Bookami

Jane In Bloom by Deborah Lytton

Jane Holden is the youngest in what appears to be the perfect family.  She has loving, hard-working parents and her beautiful and talented older sister, Lizzie.  Jane often feels as if she's the weak link in her family.  In comparison to Lizzie, she's rather plain and boring.  Not all is well with Lizzie, though.  She suffers from an eating disorder that ultimately leads to her death.  Jane soon discovers it was a lot easier to deal with an inferiority complex as a member of a complete family than it is to live every day in a broken one. 

Jane In Bloom certainly has some wonderful attributes. The strengthening of Jane's relationship with her father after Lizzie's death is heart-warming.  Jane learns that her parents always believed her to be the stronger of their two children.  She wasn't as far from their thoughts as she always suspected.  And indeed, Lytton hits upon some perfectly tuned phrases.  For instance this paragraph before Lizzie's funeral:

"My family is Presbyterian.  Not super religious Presbyterian.  Just your average go-to church-on-holidays and sometimes when Mom remembers that it's Sunday morning.  Not religious enough to give me answers to all this.  Just enough to confuse me.  Like what kind of God allows a beautiful teenager to die.  And why her?"

Out of the mouths of 12-year-old characters and every real person who has lost a loved one.  The honesty in that statement was just so potent.  I even like how Jane discovers somewhat of a kindred soul in Hunter. It's easy to forget that we are often very young when we lose our first loved one. The downside to this novel, though, is that the imagery is just a bit too heavy-handed.  Certainly it is understandable that Jane would search to find something, anything that would occupy this lonely time.  And given that she asked for a digital camera for her birthday, photography is a logical choice, but this is where it all becomes forced.  I mean her first real assignment is take pictures of roses at each stage of bloom.  Should Lytton really expect so little from her readers?  Of course, the death of a sibling is bound to change a person profoundly, but I don't think the readers really needed the constant reminder about Jane growing and blooming.  Even if I had read this novel at age  11, I think I would have felt as if the flower symbolism was a bit trite and fake.  It all felt a bit too soap-opera to me. 

My Big Nose and Other Natural Disasters by Sydney Salter

The last three books I've read have all had to deal with unrealistic expectations.  Can I be just like my perfectly beautiful and talented big sister?  Can I be the thinnest, most disciplined girl in my high school?  Can having a nose job gain me poise, popularity and a McDreamy?  The last question is being asked by senior Jory Michaels.  Jory is out to find a well-paying summer job that earns her enough money to buy a perky new nose.  The problem is that she can only find a job delivering flowers and wedding cakes, and Jory's driving record is not exactly pristine.  Will Jory end the summer with cake all over her face or find that once she learns to accept herself a bit more, the cake and a McDreamy are hers for the taking?

My Big Nose and Other Natural Disasters had me asking two questions: how often do I really look at a person on the street and think that they are ugly; and will there ever be a time in my life when I don't worry about my appearance?  The answer to the first question is pretty simple.  I can't ever remember thinking that a person is just down-right hideous.  Okay, I might think that that lipstick doesn't look good on her or that the guy in the red sweatshirt could really use a haircut, but I never really think that a person is ugly.  In other words, my thoughts about the exterior really do tend to be superficial and silly in nature.  I guess I really am one of those people that believe it's what's on the inside that counts.  My husband would say that this is just me being cute and naive, but when I look at my friends, I'm fairly sure their thoughts would lean the same way.  High school is a super competitive environment, but so is pick-up time on the playground.  I can't deny that I look around the playground to check out what the other moms are wearing.  It's human nature, which I guess is the answer to my next question.  I might finally stop worrying about my appearance when my kids are out of school.  Of course, by then I'll probably be back working in an office, and then I'll have to check out what all the women younger than me are wearing.  All I can say is that it's a good thing that books like My Big Nose and Other Natural Disasters are out there, trying to help all those teen girls get off the appearance roller coaster a bit sooner than retirement age.

Love reading debut authors?  Visit www.classof2k9.com to find the newest voices in middle grade and YA fiction.

My Life in Pink and Green by Lisa Greenwald

I read something recently in Runner's World that started me thinking about my blog again.  In the monthly column The Newbie Chronicles, Marc Parent notes, "If you intend to quit running and you plan to somehow make the quitting stick, you have to be determined about it.  You have to be focused and extremely consistent.  You have to quit every single day for the rest of your life."  For the latter part of 2008 and for all of 2009, I've been pretty consistent about quitting this blog business, and then I read a charming debut novel by Lisa Greenwald.  My Life in Pink and Green is a contemporary Pollyanna, and I just couldn't help but sing its praises.

Lucy Desberg is a girl that knows what she wants.  She wants to create her own cosmetics line and become the next Bobbi Brown or Laura Mercier.  She wants to save her family's pharmacy from bankruptcy. She wants her friends to have confidence in both their inner and outer beauty.  And if she can help save the environment while she's accomplishing the rest of her goals, so much the better.  There's only one problem.  Lucy is 12, and she's finding it's pretty difficult to make the adults in her life take her ideas seriously.

Lucy is such a wonderful, optimistic character.  You could almost find her positive attitude annoying if it weren't for the fact that her ideas about beauty, friendship and going green are so perfectly modern.  Just like everyone else, I've been watching the news and feeling as if I should hole up and put all my money under the mattress.  I've been going to the library a bit more, and the bookstore a lot less.  Thankfully, with its pitch-perfect cover, My Life in Pink and Green screamed out that it was going to be worth $16.95, and boy was it!  I can't wait to read what Lisa Greenwald writes next. 

Love reading debut authors?  Visit www.classof2k9.com  This site highlights new voices in middle grade and YA fiction.

Little Gorilla Story and Pictures by Ruth Bornstein

I rarely have much to say about board books.  Not because I don't greatly appreciate this category, but because a good portion of them were picture books first.  Recently, though, I was introduced to a charming little board book named Little Gorilla.  The book was originally published in the 1970s as a picture book, but as my first experience with it is in its board form, I decided to call out this edition.  My older son bought it for my younger son as his Christmas present.  At first I was sort of skeptical about his choice.  After all, I used to buy the board book category for Borders, and I didn't remember this book.  Of course, one read through told me I was wrong and that my 5-year-old son knew what his 3-year-old brother would like to hear better than I did.  Little Gorilla tells the tale of a young gorilla who is loved by all the other animals in the jungle.  From a boa constrictor to a hippopotamus to a roaring lion, Little Gorilla is one popular little dude.  Soon, though, Little Gorilla starts to become a big gorilla, and he worries that his jungle friends' affections will not be as easily shared.  A surprise birthday celebration tells him he need not have worried.  Even big, he is just as well loved.  For anyone who loves Goodnight Gorilla, Tumble Bumble or Bear Snores On, Little Gorilla will be a great addition to the bedtime story rotation.

The Houdini Box Written & Illustrated by Brian Selznick

Victor is forever trying to master the tricks of the great magician, Harry Houdini, with little success.  Who knew walking through walls and escaping from locked trunks could be so very difficult?  Victor fears he may never learn magic, but then a chance encounter with his idol allows him to ask many questions and become the keeper of a tightly locked box.  Does this wondrous box hold the secrets for the greatest magic ever performed?

Oh, I love it when great books are reissued, although this one was certainly a no-brainer given Selznick's Caldecott success with The Invention of Hugo Cabret.  Still, if you're looking for a last minute Christmas present for a child obsessed with magic, then this is truly the perfect gift.  A short biography of Houdini has been added to this edition, as has an illustrated magic trick and some additional sketches. And certainly there is no denying that Selznick's renderings are amazing.  So amazing, in fact, that I can't look at the cover for too long.  Selznick has captured the intensity of Houdini's eyes a little too well.  I feel as if they are boring into me.  For children who are too young for The Invention of Hugo Cabret, The Houdini Box is a wonderful introduction to the astounding art and mind of Brian Selznick.

What I Saw and How I Lied by Judy Blundell

With its steamy, cinematic writing, it's no wonder that What I Saw and How I Lied is nominated for the National Book Award in Young People's Literature.  In film noir style, Judy Blundell tells the dramatic story of Evie and her family post World War II.  When Joe, Evie's father, returns home from the war, Evie expects that life will go back to normal, but then the phone calls start, and Joe decides to whisk the family away to Florida for an extended vacation.  There, they meet Peter Coleridge, an ex-GI who served under Joe in Austria.  Evie comes to realize that Peter's appearance in Florida is not coincidental.  There is a secret between Peter and Joe, but Evie falls in love with Peter anyway.  Then an accident occurs, and Evie is forced to decide whether to be loyal to her first love or save her parents from ruin.

Much Like Godbersen's The Luxe, Blundell has given readers a dark, secretive historical novel with a contemporary feel.   This is a coming-of-age story with a sharp edge that is sure to entice even those young readers who believe all historical novels are boring and banal.

Chains by Laurie Halse Anderson

The 59th National Book Award winners will be announced this evening.  The five nominations in the Young People's Literature category are:

• The Underneathby Kathi Appelt with illustrations by David Small
• The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks by E. Lockhart
• Chains by Laurie Halse Anderson
• What I Saw and How I Lied by Judy Blundell
• The Spectacular Now by Tim Tharp

 

I have already favorably reviewed the first two novels on the above list (see April for Lockhart's novel and May for The Underneath).  As usual I'm impressed with the quality of writing in this year's finalists, but I'm also impressed by the cover art.  Kudos to all of the designers for these five novels, and particularly to the two designers of What I Saw and How I Lied and Chains. Often times, historical novels have wretched institutional covers, but both of these novels have fresh, stunning covers.  I just knew that Blundell's novel was going to be subtly steamy and that for all of Isabel's hardships, hope and light were just around the corner in Chains. 

Anderson's novel tells the tale of a young slave girl, Isabel, who is sold to a harsh New York Loyalist family at the beginning of the Revolutionary War even though her former owner had provided for her freedom in her will.  In New York she meets Curzon, who convinces her that her only hope for freedom is to help the rebels by spying on her new owners.  Isabel is blessed with an intelligence beyond her years, though, and soon realizes that the only path to being free is to help and fight for herself even if it means suffering unimaginable pain and anguish.

I love how Anderson's novel presents slavery in a different era.  I think a great number of young readers have the impression that the United States didn't really start debating the slavery issue until the mid-1800s.  I also think that many readers are stunned to learn that slavery was condoned in Rhode Island and New York, not just in the southern colonies.  Anderson also seems to understand that all novels must have a little grit.  Her pacing of this novel is just excellent.  There is not just one big heart-pounding scene, but rather several that move this novel along swiftly, keeping the reader turning the pages.  Add to this the rich detail in the vocabulary and cadence of speech used, and I can't speak more highly of this novel.  This is what all historical novels should be like.  History is fascinating and fast-paced, and Anderson makes sure her readers feel her passion for it.

Masterpiece by Elise Broach with Illustrations by Kelly Murphy

For those readers not quite ready for the intensity of Balliett's Chasing Vermeer or The Wright 3, Masterpiece offers budding sleuths a sweet, pleasant history-mystery.  James Pompaday lives with his mother, stepfather, and baby brother in an apartment in NYC.  He is a thoughtful, shy eleven-year-old boy who rarely warrants, good or bad, the attention of his family.  For his birthday, his dad gives him a pen and ink set.  While he tries to act excited, James is unhappy with the gift and sets it aside.  Ah, but one boy's junk is one beetle's treasure, and that is where Marvin comes in.  Marvin and the rest of his beetle family live under the kitchen sink in the Pompaday's apartment.  He often finds himself feeling bad for James and decides to provide him with a spectacular gift.  With the ink and his amazingly agile beetle legs, Marvin leaves James the most detailed miniature drawing.  James, of course, gets all the credit for the picture, and before they know it, James and Marvin find themselves in the middle of an elaborate plan to help recover a famous stolen miniature by Albrecht Durer.  Thus, an unlikely friendship is born.

While not as fast-paced as Chasing Vermeer or The Wright 3, I found I enjoyed the simplicity of Masterpiece.  Broach doesn't knock you over the head with facts about Albrect Durer, nor are her characters nearly as obsessive as Petra and Calder in Balliett's works.  Broach has written a satisfying linear mystery with a bit of beetle charm and wisdom to entice even the most reluctant readers.

Every Soul a Star by Wendy Mass

When I was 14 my older brother was dating a lovely girl, who also happened to be named Amy.  She called for him one afternoon, but he wasn't home, and I picked up the phone.  Somehow never having met Amy, she and I managed to have an hour long conversation.  While her relationship with my older brother didn't last, our friendship has managed to do so through high school, college, career, marriage and children.  I often find myself thinking what if I hadn't answered the phone that day or my brother had been home.  It's amazing to think how some of the best happenings in our lives are completely random, and Every Soul a Star does an excellent job of reminding readers to be open to the randomness and beauty of life.

The novel alternates between the voices of three unlikely friends.  Ally, short for Alpha, is an astronomy wiz who appreciates all the wonders nature has to offer.  She has lived most of her life at the Moon Shadow Campground, where this summer thousands will converge to view a rare total eclipse.  Bree is a prom queen wanna-be who acts kind of silly, but is a lot smarter than she would have people believe. Nature and camping are so not for her.  Jack is over-weight, unpopular and kind of lazy.  His only reason for being at Moon Shadow is to get out of summer school.  All three have reasons to hate what has been thrown their way this summer, but as the eclipse gets closer, they come to realize that this may be the best summer they've ever had.

While using some sort of rare astronomical event as the focus of a middle grade novel isn't new, I still found Every Soul a Star to be refreshing.  Mass does a wonderful job of making the voices of her characters distinct.  In addition, novels structured like this can often be a bit repetitive as events are repeated from the perspective of another character, but Mass does not do this.  She lets the novel flow naturally, giving the reader an opportunity to suppose what the other characters might be thinking.  If I had one complaint about this novel, it would be that I would have liked to know what happens to Ally, Bree and Jack when the summer ends.  I'll even go so far as to admit that I would have loved to have Jack and Ally somehow end up at the same school.  Yes, I know that would have been totally sappy, but somehow after reading about a total eclipse of the sun, it just didn't seem that implausible anymore. 

If you like this novel, you might also enjoy Love, Stargirl and Smiles to Go by Jerry Spinelli.

Paper Towns by John Green

I often tell people that I fell in love with my husband in our senior AP English class.  We had a teacher who loved to have us read our papers aloud.  While mine were fairly uninspired, I could have listened to my husband read his for hours.  Not only were they insightful and eloquently composed, he was completely confident that his interpretations were the only correct ones.  He had a certain bravado that few at 17 or 18 have yet mastered.  Reading a John Green novel makes me think back to those high school days and how audacious teenagers can be.  Whether you're a nerd or the new guy in school or just completely average, a John Green novel suggests that all young adults can be intrepid given an appropriate opportunity.  This is certainly the case with the protagonist of Paper Towns.  Quentin, also known as Q, Jacobsen generally travels the road of the straight and narrow.  He works hard in school, is a loyal friend and freakishly well-adjusted given that both his parents are therapists.  Only Margaret Roth Spiegelman knows how to crack his upstanding citizen facade.  Margaret is Q's the girl-next-door, but is really anything but.  Needing an associate and a car for a series of necessary revenge pranks, Margaret taps Q. to become her accomplice.  After the all night revenge campaign, Q. wakes up the next morning to find that Margaret has disappeared.  She's done this before and all assume she'll just show back up in a few days.  She doesn't, but Quentin discovers that she has left some clues as to her whereabouts, and it's up to him to find her.  As the quest becomes more convoluted, Q. ponders whether he really knows Margaret at all: 

" That was perfect, I thought: you listen to people so that you can imagine them, and you hear all the terrible and wonderful things people do to themselves and to one another, but in the end the listening exposes you even more than it exposes the people you're trying to listen to." 

Searching for Margaret isn't really about searching for Margaret.  It's about searching for Q's idea of Margaret and how can she possibly live up to that?  Still, Quentin's journey for Margaret does require him to be bold and daring in a way unknown to him.  It allows him to live life before "the allure of a life rightly lived - college and job and husband and babies and all that bullshit" takes over.  It's a gift from Q's girl-next-door much like this novel is a gift to all who read it.

For its similar beautiful and comedic qualities, I suggest you read Someday This Pain Will Be Useful to You by Peter Cameron.