Children's Books Too Cool for School

I may like this book more than any of the other award winners and honorees I've read this season. The pace is great, the story is engrossing, and the whole thing is very compelling. I think it teaches some very interesting lessons without being too didactic, as well.

Katya, like a few others in her world, is "graced," meaning she has a sort of special gift or power. In Katya's case she is a fighter -- a killer, really. And everyone knows. You see, they can tell by the look in her eyes. No, not the murderous glint, but the fact that her eyes are two different colors, as are the eyes of all "gracelings."

She lives in a dangerous world of five scheming kingdoms, and is used by her uncle, King Randa, to mete out his own brand of harsh justice. For Randa she must break arms and intimidate, and she leads a lonely life. Gracelings are generally mistrusted, and a graceling who can kill with such ease....

However, in her own way, Katya is trying to fight back. She's created a council of do-gooders, who try to counteract the evil the squabbling kings have inflicted upon the world. It is during a mission for the council, saving a kidnapped foreigner, that she first meets Po, another graced fighter.

Po makes Katya's world a little less lonely, and a little more mystifying. She enjoys a fellow fighter who is a true challenge to her skills, and who seems to share her sense of justice. So it seems natural that they set out together to discover the mystery behind the aforementioned kidnapping and end up on a mission to make the world a better place.

I feel a little handicapped in that I don't want to mention too much and ruin the fun of reading this great story for yourself. There are simply all sorts of twists and turns and surprises that make this story great.

Like others, I'm very taken with Katya as a heroine. She's strong, she's smart, and she doesn't depend on anyone. (Although, I'd like to see, for once, a sort of feminist hero who isn't quite so tomboyish. I'm a feminist and I still enjoy wearing pretty dresses. The two aren't mutually exclusive!) I like that she never sacrifices her ideals.

Perhaps my only complaint is that although the fast pace was exciting, I might have enjoyed a little slowdown in exchange for a longer book. However, I'm not a teen or a reluctant reader, so there are trade-offs.

I also don't like Po's name... but I got over it.

The ending was a little deus ex machina, but I got over that too. At least Katsa dealt with it in an emotionally complex manner.

A word of warning: there is a great deal of violence, horror, evil, and a bit of sexual activity in this story. Don't say I didn't warn you. It is really an older YA story. I don't usually review such mature books here, but I realy want to spread the word!

Great for boys and girls ages 15 or older.

As a Gaiman groupie, I can't tell you how thrilled I was to have Gaiman win the Newbery. As a Gaiman groupie, I'm embarrassed to tell you that I didn't read his award-winning novel when it came out. But, hey, that's easily rectified!

The Graveyard Book is easily the most touching "ghost story" I've ever read. Yeah, I cried at the end. It was funny. It was adventuresome. It was suspenseful. It was totally deserving of the Newbery. At its heart, it is really nothing more than the typical bildungsroman. Child is born, grows up, has to strike out on his own... But, of course, it is what's between those lines that really counts.

Nobody Owens lives in a graveyard. Yes, really! His parents were brutally murdered when he was a child, but the hardy toddler escaped to the local cemetery, and was adopted by the ghosts of Mr. and Mrs. Owens. Although it does take a village to raise a child -- or in this case a graveyard -- and all the inhabitants adore their live boy and take excellent care of him.

But, of course, there comes a point when Nobody (or Bod) yearns to leave the graveyard, even though he knows that the world is not safe for him. You see, the man Jack who came after Bod's family so many years ago is still trying to finish the job.

The episodic nature of this book is interesting, and makes more sense when you read how the book came together. Gaiman wrote a little story for a magazine (which became one of the best chapters in the book) but when he read it to his daughter she wanted to know, "What next?"

And so will you.

Ages 10-14, roughly. The only thing that gives me pause in terms of younger readers is the novel's rather gruesome beginning. For boys and girls and, frankly, anyone who loves a good story. Go Newbery!

This book is for children?

Its happy yellow cover with the doggy and the two kittens on the front aside, there is nothing child-like about this story. Here's a conversation with a member of my family:

"What are you reading?"

"The Underneath. Newbery Honor Book."

"Oh, any good? What's it about?"

"Well, it is about a cat whose owners dump her in the woods just before she's about to give birth and she follows the singing of a hound dog to a house owned by a horrible man. Named Gar face. Abused as a child, abandoned by his mom, and an alcoholic. Listen to this! (I then read a very graphic paragraph from the book to him about what it feels like to drink cheap vodka.)"

"You said this was a Newbery?"

"It gets worse. Gar Face totally shoots his own dog and now he keeps the poor thing chained in the front yard 24/7 and doesn't feed him half the time. And the cats have to hide under the porch so Gar Face won't drown them or something. He also beats the dog."

"Good god!"

"Also, for no reason I can discern, there's a funky subplot about some snake-woman who has been trapped in a jar for a thousand years. Also lots of trees."

"And this is for children?"

Really. I couldn't have said it better myself. At least it ends on a redeeming, if gruesome, note. Beautifully written, though. I do have to admit that. Supposedly it is for ages 9-12. Girls or boys, I suppose. Please read this one yourself first, though.

Although I finished most of the books quite some time ago, I was anxiously awaiting my library's copy of the last book in the series, The Diamond of Darkhold. I'm almost regretting my decision to review the series as a whole now, since some of the books are of a very different tenor, but what's done is done and I refuse to write four separate reviews!

I was immediately taken with the first book in the series, The City of Ember. Formerly my go-to dystopia for youngsters was Lois Lowry's The Giver (still one of my favorite books), but Ember can capture an even younger audience and I have to admit the basic concept is enchanting.

Ember is a post-apocalyptic city under the ground. Meant to last about 200 years, the instructions for leaving Ember are long-lost and its inhabitants know nothing about the world outside -- as in they don't even know there is one. Problem is, Ember is dying. The canned food supplies are running low, as are most other durable goods. This is slightly surmountable, since they do have greenhouses. The bigger problem is that the generator which runs the lights of Ember is going. The whole city is lit by electric light bulbs and now periodically goes dark for terrifying minutes at a time.

Into this city are born Doon and Lina, now embarking on their first jobs in Ember. Lina is a clever messenger with a keen observational eye, and Doon is down in the pipeworks and hoping to discover how the generator works so he can save Ember. One day Lina discovers her little sister, Poppy, gnawing on an important-looking piece of paper. Sadly, it is mostly destroyed. Can she and Doon piece it together. Does it contain the solution on how to save Ember?

This first novel was tense, amazing, and wonderfully detailed. The whole idea of Ember is fascinating, and the notion of a city whose doom is to go dark probably works for a lot of children, for whom the dark is still a scary thing. (I might as well admit it -- I'm still a bit scared of the dark, so the thought of a pitch-black Ember was a really visceral image for me.) The joy you feel when Lina finds those instructions for exiting Ember, then that sinking feeling as you realize Poppy has gnawed them to a pulp, and then the nail-biting second half of the novel as Lina and Doon try to figure out what it all means are fascinating. This is a fantasy with everything going for it.

Okay, from here on out, I'm going to have to give some things away as I discuss the sequels. You've been warned!

The People of Sparks picks up when Lina and Doon finally figure out how to get out of Ember and then locate one of the few surviving towns in the world. Sparks is considerably more primitive than Ember -- electricity is gone, there are no flush toilets, and the folks live a hardscrabble agrarian life. However, Doon, Lina and the rest of the surviving Emberites are amazed at the big world out here with its blue sky and greenery. They are less enamored with the work it takes to live in it.

The people of Sparks agree to shelter the Emberites for a time while they learn how to survive, but tensions grow as the Emberites tax Sparks' food supply and their hospitatlity. Soon they are on the verge of war -- the very thing people on the topside have always dreaded will happen again. When tensions overtop, how will the people of Ember and Sparks survive?

I found this book just as engaging, if not as enchanting, as the first. Again, the tensions really keep you on the edge of your seat, and Duprau has done a wonderful job of fleshing out her post-apocolypic world.

The third installment, The Prophet of Yonwood is a prequel, and one I could have initially done without. The books of Ember would read just fine without it. However, I may be being a little unfair. It was a fine story in its own right and I would recommend reading it, it's just that it's... a prequel. Yick.

The Prophet of Yonwood starts many years before the disaster that would drive a whole society underground, but the buildup and precursors to this disaster are already there. It takes place in the small town of (duh) Yonwood, where a women name Althea Tower has a had a fiery vision that her neighbors think is from God. I appreciate the way DuPrau captures the panic and terror that seize the town -- a panic that almost feels a little too close to home -- but I was disappointed in the way the tension was diffused. Knowing that ultimately society is going to annihilate itself in this storyline, it was frustrating to see this book tend toward happily ever after.

The last book of Ember is the aformentioned Diamond of Darkhold which, despite my frustrations with Prophet of Yonwood, might actually be my least favorite in the series. On the upside we are back with Lina and Doon again. On the dowside, they really are dealing with the same issues as they were the last time we saw them. A weather event has lessened the supplies in Sparks and now the tensions are mounting again. Lina and Doon decide to revisit Ember to gather supplies and also to puzzle out what a torn up book found by a scavenger might mean for them. Sound familiar?

Problem is, Ember is occupied by an unfriendly and stupid family who capture Doon and completely misue the thing meant to guarantee the future of the Emberites. Can Doon get free and figure out what the thing does?

Nothing wrong with the story except that it is really just more of the same. It ends on a completely unnecessary note about aliens and a reference to Yonwood. Totally skipable. Makes me enjoy Prophet of Yonwood a lot more, really.

Well, I've gone and reviewd all four books in one post, haven't I? Oh well. Overall, I have loved the books of Ember and can't wait to recommend them to as many folks as possible. With the books' dynamic duo of hero/heroine, the books will also have great appeal to all sexes. Good for roughly ages 10-12, it could definitely appeal to much older readers.

Budgetary Blues

I had two sorts of posts/apologies in mind, but I've come to realize that the two are related. Firstly, I have obviously slacked off on the posting. While one expects one's initial enthusiasm to abate a bit, I am still, frankly, reading and thinking on books. Just not writing about them. Secondly, I was not prepared to offer thoughts on the Newbery or the Caldecott this year. I really hate that.

However, both problems have essentially the same source -- the budget.

It is the bane of public workers everywhere and this year ours has been tight, tight, tight. The first problem this has lead to is that we are now terribly short-staffed at work, meaning I am now busier, meaning when I get home the last thing I want to do is more "work"-- even if it is self-imposed. So I simply haven't been writing the reviews. Also, I am committed to try and find new and interesting things to review and with the library's restricted budget, newer stuff simply isn't making it into my hands.

This brings us to the worst part -- why I have no thoughts on the Newbery or the Caldecott. I haven't read them. Our restricted budget means that I am much more out of the loop on the latest greatest things in children's lit. It isn't that this year's winners came out of left field -- most of them were making the rounds of "Best Books of '08" lists -- but that my source of books, the library, has either not ordered these books, or has ordered very limited quantities. I've been on the waiting lists for some (The Graveyard Book) and simply haven't even heard of others (House in the Night).

So here is where I am. I will try to make a little more time in my life for reviews, but as fewer new books come into my hands the reviews will also necessarily be fewer. And we'll just look to the future and imagine a time when maybe I'll be cash-flush again and we can all enjoy the benefits of that!

The popular Wynne Jones hardly needs my review or any reviewer's approval. She's a perennial favorite, and the film version of Howl's Moving Castle, to which this is a sequel (to the book that is, not the film), is never in at the local library. The book does far better than average too, as do most of Wynne Jones' offerings. However, I enjoyed this book so much, I just wanted to write about it.

For those expecting a direct pick up from where we left Howl and Sophie, it is not quite that kind of sequel. Instead we are initially introduced to Charmain Baker, an overprotected girl who has never done anything interesting in her life, but who is now taking care of her Great-Uncle's house while he has surgery.

The house itself is weird enough -- the doors don't always open to same places, and there are dishes and dirt everywhere -- then the apprentice wizard who suddenly shows up on the doorstep is even weirder. Weirdest of all are the blue creatures and the evil lubbock that Charmain encounters outside.

Charmain also secures some minor employment at the local castle, and ends up smack in the middle of the royal family's hunt for the "Elfgift," which is supposed to help solve their monetary problems. Called in to help with this issue is our old friend Sophie, with her son and crazy husband in tow. See! It is a sequel after all.

As with Howl's Moving Castle, I love the delightful chaos of this story, as well as the heroine's charmingly practical reactions to the chaos around her. In this respect, Charmain is much like Sophie, although Charmain has a bit of a journey to get to the caliber of a Sophie, it's true. The apprentice who shows up on Great-Uncle William's doorstep, on the other hand, is definitely not a couterpart to Howl. However, his bumblng ways are almost endearing, and watching his growing friendship with Charmain is fun.

The whole book is marked by the good humor and fun that is the trademark of Wynne Jones and ought to have good appeal for both boys and girls ages 10-13.

I loved the back cover of this book, that had a can label with nutrition information on it. I loved the front cover of this book, with its bright colors.

I loved the beginning of this book, wherein we meet Fergal. Fergal, whom adults think must be clever because he collects cans.

Yes, cans.

Cans without labels, to be exact. He found his first one in the bargain bin, and it was so cheap, since one really couldn't know what was in the can. Fergal liked the idea of the promise the cans held, and had soon amassed a collection of fifty. That's when his mother told him he must open one before he could purchase anymore.

And that's how he found the finger in the can.

It was while snatching up a new can that made an interesting rattle that he discovered Charlotte, another can collector! It turns out Charlotte had found a few interesting things in cans as well, and now they had a mystery to solve.

I loved the gruesome humor in this book, I loved Charlotte, and I loved the mystery.

I did not love the end, which felt a little weird and rushed, although it was the most natural and obvious conclusion. I did not like the sections that began as "Fergal's Diary" because they added no action or content to the story. I have no idea why they were there.

But I loved the last line.

Canned is definitely for the dark-humored among us, will be great for male and female reader (I'd say more of a boy book if you forced me at gunpoint), and best for ages 10 - 13.

I was distinctly underwhelmed by this little post-Holocaust tale set in Germany shortly after the war. Although it seemed to want to have a strong didactic bent, trying to drive home messages about tolerance and the importance of history, the story's very distance in time, location, and circumstance to its own ideal reader makes that message likely to fall flat. It is a highly literary little volume, but for all that, I wonder who's going to read it? And more to the point, love it?

After the Train tells the story of a young German boy sick of hearing about the Jews. Not that he suffers from any antisemitic notions, but rather that for a young boy who doesn't really remember the war, the whole thing seems so distant now. However, a few things in his life make him begin to question these feelings. He notices that not everyone seems to have moved beyond Jew-hatred. Then the real bombshell drops -- he finds he's adopted, and (not surprisingly) Jewish.

So what does that make him? Should he eat pork? Should he go to synagogue? And how will this change how the world around him reacts to him?

While interesting in premise, the whole thing may be just a wee bit to cerebral for this age. There isn't any real driving crisis or moment of tension. It really is mostly a quick read about a boy's image of himself after he discovers the story of his rescue from a cattle car headed to a concentration camp. It's very well-written, but, again, it doesn't really seem to have an audience.

On the plus side for those that like to introduce a subject like the Holocaust with gentleness, the book is remarkably free of violence and only very lightly touches on the subject of Nazi behavior towards Jews.

Good for girls and boys around 10-12.

I had the best time reading this book. From the delectable title, the wry narrator, the fabulous Frankie herself, to the deeper messages carried in a fun story, this book just rocked. I devoured it. I was quite "gruntled" when I finished. (You'll just have to read the book for that one.)

Frankie Landau-Banks is entering her sophomore year at the exclusive boarding school, Alabaster prep. And her life has gone from 0 to 60 as she's finally had that female growth spurt. Suddenly, she's the hot girl on campus and dating the most  popular senior guy.

However, Frankie isn't just a pretty face. And she'd really appreciate it if her boyfriend and his guy pals would realize that. Enter the Loyal Order of the Basset Hounds, an all-male secret society present on the Alabaster campus for over 50 years.

Frankie wants in on it. She's tired of the "old boy" network, and she's determined to prove herself. However, how will the Basset boys (including Frankie's boyfriend) feel when they discover a little sophomore girl is trying to join their ranks?

Both irreverent, and extremely relevant, The Disreputable History delivers a very serious message about women's rights, personhood, and self-discovery in a very funny package. I loved the voice of the narrator, which had a lot of dry humor, and I couldn't help but love Frankie and even the guys in the Order. However, what started out as hilarious actually made me feel a little inspired at the end.

A great one to get into the hands of teen girls (and older tweens -- there are some mentions of sex, drinking, and so forth, so keep that in mind) in your life, for sure, but don't forget to read it yourself! I'm sure this book has accolades in its future and I know you will enjoy it.

In the newest installment of Blue Balliett's art-themed mysteries, we are again treated to the endearing presence of Calder, Petra, and Calder's best friend Tommy, as they move on to the next grade, away from the delightful Mrs. Hussey and on to the more traditional Mrs. Button. When Button takes them to an exhibit of sculpture by artist Alexander Calder, she won't even let them bring paper and pencils to sketch and takes notes with! And she won't let them play the museum's "Calder Game," which asks participants to construct their own mobiles.