How to Be Bad by E. Lockhart, Sarah Mlynowski, Lauren Myracle

Last Thursday was my birthday. I went to work for a couple hours and while I was there this book came in the mail. It's one of the books on my 2008 Must Read List so it was a very nice surprise. Happy birthday to me!

My fan status for e. lockhart and Lauren Myracle is pretty well established, but I have not read anything by Sarah Mlynowski. Off the bat there are a few additional things that endeared this novel to me. 1 - I used to live in north Florida. I worked in Wakulla County and I've likely seen Old Joe for myself. 2 - I love the Waffle House! 3 - 3 really terrific teen girl protagonists. (Unsurprising considering the authors.)

How to Be Bad is a road trip novel. Jesse gets it in her brain that she has to drive Vicks to Miami to see Vicks' boyfriend who just started college there. The trip is really an escape for Jesse who is reeling from her mother's cancer diagnosis. The kink in the plan is that the girls are poor. Enter Mel, who also works at the Waffle House, but who is wealthy and so desperate for friends that she invites herself on the trip with the promise to pay for gas, food, and lodging.

Okay, so this is where you have to turn off your reality button. The girls kind of just leave. The fact that the families don't hunt down their children is just something you have to let go. Same with Mel's mother's AmEx Card. Another point of "huh?" was when all 3 girls started singing a song that was completely unknown to me. Turns out it's an old folk song called Red River Valley. It just seemed weird to me. I guess it's a big teen hit!

I had to remind myself to just enjoy the ride and not get picky on the details, but some readers may have difficulty. My enthusiasm for the story did not develop until after the party scene. I don't know if that's a problem from 3 writers trying to make 3 lead characters or if the plotting was a little slow for my taste. On top of that, I had a hard time connecting with Jesse. She had to grow on me.

I thought I would easily figure out which author wrote which character, but it did take me a few chapters of each for certainty. (I'm not going to spoil that here.) Chapter 19, which Lauen Myracle wrote, is near genius for its description of the Veggie Tales Jonah movie. Having a 4 year old and relatives who purchase those movies, I knew to what she was referring. It is head to toe Lauren Myracle at her hilarious (and sincere) best. I was laughing out loud.

Well. If an asparagus can let go of his self-righteousness, then surely I can too.

Same with e. in chapter 28 regarding the naming of the duckling and the coral castle. She nails the funny and the heartbreak. (*sigh* Ruby3...)

Sarah-who-is-new-to-me wrote some of the best boy/girl flirting dialog I have read in a long while. Mr. Exceptional = awesome.

The book comes out in May and will make a fine summer read. Furthermore, the Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants 2 comes out this summer, so put this one out as a readalike.

P.S. Patti, this is mentioned in the book. As my one and only Canadian friend, have you had it?

Happy Birthday, Jenn!

Dear Jenn,

You diva of the Gossip Girl Corresponding. You queen the heavenly baking. You babe of the youth materials relocating shiznit. Happy Birthday to you!

Yay birthday!

(hope you don't mind the m&m chick. all my pics of you are at work!)

Something to Blog About by Shana Norris*

Libby Fawcett knows better than to keep a regular journal that could fall into the wrong hands, but when she finds a website that offers password-protected online journals, it seems fail-safe. She uses the journal to swoon over her longtime crush, talk about her two best friends, and vent about her arch-nemesis (the meanest girl in school), whose father, naturally, her mother has been dating.

The jacket flap says that the story is about Libby’s journal getting discovered and published all over school, but there’s a lot more going on than just that storyline. She agrees to tutor the crush in chemistry (even though she’s almost failing it herself) and they develop a real relationship. One of the best friends is pursuing the other, flowers-from-secret-admirer-style. The story with her mother is a big one – Libby flips out when she learns that her mother is dating (the mean girl) Angel Rivera's father, and things get even more complicated when Angel wants to join forces to break them up.

In some ways, it has the feel of a teen movie, but a quality one. Libby has a great voice and personality, all the supporting characters are pretty well developed, and there’s enough going on to keep it interesting. Everything is resolved in the end, and there’s nothing too deep, but it really captures the late middle school/early high school experience where the small stuff means big drama.

I keep seeing it recommended for fans of the TTYL books, but it really made me think of the Princess Diaries books and would probably be great for girls not ready for the sex stuff later on in that series. Something to Blog About is super clean and well-suited to younger teens.

*In the interest of full disclosure, I kind of-sort of know Shana. We’ve been online journal friends for years and have swapped Baby-Sitters Club books. I’ve been silent on my journal for so long, though, that I’m not sure she’d know who I am anymore, but I still feel like I should say so.

Jenn's 2007 Faves

Ok… So, I’m really far behind on this but I wanted to throw my two cents out there since GG is on a bit of a break right now. My list is pretty small. I guess I spent most of 2007 reading books that weren’t new… or I didn’t note but a few of the new books I did read!

In no particular order…

HP7

The Off Season by Catherine Murdock

It Had to Be You (GG Prequel) by Cecily von Ziegesar

Don’t You Forget About Me (GG #11) by Cecily von Ziegesar

What My Girlfriend Doesn’t Know by Sonya Sones

Eclipse by Stephenie Meyer

Unforgettable: It Girl #4 by Cecily von Ziegesar

Derby Girl by Shauna Cross

Bliss is not your average country gal. Although she may have to live in a small Texas town (due to the fact, you know, her parents want to...) she knows she has no desire to fit in. She's got blue hair, a punk rock attitude, and the desire to seek out the different. This is all sort of a problem since her mother is completely obsessed with beauty pageants. And not only with her own beauty pageant past, but she also insists on entering Bliss into them. Pageants that Bliss never, ever, ever wins. So when the opportunity presents itself to skip off to Austin and try out for the all female roller derby league. Bliss jumps at the chance.

This book is set in the fictional town of Bodeen, Texas, which claims fame as the maker of Bluebonnet Ice Cream. Maybe the reason it took awhile for Bliss to win me over is that she was so hard on the tourists that came to visit the Bluebonnet Ice Cream Factory. I recognized that Bodeen was based on Brenham, where the very real (and extremely yummy) Bluebell Ice Cream Factory is located. You know, where they eat all the ice cream they can and sell the rest. A place where I would LOVE to visit. I mean - wouldn't you want to see an ice cream factory in action and then sample all the yummy flavors? Although now that I've looked at the Bluebell website it shows you only get one scoop of ice cream. That's totally lame. Only one lousy scoop? But if it was their Chocolate Covered Strawberries ice cream, it might be ok...

So yes, Bliss took awhile to win me over. But won over I was. I could have done without a few of the "what's cool" lectures, I'm not sure they were entirely necessary - they certainly annoyed me more than anything, but on the whole this is a cute book. And if you can make it through the first half you'll be rewarded with with angsty goodness like dealing with parents who don't understand, growing apart from your best friend, and hot boys who just might break your heart. The author's enthusiasm for the roller derby really shows in the derby action sequences. They were really well written, super fun, and I felt like I was there in the stands. Bliss' love interest, a hot musician she nicknames Senor Smolder, also makes for some great reading. And, last but certainly not least is Bliss' mother - a total hoot of a character.

It's also being made into a movie directed by Drew Barrymore and starring Ellen Page. Who, by the way, is a fantastic choice to play Bliss. I wonder who they'll get to play Bliss' mother. That would be a fantastic role. She's just so over the top that her character will translate particularly well onto the big screen.

Head Case by Sarah Aronson

Frank is a senior in high school when he makes the decision that will change his life forever. He drives drunk and kills two people - one of which was his girlfriend. He barely survives the accident himself. He lives, but is paralyzed from the neck down.

This book is told from Frank's perspective. His anger, frustration, regret, and depression is evident. Frank is not feeling lucky to have survived. He wishes he was dead. He wishes he didn't have to be looked after. But mostly he wishes that night never happened.

It is a remarkably fast read for a book that is such a downer. But it reads pretty true. I'm fairly certain most of us would find the situation difficult to deal with at any age, not just as a teenager. His rage at the way his life ended up was very realistic. My biggest complaint is that Frank's emotional turnaround begins much sooner than seems realistic. Only two months after he returns home Frank is already making progress. To my mind that seemed too soon for emotional breakthroughs. Regardless, I think teens will stick with the book. It is like the ultimate rubbernecking experience. Literally.

This book is a pretty strong public service announcement. Don't drink and drive. You're not going to like the consequences. One would hope it would make teen readers think twice before

Unwind by Neil Shusterman

“The Second Civil War, also known as ‘The Heartland War,” was a long and bloody conflict fought over a single issue. To end the war, a set of constitutional amendments known as ‘The Bill of Life’ was passed. It satisfied both the Pro-life and the Pro-choice armies. The Bill of Life states that human life may not be touched from the moment of conception until a child reaches the age of thirteen. However, between the ages of thirteen and eighteen, a parent may choose to retroactively ‘abort’ a child on the condition that the child’s life doesn’t ‘technically’ end. The process by which a child is both terminated and yet kept alive is called ‘unwinding.’"

The novel begins with Connor. A teen deemed troublesome by his parents and slated to be unwound. Of course, even though Connor has proven that he’s a pain to raise, it certainly doesn’t mean he’s stupid. He catches wind of his parents’ plan and runs away. He knows that if he can make it to his eighteenth birthday (still two years away) he’ll be safe. No one, not even someone who was supposed to be, can be unwound once they are eighteen.

Risa is a StaHo – or an orphan who lives at a State Home. She had several years to prove that she was worthy of her life, but only proved that she was ordinary. Not extraordinary in any way – which she needed to be in order to keep her life. She is also slated to become an unwind.

Lev is different, he’s a Tithe - raised from birth to be unwound once he reaches his thirteenth birthday. He believes that he is gifting his life to a higher purpose and his life-long religious instruction has made this a Godly endeavor for him. Lev knows he’s not an ordinary unwind, he’s special.

These three teens are inadvertently thrown together and their lives are never the same again.

This book is absolutely chilling. I think it is Shusterman’s best book to date. It was so suspenseful that I had to put it down after chapters – I was desperate to find out more, but I needed time to process everything that was going on. The book deals with the value human beings place on human life. When does life start? When is it appropriate to end a life? Just like today when the issue is filled with shades of gray, Shusterman’s envisioned future is no less foggy. He presents the choices, shows us their benefits as well as their ugly underbellies, and then steps back. An admirable, and I imagine extremely difficult, accomplishment.

What I was particularly impressed with was the author’s ability to introduce ideas and characters into the narrative and bring them up later without it feeling labored or overly obvious. The urban legend of Humphrey Dunfree is a good example. Humphrey is introduced several times and so as the book progresses the reader isn’t really expecting any revelations. But they come, boy do they come. There are also great plot twists, the characters were extremely well written and compelling, and the ending was hopeful, but not sappy or overly tidy. This book is ripe for discussion. Good stuff.

French Milk by Lucy Knisley

French Milk is Lucy Knisley’s travel journal from a month spent in Paris. She went with her mother in January 2007, a few months before she graduated from college. The book is a combination of comics and photographs of their trip. It’s mostly day-to-day tourist stuff – dinners, shopping, museum visits – with some time spent worrying what she’ll do when she graduates, thinking about facing adulthood, and considering art.

While there’s not a whole lot of story (being a travelogue), Lucy’s voice is so perfect, that you kind of start to feel like you know her, and like maybe you should go visit her in Paris. And have a croissant. Or at least pick up a pen and start drawing a travel journal of your own. Good for those with wanderlust. (Unless you’re trying to get over it.) I’ll look forward to more.

2008 Books We Can't Wait to Read

Here's our start to what we are looking forward to in 2008. I was inspired by all of the blogs I read and then some. The books below aren't all my picks and the list is woefully incomplete. I hope some of my teammates chip in with theirs. We'll also have to see what folks mailed back from ALA. (How girly is this list? *sigh*) Still, a sad lack of GNs I think. I know they're out there... First Second has to have something amazingly cool coming out.


New Stuff from Favorites:
The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks by E. Lockhart (I already blogged this, but I'm anxious to see what others will think.)
Lock & Key by Sarah Dessen
Suite Scarlett by Maureen Johnson
How to Be Bad by E. Lockhart , Sarah Mlynowski and Lauren Myracle
The Battle of the Labyrinth by Rick Riordan

Hurricane Song by Paul Volponi
Love & Lies: Marisol's Story by Ellen Wittlinger
Andromeda Klein by Frank Portman
Ever by Gail Carson Levine (she talked about this at the Texas Book Fest in November.)
The Fortunes of Indigo Skye by Deb Caletti
The Adoration of Jenna Fox by Mary Pearson














Patti suggested a YNF!!

Out of Line: Growing up Soviet by Tina Grimberg




















The GNs:
Janes in Love by Cecil Castellucci & Jim Rugg
Jellaby by Kean Soo

Extra Crunchy Specials:
Jumpy Jack & Googily by Meg Rosoff & Sophie Blackall (Illustrator) - Just looking at this makes me so happy!







Also, Frankenstein Takes the Cake by Adam Rex - both Frakenstein Makes a Sandwich and PSSST! are my son's favorites. Can't wait to see this one.










The X-Files:
Justine Larbalestier's book about the [parking] faeries! Maybe not until '09, but we can hope.

Bleach, vol 1: Strawberry and the Soul Reapers by Tite Kubo

Bleach is a manga serialized in Shonen Jump so you know it has boy appeal. It’s also on adult swim, which is how a staff person at my library came to recommend it for purchase. I like manga well enough, but one problem I do have with the format is that I don’t have the patience to read 20+ volumes. Although this isn’t a particularly strong argument seeing as that for 2 years I collected individual issues of Fables. But back to the review.

Ichigo “Strawberry” Kurosaki is 15 years old and he’s sees dead people. He usually helps them out with a task, like beating up vandals who wrecked their memorial flowers. Ichigo’s dad runs a local health clinic. His mom is deceased and he lives with his crazy dad and two younger sisters. He is surprised with a visit from a (cute, 300+ year old) Soul Reaper named Rukia Kuchiki. Her job is to help souls move on by way of a Konsô, or soul funeral. I’m not certain but this seems to mean giving them a loving whack with her sword. But there are 2 types of souls! Dilemma! Good spirit ghosts and bad spirit Hollows, who attack the living and the dead to devour souls. Soul Reapers also have the job of vaporizing Hollows via spells and a aforementioned big old sword.

In their first meet up, Rukia tries to transfer some power to Ichigo, but ends up transferring all her power/Dark Force to him. And there is the drama and the comedy. Ichigo, who’s a little cocky but has a heart, has to learn from Rukia and together they have to fight THE EVIL. There’s more drama about what will happen to Rukia if she doesn’t get her power. I believe it’s that she may become “human” forever. The scene where she tries to open a juice box is hilarious. So far I really like this manga. I have read vol 2 and there’s a scene, with Chad, that brought tears to my eyes. It surprised me, too!

I’m going to leave it to Jenn H & maybe Laura to clarify anything I missed here. Bleach, it’s not anything special since it has its own TV show, but I am enjoying it.