Title:Dust

Author: Joan Frances Turner

Genre: Horror, Zombies, Post-Apocalyptic, Speculative Fiction

Publisher: Ace
Publication date: September 7 2010
Hardcover: 384 pages

Nine years ago, Jessie had a family. Now, she has a gang.

Nine years ago, Jessie was a vegetarian. Now, she eats very fresh meat.

Nine years ago, Jessie was in a car crash and died. Nine years ago, Jessie was human.

Now, she’s not.

After she was buried, Jessie awoke and tore through the earth to arise, reborn, as a zombie. Jessie’s gang is the Fly-by-Nights. She loves the ancient, skeletal Florian and his memories of time gone by. She’s in love with Joe, a maggot-infested corpse. They fight, hunt, dance together as one—something humans can never understand. There are dark places humans have learned to avoid, lest they run into the zombie gangs.

But now, Jessie and the Fly-by-Nights have seen new creatures in the woods—things not human and not zombie. A strange new illness has flamed up out of nowhere, causing the undeads to become more alive and the living to exist on the brink of death. As bits and pieces of the truth fall around Jessie, like the flesh off her bones, she’ll have to choose between looking away or staring down the madness—and hanging onto everything she has come to know as life.

Stand alone or series: Stand alone

How did we get this book: Review copies from the publisher

Why did we read this book: Thea loves zombies and Ana has a new found appreciation for the creatures. When we first heard about the book, we both went: WANT.

Review:

First Impressions:

Thea: According to the marketing promo behind Dust, the novel promises to be…different than the average zombie novel. It promises to tell the story of life after death, from the walking dead’s perspective. It promises to make readers question what they know about life and death, through the eyes of a not-so-young heroine, named Jessie. These are a whole lotta promises for a debut novel to deliver, but deliver Dust certainly does. It’s a haunting, elegiac portrait of life after death, of relationships and emotions from the perspective of a character that is no longer human, but not a monster either. Dust is one of those books that gets better the more that I reflect upon it. I loved it. (And, I think that you should listen to me and not Ana, because she is wrong and I am right, and that is all there is to it.)

Ana: I had very much the opposite reaction to the book – the more I reflect upon it, the less I like it. It starts well enough but half way through the book, it loses its steam. The marketing promo, the blurb, the cover of my ARC (a letter from the marketing department) all tell me how different the book is going to be and I think that ultimately it does not deliver on its promise. I think that story-wise it doesn’t work that well and the basic themes of life and death and being human x being a zombie, were extremely heavy-handed. I didn’t like it.

On the plot:

Thea: Dust is the story of Jessie, or Jessica Anne Porter that was, a girl that was fifteen when she was killed in a car accident only to rise days later as a zombie. Fighting her way out of her cement sealed grave under six feet of dirt, Jessie finds refuge of a kind with a gang of other undead, that call themselves the Fly-By-Nights. After taking their brutal initiation of beating, breaking her bones and causing her to retch up a dark mixture of fetid, congealed blood (“Coffin Liquor,” as the zombies call it), Jessie becomes an official member of the gang, and she finally feels at home. Roaming the forest together for deer, possum and other wild prey, Jessie is respected by her fellow gang members as a fighter – even one-armed, as the book opens with Jessie finally losing her right appendage, Jessie is perhaps the fiercest fighter of the group. But then, something strange disturbs Jessie’s comfortable routine. First, there’s the strange blonde “hoo” (zombie slang for human) that stumbles into their woods, so far from the protections of civilization. Disoriented, sweating a strange, non-human, chemical smell, the girl seems like something caught between living and dead – not quite hoo, but not quite zombie either. Then, gang leader Teresa starts acting strangely, smelling eerily like the not-hoo girl from the woods. Something frightening is happening to the undead and living alike, and not a soul will be left untouched.

Well, what can I say about Dust? It is a haunting story that lingers with you long after finishing the novel. It is deeply unsettling, unique, and beautifully written. It is a story that is, more than anything else (and contrary to what Ana will tell you about romance or whatever) about people that have lived, died, and been born again in a cold, cruel world. Yes, they are flesh-hungry, but they aren’t “monsters” – at least, not any more than humans are monsters. From a plotting perspective, Dust is a quiet novel, a loving macabre ode to sinew and blood, of decay and the maggots and blowflies that feed upon the flesh of the dead. But instead of being gratuitous or overly gory for the sake of being gory, Dust is in actuality a beautiful, melancholy book – Ms. Turner manages to make the sight of dusty, parchment-thin skin beautiful, the warm blood and entrails of a fresh kill vibrant and delectable. Dust isn’t a book that aims to shock and disgust; rather, it simply is an honest recording of the life of Jessie and her gang.

Dust also is a mystery of sorts, and a book of discovery and reconciliation. There is the question of the cause and nature of the strange new infection that sweeps the forest, a biological mystery that unfolds beautifully and gradually over the course of the novel. The cause of the apocalyptic bacteria is insignificant though, really, as the more important, underlying theme is not on the macro but micro level – personal guilt, family loyalty and perceived betrayal. Though the idea of the microbe unleashed by humanity ultimately leading to the species’ demise is nothing new, Ms. Turner handles this aspect of the novel beautifully, creating a tempered, well-paced tale that I devoured whole in essentially a few short hours.

On the more technical, zombie-fan sort of stuff, I must say that I loved Ms. Turner’s take on the life cycle of the zombie, as I did the newly imagined method that they communicate with each other, although I will say that certain aspects felt underdeveloped (the strange, literal “danse macabre” and the way they hear thoughts in terms of music – or perhaps only Jessie does this?). Still, I loved their new, superior neuron-firing capable brains, and most of all, their perceived “superiority” to the idiot, stinking hoos. They aren’t superior of course – this is the beauty of Dust, with its flawed characters, laying bare the faults of both humanity and zombie, the difference between the two not so dramatic as one might suspect. I loved that the book doesn’t feel the need to explain everything explicitly, that Ms. Turner makes some unorthodox choices towards the end of the novel, too. And, contrary to the notion that Dust is romantic or some sort of cautionary tale, I will say that, in my opinion, this misses the point of the book. In my opinion, I didn’t find this book romantic at all (certainly not in the conventional, human interpretation of the word) and it certainly is not a factor in anything that Jessie chooses to do – take, for example, Jessie’s last huge decision to walk to the sands. If this were all about true love, wouldn’t she have dragged her true love with her? No. She goes by herself. Very, very late in the book (i’m talking the last 30 pages) there is, I guess, what can be interpreted as a romantic development, but Jessie isn’t exactly a romantic person. I didn’t see this relationship as a romance so much as it is a reunion between people that thought they would never see each other again. But this is all moot, and I don’t even want to spend any more time on this because the book is really not a romance, it’s only a teeny tiny 1% of the overall book, and it’s distracting from the main point:

Dust is above all a deconstruction of the zombie myth.

Instead of using the undead as a catalyst for human ugliness, it instead approaches zombies as people…that have died and been born again. It is their story, through one of their own’s eyes. It is not a cautionary tale about the evils of humanity or the presumptions of science or whatnot; to reduce the complexity of Dust to such an interpretation does the book a grave disservice. I’d liken Dust to a novel such as Kazuo Ishiguro’s Never Let Me Go, which plays on the same human/inhuman blurry areas (but more on that in the character section below).

I will say, however, that Dust is a book that clearly is NOT for everyone. Take the ending, for example (which I think, as a zombie fan, is an homage to a cornerstone of scifi horror) – it’s a risk and understandably, not for everyone. But for me? I loved it.

Ana: Dust has a promising start and I loved the first half of the book: with gore and violence and a wonderful look at how Jessie lives now. I especially liked how zombies are still decaying and will eventually, and very slowly, go through what all dead bodies go through: all the stages of decay but with the different that it happens to the zombies whilst they are conscious. It is in fact the living dead in all their horrifying glory.

But is Dust really that different from the average zombie novel? I don’t think so. Sure, it is from a different perspective ,ie from the living dead themselves but at its core it still deals with fear, love and what it is to be human. THAT’s what bothers me the most about the book – that it promises a world of difference, but that it doesn’t deliver.

I will agree with Thea when she says that Dust is above all a deconstruction of the zombie myth but beyond that, is where we fundamentally disagree. I think that this deconstruction is not well done at all, it is heavy – handed and yes, with an underlying message. I think that the idea that zombies “are just people who died” is hammered over and over again in a less than subtle way. In trying to show the other side’s story, I believe the author did in fact a 360 turn going right back at the starting point – by making them just like humans only with a different diet. The more the story progresses, the more Jessie and her companions sound like humans and when the virus hits they even start to look like humans. Which brings me back to the point I am trying to make: the story to me is not unique, or original; it simply deals with flawed characters who can be as good and bad, as violent or not, as humans are. Perhaps that is actually the point. In which case, it is just another story that doesn’t have anything special to it, at least not for me.

It is also very predictable: I saw the resolution coming a mile away, I saw the identity of one the characters as soon as she walked into the novel and I saw the romantic development between Jessie and another character basically from page 1 and yes, there is romance there although not – I agree with Thea here – central to the story. And although I don’t think that the book is about messages, they are undoubtedly THERE : in what humans are capable of, what science is capable of, what people would do for misguided love. It is so there that at one point Jessie muses:

“typical human and no, I refused to start thinking of myself as one too. “Speaking,” I said, as coldly and calmly as I could muster, “as someone with a little actual afterlife experience? This isn’t hell. There is no hell. It’s just what your kind always do to the world in one form of another, so pull yourself together and keep walking”.

I kept thinking about “identity” and how what really differentiates zombies and humans is simply how each chooses to consume their food: zombies like it raw, humans like it cooked. At first, it seemed to be more than that: it seemed that there was going to be MORE that identified the zombies as separate entities– perhaps their aggressive culture, perhaps their danse macabre – but the former can be put down as another thing that is actually remnants of their humanity and the latter is never truly explored. I think this makes the book less complex and more simplistic, as a matter of fact.

But beyond that: the novel has problems with pacing as well with the second half dragging itself to a conclusion full of navel gazing. With regards to the ending: count me in as one that did not like it, but then again, I am not a horror-sci fi fan and probably failed to see as the homage that it possibly is.

On the characters:

Thea: Dust is one of those books that gets better upon reflection, especially from a character perspective. As with any book filtered through the perspective of a single character, there is a degree of unreliability – and I think that it is important to keep in mind that our narrator, Jessie, is a flawed character that sees what she wants to see, and interprets things in the way she wants to interpret them. Again, the important thing to remember about Dust is that it is a book about the life after death – about people that have lived and died, and have been reborn. As such, Jessie and her ilk experience emotions that are very human and familiar – and yet at the same time, they are not exactly human (which makes sense – if all of our life experiences contribute to how we see things and interpret the world around us, the effect is even more dramatic on those that have been killed and reanimated). And this is the main point of contention between Ana and myself, because Ana thinks that the emotions that Jessie feels are TOO human to be zombie, to which I ask, what then makes a zombie? Must they only be mindless creatures hungering for braaaaaains? And then I would ask, why this hate against the zombie? In other books featuring vampires or fairies or werewolves or angels, they all experience “human” emotions, and those are considered successes or acceptable, but when it’s a zombie this is a failure? It seems hypocritical to me. Zombie discrimination, I tell you! Again, this is Ms. Turner’s deconstruction of the zombie, by making them something other – not human, certainly not, but not so unfamiliar either. Not living, not dead, but something in between.

As a narrator and protagonist, Jessie is a mess of sharp edges, tough attitude, and strangely, vulnerability. Jessie’s narration is by turns funny, astute, and hard. Though she was only fifteen when she died, death and revival have a way of changing a body, both physically and emotionally. Through her memories, we learn about her less-than-ideal human life, and her final ability to find a home only beyond the grave. Her relationship with her gang, especially the tangled, complicated relationship with Joe, is fodder for reflection. Yes, Jessie feels emotions – remorse, love, hate, guilt, although I would argue that her brand of emotion is twisted and if human in origin, no longer exactly human in expression – and over the course of the book she grows and changes as a character, as do the other main characters in the book. And, unlike vampires locked in eternal youth, or zombies in films locked in eternal hunger, Jessie and her crew’s desires for food do not dictate who or what they are. They are not in permanent stasis, as each zombie has a life cycle of its own. When the shit hits the fan later in the book and both zombies and humans begin to change again, mutating from undead to..sort of living again, these emotions and needs morph as well. I think it’s a pretty awesome catalyst for character development, and an original way to take a look at the connection between eating, and (non)humanity.

“How many kinds of living and dead and living dead and dead living had I been in just these few months, these few days, after the stasis of plain old human living and dying? I deserved some kind of existential medal.”

As for the other characters, I thought they were all wonderfully handled and written, in particular ‘maldie Renee (lost and friendless and discriminated against for the fact that she was embalmed), the dustie Florian with his pacifism and insightful senility, the quiet and less aggressive (yet courageous) Linc, and of course, the manipulative, screeching electric guitar that is Joe. If there’s anything that will differentiate the zombie from the human, I think it is apparent in Jessie and Joe’s relationship, in which they crush each other’s bones and fight to the point of threatening each other’s deaths as a normality, but find solace in that rage. It is what by hoo terms we would call an abusive relationship, but our interpretations don’t really apply to the walking dead. Theirs is a tangled mess of hate and trust and love, and while there are glimpses of humanity and these characters (or at least Jessie) has some semblance of right and wrong, the zombie rulebook is completely different from the human one. It is this otherness that makes the deconstruction a success, in my opinion.

I will briefly address what I know Ana will bring up (based on our emails back and forth). I just want to say that I do NOT think the author assigns any moral judgements to her characters, to Jessie’s relationships, or to any aspect of the story. Jessie does have a sense of morality, although it clearly has changed since her time as a human (from a vegan animal rights activist to an animal huntress and zombie killer as one of the most fierce of the gang’s fighters, and in the end, eating anyone and anything – human, plant, inanimate object, friend, enemy – in order to survive). The presence of Jessie’s ability to make decisions based on her own concepts of morality does not equate to a moral message or judgement for the book, however. In my opinion, this just confirms how these biological changes effect the experience and perception of each character in this book. I think that it is important to remember that Dust is a book about what are by definition non-human characters, with vestiges of humanity – they remember who they were, certain things from their lives, and they feel emotions. But it is vital to keep in mind that they are creatures that have died and been reborn, their very brains rewired and reconfigured. They do not think in the same way that we do, as much as a twenty-year old thinks and behaves in the way that an eighty-year old would, and so for that reason their motivations may sit strangely with us hoo readers – but that, I think, is the point. There is no underlying message, no judgement or subtext that says that zombies are GOOD and humans are EVIL or any such nonsense. I urge everyone to please, please, for the love of all that is good in the world of literature, to try to step outside of your comfort zone and view Jessie’s world through the eyes of someone that is neither living nor dead, but someone caught in between.

Ana: What are zombies? I don’t know. They might not be all about braaaaaaaaaiins but I think it is clear that they are not simply “humans who died” either. They are “other”. And this is indeed the greatest point of contention between Thea and me when it comes to the book: I think that the book completely fails in capturing this “otherness” of these characters and fully exploring and developing it. I think that the zombies here are utterly familiar, completely humanised and to me that include human moral judgments as well or else Jessie would not mind eating humans; or else Jessie would not know that there is “right” and “wrong” and that her abusive relationship with Joe for example falls under the latter. That is definitely this awareness here and I honestly don’t see a complete re-wire of their brains. Dust might be a book about non-human characters but still so very human that they still have very human concepts of morality and emotions.

Jessie is very much still human, (even though she will tell you that she is not and I am agreeing on the unreliability of her narrative here), wanting to be loved and accepted which is in direct contrast to what happened to her when she was alive – she was neither loved or accepted when alive. Which is why she fell into the relationship with Joe – not because as a zombie she doesn’t care anymore, or her brain has been re-wired but because of her very human characteristics of wanting to fit in, be accepted. At one point she thinks:

“Even knowing then and later that I should have collected my strength and wits, turned around and left for good, no looking back. I stayed because of him. Like I said, I was fifteen”

and then:

“I hated that look. I hated that I could never even see the sorry part of it anymore, the part that really mattered, all I could see was how it was still always me that was wrong and him that was right. Always. No matter what.”

This reads as though it could apply to anybody. I would have loved to see the “otherness” or a true Zombie 2.0 story. To me, I just read another book of a character that had family issues and carried them to grave and beyond – with a bit of mystery on the side.

Final Thoughts, Observations and Rating:

Thea: Clearly, Dust is not for everyone. At times funny, at times painful, this reimagining of the zombie resonated for me, like the strings of the electric guitar or quiet plink of piano Jessie hears in her undead brain. It’s a strange book, but a memorable one for all that. A notable, if not favorite, read of 2010 for me.

Ana: Definitely not for everyone and above all, definitely not for me. Dust left me completely cold and underwhelmed.

Notable Quotes/Parts: From Chapter 1:

My right arm fell off today. Lucky for me, I’m left-handed.

In the accident that killed me I rocketed from the back seat straight through the windshield–no seatbelt, yeah, I know–and the pavement sheared my arm to nothing below the shoulder. Not torn off, but dangling by thin, precious little bits of skin and bone and ligament. I had a closed casket, I’m sure of it, because they never wired the arm or glued it or any other pretty undertaker trick. I managed to crawl back out of the ground without its help anyway, and of course after nine perfectly uneventful years of fighting and dancing and hunting and getting by fine with the left arm, the right finally shuffles its coil right on the banks of the Great River County Park’s not-so-Great River, smack in the middle of a meat run. Joe, my boy, my backup, was not sympathetic in the least….

You can read the full excerpt online HERE.

Additional Thoughts: Dust has a pretty cool website, complete with extras such as the following book trailers (this one is hilarious, if not really having anything at all to do with the book):

You can see the other trailers HERE.

Rating:

Thea: 8 – Excellent

Ana: 5 – Meh

Reading Next: Dead Beautiful by Yvonne Woon

Giveaway Details:

Courtesy of publisher Ace, we have FIVE copies of Dust up for grabs. The contest is open to addresses in the United States only, and will run until September 4th at 11:59 pm (PST). To enter, leave a comment here telling us what your favorite zombie novel is. Only ONE entry per person, please! Multiple comments from the same I.P. address will be automatically disqualified. Good luck!

Title: Mockingjay

Author: Suzanne Collins

Genre: Dystopian, Speculative Fiction, Young Adult

Publisher: Scholastic
Publication Date: August 2010
Hardcover: 390 Pages

Against all odds, Katniss Everdeen has survived the Hunger Games twice. But now that she’s made it out of the bloody arena alive, she’s still not safe. The Capitol is angry. The Capitol wants revenge. Who do they think should pay for the unrest? Katniss. And what’s worse, President Snow has made it clear that no one else is safe either. Not Katniss’s family, not her friends, not the people of District 12. Powerful and haunting, this thrilling final installment of Suzanne Collins’s groundbreaking The Hunger Games trilogy promises to be one of the most talked about books of the year.

Stand alone or series: Book 3 in the Hunger Games series

How did I get this book: Review Copy from the Publisher

Why did I read this book: This final novel in the Hunger Games series is THE most buzzed about YA book of 2010 – of COURSE I was going to read it. I enjoyed The Hunger Games (though felt it was an American, toned-down version of Battle Royale) and was more impressed with the original direction of Catching Fire, so I was hoping for big things from Mockingjay…

Review:

**THIS REVIEW CONTAINS SPOILERS FOR THE HUNGER GAMES AND CATCHING FIRE. If you have not read the first two books in this trilogy and want to remain unspoiled, I highly suggest you look away. YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED.**

After the dramatic breakout from the Arena during the Quarter Quell, Katniss and a few other victor tributes were able to escape from the Capitol’s grasp, and have taken refuge in District 13. At the end of Catching Fire, Katniss, injured during the daring escape from the Arena, awakens to discover that District 12 is a smoldering ruin, that her friends, mentors and allies have been in on a larger rebellion scheme all along – and worst of all, she awakens to learn that Peeta has been captured by the Capitol, suffering a horrific fate Katniss cannot even begin to fathom. Taken to the subversive and very-much-alive District 13, Katniss gradually regains her strength and health and decides to make one of the most important decisions of her life. She agrees to become the Mockingjay; the face of the rebellion against the Capitol. But she soon discovers that being the Mockingjay is more treacherous than she could have imagined, as she’s used as a pawn in an incredibly dangerous, high-stakes power game between President Coin (of District 13) and President Snow. Though she believes in the rebellion and fighting back the capitol, Katniss begins to question Coin’s tactics – freedom, but at what cost?

Mockingjay is beyond doubt one of the most talked about, most highly anticipated YA releases of 2010 – and with that buzz comes incredibly high reader expectations. With high expectations comes, inevitably, some disappointment. For me, though? Mockingjay was everything I thought was missing from The Hunger Games and Catching Fire. It wasn’t a perfect book (especially given its tendency towards heavy-handed message-hammering), however, it was a meaningful and resonant one. I don’t think the Hunger Games trilogy could have ended any other way, heartbreaking and cruel though this book may be. I loved it.

First, I do want to take an aside to address something I’ve been seeing in reviews across the blogosphere – that is, the issue of reader expectation versus reality. I cannot grade this book according to what I expected or wished it could have been; I can only analyze what actually has been written. And, as it stands Mockingjay IS a hugely different book than its two predecessors – it is a paradigm shift of the Hunger Games trilogy. For some readers, this shift will be disappointing, but for me, it answered my single biggest problem with the series to date: that is, how The Hunger Games and Catching Fire, while enthralling and action-packed, felt sanitized of true violence, terror or tough decisions. There is “danger” in the arena in these earlier books, but there’s never any question that Katniss or Peeta will make it out of the Arena. Similarly, there was no moral quandary, no meaty ethical questioning that takes place in these two prior books – Katniss and Peeta are time and time again bailed out of actually killing friends or anyone in cold blood (imagine, for example how The Hunger Games would have turned out had Katniss been forced to make a decision to kill Rue or Peeta?). In Mockingjay, Ms. Collins discards this simplistic, lite version of violent dystopian horror and inflicts the most dramatic, traumatizing, heartbreaking stuff she could have possibly done to her characters.

People die (I’m talking MAJOR characters).

People are forced to make hard decisions (A preemptive strike? Inhumane weapons? To punish the Capitol’s children just as those of the Districts have been punished for seventy-five years?).

And I personally have to give kudos to Ms. Collins for this shattering of the picture pretty dystopia-lite facade. In books 1 & 2, Katniss has time to worry about which boy she likes. In Mockingjay? All that has to be pushed aside in order to survive a war in which both sides are equally bloodthirsty and driven to insane, destructive lengths to win. If you were looking for drawn out romantic resolution, Mockingjay will certainly not live up to that expectation. I will say that while I loved this shock of ruthless, cold reality – in which main characters are not protected by some magical author bubble that promises that they will be safe, beautiful and sane forever – I do think that the book will undoubtedly lose some fans that have come to expect the lighter incarnations of THG series (again, this is where reader expectation kicks in).

As for the characters, they go through the grinder in Mockingjay, and understandably, not a one of them comes out unscathed. Katniss, our heroine, is injured so often both physically and emotionally tested, that it’s no surprise that she breaks down in this final book. That doesn’t mean Katniss is weak or a shell of her former self – she is defiant and calculating as ever, but she also is forced to grow into a different person in Mockingjay. Finally, she sees the whole picture and understands her role as a pawn in a larger game – Katniss is a tool, a figurehead to be brandished and thrown away when she gets too dangerous, just as Peeta has been. As this shroud of cluelessness falls from Katniss’s eyes, she finally is able to take control of her life and make her own decisions, right or wrong. This transformation in Mockingjay is a dramatic and painful thing, but one I think Ms. Collins handles perfectly, solidifying Katniss’s place as one of my favorite heroines of current YA. Gale, too, blossoms into a different person, hungry for payback and destruction. But, besides Katniss’s arc, it is Peeta’s that is the most shocking and poignant of the bunch (at least, it is in my opinion). I won’t spoil what exactly happens to these characters, except to say that Peeta finally sees Katniss in a different way, forever altering their relationship. It’s an enormous shift, and one that is unexpected but welcome.

While I did love the gloves coming off, so to speak, and the sharp characterizations, I do think that Mockingjay stumbles in the writing department. Mockingjay is undeniably heavy-handed with it’s very clear Messages – the political metaphor (it’s not even a metaphor; the heinous evilness of war is hammered home into readers’ heads with all the subtlety of a sledgehammer), the reality television critique, how absolute power corrupts absolutely, etc. The writing, too, felt repetitive and needlessly explicit. For example, I loved Katniss’s haunting “Hanging Tree” song, but I hated that Ms. Collins felt the need to explain the song – in Katniss’s voice of course – stanza by stanza. Subtlety. Mockingjay could have used some.

That criticism aside, I think Mockingjay was a fitting, beautifully tragic end to a poignant series. Mockingjay isn’t a book about some girl prancing about amidst a thin veneer of danger – this is a book about brutal, murderous war, and how a girl tries to survive, living with the decisions she has made and the blood on her hands. It is powerful, dark, soul-searching stuff, that though incongruous with the first two books, ultimately is all the more admirable because of its grit and pain. I absolutely recommend Mockingjay – but be aware that this is not a book for the weak of heart. Mockingjay is resonant, powerful, and emotionally exhausting – and I wouldn’t want it any other way.

Notable Quotes/Parts: From Chapter One:

I stare down at my shoes, watching as a fine layer of ash settles on the worn leather. This is where the bed I shared with my sister, Prim, stood. Over there was the kitchen table. The bricks of the chimney, which collapsed in a charred heap, provide a point of reference for the rest of the house. How else could I orient myself in this sea of gray?

Almost nothing remains of District 12. A month ago, the Capitol’s firebombs obliterated the poor coal miners’ houses in the Seam, the shops in the town, even the Justice Building. The only area that escaped incineration was the Victor’s Village. I don’t know why exactly. Perhaps so anyone forced to come here on Capitol business would have somewhere decent to stay. The odd reporter. A committee assessing the condition of the coal mines. A squad of Peacekeepers checking for returning refugees.

But no one is returning except me. And that’s only for a brief visit. The authorities in District 13 were against my coming back. They viewed it as a costly and pointless venture, given that at least a dozen invisible hovercraft are circling overhead for my protection and there’s no intelligence to be gained. I had to see it, though. So much so that I made it a condition of my cooperating with any of their plans.

Finally, Plutarch Heavensbee, the Head Gamemaker who had organized the rebels in the Capitol, threw up his hands. “Let her go. Better to waste a day than another month. Maybe a little tour of Twelve is just what she needs to convince her we’re on the same side.”

The same side. A pain stabs my left temple and I press my hand against it. Right on the spot where Johanna Mason hit me with the coil of wire. The memories swirl as I try to sort out what is true and what is false. What series of events led me to be standing in the ruins of my city? This is hard because the effects of the concussion she gave me haven’t completely subsided and my thoughts still have a tendency to jumble together. Also, the drugs they use to control my pain and mood sometimes make me see things. I guess. I’m still not entirely convinced that I was hallucinating the night the floor of my hospital room transformed into a carpet of writhing snakes.

I use a technique one of the doctors suggested. I start with the simplest things I know to be true and work toward the more complicated. The list begins to roll in my head. . . .

My name is Katniss Everdeen. I am seventeen years old. My home is District 12. I was in the Hunger Games. I escaped. The Capitol hates me. Peeta was taken prisoner. He is thought to be dead. Most likely he is dead. It is probably best if he is dead. . . .

You can read the full chapter online HERE. Also, you can check out author Suzanne Collins reading chapter one aloud below:

(Is anyone a little weirded out that Katniss has a southern accent in Ms. Collins’ reading? Just me? Nevermind.)

Additional Thoughts: Our current Mockingjay 13 District Blog Tour and Giveaway is still up and running – and is ending tonight at 11:59pm (PST).

If you haven’t yet entered for your chance to win a sweet Mockingjay-embossed iSkin, hurry up before it’s too late!

Rating: 8 – Excellent

Reading Next: Dust by Joan Frances Turner

Title: The Way of Kings

Author: Brandon Sanderson

Genre: Fantasy

Publisher: Tor
Publication Date: August 2010
Hardcover: 1008 Pages

Roshar is a world of stone and storms. Uncanny tempests of incredible power sweep across the rocky terrain so frequently that they have shaped ecology and civilization alike. Animals hide in shells, trees pull in branches, and grass retracts into the soilless ground. Cities are built only where the topography offers shelter.

It has been centuries since the fall of the ten consecrated orders known as the Knights Radiant, but their Shardblades and Shardplate remain: mystical swords and suits of armor that transform ordinary men into near-invincible warriors. Men trade kingdoms for Shardblades. Wars were fought for them, and won by them.

One such war rages on a ruined landscape called the Shattered Plains. There, Kaladin, who traded his medical apprenticeship for a spear to protect his little brother, has been reduced to slavery. In a war that makes no sense, where ten armies fight separately against a single foe, he struggles to save his men and to fathom the leaders who consider them expendable.

Brightlord Dalinar Kholin commands one of those other armies. Like his brother, the late king, he is fascinated by an ancient text called The Way of Kings. Troubled by over-powering visions of ancient times and the Knights Radiant, he has begun to doubt his own sanity.

Across the ocean, an untried young woman named Shallan seeks to train under an eminent scholar and notorious heretic, Dalinar’s niece, Jasnah. Though she genuinely loves learning, Shallan’s motives are less than pure. As she plans a daring theft, her research for Jasnah hints at secrets of the Knights Radiant and the true cause of the war.

The result of over ten years of planning, writing, and world-building, The Way of Kings is but the opening movement of the Stormlight Archive, a bold masterpiece in the making.

Speak again the ancient oaths,

Life before death.
Strength before weakness.
Journey before Destination.

and return to men the Shards they once bore.

The Knights Radiant must stand again.

Stand alone or series: The first book in The Stormlight Archive, of a planned ten volume series

How did we get this book: Review Copies from the publisher

Why did we read this book: We both discovered Brandon Sanderson last year and fell in love with his Mistborn books, as well as Warbreaker (not to mention, we’ve heard nothing but praise for The Gathering Storm). So, when we learned that the esteemed Mr. Sanderson would be embarking on a brand new epic – a ten volume series! – we of course were ecstatic.

REVIEW

First Impressions:

Thea: Since Brandon Sanderson’s succession of the late Robert Jordan (to say nothing of his successes with Elantris, the Mistborn trilogy and Warbreaker), it’s to be expected that The Way of Kings would receive is a book with an ungodly amount of buzz surrounding its release. The hype for this book is massive enough to make wary even the most optimistic reader – and, as someone that has been let down more than a few times this year by highly anticipated reads, it was with some trepidation that I started this book.

And…The Way of Kings is just about as good as expected.* Impressively detailed, ambitious as hell, and freaking THICK (clocking in at over 1000 pages, The Way of Kings is a bonafide doorstopper), The Way of Kings is a solid first entry in a promising new series.

——————–
* I say “just about as good as expected” because it isn’t nearly as good as the first Mistborn book. While an impressive undertaking, TWoK’s biggest downfall is that it is but the first novel in a very long series – and as such, there isn’t much in the way of resolution. And, well, it’s shockingly similar to the aforementioned Mistborn series. But, more on that in a bit.

Ana: I am a huge Brandon Sanderson fan and was waiting for this with anxiety. All I can say is: the hype is justified. The Way of Kings met my expectations and even surpassed them. It has everything that I came to expect from the author: kooky magic system, amazing world building and strong characters (of both genres) and more, because I think this is his best book (yes, even better than Mistborn) to date where I can see how his writing has matured. I started with trepidatious excitement, HOLY CRAP- ep my way through it and ended it with that feeling of sheer, unmitigated joy which only happens when discovering a new series to love. It might be only the start of a long, long series yet to come and as such it does read like a first of many, but oh, what a beginning it is.

On the Plot: Very basically because there is way too much happening in this book: Once upon a time, the Almighty tasked the Knights Radiant to protect humanity against the threat of the Voidbringers and gave them Shardblades and Shardplate – near invulnerable armor – to fight them off. Then the Radiants, tired of their task of eternal task to protect humanity against the attacking Voidbringers, put down their shardblades and armor, and walked away from mankind (or did they?). Ever since, man has been fighting amongst each other to acquire the remaining Shardblades. The book follows four main characters from different strata of society with different sets of skills (the political/war leader, the slave/warrior, the scholar and the outsider), in alternating point of view chapters, until an inevitable convergence of threads.

Ana: The Way of Kings is an epic introduction to a brand new Epic Fantasy series. It doesn’t try to do something new, it doesn’t try to break away from traditional. Quite the contrary, it embraces the very definition of epic right from the start: it is extensive, it has impressive proportions, and it involves and encompasses very traditional heroism with some very recognisable tropes and archetypical (but not necessarily stereotypical) characters and to me none of this is a bad thing. In fact, Brandon Sanderson reminds me of how much I love Epic Fantasy for these very same reasons. But where this particular book diverges from the puerile and from the danger of being just “another one” is where he makes it all his own: by further exploring themes that he has introduced in his previous books (slavery, mythopolitics, mundane theology and the creation of Gods) , by creating another entirely original magic system and by writing sympathetic, flawed characters of the heroic variety.

As an introduction, as the first of what promises to be a long series, it is very much about setting and presentation. It starts with a bang and it finishes with another bang and it has serious moments of kick-ass action but for the most part, it takes its sweet time with introducing the main characters (their past and their present) of this play, placing them in the required position for next move as well as slowly disclosing the world and its politics, economics, theology and even biology , magic (or lack of) to the reader and Sanderson does so with a small amount of exposition. For a book that it’s 1000 page long, I fully expected to be bored at the some point or to come to the conclusion that it could have been shorter but no. Even though it reads as an introduction, I was left with the impression that it is a necessary introduction and never once felt that it should have been shorter and that in itself is surprising to me. One of the things I questioned when reading Sanderson’s previous books was the amount of repetitive information and thought processes (i.e. the needless, endless mental masturbation that characters such as Elend went through) but The Way Of Kings is very… clean and it reads so, very well and easily making it at the very least, the best of his books in terms of writing.

I am in fact, in awe at the sheer insanity that this book presents: the amount of peoples, locations, times, creatures, characters, etc is mind blowing and I can only but to bow down to Sanderson’s genius.

Ultimately, for me, the book does what is supposed to do: I am completely hooked and prepared to carry on reading the series.

Thea: I do have to agree with Ana that The Way of Kings embraces the Epic side of fantasy, and that it is an ambitious and well-conceived undertaking. There are plot threads branching off of plot threads, each as tantalizing and promising as the last. The magical system, the setting, the writing itself are all expertly crafted and executed, and in that I can find no fault with the book.

Since Ana’s already covered all the good, I’ll be the bad cop and point out what didn’t quite work for me. My problems with The Way of Kings are two-fold. The first problem I have (and I should note that this will not be a problem for everyone) is that The Way of Kings is boilerplate Mistborn.

A reluctant but dedicated hero. A post-apocalyptic, dead landscape ravaged by an ever-pressing weather phenomenon (instead of ashfall and eerie mists, you have shattered deserts and these great storms). A mysterious race of creatures that no one really knows anything about (the Kandra in Mistborn, the Parshmen here). A dead God. A prophecy (un)fulfilled. A misinterpretation of visions and texts.

It’s almost as if the template for Mistborn was taken and embellished for The Way of Kings. This isn’t to say that The Way of Kings isn’t good, because it is. It’s ridiculously good, and even though it’s a thousand pages long (with really tiny text and really large pages), I never felt tired of the story or that I was slogging through just to get to the ending. This is testament to Mr. Sanderson’s skill as a storyteller that he manages to tell almost the same story and kept me reading it the whole way through with a minimum of skepticism.

But enough with the comparisons – how does The Way of Kings stand on its own? Pretty solidly. There are possibilities of deeper issues to be explored – the divide between rich and poor, the powerful and the disenfranchised; the intriguing split between sexes (scholarship is a “womanly” art, whereas warfare is a male art; sweet food is womanly and unfit for men, etc). In Sanderson’s prior books, there really isn’t much in the way of social critique or symbolism, but there is this possibility in The Way of Kings (whether or not the books will ever go there is a different story). There is also some talk of religion and ethics, but again conducted on a superficial level. I don’t doubt that Brandon Sanderson has the capacity to go deeper with these ideas – the question is, will he?

Finally, in terms of writing, the alternating character viewpoint chapters are effective and build the story on multiple fronts (with the added benefit of readers not getting too tired with a single perspective – for example, if I had to read ONLY Kaladin’s story for the whole book, I probably would have gone insane – but more on that below!). My only qualm in terms of writing and plotting technique is that I wished that there was more time spent on Shallan and Jasnah’s storyline, as opposed to the constant Kaladin overload. But now I’m getting ahead of myself again.

On the Characters:

Ana: With regards to the characters, The Way of Kings has not only recognisable Fantasy archetypes but it has also recognisable Brandon Sanderson-style characters. The vast majority of characters in the books are that of a good, heroic, variety. That is not to say that they are cookie cutter, Mary/Marty Sues types: they are flawed, they have inner struggles for a variety of reasons (betrayal, loss, struggle with political and religious beliefs) and some of them traverse a more grey area of morality (like for example, Shallan, one of the female characters, aka the Scholar) and they sound more realistic than his previous characters for all that.

Even though I love to read about dark, morally dubious anti-hero characters, I will shamelessly admit to have a preference for the truly heroic ones, hence Kaladin (aka The Slave) is by far my favourite: he is someone I rooted for from beginning to ending, on his failed attempts not to care about his comrades and his eventual surrender to his role of protector. I totally fist pumped the air when his time came to be The Bravest of Them All.

I will also confess to being terrified right now: this series is going to be long, what are the changes that all of these characters introduced now will make it to the end? (and the fact that I am even worried about this is another sign of how much I am on board of this train).

Another important point worth mentioning. I have always appreciated Brandon Sanderson’s treatment of his female characters as characters with agency of their own. Mistborn’s Vin is one of my favourite Fantasy female characters of all time. And it is no different here. A couple of protagonists are female characters and they are great but not only that, there is a special thread which concerns the very roles that women play on this society (for now, they are respected as the scholarly ones and they are the only ones that can read – but never fight) but there is an underlying discussion as to how this norm is an imposition and not a “natural” role and the seed for breaking the norm has been sowed in this first instalment and I can’t wait to see how it all plays out.

Thea: Here’s where I’m a little more…divergent. I mentioned above that while I thoroughly enjoyed this book, my problems were two-fold. The second, larger problem, lies with the characters: they are all so ridiculously GOOD.

The biggest goody-two-shoes of them all being Kelsier-I mean, Kaladin (their NAMES even look the same). A Ben Hur-type badass warrior that has become a slave, that has become a leader again, Kaladin is undoubtedly the Hero of this book. And, he is in the tradition of old heroes, unerringly Heroic. He cannot help but save people. He takes the young and the weak under his wing. He’s faster than a speeding bullet, more powerful than a locomotive, and able to leap tall buildings in a single bound — I mean, he floats like a butterfly and stings like a — I mean…

You get the picture.

That’s not to say that Kaladin is infallible – indeed, for the good majority of the novel (and this is an overwhelming majority, as of all the characters, Kal is the only one to have a running narrative in all five parts of the book), Kal is a self-tortured hero, wallowing in the pain of his failures. (Again, to compare to the Mistborn books, Kal has shades of Elend and Sazed – the grating, constant self-doubts; the ceaseless self-torture over his past endeavors and deaths at his hands) After a couple hundred pages of this, my sympathies towards Kaladin and his terminal Jack Shephard syndrome (Oh Em Gee, Kaladin is even a SURGEON! WITH DADDY ISSUES! Didn’t even make that connection until now!) were zilch.*

This is, of course, a matter of personal preference. In modern fantasy, there is a dearth of truly Heroic characters (more morally ambiguous anti-heroes currently en vogue), so for that alone I do have to give Mr. Sanderson props.

My frustration with Kaladin aside, however, the bigger problem is that almost every protagonist and supporting character in this book shares this over-the-top goodness and nobility. The bridge crews, Alethi King’s uncle Dalinar, his son Adolin, even the purported “villains” – highprince Sadeas or assassin Szeth, for example – have best interests at heart. I find it hard to believe that in the bridge crews, there isn’t a single rotten, heinous character. Not all the “nobler” characters are so unpalatable, however. Like Kaladin, Dalinar is a similarly noble but tortured character, conflicted over the assassination of his brother Galivar, the former king, and tormented by visions. His storyline as he grapples with decisions and the accusations that he is going mad is undeniably gripping.

And, these criticisms aside, I do think there were a few fascinating characters that were at the periphery of this book – and I dearly hope to see more of them in the next volume. In particular, the female characters of Shallan and Jasnah, and the king’s Wit. Shallan, purportedly one of the three protagonists of this book (though her storyline gets far less time than either Kaladin’s or Dalinar’s) travels far and long to become high princess Jasnah (Dalinar’s niece and sister to the king)’s Ward – but her motivations are not so pure. Though she discovers a love for scholarship, Shallan’s primary objective is not to become more educated and to be married off. Jasnah is undoubtedly my favorite character of the book, as she is the most morally ambiguous of the book – there’s one particular scene in which she attempts to teach Shallan something of ethics and philosophy by way of example, and it is badass. I can only hope that there is much more of this duo – especially given their revelation at the end – in the next book.

And finally, there is the King’s Wit. I’m not quite sure what his story is, but he’s a fascinating figure, and one that I think will figure into the overall story in a much larger way.

Of course, there are a multitude of secondary and tertiary characters that we haven’t mentioned – but, despite their sickening tendency towards doing the noble/right/good thing, they are all very well written and impressively varied; i.e. they are more than just bland filler in the background. And that is impressive in and of itself.

——————–
*Ana: OH NO YOU DIDN’T JUST EQUATE KALADIN WITH JACK SHEPHARD! *engages in fighting stance*

Final Thoughts, Observations and Rating:

Thea: Despite its strong similarities to the Mistborn books and it’s over-the-top Goodhearted characters, I still truly enjoyed The Way of Kings. I am beginning to grow familiar with Sanderson’s favorite devices – alternating storylines that ultimately converge; noble-minded characters; detailed magical systems & worldbuilding; lengthy religious/ethical debate – but that’s not necessarily a bad thing. Though these favorite tropes are easily spotted, Mr. Sanderson is clearly refining his technique, growing more skilled as an author and storyteller. I think the Stormlight Archive has the potential to be a better series than Mistborn trilogy – though it isn’t there yet (I still think that Mistborn is a much better first novel in comparison to The Way of Kings – though TWoK is more complex). One of the best new fantasy novels I’ve read this year…but I’m still waiting to be wowed.

Ana: I more than enjoyed The Way of Kings, I loved it truly and deeply. I think it is already better than the Mistborn trilogy not only for its epic scale but because it is a better book when it comes to the prose. Regardless of how much I loved it, I do agree with Thea that it is still not quite up there in terms of being a Totally Awesome Book but the series has a lot of potential to be just that at some point. The Way of Kings reminded me of how much I love epic fantasy and now much I love heroic, honourable characters and it’s definitely one of the best Fantasy novels I read this year, I rank it on my top 3, in fact, alongside The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms by N.K. Jemisin and City of Ruin by Mark Charan Newton.

Notable Quotes/Parts: From the Prologue:

Prelude to
The Stormlight Archive

Kalak rounded a rocky stone ridge and stumbled to a stop before the body of a dying thunderclast. The enormous stone beast lay on its side, riblike protrusions from its chest broken and cracked. The monstrosity was vaguely skeletal in shape, with unnaturally long limbs that sprouted from granite shoulders. The eyes were deep red spots on the arrowhead face, as if created by a fire burning deep within the stone. They faded.

Even after all these centuries, seeing a thunderclast up close made Kalak shiver. The beast’s hand was as long as a man was tall. He’d been killed by hands like those before, and it hadn’t been pleasant.

Of course, dying rarely was.

He rounded the creature, picking his way more carefully across the battlefield. The plain was a place of misshapen rock and stone, natural pillars rising around him, bodies littering the ground. Few plants lived here. The stone ridges and mounds bore numerous scars. Some were shattered, blasted-out sections where Surgebinders had fought. Less frequently, he passed cracked, oddly shaped hollows where thunderclasts had ripped themselves free of the stone to join the fray.

Many of the bodies around him were human; many were not. Blood mixed. Red. Orange. Violet. Though none of the bodies around him stirred, an indistinct haze of sounds hung in the air. Moans of pain, cries of grief. They did not seem like the sounds of victory. Smoke curled from the occasional patches of growth or heaps of burning corpses. Even some sections of rock smoldered. The Dustbringers had done their work well.

But I survived, Kalak thought, hand to breast as he hastened to the meeting place. I actually survived this time.

That was dangerous. When he died, he was sent back, no choice. When he survived the Desolation, he was supposed to go back as well. Back to that place that he dreaded. Back to that place of pain and fire. What if he just decided . . . not to go?

Perilous thoughts, perhaps traitorous thoughts. He hastened on his way.

Tor has been doing a fabulous job teasing and promoting this title – in addition to the Prologue and Chapters 1-3, you can read Chapters 4-6, Chapters 9 & 11, and Chapters 12 & 13 online. (Why the jump in chapters, you ask? Because the preview focuses on a single character’s storyline – Kaladin’s. Don’t worry, you won’t be lost or confused should you try to read the chapters in this order!) You’ll need a Tor.com account to read the excerpts – but don’t worry, it’s free and easy to sign up.

And, once you’ve finished devouring those chapters, make sure to check out The Way of Kings Master Index and the official Stormlight Archive Facebook Page.

Additional Thoughts: We happen to be pretty big Brandon Sanderson fans – and if you’re daunted by The Way of Kings‘ substantial girth, and are looking for somewhere else to start, look no further! We *highly* recommend his Mistborn Trilogy (Mistborn, The Well of Ascension and Hero of Ages) for those looking for a completed series…

…or if you’re looking for more of a self-contained novel, Warbreaker is superb.

Rating:

Thea: 7 – Very Good

Ana: I am wavering between a 8 and a 9. For sheer Enjoyment-Whilst-Reading, I would give it a 9 but objectively speaking I think it would be more of a 8 – Excellent, only because there is so much more coming.

Reading Next: Dust by Joan Frances Turner

Title: Plain Kate

Author: Erin Bow

Publisher: Arthur A. Levine Books
Publication Date: September 2010
Hardcover: 336 pages

Plain Kate lives in a world of superstitions and curses, where a song can heal a wound and a shadow can work deep magic. As the wood-carver’s daughter, Kate held a carving knife before a spoon, and her wooden talismans are so fine that some even call her “witch-blade”: a dangerous nickname in a country where witches are hunted and burned in the square.

For Kate and her village have fallen on hard times. Kate’s father has died, leaving her alone in the world. And a mysterious fog now covers the countryside, ruining crops and spreading fear of hunger and sickness. The townspeople are looking for someone to blame, and their eyes have fallen on Kate.

Enter Linay, a stranger with a proposition: In exchange for her shadow, he’ll give Kate the means to escape the angry town, and what’s more, he’ll grant her heart’s wish. It’s a chance for her to start over, to find a home, a family, a place to belong. But Kate soon realizes she can’t live shadowless forever — and that Linay’s designs are darker than she ever dreamed.

Stand alone or series: Stand alone

How did we get this book: We both got signed ARCs at BEA.

Why did we get this book: We went to the YA Buzz Editor’s panel at BEA and Erin Bow was one of the panelists, when she started talking about her book, we both started foaming at the mouth to get it. About half an hour later, we are walking around the signings session and lo and behold: Plain Kate! Erin Bow! THERE! So we just got in line and got us lovely copies.

Review:

First Impressions:

Ana: I came away from BEA in May with about 100 books in my suitcase and I can honestly say that Plain Kate was my most anticipated read out of the bunch after I saw the author speaking at one of the panels. We often say here at The Book Smugglers’ HQ that sometimes having that much expectation works against a book, as unfair as it is. I think this is at work here, at least in my case: I loved many, many things about Plain Kate: the writing, the setting, the main characters, and it is really, a very good book but ultimately I felt strangely underwhelmed and somewhat disappointed that it wasn’t as good as I hoped.

Thea: As Ana says, Plain Kate was a total surprise at BEA. I hadn’t heard of the author nor a peep about the book, but when we heard Erin Bow read a passage aloud, I instantly knew I had to get a copy. And you know what? I walked away from Plain Kate feeling emotionally worn, but immensely satisfied. For me, the book lived up to my expectations, and then some. I loved this book.

On the plot:

Ana: What I liked the most about Plain Kate was the atmospheric medieval Russian setting and the evocative, beautiful prose which combined to give the book a distinct flavouring, a feeling that the reader is taking part in one of those old tales. To start with, the story is extremely inviting, welcoming even, as the tale of Plain Kate unfolds. From her relationship with her father, then with the village and its support (or lack) system, from her pride on the fact that she was one of the best wood-carvers that there was even though she was not officially part of a guild; to the increasing fear of witchery and what happens to people who let fear dictate their actions. Had the story followed this pattern and had Kate’s story gradually develop on its own, it would have been awesome, I think.

But soon enough, after Kate meets the witch Linay and makes a Faustian deal with him, it becomes clear that Plain Kate is at its core a Revenge story, the Revenge is what moves the plot along but because the Revenge is to be exacted by someone OTHER than Kate it is as though the story suddenly moves its focus and the main character becomes a supporting character of her own story (but more on that further down).

I did find the story itself interesting (and I love the idea of how important one’s shadow is) even though not necessarily original but I liked its uncompromising darkness. Although the execution of the plot was not flawless and I counted at least two instances of Extreme Coincidence to move it along. I would say that the first part of the novel was my favourite, then it lags a bit in the middle and it picks a bit again towards the ending which makes for a very uneven read.

It also needs to be said that I LOVED the fact that there is no romance in sight, none, zero. It is all about Kate and her friends and enemies and that the ending was a happy as it could be given the circumstances. But writing this I realise that perhaps the one reason I have to LOVE the book is perhaps the wrong reason: I love it for what it is NOT, rather because of what it IS.

Thea: I have to disagree, Ana. Though the book is titled Plain Kate, and though Kate is clearly the protagonist, I loved that she is an indirect heroine, by someone else’s design rather than of her own choosing. I love that ultimately, Linay chose Kate as his subject, not because of any innate magical ability or because she was born under a certain star when the planets aligned or whatever Chosen One sort of hoopla – rather, Kate is our heroine because of her perceived weakness, and over the course of the book this flourishes into strength. Instead of following Kate on a journey of her own design, Plain Kate takes an ordinary – plain – girl, and gives us her adventure in a game of a much bigger design.

I think that’s awesome.

From a writing standpoint, Ms. Bow’s prose is smooth and lush – as I remarked to Ana in an email, this book reminded me so of Garth Nix’s Sabriel (and not only because there’s a talking cat). Written in the style of the fantasy novels of my childhood – relying on emotions and almost poetic descriptions as opposed to a focus on action or romance (as seems to be the modern trend), Plain Kate is almost nostalgic. And, as a fan of Tamora Pierce and Garth Nix, Ms. Bow is a bonafide throwback, and I mean this in the best possible way.

With regard to setting, I completely agree with Ana – the medieval Eastern European feel to the novel is perhaps not entirely unique, though it is well written and conceived. The brutality of people looking to blame “witches” for their misfortunes, their propensity for hate, the mob mentality, it’s all unflinchingly seen in Plain Kate. At the same time, there is this underlying thread for wanting to belong – for acceptance and love for oneself, which is handled beautifully, I think. As Ana mentions above, Plain Kate does have a revenge story (in fact, it is the impetus for the plot), but I don’t think it’s fair to say that this novel is a revenge book. More than anything, Plain Kate is about acceptance and sacrifice.

On the characters:

Ana: On one hand the majority of the characters are complex and never fall into one-dimensional territory. That is especially true with regards to Linay who has compelling characteristic that makes him sympathetic even when he is being heinous. I appreciated the difficult, intricate love-hate relationship he forms with Kate.

On the other have I have mixed feeling directed to the protagonist of the novel. She has all the markings of a great character: strength of character, a sense of self-worth, empathy and quiet determination. It is a shame that she is written into a story that increasingly becomes not her own and which makes her more of a “reactive” character than an “active” one as most of the things that happen in the book and which serve to move the story further are events that happen TO Kate rather than out her own volition, even those some of these reactions are actually pretty cool because of who she is.

And then there is Taggle, her cat, whom I loved so totally, although I can’t really say why for risk of spoiling it but he is full of heroism and dedication and has an arc of his own which is a very interesting pointing at another consequence of Kate’s Faustian pact with Linay.

Thea: I share Ana’s love for Taggle, and her mixed emotions towards Linay (and I would extend that to Behjet, as well); it is the mark of a gifted writer that a reader can loathe a character and yet still feel sympathy and understanding at the same time. Plain Kate’s world is a rough one, and her journeys take her to people that fear her skill at carving, taking her natural talent for witchcraft, and her mismatched colored eyes only exacerbating her position. Each character in this book has surprising depth, with no simple “good” or “bad” cookie-cutter types of heroes or villains.

And this, of course, extends to Kate as well. While I completely agree that Kate’s story is more of a “reactive” one, I do think this is part of the appeal of Plain Kate. Plain Kate begins her journey because she is singled out for her weakness – when she isn’t weak at all. Using the lessons of her father, Kate gradually takes hold of her own story, and by the end of the book, she has made her choices (heartbreaking though they may be) and won me over completely. It’s very clever characterization when you think about it, this slide from utterly passive and reactive to aggressively proactive.

And a quick note as to the adjective “Plain” prefacing Kate’s name. While it is true that Kate is neither beautiful nor ugly, I personally think that the “Plain” refers to Kate’s simple honesty, or as the Miriam-Webster Dictionary says, “free from artifice.” That is Kate to the letter.

Final Thoughts, Observations and Rating:

Ana: It is the strangest thing: Plain Kate has many elements that should have me truly love this book but I was left cold. I wish I could be more positive but two weeks after reading it, all I can remember is the cat. I did love the prose though and I will be first in line to get Erin Bow’s next book (which sounds awesome).

Thea: I loved Plain Kate from beginning to end, and I most certainly will be back for more from author Erin Bow. Absolutely recommended.

Notable Quotes/Parts: From the first chapter:

A long time ago, in a market town by a looping river, there lived an orphan girl called Plain Kate.

She was called this because her father had introduced her to the new butcher, saying: “This is my beloved Katerina Svetlana, after her mother who died birthing her and God rest her soul, but I call her just plain Kate.” And the butcher, swinging a cleaver, answered: “That’s right enough, Plain Kate she is, plain as a stick.” A man who treasured humor, especially his own, the butcher repeated this to everyone. After that, she was called Plain Kate. But her father called her Kate My Star.

Plain Kate’s father Poitr was a woodcarver. He gave Kate a carving knife before most children might be given a spoon. She could whittle before she could walk. When she was still a child, she could carve a rose that strangers would stop to smell, a dragonfly that trout would rise to strike.

In Kate’s little town of Samilae, people thought that there was magic in a knife. A person who could wield a knife well was, in their eyes, half-way to a witch. So Plain Kate was very small the first time someone spat at her and crooked their fingers.

Her father sat her down and spoke to her with great seriousness. “You are not a witch, Katerina. There is magic in the world, and some of it is wholesome, and some of it is not, but it is a thing that is in the blood, and it is not in yours.

“The foolish will always treat you badly, because they think you are not beautiful,” he said, and she knew this was true. Plain Kate: She was plain as as stick, and thin as a stick, and flat as stick. She had one eye the color of river mud and one eye the color of the river. Her nose was too long and her brows were too strong. Her father kissed her twice, once above each eyebrow. “We cannot help what fools think. But understand, it is your skill with a blade that draws this talk. If you want to give up your carving, you have my blessing.”

“I will never give it up,” she answered.

And he laughed and called her his Brave Star, and taught her to carve even better.

They were busy. Everyone in that country, no matter how poor, wore a talisman called an objarka, and those who could hung larger objarkas on horse stalls and door posts and above their marriage beds. No lintel was uncarved in that place, and walls bore saints in niches, and roads were marked with little shrines on posts, which housed sometimes saints, and sometimes older, stranger things. Plain Kate’s father was even given the honor of replacing Samilae’s wiezi, the great column at the center of the market that showed the town’s angels and coats of arms, and, at the top, supported the carved wooden roof that sheltered the carved wooden gods. The new wiezi was such a good work that the Guild Masters sent a man from Lov to see it. The man made Kate’s father a full master on the spot.

“My daughter did some of the angels,” he told the man, gathering Kate up and pulling her forward.

The man looked up at the faces that were so beautiful they seemed sad, the wings that looked both soft and strong, like the wings of swans that could kill a man with one blow. “Apprentice her,” he said.

“If she likes,” Poitr answered. “And when she is of age.”

When the guild man went away, Plain Kate chided her father. “You know I will be your apprentice!”

“You are the star of my heart,” he said. “But it is two years yet before you are of prenticing age. Anything might happen.”

She laughed at him: “What will happen is that I will be a full master by the time I am twenty.”

But what happened was that her father died.

Rating:

Ana: 6 – Good

Thea: 8 – Excellent

Reading Next: The Way of Kings by Brandon “we lurves him” Sanderson

Title: Freak Show

Author: James St James

Genre: YA/ Contemporary/ LGBT

Publisher: Dutton Juvenile
Publication date: May 2007 (first edition)
Paperback: 304 pages

Meet Billy Bloom, new student at the ultra-white, ultra-rich, ultra-conservative Dwight D. Eisenhower Academy and drag queen extraordinaire. Actually, “drag queen” does not begin to describe Billy and his fabulousness. Any way you slice it, Billy is not a typical seventeen-year-old, and the Bible Belles, Aberzombies, and Football Heroes at the academy have never seen anyone quite like him before. But thanks to the help and support of one good friend, Billy’s able to take a stand for outcasts and underdogs everywhere in his own outrageous, over-thetop, sad, funny, brilliant, and unique way.

Stand alone or series: Stand alone

How did I get this book: Bought.

Why did I get this book: Once again, I blame it on Renay.

Review:

“Tease hair not homos!”

I am delighted with my YA reading at the moment. Yes, there were a few hurdles on the road, but you know, the obstacles only serve to help me appreciate the good books more and boy, Young Adult books are proving to be such a joy to me at the moment. And Freak Show is a bright diamond amongst other equally awesome jewels and I will just shut up with the jewellery analogy because I don’t think it is working that well.

What I want to say is: this book is FABULOUS!! with capital letters, exclamation marks and extra glitter on top. It is quite hilarious and I found myself laughing till I cried. I also found myself crying till I could cry no more. I had a similar reading experience when I recently read The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie: how can a book be so hilarious at the same time that is breaking your heart?

Meet Billy Bloom: 17 year old drag queen who just moved from liberal Connecticut to ubber conservative Florida to live with her father after her mother decided she’s “had enough”. The book opens with her first day at high school and it gives a measure of who Billy is and how her mind works and what to expect from her narrative. She is fully aware of where she is living now and that Florida is not really the most welcoming place in the world for someone like Billy. But she is who she is. On her first day of school, out of a mixture of fear (the book opens and Billy is hiding under the sink) and a little bit of common sense, she decides to lay low and play the heterosexual role at least to start with. And this is what happens:

She dresses like a pirate (seriously) because that’s the most manly thing she can think of, tries to go for that no-makeup look that straight boys do (but perhaps just a bit of mascara, eyes shadow –because really, WHO WOULD NOTICE – and some lip gloss) and then walks into the classroom:

“Ah, biology,” I cried, and threw my hands in the air. “The Science of LIFE! Up from the primordial goo and all that! Here we stand, on the threshold of such great knowledge. Don’t you feel it? Isn’t it TOO exciting? Couldn’t you just SQUEAL?”

Of course, all hell breaks loose with the kids and much teasing and bullying ensue until things escalate to a horrible confrontation and in the aftermath of that, a more confident than ever Billy emerges. And also sweet, awesome Romance (and his love interest is the one who needs to “come out” in this story)!

This is only (I am the first to admit it) a crappy summary of the basic plot of this book. But of course, as a character-driven novel, Freak Show is much more than that.

Billy is unique, I don’t think I ever read character like that in my life and I love her. She is fantastic, dramatic, flamboyant, earnest and true. She is a boy, in case it wasn’t clear before, but because she only thinks of herself as a girl (even when mentioning erections), I shall respect her when addressing her as a “she”. I think one of the most important quotes from this book is:

gender is a choice, not a life sentence

Mind you, Billy often refuses to answer the question about her gender and whether she is gay or not. She is “gender obscurist” and this is very important to her and very clearly a perfectly legitimate choice.

But not only that: Billy’s personality comes across in the narrative itself. The book is written in a stream of consciousness manner as Billy goes along and that includes live commentary of her life and even passages of self denial with Billy going all la la la la on our asses. It is very dramatic, with constant CAPS LOCK, exclamation marks and everything in between. I love Billy’s voice and I loved how different it is, but also, how personal it is, and how it emulates exactly what goes through plot-wise: it takes a few pages to get used to Billy’s voice because it is “different” from regular narratives but when little by little details of Billy’s life are revealed to the reader – the more you read, the more intimate it all becomes and then soon enough Billy becomes a rounded character rather than a “voice” and even the things left unsaid are important.

And this, this is the most important aspect of the book to me. That Billy is UNIQUE and PROUD to be unique. And that she makes it about HER, about what she wants, what she needs and how she will live her life. There were quite a few moments of ugliness in this book that were so, so revealing as well. Billy goes through a lot of shit and the worst thing is the realisation that she goes through so much contempt, hate, violence and disgust and it is not even about HER, Billy Bloom. And that is one of the most enlightening, heartbreaking things I ever read: that bigotry it is never about the individual who is attacked, it is about conceptual ideals of what is right or wrong but alas, at the end of the day the individual, the person is the one that hurts, that suffers, and that has to go through all that. That it is so fucking personal to the one that is at the receiving end of hate but the haters can’t even be bothered to understand that and will carry on blindly hating on principle. What it’s worse? When even allies make it about them and their guilt .

WAY TO MAKE THIS STORY ABOUT YOU, DUDE.

says Billy at one point.

There is much to love about the book: Billy’s makeup lessons; his relationship with Flip and how compassionate and understanding Billy is and possibly the only person to understand the weight of outside expectations that Flip has to live with; Billy’s difficult relationship with both his parents; plus a lot of comedy, drama and HEART!

Notable Quotes/Parts:

“I’m pro-glamour and anti-khaki. I support total artistic freedom, and I’m against conservative backlashes. I intend to stamp out redneckism where I find it, and fight discrimination and Christian intolerance, using only my beauty, wit, and wig-styling skills. I’m going to try, single-handedly, to bring about an end to the hatred I’m found here at Eisenhower. … TEASE HAIR, NOT HOMOS!”

Additional Thoughts:

At one point, something REALLY bad happens to Billy and to everybody’s dismay there are no official repercussions to what happens to him. But one of the things that Billy hopes to accomplish it to start a Gay-Straight alliance at this school. I think this is really important and I thought I should add here a link to the GLSEN, the Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network (leading national education organization focused on ensuring safe schools for all students).

Verdict:I love, love this book and I adore Billy Bloom: my newest addition to my list of favourite characters.

Rating: 8 Excellent – leaning towards 9

Reading Next: Haywired by Alex Keller

Title: I’ll Get There. It Better Be Worth The Trip

Author: John Donovan

Genre: YA/ Contemporary/LGBT

Publisher: Flux
Publication Date 40th anniversary edition – September 2010
Paperback: 240 pages

When the grandmother who raised him dies, Davy Ross, a lonely thirteen-year-old boy, must move to Manhattan to live with his estranged mother. Between alcohol-infused lectures about her self-sacrifice and awkward visits with his distant father, Davy’s only comfort is his beloved dachshund Fred. Things start to look up when he and a boy from school become friends. But when their relationship takes an unexpected turn, Davy struggles to understand what happened and what it might mean.

Stand alone or series: Stand alone

Why did I read this book: The book had been under my radar since I heard that Flux was reissuing it.

How did I get this book: ARC from BEA.

Review:

Warning: this review contains spoilers

I picked up an ARC of I’ll Get There. It Better Be Worth The Trip at BEA after reading about it on their website. This edition is the 40th anniversary edition of the book, first published in 1969 and it is recognised as the first LGBT YA mainstream novel to have addressed homosexuality in a positive manner.

This edition also includes 3 interesting essays by Brent Hartinger (Geography Club), Martin Wilson (What They Always Tell Us), and Kathleen T. Horning (Director of the Cooperative Children’s Book Center), with a foreword by Stacey Donovan (Dive) niece of the author. These essays provide perfective and context for when the novel was first published and its importance seems to be twofold both on YA and LGBT contexts. With regards to the former, the majority of books for children or Young Adults at the time seemed to resort to storytelling for an idealised youth, with a tendency for moral lessons and this book offers a realistic portrayal of a teenage boy. As for the latter, suffice to say that the book was published only a few months before the Stonewall Riots and at that time, homosexuality was still classified as a psychological disorder by the American Psychiatric Association and was a crime in the majority of the estates.

Important Historical context aside, what is the book about?

About Davy, a 13yo boy, whose parents divorced when he was a kid and who ended up being raised by his grandmother. The book opens in the aftermath of his grandmother’s funeral with his family fighting over what is to become of Davy and he ends up having to move to NY to live with his self-centred, unstable, alcoholic mother. Luckily for Davy, he has his Dachshund (named Fred) , who is his best pal, with him. The story progresses to include Davy’s growing attachment to his father, who also lives in NY, and to Fred, his difficult relationship with his mom; and his budding friendship with a guy from school, Douglas Altshuler, a relationship that might grow into more after the two boys share a (very tame) kiss one day and a second (fade-to-black) making out session.

The book’s strengths lie with Davy’s , keen, earnest, first person narration. From his amazing relationship with his dog, observations of life in NY, from his assessment of his mother’s personality to his friendship with Altshuler, the narrative allows for a connection with the kid, a connection that reaches its peak when

– *AND HERE LIES THE SPOILER* –

Fred, his beloved dog dies. Of course he does. Now, I am not a dog person, I am not a fan of animals in books, because more often than not, I feel that these are needlessly exploitative and usually end up in death and tears. But Fred’s death got me in such a way, I cried a lot along with Davy.

But Fred’s death, I think serves as an important metaphor within the story. Because it happens after Davy and Altshuler made out twice, Davy reaches a tremendous, horrible conclusion: that it is HIS fault that Fred died and it is his punishment for doing “queer things” with Altshuler. Mind you, before Fred died, Davy didn’t really think a lot about their kisses. To him it was just something that happened and he tells himself:

“It’s not dirty , or anything like that. It’s all right, isn’t it?”

The fact the he doesn’t think, he doesn’t feel that it is something dirty is positive in itself as it comes from inside. To me, then, Fred’s death and its ensuing conflict present Davy with external conflict, forces that are beyond his control: the downright negative view of homosexuality from the world the lives in. It is a wakeup call that inasmuch he is ok with the way he feels, the outside world may not be, after all being queer at that time, is a crime, is “wrong”. Fred’s death marks the moment in which Davy quits being a child, and enters adulthood and examines his feelings for Altshuler in light of what happened. It is a struggle, it comes with guilt, and his mother’s homophobia doesn’t help. But even though Davy lost his best friend and ally – yes, ally because Fred LOVED Altshuler as well, he is not alone. The most surprising conversation in the book happens between Davy and his father who proves to be open and reassuringly understanding. And of course, the talk between Davy and Altshuler when a very firm, self-confident Altshuler tells him to get a grip, Fred’s death is not his fault and

“Go ahead and feel guilty if you want to. I don’t.”

The book ends with a conversation with Altshuler and regardless of what happens next, they agree to at the very least respect each other and remain friends. Whether they become a couple is open for interpretation and it doesn’t really matter, they are only 13 after all. But the title to me is a clue: Davy will get there, to a positive place of self-acceptance which Altshuler seems to have already reached. And the trip will not be an easy one: friends will leave; his mother will not accept it but he has allies, he is not alone and in the end, it will be worth it. And I think it is awesome, that such a positive, intelligent book for Young Adults was written AND published when it was. That alone, makes the book way worth reading.

Notable Quotes/Parts: Davy and his father:

“Then Father talks a lot about how hysterical people sometimes get when they discover that other people aren’t just what they are expected to be. He tells me there are Republicans who are always secretly disappointed when friends turn out to be Democrats, and Catholics who would like their friends to be Catholic, and so forth. He says that such people are narrow-minded he believes, and funny, too, unless they become hysterical about getting everyone to be just alike. Then they are dangerous. They become religious bigots, super-patriots, super-anti-patriots, and do I understand? I tell him I think I do, but can’t people learn to understand other people? He thinks they can, but only if they want to.

Verdict: A groundbreaking novel for Young Adults and historical context aside, a pretty good one too. Well written, bittersweet and with flawed, realistic characters. I loved it.

Rating: 8 – Excellent

Reading Next: Freak Show by James St James

Today we bring you the latest installment in our feature, “What She Said…” in which we both review books that the other has already read and reviewed. The idea arose because of the dilemma that if one of us reads and reviews a book, the other can’t really post again about it, right? WRONG! Hence, “What She Said…” was born. For those books that we REALLY want to read after the other has reviewed – and gushed – about it.

For today’s post, we take on Hero by Perry Moore, and Bleeding Violet by Dia Reeves.

Hero by Perry Moore
Disney, August 2007, Paperback, 432 pages

Original Review: May 2010
Original Rating GASP! Thea gave it a 10!

What Thea Said:

I am in love. I am in love with Hero

Hero is, in this reader’s opinion, a perfect book in every way. Rousing, heartening and inspiring, Thom’s journey is one that is applicable to everyone. I cannot recommend this book enough – and it’s easily at the top of my list of favorite books read in 2010.

What Ana Says I HAD to read this book. Not only because of Thea’s awesome review but also because of her emails to me when she was reading it. I don’t think I ever received emails from her before with such an emotional response to a book – at least just not like that. It is a running joke in our headquarters that I am the emotional smuggler and it is a fairly regular event to have me emailing her with me being extremely enthusiastic about a book to the point of dramatic TEARS!DESPAIR!JOY! I often envy Thea for being able to be very enthusiastic about a book without the added drama like yours truly; but when she DOES, then I know she has found something special. She is like that when reading Juliet Marillier for example and that was what prompted me to pick her books up and guess what, she was totally right. So, going back to the start: I HAD to read this book.

And yes, Thea was right and I too, am in love with Thom and Hal Creed and their difficult relationship. THAT is what made the book to me. More than the world-building (which I think is fine, but wasn’t particularly impressed by it), more than the fighting sequences and all the action (which were cool), it was the relationships, between Thom and his father, between Thom and his absent mother, between Thom and his friends (especially Scarlett and Goran).

Thom is the teen narrator and his father Hal used to be a hero but without superpowers and it’s been a while since a law has banned non-powered superheroes from the league. Hal is a bitter yet proud man dealing with both very public failures and very personal ones. Thom both admires and fears his dad and that fear comes from being a budding superhero with real superpowers and from being gay.

And here is what I think is the genius of this coming of age novel: that inasmuch as Thom has a very real uphill struggle with the public side of being gay (his father is homophobic, his friends in school are bullies), he is actually very much secure about who he is. There is no discovery or realisation because the book starts with Thom being well aware of being gay and being fine, about it on a personal level. I love how he dreams of finding someone to love and how he has this mad crush on one of the big league super-heroes. He is much more insecure about being a superhero for example, how to use his powers, how to address his peers, etc which I think is a fine, brilliant way of addressing his story.

There are moments of despair (and I so despaired with Thom) and there are moments of utter joy and I fist pumped all alone in my living room in triumphant, compassionate happiness every time Thom got over one of the obstacles in his way. And OMG the romance is awesome!

Although I don’t think I loved every single aspect of it as Thea did, I did love Hero very much and highly recommend it.

Rating: 8 – Excellent

Bleeding Violet by Dia Reeves
Simon Pulse, January 2010, Hardcover, 464 pages

Original Review: January 2010
Original Rating: 10 – Perfect!

What Ana Said:

Bleeding Violet is one of the best Young Adult novels I have ever read. The writing is lovely, the story is hands down amazing and the characters are everything I could have hoped for. Every time I open a book, I wish for the sort of all-encompassing experience that this book provided me.

and also:

I think it is testament to this writer’s ability (and perhaps fondness for her characters) that in spite of all the aforementioned violence and darkness, Bleeding Violent ends on a definite, unmistakable and believable high note. And as of now, this book has a secure spot on my top reads of 2010.

What Thea Says: Well, how could I resist an endorsement like THAT? Yes, Ana tends to be a little more…exuberant and generous with her affections for books (when it comes down to top 10 of the year time, there’s something like 50 books on her list! How awesome is that?!), and I am in awe of the emotional rollercoaster she goes on every time she reads. More often than not, Ana finds a new author/book/character to passionately love/despise/etc – I have the emails to back it up. I kind of feel like this month’s “What She Said” is bizarre – because Hero seems like much more of an Ana book, and Bleeding Violet more of a Thea book, and yet we had them flipflopped the first time around. But I digress. Because of Ana’s emphatic endorsement, because of the irresistible blurb (and that gorgeous cover may have had something to do with it, too), I eagerly scooped up this book. Hell yes.

And you know what?

Bleeding Violet is pretty G.D. awesome.

It features a truly messed up cast of characters – bipolar, hallucination-embracing, affection-starved Hanna; the coldly beautiful Rosalee; the irritating (if intriguingly different and handsome) Wyatt. From the get-go I fell in love with Ms. Reeves’ prose and characterizations – Hanna, in particular is delightfully manic. Her surreal brand of psychosis (when we first meet her she is speaking to her dead father, mentally) may be a bit strange or hard to get into for some readers, but for me? I loved the dream-like quality her perspective-filtered, unreliable narrative provided. I also loved that she is biracial and comes across as genuine (as a biracial mutt myself, I am all to familiar with the ubiquitous “What ARE you?” question), her emotional issues and psychosis are also well-handled and ring as true. Her desperation for her beautiful mother’s attention and love is also particularly moving. Of course, the other characters are similarly textured and believable – Rosalee in her fragile frigidity, wanting nothing to do with the daughter she had the mistake of having, Wyatt in his tangled emotions and obligations. I loved them all – and Ana is absolutely right in her review, because stripped of the glamour and bizarreness of the plot, this is at its heart a character-centric novel.

That’s not to say that the plot is deficient – because it’s not. Portero is a town full of worldly portals and bizarre monsters – creatures that live in glass, that lurk, tentacled and monstrous in the shadows. And you know what? I LOVED IT ALL. Ms. Reeves’ writing style is beautiful, freeflowing and irresistible.

I have to chalk this one up to a truly successful What She Said – I am one happy camper! While I don’t think Bleeding Violet is perfect, I do think it’s damn awesome and one of my favorite reads for the year, absolutely.

Rating: 8 – Excellent

Title: How I Live Now

Author: Meg Rosoff

Genre: YA/ Dystopian

Publisher: Wendy Lamb Books (US)/ Puffin (UK)
Publication Date:April 2006 / June 2010 (UK – re edition)
Paperback: 194 pages

“Every war has turning points and every person too.”

Fifteen-year-old Daisy is sent from Manhattan to England to visit her aunt and cousins she’s never met: three boys near her age, and their little sister. Her aunt goes away on business soon after Daisy arrives. The next day bombs go off as London is attacked and occupied by an unnamed enemy.

As power fails, and systems fail, the farm becomes more isolated. Despite the war, it’s a kind of Eden, with no adults in charge and no rules, a place where Daisy’s uncanny bond with her cousins grows into something rare and extraordinary. But the war is everywhere, and Daisy and her cousins must lead each other into a world that is unknown in the scariest, most elemental way.

Stand alone or series: Stand alone.

How did I get this book: Bought.

Why did I read this book: It has been on our radar for a long, long time.

Review:

I had been waiting to read How I Live Now for a long time now, especially after reading reviews by some of my favourites bloggers (and by a few newspapers too, but who cares about those? I trust my favourite bloggers so much more. Angie even NAMED her adorable child after a character in this book) and finally the time came with YAAM.

It’s not hard to pinpoint what makes How I Live Now such a compelling read: its evocative, atmospheric narrative with its lack of both punctuation and dialogue speech marks and the non-stop-I-can’t-breathe-must-keep-reading pacing more than anything else are what kept me turning the pages voraciously. How I Live Now is not flawless but it is SO beautiful it hurts.

Daisy is our protagonist and narrator. A 15 year old New Yorker who has been sent by her father to live with her late mother’s relatives in England. Daisy recounts her life in England with her weirdly magical cousins, from the idyllic first days gallivanting in the countryside, without adult supervision after her aunt goes on a trip to Oslo, to falling in love with her cousin Edmond. The narrative progresses with the ensuing chaos after England is invaded, the War starts and the cousins are evacuated and separated; the high point is Daisy’s relentless strive for survival alongside her youngest cousin Piper and her attempts to reunite with Edmond.

Once How I Live Now starts, I found it difficult to put it down. Part of this reaction comes from its nonstop narrative. I think the best way to describe is: it reads as though Daisy took a deep breath one day and decided to tell me, the reader, how she lived in those days in England and didn’t stop until she was done. The result is a rapport between the reader and Daisy that is hard to break because the narrative is inviting and intimate.

I also find that is almost impossible to separate plot and character when it comes to this book. I think that both plot and narrative ARE essentially Daisy. And Daisy is, and consequently the narrative as well, self-absorbed and unreliable but also: funny, resilient, compassionate, and spirited. She is a doer and a survivor and among cousins that are almost mythical creatures (they have weird abilities like being able to talk to animals and communicate silently), she is also almost the most REAL one too. She is a force, a propelling force.

I think this quote summarises everything that Daisy is:

“I don’t get nearly enough credit in life for the things I manage not to say.

Of course in order to survive, Piper and I needed to have a plan, and I was the one who was going to have to make it because Piper’s job was to be a Mystical Creature and mine was to get things done here on earth which was just how the cards were dealt and there was no point thinking of it any other way. Our major plan, which we didn’t even have to discuss, was to get back together with Edmond and Isaac and Osbert by hook or by crook. So far, I was pretty hazy in the details.”

Does she do it? You will have to read to find out. But know this, the second part of the book is starkly different from the first part and it is heartbreaking and heart-warming and the final lines of the novel are incredible.

There is also an aura of mystery surrounding the story because Daisy is a certain type of unreliable narrator – one who is self-absorbed and won’t look further than its own nose, at least to begin with. And this presents a twofold result.

On one hand I felt utterly frustrated by this. And this is a very personal reaction to the story itself and how Daisy reacts to what is happening around her. A war is looming in the horizon, their country is invaded, the only adult they can count on is gone and yet Daisy doesn’t seem to be asking a lot of questions. Because of that, I couldn’t tell you WHO invaded England, WHEN or WHY. The story also has a certain “old days” feeling – the kids are homeschooled, they live off the farm but it is in fact some point in the near future. There are mentions of emails and mobiles and so I found it hard to believe that these kids would be so naïve and so insulated as to not ask simple questions, especially at their age. Daisy starts a sexual relationship with Edmond and although I have zero problems with the fact that they are cousins, and I actually loved their connection and love story, I do have a problem with how she never thought of contraception (I kept waiting for her to get pregnant).

So this is on the one hand. On the other hand, the fact that the narrative is so destitute of certain realistic details it allows for the story to be stripped down to its bare essentials, to what is crucial: the people and how they survive in times of war. Because of that, the pesky details don’t really matter because all you need to know is how Daisy lived then and how she lives now. And what she has to do to get from one point to another. And THAT my friends is a story worth reading.

Notable Quotes/Parts:

My name is Elizabeth but no one’s ever called me that. My father took one look at me when I was born and must have thought I had the face of someone dignified and sad like an old fashioned queen or a dead person, but what I turned out like is plain, not much there to notice. Even my life so far has been plain. More Daisy than Elizabeth from the word go.

But the summer I went to England to stay with my cousins everything changed. Part of that was because of the war, which supposedly changed lots of things, but I can’t remember much about life before the war anyway so it doesn’t count in my book, which this is.

Mostly everything changed because of Edmond.

And so here’s what happened.

****

I’m coming off this plane, and I’ll tell you why that is later, and landing at London airport and I’m looking around for a middle-aged kind of woman who I’ve seen in pictures who’s my Aunt Penn. The photographs are out of date, but she looked like the type who would wear a big necklace and flat shoes, and maybe some kind of narrow dress in black or gray. But I’m just guessing since the pictures only ever showed her face.

Anyway, I’m looking and looking and everyone’s leaving and there’s no signal on my phone and I’m thinking Oh Great, I’m going to be abandoned at the airport so that’s two countries they don’t want me in, when I notice everyone’s gone except this kid who comes up to me and says You must be Daisy. And when I look relieved he does too and says I’m Edmond.

Hello Edmond, I said, nice to meet you, and I look at him hard to try to get a feel for what my new life with my cousins might be like.
Now let me tell you what he looks like before I forget because it’s not exactly what you’d expect from your average fourteen-year-old what with the CIGARETTE and hair that looked like he cut it himself with a hatchet in the dead of night, but aside from that he’s exactly like some kind of mutt, you know the ones you see at the dog shelter who are kind of hopeful and sweet and put their nose straight into your hand when they meet you with a certain kind of dignity and you know from that second that you’re going to take him home? Well that’s him.
Only he took me home.

I’ll take your bag, he said, and even though he’s about half a mile shorter than me and has arms about as thick as a dog leg, he grabs my bag, and I grab it back and say Where’s your mom, is she in the car?

And he smiles and takes a drag on his cigarette, which even though I know smoking kills and all that, I think is a little bit cool, but maybe all the kids in England smoke cigarettes? I don’t say anything in case it’s a well known fact that the smoking age in England is something like twelve and by making a big thing about it I’ll end up looking like an idiot when I’ve barely been here five minutes. Anyway, he says Mum couldn’t come to the airport cause she’s working and it’s not worth anyone’s life to interrupt her while she’s working, and everyone else seemed to be somewhere else, so I drove here myself.
I looked at him funny then.

You drove here yourself? You DROVE HERE yourself? Yeah well and I’M the Duchess of Panama’s Private Secretary.

Verdict: Even though I was slightly frustrated with the not-knowing, I fully appreciated the book for what it is: an engrossing, beautiful story of survival and love.

Rating: Ana: 8 – Excellent

Reading Next: The Thief Taker’s Apprentice by Stephen Deas

Title:My Most Excellent Year

Author: Steve Kluger

Genre: YA: Contemporary, LGBT

Publisher: Speak
Publication date: February 2009
Paperback: 416 pages

Best friends and unofficial brothers since they were six, ninth-graders T.C. and Augie have got the world figured out. But that all changes when both …more Best friends and unofficial brothers since they were six, ninth-graders T.C. and Augie have got the world figured out. But that all changes when both friends fall in love for the first time. Enter Ale. She’s pretty, sassy, and on her way to Harvard. T.C. falls hard, but Ale is playing hard to get. Meanwhile, Augie realizes that he’s got a crush on a boy. It’s not so clear to him, but to his family and friends, it’s totally obvious! Told in alternating perspectives, this is the hilarious and touching story of their most excellent year, where these three friends discover love, themselves, and how a little magic and Mary Poppins can go a long way.

Stand alone or series:: Stand Alone

How did I get this book: Bought.

Why did I read this book: Because of this review.

Review:

I blame it on Renay. When she wrote about My Most Excellent Year she said:

it is unflinchingly, over the top, with-no-shame-whatsoever the happiest book in the world. Ain’t nothing but blue skies.

She had me at hello. And she was right too: My Most Excellent Year is an extremely happy book. Like ponies and rainbows and butterflies in a field of dreams, happy. And it has so many elements that I LOVE like the fact that it is an epistolary novel with romance and theatre and musicals and Mary Poppins and romance and kissing and I really loved it and hugged the book once I was finished and will treasure it like I treasure beautiful fairytales.

I reviewed The Ghosts of Ashbury High by Jaclyn Moriarty a couple of days ago and I talked about how much I love epistolary novels and it is funny (and most excellent) how both books follow a similar format with both being written as school assignments. In this case, three kids: Augie, Alejandra and T.C. writing about their most excellent year which was their freshmen year of high school in letter format as well as having IM convos, emails between all of the involved (including their parents), theatre reviews clippings from Augie’s mom.

T.C. addresses his letter to his late mother. She died when he was six and that when he became best friends with Augie. They became such good friends that they decided that they are in fact brothers and have been ever since. Both their families adopted each other too and T.C has a room at Augie’s and calls his parents Mom and Dad and Augie has a room at T.C.,’s and calls his dad pop. T.C.’s narrative covers his relationship with his dad, his love for baseball especially the Red Sox, and his love for his brother and his new found feelings for a girl named Alejandra. Then he befriends a small deaf kid who lives in an orphanage.

Alejandra is Mexican, daughter of an ambassador and her families have Big Plans for her but really Alejandra just wants to act and dance more than anything but she thinks her family would never allow that. She might be falling for T.C. but she thinks he is too cocky and perfect. Her letters are addressed to Jacqueline Kennedy and Alejandra is an incredibly interesting, strong-willed female character.

Augie is Chinese – American, plays soccer and loves all things about theatre. He is dramatic and loud and AWESOME, AUGIE I LOVE YOU. He addresses his letter to several Hollywood divas and when he starts to develop a crush on another boy named Andy Wexler, he realises that he is gay, a fact that doesn’t surprise anyone, not even his father who had been waiting for him to realise that so that they could talk about it. And that is quite possibly my favourite thing about the book: that there is never a “coming out” for Augie.

One day he realises he is gay, and that is it. It is ok and it is a fact that is respected by everybody. His conflict is just a regular love story – does he love me, does he not love me, more importantly, does he love me the way I am? – and it is great, you guys, and when they first kiss it is hilarious and awesome. To put things into perfective, Alejandra has a harder time coming as a theatre-lover. Part of me thought that perhaps this was too wishful thinking, that having Augie not finding any problem whatsoever at school for example is not really realistic. But then I thought about this great article that Malinda Lo wrote for John Scalzi’s Big Idea blog about her own book Ash:

That allowed me to write Ash as a fairy tale, not a coming-out story. That means that Ash only has to fall in love. When her love interest is another woman, it’s just as wonderful as it would be if she fell in love with a man.

I’m guessing that most if not all LGBT people understand that this is the true fairy tale: the idea that you could fall in love with someone of the same sex and only know the dizzying feeling of falling in love — untarnished by any of society’s disapproval. And you know what? Gay people need fairy tales, too.

I love that and that is exactly what My Most Excellent Year proposes.

But Augie’s story is only but a part of the book and there are many other things to love about it. All the theatre references including reviews by Augie’s mom in which she criticises several well loved musicals and they made me think so much and review things I never thought about. Or how the story is also about perception. There is a very telling story that is recounted by both Augie and T.C. about how one day T.C. showed up at school with his shirt inside out and then all kids did the same. For Augie it showed how much T.C. was a leader whereas T.C. thought the kids were making fun of him . All of the relationships are incredible too especially the one between Augie and T.C. and never once did I not think that they were NOT brothers. There is so much love and acceptance in this novel and about choosing who you love rather than that being determined simply by biology.

Where the novel fails slightly for me is in the relationship between T.C. and Hucky, the small kid he befriends. I mean, don’t get me wrong, it is beautiful and it certainly goes back to T.C. own childhood and how Augie helped him get through his mom’s death but there are certain aspects of that relationship that are too fantastical ( I am not going to spoil) and too much of a stretch. Plus, everybody is so perfect and nice. The kids, the parents, teachers, students, even *gasps* older brothers and although this certainly infuses the novel with a lever of heart-warmth that is hard not to succumb to it also sort of undermines the entire point of Augie’s storyline – because his fairytale is within the realm of possibility one day, but the others aren’t because as Jack Lemon once said: nobody is perfect.

Having said that, there is so much diversity and awesomeness about this book that it is really hard to be even slightly critical of it. I loved it and there is only one thing left to be said about it. My Most Excellent Year is well:

Most excellent, dudes. Approved by Bill and Ted

Notable Quotes/Parts: A letter from Augie’s father to T.C.’s father:

The Word Shop
Brookline’s Favorite Bookstore
E-Memo from the Desk of Craig Hwong

Hey Teddy,

You know you’ve earned your wings as a father when you drop by your kid’s bedroom to kiss him good night and on your way out of the door he stops you cold with “Dad? Is love supposed to hurt?” I’m not sure if there’s an easy answer to that particular riddle (yes, I am – there isn’t), but hearing that question from my son is the reason I wanted to be a parent in the first place. How did he know?

(…)

All he really needed to hear was that he’s not the first kid who’s had to go through this. (Isn’t that usually what it takes?) by the time I came back from the bathroom with his glass of water, he was already out like a light. And while I was tucking him in, I realised that we’d never had the “I’m gay” conversation. Has this generation finally made it superfluous? If only.

Additional Thoughts: Augie has a website! It is hilarious and full of cool things to check out (and links to Ale’s and T.C.’s too).

Augie’s stats:

Status: In a relationship. His name’s Andy. His eyes don’t match any color in the spectrum, so we think he invented Andy Blue.

Here for: Friends and anybody who can tell me in ten words or less WHY Alanis Morissette stopped touring. She was my entire life for three
weeks. Now I’m SO over her.

Orientation: Gay. Normally you can only go as high as a Kinsey 6, but they gave me an 8.

Hometown: Brookline, Massachusetts

Body type: 5′7″ and athletic: soccer, swimming, and track
(which really means cutoffs, Speedos, and white shorts—when you got it baby, flaunt it)

Ethnicity: Second generation Chinese American

Religion: Stephen Sondheim

Aww AUGIE!

Rating: 8 – Most Excellent!

Reading Next: Hero by Perry Moore

Title: A Wish After Midnight

Author: Zetta Elliott

Genre: Young Adult, Historical, Speculative Fiction

Publisher: CreateSpace
Publication Date: March 2009
Paperback: 254 Pages

Fifteen-year old Genna Colon believes wishes can come true. Frustrated by the drug dealers in her building, her family’s cramped apartment, and her inability to compete with the cute girls at school, Genna finds comfort in her dreams of a better future. Almost every day she visits the garden and tosses coins into the fountain, wishing for a different life, a different home, and a different body. Little does she know that her wish will soon be granted: when Genna flees into the garden late one night, she makes a fateful wish and finds herself instantly transported back in time to Civil War-era Brooklyn.

Stand alone or series: Stand alone novel

How did we get this book: Thea received a review copy from the author, Ana borrowed hers from a friend (thanks, Karen!).

Why did we read this book: We follow Zetta Elliott’s blog and articles on Diversity. When we organized YAAM, we decided it was time to read her novel.

REVIEW:

First Impressions:

Ana: I started reading A Wish After Midnight one night and didn’t stop until I finished it. The important thing to say is how I might have finished the book but was not done with it or rather the book was not done with me: I lay awake that night thinking about it and about the history, the story, the text and the subtext, the characters until I could think no more. I loved it.

Thea: I gotta agree with Ana on this one – I loved A Wish After Midnight. This is a beautiful character-centered book about a girl struggling to survive in two different eras, dealing with racism across two distant – but not so different – time periods. Zetta Elliott’s writing, plotting, and characterizations are flawless, and – well, how else can I say this? – I LOVED this book.

On the Plot:

Ana: A Wish After Midnight is a semi-fantastical account of Fifteen-year old Genna Colon’s life. The year is 2001 and Genna lives in Brooklyn with her family – her mother and three siblings. Genna is Panamanian/African American and her dad went back to Jamaica a few year back after being disillusioned with racial inequality in America. The first part of the book follows Genna in her daily life in a small apartment in a run-down building , dealing with racism, poverty and the expectations of her mother who hopes she will do better one day. Genna spends her day studying, taking care of her small baby brother, developing a relationship with an African-American boy named Judah and often visiting a public garden in Brooklyn where she eventually meets Hannah, a white woman who hires Genna as a baby-sitter.It is in one of those visits to the garden that Genna makes a wish to the fountain and ends up in the past – back in a Civil War-era Brooklyn. Thus begins the second part of the book as she wakes up in the past in the body of a slave who had been recently published – as the slashes on her back prove. Confused and in pain, Genna is rescued by a quick-thinking, emancipated slave who was nearby and taken to an orphanage where she will recover from her injuries and then try to find a way back home.

A Wish After Midnight is a wonderful, vivid story. I love for example, how the details regarding Genna’s wish and how exactly she ended up in the past are up to the reader’s imagination because after all this is not what the story is about. Rather, it is a character-driven book in which Genna’s resilience and observation of the world are what really matters.

Slavery is a loaded issue and I thought the author handled it very well, and not heavy-handed at all. In fact, the plot is a subtle representation of slavery: by taking Genna from everything she knows and loves and thrusting her in a situation of which she has no control of, therefore re-living what her ancestors went through , with an obvious difference: a 20th century sensibility. This shift demands a lot from Genna but her keen eyes don’t miss anything. And she is lucky too, as she is sent back to NY and not a southern state and a NY on the brink of the Emancipation Proclamation and the New York Draft Riots.

The author is very deft at incorporating Historical events and the Brooklyn setting is incredibly realistic and the story is also a tale of two cities – of two Brooklyns separated in time. It is less about a cohesive plot of a time traveller and more like an exploration of what if feels like to be a black girl in Brooklyn in 2001 and in the 1800s.

It simply astonishes me that with this writing and this story the author was unable to secure a publishing deal and ended up self-publishing.

Thea: What Ana said. A Wish After Midnight is much more of a character-piece than a rollicking time travel novel, but that doesn’t mean that the plotting isn’t superb. The time/world-traveling teen conceit is a familiar one (one of my favorites and a book that Wish reminded me of is Jane Yolen’s The Devil’s Arithmetic, in which a teen jumps back in time to the Holocaust – and of course there will always be the comparisons to Octavia Butler’s Kindred), and Ms. Elliott does it brilliantly, putting her own spin on this familiar plot trope. First, Ms. Elliott brings to life Genna’s world in modern day Brooklyn, detailing her separated and struggling family, the grime and danger of a life in the projects but also Genna’s love of her siblings and mother, her books, and the lush botanical gardens where she goes to escape fetid reality. When Genna awakens in 1863, in a beaten body on the eve of the Emancipation Proclamation, she may still be in Brooklyn, but it is an entirely different world. With equal care and attentiveness to detail, Civil War New York is brought to vibrant life too, as Genna is first brought back to health and then works as a nanny in Dr. and Mrs. Brant’s home. The political landscape and the historical detailing is impeccable (author Zetta Elliott holds a Ph.D. in American Studies), creating a very real, tumultuous picture of a major city on the brink of war.

The most intriguing thing about A Wish After Midnight, and what makes it stand out from other so-called time travel historical fantasy novels, in my opinion, is how the book (through Genna’s eyes) examines race and identity over two very different time periods. In modern Brookly, Genna’s mother has an instinctive mistrust, even hate, of white people – which isn’t without grounds, considering the interactions that Genna and her family have every day. Genna’s boyfriend, Judah, is resigned that he will not learn anything in American schools and is determined to move to Africa. In contrast, Genna isn’t comfortable lumping together all white folks into the same generalization as her mother does, nor does she think Africa is the solution to all of life’s problems. And then, Genna jumps back in time, and experiences the world from a completely new perspective – as an assumed runaway female slave, vulnerable and utterly alone. There’s danger aplenty in Genna’s worlds – both in modern Brooklyn (one story Genna relates about a girl that was raped in a staircase at school is particularly chilling) and past Brooklyn, where being black – being a black woman – is incredibly dangerous.

But more than just an examination of racism, A Wish After Midnight is a book about Genna discovering and feeling comfortable with herself. But more on that in a bit.

On the Characters:

Ana: It is in the characterisations that I think A Wish After Midnight excels. All of them to some extent or another, but especially Genna. It is Genna that carries this book on her back and her voice is simply one of the best narrative voices I have read in YA. From her relationship with siblings for example (her eldest sister is often seen as evil as most older sisters are – my baby sister will probably tell you the same when she recollects our childhood, I am ashamed to say) to he relationship with her mother. She is extremely keen observer of her environment and I love how her views of both white and black people are balanced – white people are not all devils even though she feels and sees racism every day of her life. She navigates the sometimes hazy waters of an outlook that has shades of grey instead of being black and white. She is resilient, proud, inquisitive and fair.

I absolutely loved the diversity of the characters especially the ones back in the 19th century from her white employees to her black comrades. The former are good people yes and abolitionists but their views are often patronising and insulting. As for the latter, some of them feel justifiable anger and resentment but they all react in different ways and it is all part of the different experiences – and none of them are presented as being wrong or right. They are all possible reactions, part of perfectly legitimate responses to racism and poverty. Genna’s mother is fast in hating white people for example and Judah’s answer is to want to go back to Africa.

Speaking of Judah, I don’t like Judah as her romantic interest simply because I don’t like the way he usually treats her. But I like their interactions and how they discuss things and many times disagree and this discussion is rich in providing different sides of a debate. Judah is an interesting character and a perfect counterpoint to Genna – whereas he wants to go away and start anew, Genna still wants to make America her home and a home that would welcome everybody.

In the end, I cared deeply for these characters and hoped for the betterment of their lives – anywhere in time.

Thea: As Ana says above, this is truly a character-driven book. It is because of Genna that A Wish After Midnight shines so brightly – because of her keen, observant, even lyrical narration. Her interactions with her family (especially with her mother and her youngest sibling, Tyjuan) are moving and genuine, as is her relationship with Judah. It’s the little things that Genna says – her observation about girls wearing contact lenses, her likening her newly coiled and dreadlocked hair as seedlings needing to be tended – that are so memorable.

But beyond Genna’s skill as a narrator, she’s also a girl that sees herself as awkward and unattractive, picked on at school and by her own older brother and sister. Her remarks about her own looks, her insecurity about her hair and about how tall she is, it’s relateable – and it makes A Wish After Midnight also a story of self-discovery, and identity, as Genna becomes comfortable in her own skin.

While the other characters are detailed and vivid – from Genna’s hardened mother to the cruelty of Mrs. Brant (what a terrible woman!), this really is more than anything else, Genna’s story, and she steals the show.

Final Thoughts, Observations & Rating:

Ana: A Wish After Midnight is wonderful book that made me think, made me feel. I loved the writing and most of all I loved Genna’s voice and her portrayal as a strong, proud, resourceful young girl.

Thea: This is a beautiful novel, and one that I wholeheartedly recommend to readers of all genres, backgrounds and ages. Poetic, poignant, and memorable, A Wish After Midnight is a book that lingers with you long after the last page, and I cannot wait to read more from the talented Zetta Elliott.

Notable Quotes/Parts: We love this passage when Hannah tries to donate some clothes to Genna’s mother:

It’s ok that Hannah wants to help me, but I don’t need her to help my family. I don’t need her to put clothes on my back, and I definitely don’t need her to dress my mother. Sometimes people give you things, and they don’t know when to stop. They give too much, ’cause they want to fix all your problems, but sometimes you got to fix your own problems, your own kind of way. Hanna’s already paying me, and that’s what I said.

Additional Thoughts: Be sure to stop by tomorrow: Zetta Elliott will be here with an article on diversity in YA!

Rating:

Ana: 8 – Excellent

Thea: 8 – Excellent

Reading Next: How I Live Now by Meg Rosoff