Dingo

de Lint, Charles. 2008. Dingo.

No one likes to think it of their father, but there are days when I can't help but feel that somehow I got stuck with the biggest loser of all loser dads. It's mostly on days like this when he's off on a house call to buy new stock and I'm stuck minding the store.

Miguel's father has a store--Mike's Used Comics & Records. And it is while Miguel is tending his father's store that he meet the girl. Or perhaps it should be The Girl. Everything had been going along, business as usual, until the moment he sees her through the window. "Ever have one of those moments when everything just kind of stops and it feels as though the whole universe is focused on this one thing that's got your attention? That's what it's like when I see her go by the window, hesitate at the door to look behind her, and then come in. It's gray and dismal outside, but she's got the sun in her hair--long, red-gold tangles that are frizzing because of the damp and give her a halo." (5) This mystery girl, Lainey, and her dog, Em, are from Australia. Everything about them fascinates this young teenage boy. Everything. She is a complete mystery, but one that he's happy to want to solve. He even dreams about her. That might not be completely unusual--boys dreaming about girls--but this dream is highly unusual. But I'll let you see that for yourself!

I'm NOT going to say one word more about the novel. Okay, that's a lie. But I'm not going to talk about the plot in any case. Everything about this novel--the characters, the plot, the language--is well done. I can't think of a single flaw. I can't really get into what I liked most about the characters, but I can say this. They were complex. Definitely interesting to read about, to care about.

Highly recommended to fantasy fans.

This was my first Charles de Lint novel, but it won't be my last.

© Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

Love (and other uses for duct tape)

Jones, Carrie. 2008. Love (and other uses for duct tape.)

Love (and Other Uses for Duct Tape) is the sequel to last year's Tips On Having A Gay (Ex) Boyfriend.

You think you know people and then it turns out you don't.
You think you learn this and then it turns out you didn't.
People keep changing who they are and defining themselves by their own choices, and that's cool most of the time, but not all the time. No, it's not cool all the time.

My favorite list-making heroine is back. Belle. When the novel opens, Belle is facing The Problem. What is her problem this time, you wonder, well, in a way it's both simple and complex. The problem of the moment is that Belle wants to be having sex with Tom. But Tom is happy taking things nice and slow. She's weirded out by the fact that her boyfriend isn't wanting to "do it" and also slightly perplexed as to why he hasn't used the L-word yet. Why hasn't Tom--this wonderfully nice guy--told her he loves her? His actions all show that he does. But he hasn't said it. This problem is viewed alongside the fact that her best friend, Em, and her boyfriend, Shawn are going strong. Not to mention the fact that even her mother has a steady boyfriend. It seems like everyone is having sex but her. That's the simple side of things.

Belle, lovable heroine that she is, is still having some problems that even she's not fully aware of. Things that make her who she is in part. But things that tend to annoy her friends and family.

If you're expecting Love (and Other Uses for Duct Tape) to be strictly romance, then you might be disappointed. This novel isn't all about the love and lust of Belle and Tom. It is a novel beyond labels and easy definitions. It's a novel about life, about love, about friendships, about knowing and loving yourself, about accepting others. It's about friends. It's about family. And it's about love. The love between friends especially.

This novel explores relationships of all sorts and varieties.

Little Willow's review.

© Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

Lock and Key

Dessen, Sarah. 2008. Lock and Key.

"And finally," Jamie said as he pushed the door open, "we come to the main event. Your room."

That first sentence springs you right into the action, the drama that is unfolding as Ruby comes into her new home. Ruby's first thoughts, I was braced for pink. Ruffles or quilting or maybe even applique. Which was probably kind of unfair, but then again, I didn't know my sister anymore, much less her decorating style. With total strangers it had always been my policy to expect the worst. Usually they--and those that you knew best, for that matter--did not disappoint.

Ruby hasn't seen her sister in ten years. Since the day her sister went away to college. Yet now, in Ruby's seventeenth year, the two are reunited. On Ruby's part it isn't voluntary. Ruby's mother has left her. Perhaps gone off drinking. Perhaps gone off with one of her boyfriends. Perhaps gone off drinking with one of her boyfriends. Ruby doesn't know. She doesn't want to know. She just knows that her mother disappeared without a word, without a note. And as far as Ruby was concerned, that's okay. She could manage on her own well enough.

But when the authorities find out that she is all on her own, they feel the need to place her in a home. Luckily her sister, Cora, and her wealthy husband, Jamie, are more than willing to take her into their own home and provide for her in a way that no adult ever has.

Ruby doesn't trust this new family. She doesn't trust anyone. She doesn't even know how to trust. It's a foreign concept to her. But over time and with much patience, Ruby may just start to realize what a family is and what a family does. It's a good thing too. Since that is one of her school assignments. Define the word "family." What she learns is well worth reading about.

I love Sarah Dessen. I do. She has an incredible gift with characters. They're always real. Always developed. Always human. Always flawed. And the style, the language, are equally wonderful. (She has such a gift with words. Her books are just quotable.) While Lock and Key lacks some of the emphasis on romance that her other novels have, there is plenty there to satisfy readers. I wouldn't say it's my favorite Dessen novel--it would be hard to knock The Truth About Forever from that place--I will say it was definitely enjoyable and definitely worth while.

It's never something huge that changes everything, but instead the tiniest of details, irrevocably tweaking the balance of the universe while you're busy focusing on the big picture. (38)

Everyone has their weak spot. The one thing that, despite your best efforts, will always bring you to your knees, regardless of how strong you are otherwise. For some people, it's love. Others, money or alcohol. Mine was even worse: calculus. (261)

Through my tears, I could hear her, saying it was all going to be okay, and I knew she believed this. But I was sure of something, too: it's a lot easier to be lost than found. It's the reason we're always searching, and rarely discovered--so many locks, not enough keys. (373)

Other reviews: Little Willow, Amanda.

Matilda

Dahl, Roald. 1988. Matilda.

I read this one because I was inspired by Melissa. What can I say about it? It's wild. It's definitely out there. But it's fun. Oodles and oodles of fun. Realistic? Never in a million years. Was it meant to be? Of course not. A zany (how often do I use that word???) over-the-top thoroughly enjoyable read. Matilda is a young genius. (4 or 5 years old) An under appreciated genius at that. Her parents are ghastly. There really isn't any other way to say it. They're abominable. So Matilda has a way of getting back at her parents for their cruel and horrid behavior. Then it's time for Matilda to start school. She's got a good teacher--a teacher that is practically a saint--but the superintendent (my guess is the equivalent of a principal) is evil incarnate. The battle between good and evil has never been quite so strange. Anyway, it's a fun read. But as I said, it probably isn't for everyone.

It's a funny thing about mothers and fathers. Even when their own child is the most disgusting little blister you could ever imagine, they still think that he or she is wonderful. Some parents go further. They become so blinded by adoration they manage to convince themselves their child has qualities of genius. Well, there is nothing very wrong with all this. It's the way of the world. It is only when the parents begin telling us about the brilliance of their own revolting offspring, that we start shouting, "Bring us a basin! We're going to be sick!"

240 pages.

Travel the World: Australia: The Book Thief

Zusak, Markus. 2006. The Book Thief.

The Book Thief may just be the hardest book I've ever tried to review. It is beautiful. Though it can be ugly. It is intense. It is powerful. It is memorable. The first thing you should know about The Book Thief? It is narrated by Death. This is fitting in many ways since the setting is Nazi Germany during the Second World War. Death is the narrator, and he never lets you forget it. But there are many players--many characters--in the story that Death is relating to his audience all these years later. One of them is a girl, Liesel, and is known by Death as 'the book thief.' These thefts provide some structure to the text. (The structure is one of the odd things about the Book Thief. It isn't chronological. Death doesn't tell a story traditionally. He has his own way of jazzing it up, arranging it so it suits his needs and purposes.) The language, the style, is unique. I think it is written in such a way that you either really love it or you really don't. (It's written in such a way that you could almost open it to any page, and find a sentence or two or a whole paragraph that you want to just lift out and let resonate with you for a time.)

This is how it begins:

First the colors. Then the humans. That's usually how I see things. Or at least, how I try. Here is a small fact: you are going to die. I am in all truthfulness attempting to be cheerful about this whole topic, though most people find themselves hindered in believing me, no matter my protestations. Please, trust me. I most definitely can be cheerful. I can be amiable. Agreeable. Affable. And that's only the A's. Just don't ask me to be nice. Nice has nothing to do with me. (3)

It continues:

People observe the colors of a day only at its beginnings and ends, but to me, it's quite clear that a day merges through a multitude of shades and intonations, with each passing moment. A single hour can consist of thousands of different colors. Waxy yellows, cloud-spat blues. Murky darknesses. In my line of work, I make it a point to notice them. As I've been alluding to, my one saving grace is distraction. It keeps me sane. It helps me cope, considering the length of time I've been performing this job. The trouble is, who could ever replace me? Who could step in while I take a break in your stock-standard resort-style vacation destination, whether it be tropical or of the ski trip variety? The answer, of course, is nobody, which has prompted me to make a conscious, deliberate decision--to make distraction my vacation. Needless to say, I vacation in increments. In colors. Still it's possible that you might be asking, why does he even need a vacation? What does he need a distraction from? Which brings me to my next point. It's the leftover humans. The survivors. They're the ones I can't stand to look at, although on many occasions I still fail. I deliberately seek out the colors to keep my mind off them, but now and then, I witness the ones who are left behind, crumbling among the jigsaw puzzle of realization, despair, and surprise. They have punctured hearts. They have beaten lungs. Which in turn brings me to the subject I am telling you about tonight, or today, or whatever the hour and color. It's the story of one of those perpetual survivors--an expert at being left behind. It's just a small story really, about, among other things: a girl, some words, an accordionist, some fanatical Germans, a Jewish fish fighter, and quite a lot of thievery. (4-5)

Before the story gets underway, he invites the reader along for the journey:

Yes, often, I am reminded of her, and in one of my vast array of pockets, I have kept her story to retell. It is one of the small legion I carry, each one extraordinary in its own right. Each one an attempt, an immense leap of an attempt--to prove to me that you, and your human existence, are worth it. Here it is. One of a handful. The Book Thief. If you feel like it, come with me. I will tell you a story. I'll show you something. (14-15)

There is depth, substance, to these words, to this story. The descriptions. The details. The powerful sway of the words whether they're describing the beauty of love and family and friendship or capturing the ugly heaviness of hate, anger, and death. It's not an easy story to read. It's full of emotions. It's full of words. It's a book that at it's very heart and soul captures humanity in all its depths--the good, the bad, the ugly. Here is a book that captures what it means to be human.
One of the most memorable passages for me (224-236), and I hope this isn't much of a spoiler--is the hand drawn--hand written--portion written by "Max" for Liesel. I find it so powerful in its simplicity. So hauntingly beautiful. There is a second story specially written for Liesel by Max, this second one is found on pps 445-450. This is how that one begins, "There was once a strange, small man. He decided three important details about his life: 1) He would part his hair from the opposite side to everyone else. 2) He would make himself a small, strange mustache. 3) He would one day rule the world." (445)

100 Cupboards

Wilson, N.D. 2007. 100 Cupboards.

I loved Leepike Ridge. Loved, loved, loved it. So when I saw this new author had a second novel coming out, I was very happy. And since I don't have a Random House contact (I would love, love, love a Random House contact), I purchased this one using my Borders bucks. One of the things I loved about Leepike Ridge was the language, the writing. It was bordering on magical the way Wilson's text wrapped itself around you until you were completely captivated.

This is how 100 Cupboards begins:

Henry, Kansas, is a hot town. And a cold town. It is a town so still there are times when you can hear a fly trying to get through the window of the locked-up antique store on Main Street. Nobody remembers who owns the antique store, but if you press your face against the glass, like the fly, you'll see that whoever they are, they don't have much beyond a wide variety of wagon wheels. Yes, Henry is a still town. But there have been tornadoes on Main Street. If the wind blows, it's like it won't ever stop. Once it's stopped, there seems to be no hope of getting it started again. (1)

This is our first introduction to our narrator and hero, Henry:

The Henry on the bus was not a town in Kansas. He was simply a twelve-year-old boy on a slow bus from Boston, waiting to meet an aunt and uncle he had not seen since the age of four. He was not looking forward to reuniting with Aunt Dotty and Uncle Frank. Not because he in any way disliked them, but because he had led a life that had taught him not to look forward to anything. (3)

Henry is an interesting narrator. A strange blend of a disconnected and unemotional boy with an unhappy but wistful longing for change. Does that make any sense? He is very unhappy in some ways; he's been disappointed by people, by things in the past. Yet he can't seem to shake hope as a companion. He's hoping for some simple pleasures. The pleasures of a real family, a real friend. The pleasures of baseball. Henry successfully kept his mind on the game, which might seem strange for a boy who slept beside a wall of magic. But baseball was as magical to him as a green, mossy mountain covered in ancient trees. What's more, baseball was a magic he could run around in and laugh about. While the magic of the cupboards was not necessarily good, the smell of leather mixed with dusty sweat and spitting and running through sparse grass after a small ball couldn't be anything else. (155-6) It is his longing for the ordinary, the simple things of life that provides such strong contrast to his unwillingly stumbling into adventures. Here is a boy who is not seeking out adventures, not seeking out magical lands, not seeking the mystical dangers of the unknown.

I hope I haven't confused you. Henry, our hero, is visiting his aunt and uncle and cousins. His parents were kidnapped. But Henry is unconcerned. (Which in itself is disturbing in a way to most readers. But when you think about it, most fantasy heroes just have to shake off their parents anyway to go on a quest. It's not unusual for parents to be long removed from the story either by death or abandonment. So why not kidnapping?) Henry is a visitor, and his room is the attic. His first few nights in the attic are strange to say the least. But things are about to get a whole lot creepier.

When two knobs suddenly poke through the plaster, Henry knows something is up. And try as he may, he can't fight his curiosity. What he discovers are 99 cupboards--most small--four inches in height. With his cousin, Henrietta, the two seem determined to uncover them. But while Henry can uncover them (de-plaster them) without much thought as to what he's uncovering or unsealing when it comes to trying to open them, well, he's a bit more reluctant. But Henrietta will not be easily dissuaded. So the adventures seem determined to find them one way or another. Their curiosity is only increased when they discover two journals kept by their grandfather.

The adventures that follow are purely creepy. The darkness and intensity of the text being broken only slightly with humor now and then. For fans of Coraline by Neil Gaiman, this one will be a sure winner. I can see easily why this book could truly become a favorite with kids (and a few adults that will admit to reading kids books). But in all honesty, this book was WAY too creepy for me. Perhaps my mistake was reading it late at night. I suppose I thought that it wouldn't be as dark and creepy as it was. But it was. It was thoroughly creepy. But I've got to remember, that many readers love creepy. They find creepy and dark delicious.

What I can't deny no matter how creeped out I got, was that N.D. Wilson has a way with words, a way with details, a way with characters.

Here's another review of the novel.
Here's the Random House page dedicated to the novel.

The Sweet Far Thing

Bray, Libba. 2007. The Sweet Far Thing.

The Sweet Far Thing concludes the trilogy following Gemma Doyle and her quests in and out of the realms. (The first being A Great and Terrible Beauty which I read at least six months or so before I started blogging so there's no record of what I thought. And the second being Rebel Angels which I reviewed last winter/spring.) The book is heavy both in content and weight. 819 pages. Most of them of seventeen-year-old Gemma confused about who she is and what she wants. At the end of Rebel Angels, Gemma bound the magic of the realms to herself. She had promised several different peoples or tribes that she would later share the magic and make peace throughout the realms; she would issue in a new era of peace and unity. The close of Rebel Angels also saw the death of Circe. (or did it???)

The Sweet Far Thing picks up three months later. It is spring. Felicity and Gemma are getting ready to make their debut in society. And Ann, poor Ann, is still going to be a governess. She's still being treated horribly by the other girls at Spence Academy. Mrs. Nightwing is planning a big masked ball in honor of the graduating class--the class of which Gemma and Felicity and Ann are a part. The other buzz around campus is the ongoing work to complete the East Wing. Mrs. Nightwing is determined that the East Wing which was originally destroyed by fire twenty-five years before, needs to be rebuilt in order for Spence to regain its honor and prestige. But there are many people who fear what will happen when the East Wing is rebuilt. They're afraid of what might become unsealed and unburied. The Gypsies. Mother Elena especially is full of warnings. Most of which go unheeded. But such is the way with those that prophesy foreshadowing.

Getting back to Gemma. Gemma was having an identity crisis of sorts in Rebel Angels. She feared that no one really loved her for her. That her father and grandmother and brother all have their own "idea" of who she is. An idea that is far from reality. And she's worried that her friends just love her, just include her because of her magic, because of her power. She was tempted for a while by a boy, Simon, but then felt he didn't love her for her, know her for her either.

This quote is from Rebel Angels:

To Felicity and Ann, I’m a means into the realms.
To Grandmama, I am something to be molded into shape.
To Tom, I am a sister to be endured.
To Father, I am a good girl, always one step away from disappointing him.
To Simon, I’m a mystery.
To Kartik, I am a task he must master.
My refelection stares back at me, waiting for an introduction. Hello, girl in the mirror. You are Gemma Doyle. And I’ve no idea who you really are. (396-397)

Back to Sweet Far Thing. So Gemma is still learning who she is, what she wants, what she needs, and even learning what she fears most. When the book opens, the reader learns that Gemma has not been able to regain access to the realms. She can no longer conjure up the white door. She has seemingly lost her power. Also of note, the dreams and visions have stopped for the most part. But with 819 pages, the reader knows this powerlessness won't last long. Gemma will find a way; she always finds a way to get what she wants or what she thinks she wants.

There is mystery, confusion, epic battles between good and evil, trickery, betrayal, secrets, lies, love and lost love, fear and hope. There is family drama and school drama. And drama between friends as boundaries are pushed or nudged and little lies are told. Fans of the series will no doubt be anxious to read this saga through to its bittersweet conclusion. (I read it in two days.) But I'm unable to predict how they'll feel about the ending. I know my response. (Though I won't go there here in this post.) But how will fans react?

Young Adult Challenge 2008

Hosted by Thoughts of Joy, the goal of the Young Adult challenge is to read twelve young adult books in 2008. I'm not sure which twelve I'll be reading...I'll be reading the 2008 books as well as working on the Cybils at the beginning of the new year. And I'm planning on reading all the 2007 winners and best-ofs as lists come out and awards are announced. So I'll have no trouble coming up with a working list later. Anyway, I'll be joining this one...will give books later. :)