Keturah and Lord Death

Keturah and Lord Death by Martine Leavitt

My review

rating: 3 of 5 stars
I randomly picked this book up at the bookstore yesterday. I vaguely remember hearing about it as a National Book Award finalist but that's it. The cover is what really caught my attention. I really didn't have any expectations going in to it.

This is the story of a sixteen-year-old girl named Keturah. She follows a great hart into the woods and is lost for three days. Finally she sits and waits for death since she can go on no more. Death shows up in the form of a handsome young man. She charms him with a story and is given a day to find her one true love or come with death that night. Knowing that she has but one day to live Keturah returns to her beloved village and does all she can to help the people and find her one true love. That night death comes for her and she weaves another story and is granted another day. This occurs until the climax of the story (which I won't give away here!)

During her "bought" days Keturah tries her best to prevent the plague from coming to her small village, help her friends see that the men they love are in front of them, improve life for all the dear villagers AND find her one true love. I enjoyed this story. The writing flows nicely and makes the reading very enjoyable. I did have a problem reconciling the ending with the prologue. I'm still not quite sure I understand it and it certainly wasn't what I expected/wanted to happen. Still, I'm liking it more as i go back and re-read it and consider it.

This is a great mix of medieval romance and fantasy. You have to love it when the peasant girl saves the day :)

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"Faerie" Tales

Once upon a time... I was certain that I wouldn't like books about "faeries." In fact, aside from The Chronicles of Narnia, I was pretty sure that the genre of fantasy was not for me. Ironically it was the Golden Compass and Harry Potter that changed my mind. I had to read both books for a YA Lit class in college. I was not looking forward to that assignment. However, to my surprise, I wasn't even 1/4 of the way through Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone when I found myself at the book store buying books two and three and then putting four on hold at the library. It turns out that I LOVE fantasy!! Who knew?!? Luckily for me this is a very prolific time for YA fantasy. I know that vampires are in the spotlight but I want to look at Faerie tales. Whatever you choose to call them -- Fae, the Fair Folk, the Good Neighbors, Fairies, Faeries, the Green Children -- faeries have been the focus of a number of great YA novels. 

In what I've read I've noticed two major "types" of faerie tales. Although it's not entirely correct I like to think of them as the traditional faerie versus the modern faerie. In both types you have the human world and the faerie world existing simultaneously. Faeries are in the human world but humans don't see it. Either the humans can't see the fae or the fae are "glamoured" so that they appear human. You also typically have a main character who has been raised as a human only to discover that they are fae or part fae. These characters then venture in to the Faerie realm to save loved ones, our world, the faerie world, or all three. 

To me the main difference between the two types is that the "modern" faerie tales have more of an edge to them. The characters are a bit more mature. There are more piercings and tattoos. The faeries are darker too. They don't all speak in Old English and they are more prone to pursue their wants and desires over all else. In the more "traditional" faerie tales things are a bit more wholesome. The human characters tend to be in less desperate circumstances and the fae tend to be more "old fashioned" (for lack of a better term.)

There are many great YA examples of both types of faerie tale. My favorites are listed below. I recommend all of them :)

"Modern" tales:

Holly Black's three novel set Ironside, Valiant, and Tithe as well as her graphic novel series The Good Neighbors (book one Kin is out and book two Kith is due out soon.) 

Melissa Marr's three novel set Wicked Lovely, Ink Exchange, and Fragile Eternity as well as the manga spin off that is set in the same world as the novels

Cassandra Clare's Mortal Instrument series The City of Bones, The City of Ashes, and The City of Glass

"Traditional" tales:

Frewin Jones' The Faerie Path series The Faerie Path, The Lost Queen, The Seventh Daughter (previously The Sorcerer King), and The Immortal Realm

Gillian Smmers' The Faire Folk trilogy The Tree Shepherd's Daughter, Into the Wildwood, and The Secret of the Dread Forest

There are many other great stories out there but I am a sucker for a series. I always want to know more!  If there are any great Faerie tales that you've read I'd love to hear about them. 

Happy Reading!

Don't Judge a Girl by Her Cover

Don't Judge a Girl by Her Cover by Ally Carter

My review

rating: 3 of 5 stars
In this third installment of the Gallagher Girl's books we find Cammie of to visit her roommate Macy. They are involved in a botched kidnapping attempt and Cammie doesn't really recover. She knows that there is more going on than she is being told about. What's a teenage spy to do? Certainly not sit back and wait. Cammie and her friends are in and out of trouble yet again as they try and figure out what is happening and why Cammie's super spy aunt is suddenly back in the picture. Some old friends from previous books check back in as well! Start with I'd tell you I Love You but Then I'd Have to Kill You and Cross my Heart and Hope to Spy first.

I had been waiting for this book to come out for some time. One of my students recommended the first two for me when the second one came out. We were both anxiously awaiting the release of Don't Judge a Girl by Her Cover. The date kept getting pushed back and it was so frustrating!!! I'm not sure what she thought of it (since she has moved on to the high school) but I was a little disappointed. It wasn't a bad book but I was hoping for more. Part of that may have been the expectations and waiting. I still like the series and will continue to recommend it. I guess I just wanted "more" from the characters.

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Along for the Ride

Along for the Ride by Sarah Dessen

My review

rating: 4 of 5 stars
Can I just start off by saying how much I love Sarah Dessen? Her books are fun and yet still have some depth to them. There are always waiting lists for her books in my LMC. This means that I have pretty high expectations of her new releases. Along for the Ride did not disappoint! Auden, Eli, Heidi and the rest are interesting characters...people you know or want to know.

Along for the Ride is Auden's story. The summer before starting college she goes to stay with her dad, stepmother, and new baby sister in a small beach town. She leaves behind her very serious mother and meets a group of easy going people that she is certain her mother would "look down" on. Auden isn't sure what to think at first but as she gets to know the place and the people she gets to know herself too. Of course there is a love interest (or two!) and many ups and downs. In the end it comes down to discovering who you are and who you want to be. A humorous yet thought provoking read. Fans of Dessen's other works won't be disappointed. I would say that it most resembles Just Listen. Read it and see :)

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I'm working on it AND Manga!!!

So, I haven't been blogging as regularly as I'd like. I could use excuses like summer school, family stuff, etc... but it really comes down to me being a bit lazy AND being to involved in reading to write. Hmmmmm, this won't do at all. I'll work on it :)

What I really wanted to post about today is manga. I am starting my third year as the library media specialist (fancy talk for librarian) in a middle school with grades 7 and 8. The previous librarians made a great start to our graphic novel/manga collection but it's become more popular recently. When manga first started getting "popular" I wasn't so sure about it. However, recently I've found that I really enjoy these books. Fruits Basket was the first series I read. I couldn't wait for the volumes to come in through interlibrary loan. I've also really enjoyed Marmalade Boy, Bleach, Vampire Knight, Peach Girl, Land of the Blindfolded, and others. 

Now I guess what I really need are ideas. What are some series or stand alone titles that I can order for 7th and 8th grades? I am having a hard time finding appropriate and interesting titles. I also know that there are some series that start off being alright but as they advance the content changes and they may no longer be "appropriate." 

I am also just looking for ideas on which titles I should read next. I want to learn more and become more familiar with these books. HELP!!!! Thanks :)