Hey there, Misses Jasper Place! Miss Allendale here for the
vote! I’m with you, girlfriends! Although I originally giggled out loud with
the satirical comedy of Beauty Queens,
I got bogged down after a while and threw it into my makeup bag to stagnate while
I went on to A Monster Calls.
Wow!
This one is a quick read, but lots of depth - a cunning
fusion of fairytale, horror, and realistic fiction that draws the reader in
with a mixture of suspense and empathy (not to mention nightmarish
illustrations). The novel was written posthumously by Patrick Ness, friend and colleague of the late
Siobhan Dowd, who passed away at age 47 from breast cancer. Unfortunately, I
have just the student who may some support in the reading of this text and will
be keeping my copy to pass along (Is that okay, Dia?).
I’m voting for A Monster Calls to move on to the next round... and it looks like young readers would agree. On February 23rd, A Monster Calls won the Red House Book Award for Older Readers and best overall book of 2012 – based on the votes of 83,000 young readers. It has also been shortlisted for LA Times Book Award and Bram Stoker Award (horror) and has been nominated for the Carnegie as well. Siobhan Dowd created a legacy for sharing literature with disadvantaged children and youth in the UK (see Siobhan Dowd Trust). I’m REALLY hoping to find the time to read some of Siobhan Dowd’s and Patrick Ness's other works.
BTW, I have a feeling the next round will be a tough one...
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