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Heyer, Georgette. 1965/2009. Frederica. Sourcebooks. 437 pages.

Not more than five days after she had despatched an urgent missive to her brother, the Most Honorable the Marquis of Alverstoke, requesting him to visit her at his earliest convenience, the widowed Lady Buxted was relieved to learn from her youngest daughter that Uncle Vernon had just driven up to the house, wearing a coat with dozens of capes, and looking as fine as fivepence.

I love Georgette Heyer. I know not every reader will find her writing a traditional, delightful treat to savor slowly but surely. But for me, it's just as much about the experience as the end result. I won't lie. Georgette Heyer never offers an easy read, a fluffy read. If the modern day romance novel is the wonder bread of the literary world, Georgette Heyer would offer readers the fiber-heavy complexity of whole grains.

It's romance. Never doubt that. Her books are all about (often unlikely) heroes and heroines finding love. And her books almost always have more than one couple finding love and deciding for marriage. But her books are never just about romance. They're about society and family and life itself. Her characters are human: in other words, she's smart enough to make her characters--all her characters--flawed. I think the fact that they're so complex makes the comparisons to Austen so natural and so right.

And her books are satisfying. But instead of the quick-and-easiness of modern romance novels, her books offer a lingering satisfaction. (I'm not knocking modern romance novels. Not really. I'm as guilty as can be of enjoying a nice smutty book now and then. But you've got to admit that at least some modern romance novels are mindless and forgettable often starring mix and match heroes and heroines.

Frederica Merriville is a charming heroine who doesn't want to be the heroine. As an older sister, and as a woman in her mid-twenties, she feels the spotlight should always ever be on her younger and oh-so-beautiful younger sister, still in her teens, Charis. She has come to London in hopes that she can launch her sister into society, into the ton. She wants her sister to have a chance to find love and happiness and marriage and family. You know, all the things she thinks she'll never have for herself. And Charis isn't her only consideration. She's got three brothers: Harry, Jessamy, and Felix.

Lord Alverstoke is frustrated and amused. In the past few days, he's had both of his sisters beg him to give a ball in honor of their daughters coming-of-age. He's said no, not once but twice. But the third time may just be the charm. When Frederica--the daughter of a slight acquaintance--shows up unexpectedly, asking him for his help, he's surprised to hear himself say yes. In part because he knows that launching the oh-so-beautiful Charis into society will annoy his sisters because their daughters are oh-so-plain. Yes, his nieces will get the ball. But he'll expect Lady Buxted to introduce the Merriville sisters. To welcome them both into her fold and take them along with her own daughter into society. It's blackmail of the amusing sort: his money will pay for her daughter's chance--the clothes, the shoes, the hats and bonnets, the gloves, etc.--but he will get to see her squirm at having to 'help' these strangers.

Soon Lord Alverstoke is acting as guardian of the Merriville family. He proclaims them distant cousins, and society opens their arms...true, Charis, is quite beautiful, and true, Frederica knows how to hold her own in conversation. But it is his wealth and his prestige that get the ball rolling so to speak.

What did I love about Frederica? How fully-fleshed the characters are. We don't just see Lord Alverstoke falling in love with Frederica. We see him come to love the whole family. We see Frederica's brothers up, close, and personal. We see the lovable but troublesome Felix have one adventure after another. We see the lovable eagerness of Jessamy. Both brothers became favorites of mine.

I loved the characters. I loved the slow-and-easy (in no hurry to get there) pace of the romance. The book is not boring--far from it--but it's comfortable not excitable.

If you're reading this on a site (other than Becky's Book Reviews or Becky's feed, be aware that this post has been stolen and is used without permission.

Heyer, Georgette. 1934. The Convenient Marriage. Reprinted by Sourcebooks, 2009.

"Lady Winwood being denied, the morning caller inquired with some anxiety for Miss Winwood, or, in fact, for any of the young ladies. In face of the rumour which had come to her ears it would be too provoking if all the Winwood ladies were to withhold themselves."

We meet the Winwood family early on in The Convenient Marriage. We spy on them (in a way) as Mrs. Maulfrey comes to call--or should I say get the juicy gossip on the latest news in the family. Elizabeth, the oldest sister is upset and rightfully so. Her mother, Lady Winwood, has just agreed to an engagement between her and the rich Earl Rule. The problem? Elizabeth is in love with a poor (at least relatively speaking) soldier, a Mr. Edward Heron. Charlotte, the middle sister, doesn't see what the big deal is. After all, in her way of thinking marriage doesn't amount to much. She has no interest--so she claims--in becoming someone's wife. But the youngest sister, Horatia feels her sister's pain. And she's determined--though she stutters or stammer and has thick eyebrows--to do something to solve this dilemma. She gives Mr. Heron her word that she will not let their hearts be broken. Her plan is quite bold and quite wonderful. By that I mean it is deliciously entertaining. The first few chapters of this one are so full of promise. Especially the second and third chapters. If there was an award for the best-ever-second-chapter-in-a-book, I'd nominate The Convenient Marriage.

However, the book soon settles down. As you can probably guess from the title, it is about a marriage--a husband and wife. Marcus Drelincourt (a.k.a. The Earl, or Marcus, or simply 'Rule') and his wife, Horatia (or Horry). And since the marriage occurs early in the book--by page sixty--the reader knows that there must be some drama in the works. And indeed there is. There's the former (and somewhat still current) mistress who's jealous and spiteful, Lady Massey. There's the cousin-who-would-inherit-it-all-if-only-Rule-would-hurry-up-and-die, Mr. Crosby Drelincourt, a cousin. And the villainous and cold-hearted Lord Lethbridge. All three of these people add to the drama--each in their own little way. All want to get revenge on Rule. All want to see the happy little couple become miserable. And oh the plotting that goes on that tries to break up this pair!

Horatia's closest friend is her brother, Pelham. Though he's a bit of a gambler--and often an unlucky one at that--he's got a good heart. I don't know if it was Heyer's intent to make him so likable, so enjoyable, but I just really liked him in spite of his flaws. He truly had his sister's best interests at heart. And she does need someone to look out for her with all the villains roaming about the town (or should that be ton) out for revenge.

None of the characters in The Convenient Marriage are perfect. All are flawed in one way or another. But the relationships are genuinely enjoyable, and are quite well done. The atmosphere of The Convenient Marriage--much like Heyer's other novels--is so rich, so detailed, so luxuriously drawn. The society. The fashion. The wit. The charm. The dangers of being unique in a world where conformity reigns. The delicate balance between being respectable, being boring, and being the Talk or Toast of the ton.

Recommended.

If you're reading this on a site (other than Becky's Book Reviews or Becky's feed, be aware that this post has been stolen and is used without permission.

Headley, Justina Chen. 2008. Girl Overboard.

Girl Overboard stars a very unhappy girl, Syrah, who is frustrated with practically everything in her life: she's unhappy with how her knee is healing after a bad snowboarding accident; unhappy that there seems to be a mental/emotional block preventing her from moving on in her life after a disappointing first taste of love/lust; unhappy that her very best friend, Adrian "Age", has a girlfriend who won't allow him to see her; unhappy that her parents ignore her except for when they're bossing her around--how her mom is always onto her about her weight, how they both rarely take her seriously and how both want to keep her from ever snowboarding again; angry with her two half-siblings, Wayne and Grace, both much older than herself; disappointed that her only real friend in the house--her nanny if you will--Bao-mu is going to be leaving the family to go care for her own granddaughter; and super-super angry that her parents have told her that they're all moving to Hong Kong next year. Syrah has an oh-so-terrible life because her parents are oh-so-wealthy. But it has its advantages in a way too--when Syrah decides she wants to be a part of her family and use everything to get what she wants. And what Syrah ends up wanting more than anything is to help someone else--to save a life.

It's a coming of age novel heavy on the whine in the opening chapters. The first fifty pages didn't hook me. But I kept going, I kept reading and sure enough by the end I was enjoying it. While all the characters seemed a bit flat and stereotypical in the beginning, by the end, they were beginning (at least if not more) to become fully fleshed characters with heart and soul. Her developing relationship with her family--her mother, Betty; her half-sister, Grace; her mother's family whom she meets for the first time--her aunts and cousins, etc--add depth to this story. I liked how Syrah changed through the course of the book, how she came to be someone I could like, someone I could respect.

© Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

Haddix, Margaret Peterson. 2007.

Tell me about the fire.

I honestly don't know what took me so long to get around to this one. Okay, that's a half-truth. It got put on the bottom in a box that got put on the bottom in a pile of boxes. That happens more frequently than I'd like. But they can't all be on the top on the top. The only reason you're seeing a review of this one at all is that I finally went to the library and checked it out.

Uprising is very straightforward. It makes no apologies for being what it is: a heartbreaking story of an all-too-true tragedy, the fire at the Triangle Shirtwaist Company. In the first chapter, we meet two survivors--a Mrs. Livingston--and a young woman named Harriet. Harriet had been just a girl--five to be exact--when the fire occurred. (And her presence at the factory that day was circumstantial--just happened to be there visiting her father, the owner of the company.) Now as a grown-up, or an almost grown up on any account, Harriet is on a quest to discover the truth about the past, her past, her father's past, his role in the tragedy.

It is a book that addresses many "issues"--women's rights--the suffrage movement included; the plight of the immigrant--the prejudices and discrimination not to mention the language barriers and the poverty; workers' rights--the need for unions to protect the rights of the employees from greedy and corrupt employers. The truth isn't pretty. To be an immigrant. To be a factory worker. To be living in the tenements. Not pretty at all. It was harsh and ugly and all-too-real for the characters we meet.

Our story is narrated by three girls--two of whom will meet an untimely end; we just don't know which two. Bella. Yetta. Jane.

"We did not know one another for long," Mrs. Livingston says. "We had so little time." This is both a lament and an accusation. After all these years, she still wants the story to end differently. Three girls meet, become friends, struggle, find happiness, and have their lives go on and on and on until they are three old ladies in rocking chairs. It just didn't happen that way. Mrs. Livingston stares off into the distance, off into the past, off into a time when she didn't know the fire was coming. "The story begins like so much else," she says slowly. "With hope. Hope and dreams and daring..." (4-5)

Each of the girls make for a compelling narrator--particularly Yetta and Bella. Bella is an Italian immigrant. Yetta is a Jewish immigrant--I am almost certain she's from Russia. When Bella first arrives in New York, she mistakenly learns Yiddish thinking that she's learning English. It takes some convincing too for her to realize her mistake! Two girls, two different natural languages, yet they share so much in common. Jane? Well, she's a rich society girl. How does Jane become mixed in with a bunch of poor immigrants who can barely speak English? I'll let you discover for yourself!

Richly detailed, this is a novel with haunting power. It is so good.

Other reviews: Abby, A Year of Reading, A Patchwork of Books and Sara's Holds Shelf, The Reading Zone, Teenreads.com,

© Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

Harmon, Michael. 2008. The Last Exit to Normal.

The decoder card to the universe wasn't included in the box of cereal God gave humanity. At the ripe old age of seventeen, I'd at least figured out that no matter how hard you try to guess what happens next, you can't. Life wasn't set up that way and we don't like it, so we spend most of our time running around like a bunch of dimwits.

Ben Campbell, our narrator, I must admit, is one of my favorite characters of the year. He makes this book work for me. The story itself? It's as simple and complex as life itself. Ben moves with his two fathers to a small Montana town after Ben has some emotional problems after the big reveal and its aftermath. (His father is gay; his mother moved out and away.) The three move in with Edward's mother, Bonnie Mae Ingerson. And let me tell you, Bonnie Mae is quite a character. Character with a capital C. (Just one of many reasons why I love this one!) The book is a coming of age story of a boy coming to terms with his life as it now is. It's about a boy learning that it's okay that it's not okay. It's more than that. It's about life and love; work and play; friends and enemies. It's about a boy becoming a hero, making a stand when and where he can.

I can't promise you'll love this one. (I did though.) But you should definitely give it a try.

© Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

Heyer, Georgette. 1935. Regency Buck.

"Newark was left behind and the post-chaise-and-four entered on a stretch of flat country which offered little to attract the eye, or occasion remark."

Georgette Heyer was a wonderful writer. A beloved writer, in fact, known for her regency romances in particular. Her books are rich in detail--but not in a burdening, cumbersome way. And her characters are always nicely drawn from human nature--flaws abound, but that's always a good thing. Vices and temptations abound in her works--drinking, gambling (be it at the gaming table or in a sporting arena), keeping bad company, and fashion to name just a few examples. (How is fashion a vice? Well, if you're too vain or selfish and spend too much time primping in front of a mirror, then chances are you're in for a comeuppance. Also, spending too much money on fashion--clothes, hats, gloves, jewelry, etc.--is just one way it can be a vice.)

In Regency Buck, we've got the story of a brother and sister newly arrived in London. Peregrine Tavener, the brother, and his older sister, Judith Tavener. They are coming to set up house, and perhaps even more importantly to meet their guardian. (Both of their parents have died. And the father's will left them under the care of Lord Worth.) They are expecting an older gentleman. A man that would have been the contemporary of their father. Someone with gout presumably. What they find is that Lord Worth is a young man--just a handful of years older. He isn't particularly pleased with this added responsibility, and he's not shy admitting this to his wards. But for one year at least--until Judith's birthday--Lord Worth is their official guardian.

The Taveners do set up their own house. Mrs. Scattergood, a relation (cousin???) of Lord Worth, is Judith's companion. Needed during that time to protect young women and provide them with counsel on how to behave in society. An older woman to act as chaperone. Of course, Peregrine, offers protection to his sister as well. But who's protecting him? Peregrine being prone to gambling and partying. When Peregrine becomes engaged to a young woman, Harriet, then a few strange coicidences occur to threaten his life which convinces Worth that someone is out to kill his ward.

The two stand to inherit much money when they come of age. And for this reason, suitors abound for Judith's hand. One of her most persistent suitors is her cousin, Bernard Tavener. But Lord Worth turns them all away. Saying that no man will marry her while he is still her guardian. Something that both repulses and pleases her. She's known some of the men are completely unsuitable--some as old as her father, all looking for a wealthy wife--but the idea of being controlled by a man irritates her at the same time.

Worth (Julian) and Judith (whom he persists in calling Clorinda) are always bickering. The banter flows easily between these two. While both tend to be a bit cranky around the other, the reader knows without any doubts that these two secretly feel very differently about each other.

I love Worth and Judith. I love the rich-layers of Regency Buck as well. For example, Judith's reading of Sense and Sensibility. And the presence of Lord Byron and the discussion of his poetry. There are a dozen or so other things I could point out, but those are just two examples of bits that made me smile.

© Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

Harmel, Kristin. 2008. When You Wish.

I enjoyed this much more than I thought I would. Typically books written about teens who have it all--money, popularity, good looks, etc--don't do much for me. And on the surface, this book is about that. About a teen girl who supposedly "has it all."

Star Beck. A sixteen year old pop star who already has more than a few bestselling, record-breaking albums to her name. A beautiful long-haired, red-haired princess of pop. But Star is missing a few things--a real mother who is there for her, who listens, who is kind, who is supportive, who isn't all about the money and fame; a real father, one who didn't abandon her when she was three only to resurface when she's one of the most famous teens on the planet; a real boyfriend, one who isn't all about showy kisses for the media and making a big entrance; a real friend, one who won't sell her out to the tabloids. Of course her job is far from average, and her schooling is as well. She's got her GED, but she's not been to a real school in forever. Not since Disney (I think it was Disney in the book, it might have been Nickelodeon.) plucked her out of her ordinary existence and made her the rich and famous "it" girl of the moment. The only girl who doesn't want to be Star Beck is Star Beck.

So after a particularly bad day, Star gives herself a hair cut (at least it wasn't a shave), dyes her hair, and runs away from her hotel room (she's on tour). Now calling herself Amanda, she is determined to make her way to Florida. On her way to see her dad for the first time in thirteen years. Can a pop star on her own survive in the real world? Can she survive without being surrounded by her entourage, her people? Will she like it? Will she love it?

This book is a coming-of-age story, in a way, of a girl realizing who she is and isn't. About a girl realizing that she should have some say in her own life.

I definitely liked it. I think it complements Audrey, Wait well.

© Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

Hartnett, Sonya. 2008. The Ghost's Child. Releases October 14, 2008.

"An exquisite fable about love and loss by the author of the Michael L. Printz Honor Book Surrender."

It's important for readers to realize they're holding a fable in their hands. It will help explain some of the strangeness for one thing. If they're not trying to make it fit reality. Not that the book is unrealistic--it has its moments of course--but it's a blended reality meets fantasy. It has its own set of rules.

So fable about life, love, loss....it could go either way, right? Good? Bad? Too melodramatic? Just right? Well, of course, each reader will have to determine if this one works for them or not. But for me, I liked it. I liked it a lot. I liked the writing. I liked the story.

One damp silvery afternoon an old lady came home from walking her dog and found a boy sitting in her lounge room on the floral settee. The boy hadn't been invited, so the old lady was surprised to see him. It wasn't a large boy, and he looked annoyed and bored, as if he had been waiting for her for some time.

It's a quick book--just 192 pages. It's a sweet story, but a bittersweet one. Our narrator, Maddy (Matilda), has long known that you can't always get what you want in life. And she's an intelligent woman, a brave one, one not afraid to try, one not afraid to do. And as her story is revealed chapter by chapter, as she relives her best and worst times; as she tells her story to a young boy, it's hard not to get caught up in it. Maddy is quite the storyteller. Her narrative increases in power with each chapter.

Originally published in Australia (red cover), there is quite a change in covers...when it is published in other countries...which do you like better? And here is the UK cover (to the left). And the American cover is at the top of the post. Very different images, aren't they? I must say I like the UK version best of the three. I think it best captures the feel of the book.


© Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

Holt, Simon. 2008. The Devouring: Sorry Night.

"Stop, Reggie!" Henry barked from beneath his quilt. "Don't read anymore!" Regina Halloway shut the book. (5)

Regina--called Reggie by most of her friends and family--loves to read horror. Loves it. So much so that she works at a used bookstore devoted to the genre. But perhaps Reggie should have been a bit more thoughtful as to what she was reading her younger--and much more gullible--brother, Henry. Then again, Regina hadn't any idea that her latest book, an old journal she found while unpacking boxes for the store, was nonfiction. That the Vours were real.

When Dark creeps in and eats the light, Bury your fears on Sorry Night. For in the winter's blackest hours Comes the feasting of the Vours. No one can see it, the life they stole, Your body's here but not your soul...(4)

See. Not the stuff for bedtime stories for your younger brother, right? Maybe this would have turned out just fine...if only...if only she wasn't reading it the night before "Sorry Night" the Winter Solstice, December 22nd. If only her brother hadn't been so very frightened at the thought that the Vours were real and coming for him...if only Reggie hadn't left him alone the next night to go off in pursuit of her own chills and thrills...

Then again, if she had, The Devouring wouldn't be such a chilling book.

For more about The Devouring, read my weekly geeks post where Nymeth interviewed me about the book.

© Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

Heyer, Georgette. 1957. Lady of Quality.

"The elegant travelling carriage which bore Miss Wychwood from her birthplace, on the border of Somerset and Wiltshire, to her home in Bath, proceeded on its way at a decorous pace." (1)

Lady of Quality's first line may not sparkle as much as Austen's famous one, "IT is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune must be in want of a wife." But just give it time. Trust me. This one has everything and more that you'd expect in an Austen novel: wit, humor, romance, quirky characters, as well as a few genuinely likable ones.

Such is the case with Lady of Quality. Miss Annis Wychwood is almost thirty years old. And in that time, the Regency period, thirty might as well have been sixty. Spinster is spinster no matter if you're thirty, blond, and witty or wrinkly, gray, and stubborn. But Annis is comfortable in her singleness. Or at least she prefers to see herself as comfortable. It helps that in Annis' situation, she's wealthy enough to have her own house and household. (By household I mean servants and such). If Annis had to live under her brother's roof, well, it would be a different story altogether. She does NOT get along with her brother, Geoffrey, though she does get along in a way with her sister-in-law. Yes, folks might think it a bit strange that she'd rather be independent and living on her own--and a good day's travel away from her brother and his wife--but they've become accustomed to it. But when our novel opens, Annis is about to do something a bit more unexpected, a bit more shocking.

Lucilla Carleton is just a young thing--not even eighteen--when she decides to run away from her aunt. (Her aunt is her primary guardian.) Her aunt wants her to marry the son of her father's best friend. A man, Ninian, that she's practically grown up with. It's not that she doesn't like him. But she doesn't like him like him. At least she says as much. As does he when given the opportunity. (The two like to bicker about how they don't want to be together.) Annis comes across this bickering pair on her way to Bath. Their carriage (or vehicle) has broken down--a problem with one of the wheels. Annis is too much of a lady to leave the poor girl in distress. She invites the young woman to come with her, to stay with her. Through their trip and the first day back at home, Annis hears all about Lucilla, her aunt, Ninian, and his over-bearing parents the Lord and Lady Iverley. Lucilla has runaway it's true but it's because her aunt is passive aggressive. She manipulates through tears and pleas and looks.

What is Annis to do? Welcome her home to this girl she barely knows yet instantly likes? Or send her packing with much tears of distress? She decides that the girl must write a letter to an aunt. She'll be allowed to stay with Miss Wychwood in Bath, it's true, but it's a temporary solution to the girl's problem. But this nice letter home has unattended results. Her aunt being of the nervous sort on the best of days writes a letter--a tear-soaked and illegible letter to the girl's legal guardian--Lucilla's Uncle Oliver. Oliver Carleton.

The last thing Annis expected was to be visited by Oliver Carleton. A man (from London) with the reputation of the worst sort. A truly grumpy, stubborn sort of man who speaks without thinking of the consequences, who enjoys speaking the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth come what may. Obey society's nicety-nice rules? Not a chance! A man with a sharp but witty tongue comes to Bath to get to the bottom of this mess. He doesn't want Lucilla. He's not there to take her away, he's there to investigate this woman, this stranger who has interfered and butted into his business, his family.

Let the fun begin.

Oliver and Annis. Oh the sparks will fly. Despite her claims of being ancient and spinsterly, Oliver can't help thinking that she's entirely unsuitable for chaperoning his niece. She should be the one being courted and pursued and wooed by men. She's beautiful. She's witty. She's intelligent. There's just a certain something about her that he can't ignore. Annis never in a million years thought she'd feel this way, this maddeningly confusingly wonderful feeling. She can't stand him; and yet, she keeps hoping she'll see him again.

For anyone who loves Much Ado About Nothing and/or Pride and Prejudice, Lady of Quality is for you. It is a wonderfully giddy-making novel.

Heyer's novels are rich in detail combining history and romance with wit and charm and some unforgettable characters. If you're looking for a place to start, I'd highly recommend beginning with Lady of Quality.

© Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

Howell, Simmone. 2008. (November release). Everything Beautiful.

First sentence: I am the maniac behind the wheel of a stolen dune buggy. Dylan Luck is at my side. We are tearing up the desert, searching for proof of God. My driving experience amounts to a few stuttering laps of the Safeway parking lot. That was supervised--Dad blanching and clutching his seatbelt. This is something else; something beginning with Freedom.

The above is quoted from an ARC, so it's possible that it might be different from the final version which will be released in November of 2008.

Riley Rose is a wild child. Perhaps she hasn't always been a wild child, but the death of her mother--cancer--and the remarriage of her father--to someone named Norma!--and the appearance of her new best friend, Chloe Benson, have all led up to one conclusion. Riley Rose is a bit too wild for her own good, her own safety. The "help" that Riley is about to receive is to be sent for one week to Spirit Ranch, a Christian camp for teenagers. It shouldn't really surprise anyone that Riley is an atheist. An angry atheist who uses her mother's death as proof that God doesn't exist. Do I blame her for being angry that her mother died when she was fourteen? No. Do I blame her for not wanting her father to have moved on and fallen in love with someone else? Not really. No doubt about it, Riley is a hurt soul who uses anger and bitterness as a shield. Oh. I should also mention this. She also uses food. She's 180 pounds and climbing. She does use food to hide herself and numb her feelings.

The camp is a bit much. It has its ridiculous moments. Some stereotypical. Some not. Would I want to be sent to Spirit Ranch? No. So I can't blame her there. If she at first has difficulty liking her roommates, it's understandable. Especially in the case of Fleur. And her camp group, the Honeyeaters, there really aren't many there I'd seek out to make friends with either. There are more than a few that make fun of her. And only a few that don't. And those that don't, well, they're different themselves. There's Dylan. This is his first time back at camp since an accident has left him in a wheel chair. And then there's Bird. A sixteen year old with definite social problems. It's not that he's dumb. He's very intelligent. And he's kind. It's just that he doesn't have much social grace or social skills. Then there's Sarita, her other roommate, who becomes almost her closest friend at camp.

It was interesting to see a few of these friendship develop. And the budding romance between Dylan and Riley was nice. It was nice to see how they could sort-of-melt each other's hardened shields. Neither wanted to be vulnerable. Both were resistant to "authority" and afraid to make friends. It was easier for both to be angry and alone. So it was nice to see them bringing out the best in each other. And in the process, both got to know themselves a bit better than before.

Can a week change a person's life? Maybe or maybe not. But the Riley that leaves camp is a slightly wiser Riley. So it may have been the beginning for a change, a transformation.

Don't read Everything Beautiful expecting a clean read. Language. Sex. Underage drinking. Smoking. Drug use. Some occur with the week at Christian camp, others are just referred to in talking about their pasts, their lives before camp. But the book has its strengths.

Note on the cover. I REALLY REALLY hope that the cover is not supposed to represent fat-girl-Riley, because the cover model is so not fat.

© Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

High, Linda Oatman. 2008. Planet Pregnancy. 197 pages. October 2008.

Planet Pregnancy is a novel in free verse. Sahara, our narrator, is sixteen going on seventeen. And, as you can guess from the title and cover, her whole world is about to change. Here is how we meet Sahara:

It's September tenth and
I'm holding my breath
because life
and death
and everything
in-between
depends
on a stick
dipped
for less than
ten seconds
in a dish
of pee.

A page or two further...

My name's Sahara,
like the desert.
Unlike the Badlands,
though,
I'm not barren.

Sahara has quite a predicament on her hands no doubt about it. Scared to tell her mother, she keeps her pregnancy a secret from practically everyone. She tells only her closest friend, and even then, she waits until the second trimester.

I remember seeing girls like Sahara on various talk shows. I saw a Dr. Phil episode last week in fact about girls keeping their pregnancies secret, about moms that are so clueless when it comes to knowing, to observing, to seeing what is right in front of them. So there's not a doubt in my mind that this is a realistic portrayal.

As for the poetry itself, it's not perfect. I'm on the fence about it actually. There are places where it's got a certain rhythm, where it seems to work. But there are other places, many places, where it rhymes too much. The rhymes just don't work for me. They sound authentically amateurish. Like they could be how a sixteen-or-seventeen year old might choose to document their life. For me the rhymes took me out of the story. Were a distraction.

For example,

My stomach
is in a curl.
I'm going to
hurl.
"I have
something
to tell you,"
I stammer.
My heart
is a hammer. (129)

Or

She's going
to freak.
I feel weak.
I think I'm
going to barf.
Mom's wearing
a green scarf. (128)

Or

School is so
not cool.
The teachers
are geeks,
and the weeks
drag like rags
through mud.
School is
crud.
At this time
next year,
I'll still be here,
waiting to graduate
in gown and cap
into the Real World
of crap. (99)

However, maybe the rhyming won't annoy other readers. Maybe it's just a personal thing. I just wish it was more natural. No one really and truly rhymes naturally that frequently. People just don't talk like that. Don't think like that.

To end on a more positive note. I think the poems do convey the emotions well. The confusion. The drama. The love. The hate. The uncertainty. The flip-flopping of emotions, of feelings, of hormones. I think it does do a good job of portraying the changes the mind and body go through as it changes through the months of pregnancy.

© Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

BarryBlog has posted a rare glimpse of some in-house publications for Herman Miller. They were produced in conjunction with the great design thinker Ralph Caplan, and designed by John Massey of Container Corporation of America fame. I’m drooling! I’d love to read these. Maybe we can get the good people at Barry Blog to make photo copies.

Enjoy!

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