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I have wanted to read The Crowfield Curse by Pat Walsh since it was first released in 2010. When it came out in paperback this year I decided to buy it and add it to my huge pile of books to read. The premise of a medieval abbey with something ominous buried just beyond the church graveyard and the fantastic cover art by David Frankland - don't miss the creatures in the trees. I have to
MARATHON, by Boaz Yakin, ill. by
Joe Infurnari (
First Second/Macmillan 2012)(ages 12+). In 490 BC, Athens defeated the armies of Darius of Persia at Marathon. An epochal moment in Western Civilization, its aftermath begat multiple legends of a remarkable runner, Pheidippides or Eccles, depending on whose version you read. In some stories, as the Persians were about to land, he raced from Athens to Sparta -- about 140 miles -- in the hopes that the Spartans would lend their martial vigor to the defense of Greece. In others, he ran from the plains of Marathon to Athens -- a mere 24 or so miles -- to bring news of victory.
In this remarkable graphic novel -- a poignant and compelling historical fantasy -- Yakin and Infurnari square the circle, telling the story of both runs, the tale of the son of a slave, his athletic prowess, and his love for family and country.
I have so many reasons to recommend The Six Crowns series by Gary Chalk and Allan Frewin Jones I'm not sure where to start. The Six Crowns is a highly readable, fantastically illustrated fantasy series that can easily take its place next to standards like Brian Jaques' Redwall series and Chris Riddell and Paul Stewart's Edge Chronicles. In fact, The Six Crowns is a perfect blending of these
(US and UK covers - both by the impeccable Brett Heliquist...)
I once heard a classical musician being interviewed. He was asked what time period he would most like to live in and he replied the fifteenth century because it must have been such a quiet time that any kind of music or singing was very special, revered, remembered, held in high
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By:
Terry Lee Wilde,
on 7/20/2012
Blog:
Wilde Teen Books
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Have you ever wondered what it would be like to enter a fae world? Dark and mysterious? Light and majestic? Awe-inspiring? Terrifying?
Like humans, they all have their own interests, agendas, likes and dislikes.
The Dark Fae They're not Tinker Bell-tiny, or make funny little tinkling bell sounds to get someone's attention.
The Deadly Fae They don't always get what they want but it doesn't deter them from trying.
The Winged FaeThey have human desires but magical powers.
The Ancient Fae They can be devilishly fun and devilishly bad.
The Dragon Fae --coming
What would you do if you came across the fae?
I have a dear friend who is in London right now studying Shakespeare and I had her ask her mates the names of a few classic books that most kids growing up in the UK read. Kind of like the British version of Little House on the Prairie or Charlotte's Web. Tom's Midnight Garden by Philippa Pearce, published in 1957 and winner of the Carnegie Prize (the British version of the Newbery, but they
LARKLIGHT, by
Philip Reeve (
Bloomsbury 2006)(ages 8+). In this steampunkish space fantasy, in the 19th Century, the British Empire has spread across the aether, and has established colonies as far out as Jupiter.
Arthur Mumby and his sister Myrtle live in a rambling house called Larklight orbiting the Moon. Their lives are turned upside down when they are kidnapped by giant spiders and rescued by the fearsome pirate Jack Havock himself. And things get really complicated when they uncover a plot to destroy the very heart of the Empire, London itself....
LARKLIGHT is a swashbuckling romp through a fantastically envisioned British Empire aboard ships reminiscent of those from
Treasure Planet. Art and Myrtle are engaging and dryly funny as they tell the story of how they traveled the solar system and defeated the evildoers...
The AIRBORN trilogy, by
Kenneth Oppel, comprising: AIRBORN (
HarperCollins 2004); SKYBREAKER (
HarperCollins 2006); STARCLIMBER (
HarperCollins 2009)(ages 12+).
At fifteen, Matt Cruse is the youngest, smallest cabin boy aboard the airship
Aurora. Beyond anything else, it is his dream to someday captain a vessel like the
Aurora.
On one fateful trans-Pacificus crossing, the airship rescues an off-course balloonist, who babbles about seeing beautiful creatures in the sky, before he dies.
Some months later, Kate DeVries, the balloonist's beautiful and wealthy granddaughter, embarks on the
Aurora, to see if she can track down the mysterious creatures and prove to the world her grandfather was not a madman.
Matt is more than willing to lend a hand, and the two begin to develop a tentative friendship, when the
Aurora is attacked by a dirigible belonging to the notorious and murderous pirate Vikram Szpirglas...
AIRBORN is a rousing, swashbuckling adventure and coming-of-age story. The alternate steampunkish Earth, where dirigibles are the basis for air transportation and airplanes don't exist, is convincing and richly detailed. Matt and Kate are believable and their relationship is complex and compelling.
Their tale continues in SKYBREAKER and STARCLIMBER.
THE LEVIATHAN TRILOGY: LEVIATHAN (Simon & Schuster 2009), BEHEMOTH (Simon & Schuster 2010), and GOLIATH (Simon & Schuster 2011), by
Scott Westerfeld, ill. by
Keith Thompson. Fifteen year old Alek flees from his home into the night with a handful of retainers when his parents -- the Archduke Franz Ferdinand and his wife -- are murdered in Serbia. At the same time, Deryn Sharp, disguised as a boy, enlists as a midshipman on the British airship
Leviathan. Together, as Europe erupts into war, their lives intertwine in an around-the-world adventure and in ways that they couldn't possibly have imagined...
THE LEVIATHAN TRILOGY offers a fascinating alternate history and steampunk technology, along with action and adventure, and compelling and likeable co-protagonists. Three absolutely terrific, fun reads.
MOONSHADOW: RISE OF THE NINJA, by
Simon Higgins (
Little Brown 2010)(10+). In this historical fantasy based on medieval Japan, the orphan Moonshadow has been raised as a ninja warrior spy by the members of the Grey Light Order to serve the
shogun and preserve the peace against fractious warlords.
In addition to being a master of stealth and swordsmanship, Moonshadow possesses the "eye of the beast," the ability to see through the eyes of animals. Now, on his first mission, he must put all his skills to the test as he goes in alone to the the castle of a rebel warlord who wants to overthrow the shogunate...
MOONSHADOW: RISE OF THE NINJA is a thoroughly fun, action-packed yarn. Altogether, an engaging story of friendship, honor, and belonging.
First in a series, originally published in Australia as MOONSHADOW: EYE OF THE BEAST.
The Scepter of Salvation, Book 1
Princess Talamaya turned 18 in the human kingdom of Damar, just like her twin brother. Only when she comes of age, she must wed the king's choice. When her brother comes of age, he's allowed to sit on the council. But everything changes when a wizard pits beast and man against each other in Inherian--all because of the loss of the Scepter of Salvation and she must return it to their kingdom.
Princess Talamaya and her friends, Lady Kersta and Lady Mexia, must retrieve the Scepter of Salvation when her brother is poisoned.Visions plague Talamaya of a world beyond her own, of a destiny she has to fulfill.
But the barbarian king is also after the scepter, and the black-hearted wizard who is trying to gain control will do anything to keep them from retrieving it.
She must free a knight from his madness.
Help a female dwarf escape from the dwarven mines.
Aid an Amazon fighting the Dark Elves.
Rescue even the barbarian king.
Save a crusty old dwarf from the wolves of Elan Pass.
And outwit the dark wizard once more.
Above all else, she must always take the path of righteousness.
Which is much easier said than done.
Here is the old cover!
And here's the new cover for book 2, The Mage of Monrovia!
Mexia has already done much more than most school- trained mages when she and her companions had gone in search of the scepter of salvation. But now one of the apprentices of the evil wizard they had destroyed, has stolen his spell book and plans to take up where he had left off, and she has to try and stop him.
Mexia believes the only way for her to defeat the mage is to become school trained like he was with the eventual goal of becoming a high wizard--the first of her kind in Inherian. But the current headmaster denies her entrance because she's a woman. Though if she can get the former headmaster's recommendation, she may attend.
And that's the beginning of the trouble.
First, there's the wizard.
Then, the immovable headmaster.
And then, the circle of misfortunes.
It all goes downhill from there...
One of the fun things about Indie publishing is that we can change the cover if we want, and I've wanted to do this for a long time, so what do you all think? Top one is the new cover, the bottom is the old cover...
I've also reduced the price for a short time from $4.99 to $2.99 for each book!
B & N
DINOSAUR SUMMER, by
Greg Bear (Warner, 1998)(ages 12+) is an intriguing sequel to Conan Doyle's THE LOST WORLD and a nice coming-of-age story as well. It's 1947 and fifteen-year-old Peter Belzoni lives with his father Anthony, a wildlife photographer, in a tenement (his mother left them for Chicago). There's never enough money and Peter often feels like the grown-up and sometimes out of place with his adventure-loving father.
Peter's not sure how to take it when his father gets an assignment from
National Geographic: covering the last performance of the last dinosaur circus in North America. It's some decades after Professor Challenger
et al. came back from the lost world, launching the "Dinosaur Rush," and dinosaurs are kind of passe.
What Anthony didn't tell Peter is that there's more to the assignment than watching performing animals: the dinosaurs remaining in Otto Gluck's circus are to be returned to Venezuela, and Anthony and Peter will be going along on the expedition to document the event. Along the way, they encounter dangers from humans and wild creatures alike, and Peter comes to terms with his parents' divorce and where he is and wants to be in the world.
DINOSAUR SUMMER offers a likeable protagonist and a great premise, with a creative admixture of fictional and nonfictional dinosaurs and prehistoric creatures.
Oh, and did I mention, the cover and interior illustrations are by
Tony DiTerlizzi?
BLOODLINE RISING, by Katy Moran (Candlewick 2011)(ages 10+). This companion to BLOODLINE features the story of Cai, a young thief in 7th century Constantinople. Kidnapped by a rival, he is taken on a slave ship to Britain, his parents' homeland.
There, he is bought by a clan chief, who knew his father, and is put to work spying on rival factions. But those around him know more about his past than they're saying...When it comes time to choose, where will his loyalties lie?
A compelling and richly-drawn historical fantasy, BLOODLINE RISING offers plenty of action and adventure in the exotic realms of the 7th century. Cai is believable, likeable, and occasionally ruthless as he pursues his place in the world.
Moonshine
Alaya Johnson
St. Martin's Press
2010
paranormal historical fiction
Imagine it's New York City in the roaring twenties and you teach English in a night school for immigrants. Sounds pretty normal, but add in the fact that vampires and all sorts of "Others" are integrated into society alongside humans. Not sounding so typical anymore, unless you're Zephyr Hollis. Zephyr, reformed "Defender", is a "blessed" blade wielding, social activist extraordinaire, feminist, and closet Jazz singer.
The vampire suffragette, as she's affectionately and mockingly known, is sent into a tail spin when a series of events beginning with a half dead little boy she finds in an alley on her way to teach one evening. Zephyr's comings and goings include a charming cast of characters including her hypocritically prudish landlady Mrs. Brodsky, roommate with a sixth sense Aileen, socialite and journalist Lily, and the ever mysterious Amir. Amir is not only an "Other" unlike any Zephyr's ever encountered, but also he's flirtatious, sarcastic, and dangerous- a winning combination for an intense budding romance.
Alaya Johnson has written a fast-paced, engaging novel. Her no nonsense, sharp tongued characterizations of Zephyr and Amir make this an enchanting read. The notion of Moonshine being merely another vampire or paranormal fiction novel is taking it a bit too lightly. Though a quirky and supernatural tale, it's also a guise for a more grounded critique on race. Zephyr struggles daily to get humans to see that the "Others", who openly live, work, and play in mainstream society, are still deserving of humanity even if not human.
Disclosure: This book was provided by the publisher.
The Boneshaker
"This is one of those books that's a delight from start to finish, quirky but grounded, with characters you'll fall in love with." -- Charles de Lint, author of Little (Grrl) Lost and The Blue Girl
Story: Strange things can happen at a crossroads, and the crossroads outside of Arcane, MO, is no exception. 13-year-old Natalie Minks knows all the odd, mysterious tales about her little town -- she grew up hearing her mother tell them. But even Natalie is not prepared for the strangeness that's unleashed when Doctor Hake Limberleg's Nostrum Fair and Technological medicine Show rolls into town with its bizarre tonics and elaborate, inexplicable machines.
Natalie loves machines. She's fascinated by mechanical things of all sorts -- especially automata like the little clockwork flyer her dad is helping her build. And when she finally gets a close look at the machines within the intricate maze of the medicine show, she knows in her gut that something about this caravan of healers is not right... and that Arcane is in grave danger.
Story behind the story: This story about family, community, courage and the necessity of looking evil directly in the face to conquer it is Kate Milford's first novel. And it's getting some enthusiastic pre-publication buzz like this from Colleen Mondor at ChasingRay.com: "I am reading Kate Milford's The Boneshaker and all of you who have heard early Newbery [Award] rumblings about this one would do well to heed them. It certainly has some Bradbury (ala Something Wicked This Way Comes) touches, but also a delightful bit of Wright Brothers bicycle invention/repair, Robert Johnson at the crossroads and Dewey Kerrigan (via The Green Glass Sea). I am most pleased with this one (about one third of the way through) and will have a review in my May column."
Order your reviewer's copy now.
By: Tanya,
on 9/10/2012
By: Greg Leitich Smith,
on 8/13/2012
BLOODLINE RISING, by Katy Moran (Candlewick 2011)(ages 10+). This companion to BLOODLINE features the story of Cai, a young thief in 7th century Constantinople. Kidnapped by a rival, he is taken on a slave ship to Britain, his parents' homeland.
By: L. M. Baldwin,
on 6/7/2010
What an interesting series- like your son, my 7 year old daughter is current in love with graphic novels early chapter books (Stink is a favorite), so I'm interested to see what she think of this one.
I think she'll like it! It does have quite a bit more text than a graphic novel (my son did need a little boost midway through the book which required me reading a chapter or two out loud) but is filled with action and adventure and one or two illustrations per chapter.