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Juliet once knew the life of luxury, but that is far behind her now.Her reality is working as a cleaning woman, rubbing her knuckles bare scrubbing the bloody floors of the surgical hospital to keep her off of the streets.Even if Juliet isn’t working on the streets, she still must fend off those who have enjoyed seeing her and her family’s fall in society and feel she should be treated as such.
Her father is dead, but he caused enough damage to ruin Juliet and her mother’s future without him.But one item, a drawing of a vivisection taken from her father’s journal, leads Juliet to seek out the person who owns this.And that one item will also lead her down a dark and dangerous path.This ripped page from her father's personal journals is all the confirmation Juliet needs to motivate her desire to seek the truth, and leads her to Montgomery, an old friend and former servant.
What he tells Juliet is beyond belief.Her father is alive, living on an island as a recluse and using Montgomery to go for supplies when needed, regardless of how odd or dangerous those may be.Juliet demands she goes back with him, even though his friend Balthazar makes her uneasy.
The journey is more than anyone bargained for,and when Juliet finally reaches the island and understands exactly what her father, Dr. Moreau is doing, the true horror begins.Juliet’s life is also in danger due to an aberration Dr. Moreau has created that is beginning to kill the natives and will think nothing of killing the humans….madness has taken control.
Shepherd has taken the classic tale of The Island of Dr. Moreau and created an alternate re-telling, which includes many of the same characters but in a slighty variegated form.This story is as chilling as the original and readers of historical fiction and horror fiction will find themselves mesmerized.Juliet is a strong female character trapped not only physically on an island but emotionally as well as she battles between her desires and fears.Although Shepherd doesn’t write in detail about Moreau’s creations, the reader can most certainly “see” them through the small details she does provide.I'm firmly grounded in the camp of readers that thoroughly enjoyed this book. As a bonus, the cover is as enthralling as the story told within it. Recommended.
0 Comments on The Madman's Daughter by Megan Shepherd as of 5/13/2013 2:37:00 PM
Historical fiction has always fascinated me, and I love hooking kids on an interesting period in history though an exciting story. Shadow on the Mountain is a gripping story of a young boy's resistance to the Nazi German occupiers in Norway during World War II. Margi Preus has created an exciting story full of action and adventure, but she also infuses it with a full sense of this period of history.
Espen is just fourteen when German Nazi soldiers occupied Norway in 1940. The occupation has made life hard for all Norwegians, but it has also increased their sense of national identity and pride. At first, Epsen helps the Norwegian Resistance movement in small ways, delivering newspapers, refusing to participate in a Nazi-sponsored school event.
As the story begins, Epsen is riding his bike one evening when he is stopped by a car full of Nazi soldiers. As they search his rucksack, Espen notices that his friend Kjell is sitting in the car with the soldiers, but Kjell refuses to make eye contact with Epsen. The soldiers let him go on his way, believing he is on his way to visit his uncle, but Espen is really carrying coded information for the Norwegian Resistance. As he rides home, he keeps wondering about Kjell.
Preus captures the struggle of Norwegians who resisted the Nazi occupation, showing how ordinary citizens found ways big and small to stand up to the Germans. By centering her plot around a young teen, she draws young readers into the story. She hooks them with action and suspense, as Epsen becomes more and more involved in the Resistance, first as a courier and finally as a covert spy. I particularly agree with Lynn Rutan's review over at Bookends blog:
Epsen "is an ordinary boy who eventually does extraordinary things and this makes Prues’ skillful portrayal of his courage all the more affecting. Espen is frequently terribly afraid – and with very good reason – and yet even while admitting that fear to himself, he does intensely brave things – the very essence of courage." -- Lynn Rutan, Bookends blog
Margi Preus has shared many resources that will interest teens and teachers. Shadow on the Mountain is based on real events and the experiences of real people. The book contains photos, maps, and archival material. I'm especially interested in reading more about Erling Storrusten, the Norwegian man whose experiences in the Resistance movement inspired Preus's novel.
Share this story with young teens and tweens who like adventure stories and war stories, but also share it with kids who are pulled into friendship dilemmas and historical fiction.
Get a sense of it for yourself with this preview from Google Books:
This book will be one of the many I'll be recommending at Mrs. Dalloway's Books for our Fantastic Summer Reading Event next week. Hope you can join us!
One of my teachers spends a lot of time on Anne Frank. I believe this would fit in nicely with my other HF books in my WWII collection. Thanks for the review.
There's something truly special about the time a young child spends getting to know his or her grandparents. I remember soaking up my grandmother's stories, imagining her past and feeling connected to a history larger than myself. The Matchbox Diary captures this special moment, when a great-grandfather shares his stories with a young girl. It's a wonderful picture book to share with children as they start to get to know their own grandparents' stories.
When a young girl meets her great-grandfather, he tells her to pick something and he'll tell her its story. She picks an old cigar box that holds dozens of tiny matchboxes - his diary. The grandfather explains, "When I was your age, I had a lot I wanted to remember but I couldn't read or write." So he started collecting little things to remember each experience.
As they peek inside each box, the grandfather shares his memories from his childhood. They find an olive pit from his home in Italy. As a very young boy, his family was very poor. "When I'd tell my mother I was hungry, she'd give me an olive pit to suck on." Different mementos remind him of his journey across the Atlantic to join his father in America, a frightening inspection at Ellis Island, and his first years in the United States.
As we turn each page, we are swept back into the grandfather's memories. Ibatoulline's illustrations are full of warmth and capture the emotion of each memory. They are large enough to work well reading aloud, and yet full of details that children will love pouring over. The sepia tones of the paintings reflecting the grandfather's memories help children identify that these are flashbacks. Here we see the grandfather working as a typesetter in a printing press.
Children are very aware of how small items carry many memories. My own children can tell you where each stuffed animal came from, where they got a certain bottle cap, which pen came from a special friend. I love the way that Paul Fleischman helps children connect with the stories their grandparents can share, in such a universal way.
Young children will absorb the warm feelings of family, but older children will be able to think about different themes in this story. I particularly like the way the grandfather values writing as a way of preserving memories and stories. "Books are like newspapers. They show you where you've been."
Pair this with Patricia Polacco's The Keeping Quilt in a unit about family stories. Younger children who enjoy this might also enjoy Rosemary Wells' illustrated chapter book Following Grandfather, where a young mouse remembers her grandfather's childhood immigrating from Italy to Boston.
Check out these other great reviews:
Bookends Blog - I especially like the way Cindy ties this book to the importance of family storytelling, and her memory of Alex Haley at the National Storytelling Festival
Librarian's Quest - I absolutely agree with Margie that Paul Fleischman had me hooked with the first two sentences! Margie made me think about how Fleishman told the whole story through dialog between the young girl and her grandfather. That dialog added a real heartwarming touch to the story.
The review copy was kindly sent by the publishers, Candlewick Press. Teachers should check out the teaching guide and author's note on the Candlewick site. If you make a purchase using the Amazon links on this site, a small portion goes to Great Kid Books (at no cost to you!). Thank you for your support.
I found The Matchbox Diary to be very moving. It struck me as one of those books that adults will appreciate more than children. However, it is a great book to read to a kid and then start a discussion about its deeper meaning.
Reader Gut Reaction: Kirby Larson is a familiar face to many of us old-school bloggers, since she's been to many a Kidlitcon and SCBWI conference. Her first book about Hattie Brooks, Hattie Ever After, introduced us to a (dare I use this hackneyed... Read the rest of this post
4 Comments on Thursday Review: HATTIE EVER AFTER by Kirby Larson, last added: 5/12/2013
I loved how this book ended and thought that it brought together all the loose ends and gives a sense of closure more than the previous novel. I think it shows that hard work pays off and that if something is important to someone they will find a way to make it all work out.
Who says that mystery novels for kids all have to include the same tropes and settings? I tell you, half the time when a kid comes up to a reference desk asking for a mystery they think what they want is the standard white kids in suburbia model perfected by Encyclopedia Brown and his ilk. They’re wrong. What they really want is great writing and a good mystery with a twist they don’t see coming. So I will hereby give grand kudos and heaping helpfuls of praise to the librarian/bookseller/parent who hears a kid ask for a mystery and hands them Katie Quirk’s A Girl Called Problem. This book is a trifecta of publishing rarities. A historical novel that is also a mystery set in a foreign country that just happens to be Tanzania. Trust me when I say your shelves aren’t exactly filled to brimming with such books. Would that they were, or at the very least, would that you had as many good books as this one. Smart commentary, an honestly interesting storyline, and sharp writing from start to finish, Quirk quickly establishes herself as one author to watch.
The thing about Shida is that in spite of her name (in Swahili it would be “problem”) you just can’t get her down. Sure, her mom is considered a witch, and every day she seems to make Shida’s life harder rather than easier. Still, Shida’s got dreams. She hopes to someday train to be a healer in her village of Litongo, and maybe even a village nurse. In light of all this, when the opportunity arises for all of Litongo to pick up and move to a new location, Shida’s on board with the plan. In Nija Panda she would be able to go to school and maybe even learn medicine firsthand. Her fellow villagers are wary but game. They seem to have more to gain than to lose from such a move. However, that’s before things start to go terribly wrong. Escaped cattle. Disease. Even death seems to await them in Nija Panda. Is the village truly cursed, just unlucky, or is there someone causing all these troubles? Someone who doesn’t want the people of Litongo there. Someone who will do anything at all to turn them back. It’s certainly possible and it’s up to Shida to figure out who the culprit might be.
The trouble with being an adult and reading a children’s work of mystery fiction is that too often the answer feels like it’s too obvious. Fortunately for me, I’m terrible at mysteries. I’ll swallow every last red herring and every false clue used by the author to lead me astray. So while at first it seems perfectly obvious who the bad guys would be, I confess that when the switcheroo took place I didn’t see it coming. It made perfect sense, of course, but I was as blindsided as our plucky heroine. I figure if I honestly as a 35-year-old adult can’t figure out the good guys from the bad in a book for kids, at least a significant chunk of child readers will be in the same boat.
Now I’ve a pet peeve regarding books set in Africa, particularly historical Africa, and I was keen to see whether or not Ms. Quirk would indulge it. You see, the story of a girl in a historical setting who wants to be a healer but can’t because of her gender is not a particularly new trope. We’ve seen it before, to a certain extent. What chaps my hide is when the author starts implying that tribal medicines and healing techniques are superstitious and outdated while modern medicine is significantly superior. Usually the heroine will fight against society’s prejudices, something will happen late in the game, and the villagers will see that she was right all along and that she’ll soon be able to use Western medicine to cure all ills. There’s something particularly galling about storylines of this sort, so imagine my surprise when I discovered that Quirk was not going to fall into that more than vaguely insulting mindset. Here is an author unafraid to pay some respect to the religion of the villagers. It never dismisses curses but acknowledges them alongside standard diseases. Example: “Though Shida was certain Furaha should take medicine for malaria, she was equally certain she should guard the spirit house that night. Parasites were responsible for some sicknesses and curses for others, and in this case, they needed to protect against both.”
Quirk is also quite adept at using the middle grade chapter book format to tackle some pretty complex issues. To an adult reading this book it might be clear that Shida’s mother suffers from a severe form of depression. There’s no way the village would be prepared to handle this diagnosis, and Shida herself just grows angry with the woman who stays inside all the time. You could get a very interesting book discussion going with child readers about whether or not Shida should really blame her mother as vehemently as she does. On the one hand, you can see her point. On the other, her mother is clearly in pain. Similarly well done is the final discussion of witches. Quirk brings up a very sophisticated conversation wherein Shida comes to understand that accused witches are very often widows who must work to keep themselves alive and that, through these efforts, acquire supposedly witchy attributes. Quirk never hits you over the head with these thoughts. She just lets her heroine’s assumptions fall in the face of close and careful observation.
All this could be true, but without caring about the characters it wouldn’t be worth much. I think part of the reason I like the book as much as I do is that everyone has three dimensions (with the occasional rare exception). Even the revealed villain turns out to have a backstory that explains their impetus, though it doesn’t excuse their actions. As for Shida herself, she may be positive but she’s no Pollyanna. Depression hits her hard sometimes too, but through it all she uses her brain. Because she is able to apply what she learns in school to the real world, she’s capable of following the clues and tracking down the real culprit behind everyone’s troubles. Passive protagonists have no place in A Girl Called Problem. No place at all.
Finally, in an era of Common Core Standards I cannot help but notice how much a kid can learn about Tanzania from this book. Historical Tanzania at that! A Glossary at the back does a very good job of explaining everything from flamboyant trees to n’gombe to President Julius Nyerere’s plan for Tanzania. There are also photographs mixed into the Glossary that do a good job of giving a contemporary spin on a historical work.
Windows and mirrors. That’s the phrase used by children’s literature professionals to explain what we look for in books for kids. We want them to have books that reflect their own experiences and observations (mirrors) and we also want them to have books that reflect the experiences and observations of kids living in very different circumstances (windows). Mirror books can be a lot easier to recommend to kids than window books, but that just means you need to try harder. So next time a 9-12 year-old comes to you begging for a mystery, upset their expectations. Hand them A Girl Called Problem and bet them they won’t be able to guess the bad guy. In the process, you might just be able to introduce that kid to their latest favorite book.
Notes on the Cover: Now was that so hard? We ask and we ask and we ask for brown faces on our middle grade fiction and still it feels like pulling teeth to get it done. Eerdmans really blew this one out of the water, and it seems they spared no expense. The book jacket is the brainchild of Richard Tuschman who you may know better as the man behind the cover of Claire Vanderpool’s Newbery Award winning Moon Over Manifest. Beautiful.
Many thanks for bringing this title to my attention! I cannot wait to read it, add it to the Library & share it with my students. Our 6-8th graders spend a term studying African countries, especially post-colonial development, and it’s fabulous to have a terrific mystery to complement their studies.
Tricia said, on 5/2/2013 9:27:00 AM
Bonus: the author has an irresistible name!
Elizabeth Bird said, on 5/2/2013 10:13:00 AM
Oh, it’s ideal for post-colonial development studies! Really it’s a discussion of some of the attempts made by the administration after President Julius Nyerere was elected . . . but in a kid-friendly way. Don’t know how Quirk pulled that one off, but she does.
Elizabeth Bird said, on 5/2/2013 10:13:00 AM
True! Though I had to fight with myself not to write Quick each time I mentioned it. “Quirk” just seemed like authorial wishful thinking on my part.
Wowzers! | Katie Quirk said, on 5/3/2013 3:58:00 AM
[...] Elizabeth Bird of Fuse #8 at School Library Journal just wrote an amazing review of A Girl Called Problem. This woman is major royalty in the middle-grade and young-adult universe. She’s served on the Newbery committee, written for Horn Book, and weaves together the most intelligent, thorough, and sassy reviews out there. Talk about voice! It’s such an honor to have her review the book. Here’s a snapshot of the beginning of the review–ain’t it pretty?–and here’s the full review. [...]
Eerdmans All Over: May 3, 2013 | EerdWord said, on 5/3/2013 7:49:00 AM
[...] Library Journal blogger Elizabeth Bird reviewed Katie Quirk’s A Girl Called Problem on A Fuse 8 Production, calling it “a trifecta of publishing rarities.” Loganberry Books also published a [...]
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Thanhha Lai's semi-autobiographical verse novel, Inside Out & Back Again won the National Book Award and the Newbery Honor in 2011. I feel like I say
4 Comments on Inside Out and Back Again by Thanhha Lai, 262 pp, RL 4, last added: 4/26/2013
This was a kindle kids deal of the day a couple of months ago. I am so glad Amazon introduced me to this! Bought for my daughter but devoured myself. In fact, my daughter will have to be a little bit older to understand the heft of emotion that this swift gem imparts. I never knew how effective (and efficient) a verse-novel could be!
T: You have perfectly and succinctly described the beauty of this genre! And,as a working parent, I really love a book I can read in a sitting or two. Agreed, though - this is the kind of book you want to make sure your child reads at the right time, or reads a second time. So many subtleties. If you can, read KARMA by Otslere. It's for teens but another example of a stunning verse novel.
Jeremy - Agreed! Check out Karen Hesse's ALEUTIAN SPARROW. I reviewed it a couple of years ago. An aspect of US history I never knew about. It's interesting to me how (painful, difficult) historical events seems to lend themselves to the verse novel format.
In the world of judging a book by its cover, I'll admit, I caved. I was interested in this novel solely because of its cover, and because it was put out by a Canadian press. I find that I enjoy historical fiction from Canada, because it's generally... Read the rest of this post
2 Comments on TURNING PAGES: Moses, Me & Murder: A Barkerville Mystery, by Ann Walsh, last added: 5/3/2013
Thank you for a fair, considered and thoughtful review of my book. The cover photo is of an actor who played the role of Moses the barber on the streets of Barkerville, a restored gold rush town and 'walk in' museum, for many years.
The Tutor's Daughter. Julie Klassen. 2013. Bethany House. 412 pages.
It wasn't quite love at first sight--or love at first sentence, I suppose. But within a few chapters, I knew it was LOVE, LOVE, LOVE. The more I read, the more I loved. This was one of those oh-so-magical, giddy-making historical romances for me. The Tutor's Daughter is a regency romance. (I would DEFINITELY recommend it for fans of Jane Austen and Georgette Heyer.) The heroine is a young woman, Emma Smallwood. She has for the last few years greatly helped her father in his teaching or tutoring. In the past, they've taught from their own home or school. But business has been poorly lately, and when he is offered a tutoring position at the home of his would-be-pupil, and that offer extends to his daughter, he accepts. The Smallwoods will be leaving their own home to live with the Weston family. They know the two oldest Weston sons--they are former students now grown to adulthood. But they don't know their new pupils, Rowan and Julian. And nothing prepares them for the reality of living in such a strange and sometimes unwelcoming home. (It feels more like Northanger Abbey than Jane Eyre, perhaps, but there are some secrets, some clues, some mysteries.) The Weston household can be oh-so-strange and not at all what it appears.
When she was younger, Emma was perhaps drawn to the second son, Phillip. But now that she's become reacquainted with both Phillip and Henry, well, she's surprised by how much she does admire and respect Henry! This is SHOCKING to her at first because she perhaps didn't realize that he would grow out of his childishness, his obnoxiousness, his pranks. But he is all grown up now, and he's oh-so-responsible.
I absolutely loved this one so much. It was so compelling, so dramatic, so perfectly perfect!!!
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After the death of his parents, Jameson Cooper assumes he will take over his father's printing shop. Instead, he is thrown out on the streets of Charles Towne (Carolina Territory) and sentenced to life as an indentured servant to the baker for a false charge of stealing bread. His first day on the job he ends up as a victim of a kidnapping in which he is knocked out. When he regains consciousness, he finds himself aboard the Destiny under the direction of Captain "Attack Jack" Edwards. Somehow, Jameson manages to get on the captain's good side which seems surprising considering a series of missteps by him. The captain even gives him a special assignment based upon his map making skills. Though the plot veers off course at times, the descriptions of life at sea will both captivate and gross out the young historical fiction buff. Jameson must use his knowledge to rescue the captain which provides a nerve-racking resolution that appeal the the adventurer at heart. Age 11-13. Rating: Good to Recommended
Publishing Information
Peachtree Publisher (Sept. 1, 2012)
Hardcover: 224 pages
ISBN: 9781561456338
Disclosure: Review copy received from publisher at no charge.
Giveaway Details:
Winner will receive a copy of The Privateer's Apprentice by Susan Verrico. Please use the Rafflecopter form to enter. By entering, you acknowledge you have read the terms on the form and agree to them. Giveaway ends 5/8/2013 at 11:59 EST.
My grandson had not read any pirate books that I know of or any historical fiction. All I have seen him lately reading is Harry Potter books.<br /><br />Thank you,<br /><br />Christine Womack<br />womackcm@sbcglobal.net
Speaking from Among the Bones. Alan Bradley. 2013. Random House. 400 pages.
I've enjoyed each of the Flavia de Luce mysteries written by Alan Bradley. This young detective is quite original, though her mystery novels have, in a way, become more predictable. I mean that readers know almost exactly what to expect of the series, of the main characters, of the writing. (Not the details of the actual mysteries, the murder mysteries.) If you love the character of Flavia de Luce, it can be a good thing--comforting, satisfying--to know that nothing ever changes. Still, a little character growth wouldn't be a horrible thing in any of the main characters. (There are two significant things readers learn by the conclusion of this book. These potentially could change things up a bit.) It probably won't surprise anyone that Flavia discovers a dead body in this newest mystery. She found it in an ancient tomb they (the church) were getting ready to excavate. There were plenty of peculiar details about it, plenty of clues for a young girl detective to follow. These clues lead her into great danger, perhaps the greatest danger she's known thus far in the series.
If you have enjoyed the series in the past, this one is worth reading. Others include: The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie, The Weed That Strings the Hangman's Bag, A Red Herring Without Mustard, and I Am Half-Sick of Shadows.
This Rakhi a pleasant surprise is waiting for my brother. Thanks to www.rakhitoindia2013.com for their lovely gift collection. It has simplified my task to a great extent. Send Rakhi to India as you gear up with the exciting contents of this fantastic online store.
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Last week, our students were thrilled to spend time with Vaunda Micheaux Nelson, learning about her writing process and hearing her passion for her work. As we read books by different authors, we try to think about an author's purpose in writing a story or a piece of nonfiction. We dig into the ideas authors layer in their work. Our students really appreciated hearing directly from Ms. Nelson about her many books.
"Bass Reeves was a true American hero. I felt that everyone should know about him." Vaunda Micheaux Nelson
Ms. Nelson started by talking with our 4th and 5th graders about Bad News for Outlaws: The Remarkable Life of Bass Reeves, US Deputy Marshall. She told students that one day she was watching a documentary about Blacks in the Old West and that there was a brief mention of Bass Reeves. "I wondered why I didn't know about him, and felt that everyone should know about him."
Our students had all read Bad News for Outlaws before meeting Ms. Nelson. She really talked with them, asking them questions and making them an active part of the discussion. This really extended their thinking beyond just listening to the book or hearing her presentation. They could feel just what she meant when she said,
"Bass was honorable; he had integrity; he was strong, smart and clever."
Ms. Nelson told our older students about her newest book, No Crystal Stair, which tells the story of her uncle's bookshop in Harlem. She talked about how he wanted to establish a bookshop that helped African Americans learn about their history, their stories, their literature. We are all looking forward to the picture book which Ms. Nelson is writing about her uncle's bookstore.
Our 2nd and 3rd graders talked with Ms. Nelson about her picture book Almost to Freedom, a story about a young girl's escape to freedom through the Underground Railroad. She started off by talking about why she writes.
"I know it's because my parents read to me every night. My siblings would argue about going to bed, but secretly I was dying to get into bed because my mom would read the next chapter of our book. My dad loved poetry and would recite poetry from memory to me."
Her parents taught her not only to love stories, but to love words and to understand their power. Our students love Almost to Freedom because it's told from the perspective of a doll. Ms. Nelson really creates the voice of this doll, and students can connect to that voice.
Ms. Nelson talked about how when she looked at the dolls in the museum, she started wondering,
"If those dolls could talk, what would they tell me?"
I loved a 3rd grader's question: "When you write, do you start feeling how your characters are feeling?" Yes, she does very much -- because she needs to feel what it might be like to run away through the forest at night hiding from the slave catchers, to be able to share those feelings in her words and create them for her readers. She brought her collection of African American dolls to share with our children.
Enjoy this Animoto slideshow of our visit with Vaunda Micheaux Nelson.
I want to thank the Association of Children's Librarians of Northern California for sponsoring Vaunda Nelson's trip to the Bay Area. For a wonderful resource of materials about sharing history with children, check out ACL's resources from their recent Institute. I would also like to thank the Emerson PTA for sponsoring Ms. Nelson's visit to our school. Our children appreciate your support and enrichment. But most of all, I want to thank Ms. Nelson herself for her time, energy and enthusiasm sharing her passion for stories with our children.
If you make a purchase using the Amazon links on this site, a small portion goes to Great Kid Books (at no cost to you!). Thank you for your support.
That's wonderful and thanks for the link. Its always exciting to see the authors who write the book speak the children. I haven't read her books yet, but am curious. Thanks for the reviews. -Reshama www.stackingbooks.com
Dianne Kowal Kirtley taught Creative Writing, Journalism and English at Nazareth Academy, a private, Catholic, college prep, coeducational high school in LaGrange Park, Ill. She also served as the English Department Chair and then became the Director of Public Relations, creating the school brochures, press releases and organizing events which promoted the school.
Thank you for joining us today, Dianne. Can you please start off by telling us a bit about yourself?
I loved my job at Nazareth Academy and since my retirement have maintained the close personal relationships with my friends at that school. I also am fortunate enough to enjoy some great vacations with my husband, family and friends. Our family enjoys summer vacations in Minocqua, WI, and we have taken some great trips with friends to Europe and a memorable cruise to Alaska. I have also spent much of the last seven years in the process of research and writing Point of Departure.
When did you first get bit by the writing bug?
Writing is something that I have always loved doing although it is a difficult task. I guess I always feel I have something to say, if not verbally then in a written medium. I have written short stories, one specifically for children, poetry and some shorter remembrances. Point of Departure is my first novel.
Why did you decide to write stories for the YA market?
I hope I have something significant to say to this age group: have the courage to act on your best impulses, think of others, and most of all, know that you are just as important as anyone else.
What is your favorite part of writing for this group? What is the greatest challenge?
The YA audience is so impressionable, and I would hope that the examples given in the work would be applicable to their lives. The greatest challenge is not to sound too preachy.
Can you tell us what your latest book is all about?
Point of Departure is about Charlotte Mailliard, whose family was closely tied to Joseph Bonaparte, Napoleon’s brother, called in America, the Gentle Bonaparte. Charlotte’s parents were personal secretaries to Joseph’s daughter and son-in-law, but in 1841, Eloi Mailliard, Charlotte’s father moved his family from the French intrigue and came to central Illinois, the western frontier of America. Charlotte had been raised and educated with Napoleon’s nephews in Florence, where she was born, and outside of Paris at the Bonaparte château called Survilliers. She had heard the strange stories of savages in America and was sure her life will never be the same. It is, however, at the strange place called Illinois, that she met the young half-breed whom she will love all her life. As Charlotte matured, she learned that love and loss seem to go hand in hand, but it was the impact of the Civil War that taught Charlotte the power of survival.
What inspired you to write it?
Point of Departure is historical fiction work actually based on my husband’s great-great grandmother. When I found her books, letters, family records and drawings in 2004, I felt her story to be most engaging and, as is said in my press release, “begged to be told.”
I am currently working on a remembrance of my mother. The next novel is just in the idea stage, but will be set in North Carolina and is a decidedly darker tale for a mature audience.
Do you have anything else to add?
I want to thank everyone for their interest in Point of Departure. Enjoy!
Thank you for spending time with us today, Dianne. We wish you much success.
BLURB: It is 1841, and fourteen-year-old Charlotte Mailliard should be concerned with French fashion, French tradition and her studies with her classmates, Napoleon Bonaparte’s nephews. Instead, her Papa has decided to move his family to America. Now Charlotte can only think of a strange state called Illinois and the “savages” she will encounter on her long journey. No one could forsee that the family’s trek to that frontier would bring them to a Kentucky slave auction, an experience that would forever change their lives.
Two decades earlier, another Frenchman, Henri Moreau, a street urchin of Paris, had made his way to that same Illinois, where life was a pleasant mix of his and native customs. But in 1832, that peace was destroyed by the Blackhawk War, an event that tragically impacted Henri and his family.
As the nation and the Mailliard and Moreau families mature, it is the common theme of war that causes Charlotte to realize she is but one cog in the endless cycle of love and loss, the bane of a country where another Illinois native son will not abide “a house divided.”
COVER: I like the color scheme with the jewels hidden underneath what looks like the ocean. It just seems a rather plain choice for a YA novel.
FIRST CHAPTER: Charlotte and her family are readying to leave Survilliers, Mortefontaine, France, in a carriage bound for England. From there, they will board a steam ship bound for America. They will travel three months before reaching their final destination in Illinois. In mere minutes, the only life Charlotte has ever known will be gone forever. They carry with them great treasures that will hopefully establish them in their new home where Charlotte will speak the ugly sounds of English instead of the beautiful, melodious sounds of her native French and Italian.
KEEP READING: Yes. I’m very intrigued with this story of a French family emigrating to America. Charlotte proves to be a fiery young woman from the onset, angered over her entire life being tossed into chaos by her father’s decision to relocate. The author provides a fair amount of backstory on Charlotte and her family, creating the sense of loss the girl must feel as she leaves everything she knows behind to travel to a new country. Though I’m not normally a fan of too much backstory in a first chapter, I feel it works well here because it makes Charlotte a sympathetic and relatable character. There’s also a hint of danger created by the treasures the family is carrying with them on their journey. Definitely a book I want to keep plowing through to see how Charlotte adapts to her new country and the challenges of civil war.
0 Comments on Interview with Dianne Kowal Kirtley, Author of Point of Departure & First Chapter Review as of 4/12/2013 1:04:00 AM
ALL RIGHT. I know I say this every time, but I ♥ Tu Books. It's just the kind of publishing company so many people were waiting for - because where else can you tell your crazy YA tales of monsters, the Malleus Maleficarum - the Spanish... Read the rest of this post
2 Comments on Turning Pager: HAMMER OF WITCHES, by Shana Mlawski, last added: 5/8/2013
This is a story that starts in the middle. Jepp is a dwarf in a cage, with a bruised and bloodied face, on a journey to a foreign land. He starts by telling us how he got there, how he left his mother’s safe and loving home on the border between Spanish Netherlands and the Protestant North, how he became a court dwarf for the Infanta in Brussels.
When he arrives at his destination, the story continues on, this time as a dwarf jester for the astronomer and astrologer Tycho Brahe. He is determined to be his own man, to break free of the destiny the stars have set for him. When the truth about his past comes to light, he is even more determined to live his own life on his terms.
Oh, Jepp. Such a wonderful guy trying to figure out who he is and his place in the world, trying to save his friends and family, with people not telling him the truth about everything (in that way that people don’t tell teenagers the truth about everything.) Plus, court intrigue and politics that he doesn’t fully grasp or understand, too wrapped up in his own issues and problems to see the bigger pictures at play until it’s too late.
It’s a beautiful book, and such a wonderful look at destiny and fate versus free will without it getting in the way of the plot. (in fact, most of the plot is Jepp proving to himself and the world that his life can be what he wants, not what his star chart, or anyone else, tells him it should be.)
I think it’s one that resonates to this day, and will appeal to teens who aren’t big historical fiction fans.
LOVE.
Also, it’s printed in blue ink. I love small touches like that in book design.
Book Provided by... my local library
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1 Comments on Jepp, Who Defied the Stars, last added: 4/7/2013
I love when books have colored ink, so I thought the blue ink was a nice touch. I agree that this one is a good historical fiction pick for readers who typically shy away from historical fiction.
Stolen Magic (Atheneum, April 2, 2013, middle grade) by Stephanie Burgis, is the third book in a series about an incorrigible Regency girl, Kat, who just so happens to be a powerful magic user. Unfortunately for Kat, any magic other than that of the Guardians (snooty upper class types) is tremendously looked down on. Although Kat has inherited a place among the Guardians from, she's also inherited more than a little of her mother's distasteful, distrusted, witchcraft....as have her sisters.
In this third book, one of her sisters, Angelina, is about to marry a very high-breed young man, whose mother is a snobby harridan of the worst kind. Kat, Angelina, their father and stepmother arrive at the finance's grand estate....and immediately mayhem ensues.
There are ordinary questions:
Will the schemes of the nasty mother keep Angelina from finding happiness?
Will Kat disgrace her family more than she usually does with her lack of regard for decorum?
There are magical questions:
Will Kat ever get another portal that will allow her to be a true member of the Guardians? She sacrificed hers in the previous book, and unfortunately all the spare portals have been stolen.
Will she and the woman tasked with working with her on finding them (a nasty piece of work from the previous books) come to blows?
Just what sort of spell does Angelina think she is doing?
And there are mysteries:
Who is stalking Kat with Malevolent Intent?
Who is the mysterious marquise who seems to know so much about Kat's family?
And then there is the Really Big Mystery:
Who is trying to kill Angelina?
And then there's a bonus kicker-- a plot by the scheming French that needs foiling (this being the Regency, and things not being too friendly between the French and the English).
So a very busy, entertainingly swirling plot that ends with the introduction of such a delightful appealing new twist that I hope rather a lot that there are more books to come!!!
I couldn't help but wish, as I read this one, that Kat would grow up just a bit more....she seems to have regressed somewhat in impetuosity and lack of empathy. Although that being said, there were times when I would not have blamed her for utterly loosing her temper, and she managed not to! But of course, the fact that I was caring about this as I read shows that Kat was very real to me.
The second book, Renegade Magic, is still my favorite (it has a more mythologically rooted plot, and more sympathy for Kate's poor, put-upon, unappreciated stepmama), but this was a fun, rollicking read, and I highly recommend offering this series to any ten or eleven year olds you happen to have on hand.
I enjoyed reading the finale of this series. But agree with you sometimes Kat can be too exasperating. So much so that the subtle hint that there might be something going on with her & a certain boy is ludicrous at the moment. Like you, I'm hoping there are more books to come. I'm also interested to know more about the other members of the family especially Angeline & Charles. Though their future are more or less concluded in this book. Sorry, I hope this doesn't make it too spoilerish.
Eeks! I had Angeline's name wrong...I'm glad you mentioned in in your comment! And yes, Kat is no where near grown up enough yet to start a romantic relationship...although I can readily imagine her with an awkward crush!
Didn't notice till you mentioned it. Even If I did I would have thought it was because I was reading the UK version - A Reckless Magic. Anyway, I know its only a letter difference but Angeline sounds more "posh & refine" as the character aspires to be but you and I know that's not always the case with her ;)
I thought Kat did so much better in this book at controlling herself and her reactions. I agree that she wasn't very empathetic, but then she was also confused and is still young.
I want there to be more too but Stephanie Burgis has said this is it for now. Her publisher won't commit to more until they have further sales number for the first three. (She wrote a blog post on this about a year ago but I am too lazy to go find it right now.)
It's true--there were times when I would have lost it myself and Kat managed not to! But it bothered me that she kept blurting things out she shouldn't have, and the bit where she damages the beautfiful wallpaper was to close to home for comfort...
Everyone should now go buy these books, then, because it does feel that things are really going to start to get interesting! (Not that they weren't already, but more so...)
In his Author's Acknowledgments at the end of Dodger, Terry Pratchett calls the book historical fantasy, not historical fiction, because he's tweaked some historical material. He moved some people who actually existed in the nineteenth century to a different point in the nineteenth century, for instance, and put the offices of a real newspaper on Fleet Street because he couldn't determine where it actually was located. I suspect there are many historical novelists who've done far worse without flinching and got nowhere near as good a result as Pratchett gets here.
Dodger is an amazing combination of character and setting. The plot, maybe, is a little simple. To me, the most fantastical element in the book is the way the wonderful Dodger makes his way up the ladder in life. However, that may be a play on the work of Charles Dickens, whose books I have very little knowledge of. Dickens appears as a character in Dodger, and I'm making an assumption that Dodger was inspired by Dickens' own Artful Dodger. Though that's a stretch for me because I haven't read the book in which he appears. Dodger's success in life, as a result of his own resourcefulness, innate talent, and goodness, may also be something that occurs in nineteenth century English fiction. Just guessing.
You often read about world building in science fiction and fantasy. But every book has an imaginary world, even if it's set in 2013 America. Historical novels, in particular, have worlds that require intense work. Dodger's is incredible. You have place, you have sociology, you have language, you have clothing, you have attitude. You have everything you require for a world.
I rarely think to comment on covers. But I've noticed that Tanita Davis and Sarah Stevenson do at Finding Wonderland, and I do have some thoughts about Dodger's. While the American cover (see above) makes for a beautiful book object, I think it's misleading. The character looks very young. He's around seventeen in the book, and while he seems inexperienced in terms of not knowing the ways of the moneyed classes, he is, in his own way, a man of the world. That's why he's able to do the things he does.
The British cover may be less attractive, but I think it gives a better feeling of the character.
0 Comments on World Class World Building as of 4/1/2013 6:17:00 PM
Yeah for reading books that have been sitting around the house, possibly crying in corners, for far too long! Finally I have read Sarah Zettel's Dust Girl (Random House, middle grade/YA, June 2012), and I found it good. It is good because although the barest bones of the story are familiar--girl finds out she is half fairy, the opposing sides of the fairy realm fight over her while she figures out how to use her magic--the particulars are very unique indeed.
Callie's mother won't let her go outside the Kansas hotel she runs, in case her skin gets dark and people suspect her father was black. But then the dust comes (this is the 1930s) and there's almost no-one left in town to care. Still her mother won't give up and leave, though the food and money are running out, and Callie is choking her life out on dust, because she's waiting for Callie's musician father to come back.
Then Callie plays the piano for the first time. And her playing awakens the magic in her, and a dust storm like no other comes, blowing her mother away and bringing into town the first (and most truly horrible!) of the magical adversaries Callie must deal with. (Just to give you a taste--they are grasshopper creatures in human guise, and they are very....hungry).
So Callie, and Jack, the boy she just rescued from the abandoned jail in town, hit the road, first running for their lives (grasshopper creatures sure are fast!), and then running less fast for their lives while searching for the people they have lost. On their journey they encounter madness and mayhem and magic...all the while moving through the blighted landscape of the dust bowl Midwest.
So yes, I liked it lots--although Callie was Special, she also managed to be nicely ordinary, and her motivations and actions all made sense to me. Callie also had to think considerably about the fact that her father was black--in the racially charged world through which she moves, she can't forget it--yet this aspect of her story was well integrated with the whole, and though sometimes it was underlined, it never felt overly didactic. And, on top of that, it was a swinging, exciting adventure, with (wait for it!) no Romance front and center, which was rather refreshing--it's nice to read a book in which people are running for their lives without getting distracted by their Feelings for each other. Callie and Jack will probably hook up in the future, when they're a bit older, and that's fine.
But what I really loved was the historical part of this fantasy--I don't turn to Dust Bowl fiction for my reading pleasure, and so meeting that historical landscape in my favorite genre was a lovely treat.
Here's what I especially appreciated--America is not treated as a fantasy blank slate, just waiting for the immigrants to arrive with their magics. Instead, the first magical Person Callie meets is Native American, almost certainly Coyote, and this is what he has to say about it:
"Stupid white people. Stupid yellow people, or stupid brown people. Bringing in all kinds of ghosts and little spirits. Can't even tell who's in the game anymore." (p 31).
And so even though Callie's magical journey doesn't directly involve the native magic of her place, at least there's this acknowledgement that there is an indigenous presence. The only other fantasies for middle grade/YA readers set in North American that I can think of simply do not have this (The Prairie Thief, by Melissa Wiley, and Patricia Wrede's Frontier Magic series), and I think they are the weaker for it.
Note on cover: that's the new paperback cover up at the top; it comes out in June. Some people thought that the cover of the hardback (at right) didn't show Callie accurately as half black (although since she's been passing as white, or at least, her mother thinks she has, all her life, she has to look at least somewhat ambiguous, and I think the paperback goes a bit too far in the other direction....). But in any event, it's nice to have the paperback showing a Main Character of Color, and so good on ya, Random House.
Note on age: This one is a perfect tween book, great for 11-13 year olds. As far as I can remember, there's nothing in it that would be Inappropriate for younger readers (which is to say there's no sex, but I'm not sure how well I do at registering curse words, since I am married to someone from Liverpool and have become hardened), but there are issues of racial and religious prejudice (Jack is Jewish), law-breaking and human unhappiness/human evilness that make it a bit strong for a younger kid.
I'm super-excited about the new cover! I think it does a better job of highlighting Callie's biracialness, while still making it plausible that she could pass for white.
My mentor says that a writer is someone who can’t not write, and I’ve certainly found that to be true. While we must write, the question always arises, “What should I write about?” As a historical novelist, I love nothing more than to find some obscure person and expose them. My first novel was about Anna Kingsley of Kingsley Plantation in Florida. No one had really told her story and she was an amazing woman, a role model of strength and inner courage for all of us. Anna was born of royal blood in 1793 in Senegal. She was captured at the age of thirteen in a tribal raid, survived the horrific Middle Passage, and was brought as a slave to Spanish East Florida. I tell her story in Freedom Bound, which won an award from the Florida First Coast Writers Association.
After releasing two more historical novels–Sisters of Valor, which won a Military Writers Society of America Award, and Beyond the Dream, based loosely on my great-grandparents, I struggled with my next book subject.
For years, the story of the hundreds of black children who left school to march with Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. during the Civil Rights Movement had captured my attention. I knew that 2013 would be the 50th anniversary of their pivotal march, so I decided to write about it as a tribute to them.
As with most things, the more I delved into their stories, the more impressed I was with what they had accomplished. In the 1960s Birmingham, Alabama was considered the most racist place in the country. African-Americans were completely segregated from the white population. The schools were segregated, the churches, the clubs, the waiting rooms and water fountains–everything. Blacks could not use the downtown public library; to get food from the few restaurants they could use, they had to go in the back door to order, then take their food outside. Overseeing and enforcing all this was the ruthless “Bull” Connor, Commissioner of Public Safety.
When Dr. King entered the scene with his non-violent protest, the adults in the black community were not interested in marching with him. They had too much to lose–their jobs, their homes, maybe even their lives. But the children weren’t afraid.
On the appointed day (known to them by secret code words from the local dj) thousands– literally thousands– of children left school and flocked to the 16th Street Baptist Church to march with Dr. King. Some came from as far as eighteen miles away.
And, yes, they were arrested, some even as young as eight years old, and yes, on the second day they were hosed and had police dogs snarling at them. The pressure from those hoses could tear bark off trees, and yet the children came back and marched again and again.
How could I not write of their courage?
* * *
JC Penney Award recipient Rosalie Turner has been writing for almost 30 years. Her sixth book, March With Me, released this month marking the 50th anniversary of the Children’s March. Visit Rosalie at www.rosalieturner.com.
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Would you like to participate in Friday "Speak Out!"? Email your short posts (under 500 words) about women and writing to: marcia[at]wow-womenonwriting[dot]com for consideration. We look forward to hearing from you!
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5 Comments on Friday Speak Out!: Why I Took on Racial Discrimination and Civil Rights in my Latest Book, Guest Post by Rosalie Turner, last added: 4/9/2013
Your story--about the story you HAD to tell--is a compelling one. When the tale is clawing its way out of you, that's an indication that it's a story worth telling...
Rosalie - My first novel (adult) was about the sixties. I'm fumbling about the subject of the next, but the Freedom Buses are becoming more and more compelling. I guess courage is, much more than mere drama. Thank you for this.
I’m a far-ranging reader, happily reading a picture book one minute and a book for adults the next. Professionally, being a 4th grade teacher and reviewer, not a librarian, I tend to read only YA that really intrigues me for one reason or another and I have to shamefully admit that until now what I’d heard about Marcus Sedgwick’s books — that they were dark and creepy — did not make me want to read them. But recently, I saw something interesting about his latest, Midwinterblood, just as a copy showed up in the mail and so I took it home to read.
Wow.
The book has an unconventional structure that someone told me is like Cloud Atlas, but while it does have a sort of similar time sense, I’d say it is otherwise completely different. Beginning in 2073 on the island of Blessed, it moves back in time, with an epilogue connecting back to the book’s start. There are seven stories in total, all set on the island, heading back and back and back through time. And by way of these distinctive narratives we are startled to encounter characters we have already met in the earlier stories, characters who care, hate, most of all, two who love throughout eternity. Separately these are ghost stories, love stories, and even something that might be termed dystopic. Playing on tropes of folklore, horror, myth, historical fiction, fantasy, and science fiction, Sedgwick imaginatively weaves something highly original and completely compelling. While Midwinterblood is its own distinct thing, mulling it over now, I think of Laini Taylor’s Lips Touch Three Times and the stories of Margo Lanagan.
Most of all, it is gorgeous. Highly recommended.
2 Comments on Marcus Sedgwick’s Midwinterblood, last added: 3/4/2013
I read this just last month, the first book I’ve read by Sedgwick, and it certainly beguiled me. It drew me in almost without noticing, but days after finishing it, I was still caught up in the lives of those explored in the novel. Lovely to read you enjoyed it too.
Anne Stockwell said, on 3/4/2013 9:47:00 AM
I’m looking forward to reading this. I read Revolver some time ago and liked it very much. And yes, it is dark.
Code Name Verity by Elizabeth Wein, Hyperion Book CH, 2012, 352 pp, ISBN: 1423152190
Recap: Imagine yourself a prisoner of war. Your plane was shot down in Nazi occupied France. All of your clothes have been taken away. An iron rod has been tied to your back. You are tortured on a daily basis. How long would it take you to break? And when you started talking, what story would you tell?
Review: It took me two attempts to read Code Name Verity. Not because I couldn't get into the first time - quite the opposite in fact. My first attempt was the audiobook, read by the immensely talented Morven Christie and Lucy Gaskell (although I didn't quite make it to Gaskell's portion). Christie was the voice of "Verity" and her gorgeous Scottish brogue made the book for me. I can still hear her spitting out "mein Hauptsturmführer von Linden," and goodness knows I would have completely muddled up that pronunciation had I been reading all on my own. Christie did an absolutely brilliant job of nailing down each nuance and innuendo of Verity's story, all through the power of her voice.
Now, when I started reading/listening to Code Name Verity, I didn't know a single thing about the story except that it was generating a ton of positive buzz in the book world. **Possible spoiler alert: When Verity's section abruptly ended and Maddie's began, I was so upset that I immediately ejected the CD and took it straight back to the library. Why was Elizabeth Wein taking Verity away??? Bring her back!!!
Well, about a week later, I was burning up to know how the book ended. So I checked out the print version from the library - hence, my second attempt. And I actually just started fresh from the very beginning. Seriously, this story does not get old. And I picked up on so many more things on the second read-through! So, I would consider the second attempt a big success. When I got to Maddie's story again, I was ready. And then Maddie had to go and blow my mind. Verity wasn't gone by a long shot, and her story just took a very dramatic twist when it picked up with her best friend. Elizabeth Wein, I take back what I said before. You are a genius.
Recommendation: If you love a mystery, if you appreciate historical fiction, if you get into a girl power story, if you are simply a human being who loves to read... do not pass up Code Name Verity. BOB Prediction: Code Name Verity is going straight to the Big Kahuna Round. I will be pretty shocked if it doesn't win the whole thing.
Quotable Quotes: "I have told the truth." - Verity (If you've read it, doesn't this line still just give you the chills??)
6 Comments on Code Name Verity, last added: 3/4/2013
ACK! I loved loved loved this book. I didn't know it was available in audio... and with her speaking with a Scottish accent? ACK!!!!!! Maddie blew my mind, too. I had to actually walk away for a while at one point. That never happens! I just couldn't handle it!
The Talisman Ring. Georgette Heyer. 1936/2009. Sourcebooks. 316 pages.
It can be easy to forget just how much you enjoyed a particular Heyer romance when you've read so many. The Talisman Ring is certainly enjoyable and quite satisfying...even if it doesn't necessarily stay as fresh in one's memory as being a favorite-favorite. I enjoyed the two romances in this one. But above all, I enjoyed the dramatic, suspenseful mystery! It reminded me a bit of the promise of Northanger Abbey, except in this case, there was actually plenty of adventure and danger and mystery!
One of the heroines, Eustacie, is quite fun because she is so over-the-top silly and dramatic. She CRAVES romantic adventures and dangers--the stuff of novels. While she's willing to settle, to a certain degree, for a marriage of convenience, she really, truly wants a soul mate just as imaginative and expressive as she is. She wants to be made much of, she wants to be adored, she wants to be rescued, she wants to feel like life is one thrill after another. Her grandfather wants her to marry one cousin, Tristam Shield, one of the heroes of the novel; but these two just do not suit one another! They would drive each other crazy if the marriage actually took place! But Eustacie is determined to run away--in the middle of the night. And oh the adventure she stumbles into that night, SMUGGLERS. How perfect, how romantic. One of the smugglers turns out to be another cousin, Ludovic, a man who had to flee England several years earlier because he's suspected of murder....
And that's just the start!
A scene between Eustacie and Tristam:
“You would more probably have gone to the guillotine,' replied Sir Tristram, depressingly matter of fact. 'Yes, that is quite true,' agreed Eustacie. 'We used to talk of it, my cousin Henriette and I. We made up our minds we should be entirely brave, not crying, of course, but perhaps a little pale, in a proud way. Henriette wished to go to the guillotine en grande tenue, but that was only because she had a court dress of yellow satin which she thought became her much better than it did really. For me, I think one should wear white to the guillotine if one is quite young, and not carry anything except perhaps a handkerchief. Do you not agree?' 'I don't think it signifies what you wear if you are on your way to the scaffold,' replied Sir Tristram, quite unappreciative of the picture his cousin was dwelling on with such evident admiration. She looked at him in surprise. 'Don't you? But consider! You would be very sorry for a young girl in a tumbril, dressed all in white, pale, but quite unafraid, and not attending to the canaille at all, but--' 'I should be very sorry for anyone in a tumbril, whatever their age or sex or apparel,' interrupted Sir Tristram. 'You would be more sorry for a young girl--all alone, and perhaps bound,' said Eustacie positively. 'You wouldn't be all alone. There would be a great many other people in the tumbril with you,' said Sir Tristram. Eustacie eyed him with considerable displeasure. 'In my tumbril there would not have been a great many other people,' she said.”
I loved this one; I just LOVED it. It's so delightful and fun! I am just loving my 2013 project of reading and rereading all of Georgette Heyer's romances in chronological order!
Read The Talisman Ring
If you enjoyed Northanger Abbey
If you enjoy historical romance with a good bit of mystery
If you like drama, romance, mystery, adventure set in the 1790s
You've just reminded me that it's been way, way too long since I read a Heyer romance. This one sounds delightful--I need to take a day off, curl up and indulge.
Tess knows she wants more out of life, but also knows there's a slim chance that will ever happen. So she's content for now with her position at Moorcliffe as an attendant to Irene, the only daughter of the wealthy Lisle family. But one errand will open the door to another life, one more dark and sinister than Tess could have imagined.
Trying to get back to the manor as quickly as she can, Tess realizes something is following her, but the intervention of a handsome stranger creates a barrier that saves her. When she turned around, she saw the feral eyes of a large black wolf, ready to hunt....
For days afterward, all Tess can think about is the handsome stranger who saved her life. His cryptic warnings of danger cannot overcome the thoughts that lurk in Tess's mind. But the drudgery of her job working for the terrible Lady Regina dispels those thoughts....until Tess realizes she'll be part of the Lisle family going to America.
Tess's excitement at the prospect of traveling by ship to America is full of promise, as well as the hope she can escape her servanthood and find herself in a new country. The excitement grows even more when she also spots the handsome Alec, who saved her that fateful night. But there is another sinister, dark man also watching her every move....
And so everyone prepares to board the Titanic one very fateful day.
I picked this book up from a recommendation of a student, who loved this book. So I set aside the analytical librarian book reviewer part of it and ready it like a teen girl. Then I understood why she loved it so much. The characters Gray creates are vibrant, but more than that, the relationships, both troubling and romantic, draws the reader in. What a genius idea of pairing supernatural beings like werewolves with a historic disaster like the Titanic. It's a supernatural historical fiction plot I've never heard of. And that's what the hook is....The reader is left with the question of who survives and who dies. Teens who enjoy supernatural romance will eat this book up and would be a nice addition among all the vampires, ghosts, angels and ghouls.
COMMON CORE PAIR: Iceberg Right Ahead!: the tragedy of the Titanic by Stephanie McPherson. Minneapolis: 21st Century Books, 2012
0 Comments on Fateful by Claudia Gray as of 3/7/2013 4:32:00 PM
Last night I finished Beholding Bee. Such a fresh idea, so well-written. It made me think about an idea I was noodling in a whole new way. I love that about books!
I don't keep books on my nightstand because I'd never fall asleep if I read in bed. But I do read earlier in the evening, when staring at the computer gets to my eyes. I'm currently re-reading some humorous MG stories, as research, including books by Wendy Mass and Carl Hiaasen.
The One and Only Ivan, Three Times Lucky, The Womanly Art of Breastfeeding, and Be-yond Ba-by Talk (a linguistic guide to your child's first few years). And on my Kindle, Voyager by Diana Gabaldon. Determined to finish that series before Luke turns one!
Me too. And this is Kimberly Fusco, right? I heard her editor, Michelle Frey, talk about her first book, TENDING TO GRACE at a conference in 2005. Kimberly had met Michelle at a conference one-on-one, and Michelle had said she'd look at the manuscript again with some work. I was fascinated with the way Kimberly buckled down and committed to the manuscript -- which led to an eventual sale.
Lots of goodies! I haven't read THREE TIMES LUCKY yet, though I heard Sheila talk at the Decatur Book Festival. I'm three or four book in to Gabaldon's series and have a feeling I'd need to pick up that book of characters she has before I start up again.
Well, I must thank you all for making my day! We lost power tonight for several hours and my husband was reading to my daughter and me by candlelight - the new Schneider Award recipient, A Dog Called Homeless - the power came on and I saw these comments about BEHOLDING BEE and TENDING TO GRACE. I feel blessed to be a writer, and blessed to meet such talented people. And yes, each chapter in TTG began as a poem and I found the courage to write about stuttering because I was (and sometimes am still) a stutterer. And somehow I've become a rather fearless public speaker because I found a voice. Amazing how a little writing can transform your life. Thank you!
Hello and thank you for stopping by! I feel blessed to have heard your story (I met Michelle Frey at IRA last year and shared how much it meant to me) and to have read your work. You are an inspiration.
The Corinthian. Georgette Heyer. 1940/2009. Sourcebooks. 261 pages.
In The Corinthian, we've got a bachelor, Sir Richard Wyndham, who happens to rescue a damsel in distress, Penelope Creed. Penelope set on running away from her aunt--who is encouraging her into a loveless marriage with her cousin Fred--is disguised as a boy. Richard, while on his way home and a bit drunk at that, sees Pen climbing out her window--by way of her bed sheets of course. He "catches" her just in time. Granted, this "she" is dressed as a he. But there's no fooling Richard. A bit amused at the situation, and wanting to run away himself to avoid an unpleasant appointment the next day, he decides to help out. She wants to escape London--and her aunt--and travel to Bristol (or near Bristol anyway). She's got a childhood friend, Piers, who she fancies herself madly in love with. Five (or so) years ago, these two promised themselves to each other. Hearing this tale, Richard decides to join in the journey and ensure her safety. The two will go together. He will act as her tutor-uncle-cousin and 'protect' her along the way. (Each identity is used on their journey at various stages.) Their journey is rarely boring--they get in and out of trouble along the way.
This one is a delightful romantic comedy. I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE this one! I love Pen Creed. I love Sir Richard. The dialogue is just too much fun in this Regency romance!
A scene between Pen and Richard:
"Were you locked in your room?" enquired Sir Richard. "Oh no! I daresay I should have been if Aunt had guessed what I meant to do, but she would never think of such a thing." "Then--forgive my curiosity!--why did you climb out of the window?" asked Sir Richard. "Oh, that was on account of Pug!" replied Pen sunnily. "Pug?" "Yes, a horrid little creature! He sleeps in a basket in the hall, and he always yaps if he thinks one is going out. That would have awakened Aunt Almeria. There was nothing else I could do." Sir Richard regarded her with a lurking smile. "Naturally not. Do you know, Pen, I owe you a debt of gratitude?" "Oh!" she said again. "Do you mean that I don't behave as a delicately bred female should?" "That is one way of putting it, certainly." "It is the way Aunt Almeria puts it." "She would, of course." "I am afraid," confessed Pen, "that I am not very well-behaved. Aunt says that I had a lamentable upbringing, because my father treated me as though I had been a boy. I ought to have been, you understand." "I cannot agree with you," said Sir Richard. "As a boy you would have been in no way remarkable; as a female, believe me, you are unique." She flushed to the roots of her hair. "I think that is a compliment." "It is," Sir Richard said, amused. "Well, I wasn't sure, because I am not out yet, and I do not know any men except my uncle and Fred, and they don't pay compliments. That is to say, not like that." (68-69)
Fred Griffin in conversation with Sir Richard:
"What, sir, would you think of a member of the Weaker Sex who assumed the guise of a man, and left the home of her natural protector by way of the window?" "I should assume," replied Sir Richard, "that she had strong reasons for acting with such resolution." "She did not wish to marry me," said Mr. Griffin gloomily. "Oh!" said Sir Richard. "Well, I'm sure I can't see why she should be so set against me, but that's not it, sir. The thing is that here's my mother determined to find her, and to make her marry me, and so hush up the scandal. But I don't like it above half. If she dislikes the notion so much, I don't think I ought to marry her, do you?" "Emphatically not!" "I must say I am very glad to hear you say that, Sir Richard!" said Mr. Griffin, much cheered. "For you must know that my mother has been telling me ever since yesterday that I must marry her now, to save her name. But I think she would very likely make me uncomfortable, and nothing could make up for that, in my opinion." "A lady capable of escaping out of a window in the guise of a a man would quite certainly make you more than uncomfortable," said Sir Richard. "Yes, though she's only a chit of a girl, you know. In fact, she is not yet out. I am very happy to have had the benefit of the opinion of a Man of the World. I feel that I can rely on your judgment." "On my judgment, you might, but in nothing else, I assure you," said Sir Richard. "You know nothing of me, after all. How do you know that I am not now concealing your cousin from you?" "Ha-ha! Very good, upon my word! Very good, indeed!" said Mr. Griffin, saluting a jest of the first water. (124)
Read The Corinthian
If you enjoy Regency romances
If you enjoy historical romance
If you enjoy historical romance with a touch of drama, mystery, and murder...
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I absolutely loved Georgette Heyer's Faro's Daughter. In the first chapter, readers meet Mr. Ravenscar (Max) as he visits with his sister, Lady Mablethorpe. She wants him to to prevent an imprudent match of his nephew with an unsuitable young woman, Deborah Grantham. This "vulgar" woman lives in a gaming house with her aunt! He goes to visit the young lady in the gaming house, even gambles with her for a while. His conclusion: she's not a good match for a gentleman, certainly, but she might be easily bought off. Instead of talking with his nephew, he'll talk to her instead and offer her money if she promises to never marry the boy.
Readers just don't see this from his point of view, however, readers also get to meet Deborah for themselves. And Deborah finds Ravenscar's offer insulting and infuriating. How dare he assume she could be bought off! Though she hadn't any plans on marrying Adrian, she know plans to do just that. Well. If she has to. She's hoping that that won't be necessary after all. If only she could get Adrian to fall in love with someone else...
Ravenscar and Deborah hate each other so much, their interactions are so intense. They bring out the worst in each other...
I loved this one so much! It's a great read cover to cover. So many interesting characters and stories.
Read Faro's Daughter
If you love Pride and Prejudice, North and South, Much Ado About Nothing, etc. Romance stories where the hero and heroine HATE each other before they fall in love...
If you enjoy Georgette Heyer
If you enjoy Regency romances, historical romances
This book looks really good! I love it when a book is written from different perspectives; it adds a new level of complexity to the story. I look forward to more reviews from you, thank you!
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COMMON CORE PAIR: Iceberg Right Ahead!: the tragedy of the Titanic by Stephanie McPherson. Minneapolis: 21st Century Books, 2012.jpeg?picon=2982)
One of my teachers spends a lot of time on Anne Frank. I believe this would fit in nicely with my other HF books in my WWII collection. Thanks for the review.