The King's Rose

Libby, Alisa. M. 2009. (March 2009) THE KING'S ROSE. Dutton. 296.

The King's Rose is one of those books that just captured my attention (and my heart!). It is a fictionalized account of Catherine Howard, and for those not in the know, she was the fifth wife of Henry VIII. Catherine Howard was just fifteen (perhaps even fourteen) when she caught the lusty eyes of the King. (And Henry liked them young.) Catherine's tale is tragic in that while the king chose her...she quite honestly didn't have a choice in the matter. Prompted and urged by her family--she became the person they created her to be, that the king wanted or needed her to be. And thus her life of deception began. For Catherine has a secret or two that may be her undoing...

The king is in love with me. But who am I? Who is this girl that the Howards created out of their words, to whom the king has given his love? I am King Henry's sweet wife--Catherine Howard, no more. I wonder if God can see me now, see the treason in my heart. I squeeze my eyes shut, pushing these thoughts from my mind. I am a player upon a stage, even when the stage is a bed, even in an intimate moment such as this, with no costume or mask to cover my nakedness, I must play my part well, especially in an intimate moment such as this. I must become my role, and nothing else. (56)

She's haunted by a kiss shared with her distant cousin, one of the King's men, Thomas Culpepper, a perfect kiss with much promise...because it occurred before she caught the King's attention.

My life will be more than I ever could have imagined--but perhaps it will also be a little bit less. All of this must be put aside now, the words and dreams that led to his perfect kiss, near midnight in the dark garden at Westminster, and all the happiness that kiss seemed sure to promise. This was a different Catherine who received these letters, who responded to that kiss--since then I have been transformed by the king's eyes, by the royal jewels around my neck and a cloth-of-gold gown...but who is the real Catherine: the shadow or the light? The smoke or the flame? (44)

The King's Rose is engaging and richly detailed. Libby is an excellent storyteller. It's just not the story itself that is fascinating, but how the story is told that makes it so captivating.

Other reviews: Peeking Between Pages, YA or STFU, Just One More Page, The Book Bag. Stop, Drop, and Read.
Author's official site, official blog.



© Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

Keeping the Night Watch

Smith, Hope Anita. 2008. Keeping the Night Watch. Illustrated by E.B. Lewis. Henry Holt. 74 pages.

Keeping the Night Watch is a sequel (companion novel?) to The Way A Door Closes. However, you don't have to have read the first book to enjoy and appreciate this one. Our hero and narrator is a young African-American man named C.J. who is struggling with finding his place in his family now that his father has reentered the picture and rejoined his family. C.J. grew into being 'the man' of the family. But now where does he belong? He can't go back to being a child? Can he?

Hope Anita Smith's poems are powerfully authentic as they examine the ins and outs, ups and downs of family life.

Family Cooking Instructions

Their conversation is sweet.
Their words are light and airy
like a just-baked cake.
They sugarcoat it
to cover up any flaws or imperfections.
Try to hide the sunken part.
They are so careful,
each wearing their own apron
to protect their clothed selves.
And that's why,
when I show up,
metal-cold and steel-gray,
they are not prepared.
I slice through
and we ooze out.
That's when we see that
we are not done in the middle.
We need to bake a little longer.

(5)

© Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

Kendra

Booth, Coe. 2008. Kendra.

There's nothing really different about today.

I loved Coe Booth's first book, Tyrell. I didn't love Kendra as much. But that's not to say I didn't like it. Kendra is fourteen, and in the eyes of her grandmother "Nana" doomed to repeat her mother's mistakes. Kendra's mom had her when she was fourteen. It has been Nana raising her all these years. And as much as Nana loves Kendra, she doesn't want to have to raise another child. Perhaps Nana doesn't know how to best communicate with her granddaughter. Threats and accusations and lectures aren't that effective it turns out. But despite a few mistakes in judgment, Kendra is essentially a good kid.

One of Kendra's best friends is Adonna. They're nearly the same age. They attend the same school. Have some of the same friends. And share a good many interests. Oh, and by the way, they're aunt-and-niece. Adonna's older brother, Kenny, is Kendra's father. The two families are neighbors still. Though Nana doesn't much approve of Kenny or Adonna.

Adonna has a BIG crush on Nashawn. She's adored-him-from-afar for several months at least (if not longer). But it is Kendra that Nashawn begins talking to. Their lockers are side by side. And soon it seems Nashawn is going a bit out of his way to see her...and talk to her...but should Kendra be welcoming Nashawn's attention? That's the question. Should she--knowing of Adonna's feelings--act on her own developing feelings?

Kendra's relationship with Nashawn is not at all innocent. It's messy through and through. Even Kendra herself is confused about WHY it has to be moving so fast...and in directions she's not comfortable with. In a way that makes her feel used, dirty, cheap.

I feel these graphic scenes may turn off some readers--but I'm not the moral police. I never quite know how to address these issues in my reviews. On the one hand, if I point out sensitive subject matters like sex, drinking, drugs, etc. then it might appear that I'm disapproving of it and all judgmental. On the other hand, if I say nothing, then a few readers might be in for a few shocks. Or not. It's all subjective. What is fine for one reader, may be disturbing for another. Or what is fine for fifteen or sixteen may be too much for eleven or twelve. I just think it's better to have a little warning. That way you have a feel for what to expect.

© Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

Keeping Score

Park, Linda Sue. 2008. Keeping Score.

I have read most of Linda Sue Park's novels, and I've enjoyed all of them. Some more than others, but I've enjoyed them all. (It's just a matter of degree.) I liked--really liked--this one. I didn't know quite what to expect. It is about baseball. Not about playing baseball necessarily, but about being a fan of the sport. About being a fan of the game, the players, the teams. Our narrator, our heroine, is Maggie, or "Maggie-O" as her father likes to call her. She's a Dodger's fan, a Brooklyn Dodgers fan. The novel is set in the early to mid fifties. (1951-1955). Her mother and brother are Dodgers fans as well. But her father is a Yankees fan. (Hence her name "Maggie-O" and his son, Joseph Michael.) Her father was a fireman. But after a serious injury (all occurring before the novel's start) he now has a desk job. Maggie, however, still visits the fire house, the firemen regularly. Not a week goes by when she doesn't go to hang out with her father's friends, her father's coworkers. She loves to listen to the baseball games on the radio with them. One of the men is new. His name is Jim. He's different from the others--he's a Giants fan. But oddly enough, though he's a fan of the wrong team, it's him that Maggie is most drawn to. He teaches her how to keep score, how to follow the game play by play on paper keeping precise records. Their friendship is real though sports-based. So the news that he has been drafted into the army effects her quite deeply.

Maggie has led a sheltered life. But Jim being sent to Korea opens her eyes a bit to the world around her. Not all at once. But slowly and surely, she is growing and changing and coming of age.

Baseball. War. Friendship. Family. This novel has a little bit of everything to offer readers. It is deeper than I thought it would be. The first half of the novel is just a sports novel. But the second half, it's about so much more. Anyway, I think this novel has something for everyone. Even if you're not a big sports fan.

201 pages

© Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

Kristina The Girl King

This past week I read KRISTINA: THE GIRL KING by Carolyn Meyer. It is a title in the popular THE ROYAL DIARIES series published by Scholastic. As I mentioned yesterday, I absolutely love Carolyn Meyer. She is by far one of my favorite historical fiction writers for young people. One of the things I love about her is how each of her characters--whether a famous royal or an average, ordinary person--is presented as a real young person dealing with problems and situations that anyone of any generation can relate to. For example, MARY, BLOODY MARY and BEWARE, PRINCESS ELIZABETH both portray dysfunctional families. Yes, they were princesses, but they had love-hate relationships with their father. They definitely were dealing not only with sibling rivalry but also with some abandonment issues. How much worse can it get than your father disinheriting you and threatening to kill you??? And peer pressure, talk about the pressure of politics with every adult making power plays and trying to manipulate you to fit into their schemes. Anyway, back to Kristina. Kristina's family life left a lot to be desired. Her mother is presented as quite crazy. She was mean. She was manipulative. She was ungrateful. She was just an absolute terror to live with. When her father dies, Kristina's father that is, her mother refuses to bury the body not for days, not for weeks, not even for months, but for several years. Imagine being seven or eight and having to sleep in a room with a coffin. Yes, Kristina when she was with her mother experienced night mares on a daily basis. And the day time wasn't much better. Her mother was constantly yelling at her and belittling her. Talk about dysfunction. Fortunately for Kristina, her father has a group of men whose purpose is to rule the country and whose task is to prepare her to rule the country. When she's eighteen, this young girl will become KING, not queen, but King. Her father's will was clear that she was to have sole control that no future husband could take away from her. Kristina is a strong-minded, likeable character. It is a great book that I definitely recommend.

Words of Wisdom...

Portman, Frank. 2006. King Dork.

King Dork is by far one of the best young adult books released this year. The books I fall in love with at first sight are few and far between, but I must say that King Dork had me from the very first paragraph:

They call me King Dork. Well, let me put it another way: no one ever actually calls me King Dork. It's how I refer to myself in my head, a silent protest and an acknowledgement of reality at the same time. I don't command a nerd army, or preside over a realm of the socially ill-equipped. I'm small for my age, young for my grade, uncomfortable in most situations, nearsighted, skinny, awkward, and nervous. And no good at sports. So Dork is accurate. The King part is pure sarcasm, though: there's nothing special or ultimate about me. I'm generic. It's more like I'm one of the kings in a pack of crazy, backward playing cards, designed for a game where anyone who gets me automatically loses the hand. I mean, everything beats me, even twos and threes. (5)

And the genius continues throughout...the reader finds phrases that resonate with wisdom, truth, and/or humor.

There's always a bit of suspense about the particular way in which a given school year will get off to a bad start (7).

King Dork is one teen boy's (Tom, aka "Moe" or "Chi-Mo") story of the first semester of his sophomore year (August-December). The characters are memorable and the story unforgettable. A coming-of-age novel that will entertain teens and adults alike.

Recommended books: Looking for Alaska by John Green (reviewed September 11, 2006) and The Astonishing Adventures of Fanboy and Goth Girl by Barry Lyga (reviewed October 20, 2006).

http://www.frankportman.com/
Video trailer for King Dork
Frank Portman's Listmania List for "King Dork"

Spotlight on Cynthia Kadohata

Cynthia Kadohata

Born: Chicago, 1956
Education: BA in journalism from the University of Southern California
Books: The Floating World, 1989 (adult); In The Heart of the Valley of Love, 1992 (adult); Kira-Kira, 2004 (young adult); Weedflower, 2006 (young adult), Cracker: The Best Dog in Vietnam, 2007 (young adult).

Honors for Kira-Kira:
Winner of the 2005 Newbery Medal
Selection of Junior Library Guild
ALA Notable Children's Books
Asian/Pacific American Award for Literature Award Winner
Blue Spruce YA Book Award Nominee (CO)
Booklinks Lasting Connections
Booklist Editors' Choice
Capitol Choices List (DC)
CCBC Choices (Cooperative Children's Book Council)
Charlotte Award Suggested Reading List (NY)
Dorothy Canfield Fisher Book Award Master List (VT)
Garden State Teen Book Award Nominee (NJ)
Kiriyama Prize Notable Book
KSRC Middle School Titles - Top Pick
Librarians' Choices 2004
Nene Award Master List (HI)
NYPL "Books for the Teen Age"
Pacific Northwest Young Reader's Choice Award Master List
Thumbs Up! Award Master List (MI)

Official website: http://www.kira-kira.us/

Interview with Cynthia Kadohata: Cynsations: Quirky, thoughtful, angsty, joyous musings on all things life and book from a writer who finds her heroes in the sunshine and in the shadows written by Cynthia Leitech Smith

Kira-Kira by Cynthia Kadohata

Told with humor and honesty, KIRA-KIRA is narrated by Katie Takeshima and tells the story of one Japanese-American family's experiences in the fifties and sixties. The novel shares the family's experiences with poverty, prejudice, illness, and death as Katie's older sister is diagnosed with a terminal illness and slowly deteriorates before her family's eyes. It is both painfully poignant and honest and at times laugh out loud funny. The strength of Kira-Kira is the growth of the narrator Katie who ages from four to twelve during the course of the novel. As Katie experiences life's harshness from prejudice to poverty to being the victim of school bullies and teasing, her narrative changes. Her relationship with her sister also changes over time. As a child, she absolutely idolized her sister. She literally believed every word her sister told her. As the sisters grow up, however, Katie learns that things can't stay the same. Suddenly, her sister becomes more interested in spending time with friends her own age and even more shocking to Katie boys. Her sister no longer has time to play games with her; her interests have changed. It is about this time in her life, that Lynn becomes sick and slowly weakens and dies. Her sister's death leaves a hole in her life and Katie is unsure of how to cope with all the changes and losses in her life. The novel is one of strength and hope despite its sadness.

Weedflower by Cynthia Kadohata

Cynthia Kadohata's first novel, Kira-Kira, was an impressive book. And Weedflower is equally impressive. This time the novel is set in the Southwest before and during World War II. Sumiko is a typically happy twelve-year old. While she feels awkward that she's the only Japanese-American in her class at school, she has not yet felt the harsh stings of discrimination...until a vicious birthday party. Soon after, I believe the same weekend, Pearl Harbor is bombed. Her normal life vanishes, no more school...no more social life...only fear and anxiety as they wait to see what will become of them all.

It is a very heart-felt story of one girl's experiences in a Japanese-American internment camp. Definitely recommend it to everyone!