Boy oh boy, if you want to sink your teeth into a good adventure story that begins in a sinkhole, you’ve come to the right pocket park. Pocket park, you know, those tiny fenced in gardens carved out between two brownstones in a city like, say, why yes, New York City. The NYPD cordoned the sinkhole off with yellow construction tape before the morning was over, but that just increased its appeal. Go on, you know you want to find out why Ananka Fishbein went down the hole and whom she discovered there.
My goodness, I haven’t even mentioned Kiki Strike yet. Kirsten Miller has created an incredibly resourceful, undernourished, pale-haired junior spy who takes NYC by storm. In her debut novel, Kiki Strike: Inside the Shadow City, Miller sends us haring off into the underground tunnels with a troop worthy of their Holmesian appellation: the Irregulars. Dee Dee, Luz, Betty, and Oona, all ex-Girl Scouts, join Ananka and Kiki as they combine their many talents (forgery and explosives, to name a few) to explore the shadowy bowels of New York.
Just think what’s beneath Manhattan Island: tunnels for natural gas, electricity, water, sewer, subways, all interlacing beneath the great skyscrapers and heavy stone buildings of the 19th and 20th centuries. Rats, bodies, vaults, opium dens…well yeah! Where do you think the criminal and moneyed classes hid their loot and drugs and bodies from the police? Underground! Although the other girls don’t realize it at first, Kiki is on a serious, international security mission but she cannot achieve success without their help. And who better to come to her aid, with bombs, costumes, and maps, than a crack team of girls?
Go ahead, be an Irregular and dig deeply into this one, and don't forget the next installment: The Empress's Tomb. You won’t regret it for an instant, except for the, uh, rats…. Drat, where is that pest repellent, Dee Dee?!
Ever had any "underground" adventures? Speak up!
Thursday, February 14, 2008
Wednesday, January 30, 2008
Insatiable - The Compelling Story of Four Teens, Food and Its Power
Samantha, Hannah, Jessica, and Phoebe wrestle with their eating demons in the pages of Eve Eliot’s “self-help novel,” Insatiable. More popular at HHS than its sequel, Ravenous, Insatiable is second only to The Best Little Girl in the World among our eating disorder novels.
Samantha, the blonde, athletic cheerleader, starves, cuts, and vacuums compulsively. We meet her in the first 3 sentences of the book: “Samantha's heart nearly stopped as she realized what Brian was actually telling her. Because there were other students all around them, milling past carrying books and backpacks, she forced herself to breathe evenly, look normal, perfect as always. This is what was expected of her, the blondest cheerleader with the cutest boyfriend, the prettiest girl at Maple Ridge High.”
Phoebe, everybody’s pal and nobody’s girlfriend, is a great student who feels best when she eats. Her fashion photographer Dad has plenty to say about that, and with predictable results.
Jessica is artistic, rebellious, and captivated by style and fashion. She gets along on coffee and Diet Coke, and is now too weak to climb the stairs to English class. Her claim to fame? “I tell myself how special I am,” said Jessica. “I tell myself I’m different because I can be hungry and still not eat.”
And Hannah, another top student, swamped with grief over her Mom’s death, is a beautiful girl who binges and purges to keep herself that way. She is very good at keeping secrets.
Each story has been intertwined, girl by girl, chapter by chapter, to produce a work that is at once gripping, melodramatic, and clinical. Eliot is a practicing psychotherapist, and her novel is based on real case histories. She has also survived an eating disorder, which adds to Insatiable’s authenticity.
While many readers are very enthusiastic about this one, more than a few think Insatiable is too much therapy and not enough plot. What do you think?
Samantha, the blonde, athletic cheerleader, starves, cuts, and vacuums compulsively. We meet her in the first 3 sentences of the book: “Samantha's heart nearly stopped as she realized what Brian was actually telling her. Because there were other students all around them, milling past carrying books and backpacks, she forced herself to breathe evenly, look normal, perfect as always. This is what was expected of her, the blondest cheerleader with the cutest boyfriend, the prettiest girl at Maple Ridge High.”
Phoebe, everybody’s pal and nobody’s girlfriend, is a great student who feels best when she eats. Her fashion photographer Dad has plenty to say about that, and with predictable results.
Jessica is artistic, rebellious, and captivated by style and fashion. She gets along on coffee and Diet Coke, and is now too weak to climb the stairs to English class. Her claim to fame? “I tell myself how special I am,” said Jessica. “I tell myself I’m different because I can be hungry and still not eat.”
And Hannah, another top student, swamped with grief over her Mom’s death, is a beautiful girl who binges and purges to keep herself that way. She is very good at keeping secrets.
Each story has been intertwined, girl by girl, chapter by chapter, to produce a work that is at once gripping, melodramatic, and clinical. Eliot is a practicing psychotherapist, and her novel is based on real case histories. She has also survived an eating disorder, which adds to Insatiable’s authenticity.
While many readers are very enthusiastic about this one, more than a few think Insatiable is too much therapy and not enough plot. What do you think?
Friday, January 18, 2008
Breathing Underwater
Author Alex Flinn interned after law school with the state attorney and tried domestic violence cases, then volunteered at a shelter for battered women and their families. When she gives us Nick’s story -- the anger, jealousy, violence, secrecy, and heartache -- she knows whereof she speaks. But it’s Nick as the narrator who speaks most eloquently for himself.
This is the tale of Nick’s relationship with Caitlyn, related in the journal he now has to keep, by order of the judge. It’s also the story of Nick and his abusive dad and Tommy, his friend for life. Finally, it’s an account of how he struggles to pull his life together, with the help of group counseling and a certain Ms. Wiggins, after he has made his big mistakes.
He told his new girlfriend she couldn’t hang out with her friends anymore, since they didn’t like Nick’s group. “You do want me as your boyfriend, right?” He ridiculed her. “You bitch, you’re just a fat cow.” He tried to keep her glued to his side. Sounds pretty awful, right? Still, Nick managed to charm Caitlyn enough so that they began to see themselves as two of a kind, unlucky teens from seemingly perfect families. Then a long planned group trip to Key West went awry, and our boy was derisive, possessive and drunk, almost killing them both as he drove home. Played the “Don’t you trust me?” and the ”My life is nothing without you.” cards. And then he hit her… and it didn’t happen just once.
Alex Flinn returns to Nick in her novel, Diva, which is actually more Caitlyn’s story. Try it. Life goes on for the two of them, just not together. And do post a response; like Laurie Halse Anderson’s Speak, this novel is certain to push some buttons.
This is the tale of Nick’s relationship with Caitlyn, related in the journal he now has to keep, by order of the judge. It’s also the story of Nick and his abusive dad and Tommy, his friend for life. Finally, it’s an account of how he struggles to pull his life together, with the help of group counseling and a certain Ms. Wiggins, after he has made his big mistakes.
He told his new girlfriend she couldn’t hang out with her friends anymore, since they didn’t like Nick’s group. “You do want me as your boyfriend, right?” He ridiculed her. “You bitch, you’re just a fat cow.” He tried to keep her glued to his side. Sounds pretty awful, right? Still, Nick managed to charm Caitlyn enough so that they began to see themselves as two of a kind, unlucky teens from seemingly perfect families. Then a long planned group trip to Key West went awry, and our boy was derisive, possessive and drunk, almost killing them both as he drove home. Played the “Don’t you trust me?” and the ”My life is nothing without you.” cards. And then he hit her… and it didn’t happen just once.
Alex Flinn returns to Nick in her novel, Diva, which is actually more Caitlyn’s story. Try it. Life goes on for the two of them, just not together. And do post a response; like Laurie Halse Anderson’s Speak, this novel is certain to push some buttons.
Friday, December 21, 2007
Katie.com
Katie.com burst on the reading scene in 2000, just as national concern over child safety on the internet reached critical mass; since then it has remained a popular read here at HHS. In an emotional memoir of her experiences with an internet predator, 17-year-old Katherine Tarbox plunges us into the world of her 14-year-old self: wealthy and talented, lonely and naive.
So how does an 8th grader from upscale New Canaan, CT, an athlete competing at the national level, and a concert pianist, end up in a Dallas hotel room with a middle-aged groper? Easy. She falls in love.
How VALLLEYGUY met ATARBOX, paid attention to her and encouraged her in the face of troubles at home and at school, makes up the first part of the book. In what seems like no time at all, we are in that Dallas hotel, wondering just how badly Katie will be hurt.
More damage is done when Katie resumes her life in New Canaan. Her mother is wildly angry. Her step-father thinks she ruined VALLLEYGUY’s life. The folks in town who don’t think she’s a slut think she’s crazy. There’s a trial. And Katie blames herself: “I needed to say that I was guilty, maybe even as guilty as the man who was going to jail for our relationship.” Relationship.... Yikes.
Katie.com is a cautionary tale on many levels, perhaps the least of which is the threat of internet stalking. I take the “blame the victim” mentality exemplified in the second half of the book to represent the greater danger. Do you?
So how does an 8th grader from upscale New Canaan, CT, an athlete competing at the national level, and a concert pianist, end up in a Dallas hotel room with a middle-aged groper? Easy. She falls in love.
How VALLLEYGUY met ATARBOX, paid attention to her and encouraged her in the face of troubles at home and at school, makes up the first part of the book. In what seems like no time at all, we are in that Dallas hotel, wondering just how badly Katie will be hurt.
More damage is done when Katie resumes her life in New Canaan. Her mother is wildly angry. Her step-father thinks she ruined VALLLEYGUY’s life. The folks in town who don’t think she’s a slut think she’s crazy. There’s a trial. And Katie blames herself: “I needed to say that I was guilty, maybe even as guilty as the man who was going to jail for our relationship.” Relationship.... Yikes.
Katie.com is a cautionary tale on many levels, perhaps the least of which is the threat of internet stalking. I take the “blame the victim” mentality exemplified in the second half of the book to represent the greater danger. Do you?
Wednesday, December 19, 2007
Maximum Ride The Angel Experiment
Okay, if you haven't been here yet, and I know at least one avid reader who hasn't, you need to get here fast! And speed is what it's all about in James Patterson's incredibly successful (according to all kid readers) first attempt at YA literature. Maximum Ride and her team of five fled The School, where they were "lab rats" raised in cages, to seek sanctuary in the real world. Well, the world has become all too real for Max, Fang, Iggy, Nudge, the Gasman, and Angel, and the "Erasers" are after them, and how!
Never mind always having to scavenge for food, improve their flying, and discover each others' talents. That's all in a day's work. Flying? Yes, these six are 98% human and 2% bird; products of an experimental recombinent DNA experiment back at The School, they sport wingspans of up to 14 feet.
But those nasty, flying, wolf-like "Erasers" won't give them a moment's rest, as the flock pursues two vital pieces of information: the identity of their true parents, and the location of Angel, kidnapped by some of the worst bad guys in teen fiction. Hang on for a wild ride because Patterson has indulged us with two more books, and you won't want to miss a single page.
Send us a post from your journey, IF you can catch your breath.
Never mind always having to scavenge for food, improve their flying, and discover each others' talents. That's all in a day's work. Flying? Yes, these six are 98% human and 2% bird; products of an experimental recombinent DNA experiment back at The School, they sport wingspans of up to 14 feet.
But those nasty, flying, wolf-like "Erasers" won't give them a moment's rest, as the flock pursues two vital pieces of information: the identity of their true parents, and the location of Angel, kidnapped by some of the worst bad guys in teen fiction. Hang on for a wild ride because Patterson has indulged us with two more books, and you won't want to miss a single page.
Send us a post from your journey, IF you can catch your breath.
Monday, November 19, 2007
Peach Girl 1
Poor Peach Girl. As the first volume of Miwa Ueda’s shojo manga series begins, it looks like the book will be going out way more often than the girl. And, in fact, Peach Girl 1 is often out on loan, as reader after reader explores the turbulent world of Peach Girl’s school days.
Momo (“peach”) is our heroine. Blonde and tanned in a culture that values dark hair and pale skin, she is shy and uncomfortable around her classmates. And no wonder, since her appearance labels her as a “beach bunny” with questionable character and loose morals.
Momo loves Toji, but is afraid to tell him so. Sae, who pretends to be her only friend, is a rumor and gossip specialist who wants Toji for herself. And then there’s Kiley: handsome, older and dangerous. Here we go into a series of romantic cliff-hangers loaded with betrayal and misunderstanding -- the sort of thing that will sound a bit familiar to anyone who has ever struggled to fit in at a new school, learned the hard way that not all friends are true friends, or fallen in love.
There is wit amidst all the typical shojo melodrama. Momo, a swimmer and softball player (which accounts for the bleached hair and deep tan) slathers on the sunscreen to no avail. And in a subplot that has her coincidentally saving the lives of her love interests, Momo remarks “Why does my fate always take me to people who are drowning?” Why, indeed....
Ueda won the Kodansha Manga Award (Shojo) for Peach Girl, and no wonder. Her art is a compelling blend of realistic background scenes and fantastic, emotionally-charged character drawings.
The entire Peach Girl series is coming out on DVD, too.
If you like shojo, give this one a try -- and tell us what you think. I checked out a few collections of Peach Girl reviews, and I have to say that the reviewers either loved it or hated it. No one sat on the fence. Where do you sit?
Momo (“peach”) is our heroine. Blonde and tanned in a culture that values dark hair and pale skin, she is shy and uncomfortable around her classmates. And no wonder, since her appearance labels her as a “beach bunny” with questionable character and loose morals.
Momo loves Toji, but is afraid to tell him so. Sae, who pretends to be her only friend, is a rumor and gossip specialist who wants Toji for herself. And then there’s Kiley: handsome, older and dangerous. Here we go into a series of romantic cliff-hangers loaded with betrayal and misunderstanding -- the sort of thing that will sound a bit familiar to anyone who has ever struggled to fit in at a new school, learned the hard way that not all friends are true friends, or fallen in love.
There is wit amidst all the typical shojo melodrama. Momo, a swimmer and softball player (which accounts for the bleached hair and deep tan) slathers on the sunscreen to no avail. And in a subplot that has her coincidentally saving the lives of her love interests, Momo remarks “Why does my fate always take me to people who are drowning?” Why, indeed....
Ueda won the Kodansha Manga Award (Shojo) for Peach Girl, and no wonder. Her art is a compelling blend of realistic background scenes and fantastic, emotionally-charged character drawings.
The entire Peach Girl series is coming out on DVD, too.
If you like shojo, give this one a try -- and tell us what you think. I checked out a few collections of Peach Girl reviews, and I have to say that the reviewers either loved it or hated it. No one sat on the fence. Where do you sit?
Tuesday, November 13, 2007
Big Mouth and Ugly Girl
Wow, all he did was say he could set off a bomb or kill someone, and that was only because he was ticked off about his play and the spring competition. It was just a little artistic frustration, really. But "Big Mouth" Matt spoke a little too loudly in the school cafeteria and someone heard him, and before he knew it, Matt was pulled out of class by the police, no less. Sure doesn't pay to make enemies, does it?
"Ugly Girl" Ursula, of the fiery red moods and superstar athletic status, heard him, too, and tried to explain everything to Mr. Parrish, but he was only the principal. Although Matt was cleared and sent back to school, the whole community knew, and the rumors flew. It was all over for Matt except that Ursula caught him at the ravine edge after those jerks had beaten him up, and, well, they started this thing. You know, first it was just the telephone, and then it was going out. They got coffee, they went hiking, they went to the Museum of Arts and Design. All that was cool, but his parents had already sued the school, and Ursula, pressed for the truth by Matt, admitted to him that the suit was just plain wrong.
Joyce Carol Oates wrote her first young adult novel about some pretty hot topics. Sign on and answer the question truthfully: what would YOU have done?
"Ugly Girl" Ursula, of the fiery red moods and superstar athletic status, heard him, too, and tried to explain everything to Mr. Parrish, but he was only the principal. Although Matt was cleared and sent back to school, the whole community knew, and the rumors flew. It was all over for Matt except that Ursula caught him at the ravine edge after those jerks had beaten him up, and, well, they started this thing. You know, first it was just the telephone, and then it was going out. They got coffee, they went hiking, they went to the Museum of Arts and Design. All that was cool, but his parents had already sued the school, and Ursula, pressed for the truth by Matt, admitted to him that the suit was just plain wrong.
Joyce Carol Oates wrote her first young adult novel about some pretty hot topics. Sign on and answer the question truthfully: what would YOU have done?
Thursday, October 18, 2007
Cut
I just went to check a detail from the back cover of Cut, by Patricia McCormick, and -- why am I surprised? -- it’s not there! Cut remains the most popular of our Library’s several novels dealing with the difficult topic of cutting. (Next most popular being Steven Levenkron’s The Luckiest Girl in the World, followed by Melody Carlson’s Blade Silver.)
Callie cuts herself to feel better, first with an Exacto knife, and later with just about anything that will get the job done. The more she cuts, the less she talks, and pretty soon she isn’t talking at all. As soon as the school nurse sees her scars, Callie is sent off to Sea Pines for treatment. (“The place is called a residential treatment facility. It is not called a loony bin.”) Most of the book then becomes a silent conversation, heard only by the reader, as Callie mentally responds to her therapist and the other girls in her treatment group.
And what a group! McCormick’s novel rings true as we meet the other “guests” and follow their struggles with food, drugs, alcohol, and the other self-destructive behaviors that have landed them at “Sick Minds” along with Callie.
Gradually, through memories and flashbacks, Callie offers up details of her life from before she started to cut. And when Amanda joins the group, proudly displaying scars of her own, Callie gets a life-changing jolt.
Cut is a real couldn’t-put-it-down sort of book, full of drama, insight. and vivid description (“a perfect straight line of blood bloomed up from under the edge of the blade....”) If you like realistic stories about teens in trouble, give it a try. If you’ve read it already, tell us what you think!
Callie cuts herself to feel better, first with an Exacto knife, and later with just about anything that will get the job done. The more she cuts, the less she talks, and pretty soon she isn’t talking at all. As soon as the school nurse sees her scars, Callie is sent off to Sea Pines for treatment. (“The place is called a residential treatment facility. It is not called a loony bin.”) Most of the book then becomes a silent conversation, heard only by the reader, as Callie mentally responds to her therapist and the other girls in her treatment group.
And what a group! McCormick’s novel rings true as we meet the other “guests” and follow their struggles with food, drugs, alcohol, and the other self-destructive behaviors that have landed them at “Sick Minds” along with Callie.
Gradually, through memories and flashbacks, Callie offers up details of her life from before she started to cut. And when Amanda joins the group, proudly displaying scars of her own, Callie gets a life-changing jolt.
Cut is a real couldn’t-put-it-down sort of book, full of drama, insight. and vivid description (“a perfect straight line of blood bloomed up from under the edge of the blade....”) If you like realistic stories about teens in trouble, give it a try. If you’ve read it already, tell us what you think!
Monday, June 18, 2007
The Wee Free Men
OK, I promised you an occasional reading rave, so buckle up: here’s rave #1.
Terry Pratchett’s 30th Discworld novel, The Wee Free Men, is at the top of my list for the 2006/2007 reading season. Yes, there were other titles I particularly enjoyed -- The Glass Castle, The Book Thief, All Over Creation, Eventide -- but The Wee Free Men really left an impression.
How could it not? There’s 9-year-old Tiffany Aching, of Home Farm, The Chalk, who clobbers a big green water monster with a frying pan. And there’s her horrid, sticky little brother, Wentworth, whose constant cries of “Wanna wanna wanna sweetie!” perhaps explain why Tiffany used him as bait for Jenny Green-Teeth, but do not explain why he gets kidnapped by the Queen of Faerie.
There are the Wee Free Men, masterful brawlers, theivers, and drinkers, blue with tattoos, red-headed, and 6” tall, who’ve come down to The Chalk looking for the new witch. And wasn’t the old witch Tiffany’s Granny? And doesn’t it begin to look like Tiffany herself will be called upon to save Wentworth, the Baron’s son, and the Chalk Hills from the clutches of the evil Queen? Crivens! There are Grimhounds, Nightmares, and Headless Horsemen, a Queen who steals your dreams and traps you in them, and a creeping iciness devouring The Chalk. Will Tiffany, armed only with frying pan, common sense, and steely determination, be able to put things right?.
I guess it’s because I enjoy both fantasy and word play that I am besotted with The Wee Free Men. Tiffany’s tutor in the witchly arts is Perspecatia Tick. Miss Tick gives her a talking toad (he used to be a lawyer) and advises Tiffany to pay attention to her first sight and her second thoughts. The Wee Free Men, aka the Nac Mac Feegle, Pictsies, or “person or persons unknown, believed to be armed” sport delicious names, like Rob Anybody, No’-As-Big-As-Medium-Sized-Jock-But-Bigger-Than-Wee-Jock-Jock, and Daft Willie. And what do those ferocious Feegles shout when things are going badly? “Waily, waily, waily!” of course. Too funny.
If you haven't read Terry Pratchett, I recommend starting with The Wee Free Men. If you like it, there are two more in the series (s0 far): A Hat Full of Sky, and Wintersmith. Yum!
Terry Pratchett’s 30th Discworld novel, The Wee Free Men, is at the top of my list for the 2006/2007 reading season. Yes, there were other titles I particularly enjoyed -- The Glass Castle, The Book Thief, All Over Creation, Eventide -- but The Wee Free Men really left an impression.
How could it not? There’s 9-year-old Tiffany Aching, of Home Farm, The Chalk, who clobbers a big green water monster with a frying pan. And there’s her horrid, sticky little brother, Wentworth, whose constant cries of “Wanna wanna wanna sweetie!” perhaps explain why Tiffany used him as bait for Jenny Green-Teeth, but do not explain why he gets kidnapped by the Queen of Faerie.
There are the Wee Free Men, masterful brawlers, theivers, and drinkers, blue with tattoos, red-headed, and 6” tall, who’ve come down to The Chalk looking for the new witch. And wasn’t the old witch Tiffany’s Granny? And doesn’t it begin to look like Tiffany herself will be called upon to save Wentworth, the Baron’s son, and the Chalk Hills from the clutches of the evil Queen? Crivens! There are Grimhounds, Nightmares, and Headless Horsemen, a Queen who steals your dreams and traps you in them, and a creeping iciness devouring The Chalk. Will Tiffany, armed only with frying pan, common sense, and steely determination, be able to put things right?.
I guess it’s because I enjoy both fantasy and word play that I am besotted with The Wee Free Men. Tiffany’s tutor in the witchly arts is Perspecatia Tick. Miss Tick gives her a talking toad (he used to be a lawyer) and advises Tiffany to pay attention to her first sight and her second thoughts. The Wee Free Men, aka the Nac Mac Feegle, Pictsies, or “person or persons unknown, believed to be armed” sport delicious names, like Rob Anybody, No’-As-Big-As-Medium-Sized-Jock-But-Bigger-Than-Wee-Jock-Jock, and Daft Willie. And what do those ferocious Feegles shout when things are going badly? “Waily, waily, waily!” of course. Too funny.
If you haven't read Terry Pratchett, I recommend starting with The Wee Free Men. If you like it, there are two more in the series (s0 far): A Hat Full of Sky, and Wintersmith. Yum!
Friday, May 18, 2007
Welcome to the Monkey House
Welcome to the Monkey House, by Kurt Vonnegut, is one of the few remaining Vonnegut books on our shelves, and it's a beat up copy at that. What is it about this man that tickles our funny bones and makes us weep in frustration and nostalgia?
I asked two students that very question.
One replied that "Vonnegut knows what a reader wants to hear." Well, yes, especially if you believe that dogs are smarter than their people.
The other called him "the dark humor man, the funny grampa who embarrasses the bride on her wedding day with his views on everything." Too true, although whatever he uttered would be the truth.
Want a vision of the future? Read the first and last stories in this collection, and then, like Harrison Bergeron, treasure your imperfections in the face of mediocrity. Just be sure that, unlike Lou and Emerald Schwartz, you occupy a cozy bed in your own room while you read these wickedly funny stories.
And for Vonnegut's own words on whatever life throws at us? "Laughter and tears are both responses to frustration and exhaustion. I myself prefer to laugh, since there is less cleaning up to do afterwards."
Kurt Vonnegut, novelist and essayist, died this past April at 84.
My favorite? Miss Temptation, in which Cpl. Fuller, upon return from the Korean War, learns from an alluring and decent young woman how to be a human being again.
What's yours?
I asked two students that very question.
One replied that "Vonnegut knows what a reader wants to hear." Well, yes, especially if you believe that dogs are smarter than their people.
The other called him "the dark humor man, the funny grampa who embarrasses the bride on her wedding day with his views on everything." Too true, although whatever he uttered would be the truth.
Want a vision of the future? Read the first and last stories in this collection, and then, like Harrison Bergeron, treasure your imperfections in the face of mediocrity. Just be sure that, unlike Lou and Emerald Schwartz, you occupy a cozy bed in your own room while you read these wickedly funny stories.
And for Vonnegut's own words on whatever life throws at us? "Laughter and tears are both responses to frustration and exhaustion. I myself prefer to laugh, since there is less cleaning up to do afterwards."
Kurt Vonnegut, novelist and essayist, died this past April at 84.
My favorite? Miss Temptation, in which Cpl. Fuller, upon return from the Korean War, learns from an alluring and decent young woman how to be a human being again.
What's yours?
Friday, March 23, 2007
Speak
Most of us have been to at least one bad party. And I bet all of us have had a crummy day at school. (Remember Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day?) Well, Laurie Halse Anderson’s 1999 novel, Speak, takes the un-fun party and the awful school day to new heights. It’s one of the most-borrowed books in the fiction section. (It’s also a movie.)
Melinda starts off her ninth grade year under the cloud of something that happened at a summertime party. Something so terrible that she called the police, who broke up the party, which outraged the other party-goers. In the space of a phone call, Melinda has become an outsider, shunned and heckled by her peers -- even her best friend, Rachel, dumps her. “I am OUTCAST,” she realizes. Why did Melinda call the cops? She can’t think about it. She can’t talk about it. Soon, she cannot speak at all.
Speak is organized by quarters, like the school year. We see the students, teachers, halls and classrooms from Melinda’s point of view, reading her thoughts. We are outcast with her, and burning to find out what actually happened at that infamous party.
Lest you think that Anderson’s novel is one long, miserable slog, I have to mention how funny it is. Yes, really. Melinda has a wicked wit, and a spot-on take on almost every aspect of high school life. From the cliques (the Future Fascists of America, the Marthas, the Suffering Artists...) to the teachers (good old Mr. Neck!) to the ever-changing school mascots and the way her parents talk in post-it notes, you will find plenty of humor to break up the suspense and sadness.
If you’ve read Speak, we’d love to see your comments. Fire ‘em in!
Melinda starts off her ninth grade year under the cloud of something that happened at a summertime party. Something so terrible that she called the police, who broke up the party, which outraged the other party-goers. In the space of a phone call, Melinda has become an outsider, shunned and heckled by her peers -- even her best friend, Rachel, dumps her. “I am OUTCAST,” she realizes. Why did Melinda call the cops? She can’t think about it. She can’t talk about it. Soon, she cannot speak at all.
Speak is organized by quarters, like the school year. We see the students, teachers, halls and classrooms from Melinda’s point of view, reading her thoughts. We are outcast with her, and burning to find out what actually happened at that infamous party.
Lest you think that Anderson’s novel is one long, miserable slog, I have to mention how funny it is. Yes, really. Melinda has a wicked wit, and a spot-on take on almost every aspect of high school life. From the cliques (the Future Fascists of America, the Marthas, the Suffering Artists...) to the teachers (good old Mr. Neck!) to the ever-changing school mascots and the way her parents talk in post-it notes, you will find plenty of humor to break up the suspense and sadness.
If you’ve read Speak, we’d love to see your comments. Fire ‘em in!
Friday, February 23, 2007
The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy
Got an electronic thumb? How about your Sub-Etha-Sens-O-Matic? If you wanna' be a hoopy frood, grab a towel and let Douglas Adams guide you into outer, way outer, space.
Ford Prefect, seasoned traveler and man about space, has one more entry to make in the Hitchhiker's Guide but got stuck on Earth for far too long upon completion (of the entry, not of Earth!) Rescuing Arthur Dent in the nick of time as the Vogons blast the planet into smithereens in order to create their own freeway, Ford and Arthur hitch a ride out of destruction and into the wackiest version of space in sci fi lit.
Meet Zaphod Beeblebrox, galactic president and proud owner of two heads and three arms, his girlfriend, Trillian, former Earthling herself, and Marvin, their depressed, rather intelligent computer who so depresses the policeship computer that it commits suicide, but that's another story. Y'see, it turns out that Earth was really nothing more than an organic computer designed to formulate the answer to the question: "Well, what's the question to the answer, "42?"
Confused yet? Can't imagine why. Get a good night's sleep, tighten your belt, and let us know how you survived. Yes, yes, you clearly had a towel but write us a note anyway.
Ford Prefect, seasoned traveler and man about space, has one more entry to make in the Hitchhiker's Guide but got stuck on Earth for far too long upon completion (of the entry, not of Earth!) Rescuing Arthur Dent in the nick of time as the Vogons blast the planet into smithereens in order to create their own freeway, Ford and Arthur hitch a ride out of destruction and into the wackiest version of space in sci fi lit.
Meet Zaphod Beeblebrox, galactic president and proud owner of two heads and three arms, his girlfriend, Trillian, former Earthling herself, and Marvin, their depressed, rather intelligent computer who so depresses the policeship computer that it commits suicide, but that's another story. Y'see, it turns out that Earth was really nothing more than an organic computer designed to formulate the answer to the question: "Well, what's the question to the answer, "42?"
Confused yet? Can't imagine why. Get a good night's sleep, tighten your belt, and let us know how you survived. Yes, yes, you clearly had a towel but write us a note anyway.
Tuesday, January 23, 2007
The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants
There may be a few teenage girls in the USA who haven’t read Ann Brashares' 2001 novel, The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants, in which case, I’d better plug it now. Happy readers have worn out several copies from our library; the net is thoroughly populated with Sisterhood sites (including the Wikipedia article, Sisterhood Central, and a great author Q&A from Random House); and there was even a movie back in 2005.
The recap: four 15 year old best friends (Carmen, Lena, Bridget & Tibby) prepare to spend a first-ever summer apart. They’ve been together forever, and while they mostly look forward to spending time in South Carolina, Greece, Baja California, or (poor Tibby) right at home in Bethesda, Maryland, they also know how terribly they will miss each other.
These are no cookie-cutter friends: they have wildly different interests, personalities, backgrounds and body types. So it’s pretty weird when a pair of $3.49 thrift shop jeans fits all of them perfectly, making each one feel confident, sexy, and powerful . “These are magic pants!” And magic pants must be shared so that each girl will have the pants for one week, and then send them on in rotation, giving everyone two weeks of the magic by summer’s end.
Each girl’s summer story then unfolds, intertwined with the schedule of the traveling pants. Fear, happiness, anger, love, jealousy, suspense, grief -- it’s all there, and then some, as we experience not one, but four summertime comings-of-age.
Ann Brashares’ captivating first novel has something to offer almost any girl on the planet. The writing is witty and true to life; the characters are so well drawn you feel like you’ve known them for years; and each girl’s summer story is a page-turner in its own right. Like the movie trailer says, “Laugh. Cry. Share the pants.”
If you liked The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants as much as I did -- or if you really didn’t -- please say so. (My favorite character was Tibby; who was yours?)
The recap: four 15 year old best friends (Carmen, Lena, Bridget & Tibby) prepare to spend a first-ever summer apart. They’ve been together forever, and while they mostly look forward to spending time in South Carolina, Greece, Baja California, or (poor Tibby) right at home in Bethesda, Maryland, they also know how terribly they will miss each other.
These are no cookie-cutter friends: they have wildly different interests, personalities, backgrounds and body types. So it’s pretty weird when a pair of $3.49 thrift shop jeans fits all of them perfectly, making each one feel confident, sexy, and powerful . “These are magic pants!” And magic pants must be shared so that each girl will have the pants for one week, and then send them on in rotation, giving everyone two weeks of the magic by summer’s end.
Each girl’s summer story then unfolds, intertwined with the schedule of the traveling pants. Fear, happiness, anger, love, jealousy, suspense, grief -- it’s all there, and then some, as we experience not one, but four summertime comings-of-age.
Ann Brashares’ captivating first novel has something to offer almost any girl on the planet. The writing is witty and true to life; the characters are so well drawn you feel like you’ve known them for years; and each girl’s summer story is a page-turner in its own right. Like the movie trailer says, “Laugh. Cry. Share the pants.”
If you liked The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants as much as I did -- or if you really didn’t -- please say so. (My favorite character was Tibby; who was yours?)
Wednesday, December 06, 2006
Into The Wild by John Krakauer
Okay, here's the book everyone grabs when given the assignment: read an adventure story. Chris McCandless, fresh out of college, roamed the country for a year as he sought the kind of experiences Jack London invited and endured a century earlier. He ended up hitchhiking and riding the rails as he worked to equip himself to spend a season in Alaska...alone.
Chris turned out to be an incredibly stubborn guy who ultimately entered the Alaskan bush in late spring, ill-prepared and penniless by choice, determined to rely on nothing but native intelligence, rifle, and rice, of course. He left behind a map but carried a field guide to edible plants. The book's cover informs you that his decomposed body was discovered four months after he went in. You know how he ended. The question is: what happened?
Let us know what you find out by posting a comment and offering your opinion: was he just an arrogant rich kid, as many of the Alaskans thought, or did he have something else in mind, something to prove? Tell us, 'cause we want to know what you think!
Chris turned out to be an incredibly stubborn guy who ultimately entered the Alaskan bush in late spring, ill-prepared and penniless by choice, determined to rely on nothing but native intelligence, rifle, and rice, of course. He left behind a map but carried a field guide to edible plants. The book's cover informs you that his decomposed body was discovered four months after he went in. You know how he ended. The question is: what happened?
Let us know what you find out by posting a comment and offering your opinion: was he just an arrogant rich kid, as many of the Alaskans thought, or did he have something else in mind, something to prove? Tell us, 'cause we want to know what you think!
Friday, December 01, 2006
The Lovely Bones
In December, when I hear the jingle bells, I remember The Lovely Bones: A Novel, by Alice Sebold. 14-year-old Susie Salmon (like the fish) died in December, raped and murdered by a neighbor as she took a shortcut home from school. Mr. Gilbert’s dog brought home her elbow.
Susie tells her story from beyond the grave -- from her afterlife, in her heaven. We follow as she watches her friends and family struggle with their grief, and as she imagines and mourns the life she will never live.
This book is at once gripping, powerful, and everyday. We grin as Susie describes the silly hat with pom-poms and bells she puts on to please her mom, but takes off when she's out of sight. We hold our breath as Susie fights to live, and gasp as she jumps to grab death by the hand when the battle is clearly lost. We understand her quest for justice, and her yearning for vengeance.
The Lovely Bones is one of the HHS Library’s most-borrowed books. I thought about it for weeks after I finished it. If you’ve thought about it, too, please leave a comment.
(And the jingle bells? The murderer jams that silly hat into Susie's mouth. When she screams, the only sound is the tinkle of the bells.)
Susie tells her story from beyond the grave -- from her afterlife, in her heaven. We follow as she watches her friends and family struggle with their grief, and as she imagines and mourns the life she will never live.
This book is at once gripping, powerful, and everyday. We grin as Susie describes the silly hat with pom-poms and bells she puts on to please her mom, but takes off when she's out of sight. We hold our breath as Susie fights to live, and gasp as she jumps to grab death by the hand when the battle is clearly lost. We understand her quest for justice, and her yearning for vengeance.
The Lovely Bones is one of the HHS Library’s most-borrowed books. I thought about it for weeks after I finished it. If you’ve thought about it, too, please leave a comment.
(And the jingle bells? The murderer jams that silly hat into Susie's mouth. When she screams, the only sound is the tinkle of the bells.)
Thursday, November 02, 2006
Sojourn, Vol. 1: From the Ashes
What’s the most-read graphic novel here in LibraryLand? Yup. It’s Sojourn, Volume One: From the Ashes, written by Ron Marz, penciled by Greg Land, and inked by Drew Geraci. Here is epic fantasy, complete with heroine, wizard, quest, magic, mystery, trolls, and grand, bloody, chaotic battles between the forces of good and evil. It’s true that Sojourn starts out a little slowly, action-wise, while the author catches us up on 300 years of backstory -- but what fantasy junkie doesn’t love that stuff? The more we find out about that other world, the better.
Plus -- unlike its 800+ page counterparts on the fiction shelf (think Jordan’s Wheel of Time or Martin’s Song of Ice & Fire, etc.) -- this is a comic! The art is splendid. Aside from all the fantastic detail work, the action and emotion drawn into each character, creature, and scene really bring Marz’ storyline to life.
Fellow fantasy freaks, speak up! If you’ve read Sojourn, pop us a comment. If you haven’t, give it a try.
Plus -- unlike its 800+ page counterparts on the fiction shelf (think Jordan’s Wheel of Time or Martin’s Song of Ice & Fire, etc.) -- this is a comic! The art is splendid. Aside from all the fantastic detail work, the action and emotion drawn into each character, creature, and scene really bring Marz’ storyline to life.
Fellow fantasy freaks, speak up! If you’ve read Sojourn, pop us a comment. If you haven’t, give it a try.
Thursday, October 26, 2006
Fallen Angels
Written as a memorial to his brother, who died fighting in Vietnam in 1968, Walter Dean Myers' Fallen Angels is an accurate and revealing account of one soldier's tour of duty in Nam. If you want the sights and sounds of war, you've got 'em here: mortar and rocket fire, choppers, and the eerie noises of night patrol. And underlying the horrors, the loyalty and camraderie, is that omnipresent soldier's emotion -- fear.
Felt the fear? Thrilled during the skirmishes? Ached with a fellow soldier's death? (all in the story, of course.) Share your stuff here and post a comment.
Oh, and you might want to try Tim O'Brien's Vietnam books, Going After Cacciato, and The Things They Carried.
Felt the fear? Thrilled during the skirmishes? Ached with a fellow soldier's death? (all in the story, of course.) Share your stuff here and post a comment.
Oh, and you might want to try Tim O'Brien's Vietnam books, Going After Cacciato, and The Things They Carried.
Wednesday, October 11, 2006
Go Ask Alice
Long the “number one most stolen book” on our fiction shelves, Go Ask Alice, by Anonymous, continues its 35-year reign as one of the HHS Library’s most popular reads. If you’re a fan of gritty, realistic, don’t-end-up-like-me novels, then Alice has much to offer: drugs (lots of them), promiscuity, running away, abuse, hospitalization, suspicion, and death (to name a few.)
Some think that Beatrice Sparks, “editor” of other cautionary tales (Jay’s Journal, It Happened to Nancy, Annie’s Baby, Finding Katie) is the anonymous author behind Go Ask Alice. Many think the book is poorly written and not quite believable. But the fact remains: years after its publication in 1971, it still makes a splash.
Do you have thoughts on Go Ask Alice? Send ‘em in!
Some think that Beatrice Sparks, “editor” of other cautionary tales (Jay’s Journal, It Happened to Nancy, Annie’s Baby, Finding Katie) is the anonymous author behind Go Ask Alice. Many think the book is poorly written and not quite believable. But the fact remains: years after its publication in 1971, it still makes a splash.
Do you have thoughts on Go Ask Alice? Send ‘em in!
Friday, September 29, 2006
Startled by His Furry Shorts
If you're keeping up with current teen melodrama, then you will not be Startled by His Furry Shorts, Louise Rennison's latest installment in the hilarious English schoolgirl series. Georgia Nicolson is once more on the "rack of romance" and probably heading to the "bakery of pain." But don't worry, Georgia's antics, which began in Angus, Thongs and Full-Frontal Snogging, will most likely leave you howling on the kitchen floor. Watch out, that's Angus' tail you just stepped on!
If you can drag yourself off the floor and wipe away the tears of laughter, let me know what you think. Post a comment, please.
If you can drag yourself off the floor and wipe away the tears of laughter, let me know what you think. Post a comment, please.
Wednesday, September 27, 2006
Twilight
We've hardly seen Twilight: A Novel, by Stephenie Meyer, on the shelf at all this Fall -- someone's always reading it. Not your average vampire story, Twilight blends passion, suspense, and school into a feverish stew that will have you hanging on every word. This, my friends, is a whole new take on what can happen when there's a new girl in a small town high school.
If you've read Twilight, hit the comment button and register your thoughts.
If you've read Twilight, hit the comment button and register your thoughts.
Thursday, September 21, 2006
Welcome!
Welcome to the Hopkinton High School Library's first experiment in blogging! We want to use this space as a forum for promoting the books that our high school and middle school students like best. These will not necessarily be the titles that publishers, teachers, parents -- or even librarians (!) -- think young people should like, but rather the ones about which our students have actually said: "I couldn't put it down."
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