The Weekend Word... from Hello *Ello

Why The Pretty White Girl YA Book Cover Trend Needs To End.

I love it when I find a writer with whom I agree, who is much more genteel and polished than I whilst still giving a teensy rant. So, so, so many well articulated points made. Here's hoping she's not just preachin' to the choir.

Happy Weekend...

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In case you didn't know: "Ello is short for Ellen Oh. Transplanted from Brooklyn, NY, I'm a lawyer, a writer, and a college instructor now living near the nation's capital. I have three smart, beautiful little girls and an ultra-supportive husband who tells me to write every day so that maybe, one day, I'll actually get a book published. I'm repped by the amazing Joe Monti of Barry Goldblatt Literary. And what do you know, Da Man was right! My first book, Prophecy: The Dragon King Chronicles, is being published by HarperCollins Childrens for release in Winter 2013! Life is very good."

Readers, I Have Finished Grave Mercy.

OH, MY GOODNESS.

I ... lost track of time reading. There was sun on my chair, and then, I looked up, and it was dusk.

Oh, my goodness.

I sat down with GRAVE MERCY, and nibbled at it - and was hooked, but I was still able to get up, and, you know, function. She was out of a bad situation, into a better one, it was all good. And then, things got interesting. I was unable to stop, at that point.

And then, things went all, as the British say, "pear shaped." And I couldn't put it down until the last page.

I cannot WAIT for you to get a chance to read this one. It's OUT APRIL 3rd, and it's a great story - and those of you who serve on the Cybils SFF will know what I mean when I say that there's a PURPOSE to the sequel. This is a complete tale, with a beginning, middle, and end, but you will LONG for more.

Review to follow, first, I should make an attempt to, oh, you know, cook food. Eat it. Bathe. That sort of thing... Tune in next week.

Meanwhile, a note to the author:
Dear Robin, THANK YOU.
That was amazing.

Toon Thursday: Box Up Those Books!

As always, click the cartoon to view it larger.

Yeah, I know--there probably ARE some lucky bloggers out there whose lives look more like the "Myth" side of that cartoon. And I'll admit the number of wildly inappropriate unsolicited review copies has declined greatly in number over the years (nor have I ever received a book on geriatric cyberdating). But really, MY office looks more like the one on the right.

And, if you're like me, you wonder what the heck you can do with all those books. Well, yesterday we featured a call to action for tornado-devastated Henryville's school libraries. And today, in honor of this year's Share a Story - Shape a Future tour (with fab logo at right designed by the lovely Elizabeth Dulemba), I've got a guest post over on Terry Doherty's Family Bookshelf telling the story behind the collaborative resource site Reach a Reader, which I put together just about a year ago with the help of Terry and several other wonderful kidlitosphere friends. The inspiration for the project? You'll have to read the post to find out, but rest assured it definitely has something to do with cleaning out all those review copies! You'll also find out how to locate places to donate YOUR out-of-control book piles, so that you, too, can share a story and shape a future.

Hope for Henryville

On March 2nd, tornados ripped through Southern Indiana, killing 14 people and devastating several communities. Among the towns that were practically erased from the map was the small community of Henryville. Its elementary, middle, and high schools were torn apart, shredded, and flattened. All the books in the school libraries were ruined.


Perhaps you'd already heard the news. Lives upended and lost in the wee town of Henryville, Indiana, and books - the best vehicle to escape madness - in a sodden mess. The Authors for Henryville - Julia Karr, Ashley Hope Perez, Christine Johnson, Mike Mullin, and Josie Bloss - are Indiana-based writers who have rallied to help. They're asking for donations from the general public, with a little incentive - a drawing to give away books and book swag from YA authors all across the spectrum. YA authors are enlisted to join the effort by contacting their publishers for books - check the website for details - but here's how everyone else can get involved:

* You can donate funds directly to the Henryville library donorschoose.org project (link will follow when the school has it set up) & tweet your donation amount with #authors4henry as hashtag. You can also email your donation amount to authors4henryville@gmail.com

* Help us get the word out about Authors for Henryville via twitter, your own website, facebook, and any other megaphones you have. Or, simply forward a link to this site to your author friends who might be interested in donating.

The important thing to know in any crisis in which you feel helpless and horrified is that there is ALWAYS a way to help - even if it's just passing the word along and telling someone about it. It's better to polish up your tiny star than to let the midnight go dark. The most you can do is your best. And that's all.

Thanks for being a star.

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Artwork by David Pearson, apparently illustrating a fortune cookie saying. He could be this same designer, but I'm unsure.

Turning Pages: Summers at Castle Auburn, by Sharon Shinn

Many of the books I read are new - we have contacts with publishers who want us to talk up things that are recent releases. Those are fine. But, we also have our trusty library cards, and I for one love to talk about earlier releases which catch my eye and which I find on my own. (I like old books, and I cannot lie - though this one is not really even "old," per se...) While this novel was marketed as a fairytale for adults, it is a perfectly attractive and intriguing novel for teens, and I think this is one which many will enjoy.

I don't even remember who told me about this book anymore. Probably Charlotte, since I learn of all of the really cool old books from her... except, this one doesn't include time travel. Hm. Well, whomever suggested this one, thank-you. It was eminently readable in the way the historical fantasies like Hilari Bell's or Lawrence Watt-Evans are -- totally immersing and the world-building was believable and fantastic.

Reader Gut Reaction: This novel's blend of non-magical and magical was so well done that when the magic came, it felt... fairly mundane. SUMMERS reads like historical fiction, and the novel is a period piece that shows all the ins and outs and backstabbing that happens in royal political families. It follows the life of a young girl who saw just what was in front of her - beautiful, shiny people that she had the privilege to spend time with each summer, and their glorious captive alioras. It's a gradual story of how a life changes, bit by bit - how each summer at the castle produces changes - and what always stays the same.

Concerning Character: Coriel's father was a Lord, despite her mother being merely a wise woman and green witch. Her death during Coriel's early childhood leaves Coriel her grandmother's apprentice, and she has learned herblore from the time she was tiny. Coriel believes she will be serving a village of her own as wise woman someday. She is serious about her studies - very serious. And then, in a fairytale move, a great man comes. It is her uncle, Lord Jaxon, who informs her that her father has died, but that because Jaxon promised his brother that his daughter should be introduced to life at court, Coriel is to be taken away to summer at Castle Auburn and learn to know her half-sister.

We enter the story when Coriel is fourteen. Her half-sister Elisandra is engaged - to a prince, which thrills Coriel no end, especially because Prince Bryan is beautiful and charming, and everyone loves him. Coriel looks forward to her glittering summers most because of the aliora, the beautiful, fey creatures Jaxon captures for use in the castle. They are almost human - they cannot abide the bite of metal, and just being in their presence is calming and centering, and brings everyone great joy. Coriel is allowed to go on a hunt for aliora once and is delighted just to be out with her uncle and the prince and all the men. Her life circles around her love for her sister, and her absolute slack-jawed adoration of Prince Bryan. The prince's cousin, Lord Kentley, becomes a good friend, indeed, Coriel finds friends everywhere. Even the guardsmen are fun and congenial companions. For the first few summers at least, life is good.

Gradually, as Coriel ages, people seem to ...change. Her uncle doesn't seem as happy as she thought him to be. The prince's regent, Lord Kent's father, seems to look at her speculatively a great deal. Elisandra seems to wear serenity over any true emotion, and Prince Bryan has changed -- he is paranoid that someone is going to kill him, is brittle and brash and drinks too much. One of the guardsmen is behaving oddly - and Coriel finds herself with a niggling and confusing envy she cannot shake at the alliances and entanglements among the royals - and she often has to remind herself of who she is, and how lowborn she will always remain.

When Uncle Jaxon brings a new aliora to the castle - a very young one - Coriel can't get the image of her cringing beauty out of her mind. What if Coriel were that child herself, ripped from her magical homeland and her family's arms and brought to be sold to strangers?

Suddenly, the summers aren't quite so bright at Castle Auburn.

Recommended for Fans Of...: Ever, Fairest and Two Princesses of Bamarre, by Gail Carson Levine, plus the novels of Robin McKinley, Hilari Bell, and the Ethshar novels of Lawrence Watt-Evans.

Themes & Things: This novel is clearly a bildungsroman, exploring the way we see the world that is full of the same things, from one moment in our lives to the next as we age. Also there are issues of slavery and freedom, of love and obsession which are darker and more involved that they appear on the surface. (When any of us love, are we really free, whether we are in chains or no?)

Cover Chatter: Though the color palette is not especially bright or arresting, and the picture of the young girl with a Lordly looking dude in the background on a horse has a sort of long-ago murky museum portrait quality, as far as fantasy novels marketed to adults go, this cover is not bad. (Boy, that's damned with faint praise, isn't it? Let me rephrase: it's not particularly engaging, but it's still not a headless female, a female torso, or a girl in a ridiculously huge dress with an earnestly constipated expression.) Repackaged with brighter, stronger colors and more emphasis on Coriel's green witchery, this title would surely sell to younger readers.

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You can find SUMMERS AT CASTLE AUBURN by Sharon Shinn at an independent bookstore near you!

Monday Review: FEYNMAN by Ottaviani and Myrick

We don't usually review nonfiction here on FW, but I like to make the occasional exception for an outstanding graphic novel—because, naturally, even a biography or a memoir has to present a good STORY for it to hold the reader's attention. Feynman, which was a finalist in this year's Cybils Awards for YA Graphic Novels, does that and more.

Reader Gut Reaction: Richard Feynman was not only a physicist but a larger-than-life character in many respects, whose voice lives on in numerous writings and recordings and whose charisma alone has inspired generations of would-be scientists. That would seem to make him a great choice for the subject of a graphic novel, and with a few qualifications, I think this was accomplished with Ottaviani and Myrick's Feynman.

Yes, the chronology was a little confusing at times, flipping back and forth in time, but for the most part this wasn't an issue. Also, not everyone will gravitate toward the subject matter, and there are some lengthy portions that concentrate rather intensely on math and physics. However, readers with an interest in science and/or biography, or at least those who are open to reading about a real character (in both senses of the term), will enjoy it quite a bit. It has a great visual style, with a loose, indie-comics feel that makes it stand out from the crowd. I also see this as having a large adult crossover audience.

Concerning Character: It's so easy to say the word "genius," but surely it's not as easy to depict one. I really liked how this one portrayed the humanness of a great scientific figure, showing him in his quiet moments, with his family, not hiding his foibles. It's a fascinating way to bring Feynman's speeches and anecdotes to life, and it doesn't talk down to readers—rather, it assumes readers will want to learn about the physics as well as about the man, and by doing so it succeeds in giving us a fuller picture of what was really going through his head. I also thought the authors did an admirable job of showing Feynman's wife; though she's not the focus, she was an important figure in his working and non-working life.

Recommended for Fans Of...: Graphic memoirs that take place against a specific cultural and historical backdrop, like Persepolis by Marjane Satrapi; fans of biography, especially scientists' biographies; and particularly recommended for those who liked The Watchmen and want to know more about the real history of the development of the atomic bomb.

Themes & Things: Theme and character are almost impossible to separate in this one, but besides the biographical aspects, this one's also fascinating in terms of history—the history of science, of course, but also the history of how science and politics became bound up together, for better or for worse, during the nascent nuclear age. There is also a strong underlying thread that concerns the history of women and science—we see Feynman's wife serve as a sounding board for his ideas; and we see his sister, discouraged by everyone around her EXCEPT him, from her interest in science, but who nevertheless goes on to be quite accomplished and learned herself. This is definitely a must-read for science enthusiasts, whether you're a layperson or an expert.

Review Copy Source: Publisher (Cybils review copy)

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You can find Feynman by Leland Myrick and Jim Ottaviani at an independent bookstore near you!

WEEKEND WORD: ON PRIVACY: TED Talks...

Like many in the blogosphere, I often get videos from TED talks passed to me. I love TED stuff - conversations, since 1984, about the best in Technology, Entertainment, and Design. In some ways, I'm a little torn about their role - I think the conferences are ridiculously elitist, in that it's so prohibitively expensive to attend them that only the über rich do, and in that way sort of create themselves (dominant culture, male, AND the 1%) as the leaders in the field of "spreading ideas." On the other hand, I appreciate that TED invites thinkers to speak to them from every field and also that they always encapsulate the messages the thinkers present via free and easily accessible video media, worldwide. So, there's that.

Anyway.

Because Tech Boy's doctoral dissertation is on information management and media, I'm familiar with Sherry Turkle, author and director of MIT's initiative on Technology & Self. What she said about privacy struck chords with me - big, ringing chords, like tolling bells.

Whether the bells are tolling, TOO LATE TOO LATE TOO LATE or some other message, however, remains to be seen. Think on this:

From NPR's All Tech Considered:

"We like to say that we grew up with the Internet, thus we think that the Internet is all grown up. But it's not. The problem is that we have not created a privacy culture on the Internet that we can live with. We created the wrong one. What I think about is: What is intimacy without privacy? What is a democracy without privacy? We weren't asking those two questions when this was created and we bequeathed to our children this culture then we shrug, 'they don't care about privacy.'

"I was trained to care about privacy. My grandmother of Eastern European descent used to marvel at the mail. The idea that you were in a country where mail was sacrosanct... that to tamper with the mail was a federal offense, to her, this was one of the great things about being an American. What drives me crazy is that people turn to these babies, these children and say, 'They don't care about privacy.' But it was our responsibility to teach them.

"[Facebook CEO] ]Mark Zuckerberg says privacy is no longer a social norm. When he said that, I tweeted — and I never tweet, that's how angry I was — it may not be relevant for the social network, but it is for intimacy and democracy. Technology makes people stupid. It can blind you to what your underlying values are and need to be. Are we really willing to give away our Constitutional and civil liberties that we fought so hard for? People shed blood for this, to not live in a surveillance society. We looked at the Stasi and said, 'That's not us.' And now we let Apple do it and Google do it? For what?"

Turkles message resonates with me because I'm old enough to have been taught voting by "secret ballot." In many ways, the political ...contagion brought about by media saturation and social, wherein we now know what everyone else thinks about everything, is kind of scary to me - I was raised believing that political stuff, like religion, was a matter of intense personal belief, and thus deeply private. In many ways, I still view myself as an educator, so these things matter to me, on behalf of the teens with whom I interact, and on behalf of myself. Who do we want to be, as writers and bloggers and people, online? Who do we want to be seen as? Or, does that no longer matter, since it seems that we're seen whatever we do? Is there any going back from the edge of this cliff??

Talk amongst yourselves.

TURNING PAGES: Man Trip, by Graham Salisbury

It has to be every once in a great big blue moon that we'll do a middle grade review on this blog, mainly because AF, Citysmart Girl and I write YA lit and tend to limit our reading choices in that direction. However, CSG has two wee boys, and one who might enjoy discovering the Calvin Coconut books, so I thought I'd give this one a whirl. Plus, deep-sea fishing is big at AF's house!

Funny and full of Calvin's boundless energy - for anything except mowing the lawn or doing story problems - the book is a quick-paced read that will be a lit, like the rest of the series. Though this series is aimed at boys, there are female characters, and I think it can easily be enjoyed by everyone.

Reader Gut Reaction:There's something about author Graham Salisbury books which is appealing, regardless of the age he's writing for. His island-centric fiction, colorful characters, and little snapshots of a world where we'd all love to live is a good hook. His Calvin Coconut series has been ongoing for some time, and the title of this episode in Cal's life kind of hooked me, too. MAN TRIP. I laughed. Man trip? Calvin's a fourth grader!

Oh, well. Calvin's Mama always tells her he's the man of the house... which isn't really what Calvin wants to hear.

Concerning Character: Calvin is a well-drawn fourth grader - full of enthusiasms which do not include story problems or chores like mowing the lawn, or girls in general and Shayla, who sits next to him at school, in particular. He's a typical kid - not particularly bad, not particularly stellar, just ... a kid with his own concerns. He is, fortunately, surrounded by older people who are reasonable - His long-suffering mother, who does not screech when he leaves the lawn unmowed for days after she's requested his assistance with that chore, Mr. Purdey, an ex-Army man who is his teacher, the live-in exchange student, Stella. His mother's boyfriend, Ledward, a mountain of a man who owns a banana plantation, provides a non-intrusive male presence at home. It is Ledward who comes up with the idea to take Calvin on a man trip to the Big Island with his friend Baja Bill - just the three of them, getting away to clear their heads in a manly fashion. It is a deep-sea fishing trip that's going to change things for Calvin.

Recommended for Fans Of...: Bruce Coville, including books like Jeremy Thatcher, Dragon Hatcher, Gary Paulsen's books, including Lawn Boy, and Richard Peck's middle grade books including A Year Down Yonder, and Here Lies the Librarian.

Themes & Things: And this is where Graham Salisbury catches me: he writes books directed toward male readers which have strong thematic elements about basic issues of manhood... in short, how to be a man. Truthfulness, honorable behavior, responsibility, kindness - these are all covered in an oblique fashion which does not club readers over the head, but the issues are there, nonetheless. Calvin does thoughtless things, like running over toads with the lawn mower, or catching tiny fish, and leaving them on the bank for the mongoose to find -- or the ants. He's not deliberately destructive, but he doesn't think about the fact that tiny fish deserve to live. Through Ledward's example - being shown and not so much told - Calvin absorbs the idea of respect for the natural world. Ledward and Calvin's "man trip" bumps Calvin up the ladder toward being a man through unobtrusive leadership in a book which still manages to be fresh and funny and full of wonder. And exaggeration. And gross bits. And the odd nose picking. And a fairly pesky girl.

Cover Chatter: One fun thing that middle grade books have that YA books often don't? Interior artwork! Jacqueline Rogers does a fantastic job of creating active looking b/w sketches for the interior pages of the story, as well as an appealing cover which shows Calvin buckled in, front and center, having his big moment, wrestling his ono into the boat. Fun stuff.

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You can find CALVIN COCONUT: MAN TRIP by Graham Salisbury after March 13 at an independent bookstore near you!

Thursday Review: BAD ISLAND by Doug TenNapel

Doug TenNapel, who the increasingly aged among us may remember as the creator of the video game character Earthworm Jim, has written several graphic novels by now, which have gotten quite a bit of positive buzz; however, Bad Island is the first one of his that I've read so far. It was a finalist in this year's Cybils Awards for YA Graphic Novels, and this isn't the first time he's had that honor—last year his GN Ghostopolis was also a YA GN finalist.

Reader Gut Reaction: Who doesn't love a story about being shipwrecked and solving the mystery of a weird desert island full of fantastical plants and bizarre creatures? It's like Indiana Jones, but this one's got a few interesting, creative, and unexpected twists to the underlying premise. Although this one seems to skew to a slightly younger YA (or even older MG) audience, that adventuresome setup is pretty appealing to any reader with a love of action and fantasy. This is definitely a plot-driven piece, with two nicely structured parallel stories: one that takes place on a strange planet in an unknown time and place, and one that follows Reese and his disastrous family boat outing.

I really enjoyed the graphic storytelling in this one, particularly the use of color to set a mood, and establish a different atmosphere between the two storylines. The way the panels are laid out and the action is portrayed has a classic comics feel to it and makes everything easy to read. Style-wise, it's a nice blend of funny, scary, and fantastical.

Concerning Character: As I mentioned, this one is more plot driven, but all of the characters, including the parents, were fully rounded, and each of the four family members played a relatively even role in the story, though it's arguably teenage son Reese's adventure. The dialogue was well-written and entertaining, and distinct for each of the characters. Without giving away too much of the plot, the alien characters, too, were distinctive, fun, sympathetic when appropriate, and scary when they needed to be.

Recommended for Fans Of...: Stories that blend fantasy, sci-fi, and adventure, like Kazu Kibuishi's Amulet books; also, fans of TV shows like Lost or Terra Nova, in which humans must use their wits to survive in an alien and sometimes hostile environment.

Themes & Things: Bad Island is loaded with themes appropriate to an adventure story and a shipwrecked-on-an-island-with-your-aggravating-family-possibly-forever story: most notably, though, it's a story of forgiveness, courage, and trust.

Review Copy Source: Publisher (Cybils review copy)

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You can find Bad Island by Doug TenNapel at an independent bookstore near you!

Ooh, Clicky Goodies! (Not Waiting 'Til Wednesday)

Well, you know we love us some LaFevers at Wonderland, yes? She of the courage to keep writing after a really eviscerating review from Kirkus long, long ago. She of the generosity of spirit to share herself and her methods of not just surviving but thriving in a noisy world, together with Mary Hershey at Shrinking Violets Promotions. She of the wonder of Egyptology and Beastology, of the awesome that is both Theodosia Throckmorton and Nathaniel Fludd. She who now has written a novel which is getting quite an excited little buzz, and which has been compared in positively glowing terms to Kristin Cashore's Graceling.

Okay, wait. Back up. What novel compared to Graceling?

Robin's, of course. Imagine: Assasins. Nuns. France. ...and most of all, YA.

GRAVE MERCY, out in April, I've just bumped up on my TBR, as it is on NetGalley for just two days. I'm on it. It's BONUS DAY, which means that there's no really good reason to at least not give yourself the gift of an the first chapter of the book. Click through and enjoy.

Don't miss the fab book trailer, either.

Seven Fab Years - Now Onto Super 8

It took us a few days, to figure out an introduction. We both wrote one, or accidentally posted both the original and an edit of the first one, and never figured out - or decided - to delete them. It was 2005, and we were taking our first self-conscious steps onto the stage of YA book blogging after finishing our MFA's. Our first book reviews a few days later - David Levithan's classic Boy Meets Boy and Richard Peck's Between Two Rivers were followed up by a rather opinionated rant on animal-morphing CGI in children's movies on February 28, 2005.

What a long, strange trip it's been since then.

Blogs have a life cycle, and several times since then one or the other of us has said, "I think I'm done with this." But, having two - sometimes three - people around has helped to spread the wealth. We don't make any attempt to blog daily - that's too much, for people whose primary jobs now are full-time freelance writing. We have too many projects and deadlines - but as we head into year eight, we're still reading, still participating in the gigantic, dynamic soup of YA and children's literature, and watching it morph from something a little bound by convention and hovered over by gatekeepers into something altogether changeable and disputed, lively, colorful and marked by the disparate cultures and communities it now represents. From graphic novels to ebooks, to apps, there's a lot of change in the air - and a lot of questions on how the economy and the children's book industry will continue. Do books have a future? Will the great pots of story always be stirred by one group to and fed to another?

Change is... inevitable. Adventure is optional. Here's to the great adventure...

It's been good to be a part of the blogosphere. Thanks for being here, too.

Monday Review: WONDERSTRUCK by Brian Selznick

Wonderstruck, the second novel by the author of the incredible Invention of Hugo Cabret, was a finalist in this year's Cybils Awards for Elementary/Middle Grade Graphic Novels. As with Hugo, I had mixed feelings about whether this one belongs in graphic novels. It's truly a hybrid genre--large portions of the book took place entirely wordlessly, with only images telling the story. I'm just not sure there's anybody out there doing anything quite like it.

Reader Gut Reaction: This one is sure to grab readers who are visually oriented, as well as those with an irresistible urge to solve a mystery—We find out pretty quickly who Ben is, but who exactly is Rose? How is she connected to Ben? Admittedly, it's not the most sensational of mysteries, and it may be a little "quiet" for some readers, but the surprising parallels in Rose's and Ben's stories intertwine in ways that continue to foster that feeling of wonder in the reader. Their stories take place 50 years apart, but both find their way to New York, and both end up finding themselves in the process. It's an appealing story structure, and it kept me turning the pages, whether those pages were filled with words or with images. And, as with Hugo, I was again floored by how Selznick seamlessly blends fact and fiction in just the right way to intrigue the reader into finding out more about the factual elements—in this case, elements of natural history, of the history of New York and its museums, of deafness and deaf culture and its history.

Concerning Character: I loved the fact that Rose's story was told entirely in pictures—fitting for the story of someone with a non-hearing life—and Ben's in words, and then at the end both come together. The parallel stories told in two different modalities was a fantastic way of conveying the idea of a non-verbal narration from a deaf protagonist versus Ben's verbal experience of the world. It also helped create a sense of the two very different time periods constituting each story.

The full-page, bleed pencil drawings as always are absorbing and convey a lot of emotion and detail, fitting to Rose's story, which starts off with a sort of emotional desperation that is palpable as we understand her feelings of imprisonment in her own life and body. Ben, meanwhile, is dealing with his own storm of feelings, as he struggles to figure out who he is and what he should do in the wake of his mother's death.

Recommended for Fans Of...: Brian Selznick's first book, The Invention of Hugo Cabret, as well as fans of stories that bring to life the magic of museums, like the fabulous and classic work From the Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler--which is mentioned in the author's notes and which I fully intend to re-read now.

Themes & Things: Above all, this is a story about discovery and, as the title notes, wonder. It's about going in search of something nameless in order to find yourself, and, in the process, being open to things like wonder and awe and coincidence and friendship, often in unexpected places. And, of course, it's about the joy of finding something you didn't even know you were looking for.

Review Copy Source: Publisher (Cybils review copy)

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You can find Wonderstruck by Brian Selznick at an independent bookstore near you!

Toon Thursday: Game Shows, 2.0

Yeah, when I hit on something fun, I just can't leave it alone! Here you go:

Happy birthday, by the way, to David Foster Wallace this week--he would have been 50. Also, today would be the birthday of Edward Gorey, one of my all-time favorites. Tidbits via the L.A. Times column Jacket Copy, which also reports that you WILL, in fact, be able to buy Stephen Colbert's children's book, I am a Pole: And so can you!

Also, I was only able to think of two feminist poets whose names start with A, but I'm sure there must be more...

How Did I Miss...?

'Scape Zine.
How did I miss this?
A new venue for young adult fiction, poetry and reviews of speculative fiction, and it's on its third issue already. Directed toward young adults and those who enjoy young adult SFF/speculative fiction, 'Scape is produced by a team of brilliant young things led by editor-in-chief Peta Freestone, a 2011 graduate of the Clarion Writers' Workshop at UCSD. 'Scape is published four times a year.

Do you not love the logo? I love the logo.

'Scape is a fresh YA SFF 'zine, concentrating its focus on unusual settings: unique worlds, fresh takes on the future, geographic and cultural contexts that aren’t often featured in fantasy and scifi. They're actively seeking stories that make them think, make them ponder, make them wonder, and which are geared to thinking young adults - not children. Surprise, writers: is a paying market, and they only accept original content - nothing in the fan-fic/derivative works category. They're after fiction with a twist, tightly written, brilliantly plotted pieces that makes readers think and care and dream in colors they've never seen. If you're not sure your piece is YA-friendly, check out Speculation or Formula? in their first issue, and read a definition at Broad Universe's What Makes YA? Those should help clarify.

'Scape is actively seeking submissions in fiction, poetry, and speculative fiction related artwork -- and they're also actively seeking slush readers. All staff are volunteers, but this is one of those great things to put on a writing résumé, if you're of a mind to get involved seriously with the speculative fiction writing community.

Check it out.

Turning Pages: Azad, by Sanjiv Behera

It's not often that I have a chance to review books which are truly multicultural, but this book is one. It's a quiet gem of stories interlinked by the common theme of freedom. Freedom is truly the subject at hand, as all proceeds from the novel are to go toward freeing others...

Reader Gut Reaction...According to Wikipedia, Azād is a word of Indo-Iranian origins, which means "free" - the author more specifically defines the word as "liberation." Despite its Arabic roots, the word azād is used in Indo-Iranian languages like Kurdish, Dari, Urdu, Persian and Punjabi -- as well as Armenian. From South Asia to Arabic lands, freedom is certainly a necessary component of the human condition, and Azad, A Flight of Desi Fantasy is a short story collection which unshackles the mind from convention in fiction and pitches it head first into a parallel universe where enigmatic sages and gods and monsters lurk. Though this book is sold as YA, its appeal is cross-generational.

A street vendor, a teen girl from the suburbs, a completely nonathletic ten-year-old boy, a nonconformist young Indian woman, a goodhearted - but unlucky - rickshaw driver, and a young Muslim man in NY are all subjects on their own stages - and then the forces of Other step in. Rich in imagery and enigma, Behera's debut YA collection of short fiction is ripe with magical realism, gods, and fate. You'll have no idea where you're going, but you'll be better off when you get there.

Concerning Character..."The Gondolier" - Ravi and Nwanko's escape from their hand-to-mouth existence in Venice includes a gondola, a sea god, and a tanker -- things no one would have believed.

Nachli Iyer danced her the world into existences - and almost right out again.

"Golden" - Sona Grewal dreams of baseball - but loathes baseball practice, until one day...

In Passage, Swati, her family's unmarried burden, is horrified when their family home burns down. It is brought home to her that ultimately, it is her fault, for being too stubborn, too difficult, and too different. Truly, only Buddah can help her...

"Vinayaka" - A satisfying tale of obstacles removed and kindnesses done, "Vinayaka" will be a favorite to those who love a happy ending. It, incidentally, is also the only story in the collection with a tiny cultural footnote - none of the rest of the stories need even the little bit of interpretation.

"The Djinn's Wings" - the final story in the collection. Zubin Khan's first job in New York isn't the joy it was supposed to be -- because at every opportunity, his boss chips away at his self image, insults him, and belittles. Revenge is easy -- but it's living with the consequences of your actions that's sometimes hard.

Recommended for Fans Of...: The Kissing, and other works by Merlinda Bobis, The Magicians, by Lev Grossman, Jhumpa Lahiri's Interpreter of Maladies, The Shadow Speaker, by Nnedi Okorafor-Mbachu, and the work of Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni.

Cover Chatter: Rickshaw Books and Sanjiv Behera have chosen a beautiful and simple alpana (I think) mehndi pattern for the cover, which is a sacred painting and artistic motif used by Bengali and other South Asian peoples. All author proceeds from this novel will be donated to helping stop child trafficking in India. Enchanting storytelling and real-life freedom: win/win.

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You can order AZAD: A Flight of Desi Fantasy from an online bookseller.

Monday Review: ZITA THE SPACEGIRL, VOL. 1 by Ben Hatke

Zita the Spacegirl, Vol. 1 was this year's Cybil Award winner in Elementary/Middle Grade Graphic Novels. Now that the winners have been announced, we judges are released from our vows of silence and can now discuss our opinions freely. Bwahahaha.

A quick note: please excuse any similarities in style or phrasing between this review and the official blurb. I helped write the official blurb, and both the blurb and this review reflect the notes I took while I was reading. (Is it really plagiarism if I'm plagiarizing myself? That's a Zen koan for writers if I ever heard one...)

Reader Gut Reaction: Everything about this, to me, screams kid appeal—one of the key must-haves of a great Cybils title. And it's GOT everything: adventure, aliens, robots; critters from the cute to the weird to the scary; friendship and humor aplenty. It felt a little like a Hitchhiker's Guide for kids—to me, the perfect combo of humor and sci-fi adventure. I thought the visual style was fantastic, too, and I read it in one sitting—which was testament not to length or simplicity but to its sheer ability to get me hooked. I'm really glad there's a sequel...

Concerning Character: Zita, the book's heroine, is smart and self-sufficient, and loyal to her friends whether they happen to be human, robot, or giant mouse (and, believe me, she encounters and enlists the help of ALL of those). Her bravery and sense of adventure are balanced out by the fact that she is thoughtful, non-judgmental, and wants to do the right thing. She's drawn in an appealingly loose and open style—well-drawn but not overly complicated. The side characters are varied and interesting, as noted, while from a visual perspective they're consistent with the overall style. In other words, everything fit neatly from a graphic storytelling standpoint.

Recommended for Fans Of...: Stories of adventuresome, plucky, creative, smart kids, like Frankie Pickle or Babymouse (although, technically, I guess she's not a kid...)--if you've got a reader who's "graduated" from those titles and is looking for something a bit more advanced, I think this would be a great choice.

Themes & Things: In my opinion, this was really well-written and has a lot of very thoughtful themes for a graphic novel aimed at the younger set—friendship, loyalty, giving people a chance to prove themselves and looking beyond the exterior to who they really are, creative problem-solving, not losing hope in the face of disaster. While some might see it as more of a genre piece, without a lot of character setup or "message," I see that as a strength, myself, something that helps highlight the book's themes rather than overshadowing them, if that makes sense.

Review Copy Source: Library

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You can find Zita the Spacegirl by Ben Hatke at an independent bookstore near you!

The Edge in Fiction, or: Why Safe Books Are Dead Books

Welcome to our humble stop on the blog tour for Ashley Hope Pérez's latest novel, The Knife and the Butterfly, out now from Carolrhoda Books. We posted an in-depth review on Monday and on Wednesday a follow-up chat on the overarching ideas Ashley is covering during her blog tour. Today we've got some thoughts from the author herself on what it means to write a book with an edge--and what it doesn't mean.

A brief bio to begin: Ashley Hope Pérez is the author of two young adult novels, WHAT CAN'T WAIT and THE KNIFE AND THE BUTTERFLY. She also is a passionate teacher and student working on her PhD in comparative literature. At the moment, she lives in Paris with her husband and son where they enjoy culture, croissants, and cramped living quarters.

With no further ado, here's Ashley:

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The term “edgy” is flying around in talk about The Knife and the Butterfly and the voice in which it’s told. And trust me, I’m thrilled that I (cautious rule-follower to the max in all other areas) have pulled off writing in the voice of a 15-year-old boy who happens to be homeless, in trouble with the law, and caught up in a gang.

What’s the one thing that would make me happier? If I could give “edgy” the particular edge it has for me.

The thing is, the edge that interests me most has little to do with sex or gangs or profanity. These are, in my view, simply accidents of my characters’ world (think: inner-city, no safety nets). Sometimes when I’m talking about this aspect of The Knife and the Butterfly, I feel like a woman giving a tour of a house she’s renting: “I know, I know, I wish the wallpaper in here were nicer, but this is what I’ve got to work with.”

The world of The Knife and the Butterfly is, indeed, a world on loan. It’s borrowed from the news (the gang fight that opens the novel was inspired by an actual event in Houston). It’s borrowed from the alleys and taquerías and run-down parks that I scoped out while writing. It’s borrowed from interviews with Houston teens and MS-13 members that I read.

Now, this is where I could say, “the book has to be rough because the world it’s about is rough.” There’s plenty of truth to that, but it’s not the truth I want to take up right now. And my novel, like all fiction, is far from a facsimile of the actual world. The cussing is scaled WAY back from reality (for a teen like Azael), and most of the violence and sexual stuff in The Knife and the Butterfly is thematic, not explicit or graphic.

What if we think about the “edge” in a new way? What if it’s not so much about the themes and material in the book but rather about how that book and a real reader relate?

Here’s the edge that really matters in YA (and in all fiction): the way something a book can take the reader by surprise, almost violently. Not in a “I can’t believe the butler did it” way, but in a “nothing could have prepared me for how X would affect me” way.

In that previous sentence, X stands for the edge. It might be the beauty of language (or its deliberate plainness), a character, or even a turn in the plot. The important thing is that a truly edgy book doesn’t leave us intact; it makes us vulnerable to something—an emotion, a thought, a realization, a fear, a discovery, a way of seeing—and it forces us to reckon with it. Certainly this edge is different for different readers, even when they are reading the same book, but we all need it to evolve our reading lives.

I doubt that I need to remind anyone of the whole debate sparked by Meghan Cox Gurdon’s Wall Street Journal article, “Darkness Too Visible.” (If you have no idea what I’m talking about or want to know my take, look at this or this.) The only thing that I want to bring back from that piece was the longing—false nostalgia, even—for safety in books. As a parent, I understand this feeling. Really, I do. But I am more than just a parent. I am a reader, a writer, and a student of literature, and in those roles, I have come to believe that safe books are inert books, dead books.

If we feel 100% safe with what we’re reading, if we meticulously avoid the chance of encountering the edge, we’re very unlikely to be deeply affected by our reading. There has to be an element of risk and exposure in the reading relationship if anything very profound is going to occur. A great book is not a safe place for the reader.

Don’t misunderstand me. An edgy book needn’t be dark or peppered with profanity. But there must be something about the book that takes the reader to a place she could not have said, in advance, that she wanted to go.

That something is the edge I hope readers will find in my writing. The rest… it’s just wallpaper.

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Thanks so much, Ashley, for stopping by and sharing your writerly thoughts! And, for readers of this post, you can visit Ashley's blog, follow her on twitter @ashleyhopeperez, or find her on facebook.

Watch for more insights into the writing of the novel throughout Ashley's The Knife and the Butterfly blog tour. See the full tour schedule here.

You can buy The Knife and the Butterfly from your favorite local bookseller or order it online.

Tune In Tomorrow...

...for a wonderfully thought-provoking guest post from Ashley Hope Pérez, author of What Can't Wait and The Knife and the Butterfly. If you've got an opinion on "edgy" YA and what the term means, or if you're even wondering what the heck it DOES mean in the first place, please stop by and check it out.

In the meantime, a quick tidbit of news that should be heartening to hardworking authors everywhere, via Cynthia Leitich Smith:

Together with The Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrators (SCBWI), beloved author Jane Yolen has created a new grant to honor an oft-overlooked group: Midlist authors. These are authors who have consistently sold work but are not bestsellers.

According to Jane, "In these difficult book times, well-reviewed and honored authors often find themselves stalled in their writing lives and find they are having trouble selling new work. In our attention to up-and-coming authors, we, the reading public, often ignore these mid-list writers who struggle to remain true to their personal vision and craft. This grant is to say: SCBWI honors you, we recognize you, we are paying attention to your work."

Bravo to Jane and to SCBWI! To read more about it and check out a video clip, visit Cynsations. I am consistently amazed at what we can do, and what we DO do, for one another as children's/YA authors, and what a supportive field it is. Of course, by supporting one another, I believe we all benefit.

Ashley Hope Pérez: Big Ideas, Small Venues

Writer and Blogger Ashley Hope Pérez has been throwing her considerable intellect around a great deal these days. "Stuck" in Paris (Oh, hahaha) for a year as she works toward her PhD in Comparative Literature (with a wee man, age two, and a Big Man who is also working on his PhD. How. Do. They. Do. It?!), the writer struck on a brilliant way to promote the book which released while she was abroad, and still effortlessly keep up with everything else. (Cue author's, "Oh, hahaha.") She set out on a low-key blog tour with twenty-four stops (it's not really an oxymoron. No, seriously). Spread out from the end of January through the month of her book release, February, the posts are helping the author retain visibility, and allow readers familiarity with her name. They're also helping Pérez to convey a few big-ticket ideas along the way.

Being a funny person, some of the author's ideas are a bit on the funny side, some in the form of a teensy tiny rant. For instance, Pérez does not love the glossary thing, and we are with her on that. Despite the fact that her otherwise positive review at Kirkus said The Knife and the Butterfly could have used a glossary, Pérez disagrees. At Forever Young Adult she says, "...you really don’t need a glossary to read The Knife and the Butterfly. All you need is a big appetite for a story that will take you into dark places and show you a good dose of light, too."

We have to agree. Sometimes American publishing - and this is possibly because many are always half thinking of YA novels in some scholastic context - really is too eager to dumb things down. I remember the scornful lift of many a teen lip as they realized that the American version of Harry Potter had been wiped clean of the many British-isms which editors felt would be distracting. "Really?" Young readers shrieked. "Do they think we're stupid?!" Um, no. But, um, yes. Sorry. It seems that they do. They also think you have zero attention span, but that's a rant for another day.

One thing you will not find in The Knife and the Butterfly - an author who thinks readers are stupid. Read on.

So, yeah. It's a novel about an Hispanic boy from a gang in jail. Shoppers, turn on your blue Kmart stereotype light, and let it spin and flash!

Racism on aisle six! Racism on aisle six!

Feel better? Now, turn it off. Yeah, turn it off. Yes, really.

No, this isn't a case where, say, Pérez is Hispanic, so she can write these things. (She is not, but knows Hispanic culture very well, and has married into a Latino family.) That's like the dumb inference which means I can drop the n-word (or, hey, my Dad's half or maybe a quarter Greek; surely there's some Greek stereotype I'm now eligible to rock?), or that because of a slim piece of her ethnic background, A.F. can call people towel-heads. (If you've read The Latte Rebellion, you know you just Caught A Book Reference. Woot!) No. This is the author acknowledging a statistic, and busting the stereotype that merely taking statistics into account can engender, by bringing out the human side. During her visit to Actin' Up, Pérez said, "...I discovered that, even in the world of gangs and petty crimes, everyday realities cast a wider shadow than the stereotypes that pretend to contain them. Azael’s life is full of contrasts, love and loss, loyalty and recklessness."

WORD. People are breathing, flesh-and-blood entities creatures who cherish things, mourn things, hope for things, have vulnerabilities, and are real. A writer who messes around with stereotypes without thinking them through is asking for trouble. We like that Pérez not only thought of the seriousness of writing about gang members, she is honest and up-front enough about it to just be real, and get people's objections and uncertainties out of the way.

Another thing you find in The Knife and the Butterfly - an author who takes her subject seriously. Read on.

We are always about the art around here - whether that's because I like to mess around with images whilst thinking (my niece is the graphics design major; does this stop me from pretending that I am? Does she wish it would? Yes to both), or because A.F. is an actual bonafide Artist Type, but we love to hear how a book cover comes to be. Blogger Sarah Laurence actually asked, and Pérez graciously walked her through the previous drafts of the deliciously dark cover. And Oh, My Word, did she dodge a bullet with the Twilight feel/ Dark Angel kind of thing cover that came across at one point. On one hand, so evocative and kind of moody and gorgeous. On the other, so sending sixteen hundred varying and wrong messages about this particular book, and so, so DONE. Not every author gets a chance to be involved in the steps to produce a cover, so kudos to the editors who are confident enough to let the author in, and to the author who knows her mind enough to speak it. WIN on all sides.

While conveying Big Ideas, Pérez has managed to generate them for writers as well. My favorite post in terms of writerly things thus far is at Blogger Holly Schnindler's YA Outside the Lines. Pérez's ruminations on The Things That They Carried, by Tim O'Brien, and listing out the things Azael carries is both poignant and telling, and gives such an appalling look at the transience of this character on earth - he carries so little! And yet, he's such a presence, tagging all over the city, being mouthy and swaggering -- he seems so big. Contrasts. Complexities. Characters. (Writers - more on the subject on the author's blog.)

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The best thing about a blog tour is that it allows an author to think deeply and really talk about their work, and allows readers to ask the niggling, secret, or silly questions they've got lurking within them about a work, about an author, or about their process. Ashley has been a guest blogger from whom the folks at Writers' Digest should take notes. There's more on deck for The Knife and the Butterfly blog tour, including a stop with us this Friday. Be sure and read A.F.'s review of The Knife and the Butterfly, which she struggled to keep spoiler-free, and we'll see you back here then.

We Gotcher Hearts Right Here

FEEL THE LOVE, GIVE THE LOVE

It's We Give Books.org's Book Giveaway Day, it's Day 14 of the Brown Bookshelf 28 Days Later African American authors and illustrators highlights, it's International Book Giving Day, wherein authors and publishers from around the world are giving books, and it's also the day that.... *drum roll, please* .... THE 2011 CYBILS AWARD WINNERS ARE ANNOUNCED!

(Oh, and, you know, it's Valentine's. Chalk candy hearts and dead saints and all. Woot.)

Just in the categories we covered - A.F. in graphics and me in SFF - I know there was a lot of ground to cover. Since the team at SFF read ebooks for the first time in 2011, we had a lot of self-pubbed and small press stuff which was a tremendous opportunity. Some of it was, non-spell checked, poorly plotted, unrealistically characterized first draft stuff, but most of it was really wonderful - congratulations on your finalist nomination, Susan Ee - we were truly impressed -- and Nora Olsen, you are awesome and were so, so close! Please, keep writing!

Well, our crew eventually fought our way to a shortlist. While others loved Anna Dressed in Blood with an undying - and rather crimson - passion, I really loved The Girl of Fire and Thorns -- but I'm frankly disappointed that Misfit and The Shattering weren't also overall winners. However, there can only be one, winner -- and there were SO MANY GOOD BOOKS from which to choose this year.

Holly Black, Susan Ee, Rae Carson, Jon Skovron, Karen Healey, and the others in our shortlists well deserved their nominations, and I'm grateful again for the chance to be involved, for the publishers and editors and authors who were good sports and subbed something for us, and for everyone who let me play. Thank you Overlord Anne, Sheila, Hallie, Steve, Maureen, Sommer, and Gwenda and Leila in abstentia (they were there in spirit) for letting me play. Woot!

Without further ado, the winners, as taken from the website - and if you are not Leila Roy, you must now restack your TBR list:

Book Apps
The Monster at the End of This Book
by Callaway Digital Arts, Inc
Nominated by: Sheila Ruth

No one will be able to resist lovable, furry old Grover in this giggle-inducing book app based on the 1971 classic Golden Book. Sesame Street and Callaway Digital Arts hit all the notes perfectly from the opening pages, as Grover draws the reader in with his charm and natural humor. From that point on, no matter what age you may be, you will laugh, smile and read along while Grover tries his best to keep you from turning yet another page. Emerging readers will follow the highlighted words as Grover speaks. Little fingers will tap the screen, discovering ways to untie the ropes and knock down Grover's brick wall, undoing each of his creative attempts to stop them. This app is perfect for preschoolers, but Grover’s silly voice and the engaging interactive features make it fun for all ages.

Fiction Picture Books
Me . . . Jane
by Patrick McDonnell
Little, Brown
Nominated by: Kerry Aradhya

Me...Jane is a touching glimpse into the life of a young Jane Goodall as a curious girl with a love of nature, and books, and a stuffed chimpanzee named Jubilee. A unique combination of dreamy watercolor vignettes and nature-inspired vintage engravings complement a simple and evocative text. Every element of the book's design, from its album-like cover and heavy yellowed pages to the inclusion of photographs and Goodall's own childhood drawings, helps create a picture book that feels like a relative's cherished scrapbook. Readers of all ages will take inspiration from a young girl who so fully follows her dreams.

Nonfiction Picture Books
I Feel Better with a Frog in My Throat: History's Strangest Cures
by Carlyn Beccia
Houghton Mifflin Books for Children
Nominated by: Mary McKenna Siddals

From the very first page, A Frog in My Throat offers readers a great deal of scientific and historical information with just enough ick factor to keep readers of all ages turning the pages. The question-and-answer format gives it an interactive feel, and the author includes amazing language choices that continually draw in the reader. The text and the illustrations are loaded with tidbits that will send kids to the library asking for more information on specific topics.

Elementary listeners, middle grade readers, and their parents will eat up this nonfiction picture book, filled with enlightening conversational text and perfectly suited pictures. Kids will likely choose I Feel Better with a Frog in My Throat for the gross-out factor, but they'll put it down ever wiser about history, science, and sociology, too ... just don't tell them there's learning inside.

Easy Readers
I Broke My Trunk! (An Elephant and Piggie Book)
by Mo Willems
Hyperion
Nominated by: Becky

Piggie is surprised to see Gerald's trunk wrapped in a bandage. When she asks how it happened, Gerald starts a v-e-r-y detailed, humorous explanation. It is wonderful how much suspense can be packed into so few words, leaving readers eager to turn the page. Willems effectively blends illustration and early-reader vocabulary in a way that allows new readers not only to decode what's happening, but to add emotion to their reading aloud. With wonderful facial expressions and expressive body language, Gerald and Piggie invite the reader into their friendship circle. Elephant and Piggie is an entry-level Easy Reader that works very well for that very first-time, read-by-yourself story, and hits kids in one of their favorite spots: their funny bone!

Early Chapter Books
Have Fun, Anna Hibiscus!
by Atinuke
Kane/Miller Book Pub
Nominated by: Madigan McGillicuddy

Readers of all ages will fall in love with Anna Hibiscus. With beautiful writing and great illustrations, Anna invites us into her world as a young girl from Africa visiting family in Canada during the winter. Have Fun, Anna Hibiscus has a lot of heart and humor. The story not only makes the reader reflect on his or her world, but shows them constructive ways of handling different situations. This is not a "girl book," but a story that celebrates cultural differences and at the same time highlights how childhood cares and concerns are similar around the world. The illustrations - particularly how they are used - add to the story's effectiveness as an early chapter book, making Anna a true friend for developing readers.

Poetry
Requiem: Poems of the Terezin Ghetto
by Paul B. Janeczko
Candlewick Press
Nominated by: Tricia Stohr-Hunt

"I am a watcher/sitting with those about to die." These are the words of Elisha Schorr/25565 as imagined by poet Paul Janeczko. In Requiem: Poems of the Terezin Ghetto, we all become watchers, viewing snapshots of the Holocaust, one after the other, each one deepening the grief and raising questions to which there are no answers.

We watch, but we also hear the story of Terezin, voice by voice, insistent and haunting, so that the effect by the end of the collection is almost choral. For each song of despair, there is a concordant and essential song of anger, tenderness or resignation; like a recurring melodic theme, the voice of one child appears and fades and appears again. We hear the violin of one victim playing "as only the heartbroken can play."

Cybils committee members agreed early in the deliberations that this slim volume of poems was a strong contender for the prize, with words like "stunning" and "haunting" coming up repeatedly in our conversation. Ultimately, the voices Janeczko created could not be forgotten.

Graphic Novels
Zita the Spacegirl
by Ben Hatke
First Second Books
Nominated by: Isaac Z

Zita the Spacegirl's appealing combination of humor and sci-fi adventure already has kids begging their librarians for the sequel. It's got everything: aliens, robots, critters from the cute to the weird to the scary, and a smart, self-sufficient heroine who's unfailingly loyal to her friends whether they happen to be human, robot or giant mouse. The visual storytelling is just as appealing—the drawing style is loose and open, and the fun character design and sound effects add liveliness and humor. There's enough action, novelty, and color to keep younger readers interested, and enough thoughtfulness to satisfy more sophisticated readers, making this a terrific choice for a wide range of ages.

Fantasy & Science Fiction
The Cheshire Cheese Cat: A Dickens of a Tale
by Carmen Agra Deedy and Randall Wright; illustrations by Barry Moser
Peachtree Press
Nominated by: Monica Edinger

The Cheshire Cheese Cat slipped into our hearts like Skilley the alley cat sneaks into Ye Olde Cheshire Cheese. Much more than just a cute, talking animal fantasy (though it is that too), this book has a depth of theme and character and a richness of language that blew us away. Both animals and humans ring true to life and the unique alliance that develops between Skilley and Pip, an uncommonly well-educated mouse, matures and ripens like a tasty piece of cheese. The illustrations scattered through the text are warmly humorous and add dimension to the characters. Charles Dickens has an important supporting role and there are abundant literary allusions and though these may be lost on some younger readers, we believe they will remember and enjoy them again in later life. We feel that The Cheshire Cheese Cat has oodles of kid appeal and that readers will be as charmed as we were by this sweet and funny tale of an unlikely friendship overcoming the odds.

Middle Grade Fiction
Nerd Camp
by Elissa Brent Weissman
Atheneum Books
Nominated by: Jennifer Donovan

Gabe is a nerd. He's not ashamed of this fact; quite the contrary, since he's been accepted into the Summer Center for Gifted Enrichment. It's the most exciting thing of his 10-year-old life. Then he meets his soon-to-be stepbrother, Zack. Zack is cool and most definitely not a nerd. In fact, Zack is disdainful of all things nerdy. Gabe really wants his new brother to like him, but he also really loves all things nerdy. In the end, Gabe sets out to find scientific proof, once and for all: are the adventures he has at the SCGE camp over the course of the summer too nerdy for words? Or are they cool in their own right?

With its quirky, nerdy humor; amazing camp activities; and believable characters, Nerd Camp is a delight to read. There are nerds of all stripes, from Gabe's bunkmates Wesley and Nikhil to a guy who goes by C² (a living legend at the camp because he skipped two grades). Elissa Brent Weissman just gets the awkwardness of being 10. It's admirable that Gabe strongly identifies as a nerd, even though he is picked on, and finds comfort and belonging in a group of people as quirky and as unique as he is. (Memorizing pi to the 20th digit, or rocking the nations of the world song on karaoke night, anyone?) A celebration of all things smart, Nerd Camp is a book that's worth cheering for.

Young Adult
Nonfiction Books
Amelia Lost: The Life and Disappearance of Amelia Earhart
by Candace Fleming
Schwartz and Wade Books
Nominated by: Monica Edinger

Amelia Lost offers both a biography and an expose of Amelia Earhart, the aviation pioneer whose exploits played a groundbreaking role in the achievement of equal rights by American women. Earhart actively crafted and cultivated a mythology around herself in order to create ongoing opportunities as a female aviator and to maintain her heroine status. Exciting chapters alternate between Amelia's high-profile life and the days and hours preceding her still-unsolved mysterious 1937 disappearance somewhere in the Pacific Ocean. Author Candace Fleming carefully separates history from myth with her meticulous research. Packed with photos and informative sidebars, Amelia Lost shows readers in vivid detail the dangers of early aviation and an accurate portrayal of this very real American heroine.

Graphic Novels
Anya's Ghost
by Vera Brosgol
First Second Books
Nominated by: Robin

Ghost story—check. Snarky but fully rounded protagonist—check. Believable teen characters and behavior—check. Humor—yep. Anya's Ghost has the perfect blend of story elements and it deftly layers several classic teen literature topics in a relatively short space. The themes of fitting in at school and in life, avoiding toxic friends both earthly and unearthly, and learning to come to terms with who you are, are nicely underscored by the fact that Anya is an immigrant. At the same time, Anya's interactions with the ghost add suspense and the perfect amount of creepiness. The art style is simple, engaging and funny, and works well with a monochromatic format. A fast-paced read that doesn't skimp on story.

Fantasy & Science Fiction
Blood Red Road
by Moira Young
Margaret K. McElderry Books
Nominated by: Leila Roy

Blood Red Road is one of those books that can be infinitely compared to other stories -- one panelist wrote that it “read like the Harlequin Romance version of Mad Max” -- while still having its own unique voice and style. We’re not sure where an Australian writer living in England learned an Ozark accent. Although we sometimes struggled with it, we admired the way the innovative use of language allows the reader to get into the head of the prickly but ultimately sympathetic protagonist.

Saba’s beloved twin brother Lugh has been kidnapped, and Saba knows it’s up to her to rescue him. This is no easy task in their post-apocalyptic world, where food is scarce and those who can’t fight are easy pickings. Luckily, Saba’s a survivor, and she finds some allies in her quest: a handsome man named Jack, a group of fierce warrior women, and even her own little sister Emmi.

Saba is a wonderfully dynamic character, growing from a sometimes cruel girl with a single-minded purpose into a more mature young woman sensitive to the feelings of those close to her, particularly Emmi. The violent wasteland Saba inhabits is well-drawn and terrifying in the best way. The romance can feel cheesy, but it’s interwoven in a way that doesn’t overpower the story. While the plot is sometimes predictable, we loved that this book takes risks, doesn't talk down to its audience, and takes us on a familiar journey in a style that we don't often see. The combination of voice, character, and fast-paced action make this an appealing book that will keep readers turning the pages.

Young Adult Fiction
Stupid Fast
by Geoff Herbach
Sourcebooks Fire
Nominated by: Karen Yingling

"I am not stupid funny. I am stupid fast." Enter the frenzied world of Felton Reinstein. His vibrant, engaging voice draws readers into a teenaged mind knocked off kilter by a growth spurt of body and hair that lands him on the radar of the football jocks. Suddenly, Felton is racing past defenders, romance is blooming, his best friend has left the country, his prodigy little brother has stopped playing the piano and turned into a pirate, and his hippie mom is sinking into depression. An extraordinary mix of adolescent angst, football, family drama, first love and refreshing humor, Stupid Fast lets reader run fast with Felton as he navigates the complicated and raucous maze of going from high school joke to high school jock.