Morris Blog Tour – E.K. Johnston

January 29, 2015January 27, 2015 | Tasha

I am honored to be part of the Morris Blog Tour and to get to interview Morris finalist, E. K. Johnston, the author of one of my favorite books of 2014, The Story of Owen. The Morris YA Debut Award celebrates new voices in teen literature each year. The 2015 winner will be announced next week at the ALA Midwinter Youth Media Awards ceremony.

The Story of Owen is entirely unique. Right from the beginning you know that the book is something special. Tell us about how you came to combine modern-day Canada and dragons.

E. K.: The Story of Owen started with a picture I had in my head of a dragon slayer standing on the Burlington Skyway, fighting a dragon while people on the bridge ran away/filmed her on their iPhones. So it’s been Canada + modern day + dragons right from the beginning. I wanted to set a book in my own country, and I thought that dragons would be fun, and then it got out of control very quickly, as these things do.

Another aspect of The Story of Owen that wowed me was that you edited the world’s history to include dragons too, reweaving it so that it supported the story you were telling. Your world building is deep and extraordinary. Tell us about your world building process.

E. K.: My world building process was actually pretty straightforward in this case. I did it in one of two ways. The least frequent method was to take a story about a dragon and make it into Actual History (as I did with St. George, for example). The most common method I used (also the most fun), was to break every piece of world building I had into four parts, and make sure the dragon was the last quarter. Thus:

Queen Victoria selected Ottawa as Canada’s capital because it was far away from the American border.

became

Queen Victoria selected Ottawa as Canada’s capital because it was far away from the American border and also a safe distance from a Hatching ground.

You’d might be surprised at how easy it was to put together. Also, it was super fun. I think it paid off the most with Lester B. Pearson, who my editor thought I had made up whole cloth until two days before my release date when I had to tell him that Lester B. Pearson was an actual person (and Prime Minister of Canada, WWI Ace, WWII “courier”, semi-pro hockey and baseball player, Nobel Prize Peace Winner, helped to found NATO and the UN, etc).

You write fight scenes so brilliantly, letting the readers see the physicality of the fight and the beauty of the skill it requires. Where did you learn so much about fighting dragons and battle in general?

E. K.: I learned it in high school, actually. From the real life version of Mr. Huffman, who had us do Offence/Defence Friday in his class. We never did the Panama Canal Crisis, but we did do a lot of castles, and look at a lot of battle plans from WWII. I was already quite interested in the ideas and concepts thanks to a lifelong love of fantasy novels, and then in university I studied archaeology, which is also a lot of fortification systems and weaponry and whatnot. Maps and movies filled in the gaps, so I guess it’s been a sort of accumulation since I was four, and my father read me The Hobbit.

Just as surprising as the dragons in Canada is a teen novel where there is a boy and a girl who spend time together, like one another and there is no romance. Tell us about Siobhan and Owen and why you crafted their relationship the way you did.

E. K.: “There Will Be No Kissing” is actually the only rule I made up for myself that I didn’t break while writing The Story of Owen. They were always going to be friends, Owen was always going to end up with Sadie, and Siobhan was always going to be totally thrilled about that (even in the first draft, where I kind of forgot that people couldn’t read my mind and see Sadie’s character progression even though I hadn’t written it down). Owen is waiting for a girl that is 100% committed to dragon slaying (actual. dragon. slaying.) to avoid inflicting any kid of his with a parental situation like his own, and Siobhan has zero interest in ever parenting a dragon slayer, and, eventually, zero interest in ever leaving Trondheim, and I can’t tell you more about that because: PRAIRIE FIRE.

The sequel to The Story of Owen is coming out this year. Tell us a little about Prairie Fire and what fans can expect!

E. K.: While OWEN was pretty localized, PRAIRIE FIRE covers Canada from coast to coast (almost, anyway). Owen and Siobhan are themselves a full year older than they were when we left them, and most of the supporting cast is older than they are. There are characters from Japan, the UK, and the US. There are several new kinds of dragons, all of which I took extreme delight in naming. And one possible culturally-appropriated recipe for pancakes that I took out of a cookbook a co-worker found, and showed to me because the computer had misspelled its name so badly in the system that we couldn’t shelve it (Vikings, man).

Huge thanks to E. K. for participating in the blog tour and giving us such a great glimpse into her process and a peek at the sequel!

For more Morris Blog Tour sites, head to Cinco Puntos Press where you can find links to all of the blogs on the tour.

Review: Hold Tight, Don’t Let Go by Laura Rose Wagner

January 28, 2015January 19, 2015 | Tasha

Hold Tight, Don’t Let Go by Laura Rose Wagner

Magdalie lives in Haiti with her cousin Nadine and Nadine’s mother, but Magdalie considers them to be her sister and mother. Her aunt works for a wealthy lady, cooking and cleaning, and the three of them live in the lower rooms of the house. When the earthquake hits Haiti in 2010, the girls survive but Nadine’s mother is killed. The two girls have nowhere to go but they are rescued by Magdalie’s uncle and move into the refugee camp. Soon after they move, Nadine’s father gets her a visa and she moves to Miami to live in the United States. Nadine promises to send for Magdalie as soon as she can. Magdalie is left all alone, unable to afford to attend school any longer and mourning the loss of her sister and mother. Magdalie holds tightly to the hope of heading to the United States, but eventually has to admit that she is staying in Haiti and figure out how to not only survive but thrive there.

Wagner writes with a passion that shines on the page. She shows the beauty of Haiti, creating a tapestry of food, sounds and voices that reveals what is often buried beneath the poverty. She does not shy away from the ugliness of poverty, from the waste, the violence and the impossible choices facing a girl like Magdalie. Sex simmers constantly around her, offers are made to young girls, and in one instance Magdalie must make the choice of whether she is willing to be taken care of in exchange for sexual favors.

Through it all, even when she is deep in despair, Magdalie is clearly a smart girl who loves to learn and wants to be something more than where she finds herself. Magdalie is incredibly strong too, facing on a daily basis things that American readers will never have experienced. And that too is part of Wagner’s amazing depiction of Haiti. She makes it clear that it is because of the society of Haiti that there is immense poverty but also that people can survive that poverty. When Magdalie visits a rural part of the country, readers revel right alongside her in the natural beauty. When she longs to return to the camps and the filth, readers too will begin to understand what she sees there and the potential it offers her if she can just find a way.

This is a complex book that does not try to answer society’s issues in a pat or simple way. Rather it stands as witness to the brutality, beauty and incredible strength of Haiti and its people. Appropriate for ages 13-17.

Reviewed from ARC received from Amulet Books.

Branford Boase Longlist

January 28, 2015January 27, 2015 | Tasha

The longlist for the Branford Boase award has been announced. The British award was started 15 years ago and is awarded to the author of an outstanding debut book and their editor. The shortlist for the award will be announced on May 4th with the winner to be announced in July. Here are the title in the longlist:

Archie Greene and the Magician’s Secret by DD Everest

Bone Jack by Sara Crowe

Boy in the Tower by Polly Ho-Yen

Broken Strings by Maria Farrer

City of Halves by Lucy Inglis

Cowgirl by Giancarlo Gemin

Dandelion Clocks by Rebecca Westcott

The Dark Inside by Rupert Wallis

The Executioner’s Daughter by Jane Hardstaff

Half Bad by Sally Green

Leopold Blue by Rosie Rowell

Mars Evacuees by Sophia McDougall

A Room Full of Chocolate by Jane Elson

Shadow of the Wolf by Tim Hall

Trouble by Non Pratt

True Fire by Gary Meehan

Valentine Joe by Rebecca Stevens

The Year of the Rat by Clare Furniss

Review: Geek Girl by Holly Smale

January 26, 2015January 6, 2015 | Tasha

Geek Girl by Holly Smale

Released January 27, 2015.

This British import is hilarious, geeky and great fun. Harriet Manners knows that she is not a popular person. She shares too many factoids about things, she doesn’t care about fashion to the point that she took wood shop to avoid going to a fashion event, and she even has a list of the people who hate her. So when Nat, her best friend, demands that she come along to the fashion event, Harriet knows that she has to. Nat has dreamed her entire life of being a model, something that Harriet doesn’t even start to understand. She’d much rather be a paleontologist and spend her time watching nature documentaries. But everything goes wrong and it is Harriet who is discovered at the fashion show, and now Harriet starts a series of lies and cover ups to keep both her best friend and her step mother from knowing anything about her being discovered. Modeling is hard when you’ve never walked in heels before, when you don’t know the rules and when you are sitting next to the most gorgeous boy you have ever seen.

Smale has managed to give us a perfect mashup of geek and Next Top Model in this novel. Harriet is an unforgettable heroine, someone who is awkward in the extreme, entirely herself, and uncertain about who she wants to be. She is bullied by a classmate even as she is being discovered as a model. Even as she wants modeling to transform her into someone else, Harriet manages to be a voice for teens who are different, fascinated by facts, think in charts and graphs, and who are different from the rest.

Smale is also deeply funny. Harriet has wonderful asides that reference geeky movies and books. Her father and step mother have the most marvelous arguments, ones that read like a real argument when things stop making sense and have plenty of zinging comments. Best of all, the arguments don’t end their relationship but somehow form a basis for it. The writing throughout is clever and witty, making it a book that is impossible to put down.

The first book in a trilogy, this book came out in the UK in 2013 and was nominated and won several awards. It certainly lives up to the hype with its wit, strong heroine and inherent joy. Appropriate for ages 13-15.

Reviewed from digital galley received from Harper Teen and Edelweiss.

Review: Audacity by Melanie Crowder

January 22, 2015January 22, 2015 | Tasha

Audacity by Melanie Crowder

Told in masterful verse, this is the story of real-life heroine Clara Lemlich who led the largest strike by women in the history of the United States. Born in Russia, Clara was forbidden any education because her devout Jewish father did not approve. When her family emigrated to the United States at the turn of the twentieth century, Clara was required to go to work to support her family while her father and brothers dedicated their lives to prayer. Clara got work in the garment industry, discovering horrific working conditions and refusing to just accept them. Clara worked to get women workers taken seriously by the male-driven unions and for their plight to be incorporated into union strikes and negotiations. Along the way, she also used the public library and free classes to teach herself English. Anyone wondering if one person can truly make a difference in a larger world has only to read this book to be inspired to action.

Crowder’s poetry here is completely amazing. From one page to the next, she captures the incredible spirit of this young woman and her desire to educate herself. When she finds something to fight for, she is unstoppable, fearless and unbeatable. Crowder also ties Clara to nature, even in among the tenement buildings of New York City. She is a small hawk, a flower in the concrete, she herself is the force of nature in the city.

Just the descriptions of the horrific beatings that Clara withstood on the streets and the picket lines would make most people quit. But Crowder makes sure to depict Clara as a person first and a hero second. It makes what she did so much more amazing but also encourages everyone to realize that they too have this within them if they are willing to take on the fight. This woman was a heroine in such a profound way, unsupported by her family and willing to use all of her free time to make a difference, she is exactly what the modern world needs to have us make change now.

Strong, beautiful and wonderfully defiant, this book is an incredible testament to the power of one woman to change the world. Appropriate for ages 13-17.

Reviewed from ARC received from Philomel.

Review: X by Ilyasah Shabazz and Kekla Magoon

January 21, 2015January 2, 2015 | Tasha

X by Ilyasah Shabazz and Kekla Magoon

This is the story of Malcolm X’s boyhood and teen years. Malcolm Little grew up during the Depression, surviving on dandelion greens soup after his father is murdered. When his mother gains the attention of social services, Malcolm is moved out of the family home and away from his days of stealing melons from patches and apples from stands to fill his belly. When Malcolm gets a chance to leave his foster home and head to live with his half-sister in Boston, he jumps at the chance. Boston and its neighborhoods are a buzz with activity and nightlife and Malcolm immediately joins the fray, turning his back firmly on the way he was raised. Malcolm continues to explore the dangerous side of society by dealing reefer, drinking, and dating a white woman. He moves to Harlem where the jazz is even more incredible and where he really gets into serious trouble. This novel follows Malcolm from his childhood until he is imprisoned for theft at age 20 and eventually converts to Islam.

Shabazz is one of the daughters of Malcolm X and according to the Authors Note at the end of the book the story while fiction is firmly based in real life people and events. The writing prowess of Magoon is also here in full force, directing a story that is a headlong dash into sex, drugs and jazz into something that speaks volumes about the intelligence and emotions of the young man at its center. The result is a book that shines light on difficult years of Malcolm X’s life where he lost himself and then the tremendous results of having returned and found himself again.

There is such emotion here on the page. Malcolm’s heart shows in each interaction he has, each moment of losing himself that he manages to find. It is a road map of hope for those who are lost to these moments in their lives that you can return and be better than ever. It also shows the humanity behind the historical figure, the real boy behind the legend.

Powerful, gritty and honest, this novel expands what young readers know about Malcolm X and offers hope for those in their own crisis. Appropriate for ages 14-17.

Reviewed from digital galley received from Candlewick Press and Netgalley.

Review: All the Bright Places by Jennifer Niven

January 19, 2015January 2, 2015 | Tasha

All the Bright Places by Jennifer Niven

Finch and Violet go to the same high school but don’t move in the same social circles. So when they both find themselves at the top of the school’s bell tower one day, it’s a chance for that to change. Finch is a boy who flirts constantly with death, thinking about different ways to kill himself and researching suicide statistics. He’s known as “Theodore Freak” by his classmates and has a couple of close friends but that’s it. Violet moves among the popular kids at school, but lost her older sister in a car accident the year before, something she’s having problems coping with. The two of them start working on a school project together since Finch tricks Violet into agreeing. For the project, they travel the state of Indiana finding unique places to visit and leaving small things behind. As they travel, the two become closer and more honest with one another about what they are going through. Violet begins to come out of her grief and live more, but something different is happening to Finch.

Niven creates a movie-like novel here with scenes that comes to life complete with cinematography in your mind. There are iconic moments throughout the book, thanks to the plot of them moving from one unique spot to another. Moments that stand out as important and vital even as they are happening, moments that disguise but also highlight what is happening to the two main characters. There is a moment in the middle of the book where things switch and change starts to happen for both characters, but in opposite directions. There is a sense of loss at that moment, of being unable to save someone that echoes suicide right then and there. It is beautifully done.

The two main characters are brilliantly written as well. The sorrowful Violet who can’t see her way towards trying at school or connecting with others at all and who finds her light in Finch that moves her forward. The clever and sarcastic Finch who steeps himself in dark thoughts but flares alive, sleepless and awake, desperate never to fall into the trap of sleeping for days or months again. He is a deep character, fighting being bipolar on his own.

Niven writes with a simple beauty that will appeal to teens, especially as they explore these complicated subjects. Appropriate for ages 15-18.

Reviewed from ARC received from Knopf.

Review: There Will Be Lies by Nick Lake

January 14, 2015December 22, 2014 | Tasha

There Will Be Lies by Nick Lake

Shelby is about to be hit by a car, in four hours. She lives an isolated life with her mother, one where she is homeschooled and doesn’t really know anyone else outside of the online forums she visits without her mother knowing. Every Friday they have a day out, one with ice cream for dinner, batting in the batting cage, and a visit to the library. There’s a cute boy there that Shelby has seen, another thing that her mother doesn’t know about. But the car is coming, and Shelby’s quiet life is about to change. After she is hit by the car, a coyote appears to her, warning her that she will be told two lies and then she will know the truth. Immediately after she is released from the hospital, her mother takes her away in a car, fleeing from dangers that only her mother understands. As Shelby begins to see her mother in a new light, she also starts leaving real life and spending time with Coyote in The Dreaming, a place where she is responsible for saving the world. And soon she will have to deal with the truth and that may be a lot harder than dealing with the lies along the way.

Lake has written a book that is a real page turner. Readers will know immediately upon meeting Shelby that something is wrong with her living situation, though it is vague enough to be almost anything. I don’t want to ruin at all that exploration of the lies and truth, because it is a large reason the book is so compelling to read. Lake has also constructed the book so it’s a count down. First readers know that the car accident is coming. Then readers will see that the chapter numbers are counting down, one after another towards another impact, one that readers know is coming but can’t avoid or quite understand yet.

One of the revelations that comes early in the book is Shelby’s deafness. Written in the first chapters without any acknowledgement, readers will be stunned by the news that Shelby is 90% deaf. Then they piece together the clues of it, the many gestures used as she communicates with her mother, the subtitles, the way her mother tells her to be careful because she is special. I appreciated this treatment so much because Shelby is a person first and then her disability is revealed. Exactly the way it should be.

Strongly written, compellingly structured, with one strong and very human heroine, this book of family, lies and truths is a riveting read. Appropriate for ages 14-17.

Reviewed from digital galley received from Bloomsbury and Edelweiss.

My Top 25 Picks for 2014 Teen Reads

January 8, 2015January 7, 2015 | Tasha

Here are my top selections for the best books for teens in 2014. Please share your favorites in the comments since try as I may, I never manage to make it through all books published during the year!