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I have never done a Best Books list, mainly because although I absolutely love to read these types of lists, I generally have a hard time choosing ten favorites from a given year.  I read so much, but for me to put a book on a BEST list, it had better be damn good. And some years, as much as I read, I don't read ten great books. Let's see if I make it to ten for 2011. My favorites, in no particular order:

Marie Lu's smart, fast-paced addition to the dystopia coterie begs for a sequel. Violent and bloody, Legend is an in-your-face commentary on how the chasm between the haves and the have-nots in our society continues to expand.

 

 

 

 

Not a YA novel, but I'm pretty sure The Magician King, the sequel to Grossman's The Magicians will show up on a lot of high school reading lists. It's Harry Potter for grown-ups, wizardry with humor and intellect. Completely unpredictable and totally original. I loved it.

 

 

 

Of the spate of dystopian novels from this post- Hunger Games YA literary landscape, Delirium stands out. Sure, it's set up for a sequel, but that won't interfere with your enjoyment of this story. Is a life without love a life at all? Delirium is a perfect read for those who grew up reading The Giver and now want a YA experience.

 

 

 

 

Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children is a creepy, weird, atmospheric book. I love the harsh and hearty Welsh island setting.  The odd, quirky characters remind me of a kids' version of Twin Peaks. I think the use of the old photographs is a little gimicky, and sometimes, author Ransom Rigg seems more enamored of the photos than how they actually f

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I was told in an ever-so-brief e-mail yesterday.  Strangely, the note didn't do a thing to discourage me from the work I am doing to tell William's story in a Dangerous Neighbors prequel.  Most importantly, perhaps, because I just love this book—the guy-oriented nature of it, the pretty fascinating history behind it, and the way it visits me, late at night (my characters inside my dreams, my dreams beginning alongside a mess of noisy railroad tracks, in the clamor of a newsroom, in the rescue of a red heifer).  But also because when I look around I see books I've loved—historical novels for young adults—that are absolutely thriving.

Let's consider Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children (Ransom Riggs), a Quirk publication, now in its seventh week on the New York Times bestseller list (I'm 70 pages in and loving the mix of image and story; expect a full report tomorrow).  Let's talk about Ruta Sepetys' Between Shades of Gray, a book that led me to the marvelous Tamra Tuller of Philomel, and which, in its very first week, debuted on the New York Times list.  Let's talk about The Book Thief, one of my favorite books of all time, still number one on the list, or, for that matter, the award-winning, bestselling The Good Thief, still generating much enthusiasm.  Libba Bray didn't do too badly with The Sweet Far Thing or A Great and Terrible Beauty, Rita Williams-Garcia was deservedly rewarded for her basically perfect One Crazy Summer, and I recall—do you as well?—a certain series of historical novels featuring glamorously clad society heroines that rocked the lists for a very long time.

Then there are those adult books, historical novels all, with which we are so familiar—Devil in the White City, The Help, Water for Elephants, The Paris Wife, Loving Frank, so many others—that locked in their places in book clubs and on lists. Struggle isn't a word that I would apply to them. 

I believe, in other words, that there is room for those of us out here who have fallen in love with a time and place and have a story to tell.  I've been barely able to breathe under a load of corporate work lately.  But the first chance I get, I'm returning to William.  I left him in a saloon down on Broad Street named Norris House.  He's been hankering for some dinner. I've got ideas about a multi-media launch.  And this kind of fun is worth having.

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The bad news is, Harry Potter is ending. The books, the movies, all finished, as of July 15th. The good news? I’ve found a new series, and it has only just begun with the first of what could possibly be many: Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children.

I stumbled upon this creepy tale via a book trailer. It was the kind of trailer that excited me and made me want to read the book, immediately. Unfortunately, it came out the day after my birthday, so I had to wait three extra days to get my final gift in the mail from Amazon. I was not disappointed.

The cover depicts a young girl, dressed in 1940s attire and a tiara. At first glance, she’s just standing there in the woods, staring at you. At second glance you realize she’s floating a couple inches above the ground, standing in the woods, staring at you. Either way, it makes an impression. The interior is no different. The pages are thick and soft to the touch, and dispersed amidst the words are freaky photos of other children doing strange—or peculiar—things, like one child holding a huge rock over his head or another holding flames in her hand. You want to read this book; it’s too unusual to put down.

The story of Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children focuses on sixteen-year-old Jacob and his grandfather, Abe. Ever since Jacob was a child, Grandpa Abe told stories about “the peculiar children” back in Abe’s old country, on an island off the coast of Wales. Abe lived with the children and their headmistress, Miss Peregrine, after fleeing his home country to escape the Nazis.

Among the peculiar children were an invisible boy, a girl who could fly, and a child covered in bees. Abe even had pictures to prove it, even though Jacob always assumed the stories—and photos—were fake. That is until Grandpa Abe dies under mysterious circumstances, which sends Jacob to his grandpa’s island in search of answers … and perhaps, something peculiar.

The pictures set the tone, but the words paint the picture. Author Ransom Riggs is a filmmaker, first and foremost. This is his first novel, although he previously wrote a nonfiction book about Sherlock Holmes. Even though this is a debut, it doesn’t feel like a debut. Riggs is comfortable with prose and the stepping-stones of good storytelling. In other words, he does a lot of showing, not telling … but he never shows you too much, because Miss Peregrine is written as a mystery. It’s also a bit science fiction, a bit horror. You have to wrap your mind around time-travel, and yes, you might not want to read this book at night—but read it you must.

I’m not ruining anything by telling you the end is not the end. I’m not sure what Riggs has planned, but there is much more to be told about the peculiar children. In this work, he created an amazing cast of characters, each with their own quirks and “super powers.” It would be a tragedy to create this world and not play with it, hopefully for several books to come.

In a world filled with to-be-continued vampire books and witch novels, Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children stands out because it is original. It is extraordinary in its different-ness. That is the hook. Not only is it a

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