Shadowland

Cabot, Meg. Shadowland. New York: Avon, 2005. Print.

Genre: Fantasy

Intended Audience: Ages 11 and older

Personal Reaction: When I learned there was going to be another Mediator book released I couldn't help but reread the series starting with Shadowland.  For those who have never read the series (and I suspect most who are visiting my blog have not) perhaps my "personal reaction" will give you reason to read it. Suze sees dead people.  She helps guide people to their after life, most are happy about it and require something simple.  Some aren't so much-which brings in the problems in the series.

When Suze moves with her mom to California she moves into her new bedroom and finds Jesse de Silva, a ghost, sitting in her room.  In Shadowland Heather, a former student, committed suicide because her boyfriend broke up with her.  She decides to attempt to kill him and Suze and Father Dominic (another mediator at the school) help her to find her way home.  Through all this Suze and Jesse have feelings for one another and Jesse ends up saving Suze on multiple occasions throughout the story.

Author Facts:  Meg Cabot worked in a residence hall for ten years at NYU.  She has celiac disease which she finds most unfortunate as she loves all carbs, especially pizza and beer.  She currently lives in Key West with her husband and many cats.

Author Website:  http://www.megcabot.com/

Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children

Riggs, Ransom. Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children. Philadelphia, PA: Quirk, 2011. Print.

Intended Audience: Ages 12 and older

Genre: Fantasy

Personal Reaction: This book was creepy.  I loved it, don't get me wrong, but it was creepy.  There are photographs littered throughout the novel which you find after reading it, are actual photographs.  It is the story of children known as peculiars and their life in a time loop and how Jacob came to find them.  Jacob watched his grandfather die at the hands of a monster only he could see and later finds he is one of very few people who can.  At the end their time loop is broken and Miss Peregrine (their leader of sorts, who turns into a peregrine) is left inhabiting a peregrine's body.  At the end of the story Jacob and the other peculiars go to search for another time loop and leave Jacob's father to stay in the "real world."  Without divulging the entire story I'm unsure of how else to describe my reaction, so read it yourself.  

Author Facts: Ransom Riggs loves to travel, especially to those places not easily found on maps.  He also enjoys scuba diving and telling stories.  When he was much younger he and his friend created videos starring themselves on an old video camera they found.  

Author Website:http://www.ransomriggs.com/

Fables: Legends in Exile

Willingham, Bill. Fables: Legends in Exile. Vol. 1. New York, New York: DC Coics, 2012. Print.

Genre: Comic/Fantasy

Intended Audience: Ages 13 and older

Personal Reaction: I loved these stories. Fables follows the lives of characters in any of the fairy tales and fables we grew up reading.  Snow White is the Director of Operations for the Fable community and finds her sister, Rose Red has gone missing.  Mister Wolf (from the story of the three little pigs) is a detective and is attempting to solve the mystery of her disappearance.  Jack, from Jack and the Beanstalk, Prince Charming and many other characters are included as suspects and characters making an appearance. 

The artwork is beautifully done and colored, making the story easy to follow and a cohesive unit.  When there is a back story, or flashback moment the drawings are done in shades of purple while the rest has bold, but at times, dark colors.  A friend had recommended reading Fables many years ago in my undergraduate degree and at a recent trip to a comic book store I'm glad I purchased this volume. 

Author Facts: As a child Bill Willingham was stationed with his parents in Germany during the Cuban Missile Crisis and after moved to New York City.  He hates receiving mail with improper grammar and punctuation (but who doesn't?). Finally, he loves riding on the Amtrak and has written blogs and books while on it.  

Author Website: http://www.billwillingham.com/

A Thousand Splendid Suns

Hosseini, Khaled. A Thousand Splendid Suns. New York: Riverhead, 2007. 

Intended Audience: Ages 15 and older

Genre: Historical Fiction

Personal Reaction: I was recommended this novel by a teenager at the library I work at.  To start, I was hesitant, A Thousand Splendid Suns does not fit in the books I would normally read.  Thankfully, I have much respect for my patrons' recommendations and devoured this book.  

A Thousand Splendid Suns follows the lives of Mariam and Laila to women growing up in Afghanistan.  The story tells of their childhoods, the war taking place, the Taliban and the Soviets taking over their homes and the lives they led, marrying the same man and sharing children.  This is a novel filled with hope but only after times of brokenness.  I have heard and read how closely this book follows the lives of many women who have lived in Afghanistan and surrounding countries, making it even more memorable. 


Author facts: Khaled Hosseini was born in Kabul, Afghanistan in 1965 but moved to the USA in 1980.  In 1993 Hosseini received a degree in medicine years later began to write Kite Runner.  After a visit to Afghanistan he began The Khaled Hosseini Foundation, providing humanitarian assistance to those in Afghanistan. 

Author Website: http://khaledhosseini.com/

Copper Sun

Draper, Sharon. Copper Sun. New York: Antheneum, 2006.

Intended Audience: Ages 12 and older

Genre: Historical Fiction

Personal Reaction:  Copper Sun is the story of Amari, a young girl looking forward to her marriage with Besa.  Instead of marriage, Amari finds herself stolen into slavery, finding herself living the horrible life of a slave girl as she attempts to find herself free.  After being raped, beaten and destroyed in many ways, Amari escapes slavery to freedom. 

Living life as a slave is not a place you would expect hope to exist, but somehow there is.  It is a book that leaves you with the realization of looking forward to what lies ahead, not simply being stuck on the past and the horrible things that have happened.  This is an amazing story, showing the need to live and look forward to what may come, not necessarily what has happened.

Author Facts: Sharon Draper is an educator as well as an author, having won the teacher of the year award in Ohio and an NCNW Educator of the Year award.  Draper's literary achievements began when challenged by a student to submit a short story to a contest.  Draper sees herself as a poet, a dreamer and an innovator. 

Author Website: http://sharondraper.com/

Maus

Spiegelman, Art. Maus A Survivor’s Tale: My Father Bleeds History. New York: Pantheon, 1992

Intended Audience: Ages 13 and older

Genre: Historical Fiction

Personal Reaction: Maus was a difficult read. Not because of the topic, though the Holocaust is never an easy topic to read about, but because it was a graphic novel.  One of the first pages it shows Jews being drug from their homes and children "not screaming anymore" when they would not stop crying.  Even though Jews were portrayed as mice and Nazis as cats it was not difficult to see how their horrible the living conditions for survivors, and those who did not make it, was.  

I have always had an interest in books about the Holocaust but I hadn't read many showing the life of a survivor after the war.  Seeing how difficult it was for Vladek to throw anything away made sense, as not having enough would always be a consistent thought in his mind.  As difficult as it was to read, this is one book I would recommend for others to read as well, the graphics are very well done and brings history to life.   

Author Facts: Art Spiegelman began cartooning in high school and decided to go against his parents wishes of becoming a dentist.  He believes that comics are on the rise, as they are often the way the brain works.  With this mentality he gave a lecture titled "What the %@&*! Happened to Comics?" a historical journey through the history of comics.  

Author Website: http://barclayagency.com/spiegelman.html

Goose Girl

Hale, Shannon. The Goose Girl. New York: Bloomsbury, 2003. Print.

Intended Audience: Ages 12 and older

Genre: Fantasy

Personal Reaction: Goose Girl is the story of Ani, the princess of Kildenree a young girl who finds she is able to speak with and understand birds.  She has been betrothed to the prince of Bayern to form an alliance between the countries and leaves her home to marry.  She was accompanied by Talone and a company of soldiers, men and her lady in waiting for the several month journey to her betrothed. On the way Selia, her lady in waiting, and much of the company kill those who supported Ani.  Selia took the place as princess when Ani went missing and when arriving in Bayern Ani finds she is without a throne, or home.  

This story tells of how Ani became a goose girl, making a living taking care of the geese and making friends with those who lived in the Forest prior to working for the King.  She meets a man named Geric who she falls in love with and eventually loses to the palace. This is a wonderful story, filled with unexpected plot twists, one many should enjoy.  I found myself unable to put down this book, as I could not wait to see what Ani would do next and how she would stay safe with Selia wanting her dead. 

Author Facts: At age ten Shannon Hale began writing books and now holds a Masters of Fine Arts in Creative Writing.  This novel, Goose Girl was her first to be published.  She is a mean dance instructor for her son. 

Author Website: http://www.squeetus.com/stage/main.html 

Four

Roth, Veronica. Four. New York, NY: Katherine Tegen, 2014. Print.

Intended Audience: Ages 13 and older

Genre: Dystopian Fiction

Personal Reaction: For those who have read the Divergent trilogy I highly recommend reading Four.  It is a series of short stories following the life of Tobias, one of the main characters in the trilogy.  I loved seeing how Tobias became Four and how he realized he was divergent and became Dauntless, despite his home in Abnegation. These stories gave extra life to the relationship between Tobias and Tris, something that is appreciated by many readers.  It could be well read after reading Divergent before reading Insurgent. 

Author Facts:This past July Veronica Roth went to Framingham, MA discovering it was a square dance.  She has a dog she loves very much and grows herbs at her home.  Roth also went to the San Diego Comic Con in July.

Author Website: http://www.veronicarothbooks.com/

Redwall The Graphic Novel

Jacques, Brian. Redwall: The Graphic Novel. New York, Penguin, 2007.

Genre: Animal Fantasy, Adventure, Graphic Novel

Audience: Ages 8 and older

Personal Reaction: Reading Redwall as a graphic novel was a perfect way to introduce the story.  It is one I had considered reading for several years and still had not committed to doing so.  This is the story of a mouse named Matthias and his journey to retrieve a famous sword to help defeat Cluney and his rats.  Matthias shows no fear as he befriends shrews, an owl, a cat and other birds.  

This was a book of adventure, as it moved quickly and the characters were easy to follow. Being able to visibly see the clawed tail of Cluney helped one to understand the fear the mice of Redwall would have against his army.  This was a hopeful tale, one where the smallest and big dreamer becomes the hero.  Matthias is able to save the day and protect his people from the rats and makes friends with other animals in the area.  

Author Facts: Brian Jacques is from Liverpool, England in 1939.  When he was ten he realized he had a skill for writing when a teacher refused to believe a story he had written was indeed, written by a ten year old.  He began his writing career as a playwright even though he has written poetry and novels.  

Author Website: http://www.redwallabbey.com/

If the Witness Lied

Cooney, Caroline B. If the Witness Lied? New York: Delacorte, 2009.

Genre: Mystery

Audience: Ages 12 and older

Personal Reaction: I have always loved Caroline B. Cooney's novels, from the first Janie book and still now with If the Witness Lied.  She has a way of making characters come to live and enticing readers to continue the novel.  In this story we meet Jack and Tris, brothers whose parents have died.  In the first half of the book their sisters, Madison and Smithy come home to celebrate their late father's birthday and realize their youngest brother was unlikely their father's murderer.  As the novel progresses they realize their Aunt Cheryl murdered their father and blamed it on Tris, since he was too young to be penalized for any wrongdoing.  

The story (unfortunately) ends abruptly and Cheryl is taken into custody for killing the children's father and stealing from them, losing her television deal in the meantime.  The children move to live with their grandparents, realizing it does not matter where they live, only that they are together.  

Author Facts: Caroline B. Cooney has lived in many places but has settled in South Carolina because she loves being warm.  She has three children and five grandchildren.  Even though she is educated and has attended many colleges, Cooney has not graduated from any.  

Author Website: http://www.carolinebcooneybooks.com/index.html

The Maze Runner

Dashner, J. (2009). The Maze Runner. New York, NY: Delacorte Press.

Genre: Science Fiction/Dystopia

Intended Audience:  Ages 13+

Personal Reaction: When I saw The Maze Runner was on the list of required reading for my class I was quite excited.  I found myself drawn into the characters and setting, unsure, as Thomas what exactly was happening.  This was a fast-paced novel with likable characters.

As a general rule I aim to not watch the movie before the book, however, I failed to do so with The Maze Runner.  Therefore, many of my reactions are in relation to how it compared to the film adaptation.  I was annoyed at how the adaptation changed the maze to not having an exit, to having one and Alby not wanting to give the Gladers hope.  In addition to changing the maze, they lacked the telepathic communication between Teresa and Thomas, taking away from the depth of their relationship. As usual, I found the book to be better than the film version, and was quite impressed with the storyline Dashner gave.

Author Facts: James Dashner began his career in accounting and later decided to become an author, he does not miss the numbers game and now writes full-time. He lives with his wife and four children and watches movies when he doesn't know what to write about. He now believes he has the best job in the world and is the luckiest guy on the planet. 

Author Website: http://jamesdashner.com/

A Wizard of Earthsea

Guin, U. (1968). A Wizard of Earthsea. New York, New York: Bantam Press.

Genre: Fantasy

Intended Audience: Ages 12 and older

Personal reaction to the book: I chose this book because it was a favorite of a friend when he was growing up.  After reading it I find it easy to understand why it made such an impact and why he reads primarily fantasy books.

This book followed the choices of a young wizard, Ged.  It described and acknowledged the importance of taking responsibility for one's actions and not being afraid to clean up one's mess.  Ged released an evil force on the world while showing his pride and being pompous.  He puts the lives of his friends and teachers in danger until he later masters the shadow he created.  Earthsea was a very easy novel to follow and the lessons were easy to see.

Author Facts:Ursula Le Guin learned to write at five and never stopped since.  She received many awards for her books. In addition to writing many novels, Le Guin takes time to review novels of others and can be found on her website.

Author's website: http://www.ursulakleguin.com/