Posts tagged young adult

For all of you who are interested in participating in this site’s up and coming book discussion club, we have our first selection, chosen by the lovely and talented Jessica Spotswood!

Our first book, which we’ll talk about during the month of November, will be the new young adult novel Plain Kate, by Erin Bow.

Here’s what IndieBound has to say about it:

Plain Kate lives in a world of superstitions and curses, where a song can heal a wound and a shadow can work deep magic. As the wood-carver’s daughter, Kate held a carving knife before a spoon, and her wooden charms are so fine that some even call her “witch-blade” — a dangerous nickname in a town where witches are hunted and burned in the square.

For Kate and her village have fallen on hard times. Kate’s father has died, leaving her alone in the world. And a mysterious fog now covers the countryside, ruining crops and spreading fear of hunger and sickness. The townspeople are looking for someone to blame, and their eyes have fallen on Kate.

Enter Linay, a stranger with a proposition: In exchange for her shadow, he’ll give Kate the means to escape the town that seems set to burn her, and what’s more, he’ll grant her heart’s wish. It’s a chance for her to start over, to find a home, a family, a place to belong. But Kate soon realizes that she can’t live shadowless forever — and that Linay’s designs are darker than she ever dreamed.

Comment here or send me an email if you want to read with us!  I’m currently figuring out how this will all work in an online setting and I’m also working on choosing selections for later on, so I’m extremely open to suggestions.  I want to read what you want to read!

For now, mosey down to your local  library or bookstore and give Plain Kate a whirl!  Stay tuned!

Frankenstein, by Mary Shelley

What do you picture when you hear someone mention Frankenstein?  A big green monster with bolts in his neck?  One who looks like, say, Boris Karloff?  Somewhere in the funnel of pop culture, that’s the image that universally comes to mind, but that’s not what Mary Shelley originally intended.

Everybody has heard of Frankenstein, but how many have actually read the book?  If you haven’t yet, now is a great time to give it a whirl—Mary Shelley’s dark novel is one of the ultimate horror tales and predecessor to many other works of science fiction.

Famously written in 1818 as part of a contest between Shelley, her husband Percy, and their famous poet friend Lord Byron, Frankenstein is a dark and fascinating tale of the human condition and what happens when we push science too far.  Victor Frankenstein, ambitious and clever, has been slaving away to figure out the mystery of life and creation, trying to cobble his own human being  together from the body parts of cadavers and bring it to life.  Of course, we all know that this does not end as the doctor would have liked, creating instead a violent and wildly unpredictable Creature who is immediately branded as a monster.

Rather than take responsibility for the mess he has created, Frankenstein allows his Creature to roam free and uninhibited over the land.  The pitiful Creature, abused, neglected, uneducated, and friendless, longs only for companionship, a luxury denied him over and over again save from the kindness of a blind man who cannot see his frightening appearance.  At his core, we discover, he is not an evil monster, but merely an unfortunate soul who has not been given education or restraint: a parentless child left to fend for himself.

As the Creature gains more knowledge and experience in the world, he learns of his creation and comes back to Frankenstein with a request: to make him a mate or there will be severe consequences.

Check out the original story, a thoughtful and spooky tale of ethics and humanity, just in time for Halloween!

Bridge to Terabithia, by Katherine Paterson

This is another often-banned book, as well as one of my favorite books of all time.  I have reread it several times over and it never ceases to amaze:

In 1970s Maryland, young Jess lives an ordinary, if boring, life: longing to be the fastest boy in the 5^th grade, helping his parents with chores, hiding his growing artistic talent from his no-nonsense father, and trying not to get overshadowed by his many sisters.

But then, Jess meets his new neighbor Leslie, the girl who will turn his world upside down.

At first glance, Leslie is just plain weird—a pants-wearing, TV-less girl who runs with the boys and makes up wild stories.  After a while, though, the inevitable friendship between the two blossoms and they become inseparable.  Together, they form the kingdom of Terabithia, a magical place that belongs just to them where they can be free of school bullies and tough parents and let their imaginations and creativity rule the day. 

Jess and Leslie are king and queen, and nothing can stop them…until the unthinkable happens.

Treat yourself and your children to an absolutely heart-wrenching, beautiful story of friendship, imagination, and life after loss that will stick with you forever after.

Bridge to Terabithia is the recipient of the 1978 Newbery Award for the most distinguished contribution to American Literature for children, and it has inspired the 2007 feature film of the same name.

The Lightning Thief, by Rick Riordan

The time is now.  The Greek Gods still rule the world from a Mt. Olympus on the 600th floor of the Empire State Building, and their demigod children walk among us.  In the midst of all of it lives Percy Jackson, a 12-year-old problem child who has been to six different schools in six years because of his talent for getting into trouble.  But what if all of the strange things that happen to Percy aren’t his fault?  What if there are forces out to get him because he himself is the son of one of the famed Olympians?

After vaporizing his math teacher on a school field trip, Percy’s destiny suddenly shifts, and he finds himself head-to-head with a minotaur and racing for his life before he can make his escape.  He ends up at Camp Half-Blood, a hero training camp and safe haven for young demigods.  Soon enough, Percy and his friends are sent on a quest to the Underworld to stop Zeus and Poseidon from going to war over a stolen lightning bolt.  Along the way, they are besieged by challenges from famous mythological figures like Cerberus, Medusa, and the Fates. 

Is Percy in over his head, or can he overcome these obstacles and fulfill his quest?  Will he find out who his famous father is?  Read this funny and daring adventure to find out!