ALAN Online

ALAN’s Picks is a monthly book review column compiled and edited by Dr. Pam B. Cole of Kennesaw State University.  Be sure to check ALAN online each month for a fresh look of  the latest and greatest in YA Lit.

Reviewed this month:

Black Box by Julie Schumacher
Bring Down the Sun by Judith Tarr
The Cabinet of Wonders, The Kronos Chronicles, Book I by Marie Rutkoski 
The Devil’s Breath by David Gilman 
Distant Waves: A Novel of the Titanic by Suzanne Weyn 
Fragile Eternity by Melissa Marr 
Gentlemen by Michael Northrop 
The Ghosts of Kerfol by Deborah Noyes 
Hippie Chick by Joseph Monninger 
i know it’s OVER by c.k. kelly martin 

Black Box by Julie Schumacher
Random House, 2008, 168 pp., $15.99
Adolescent Depression/Family Issues
ISBN: 978-0-385-73542-1

Elena and Dora are teenage sisters who share a close and complex relationship. When Dora is diagnosed with depression and suddenly institutionalized, Elena silently struggles with her parents’ faltering marriage and the idea that her older sister has a “mental illness,” and eventually turns to a knowledgeable neighborhood outcast for insight and moral support. 

Through captivating characterization and highly believable dialogue, Schumacher manages to accurately and sensitively capture the strength between sisters and the nightmare of teenage depression, without any unfortunate sugar-coating or over-dramatization. Black Box’s short, fast-paced chapters and high-interest subject matter are enhanced by Schumacher’s masterful portrayal of character as well as Elena’s touchingly believable narration. 

English teachers will appreciate the occasional bit of discreet, pro-reading propaganda as Dora requests that her family bring her books to read while she is in the hospital, and Schumacher’s writing provides a valuable example of teachable craft as she frequently incorporates aesthetic elements such as metaphor, simile, and vivid imagery. This novel is recommended for readers grades 8 through 12 and would be an excellent choice for a reluctant independent reader.

Reviewed by Kate Featherston, Princeton, NJ

Bring Down the Sun by Judith Tarr
Tor, 2008, 220 pp., $22.95
Historical Fantasy/Romance
ISBN: 0-7653-0397-3

Polyxena.  Myrtale.  Olympias.  Three different names.  One powerful young woman.    An Epirote princess by birth, Polyxena spends her days serving her aunt and the two other priestesses of the Oracle of Dodona.   Certain she is destined for a life beyond the walls of the shrine, she demands an oracle for herself and nearly destroys her community when she inadvertently reaches out and touches the sun.  Sent by the king to the Isle of Samothrace where she is sworn into the Mysteries, she begins a relationship with King Philip II of Macedon and is renamed by him.  Now Myrtale, she is eventually summoned by Philip to Macedonia, where she marries him and conceives his child.  However, before the child can be born and she can assume her true name, Olympias, Myrtale must confront the omens of her birth and those plotting against her unborn son.  She must discover what she is capable of and who she truly is.   

Magic and mystery abound in this lush novel as author, Judith Tarr, imagines what it might have been like to be Olympias, mother of Alexander the Great, as a young woman.  Because of the historical and mythological narratives on which this story is based, Bring Down the Sun contains mature sexual content.  However, for older YA readers interested in Greek history and mythology, this book will have strong appeal.

Reviewed by Emily Meixner, Ewing, NJ

The Cabinet of Wonders, The Kronos Chronicles, Book I by Marie Rutkoski
Farrar Straus Giroux, 2007, 272 pp., $16.95
Fantasy Fiction
ISBN: 13: 978-0-374-31026-4

In her first novel Rotkoski synthesizes history, fable and fantasy with compelling mystery ideal for middle school children and even older fans of fantasy fiction. While the hero’s journey plot line is familiar, the characters and setting are unique: Petra, the stubborn but brave heroine and her wise tin spider, Astrophil, journey through Renaissance Bohemia meeting magicians, and ultimately a charming but evil prince.

The story opens with two men delivering a “package” from the prince’s palace to Okno, a small but prosperous village in Bohemia. Petra’s father, Mikal, is the package. The reader soon learns that Mikal was commissioned by the prince to create a masterpiece of an astronomical clock so magnificent that the prince wanted to make certain a duplicate could never be made; he ensured his desire by blinding the metalworker. Petra is horrified by her father’s blindness but equally disappointed in her father’s judgment to have accepted the commission while knowing the prince’s reputation for atrocities. 

Petra and Astrophil’s journey to avenge Mikal’s blinding is filled with suspense, surprise and, ultimately, satisfaction rendering the book itself a form of “cabinet of wonders.” 

Reviewed by Coleen Sams, Palm Harbor, FL

The Devil’s Breath by David Gilman
Delacorte Press, 2007, 389 pp., $16.99
Action/Adventure
ISBN: 978-0-385-73560-5

Max Gordon’s life was never quite normal. While his dad traveled the world seeking adventures, he went to an adventure-training high school nestled in a rock face called Dartmoor High. Just when his dad turns up missing in Africa and is presumed dead, Max is attacked by a determined assassin. Relying on experience, fortitude, and the few people he has left to trust, Max embarks on a mission to find and rescue his dad. 

Filled with computer hacking, sabotage, stampedes, and the extremes of the African wilderness, David Gilman’s story keeps your heart pumping from the first page. Constant twists and action put it on par with the best adventure movies. This story is perfect for all readers. Young readers who find it difficult to follow novels or to find one of interest will benefit from the fast-paced plot. In addition, Gilman calls on his travel experience to enrich this story with African culture. Lessons learned about the Bushmen of Africa are invaluable and approachable. The Devil’s Breath is a great start to the new series, Danger Zone.

Reviewed by Brian Spiro, OH Cincinnati, 

Distant Waves: A Novel of the Titanic by Suzanne Weyn
Scholastic Press, 2009, 336 pp., $17.99
Historical Fiction/United States/20^th Century/Love and Romance
ISBN: 0-545-08572-1 

Never mind that sixteen-year-old Jane Taylor doesn’t step aboard the Titanic until page 200; this historical novel is about so much more readers won’t really notice. Opening in a dimmed parlor in New York City, four-year-old Jane hides behind a curtain with her sisters to watch as her mother contacts the spirit world. As she grows up, Jane’s memories of what is true and what may be possible lay the foundation for the intersecting of the worlds of the living and the dead, the past and the future and the evolving distinctions between class and race in the early 20^th century. Yes, this book takes on a lot. But, while the story line sweeps the reader through a span of sixteen year and across an ocean, the central core remains Jane’s drive to understand her role in her present life and how her actions impact those around her. This need to make sense of her world is mirrored in the real-life characters she encounters who are trying to do the same: inventor Nikola Tesla; author Sir Arthur Conan Doyle; millionaire John Jacob Astor; and the infamous spiritualist Fox sisters. 

Weyn intricately weaves a fictional tale out of several historical events that culminate in an accessible exploration of what is truly possible and what fate might actually mean. A quick read featuring a love story and suspenseful edges, Distant Waves will leave the reader wanting to know more about the past and curious as to how the decisions each of us makes today may impact the future of everyone.   

Reviewed by Laurie Thurston, Portland, OR

Fragile Eternity by Melissa Marr
The Bowen Press/HarperCollins, 2009, 390 pp., $16.99
Fantasy/Romance
ISBN:  978-0-06-121471-4

Contemporary teen lovers Aislinn and Seth face new challenges regarding their desire to remain together in this sequel to Ink Exchange, third in the Wicked Lovely series.  Aislinn is now the long-awaited faery Summer Queen and immortal, with Seth desperately loving her while watching her draw nearer to Keenan, Summer King.  

The Summer Kingdom needs strengthening, gained by Aislinn and Keenan becoming lovers and thus true partners, but Aislinn’s love for Seth has allowed her resistance of Keenan’s attractive advances. Still, she recognizes her new responsibilities and perils of remaining with mortal Seth, while Keenan is also torn between his kingly duties and love for Winter Queen Donia, another inappropriate match.   

Seth boldly appeals to High Queen Sorcha, requesting faery transformation.  Sorcha recognizes his possibilities and offers a seemingly simple contract: by staying with her and reverting to mortality only one month each year, he receives conversion. 

Aislinn is kept uniformed of Seth’s whereabouts to coerce her bonding with Keenan, and as time passes she painfully concedes abandonment.  Their eventual reunion jolts; Sorcha had concealed that faery days equal six mortal ones, meaning Seth was hidden over five months.  Aislinn alludes to sleeping with Keenan, and Seth shockingly requests defensive techniques—and those for wounding others.  

This engrossing novel is full of lush, intricate, and fascinatingly-detailed descriptions of its faery kingdoms and their occupants, in addition to Aislinn and Seth’s continued mortal world experiences.  However, this is a transitional read; although resolving prior events, it contains more scenarios for future conclusion than present action.  Descriptions fill this sparseness, but are overlong and repetitive in places.  A major caveat is the complete absence of back-story; familiarity with the series is necessary to fully comprehend this entry.  Regardless, female series fans will devour this with new readers doubtless grabbing the previous novels.   

Reviewed by Lisa Hazlett, Vermillion, SD

Gentlemen by Michael Northrop
Scholastic Press, 2009, 249 pp., $16.99
Social Situations/Adolescence
ISBN: 978-0-545-09749-9

Micheal Benton and his friends Tommy, Mixer, and Bones are just putting in their time at Tattawa High School.  Cast off as unintelligent troublemakers by their peers and often told by their teachers that they are not living up to their potential, the boys rely on each other to get through each school day.  Only Mr. Haberman, the boys’ remedial English teacher, cares enough about the boys to refer to them as gentlemen. 

When Tommy suddenly disappears from school one day, Micheal, Mixer, and Bones have a mystery on their hands.  Did Tommy leave on one of his runaway journeys, or did something much more sinister and deadly happen to him?  As the police search for Tommy, the boys collect clues of their own, all of which lead them directly to Mr. Haberman.  Was Haberman involved in their best friend’s disappearance?  The boys are determined to find out, no matter what the cost.

Michael Northrop’s debut novel is suspenseful, darkly humorous, and strikingly real.  His book examines the importance of friendship during difficult times, but it also notes how fragile friendship can be.  Gentlemen also critically examines the theme of crime and punishment, offering readers the chance to consider whether a crime is a lone act, or has predetermined causes and far reaching consequences beyond the act itself.

Reviewed by Ryan Colwell, Storrs, CT

The Ghosts of Kerfol by Deborah Noyes
Candlewick Press, 2008, 163 pp., $16.99
Ghost Stories/ Royalty/ Suspense
ISBN: 978-0-7636-3000-3

Broken dreams, fractured truths, cold, bloody murders – Deborah Noyes crams it all into The Ghosts of Kerfol.  Noyes captures the readers’ interest immediately and takes them on a spellbinding travel back in time in her five intertwined short stories.  The first ghostly tale introduces Anne de Barrigan, a beautiful, young girl who is trapped in a loveless, abusive marriage with a noble almost forty years her senior. Anne finds herself on trial for the vicious murder of her husband, and her only hope of resolution teeters on the words of her sympathetic servant girl. 

Noyes slides through time and spins the other stories about a young artist struggling with the loss of his father and the greedy transformation of his mother. Next, a wealthy, foolish girl who drinks too much and parties too hard has to face the consequences. Noyes continues as she writes more modern tales about an American couple with a knife-turning secret and a deaf gardener who has to rely on his other senses while caring for the abandoned, run down manor. 

The walls have eyes and ears in this novel and the lost, forgotten souls of Kerfol haunt the readers long after they have finished the easy read. 

Reviewed by Jessica Schneider Ford, Fairmont, WV

Hippie Chick by Joseph Monninger
Front Street, 154 pp., $16.95
Survival/Manatees
ISBN: 9781590785980

After her Boston Whaler, the Mugwhump, wrecks, Lolly doesn’t give up, she gives in. Rescued by a manatee she names One, Lolly discovers the oneness of the universe.  Already a “hippie chick,” Lolly’s zenlike experience with the manatees is a compelling story of the unity of humans and nature. 

Lolly’s tranquil experiences are juxtaposed with chapters about the reaction of the outside, logical, commercial world in which Lolly’s “whole life and [her] likely death” were simply fodder for a radio talk show, and her accident is  used by a classmate to ramp up her own resume.   Not everyone in the “real” world is selfserving, however.  Nick jumps an alligator to bring her back, and others expend extraordinary effort on her behalf.  But the contrast between the two worlds makes the description of the manatees’ lagoon more poignant.

Readers who appreciate lyrical figurative language will delight in this novel, as will those young adult readers who like to linger over thoughtful philosophical passages.   

Reviewed by Lottie Waggoner, Wabash, IN

i know it’s OVER by c.k. kelly martin
Random House, 2008, 244 pp., $16.99
Teen Pregnancy/Sexuality/Coming of Age
ISBN: 978-0-375-84566-6

Nick has a summer of fun planned with no commitments to anything other than hockey and fun. He parties with the in-crowd which includes his two best friends, Keelor and Nathan, has a “friends with benefits” relationship with Dani, and is successful at school and on the ice. Despite his parents’ divorce, life is running smoothly, until he falls for Sasha Jasinski. Nick’s priorities change as his relationship with Sasha develops. However, Sasha feels like things are moving too quickly, so she retreats. At the same time, Nick must handle the fact that Nathan is gay and coming out. Nick feels his life spiraling out of control, when Sasha reveals she is pregnant.

In c.k. kelly martin’s first book, she holds no punches and confronts difficult coming-of- age issues head on. The story is fast-paced, true to life and well written. It will certainly appeal to a mature adolescent audience because of its honesty and frequent references to music, events, and language found in current popular culture.

Reviewed by Marianne Rohr. Cookeville, TN