The YA Darkness Maelstrom

I was going to not write a post about the whole Wall Street Journal article that pretty much bashes and dismisses young adult literature, but I feel like I should at least say something about my stance. Especially when I see it's gotten more than 8,000 Facebook "likes" from people.

If you know me, you will know that I am distraught by the complete ignorance and lack of empathy Meghan Cox Gurdon displays in her article, titled "Darkness Too Visible." She basically claims that teens don't need to worry about the dark themes that are present in many young adult titles today.

Unfortunately, she is very wrong.

Let's just look at a few statistics. According to Rape, Abuse & Incest National Network (RAINN), someone in the United States is sexually assaulted every 2 minutes. According to the National Institute of Mental Health, suicide was the third leading cause of death in young adults ages 15 to 24 in 2007. According to Childhelp, a report of child abuse occurs every 10 seconds. According to the National Association of Anorexia Nervosa and Associated Disorders, 95% of those who have eating disorders are between the ages of 12 and 25.8.

Do we see something here?

Teens and tweens do not always have lives full of sunshine, rainbows and lollipops. I actually have yet to meet a teen whose life is that awesome. I remember what it was like when I was in middle and high school, and life sucked hardcore. I went through a period of pretty intense depression (though it was never diagnosed or anything), and I felt so alone and miserable, despite my loving family and decent economic standing. I did not get the idea to be miserable from books. Books helped me to escape, and to see that I wasn't alone.

This is the reason why I'm studying to be a librarian and hope to work with teens. I want to find books for them that will help them, that are relevant to their lives and are something they can hold on to. Now, don't read this to say I will give every teen that walks through the library doors books about rape and suicide. No. I will assess the situation and use my training to see what interests the teen, to see what they are looking for and what they want or need. Then I will do my best to find a book that is a match for them, and, if necessary (and if possible), one that fits with their parents' desires too (it can be done, believe it or not). The good news is, there are too many books to count in the world. There is one out there to fit nearly every situation.

It will just be my job to find them.

Review: "Drums, Girls & Dangerous Pie" by Jordan Sonnenblick

Title: Drums, Girls & Dangerous Pie
Author: Jordan Sonnenblick
Publisher: Scholastic, 2004

Steven Alper's life is fairly typical of your average 8th-grader. He plays drums (and he's really great, not to mention dedicated), he gets decent grades, and he's annoyed by his (totally adorable) 5-year-old brother Jeffrey. But Steven's life, and those of his family, are thrown into a whirlwind of hospitals, medications and constant anxiety when Jeffrey is diagnosed with leukemia. Not only does Steven have to process the fact that his younger brother may not live to see middle school, he has to deal with a father who can no longer communicate, a mother who must quit her job to care for her younger son, and Jeffrey's own fears and uncertainty of what will happen to him. And he still has to worry about grades and stuff. That's a lot for a 13-year-old to deal with.

It's not easy to write a funny book about cancer, but Sonnenblick did. Let me just clarify: the cancer is not funny, but humor is still a part of the writing and is present in the characters' lives, despite the grim issues Steven has to deal with. Steven has a keen sense of humor, and I often found myself smiling while reading certain passages. His voice is also perfect, and I love that he's so intense about his drumming, and so fiercely protective of Jeffrey (even if he doesn't realize it).

The way Steven's parents deal with the news and Jeffrey's treatment are wildly different. While his mother drops everything, including her job as an English teacher, to take care of Jeffrey and learn everything she can about his disease and the treatment, his father shuts down emotionally and immerses himself in his accounting work. The Alper's financial situation is dire because of Jeffrey's leukemia, and Steven becomes very aware of this.

Sonnenblick never forgets his main character is in middle school and is just trying to get by without looking like an idiot (he's not always successful). His grades start to slip, and his image is still super important to him (keep an eye out for the school dance scene). 

And the "girls" part in the title? Those girls are Renee, gorgeous neighbor and girl of his dreams; and Annette, friend and fellow musician (basically she's a piano genius). I loved watching Steven's relationship with both girls grow and change over the course of the year—not only do we learn a lot about each girl and their little complexities, we learn a lot about Steven by how he reacts to each one. Also, he can be super clueless when it comes to girls, but hey, I guess that's understandable. He's only 13, after all.

Alternately funny and heartbreaking, this is a great read. There aren't many books that tell the story of the sibling of a cancer patient, and I'm very glad to know this one exists. Humor is so important to have in the face of tough times, and this book serves as a good reminder of that, especially for teens who don't know what to do when faced with such horrible, life-changing things.

Disclosure: I bought this book from my local bookstore.

Review: "The Time-Traveling Fashionista" by Bianca Turetsky

Title: The Time-Traveling Fashionista
Author: Bianca Turetsky
Publisher: Little, Brown and Company; 2011

Twelve-year-old Louise is ready for a change. She is bored of the way she looks, the food her mom cooks (doused in vinegar, always), and the plain old boring life she leads. It's a good thing the school dance is coming up to give her something to look forward to, and to shop for. You see, Louise loves vintage clothing—the feel of the fabric, the style, the stories each garment holds. So when she gets an invitation to the Traveling Fashionista Vintage Sale, she figures this is the perfect place to find The Dress of her dreams. And she's right. But she has no idea just how far she will "travel" once she puts it on.

Basically, this is a simply written but engaging story of a girl who is sent back in time to 1912 into the body of another woman, who just so happens to be on board a glamourous ship going from England to America. Guess which one. It's full of fashion and descriptions of high living, from the perspective of a 12-year-old girl from 2011.

The writing is, again, simple, especially for something labeled "teen." I would categorize this more as a middle-grade novel, though it masquerades as teen. This isn't necessarily a bad thing either. It actually worked pretty well for one of my Girl Scouts who is less confident as a reader, and whose teacher would only look at reading level when she judged its appropriateness.

By far my favorite aspect of this book was the artwork. Beautiful illustrations by Sandra Suy are scattered throughout the book, showcasing the fashion designs Turetsky describes. It really brings the story to life, and I relished each piece of art.

All in all, this was a fun historical fiction with a contemporary character thrown out of her world and into one she (mostly) wished she could live in. Real people are characters in the novel, so we even learn a bit about the people aboard the great ship. (By the way, I did find myself tearing up toward the end; I got attached to some of these characters, even if they were only minor.) If you are looking for a quick read and you love fashion and color, by all means go find copy of this book. If you're looking for something with a bit more depth, you might want to consider another historical fiction novel.

Disclosure: I received a copy of this book for review from the publisher.

Review: "When You Reach Me" by Rebecca Stead

Title: When You Reach Me
Author: Rebecca Stead
Publisher: Yearling (Imprint of Random House), 2009

Miranda, sixth-grader and native New Yorker, knows how to live in the city, especially since her mom has been telling her how to be safe for pretty much her whole life. She deals with the older boys who hang out near her apartment building, the crazy man on the corner who kicks at the street and lies with his head under a mailbox, and she knows to keep her key out at least a block before she gets to her door. But her constant companion, her best friend Sal, starts acting really weird; after he gets punched by one of the kids on the street for no reason, he stops talking to her and walking home with her and basically just ignores her. She's not sure why or what she did, or how to get him back.

This is all made way more complicated and frightening when she starts getting the notes. The notes that tell her pieces of the future. And the notes that tell her she needs to help the note-writer before it's too late and a person close to her dies.

When You Reach Me has stayed with me long after I finished the last page. It's a fast read, but it's also one that I will probably revisit again soon. There is a gentleness to Stead's writing, a mystery just out of reach that only comes together when it should. I did guess at things, but I often found myself second-guessing and turning to pages to see if I was right or not.

And let me tell you, that ending is beautiful.

I also need to tell you all that, if you have read and liked (or loved—better if you love it, as I do) A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L'Engle, you need to read this book. Miranda loves it to the point where she's read it too many times to count and her copy is falling apart. She calls it her book, and I think any reader knows what she means. It's the book that means the most to her, the one she carries with her always (be it figuratively or literally).

Miranda isn't perfect.. She has a mean streak if the mood strikes, if she's jealous of someone. And she doesn't always make the best decisions. But she is all the more real for it, even if we don't want her to do what she chooses to do.

Oh, and the story takes place during 1978-9, giving it a slightly different feel. It's a New York of a different time, but not so different. There is just a dash of science fiction, but it's nothing that takes you out of the real setting or out of Miranda's day-to-day experiences.

I truly loved this book and wholeheartedly recommend it to those who enjoy books about time travel, friendship, A Wrinkle in Time, and possibly game shows.

Disclosure: I purchased a copy of this book from Barnes & Noble.

Blogging About Blogging

So here we are, the final day of Armchair BEA. It's been pretty fun, though I wish I had had more time to peruse all the different blogs and get to know bloggers participating. Lots going on this week (wedding venue hunting... not fun).

Anyway. Today's Armchair BEA topic is blogging about blogging.

When I blog, I mostly try to put quality content up here. I write reviews as often as I can, though I don't review every YA/MG/children's title I read (sometimes you just gotta enjoy it). I also try to keep the memes to a minimum, unless I know it will increase the quality of my blog.

I would really my readers to get to know me and like when other bloggers are able to include personal information in their posts, but I often find it difficult to know how much to put in. I don't want this to be a blog about ME, but about the books I enjoy (which is part of me, true, but not all). I think in the future I'll try to include a bit more about librarianship and what I value in the career path I've chosen to pursue. I do a few posts here and there but nothing to write home about. (On a side note, I just renewed my memberships to ALA [American Library Association] and YALSA [Young Adult Library Services Association], so I'm kind of excited about that.)

I use Twitter a lot to promote and to get to know other bloggers, and have them get to know me, too, but maybe someday I will be more comfortable and confident in sharing more here.

I really like blogging. It's fun and it's useful to me, especially since I can keep track of all the books I read and review much more easily (provided I keep up with cataloging them. Bad librarian!). I just khave to remember that it's something I do for fun and not an obligation! Sometimes I get too stressed from it all, but I eventually make it back to where I need to be.

Anyway, that's me and blogging. Do you have my same issues, or different ones? What does blogging mean to you?

Armchair BEA, Days 3 and 4

Okay, so I missed yesterday... my bad! In my defense I was real busy.

Let me start off with the discussion topic from yesterday: Networking!


I don't have an interview for you all, but I will share the best networking tool for bloggers that I've come across: Twitter. I don't know what I'd do without it. It's a great way to get into conversations with others, be they bloggers, publishers or authors. I have made so many contacts through this social networking site, and I love getting to know people better through it.

Some of my favorite bloggers? That's a tough one, as there are so many (I'm sure that's been said by most people), but I need to give a shout out to Jamie from The Perpetual Page-Turner, as well as The Broke and the Bookish, which I also write for. She is always so encouraging and fun to talk to, plus she's awesome. I'm also quite fond of the Boston Book Bums, who are super fun to tweet and chat with, and I love their Bookish Intelligence Reports (gotta keep up with the bookish news). Plus they're from my neck of the woods, so that's pretty great.

Okay, on to today's topic: Nurturing Blogger Relationships.

Actually, I'm going to go with Twitter again here. Love getting into the conversations. It's pretty much the only way I talk with other bloggers, except for in comments (though I don't write comments as frequently as I should). I also use a lot of e-mail stuff, but only with publishers and other bloggers in The Broke and the Bookish (*coughJamiecough*).

I also like to meet bloggers in person, but alas I have few opportunities to do so since not many live in the Boston area. Though I did just join a Facebook group for us Bostonians, so I have hope.

As far as book pitches go, I get annoyed when I'm approached to review books for adults. This is primarily a young adult/children's review blog; I only review adult titles if I think they'll appeal to teens. This is not just because I just enjoy YA/children's, it's because this blog is also professional development for me. I am hoping to be a YA librarian at some point (sooner rather than later, fingers crossed) so it just wastes time if I start reading a book and find out that it's not for teens. I have a lot of books that I really should read, considered classics in YA, that I should be reading instead.

Sorry about that rant! Whoo. Glad to get that off my chest! :)

Just thought I'd randomly throw in some happy sunflowers. 

Anyway, that's my story. Pretty much it revolves around Twitter. How do you network/keep in touch?

Armchair BEA, Day 2

On this, the second day of Armchair BEA, our question is: What are the best books you've read in 2011?


Here's my list!

First up: Diamond Willow by Helen Frost. A wonderful book of diamond-shaped poems, with a deeper message buried in the heart of each (a few words are bolded to spell out that message). You can read my review here.

Heartbreaking yet inspirational, this lovely middle grade book won the National Book Award for Young People's Literature for 2010, and for good reason. My review is here.

The Dairy Queen Trilogy are some of the best contemporary YA books I've ever read. Er, listened to. I love D.J. Schwenk and her farm and her sports-crazy family and her relationship angst! Every part of this series is fantastic. Oh, I listened to the audiobooks, by the way, and Natalie Moore is the most perfect narrator for this series. You can read my reviews of the audiobooks here, here and here.

Rita Williams-Garcia's One Crazy Summer deals with a part of American history that is usually glossed over in the middle grade literature I usually read, and that is the Black Panther movement of the 1960s. Told by 11-year-old Delphine, this is the story of how she and her two younger sisters spend the summer with their reluctant mother in Oakland, California. Check out my review here.

Those are the best books I've read this year, no doubt about it.