Speculative Fiction

The Key to Extraordinary

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keytoextraordinaryby Natalie Lloyd
First sentence: “It is a known fact that the most extraordinary moments in a person’s life come disguised as ordinary days.”
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Review copy pilfered off the ARC shelves at my place of employment.
Release date: February 23, 2016
Content: It’s short(ish) and the words aren’t too terribly difficult, but there’s kind of a little romance, so maybe it’s not for the 3rd graders? It’s in the middle grade (grades 3-5) section of the bookstore.

The women in Emma’s family have had a long history of doing Extraordinary things. They have a dream, which they call their Blue Wildflower dream, and in that dream they are Shown Their Path, the way in which they’ll be extraordinary. At almost 13, Emma’s convinced that in spite of all this, her life won’t be that special. She lives in a smallish town in Tennessee, and while she loves her Grandma Blue and the cafe she runs, where Emma’s older brother is the baker, there really isn’t much else.

Then Emma gets her wildflower dream, and it doesn’t make sense.  Then developers start sniffing around the cafe, wanting to buy it, and suddenly maybe Emma can piece together some lost history and save the cafe while filling her destiny.

I liked Snicker of Magic quite a bit, and I like Southern Quirky (as Ms. Yingling calls it), but this one didn’t work for me.  I’m not sure I can pinpoint why, though. Maybe it’s a bit of a reading slump (I tossed aside about four books partially read before I settled on this one), maybe it’s that I’m a bit under the weather. Either way, Emma and her plight didn’t sit with me. It even had a Nice Moral at the end: follow your dreams and expectations and don’t let the accomplishments of the past make you intimidated (or at least I think that’s the message), but I kind of just shrugged and said, “Meh.”

Which is too bad. I did want to like this one more.

Audio book: The Buried Giant

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buriedgiantby Kazuo Ishiguro
Read by: David Horovitch
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Content: There’s some violence and mild sexual elements. But, no worse than any Tolkein book. In fact, if you’ve made it through LOTR, you will probably really like this one.

Axl and Beatrice have had a long, good life. Or, at least as much as they can remember. They live in a cave dwelling in Britain, in the time after the Romans left and Arthur’s peace with the Saxons is waning. They’re not quite content, and so they determine that they need to head to a nearby village to see their son — whom they only can barely remember having — because he’s anxiously waiting for them.

They have no idea how their journey will go, or the people they will meet (an elder Sir Gawain among them, much to my delight), and how it will all change them.

I’m not sure how much more of the actual plot I want to divulge. Much like LOTR (which this strongly reminded me of), the plot is less important than the journey. Axl and Beatrice’s journey — though we never really got inside Beatrice’s head, which disappointed me — was a grand one, like Odysseus, or Frodo. The people the met, the friendships they made, the emotional journey they took as well as the physical one all had a mythological quality to it.

I’m sure you can find a lot of deeper meaning in the story as well. But for me, listening to it on my way to and from Dallas (the narrator was excellent, once I got used to his cadence), it was more a long oral narrative, a story to be heard by the firelight over several nights, a story to capture the imagination and to be swept up in.

Which means it’s being told by a master storyteller. And I loved every minute.

The Fog Diver

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fogdiverby Joel Ross
First sentence: “My name is Chess, and I was born inside a cage.”
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Content: There’s some intense moments, and it’s a bit difficult to follow plot-wise, but it’s great for grades 4 and up. It’s in the middle grade (grades 3-5) section of the bookstore.

It’s the distant future, and the nanites that the world had designed to clean up the smog went crazy and created a fog that is inhabitable for humans. They’ve moved up to the tops of mountains to survive and have developed a whole society up there. Chess and his friends are at the bottom of the totem pole, being junk divers: they troll the Fog in their airship and it’s Chess’s job to dive in the fog to find relics of the lost age. The reason why Chess is so good at this is because he was born in the fog and his eye is swirling with nanites. He’s in hiding, somewhat, from the evil Lord Kodoc, who will take Chess and work him to death if he ever finds out he exists.

Huh. I’m not sure if that does this justice. (Probably not.) It’s a fantastic, wild weird world that Ross has created. My favorite part? The obscure references to pop culture. Harry Otter, or the X-Wing Enterprise or skycatchers (instead of skycrapers), all made me smile. It’s was a wink to current times without being too trendy and it was perfect. I also loved the supporting characters. Chess was pretty great, but so was the captain Hazel, the pilot Swede, and the gear girl (who had shades of Kaylee from Firefly) Bea. They worked well as a team and I ended up loving all of them equally.

I do have to admit that this took me a bit to get into. It’s slowish to start, but once it gets going, it’s a LOT of fun. And fun is just what I needed right now.

Nomad

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nomadby William Alexander
First sentence: “Nadia Antonovna Kollontai, the ambassador of her world, was not on her world.”
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Review copy provided by the publisher.
Others in the series (though I’ve not read it): Ambassador
Content: There’s some intense moments, and maybe some difficult made-up words, but I’d give it to a 4th grader or higher. It would be in the middle grade (grades 3-5) sections of the bookstore.

I didn’t know what to expect heading into  William Alexander’s latest. From the cover, something in space, most likely. What I got was an epic adventure that involved aliens, space travel, time travel, and kids learning to put aside biases and learning to work together. There’s also a side story (which was never truly fleshed out to my satisfaction, but it didn’t deter from my overall enjoyment) about deporting illegal immigrants and how that affects people. In short: there’s a lot packed into this one.

From what I understand, Gabe and Nadia’s story begins in Ambassador, but since this is a Cybils book (I could have checked it out, but I honestly didn’t know until after I’d finished Nomad) I just dove right in. And aside from some initial getting used to the world that Alexander had created — a world in which aliens from all over space and time meet together in a dream space that you get to by, well, dreaming — I fell headfirst into the story and thoroughly enjoyed my time there.

I really enjoyed the problem-solving aspect of this as well. Nadia has been in space for 40 years (and hasn’t aged; isn’t speed-of-light travel fun?) and has to learn how to get along without her sight (she lost it in a failed experiment). She didn’t moan or whine about it; she just tackled the problem and looked for solutions. Gabe was the same way with being put into a new situation with being the Ambassador of Earth. He needed to learn the rules and guidelines and how to cooperate with people who are vastly different from him, and he did.

The only thing I didn’t think fit exactly was the subplot involving Gabe’s dad being deported. It did give Alexander an excuse to use a holding area near the border in Arizona, and to spotlight the awful conditions that immigrants (especially children) were being held in. But, other than that, it really didn’t serve much of a purpose to the overall story.

But even with that one little quibble, it was a delightful book, one I’m glad I read.

(Just for the record: because this is a Cybils nominee, I’ve been asked to make sure y’all know this is my opinion only, and not that of the panel.)

The Dungeoneers

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bdungeoneersy John David Anderson
First sentence: “Colm Candorly had nine fingers and eight sisters.”
Support your local independent bookstore: buy it there!
Content: There’s some violence and it’s a little thick and somewhat intimidating for reluctant readers. It’s in the middle grade (grades 3-5) section of the bookstore.

Colm is the son of a cobbler in a small town in this world. They’re struggling for money (9 kids is no walk in the park) and one day, Colm decides that he’s going to help out. He heads to the town square and proceeds to pickpocket those who look like they could afford it. His father is (rightly) appalled, and heads out to talk to the magistrate. Instead, he brings back Finn Argos, a rogue and a teacher at the training school for Thwodin’s Legions, a band of dungeoneers — those who raid the hoards of elves, dwarves, and orcs for treasure.

I really, really , really wanted to like this one. It’s essentially a Dungeons & Dragon’s adventure in novel form. In Colm’s little group where he’s the rogue, there’s a mage, a druid, and a barbarian (she’s pretty awesome) and together they work to become awesome. There’s another group that bullys Colm’s, and there’s predictable ups and downs at school. I ended up skimming the last third, because I just got bored with it. It wasn’t doing anything new and the characters weren’t enough to keep my interest. Which was disappointing.

(Just for the record: because this is a Cybils nominee, I’ve been asked to make sure y’all know this is my opinion only, and not that of the panel.)

 

MiNRS

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minrsby Kevin Sylvester
First sentence: “The Earth blinked, and was gone.”
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Content: There’s a lot of death, some of it a little graphic, especially in the beginning. I’d give it to an advanced 4th grader and up, as long as they were okay with the violence.

It’s a future where the people of the world were going to die from an asteroid hit, until a brilliant scientist, Harold Melman, figures out how to nudge it away. And then, the ice melts and they discover that there’s a ton of resources — ones that the Earth is running out of — to be had. So, Melman Mining Corp sends families up to inhabit the asteroid, to mine the minerals and ore, and ship it back to earth.

Fast forward several years later. A Blackout is coming — the asteroid and the Earth will be on opposite sides of the sun and there won’t be any communication possible. And in the middle of this, the mining colony is attacked. Brutally bombed. Everyone killed except for Christopher Nichols and a few other kids. No one (read: the bombers) knows they’re alive. And so, they not only have to figure out how to stop those responsible for the bombs, but keep themselves alive. (In more ways than one.)

This was a trip and a half. It’s a good adventure novel: figuring out how to survive in the mines, the internal conflict between those who just want to survive and those who want to attack, and the inevitable betrayal. It’s a unique premise (for the most part; I have read other kill all the adults and make the kids survive books this year) with the future and science. And even with the love triangle (of sorts), it was a good science fiction book.

My only real complaint is that I was hoping for a stand-alone, and while the conflict mostly resolves, there’s a pretty big cliff hanger that sets up at least a sequel. Other than that, though, it’s spot on.

(Just for the record: because this is a Cybils nominee, I’ve been asked to make sure y’all know this is my opinion only, and not that of the panel.)

 

Wings of Fire: Moon Rising

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moonrisingby Tui T. Sutherland
First sentence: “The volcano was restless, and so were the dragons in the NightWing fortress.”
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Others in the series: Wings of Fire, The Lost Heir
Content: There’s some violence, and a couple of dragons are seriously hurt. But other than that, I’d give it to a confident 8 year old reader. It’s in the middle grade (grades 3-5) section of the bookstore.

If you’ll notice, this is book SIX in the Wings of Fire series and I only read the first two. I have issues with series that go on and on and on, and I lost interest with this one pretty quickly.

However, this is like the second series in the larger story. The narrative shifts from the Dragons of Prophecy in the first book to the second generation after the war (there was a war? Okay then.). There are attempts to build a peace between the dragon clans (tribes?) and one way to do this is to have them all come together at a school to live and learn to get along.

Moon is a NightWing, one of the least trusted dragon clans (tribes? breeds? I don’t know what they’re properly called.) and Moon is an outcast among them. She was basically raised in the rainforest rather than in their volcano, and because of that (well, it’s because she was born under the moons) she can hear other people’s thoughts as well as seeing visions of the future.

When she’s dropped off at school, her mother tells her to keep her gifts secret. Except someone is trying to kill other dragons. And she’s hearing this mysterious voice inside her head of a dragon everyone thought was long dead. What’s a dragon to do?

It worked well as a stand alone, which surprised me. Sure, it’s the start of another adventure, but you can come in to this series on this one and not be utterly lost. Other than that, it’s got pretty much all the standard boarding school tropes: Moon feels left out, she makes friends, friends leave her when she reveals her differences, they end up working together to solve the problem that Moon’s difference plays a crucial role in.

It wasn’t all sorts of brilliant writing, but it’s a good, solid, fun story.

(Just for the record: because this is a Cybils nominee, I’ve been asked to make sure y’all know this is my opinion only, and not that of the panel.)

Jack

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jackby Liesl Shurtliff
First sentence: “When I was born, Papa named me after my great-great-great-great-great-great-GREAT-grandfather, who, legend had it, conquered nine giants and married the daughter of a duke.”
Support your local independent bookstore: buy it there!
Review copy snagged off the ARC shelves at my place of employment.
Content: It’s pretty basic and a slim book, though it’s definitely  above a beginning chapter level. Give it to those who aren’t ready for longer, more involved books. It’s in the middle grade (grades 3-5) section of the bookstore.

Jack has spent his whole life on his parents’ rinky dink farm, hearing tales of his great-grandpa’s exploits. He’s sick and tired of growing wheat; he wants to see the world! He wants to do something grand!

So, when crops, animals, and buildings (not to mention people, including Jack’s father) in his village go missing, stolen by the giants in the sky (which his mother scoffs at), Jack figures this is his chance to make a difference. Three magic beans later, he climbs the beanstalk to find (and rescue) his dad.

What he finds is a giant nation in peril.H There’s a tyrant for a king who covets gold and taxes his people until they can’t pay any more. And there’s a famine on, which is why the king’s henchmen are stealing the food from the “elves” (non-giant people) and making them their slaves. Jack knows he needs to put a stop to all this, but what can one boy do?

It gets more complicated when Jack’s younger sister joins him up in giant land. They almost get trampled, they get taken by pixies, and Jack must learn to listen to and trust his younger sister and his friends if he’s ever going to get back home.

It’s not a bad book, and I did enjoy the nice twist on the Jack and the Beanstalk Tale. But it was just okay in the end. There were Lessons Learned and Adventures Had and Reunions and it just kind of all fell flat. But, that doesn’t mean a fairy-tale loving kid wouldn’t just love this to death.

(Just for the record: because this is a Cybils nominee, I’ve been asked to make sure y’all know this is my opinion only, and not that of the panel.)

Lilliput

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lilliputby Sam Gayton
First sentence: “All down the pebble path to the beach, Lily sulked about her iron shoes.”
Support your local independent bookstore: buy it there!
Content: There’s some abuse and danger, and there are some larger words, but for the most part, this one is suitable for grades 3 and up. It’s in the Middle Grade (grades 3-5) section of the bookstore.

Lily is a young child in the land of Lilliput when this big giant, Gulliver, comes and snatches her away. He takes her back to London to serve as “proof”. It seems, his stories of his travels have been dismissed as fake and so for the sake of his pride, he kidnapped Lily. He has her in a cage while he finishes his book. Lily, however, just wants to be free. Her life span is a lot shorter than Gulliver’s, and she’s spent half of her life in this cage. She needs to be free.

So, she keeps trying to escape. And eventually, she finds some humans who are willing to help her.

It’s an interesting take on Gulliver’s travels, and I enjoyed having it from the point of view of Lily. There’s some nice subtle commentary on the ethics of taking people from their homeland as well as the conditions which children often found themselves in, both in orphanages as well as in apprenticeships. It was a nice change to have the Spanish character be the “good” guy (in addition to him being the stay-home dad while his wife traveled the world).

But, while it all added up to something nice, it wasn’t overwhelmingly compelling, in my view. And that’s too bad.

(Just for the record: because this is a Cybils nominee, I’ve been asked to make sure y’all know this is my opinion only, and not that of the panel.)

A Dragon’s Guide to the Care and Feeding of Humans

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dragonsguideby Laurence Yep and Joanne Ryder
First sentence: ”
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Content: It’s short, there are lots of pictures, and the words aren’t terribly difficult. It’s a great bridge book between beginning chapter and middle reader, and good for ages 7 and up. It’s in the middle reader (grades 3-5) section of the bookstore.

Miss Drake, a dragon who has been around a long time, is happy with her lifestyle. Sure her “pet”, a human she calls Fluffy, recently died and she is grieving that. But when another human, the 10-year-old great-niece of Fluffy (aka Great-Aunt Amelia), comes into her life, she is not at all happy with it.

And thus begins the relationship between Miss Drake and Winnie. Sure, there’s a little adventure with a magical sketchbook and a rabid magic-eating monster, but mostly it’s about overcoming grief of the death of a loved one (Winnie’s father has recently passed away as well) and making friends.

My favorite thing is that it’s written from the dragon’s point of view. Beginning each chapter is a word of “advice” to magical creatures about how to deal with their “pets”, but the narrative is from the point of view of a very old, somewhat cranky dragon. It’s a clever take. That, and it’s blissfully short. Yep and Ryder know their audience, get to the point, and don’t bother putting in a whole lot of backstory. There are clues here and there about Miss Drake’s former pets and Winnie’s family (I’d like to read more about them in other books!), but there are no long-winded passages, no extra words. It’s refreshing.

My  only complaint is that while there is a child character, the protagonist (and the one who propels the action, in the end) is the dragon. And that felt a little off. But other than that, it’s an enjoyable story.

(Just for the record: because this is a Cybils nominee, I’ve been asked to make sure y’all know this is my opinion only, and not that of the panel.)