Young Adult Fiction

13: Thirteen Stories That Capture the Agony and Ecstasy of Being Thirteen, edited by James Howe

American Born Chinese by Gene Luen Yang

Angry Little Girls by Leela Lee

The Arrival by Shaun Tan

Before Midnight: A Retelling of Cinderella by Cameron Dokey

Cathy's Book by Sean Stewart and Jordan Weisman

Chasing Yesterday by Robin Wasserman

Dark Sons by Nikki Grimes

Middle School Is Worse Than Meatloaf: A Year Told Through Stuff by Jennifer L. Holm & Elicia Castaldi

Peak by Roland Smith

Runaways: True Believers by Brian K. Vaughan

Sex Kittens and Horn Dawgs Fall in Love by Maryrose Wood

So Yesterday by Scott Westefeld

Uprising by Margaret Peterson Haddix

Wednesday Wars by Gary D. Schmidt

Zen and the Art of Faking It by Jordan Sonnenblick

Total: 16  Of these, 6 were graphic or included a lot of graphic elements

There were a lot of enjoyable reads here.  "Cathy's Book" was unique and the mystery element kept me guessing.  "Before Midnight" and "Uprising" were both straight up old fashioned storytelling, with Dokey adding a different twist to a familiar tale.  "Peak" was an exciting, fast read.  "So Yesterday" made me think.  The graphics are kind of new for me – they are quick.  The one I didn't get had to be "Angry Little Girls".  Either the inside jokes were way too internal for me or it was just drier than the Sahara.  Teen fiction is so diverse - these books all had major teen characters but they were completely different from eachother.I really enjoyed reading these books and look forward to more in the New Year.

Adult Fiction

Bridge of Sighs by Richard Russo

The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time by Mark Haddon

Michael Tolliver Lives by Armistead Maupin

Nineteen Minutes by Jodi Picoult

Pride of Baghdad by Brian K. Vaughan

Shape Shifter by Tony Hillerman

Skylight Confessions by Alice Hoffman

Wow, what a paltry list!  It's official – teen and children's fiction rule my fiction choices.  Most of these adult titles were written by old favorites who I could not ignore.  I think my real love right now is adult non-fiction.  Maybe this year one of my resolutions will be to try and be more adventurous with my adult fiction choices.  Of these, I would say that "Curious Incident" was probably the best.  It was so different and funny and heartbreaking.  I think it may also have been a first novel.  I wanted to love "Bridge of Sighs" but I think the book left me very unsettled.  At heart it is a book of dread.  Are our destinies in our hands or are we subject to forces we do not understand?  And ultimately, are we, as a nation, at the end of something?  These are the questions Russo left with me.  I think I liked his books more when they were more gently witty and forgiving.  "Nineteen Minutes" was also disquieting, in a flashy, "Dateline" sort of way.  Very au courant, and unforgivingly readable.  Those were the highlights, as I see it, of 2007.

I am home on vacation and between hanging with the family, I hope to post my thoughts on the different books I have read in 2007.  First up - Adult Non-fiction.  Here are the titles, some authors too:

And His Lovely Wife: A Memoir From the Woman Beside the Man by Connie Schultz

Born Standing Up: A Comic's Life by Steve Martin

Breastless in the City by Cathy Bueti

Closure by William Keegan

Dead Center: Behind the Scenes at the World's Largest Medical Examiner's Office by Shiya Ribowsky

The Dog Dialed 9-1-1 - Smoking Gun

Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert

The Elephant in the Playroom edited by Denise Brodey

The Feminine Mistake: Are We Giving Up Too Much by Leslie Bennetts

Free for All: Oddballs, Geeks, and Gangstas in the Public Library by Don Borchert

Fun Home: A Family Tragicomic by Alison Bechdel

George and Sam: Two Boys, One Family, and Autism by Charlotte Moore

Last Days of Dead Celebrities

Learning to Drive by Katha Pollitt

Library Mascot Cage Match: An Unshelved Collection by Bill Barnes and Gene Ambaum

On Becoming Fearless by Arianna Huffington

A Photographer's Life, 1990-2005 by Annie Leibovitz

Sound Bites by Alex Kapranos

The Wall: Growing Up Behind the Iron Curtain by Peter Sis

Waiting for Daisy by Peggy Orenstein

Total: 20

Thoughts: I hate when "Best of" lists include things that came out late in the year.  But I'm afraid I may fall victim to the same practice, because "Born Standing Up" was one of the finest books I read in 2007.  Martin's honest willingness to let us watch as his act evolves is fascinating.  We see the alchemy of his childhood experiences and the tenor of the times coming together into an unanticipated rise to fame.  And Martin's brief but completely crucial anecdotes about his life at the apex of his celebrity status lay bare with extreme efficiency the way our culture consumes human beings.

Other highlights were the visual books - "The Wall" by Peter Sis is ostensibly a children's book, and children will learn from it, but I included it here becasue adults should read it too, if only to appreciate the good things about our country that we get to take for granted.  "Fun Home" created a time and a place and a world that I could really see and feel.  And the photographs of Susan Sontag taken by Annie Leibovitz are a beautiful and haunting elegy.  Leibovit's love and respect for her friend radiate from the page.  She takes on all of the big themes of life and death and makes them dramatic and scary and beautiful.

I also enjoyed "Sound Bites" by Alex Kapranos, about his gustatory adventures around the world.  What a glorious, irreverent, politically incorrect celebration of the diversity of cultures around the world! 

So those are the ones that stay with me, that live in my memory, at least for now.

Still to come - adult fiction, teen fiction, children's fiction.

The middle school visit went pretty well.  We talked to 130 kids.  This was a book I read in preparation but ended up not booktalking:

Reading - Zen and the Art of Faking It by Jordan Sonnenblick

San Lee is the new kid in his 8th grade class in the middle of Pennsylvania.  His family moves a lot, and San is wondering who he should be this time.  His ultimate goal is to NOT stand out, because that can lead to trouble.  In other towns, San has been a Skater, Bible Thumper, Rich Preppy and Pretend Jock.  Should he try being a Goth?  Nah, his mom would kill him and it involves too many painful piercings.  San's new social studies class is talking about Buddhism, the same subject his old class in Texas finished just before he and his mom skipped town, and San's dad landed in prison.  Suddenly, without even really trying, San becomes an expert on Buddhism, and he decides that Zen Master might be an identity that he can hide behind for a while.  But things get a bit out of control and San does begin to stand out.  This leads to some complications when San actually starts to make some REAL friends. 

San is a likable kid, despite the web of deceit that he spins.  The novel has lots of quirky characters, including a loopy librarian.  It's got some real information about Buddhism, and introduces readers to a different belief system in a lighthearted way.

Now I am reading some children's books in preparation for our staff's mock Awards prior to the real Newbery (fiction), Caldecott (picture books) and Sibert (non-fiction) Awards.

A Crooked Kind of Perfect by Linda Urban

Ten (almost 11) year old Zoe has a big dream - to play piano at Carnegie Hall. She ends up instead with an organ from the mall and the chance to compete in the annual Perform-O-Rama at the Birch Valley Mall, an hour away.This novel is also heavy on the quirk.  Zoe has an agoraphobic father who takes correspondence courses on all sorts of offbeat subjects.  Her mother is a comptroller who is super focused on work to the point of neglecting her family.  Zoe's organ teacher has lots of unusual sayings and habits.  "Crooked" is reminiscent of "Higher Power of Lucky", with lots of charm and a plucky heroine.

No Talking by Andrew Clements

The fifth graders of Laketon Elementary school have an unusual nickname.  The teachers have taken to calling them The Unshushables, because they are a very chatty and talkative bunch.  All of that changes when a no-talking competition is unleashed by Dave and Lynsey, two of the biggest talkers in the school. 

Kids will get a kick out of this one, but there is also a fair bit of substance for them to ponder about rather important themes like language and communication.

Reading - I've got some catching up to do here:

13: Thirteen Stories That Capture the Agony and Ecstasy of Being Thirteen, edited by James Howe

Ecstasy?  Not a word that comes to my mind when describing age 13.  Howe brings together some of the big names in teen literature for an entertaining collection of 12 short stories and one poem, all featuring 13 year olds.  The voices here are extremely diverse - readers should find some characters they can identify with, and others they will learn from.  Both genders are well represented.  The first story by Bruce Coville, gets things started on a humorous note, with slapstick and pratfalls built in.  The most gripping story for me was Lori Aurelia Williams' "Black Holes and Basketball Sneakers".  It's a profound look at class, poverty, and the origins of violence.  And I guess I'll admit that there IS a moment of ecstasy in this collection - Maureen Ryan Griffin's poem, "Such Foolishness", about running out into the street in the middle of a summer rainstorm.  Each writer adds a short personal note at the end of their contribution.  I will share something from Griffin's: "That dance in summer rain was a celebration of being alive inside my own skin, and as I inhaled the scent of wet asphalt - a smell I still love - I knew it was a moment to keep."

Middle School is Worse Than Meatloaf by Jennifer L. Holm, pictures by Elicia Castaldi

Does anyone remember the "Griffin & Sabine" books?  This is sort of like that.  Sub-titled "A Year Told Through Stuff" we piece together the story of 12 year old Ginny Davis, who likes ballet, her Grampa Joe in Florida, and Vampire Vixens movies.  She's not too crazy about her new stepfather, her ex-best friend and the increasingly disturbing antics of her older brother Henry.  We follow Ginny through the ups and downs of 7th grade as her school and family lives go through some big changes.  But the book has no narrative, really.  We learn about Ginny through the pieces of paper that document her life - school assignments, reports, schedules, letters, cards, etc.  Excerpts from Ginny's diaries and comics penned by Henry help round out the story.  This is a quick read and it is fun to puzzle out the details of Ginny's life.  The objects on the surface seem kind of lighthearted, but there are some serious things happening in Ginny's life - I sensed a bit of darkness hovering beneath the smiley-faced surface here.  Although the book looks a bit juvenile it is really aimed at young teens.

The Arrival by Shaun Tan

Can we ever really know what it feels like to emigrate to a foreign land?  This book attempts to give the reader/viewer the experience of moving to a completely alien place and trying to survive and adapt.  The story is told entirely through drawings that evoke the early 20th century American immigrant experience.  This book is a complete original, accessible on different levels to all ages. 

Before Midnight: A Retelling of "Cinderella" by Cameron Dokey

Do you believe in love at first sight?  Cendrillon has heard that such a feeling can run in families.  She is not yet sure if it runs in hers.  All she does know is that her mother died giving birth to her, and her father has fled, unable to acknowledge his daughter, who he blames for the loss of the love of his life.  Cendrillon lives in a castle by the sea with the mysterious Raoul, who was brought to the castle by her father without explanation and abandoned as well.  Unanswered questions are brought to light, and eventually answered, when a carriage arrives at the castle, carrying Cendrillon's new family - a stepmother and two step sisters.

This retelling of Cinderella is not the black and white good vs. evil Disney tale we have grown up with.  This version asks - what if Cinderella's father is alive?  What if her stepfamily is NOT evil?  In an author's note at the end, Dokey says that she used some of the earliest telling of the fairy tale to come up with her version.

Reading - Chasing Yesterday 1: Awakening by Robin Wasserman

JD aka "Jane Doe" cannot remember anything about her past.  She wakes up in rubble after a massive explosion.  After going to the hospital, nobody knows what to do with her, so she is placed in a juvenile home until her mother shows up a few days later.  JD's time in the home is a waking nightmare - she's having violent flashbacks of strange experiences that make no sense, and the other kids hate her.  When she gets into a confrontation with another "inmate", JD somehow makes the girl fly across the room without even touching her.  JD would be going crazy except for one thing - she makes a friend named Daniel, and he seems to "get" her.  But soon after she and Daniel meet, JD's mother shows up to claim her.  Mom says her real name is Alexa, and takes her home.  But nothing looks familiar to JD/Alexa.  And her Mom won't let her talk on the phone, use the computer, go to school, or even leave the house, except to meet with a creepy psychiatrist named Dr. Styron.  He tells her that her fleeting memories are false and delusional.  Both adults think JD/Alexa needs to be sent to an institution for more extensive therapy.  JD/Alexa does not know what to do - she can't trust her own thoughts and memories, but something about her mother and Dr. Styron feels wrong.  The only person she can trust is Daniel, and she sneaks away to talk to him.  With his help, JD/Alexa is able to confront the adults and their lies and manipulation.  JD and Daniel end up on the run from the grownups and on a quest to put together the pieces of JD's past.

This book has a really creepy "Memento/Lost" kind of vibe.  It moves along pretty quickly.  It's a good science fiction pick for ages 9-13.  And it's got strong male and female protagonists, which is cool.

Reading- Peak by Roland Smith

I am reading a bunch of 7-8-9th grade level books in preparation for a Middle School visit at the end of the month.  "Peak" is the name of a 14 year old kid living in New York City.  As the story begins, Peak is hanging on by his fingernails to a skyscraper.  His current hobby is scaling tall buildings so he can tag them with his signature graffitti, a blue mountain.  But this climb does not go so well, and Peak ends up in juvie lockup.  What's worse is some copycat kid falls off the Flatiron Building and dies.  Now everyone in authority wants to make an example of Peak.  Suddenly, for the first time in his life, Peak's real father, a famous mountain climber named Joshua Wood, who Peak has not seen in years, shows up to save the day.  Wood works out a deal with the cops and Peak is off the hook.  But there's always a catch.  Wood wants something in return.  He has an offer for Peak that is hard to refuse - how would Peak like to be the youngest person ever to climb Mount Everest?

Being a fan a Jon Krakauer, I enjoyed this fictionalized account of an Everest expedition, as seen through a kid's eyes.  The book moves along briskly, and has a lot of heart.

Reading - Uprising: Three Young Women Caught in the Fire That Changed America by Margaret Peterson Haddix

Why does the past matter?   Three young girls who lived 100 years ago - what relevance can they have to our modern lives?  Look around you.  Are you in a public building?  Does it have a sprinkler system, fire extinguishers, emergency lights?  Some of these safety features are the direct result of events that took place in 1911.  "Uprising" tells the story of three young women from very different backgrounds who become friends.  Bella literally just got off the boat from Italy.  She has left behind a family who is starving and her only hope is to send money home so that they can get enough food to eat.  Her father is dead.  She speaks only Italian and cannot read or write in any language.  Yetta is new to America, too.  She and her sister escaped Russia and they are trying to earn enough money to bring the rest of their Jewish family to safety in America.  Jane is a child of privilege who lives trapped in the stuffy cage of high society, where nothing more is expected of girls than to have good manners so they can be married off to the highest bidder.  The lives of these three young women become intertwined when they get involved in the labor movement at the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory.  Bella and Yetta work there, and Jane learns about their attempts to organize a labor union through some college student friends.  The girls face many challenges - poor pay, cheating bosses and a whole world that looks upon them as worthless.  Just like in real life, things do NOT work ut perfectly in the end.  But these girls learn the value of standing on their own two feet.  What they did mattered, and still matters to us today.

This book was amazing.  It was somehow heartbreaking and hopeful at the same time.  Be sure to read the Author's Note at the end.  Haddix ties the distant past at Triangle to current events.