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Welcome to He Said, She Said, a feature for GuysLitWire (and Bildungsroman) in which a guy (Book Chic) and a gal (Little Willow) discuss books that will appeal to both genders. Today, we’re discussing Gayle Forman’s connected novels, If I Stay and Where She Went. Are you ready to face the music?

LW: If I Stay is the story of Mia, a teenager who slips into a coma after a tragic car accident that kills the rest of her family. She can see those who visit her in the hospital, and she also reflects on her past. How did you feel reading her thoughts?

BC: I really felt like I was reading about a real person. The way Forman sets up the story, moving between the present with Mia watching the people visiting her in the hospital and the past with Mia reminiscing about her life, was a really great way of getting across Mia’s personality and life story. It also shows why it’s such a tough decision for her to stay or go; it isn’t cut and dry. Going through Mia’s life was good too because Forman encapsulated so many different, various memories- happy, sad, funny, embarassing, romantic, etc.- that the reader really gets to know Mia through the book.

LW: I liked getting to know Mia through her memories. Even though I knew the premise of the book before reading the first page, the scene with the accident still hit me hard, and made me wish that it could have been prevented. To then follow the path of the person who would become the sole survivor or the final victim of that tragedy - I think I often held my breath while reading this book because I was so worried that Mia wouldn’t make it. After reading If I Stay, did you think there would/should be a sequel?

BC: I didn’t think there would be a sequel at all. I felt like it ended really well but this isn’t your usual sequel which I think made it work so well.

LW: How do you feel about the sequel principle in general?

BC: I think it’s become the norm in YA. It’s like everything I read is the first in a trilogy and there’s hardly any standalone books anymore. I love spending more time with characters as much as the next bookaholic, but sometimes I just want a book to, y’know, END, and not always be a cliffhanger. I do also think that sometimes there is a need for more than one book but other times, not so much and it can feel like the author is just trying to make a story longer even though it should have just been one book. So essentially, I don’t mind sequels, but I do also like to see standalone books published.

LW: Were you happy with the sequel, Where She Went? Did you like knowing what happened to Mia after the end of If I Stay?

BC: I was really happy with it and thought Forman did a really wonderful job. The switch of POV and taking place three years later was a good decision and it just made sense.

LW: I applaud Gayle Forman for giving Adam a voice of his own. Where She Went can really stand on its own. The narrators of these two books have different personalities, different tones, different priorities, and different interpretations of past events and memories.

BC: I was a bit wary before reading Where She Went because I wasn’t sure if it could be pulled off and if it would be as good as If I Stay was, but I shouldn’t doubt Forman. She’s such a good writer. I did like seeing what happened to Mia afterward and just spending time with her and Adam again even though it was a bit awkward at times, lol.

LW: Where She Went showed us characters we knew as teenagers now a little older, truly young adults. I feel as if there aren’t enough books with narrators of that age. Did you like Adam’s narration?

BC: I did! Forman did a great job writing from Adam’s POV, though at ti

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Welcome to He Said, She Said, a feature for GuysLitWire in which a guy (Book Chic) and a gal (Little Willow) discuss books that will appeal to both genders. Previously, we've discussed novels such as Soulless by Christopher Golden (zombie apocalypse now!) and Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher. Today, we're talking about Mary E. Pearson's connected stories The Adoration of Jenna Fox and The Fox Inheritance, the first two novels in a projected trilogy. Follow us into the future as we discuss these fantastic tales:

Little Willow: What drew you to the first book, The Adoration of Jenna Fox? I know I was eager to read it because I was intrigued by the premise and I had enjoyed Pearson's earlier novels. Did you read the book prior to reading any reviews or spoilers, or did you already know a bit of what was going to happen?

Book Chic: It just sounded really interesting and the cover was beautiful, so both of those together make me really want an ARC! I was able to get one and read it the month of release so I don't think I had really read anything too spoilery when I was reading Jenna Fox. I just loved the story and it's still one of my favorite books.

LW: Do you like sci-fi stories such as this, stories grounded in plausible scientific and technological advances? I do.

BC: I like all kinds of sci-fi stories but it is a bit fun to read stories that are more grounded and can be plausible. It's also a bit harrowing too because we could possibly end up like this and it may not seem like a good future to be in.

LW: The second book, The Fox Inheritance, is narrated by Jenna's friend, Locke. Did you like the narrative switch?

BC: First off, I had no idea a sequel was being written until I was at BEA this past May and someone mentioned Mary's signing that hadn't been on the online signing schedule. I of course immediately put it into my schedule for that day.

LW: I'm glad that you got to go!

BC: I was really excited to get an advance copy of this book too. I thought the narrative switch was a good choice and it really suited the story. I don't think it would've been good to keep it with Jenna, so it was necessary if the second book was to happen.

LW: I did not expect another story about Jenna; I thought Adoration ended well, and I was content with that ending, that explanation. I was glad that Locke's story was so different from hers, stylistically and personality-wise, and it was interesting to see Jenna through someone else's eyes. Did you feel as if the narrators' actions or tones were influenced by their genders?

BC: I don't really think so. Maybe I'm just speaking in stereotypes, but neither Locke nor Jenna seemed like the typical boy or girl. Locke seems to rely a lot on female figures rather than standing up for himself or making big decisions. His tone is a bit passive throughout most of the book, though he does find his way and becomes a bit assertive in the end. It's been a while since I've read Jenna Fox, so I don't really have examples, but I don't feel like her gender influenced what she did or how she did it.

LW: Not only do the two books have different narrators, they also have different tones. Adoration is more introspective and revelatory, I think, while Inheritance has more action and physical risk-taking.

BC: I thought each tone worked well. The Adoration of Jenna Fox sets up the story and the reader is introduced to the ideas of bioethics, so it needed to be more introspective and revelatory. Jenna is trying to find out who she is. When the reader gets to The Fox Inheritance, they already know what's going on so more time can be spent on other issu

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Welcome to He Said, She Said, a feature for GuysLitWire in which a guy (Book Chic, a recent college graduate) and a gal (Little Willow, a bookseller) discuss books that will appeal to both genders.

Today, we'll be discussing Dash & Lily's Book of Dares by Rachel Cohn and David Levithan. This collaborative novel is a perfect fit for He Said, She Said. Levithan and Cohn wrote alternating chapters, each from his or her main character's point of view, following the model they set up in previous bestselling novels Nick & Norah's Infinite Playlist and Naomi & Ely's No-Kiss List. (Little Willow adds: I found Dash & Lily to be just as amazing as Nick & Norah. This novel is absolutely delightful - a true holiday treat!)

When Dash discovers a red Moleskine notebook on the shelf of The Strand bookstore, he opens it and finds questions and challenges inside. Lily, the girl who left the notebook, wants to liven up her holiday break. The two teenagers start a lively game of dares, each writing in the notebook and leaving it in designated locations for the other person to discover. Along the way, they challenge themselves just as much as they challenge each other. Will they ever dare to meet in person? You have to read the book to find out!

Now we challenge you to read our roundtable. It's simply, really. Just keep going...

Little Willow: What did you think of Dash at first?

Book Chic: I actually really liked him and identified with him more than with Lily. He was sarcastic like me, though more quick-witted and eloquent. I didn’t agree with the description from others of his being “snarly” because to me, that made him sound like Billy Idol from the ‘80s with a sneer on his face all the time, thus making him look unattractive. This cannot be, so I refused to believe it. It made him look too mean.

Little Willow: I liked Dash from the get-go because he was intellectual, and he was intrigued and amused by the clues he found in the little red Moleskine notebook, just as the readers were. I really liked the fact that the story opened with the book scavenger hunt, wasting no time and introducing the main plot immediately. Then we met Lily in the next chapter, and I dug her right away as well. She was an individual, sassy, and just plain fun! What was your first impression of Lily?

Book Chic: I liked her too, but not as much as Dash. She wasn’t as adventurous and seemed rigid and a rule-abiding girl. Although I do identify with those traits (except the girl part, obviously), I just wasn’t as into her as much. She did have a good sense of humor though.

Little Willow: Have you ever been on a scavenger hunt that required epistolary correspondence and/or hiding or finding things in a bookstore?

Book Chic: Nope, I’m not good at finding things, so I stay away from scavenger hunts, epistolary or not, to avoid embarrassment.

Little Willow: Maybe you could be the person who hid the items instead of the person who found them. You could be the hunt coordinator! I dare you to start with with a notebook. I’ve never had a Moleskine, but when I was in 10th grade, I had a notebook that I shared with a friend and passed back and forth. Did you ever do that?

Book Chic: I had a sheltered childhood so I didn’t even do anything as little as passing notes with a friend, much less a whole notebook. I’m very lame and rule-abiding. Also, I figured I could wait and just talk to them out loud.

Little Willow: Rule-abiding people rule! No pun intended. Did you favor one narrator over the other? I liked how different they were in both personality and voice. Kudos to David Levithan and Rachel Cohn for giving them those distinct voices.

Book Chic: Like I said before, I did really enjoy Dash’s per

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It's time for He Said, She Said, a newish feature for GuysLitWire in which Book Chic, a recent college graduate (male) and Little Willow, a bookseller (female), discuss books that will appeal to both genders.

Last month, we talked about Play Me by Laura Ruby, a YA book written by a woman with a teenage boy as the protagonist.

This month, we're talking about Poison Ink by Christopher Golden, a terrific horror novel. Here we have a story written by a man with a teenage girl as the protagonist. Her four best friends, all female, round out the cast. Christopher Golden always does such a good job of getting into the mindset of a teen girl.

Do you prefer third person narration or first person narration in general? Does that preference depend on whether or not the gender of the narrator matches that of the author?

Book Chic: I generally prefer first person because it’s easier for me to get hooked into a story, though I have read and enjoyed third person narration before. But that could have been another reason why I wasn’t as into the book as I normally would be. When I read Lisa McMann’s “Wake” and E. Lockhart’s “The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks” (both AMAZING books), I was a bit jarred because of the third person and I had been reading lots of first person books before starting those. I don’t think it matters who’s writing it and whether they match, it’s more of a question of what kind I’ve been reading more of lately, and YA books do tend to lean more towards the first person than third.

Little Willow: I also loved Disreputable History. (A future He Said, She Said column, perhaps?)  I like both first person and third person narratives, but I suppose I prefer first person. When I write stories with a female protagonist, I tend to use first person, but when I write with a male protagonist, I’m more likely to write in third person. In Poison Ink, Christopher Golden uses third person to relate Sammi’s story. He tends to use third person in his novels, no matter what the age or gender of the leading character. Whenever it calls for it, he always does a great job getting into the mindset of a teen girl. I don’t know exactly how he does it, but it’s really impressive. Have you read his mystery series called Body of Evidence? The main character there was also female – Jenna Blake, a college student, and one of my favorite characters created by Golden.

Who was your favorite character in the book?

BC: My favorite character would probably have to be Cute Adam, as I'm very much a sucker for male romantic leads, ha ha. I do hope that he and Sammi work things out eventually. I also really enjoyed Sammi since she was pretty much the main character of the novel. I really liked her for her perseverance, and for doing everything possible to help and save her friends.

LW: I liked Sammi as well. I feel as though I got to know her the best, since she was the main character, the filter through which readers saw the story unfold. However, since the narrative was in third-person, that allowed her some space as well.

 

Do you share personality traits with any of the five main characters?

BC: Like TQ, I'm quite shy, at least around new people, but once you get to know me, I am more outgoing. And while this isn't really a personality trait, I share the homosexuality aspect with Letty. I don't think I really shared any other traits with the five friends.

LW: The girls come together because they were floaters who didn't fit in any other groups at school. I really appreciated how different the girls were, and that they bonded despite those differences. When I was in high school, I knew people in various cliques and social circles. I didn't have a close-knit group of friends, though, like these girls do. As far as physical commonalities, let's see . . . Oh! I'm short, and so are Sammi and Caryn. Described as 5'3", they are three inches taller than I am.

Would you ever get a tattoo?

LW: No, never. I have no desire to ever get a tattoo. It's not about the pain or the health risks that may or may not be involved. Instead, it's that I value different forms of expression and art. I create things with my voice, my words, and my movement - speaking and singing, dancing and acting, writing and directing - rather than drawing anything on my skin. My ears are not pierced, and I never wear makeup unless I'm on stage or in front of a camera. I have never even dyed my hair, and don't plan on doing so unless a part calls for it; even then, if that ever happens, it will be temporary, and I will restore my hair to its natural color and state after completing the project. I understand that others have tattoos and piercings as expressions of art and of themselves, and that's fine— those methods simply aren't for me.

 

BC: I pretty much agree with you. I wouldn't get one for the reasons you described, but it is also about the pain for me. I'm very fragile, and do not like any sort of pain. I'm also worried about the long-term when it comes to tattoos and what happens when you get older. Not really a good thing. But I do quite enjoy looking at tattoos though; they are very beautiful, and usually there's a fascinating story behind it. Also, while it's not a requirement, it would be cool (and ok, kinda hot) if my future boyfriend had a tattoo on his arm or chest. But, for myself, tattoos are just not my thing.

Do you have any favorite scenes or quotes from the book?

BC: Other than the climax, not really, though I did also enjoy any scene between Sammi and Adam. Surprisingly, I don’t really pay much attention to specific lines or anything while reading, so I usually never think of favorite lines once I’m done.

LW: I LOVE the line, "Everything had been poisoned, and the poison was spreading." I used it at the book's website as well as my blog posts about the book because I thought it was such a great quote. It sums up the premise and it's just lovely. I picture the poison ink actually spreading, as if the jar had been tipped over.

Do you enjoy horror stories as a general rule?

BC: I’m not sure if I’ve read very many horror stories, or at least ones that were specifically horror. I do enjoy them, but I also tend to avoid them, as I am WAY easily scared and don’t need stories to help my imagination, lol.

LW:  I like horror stories that are thought-provoking and plot-driven. When they are based on something psychological, they are even better. I love the original run of The Twilight Zone. It was smart and derived its horror from real things rather than relying on blood and guts. I don’t like a lot of modern horror films, especially not slasher flicks that are gory for gore’s sake, and I’m not a fan of cheesy special effects. Reading a book is different than watching a television show or film, because the reader has control over his or her mental theatre and imagination.

If this book were made into a movie, who would you cast in the main roles?

BC: Eep! I hate this question, as I’m sure authors probably do too. I’m never good at picking out people who look like the characters— that’s the casting person’s job and they’re good at it. I am not. For Sammi though, the person that I had in my head while reading the book was my friend Sammi since they had the same name, though I don’t think they look anything alike. Other than that, I can’t really remember if I pictured any of the characters as actual people. For Adam, maybe Michael Cera? I don’t know.

LW: If and when the book gets optioned for film, I’ll share my casting ideas with the powers-that-be. Until then, I’ll simply say that I’d hope the actors cast matched the character descriptions that Golden provided. I had a really clear picture of each character in my head.

Without giving too much away, what did you think of the villain, the climax, and the conclusion?

BC: I really liked the villain (well, how he was portrayed, not what he did). It was kind of a surprise how he turned, though you could see it even from the beginning. I enjoyed the twist in the book when Sammi went to see what was in his back room. As I said in my review, the climax was AMAZING.  I loved it, and I seriously could not put the book down. The ending was really good too, though it wasn’t exactly what I expected. I won’t say more than that because I don’t want to ruin anything for the blog readers!

LW: You gave away the villain’s gender! *grin* I don’t want to spoil anything for potential readers either, so I’ll simply say that it was a killer ending.

For more about Poison Ink, visit the website: http://www.christophergolden.com/poisonink

For more about Christopher Golden, visit his site: http://www.christophergolden.com/

For more about GuysLitWire, visit the blog: http://guyslitwire.blogspot.com/

This concludes Part 1 of our Christopher Golden He Said, She Said. In Part 2, coming at the end of this month or beginning of next, we will discuss Golden's newest horror novel, Soulless.

In the meantime, you may learn more about Soulless at Bildungsroman or at the Soulless website.

Christopher Golden will be chatting live tonight at the readergirlz forum along with Holly Cupala (A Light That Never Goes Out), Annette Curtis Klause (Blood and Chocolate), and Mari Mancusi (Boys That Bite) as part of a week-long celebration of Night Bites. Join us at http://groups.myspace.com/readergirlz TONIGHT! The chat will begin at 6 PM PST / 9 PM EST and last about an hour.

View all Bildungsroman posts tagged as He Said, She Said.

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What happens when a recent college graduate (male) and a bookseller (female) team up to discuss a book written by a woman from the point of view of a teenage boy? A new book discussion feature entitled He Said, She Said.

When Book Chic and I discovered we had read Play Me by Laura Ruby within days of each other, we decided to do a co-post for GuysLitWire.

Who was your favorite main character in Play Me?
BC: It might seem a bit obvious, but I enjoyed Eddy. His voice was just so real, and I actually could relate to him pretty well in regards to some of his characteristics and actions (though not the player part- I’m not that, lol). It was a pleasant surprise since I don’t read many books from a straight guy’s perspective, and this has made me a bit more open to reading other books from this point of view.
LW: I admit that I went into the book holding Eddy at a distance since he was described as a “player” in the book summary. Thankfully, he’s not really like that - he’s not dating a different girl every chapter, nor looking to make trouble with others - so I’m able to tell future readers that the summary is a little misleading. Rambling aside, I liked the story and I enjoyed Laura Ruby’s writing, but I really didn’t have a favorite character.

Who was your favorite supporting character?
BC: Hm, I’d have to say Meatball/Matthew, Eddy’s brother. I thought it was so funny and cute how he would pretend-die all the time, and have Eddy “save” him.
LW: He was a quirky kid. I would have been more worried about his fake deaths than his other family members were, because I’m extremely sensitive to jokes about death. I suppose they got used to it because he did it all of the time and knew he was really okay, but I still worried that he would get hurt at some point and everyone would think he was joking, like The Boy Who Cried Wolf.

Why did you pick up this book?
LW: I really liked Good Girls, so when I saw that this book was being offered by HarperTeen’s FirstLook program, I immediately entered the drawing.
BC: I got this book originally from HarperTeen’s FirstLook program, but the reason I decided to enter for it was because the summary looked really interesting. Plus, I’d been meaning to read a book by Laura Ruby anyway and this seemed like the perfect chance. And I ended up winning a copy, which was fantastic.

Do you feel the tagline and cover summary capture the essence of the story, or are they misleading?
LW: Yes, I do. He’s not “such” a player. (I just shuddered when I typed that. I really don’t like the word “player” and I stay away from anyone who boasts about being one!)
BC: I agree with Little Willow. Both are a bit misleading because when I finished the book, he didn’t really “get played”, like the tagline suggests. But hey, if it gets people to read this book, then that’s great because it is a really good novel.

What did you think of the cover?
BC: To me, it really doesn't seem like something that would catch a straight guy's eye, and it seems similar in style to the cover for Good Girls, which was more aimed toward girls. I think the story itself would be a fantastic read for guys, but they may be put off by the cover. That's just me though.
LW: Yes, it was obviously made to match the style of Good Girls, which suited it - the stories took place in the same school and have the same market and target audience, and much of Play Me revolves around the movies they film. The camcorder is being held up by a hand that looks feminine, small, with polished nails. Do you think it should have been held up by a boy's hand instead, or had a completely different cover?
BC: Yeah, I like the continuity of the covers since they do take place in the same setting, however, I don't think this book is necessarily aimed at the same target audience since it's being told from a guy's perspective, and so guys will be more likely to read this book over Ruby's first, Good Girls. I do like the camcorder idea because it does make sense with all the filmmaking going on, but I do also think that it should've been held by a boy's hand since Eddy is the main character and the filmmaker, so he'd be the one holding the camera, not a girl. Also, the colors on the cover seem more feminine, so parts of the cover do make sense but at the same time, there are other parts that may keep guys away from picking it up and reading it. Alright, my rant's over now, haha.

Had you read Good Girls, Laura Ruby's previous novel that takes place in the same school?
LW: Yes, and I really enjoyed it. I like that the two books are loosely connected, having protagonists that attend the same school, without having PLAY ME be a direct sequel to Good Girls. I like authors that employ those kind of connections, setting their stories in same world but not exactly writing a series, such as Sarah Dessen, Christopher Golden, and Laurie Halse Anderson.
BC: I had REALLY wanted to since it first came out, but I just never got around to it, but I hope to do so soon once my reading pile goes way down, and since the paperback is now out, so it’s much cheaper.

Would you read another book in this school or this town?
LW: Yes, indeed. Ruby has a nice handle on this generation.
BC: I second Little Willow’s statement. This was a great book, and I’ll pretty much read anything else Ruby writes from now on, even if it’s not set in the same school or town.
LW: Speaking of which, if readers like Play Me, I think they’ll also like Twisted by Laurie Halse Anderson and Busted: Confessions of an Accidental Player by Antony John. Pick up Looking for Alaska by John Green while you’re at it, please!

Have you ever filmed your own movies?
LW: Not yet, but I plan on it. I'm a screenwriter, a playwright, an actress, and a director. I look forward to filming my own works someday.
BC: No, I have not, due to not having a video camera. But I really would love to do video blogs sometime on my own book blog, which aren’t really movies per se, but they do involve a video camera, lol. Oh, wait, I was a part of my friend Lauren’s movie project that she had to do for one of her classes, but that wasn’t my movie. I just played a part in it, as the “Literacy Fairy”- how gay is that? lol.
LW: That sounds awesome, and I want to see it.
BC: It was horrendous and will never see the light of day, though I did have a fun time being a part of it all, though I crack up in fits of laughter WAY too much. Also, I think that Lauren turned in the only copy of it, and it's not in a file she could share with me over the internet. But it's been so long that I don't even remember the reason I never saw the finished version of it (other than the whole being 4 hours away bit).

Book Chic posts his reviews over at MySpace, while Little Willow blogs about books at Bildungsroman.

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