Dacia, and her cousin LouLou, are traveling to Romania to meet their mothers' family for the first time. While Lou visits Paris and shops the fashion houses there, Dacia travels by ship with her Aunt Kate. Dacia, ever the rebel, is in disgrace since she had an escapade with a certain nobleman in England.
Dacia catches sight of her prim aunt passionately kissing a stranger when the train they have boarded is stopped by snow in the mountains.
Meanwhile, Lou is stalked by That Awful Man, a stranger who accosts her on the ship asking if she is The Wing or the Claw. Another time, he announces that she is the Smoke and an houri, which upsets her terribly.
In Romania, Dacia meets Prince Mihai, charming to the nth degree. Then she meets her maternal grandmother, the dread Lady Ioana. "Dread" does not come close to describing this woman.
Dacia and Lou are trapped by their genetic make-up in a destiny that neither wants nor can control.
But things are worse. Their family believes that these two girls are the answer to a prophecy. And the family is at odds about what the prophecy means.
And the English Lord, That Awful Man and Prince Mihai are, none of them, what they seem to be.
Ahh, a proper paranormal romance, set in the home of paranormal activity, the mountains of Eastern Europe! Terror, entrapment, kidnapping, poison, armed guards, swoon worthy men, Victorian fashions and manners... It's all in here. Silver in the Blood by Jessica Day George.
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By: bookkm,
on 9/2/2015
Blog: Books 'n' stories (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: werewolves, YA fiction, Jessica Day George, Dracula, paranormal fiction, Silver in the Blood, Add a tag
By: Becky Laney,
on 10/2/2014
Blog: Becky's Book Reviews (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: YA Fiction, YA Fantasy, Jessica Day George, 2014, Bloomsbury USA, MG Fiction, review copy, MG Fantasy, books reviewed in 2014, Add a tag
Thursdays with the Crown. (Castle Glower #3) Jessica Day George. 2014. Bloomsbury. 224 pages. [Source: Review copy]
I enjoyed reading Thursdays with the Crown. I'm glad I read it so soon after finishing Wednesdays in the Tower. I only wish I'd had the time to reread the first novel in this fantasy series, Tuesdays at the Castle. I'm sure I would have appreciated the whole series even more if I'd had the chance to reconnect with the characters and have an attachment. That being said, I ended up enjoying so many of the characters anyway. Thursdays with the Crown picks up right where Wednesdays in the Tower left off. I was prepared to love it from the start.
The novel opens with Celie, Lilah, Pogue, Rolf, Lulath, and Rufus (Celie's griffin) finding themselves in a strange, foreign place. They have been transported to the Glorious Arkower, a land they believe the Castle originated from. They come into this adventure with a few assumptions for better or worse. When they come across two different men with two very different stories--contradictory stories--everything becomes a bit confusing. Who is telling the truth? Is either man telling the whole truth? What is true and what is only half-true? If a man lies about one thing, does that mean he's lying about everything? Celie and her friends will have to puzzle things out.
It is definitely an adventure fantasy. It is a quick read, a delightful read in many ways. I think I love Lulath best of all.
© 2014 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews
By: Becky Laney,
on 9/17/2014
Blog: Becky's Book Reviews (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: J Fiction, J Fantasy, Jessica Day George, MG Fiction, library book, MG Fantasy, 2013, books reviewed in 2014, Add a tag
Wednesdays in the Tower. Jessica Day George. 2013. Bloomsbury. 240 pages. [Source: Library]
Even though it has only been two years since I've read Tuesdays at the Castle, I remembered very little about the characters and the plot. So I was hoping that Wednesdays in the Tower would not prove too tricky or challenging. Within pages, I was hooked. I read this one cover to cover without putting it down even once. I do have to say that it has a great opening which worked in its favor: "There are a lot of things that can hatch out of an egg. A chicken, for example. Or a dragon. And when the egg in question is the size of a pumpkin, and almost as orange, not to mention burning hot, you know that you're far more likely to get a dragon than a chicken."
Princess Celie and her family live at Castle Glower. The castle is without a doubt one of the more interesting in literature. This castle has a mind of its own. It does what it wants, when it wants. Usually on Tuesday is when it decides to add rooms, or, perhaps take away rooms. It isn't always adding or subtracting. Sometimes it's rearranging. One thing is for certain, only a handful of people know their way around all the rooms in the Castle. And Princess Celie is trying her best to provide a map or atlas of the ever-changing castle.
As I said, usually the castle is full of surprises on Tuesday. However, it is a Wednesday when Celie discovers a new room, and not just the room, but an egg. The castle leads Celie to this room again and again, but only when she's alone. Anytime she tries to bring someone else, to show them what she's found, it's vanished.
Essentially Wednesdays in the Tower concerns Celie and what hatches from the egg. Also about the magic of the castle as well, trying to understand how the castle works and why it does what it does when it does. In other words, the history of the Castle in general and how it connects with what hatched from the egg.
I found this a quick and enjoyable read. I liked Celie. I liked her siblings and parents. I liked getting to know her friends. I probably would have appreciated them all a bit more if I remembered Tuesdays at the Castle. But. Sometimes it's good to know that a book can be read alone or out of sequence.
The ending. Did it leave me wanting more? Yes. Was that how it should have been? I think so. Not that I'm a fan of cliffhanger endings. But. When the opening of a book and the ending of a book leave you wanting more it can't be a bad thing. Of course, if I'd read this book when it first came out, I might have felt frustrated. But the sequel will be out soon.
© 2014 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews
By: bookkm,
on 5/14/2013
Blog: Books 'n' stories (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: Jessica Day George, KBWT, Wednesdays in the Tower, HMH Books for Young Readers, book reviews, Add a tag
By: Trisha, Gayle, and Jolene,
on 6/6/2010
Blog: The YA YA YAs (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: Events, Fiction, jessica day george, 48 hour book challenge, princess of glass, Add a tag
By: Jennie,
on 9/30/2009
Blog: Biblio File (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: YA, Fiction, Fairy Tales, Jessica Day George, Margo Lanagan, Add a tag
Princess of the Midnight Ball Jessica Day George
You know I love a good fairy tale retelling and some of my favorites (The Night Dance, Wildwood Dancing) have been based on "Twelve Dancing Princesses." So, I was both really excited and kinda nervous about Princess of the Midnight Ball.
Luckily, it was awesome (I'll admit I was a lot less nervous after reading George's Sun and Moon, Ice and Snow). Based loosely on pre-unified Germany, the kingdom of Wesfalin has just finished a long war against Analousia. Galen grew up in the army and is glad to be done with that life, finding work with his uncle, the head gardner at the palace. There, he meets the twelve princesses, bound and cursed to dance every third night for the legendary and evil King Under Stone. Their binding is the price their mother paid to ensure the Wesfalin victory in the war. And, as the story goes, the Westfalin king is disturbed to see his daughter's dancing shoes worn out so often (especially as how can he be expected to buy new shoes when his country is in such poverty after the war?). Things get even worse as the princes cannot find out where the girls go and rumors of witchcraft spread, prompting drastic action from the Church.
One of the things I really liked about this book is that we got a lot of Galen's side of the story. In fact, most of it is Galen's point of view, with some chapters focusing on the princesses thrown in. Also, Galen knits! After living with the army, he had to learn to knit if he wanted his own socks and hats, and it's something he continues to do to calm his nerves (and keep his feet warm.) Such knitting ends up playing a large role in the story and there are even knitting patterns at the end of the book, which is awesome. And more knitting patterns at George's website, which is more awesome. A most excellent retelling.
Tender Morsels Margo Lanagan
I read this book five months ago and I'm still not entirely sure how I feel about this retelling of "Snow White and Rose Red".
Liga retreats to a magical heaven (her heart's desire) after bearing two children--one the product of repeated rape by her father, one the product of gang rape by some neighborhood boys. While she is safe and content there, her daughters long for more and eventually they come back to the real world.
This isn't an easy book--lots of plot lines and a lot of sections switching to first person narration without telling us who the narrator is (and who the narrator is switches from section to section.)
It moves a little slowly and while I cared deeply for Liga and her daughters, it was a hard read for me. I had to put it down often and go do something else and then come b ack to it and I don't know why. It wasn't the complexity of the novel and it wasn't the content, something about it... I don't know. It's really well written and crafted, but it just didn't do it for me on a lot of levels and I didn't like it.
I also didn't like the gender politics that exisited in the real world. Really, really, really didn't like the societal rules and how much they were unquestioned by everyone else. This is probably really true of a certain time and place, but it annoyed the hell out of me.
And then the end! ACK!
By: Jennie,
on 7/10/2009
Blog: Biblio File (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: Jessica Day George, Once Upon a Time, Suzanne Weyn, YA, Fiction, Fairy Tales, Alex Flinn, Add a tag
Sun and Moon, Ice and Snow Jessica Day George
Rejected by her mother, the lass remains unnamed and a target for trolls, but she bonds with her eldest brother, Hans Peter who returned from the sea a broken man. Then, the bear comes and demands she spend a year with him at his ice palace, where the unknown she controls everything and kills anyone who gives the lass any information.
A most excellent version of "East of the Sun, West of the Moon." This version doesn't set it someplace new or put a new spin on it (although there are some echoes to "Beauty and the Beast" but I think that's mainly because the original tales are fairly similar) but it takes the Nordic tale and expands it, embroiders on its edges and paints us a vast and frozen landscape. George's time spent in Norway, and her minor in Scandinavian studies clearly shine in this book, but not in a way that's annoying or gets in the way of the story. There's too much ice and snow for me to describe this as "lush" but... that's still the word I want to use, so I'm going to just go with it.
Beastly Alex Flinn
Kyle Kingsbury is the most popular, hottest guy at school. And he knows it. After playing an unoriginal and cruel trick at an ugly classmate, just for fun, he gets turned into a Beast. He has two years to find a girl to love, who will love him in return, despite his appearance.
An excellent retelling of "Beauty and the Beast." Flinn really gets inside the beast's head, and it's refreshing to hear the tale from his point of view. Kyle is a believable character that goes through a drastic transformation (literal and metaphorical) that Flinn makes completely believable as he learns to get beyond appearances. An extra touch is the chat room he visits where he talks to other transformed people, mainly the bear from "Snow White and Rose Red," the frog prince, and the Little Mermaid. It was a nice (if quick) glimpse into how the transformed characters thought about their transformation and their prospects for escaping it.
A must read for all fairy tale fans.
The Diamond Secret Suzanne Weyn
Oddly, the latest installment from the Once Upon a Time series isn't a fairy tale at all, but rather urban legend and rumor. Diamond Secret is about Anastasia Romanov, who was gunned down with the rest of the Imperial family in 1918. For years, rumors swirled that the youngest daughter of the Tzar had survived and many claimed to be her. Recent discoveries, however, have placed her remains near those of the rest of her family.
I'm not a fan of recasting history as a fairy tale (Disney-- I'm looking at you and your horrible version of Pocahantas!) History is an interesting enough story in itself, we don't need to rewrite it. (Now, historical fiction that is true to the history is awesome, as are speculative histories like books that explore what would have happened if... I don't read a lot of those, but I once saw a really cool show in England about what might have happened if the Germans had successfully invaded and taken England in WWII. Fascinating stuff.)
Anyway, I digress. Just, at the offset, I want to state my displeasure with the entire premise of the book. However, I love this series, and I like many of Weyn's offerings to the series. (Especially The Night Dance). So, I told the history major in me to shut up and sat down and just ate this up.
Ivan is a Red Army deserter, the violence he witnessed on the night of the Imperial family's murders turning him away from Communism.
Sergei is a Count who lost everything but the clothes on his back during the Revolution, desperately trying to find his wife and son, who were supposed to flee to Sweden but never arrived.
The two are friends, trying to find a girl they can pass off as Anastasia to collect the reward money that her grandmother is offering. They figure they have a leg up on everyone else, given that Ivan has actually seen Anastasia on a few occasions, including the night he saw her die.
They happen upon Nadya, a tavern waitress who knows nothing before her time in an insane asylum the year before. She has something that Ivan recognizes--Anastasia's certain je ne sais quoi and they take her to Paris to pass her off as the missing Grand Duchess.
Adventure and complications ensue.
My favorite part of the book is also my main complaint. Weyn's omniscient narrator doesn't focus on just one character, but rather shifts between the three. I loved seeing inside everyone's heads, but at the same time, it kept me from getting attached to the characters, because I also saw them at the same distance their companions did.
Weyn does include an author note with Anastasia's true story and some of the political background for those unfamiliar. She states "This story mixes true history with imagination to create a possible ending to the Anastasia tale. It is a story that the author would love to believe is true."
So, I did like it, even if I'm not wild about the idea of it.
Posted on 2/27/2008
Blog: Whimsy Books (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: jessica day george, dragon slippers, recommended for pre-teens, interview, recommended for pre-teens, jessica day george, dragon slippers, Add a tag
By: Elaine Anderson,
on 2/5/2008
Blog: Fahrenheit 451: Banned Books (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: visual arts, Forest Heights, Kitchener, Freedom to Read Week, visual arts, Forest Heights, Kitchener, Add a tag
By: Elaine Anderson,
on 9/29/2007
Blog: Fahrenheit 451: Banned Books (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: banned book list, visual arts, Add a tag
By: Elaine Anderson,
on 5/15/2007
Blog: Fahrenheit 451: Banned Books (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: censorship, Martin Konrad, visual arts, Add a tag
Thanks to Mental Floss for bringing this to my attention.
Viewing: Blog Posts Tagged with: Jessica Day George, Most Recent at Top [Help]
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By: bookkm,
on 9/2/2015
Blog: Books 'n' stories (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: werewolves, YA fiction, Jessica Day George, Dracula, paranormal fiction, Silver in the Blood, Add a tag
0 Comments on Silver in the blood, in the hand and everywhere as of 1/1/1900
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By: Becky Laney,
on 10/2/2014
Blog: Becky's Book Reviews (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: YA Fiction, YA Fantasy, Jessica Day George, 2014, Bloomsbury USA, MG Fiction, review copy, MG Fantasy, books reviewed in 2014, Add a tag
I enjoyed reading Thursdays with the Crown. I'm glad I read it so soon after finishing Wednesdays in the Tower. I only wish I'd had the time to reread the first novel in this fantasy series, Tuesdays at the Castle. I'm sure I would have appreciated the whole series even more if I'd had the chance to reconnect with the characters and have an attachment. That being said, I ended up enjoying so many of the characters anyway. Thursdays with the Crown picks up right where Wednesdays in the Tower left off. I was prepared to love it from the start.
The novel opens with Celie, Lilah, Pogue, Rolf, Lulath, and Rufus (Celie's griffin) finding themselves in a strange, foreign place. They have been transported to the Glorious Arkower, a land they believe the Castle originated from. They come into this adventure with a few assumptions for better or worse. When they come across two different men with two very different stories--contradictory stories--everything becomes a bit confusing. Who is telling the truth? Is either man telling the whole truth? What is true and what is only half-true? If a man lies about one thing, does that mean he's lying about everything? Celie and her friends will have to puzzle things out.
It is definitely an adventure fantasy. It is a quick read, a delightful read in many ways. I think I love Lulath best of all.
© 2014 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews
0 Comments on Thursdays with the Crown (2014) as of 10/2/2014 3:01:00 PM
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By: Becky Laney,
on 9/17/2014
Blog: Becky's Book Reviews (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: J Fiction, J Fantasy, Jessica Day George, MG Fiction, library book, MG Fantasy, 2013, books reviewed in 2014, Add a tag
Even though it has only been two years since I've read Tuesdays at the Castle, I remembered very little about the characters and the plot. So I was hoping that Wednesdays in the Tower would not prove too tricky or challenging. Within pages, I was hooked. I read this one cover to cover without putting it down even once. I do have to say that it has a great opening which worked in its favor: "There are a lot of things that can hatch out of an egg. A chicken, for example. Or a dragon. And when the egg in question is the size of a pumpkin, and almost as orange, not to mention burning hot, you know that you're far more likely to get a dragon than a chicken."
Princess Celie and her family live at Castle Glower. The castle is without a doubt one of the more interesting in literature. This castle has a mind of its own. It does what it wants, when it wants. Usually on Tuesday is when it decides to add rooms, or, perhaps take away rooms. It isn't always adding or subtracting. Sometimes it's rearranging. One thing is for certain, only a handful of people know their way around all the rooms in the Castle. And Princess Celie is trying her best to provide a map or atlas of the ever-changing castle.
As I said, usually the castle is full of surprises on Tuesday. However, it is a Wednesday when Celie discovers a new room, and not just the room, but an egg. The castle leads Celie to this room again and again, but only when she's alone. Anytime she tries to bring someone else, to show them what she's found, it's vanished.
Essentially Wednesdays in the Tower concerns Celie and what hatches from the egg. Also about the magic of the castle as well, trying to understand how the castle works and why it does what it does when it does. In other words, the history of the Castle in general and how it connects with what hatched from the egg.
I found this a quick and enjoyable read. I liked Celie. I liked her siblings and parents. I liked getting to know her friends. I probably would have appreciated them all a bit more if I remembered Tuesdays at the Castle. But. Sometimes it's good to know that a book can be read alone or out of sequence.
The ending. Did it leave me wanting more? Yes. Was that how it should have been? I think so. Not that I'm a fan of cliffhanger endings. But. When the opening of a book and the ending of a book leave you wanting more it can't be a bad thing. Of course, if I'd read this book when it first came out, I might have felt frustrated. But the sequel will be out soon.
© 2014 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews
0 Comments on Wednesdays in the Tower (2013) as of 9/17/2014 1:10:00 PM
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By: bookkm,
on 5/14/2013
Blog: Books 'n' stories (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: Jessica Day George, KBWT, Wednesdays in the Tower, HMH Books for Young Readers, book reviews, Add a tag
Just so you know, when I feature a publisher's website I get no remuneration. I just feature those websites because I like them.
Today, for Kids Book Website Tuesday, I offer you the HMH Books for Young Readers Blog. This is a book review blog touting the latest and greatest of HMH's offerings. You can watch book trailers. You can choose to view only Teen titles or Kids titles or both and there are categories among all these books for you to choose from. The blog is colorful and a teensy bit interactive. I like it.
I also want to feature an author today. I just finished Jessica Day George's Wednesdays in the Tower, and my reaction to the ending was WHATTTT!!!??? Because we are left hanging and that is almost exactly what happens. Read the book - or if you hate suspense - wait until ALL the Castle books are written and read them in one fell swoop. Or, and this is my choice, read them one by one and THEN in one fell swoop. Anyway, I checked out Jessica's website and, from there, her blog. If you liked Tuesdays at the Castle, you will thoroughly enjoy Wednesdays in the Tower. Check out the pages!
0 Comments on Jessica Day George - HMH Books for Young Readers as of 5/14/2013 2:53:00 PM
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By: Trisha, Gayle, and Jolene,
on 6/6/2010
Blog: The YA YA YAs (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: Events, Fiction, jessica day george, 48 hour book challenge, princess of glass, Add a tag
Princess of Glass by Jessica Day George (ARC from publisher) didn’t work for me, but I’m sure it’ll please fans of George’s previous Princess of the Midnight Ball. It’s an interesting take on Cinderella, and I found the depiction of the godmother particularly intriguing. But I was never convinced of any of the romantic relationships and I had a couple of quibbles with it that made it hard for me to really get into the story. As Charlotte points out, this is partly due to the effects of the spell on the men. Combined with my questions about why Eleanora was forced to become a maid, well… The various story threads never gelled for me. I’m in the minority about this one, though.
I also finished two adult books, His at Night by Sherry Thomas (personal copy) and The Merry Misogynist by Colin Cotterill (public library). His at Night is the first book by Thomas that I’ve read and I really enjoyed it. However, I’m not sure I’m going to go back and read Private Arrangements or any other of her previous novels. Nothing against Thomas, because I don’t think there are any romance authors whose new books I automatically read or whose backlist I’ve completely read.
Mysteries, on the other hand, I need to read in order, in their entirety. I will automatically pick up the latest book in a favorite series without even knowing anything about it. The Merry Misogynist is the sixth book in Cotterill’s Dr. Siri Paiboun series. I’m a huge Cotterill fan and gotten a few of the (non-teen) patrons at the library hooked on his books, too. The Merry Misogynist, though, is my least favorite in the series so far. The series is set in 1970s Laos, after the Communists have taken over. Dr. Siri Paiboun is in his seventies and looking forward to retirement, but ends up the country’s coroner instead. The previous books are notable for their vibrant setting, sympathetic and lively cast of characters (except for the Communist government), culture and history are an integral part of the mysteries, and a kind of ruefully ironic humor. In this one, the mystery aspect was a lot more Western, which rather disappointed me. Still a good book, just not one that I enjoyed as much as the previous ones.
Reading Time: 6 hours 38 minutes
Blog/Twitter Time: 1 hour 17 minutes
Total Reading Time: 13 hours 20 minutes + 2 hours of social networking time. That’s more than 15 hours! Woohoo!
4 Comments on Quick thoughts on three more books, last added: 6/7/2010
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By: Jennie,
on 9/30/2009
Blog: Biblio File (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: YA, Fiction, Fairy Tales, Jessica Day George, Margo Lanagan, Add a tag
Bebel Gilberto's new CD, All in One, came out yesterday! I'm a big fan and the disc doesn't disappoint. And I'd like to sincerely thank everyone who bought something from Amazon by clicking first on one of my links, because it was this summer's commission that bought me the CD.
You know I love a good fairy tale retelling and some of my favorites (The Night Dance, Wildwood Dancing) have been based on "Twelve Dancing Princesses." So, I was both really excited and kinda nervous about Princess of the Midnight Ball.
Luckily, it was awesome (I'll admit I was a lot less nervous after reading George's Sun and Moon, Ice and Snow). Based loosely on pre-unified Germany, the kingdom of Wesfalin has just finished a long war against Analousia. Galen grew up in the army and is glad to be done with that life, finding work with his uncle, the head gardner at the palace. There, he meets the twelve princesses, bound and cursed to dance every third night for the legendary and evil King Under Stone. Their binding is the price their mother paid to ensure the Wesfalin victory in the war. And, as the story goes, the Westfalin king is disturbed to see his daughter's dancing shoes worn out so often (especially as how can he be expected to buy new shoes when his country is in such poverty after the war?). Things get even worse as the princes cannot find out where the girls go and rumors of witchcraft spread, prompting drastic action from the Church.
One of the things I really liked about this book is that we got a lot of Galen's side of the story. In fact, most of it is Galen's point of view, with some chapters focusing on the princesses thrown in. Also, Galen knits! After living with the army, he had to learn to knit if he wanted his own socks and hats, and it's something he continues to do to calm his nerves (and keep his feet warm.) Such knitting ends up playing a large role in the story and there are even knitting patterns at the end of the book, which is awesome. And more knitting patterns at George's website, which is more awesome. A most excellent retelling.
I read this book five months ago and I'm still not entirely sure how I feel about this retelling of "Snow White and Rose Red".
Liga retreats to a magical heaven (her heart's desire) after bearing two children--one the product of repeated rape by her father, one the product of gang rape by some neighborhood boys. While she is safe and content there, her daughters long for more and eventually they come back to the real world.
This isn't an easy book--lots of plot lines and a lot of sections switching to first person narration without telling us who the narrator is (and who the narrator is switches from section to section.)
It moves a little slowly and while I cared deeply for Liga and her daughters, it was a hard read for me. I had to put it down often and go do something else and then come b ack to it and I don't know why. It wasn't the complexity of the novel and it wasn't the content, something about it... I don't know. It's really well written and crafted, but it just didn't do it for me on a lot of levels and I didn't like it.
I also didn't like the gender politics that exisited in the real world. Really, really, really didn't like the societal rules and how much they were unquestioned by everyone else. This is probably really true of a certain time and place, but it annoyed the hell out of me.
And then the end! ACK!
2 Comments on Some Fairy Tales, last added: 10/3/2009
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By: Jennie,
on 7/10/2009
Blog: Biblio File (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: Jessica Day George, Once Upon a Time, Suzanne Weyn, YA, Fiction, Fairy Tales, Alex Flinn, Add a tag
Y'all know how much I love a good fairy tale retelling. Today, for your reading pleasure, I give you three, all of which I loved.
Rejected by her mother, the lass remains unnamed and a target for trolls, but she bonds with her eldest brother, Hans Peter who returned from the sea a broken man. Then, the bear comes and demands she spend a year with him at his ice palace, where the unknown she controls everything and kills anyone who gives the lass any information.
A most excellent version of "East of the Sun, West of the Moon." This version doesn't set it someplace new or put a new spin on it (although there are some echoes to "Beauty and the Beast" but I think that's mainly because the original tales are fairly similar) but it takes the Nordic tale and expands it, embroiders on its edges and paints us a vast and frozen landscape. George's time spent in Norway, and her minor in Scandinavian studies clearly shine in this book, but not in a way that's annoying or gets in the way of the story. There's too much ice and snow for me to describe this as "lush" but... that's still the word I want to use, so I'm going to just go with it.
Kyle Kingsbury is the most popular, hottest guy at school. And he knows it. After playing an unoriginal and cruel trick at an ugly classmate, just for fun, he gets turned into a Beast. He has two years to find a girl to love, who will love him in return, despite his appearance.
An excellent retelling of "Beauty and the Beast." Flinn really gets inside the beast's head, and it's refreshing to hear the tale from his point of view. Kyle is a believable character that goes through a drastic transformation (literal and metaphorical) that Flinn makes completely believable as he learns to get beyond appearances. An extra touch is the chat room he visits where he talks to other transformed people, mainly the bear from "Snow White and Rose Red," the frog prince, and the Little Mermaid. It was a nice (if quick) glimpse into how the transformed characters thought about their transformation and their prospects for escaping it.
A must read for all fairy tale fans.
Oddly, the latest installment from the Once Upon a Time series isn't a fairy tale at all, but rather urban legend and rumor. Diamond Secret is about Anastasia Romanov, who was gunned down with the rest of the Imperial family in 1918. For years, rumors swirled that the youngest daughter of the Tzar had survived and many claimed to be her. Recent discoveries, however, have placed her remains near those of the rest of her family.
I'm not a fan of recasting history as a fairy tale (Disney-- I'm looking at you and your horrible version of Pocahantas!) History is an interesting enough story in itself, we don't need to rewrite it. (Now, historical fiction that is true to the history is awesome, as are speculative histories like books that explore what would have happened if... I don't read a lot of those, but I once saw a really cool show in England about what might have happened if the Germans had successfully invaded and taken England in WWII. Fascinating stuff.)
Anyway, I digress. Just, at the offset, I want to state my displeasure with the entire premise of the book. However, I love this series, and I like many of Weyn's offerings to the series. (Especially The Night Dance). So, I told the history major in me to shut up and sat down and just ate this up.
Ivan is a Red Army deserter, the violence he witnessed on the night of the Imperial family's murders turning him away from Communism.
Sergei is a Count who lost everything but the clothes on his back during the Revolution, desperately trying to find his wife and son, who were supposed to flee to Sweden but never arrived.
The two are friends, trying to find a girl they can pass off as Anastasia to collect the reward money that her grandmother is offering. They figure they have a leg up on everyone else, given that Ivan has actually seen Anastasia on a few occasions, including the night he saw her die.
They happen upon Nadya, a tavern waitress who knows nothing before her time in an insane asylum the year before. She has something that Ivan recognizes--Anastasia's certain je ne sais quoi and they take her to Paris to pass her off as the missing Grand Duchess.
Adventure and complications ensue.
My favorite part of the book is also my main complaint. Weyn's omniscient narrator doesn't focus on just one character, but rather shifts between the three. I loved seeing inside everyone's heads, but at the same time, it kept me from getting attached to the characters, because I also saw them at the same distance their companions did.
Weyn does include an author note with Anastasia's true story and some of the political background for those unfamiliar. She states "This story mixes true history with imagination to create a possible ending to the Anastasia tale. It is a story that the author would love to believe is true."
So, I did like it, even if I'm not wild about the idea of it.
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By: Emily,
on 1/28/2009
Blog: Deliciously Clean Reads (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: adventure, fantasy, romance, humor, tween, teen, Jessica Day George, review by Emily, Princess of the Midnight Ball, Add a tag
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It's official. Jessica Day George is one of my favorite authors. From this point forward, I will be sure to own all of her books as soon as they are released. I loved Dragon Slippers and the sequels and Sun and Moon, Ice and Snow.
Besides loving her books, I've heard her speak and believe me, she's a red-headed riot. Here's an interview I did with her a while back.
Review by Emily Beeson
Princess of the Midnight Ball is a retelling of the twelve dancing princesses. To be honest, I'm not familiar with the original tale, so I can't tell you how much this version deviates. However, I can certainly tell you that this version is very enjoyable.
Tall, handsome Galen is returning from war. His parents and sister have all been killed, so he is headed for his aunt and uncle's house in Westfalin.
When he arrives, he finds a welcoming home and a job as an under-gardener at the palace. While working in the gardens, he befriends the eldest princess, Princess Rose. He discovers that Rose has a secret. She is a prisoner and is required to dance every night from midnight until dawn, along with her eleven younger sisters.
A string of princes come to rescue the princesses from their unseen captor. When none of them are successful, Galen takes the matter into his own hands...but he doesn't know anything about magic...and the captor is certainly not a regular mortal.
Princess of the Midnight Ball is full of romance, humor, mystery, adventure, and fantasy. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did.
It is perfectly clean (as long as an innocent kiss is clean to you :). I recommend it to fairy-tale-lovers of all ages.
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By: Emily,
on 3/5/2008
Blog: Deliciously Clean Reads (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: teen, Jessica Day George, interview, fantasy, teen, Jessica Day George, Sun and Moon Ice and Snow, Sun and Moon Ice and Snow, Add a tag
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JacketFlap tags: teen, Jessica Day George, interview, fantasy, teen, Jessica Day George, Sun and Moon Ice and Snow, Sun and Moon Ice and Snow, Add a tag
I ran across this video interview with Jessica Day George over at Fuse #8's School Library Journal Blog and decided it would be the perfect thing to share with you while you are waiting to find out if you are the lucky winner of the signed copy of Sun and Moon, Ice and Snow.
I'll announce a winner in the morning...until then...
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By: Emily,
on 2/27/2008
Blog: Deliciously Clean Reads (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: teen, Jessica Day George, Sun and Moon Ice and Snow, review by Emily, adventure, adult, fantasy, romance, teen, review by Emily, Jessica Day George, Sun and Moon Ice and Snow, Add a tag
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GIVEAWAY! GIVEAWAY!
Sun and Moon, Ice and Snow by Jessica Day George
Review by Emily of ...whimsy...
The difficult thing about reviewing is finding a balance between telling about a story and not giving anything crucial away. I am finding this balance particularly difficult with Sun and Moon, Ice and Snow.
If I knew everyone would be intrigued enough to read it with a recommendation that simply said, "I love this book. If you enjoy YA fantasy, such as books by Shannon Hale, Robin McKinley, Patricia Wrede, C.S. Lewis, etc. don't pass this one by"...that is all I would write. I enjoyed the journey through this book, not having any clue about the story ahead of time. I have seen reviews since I read Sun and Moon, Ice and Snow that gave away crucial elements of the story that I am glad I didn't know.
Having said all that, here is my review. I know. Finally.
The girl, aka the pika, lives in a place that is always winter. Her family is poor. The girl, though a teenager, remains nameless. Her mother was so upset at having another worthless girl, that she refuses to name her.
Legend has it, that nameless girls are often stolen by trolls...but it isn't a troll that takes the pika away from her safe home and beloved brother. It is an isbjorn, or ice bear. The great white bear takes the girl to live in an ice castle for a year, promising that her family will be wealthy.
Many girls have been taken by isbjorns in the past, but the girl has a special quality that distinguishes her from the others.
She can talk to animals, which certainly helps when you have been taken captive by a bear.
Jessica Day George loved this Norwegian fairy tale and decided to flesh it out into a full length novel. At the BYU conference, she said she chose the story because it had everything...adventure, trolls, castles, mystery, romance.
I also enjoyed the details she added to the tale...like how the ice castle smells of rotten meat. Ewww. So gross. Great description though.
Recommended readers: lovers of YA fantasy/fairy tales.
Don't forget to comment (in a relevant way, please) on this review, the review of Dragon Slippers or the interview posted earlier today for a chance to win a signed copy of Sun and Moon, Ice and Snow!!!
22 Comments on Sun and Moon, Ice and Snow by Jessica Day George, last added: 3/12/2008
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Posted on 2/27/2008
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JacketFlap tags: jessica day george, dragon slippers, recommended for pre-teens, interview, recommended for pre-teens, jessica day george, dragon slippers, Add a tag
Today I have an interview with fabulous author, Jessica Day George, at Deliciously Clean Reads. You can see the interview here. You won't regret it. She's hilarious. I am also giving away a signed copy of her new book, Sun and Moon, Ice and Snow.
The story begins with this great opening: “It was my aunt who decided to give me to the dragon. Not that she was evil, or didn’t care for me. It’s just that we were very poor, and she was, as we said in those parts, dumber than two turnips in a rain barrel.”
Creel’s aunt hopes Creel will come away from the dragon with a rich husband. Creel hopes to come away with gold from the dragon’s hoard. What she actually comes away with is something nobody expected…a pair of enchanted slippers.
When she escapes from the dragon’s lair, she can’t return home, so she makes the long journey to the King’s Seat in search of a job as a dressmaker. Of course, things don’t often turn out the way we expect. Many obstacles arise, but in the midst of her struggles, she finds love, courage, friendship, and the strength to pursue her dreams.
As you can probably tell, I highly recommend this novel. It is an original fairy tale full of dragons, princes, adventures, and laughs. Nothing pleases me more than a good fairy tale.
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By: Emily,
on 2/27/2008
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JacketFlap tags: teen, Jessica Day George, Dragon Slippers, fantasy, romance, teen, Dragon Flight, Jessica Day George, Dragon Flight, adventure, adult, interview, Dragon Slippers, Add a tag
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What can I say about Jessica Day George? She is a riot in a bottle. She is a red-headed firecracker. When asked for a picture of herself she sent the one to the right, saying, "Oh, here, post this picture! I swear, it's an exact likeness!"
Today we have the opportunity to find out a bit about her, her books, and her writing habits.
But quickly, before we get started, let me remind you about her books. The first one was Dragon Slippers, which I requested from the publisher after hearing it was something I might enjoy. I did. Tremendously. To find out all my thoughts about it, visit my review here.
The sequel to Dragon Slippers will be released in April. Dragon Flight is a fantastic sequel and lovers of Dragon Slippers will surely be happy with it. I have had the chance to read it already and will be reviewing it fully closer to its release.
Jessica Day George's latest book, Sun and Moon, Ice and Snow, is my favorite of the three. I will be reviewing it shortly. If you love fairy tales and fantasy, you don't want to miss this book. I loved it.
If you comment on this post (be relevant, please), the one about Dragon Slippers, or the review of Sun and Moon (which is coming soon) you will be entered into the drawing for a free signed copy of Sun and Moon, Ice and Snow!!! Comments will close a week from today, on Wednesday, March 5th at midnight. A winner will be announced the following day.
JDG: Okay, let's get to these questions before my brain falls out my ear, which is a very likely scenario at this point.
1. How much research do you do for your stories? How do you organize it?
JDG: Ah, organization. Yes, er, I'm not that organized, actually. It's kind of alarming. For Dragon Slippers, I pretty much did no research, since I like my dragons a certain way and I invented the customs, language and culture of Feravel. But for Sun and Moon, Ice and Snow, I reread the original fairy tale both in English and Norwegian, and kept an Old Norse dictionary at hand for reference. It was a project I had been mulling over for years, and so I already knew what elements of Norwegian culture I wanted to bring to it.
2. How did you get the ideas for Dragon Slippers and Dragon Flight?
JDG: Dragon Slippers came to me one night like a bolt of lightning, which is just as painful as it sounds. The entire book just downloaded into my brain (again: ouch!), and I just had to type fast enough to get it all in before I forgot any of it. I never intended to write a sequel, but one day while telling my husband that I had no ideas for a sequel, I thought of one. So Dragon Flight was a bit harder to write. I knew that certain dragons were still alive (not to spoil anything), and I knew that I wanted to go to a new country, and have that country using dragons like cavalry horses. But piecing the rest of it together took a lot more effort than the first book. Hilariously, I've just finished the first draft of a third dragon book, which was much easier to write than the second one.
3. Is the setting in Dragon Slippers and Dragon Flight based on a real location and society?
JDG: Not at all. But if there is a Feravel out there, I'd love to visit. (Not so much Citatie, I don't do well with heat.)
4. How did you get into writing?
JDG: "Oh, yo ho! Yo ho! The writer's life for meeeee. . . ." I am just completely unsuited for anything else. All my life I've wandered around with my nose in a book or my head in the clouds, making up stories. I've got a Cabbage Patch Kid diary from when I was eight that has about five pages of actual diary entries, and then it suddenly goes off on some story about a girl and her horse. (Which, incidentally, I'm turning into a trilogy based loosely on World War I England.) I've been telling people I was going to be a fantasy author since I was at least eleven, and my parents always supported me in that. They would take me to writers' conferences or to booksignings so that I could meet real authors, and all I've ever wanted was to be one of them.
5. What authors have influenced you as a writer? As a person?
JDG: The person and the writer are the same being, really. And I owe so much of my childhood and my writing to Robin McKinley, Patricia C. Wrede and Diana Wynne Jones. If you haven't read The Hero and the Crown, Dealing with Dragons, or Dogsbody. . . . for shame! And there's also the inestimable Tad Williams, whose giant, 1,000 page fantasy novels were the most treasured possessions of my awkward high school years. (Memory, Sorrow, and Thorn: best fantasy trilogy ever.)
6. Why did you choose to retell Sun and Moon, Ice and Snow?
JDG: It is, hands down, my favorite folk/fairy/legend/tale/story. Trolls, polar bears, fabulous palaces, it has them all! And it's set in Norway, one of the most gorgeous places on the planet. I used to read the P.J. Lynch picture book version over and over, and dream about how I was going to turn that story into a full-length novel. There was just something about it that appealed to me. It was my story, the way little girls now dress up like Belle from Beauty and the Beast, I wanted to be the woodcutter's youngest daughter.
7. After Dragon Flight, do you have any other books in the works?
JDG: Oh, my yes! I have a retelling of Twelve Dancing Princesses coming out next year (title is under construction), which will have knitting patterns in it, and I'm a hundred pages into a sequel to that. Plus I just this week finished a third dragon book, and have about half a dozen more books planned. So far.
8. How did you break into publishing?
JDG: With a crowbar and a delicate set of lockpicks. . . . Oh, sorry! That's another story. . . . I was at BYU's Writing for Young Readers Conference (which I very much recommend), and the girl sitting next to me during one of the sessions heard me talk about Dragon Slippers. She invited me to attend a private writing retreat she and some local authors were putting together. They were bringing in a real live New York editor to talk to about 20 people about publishing, and then we would each get 15 minutes alone with the editor to tell her about our writing. I went, it was wonderful, the editor loved my story and ended up buying it. I couldn't understand one word in ten of the contract, though, so I called up an agent I had met at the BYU conference, and asked her if she could negotiate it for me. Now she's my agent full time, and Bloomsbury is my publisher! I really recommend attending writing conferences. Not only does it help you become a better writer, but meeting an agent or editor face-to-face gives you a much better chance at selling your story.
9. What is the hardest thing about being a writer?
JDG: Not enough time! Balancing writing new books, editing the ones on their way to the printer, and taking care of my little one and our messy house is a lot harder than I thought it would be. Added that are making time for school visits and booksignings, it's just crazy-busy!
10.What advice do you have for other aspiring writers?
JDG: Make sure you don't forget to read, not just in the genre you're writing in, but all kinds of books. Write down all your ideas and keep them, even if you think they sound stupid five minutes later. A few years down the road, you may find a use for that scene/character/plotline. Did you catch my above comment? I'm using a story I wrote when I was EIGHT as the starting point for a trilogy! And writers' conferences = invaluable.
A commenter at Clean Reads asked the following questions:
What are you reading right now?
JDG: I am currently reading Juliet Marillier's Wildwood Dancing, which is also a Twelve Dancing Princesses story (but vastly different from mine), and next I am very excited to read Ysabel by Guy Gavriel Kay, a wonderful writer for grown ups and a cool person too!
What do you do when you get writer's block?
JDG: Eat licorice and dance around the room. (You're laughing because you haven't tried it.)
What's your favorite part of the creative process?
JDG: Sitting down at the computer and starting a fresh new story. There is no writer's block yet. There is nothing but that blank screen. And as soon as I start typing, I get this giddy feeling and think that I could go on and on for days . . . if only my family didn't need dinner and clean underwear.
Thank you, thank you, thank you!
JDG: You're welcome, you're welcome!
To find out more about Jessica, visit her website, http://www.jessicadaygeorge.com/, where she blogs and there's all kinds of fun stuff about the books.
1. How much research do you do for your stories? How do you organize it?
JDG: Ah, organization. Yes, er, I'm not that organized, actually. It's kind of alarming. For Dragon Slippers, I pretty much did no research, since I like my dragons a certain way and I invented the customs, language and culture of Feravel. But for Sun and Moon, Ice and Snow, I reread the original fairy tale both in English and Norwegian, and kept an Old Norse dictionary at hand for reference. It was a project I had been mulling over for years, and so I already knew what elements of Norwegian culture I wanted to bring to it.
2. How did you get the ideas for Dragon Slippers and Dragon Flight?
JDG: Dragon Slippers came to me one night like a bolt of lightning, which is just as painful as it sounds. The entire book just downloaded into my brain (again: ouch!), and I just had to type fast enough to get it all in before I forgot any of it. I never intended to write a sequel, but one day while telling my husband that I had no ideas for a sequel, I thought of one. So Dragon Flight was a bit harder to write. I knew that certain dragons were still alive (not to spoil anything), and I knew that I wanted to go to a new country, and have that country using dragons like cavalry horses. But piecing the rest of it together took a lot more effort than the first book. Hilariously, I've just finished the first draft of a third dragon book, which was much easier to write than the second one.
3. Is the setting in Dragon Slippers and Dragon Flight based on a real location and society?
JDG: Not at all. But if there is a Feravel out there, I'd love to visit. (Not so much Citatie, I don't do well with heat.)
4. How did you get into writing?
JDG: "Oh, yo ho! Yo ho! The writer's life for meeeee. . . ." I am just completely unsuited for anything else. All my life I've wandered around with my nose in a book or my head in the clouds, making up stories. I've got a Cabbage Patch Kid diary from when I was eight that has about five pages of actual diary entries, and then it suddenly goes off on some story about a girl and her horse. (Which, incidentally, I'm turning into a trilogy based loosely on World War I England.) I've been telling people I was going to be a fantasy author since I was at least eleven, and my parents always supported me in that. They would take me to writers' conferences or to booksignings so that I could meet real authors, and all I've ever wanted was to be one of them.
5. What authors have influenced you as a writer? As a person?
JDG: The person and the writer are the same being, really. And I owe so much of my childhood and my writing to Robin McKinley, Patricia C. Wrede and Diana Wynne Jones. If you haven't read The Hero and the Crown, Dealing with Dragons, or Dogsbody. . . . for shame! And there's also the inestimable Tad Williams, whose giant, 1,000 page fantasy novels were the most treasured possessions of my awkward high school years. (Memory, Sorrow, and Thorn: best fantasy trilogy ever.)
6. Why did you choose to retell Sun and Moon, Ice and Snow?
JDG: It is, hands down, my favorite folk/fairy/legend/tale/story. Trolls, polar bears, fabulous palaces, it has them all! And it's set in Norway, one of the most gorgeous places on the planet. I used to read the P.J. Lynch picture book version over and over, and dream about how I was going to turn that story into a full-length novel. There was just something about it that appealed to me. It was my story, the way little girls now dress up like Belle from Beauty and the Beast, I wanted to be the woodcutter's youngest daughter.
7. After Dragon Flight, do you have any other books in the works?
JDG: Oh, my yes! I have a retelling of Twelve Dancing Princesses coming out next year (title is under construction), which will have knitting patterns in it, and I'm a hundred pages into a sequel to that. Plus I just this week finished a third dragon book, and have about half a dozen more books planned. So far.
8. How did you break into publishing?
JDG: With a crowbar and a delicate set of lockpicks. . . . Oh, sorry! That's another story. . . . I was at BYU's Writing for Young Readers Conference (which I very much recommend), and the girl sitting next to me during one of the sessions heard me talk about Dragon Slippers. She invited me to attend a private writing retreat she and some local authors were putting together. They were bringing in a real live New York editor to talk to about 20 people about publishing, and then we would each get 15 minutes alone with the editor to tell her about our writing. I went, it was wonderful, the editor loved my story and ended up buying it. I couldn't understand one word in ten of the contract, though, so I called up an agent I had met at the BYU conference, and asked her if she could negotiate it for me. Now she's my agent full time, and Bloomsbury is my publisher! I really recommend attending writing conferences. Not only does it help you become a better writer, but meeting an agent or editor face-to-face gives you a much better chance at selling your story.
9. What is the hardest thing about being a writer?
JDG: Not enough time! Balancing writing new books, editing the ones on their way to the printer, and taking care of my little one and our messy house is a lot harder than I thought it would be. Added that are making time for school visits and booksignings, it's just crazy-busy!
10.What advice do you have for other aspiring writers?
JDG: Make sure you don't forget to read, not just in the genre you're writing in, but all kinds of books. Write down all your ideas and keep them, even if you think they sound stupid five minutes later. A few years down the road, you may find a use for that scene/character/plotline. Did you catch my above comment? I'm using a story I wrote when I was EIGHT as the starting point for a trilogy! And writers' conferences = invaluable.
A commenter at Clean Reads asked the following questions:
What are you reading right now?
JDG: I am currently reading Juliet Marillier's Wildwood Dancing, which is also a Twelve Dancing Princesses story (but vastly different from mine), and next I am very excited to read Ysabel by Guy Gavriel Kay, a wonderful writer for grown ups and a cool person too!
What do you do when you get writer's block?
JDG: Eat licorice and dance around the room. (You're laughing because you haven't tried it.)
What's your favorite part of the creative process?
JDG: Sitting down at the computer and starting a fresh new story. There is no writer's block yet. There is nothing but that blank screen. And as soon as I start typing, I get this giddy feeling and think that I could go on and on for days . . . if only my family didn't need dinner and clean underwear.
Thank you, thank you, thank you!
JDG: You're welcome, you're welcome!
To find out more about Jessica, visit her website, http://www.jessicadaygeorge.com/, where she blogs and there's all kinds of fun stuff about the books.
18 Comments on Interview with Jessica Day George, last added: 3/12/2008
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By: Emily,
on 2/21/2008
Blog: Deliciously Clean Reads (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: Jessica Day George, Dragon Slippers, Jessica Day George, Dragon Slippers, Sun and Moon Ice and Snow, Sun and Moon Ice and Snow, Add a tag
Blog: Deliciously Clean Reads (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: Jessica Day George, Dragon Slippers, Jessica Day George, Dragon Slippers, Sun and Moon Ice and Snow, Sun and Moon Ice and Snow, Add a tag
Friends,
I have some exciting news. I went to LTUE at BYU last weekend. Oh, that wasn't the exciting part. Here it is...I have new signed books lined up for giveaways! YAY!
And, I talked Jessica Day George of Dragon Slipppers and Sun and Moon, Ice and Snow fame, into doing an interview. As soon as I brave up, I'll email some questions off to her. I can't wait for her answers. She was a riot in a bottle on Saturday.
In other words, expect a giveaway (and hopefully an interview) next week! See you then.
-Emily
PS. If you have any questions for Jessica, PLEASE leave them in the comments, and I'll throw them in (with credit to you). I'm not terribly confident about my interview-question-making skills. :)
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By: Elaine Anderson,
on 2/5/2008
Blog: Fahrenheit 451: Banned Books (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: visual arts, Forest Heights, Kitchener, Freedom to Read Week, visual arts, Forest Heights, Kitchener, Add a tag
The Record in Kitchener, Ontario recently featured story about a student art project which had students creating sculptures from discarded books in honour of Freedom to Read Week. The display will be displayed at the Forest Heights Community Library until the end of March.
Libary Manager had seen a similar project in a Toronto library. She approached Wendy Bonza, visual arts teacher with the idea. The Kitchener Public Library provided students with discarded books to be made into sculptures that express what reading means to them.
Pictured is Kale Hofstetter with his work "For Reference." Kale was thinking about what it would be like to have reference questions answered by a book.
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By: Emily,
on 1/31/2008
Blog: Deliciously Clean Reads (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: tween, teen, Jessica Day George, Dragon Slippers, adventure, fantasy, teen, tween, review by Emily, Jessica Day George, Dragon Slippers, review by Emily, Add a tag
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Review by Emily of ...Whimsy...
Dragon Slippers by Jessica Day George is absolutely delightful.
The story begins with this great opening: “It was my aunt who decided to give me to the dragon. Not that she was evil, or didn’t care for me. It’s just that we were very poor, and she was, as we said in those parts, dumber than two turnips in a rain barrel.”
Creel’s aunt hopes Creel will come away from the dragon with a rich husband. Creel hopes to come away with gold from the dragon’s hoard. What she actually comes away with is something nobody expected…a pair of enchanted slippers.
When she escapes from the dragon’s lair, she can’t return home, so she makes the long journey to the King’s Seat in search of a job as a dressmaker. Of course, things don’t often turn out the way we expect. Many obstacles arise, but in the midst of her struggles, she finds love, courage, friendship, and the strength to pursue her dreams.
As you can probably tell, I highly recommend this novel. It is an original fairy tale full of dragons, princes, adventures, and laughs. Nothing pleases me more than a good fairy tale.
The story begins with this great opening: “It was my aunt who decided to give me to the dragon. Not that she was evil, or didn’t care for me. It’s just that we were very poor, and she was, as we said in those parts, dumber than two turnips in a rain barrel.”
Creel’s aunt hopes Creel will come away from the dragon with a rich husband. Creel hopes to come away with gold from the dragon’s hoard. What she actually comes away with is something nobody expected…a pair of enchanted slippers.
When she escapes from the dragon’s lair, she can’t return home, so she makes the long journey to the King’s Seat in search of a job as a dressmaker. Of course, things don’t often turn out the way we expect. Many obstacles arise, but in the midst of her struggles, she finds love, courage, friendship, and the strength to pursue her dreams.
As you can probably tell, I highly recommend this novel. It is an original fairy tale full of dragons, princes, adventures, and laughs. Nothing pleases me more than a good fairy tale.
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By: Elaine Anderson,
on 9/29/2007
Blog: Fahrenheit 451: Banned Books (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: banned book list, visual arts, Add a tag
Alternative Reel presents some great photos of the original covers of the top 10 banned books of the 20th century.
While you are there, take a look at other menu choices that have literary value. For example, Reel Reviews of Cult Fiction
Disclaimer: Watch for links to a certain bookseller. This looks like a subtle form of advertising.
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By: Elaine Anderson,
on 5/15/2007
Blog: Fahrenheit 451: Banned Books (Login to Add to MyJacketFlap)
JacketFlap tags: censorship, Martin Konrad, visual arts, Add a tag
Artist Martin Konrad has designed a series of works to highlight the issue of censorship and banning.
From his web site:
dirty books - 2006
conceptual series of books. reminder of ongoing censorship and restrictions on intellectual freedom.
cover with information on censorship of specific book. first amendment of bill of rights to US constitution as background. physical references to past and ongoing book treatments: burning, tearing apart, locking away, danger of reading, hiding.
Thanks to Mental Floss for bringing this to my attention.
0 Comments on "Dirty and Clean" Books as of 5/15/2007 10:10:00 PM
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Yeah, the maid thing was strange in Princess of Glass. But for whatever reason, I just really liked Poppy enough so that that, and other plot weaknesses, didn’t keep me from enjoying the book.
I hope the reading is going well for you this afternoon!
Huh. I don’t think the maid thing bothered me at all. I just accepted it as part of the plot and went with it. Same with the enchantments. But, then, I guess I was just ready to actually like one of of her books, because I can totally see where you’re coming from… now.
Yes, it did go well! Thanks for the good thoughts.
I know what you mean about liking Poppy, but I think if I had found the Poppy/Christian relationship more convincing, I would have been willing to overlook most of the other weaknesses. In any case, to each his/her own, so I’m glad you liked the book.
Well, I suppose I could have been more forgiving of the maid thing, since this is a fairy tale, after all.
I know that sometimes, even when I see the faults of a book, I still like it regardless. I hope this is still the case with you and Princess of Glass.