I Second the Rebellion & Deceiving Covers

Beautiful Blue World vs. Drowned City

Since this is sliding into over a week overdue, I will keep it short and sweet. 

In my mind Beautiful Blue World was a historical fiction book until I read the names of the different nations. I then told myself that maybe these were areas of Europe from World War II that I was not familiar with. Then, it became apparent that this was not historical fiction, but instead a dystopian novel. Yet the cover looks to be so innocent and childlike with the two young girls in blue hued dresses in the snow. I will just just give you the Lisa synopsis:

Please pay special note to her closing comment. Humpf. The group was in agreement (well except for Lisa) that the book dragged at times and that although interesting, we were not sure which of our readers would be inclined to pick up this book. The ending left a lot to be desired. I think this book would fit in a 6-8 classroom, but the audience would be slim. A few of us said we may consider reading the next book. 

Drowned City is a historical graphic novel that details the events surrounding Hurricane Katrina. It is interesting because the novel does not have a main character, but instead goes through the disaster in a sort of day by day, moment by moment way. I would like to call myself knowledgeable about this particular event, having had my father working abroad just outside of New Orleans for three years and getting to visit the area multiple times a year, and I felt like Brown did a great job showing all sides of the disaster; from the perspective of the people and the government. The dreary color palette lends itself well to the story. I liked that Brown included the story lines of the people who came with their own boats to rescue people, how many police officers ended up evacuating themselves, and the pain of having to leave pets behind. 

This book does its job: explains a historical event to a generation of students who may not know it existed, using images and text in a succinct way. I think it would be wonderful to pair with novels such as Zane and the Hurricane or Upside Down in the Middle of Nowhere. 

The only place I felt it was lacking was the afterwards. The resiliency and spirit of the people of New Orleans was not included, the thing that makes them so endearing still to this day. I am sad it didn't have a place.

If you are interested, I suggest Spike Lee's documentary When the Leevees Broke: a Requiem in Four Acts.

In sum, we feel important historical events like Hurricane Katrina deserve a place in our discussion of history, so deserves to go forward. 

Ahh...Down with Deadlines - Rebellion Edition

So we have decided to advance Ecco to the next round but it should not be a lot of surprise in that the novels have already been allocated for Round 2.

However, since Dia has given us this soapbox and repeatedly reminded us to blog - sorry :( - we thought it important to allow you a quick preview into the collective minds of our group.

Ecco is beautifully written and far more engaging. We, literally, found it a challenge to put down. With historical elements woven into its fairy tale world, the novel finds a place with students that enjoy this genre - with works like Once Upon a Time and Land of the Lost.

Conviction is a much more challenging read. Teenagers may be able to relate to it more easily. It just lacked any special qualities. It falls into a large group of novels that are well written and well developed but fall quickly from memory.

Good luck moving forward Ecco!!

Anna and the Swallow Man vs. The War That Saved My Life

Team 15 was unable to blog but they did vote for The War That Saved My Life to move on.  Wondering why? Here is a little quote from Elizabeth Wein's review in the  New York Times about Anna:

There are two questions about Gavriel Savit’s splendid debut novel that are sure to be asked repeatedly: Is it an allegory, and at whom is it aimed? The first I believe Savit answers clearly. “The world understands stories,” he has one of his main characters come to realize, “not as absolute, irrevocably factual truths that simply don’t exist, but as flaccid allegories or metaphors.” You may read the novel as allegory; go ahead. All stories are allegory. This one makes use of stock figures from European folklore (the fool, the golem, the trickster, the demon, animal shape-changers). It’s also tempting to expand on ways in which the novel’s characters represent aspects of the Polish people during World War II. 

From School Library Journal here is a piece of Elizabeth Bird's review:

Ada is ten and as far as she can tell she’s never been outdoors. Never felt the sun on her face. Never seen grass. Born with a twisted foot her mother considers her an abomination and her own personal shame. So when the chance comes for Ada to join her fellow child evacuees, including her little brother Jamie, out of the city during WWII she leaps at the chance. Escaping to the English countryside, the two are foisted upon a woman named Susan who declares herself to be “not nice” from the start. Under her care the siblings grow and change. Ada discovers Susan’s pony and is determined from the get-go to ride it. And as the war progresses and things grow dire, she finds that the most dangerous thing isn’t the bombs or the war itself. It’s hope. And it’s got her number.


Sounds like both books are in the same genre and both look like they are worth a read.

Ember in the Ashes vs. The Gospel Truth

Ember in the Ashes:  Sabaa Tahir

As a group, we found this book dark, and in places illogical. Every chapter there was death, violence and rape... oppressive... depressing. Where there is the theme of romance, a note of hope in this dreary novel, the plot is thin at best.  Ends up there is a love triangle, and then another love triangle.  Boy finds out his best friend is in love with him, and then he meets another girl, and they instantly fall in love, and eyes lock in deep passion (without words or substance, just instant retinal magnetism), and now nothing else matters, and blah blah blah…. You get the picture.  Aside from the weak grammar of my previous sentence, the obligatory romance was tedious!  Here are a couple of lines:

“I shot at her now because I’m so angry at her for loving me.”  Pardon?????

Or

“If she had controlled her emotions, we would never have fought.”  Double pardon???

And then Elias (a remarkably stupid main character) has other love interests.  Hmmmmm.  Perhaps a love square instead of a love triangle.   And then Elias and Helene have to fight each other to the death… well, I guess that is one way to end the romance.  But… he does not kill his best friend, and gets Laia as the prize.  Yeachhh.  

Even as I am writing, I am getting irritated with this book and the low hanging fruit of young adult interest; violence and romance.  Sigh.

On the other hand…   The Gospel Truth by Caroline Pignat is unpredictable, tense, historically based, and engaging.  The book talks about the life of a slave from different perspectives, that of different slaves, the master and slave owner of a plantation and his daughter Tess.  The book reads like poetry and is easy to complete at one sitting.   Each character has their own distinct voice, but each voice is immensely readable. Each character reveals a different truth about the life of slavery.  The main character, Phoebe, accepts her lot in life, as the bird in the cage metaphor suggests.  She sees the world outside the plantation fences as more dangerous than the one inside. Her best friend, a boy named Shad, believes that if he does everything right the master’s rewards will make up for his lack of freedom. Shad’s brother Will, is obsessed with escaping the plantation even if that means his death.  This book is immensely readable, avoids the predictable and formulaic plots of most YA literature, and leaves the reader with questions.   What a gift!

Goodbye Stranger vs. Hired Help

Goodbye Stranger

For a first time reading anything by Rebecca Stead, we really enjoyed this novel! We thought that for the most part the characters were accessible and authentic and the pacing was appropriate to keep adults and young readers interested. I enjoyed how Stead approached some pretty difficult topics with a light touch and kept it PG for our younger readers. The issues of depression, picture messaging are current and relevant to students today  There is an element of mystery, but it gets wrapped up in a solid conclusion that leaves the readers satisfied.  I still have a few questions, but from what I hear that’s common with her work.

Hired Help

For the historical fiction fans in our group, this was a tough battle.  The novel was really well crafted and engaging to read. The struggles were authentic and easy to empathize with.  . I think that a mature Div 2 student could easily be hooked by the story and see it through to the end. This could be an extension text for grade 5 and 7 with the suffragette movement.  It may appeal to more females than males.  In the end, Goodbye Stranger won out for the greater accessibility of readers who are looking for something new to read, and could be read by both boys and girls.  

A Madness so Discreet vs More Happy Than Not

which left us More Meh Than Anything Else

Not sure if the holes in Dia’s Auntie’s afgan are bigger or smaller than the holes in my brain. The Hillcrest team met over a week ago for a lovely Smackdown Dinner. There was quite a bit of catching up (I’ve been on leave recuperating from knee surgery) and a few disagreements over our books. Katrina kindly wrote down everyone’s comments regarding both books and our reasons why we chose one over the other. Perhaps the holes in my brain are larger than the holes in the afgan - not only did I forget to blog but I have now lost the napkin Katrina wrote on. It could be that the holes in my brain have nothing to do with old age and I forgot to blog because the books were both rather forgettable. I would say this first round was "More Meh Than Anything Else". 

Although the beginning of A Madness so Discreet, an historical thriller we were all looking forward to reading. was compelling and perhaps even disturbing, the rest of the book left you confused and wanting more. The gripping description of the insanity of Victorian asylums was horrific and the author portrayed it well in the first part of the book. The madness of the beginning, alas, did not carry through and the book turned into a boring detective story with an abrupt and confusing ending. Too graphic and too disturbing at the beginning or just too boring were our reasons for dropping this book.

 

That left us with More Happy Than Not and our vote to go through to the next round. The book dealt well with relevant and serious issues of self-discovery around homophobia, sexuality, depression and suicide. The main character, Aaron, considers a memory altering procedure to try and change who he was. This was a good read and at times more sad than happy but it wasn’t a jump up and down, oh my goodness, you need to read this book. We liked the twist in the middle but also felt it was a book that didn’t quite excite us. Let’s see what the next round thinks.

Suanne for the Hillcrest Team (Katrina, Judy, Linda and me)

One Blows Away Updraft!

Sarah Crossan’s One tells the compelling and unique story of conjoined twins, Tipi and Grace, through the point of view of the quieter twin, Grace.  This is a universal story of the teenage girl, with heart wrenching complications and challenges.  It is the story of family, of siblings and of difficult decisions.  The choice of free verse is a perfect vehicle for the narrative. I did not want this book to end. Although at first, I was concerned that the free verse format would not draw me into either character or plot, I was so quickly engaged that I read the book in one sitting and was saddened that the story had to end. 

Updraft by Fran Wilde was a different sort of read.  This  well crafted fantasy with Kirit Densira as the protagonist in a sky world explores the wildly popular theme of a society gone awry while trying to meet the best interests of its citizens.  Kirit and her friends uncover and challenge the workings of the ‘Singers’ and set the book up for a forthcoming sequel.  Anyone who has dreams of flight will enjoy the beauty and challenges of these people as they put on their wings and catch an updraft, flying from one community to another!   Readers who love fantasy and dystopian literature will enjoy reading Updraft.  It was a fun read, but didn’t hold our attention or capture our hearts in the same way as One!

Both books deserve a place in our classroom libraries.