Six of Crows

Book talk: The Barrel is the part of town controlled by warring gangs. The part people avoid if they can afford to, unless they have illegal tastes and nefarious intentions. Kaz came to the barrel as a broken child, but now he practically rules it. His path to the top wasn't pretty and he's done a lot to earn his reputation as a monster. When a richly rewarding job is offered to him, he sees the possibility not just to become wealthy enough to leave the barrel behind, but to slake his long-nursed thirst for revenge. The job is impossible, of course, so if he has any chance of succeeding and surviving he'll need a crew that's the best of the worst: “A gambler, a convict, a wayward son, a lost Grisha, a Suli girl who had become a killer, a boy from the Barrel who had become something worse.” “Six people, but a thousand ways this insane plan could go wrong.”

Rave: I loved everything about this book from the rag-tag crew of misfits to the daring heist plot to the setting in the familiar world of the Grisha. The characters were fully developed and diverse including different races, sexual orientations, and physical abilities. An author's note at the end explains that she has to use a cane on occasion much like the character of Kaz and I really appreciated her thoughtfulness in the approach to all her characters. Most of them have gone through trauma and while that clearly affects them and isn't downplayed they still get the chance to change and grow and prove that they're survivors. The shifting perspective really allowed me to get a sense of each character and their struggles and made them feel very real and dear to me. It also helped create suspense because each character's knowledge was incomplete so seeing who knew what allowed me to piece together the plot in a way that was fun. Highly recommended, especially for fans of the Grisha trilogy (although you don't have to read that to understand this book.)

Every book its reader: I'd give this to fans of fantasy and heists. Think Ocean's Eleven crossed with Lord of the Rings. There's some pretty intense violence at times so I'd say 8th and up.

Topics and trends: Heists, fantasy, diversity, multiple perspectives, disability, LGBTQ

Extras:
There's a strong fan community for this book, you can find its wiki here: http://thegrishaverse.wikia.com/wiki/Six_of_Crows

There's a lot of great fan art too, like this drawing of all the characters by Kevin Wada

Quotes:

“When everyone knows you’re a monster, you needn’t waste time doing every monstrous thing.”

“She wouldn't wish love on anyone. It was the guest you welcomed and then couldn't be rid of.”

“the only law that applied to her was gravity, and some days she defied that, too.”

“You wouldn't know a good time if it sidled up to you and stuck a lollipop in your mouth.”

“There was no part of him that was not broken, that had not healed wrong, and there was no part of him that was not stronger for having been broken.”

Source: school library

Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo: buy it or check it out today!

Thief Lord review

Book talk: Is there somewhere you've always wanted to go?  For Prosper and Bo, that place is Venice.  Their mother always told them stories of this magical city and after they become orphans and are forced to run away from their cruel aunt it's where they decide to hide.  But life as a runaway is not as glamorous as they thought.  Things are looking pretty grim until they meet Hornet, another runaway who introduces them to The Thief Lord and takes them to live in the abandoned cinema she calls home.  Life still isn't easy, but at least they have a roof over their head.  Their problems only get worse though as their aunt and uncle hire a private detective to track them down and The Thief Lord takes on a dangerous job.

Rocks my socks:  As with any heist story the plot is tense as the young thieves plan their strategy and avoid getting caught.  The lure of the magical carousel that can turn adults into children and vice versa is potent.  The real attraction of this novel though is the characters.  From the private eye with the mustache collection to the self-styled thief lord himself the book is full of memorable individuals. This isn't your typical thief with a heart of gold story though and as identities are revealed and characters become more complex the plot takes multiple twists and turns.

Rocks in my socks:  I wasn't entirely happy with the ending and as delightful as the magical age-changing carousel is, it isn't introduced until fairly late in the novel.  It seemed a bit odd tacking this in at the end of a book that was otherwise realistic.  I wish more of the fantastic elements were introduced earlier on and woven throughout the narrative.

Every book its reader:  I'd give this to 3rd to 5th graders looking for an adventure story with a hint of magic.  Especially for anyone with an interest in Venice.

Extras:

The author has a website that is too fancy for me to have the patience to navigate it but you can explore it to find unknown wonders if you so wish: http://www.corneliafunke.com/

There's a page for the novel on the Cornelia Funke wiki:  http://corneliafunke.wikia.com/wiki/The_Thief_Lord

The book was made into a movie, the trailer can be seen here:





Source: Oxfam Books in Aberdeen, Scotland

The Thief Lord by Cornelia Funke

The Thief Review

Book talk: Gen is chained up in a dungeon, with shackles chaffing against his wrists as he slowly starves.  But he isn't concerned.  Gen is an experienced thief, which is what got him into prison and what will get him out.  There isn't a prison that he can't steal himself out of and he knows he'll be free of this one soon...somehow.  He isn't surprised when the King's Magus brings him out for a consultation.  He has a job that only a thief can do.  It will be dangerous and difficult and he may not make it out alive, but the Magus assures him that he will definitely die if he doesn't go along with it.  So Gen agrees to go with the Magus and steal an ancient treasure from the Gods.

Rocks my socks:  I am a sucker for any story involving sly thieves with hearts of gold--the sassier the better!  Gen does not disappoint on this count.  He takes pleasure in annoying the rest of the party throughout the novel, but when the going gets tough is quick to display his skill and cunning.  The world-building and invented mythology is interesting and their adventures on the road keep the pace moving admirably.  The characters are believably portrayed with flaws and layers and grow over the course of the novel.

Rocks in my socks:  There's a lot of energy put into creating a twist at the end that was ultimately fairly predictable.

Every book its reader:  I'd give this to fans of fantasy and stories about thieves.  5th grade and up.

Extras:

Megan Whalen Turner has a website: http://meganwhalenturner.org/

There's a jaunty trailer for the book:


Source: school library

The Thief by Megan Whalen Turner: buy it or check it out today!

Tokyo Heist Review

Book talk:  What would you do if you found yourself living the kind of adventure you normally only find in a book?  Violet loves reading manga and has been working hard on making her own.  She thought her biggest problem this summer would be the fight she got in with her best friend.  Then she goes to stay with her father, an artist, and ends up in the middle of a high-stakes art theft case in Japan.  At first the unexpected trip to somewhere she's always longed to go is exciting, but as the yakuza get involved and her friends and family are threatened she starts to wonder if she should have stuck to making up stories and not living them.

Rocks my socks:  I love the premise that an average geeky girl obsessed with a certain type of media ends up in a situation very much like the ones she's always read about.  Her obsession with manga is a key part of the narrative from the way that she analyzes real-life people by imagining how they'd be represented in a manga to her knowledge of Japanese culture and customs that comes from reading it.  I don't like manga as much as Violet, but I know enough about it that I was able to appreciate the references (I particularly enjoyed Violet's friend's apt description of her relationship with the main love interest: "the two of you are like in episode seventy-eight of a manga series with no climax.")  It makes sense to me that Violet would find it helpful to storyboard ideas in manga form to help organize her thoughts about who might have committed the actual art heist.  It was also pretty meta, which I always like.

Rocks in my socks:  The book doesn't feel like a very authentic representation of Japanese culture to me, but then again it's not really claiming to be.  It's clearly about a manga-obsessed foreigner's view of the culture.  There are plenty of aspects of the plot that strain credulity, but if you can put that aside it's good, clean fun.

Every book its reader:  Despite the action-packed cover image I'd be hesitant to give this to the average heist fan.  There's a lot of quieter moments and manga plays such a big role in the narrative that if you don't know anything about it, it might be hard to appreciate the novel.  I'd be more likely to recommend it to manga or anime fans looking for something in novel form.  There will be plenty here for them to enjoy.  The romance and violence are relatively minimal for a thriller.  I'd say it's fine for 6th grade and up.

Extras:

Diana Renn has a website with more information about her and her books.

There's an official book trailer:



Source:   school library

Tokyo Heist by Diana Renn: buy it or check it out today!