A Very Red Blogpost

Coincidentally, I read two red books in a row. And the dork in my can't resist blogging about them together.

Rose Sees Red-- Cecil Castellucci


It's the early 80s and Rose is your typical teen age girl trying to carve out her own identity and place in the world. When she decided to sacrifice popularity in order to attend an arts-based high school, she didn't realize how lonely it would be. Even her love for dance can't mask the depression she feels. One evening, her next door neighbor (with whom she's never had a conversation) climbs through her bedroom window. Yrena is Russian born, and lives an extremely protected life. Yrena decided to ditch her body guards for just one night, and she and Rose take on New York City with a vigor that can only come when you free yourself from your personal prisons. It's a nice story, and engaging, but not really groundbreaking in any way. I do wonder how much teens will be able to relate to the story. The U.S.S.R/USA tension that was rampant in the 80s isn't really felt now, and that is a key component to the story.

Sisters Red-- Jackson Pearce

What if Little Red Riding Hood wasn't a squeeky little girl who obliviously traipsed through the woods only to be saved by the big brave woodcutter? What if she was a hatchet-wielding, one eyed, scarred up badass? Wouldn't that story be so much better?

Scarlet and Rosie March are Fenris (werewolf) hunters. When their grandmother was brutally murdered by a Fenris, and Scarlet was brutally mutilated defending her sister, the sisters red were born into a new destiny. Killing Fenris is Scarlet's entire reason for living, and she wants to make sure her sister Rosie will never be hurt... and Rosie herself is quite skilled with a knife. Scarlet shelters Rosie to the point of smothering, and Rosie decides that she and her knives need some action of their own. But when Rosie falls for the woodcutter's son, and gangs of Fenris descend upon the city, the life Scarlet has designed for them falls apart. Plenty of love and plenty of gore... I think this book will please fans of Twilight and other romance/horror novels.

Yummy: The Last Days of a Southside Shorty-- G. Neri and Randy DuBurke, Illustrator

Robert Sandifer is 11 years old. Everyone calls him Yummy because he has a sweet tooth that just won't quit. He lives with his grandma in the Roseland neighborhood of Chicago. He's just a little guy, a shortie, only 4 feet tall and maybe 60 pounds. Yummy still sleeps with a teddy bear. And Yummy shot a 14 year old girl. He shot her with a gun that was given to him by his mentors, members of the gang Black Disciples.

Yummy has an extraordinarily hard life. His father is in prison. His abusive mother has been in and out of jail for drugs and prostitution over 40 times. Yummy learned that the only way to be safe was to have a gang watching out for you. But being a part of the Black Disciples has it's price and Yummy paid it in the fullest.

This powerful graphic novel is short, but compelling; you really feel for Yummy. He was a criminal by the age of 11, but still completely a child. He was used and abused by almost everyone who entered his life, and his loyalty to his chosen family, his gang, only led to betrayal. In a situation as horrific as Yummy's, it's hard to blame him for his actions... yet an innocent girl was dead and he shot her. So how is that not his fault?

Oh, and did I mention that this is a true story? Robert "Yummy" Sandifer really did live in Chicago and this incident happened in 1994. While the topic of this story is mature and could be hard to handle for some youth, the pictures and description of events are appropriate even for younger teens. I would recommend this to teens who want true stories, reluctant readers who aren't afraid of the topics covered within, and teens who like gritty street stories.

Revolver-- Marcus Sedgwick

A really good writer leaves something for the imagination. S/he describes a scene in detail but leaves the truly horrific part for you to create in your mind. I can read gory horror books and feel fine, but the creepy-left-to-our-imagination scenes... that's what keeps me up at night!

Marcus Sedgwick accomplishes the balance between detail and not over-writing perfectly. Revolver takes place in the arctic circle during the gold rush. When Sig discovers his father frozen to death on the ice, he knows his whole life will change. But when Wolff shows up and torments Sig, his emotions go from sadness to utter terror. Wolff believes that Sig's father is hiding gold and will do anything to retrieve it. Sig and his sister Anna do everything they can to appease Wolff, but he still brutalizes them believing they are lying. Sedgwick weaves threads of this tale together, allowing the reader to figure out some things on their own and leaving enough mystery to keep the pages turning.

For whatever reason, Wolff's character scared the crap outta me. It was like he had no moral compass and couldn't see beyond his own personal desires. Wolff was adept at both physical and emotional torment. He was animalistic but just human enough to make me get up and make sure my doors were locked at night.

I would recommend this book to youth who like thrillers, pager turners, short chapters, and stories about harsh landscapes. This book would be especially good for boys. While there isn't anything graphically described in detail, it's still not for the faint of heart.

Mock Printz Nominations!

After many agonizing meetings, my librarian cohort Paige and I have settled on an official Mock Printz list for this year. It's always so hard to choose, because inevitably something amazing will be published after we've already made our list...

And the nominees are (in no particular order):

Nothing-- Janne Teller
A Love Story Starring My Dead Best Friend-- Emily Horner
The Water Seeker-- Kimberly Willis Holt
Black Hole Sun-- David Macinnis Gill
Revolver-- Marcus Sedgwick
Yummy: The Last Days of a Southside Shorty-- G. Neri and Randy Duburke, Ill
They Called Themselves the KKK-- Susan Campbell Bartoletti
Wicked Girls-- Stephanie Hemphill
Finnikin of the Rock-- Melina Marchetta
Last Summer of the Death Warriors-- Francisco X. Stork

OK, you have your list! Now start reading and let me know what you think about our Mock Printz selections. And, if you want more information about the Mock Printz event, email teens@fvrl.org.

The Water Seeker-- Kimberly Willis Holt

Taking place from 1833 through 1859, The Water Seeker is a fictional tale of what life was like on the prairie and along the Oregon Trail. Mostly historical fiction, but with a light touch of magical realism, this novel is a meandering but compelling story of a boy and the adults who find their way into his life.

Amos is the son of Jake, who is a trapper by chosen trade but a dowser by god given gift. While Jake is away trapping, he leaves Amos to be raised by his brother and his wife, then later the neighbor and her five sons. It isn't until Amos is almost 14 that his father comes back to claim him... and take him on the journey of a lifetime, out west on the Oregon trail. Amos learns about himself through those who care for him. After watching Jake work as a dowser, Amos realizes that skill is living within him, too. And after years of sketching eerily accurate portraits, he learns his mother (who died giving birth to him) was a talented artist. But it isn't until he meets Gwendolyn that Amos learns what it means to be a man and see beyond the surface and first impressions.

This novel is appropriate for all ages of teens, and would be especially appealing to those who loved the Little House on the Prairie books but have outgrown them.

This Gorgeous Game--Donna Freitas

When 17 year old Olivia wins a prestigious writing contest sponsored by award winning author Father Mark Brennan, she can't believe her good luck. Being a writer is her life's dream, and winning this contest will set her on her career path. When Father Mark offers to mentor her in the ways of writing, Olivia couldn't be happier. As a devoted Catholic and completely dedicated to her writing career, Olivia believed being mentored by Father Mark would take her places she would never reach on her own.

But when Father Mark begins to call and text her multiple times an hour, follow her, and completely dominate her time, Oliviae starts to realize their relationship isn't typical. Although Father Mark hasn't touched her in any way, Olivia can still tell that something is inappropriate about their interactions. But soon the situation spirals out of her control and she has to dig deep inside herself to try and find her way out... and to still find the love for writing that started it all.

Donna Freitas has written a tale of an inappropriate relationship between a priest and a young girl, but she has done it in a respectful, not sensationalized way. She does not dismiss all priests or Catholicism as wrong; in fact I would think readers who are Catholic might be pleased with the way she portrays the religion. I would easily recommend this book to youth who like clean, religious fiction even though the subject matter seems so appalling. Personally, I didn't enjoy it much but only because it's not quite my literary cup of tea... but in general, I found it to be well written and there is a subset of teens out there who will be looking for a book like this.

A Love Story Starring My Dead Best Friend-- Emily Horner

Things that are happening during the summer before Cass's senior year in high school:

Totally Sweet Ninja Death Squad.
A badass solo bike ride from Illinois to California (kinda).
A musical which should have stared Julia, but instead stars Heather, the girl who mercilessly called Cass a dyke in front of the whole school.
Self discovery.
Two first kisses.

Something that happened in the spring:

Julia, Cass's best friend and secret (even to herself) girlcrush is killed in a car accident... and Cass's world implodes. Her hippy-liberal-Quaker parents encourage Cass to find her way out of the blackness, and Cass decides to do so by making a cross country bike trip, alone, to scatter Julia's ashes in the Pacific Ocean. Meanwhile, Cass and Julia's friends decide to produce Julia's legacy, the musical she'd been slaving over "Totally Sweet Ninja Death Squad."

This book is told in Then and Now passages, isn't linear, and is totally compelling. I literally couldn't put it down. Sometimes YA coming of age stories are unrealistically good (ahem, John Green), but this one really communicates how boundaries in the mind can be blurry, and how easy it can be to trick yourself into believing a lie... basically just like real life. I also found this book to be quite well written and will be keeping it in mind when it's time to select titles for Mock Printz!