More than this Review

Book talk: Seth feels the impact of a rock against his head as the waters close in around him and he drowns. He dies in America, but he wakes up again in his childhood home in England. His neighbors' houses are exactly how he remembers them, except that nobody's home. He ventures into town for supplies and finds that nature has begun to reclaim the town with wild plants and animals. It's like nobody has lived there for years. He thinks he's in his own personal afterlife until he finds two others like him and a mysterious enemy that is hunting them all down.

Rave: I always go into Patrick Ness novels expecting death, so I was actually a bit relieved when it came at the very beginning. I had hoped that would remove some of the suspense and eventual emotional devastation--oh how wrong I was! I think talking too much about the plot will just ruin it for people who haven't read it yet so I'll just say that I love the diversity of the characters, their layers that are revealed as the plot progresses, and the mind-trip that was the ever-twisting plot.

Every book its reader: I'd give this to fans of both plot-focused science fiction like the Matrix and fans of realistic books about teens dealing with surviving all-too-real trauma. It can get pretty intense at times so I'd say 8th grade and up.

Topics and Trends: death, abuse, trauma, science-fiction, immigration, guilt, post-apocalyptic, thriller, diversity

Extras:
There's a website for the book and a couple of great videos





Bonus Quote:
“Know yourself and go in swinging.”

Source: kobo ebook

More than this by Patrick Ness: buy it or check it out today!

The Different Girl Review

Book talk: Veronika, Caroline, Isobel, and Eleanor have lived on a deserted island for as long as they can remember.  The four girls do everything together and look identical except for their hair color.   Irene and Robbert tell them that their parents all died in a plane crash and do their best to take care of them and provide them with an education.  Despite their tragic circumstances they live a relatively happy and normal life.  Or at least that's what they always believed.  Then one day a very different girl appears on the island who makes them question everything.

Rave:  I know the language will turn a lot of people off but I absolutely love books that are written in a stylized way or in dialect.  The story is narrated by Veronika and her inability to understand figures of speech and use metaphor is part of what is so intriguing about her character and what makes the narrative so unique.  Her limited knowledge and belief that she is normal creates a delicious tension as little hints are dropped which left me constantly guessing and trying to extrapolate to figure out what was going on.  It's clear from the beginning that something is off both with the world at large and these girls particularly but exactly what is never entirely revealed--even at the end.  It's wonderfully atmospheric and combine that with the science fiction angle and it reminded me of The Twilight Zone.  It makes perfect sense that Veronika talks the way she does and even though it does feel stiff and strange it is hauntingly poetic at times.  What starts as a quiet, introspective novel turns into a tense thriller as the novel approaches its climax and the stakes are raised.  This is not your average YA dystopian thriller.  It is something quiet different and wonderfully refreshing.

Rant:  none

Every book its reader:  Fans of psychological science fiction like the Twilight Zone will love this story.  The difficult language will draw some in and turn others off.  Read the first chapter to get an idea of whether or not you'll like it or see the quotes below for a taste.  Content wise I'd say it's fine for 5th grade but the writing style makes it more likely to be enjoyed by teens.  

Bonus Quotes:

“I hope what I’m telling is what really happened, because if it isn’t--if I’ve forgotten things or lost them--then I’ve lost part of myself. I’m not sure how old I am, mainly because there are so many different ways to tell time--one way with clocks and watches and sunsets, or other ways with how many times a person laughs, or what they forget, or how they change their minds about what they care about, or why, or whom.”

“But we learned she was listening to how we said things, not what, and to what we didn’t talk about as much as what we did. Which was how we realized that a difference between could and did was a thing all by itself, separate from either one alone, and that we were being taught about things that were invisible.’

“I didn’t like everyone looking at me like I was different--because their looking made me different--"

“Her absence extended in lines of numbers made of smoke, backward in memory and forward in futures never to occur.”

Source: ebook from public library

The Different Girl by Gordon Dahlquist: buy it or check it out today!

After the End Review

Book talk:  When World War III ravaged the world a small group managed to survive in the remote Alaskan wilderness. Juneau is one of the children of these survivors and has learned how to live off the land and tap into the heart of nature to work magic. When her tribe is taken while she's out hunting she ventures out of the safe zone for the first time and what she discovers shakes her to the very core: a whole city, completely untouched. Is everything she was ever told a lie? But her tribe is still missing and she must find them. Now she has to survive in an environment she is completely unprepared for in a world where she has no idea whom to trust.

Rave:  This story is told in the alternating perspectives of Juneau and Miles.  Plum does a great job making Miles unlikable at first.  She contrasts the serious problems Juneau is dealing with to Miles's melodramatic reaction to having to work in a mail room after being caught cheating on a test.  When Juneau first meets him she sizes him up with the quip "a fortunate life, unfortunately for the rest of the world."  At first Miles just plays along with her so he can earn points with his dad for turning her in but as anyone who's ever watched a high school rom-com will be able to predict he soon starts to fall for her.  Despite being a bit cheesy it's nice to watch him gain empathy for Juneau and start to grow as a person and expand his world view (although it would be nice if he could have had empathy for someone without having to fall for them first.)  The pacing is quick and fans of Katniss will enjoy the capable Juneau.  An added supernatural element as Juneau works her nature-based magic will draw additional fans as will Juneau's pets including dogs and a wild bird.  

Rant:   At one point Miles says "Suddenly, and randomly, I have this flashback to history class, when we learned about how afraid the Native Americans were when they saw the European explorers’ rifles for the first time, calling them magical ‘fire sticks.’" Juneau's group also refers to shoes as 'moccasins' but has no stated connection to any native peoples.  I found it odd and problematic to have these brought up without any commentary or other mention of native peoples.

Juneau uses homeless individuals as a conduit for her magic and I have torn feelings about it.  On the one hand it's clear that Juneau treats them with kindness, values their help, and is saddened by the way society treats them.  On the other hand the author always depicts them as insane, alcoholic, or both: “A hat sits in front of him with coins inside, and empty metal cans with BEER printed on them are scattered around him. I approach. His odor is pungent. Rancid.”

One final warning that the book ends on a complete cliff hanger.  Plum easily could have ended the book a chapter or so earlier and left on a good note while still leaving curiosity over the sequel.  Instead she chose to go on so that it would end on the most dramatic scene possible.

Every book its reader:  I'd recommend this to fans of supernatural and survival stories.

Extras:

Amy Plum has plenty of extras on her site including a guide to post apocalyptic fashion and interviews with herself and her characters.

Source: ebook from public library

After the End by Amy Plum: buy it or check it out today!

Ashes Review

Book talk:  The past few years have not been kind to Alex.  First both of her parents die, then she gets diagnosed with cancer.  Alex is sick of chemotherapy and sick of doctors and she's sick of getting sick.  So she ditches the new experimental treatment her aunt signed her up for to go for a solo hike while she still can to spread her parents' ashes. Aunt Hannah isn't happy about it, but there's not much she can do.  Her aunt should have been worrying about her own imminent death instead, but there wasn't anything she could do about that either.  Alex never suspected that she'd outlive so many people.  But now she has to fight for survival in a whole new way: find food, weapons, and shelter, protect those supplies from bandits, and avoid becoming a meal for the Changed.

Rocks my socks: Despite this not being the type of book I'd normally pick up, once I did I kept reading until past midnight when I finished it.  Alex is a realistic and strong protagonist and I enjoyed reading about her.  The other characters she encounters are layered and believable as well--even the minor ones.  Bick is a child psychiatrist and former Air Force major which lends an unique perspective and expertise to the story.  For what is essentially a zombie thriller there is a fair amount of time spent considering moral questions and delving into the characters' emotions.  She accomplishes this without letting the pace lag.

Rocks in my socks:  Bick repeatedly uses a structure that is a bit of a pet peeve of mine.  She'll set up a scenario in a paragraph and then contradict the sentiment with a short line.  Almost like she's afraid the reader will stop reading if she ends the chapter on a happy note so she sneaks an extra line in saying 'hey--don't worry it'll pick back up in a second!' Of course there's also some sketchy science involved with how the zombie apocalypse occurs, but I doubt it's possible to write an entirely realistic and scientifically accurate zombie apocalypse novel so that didn't bother me too much.

Every book its reader:  I'd give this to teens looking for a fast-paced novel.  Fans of zombies and/or wilderness survival will enjoy it in particular.  There's an endorsement from James Dashner on the cover so it should be easy to convince the legions of Maze Runner fans to pick it up as well.

Extras:

Ilsa Bick has her own website with the usual blog news updates as well as articles about film and television

There's a decent fan-made book trailer over at YouTube

Edgmont has a video up of Ilsa Bick talking about what she'd put in her survival pack

There's an interview with Bick over at Random Acts of Reading

Source: school library

Ashes by Ilsa J. Bick: Buy it or check it out today!