This Week in Jenn H.'s Reading

First of all, let me apologize if you all got a message about resetting your password. Blogger and my usual browser do not get along....

On to the books...

Early in the week, I started a small book by Jacqueline Woodson called Feathers. I've read several of her books before and enjoyed them. This one was quite interesting. In some ways it reminds me of Spinelli's Maniac Magee. The plot is similar--white boy enters an all-black neighborhood and changes the way the other children see their world. What makes it different is the beautiful imagery and the flaws apparent in all the characters, even the "Jesus Boy." I like how Woodson uses the religious images and ideas but doesn't preach.


Next I tried one of the new GNs, Miki Falls by Mark Crilley. It's part mystery, part romance. I was intrigued at the opening, when we see the heroine, Miki, plunging out of a two-story window. How did she get here? Turns out it all started with a boy, of course. He is a new student who is keeping everyone at arms length. This just makes Miki more determined to get to know him. Soon she discovers that he is not quite human and has a very strange "job" that must be kept top secret. This appears to be a four-part series, following the seasons of the year. APL has vol. 1 and 2, Spring and Summer. Autumn has been published and Winter is not yet released.


Finally, Repossessed: A Novel by A. M. Jenkins. This book was so much fun to read! Kiriel is a Fallen Angel who is fed up with his job in Hell. So, he decides to take a vacation by stealing a human body and spending some time on Earth. But not just any body will do--"A body that was carefree, insulated from earthly considerations like hunger; a protected place to try out physical existence. A body without responsibilities-no family or job to care for; someone who had time to experience the things I wanted to experience. But not too protected."

Ultimately, he chooses Shaun, a typical middle-class American teenager. Kiriel gets more than he expected in physical existence, including the hormones and troubles of a teenage boy. His sensual experimentations and humorous mistakes will definitely appeal to teens, as will his questioning of authority and his place in the universe. This is a good pick for reluctant readers, especially those who are curious about religion. I can just bet that someone, somewhere will try to ban it, though!