Blog Tour: Not Quite a Ghost by Anne Ursu

When Violet Hart's growing family moves into an old house for more space, she is less-than-thrilled when she discovers her new bedroom is in the attic and is plastered with a hideous yellow wallpaper. It isn't long after her family moves into the house that Violet falls ill from a mysterious virus -- that keeps her feeling sick for weeks afterwards, with no answers from her doctors. In fact, not only do her friends question whether Violet is really sick, but so do her doctors. Due to her malaise, Violet spends a lot of time in her creepy room... and she eventually starts to wonder if she's actually alone up there and also how much of her mysterious illness is related to whatever is living (or dead) in her room. 

Not Quite a Ghost is a book that any adult that has taken enough literature classes in college will immediately make the connection to the famous short story by Charlotte Perkins Gillman, "The Yellow Wallpaper." In that story, a woman is left alone to "recover" from her postpartum depression by being isolated alone up in a room where she eventually descends into madness. Instead of postpartum depression, the main character in Not Quite a Ghost is a young 6th grade girl who is being told by her friends and the medical community that there is nothing wrong with her and everything she is experiencing is in her head. So in that regard, it is a book about medical gaslighting and the very real damage it causes to real people, disguised as a ghost story. 

I  am generally not a fan of fantasy stories because so often they are hard to follow and lack fully realized and empathetic characters. But because Ursu writes characters that feel like real people, I find myself not being able to stop turning the pages of her books. Not only is Violet a protagonist you root for, but there are a lot of other wonderful characters in this book that you fall in love with, including Violet's mother and stepfather, which is unusual in children's literature to have supportive and competent parents. 

I look forward to recommending this book to readers, kids and adults alike, who are experiencing any sort of chronic illness that has resulted in being written off by their doctors, as they will most certainly see themselves in this story. 

Not Quite a Ghost Educator guide

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Anne Ursu is the author of acclaimed novels The Troubled Girls of Dragomir Academy, The Lost Girl, Breadcrumbs, and The Real Boy, among others. Her work has been selected as a National Book Award nominee, a Kirkus Prize finalist, and as a best book of the year by Parents Magazine, Publishers Weekly, Amazon.com, and School Library Journal. She lives in Minneapolis with her family and an unruly herd of cats. Find Anne online at anneursu.com.

 

BLOG TOUR STOPS 

January 16 Nerdy Book Club @nerdybookclub

January 17 A Library Mama (@librarymama)

January 18 Charlotte's Library (@charlotteslibrary)

January 21 Teachers Who Read (@teachers_read)

January 22 Bluestocking Thinking (@bluesockgirl)

    ReadWonder (@patrickontwit)

January 23 A Foodie Bibliophile In Wanderlust (@teacherlibrarianbeth)

January 25 Satisfaction for Insatiable Readers (@grgenius)

 

Blog Tour: No One Leaves the Castle by Christopher Healy

Christopher Healy's The Hero's Guide to Saving Your Kingdom is one of my all-time favorite middle grade series (read my review here). So when Walden Pond Press asked if I would like to participate in a blog tour for Healy's newest book, I was elated. But then when I discovered it took place in the same world as the Hero's Guide, I was even more excited. My entire reading experience wasn't just about following along with the mysterious quest of the main character in this novel, but also to find all of the Easter eggs from the Hero's Guide (I will have to re-read the series to find them all, I'm sure). 

My favorite thing about Christopher Healy's books is that because he leans into humor rather than drama, that makes the fantasy setting more bearable for someone like me who doesn't love fantasy novels. Because I'm too busy laughing, I don't have time to think about how I normally shy away from fantasy. 

If you or a young reader in your life love mystery, fantasy, and humor, add No One Leaves the Castle to your TBR! And most importantly, you don't have to have read The Hero's Guide series to enjoy No One Leaves the Castle (but I recommend you read it sometime in your life because it's one of the funniest series in all of children's literature). 

ABOUT THE BOOK
Agatha Christie meets the Brothers Grimm in an unexpected, hilarious, and wholly original new fantasy-mystery from the beloved author of The Hero’s Guide to Saving Your Kingdom.

The Lilac. The bard songs say that she’s the world’s most fearsome bounty hunter. That there’s no criminal she can’t catch, no mystery she can’t solve.

None of that is true. Yet.

In reality, the Lilac is just a kid, and the bard who wrote all that is her best friend, Dulcinetta. But when a priceless artifact goes missing from the home of famed monster hunter Baron Angbar, the Lilac and Netta see their chance to apprehend the thief and make a name for themselves.

When they get to Castle Angbar, however, and meet the Angbar family and their servants and guests—an unsavory group of nobles, mages, and assorted creatures, each more shady than the last—the Lilac begins to wonder if the reward is worth the trouble.

And that’s before the dead body is discovered.

Now everyone is magically sealed inside the castle—and there is a murderer among then. If the Lilac wants to make it out with her reputation intact, it’s going to be up to her to figure out who the killer is. But everyone in the castle—even the Lilac herself—has secrets to hide, and as the walls literally start to close in around them, the Lilac worries that her first job as a bounty hunter may be her last….

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Christopher Healy is the author of the New York Times Book Review Editor’s Choice The Hero’s Guide to Saving Your Kingdom and its sequels, as well as the Perilous Journey of Danger and Mayhem series. Before becoming a writer, Chris worked as an actor, an ad copywriter, a toy-store display designer, a fact-checker, a dishwasher, a journalist, a costume shop clothing stitcher, a children’s entertainment reviewer, and a haunted house zombie. He lives with his family in New Jersey. You can visit him online at christopherhealy.com

Blog tour stops: 

August 2 Nerdy Book Club (@nerdybookclub)

August 7 Bluestocking Thinking (@bluesockgirl)

August 8 Teachers Who Read (@teachers_read)

August 12 Maria’s Mélange (@mariaselke)

August 15 A Foodie Bibliophile in Wanderlust (@teacherlibrarianbeth)

August 18 Satisfaction for Insatiable Readers (@grgenius)

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

No One Leaves the Castle by Christopher Healy

Publication date: August 15, 2023

Publisher: Walden Pond Press

Pages: 384

Genre: Fantasy/Mystery

Audience: Middle grade

Disclosure: ARC received from publisher

Purchasing the book from the above Bookshop affiliate link supports independent bookstores and gives me a small percentage of the sale. 

Blog Tour: The Witch of Woodland by Laurel Snyder

Thank you to Walden Pond Press for inviting me to be part of the blog tour for Laurel Snyder's newest middle grade novel that was published this month, The Witch of Woodland. 

About the book: 

Laurel Snyder, author of Orphan Island, returns with a story of one girl's quest to answer the seemingly unanswerable questions about what makes us who we are.

Hi, whoever is reading this. I'm Zipporah Chava McConnell, but everyone calls me Zippy.

Things used to be simple--until a few weeks ago. Now my best friend, Bea, is acting funny; everyone at school thinks I'm weird; and my mom is making me start preparing for my bat mitzvah, even though we barely ever go to synagogue. In fact, the only thing that still seems to make sense is magic.

See, the thing is, I'm a witch. I've been casting spells since I was little. And even if no one else wants to believe in magic anymore, it's always made sense to me, always felt true. But I was still shocked the day I found a strange red book at the library and somehow...I conjured something. A girl, actually. A beautiful girl with no memory, and wings like an angel. You probably don't believe me, but I swear it's the truth.

Miriam is like no one else I've ever met. She's proof that magic is real. And, it's hard to explain this part, but I just know that we're connected. That means it's up to me to help Miriam figure out what she is and where she came from. If I can do that, maybe everything else in my life will start to make sense too.

Anyway, it's worth a try.

My review: 

Laurel Snyder has always been one of my favorite middle grade authors. Her work is heartfelt and always makes you think without being obviously didactic. In The Witch of Woodland, Snyder writes a coming-of-age story that delves into Jewish folklore while still maintaining a contemporary vibe. We are so entrenched in Christianity being the default in American culture that coming across a contemporary coming-of-age story that looks at Judaism as more than a religion, but also in a cultural context was a beautiful and immersive reading experience. 

About the Author

Laurel Snyder is the beloved author of many picture books and novels for children, including the National Book Award nominee Orphan Island and the Theodor Seuss Geisel Award winner Charlie & Mouse. A graduate of the Iowa Writers’ Workshop, she teaches in Hamline University’s MFA in writing for children and young adults program. Laurel lives in Atlanta with her family and can be found online at www.laurelsnyder.com.

Download the Educators' Guide

Purchase The Witch of Woodland on Bookshop.org (affiliate link)

The Witch of Woodland Blog Tour Stops: 

May 16	Nerdy Book Club	@nerdybookclub
May 16	Unleashing Readers	@unleashreaders
May 17	Teachers Who Read	@teachers_read
May 18	Satisfaction for Insatiable Readers	@grgenius
May 22	StoryMamas	@storymamas
May 23	LitCoachLou	@litcoachlou
May 26	A Library Mama	@librarymama
May 30	A Foodie Bibliophile in Wanderlust	@bethshaum

Blog Tour: The Troubled Girls of Dragomir Academy by Anne Ursu

 Today is the publication date for Anne Ursu's beautiful new novel The Troubled Girls of Dragomir Academy. Thank you to Walden Pond Press and HarperCollins for inviting me to be part of the blog tour and giving me the opportunity to read an advanced copy.  

I am going to let you in on a little secret, dear reader. I normally have a major aversion to fantasy novels. I prefer reading books in this world because I know how to navigate it and fantasy always seems like so much work to me. We all have our biases as readers, right? However, I always make an exception to Anne Ursu's novels because I know that despite the fantasy world she has built, she is  making a social commentary on the world in which we are currently living. And The Troubled Girls of Dragomir Academy is no different. Like Ursu's previous novels, this book deals with themes of feminism and girl power, this time with a particular focus on women and girls who have to follow along with the leadership of mediocre men (and women who want proximity to power) who gaslight them.

About the Book:

If no one notices Marya Lupu, it’s likely because of her brother, Luka. And that’s because of what everyone knows: Luka is destined to become a sorcerer.

The Lupus might be from a small village far from the capital city, but that doesn’t matter. Every young boy born in Illyria may possess the rare ability to wield magic, to protect the country from the terrifying force known only as the Dread. For all the hopes the family has for Luka, no one has any for Marya, who can never seem to do anything right. But even so, no one is prepared for the day that the sorcerers finally arrive to test Luka for magical ability, and Marya makes a terrible mistake. Nor the day after, when the Lupus receive a letter from a place called Dragomir Academy — a mysterious school for wayward young girls. Girls like Marya.

Soon she is a hundred miles from home, in a strange and unfamiliar place, surrounded by girls she’s never met. Dragomir Academy promises Marya and her classmates a chance to make something of themselves in service to one of the country’s powerful sorcerers. But as they learn how to fit into a world with no place for them, they begin to discover things about the magic the men of their country wield, as well as the Dread itself — things that threaten the precarious balance upon which their country is built.

About the Author:

Anne Ursu is the author of the acclaimed novels The Lost Girl, Breadcrumbs, and The Real Boy, which was longlisted for the National Book Award. The recipient of a McKnight Fellowship Award in Children’s Literature, Anne is also a member of the faculty at Hamline University’s MFA in Writing for Children and Young Adults. She lives in Minneapolis with her family and an ever-growing number of cats. You can visit her online at www.anneursu.com.

PRAISE FOR THE TROUBLED GIRLS OF DRAGOMIR ACADEMY

“A wonderful and inspiring feminist fantasy.” – Kirkus

"An accessible, timely school story with a rather Transylvanian flavor to its fantasy setting. Ursu explores girls’ conditioning in timidity and shame in a male-dominated world and, ultimately, envisions a hopeful, female-determined future of magical ability." - Horn Book Magazine

“A suspenseful tale woven with secrets and magic, with a gasp-worthy twist at the end, The Troubled Girls of Dragomir Academy is everything I love about fantasy. Spell-binding.” - Christina Soontornvat, Newbery Honor-winning author of A Wish in the Dark

“Anne Ursu practices her own brand of sorcery—the ability to craft wondrous, magical stories that are unlike anything you’ve ever read. Another extraordinary tale from a remarkably talented author.” - Erin Entrada Kelly, Newbery Medal-winning author of Hello, Universe

"A thoughtful and incisive story of lies told to control people and the complicated girls who ask questions, push back, and keep fighting." - Tui Sutherland, New York Times-bestselling author of the Wings of Fire series

“It’s no secret that Anne Ursu is a gifted storyteller. The Troubled Girls of Dragomir Academy is intricately plotted and compulsively readable, with characters who will stay with you long after you stop reading. I could not put it down.” - Aisha Saeed, New York Times bestselling author of Amal Unbound

"The Troubled Girls of Dragomir Academy manages the particular magic of being both a true fantasy novel and a clear-eyed reflection of the here-and-now. Bighearted, generous, and outstandingly original, this is a story only Anne Ursu could write."- Elana K. Arnold, award-winning author of The House That Wasn't There

Here are two upcoming virtual author events with Anne Ursu:

Tuesday October 13, 2021 at 7 pm CT Anne will launch her book in a virtual conversation with Laura Ruby, hosted by the RED BALLOON BOOKSHOP in St. Paul Minnesota.Click here for more information. We hope you will join us!

October 26, 2021 at 6 pm CT Anne will be in conversation with Kelly Barnhill, hosted by WILD RUMPUS BOOKS in Minneapolis.Please click here for more information. We hope you will join us then as well!

BLOG TOUR STOPS

October 12 A Foodie Bibliophile in Wanderlust

                     Unleashing Readers

October 13 Read Wonder

October 14 Nerdy Book Club

October 15 A Library Mama

October 16 Maria’s Mélange

October 17 By Singing Light

October 18 Bluestocking Thinking

October 20 Insatiable Readers

Return by Aaron Becker

If you have not read the stunning wordless picture book Journey, stop reading this blog post and do that right now before you even continue -- not because this review will spoil the trilogy for you, but because Journey is a book everyone should read and you need to get on that.

Return is the third and final book in the Journey trilogy and if you've read the other two books, it is just as stunning as you would expect it to be. It is a book that reminded me of everything I loved about Journey but this time the young protagonist understands the world in which she has drawn herself and is guiding someone into that world with her.

In Return, the young girl journeys back to the magical land into which she drew herself for the same reason she did before: a lack of attention from her family. Only this time, her father notices and follows her into this magical world. The man is awed by the wonder and curiosity of this place, but he can't quite take it all in because he is focused on finding his daughter. When he does finally catch up to her, she has no desire to return home with him, which leads them on a magical journey fraught with wonder and peril.

For lovers of Journey and Quest, Return is everything you want it to be: stunning illustrations, a compelling story full of imagination and fantasy, and characters that we find a way to care about despite the fact that they never speak.

I can't wait to share this book with my students in the fall. Thank you Aaron Becker for gracing the world with the gift of your stories and drawings.

GIVEAWAY! (Note: This giveaway has ended)

In anticipation of the release of Return, Candlewick Press is generously giving away to the readers of this blog a hardcover copy of both Journey and Quest to get caught up on the trilogy before the third books comes out.

Terms and conditions:
Must be 13 or older to enter and have a U.S. or Canadian mailing address
One winner will be selected to receive a hardcover copy of Journey and Quest.
Use the Rafflecopter widget to enter

Audiobook review: The Doldrums by Nicholas Gannon

Lovers of Lemony Snicket, Neil Gaiman, and Roald Dahl (there's quite the Trunchbull-like character in this novel) will surely find nothing dull about The Doldrums, the story of a young Archer Helmsley who lives with his parents in the house formerly occupied by his grandparents. While Archer has never met his grandparents, he feels very close to them and wishes he could accompany them on their great adventures around the world. Instead, he must be reminded daily by his mother that life should be lived with an abundance of caution because no one wants to end up presumed dead as a result of a rogue iceberg in Antarctica like his grandparents. 

But Archer is convinced that his grandparents are in fact alive and he enlists the help of his two friends -- Adélaïde L. Belmont who moved to their little town from France and claims she lost her leg to a crocodile, and Oliver Glub, who is as practical as Archer is impetuous -- to accompany him to Antarctica to find them. 

I listened to the audiobook of this novel, but also checked out a physical copy of the book at the library so as not to miss out on the stunning color illustrations that reminded me a bit of Molly Idle's style.

Bronson Pinchot narrates the audiobook and does a fabulous job. After listening to him narrate The Hero's Guide to Saving Your Kingdom, I already decided that if I ever saw him narrate another audiobook, I would listen to it regardless if I wanted to read the book or not. His voices are always so full of life and character. I especially loved how Pinchot interpreted the character of Oliver Glub, someone who knows how to rock a lisp. 

I can't wait to read the next book in the series. 


The Doldrums by Nicholas Gannon
Audiobook Narrator: Bronson Pinchot
Published: September 29, 2015
Publisher: Greenwillow/HarperAudio
Pages: 358
Audiobook Length: 6 hours, 19 minutes
Genre: Fantasy
Audience: Middle Grade
Disclosure: Audiobook download provided by publisher
 
If you buy this book or any book through Amazon, it is my hope that you also regularly patronize independent bookstores, which are important centerpieces of thriving communities. While I am an Amazon Affiliate, that by no means implies that I only buy my books through their website. Please make sure you are still helping small, independent bookstores thrive in your community. To locate an independent bookstore near you, visit IndieBound. 

Audiobook Review: Bone Gap by Laura Ruby

From Goodreads:

Everyone knows Bone Gap is full of gaps—gaps to trip you up, gaps to slide through so you can disappear forever. So when young, beautiful Roza went missing, the people of Bone Gap weren’t surprised. After all, it wasn’t the first time that someone had slipped away and left Finn and Sean O’Sullivan on their own. Just a few years before, their mother had high-tailed it to Oregon for a brand new guy, a brand new life. That’s just how things go, the people said. Who are you going to blame?

Finn knows that’s not what happened with Roza. He knows she was kidnapped, ripped from the cornfields by a dangerous man whose face he cannot remember. But the searches turned up nothing, and no one believes him anymore. Not even Sean, who has more reason to find Roza than anyone, and every reason to blame Finn for letting her go.

There were a few points in this story where I said to myself, "Ugh! This is too much mythology inspiration for my liking." You see, I have an aversion to mythology. Ever since since I was in 6th grade and my English teacher made us learn about it through a series of horrifically boring worksheets, I cannot stomach even the slightest mythological reference. It is the literary equivalent to an allergic reaction. 

When the story was more realism than magical, I enjoyed it a great deal. But those fantasy/mythology elements just didn't seem to click right for me in my addled, traumatized mind.

Still, even with my mythology aversion, I enjoyed Bone Gap more than I didn't. The writing is both simple and lyrical and I love that the ending was a win for feminism. It is also really difficult for me to connect with third person narration, but Laura Ruby expertly navigates that point-of-view to allow readers to connect with many of the characters you are meant to empathize with.

What made the story even more enjoyable for me was Dan Bittner's gentle yet haunting performance of the audiobook. I'm definitely a fan of his narration style.  

Overall, Bone Gap was an enjoyable listening experience and lives up to the buzz it has been receiving among my book-loving friends. It's a quiet book that will likely have to be hand sold to just the right student, but I've already got a few students in my mind who I know would love it. 


Bone Gap by Laura Ruby
Audiobook Narrator: Dan Bittner
Published: March 3, 2015
Publisher: Balzer + Bray 
Pages:  373
Audiobook Length: 8 hours, 21 minutes
Genre: Magical Realism
Audience: Young Adult
Disclosure: Audiobook received for review from publisher

If you buy this book or any book through Amazon, it is my hope that you also regularly patronize independent bookstores, which are important centerpieces of thriving communities. While I am an Amazon Affiliate, that by no means implies that I only buy my books through their website. Please make sure you are still helping small, independent bookstores thrive in your community. To locate an independent bookstore near you, visit IndieBound. 

Demon Derby by Carrie Harris

Casey Kent is a teenage cancer survivor and hates being seen by her friends and family as fragile. So when she tries out for the local roller derby team, many are hesitant to allow her to do so -- especially the team captain, who seems to want to do nothing but make her life miserable. But Casey soon finds out that cancer was a walk in the park compared to the new demons she must fight: well, that's because they're actual demons.

Carrie Harris's novels are perfect to give to readers like me who don't particularly like paranormal stories that involve zombies, werewolves, demons, and the like because there is always an element of comedy in her writing. Laughter and smart-assery are Carrie's M.O. in her writing and in her life -- and no doubt Carrie will read that statement as a badge of honor, as she should.

In Demon Derby, the comedy is toned down more so than it was in her first two books, Bad Taste in Boys and Bad Hair Day, but it's still there. However, what Harris adds to this narrative is a greater purpose than her previous books. You see, this book is dedicated to her husband Andy who is a cancer survivor -- and having heard Andy's harrowing story from Carrie herself, I see where those personal moments are inserted into the narrative. Despite the fact that Harris's writing never takes itself too seriously, there is definitely an underlying gravitas happening beneath the surface. The fact that the paranormal beings Harris's protagonist must fight are demons rather than zombies, werewolves, vampires or any other paranormal being, is clearly symbolically intentional: because cancer is a demon that survivors must fight in myriad ways.

Don't miss the acknowledgements as well as the Q & A with Carrie at the end of the book to learn more about the inspiration for this story. It will make you read it in a whole different light.


Demon Derby by Carrie Harris
Published: July 8, 2014
Publisher: Delacorte
Pages: 294
Genre: Paranormal Fantasy
Audience: Young Adult
Disclosure: Purchased Copy
 
If you buy this book or any book through Amazon, it is my hope that you also regularly patronize independent bookstores, which are important centerpieces of thriving communities. While I am an Amazon Affiliate, that by no means implies that I only buy my books through their website. Please make sure you are still helping small, independent bookstores thrive in your community. To locate an independent bookstore near you, visit IndieBound. 

ARC review: Chasing Before by Lenore Appelhans

Note: This review contains spoilers from book one so if you haven't read The Memory of After yet, you might want to refrain from reading this review until you get up to speed.

I thought one advantage of dying was that you'd finally know what happens to you after you die. But here I am, dead, and I'm still in the dark as to what comes next, if anything. A better place? A worse place? No place at all?

Now that Felicia Ward has defeated the Morati in Level Two and been reunited with her boyfriend Neil, she is ready to move on to Level Three and begin what she thinks is her long-awaited, peaceful afterlife.

Oh how wrong she is.

Upon arriving in Level Three, Felicia soon discovers that the Mortai have infiltrated this new level and are sabotaging it with powerful and deadly explosions. Felicia realizes that she must make a choice between seeking answers to the past that she is desperate to remember or defeating the Morati yet again in order to move on to the next level. Another risky choice she must make is realizing that Julian, her complicated former love interest, may be the only person who can help her figure out what to do. Afterlife-changing choices are all around her in Level Three, and it seems like no matter which one she makes, she is going to lose. Will Felicia choose to find answers to her past and risk losing Neil? Or will she follow her heart and risk losing herself?

*~*~*~*~*
As I did when I wrote my review for the first book and in the interest of full disclosure, I want to put it out there that the author is a friend of mine. Feel free to use that information to determine as you see fit, the legitimacy of this review.

Chasing Before is a strong sequel to The Memory of After but it is also quite different from book one. Gone are the white, hive-like pods of Level Two where inhabitants are drugged up on memories of their past, and  we now enter a world where the deceased begin training for an afterlife career. The dystopia label that I felt was a misnomer in the first book, in my mind has gone to straight-up fantasy here in book two. I don't see any signs of sci-fi/dystopia in Chasing Before.

Lenore's strength in both her first book and now Chasing Before is her fierce desire to build a world that readers can immerse themselves in. While I think the world-building in The Memory of After was more vivid and unique, I can still see in this sophomore release that Lenore will always be an author who puts a great deal of passion into  creating a new world for readers to escape to. As I did when I first began reading The Memory of After, I started questioning how some of the things in this created afterlife were possible (how someone who was already dead could die again for instance), but I needn't have worried, because those questions eventually get answered.

If you are a fan of fantasy and afterlife thrillers, I highly recommend you give Chasing Before a try. It's not absolutely necessary to read The Memory of After first since Lenore gets you up to speed as to what happened in book one in the prologue, but just because you don't HAVE to read book one to understand book two, doesn't mean you SHOULD skip book one.  Put this book (and book one if you haven't read it yet!) on your TBR piles come August!


Chasing Before by Lenore Appelhans
Expected Publication: August 26, 2014
Publisher: Simon & Schuster
Pages: 359
Genre: Fantasy
Audience: Young Adult
Disclosure: ARC provided by the author

If you buy this book or any book through Amazon, it is my hope that you also regularly patronize independent bookstores, which are important centerpieces of thriving communities. While I am an Amazon Affiliate, that by no means implies that I only buy my books through their website. Please make sure you are still helping small, independent bookstores thrive in your community. To locate an independent bookstore near you, visit IndieBound.  

Rules of Summer by Shaun Tan

 Never be late for a parade.
Never forget the password.
Never ruin a perfect plan.

It's all about the rules. But what if the rules feel completely arbitrary? What if your older brother is the only one who gets to make them up all summer long? And what if he's the only one who can save you when the darkness of winter comes rushing in?

 
I'm glad I read Betsy Bird's review of Rules of Summer immediately after I read the book. I went back and did another read through and I never would have garnered that meaning on my own had it not been for Betsy's insights. I feel like I need an interpreter every time I read a Shaun Tan book, or at least someone who is more adept at reading symbolism than I am. His books completely perplex me, but I also have an intense desire to talk about them with someone to try to figure out all the weirdness.

I liken Shaun Tan to the illustrator version of Neil Gaiman. I know Gaimnan's work is brilliant, but it's a little too creepy and weird for me and I just don't get the appeal. That is my exact feeling about Tan's work as an illustrator. I know it's brilliant, but it just doesn't resonate with me the way I feel it should.

Rules of Summer might be a good book to read with students on the first day/week of school to give them something deeper to reflect on than the traditional "What I did on my summer vacation" assignment. Since the first line of the story is "This is what I learned last summer," that line coupled with the book's strangeness could be a catalyst for students to go beyond the typical "I went to Disney World and it was fun" response, and turn it into something much more detailed and thought-provoking. 


Rules of Summer by Shaun Tan
Published: April 29, 2014
Publisher: Arthur A. Levine Books
Pages: 48
Genre: Fantasy Picture Book
Audience: Primary/Middle Grade/Young Adult 
Disclosure: Library Copy

If you buy this book or any book through Amazon, it is my hope that you also regularly patronize independent bookstores, which are important centerpieces of thriving communities. While I am an Amazon Affiliate, that by no means implies that I only buy my books through their website. Please make sure you are still helping small, independent bookstores thrive in your community. To locate an independent bookstore near you, visit IndieBound. 

Flora & Ulysses by Kate DiCamillo, illustrated by K.G. Campbell

Flora Belle Buckman is what her mother calls a natural-born cynic. As the child of divorced and somewhat eccentric parents, Flora spends a lot of time in her room reading her favorite comic book, The Illuminated Adventures of the Amazing Incandesto, much to her mother's chagrin, as she thinks Flora should be reading real literature.

One day, Flora notices something very strange outside her bedroom window. A rogue vacuum, the Ulysses 2000x, is out of control in her neighbor's backyard and vacuums up an unassuming squirrel. Not sure if the squirrel is alive or dead, Flora runs down the stairs and out of her house to try to rescue him from his prison, and is compelled to perform CPR on the unresponsive critter. What happens next is nothing short of extraordinary. The squirrel, having been resuscitated by Flora, now seems to have special powers, and Flora is determined to use him to help try to rid the world of evil.  Or something.

All superheros, however, must have an arch-nemesis, and Flora, to her horror, discovers that her superhero friend's mortal enemy is her own mother. Armed with a band of unconventional sidekicks such as her neighbor Mrs. Tickham, along with Mrs. Tickham's temporarily blind great-nephew William Spiver (who prefers to be called William Spiver, thank you very much), and the philosophizing Dr. Meescham, Flora and Ulysses seek to "conquer villains, defend the defenseless, and protect the weak. Or something."

Flora & Ulysses is a kooky little book. At first, it can be hard to wade through the eccentricities to find a purpose other than just straight-up nonsense, but stick with it. Despite the head scratching that is sure to go on at the beginning of the novel, the writing is what keeps the reader amused and interested. The voice and cadence are quirky to say the least. But a little over halfway through, while the quirk continues, the heart and soul of the story finally begins to reveal itself.

Kate DiCamillo's reaction to the news that she had won the 2014 Newbery medal for Flora & Ulysses through her tears was, "But it's a book about a squirrel!"

Oh no dear Kate. This book is about so much more than a squirrel. This is a book about love and about melting even the most cynical of hearts, which in the end, was Ulysses' true superhero power. 


Flora & Ulysses: The Illuminated Adventures by Kate DiCamillo, illustrated by K.G. Campbell
Published: September 24, 2013
Publisher: Candlewick
Pages: 233
Genre: Fantasy
Audience: Middle Grade
Disclosure: Purchased Copy

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Hollow City by Ransom Riggs

We rowed out through the harbor, past bobbing boats weeping rust from their seams, past juries of silent seabirds roosting atop the barnacled remains of sunken docks, past fishermen who lowered their nets to stare frozenly as we slipped by, uncertain whether we were real or imagined; a procession of waterborne ghosts, or ghosts soon to be. We were ten children and one bird in three small and unsteady boats, rowing with quiet intensity straight out to sea, the only safe harbor for miles receding quickly behind us, craggy and magical in the blue-gold light of dawn. Our goal, the rutted coast of mainland Wales, was somewhere before us but only dimly visible, an inky smudge squatting along the far horizon.

And with that first paragraph, Ransom Riggs proves yet again why he is a master of creating atmospheric novels. I would say even more than the story itself, his ability to set the mood is his niche. Hollow City is the second book in his Miss Peregrine series, but as you find out on the last page, it will not be the last. In this installment the Peculiars flee to London but are met with even more danger as they encounter Miss Peregrine's dangerous brother Caul who is able to steal Peculiar abilities.

Just like in book one, the reader is met with a series of photographs to enhance the narrative and while the photographs in the first book live up to the word Peculiar in the title, I found that the pictures in this book weren't as compelling. The composition of the photographs in this volume don't beg the reader to stare curiously for lengthy spans of time the way the photos in the first book do. However, what theses photos do accomplish for the reader is giving us a glimpse of how writers can use visual inspiration to tell a story. Many authors do this behind the scenes when researching their novels, but Riggs put this process right into his stories. This could be an interesting writing exercise or full-blown project to do with students: give them a series of photographs they've never seen before and ask them to incorporate them into a story.

I'm looking forward to seeing how Riggs extends this process in book three.

Read my review of Book One


Hollow City by Ransom Riggs
Series: Miss Peregrine #2
Published: January 14, 2014
Publisher: Quirk Books
Pages: 400
Genre: Fantasy
Audience: Adult/Young Adult
Disclosure: Book received from publisher