Fiction – Page 20 – Mom Read It

Fiction, Historical Fiction, Middle School, Realistic Fiction, Teen, Tween Reads

In The Gallery, art speaks volumes – who’s listening?

Posted on August 20, 2016August 20, 2016 by Rosemary Kiladitis

The Gallery, by Laura Marx Fitzgerald, (June 2016, Dial Books), $16.00, ISBN: 9780525428657

Recommended for ages 10+

It’s 1929, and 12 year-old Martha has gotten herself thrown out of school for the rest of the school year. Her Ma certainly isn’t going to let her sit home and do nothing, so Martha ends up going to work as a maidservant for Mr. Sewell, the wealthy owner of a major New York newspaper, and his reclusive wife, Rose. Martha’s mother is in charge of the household and oversees all the staff, and Rose isn’t getting any favors by being Ma’s daughter: she’s put straight to work in the kitchen, scrubbing, sweeping, and mopping. She also hears a lot of talk from the servants in the house, who say that Rose is crazy, but Martha isn’t buying it: there’s more there than meets the eye, especially because Mr. Sewell gives her the creeps. When she discovers the Sewell gallery, a conversation with Alphonse – a servant who also seems to know more than he’s letting on – confirms Martha’s suspicions. By learning more about the art that Mrs. Sewell sends down from her locked room to be displayed in the gallery, Martha puts together the real story about what’s going on at the Sewell house.

The only thing better than the story taking place in The Gallery is the fact that it’s based on a true event. Ms. Fitzgerald’s captivating author’s note at the end of the story fills in some crucial details about the story, the true story that inspired it, and more information about events taking place at the time the story unfolds. The Jazz Age, on the brink of the stock market crash and ensuing Great Depression, had anarchists, performers both glitzy and outrageous, defined separation of classes, and a lot of backstabbing, both professionally and personally. It was a fascinating time, and The Gallery is a fascinating look into some of that era.

The Gallery is a metaphor for there being more than just face value to things. Martha sees past Mr. Sewell’s exterior, to be sure, but there’s also a touching subplot about a girl coming of age in the middle of this madness, and realizing that her father isn’t the person she thought he was, either.

Every single character in this book is interesting; the story’s pace is perfect, with just enough exposition, then a slow but consuming buildup to the big finale. The bookend story that frames the entire narrative is just so good, and brings readers full circle. This is a great book to introduce to middle schoolers who want something… more. You know the readers: they want something, but not what everyone else is reading. They aren’t really sure what they’re in the mood for, but they want a good book. This is that book. Suggested books I’ve seen are Chasing Vermeer and The Westing Game, neither of which I’ve read, but have heard great things about. As they’re art-related mysteries, display them together. I’d also suggest The Girls at the Kingfisher Club, an excellent Jazz Age re-imagining of the beloved fairy tale, The Twelve Dancing Princesses, and also includes an autocratic, wealthy male figure that wants to keep the girls in his life locked away so he doesn’t have to deal with them.

Definitely worth the add to your collections. I’m thinking of gifting this to the eldest’s girlfriend; she loves a good story. It’s lovely when there are readers all around you!

Fiction, Science Fiction, Teen, Young Adult/New Adult

Conspiracies and Aliens! The Alienation of Courtney Hoffman

Posted on August 6, 2016 by Rosemary Kiladitis

The Alienation of Courtney Hoffman, by Brady Stefani (June 2016, SparkPress), $14.95, ISBN: 9781940716343

Recommended for ages 12+

Courtney Hoffman is a 15 year-old whose biggest fear is that she’s going insane, like her grandfather did. When she was 7, her alien-obsessed grandfather had her tattooed with a strange symbol, and then he tried to drown her in his bathtub. She’s lived with this for years, but now, the aliens are visiting her in her bedroom. Her mother and her mother’s doctor boyfriend are more concerned with trying to commit her so they don’t have to deal with her anymore – stellar parenting, right? – and she’s just discovered that the girl she grew up envisioning as her imaginary friend is real, that she’s got some alien obsessions issues of her own, but that she’s also got information that will help Courtney get the whole story about her grandfather and about herself. There are secret societies, family secrets, and conspiracies aplenty to be had.

There is a lot going on in The Alienation of Courtney Hoffman: think X-Files meets DaVinci Code, with family drama tossed into the middle of it all. Courtney’s mother is just an awful human being that shouldn’t even have custody of her older daughter; she’s more concerned with getting her locked away so she can focus on her Courtney’s younger sister and her sleazy doctor boyfriend. Courtney’s father is almost nonexistent, except for that one time he bailed her out of the nuthouse and let her stay with him for the summer to let things blow over. What kind of father lets his daughter go back to a woman like Courtney’s mother? Agatha, Courtney’s imaginary friend who’s not so imaginary, is a tough character to like; she vacillates between trying to help Courtney and being obnoxious and rude. Agatha has alien visitation history of her own, and ends up helping Courtney figure out more than she does to push her away, which ends up being a huge plus.

Overall, this was a promising paranormal adventure that just needed a little more structure to be unputdownable. If you really love alien visitation theories and stories, take a chance on Courtney Hoffman; I was hoping for just a little more.

Fiction, Fiction, Graphic Novels, Historical Fiction, Humor, Intermediate, Middle Grade, Tween Reads

Sibling antics in the Wild West: Varmints

Posted on August 4, 2016August 24, 2019 by Rosemary Kiladitis

Varmints, by Andy Hirsch (Sept. 2016, First Second), $16.99, ISBN: 9781626722798

Recommended for ages 7-12

Set in the Old U.S. West, Opie and her younger brother, Ned, are orphaned siblings searching for the man who shot their Ma. Problem is, their Pa is THE bad guy – the kingpin, the big bad, cue the dramatic music at the mere mention of his name kind of bad. And he’s expert at not being found. Opie and Ned are undeterred, though; they mean to find their Pa and have some words: if they can just stop arguing with one another long enough to stay out of trouble, that is.

There’s a lot of action and dialogue in this first volume of Varmints. The sibling squabbling provides some quick-witted entertainment, and the explosions and fights, not to mention the cartoony art and bright colors, will hold kids’ interests. It’s a very old-school type of storytelling, with humor, wit, and pathos.

Good addition to graphic novel collections, especially where Westerns are popular; otherwise, a good secondary purchase. There’s a 2013 Varmints story, “The Coonskin Caper”, on Andy Hirsch’s website, along with links to his other work, including The Baker Street Peculiars, for fellow Sherlock Holmes fans who love a touch of the supernatural in just about anything. Check out some of his work on Adventure Time, Garfield, and The Regular Show, too.

Early Reader, Fantasy, Fiction, Fiction, Historical Fiction, Intermediate

The power of stories: The Storyteller

Posted on July 28, 2016August 24, 2019 by Rosemary Kiladitis

The Storyteller, by Evan Turk (June 2016, Athenum), $18.99, ISBN: 9781481435185

Recommended for ages 5-10

Every now and then, you get an epic in storybook form. The Storyteller is such a tale. We sit down and listen to the storyteller: the narrator of the book, who tells us how the Kingdom of Morocco formed at the edge of the great, dry Sahara desert; how there were fountains of cool water, and storytellers to bring the people together. We also learn that as people forgot the perils of the desert, they forgot about the storytellers, too – except for a single boy, who happened upon a storyteller while in search of a drink of water. The storyteller spun tales for the boy, always leaving him thirsty for more stories.

Once a sacred duty to preserve a culture’s collective memory, the advent of television, movies, and the Internet whittled away at the practice of storytelling. What The Storyteller gives us is a beautifully complex, layered tale that illustrates the power of storytelling, an art that – according to the author’s note at the end of the book – is at long last making a comeback.

Mr. Turk’s art has an ancient feel to it, capturing the story’s spirit using a variety of instruments: water-soluble crayon, colored drawing pencils, inks, indigo, sugared green tea, a heat gun, and fire. The final product made me feel like I was holding a revered story scroll, reading tale straight from history.

Evan Turk received the New Illustrator Honor from the Ezra Jack Keats Foundation for Grandfather Gandhi. Find more of his artwork at his author website. The Storyteller has received starred reviews from Publishers Weekly and School Library Journal.

This is a picture book more for school-age kids than little ones. The publisher suggests ages 4-8, but I’d bump it up to ages 5-10, because I feel like Kindergarteners would be better able to sit through the story and lose themselves in this tale. I also feel like this would be a great book to skew a little older with; for instance, upper elementary grades that have storytelling/fairy tales units would have great success introducing this book to classrooms.

Fiction, Realistic Fiction, Teen, Young Adult/New Adult

The Cresswell Plot: Father doesn’t know best

Posted on July 22, 2016 by Rosemary Kiladitis

The Cresswell Plot, by Eliza Wass (June 2016, Disney-Hyperion), $17.99, ISBN: 9781484730430

Recommended for ages 14+

Castella Cresswell is a 16 year-old living in rural upstate New York with her 5 siblings, her disabled mother, and her father, a religious zealot who believes that everyone except his family is evil and doomed to Hell. To keep the devil away from his family, he limits their interactions with other people; the kids go to public school, because they must, after a previous visit from Child Protective Services, and he insists that the siblings will marry one another in the afterlife. He’s even matched them up accordingly. I’ll let that sink in for a sec before I continue.

Castella is caught between loyalty to her family and the desire to be a normal teen, going to parties and having friends. She’s increasingly unsure about her father’s prophecies and revelations, and she just wants to save her siblings and break away from their controlling, abusive father. Her siblings have mixed emotions about Castella’s actions and ideas; whether they stem from truly being brainwashed by their father or being fearful of making waves, we never quite get: I expect it lies somewhere in between.

The Cresswell Plot is a book you sit down to read, and don’t move until you’re finished. It’s a fast read, it’s a disturbing read, but there were parts to the story that were missing; chunks that I feel could have made for an even more compelling read. I wanted more background on the Cresswell patriarch, and an entire suplot feels glanced over, really needing more development. The characters were all on the verge of being fully fleshed out, but missed nuances that really would create fully realized personalities. More conservative readers will find the subject matter – domestic violence, child abuse, references to incest – disturbing.

I enjoyed The Cresswell Plot, I just wanted more of it. I’ve heard this book compared to Flowers in the Attic, but I found more in common with Lisa Heathfield’s Seed.

Fiction, Realistic Fiction, Teen, Young Adult/New Adult

Whodunit? Secrets, Lies, and Scandals

Posted on July 22, 2016July 21, 2016 by Rosemary Kiladitis

Secrets, Lies, and Scandals, by Amanda K. Morgan, (July 2016, Simon Pulse), $17.99, ISBN: 9781481449540

Recommended for ages 14+

A much-loathed teacher dies. Five students are in the room. What happened? Who’s responsible? Most importantly, can they all keep it a secret, or will one of them break? Secrets, Lies, and Scandals tells the stories of five teens – all of whom have their own private crosses to bear – who have to come together to keep the circumstances under which their teacher died secret.

We’ve got Ivy, the mean girl who finds herself on the outs after a relationship gone bad; Tyler, the bad boy whose exhausting his last chance; Kinley, the perfect student with her own secrets; Mattie, who’s only in town for the summer, and really didn’t expect to find himself in a situation like this, and Cade, a repressed rage case who’s always looking for someone else to take the blame. He’s the master manipulator, and all he needs is an opening.

This is one of those novels that I didn’t expect to enjoy as much as I did. None of these characters are really likable, but that adds to the story, rather than distances the reader. What do you do when there’s not one decent character in the book? You dig in for a salacious read. It’s schadenfraude at its finest – I couldn’t wait to see what these characters were going to do next. It’s a well-constructed, fast-moving read that pulls you in and doesn’t let you go until the last page, when you’re likely to yell, just like I did.

I’m going to put this one in my YA collection and booktalk the daylights out of it. Sell it like it’s How to Get Away With Murder set in high school, or an updated version of I Know What You Did Last Summer. (Then explain I Know What You Did Last Summer, because you know you’re going to get blank stares.)

Adventure, Fantasy, Fiction, Teen, Tween Reads

The Dark Crystal returns: Shadows of the Dark Crystal #1

Posted on July 21, 2016August 24, 2019 by Rosemary Kiladitis

Shadows of the Dark Crystal (#1), by J. M. Lee/Illustrated by Brian Froud & Cory Godbey, (June 2016, Grosset & Dunlap), $17.95, ISBN: 9780448482897

Recommended for ages 12+

Jim Henson’s The Dark Crystal is back, in a big way. Comic and graphic novel publisher BOOM!’s Archaia imprint has had a Dark Crystal series since 2014, and now, we’re getting a series of YA novels, set in the years before the events of the original Dark Crystal movie, to appeal to new and established fans.

Set in the world of The Dark Crystal, Shadow of the Dark Crystal introduces us to Naia, a young Gelfling girl who leaves her home and travels to the Castle of the Crystal to find out what’s happened to her brother, Gurjin. He’s being sought after by the Skeksis Lords, who want to charge him with treason; Naia refuses to believe it. As she journeys to the Castle, she learns a great deal about the Skeksis and the crystal, setting things in motion for the rest of the series and leading into events taking place in The Dark Crystal.

The book cover is illustrated by Brian Froud, the conceptual designer on the original The Dark Crystal film, as well as Labyrinth, which makes my ’80s heart sing. Froud is also considered the preeminent faerie artist in the world and an authority of faerie lore. Cory Godbey’s beautiful black and white illustrations throughout the book bring the story to life.

I have a long-standing admiration for The Dark Crystal, but the book just didn’t set me on fire like I hoped it would. If you aren’t well-versed in the movie’s lore, you may find yourself lost. The narrative plodded at parts, and I never really connected to the characters. It did pick up toward the end, so I’m hopeful that the world-building and exposition taking place in Book One will lead to more interesting adventures in Book Two, especially since most readers will know where the Skeksis are heading at that point.

Fantasy fans, particularly Dark Crystal fans, will want to read this. It’s suggested as a young adult series, but I think it would appeal more to middle schoolers, so I’d encourage my 6th-8th graders to discover this; the cover and internal fantasy art will appeal more to tweens and early teens. I’d also suggest making the original DVD available, along with the BOOM! graphic novels; there is a lot of mythology to this universe and it’s a good thing to provide a well-rounded reading experience for fans. Here’s a peek at some of the artwork and interiors:

Fiction, Historical Fiction, Middle Grade, Realistic Fiction, Tween Reads

The Lost Twin: A boarding school whodunit

Posted on July 5, 2016 by Rosemary Kiladitis

Scarlet & Ivy: The Lost Twin, by Sophie Cleverly, (May 2016, Sourcebooks Jabberwocky), $16.99, ISBN: 9781492633396

Recommended for ages 9-13

Ivy is still grieving the death of her twin sister, Scarlet, when the letter from the school comes: a spot has opened up, and she can expect to be picked up immediately. Ivy is indignant – how rude and cold, to be referring to her sister’s death as an “opening” – and it only gets worse once the imperious headmistress, Miss Fox, comes to collect her. Miss Fox tells her that Ivy’s expected to become Scarlet – a face-saving measure for the school. Once at the school, Ivy finds herself in the thick of a few mysteries, all having to do with Scarlet and her disappearance from the school. Can Ivy unravel all the mysteries surrounding the school and learn what really happened to her sister?

Scarlet and Ivy: The Lost Twin is a well-paced, consuming boarding school mystery, set in 1935 England. The characters are interesting and the intrigue keeps pages turning, while getting readers riled up at the injustices Ivy endures. There are so many little mysteries entwined with larger ones – once a thread gets pulled, you’ll be consumed with following it to see where it goes. Fox is an awful human being that loves corporal punishment a bit too much to be in charge of children; Ms. Cleverly has given us a truly hissable villain here (she and Professor Umbridge would get along swimmingly). You’ll root for Ivy and her friend, Ariadne, and the ending leaves you bouncing up and down with the knowledge that we’ll be getting more adventures in the future.

According to Sophie Cleverly’s Twitter, the third Scarlet & Ivy book is out – pretty sure it’s only out in the UK, but let’s be really, really nice to Sourcebooks Jabberwocky and Ms. Cleverly, so they’ll bring the further adventures of Ivy, Ariadne, & Co. to us here in the States.

The Lost Twin is a good summer reading choice for middle grade readers who enjoy a good mystery with a few well-placed plot twists. I’ve got a lot of kids asking me for good mysteries, so I’ll add this one to my booktalks, along with The Peculiar Haunting of Thelma Bee and Audacity Jones.

Early Reader, Fiction, Fiction, Historical Fiction, Intermediate, Realistic Fiction

Mother Jones is on her way to Oyster Bay – join the march!

Posted on July 2, 2016July 1, 2016 by Rosemary Kiladitis

On Our Way to Oyster Bay: Mother Jones and Her March for Children’s Rights, by Monica Kulling/Illustrated by Felicita Sata (Sept. 2015, Kids Can Press), $17.95, ISBN: 9781771383257

Recommended for ages 7-11

Eight year old Aidan and his friend, Gussie, want to go to school, but they have to work instead, to help their families. When the millworkers go on strike, Aidan and Gussie join the picket line; that’s when they meet Mother Jones, a feisty activist who wants to take action against child labor. She organizes a children’s march that will take them all the way to President Theodore Roosevelt’s summer home in Oyster Bay, New York!

In 1903, child labor was a harsh reality for many children like Aidan and Gussie. Instead of going to school, children toiled for up to 12 hours a day, six days a week, in factories; they experienced unsafe conditions and many were injured, disfigured, or even died doing their work. On Our Way to Oyster Bay is a fictionalized account of the very real story of activist Mother Jones’ March of the Mill Children, beginning in Pennsylvania and going all the way through the streets of Manhattan, ending up on President Roosevelt’s Oyster Bay lawn. While the President refused to meet with Mother Jones and her brigade, the march raised awareness of child labor, leading to the 1904 formation of the National Child Labor Committee.

On Our Way to Oyster Bay is a great story for younger kids about a period in history that doesn’t get as much love as it should. If you ask any given kid you encounter whether or not they know Mother Jones, you’re likely to get a blank stare, and that needs to be remedied. We still work in a world where child labor is a reality for many – I constantly remind kids that kids have fought and died for the right to go to school and do the same things they complain about every day – and a book like this lends itself to some important discussions about our own history of child labor and unsafe conditions, as well as the chance to brainstorm some ideas about what kids can do to help other kids around the world. Being a CitizenKid book – an imprint I love – there’s loads of information about child labor, suggestions for getting involved, and discussion points. Kids Can Press has a winner with this imprint; the books bearing the CitizenKid stamp empower kids to learn about the world around them and to take action, just like the kids in their books do. These books give them the information and the tools to take action, putting the power in their hands.

The artwork is vibrant, with movement coursing through the illustrations. The march through Manhattan thrums with activity, and I found myself bouncing up and down on my seat as Mother Jones made things happen! This is great for a read-aloud or a read-alone, but it needs to be read. Add this to your collections, read it to your kids, and make things happen. Talk about social justice, everyday activism, and being a good citizen, globally and locally.

Early Reader, Fiction, Fiction, Preschool Reads

A little boy learns to tell A Squiggly Story

Posted on July 1, 2016June 29, 2016 by Rosemary Kiladitis

A Squiggly Story, by Andrew Larsen/Illustrated by Mike Lowery (Sept. 2016, Kids Can Press), $16.95, ISBN: 9781771380164

Recommended for ages 3-6

A little boy wants to write a story, just like his big sister, but he’s got one problem: he doesn’t know that many words! Big sister knows just what to tell him: start with what you know. Every word starts with a single letter, after all! When he writes the letter “I”, he’s on his way; with his sister to help guide his thought process, he’s on his way to creating an exciting adventure!

What a great way to encourage new learners to create their own stories! The little boy is unsure about himself at first, but his sister quickly allays his fears by empowering him to just go with what he knows, guiding him through the stages of writing a story: the beginning, the middle, and the end. When he proudly brings his finished story to school, his teacher encourages him to think even more deeply, and turns the story into a class project. It’s a great storytime concept and a great way to introduce creative writing and art to new learners.

Mike Lowery’s cartoony art is filled with interesting styles to capture a young readers’ attention. There are word bubbles, emphasis on words like BIG and small, comic-style panels, and callout sketches that invite readers into the characters’ imaginations. The children are multiethnic, making the story accessible for all.

This is a good addition to creative picture book collections. Pair A Squiggly Story with Written and Drawn by Henrietta for a creative storytime and crafternoon.