Month: July 2012

Stickman Odyssey: An Epic Doodle

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by Christopher Ford
ages: 11+ (though my 8 1/2 year old read it and quite enjoyed it)
Support your local independent bookstore: buy it there!
Others in the series: The Wrath of Zozimos

Admittedly, I read these backwards, this one being the first in the series, and Zozimos’ backstory. So, if you’re going to do this right: you need to read this one first. But, even if you don’t, it’s still quite a fun read.

I’m gathering from the title and the back that this is basically the story of The Odyssey in simplified graphic novel form. In his quest to return to Sticatha, Zozimos washes up on the shore of a country where a beautiful princess is being protected by her father from a horrible prophecy. Zozimos ends up in the dungeon, before going on several adventures to prove his worth. Along the way, he meets a couple of people — the frog man, Atrukos, and the strong man, Praxis — who help him. Actually, that’s the big Lesson to be Learned: that even though Zozimos is all sorts of awesome (well, not really), he needs his friends in order to Get Things Done.

The good news: you don’t have to know the original epic in order to enjoy this one. It’s one adventure after another, with lots of sword fighting, humor, a wee bit of romance, poop jokes, and friendships. I’m sure boys will love this one, but I have to say that both C and A really found it to be all sorts of fun.

As did I. Here’s to more Stickman adventures.

Shadow of Night

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by Deborah Harkness
ages: adult
First sentence: “We arrived in an undignified heap of witch and vampire.”
Support your local independent bookstore: buy it there!
Others in the series: Discovery of Witches

How about this for a brief teaser: if you liked Diana Gabaldon’s Outlander, you’ll probably really like this one.

The long explanation is a lot more complicated, however. There were elements of Shadow of Night that I really liked. And there were some that I didn’t. But my major problem with the book — and this is one I have with many works of “adult” fiction — is that I thought a good third to half of this book was wholly unnecessary.

Because of the conflicts set up in Discovery of Witches (which I won’t go into, but partially are caused by the love Matthew and Diana have for each other; witches and vampires aren’t supposed to mate.), and because Diana needs help figuring out what kind of witch she is (and to control her magic), they end up in the past. In England, circa 1590, to be exact. Which brings me (so soon?) to problem number one: too often, I felt Harkness was using her status as a historian to show off. I got the sense that she set the book in the past not because it best served the story (though in some ways, it did), but because she KNOWS STUFF and wanted to share. Too often I was pulled out of the story because of some name dropping (though Diana has a moment of exasperation, wondering out of all the people in England in the past, how come Matthew knows all the famous ones. That kind of helped.) and historical elements. It was hard for me to enjoy the past because she kept pulling me out of it with details about clothes, food, the weather, and blasted Christopher Marlow.

Anyway. Matthew and Diana aren’t in England very long before they cause a ruckus and get sent to Sept Tours, Matthew’s ancestral home. Where his dead father is still very much alive. And who forces them to get married. (In way too many pages. Followed by many, many more pages of [not graphic, or even titillating] married sex.) Back to England they go, where (in some of the best passages) Diana begins to figure out that she’s a unique sort of witch, and gets a handle on her magic. Oh, and manages to get pregnant by the vampire.

Before you think that Harkness went all Breaking Dawn on us, she didn’t. Oh, sure, there are influences there: Matthew is just as protective and oppressive as Edward; apparently it’s in a vampire’s “nature”. The difference is that rather than being pushed around, Diana takes him on. Thank heavens for that; in many, many ways, Diana as a character is the best part of this novel. She’s strong, interesting, clever, inquisitive, and plain fun to be around as a character.

There’s more, of course: It’s a nearly 600 page book, and Harkness finds ways to fill them out. And it’s not a bad book, per se: I did finish it. Because even with all the extra historical stuff, and the poor plotting (for my YA-saturated brain), I am invested in Matthew and Diana’s story. Which means, I’m already asking when the next one will be out.

If you’re still interested in this one after all that, I’m offering a giveaway of this book. I’ll even throw in a set of five pins, and a temporary tattoo. Maybe you’ll like it more than I did. You have until Friday, July 13th (ooooh, auspicious) to enter.

Throne of Glass

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by Sarah J. Maas
ages: 14+
First sentence: “After a year of slavery in the Salt Mines of Endovier, Celaena Sardothien was accustomed to being escorted everywhere in shackles and at sword-point.”
Review copy provided by my place of employment
Release date: August 7, 2012

At first glance, this should be a great fantasy novel. A strong, but not exactly noble, heroine (is there an assassin theme this year?) is put up against twenty three other people (Hunger Games!) in competition for the spot to be the king’s Champion (i.e., heavy) and win her freedom.

Of course she’s Beautiful, Desirable, Awesome, Cool, Flawed, Intelligent, Perfect, and both the prince and the Captain of the Guard is in love with her. (Or so I assume; I never actually got to that point.)

It has Everything a Woman Fanasty Reader wants, right?

Well, there is one problem: the writing is crap.

Sorry. I suppose I should beat around the bush, and I do have to admit that it may be me, not the book, but honestly I had no patience for this (all from the ARC, so maybe the editing will get it together in the next month…):

“She curtsied, looking up at him beneath lowered lashes.” (*eye roll* I understand she’s playing a part, here, but this is just lame.)

“She actually did trip on her dress, and her shoes cut into her heels quite terribly, but he would hear none of her objections as he dragged her into the hall.” (Blah blah blah. There were a lot of instances like this, where I just wanted to say: Really, we don’t need to know how many buttons are on her dress, or whether or not her heels hurt terribly. Get. On. With. It.)

“‘Save it for the competition,’ he said softly, but not weakly.” (SERIOUSLY??? Why does “softly” imply “weakly”? Why do I care?)

“Ahead, Cain turned a corner, heading north — back toward the castle. [repetitive] Like a flock of birds, they followed him. [What have they been doing up to this point?] One step after another, never slowing down. [I didn’t think, giving the previous two sentences, that they had been slowing down.] Let them all watch Cain, let them plot against him. [Okay then: she switched Point of View here, didn’t she?] She didn’t need to win the race to prove she was better — she was better without any kind of validation that the king could give her! [You keep telling yourself that, dearie.] She missed a breath, and her knees wobbled, but she kept upright. The run would be over. Soon. [Not soon enough.]”

There were more, but that pretty much gives you an overview of my irritation. I know that by reading so many middle grade and young adult fiction books, my patience with plotting and wordiness has become limited. But, this was egregious even for a crossover novel (was it supposed to be teen? Adult? I never did figure that out).

So, I bailed. The romance(s) were moving too slowly for me (too much simpering, not enough smouldering), the author kept telling me rather than showing me stuff, and the whole plot was taking way. too. long.

One other note: this author has a huge fan base [don’t shoot me!], and has written several on-line prequels leading up to this novel. I don’t think reading on-line fiction should be a prerequisite to enjoying a novel, and yet I felt that I was missing something when reading this one. Yet another reason I bailed.

But I’m sure some people will luuuuuvvvv it.  Just not me.

Sunday Salon: Final Top 100 Chapter Book Poll Results

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Here, in all its glory, is Fuse #8’s final chapter book poll list. And, because I like lists, I’m going to make this a meme of sorts. How many have you read (89, for me; the first one I haven’t read is #24, and I have no excuses for that)? What’s your reaction to the list? What’s missing?

As for me, the big omission is the Percy Jackson series. I love me some Harry Potter, but out of the two series, I have an easier time selling the Greek mythology to kids. That, and I’ve found it has a wider appeal. That said, there were only three on my list that didn’t make the top 100, so I’m satisfied. Also: I need to read Elizabeth Enright. Obviously, I’m missing something here.

#1 Charlotte’s Web by E.B. White (1952)
#2 A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L’Engle (1962)
#3 Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone by J.K. Rowling (1997)
#4 The Giver by Lois Lowry (1993)
#5 The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe by C.S. Lewis (1950)
#6 Holes by Louis Sachar (1998)
#7 From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler by E.L. Konigsburg (1967)
#8 Anne of Green Gables by L.M. Montgomery (1908)
#9 The Westing Game by Ellen Raskin (1978)
#10 Bridge to Terabithia by Katherine Paterson (1977)
#11 When You Reach Me by Rebecca Stead (2009)
#12 Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban by J.K. Rowling (1999)
#13 The Thief by Megan Whalen Turner (1997)
#14 The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien (1938)
#15 The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett (1911)
#16 Tuck Everlasting by Natalie Babbitt (1975)
#17 Harriet the Spy by Louise Fitzhugh (1964)
#18 The Book of Three by Lloyd Alexander (1964)
#19 Little House in the Big Woods by Laura Ingalls Wilder (1932)
#20 Because of Winn-Dixie by Kate DiCamillo (2000)
#21 The Phantom Tollbooth by Norton Juster (1961)
#22 The Dark is Rising by Susan Cooper (1973)
#23 Hatchet by Gary Paulsen (1989)
#24 Ramona the Pest by Beverly Cleary (1968)
#25 The Watsons Go to Birmingham, 1963 by Christopher Paul Curtis (1995)
#26 Winnie-the-Pooh by A.A. Milne (1926)
#27 Little House on the Prairie by Laura Ingalls Wilder (1935)
#28 The Golden Compass by Philip Pullman (1995)
#29 The Penderwicks: A Summer Tale of Four Sisters, Two Rabbits, and a Very Interesting Boy by Jeanne Birdsall (2005)
#30 Matilda by Roald Dahl (1988)
#31 Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll (1865)
#32 Roll of Thunder, Hear My Cry by Mildred Taylor (1976)
#33 Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH by Robert C. O’Brien (1971)
#34 Where the Red Fern Grows by Wilson Rawls (1961)
#35 Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing by Judy Blume (1972)
#36 The Witch of Blackbird Pond by Elizabeth George Speare (1958)
#37 The Wednesday Wars by Gary D. Schmidt (2007)
#38 Frindle by Andrew Clements (1996)
#39 The Invention of Hugo Cabret by Brian Selznick (2007)
#40 Maniac Magee by Jerry Spinelli (1990)
#41 The Wonderful Wizard of Oz by L. Frank Baum (1900)
#42 Gone-Away Lake by Elizabeth Enright (1957)
#43 Jacob Have I Loved by Katherine Paterson (1980)
#44 Okay for Now by Gary D. Schmidt (2011)
#45 Island of the Blue Dolphins by Scott O’Dell (1960)
#46 The True Confessions of Charlotte Doyle by Avi (1990)
#47 Little Women by Louisa May Alcott (1868)
#48 The Bad Beginning by Lemony Snicket (1999)
#49 My Father’s Dragon by Ruth Stiles Gannett (1948)
#50 Number the Stars by Lois Lowry (1989)
#51 The Tale of Despereaux: Being the Story of a Mouse, A Princess, Some Soup, and a Spool of Thread by Kate DiCamillo (2003)
#52 Betsy-Tacy by Maud Hart Lovelace (1940)
#53 The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman (2008)
#54 Half Magic by Edward Eager (1954)
#55 All-of-a-Kind Family by Sydney Taylor (1951)
#56 A Little Princess by Frances Hodgson Burnett (1905)
#57 The Wolves of Willoughby Chase by Joan Aiken (1962)
#58 Swallows and Amazons by Arthur Ransome (1930)
#59 The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane by Kate DiCamillo (2006)
#60 Bud, Not Buddy by Christopher Paul Curtis (1999)
#61 Charlie and the Chocolate Factory by Roald Dahl (1964)
#62 Clementine by Sara Pennypacker (2006)
#63 The Great Gilly Hopkins by Katherine Paterson (1978)
#64 The Twenty-One Balloons by William Pene du Bois (1947)
#65 Wonder by R.J. Palacio (2012)
#66 The Evolution of Calpurnia Tate by Jacqueline Kelly (2009)
#67 A Long Way from Chicago by Richard Peck (1998)
#68 The High King by Lloyd Alexander (1968)
#69 The Ruins of Gorlan by John Flanagan (2006)
#70 Walk Two Moons by Sharon Creech (1994)
#71 Each Little Bird That Sings by Deborah Wiles (2005)
#72 Where the Mountain Meets the Moon by Grace Lin (2009)
#73 The Best Christmas Pageant Ever by Barbara Robinson (1972)
#74 Are You There, God? It’s Me, Margaret by Judy Blume (1970)
#75 The Saturdays by Elizabeth Enright (1941)
#76 Diary of a Wimpy Kid by Jeff Kinney (2007)
#77 My Side of the Mountain by Jean Craighead George (1959)
#78 Ballet Shoes by Noel Streatfeild (1936)
#79 The Egypt Game by Zilpha Keatley Snyder (1967)
#80 The Four-Story Mistake by Elizabeth Enright (1942)
#81 The Witches by Roald Dahl (1983)
#82 The Cricket in Times Square by George Selden (1960)
#83 Ozma of Oz by Frank L. Baum (1907)
#84 The Long Winter by Laura Ingalls Wilder (1940)
#85 Ella Enchanted by Gail Carson Levine (1997)
#86 Peter Pan by J.M. Barrie (1911)
#87 The Strange Case of Origami Yoda by Tom Angleberger (2010)
#88 The BFG by Roald Dahl (1982)
#89 The Mouse and the Motorcycle by Beverly Cleary (1967)
#90 The Children of Green Knowe by L.M. Boston (1954)
#91 Pippi Longstocking by Astrid Lindgren (1950)
#92 Flipped by Wendelin Van Draanen (2001)
#93 Journey to the River Sea by Eva Ibbotson (2001)
#94 Ramona and her Father by Beverly Cleary (1977)
#95 The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint-Exupery (1943)
#96 The Horse and His Boy by C.S. Lewis (1954)
#97 The Diamond in the Window by Jane Langton (1962)
#98 Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire by J.K. Rowling (2000)
#99 The Boxcar Children by Gertrude Chandler Warner (1942)
#100 Love That Dog by Sharon Creech (2001)

The Incorrigible Children of Ashton Place: The Unseen Guest

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by Maryrose Wood
ages: 9+
First sentence: “‘Lumawoo, look.'”
Support your local independent library: buy it there!
Others in the series: The Mysterious Howling, The Hidden Gallery

The best thing about this one is that finally (!) some of the questions I’ve had are finally being (slowly) answered.

See, Lord Frederick’s mother and her suitor, Admiral Faucet, show up at Ashton Place, with an ostrich. (Seriously.) The ostrich gets looks, and Admiral Faucet, intrigued by the Incorrigible’s tracking skills, takes them into the woods to find said runaway ostrich. Of course, their governess Penelope — somewhat daunted by the idea of taking the children into the woods, where there are scary bears and other animals — comes along.

Once in the woods, Strange Things happen. Penelope sees where the Incorrigibles were living before they came to Ashton Place, and discovers their relationship with the wolf, Mama Woof. Additionally, she learns of Admiral Faucet’s Grand Plan, which involves taking the Incorrigibles on the road as a freak show. After he squanders the Ashton fortune, of course. To stop him, Penelope turns to her friend Simon to hold a seance for Lord Frederick’s mother.

The best thing about these, still, is the narrator. Long, hilarious asides explaining words and meanings. Nudges to the reader about the characters. Silly, silly plot twists. I’m still not sure how many kids will like/get this one, but I sure find them enjoyable. Bring on the next installment.

The Book of Three

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by Lloyd Alexander
ages: 9+
First sentence: “Taran wanted to make a sword; but Coll, charged with the practical side of his education, decided on horseshoes.”
Support your local independent bookstore: buy it there!

This is one of the titles I remember having fond memories of as a kid. I don’t really remember the act of reading it, though I know I must have: I remember talking about it with friends, especially after the Disney monstrosity of a movie came out. (We were purists, if you can’t tell…) I know I’ve reread the story before this, but I don’t have any record of it, so it’s good that I was asked to reread it again (and write up a lengthy review…)

Taran is just an Assistant Pig Keeper at Caer Dallben, charged with taking care of the oracle pig, Hen Wen. He longs for adventure, and then one day, quite unexpectedly, he gets it: the Horned King and his minions (in service of the Big Baddie, Arawn — yes, that does remind me of Lord of the Rings, thanks for asking) make Hen Wen uneasy and she escapes her pen. Taran, because he’s just impulsive that way, takes off after her, falling in with Prince Gwydion for a bit before they get separated and Taran is on his own.

But he’s not alone: he collects a rag-tag band of friends:the half-animal, always hungry Gurgi; the headstrong Eilowny; the ever-exaggerating bard Fflewddeur Fflam (who will always be “flewder flam” instead of “fleoothur flam”); and the grumpy dwarf Doli. Together they find their way back to Gwydion, fight the Horned King (though Taran rightly asserts in the end that he didn’t do anything worthy of being called a hero), and realize there’s no place like home.

On the one hand, the book is really simplistic: boy leaves, boy has adventures, boy comes home a Wiser and Better person. And yet, I found it to be incredibly compelling. Perhaps it was because I loved it as a kid, but I don’t think that’s entirely it. I think it’s because Alexander is a master storyteller, and he knows how to create characters that we can relate to and root for, ones that are flawed even in a black-and-white world.

And that is really the best kind of middle grade book. And yes, I am going to make the time to read the rest now.

The Books of Elsewhere: Spellbound

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by Jacqueline West
ages: 9+
First sentence: “Everyone who lived in the big stone house on Linden Street eventually went insane.”
Support your local independent bookstore: buy it there!
Others in the series: The Shadows

As a result of events in the first book, Olive is no longer able to get into the paintings — the doorway to Elsewhere — on her own. She needs the help of the cats — Horatio, Harvey and Leopold — to get in and out. And, increasingly, they are unwilling to help her. That, and her friend Morton is getting more and more cantankerous because Olive can’t find a solution to get him out of the painting for good.

Then a boy moves in two doors down, and starts asking questions he shouldn’t (or, rather, Olive doesn’t want to answer), but he puts an idea in her mind: if she can find the grimorie (book of spells), then maybe she can figure out not only how to get to Elsewhere by herself, but maybe she can figure out how to get Morton out.

Except, things don’t go the way Olive wants them to.

The best thing about this one is that it’s delightfully creepy. There’s a point when you, as the reader, know something bad HAS to happen, and yet West drags it out, bit by bit (but not in a painful way), stringing us along just enough for us to sit at the edge of our seats, wondering when the resolution will come.

And come it does.  (It’s quite satisfying, too.)

While it’s a continuation of the previous book, it’s also a stand-alone story of its own. You don’t really need to have read the first one to enjoy this one, and there really isn’t any threads left undone (well… not entirely true, but the undone thread isn’t entirely relevant to the story). And that truly makes this a winner of a series.