We Were Liars OR The Nazi Hunters

Not surprised there is a division in the team one camp. Both books are worthy of a vote and we are having a difficult time picking one over the other.

We Were Liars was our enthusiastic pick in an earlier round mostly for its unseen twist at the end. We have recommended the book to students and adults with both groups enjoying the tragic and haunting story. We didn't think The Nazi Hunters would even come close. Weren’t we liars! The non-fiction book reads like a spy novel making it an easy read and interesting way in which to learn new information - a definite appeal for young readers. We sobbed at the end of We Were Liars and cheered for justice (yes an audible cheer came out) at the end of The Nazi Hunters.  So how were we going to decide? We have waffled back and forth all week. When I mentioned the dilemma to my grade eight class this afternoon, one of them pointed out a quote, which we have decided to use as a guide in our decision-making process:

"If you love two people books at the same time, choose the second one. If you really loved the first one, then you wouldn't have fallen for the second."

The Nazi Hunters gets our vote.

Suanne and Katrina 

Nazi/Liars

It looks like some division amoungst the readers of We Were Liars and Nazi Hunters. 

Where some have argued that Liars is fluff, a look at a too entitiled rich world, it really portrays the humanity of a class of people we often show with disdain.  The effects of trauma on memory are profound, perhaps more so in young people and wealth does not ameliorate its effect.  Liars reminds us of this. The lens we see life through often clouds reality.  Is everything we see and believe real?  I see a wide range of themes to explore here, not the least of which is our reverse prejudice against entitled society.

In fact, Nazi Hunters bored me.  The writing was simple and the straight forward, lacking suspense, perhaps just like a non fiction should read.   Here is my bias, as I love a good yarn that leaves me hanging.  I want to get engaged with my characters, and this book left me wanting.  Hence my preference for Liars. 

Zombie bid?  Well, I haven't read the recent suggested books, (Glory, Sun( and am wanting too, so will stick to my first choice book, first round, which Wendy and I argued over... The Cutting Knife of Memory,  another book like Liars that uses the foil of memory to create conflict.  (I lost that battle to Wendy's preferred choice. (Summer)

The Night Gardener buries Glory's History

This round, The Night Gardener and Glory O'Briens History of the Future were pittted against one another.  Glory O'Brien's History of the Future provided an interesting premise but, for me, it fell a bit flat (I guess I never really bought into the bat juice leading to a remarkable new skill to see into the future).  The Night Gardener was pleasantly creepy without making me sleep with the light on.  I can see The Night Gardener being a preferred read for some and I can see it used in the classroom (some of the imagery describing that tree was worthy of a class discussion). So without consulting any of my fellow readers my vote is for "The Night Gardener".  This year, unlike past years, I have no vote for the Zombie pick.

Maureen

Trying to think after Spring Break

I'll keep this short.  We Were Liars is my pick.  The family was horrible - I don't think every book should make you feel like you went to Disney (or else Disney would be like everywhere else). The fact that I could feel such a strong emotion is what drew me in. And I'll admit it, I did NOT see dead people until it was pointed out directly to me at the end.  Child-like innocence? Perhaps.  More likely, I skipped a critical page and didn't realize it but either way...it remains my choice! (she said proudly!) And I don't need to wait for my zombie pick because it's already out... I'll Give You the Sun.

Big Buzz vs Little Buzz

When We Were Liars came out this last Spring there was a lot of buzz! This books is a game changer... you'll never see it coming...I knew I wanted to read it and I knew I wanted to be surprised. Unfortunately, I wasn't. I'm old enough to have seen Bruce Willis and a little boy see dead people. I saw it coming. Still it was interesting to read about such a repulsive family though the whole fire thing (even drunk) doesn't make much sense.

In contrast, The Nazi Hunters came with little buzz beyond a grade eighter in my class who really enjoyed it (and he, like Mikey, didn't like anything). I do have a little love set aside for non-fiction that reads like a story. Tell me a story, after all, is essentially the phrase that wins my heart. Like others who have bloged already I read this book in just a few sittings. What sticks with me is the role ordinary non-spies played in the novel...the sense of purpose everyone seemed driven by.

Though there are messages in both one keeps rolling around in my head and will be my choice to move on - The Nazi Hunters. 

Now I need to sit back and dream of zombies.....

Nazi Hunters vs. We Were Liars

Much has already been said about both of these books, so I will keep it brief. I found The Nazi Hunters engaging, well-paced, and informative. I had previously read Hannah Arendt's Eichmann in Jerusalem: A Report on the Banality of Evil so was not unfamiliar with him. Still, Bascomb managed to bring some interesting new details to light and I was captivated enough to read the book through in two sittings. Students are generally fascinated with Nazis and WWII history, and this book would be a nice introduction to reading research-based texts. I would recommend this to students across division 3 and 4 and be confident that most would like it.

By contrast, We Were Liars is pure, escapist fluff. It was a quick, disposable read that won't have a lot of lasting power for me and that would appeal to a much narrower set of students. Nazi Hunters has my choice.

My zombie pick is I'll Give You the Sun. It remains my favorite book of this Smackdown series and never should have been eliminated in the first place. Anyone who has not yet read it should do so ASAP!

The Night Gardener vs the Other Book I have already blocked from memory.

Poor Glory O'Brien wins no awards from me.

I found her character draining, the plot ridiculous, and story, as reflected by my title, absolutely forgettable.  Like many a tale, I wanted to enjoy the story: after all, the girl drinks bat juice and sees the future.  But she has the vision, alongside her co-bat-juice-imbiber, repeats the same listings of tragic/miraculous events that just happen to occur to a kid living just this side of Hicksville, and then has  the visions no more.  Really?  That's all you can do when the world of speculative fiction flaps its bat-wings so promisingly in front of you.  Sigh.

Splice these chapters between her self-indulgent whining about her friend, her mother, her life - oh please, now you could lose your property because it just happens to be nearing year 21 since Jasmine was allowed to hold onto her commune, and she could, in essence, claim squatter's rights - and I couldn't wait fast enough to make this nightmare of a book end.  This novel gives YA books a bad name.

My other read, The Night Gardener, was the better of the two by far.  It was an enjoyable read for its nod to fairy tales of yore that were Grimm, and not filled with singing animals and glass slippers.
I still found the main characters voices rather uneven in places, as there were feeble attempts to create an Irish accent - dinna you know - that mainly fell flat.  But the magical tree that gives you what your heart desires (better than Potter's Mirror of Erised), was a great metaphor for the novel, and basis of a cautionary moral tale about falling prey to your insecurities.

I think young readers will enjoy Molly's and Kip's experience, and Auxier leaves the door open for a sequel so that the kids who bought into this magical world, will be happy to see where Galileo and the wagon takes them next.

Onward and upward with the Gardener.

Tracy