These books all have a definite ‘girl’ slant to them and most have a fantasy ‘feel’ to them. It is very helpful with a 13 year old in the house – that I can pretend I am getting books for her to eventually read. In truth, that is not the case. I love fantasy…
These books all have a definite ‘girl’ slant to them and most have a fantasy ‘feel’ to them. It is very helpful with a 13 year old in the house – that I can pretend I am getting books for her to eventually read.
In truth, that is not the case. I love fantasy books, and Young Adult books are just too easy to consume and are not too dark or twisted (as the adult versions of these books often are).
We will start with the first ‘straight’ book I think…
Where She Went by Gayle Forman is the story of star-crossed lovers Adam and Mia and picks up three years after the previous book, If I Stay. If I Stay is the story of two young people struggling to cope with the terrible impact of the loss of both of Mia’s parents, and her younger brother as well. She is terribly injured in the crash that kills her family, but Adam stays with her trying to help where he can. This is all played out against the backdrop of both of their exploding musical careers, hers as a classical cellist, his as a guitarist in a soon to be famous band (as you do).
Where She Went picks up three years later with Adam now nearly imploding with the pressure of fame, and the constant thoughts of why he and Mia didn’t work out. They have a chance meeting in New York just as Adam is about to leave for London; twenty four hours to spend with each other… it is a love story in all the right ways, though I would say the characters are in their early twenties, and there may be some very slight sex scenes, so maybe not best for under 15 year olds. Where She Went by Gayle Forman is published and distributed by Random House and is $29.99.
Guardian Knights by Beck and Stewart came to us via a press release. It is written and published by two women, one American and living in Christchurch, and the other from Christchurch and living in the US. I was intrigued that this small NZ company was having a go at distributing their own book, tied in with a website, www.guardianknights.com and also some small film clips on YouTube. They are thinking big.
The book is about seventeen-year-old triplets Monaco, India and Egypt – the social butterfly, the bookworm, and the one with Aspersers’ Syndrome respectively. They find out that their parents are part of a 400-year-old struggle between the light (SOUL) and the darkness (Illuminati) (of course) – and that they are part of the prophecy to help save humankind and the planet (again, of course!) The action takes place mostly in Arlington Virginia, and Sumner in Christchurch. There are lots of fun bits about NZ – it is always a little fun to see familiar places in the middle of a thriller! The book is not too testing to read – and could easily and safely be read by anyone from 10 years and up. Just a nice bit of girly adventure, with a bit of fun tossed in.
I am always interested in how Aspersers’ is portrayed in books (I may have one or two Aspergians in my own family) and this book has chosen to take the insanely gifted, socially awkward route – I am always a little sad when the characters are not as warm as actually many of our children are – but then I am just nit picking! Guardian Knights by Beck and Stewart is published by Asteron Media and is available from Amazon and their own website as above.
The next two books our 13-year-old test reader really enjoyed – as did I. Wood Angel by Erin Bow is the story of Kate, who is left completely alone in the world after the death of her father. The book is set in some time and place where magic is commonplace though frowned upon. She makes ‘lucky’ wooden charms to sell to survive, though it is unusual for a girl to carve. Kate is driven from her village as she is accused of practising dark magic. She leaves with her cat Taggle, only to ask a stranger for help – that ends up causing her no end of pain. She needs to find a way to carve good out of evil. This book is a little dark but beautifully written. It is both magic and magical – a thoroughly good read. It is for 13 years and above (or thereabouts). Wood Angel by Erin Bow is distributed by Scholastic. It is $21.00 and available now.
The Bones of Faerie by Janni Lee Simner is a darker book by comparison – it is the story of a world AFTER the destruction caused by the war between humanity and Faerie. The world’s technology has been destroyed, plants resist being harvested, trees move with ‘sinister intention’ and nowhere feels safe. Most of all, all traces of magic are despised and violently dealt with. Fifteen-year-old Liza’s sister is born with all the pale marks of faerie magic and so her father leaves the baby to die on a hillside. Her mother disappears, and her father is driven into a fury by grief. When she discovers that she has the faerie ability to ‘see’, she realises she must leave before her father destroys her too. Matthew, a young man from the village with secrets of his own, accompanies her on her quest to find out what has happened to her mother. This is a great book for those of the ‘magic and fantasy’ persuasion, with a wonderfully strong protagonist in Liza. Watch out for the next book in the series to be released next year, Faerie Winter. Bones of Faerie is by Janni Lee Simner and is published by Random House.
It isn’t my intention to always leave the best for last – but I find that preferable to starting well and ending badly! The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins is the story of Katniss Everdeen, a 16-year-old girl who lives in a place once called North America, now called Panem. It is a post apocalyptic world where children fight to the death for entertainment. A child is chosen from each district, a girl and a boy, and the district benefits with gifts of scarce food. Our 13 year-old-reader loved the action and suspenseful way the book was written. The book is written so that it is perfect for either boys or girls – and though there are a lot of deaths in the book, they are not dwelt on in too much detail to be overly gruesome. The book is being made into a movie next year, and with two other books to follow on from this one, Catching Fire and Mockingjay – there is plenty to keep you enthralled. On an observational note, this is the first book that I have seen grab my daughter’s attention enough (other than Harry Potter) that she quite simply couldn’t put the book down. I keep arriving at school to find her in a corner with her nose in the book all the way to the end. The Hunger Games in distributed by Scholastic and is $31 for the hardcover version.
By Anya Brighouse 31 July 2011.
Leave a Reply