Although I have always enjoyed history and love learning about the past, a lot of non-fiction tends to be very dry and tedious. It is informative and the information itself is interesting, but the delivery often leaves much to be desired. It is always a treat to find an author who can write history and keep it interesting.
The Six Wives of Henry VIII by Alison Weir is a wonderful example of that. Ms. Weir delivers a very informative, yet highly entertaining account of Henry the VIII; one of England's most notorious monarchs. Henry's desperation to father a son led to one of the greatest scandals in English history. Before reading this book, I knew the basics about Henry's reign. I knew that he married 6 women and had a reputation for beheading those women who displeased him, his desire to marry Anne Boleyn initiated the break between England and the Catholic church, because the Pope wouldn't grant him a divorce and his two living daughters were both rather famous monarchs in their own right.
Because I knew very little actual information about this period of English history, but have always been fascinated by what I heard, I decided to pick up this book and learn a little more about King Henry and his outrageous court. I was pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed reading this book. The book was very well written and flowed from one sequence of events to another very smoothly. Although this was non-fiction, it read more like a novel than the typical dry recitation of historical facts.
The first half of the 600+ page book was dedicated to Catherine of Aragon, Henry's first wife and Anne Boleyn, his second. Catherine was married to Henry for 24 years and is the only wife to have been married to Henry for longer than 4 years. During the later years of his marriage to Catherine, Henry's attentions began shifting toward Anne Boleyn, one of the ladies of the court. While it makes sense to devote so much of the book to these two women, the history here did get a little repetitious. I was also a little disappointed because none of the other wives were given as much detail as the first two. Although I did wish for a little more detailed information to be given on the remaining 4 wives, I understand why there was less to say of the others. I mean, Katherine Howard was only 19 when she was married to King Henry, and she was executed after only 2 years of marriage, and Anne of Cleves was married to Henry for less than a year. I did love that interspersed throughout the story of each of these women was the connections to the other women in Henry's life, as well as information about what had happened or what was happening to each of the previous queens. That is something that would have been missing from individual biographies on these six women that I was grateful was included.
Overall, this was a book well worth reading. The facts were well researched, the history informative, and the writing engaging. I will definitely be picking up other books by this author in the future.
The Story of Mankind by Hendrik van Loon was awarded the very first Newbery Medal in 1922. I decided a few years ago that I wanted to read and own every Newbery Award Winner. Given that this won the first Newbery, I was excited to read it, even though I had heard some less than favorable things about the writing.
Let me first admit that I skimmed a vast majority of this book. I started the book with the full intention of reading everything as normal, but it didn't take long for me to realize that I would never get through the book if I tried to read without skimming.
The one positive thing I can say about this book is that Hendrik van Loon took on an impossibly difficult topic. He tried to fit the entire history of mankind into one book. This must have taken huge amounts of time and research, and I give the man props for that. However, that is about the positive thing I can say about the book.
While reading, it is painfully obvious that van Loon thinks himself to be terribly witty and clever, but he's not. At all. He's dry and dull and tries too hard to be entertaining, instead of just letting the history tell itself.
I was also rather confused at the way he broke up history, and what time periods he gave more weight to. In a book that only has 485 pages to talk about the entire history of mankind from when we were amoebas until the 1920s, there are only a few pages to talk about different parts of history. But why would you spend 4 pages on Ancient Egypt and 13 on chivalry in the Medieval Era?! This feels a bit backwards to me.
Overall, this is not a book I'd recommend. The only reason I read it was so that I could complete the Newbery list, and I admit to feeling a huge sense of accomplishment now that it's done. But man, was it a struggle to get through.
When I first heard about The Time-Traveling Fashionista by Bianca Turetsky I wasn't sure what I thought about the idea. No one would ever accuse me of being very interested in fashion, and my designer recognition is limited to the names of the very most famous. But, I was approached, in a round-a-bout way to review this novel, and realized that the dress takes our main character back to the Titanic... Well, it just so happens that 11 year old Ashley was obsessively in love with the Titanic, and 11 year old Ashley has an especial love for books where modern kids were able to travel back themselves. How could I not want to read this book?! So, I accepted, if for no other reason that to 'feed' 11 year old Ashley a little bit.
Before I say anything about the story, I want to briefly mention that this is one of the most beautiful books I've ever read. I know you aren't supposed to just by appearances and all that, but seriously. This book is gorgeous. There are pages and pages of full color illustration, beautiful script work inside, the chapter headers are elegant and lovely, and the exterior of the book is a lovely purple. I'd love owning this book for the aesthetic value alone.
However, I did find this book to be delightfully charming, and I loved reading it. I admit that a lot of why I loved this book so much comes from 11 year old Ashley saying, Yay!! Titanic! but the story itself was cute and a lot of fun to read. Louise is 12 and in love with vintage clothing. She loves clothes and fashion, but would rather scour Goodwill and Salvation Army that hit up the mall. When she gets an exclusive invite to a traveling vintage sale, she's thrilled and can't wait to see what's offered. She just knows she's going to find something amazing to wear to the upcoming school dance. What she ends up finding are two (possibly crazy) old women and a glorious pink dress that transports her to the deck of the Titanic.
I did find found myself a little disbelieving that it took Louise so long to realize she was on the Titanic. Her history teachers may have been insanely dull, but they talked about the Titanic in class the day before she puts on the dress. Not only that, but she mentions having seen the movie. I do also wish that there had been a little bit more history of the Titanic included. It seemed to focus more on the outfits aboard the ship than on the history of the people or the ship itself.
I also found the descriptions of all the outfits worn both by Louise and others in the story to be a little too detailed. I freely admit that this one is more my fault, more personal, than anything actually wrong with the story. I have never been very interested in what's fashionable, or who is wearing what, and I would never recognize real designer clothing. I just don't have the eye or the interest towards it. I understand that vintage clothing is a large part of what makes Louise unique, but it's never been my thing. And, I worry that it might limit the readership a little bit, because I've never met a 12 year old in real life with this type of interest in vintage clothing. But then again, with the gorgeous illustrations, maybe it will, instead, encourage their interest in vintage fashion.
With that being said, I did really enjoy reading this book. It's a quick read and Louise was a fairly believable 12 year old. Initially, she's in shock and scared about where she's found herself. But then, as she realizes she's a first class passenger with a stunningly lovely wardrobe and she is back in time, she starts to enjoy herself, and enjoy living the life of pampered and loved starlet. But, once the newness wears off, she definitely resorts to 12 again, missing her mom, and wishing for nothing more than to be back home with her family and friends.
Although I mentioned wishing for more history of the Titanic, I did like the interaction Louise had with the passengers aboard the ship. Whether or not their portrayal here was completely accurate to real life, it was neat being able to see a little of what they might have been like as real people, instead of just names on a list. It's one of the reasons I love historical fiction, and I thought this book did a marvelous job of bringing the real people to life a bit. The story has set itself up to easily become a series, and I would be interested in following along with the series to see what else happens to Louise. I would be fascinated to watch as she travels through different clothing eras, and will also be interested to see if Louise ages at all as the series progresses. I think it would be neat to watch as her adventures change with her real age, and the perspective that age grants you. But then again, maybe the magic of the dresses wears off as you age, and no longer believe in magic the same way you do as a kid.
Overall, the book was a really fun middle grade read that allowed me to remember what it was like to be 11. My 11 year old self would have rolled my eyes at the clothes and gobbled up any mention of the Titanic. I think that young girls will love the illustrations that go along with the clothing descriptions and who doesn't love the idea of being able to travel through time?!
*Disclaimer: I received a copy of this for review in exchange for an honest review.
Pirate Treasure and The Lost City of Atlantis are the first two books in the middle grade adventure series, The Traveling Trunk Adventures written by Benjamin Flinders.
In the first book, Pirate Treasure, Ethan and Dallin's father brings them a gift; an old looking chest, said to have previously been owned by pirates. Although confused at first (because pirate chests don't really fit in with their awesome jungle themed bedroom, complete with vines) they open the chest and start to play around a little. When they jump in the chest and close the lid to hide from their little sister, they are amazed, and more than a little scared to open the lid and realize they are no longer in their bedroom, but in what looks like the cabin of a ship.
After their adventures in the first book aboard a real life 18th century pirate ship, the boys manage to unlock the mysteries of the chest and return home. A short time later, they return to the chest and find themselves in the City of Atlantis, listening to men preach in the streets that the city is doomed and will fall any day unless drastic changes are made.
While reading these two books, there were a few moments when I just had to roll my eyes at the unlikeliness of their situations. I found that the adults in these stories were just a little too dumb to be believable and people in both books were a little too willing to help these brothers out. They patiently explained unfamiliar words and phrases, and accepted whatever the boys told them as explanation.
However, these books are designed to be read and enjoyed by young middle grade readers, and I think they were written perfectly for that age group. They are quick reads with eye catching illustrations, and the language is on level with what kids that age would understand and enjoy.
I wasn't exactly sure how I felt about these books immediately after finishing, until I thought about how much I would have loved these books as a kid. I was fascinated by history, and loved the idea of kids being able to go back in time to live through, and maybe alter, history. In 5th grade, when I just knew I was going to be a writer someday, I wrote a little mini-series of (awful) time travel stories and this brought all those memories back.
I would definitely recommend this series to younger kids, whether they are interested in history, like the idea of traveling through time, or just like the idea of an adventure. They might not switch between adults and children as smoothly as other MG books I've come across, but they are perfect for children and would easily be enjoyed by many MG readers, boys and girls alike.
Each book also contains a little bit of historical fact at the end of the chapter. Pirate Treasure includes a pirate glossary. How cool is that?! With this book, on International Talk Like a Pirate Day (Sept. 19) you can totally sound legit!!
*Disclaimer: I received these books from the publisher in exchange for a fair and unbiased review.
With us now, we have Jaclyn Dolamore, author of Magic Under Glass and the upcoming Between the Sea and Sky. Jaclyn was homeschooled in a hippie sort of way and spent her childhood reading as many books as her skinny nerd-body could lug from the library and playing elaborate pretend games with her sister Kate. She skipped college and spent eight years drudging through retail jobs, developing her thrifty cooking skills and pursuing a lifelong writing dream. She has a passion for history, thrift stores, vintage dresses, David Bowie, drawing, and organic food. She lives with her partner and plot-sounding-board, Dade, and two black tabbies who have ruined her carpeting. So now, I give you, Jaclyn:
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ The "Serious" stuff:
~ Even if not direct fairy tale retellings, your stories definitely have fairy tale-esque elements. Is this intentional on your part, or just a by-product of the tales you like to tell? Any plans to do a direct retelling?
Well, so far, my intention with any story is to take a period of history and run it through an otherworldly, magical filter. I guess the fairy tale part just comes in as a by-product. Certainly, I read a lot of fairy tales as a child; we had an old book of Perrault stories as well as some of the Lang Fairy Books, Russian tales and Hans Christian Andersen (way to traumatize me as a child, Hans), and I read many retellings. One of my favorite things are stories that mash-up a bunch of tales like the mini-series "The Tenth Kingdom" (seriously, it is so fun, if anyone hasn't seen it yet you should), the musical Into the Woods, or the comic Fables. I always thought that would be fun to do, but I'd have to come up with a new take on it because it's already been done so well by others. I've often thought it would be fun to do a fairy tale retelling, but I'm waiting for the right one to cross my path, something a little creepy but also romantic in just the right way... Of course I've seen a lot of comparisons between Magic Under Glass and Beauty and the Beast so perhaps I DO retell fairy tales in some ways.
~ Your ideas are really original and interesting, with great juxtaposition (a dancer falling for an automaton, a mermaid falling for a winged man, etc): can you tell us a little bit about where these stories come from?
I am a SUCKER for star-crossed romances between two outsiders. Magic Under Stone, of course, continues the Erris/Nimira love story but there is also a jinn whose master pits him against the girl he loves. (To be very vague about it... I don't want to be spoiler-y.) All my books have some element of this and I doubt that will change anytime soon. I am especially attracted to stories about two like minds in unlike bodies... a girl and an automaton, a girl with a fish tail and a boy with wings... I guess they are kind of stories about how human hearts cross boundaries.
~You mentioned in a past interview with another blogger (I’ll link to it) that you wanted to see more Victorian era fantasy, so you wrote Magic Under Glass: what was the research process like for this? Beyond the rest of the Magic series, do you intend to set any more books in the Victorian era, or is there another time period calling your name?
I've always loved the Victorian era, and history in general, and I am a total non-fiction book junkie, especially when it comes to the details of domestic life such as houses, clothes, social mores, etc. so I wrote the first draft of Magic Under Glass without any research. But, the more detail, the better, so I also read many books while writing it, and looked at a lot of period photography of people and places so I could capture details like what you would really see when you walked down the street or what accessories a woman would wear with her dress.
As for other time periods, well, Between the Sea and Sky is set in that world's equivalent of 1800, so it's earlier than Magic Under Glass, and now I am working on a novel based loosely on the 1927 German silent film Metropolis, so the settling is based heavily on Weimar Berlin. Which has proved to be a pain to research. Most books on Weimar Berlin seem geared to really intellectual political or art scholars and as an extra bonus, were translated from German and read very stilted, and it's been hard to find much information on everyday life. Even memoirs and diaries have been kind of hard to find. I've cheated a bit and read a lot about 1920s Paris... There is a silent film called "Berlin: Symphony of a Great City" that is nothing but scenes of everyday life in 1920s Berlin, though, so you do find these little tidbits...
~I know Between the Sea and Sky is a companion novel of sorts to Magic Under Glass, but do you intend it to be a stand-alone, or is it going to spin-off into its own series?
It stands alone. I do have some sequel ideas, although they would focus on characters that are children in Between the Sea and Sky. But whether my publisher would buy a sequel depends on whether the book does well.
~What’s the most challenging aspect of writing for you? And what’s the thing that makes it all worthwhile?
Challenging: There is always a sticky spot somewhere in the middle of a book. Also, endings! Sealing the deal is one of my weaknesses for sure. I don't really LIKE things to end... In my mind my books keep going, but of course I can't write endless sequels to everything, so I have to find a spot to wrap everything up, it's just hard. And action scenes. Augh. As a reader, I usually skim fights and escapes. I wish I could skim them as a writer too...
But except for those occasionally sticky spots, I love every part of writing; the research, the early development, the first page, the part where you really start to know where it's going, the editing, the line editing, the copy editing... And sharing that story with others and hearing from fans is a huge rush, although I have to be careful not to get caught up in advances or awards or fans (or the flipside--the lack of those things) and stay focused on the writing itself.
~What is your writing process like? What do you do to prepare and get yourself in the mood to create worlds?
I'm a workaholic, really. I do take days off. But I feel very guilty about them, unless I take an actual vacation away from home. Even when I'm not writing, I think about both my current project and think ahead to my next project almost constantly. It's a constant struggle not to zone right out of my real life and back into my invented one. One time I was apparently in 7-11 with an old man clad entirely in lime green spandex and I didn't notice. I got to the car and my boyfriend was like, "Did you see that guy in line in front of you and his crazy outfit?" I was like, "Uhh, I was thinking about my characters... " Even as a kid I was like that. I'm just glad I found a way to make a career out of it...
~What’s your favorite scene you’ve ever written?
@_@ Ever?
Boy, that's tough. I do love the climax of Between the Sea and Sky, with its mingled vulnerability and yearning. And kissing and rain. Who doesn't enjoy that mix?
Quickfire, Silly and Random stuff:
~Rapunzel is named after lettuce; what odd thing would you be named after if you were in a fairy tale? Hmm, not to steal the produce thing, but I could be named after an apple. I think they are nature's most perfect food! Plus they turn up in fairy tales a lot. ~ Using that name, give us a line from your life as a fairy tale: "When the weather was fine, Jonagold and her sister Gingergold would play in the scrub pine forest, catching minnows in the pond and crawling under the palmettos hoping to spot rabbits, but they never ventured into the swamp, for that was where the fairies lived." (Note 1: Apples don't make for very good names. Especially if you are trying to find some that match. Note 2: I really did grow up on a 5-acre property in central Florida with a swamp in back and I wouldn't be surprised if some North American breed of fairy lived back there.)
~Best fairy tale villain and why?
Bluebeard. Talk about creep-tacular; it plays to my love of the mysteries behind locked doors, but in a far scarier way than The Secret Garden. The first time you hear that story you NEVER forget it... Although I also love crone archetypes in general which includes a lot of women you wouldn't want to cross paths with like Baba Yaga.
~Favorite tale from childhood? Favorite tale as an adult? Least favorites?
In childhood my favorite tale was in a collection "Princess Tales" by Nora Kramer. I no longer have this book and I'm not sure if it was an original story or based on an older tale; the collection did have The Twelve Dancing Princesses in it so I'm not sure, but I vaguely recall it was about a painter who painted an ugly-but-honest picture of the king or something and was thrown in a prison with a tiny window, but a blackbird would visit him, and in the end just as he was about to be executed the birds saved him. I was enthralled by the poor painter trapped with only one window and the birds rescuing him. I need to get a new copy of that book... As an adult my favorite might be The Seven Swans; I always feel for the poor mute girl weaving shirts of nettles and I always wonder about the brothers who lived as swans and the boy who was left with one wing in the end. I like birds, clearly. There is actually a fairy tale I invented mentioned within Between the Sea and Sky called "The Girl Who Fell in Love with a Bird."
~If you could be any fairy tale character, or live through any fairy tale "happening," who/what would it be?
Fairy tale characters don't have very good lives! I mean, up until the happily ever after part. I guess I'd be Sleeping Beauty because at least she just sleeps through the whole thing. So many of them have to go through a lot of trials; great fun to read about but not much fun to live through.
~Would you rather: - — live under a bridge with a troll, or all alone in a high tower? I think I need more information about the troll and what kind of roommate (bridge-mate) he would be before I can decide...
- — ride everywhere in a pumpkin carriage (messy) or walk everywhere in glass shoes (uncomfortable)? Glass shoes. I already have a heck of a time finding comfortable dressy shoes so maybe it wouldn't be much difference.
- — have a fairy godmother or a Prince Charming? These quickfire questions are harder than the serious questions!;) Well, I guess, although the term "Prince Charming" sounds shallow, I'd rather have someone to spend my life with than a fairy godmother.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
A conversation with Misty and Ashley:
Misty and Ashley: Wow! Jaclyn, you are amazing! We loved the interview!
Ashley: So, Jaclyn's bio mentions that she loves to draw. It would be cruel, would it not, to brag about her mad-drawing skills and not share that with the rest of the world.
Misty: It would be cruel. Too true!
Ashley: So, because Jaclyn has an official saved spot at the 'Fairy Tale Cool Kids Table' and is not, in fact, a cruel person, she has offered up an absolutely stunning giveaway!
Misty: She is providing one lucky winner with hand-drawn bookplates, featuring the main couples from each of her novels. Aren't these covers absolutely stunning?!
Ashley: What must you do to win these bookplates? These hand-drawn bookplates?! It's simple really. You must provide us with unicorn sprinkle cupcakes. (what Misty? Oh... Ooops. Right)
Ahem. To win this one-of-a-kind giveaway, you must leave us a comment. But, not just any comment. Because Jaclyn is putting so much effort into making this giveaway special for you, you must put forth a little effort as well. For any MEANINGFUL comment left on this review, you will be entered to win. If your comment isn't meaningful, I'm going to assume that you don't actually want to win the awesomeness that is these bookplates, and I will NOT enter you into the contest. You must also leave a way for us to contact you, if you are the winner. If I can't contact you, you can't get your prize.
This contest IS open Internationally! Closes May 5th.
Pegasus by Robin McKinley was one of my most highly anticipated books of 2010. I've mentioned before that I love Robin McKinley. She is the author I credit with teaching me that fantasy can be a great genre to read. I was so excited when I noticed a new McKinley book that I'm pretty sure I made those embarrassing 'sqeeish' noises.
When the book came in the mail, I was beyond excited. And then, I started reading... End of excitement. The entire book was a struggle for me to get through. The beginning of the book is really vague, with the readers jumping into the middle of our 12 year old princess' history lesson and the narration doesn't really clear up much after that. I felt like I was reading the story told many years later by someone who kept forgetting the order things happened. It was full of flashbacks and flashforwards that would go on for pages, before the narration would pick up again in the present. I'm normally okay with this in books, but I like a little warning first. These flashes would just happen, and I'd find myself wondering where we were, and when we left the present tense.
I also regularly found myself bored with all the description. McKinley is a fantastic world builder and has a great imagination. I am amazed that she is able to come up with such beautiful and vivid descriptions for this magical world, but I got tired of hearing about them over and over again. It felt too much like a really boring teacher's desperate attempt to make a history lesson interesting to a group of students who couldn't care less. (ie: fail).
The story does definitely pick up once Ebon enters the picture and the story is no longer solely about Sylvi. Ebon was a fun character and I found myself truly enjoying his blunt and honest interior commentary. But this too was over used.
I must also admit that I was seriously upset, disappointed and annoyed when I realized that this book was actually going to have a sequel. I thought that McKinley could easily have cut the book down by 100 or so pages, removing the repetitious and redundant descriptions, and smoothing out the timeline, and then I find out she's going to follow it up with a second book?! Sigh. That was a bit of a bummer. And, of course I need to read the sequel because this book has one of the worst endings I've ever read. It ends, quite literally, in the middle of a scene. Nothing is resolved, everyone seems doomed, and all we have to go on are questions, assumptions and vague references to history.
I know that this review is predominantly negative, which makes me sad, and is not entirely what I was going for. The writing is, as always, beautiful and very well done. Sylvi and Ebon were a great character team, and their friendship is almost palpable. Their connection has enriched their lives, and I'm very interested to see what they will be able to accomplish in the future.
And although I was quite annoyed that this story ends in the middle of the scene, I must admit that I am incredibly interested in watching what Sylvi's father does with this new information, and how it will change their lives.
Overall, this is a beautiful story that just happens to be a little difficult to get through. But, I'd still recommend it for McKinley fans. Just, don't get your hopes too high.
* Disclaimer: I received this book through Star Book Tours.
I know this post is a few days late, (been crazy busy) but I wanted to celebrate America's Independence Day with a review of a childhood favorite set during the Revolutionary War, because without that war, and the brave people who fought it, we wouldn't have an Independence Day.
Time Enough for Drums by Ann Rinaldi is the one of three reasons I decided in 8th grade that it was okay to read and enjoy more than murder mysteries. (Robin McKinley is reason one and two but more on that later.) Because this book is one that I credit with vastly expanding my literary horizons, I'm going to tell you that this book is basically amazing. However, I understand and recognize that if I were to read this for the first time now, I imagine my rating would be more along the lines of pretty awesome. Thus, the dual tag.
Time Enough for Drums is enchanting. Jemima, (Jem) our heroine, is a strong, well crafted character. Although she is young, she has strong convictions, intense loyalties and a vast capacity for love and other emotions. When war breaks out between the colonies and the British, Jem knows which side she'll be rooting for. Her and her family and strong patriots who believe in what the colonists Americans are fighting for. Imagine the outrage when headstrong 15 year old Jem is forced to suffer through tutoring sessions with that horrid Tory John Reid. Although John has been a friend of the family for some time, Jem is none too fond of him. He is a strict tutor who demands respect and compliance and tells her what to do. Plus, he's a Tory.
I'll admit, this book is fairly predictable. It isn't terribly hard to figure out some of the major plot points, but in this story, that almost seems irrelevant. It doesn't matter that the storyline flows in a relatively straight and predictable manner, because Jem has such a hard time walking along it and that is where we find the great elements of this novel. There are also enough offshoots and unexpected moments that the story never feels trite or contrived. It is in large part due to those small side routes that we are able to see a true change in Jem from the spoiled and stubborn young 15 year old girl who will abandon her lessons at the drop of a hat (or the whinny of her horse) into a responsible, mature and determined young woman. War changes people. It changes some for the better, while bringing out the worst in others. Jem is one of the strong ones, truly changed for the positive and I consider myself lucky that I was able to watch her grow and learn what it means to be an adult.
Jem finds herself in many tough situations that really challenge her thinking, and force her to evaluate who she is, what she wants from life and what she is willing to sacrifice in order to achieve it. Some of the decisions Jem is forced to make are incredibly hard and have the potential to be seriously detrimental to the people she loves and cares for. These decisions were handled in an honest and realistic manner that made Jemima's character all the more real.
I also believe Rinaldi did a wonderful job contrasting the colonists with the British without turning the British or the British sympathizers into villains or stock characters. They were people too standing up for what they believed in, and trying to act as they found best. Rinaldi is also a master at knowing just how much information to include. She added just enough of the history within the story that I learned something but I never felt overwhelmed by all the details shoved into every single crack and crevice in the story. It always makes for awkward reading when you come away with the feeling that the author just had to show off how much research they did. This tends to bog the book down heavily and really disrupt the flow of the story. There was none of that in this book. Rinaldi transports the reader back in time, allowing us to experience life along with Jemima. There were moments after reading this book (every time) where I halfway expected to walk out of my house into the cobblestone streets in my petticoats and bonnet to fetch fresh fruits from the market. And I was almost always disappointed when I realize I'm a few hundred years late. (And then I remember indoor plumbing and tic-tacs and I'm happy again.)
Time Enough for Drums is a story that I connect with on several levels. I love Jemima's strong patriotism, her desire to do what she believes to be right and her fierce devotion to those she loves. I respect the choices that characters make when they are fighting to preserve what is most dear to them. And yes, there's also that part of my that just loves the happy ending.
One of the most amazing scenes in this book is when Jemima stands at the bottom of the Courthouse steps listening to community members read the Declaration of Independence. Although she doesn't stay for the entire reading (sigh... what a bummer) the emotions of the nameless characters experiencing it with her seep from the pages. You can feel the excitement and the energy is almost tangible. Perhaps it is because our Independence Day just passed, but at this moment, if I were able to visit one day or one event in history, I would choose to attend one of the readings of the Declaration of Independence. It is such an important and decisive moment in American history. It means so much to me personally, but I can't even begin to imagine how much more it meant to the people it was written for. They felt the bonds of tyranny and this document was the first blow to those chains. How powerful would it have been to have listened to those words read for the first time, and truly begun to believe that you could be free.
Although it is not the most complex story I've read about the revolutionary war, nor the most intense, it is one that has stayed with me over the years because of the emotions it invokes. It leaves me with a strong feeling of love and support for my country. (As well as the strong desire to hug my sister and tell her how much I love her.)
I recently read and reviewed Zan-Gah: A Prehistoric Adventure and it's sequel, Zan-Gah and the Beautiful Country. (If you missed that, you can find my review HERE.)
I recently conducted an interview with the author, Allan Richard Schickman about his novels and am delighted to share his responses with you! You can also find out more about Allan and his books on this website. (in my blog.) ____________________________________________________
First, I would like to thank Allan Shickman for being willing to answer some questions. I really enjoyed reading his novels and am excited to have this chance to talk with him. The pleasure is all mine. I find to my surprise that I just love to talk about myself and my work. So, have you always known you wanted to be a writer? Or is it something that just kind of happened? You have it exactly right. It just sort of happened. As a student I liked to write, and tried my hand at it from time to time. As a professor I wrote scholarly articles, and most of those journals have very high standards. It was an honor to be published in any one of them. Only upon retirement did I attempt a fictional book. Once I wrote that first chapter I was hooked. Because I am a reader and I love getting great book recommendations, especially from authors I enjoyed, what are some of your most favorite books? I have always been a lover and student of the classics. Once I find a book I like, I am apt to read it several times over a period of years. Dostoyevsky is my favorite. I read Crime and Punishment when I was sixteen, and I still reread it from time to time. Later in life I discovered Thomas Hardy. I love The Mayor of Casterbridge. Twain’s Huckleberry Finn was one book when I was young, and quite another, richer, book now that I’m older. One never really knows a book until he has read it three times. In that, it’s like a symphony or an opera. What would you say has been the most influential book or literary experience for you and your writing? Hard question. The Brothers Karamazov by Dostoyevsky taught me how complex, contradictory, and downright funny human beings can be. Shakespeare and Milton taught me that language can roar and thunder, and stir the imagination. Your bio mentions that you were an Art History Professor for years. How did you end up writing a historical fiction novel about the Prehistoric era? That seems like quite the jump. It is not really such a jump. Prehistoric people produced art. I studied it and their possible reasons for producing it. Some of that was in the back of my mind when I wrote the Zan-Gah novels. But there is a lot nobody knows. For all we know, women, not men, did those famous cave paintings. So I mixed knowledge with imagination. How much research went into writing these two novels? Some. I already knew a little about prehistoric art and life. I needed to learn about slings, and about fishing by hand. I researched twins in primitive societies, and discovered that such societies were sometimes terribly frightened by the birth of twins. They would kill them and their mother (never their father). I used that fear in my books. I also went to a marvelous cavern, Onondaga, in my own cave-rich state of Missouri. I was the only guy in the whole cave who was taking notes. Eyeless salamanders! Cool. We met a lot of interesting tribes with very complex and different ways of life. Were each of these tribes something out of your imagination, or were they based on actual tribes from history? Mostly imagination. There were no wasp people that I know of, but I did not make up totemism—the belief that a clan is related to an animal and shares some of its qualities. Why not have a people that models itself after stinging wasps? What sort of evidence and artifacts (if any) do we really have about this era? We have a lot. Whole volumes are written about cave paintings, petroglyphs, sculpture, etc. We have very fat, bulbous steatopygous figures assumed to be models of fertility. I hinted that Siraka-Finaka might have been shaped like the Venus of Willendorf (aw, go ahead and google it), but I didn’t push the idea very hard. There were some amazing characters in these novels—really strong and well-defined. It made me really glad there was a sequel, because it meant I was able to read more about them. However, the first book does end in a pretty comfortable spot. Was it always your intention to write a sequel to Zan-Gah, or is that a decision that came later. Thanks for “amazing.” I like “amazing.” However, I never intended to write a sequel, but some of my teen friends and relatives encouraged me to do so. The thing is, you can’t write anything until you get an idea. Then you slowly develop it, and put leaves on the tree, so to speak. The second book gave me a chance to develop characters introduced in the first, and work on new ones too. It gives me great satisfaction to think that my readers take an interest in my fictional characters, and want to read more about them. Any plans for a third Zan-Gah adventure? Yup. Speaking of future plans, do you have a current work-in-progress? If so, are there any details you can share about it with us? I am working on a third Zan-Gah book, but I am reluctant to talk too much about it. The story continues with Dael's self-imposed exile, as he seeks some sort of redemption or resolution of his life. He will go to live with the crimson people (introduced already in Zan-Gah and the Beautiful Country). I think I will call it Dael and the Painted People. But first I have to write it. Is there anything else you'd like to share with us today? I ask what an author has no right to insist on, that folks read the Zan-Gah books with a little care. It isn’t a race. If you don’t feel the books, you haven’t read them. Thank you again for answering my questions today. I really appreciate it. Just one last question before we go (because I know which I prefer and it's always an interesting question) Do you prefer wearing shoes or going barefoot? I always shower, swim, and go to bed barefoot. Any other time, I am shod. Thank you too. ____________________________________________________ How wonderful! I'm definitely excited for this third Zan-Gah novel. And, I totally googled that statue.:) Also, I am going to be offering a signed copy of each of these books to one lucky reader in the next few days so stayed tuned! Be sure to comment and let me know what you think!
Case Closed? Nine Mysteries Unlocked by Modern Science by Susan Hughes is a fun look into nine mysterious disappearances, many going back to ancient times.
The book is definitely geared toward middle grade readers. The language was on a level younger kids could understand, and larger words (like Anthropology) that young kids might not have come into contact with previously are explained in a way that does not make the reader feel stupid or condescended to. And, the author also included a glossary in the back of the book to use as a reference guide.
This is a great starting point, and would definitely be a book I'd direct children toward if they showed an interest in history, or science. My main complaint with this book is that there wasn't a lot of detail. Both our introduction to the original mystery, and its resolution were told with just the basic facts presented. Knowing that this is a book geared toward younger kids makes that understandable and acceptable, but I still found myself wishing for more detail. But, this is a great place to start. If mysterious disappearances intrigue you, this is likely a book you will enjoy as a starting point, but don't expect very much new information if you are already familiar with the cases.
Although I did enjoy reading this book, it doesn't cross over for adults as well as I'd hoped. However, I do not fault the author or the book for that, because it is meant to be a place to initially learn about some of these disappearances, and it was written for kids. If you have kids who are interested in history or science, I'd definitely recommend picking up a copy of this book and giving it a shot.
*Disclaimer: Review copy received from the author/publisher in exchange for a fair and unbiased review.
*Disclaimer — I received these books from the publisher in exchange for an honest and unbiased review.
I enjoy historical fiction. I love reading about a time period before my own because it gives me a little taste of what life was like for someone with very different experiences. And, I'd much rather experience it vicariously than permanently give up electricity and running water.
So, when I was contacted by Earthshaker Books to review a prehistoric adventure following young Zan-Gah, I was thrilled. It sounded like something that would be a fun read, and even if I didn't end up loving them, I have four younger brothers, and between them, one brother was bound to be interested. My initial feelings after finishing these two books? I'm keeping them (sorry bro... Maybe, if you're nice to me, I'll let you borrow it.)
The two books, Zan-Gah: A Prehistoric Adventure
and Zan-Gah and the Beautiful Country
by Allan Richard Shickman were a lot of fun to read. When we first meet Zan, he is a young boy trying to determine his place within his tribe. He wants to be a man, with a man's responsibilities, but at such a young age, that's hard. Zan is a great character. Although he is young, he's already well on his way to becoming a remarkable man. He is learning the courage does not mean a lack of fear, but rather accepting those fears and facing them anyway. He goes with the men of his and the neighboring tribes to hunt the lion that has recently killed a child. He's the both the youngest and the smallest person involved, and he's scared. He refuses to let that hold him back and ultimately, he is the one who brings the lion down. Doing this earns him the name Zan-Gah as an honor.
After the celebration over the defeat of the lion, the narrative breaks away to tell us a little of Zan-Gah's past. Zan has a twin, Dael, who has been missing for about a year. Zan-Gah begins to have disturbing dreams that convince him his brother is actually alive. Now that he has become more of a man, Zan-Gah decides it is time to set out to find his brother, save him, and bring him back home. The search for his brother and all that happens to him as he travels is detailed in the first book. Zan-Gah meets many new people, makes friends and enemies, learns, grows, suffers and triumphs.
I was really rooting for Zan-Gah to find his brother and bring him safely home. Reading this, you really want Zan-Gah to succeed. Which, to a degree, he does. Zan finds his brother and brings him back to the family. It took Zan-Gah over a year to find and free his brother from captivity which means Dael has now been a prisoner for over two years. And his captors did not treat him well. Dael does go home, but he returns to his people broken and withdrawn.
The second book begins with what little humanity Dael regained after being set free fleeing, leaving him angry, bitter, broken and uncaring. He is so full of anger and, all he can think about is exacting his revenge on those who he believes wronged him. And that includes Zan-Gah. Zan-Gah cares deeply about his brother and it hurts him that Dael is in so much pain but masks it with these darker emotions and refuses to let anyone close. Although Dael's character angered me in the second novel, I respect that Shickman didn't sugarcoat anything here. Being d in captivity for two years damages a person. It is impossible to be the same after surviving something like that, and as much as he angered me, I can't really bring myself to blame Dael. He didn't ask to be broken.
I very much enjoyed the story told within these two novels. For the most part, the story was told very well and I thought the characters were wonderful and real. None of the characters felt like overused cardboard stock characters. Each character has their own personality and unique way of looking at life. I was impressed at how much life Shickman was able to give his characters. The differences between the various tribes we meet within the course of the story are also amazing. He gave them each distinct characteristics that definitively set them apart from each other.
There were times however, when the flow of the novel seemed slightly disjointed or abrupt. There were a few times when the story would be moving along at a good pace, and then I felt like Shickman backtracked to give us important information that would become relevant in a few pages, even though it had little, if anything, to do with the current action. But, it needed to be said before it was too late so he just kind of stuck it in. The transitions weren't always smooth.
While reading this, there were also times that I felt like I was reading a very well written history text. I actually enjoyed that aspect of the writing, and thought that it was exactly what this book needed. I think I would have found most other narrative forms awkward or overdone. However, I don't know how much a young reader would enjoy that and the book is marketed at children ages 11 and up. There are many scenes that involve the harsher aspects of life during the prehistoric era which might also be harder for a young child to understand and cope with. While I wouldn't keep this book away from the children (and do plan on asking my 11 year old brother if he'd like to read them) I think these are books that parents would do well to read along with their child (especially if they are a young 11 or so) or at the very least, be aware of the potential questions and concerns that might be raised by the reading of these books, and be available for questions.
Overall, I was very pleased to have read these, and am interested to see what Allan Shickman does next.
Welcome everyone, with an especial welcome to Zohar! He is our very first guest blogger! I'm really excited to have him with us! Read is post, comment and let us both know what you thought, and then head on over to his site for a visit!
Bio:
Zohar is a father, husband and a new book blogger. He reads usually likes history and non-fiction books but generally reads everything he can get his hands on. His blogs features Pulitzer winning biographies, historical fiction, non-fiction and even graphic novels. You can find him at Man Of La Book
Post: ====================
My rating for Treasure Island — 5
About:
“Treasure Island” by Robert Louis Stevenson is an 1883 fictional adventurous and classic pirate story. The book follows Jim Hawkins, a young man, who has found a treasure map and with the help of friends hires a crew to find the treasure. But the crew has their own plans.
Thoughts:
I read "Treasure Island” by Robert Louis Stevenson as a young boy and always remembered it as one of my favorites. Recently, as part of a classics book club, I read it again.
The two main characters of the book, Jim Hawkins and Long John Sliver have certainly cemented themselves as two of the most intriguing and dimensional characters in literature. I was happy to reconnect with them almost as if they were old friends.
The first half of the book was a breeze to read, but the second half was a bit more difficult due to the pirate’s slang, cumbersome metaphors and tongue tied conversations. However, I quickly re-discovered that those quirks were part of the charm of the book. Even Jim Hawkins admits he has trouble understanding the narrative – so I wasn’t alone.
I read the Barnes and Noble classics version, which came with a fascinating biography of Stevenson especially regarding “Treasure Island”. The book was actually written for Stevenson’s stepson, after painting the island he started the novel and completed 15 chapters. Stevenson finished the book in Switzerland writing a chapter a day.
Unknowingly, Stevenson created much of the pirate lore which we have been accustomed to. The pirate speaking almost unintelligibly, a parrot on his shoulder, missing a foot and ready to double cross his best friends for a buck or two.
My biggest surprise upon reading “Treasure Island” as an adult was that I realized that the story is not about Jim Hawkins, but about Long John Silver. Granted that usually the villain in any book is usually more colorful and fun than the upstanding protagonist – but this discovery has taken by surprise. Silver’s moral ambiguity is well known but just how amoral the character is I never fully realized as a naïve child (even though I have become a naïve adult).
I was happy to discover that “Treasure Island” truly deserves its status as a beloved classic. The story is suspenseful and the adventure can be enjoyed by children of any age.
Synopsis:
In the mid 18th Century at a seaside village in south-west England Jim Hawkins, the young son of the keepers of the Admiral Benbow Inn, meets and old seaman named Billy Bones. Quickly Jim discovers that Bones is a pirate and that his old crewmates want Bones’ sea-chest.
Bones dies and Jim opens his sea-chest to collect the money owed to the inn – only to discover a mysterious oilskin packet. The packet is a detailed map of an island Jim, together with Dr. Livesey and Squire Trelawney, hire a crew to sail to the island.
But the crew are not the honest sailors they think they are and the sea-cook, Long John Silver, turns out to be the most dangerous one of them all.
Today's interview is with Zoë Marriott, author of The Swan Kingdom (read Ashley's review) , Daughter of the Flames (which Ashley also loved) and the upcoming Shadows on the Moon (which both Misty and Ashley are eagerly awaiting). Zoë has known that she wanted to be a writer since she was finished reading her first book; The Magic Faraway Tree by Enid Blyton. She thinks she was about eight, but she decided on being a writer and hasn't changed her mind since then. And boy, are we glad that she didn't! Help us welcome Zoë to the blog today!!
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ The Swan Kingdom is my favorite retelling of The Six Swans/The Wild Swans that I have come across. You talk about what inspired you to write this one down in your guest post. I loved what you did with the story to make it your own, but your interpretation of the ending to this story is largely responsible for how much I love this book. Without spoiling anything, can you talk about that? Can you share where or how that idea came to you?
So hard not to spoil!! Argh! Okay... well... basically, in the original version of the story, I didn't think the heroine really got a very happy ending. Or enough credit! She's clearly an extraordinarily brave and strong young woman, loyal the her brothers to the end despite all the suffering she's gone through — but she gets stuck with this prince who pretty much *kidnapped* her, and then was going to burn her because he thought she was a witch? That's true love for you, right? And she never gets justice for the wrong done to her family by her stepmother, or any closure, or even to see the land of her birth again! I suppose a few hundred years ago women weren't supposed to care about thing like that, but I was sure that for someone like her, the fate of the people she had left behind much have weighed on her mind very heavily. And then, it also made sense to me that in order to reverse such a powerful curse on her brothers through almost nothing but willpower and knitting, she must have had some fairly strong magical power of her own! So I wanted to try and bring those elements into the resolution of the story and bring everything full circle.
Did you have the changes you brought to the story in mind before you started writing, or were these things that came to you after?
Wow, that's a good question! I think some of them were always there, because they grew from the questions I had about the story — the questions that made me want to retell it. I mean, for example: just who was the mother of these royal children? In fairytales the real mother nearly always gets erased in the first line and replaced by a wicked plot-point. But it seemed to me that, particularly in The Wild Swans, where the father is pretty much a non-entity and yet the children are remarkable, that the mysterious, dead mother must have been remarkable too. So I always new that in my version the mother and particularly her death would be significant and happen 'on-screen' as it were. In other cases, the changes to the story were due to things that happened to be marinading in my brain at the time. When I was working on the first draft of the story I was watching a BBC documentary series about British pre-history in which there was a lot of information about the hunter-gatherers who built all our long barrows and stone circles. The experts talked about ancestor worship, and about the way that cave art seemed to show animal and human spirts all together, as part of nature. But then as people started to farm and develop agriculture and a more sedentary life, the idea of ownership and kingdoms appeared, and there was a massive shift in the way people lived. Did the hunter-gatherers disappear? Or were they absorbed into the farmer population? So those ideas worked their way into the book, and gave me an interesting and, I think, unique magical system and backstory for the Kingdom. Is there a fairy tale that you just need to retell, but are waiting to retell, or holding off for now? What are some of the other fairy tales you've considered retelling? Are there any fairy tales that you absolutely do not want to retell? Sooo many! I've always wanted to retell Beauty and the Beast, but I'm horribly intimidated by Robin McKinley's legacy. I mean, how is anyone supposed to live up to THAT? And there are a lot of less famous stories, for example, from Japanese mythology, that I have ideas about. The one I've never really been interested in is Sleeping Beauty — there's so little for the princess to do, and the idea of falling conveniently in love with your saviour bugs me. But I'd never say never. I always hated Cinderella too, until she started whacking me on the back of the head with a pick-axe demanding I tell her story properly! You've also written a non-fairy tale story, Daughter of the Flames. How does the writing and the research differ between the two genres? Which do you prefer writing? Do you prefer creating a completely new story and creating the world to fit the story, or taking an existing story at making it your own?
This isn't a very interesting answer, but I can't really put my finger on any significant differences in the process between writing an original fantasy and a fairytale relling. Possibly because I don't stick very closely to the specific events of my fairytale frameworks (as you may have noticed!) which means I still need to come up with my own plot, my own characters, my own emotional conflicts and arcs. Probably more importantly, I don't really think that writing a fairytale retelling is a get-out-of-jail card when it comes to setting. It's easy to slip into that non-specific, Eurocentric, Tolkien-esque world we all know so well. But that is a thin, bland sort place where I don't have much fun as a writer. Creating the world of Shadows on the Moon, for instance, required as much (actually, far more!) thought and research than the world of Daughter of the Flames. Your most recent book, Shadows on the Moon comes out this July, and I'm crazy excited for it. It's a Cinderella story, but she is most assuredly not your typical Cinderella. You mention why you wrote her this way in your guest post, and I am dying to read about it. There are many fairy tales with rather weak heroines. Are there any other stories that you would like to retell to give the heroines a chance to be strong? Actually, I think the female characters in fairytales tend to get a bit of a bad rep, overall. In a lot of original folk stories, young woman are cunning, resourceful, brave and loyal. Often men are the weak ones who need to be rescued. Look at Janet in Tam Lin, Kai and Gerda in the Snow Queen, the heroine of East of the Sun and West of the Moon, all those clever young witches and woodcutter's daughters! And the powerful, fearsome baddies are often women too. The problem, I think, is that the Victorians didn't approve of all these bold, adventuring women, and they cut their parts down and sometimes out entirely, in order to make fairytales 'fit' for their children. Not many years later, Disney carried on this process by producing a great many films in which being sweet, obedient and passive (and supernaturally attractive to forest animals) were the heroine's only traits. Later films, like Beauty and the Beast and The Little Mermaid, did allow the heroines to have SOME personality — but their number one desire was nearly always to escape from their fathers so they could find true love, and their princes were the ones with the claws/swords. It's really only very lately that we're seeing books and films that give women back their original, strong roles (Tangled, for example!) and I'm very happy to be a part of that process. Silly/Random Questions: ~Rapunzel is named after lettuce; what odd thing would you be named after if you were in a fairy tale?
Pencils, probably. I always have one on me somewhere! Princess Pen... now, why does that sound familiar?:) ~ Using that name, give us a line from your life as a fairy tale: "Princess Pen cracked open her stepmother's ribcage and cut out the woman's horribly blackened, twisted, yet still-beating heart; she then replaced it with an artificial one which she had grown within a local farmer's pig, and closed up the incision." [Misty likes Princess Pen already... ] ~Best fairy tale villain and why? The wicked fairy from Sleeping Beauty's christening. She's really the only interesting character in the thing! ~Favorite tale from childhood? Favorite tale as an adult? Least favorites? Childhood favourite was definitely The Wild Swans, and I have to be boring and say it STILL is. Least favourite used to be Cinderella — now Sleeping Beauty. ~If you could be any fairy tale character, or live through any fairy tale "happening," who/what would it be? I wouldn't. Are you crazy? Those stories are full of utter loonies, and even Princess Pen isn't mightier than the sword. ~Would you rather:- — eat magic beans or golden eggs? Golden eggs. With a little smoked salmon, on toast points. Maybe they would finally allow me to get a tan. - — style 50ft long hair or polish 100 pairs of glass slippers?My hair is actually waist-length right now, and I'm about to have it cut off from sheer annoyance, so I'd have to go with the slippers! - — have a fairy godmother or a Prince Charming? Fairy godmother — and once you've read Shadows on the Moon, you will know why! [Ashley says — SO mean to tease us this way when you already know how badly I want to read it! :) ]Fill-in-the-Gaps, story 1: Three Wishes The strange little man had offered Princess Pen three wishes. But what to wish for? The obvious answer was world peace , but that would never do, for obvious reasons. Princess Pen wasn't naive enough to think that people would ever stop fighting for long. And unlimited money for stem cell research was out of the question, since Princess Pen's wicked stepmother had outlawed it.
The Princess squandered the first two wishes on aiding earthquakes sufferers and cooling down some nuclear reactors, and really needed to make the 3rd one count. There was only one thing to do: he/she would ask her genetically enhanced pig, Francis.
So early in the morning, the Princess set off for her lab where the porcine Francine lived. It was no easy task getting there; Princess Pen went through three security searches and a full body CT scan, and nearly lost hope of ever reaching Francisand making her final wish before she had to go off and do her rounds at Mount Eraser Hospital. Her stepmother's security measures were really getting out of hand.
But in all good time, Princess Pen reached the door of the one person who could help. With great trepidation, (for Francis could be somewhat cranky in the mornings if he hadn't had his coffee) Penknocked and waited. Finallly, Francisopened the door with one handsomely trimmed trotter and peered out. “Yes?” he said.
Penlaunched into the story of the little old man and his three wishes, but Francismerely held up a hand and said “It’s simple, really. I’m surprised you wasted your time coming all the way out here — you must wish for your wicked stepmother to agree to heart surgery so you can change her blackened, wizened heart for one which is generous and free of bigotry and unreasoning fear.”
Penwas baffled. Wish for something so simple? Not magic League-Boots to travel the world, or a wheel to spin flax into gold so that she could set up an inoculation project in the slums?However, it wasn't long before Pen realized that if her government was run by someone who actually had a working heart all the other things might one day be possible. So the Princessdid the only thing she could, and wished for her stepmother to finally heed her pleas to accept a new heart.
Whether it was the right choice, the world will never know, but for Princess Pen it meant freedom from a great deal of unnecessary red tape in the long run, and the increased well being of everyone within the kingdom. And with all of the wishes gone, Pen lived busilyever after. ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ Thanks for stopping by Zoë!! We're so glad to have you! Hope you guys liked the guest post. If you want to fill in one of the stories for yourself, see this post. And make sure to head over to our awesome guest post from Zoë, and enter to win our prize pack of Zoë's books!
As you know, this weekend I participated in the Read Your Own Books Read-A-Thon hosted by Monica over at The Bibliophilic Book Blog and I think I did quite well. The best/scariest part? I know I could have done better... We'll see where I take that for the next read-a-thon... Hmmm. Anyway, I know you are all interested in what I managed to get read so here it is.
I finished 13 1/2 books in 3 days.:)
On Friday, I read
* Maus I: My Father Bleeds History * Maus II: And Here my Troubles Began * Jonathan Livingston Seagull * The Report Card * The Tales of Beedle the Bard * The Hundred Dresses (Newbery Honor Winner) * Knee-Knock Rise (Newbery Honor Winner)
Saturday was slower, but I read
* Coraline * The Little Prince * Heart of Darkness
Sunday, I finished
* Over Sea, Under Stone * The Dark is Rising * Greenwitch * and I read the last half of The Wonder Book aloud with my nephews.
It was a great weekend, and I'm really proud of the amount I managed to read. It will take a while, but reviews for all, or most, of these books should be coming soon!:)
Father of Lies by Ann Turner is set in Colonial Massachusetts, just before the start of the Salem Witch Trials. 14 year old Lidda is struggling to find her place within her family and Salem Village. She's always been different. She's a dreamer who loves to dance beneath the trees and hates the restrictive garb she is required to wear but she lives in a time period that expressly forbids each of these behaviors.
As if her life isn't hard enough, Lidda has suddenly begun hearing the voice of a man inside her head. She doesn't know what's going on, but she knows it isn't good, and more importantly, she knows she cannot tell anyone. Especially when the charges of witchcraft start flying around. Lidda's new internal friend has enabled her to distinguish between truth and lies and her newfound insight is creating problems. She believes that these so-called 'afflicted girls' are nothing but bored and powerless girls spreading lies to gain importance and power for themselves. But, she also knows that if she says anything, the repercussions will be devastating.
As soon as I heard about Father of Lies, I knew I was interested. The Salem Witch Trials has always been one of my favorite periods of history to learn about, and I love historical fiction interpretations of the Witch Trials.
Somehow, when I read the description initially, I picked up on the Salem Witch Trials, and missed the fact that our main character is bi-polar. When I started reading the book, several of Lidda's traits struck me as strange, and I thought to myself that Lidda seemed Manic Depressive (the correct diagnostic term for bi-polar disorder) or in the early stages of Schizophrenia.
I'm going to interrupt my review of the book to make a comment about research. My Bachelor's degree is in Psychology. I found myself questioning the research Ann Turner did on Manic Depression. It wasn't that her information (the symptoms of Lidda) was wrong, exactly, more like incomplete. I felt like her research came more from a google search than legitimate, peer reviewed research. Her cycles of mania and depression were more what popular culture tells you should be happening than what current research says is what happens. I felt like much of Lidda's symptoms are pop cultural misconceptions, and not what is actual research tells us happens. I also felt that the symptoms Lidda demonstrates are more indicative of the beginning stages of Schizophrenia than Manic Depression. I don't want to take up my entire review with the current research on Manic Depression, so if you want to know more, shoot me an email and I'll discuss it with you in more detail.
Anyway, other than my minor annoyances with inconsistencies in Lidda's symptoms, I really enjoyed Turner's perspective on the Salem Witch Trials. I've always believed that the 'afflicted girls' were making it up. There are a lot of theories out there about why these girls made the claims they did, but what has always made the most sense to me is the idea that the girls made up the initial stories to keep themselves out of trouble, and things spiraled out of their control. Once things got so out of hand, the girls knew they couldn't stop it because they would be in even more trouble than the initial trouble, and they were, for the first time in their young lives, important, influential and listened to. These young girls, with ultimately no control over their own lives were able to control and dictate the fate and future of their entire village.
This is very similar to the viewpoint Turner takes, but the eyes in which she has us view that world is incredibly unique. Lidda really is hallucinating. She does experience many symptoms, that if mentioned, would make people believe she was either tormented by a witch, or in league with the devil herself. So, it was very interesting to watch a young girl who was 'afflicted' in the midst of the 'pretenders'. Her perspective and evaluation of the girls who claimed to be tormented by witches was very intuitive and insightful. At one point, while talking to Ann Putnam, long believed by historians to have been the ringleader, and driving force behind the accusations, Ann tells Lidda that she is afraid of what is happening, but her eyes and facial expression instead show excitement. It is the same with each of the girls Lidda talks to. They claim to be afraid, but each of them is clearly caught up in the drama and undeniably excited by the attention and newfound power.
Lidda's interactions with her hallucination are also intriguing, and are somewhat designed to make us question whether it is a legitimate hallucination, or an actual demonic possession. I felt strongly for Lidda. Colonial Salem would have been a difficult and frightening time to live for anyone, but it would have been made far worse by the addition of a disorder that no one understood, that makes you question your own sanity.
Overall, I did truly enjoy this book. As I mentioned, the examination of the afflicted girls by someone who truly did have a mental condition was fascinating, original and well done. I personally would have liked the story better for several reasons if the author had not labeled it 'bi-polar' but it worked very well as a plot device. The characters were strong and their relationships believable and well thought out. The descriptions of live in Salem Village were believable and well thought out.
This book boasts an original main character in a story that's been told before. If you are at all interested in the Salem Witch Trials, I do recommend this book.
(Note, this might not be the actual final cover, but I don't care — I like this one better, so I'm using it.:) )
*Disclaimer: This book was received through Around the World Tours.
Last week, I posted my review of Saving Francesca by Melina Marchetta. (Click the link if you missed it). I had read it earlier last year, but hadn't gotten around to reviewing it, mostly because I was afraid all that would come out was a big LOVE! But then, I saw some news that made me spaz out a little bit... She wrote a sequel. That happens five years later, and is told by Tom, who was my favorite of the male characters in Francesca's story. Seriously... I did myself a little squeal and dance and started breathing funny. So when I had the chance to sign up for an ARC tour, of the sequel, I took it. Which meant I had to quickly review the first. So I did. Then I read this book. And, sigh. Here I go again with that great big LOVE!
The Piper's Son is Tom Mackee's story, and the years between now and the end of Francesca's story have not been kind to him. His family is disintegrating, Tom is unraveling, he has no idea how to stop it, and he's basically given up on everything. Two years ago, Tom's favorite Uncle moved to London to teach, and was killed by a bomber on the train. And everything has completely fallen apart since then.
As I mentioned above, Tom was my favorite of the guys we met in Saving Francesca. I was so excited to learn that this would be his story, but just reading the blurb broke my heart a little, because I knew Tom was going to be really suffering throughout the whole book. In Saving Francesca, it's clear that there is a lot more depth to Tom than Francesca and the others believe. He has a huge capacity for love, which means there is also a lot of space for pain. And in the last two years, all that love is drowning in the pain Tom can't escape from. So he ignores it. He spends him time lazing around, mostly stoned out of him mind. He has no liking or respect for the people he lives with, but they have cheap beer and access to drugs, so whatever.
After a chain of events where even Tom begins to realize that he's let things get out of control for too long, things start to change. He gets a job, starts (sort of) talking to Francesca and Justine again, and after a time starts sending Tara emails. She's living in another country at this point, and given their history, he's pretty sure she doesn't actually want to hear from him. But these emails to her become cathartic and he can't seem to stop sending them. He's able to tell her things in an email that he can't hardly face yet, and it begins to slowly heal him, as do the interactions with his former friends, and moving in with his aunt.
The family scenes were the hardest to read. Marchetta is such a gifted writer that it doesn't take much for the pain to start pouring off the pages. There is so much anger, grief and betrayal floating around that family that it is hard to see how they've stuck together for so long. But, there is undeniably also a lot of love, and that is what holds them together past all the hurts. It's almost palpable.
The only complaint I have with this story is the absence of Jimmy. He was such a fun character to read about before, and he is kind of who brought the group together. Things would not have been the same without Jimmy, and I definitely felt his absence. I understood that he was working on his own issues, but I missed him! Maybe Marchetta will write his story next. (Ahem... Please. Thank you)
Marchetta has definitely earned herself a place on my favorites list. She is a stunningly brilliant writer. Her characters are real and they are raw. They all have their faults, their inconsistencies within themselves, but they also each contain good qualities. There is never any doubt in my mind that these people whose lives I am reading about are real. They exist, they, hurt, they laugh, they cry, they bleed. And I will love them always.
*Disclaimer: This book was received as part of Banned Book Tours.
Cindy Pon is the author of two Asian-inspired high fantasy novels, Silver Phoenix and Fury of the Phoenix. While not based on a fairy tale, the books, especially Silver Phoenix, are full of original lore and mythical beings that could have stepped out of any traditional story. For a review of Pon’s work, please visit A Backwards Story .
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ 1) What were your favorite fairy tales growing up? What drew you to them? I love the Hans Christian Anderson stories like The Little Match Girl and The Little Mermaid and The Snow Queen. They were all magical but also all rather tragic. I think my father was the one to buy me his anthology and I treasured those stories.
2) What Chinese folklore tales were your favorites? What did you like about them? My favorite is The Cowherder and the Weaver. It is called the Chinese Valentine’s story and not only incorporates fantasy, but is very romantic. The weaver girl in the story was immortal and despite having children and living a happy human life, she was pulled back and separated from her family and husband to return to the heavens by her angry grandmother. So it is only on July 7th of each year that the lovers can meet in the heavens on a bridge across the Milky Way formed by magpies.
2) Did any traditional tales influence you when writing Silver Phoenix? Not really. I'm influenced by everything I read in a way. But with Silver Phoenix, I simply knew I wanted to tell a heroine's journey and have a fantasy inspired by ancient China.
3) Was it hard coming up with your own lore when you began world-building, especially because, despite the Chinese influence, Xia isn't China? How did you bring everything together? That wasn't the difficult part. The difficult part was allowing myself the freedom to make stuff up! I had to realize and accept that I wasn't writing a historical or even a historical fantasy (which would have to take place in a certain time or place in our history), but creating my own world inspired by China. Once I gave myself that freedom, it was easy to just write Ai Ling's story the way I envisioned it. It is no different than what Tolkien or Lewis or many fantasy authors did, use real culture and myth but also create your own for your fantasy world.
4) What are some of your favorite fairy tale inspired novels and/or authors? I really enjoyed Entwined by Heather Dixon as well as Ash by Malinda Lo. White Cat by Holly Black is amazing (followed by Red Glove). These novels are loosely based on the White Cat fairy tale and is a favorite series of mine!
5) If you could live out any fairy tale, what would it be and why? As tragic as it is, and as afraid as I am of being underneath the sea very deep, I'd have to say The Little Mermaid. I've always been fascinated by mermaids since reading the story.
6) Will you be writing any more novels that incorporate mythical beings? Can you tell us anything about your upcoming work? I only sold two young adult novels so Ai Ling's story ends with Fury of the Phoenix. For my next project, I do hope to write and sell another Xia fantasy starring a shape-shifting snake demon (very popular in Chinese folklore) heroine and a wannabe monk. =)
8) What are some traditional Asian tales that should be more well-known in the Western Hemisphere? Journey to the West (Monkey King) is the best known (but still not very well-known) story. I'm very excited, as Neil Gaiman has been asked to write the screen play and I hope to see an excellent film made for the US audience in the near future!
And now, in traditional Fairy Tale Fortnight fashion, the lightning round of crazy but fun questions!
~Best fairy tale villain and why? The stepmother from Snow White. She was just so conniving and scary
~Rapunzel is named after lettuce; what odd thing would you be named after if you were in a fairy tale? A pastry, like Pie or Cupcake.
~ Using that name, give us a line from your life as a fairy tale: Cupcake wandered lost in the strange forest, surrounded by star-shaped donuts, singing apple pie slices, and dancing blueberry scones.
~Would you rather: - — eat magic beans or golden eggs? Golden Eggs!
- — style 50ft long hair or polish 100 pairs of glass slippers? Polish glass slippers!
- — have a fairy godmother or a Prince Charming? A fairy godmother!
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~ Thank you so much for taking the time to stop by and answer some questions for us today Cindy! The interview was fascinating! And thanks Bonnie, for contacting Cindy and working with us on these interviews! You are both wonderful!
The Other Side of Dark by Sarah Smith is a book I was not expecting. I started the book pretty much knowing only that it was about two characters, one of whom saw ghosts. There are a lot of place that an author can go with that as a guideline, so I wasn't totally sure what to expect.
It's told in perspectives alternating between Katie, the girl who sees ghosts, and Law, a teenager struggling to meet the expectations of his parents — a white mom from a well to do family, and the black father who is THE name in black reparations — what you owe to the black man.
I like multicultural fiction, and have lately been making it a priority to read it more often. But, I didn't pick up this book knowing that, not only were our narrators of different races, but that race was a huge factor into the story as a whole. When I started noticing how focused Law's dad was on what it is the white man owes to the black man, I was a little worried. I don't enjoy reading books that are political agendas lightly disguised as fiction, no matter what the agenda. However, I believe that Smith handled the topic beautifully. She met at the perfect median, where I understood Law, and to a lesser degree, his father, but I never once felt bludgeoned by one view point or another. The ideas of race and reparations are vital, not only to this particular story, but also to the growth and maturation of Law.
I found it interesting that both Katie and Law seemed to find themselves torn between two worlds. Katie's is obvious. She has contact with the dead that alienates people, make them think she's simply crazy. She lives in our world, but must also learn to deal with those from the other side who want her help. Law's struggle is different. He has a white mother and a black father and he feels torn between two races. He isn't black enough to claim what his father has, but isn't really white enough either. He's stuck somewhere in the middle, and he spends the larger part of the book trying to figure out just where and what that is.
Law was my favorite narrator. Although I really liked Katie, and thought her voice was strong and well defined, the passages narrated by Law resonated with me more, and I felt more of a connection to law than to Katie. I think part of this is because everyone knows what it's like to feel like you don't fit in, with family or friends, but not many (if any) people have legitimate contact with ghosts. Although, I must say, Smith's imagery is amazingly vivid. I found myself shivering and looking over my shoulder more than a few times while reading this book, and was awed by the scenes she crafted.
I've already admitted that this book isn't what I expected, but I definitely think it was better. There is a strong sense of history within this novel, and it places a strong importance on the value of the past, our families and discovering who we are, and who we might become. This is a book I am happy to recommend.
*Disclaimer: I received this book through Star Book Tours.
I'm archiving this page as a post to make room for Books Read in 2011!!
*If there is a link, it will take you to my review. If I received the book from another blogger, I will link them after the title. 1. I Am a Genius of Unspeakable Evil, and I want to be Your Class President - Josh Lieb 2. Ellen Foster- Kaye Gibbons 3. The Red Pony- John Steinbeck 4. Johnny Tremain- Esther Forbes (NB) 5. Rifles for Watie- Harold Keith (NB) 6. Scorpions- Walter Dean Meyers (NBH) 7. Wild Orchid- Cameron Dokey 8. The Winter Child- Cameron Dokey 9. What My Mother Doesn't Know- Sonya Sones 10. What My Girlfriend Doesn't Know- Sonya Sones 11. Punkzilla- Adam Rapp (PH) 12. Staying Fat for Sarah Byrnes- Chris Crutcher 13. Ransom My Heart- Meg Cabot (Mia T.) 14. Goddess of Yesterday- Caroline B. Cooney 15. That Was Then, This Is Now- S.E. Hinton 16. Book of a Thousand Days- Shannon Hale 17. A Visit to William Blake's Inn- Nancy Willard (NB) 18. Skellig- David Almond (PH) 19. Crazy Jack- Donna Jo Napoli 20. Everything on a Waffle- Polly Horvath (NBH) 21. I am Not Joey Pigza- Jack Gantos 22. Hoot- Carl Hiaasen (NBH) 23. Freaks, Alive on the Inside- Annette Curtis Klause 24. Burned- Ellen Hopkins 25. The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau Banks- E. Lockhart (PH) 26. Prom Nights from Hell- Anthology 27. The Girl Who Could Fly- Victoria Forester 28. The Rose and the Beast: Fairy Tales Retold- Francesca Lia Block 29. The Surrender Tree: Poems of Cuba's Struggle for Freedom- Margarita Engle (NBH) 30. Jellicoe Road- Melina Marchetta (PA) 31. Rabbit Hill- Robert Lawson (NB) 32. The Dark-Thirty: Southern Tales of the Supernatural- Patricia McKissack (NBH) 33. The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian- Sherman Alexie 34. Unwind- Neal Shusterman 35. I Capture the Castle- Dodie Smith 36. Wintergirls - Laurie Halse Anderson 37. The Rumpelstiltskin Problem- Vivian Vande Velde 38. Go Ask Alice - "Anonymous" 39. Good Masters! Sweet Ladies! Voices from a Medieval Village- Laura Amy Schiltz (NB) 40. A Corner of the Universe- Ann M. Martin (NBH) 41. Gentlehands- M.E. Kerr 42. The Thirteenth Princess- Diane Zahler 43. Hard Love- Ellen Wittlinger (PH) 44. A Certain Slant of Light- Laura Whitcomb 45. Bella at Midnight- Diane Stanley 46. The Lovely Bones- Alice Sebold 47. Chalice- Robin McKinley 48. Because I am Furniture- Thalia Chaltas 49. The Unfinished Angel- Sharon Creech 50. Prom- Laurie Halse Anderson 51. Elijah of Buxton- Christopher Paul Curtis (NBH) 52. The Goose Girl- Shannon Hale 53. Enna Burning- Shannon Hale 54. River Secrets- Shannon Hale 55. Forest Born- Shannon Hale 56. The View from the Cherry Tree- Willo Davis Roberts 57. The Princess and the Bear- Mette Ivie Harrison 58. Night- Elie Wiesel 59. You Don't Know Me- David Klass 60. A Kiss in Time- Alex Finn 61. Palace of Mirrors- Margaret Peterson Haddix 62. Push - Sapphire 63. Calamity Jack- Shannon Hale 64. Hostage- Willo Davis Roberts 65. Going Bovine- Libba Bray (PA) 66. Sold- Patricia McCormick 67. When You Reach Me - Rebecca Stead (NB) 68. Fire: Tales of Elemental Spirits- Robin McKinley and Peter Dickinson 69. Legally Correct Fairy Tales- David Fisher 70. The Castle Corona- Sharon Creech 71. Ugly- Donna Jo Napoli 72. Inside Out - Terry Trueman 73. Scared Stiff- Willo Davis Roberts 74. The Invisible - Mats Wahl 75. Black Pearls- Louise Hawes 76. Violet Eyes- Debbie Viguie 77. One of those Hideous Books Where the Mother Dies- Sonya Sones 78. An American Plague: The True and Terrifying Story of the Yellow Fever Epidemic of 1793- Jim Murphy (NBH) 79. When Dad Killed Mom - Julius Lester 80. I Had Seen Castles- Cynthia Rylant 81. Fever, 1793- Laurie Halse Anderson 82. Daughter of the Flames- Zoe Marriott 83. Imaginary Lands- Anthology 84. You Remind Me of You- Eireanne Corrigan 85. PostSecret: Confessions on Life, Death, and God- Frank Warren 86. PostSecret: The Secret Lives of Men and Women- Frank Warren 87. PostSecret: A Lifetime of Secrets- Frank Warren 88. If Life Were Easy, It Wouldn't be Hard: and Other Reassuring Truths- Sheri Dew 89. PostSecrets: Extraordinary Confessions from Ordinary Lives- Frank Warren 90. By the Time You Read This, I'll be Dead- Julie Ann Peters 91. The Diamond Secret- Suzanne Weyn 92. Letters from Rifka- Karen Hesse 93. Hitler Youth: Growing up in Hitler's Shadow- Susan Campbell Bartoletti (NBH) 94. The Twits- Roald Dahl 95. Charlie and the Chocolate Factory- Roald Dahl 96. Echo- Francesca Lia Block 97. The Cybil War- Besty Byars 98. Summer of My German Soldier- Bette Greene 99. The Map of True Places - Brunonia Barry (Lori @ TNBBB) 100. Full Tilt- Neal Shusterman 101. The Book - M. Clifford (Lori @ TNBBB) 102. Where the Sidewalk Ends - Shel Silverstein 103. When You Reach Me- Rebecca Stead (NB) 104. Chucaro: Wild Pony of the Pampa- Francis Kalnay (NBH) 105. how i live now - Meg Rosoff (PA) 106. Tenderness - Robert Cormier 107. When Shlemiel Went to Warsaw - Isaac Bashevis Singer (NBH) 108. The Invention of Hugo Cabret - Brian Selznick 109. A Light in the Attic - Shel Silverstein 110. American Born Chinese - Gene Luen Yang (PA) 111. Izzy, Willy-Nilly - Cynthia Voigt 112. Falling Up - Shel Silverstein 113. Zlateh the Goat and other Stories - Isaac Bashevis Singer (NBH) 114. John Lennon: All I Want is the Truth - Elizabeth Partridge (PH) 115. Forget You - Jennifer Echols (Review copy) 116. Zan-Gah: A Prehistoric Adventure - Allan Richard Shickman (Review copy) 117. Zan-Gah and the Beautiful Country - Allan Richard Shickman (Review copy) 118. A Journey into Tomorrow - Veronica Camille Tinto (Review copy) 119. I know I am, but what are You? - Samantha Bee (Review copy) 120. Before I Fall- Lauren Oliver 121. Figgs and Phantoms - Ellen Raskin (NBH) 122. If I Stay - Gayle Forman 123. Tiger Eyes- Judy Blume 124. A Season of Gifts- Richard Peck 125. Maus I: My Father Bleeds History- Art Spiegelman 126. Maus II: And Here My Troubles Began- Art Spiegelman 127. Jonathan Livingston Seagull- Richard Bach 128. The Report Card- Andrew Clements 129. The Tales of Beedle the Bard- J.K. Rowling 130. The Hundred Dresses- Eleanor Estes (NBH) 131. Knee-Knock Rise- Natalie Babbitt (NBH) 132. Coraline- Neil Gaiman 133. The Little Prince- Antoine de Saint Exupery 134. Heart of Darkness - Joseph Conrad 135. The Wonder Book- Amy Krouse Rosenthal (Bri Meets Books) 136. Over Sea, Under Stone- Susan Cooper 137. The Dark is Rising-Susan Cooper (NBH) 138. Greenwitch- Susan Cooper 139. The Grey King- Susan Cooper (NB) 140. Silver on the Tree- Susan Cooper 141. One Child - Jeff Buick (Review copy) 142. Firelight - Sophie Jordan (ARC tour) 143. The Cricket in Times Square- George Seldon (NBH) 144. The Thyssen Affair - Mozelle Richardson (Review copy) 145. Morning is a Long Time Coming- Bette Greene 146. The Duck Song - Bryant Oden (Review copy) 147. Feed- M.T. Anderson 148. A Northern Light- Jenniger Donnelly (PH) 149. The Upstairs Room- Johanna Reiss 150. Ash - Malinda Lo 151. Looking for Alaska - John Green (PA) 152. The Hunger Games - Suzanne Collins 153. Catching Fire - Suzanne Collins 154. Mockingjay - Suzanne Collins (The Good, the Bad & the Ugly) 155. This Lullaby - Sarah Dessen 156. Just Listen - Sarah Dessen 157. My Most Excellent Year: A Novel of Love, Mary Poppins and Fenway Park- Steve Kluger 158. To Be a Slave- Julius Lester (NBH) 159. The Phantom Tollbooth- Norton Juster 160. A Day No Pigs Would Die- Robert Newton Peck 161. The Voice that Challenged a Nation: Marian Anderson and the Struggle for Equal Rights - Russell Freedman (NBH) 162. The Chocolate War- Robert Cormier 163. Nick & Norah's Infinite Playlist - David Levithan & Rachel Cohn 164. Extraordinary - Nancy Werlin (ARC tour) 165. Crank - Ellen Hopkins 166. Liam the Leprechaun - Charles A. Wilkinson (Review copy) 167. Glass - Ellen Hopkins 168. It's Like this, Cat- Emily Cheney Neville (NB) 169. Miracles on Maple Hill- Virginia Sorenson (NB) 170. Alphabet Woof- Doreen Cronin (Review copy) 171. Pirate Treasure - Benjamin Flinders (Review copy) 172. The Lost City of Atlantis - Benjamin Flinders (Review copy) 173. A Step from Heaven- An Na (PA) 174. The Body of Christopher Creed- Carol Plum-Ucci (PH) 175. The Duff - Kody Keplinger (ARC tour) 176. Hattie Big Sky - Kirby Larson (NBH) 177. Commodore Perry in the Land of the Shogun- Rhoda Blumberg (NBH) 178. Tales from Silver Lands - Charles J. Finger (NB) 179. The Princess and the Snowbird- Mette Ivie Harrison 180. Tangerine- Edward Bloor 181. The Forest of Hands and Teeth - Carrie Ryan 182. Saving Francesca- Melina Marchetta 183. Graceling- Kristin Cashore 184. Hunger - Jackie Morse Kessler 185. Fire- Kristin Cashore 186. The Thief - Megan Whalen Turner (NBH) 187. Little Brother- Cory Doctrow 188. 26 Fairmount Avenue- Tomie DePaola (NBH) 189. Stuck in Neutral- Terry Trueman (PH) 190. The First Part Last- Angela Johnson (PA) 191. Low Red Moon - Ivy Devlin (ARC tour) 192. Fallout - Ellen Hopkins (ARC tour) 193. Carver: A Life in Poems - Marilyn Nelson (NBH) 194. The Great Fire- Jim Murphy (NBH) 195. In the Beginning: Creation Stories from Around the World- Virginia Hamilton (NBH) 196. Fallen - Lauren Kate 197. The Magic Circle- Donna Jo Napoli 198. Flipped- Wendelin Van Draanen 199. Paranormalcy - Kiersten White (ARC tour) 200. Personal Demons - Lisa Desrochers (ARC tour) 201. Losing Faith - Denise Jaden (ARC tour) 202. Mountain Born- Elizabeth Yates (NBH)f 203. When the Stars Go Blue - Caridad Ferrer (ARC tour) 204. The Queen of Attolia - Megan Whalen Turner 205. Being Jamie Baker - Kelly Oram (ARC tour) 206. Torment — Lauren Kate (ARC tour) 207. Hope in Patience — Beth Fehlbaum (ARC tour) 208. You - Charles Benoit (ARC tour) 209. The Replacement — Brenna Yovanoff (ARC tour) 210. Room — Emma Donaghue (ARC tour) 211. I'd know you anywhere — Laura Lippman (ARC tour) 212. The King of Attolia — Megan Whalen Turner 213. Eleanor Roosevelt: A Life of Discovery — Russell Freedman (NBH) 214. Sisters Red — Jackson Pearce (ARC tour) 215. Somewhere in the Darkness — Walter Dean Meyers (NBH) 216. The World Above — Cameron Dokey 217. Love, Inc. - Yvonne Collins & Sandy Rideout (ARC tour) 218. Your Own, Sylvia: A Verse Portrait of Sylvia Plath — Stephanie Hemphill (PH) 219. Encyclopedia Brown's Book of Wacky Spies — Donald J. Sobol 220. Star Crossed — Elizabeth C. Bunce (ARC tour) 221. The Trouble with Half a Moon — Danette Vigilante (ARC tour) 222. Lipstick in Afghanistan — Roberta Gatley (Review copy) 223. Hole in my Life — Jack Gantos (PH) 224. The Body Finder — Kimberly Derting 225. Eve's Harvest — Anthology (Odyssey Books) 226. Revolution — Jennifer Donnelly (ARC tour) 227. The Other Side of Dark — Sarah Smith (ARC tour) 228. Angelfire — Courtney Allison Moulton (ARC tour) 229. Tricks — Ellen Hopkins 230. Daughter of Xanadu — Dori Jones Yang (ARC tour) 231. Case Closed? Nine Mysteries Unlocked by Modern Science — Susan Hughes (Review copy) 232. Matched — Ally Condie (ARC tour) 233. Fixing Delilah — Sarah Ockler (ARC tour) 234. Girl, Stolen — April Henry (ARC tour) 235. Pegasus — Robin McKinley (ARC tour) 236. Desires of the Dead — Kimberly Derting (ARC tour) 237. A Conspiracy of Kings — Megan Whalen Turner 238. Anna and the French Kiss — Stephanie Perkins (ARC tour) 239. Babe in Boyland — Jody Gehrman (ARC tour) 240. Cloaked — Alex Flinn (ARC tour) 241. Unearthly - Cynthia Hand (ARC tour) 242. Songs for a Teenage Nomad — Kim Culbertson (ARC tour) 243. The Gift of the Magi and Other Stories — O. Henry 244. Where She Went — Gayle Forman (Antony John) 245. Brooklyn Story — Suzanne Corso (review copy) 246. North of Beautiful — Justina Chen Headley 247. The Memory Bank — Carolyn Coman (GR 1st reads) 248. Willow Run — Patricia Reilly Giff 249. America the Beautiful — Sri Chinmoy (review copy/audiobook) 250. The Short Second Life of Bree Tanner — Stephenie Meyer
Before I get started on what books I want to remember today, and the memories themselves, I need to give you a little background on my family and my childhood. Bear with me here. If you actually end up reading the whole story below... It's pretty funny, and totally true. (Welcome to my life... ;) )
So, my dad grew up in a theater family. His father owned a 'local summer theater' up in West Yellowstone, Montana (The Playmill, for anyone who's been out that direction) and my dad (the youngest of 7 kids) began performing in the Playmill when he was 6 or 7. I'm not kidding or exaggerating when I say it's in his blood, which very likely means it's in mine as well (even though I haven't done much in the way of acting) which may explain why I have a tendency to be a little over the top.
Anyway, rather than divulge more family history, I'm going to tell you a story, that will segue nicely into my Memory, for Memory Monday.
As I believe I mentioned, or hinted, I tend to be dramatic, and I can get pretty intense, especially when I was a kid. One day, as the family was getting ready to go somewhere nice (I was in a dress) my father did something that upset me, and I decided that I was tired of it. So, I informed the family that I was leaving, and they could just go on/be happy without me, and I walked out of the house. I don't think I really intended to run away, it was (as it so often is with nine year olds) more of a punishment for my parents. We had a very long driveway/road (about 3 other houses along the road) and I walked to the end of the driveway, and then turned to watch, expecting my dad to be right behind me, waiting to drag me back into the house. Apparently, it took them a while to notice I was gone, so it was a few minutes before my dad came after me. But, by then I was so mad! I couldn't believe that they had waited that long before coming to get me! So, I decided to run away for real, which meant I definitely needed to get a move on.
As I mentioned before, I was a nine year old wearing a dress that had previously been worn in my aunt's wedding... Stiff fabric and a long, straight skirt. So, I didn't move very fast. My dad caught up with my just around the corner, in the libraries parking lot (fitting, I suppose) and dragged me back to the car. He made me get in, we started driving. My dad asked me if I knew what happened to young girls who tried to run away from home. He sounded quite ominous, and he spent the next 15 — 20 minutes explaining to me what exactly happened to nine year old runaways... In a nut shell, I could look forward to being picked up by a pimp and turned into a crack whore. (Did I mention that I was nine, and that I'm not making this up?!)
My mom was horrified, my older sister completely scandalized, my little brothers oblivious, and me? I was belligerent. Every bad thing my dad mentioned — some guy will grab you and force you to be a prostitute/he'll take all your money/he'll make you take drugs/you will have no choices etc and etc and etc was met with a very sincere, well, I won't let him do that. I was a little afraid, because what nine year old want to believe that her possible future includes hooking for some greasy, smelly old guy while completely high on some toxic mixture of meth, crack and heroine?! But, I refused to let my dad know he was upsetting me, and I honestly remained convinced that I would be able to get away, or overcome said greasy, smelly old guy. I believed that they same way I believed, when my mom would tell me never to open the door to strangers when my parents weren't home, that I could just 'shut the door really fast if they were bad' and there would be no problems. I could handle it.
My mom and I were talking about this a while ago (well, she was actually kind of mocking me) and it got me thinking about why I was so convinced I would be able to handle the world's bad guys as some fairly scrawny 9/10 year old kid. I was looking through some of my old favorite books, when I had an epiphany. I had discovered why I was convinced I could take anything those evil nasties threw at me: Willo Davis Roberts. (GR profile)
I read Roberts voraciously. Some of her books were 'issue' books (Sugar isn't Everything about a girl who is diagnosed with diabetes, Don't Hurt Laurie about child abuse etc) but most of her books are more in the vein of The View from the Cherry Tree, Scared Stiff, Twisted Summer, Baby-Sitting is a Dangerous Job, and Meghan's Island. That is to say — a mystery where the young (generally 8-13ish) protagonist(s) ends up matching wits with the sinister bad guy, and the kids alwayswin! True, there are usually adults involved on the periphery, but there role is generally relegated to calling the police, or offering a small amount of moral support while their world collapses. It's always the kids who ultimately save the day, not only figuring out who the bad guys are, but also managing to subdue them until the police arrive, while also caring for the injured adult family member.
I read every single book by Roberts I could get my hands on. And a vast majority of the books I picked up involved a young kid outsmarting the adult criminal. So I ask you... What else was I supposed to think?! How could I not have believed I'd be able to 'take them down?' What we read often reflects on our realities, so in my reality, kids were definitely the heroes, and there was no doubt in my mind that I would be able to bring those suckers down. Those criminals had no idea who they would be messing with, and I was just itching to prove all these great abilities gleaned from Roberts wisdom.
Wanna know the craziest part? I went back and reread a few of my favorite Roberts' stories a few months ago and I can still believe what those kids get involved with! Her stories are just barely plausible enough to work, and if you don't think about it too hard, those kids really could have done everything she professes them capable of. While it's unlikely that they would be so lucky, by just the right combination of brains, luck, boredom and skill, it's a possible scenario!
Today's Memory Monday guest is Allison! She has one of my favorite blogs, and she is here to talk about a childhood favorite that was also a favorite of mine! If you would like to be a guest blogger for Memory Monday, in my blog to find out more information, or send me an email! I'd love to have you!
Bio:
My name is Allison. I'm in my twenties, and I live in Oklahoma. I attend OU in Norman and hope that someday I will actually finish school and end up with my Masters in Library Science! I'd love to be a young adult librarian so I can get paid to do what I spend all my time doing already! I'm an unapologetic book pusher and Patrick Rothfuss fangirl.
I would also like to add that Allison is the phenomenal blogger over at The Allure of Books. If you haven't checked out her blog, you are definitely missing out! Head on over there and leave her some loving!
Post:
When I start thinking about books that impacted my life when I was a kid, several series come to mind. However, none of them had a more lasting influence than the American Girls series Felicity books by Valerie Tripp. I read all the American Girl books that were out when I was younger (there are more now), but the Felicity books were definitely the most special to me.
My parents are big antique collectors, and as far back as I can remember, my mom was especially caught up with both the antiques and the history of Colonial Williamsburg. I learned a lot about the time period from her, so when I read the Felicity books, the time period already felt familiar. I was captivated by everything — from the clothes to the proper etiquette to the politics. Felicity's family were patriots, and the tension that caused them was a large part of the stories. The idea of standing up for something you believe in (especially when it isn't easy) is a cornerstone of the series, and Felicity definitely isn't afraid to stand by her family! I loved imagining myself in her place and being spunky and adventurous like she was.
I remember sitting in my dad's lap while he read the books aloud to me (the only time I ever remember that happening!), and I know I read them with my mom as well. I loved collecting different items from the series besides the books... paper dolls, stickers, etc. One Christmas, I even got a Felicity doll! (Since I'm home for Spring Break, I was able to take a picture since my mom still has it sitting out.) Also, since buying things from the catalog was always really expensive, my awesome parents even made things to go with it, like this bed! My dad built it and my mom made the bed linens. Loved it.
We even took a vacation to Colonial Williamsburg one year. I'd mostly grown out of the American Girl books by then, but I still loved walking down the streets and eating different things and getting a clearer picture of how Felicity and her family lived!
So even though I read a lot as a kid, the Felicity books are definitely the ones that hold the most memories. Having the doll and getting to go to Colonial Williamsburg definitely made her story much more personal for me. Anybody else remember Felicity (or any of the other American Girls)?
Thank you so much Allison, for being here with us today! I absolutely loved the post, and am very jealous of your handmade American Girl bed!
