers a scared and battered toddler, all alone in a deserted grocery store, so she takes her home and calls her Baby.

Amy and Baby live together for several years in the safe house, using their own form of sign language to communicate and rarely seeing other human beings. They become very close, and their life together falls into a routine, though danger is still lurking just outside the fence.

Then one day, they are saved! A community called New Hope finds them and takes them into the safety of their compound where many others are living safely and peaceably together.  Finally, Amy can relax, and they can both get used to not being alone anymore. It takes a period of adjustment, but they both make new friends, start school, and settle into life in New Hope. But certain things just don’t seem right to Amy, and the more she learns about New Hope, the more concerned she becomes.  Besides Them outside the compound, she now worries about new dangers possibly lurking right inside their new home and how to keep herself and Baby safe.

Throughout the story – through both the post-apocalyptic beginning and the dystopian second half – the suspense and tension are maintained.  I listened to the book in record time. Like another post-apocalyptic novel I recently finished, AMatter of Days, this one also contains some unlikely coincidences – Amy’s father was an environmentalist who installed solar panels so they could live “off the grid” and her mother had a super-secret government job that required an electric security fence around their house – that ensured the main character’s survival in the frightening post-apocalyptic world. As with that book, I just accepted those contrivances as necessary to the story and went along for the ride – and it was a wild ride! It sounds like there might be a sequel coming…ah, yes, I see on the author’s blog that In the End will be released June 24, 2014. I can’t wait!

Listening Library/Harper Children’s Audio

If you want to listen to a sample of the audio, click on the amazon link below - there is a "Listen" button just below the photo of the cover. 

Teen/YA Review: The Ask and the Answer

It usually takes me a while to find time to read a sequel, even when I really liked the first book, but I started The Ask and the Answer, book 2 in the Chaos Walking trilogy by Patrick Ness, just a couple of weeks after finishing book 1, The Knife of Never Letting Go, because I couldn’t wait to find out what was going to happen next. It worked out well because this was another long book to add to my Big Book Summer Challenge. This series continues to be fast-paced and exciting with a unique plot full of surprises.

I don’t want to give too much away for those who haven’t read book 1 yet, so this will be tricky. Todd, the main character from the first book, is back. He and his friend Viola have been captured by their enemy, Mayor Prentiss, and separated. The Mayor tells Todd that the only way to keep Viola safe is to comply with everything he says and become a part of his new regime. Todd is constantly worried because he has no way of knowing if Viola is safe or even still alive, as he struggles to keep her safe while doing things for the Mayor that he knows are wrong.

With this page-turning beginning, the story continues against a backdrop of increasingly disturbing changes the Mayor is making to the society he is now ruling, and increasing violence against the Mayor’s regime by a rebel group called The Answer. Where The Knife of Never Letting Go had more of a post-apocalyptic feel to it, with Todd and Viola fleeing from their enemies, The Ask and the Answer is decidedly more dystopian, focusing in on the new society that the Mayor is trying to create. Of course, both books are still in the sci-fi realm, with plenty of action, adventure, and suspense thrown in. It’s an enticing combination.

Like the first novel in the trilogy, The Ask and the Answer is a very violent story, with similar fighting and combat but also plenty of bombing in the mix from the rebel group. However, this second book introduces lots of thought-provoking ethical questions, about war and violence, torture and terrorism. Ultimately, it investigates an age-old question that applies as well to our own world as it does to Todd and Viola's: do the ends justify the means?

The action and suspense build to a final stand-off between the rebels and the Mayor’s organization, but once again, the book ends with a surprising twist that left me yelling, “What?? No, not that!” Now, I can’t wait to read the third and final installment of this exciting trilogy.

519 pages, Candlewick Press

 

Teen/YA Review: The Knife of Never Letting Go

My son and my husband both raved about the Chaos Walking trilogy by Patrick Ness, so I finally found time to read Book 1: The Knife of Never Letting Go as part of my Big BookSummer Challenge last month. Though this unique series has been marketed as teen/YA fiction, it seems to be loved just as much by adult readers. I enjoyed it so much that I started reading Book 2: The Ask and the Answer this week.

I am going to tread lightly with plot description here because it’s obvious the author intended for the novel’s secrets to be gradually discovered by readers. Todd is a boy just one month away from the birthday that will make him a man. He lives in a society where everyone can hear everyone else’s thoughts, creating a continuous stream of Noise. Though Todd is an orphan, he has had a decent life, brought up by two close family friends who care for him.

One day, Todd and his dog, Manchee (whose thoughts Todd can also hear), encounter an odd patch of silence on the edge of town.  This strange discovery leads to the uncovering of some dark secrets that have been kept from Todd, in spite of the Noise. Certain people in town are so committed to keeping the town’s secrets that they go after Todd, forcing him and Manchee into life on the run, leaving his little town for the first time in his life.

This novel is full of action and adventure, as the bad guys chase after Todd and Manchee and a friend they meet along the way. It’s an unusual mix of science fiction, post-apocalyptic fiction, and even some dystopia. And through it all, the Noise adds a unique element. Can you imagine a world where you know what everyone else is thinking?

I loved this book just as much as my husband and son did. Todd is a very likeable character, and Manchee provides a touch of humor, with his doggie thoughts being constantly broadcast to Todd. Although it is a longish book at almost 500 pages (hence its inclusion in my Big Book Summer plans), it is a fairly quick read, with a fast pace and plenty of suspense to keep you reading long past bedtime. So far, Book 2: The Ask and the Answer is just as good.

479 pages, Candlewick Press

 

Middle-Grade Review: Game Changer

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Margaret Peterson Haddix’s novels are always fast-paced with original, thought-provoking plots. In Game Changer, she tackles an alternate reality where sports and academics are reversed in our society.

KT Sutton is an 8^th grade softball champion. Her whole life revolves around her amazing talent as a softball pitcher, and her goals are to win a college scholarship and play in the Olympics. Her shoulder has been bothering her, but KT tries to play through the pain. One day during a championship game, KT blacks out. When she wakes up, she’s back in her bedroom, and the world is a different place.

In this strange new world, school is all about physical fitness, with each class one series of boring drills after another: stretching, running, throwing, etc. For fun, the kids participate in academic competitions, and those seem to be the only things that kids, parents, and the school are truly interested in. In this new world, athletic KT is an outcast, and her little brother, Max, is the star of his 6^th grade Mathletics team and the focus of all of her parents’ attention. Max isn’t any happier about this situation than KT is. When KT discovers that Max also remembers the “real” world, the two team up to try to find a way back.

Alternate reality always makes for an interesting story, and there is plenty of suspense here as KT and Max struggle to figure out what happened and how they can reverse it. Haddix’s lessons – about sports and academics, bullying, and the importance of valuing diversity – are rather obvious here, though maybe less so for younger readers. It is not one of her best books, but overall, it is a fun and fast-paced story that will especially appeal to middle-school age readers.

272 pages, Simon & Schuster

If you like alternate reality stories, one of my favorites is Prism by Faye and Aliza Kellerman.

 

Middle-Grade Review: The Silver Six

As I’ve mentioned here before, I rarely read graphic novels, but sometimes I stumble across a good one. I received a proof of The Silver Six, a middle-grade graphic novel by AJ Lieberman and Darren Rawlings, and thoroughly enjoyed its futuristic, kids-save-the-world story.

As with all good action-packed adventures, there is an evil, powerful bad villain at its center: Mr. Craven, owner and CEO of Craven Mining Co, the corporation that controls much of this futuristic world and that is responsible for continuing to destroy the earth in search of ever-more profitable fuels. As the story opens, young Phoebe is worried about paying her rent and convincing the landlord that her parents are still there…because they aren’t. Phoebe is an orphan who, with the help of her beloved robot, Max, has been fooling the authorities for a year now so that she can stay in her home, near her friends.

But Mr. Craven disrupts her plans, as his minions search for an important electronic file that appears to be hidden somewhere in Phoebe’s home. In short order, Phoebe is caught and sent to an orphanage. It’s a dismal life, filled with hard work and poor conditions, but Phoebe quickly makes friends. Gradually, she and her friends discover they have far more in common than just being orphans, and before long, Phoebe is leading the rest of the Silver Six in an escape plan! The kids have more to worry about than just escaping the orphanage, though, as they find they are being pursued by mysterious forces that clearly want them dead.

From there, the action continues and the suspense builds, both on earth and in distant space, as the mysteries surrounding Craven Mining and Phoebe’s parents’ deaths slowly come to light. The Silver Six is kind of like James Bond for kids: it has cool technology, an evil villain, and lots and lots of action and adventure. The characters are fully developed – which surprised me in a graphic novel – and I quickly came to like Phoebe and to root for her and her friends in their quest for truth and freedom. Lots of fun for middle-grade readers who enjoy action and adventure.

188 pages, Scholastic

 

Middle-Grade Review: Infinity Ring

My son had knee surgery last weekend, and with long hours spent at the hospital, stress, and exhaustion, I needed something light and fast-paced to read. Infinity Ring, a new middle-grade time travel series, fit the bill perfectly. I enjoyed Book One: A Mutiny in Time by James Dashner so much that I immediately moved onto Book Two: Divide and Conquer by Carrie Ryan (this is one of those series with different authors for each book and an online tie-in).

Eleven year-olds Dak and Sera have been best friends for as long as they can remember. They are both geniuses – and therefore outcasts among their peers – so they have bonded over their geekiness. To say that Dak is a history buff is an understatement; he’s been reading thick historical tomes since he first learned to read and spouts obscure historical facts constantly. Sera’s talents lie more in science – she’s been messing around with quantum mechanics since she was a preschooler.

This series takes place either in present day or perhaps a bit into the future. It’s hard to tell exactly because Dak and Sera’s world is slightly different from ours. Some of the differences are subtle and trivial, like the different-sounding names and varied spellings from what we’re familiar with. Other differences are more obvious: there are 48 states in the U.S. and its capital is Philadelphia. And one difference is very significant: a powerful group called the SQ rules the world and has been around since the earliest days of civilization. We don’t know much about the SQ except that they are very powerful and very dangerous.

While exploring Dak’s parents’ lab one day, the two friends discover a time travel device that Dak’s parents have been working on, and Sera figures out how to finish it and make it work. Soon after, the two friends are recruited by a group called the Hystorians who explain that there are certain Breaks in history where things went horribly wrong (mostly thanks to the SQ), resulting in the ever-increasing problems facing the world today (frequent extreme weather events, violence, the SQ’s all-encompassing power and abuses). Through an unexpected disaster, Dak, Sera, and a young Hystorian named Riq are sent back in time on their own and have to try to fix the Breaks and set history back on its proper course.

The history here is sometimes a bit confusing since the history of the story differs a bit from our own, but reading about these major events in history made me want to go look them up online and learn more. In addition, each book includes a pull-out guide to an online game that immerses kids in another historical event, as they help Dak, Sera, and Rik to fix another Break. I tried the first game, and it's fun (though my son told me I;m terrible at online games!) It’s clever because you don’t have to play the games in order to enjoy reading the books, but playing the games brings a whole new dimension to the experience and builds on the basic storyline.

There’s nothing I like better than a good time travel plot, and this series is filled with fast-paced adventure set against some fascinating historical backdrops. In the first book, the kids travel back to 1492 when Columbus was setting off on his historical voyage, and in the second, they travel to 885 in France when the Vikings attacked the island city of Paris. The action, historical details, and suspense are all great; I read the two books in just a few days. The writing is not spectacular – dialogue seems a bit stiff and unrealistic at times and I noticed a few anachronisms in speech during their time travel – but it will be satisfactory for middle-grade readers looking for lots of action and a gripping story, and perhaps the addition of the online games (as well as the short length of the books!) will help to engage reluctant readers. I think that all readers will be fascinated and engaged by the historical settings, as I was.

Book One: 190 pages, Scholastic

Book Two: 188 pages, Scholastic

For more information on both the books and the games, head to the Infinity Ring website. You input a code from the book in order to play the games, but for June and July only, the first two games are available for free!

   

Ender's Game Movie Trailer

The trailer for the movie adaptation of Orson Scott Card's highly acclaimed novel, Ender's Game, was recently released. I first read Ender's Game about 25 years ago, based on the recommendation of my husband (then boyfriend!), and I loved it and went on to read the entire series. My oldest son, now 18, read it a few years ago, and he loved it, too. So, we are all very excited that they have finally made a movie out of this fabulous book!

Here's the trailer:



I didn't realize that Harrison Ford and Ben Kingsley were starring in it - looks like it should be good! Its release date is 11/1/13 - can't wait!

Teen/YA Review: Turnabout

I have read and enjoyed several middle-grade novels by Margaret Peterson Haddix. Turnabout, one of her teen/YA novel s that was recently re-released, is aimed at teens but will appeal to older readers since its plot is all about aging. I found it fascinating and engrossing

In 2000, Amelia is 100 years old, living in a nursing home and waiting to die, when a couple of doctors ask her to sign a release form to join a unique scientific study. Soon, she has been moved to a new facility with 50 other elderly patients who are now all a part of Project Turnabout. The two doctors in charge have administered a drug to all of them that is “unaging” them; they are all becoming younger each day. At first, they are all thrilled; each day, they are regaining lost skills – hearing, walking, memory – but there are some catches. The biggest one is that the doctors assumed they could stop the process at any time, but it turns out they can’t.

After a few years, Amelia and her new friend, Anny Beth, decide to leave the facility and live out their second chance lives on their own. When the novel opens in 2085, Anny Beth has unaged to 18 and Amelia just turned 15, and they are both still getting younger. They realize they will not be able to care for themselves much longer and need to figure out what to do. They think they have plenty of time, until an ancestor of Amelia’s tries to get in touch with them. The super-secret project required them to break all ties to family (their families thought they died of old age) in order to avoid becoming the center of a media circus.

The action goes back and forth from the start of the project to the present day in 2085, gradually filling in the stories of the project’s inception and Amelia and Anny Beth’s long, eventful reverse lives. I was captivated by this unique story and all the questions it provoked. It’s a fascinating concept to consider. There was plenty of suspense, not only in finding out how Amelia and Anny Beth would address their problem of turning back into children but also how they would elude the persistent family member following them. The details of the project and its progress are also gradually revealed. In all, this is a fast-paced and compelling story that easily kept my attention. I finished it in just a few days and look forward to reading more of Haddix’s novels.

240 pages, Simon Pulse

 

Teen/YA Review: Ruins

My husband, 18-year old son, and I are all big fans of Orson Scott Card. We all read his series that starts with Ender’s Game, a classic by now (my husband and I read it 25 years ago!). So, when we heard he had a new sci fi series out for teens and young adults, we were all excited. All three of us loved the first book, Pathfinder, and I was just the last one of us to read its sequel, Ruins, which was just as good. I’ll try not to include any spoilers for those who have not yet read Pathfinder and still want to start the series…so that means I can’t really say too much about the plot because both books have a lot of twists and turns and surprises.

Most of the main characters from the first book are back for Ruins, setting off on a journey with the goal of literally saving the world. Rigg, the main character from Pathfinder, is back and the de facto leader of the small group, though his best friend, Umbo, is a bit jealous and wonders why he’s not the leader. Both Rigg and Umbo have unusual skills. Rigg can see the paths of all living creatures, even those that passed by thousands of years ago. Umbo can travel back in time to the recent past, and when the two friends work together,  Rigg can travel far back into the past with great accuracy, with Umbo anchoring him to the present and able to bring him back.

These talents come in handy, but the problem is that none of their little group can travel into the future. All they know is that their world will be destroyed in a few years, but they don’t understand why or how to fix it. As they try to save their world’s future, they learn more and more about its unusual origins and past.

As in Pathfinder, much of Ruins deals with time travel and with the philosophical and ethical issues around trying to change the past. I love time travel plots for exactly this reason – the fascinating, often paradoxical, discussions that are integral to them. What happens to your own present when you change the past? Do alternate histories disappear or remain intact? Could you actually make changes in the past that would result in you no longer existing in the present?

Besides these existential issues, there is ample suspense in this story and plenty of action. The group doesn’t know whom they can trust, and it seems that everyone they meet turns out to be lying to them in one way or another. Everything they try seems to fail, as they struggle to figure out how to save the world from its pending destruction. This is a fast-paced and exciting adventure that is also thought-provoking. Card has done it again, and we can’t wait for book #3!

530 pages, Simon Pulse


 

Teen/YA Review: The Dark Side of Nowhere

We are big fans of Neal Schusterman’s novels here at our house. My husband, son, and I all loved the Everlost trilogy and Unwind and its sequel (which I still need to read). So, I couldn’t wait to read a new reprint of one of his older novels, The Dark Side of Nowhere. While the plot is wholly unique, it has that signature Schusterman fast pace, creativity, and suspense.

This story is full of surprises, so I won’t tell you too much about the plot – part of the fun is seeing it unfold. Fourteen-year old Jason lives in a small town somewhere in the center of the US – basically, the middle of nowhere. Jason has a good life with his parents and friends, but mostly, he is just bored. He feels like nothing exciting ever happens in his pathetic town:

“If God threw a dart at the world and it happened to strike Billington, completely obliterating it, no would notice and no one would care. In fact, I often thought it would be the best thing that could happen to this place. Smack in the middle of the state, Billington is on a highway that couldn’t be straighter if you drew it with a ruler, and whenever I heard people talk about going nowhere fast, I figured they were headed here, although I couldn’t see what the hurry would be. We’ve got your typical fast-food places, an uninspired mall, and way too many satellite dishes – because in a place like this, what else is there to do but watch five hundred channels of TV? If boredom was a living, breathing thing, then its less interesting cousin would be Billington.”

You get the picture. So, Jason’s boring life continues until one of his best friends dies from appendicitis, and his school’s eccentric janitor gives him a strange gift. From there, things just get weirder and weirder, as Jason begins to realize that very strange things are going on in his boring little town – things that may have never happened anywhere else on earth.

It’s a fun, fast adventure with a lot of warmth and heart at its core. Schusterman’s wild imagination is in full swing here. He has also created a likable and unlikely hero in Jason; I tore through this novel in just a few days, hoping things would turn out OK for him in the end. You'll have to read it to find out for yourself!

230 pages, Simon & Schuster

(This book is officially recommended for teens, but I think older middle-grade readers will enjoy it, too.)

 

Middle-Grade/Teen Review: The Power of Six

 A few months ago, my family and I watched the movie adaptation of I Am Number Four, and we all enjoyed it very much.  My 17-year old son said it seemed like the sort of story where the book was probably even better than the movie (he is an avid reader!), so we gave him I Am Number Four and its sequel, The Power of Six, by Pittacus Lore for Christmas.  He loved them both.  Interestingly, I had tried to interest him in the audio version of The Power of Six, but he refused to listen!  He said he wanted to read it in traditional format.  Though I was frustrated by his stubbornness at the time, I have to admit now that he was right: this was a very good story but one best read rather than listened to.

This sci fi series, The Lorien Legacies, is about a dying planet (Lorien) that sent 10 of its children to Earth in an effort to someday revive their race.  Those children have been in hiding, along with their adult guardians, spread across the planet, living as humans among us for years.  In this latest book, The Power of Six, the stories of Number Four, known as John Smith, and Number Six are continued from the first book, as they go on the run to try to stay away from both the FBI and their alien enemies, the Magadorians (I won’t say much more than that in case you haven’t read the first book yet).

Readers are also introduced to a new Lorien character, Number Seven, known as Marina, who has been living in an orphanage in a monastery in Spain with her guardian.  The chapters alternate between John and Marina narrating, with lots of action, suspense, and even a bit of romance.  This book is rife with battle scenes between the Lorien teens and the fierce Magadorians who want to eradicate their race, which I found a bit tiresome but my son says were the best part of the book!  The series’ story is moved forward quite a bit with this book, as each of the kids develops his or her powers, and more back-story is explained.

Overall, I enjoyed the story and found it interesting and engaging.  My only complaint is with the audio production.  There were two narrators: a male reader, Neil Kaplan, who read the chapters from John’s perspective and a female narrator, Marisol Ramirez, who read Marina’s chapters.  Ramirez did a great job, and I enjoyed listening to Marina’s chapters; however, John’s chapters, read by Kaplan, were often cringe-worthy.  He used different voices for different characters, which just did not work.  John’s friend, Sam, who is supposed to be a bit of a geek, was voiced with an abrasive, nasally voice that just sounded ridiculous, and he didn’t do much better with the female voice used for Six.  In fact, my son overheard me listening one day, and said, “See?  I told you the audio would be no good!”  I wouldn’t go that far – I did listen to the whole thing – but this is definitely one case where I would recommend reading the book rather than listening.

HarperCollins

NOTE: This book is recommended for ages 14 and up.  I think that older middle-grade readers would also enjoy it, though there is a lot of graphic violence during the battle scenes, so keep that in mind.

 

Happy Anniversary to My Favorite Book!

Did you know that this year is the 50th anniversary of the iconic children's novel, A Wrinkle in Time, written by author Madeleine L'Engle and published in 1962?  The publishing world has been pulling out all the stops for its year-long celebration of this beloved book, including brand-new 50th Anniversary Commemorative editions, in both hardcover and paperback. I heartily agree that this is a milestone worth celebrating!

I enjoyed this article in Publisher's Weekly about a big anniversary celebration event held last week at Manhattan's Symphony Space. I wish I had been there - it sounds like so much fun! There were various performances of bits of the book, by both children and celebrities (I would have loved to hear Jane Curtin's reading), as well as recordings and photos of L'Engle herself talking about the novel, and a panel discussion of current children's authors.  Among the authors in the panel was Rebecca Stead, author of When You Reach Me, a recent Newberry Honor winner that paid homage to A Wrinkle in Time.  Each of the panelists was asked about their first encounter with L'Engle's most famous novel, so I thought it would be fun to share with you my own early experiences with what was my all-time favorite childhood book.

I actually read A Wrinkle in Time (for the first time) for school.  My class was reading it.  I thought it was my 3rd grade class, but I recently reunited with some old elementary school classmates on Facebook who said it was a later year...I guess my memory is faulty! So, anyway, sometime in elementary school, our class read A Wrinkle in Time, and it was love at first read for me.  I loved Meg and Charles Wallace right from page 1 and was entranced by the other-worldly plot.  After reading the book, my class performed a play based on the book, and I was thrilled to be cast as Meg!  I remember being on stage with the kids playing Charles Wallace and Calvin, while someone back stage flashed strobe lights during our tesseracts (yes, awesome special effects).

I was so entranced by the book that I immediately went to the library and read through the rest of the series.  Did you know that A Wrinkle in Time is only book one in a 5-book series?  I read and loved them all!  I probably read the first book several more times during my youth.

Fast-forward 20 years or so, and I'm a mom to two sons.  I couldn't wait until they were old enough to share my favorite book with them!  But I was too impatient.  I tried reading it to them when they were maybe about 5 and 8, and they made me stop - told me it was too scary.  So, I bided my time.  Before long, my oldest read it on his own and enjoyed it.  One down, one to go.  Once my youngest son was old enough, I kept recommending it to him...but he has a fierce independent streak and hates when anyone in the family recommends anything to him! So, he avoided it.  Finally, his 6th grade teacher assigned A Wrinkle in Time as required reading for the whole class, and he had to read it.  He finished it - and loved it! - and then, my reluctant reader said those words every book-loving mother wants to hear, "This was so good!  There's a sequel?  I have to read it!" So, he read A Wind in the Door and loved that one, too.  Music to this mother's ears.

So, what's your story?  When and how did you first experience A Wrinkle in Time?

    

Middle-Grade Review: The Roar

For the past month or so, whenever I began reading a new book, my 17-year old son would say, “Mom!  You started another book!  You HAVE to read The Roar next!”  So I finally listened to him (sometimes kids know best) and recently finished The Roar by Emma Clayton, an action-packed dystopian sci fi novel for middle-grade and teen readers.  He was right – I absolutely loved it!

The Roar is set in London in the future.  An Animal Plague spread a deadly virus across the world and forced all remaining humans to barricade themselves behind The Wall.  To accommodate the population in such limited space, they built up instead of out.  Now, as you might expect, the wealthy and powerful live in the new, elite upper levels of London, with the poor masses crammed into dark, wet slums below or dismal towns filled with “fold-down” apartments further north.

Twelve-year old Mika leads a gloomy existence in one of those tiny apartments with his parents.  A year ago, his twin sister, Ellie, disappeared and was declared dead, but Mika knows in his heart that she is still alive.  The reader learns, on the very first page, that this is true, as Ellie attempts to escape from her captors.  When the government begins a new program to strengthen kids and launches a new battle-filled video game, complete with competitions featuring unbelievable prizes, Mika is suspicious of their motives but knows he must go along with the program if he hopes to find his sister.

It’s an original and thoughtful story, filled with action and suspense and cool technology, that moves along at a fast pace.  I stayed up way too late at night reading until I finished this book!  There is even an element of the paranormal here, in the amazing connection between Ellie and Mika that grows even stronger as the story progresses.  Some elements (the game, for instance) reminded me a bit of Ender’s Game, though this is a wholly unique tale with its own twists and surprises.  My son and I both loved this novel, and it looks as if a sequel is in the works, so we have more to look forward to!

481 pages, Scholastic

NOTE:  The publisher says the book is appropriate for ages 9 and up, and I do think it will be popular with middle-grade readers, but it will also appeal to teens (and adults!).

If you like The Roar, you might also like Spacer and Rat by Margaret Bechard, another good sci fi novel that my son recommended to me.

Middle-Grade Review: The Search for WondLa

 I had been eager to read the new middle-grade release from Tony Diterlizzi, co-author/creator of The Spiderwick Chronicles.  His latest is a middle-grade fantasy/sci-fi adventure called The Search for WondLa.  I ended up listening to the first half on audio and reading the second half on paper, with a rather mixed review of the two different approaches to telling this imaginative story.  Ultimately, I would recommend reading the book on paper but not listening to it on audio.

The story opens with 12-year old Eva Nine, a young girl who has grown up entirely isolated in an underground sanctuary with her robot mother (cleverly named Muthr, Multi-Utility Task Help Robot, a name I may adopt!).  Though Eva has been happy and well cared for, she sets off on a journey, eager to find others like herself.  Her only clue to help in her search is a scrap of torn paper that shows a girl like herself with a robot and an adult human with the torn words WondLa left.  The world she explores is filled with strange, wondrous, and sometimes frightening creatures.

I brought the audio on our California vacation this June, figuring it would be a perfect fit for our annual road trip, with all the elements my family usually enjoys: a young protagonist in a fantastical place on a fast-paced adventure.  We listened to about half of it before my kids finally said, “No more!” and my husband and I agreed.  Now granted, none of us are smack in the middle of the book’s intended audience of middle-grade readers (my sons are now 13 and 17 and their reading tastes have matured a bit), but all four of us felt that the audio production just wasn’t very good. 

The story was interesting, but the narrator (ironically a well-respected actress, Teri Hatcher of Desperate Housewives fame) just grated on us.  She read the main character, a twelve-year old girl, in a fake-sounding little girl voice.  My youngest son kept saying, “She just sounds too young!” And some of the other characters had similarly strange-sounding voices (granted, they are all strange, made-up sorts of beings).  It’s hard to describe, but we just found the overall effect annoying and finally gave up.

Upon returning home, I was determined to give it another try, this time on paper.  I finished reading the book and enjoyed it very much.  I think this is a case where the old-fashioned paper format is best, especially because Diterlizzi’s imaginative text is accompanied by lots and lots of his wonderful illustrations.  With so many unusual creatures and places in the story, the illustrations were additive, helping me to better imagine Eva’s adventures.  I found the rest of the book engrossing, loved the ending, and can’t wait for the next book in the planned trilogy!

NOTE:  The book and audio both have a unique feature.  You go to the WondLa website (where there is also a nice promo video of the story), click on the WondLa Vision icon, and follow the instructions to download special software (it took about 5 minutes).  Then, you hold up certain illustrations (3 different pages of the book or the pictures on the first 3 CDs) to your web cam, and up pops a 3-D map of Eva’s journey, each one adding to the last as the story unfolds.  It’s pretty cool.

473 pages, Simon & Schuster

 

Teen/YA Review: Pathfinder

I’ve been a big fan of Orson Scott Card ever since 23 years ago when my then-boyfriend (now husband) lent me Ender’s Game, which still stands as one of my favorite books.  I went on to read the entire series and was captivated by Card’s unique plots, writing style, and in-depth characters.   I haven’t read much of his work since then, until last week when I had a chance to read his latest teen/YA sci fi novel, Pathfinder.  I was pleased to find that his new novel has all the characteristics I enjoyed all those years ago.

Each chapter of the book has two parts:  the first part, often brief, is written in a different font and follows the life of Ram Odin, a starship pilot.  The bulk of each chapter deals with thirteen-year old Rigg who lives a quiet life with his father, hiking through the forest and trapping animals for their furs, but who has a secret talent:

Saving the human race is a frantic business.  Or a tedious one.  It all depends on what stage of the process you’re taking part in.

***

Rigg and father usually set the traps together, because it was Rigg who had the knack of seeing the paths that the animals they wanted were still using.

Father was blind to it – he could never see the thin, shimmering trails in the air that marked the passage of living creatures through the world.  But to Rigg it was, and always had been, part of what his eyes could see, without any effort at all.  The newer the path, the bluer the shimmer; older ones were green, yellow; ancient ones tended toward red.

Rigg’s quiet life changes dramatically when his father dies.  As he sets out to follow his father’s last instructions, he begins to discover secrets Father had kept from him.  He also discovers a way to use his talent to go back in time.  He sets out on a journey, as his father asked him to, and meets some new friends along the way.

I won’t say too much more about the plot because half of the fun of this novel is the surprising twists and the ways that disparate things begin to come together.  Pathfinder was utterly compelling, keeping me firmly engaged right up to the last page, when I thought, “I can’t wait to read the next book!” (Card does mention in his acknowledgements that there will be a second book).

Card has created a fascinating story here, peopled by likable characters and intriguing secrets.  It’s a very complex story; one of the things my 16-year old son said he liked best about it was the characters’ discussions of time travel and the usual paradoxes that are created when someone goes back in time and tries to change the future (I love time travel plots, so I enjoyed this aspect, too).  He and I both loved this novel and are eagerly awaiting the next one.

657 pages, Simon Pulse (Simon & Schuster)

 

Middle-Grade/Teen Review: Pendragon 10: Soldiers of Halla

On our recent trip to Oklahoma after Christmas, I absolutely devoured Pendragon #10: Soldiers of Halla by D.J MacHale.  Then, the moment I finished it, my 16-year old son snatched it up and read the 600-page book in less than 24 hours!

The Pendragon series has been one of our all-time favorites for years, and it obviously still holds that rank in our household.  This series finale did not disappoint.

The star of these books is Bobby Pendragon, a 14-year old boy living in Connecticut with his family at the start of the series, and an 18-year old young man who is responsible for the fate of the universe by the end.  In between, it's a fast-paced adventure through space and time to different Territories, peopled by a wide variety of beings, all united in a race against time to defeat evil, in whatever form it appears in their world.

I'm not going to say much about the plot of this particular book because the twists and turns are an integral part of the imaginative story, and I wouldn't want to ruin it for anyone who wants to read the series from the beginning...which I highly recommend!  My son and I were both very satisfied with the series ending and the answers it provided.  I couldn't wait for him to finish it, too, so we could talk about it!

Pendragon will appeal to older kids, teens, and adults who enjoy adventure, science fiction, or fantasy with an intricate, suspenseful plot that makes you keep turning the pages long past bedtime.  I couldn't wait to read the final book, but now I'm sorry that it's over.  I'll miss Bobby and his friends!  Give this series a try - you won't be sorry.

608 pages, Aladdin

Teen/YA Review: Leviathan and Behemoth

Leviathan and its sequel, Behemoth, by Scott Westerfeld, have been big hits so far in the YA book community.  My husband, my teenage son, and I are all thoroughly enjoying this exciting series set in a unique world.

The novels take place in an alternate reality during the time of World War I.  In this alternate place, the world is split into two main factions:  the Clankers and the Darwinists.  The Clankers, mainly Germany and Austria-Hungary, have enormous steam-driven machines, heavily armored and ready for battle.  The Darwinists, led by Britain and enabled by the early DNA research of Charles Darwin, have developed genetically modified animals as their “machines”.  The Leviathan is a living, breathing airship that is its own ecosystem, formed in part by a huge whale.

The two main characters of the series are young teens, each on separate sides of the growing conflict.  Deryn Sharp is a young girl, disguised as a boy, in the British Air Service.  She’s got excellent skills but is in constant danger of her secret being revealed.  Alek is the prince of the Austrian-Hungarian Empire but is on the run with a small crew of loyal men in their Stormwalker.

It’s an exciting, fast-paced story, filled with fascinating details of the bizarre technologies used by both sides, as the reader gets to know and care about both Deryn and Alek, whose paths eventually cross.

I listened to Leviathan on audio and read the written edition of Behemoth.  Although the audio was excellent, with convincing British and Austrian accents by the narrator, this is one case where I think I would recommend the written form.  The reason?  The spectacular illustrations in the books, drawn by Keith Thompson.  The detailed black and white drawings really add a lot to the story, especially in helping the reader to visualize some of the bizarre creations of the Darwinists and the Clankers.  I pored over every illustration eagerly and even referred often to the written book while I listened to the audio.

Kids and teens who love adventure, especially fans of steampunk, will love this thrilling series (though it’s classified as YA, I think older middle-grade readers will enjoy the series as well).  The hardcover editions are especially nice (you just can't help but run your hands over the textured covers) and would make a wonderful gift.  We can’t wait for the next book!

464 pages, Simon Pulse