The Bride’s Farewell by Meg Rosoff

 

I have just finished an amazing book.

It is part fairy tale, part love story. It is a cross between Charles Dickens and Lemony Snicket. It is part Brothers Grimm and part historical melodrama.

In other words, it is unclassifiable.

I am speaking of The Bride’s Farewell, the new novel by the New York Bestselling, Carnigie Award Winning author Meg Rosoff. This is her fourth novel for young adults, but even there I would say that genre does not suit her.

Meg’s novels are for young adults in that they feature a younger cast of characters. But the themes her books deal with are much more adult; incredibly darker and moodier than most juvenile fiction published today.

Her first novel, How I Live Now, featured a young girl and her cousin that have survived a bombing in a future not unlike ours; and fell in love. Her second novel, Just In Case, concerns a boy who, to escape Fate, reinvents himself; he even imagines an invisible dog for himself that other people can see. Her third novel, What I Was, can be described as a boarding house love story between two boys.

Quite obviously, Meg Rosoff never writes the same book twice.

I was eagerly awaiting to see what Meg Rosoff would give us with The Bride’s Farewell. I wondered what the setting would be. In Rosoff’s novels, the characters and the place around them play equally important roles.

She is a beautiful storyteller. For me, she seems to have written each of her books carefully, choosing each word so that it feels right. Though her books may be short in length (each of her four novels are around the 200 something page count), the emotion and the power in her novels makes the books feel stronger, somehow; more vibrant.

I’m always a little nervous when I begin a Meg Rosoff novel. Since no two stories are the same, I wonder where she is going to take me; what story she is going to tell. Her novels remind me of the novel in verse books written by Ellen Hopkins. Though Rosoff writes in prose, her books mirror Hopkins’ in that they always present us with stories that are engaging, beautifully written and emotionally charged. And each time you open one of their novels you wonder where you are going to end up.

When I read a Meg Rosoff novel, I treat the book as if I am pursuing a gem. So clearly I had high expectations for The Bride’s Farewell. Meg Rosoff’s new novel has been one of my most anticipated reads of 2009.

I am delighted to say that I was not disappointed in the least. 

Quite the contrary, in fact. I think that The Bride’s Farewell is Rosoff’s best book to date. It concerns sixteen year old Pell Ridley who runs away from her home on her wedding day in the year of eighteen hundred and fifty something.

She leaves home with only her horse Jack and her brother Bean, a boy who does not speak. What she returns with is so much more.

I won’t say any more of the plot then that, only to say that you should experience the story as I did. Meg Rosoff writes novels that are not just merely read; they are explored. Each page brings you deeper into the story of Pell and what happens to her that, by the end, you will never want to leave her world. 

Ultimately, The Brides Farewell is really about three things: It is about family and courage. And the incredible power of love.

Through stunning words, vivid imagery, Meg Rosoff has given us a delightful historical novel that reminds us of something important.

She reminds us that we cannot get where we are going, if we do not remember where we came from.

Though the book may seem grim at times, The Bride’s Farewell is ultimately a joyous novel about the search for who we are and the happiness we find at discovering our place in the world.

Abarat by Clive Barker

 

“..Once upon a world, where time is place, a journey beyond imagination is about to unfold…”

Enter a world filled with darkness. A world fraught with peril at every corner, scenes beyond all imagining and magic so thick it could fill the air. Welcome to Abarat…

When we meet our heroine, 16-year-old Candy Quackenbush, for the first time, she is bored with her life in Chickentown USA. Her teacher hates her, her father is an abusive drunken brute, and her mother no longer stands up for Candy or herself when he beats them. Candy remembers often hiding in corners or waiting for the tears to stop after a fresh bout of abuse.

She knows that there must be more out in the world that what she has here; living in a town whose only claim to fame is that it is the largest exporter of chickens in the USA. Perhaps it is this boredom that leads to Candy telling off her teacher, Ms. Shwartz, for being an intolerable bully. Ms. Shwartz, in turn, hating Candy with every fibre of her person, sends her to the principal’s office for expulsion from school. Except, Candy does not go to the principal’s office.

It all started with the doodle…that doodle of waves that she drew in her notebook. Lines upon lines, all crashing and flowing into one another. Her feet and body recognize these waves, this doodle, and lead Candy towards a large open field far away from the town limits. In the centre of this field is a jetty and a skeletal light house, its beauty reduced to ruins. A lighthouse in the middle of Minnesota? Thousands of miles from the ocean? It is there that she meets John Mischief.

John Mischief, a man with antlers on his head, upon which grow seven heads, tells Candy of a land called Abarat, a glorious land where there are twenty-five islands: one island for each hour of the day and The Twenty Fifth Hour, the hour between dawn and dusk that allows itself to slip away.

Mischief tells Candy of magic and asks for her assistance. They are trying to avoid being slaughtered by Mendelsome Shape, a terrible man who has four swords lodged in his back, as if his skin were the sheath for the weapons. Candy must flee with the Brothers John into the Sea of Izabella, and to Abarat, if they have any hope of escaping.

While in Abarat, Candy learns of Pilxer, creator of The Commexo Kid, and Lord Carrion, Lord of Midnight. Pilxer wants a world full of light, whereas Lord Carrion would like the world to remain dark, thank you very much.

Candy also learns that she is more important than she previously thought, and must have her wits about her to stay safe. What with Dragons, Mires (or Stichlings), and the like after her, she has become quite a celebrity. She must work to stay alive…

Abarat (which is the first of four in the Abarat Quartet) is a modern day Wizard of Oz meets Harry Potter meets A Series of Unfortunate Events. Throw in a little bit of Charles Dickens patented darkness, some twisted Barker humour, and you’ve got Abarat .

This book is full. Though it is not a large book, it is as if Barker has taken a world and stuffed it into the Pandora’s Box of Abarat. This book is sprawlingand full of life. The words seem to lift off the page as you read them, creating the images of monsters and magic in front of you. It is an epic tale, a dark tale, a moral tale; all this rolled into one novel. It must have been quite an undertaking.

There are new images presented on each line, on each page. Every word is a contribution to the Abaratian Gods, a homage to what Abarat was, is and will be. Never fear! This being his world, Barker thought we might need a little help imagining things as they should be.

Riddled throughout the book are over a hundred of Barker’s own oil paintings, all in full colour. Abarat is a treat for the eyes as well as the mind. It mesmerizes your sight as you flip the pages along, white knuckled with anticipation to know what will happen to Candy next. The pictures add that dark artistic touch that Barker is famous for; they also let the reader see into Abarat, to feel it more closely than words alone would allow.

There are a few things that stand out to me about this book. First, its darkness. In the introduction to the book, Barker recounts reading tales from such authors as C. S. Lewis and The Wizard of Oz. Influenced by these childhood wonders, he took it upon himself to create something like that, a piece of the canon that would burn brightest.

He has succeeded, though not with light; instead he uses darkness. Abarat is not a particularly happy book. In fact, not many good things happen to our lovely Candy Quackenbush. Throughout she is kidnapped, assaulted, beaten, chased after and treated like filth. She plummets from thousands of feet up in the air from the back of a giant moth created by magic, she is pursued by the brothers Fugit, who wish to beat her and then drive her insane.

The darkness forms a parallel with earlier fantasy works. The Brothers Grimm, The Wizard of Oz, Harry Potter, A Series of Unfortunate Events; all these books have darkness riddled throughout them. There is a sense of danger, a sense of peril.

One thing always happens: good triumphs over evil. Barker has created a dark world filled with mystery and enchantment. One day I hope to see this book as a classic. It is that amazing.

Abarat also reminded me of many other tales I read as a child, the above mentioned among them. I found myself in a few places feeling like I was reading something out of Hansel and Gretel. Barker makes you familiar with the story, comfortable with it.

Thus you are more likely to immerse yourself in the Sea of Izabella, or the twenty-five islands of Abarat. Even though some parts of Abarat scared me, I felt safe there; I felt welcomed. The book is so layered with parallels and allusion that you can’t help but get lost in it.

Barker has created a magnificent piece of work, and one hell of a cliffhanger. It is a beautiful book, filled with images and wonders, dreams and nightmares and everything in between. I can only wonder what my next visit to Abarat will bring.

Should you choose to visit, I’ll be on the Island of Yebba Dim Day, haggling with a pastry stall owner about the price of a muffin. Come and find me; I’ll be happy to show you around.

Anne of Green Gables by L. M. Montgomery

 

Everyone knows the story of Anne of Green Gables: A plucky orphan girl who comes to Prince Edward Island after being adopted by the stern but loving Marilla and her brother Mathew Cuthbert.

Anne is eleven when she comes to Prince Edward Island to be adopted. Mathew Cuthbert, having driven most of the day to the train station to pick up a boy they wanted to adopt, is shocked to find a red haired, freckled girl waiting for him instead.

Not wanting to crush the girl’s tender spirit by telling her she is not wanted, Mathew takes her home and hopes that Marilla will tell her instead. But, things do not go according to plan. Despite plans to send Anne back and get the boy they wanted to replace her, they decide to let Anne stay if she is willing to prove herself.

Thus begins one of the most beloved novels of all time. It is indeed beloved the world over and has been translated into several languages and has never once been out of print since its initial publication in January of 1908.

Having been a long time fan of the movies starring Megan Follows, I had never had the pleasure of reading the actual book. I thought I knew all there was to know about Anne Shirley and her story. Thankfully, I was very wrong indeed.

While looking for something to read in a local bookstore, I saw a display that intrigued me. Celebrating the 100th anniversary of Anne of Green Gables, the display held copies of two books: Before Green Gables by Budge Wilson, an authorized prequel and a collector’s edition of Anne of Green Gables. I bought the two books immediately.

In them, I knew I would find a piece of the childhood that I hadn’t been able to have, that I hadn’t experienced. I knew that inside those pages, I would be able to discover something wonderful.

I read Anne of Green Gables first and I wasn’t disappointed. The collector’s edition is a facsimile of the book from when it was first published in 1908 complete with original spelling mistakes and punctuation errors. However, I never saw the errors.

All I was able to do was lose myself in the wonderful, amazing story of Anne of Green Gables. What makes the story so magical I think is it’s wonder, it’s abundant joy. Anne is a remarkable protagonist and from the moment we meet her, we feel for her, ache for her. She is real.

I think that Anne is the child within all of us. As I read Anne of Green Gables (and Before Green Gables) I fell more deeply in love with Anne. She is the embodiment of joy and is just as lovable today as she was one hundred years ago.

When Lucy Maud Montgomery penned Anne of Green Gables, I don’t think even she knew how well the book would do, how much people would grow to love it. I doubt she knew that it would be read by generation after generation for a hundred years.

For me, Anne of Green Gables was sheer delight and pure magic. As I read her story I was transported to another time, another place.

As fresh today as it was a hundred years ago, Anne of Green Gables is a literary treat and perhaps the most enjoyable book I have read in years. I know that I will be reading Anne’s story again and again in the years to come.

For every time I open the book, Anne’s spirit comes alive.

 

 

Maximum Ride: The Final Warning by James Patterson

Maximum Ride is a very special girl.

For one thing, she can fly. Her and five other children (Fang, Angel, Nudge, Iggy and Gazzy) have been genetically altered so that two percent of their DNA is avian. What does this mean? It means that they are able to fly.

In their newest adventure, the flock face their most harrowing nemesis yet. The evil Uber Director, part man and part machine, wants to capture the flock and sell them to the highest bidder.

Unaware of the Uber Directors plans, the flock have problems of their own. The U.S. Government has stepped in and wants to protect them but study them at the same time. The flock wants no part in this; they want freedom and the chance to be like any other kid in the world.

Max’s mother, Dr. Martinez, has a plan. She sends them to work with a group of doctors and scientists in Antarctica. They are studying the effects of Global Warming and feel that the flock could be a great asset to their fight for the planet.

There are also other problems to deal with, however. Max is struggling with her growing feelings for Fang. She loves him but won’t admit it to herself. She also doesn’t know if Fang feels the same way. Added to that, each member of the flock has developed a new ability. The flock seems to be mutating on its own. They are unsure how this is happening or what it means for the flock.

Tragedy strikes when one of the researchers is revealed to be a spy. Max realizes that they are no longer safe and that they will have to prepare to fight for their lives….

The Final Warning is the fourth in the best selling young adult Maximum Ride series by James Patterson. It follows the first three books: The Angel Experiment, Schools Out-Forever and Saving the World and Other Extreme Sports. I love these books and have read them countless times.

Though written for young adults, the Maximum Ride series are for kids of all ages. I’ve been eagerly awaiting the release of the fourth, and I assumed, final chapter in the Maximum Ride saga. I figure that with a title like The Final Warning, the book would be an incredible cap off to an amazing series.

I was wrong. Though the book is amazing and runs along at a break neck pace, it seems there is no end in sight for Maximum Ride and her flock. I was expecting a concrete ending and what I got was a lose ending that leaves everything open for another book. That’s not a bad thing, though. Personally I can’t wait for another Maximum Ride adventure.

I have only two minor complaints about the book. First, it’s far too short. The three previous books clock in at well over four hundred pages. The Final Warning only clocks in at a little over two hundred pages and all the books are the same price. I figure if I’m getting half the book, it should be half the price.

The second major complaint has to do with the Global Warming sub plot. While I applaud Patterson for putting a very sound environmental message in the book, the message doesn’t go anywhere. The flock don’t do anything to help stop Global Warming and instead are reduced to mouthpieces, sprouting off enough info on Global Warming to fill an environmental dissertation.

I would love to have seen the plot go beyond what has already been established: We meet the Villain, we meet the Hero/Heroine, the Villain and Hero/Heroine meet, and the Hero/Heroine wins. There was so much potential for a mind-blowing book that I don’t think was achieved here.
That’s not to say that The Final Warning is a bad book; far from it. It’s a fantastic read and you’ll be able to finish it off in a day or two of fast paced reading. It’s great candy for the mind and will leave you wanting more. It’s a great book for a rainy weekend where all you want to do is fly off and have an adventure of your own.

Not Patterson’s best effort, but still great nonetheless. I know that I’ll be waiting for the next Maximum Ride novel to come out. In the meantime, I’ll just have to read the first three all over again.

 

 

Skulduggery Pleasant – Playing With Fire by Derek Landy

Stephanie Edgley has been having a rough time as of late.

After her uncle’s death, twelve-year-old Stephanie meets Skulduggery Pleasant, a fast-talking, snappy dressing detective who just happens to be a walking, talking skeleton. He tells Stephanie that she is directly descendant from the Ancients, people who used control magic.

Under Skulduggery’s tutelage, Stephanie’s skills have grown. She is an Elemental, able to control Air, Earth, Water and Fire to her will. While still not as skilled as Skulduggery, she’s getting better. Which is a good thing; she’s going to need all her skills for a new evil that is threatening the world.

Evil sorcerer, Baron Vengeous, has hatched a plan to bring back the Faceless Ones; Gods who ruled the Earth with dark magic and great cruelty. Stephanie and Skulduggery previously defeated the Baron’s boss, the horrible Serpine. But the Baron has a surprise in store for our hero’s far nastier than Serpine.

The Baron plans to resurrect the Grotesquery. Part man, part Frankenstein mishmash of mythical creatures and all evil. If brought back to life, the Grotesquery will call the Faceless Ones back to earth and then everyone will be done for.

Skulduggery and Stephanie will need all their magic, all their allies, to defeat this most monstrous of enemies.

And they only have three days to do it.

I am a huge fan of Landy’s first Skulduggery book. I’ve given copies out to friends and family and have told everyone I know about it. It was one of my favourite books of 2007.

It was funny, fun, frantic and incredibly fantastic. It was also self-contained. So, needless to say, I was a little worried about a second book in the series though extremely excited at the same time. Would Playing With Fire be just as funny, as fast paced and fun?

The answer is a loud and resounding yes. In fact, Playing With Fire is better than Landy’s first offering. Landy manages to write a dark gothic fantasy that is laugh out loud funny and also incredibly original, fresh and new.

Landy has managed to do something that many authors have not: transcend genres. While this is first and foremost a young adult fantasy, it’s also a noir comedy and can be read by young adults and adults alike.

Landy is a talented writer and has managed to create characters we care about. The relationship between Skulduggery and Stephanie is comic, yes, but also extremely touching. It’s a rare and talented author that can make us laugh in one sentence and then pull our heartstrings in another.

Playing With Fire is an incredible, amazing treat and one hell of a read. It’s also the best young adult book I’ve read in years. If you haven’t read Skulduggery Pleasant, the first book in the series, do so. Then read Skulduggery Pleasant: Playing With Fire. You won’t be sorry.

In fact, you’ll be left begging for more. 

 

 

Stealing Heaven by Elizabeth Scott

Danielle has been stealing things for as long as she can remember.

At eighteen years of age, Danielle isn’t your average young adult. After her father got put in jail for theft, she and her mother have led a nomad life style. They go from place to place, stealing to make their way. Thieves don’t always look like you think they should.

Danielle is tired, though. Tired of living a life where nothing is hers, where she is constantly on the move. Tired of lying about her name, her background, tired of pretending to be someone she isn’t.

She longs for what every other young adult takes for granted: a home to call her own. Her own room. Her own possessions. She longs for a life that doesn’t include thieving, making money off of someone else’s misfortune. Danielle wonders if her life is ever going to change.

That change comes when she and her mother make a stop in the small tourist town called Heaven.

There, Danielle begins to get a glimpse of what it would be like to have a normal life, to be a normal girl. And when she meets Greg, her life changes in a big way. Greg is one of Heaven’s cops. And Danielle can feel herself falling in love with him.

Falling for a cop is dangerous but Danielle can’t seem to stop herself. And when disaster strikes, when something terrible happens, Danielle finds herself having to choose between the life that she’s always known or getting the life she’s always wanted…

This was a hands down fantastic read. From the first page, I found myself pulled into Danielle’s story. By page ten, I was hooked. I finished the book in just under two days and wanted to read it all over again.

Scott has given us an incredible narrator in Danielle. Someone that we can relate to right away, someone that we care for within the first few pages of Stealing Heaven. Getting a reader to care about a character so quickly is no small feat, but Scott achieves this with ease and grace.

Instead of the stilted, cardboard cut out characters that one normally gets in most teen fiction, Scott has written characters that are very real, that are alive. While reading Stealing Heaven, it felt as if Heaven was a real place, like I could go visit these people any time I wanted.

Scott has given us an intimate look at a very human struggle, perhaps the greatest What If of all: What if I got everything I wanted but it would cost everything I knew? Stealing Heaven is essentially a study in human nature, at what one girl would do to get everything she desired.

Stealing Heaven is a fast, fantastic read that is sure to become a classic. It won’t take you long to read Stealing Heaven, but it’s story and it’s characters will stay with you long after you finish the book.

 

 

 

MIKE by L. Diane Wolfe

Have you ever wanted something so badly you could taste it? Have you ever wished you could travel back in time and erase past mistakes so that you could start fresh? Have you ever regretted something you have done?  

Mike Taylor is a troubled young man.  

Though you wouldn’t know this to look at him. Hard working and down to earth, he is well liked by everyone who knows him. Having achieved high marks at Georgia Tech and athletic success, you would think that Mike is a man on top of the world.  

But secrets, especially those that are deeply buried, will eat away at even the most convincing façade. And they usually have a way of getting out.

Years ago, Mike got one of his girlfriends pregnant. After she had an abortion, things were not the same for Mike. How could he live with himself after letting a human life be taken away?  

Worse still, he is in love with his best friend’s wife. Sarah has no idea of Mike’s feelings towards her and if she did, it would change everything between them. Loving and admiring her from afar, his heart and spirit suffers. He feels guilty for loving his friend’s wife, guilty for all the mistakes he has made.  

Needing a fresh start, Mike moves out to Albuquerque to start a job at the Sandia Labs. Hoping to escape his past, Mike finds himself instead isolated and alone. Away from his friends and family, Mike does nothing but obsess about the mistakes he made in his past and the ones he has made in his present.  

All that changes, however, when he meets Danielle. Her energy and her bright personality bring a spot of light into Mike’s dark life and the two bond quickly. Mike finds himself falling in love with Danielle and the two are married shortly after meeting. Mike feels that nothing can go wrong, that nothing can destroy the relationship they have built. 

But Mike has not counted on the power of secrets. Even if you keep them tightly hidden, they will find a way to break free.  Can Mike find a way to be honest with Danielle and himself? Or will he let past misjudgements ruin what could be the greatest love of his life?  

Simply put, MIKE is amazing. I have fallen in love with Wolfe’s Circle of Friends series since reading the third book and working my way back to the beginning.

Thus far, I’ve read MIKE three times and it’s better every time I read it. For those unfamiliar with the series, never fear! Each book is a stand alone novel but you will meet characters from the other books in the series.  

Wolfe manages to write a novel about difficult situations and still manages to make it light, funny and heart warming. While there is a lot of focus on Christianity and faith, it never comes off as preachy. Most books that involve even a hint of references to Christianity make my skin crawl but Wolfe manages to juggle many storylines, plots and characters all at once and always comes out shining.

Faith is an important part of MIKE but not the central focus. It takes an incredibly talented writer to tackle the subject of faith and religion and not make it sound preachy. 

Another reason that Wolfe is such an amazing writer is her ability to write such well defined, amazing characters. And in MIKE she has sharpened her pen and her inner eye to crystal cut clarity. You know just from reading the beautiful prose that Wolfe loves these characters, that she aches for them. Because she does, you do too. 

I wanted to tell Mike that it was all going to be okay, that he needed to take one day at a time. You KNOW Mike after this novel, you feel for him, you ache for him. Many writers try to accomplish this and even more fail. Happily, Wolfe manages this with flying colours.  

Wolfe’s novels also have a moral or important message to take away from them. This one is important for everyone and I want to make sure you’re reading carefully, that you pay attention to this next line. It’s such an important message and everyone needs to hear it. Are you ready? Here it is:  

Do not let past mistakes determine your future.  

Sounds simple, right? But that theme, that message, is woven through out every word in this glorious novel. It’s such an important message because everyone does this.

Everyone judges themselves so harshly for the things they have done that they never stop to forgive themselves. If you don’t forgive yourself for your mistakes, how can you move on? How can you live your life?

  MIKE is such a powerful, engrossing, incredible, beautiful novel. But it still manages to be light hearted, funny and heart felt. There is real emotion and real people in these pages and I enjoyed MIKE more than any other book in the series.

I know that when the fifth and final book comes out, it will be like saying goodbye.  Do yourself a favour and make some time for this book.

This is a life changing novel and you will look at yourself, and the world around you, once you have finished.   

James by L. Diane Wolfe

James: Circle of Friends Book Three
By: L. Diane Wolfe

Author Site: http://www.thecircleoffriends.net/ 

Author Blog: http://circleoffriendsbooks.blogspot.com/

James is a young man who is lost within himself. Growing up with an abusive father, James doesn’t let too many people into his life. In order not to think about the past, he focuses on other things diligently: school, work. But, though lost, he longs of having someone love him; of giving someone his heart and receiving theirs in return.When his current girlfriend cheats on him, James despairs of ever finding someone who is honest, down to earth and caring. His friend Lori sets him up with a shy girl named Maria and the two hit it off instantly. Both being photographers, they find common ground and their relationship begins to blossom.

Other relationships not well, however. James father Ben informs him that if James does not come to collect his belongings, he will throw them out. James goes to collect his things, marvelling at his step mother’s willingness to stay with his abusive father.
Lynn has always loved James like her own son and has been a real mother to him. He can’t stand the idea of Ben hurting her.

James knows that if he didn’t have Maria’s love, life would be unbearable. Despite all the secrets of his past, Maria is a light in the darkness for him. James strives to do well for himself and Maria inspires him to do even better.

But when something life changing happens, will Maria and James survive? Will their relationship crumble around them or will they face their problems head on and come out stronger in the end?

My meagre plot summary doesn’t even come close to recounting the gripping plot of this amazing novel. While James is essentially the story of one young man, it is also a study of relationships: mother and son, father and son, boyfriend and girlfriend. It is a study of the depth of the human heart and the choices we make in our lives.

What makes this novel so incredible is its realism. Wolfe deftly manages to draw you into the story and makes you care for these characters. You ache for James and Maria. You want James’ father to love him. You will fall in love with these characters and never want the book to end. I guarantee it.

Also interwoven with the incredible story is an important message: Never give up on your dreams. Everyone holds the power to succeed at whatever they dream as long as they believe in themselves. Normally I find inspirational fiction to be preachy, but James is far from it. James is a life changing novel that will have you examining your life with new eyes and reaching out to those you love to let them know how much they mean to you.

Thankfully, the story continues in Mike: Circle of Friends Book Four. Though these novels are all part of a series, you can read them on your own. You will want to read the rest of them though, again and again. James is, by far, one of the best books I have ever read. It made me laugh; cry, cheer and the ending left me spellbound.

If you read this incredible novel, L. Diane Wolfe will become your new favourite author. Trust me on this. Become part of The Circle of Friends. You’ll never want to leave.

The Rock of Realm by Lea Schizas

The Rock of Realm

By Lea Schizas

Star Publish Books, 2005

http://leaschizaseditor.tripod.com 

Life is exceedingly normal for fourteen year old Alex Stone. She has to clean up her dogs mess, get a ride to school from old Ms. Harris who shouldn’t be allowed on the road and babysit Ms. Harris’ grandchildren after school against her will. Life could not possibly be any worse. Could it?

As it turns out, it could. Alex, frustrated with her life and the boredom of it, wishes she were Queen in anEnchanted Forest. She dreams of wizards and knights in shining amour and wishes that she were something special. What Alex doesn’t realize however is that wishes have an annoying habit of being granted.

Walking through Greendale park with her best friend Sarah Breckninridge, Alex is hit on the head with a small, pink rock. It glitters in the moonlight and Alex is perturbed by it. Things get odder still when Sarah finds a small pouch near where Alex found the rock. The pouch is filled with a handful of glittering, gold dust.

 

Sarah tries to make fun of Alex’s wish for the fantastical, throwing dust around them like rain. Growing frustrated with her friend, Alex throws some of the gold dust in the air, reciting a passage she knows by heart:

“Glitter I toss, safely I will cross, into your realm it will lead, evil digress, the Queen I am to thee.” 

With these words, Alex has no idea that her life is about to change forever. A mysterious wind starts up and wails around them, the two girls hardly even able to see each other. When the wind clears, they are no longer in Greendale Park. Instead, they have entered the mysterious world of Rock Kingdom.

They come upon a talking tree who tells Alex that she must have the Rock of Realm in her hand and that only the enchanted ones can possess its magic. Alex, feeling a touch of fear at the words, doesn’t realize her life is about to change forever….

 

The Rock of Realm is, without a doubt, the most engaging fantasy I have read in years. I’ve long stayed away from the fantasy genre. Lately it seems to be cookie cutter books; the same story with different characters all going on the same kinds of quests. This is especially true of young adult fantasy. Since the dawn of the Age of Harry Potter, too many authors have tried to ride the coat tails of Harry’s successes.

 

I’m glad to say that The Rock of Realm rides no one’s coat tails and is just as engaging as and indeed fresher than the Harry Potter books. Perhaps it is the Harry Potter books that ride The Rock of Realms coat tails?

 

 

Right away, you know you are in for a treat. While this is the usual story of a girl in a strange world with magical powers, Schizas gives the old tale quite a few twists. Nothing is what it seems and just when you think you have the story figured out is when Schizas takes another incredible turn and twists the story into something new and incredible.

 

What I love about The Rock of Realm are the characters. Alex and Sarah are so real and so grounded that you could swear that you have known these two girls all of your life. Alex is a strong protagonist who confronts dangers and magic head on and Sarah is a worthy sidekick. Alex’s dog Butch (and Butch’s pet squirrel Pops) who both talk are excellent for comic relief and keep the story from becoming too dark.

 

By the end of the novel, you care for these characters, you ache for them, and you cheer for them. This book has everything you need for an excellent story: a battle of good versus evil, magic and strange worlds, darkness that creeps out of shadows, talking animals and, most importantly, the strength of the human heart. It would not be going to far to say that The Rock of Realm is a life changing book. This is how fantasy should be written.

 

If you haven’t read The Rock of Realm yet, I don’t know what you’re waiting for. The novel is a light, fun and enjoyable romp through an unknown land that will leave you spellbound. You will want to read The Rock of Realm first to yourself and then to your kids. And then once more, just for the sheer enjoyment of it.

 

A fantastic book and one that should be considered a classic. If you haven’t read it yet, why are you still reading my review? Read and enjoy, you won’t be sorry.

After by Francine Prose

They called what happened at Pleasant Valley a massacre. Dozens of students and teachers gunned down in the school’s gymnasium before anyone knew what was going on. The most terrible thing is that no one saw it coming.

A group of teens, loners, marched into the school wearing trench coats, tracked down the jocks and opened fire. Fifty miles away, the students at Central High reel from the news that something so bizarre could happen at so close to home. However, the students at Central High are about to realize just how bizarre things can be. Overnight, new security measures pop up all over Central High. Students must now enter the school through metal detectors, bags are searched, and inspections are done, all in an effort to prevent what happened at Pleasant Valley from happening at Central High.

After all, you can never be too safe, can you? And then a new Grief and Crisis councillor is hired to aid students in dealing with the tragedy. Dr. Willner seems to change the school overnight, adding new rules and regulations.

No cell phones are allowed, a new dress code is introduced. Central High begins to take on an air of desperation. Tom and his friends Brian, Avery and Silas watch as the school turns from a place of learning to a prison. Their parents begin to receive nightly emails from the school telling them of the possibilities of violence and how to protect their children. They watch the goings on with curiosity. Surely this was all for their safety, wasn’t it? Students are afraid to step out of line. Silas starts talking of a cover up, a conspiracy. Something is wrong in their school and Silas knows it.

Tom, Brian and Avery laugh it off – until the students start to disappear. Willner is taking over their school; they are being watched, observed. If anyone steps out of line, the consequences are severe. Tom learns that this is happening all over the country, students are disappearing without a trace or an explanation, Silas and Avery among them. They are sent to rehab camps, never to return.

Tom thinks this is bad enough until the first student dies. Knowing he is in a race against time, he rallies together with his friend and the class pet, Becca, to try and stand up to the school and to Dr. Willner …

Prose gives us a novel that is at times chilling, at times shocking. It is a slow book that takes its time to hook the reader and draw them in to the story. Once you’re hooked, it won’t let you go. It’s also a stark novel, one that relies more on internal and external dialogue rather than the powers of description. It is also very reminiscent of George Orwell’s 1984. Big Brother is watching.

However, there are a few interesting quirks about the novel. There are several things that aren’t clarified or explained. We’re never told whether or not this book is set in the future, for instance, or if it is a fantasy or a satire of real life.

We never find out what happened to the students who have disappeared. Their disappearance remains a mystery even after the book is finished. It isn’t even explained why the school is killing students and treating it’s halls like a prison.

Now, the theme of the book is supposed to be safety gone too far. That’s fine and dandy, but we still could have benefited from some explication. I enjoy fiction where I walk away thinking about what I’ve just read.

However, “After” just leaves too many questions unanswered. There is vagueness to “After” that I found unsettling, that got under my skin; this may have been its desired effect.

In the end, “After” is a pretty good novel. It shows us what can happen when supposed safety measures are taken too far and that Big Brother may not be as unrealistic a portrayal of our society as we once thought.