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A short while ago, I reviewed A Journey into Tomorrow by Veronica C. Tinto. (Read my review HERE.) I have been in contact with the author, and she was kind enough to write a short bio and guest post for my readers here, explaining a little bit more about herself, her background and why she decided to write poetry. Also, (and I think this is quite exciting) Veronica has offered to be available to respond to comments and questions left on this post! She'll be keeping track of reader comments and answering questions etc. with anyone who would like to ask questions, give feedback etc. This is a great thing for her to offer, so I definitely think it's something that you should take advantage of! In my experience, she's been a great correspondent! So, here is what she had to say for us!

Bio:

I am from Trinidad and Tobago and my only language is standard British English. My educational background is in Communicative Disorders and Psychology. However with that being said, first I must say that I have never written poetry before, it is talent that I never knew I had before the unfortunate circumstances of a very bitter divorce. The title of the poems came first to me and within five to ten minutes I would have them completely finished. I was inspired by different factors as I wrote these poems. Of course by my own feelings, but I was also inspired by the tremendous courage I saw in my baby boy's actions in terms of the resiliency that he showed dealing with these life circumstances. I was also inspired by the unconditional love and countless support that I received from my closest and dearest friend Jemeka who on many nights spoke with me on the phone until 3am many mornings as I dealt with the emotional turmoil that was happening in my life. The poems began as sending Jemeka a simple thought for the day via a text message. However, as weeks passed by the poems began to have a life of their own as my words began to transcend my own life altering experiences and began to touch the lives of family and friends. I should also add that I made reference to the elements of nature many times in my poetry because growing up in Trinidad and Tobago I had the first hand experience of seeing the natural wonder of Mother Nature which was always a soothing experience for me in my life.
In addition to this bio, she also wrote a guest post just for us! Here it is!

As funny as it sounds, my first experience writing poetry was almost my last experience! While attending high school in Trinidad and Tobago, my English teacher assigned the entire class a homework assignment to write a piece of poetry with personal meaning behind it. I dutifully went home that night and poured my ten-year-old heart and mind into the assignment. I returned to school the following morning proud of what I had created. I handed my piece to the teacher with all the confidence in the world, just knowing that it was an “A+” effort. After reading it, my English teacher promptly gave me an “F” and scolded me in front of the class for plagiarizing. Unfortunately my English teacher never acknowledged that the poem written that day for homework was only written by me the author. The hurt and embarrassment of that one experience so long ago stuck with me throughout my life. For this reason I never thought or even conceptualized that one day I would have been blessed with the ability to one day write a book of poetry entitled “A Journey into Tomorrow.”

Pushing that high school experience aside and through the inspiration, love and unconditional support I received from my closest and dearest friend Jemeka, and seeing the resiliency that my baby boy demonstrated, my healing process through poetry began. The words, thoughts, feeling and emotions flowed out of me like water in a torrent river. By turning my feelings into words, I was able to appreciate what was important in my life. For example the unexpected deepening friendship that occurred, the kindness of strangers, the simple pleasures I enjoyed and the lessons I learnt from my little angel, and the metamorphosis of my spirituality during this season of my life. Each experience that unfolded in my life as well as the lives of family and friends became the lyrical melody for my poetry.

It is my sincere hope for you my reader that these poems provide you solace during stressful or quiet moments in your life. The purpose of writing these poems were to also address the spectrum of human emotions from love to disappointment, to rage, to sadness, to the beauty of nature, to enjoying life to the sadness of death, to the past, present and future. I believe these are common themes that we all can relate with since these themes are the fundamental foundations of our human experiences. The poems were written to provide you food for thought without the use of vague metaphors and obscure analogies, because during the lowest moments in life, regardless of what circumstance generate these feelings, we all want to read words that speak directly to our hearts.

I'd like to thank Veronica for taking the time to talk with me, and write this up for me and my readers. Please, share your thoughts with me and Veronica. I look forward to hearing your thoughts!

Brooklyn Story by Suzanne Corso is the story of Samantha, a young girl growing up in Brooklyn in the late 1970s, desperate to escape across the bridge into what she knows will be a better life. But then, at 15, she meets Tony, a local Brooklyn Boy with ties to the local mob.

I was intrigued by the idea of this book, but unsure what to expect. The book mirrors experiences in the authors own life — growing up in Brooklyn and living through an abusive relationship. The last book I read that took inspiration from the authors personal life was probably my worst read thus far in 2010, so I was a little worried about this story. I must say, I was very pleasantly surprised by how this story turned out.

The issues that Samantha is dealing with during this story — poverty, crime, drug abuse, abusive relationships etc — are something I have never had any experience with. My childhood is split between small town Western Washington and rural Conservative Southern Idaho. I don't know of anything that's farther removed from the life described here in the Italian section of Brooklyn. There were times when I felt the narrative to be overly wordy and detailed, but it enabled me to experience some small part of what life must have been like for Samantha. Although it never felt quite real to me, it was obviously real to Samantha.

I also really enjoyed the lyrics from popular songs that Samantha felt spoke to her at one time or another. I love old music and was pleased by how many of the songs I recognized and like.

My one major complaint with this story is the narrative voice. The story begins with 19 year old Samantha walking into a court room where Tony is waiting to be sentenced. We are then taken back with her to the summer she was 15 when she met Tony and the story is told from there, until the final chapters when she is again 19 and discussing the end of this stage in her life. But, I never felt like the narrative could have been written by a 19 year old. I'm still pretty close to 19 myself, and this is not how we talk. Samantha spends the entire book focused on and dedicated to her writing, so it makes sense that it would be more mature than the average 19 year old, but I still felt more like I was reading the writing of someone closer to 30. Which is fine, because I am, but it never felt quite... right.

And then there is Samantha herself. She is a pretty strong character with a firm sense for her goals, but I was completely amazed at how incredibly naive she was. I understand that she was 15, and very inexperienced with boys, but I couldn't believe how much she willfully misunderstood. It amazed me the power we have to rationalize and justify almost any action. It's a little scary how easy Samantha found herself sucked into an abusive and scary situation, willing to explain and will away nearly everything Tony was doing to her. The was the author writes makes it seem like these abusive and unhealthy relationships are the norm in Brooklyn, and this saddens me more than I can possibly say. No one deserves to be treated like garbage.

Overall, this is a story I think is worth reading. Samantha is a strong character who knows what she wants and really does work hard to attain that. There were a few times when I didn't feel like her character was totally consistent, but she's also 15 and exploring new things for the first time. I was also a little confused by Tony's behavior. Without trying to give spoilers away, it sometimes seemed like what he said and what he did were completely unconnected, like violently claiming her as a possession, but allowing her to remove him from her life.

Regardless of any complaints I had with the story or writing (which were not enough to diminish my enjoyment of the story), I'm impressed with Ms. Corso for writing this story. Given the parallels between her own life, I imagine it must have been really hard. I watched a short video of her talking about her book, and she said she wrote it so that women could take away from it the knowledge that it is always possible to leave, always possible to get yourself out of a bad situation. She hopes that women who find themselves in this kind of trouble take heart and comfort in knowing there is more out there for them, and that I think is an amazing thing to give to a woman. Here's to hoping that it works.

*Disclaimer: I received a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for a fair and unbiased review.

Girl Saves Boy by Steph Bowe is a hard book for me to review. I want to start by saying I did honestly enjoy this book, and I will definitely be watching for what Steph Bowe comes out with in the future. And, there is nothing that I can pinpoint as to why I didn't love this book. But, something wasn't quite there for me. Let me try and explain myself.

Jewel and Sacha are the main characters, and each have their own unique set of problems that basically means they are both pretty messed up.

Jewel watched her older brother drown when she was 8 years old. Her father blamed her for his death, and told her she should never have been born, right before walking out of her life. Her mother, unable to cope, ODed several times on pain killers and anti-depressants, and finally sends Jewel from Australia to Canada to live with her grandparents, because Mom just can't deal. 10 years later, Jewel's grandparents have both died, and because she has no where else to go, she comes back to her childhood home to finish her final year of school.

Sacha was diagnosed with Leukemia as a child, and spent all of his elementary years in and out of the hospital. The Leukemia did finally go into remission, but his parent's marriage was never quite... solid after that. Desperate to regain the attention of her husband, Sacha's mom starts down a path that will eventually kill her. One year later, Sacha is still trying to deal with the death of his mother, his guilt over not being able to help her, the fact that his father is now dating his male art teacher, oh ya... and the Leukemia is back, and the prognosis is terminal.

Sacha decides life is no longer worth living and tries to drown himself in the lake where Jewel's brother died. Jewel often walks near there at night to clear her head, and she sees s boy in the water. Desperate to undo the mistake of her past, she jumps in and saves Sacha's life, something he's not so sure he's grateful for yet.

After Jewel saves him, their paths cross, and they realize they have an awful lot to offer each other. They start spending time together, and each

Now that Sacha has had a little more time to come to terms with his prognosis, he has an interesting view on life. He knows he's going to die, so he desperately wants to use the time he has left living. He struggles with whether or not it's worth it to keep going to school. He wants to tell the people he's closest to about everything, but is scared and doesn't want to be a burden to them. It's shown him that he needs to live life to the fullest, and he tries to do that. Things move faster between him and Jewel than they probably would otherwise, and he seems desperate to get in as much time with her as possible.

Although both Jewel and Sacha are supposed to be the main characters, and the story is told in alternating view points, I really felt it was Sacha who carried the story, Sacha would is most likely to touch my heart and teach me something. There is a lot to learn from a boy living out what may possibly be his final year of life.

Jewel does learn a lot during the week or so we spend with them. Her only goal in life is to be homeless in New York or London, and draw. She doesn't want to sell her art, or even show anyone. She draws for herself and that's enough for her. She decided a long time ago that she is going to be alone forever, and aside from periodic moments of staggering loneliness, she is content with the path she has chosen for herself. Until she meets Sacha. And then everything she has thought about herself and her future begin to change.

There were a few side 'issues' in the book that felt odd to me, and I think this is where my main disconnect from the book comes in. In the interest of avoiding any more spoilers than I've already given, I won't go into details, but there were some issues that felt like they were brought up, just to be issues, or additional conflict that didn't really go anywhere, like the phone call for her mother that Jewel answers at the end of the book. And, how easily Jewel resolved her conflict with her mother. I honestly felt that it was a 'kiss (or hug) and make-up' moment. Nothing was resolved, but life is suddenly grand.

Perhaps my favorite thing about this book, aside from the great characterization present in Sacha and Jewel was the ending. It's like a big question mark at the end of a page, but not in a bad way. The story resolved what needed to be resolved, but didn't spoon-feed us all the answers. It left much to the imagination and decision of the reader, and I think that was a wise way to let their story end.

Have any of you read this book? Did anyone else have a similar or completely different reaction? I'd love to hear your thoughts!

Star Crossed by Elizabeth C. Bunce is a beautifully written book. I mean, really — the writing is beautiful. Bunce has this gift with words. She has this was of picking exactly the right word or phrase to make the passage come alive. Several other words would have sufficed, but what she picks out is perfect. (I have some of the same feelings when I read Jennifer Donnelly.)

Anyway... Digger is our main character and one of my new favorite heroines. She's a believable character with believable motivations, and she's rather atypical of the current YA novels. She can take care of herself, but not in a I'm so Bad-A way, more like — If I don't, I die way. She's more concerned with her own survival than the greater good, although she does have people that she cares for, and if she lets you into that place, she cares for you deeply. She finds herself in an unexpected situation, and she begins to realize that her life is no longer just about herself. There are bigger things out there that have touched her life and she cannot simply run from them, she must stay an accept what is to come. I loved watching Digger learn and grown but even more, I loved watching her learn about herself.

Bunce's world building is brilliant. She introduces the concepts and elements of what makes her world different slowly, allowing us to acclimate to what makes this world unique while feeling the whole time as if we belong there. I loved her idea of the 7 moons with their corresponding Gods and how each God/Moon has come to represent different things to the people.

Part of world building is crafting great characters, and as I already mentioned, I loved Digger, but I loved many of the other characters too. Meri was such a bright spot of the story. She's a bit naive, but that's understandable because she's been sheltered her whole life. She is full of life and love and just learning about what it means to be on your own and able to take control of your life. She's a pretty major character in the story, but every character in this story was well developed, even the very minor characters we only get to meet every once in a while. This is a series, so it's possible these characters will return later with greater importance, but at this point, to give so much depth and life to characters with such a small role to play was wonderful. We weren't overburdened with details and facts that show a desperate author trying to convince us they write great characters, but rather an author sharing with us the lives of the people she's created. This is a book full of great characterization.

As I mentioned, this is going to be a series, and I for one and very excited about that. This book is self contained, and has a satisfying resolution, but what Digger has stumbled across is much bigger than any one book and it is obvious that there is much more that will happen to Digger and those around her before her story in complete. I can't wait to see what's waiting for us in Liar's Moon.

*Disclaimer: I received this book through Star Book Tours.

If I Stay by Gayle Forman is easily one of the best books I have read this year. It's an intensely personal story about the struggle of a young girl whose world is changed in the blink of an eye.

Mia's life is full. She's been very blessed. She has a wonderful boyfriend, is an incredibly talented Cellist and she has a wonderful close family who gets her. She is close to her parents and younger brother, in a way that few people are really able to experience, especially as a teenager. We are given just enough time in the beginning of the book to meet Mia's family and in those few pages, we are able to see the connection this family shares.

Her family is involved in a horrible accident, and Mia is rushed to the hospital in a coma. She watches everything around her trying to understand the changes to her life, and where to go from there. Because she realizes it's her choice. She can choose to live or die. And what would you decide?

The book is Mia's struggle to make that all important choice. The story is told in flashed between then and now. We switch between scenes with Mia and her family and friends in the hospital, and her memories of the important people in her life. We are introduced to everyone through Mia's memories as she lays in a coma in the hospital, in limbo between life and death. It's heart wrenching to watch as each loved one comes to her bedside to talk. They give her words of hope, love, encouragement, understanding, and peace. They plead for her to remain, even while understanding why it's so hard. Every page teams with emotion and every memory tears at your heart.

I won't go into detail about the complete impact and effect music has to this story other than to say it is essential to almost every character. Music is a way of life for these people and it's changed each of them. Mia's boyfriend Adam is in a band that might be about to make it big, Mia's been playing the Cello for years, her father used to be in a band and on and on.

The writing in this book is incredibly powerful. There is a genuine connection to each character and a realness that makes you believe in them. I would say that Forman is a genuinely gifted writer. I can't remember the last time I believed in people so much, felt so much like the people I was reading about were real. I had tears streaming down my face for the vast majority of the book, and I was unable to put it down. It's a short book, and I read it in one sitting, but that in no way takes away from its impact. This book is beyond a doubt powerful, emotional, and compelling. Never doubt that its important.

WARNING: This review contains more spoilers than normal.

When I first picked up this book, I, like most readers, had heard that this is a true story. Go Ask Alice is marketed as the true diary of a 15 year old girl detailing the destruction of her life after becoming involved with drugs. (Not true, but, more on that later.)
In high school, I kept a journal. A very detailed journal. (I filled 9 large notebooks in 2 years...) Although absolutely nothing in my life relates to or compares to what Alice experienced, I did keep a journal during the same age bracket Alice was writing. Reading this book as if it were her diary was interesting for me, because I did not recognize this as an actual diary of a young teenage girl. Very little of the book focused on typical teenaged drama. She touches on major crushes, glosses over losing her virginity and gives an intensely colorful and detailed description of the wonderful colors and feelings experienced while high on acid... Hmm...
The writer of this 'journal' rarely felt 15 to me. Her writing was too advanced and cohesive to be the true ramblings and musings of a lost (and generally high) 15 year old trying to sort out her problems and her life. It just wasn't realistic. The few times the narrator felt 15 were after being ostracized from her peer groups. She expresses feelings of confusion and loneliness that range true but even those passages were so short as to almost be an afterthought. I read this believing it to be true, but was confused more than once and had to really stop to think about it. No 15 year old I know writes or talks like this.
(I am about to SPOIL the ENDING. You have been warned.) Perhaps the most disappointing thing about this novel was the ending. It leaves you with a feeling of hopelessness. Rather than being a triumphal story about a young girl overcoming her addictions, or a cautionary tale about a life of excess, it is a tale to those addicted to drugs that there is no hope for you. The end will never come, and you will be a user until you die no matter how hard you try to get away from it. Alice has got her life back on track. She is clean, living with her parents and she even has a new boyfriend who knows her past and accepts her for who and how she is. Everything seems to be going so well for her. It seems so hopeful and wonderful. So what happens? In an 'afternote' we are told that 3 weeks after Alice wrote the last page in her diary (remember, she's clean now) she ODs and DIES! Really?! She cleans herself up so that she can die in the end?! Sigh...
Okay. Now that I've told you why I didn't love this book, I should tell you that I did like it. It made me sad. It broke my heart. Although it wasn't always delivered in a perfectly believable manner, the situations Alice discovered herself in were traumatic and portrayed quite well. If nothing else, this book made me feel. For the most part, I was able to ignore the parts of the story that didn't ring perfectly true until I had finished the read. It's a short book, and one that I would say is definitely worth the read. Even though some of the descriptions and the writing itself isn't always on the level a 15 year old would use, the language of emotion was. When Alice did speak about her emotions, I found myself easily believing the sincerity of the narrator's emotions, especially when feeling lost, lonely and homesick.
So, although overall I DID enjoy this book, and I DO recommend it, I am going to warn you now — This book is a work of fiction, no matter what you have heard otherwise. Check out snopes.com for the specifics about this book. And, read the copyright page! It clearly states that this book is a work of fiction. My recommendation to you — Read this book knowing that it is NOT really the anonymous diary of a teenager addicted to drugs and is instead someone's story of what could happen to you if you find yourself mixed up with drugs. It's a horrifying tale that doesn't need to be marketed as non-fiction to accomplish it's goal. I would have enjoyed this book much more had I know beforehand that it wasn't really true.

This review is also part of Once Upon a Bookcase's Body-Image and Self Perception month. More information is viewable here.

Cynthia Voigt has been one of my favorite authors since I read her Tillerman Saga in elementary school. After those 7 books, I was eager to read more, because that's what you do with an author you love, right?! I read several more of her books before I lost interest in a lot of my old favorites in favor of Mary Higgins Clark and Agatha Christie. Real life drama, trials and pain didn't hold a candle to trying to figure out the mystery before someone else died. However, as I've gotten older, I find myself drawn more and more to those stories I loved when I was younger — stories of people facing terrible obstacles and learning to overcome.

Izzy, willy-nilly by Cynthia Voigt is a novel I skipped over as a kid that I now wish I had not. It was painful, gritty, realistic and honest. How is it all of those things you ask? Because of Izzy (Isobel). Izzy is a great character. Although the book begins with her in the hospital after her car accident, we learn through interactions with other characters and Izzy's own thoughts that before the accident she was a nice, well-liked, intelligent person. She was one of three sophomores on the cheerleading squad and learning Latin, she gets along well with almost everyone and has a lot of friends. So really, she was your average high schooler. Can I just add that I loved that Voigt gave us a genuine person for a cheerleader, and not those flat, stereotypical, petty awful girls most stories seem to portray cheerleaders as?! (Sometimes, a cheerleader is just a normal person too...)

Anyway, back to Izzy. She accepts an offer for a date to a party from a senior she isn't interested in simply because he's a senior, and really, how cool is that?! Turns out, when said senior is over-confident in his driving abilities while under the influence, not so cool at all. Before I get into the real meat of Izzy's struggles, I want to address one more thing — At the party, when she asks her date to take her home (she's conscious of her curfew!) she notices that he's a little bit drunk. Another senior (one she actually has a crush on) offers to take her home. Her date takes issue with that, and, not wanting to seem any lamer than she already does for needing to make it home for curfew, she blows it off as no big deal. She acts like everything will be fine, and leaves with a boy, knowing that he is too drunk to be a safe driver. Turns out — he drove the car into a tree. What bad things have happened to you because you wanted to 'save face' and what bad things have you managed to avoid?

Izzy wakes up in the hospital, broken. They try to stabilize her leg, but as another fever comes on, and the infection spreads, they are forced to amputate her right leg, removing everything just below the knee. A previously active, healthy, lovely young girl is suddenly rendered basically immobile and completely unable to do many of the activities that previously felt completely natural. At first, she doesn't realize just how serious things are. And then, she uses her walker for the first time. Izzy slips into a deep depression she tries desperately to hide from those close to her. Her family tries to be supportive and they are there for her, but they don't know how exactly to treat her. Her mother tries to act as if Izzy will go right back into the life she left behind — all her same friends, all the boys calling, everything. It's hard for Izzy, because she knows that nothing is ever going to be the same again. Already her friends are drifting off. None of them really know how to talk to her anymore, and it's obvious every time they talk to her, or come to see her that they are deeply uncomfortable with the situation, until, for the most part, they just stop coming. Enter Rosamunde. Rosamunde is a girl in Izzy's grade who doesn't seem to care what other people think. She dresses to be comfortable, and speaks exactly what she's thinking. There is very little guess work involved in a conversation with Rosamunde and this comes as a relief to Izzy. Everyone steps lightly around her, careful to avoid any subject that might upset her or make her aware of her new disability. Instead of tiptoeing around, Rosamunde laughs at the line of left shoes, all lined up together in Izzy's closet, missing their mates.

Izzy has never had to struggle with self image before. She really had everything going for her. Popularity, a loving family, an active and healthy body, etc. Right after the accident, she isn't truly capable of dealing with these changes, because anything related to this has always been so far out of her realm of experience. I don't know how Voigt manages it, with this and every other book I've read, but Izzy was so real. Her voice was powerful and authentic. I felt almost voyeuristic watching her suffer at night when no one was around, suffering in silence with all the lights turned off, so no one would suspect she was still awake. Because her suffering was so realistic, it was incredibly empowering to watch as slowly, day by day, she faced awkward situations and learned how to deal with them. Rosamunde was there for her the whole time, sticking around to push, pull and prod her into life again, and sticking around long enough to help her up when she's down.

I don't know how I would handle something as devastating as loosing a limb. It changes every part of your life and is something that never 'goes away.' It's always there, and will always remain a part of you that you need to learn to live with and accept. While I definitely hope that I am never forced to deal with something as traumatic as losing a limb, I hope that I handle it as well as Izzy. It isn't easy for her, and it takes a long time to get there, but Izzy learns how to accept her new life. And, once she stops thinking of herself in terms of 'crippled' she finds that it's easier for others to overlook that as well.

Songs of a Teenage Nomad by Kim Culbertson is a book with a lot of emotion, and a lot of heart. Calle is a young teen whose entire life is completely lacking in stability. Her dad left when she was very little, and her mom has bounced from relationship to relationship ever since. And with each new relationship (and often without them) they move to a new town. The mom drops a penny onto a map of California, and that's where they go next. That type of lifestyle is hard on anyone, but especially a teenager. Calle wants to fit in, to belong, but it's never a good idea to make new friends or get comfortable in an area when you know your mom could decide to pack up and move again at any time.

My heart hurt for Calle. Her mom tried to be a good parent, but it's fairly clear that she doesn't know how to be herself, which makes it awfully hard to take care of a teenager. The mom is always reinventing herself, and Calle desperately needs stability. Her mom is also very tight-lipped. She won't tell Calle anything about her absentee father, other than he left them a long time ago. Calle keeps asking questions, trying to understand where she comes from, but her mom refuses to answer her questions, even when the lies and contradictions are staring her in the face. Like the letter Calle finds from her dad in her mom's drawers, that make is obvious he's been trying to write to her for a long time, but her mom always hides the letters. When Calle confronts her about this, her mom focuses on the snooping, and refuses to address the letter itself. It really bothered me. There comes a time when you can't 'protect' your child anymore, and keeping the truth from them hurts them far more than any truth can.

Calle herself also bothered me a little bit, especially in her 'relationship' with Sam. I understand why she is initially attracted, interested and drawn to Sam. I really do. But after the third or fourth time he ignores her or treats her like trash, I started to wonder why on earth Calle bothered talking to him again. I understand that he has his own demons to wrestle, but that doesn't excuse his behavior, especially since he never really apologizes, or tries to make it right. Calle let herself be pushed around and stepped on by this kid over and over again and it really bothered me. I wanted her to be happy and I just didn't think this kid was the way to make that happen.

There was also a lot of drama surrounding the father. I know a large portion of the plot was Calle's mom keeping information from her, but I really wished we had been given more information about Calle's dad, both past and present. And, I won't spoil anything, but the resolution with dad was also rather unsatisfactory to me.

However, those two grievances aside, I really enjoyed this book, and especially appreciated Calle as a narrator. I don't blame her for being a little bit... soft. She's a teenager who has had no stability in her life, desperately looking for it. She speaks to that lonely teenager everyone has living inside them, that just wants/wanted to be accepted and be loved. For all the drama and tough stuff life has handed to her, she's remarkably strong and adaptable. She deals with a lot more than I've ever had to, and I was impressed by Calle many times. Although, I do have to say, she's a bit of an over-discloser. She shares an awful lot of personal and private information with an lot of people. I can't decide if she's just open about her life, or if she hasn't quite gotten the hang of who should hear what information, and when.

I also loved the idea of Calle's song journal. She strongly links music to memories, and writes down the memories and the songs associated with them, so she can hold on to them and keep them a part of herself. I smiled a lot reading this book, because I really like a lot of old music, and I recognized a lot of the songs that are associated with Calle's memories. I spent the next couple of days humming Mr. Tambourine Man which has a lot of significance to Calle.

I'd definitely recommend this book. Calle is a great character, and I think there is a lot to be learned from her and her story.

*Disclaimer: I received this book through Around the World Tours.

Revolution by Jennifer Donnelly is a vivid and captivating book filled with feeling. If you haven't yet read anything by Donnelly, I seriously think you are missing out, and I strongly recommend you fix that. Now.

Revolution is the story of Andi, an intelligent, talented girl who should have her whole future ahead of her. She's always been smart, has done well in school and is a gifted musician — able to play guitar and write her own music. But, her younger brother died in an accident about a year ago and Andi blames herself. Overwhelmed by grief and guilt, Andi loses focus on everything but her music. Her mom is immobilized by grief, scarcely able to function, and her dad, who has never been around much, retreats even further.

When her father forces her to accompany him to Paris, as a way to rescue her slipping grades, Andi is angry and can think of nothing more than getting back to New York. But then she discovers a journal, hidden in a guitar case that might date back to the French Revolution, and her world changes.

I was blown away by this book. The writing is intense and powerful, and Andi's pain practically screamed from the pages. Her depression and detachment from life was so real, and so perfectly portrayed that I found myself experiencing everything right along with her. But even more than just experiencing it with her, Andi was so well written, and so real a character to me that I found myself knowing how Andi would feel or react to a situation as it happened, before we, as readers, were given her reaction. I knew her. I don't think I've ever felt such a strong connection to a character before, but it was thrilling.

The only thing that really reaches Andi is her music and this is where she goes when life becomes too much for her, often playing her guitar until her fingers bleed. She is constantly listening to music, both classical and contemporary and she lets that heal the outward hurt. Nothing can touch that empty place inside her, but she seems content to let that fester, although that 'contentment' might be more a side effect of the anti-depressants she eats like candy than anything real on her part.

It was powerful watching Andi struggle between life and death, both metaphorically and realistically. There is more than one aborted suicide attempt, and they start right at the beginning of the story. She isn't sure if she wants to die, but she also isn't sure she wants to continue living.

Her experiences in Paris help to open her eyes to life, and help her to understand that although her grief will always be a part of her, it does not have to completely define her. Both the journal she discovers of a young girl living through the French Revolution, and Virgil, a boy she met while joining a local band for a few songs help to bring Andi back from the depression she's been drowning in.

I liked the sections with the journal. It was well written and engaging, but Alexandrine was never a real person for me the way she was for Andi, and the way Andi was for me. I don't mean to be derogatory toward them at all, because they are an essential part of the story, and still beautifully written. But, they were always sections of a journal, fascinating, but removed from me. I doubt I would have paid as much attention to this if my connection to Andi hadn't been so strong.

Virgil was wonderful. Although he doesn't have a lot of actual face time throughout the story, he is in no way a minor character, but neither is he the focus of the story, which was nice. (I'm a little bored with the books right now that seem to be all about the romance, even when other points should be more important. Virgil was great and I enjoyed watching their relationship develop. It was pretty realistic. They met, and are attracted to each other. Andi does think about him a lot over the next few days, but isn't obsessed, and doesn't believe herself to be in love. He's just on her mind, because it's a new-almost relationship.

This book was almost perfect. The only reason I'm not calling this book Basically Amazing is because of climax. It's the part of the summary that reads, "on a midnight journey through the catacombs of Paris, Alexandrine’s words transcend paper and time, and the past becomes suddenly, terrifyingly present."
Take from that what you will/what you can. I won't spoil it for you. I had my thoughts on what that might mean when I picked up the book, and was a little disappointed to realize which of my theories was correct. It didn't work quite as well for me as the rest of the story.

However, Andi is one of the strongest characters I've ever come across, and this is most definitely a book I'm going to have on my 'keep forever' shelf. It deserves to be read again and again, because I imagine there will be new things waiting for me every time.

*UPDATE — This is one of those books that refuses to let go of a person. So... I'm updating my previous rating from Loved it, but to BASICALLY AMAZING!:) Seriously — GO READ THIS BOOK!!

*Disclaimer: I received this book through Around the World Tours.

Blue by Lou Aronica is a book that is impossibly hard to categorize. It is, at once, an adult story of life, love and divorce, a young adult story of learning to life with what life has handed you, a high fantasy story with rich and beautiful world building and a tragedy about learning what it means to heal.

Blue is told through three main view points. Chris is a man in his early 40s, divorced and the father of 14 year old Becky, who was, is and always will be the center of his world. Becky is our second narrator. She was diagnosed with Leukemia at age 5. It has been in remission for years, but she's starting to feel weak again. Chris and Becky created a fantasy world called Tamarisk when she was sick as a way to take her mind off the pain and help her deal with what was happening to her body. Miea is the Princess of this world, and now, 4 years after they have stopped telling the story, Miea is our third narrator. Her beloved Tamarisk is real, and in serious trouble. A blight is killing the vegetation and nothing they do is able to stop the damage.

There is also a fourth voice to the story, one that is only around for a few paragraphs here and there. Through some careful manipulation on his part, he opens a pathway between Miea and Becky, allowing her to visit the fantasy world that helped her accept her illness. As she begins spending time there, Tamarisk starts to minimize the empty space between Becky and her father that has grown since Chris moved out of the house after the divorce. They begin to draw closer together, much as they were when Becky was young.

I didn't really know what to expect from this book going into it. I thought the idea of a made-up, healing fantasy world come to live was interesting, so when I was approached to review this book, I accepted. I didn't know what to expect, but man, I didn't expect this! Blue is so much more than it appears to be. Most of my thoughts are tied up in how complex this story is, and how full of meaning each passage is.

I felt for these characters. My heart broke for Chris. His thoughts are constantly tied up in his daughter, wanting desperately to do right by her, but no longer understanding how to bridge the gap his divorce has broached between them. When Polly, his ex-wife, approached him asking for a divorce, Christ was caught completely off guard. Their marriage hadn't been good for a long time, but Chris was determined and willing to stick it out, because he wanted to stay in the same house as his daughter, didn't want to miss any nights tucking her into bed.

Although he desperately wants to be a good father, and he truly loves his daughter, there were times when I was almost uncomfortable with the intensity of his thoughts and focus on his daughter. Don't get me wrong. There was never any mention or hint of inappropriate behavior, but everything revolved around Becky. He himself mentions that his whole being is consumed by Becky (although I am paraphrasing a little bit) and that doesn't leave much room for anything else. I don't really know how to properly articulate what about the descriptions made me uncomfortable, but there was just this underlying feeling of... not-rightness.

A hugely important part of the story is Tamarisk, the fantasy land where Miea is now the Queen, desperately trying to salvage and save her home. The world building here was fantastical and beyond beautiful. The world has a song to it, and smells of chocolate and raspberries. It's a beautiful place to be and the imagination it took to create that world is astounding. When Becky begins traveling to Tamarisk, she is delighted by the reality of this world she created.

Although Tamarisk is a stunning part of the story, the real draw to the story for me was the relationships. Becky has a way about her that draws people in. I would like to meet this little girl, shake her hand, and spend a day talking to her. Having an illness as serious as Becky's gives people a unique approach to life. Becky desperately wants to live, and she understands the value of relationships and love. Lonnie has been her best friend and truest confidant since pre-school. She was there for the prior illness, but she's stayed by Becky's side the whole time.

There is so much love and hope on the pages of this book that I feel full of it right now. It's a story that will stick with me for a long time and one that will draw my mind back again and again. There is so much to say about this book, but telling you too much would lessen the experience for you. So I can only tell you that this is a book worth reading.

*Disclaimer: I received this book from the author through Pump Up Your Book.

A few weeks ago, I reviewed Daughter of Xanadu by Dori Jones Yang. (click the title for my review!) And today, she is here to talk to us! I really enjoyed the book, so I'm especially excited for this chance to interview her.

Also, before I get to the interview, I have to mention that Daughter of Xanadu hits the shelves today!!! Yay for book release days! (and how cool that I get to post my interview on the day the book comes out!?!) If your interested at all in Mongol culture, historical romance, or fierce heroines, I suggests you check it out! You can also view the book trailer here!

Dori has been writing for a while now. She's got a great website, and she included a quote from my review of Daughter on her website! How great is that?!:) Her website is www.dorijonesyang.com and I strongly recommend you head over there after you read the interview here!
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Ashley: Hello Dori and welcome! Thank you so much for being here with us today.
I was reading the bio on your website, and you have had a very interesting and varied life. You've lived all over the world and done a lot with journalism. You must have fascinating dinner conversations! You've been a journalist for a lot of years, but when, and how, did you decide you wanted to write books? And how did you decide to make the switch from non-fiction writing to fiction?
Dori: I have wanted to write books since I was a little kid, an avid reader like you! When I was 17, my dad popped my balloon by telling me that no one hires authors; he suggested I aim for a career in journalism. I did, and I loved it. As a journalist, I got to meet fascinating people, interview the experts and learn a lot with every article. My goal was to become a foreign correspondent in China, and I achieved that at age 28. But I never forgot that early dream. As a business reporter, I decided to write my first book about business. After that, though, I was eager to write fiction. What I did not expect was just how hard it would be to make the transition from just-the-facts journalism to how-did-she-feel? fiction.
Daughter of Xanadu had very beautiful and vivid descriptions, and contained a lot of information about the Mongol Culture and way of life. What kind of research did you have to do to create such an authentic story?
The research was fun! I read every book I could get my hands on about the Mongols, the Mongol Empire, and modern Mongolia. Then, I visited Mongolia. Wow! It’s so remote, and many people live nomadic life in yurts (gers), just like in the old days. That gave me a strong visual sense of their world. I used a lot of my Mongolia photos in the book trailer video for Daughter of Xanadu.
As I mentioned in my review, I loved the book, but was a little disappointed with the ending. It didn't quite seem to fit with the rest of the story. Have you seen this reaction in others? What are your responses to that/How have you responded to that?
I hate to disappoint my readers. But here’s one thing I discovered about endings: Most stories can have a happy ending, if you cut them off at the happy part. What happens after that ending is another story.
Are there any plans for a sequel to Daughter?
I’d love to publish a sequel if my readers are eager for one!
You've written fiction for children, YA and adults. Is it hard adjusting your writing style for different age groups? Do you find that you prefer one genre/age group over the others?
It is hard. But I’m guilty of genre-jumping because I love new challenges. One thing I find great about YA is that the genre is booming, with many talented new writers, a huge variety of styles, open-minded editors, and avid readers. I love that. It’s interesting that the music industry discovered the demand for youth-oriented music decades before the book industry truly discovered the demand for youth-oriented fiction.
What do you have planned next? Do you plan to write more for young adults?
Oh yes, I am working on a young adult novel now, almost finished, and am planning more for the future.
Which books and authors have inspired you? Both in writing and in life.
There are many! But one of them I especially admire is C.S. Lewis. He wrote many different types of books, for different audiences. He is most remembered for his Narnia children’s books, but he was quite a genre jumper, a Renaissance man with many skills and deep insights.
If you had to pick one favorite book (or author), a book that's a favorite just because it is, what would that be?
That’s a hard question. As a girl, I loved J.R.R. Tolkien so much that I learned to write in his elvish script and taught it to my friends; we used it to write secret notes in class. But today, I read many authors and books and can’t pick a favorite.
Is there anything else you'd like to share with us?
In your review, you mentioned how Emmajin begins to view her culture from the eyes of an outsider. To me, this message is the heart of Daughter of Xanadu. Too many of us, in America and all over the world, don’t get to this point. Next time you meet someone who comes from a different country or culture, I hope you’ll spend some time trying to see how our culture looks from that person’s eyes. It is eye-opening.
Again, thank you so much for talking with us today! I really appreciate it!

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.

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

The Swan Kingdom by Zoë Marriott is one of my favorite fairy tale retellings of all time. I love it. Zoë has taken the old tale, The Wild Swans and made it completely her own. She wrote us an absolutely lovely guest post that talks about the book far better than I could, so I'm going to link it here.

Alexandra is the young daughter of a distant and disappointing father and a warm, loving and magical mother. Her father is disinterested in her life, preferring to spend his time and attentions on his three sons, all older than Alexandra. Her mother teaches her about the enaid, the life magic that flows through the land, the growing things and Alexandra herself. The kingdom of Alexandra's family is rich with the magic and flourishes, while outlying kingdoms have destroyed theirs. But then tragedy strikes, madness and evil take over and Alexandra must find strength within herself. She is no longer able to rely on her mother or brothers for strength, support and protection. Now, it is up to her to save everything.

Alexandra is one of my very favorite heroines in all the fairy tale retellings I have read. She is so real. She is strong, brave, intensely loyal, and loving. But, she also begins the story meek and accepting. She is told what to do, and she does it. Sometimes, this is a good thing. But not always. And definitely not when the great evil you believe killed your mother has taken on the form of a beguiling female, betwitched your father, destroyed your beloved brothers, ensnared the entire kingdom, and is now shipping you off to a neighboring kingdom to live with an aunt you barely know exists.

In her defense, Alexandra was drugged, poisoned and unconscious while she was being shipped off to a neighboring country, but still. Once there, she accepts that this is now the place for her, and she does nothing. She does not search for her brothers, waiting instead for them to come find her, she does not question her aunt's rule beyond sneaking out to the beach each night, and she does not try to return home to stop the evil Zella whom she knows is destroying her kingdom and her people.

While living with her aunt, Alexandra feels stifled. The enaid is not strong her, as it is in her kingdom and being indoors all the time wears her down. So, each night she slips out her window and walks along the beach, and each night she meets up with Gabriel, a young man vacationing on the coast with his family. They talk and laugh each night until dawn, learning of each other, and filling the empty spaces life has left within. Alexandra is one of my favorite heroines and Gabriel is one of my favorite love interests. He never tries to steal the show, never upstages Alexandra. This is her story, and she must live it, but her is there for her. He is her friend in a troubling time when she has no one, and they slowly grow from friends into the hope of something more while walking along the beach. When the day comes he must leave, and return to his home, your heart weeps with Alexandra's and cracks with Gabriel's. And you hope, oh you hope that they will be able to meet again soon.

The time spent with her aunt is somewhat a state of limbo for Alexandra. She knows that something must be done, but is content to wait for her brave and strong brothers return. But then Zella, her evil step-mother, sends people to collect Alexandra and bring her home. On the way, Alexandra realizes that she is enchanted and dying, and to return home would be to go to her death. And so, she escapes and begins the struggle to rescue her brothers and save her kingdom. And she leaves behind the meek Alexandra who follows orders blindly.

There is so many amazing sections of this book. There is so much to say about the enaid, the circle of the ancestors, the curse Alexandra discovers on her brothers, Zella, and, of course, Gabriel. I don't have the space here to tell you everything that I love about this book. There is so much awesome in this book that it would be impossible to fit it all into one review. I know that my review isn't doing the book or the characters justice, but I want you to know that it is truly a book worth reading. It is all the standard 'review' words (compelling, captivating, magical, stunning) but it is more than that too. It is a book that fills you up, that gives meaning to the mundane.

Do not all of us wish we were like Alexandra? That we had power far greater than even we understand? There is a scene in the book where Zella confronts Alexandra at the base of the mountain of the Circle of Ancestors. Zella is there to kill Alexandra and it is the first time we see Zella without the pretense of innocence and fragility. But Alexandra defies her. And in so doing, she realizes that she has power and that if anyone is to save her kingdom and her brothers, it shall be her. Watching her grow and mature, both in life and in magic is empowering, heartening and wonderful.

Do not let my lack of eloquence deter you from reading this book. Ignore my stumbling attempts to express how much I love this book and grasp the love and delight that is beneath them. And, then, go read this book! (in my blog for a chance to win a signed copy, along with a signed ARC of her upcoming novel, Shadows on the Moon!)

*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.

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:

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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.

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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.

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.)
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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!

Today our guest is Bonnie! Bonnie has been an amazing addition to Fairy Tale Fortnight! She contacted me, asking how she could be involved and managed to add seven (yes, seven) additional authors to our line-up. Those interviews will be coming up later in the event, and we'll give Bonnie another shout out with each of them, because she's pretty much awesome! In discussion with Bonnie about favorite fairy tales and retellings and Bonnie and I have decided that we are Fairy Tale Soul Twins. So now, I will let Bonnie introduce herself and then get to her awesome post! ~*~
Bonnie Lynn Wagner is currently hard at work on her own fairy tale novel, which she hopes to start querying later this year. She runs A Backwards Story, a book blog that focuses on reviews and design. Reviews for all of the aforementioned novels can be found here, as well as other retellings every day for the duration of Fairy Tale Fortnight. She is a life-long fan of fairy tales and would love nothing more than to wake up one morning and find herself living in one.
When most people think about fairy tales, they envision a magical realm brimming with triumph, valor, and true love. Who doesn’t love reading about the heroes and heroines destined to embark on virtuous quests or struggling to break free from a dangerous curse? There are so many repetitious elements linking such tales together that I’ve come to savor the flip side of the story no one ever thinks twice about. While I love the traditional classics we all grew up with, these days, I’m more interested in the unexpected. I don’t know if there’s an official name for this, but I tend to call the sub-genre “fractured fairy tales.” The current fairy tale novels I most enjoy are ones with unique takes on the stories we all know and love.

HEART’S BLOOD by Juliet Marillier (read my review here)

This was one of the best books I read last year. It’s also become one of my all-time favorite fairy tale renditions because it’s beautiful and well-developed. I think I like this version of Beauty and the Beast even more than the famous Robin McKinley rendition that was a staple in my Favorite Novels Collection for years. Blasphemy, I know, but true. I love the fact that Heart's Blood is grounded in “our” world and entwined with Celtic lore and the arrival of the Normans. This could have actually happened, for the most part. The “beast” wasn’t a human transformed into a frightening creature. No, this time around, he’s an Irish Chieftain who suffered from a terrible palsy (a stroke) as a child, causing him to be partly-paralyzed with lopsided features. He takes the heroine in as a hired scribe when she seeks shelter as a terrified runaway. Even the “curse” is something that could have possibly happened long ago (in some worlds, at least) and has nothing to do with bringing “Beauty” and “Beast” together.

MERMAID by Carolyn Turgeon (read my review)

This is one of my favorite books so far this year. When I saw it at the bookstore a few weeks ago, I was lured in by the unique way the novel retold The Little Mermaid. The point of view flips back and forth from the mermaid to the princess that the prince ultimately marries. I’d never seen a version from the princess’ perspective before and was stunned. On top of that, the descriptions were beautiful, especially while in the mermaid’s realm. I loved the book so much that I quickly purchased Turgeon’s other novels, Godmother and Rain Village (which is loosely based on Thumbelina, another tale seldom re-envisioned). Godmother reminds me a lot of The Fairy Godmother by Mercedes Lackey. Both novels deal with the life of a fairy godmother. How often do we think about these women outside of their traditional roles?

GODMOTHER by Carolyn Turgeon (read my review here) and THE FAIRY GODMOTHER by Mercedes Lackey

In Godmother, our heroine falls in love with Cinderella’s prince and is banished to our mortal world, an outcast for depriving her charge of a happily ever after. The novel is one of the darkest fairy tale renditions I’ve read. The way everything comes together really leaves you thinking. I also love the fact that Turgeon wove the true historical account of the Cottingley Fairies into the tale. The Fairy Godmother, on the other hand, is a lot more uplifting. I was enamored with the way Mercedes created The Tradition, which forces people into fairy tale roles at the expense of everything else. Sometimes, the magic goes wrong. If you’re put onto the Cinderella path because you have a stepmother and stepsisters, you might wind up with a prince much younger or older... or he might die before he can marry. If a person doesn’t fulfill his or her happily ever after, there’s a bad build-up of magic that accumulates around them. Our main character is one such person. Rather than give up her magic when her happily ever after doesn't pan out, she chooses to become a fairy godmother and help others. She becomes such a strong person that she breaks from Tradition and creates her own tale.

THE SEVENFOLD SPELL by Tia Nevitt (my review here)

Just this past week, I read this unique self-published e-book. It really challenged the way I think about fairy tales. What compelled me to download this to my nook was that it’s told from the POV of a village girl. We always hear about the heroes/heroines, or even the villains of a fairy tale. How often do we hear about how their happily ever afters effect the rest of the kingdom? This novella takes place in the world of Sleeping Beauty. It’s about a girl and her mother, two spinners whose spinning wheel is taken away. Having lost their sole source of income, the heroine is forced to dip into what little dowry she had. Now, she has no chance of marriage and must look at unsavory methods of work in order to make a living. Her life is completely destroyed by the curse placed on the princess. At the same time, Nevitt introduces a new twist on the original christening ceremony, one where a Sevenfold Spell is created specifically for the newborn princess. When one of the seven fairies is unable to lay down the final part of the spell in order to reduce the curse’s severity, it results in something unexpected that hinders the princess throughout her life.

There will always be an author who is able to look at things we didn’t notice when reading our favorite tales, pull it out, and create something fresh and exciting. I already have two shelves brimming with renditions; this is one of my favorite genres to curl up with. With all the movies and novels coming out in our genre over the next couple of years, I’m optimistic that I’ll soon have new favorites to discover and add to my bookcase.

What about you? What are some of your favorite alternative fairy tales, new and old alike?

*Disclaimer: I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest and unbiased review.

I know I am, but what are you? is a book written by Samantha Bee, currently the Most Senior Correspondent on The Daily Show with Jon Stewart. I haven't watched a lot of The Daily Show, because I don't really watch much TV, but I've seen a few clips and it always makes me laugh. So, I don't really know how funny Samantha is on TV, but I can tell you that she is hilarious in writing.

This book is a memoir, or more accurately, a collection of personal essays detailing the many adventures of young Samantha. She adopts a frank and droll tone as she discusses the events from her past with an almost resigned acceptance. Her writing is so clear, and her voice so well drafted that there were times I could almost hear her sigh and admit, Yes. That really is what happened. This really is my life.

Although her stories were funny, what really made this book for me was her writing. She has such a strong voice as she writes that I think she could probably make a quiet Thursday evening watching TV into something wildly entertaining. Some of the stories that she told felt a little like that. They were interesting, but told by someone else would probably end up as one of those stories that trail off awkwardly as the teller looks embarrassed and mumbles, Well, you probably just had to be there...

I didn't really know what to expect when I accepted this book. Although I enjoy comedy and humorous writing, there's a pretty thin line between really funny — makes you laugh out loud — and the wow, you really just said that?! I know you are trying to be funny, but maybe you should stop. You all know how those situations go. Someone thinks they are so funny, but no one else seems to agree. I never once felt like Samantha was trying too hard with this book. It was just the perfect blend of an interesting story, good writing, comedic timing, fact, and probably just a little bit of fiction. I don't know how much creative license Samantha Bee used when telling the story of her life, but whatever it is she did, it definitely worked for me.

I laughed out loud reading this book more than I can remember ever laughing before. And, since I read this book on more than one occasion in public, it made for some interesting conversations, and some really awkward looks. I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book. From the pictures and the reader comments on the dust jacket to the very last line, this is a wonderfully entertaining and amusing book.

I recommend this book to anyone who is a fan of The Daily Show, anyone who has ever felt like their life is too weird for words, and everyone who likes to laugh. I can only hope that Samantha Bee will be writing more in the future.

And, stay tuned because the awesome publishers have made copies of this book available to giveaway! More information coming soon!

"She put the survival knife down on the table." So begins When She Hollers by Cynthia Voigt, one of the first books I remember reading that could be considered an 'issue' book.

When I first opened this book, I didn't really know what to expect. I was somewhere are 8th grade, and a majority of my reading in recent years was Mary Higgins Clark or Willo David Roberts. Murder mysteries where the bad guy always gets caught, and the good guy always saves (and gets) the girl, and books about kids outsmarting adults in all sorts of implausible situations didn't really prepare me for the gut punch I felt when I started this book.

I picked it up because I had read Cynthia Voigt's Tillerman Saga, which begins with Homecoming. I loved the Tillerman Saga. They are sad yet hopeful books, stories of children with unsure families and futures who make their own way in the world by necessity, never by choice. I loved these books. They touched me as a young girl, and I was amazed that any character could possess that kind of strength. (You will definitely be hearing more about these books in the future). Because I loved these books so much, I started picking up other books by Voigt. This led me to Jackaroo, which is the first of Voigt's loosely connected Novels of a Kingdom set.

By the time I got around to this book, I wasn't even really paying attention to summaries anymore. I just saw Voigt's name on the cover and thought — Yes. So, I read the book. And Oh. My. Goodness. This was not what I was expecting. Voigt doesn't pull any punches with this story. She tells us the story of Tish and her pain with such vividness that I didn't know what to do. I had been exposed to something like this that pulled absolutely no punches with the telling. You see, Tish is young, 13 or 14 at most and her step-father rapes her. Her mother doesn't believe her, or maybe, doesn't want to believe her would be more accurate and Tish doesn't know how to make it stop. So she gets a knife. And she decides that she is going to keep it with her at all times, no matter what, because it's the only way she will ever be safe again.

This book opened my eyes, broke my heart, and both hurt and healed my soul. Tish has had so much bad already in her young life. This man who is supposed to take care of her, who used to treasure and dote upon her now hurts her all the time, and no one will listen to her. So she tries to make them listen. And when they don't, she takes her survival into her own hands and proves that she is stronger than they are, that although the experience will scar her and change her, she won't let it ruin her.

This book, and my experience with it is largely responsible for the pull I feel toward 'issue' books. There is something about the struggle of a character toward life and light when their whole existence is filled with pain and suffering that really pulls me in and forces my interest and attention. I actually wonder if this book, and others like it isn't what really sparked my interest in Psychology, and working with teenagers.

I need to reread this book, if for no other reason than as a way of saying thank you to a book that changed my life. It's one I recommend. It will hurt a place inside of you, because Tish is so young, and she's hurting, but it will ultimately leave you feeling hopeful because Tish is going to make it after all.