Dash and Lily’s Book of Dares

Title: Dash and Lily’s Book of Dares
Authors: Rachel Cohn and David Levithan
ISBN: 9780375866593
Pages: 260 pages
Publisher/Date: Alfred A. Knopf, c2010.

So here we are.
Now it’s up to you,
what we do (or don’t) do.

If you are interested in continuing this conversation,
please choose a book, any book, and
leave a slip of paper with your email address inside of it.
Give it to Mark, at the information desk.

If you ask Mark any questions about me,
he will not pass on your book.
So no questions.

Once you have given your book to Mark,
please return this book to the shelf
where you found it.

If you do all these things,
you very well might hear from me.
Thank you.
Lily (13)

Dash has given his divorced parents the slip for the holidays, telling his mom and dad that he’s spending Christmas with the other one. Christmas has never really been his holiday anyway. Wiling away his time at a local bookstore, Dash stumbles across a mysterious notebook planted by a girl named Lily. Lily loves Christmas, and agrees to her gay brother’s idea of getting Lily a date through the notebook. What follows is a New York City version of 39 Clues, with the notebook visiting some of New York’s famous landmarks. But when Lily and Dash finally have the opportunity to meet in person, will they recognize each other from the people portrayed on paper?

This is my first exposure to Rachel Cohn and David Levithan together, even though they’ve done this kind of collaboration twice before, most famously Nick and Norah’s Infinite Playlist but also with Naomi and Ely’s No Kiss List. Are we sensing a pattern here?

The story was engaging, although towards the end the emphasis and worries about how Dash and Lily really act seemed to take over the fun and witty banter that initially pulled you into the story. The other problem I have is the language. Although for me it wasn’t as bad as it was for Beth S., I did have a problem when on the first few pages I found words like ersatz, Bolshevik, philatelist, and Pavlovian, along with the description of the Stand (a New York bookstore) as “that bastion of titillating erudition” (2) Say WHAT?! Would you continue this book with that many unknown words if it was written by anyone other than Rachel Cohn and David Levithan? I really don’t think so.

However, the story really does have a nice ebb and flow, with Dash’s Scrooge-like cynicism balanced against Lily’s overly optimistic outlook with life. Regardless of how unrealistic it might be that these two would really be able to get along as well as they do (both on paper and when they finally meet), readers are willing to suspend their belief. Their hodgepodge cast of helper elves also adds lots of humor and intrigue, as you slowly learn who everyone is in this six-steps-removed setting. A nice holiday read for a snow day when you’re curled up under the covers or in front of a fire.

The Things a Brother Knows

Title: The Things a Brother Knows
Author: Dana Reinhardt
ISBN: 9780375844553
Pages: 245 pages
Publisher/Date: Wendy Lamb Books, and imprint of Random House Children’s Books, c2010.

“I used to love my brother.
Now I’m not so sure.” (1)

Levi Katznelson’s older brother Boaz has finally returned from serving overseas for three years as a marine. He is physically healthy, but it doesn’t take a rocket scientist to realize that Boaz was affected in other ways. He’s locked himself in his room since his arrival home, sleeps on the floor while listening to radio static, refuses to ride in cars, and is planning a mysterious trip. While Boaz tells his parents that he’s hiking the Appalachian Trail, his browsing history on Levi’s computer tells a different story. No one seems to be worried about Boaz’s weird behavior, so Levi takes matters into his own hands and sets off after him. Will the journey divide these brothers even further, or will Levi finally find the brother he and the whole town idolizes.

Those first two sentences set the tone for the whole book, in my opinion. Behind this eye-catching cover, you really get a sense of the conflict that Levi feels towards his brother’s involvement in the war and the effects it has on Boaz. Everyone respects Boaz’s actions, and because of his association to his brother Levi is treated differently. Levi though doesn’t want any special recognition, because he doesn’t feel brave, and he’s not particularly happy with his brother when he arrives home.

Maybe I sound even worse than self-pitying: un-American or anti-American. That’s a tight spot to be in for a guy with a weird Israeli last name and a father with a thick accent who makes me call him Abba instead of Dad like wa all still live in Israel, but I’m neither of those things. I’m not un or anti. I just don’t know what to think about this whole big mess we’re in.
And who knows. Maybe that’s even worse than being un or anti, because at least then you know where you stand.(4)…
It’s been thirteen months.
That’s the last time he came hom.
He must have had some breaks in there somewhere, some leave time. But he chose to do something else with those breaks, and we don’t know what it was, or who he was with, or where he went, because somewhere along the road he’d decided that communication with the family he left behind wasn’t a priority.(9)

The emotions for this story is what Dana Reinhardt nails. Absolutely, positively NAILS, right on the head. A friend of a friend was in the marines, and I guess he’s expressed some of the same frustrations that Boaz feels. People think they can come up to this ex-marine and start talking to him, asking him questions, inquiring about his opinion of the war, sharing their own stories about service members they know, and thanking him for his service. Some service members though just want to get on with their own lives, and rejoin society.

Boaz though has difficulty doing this, and has strong impressions about what he needs to do and the stories he does and does not need to tell others. He isolates himself upon his return, and I think that’s because he feels isolated. This is also why he’s driven to take his trip, because he feels connected to his fellow marines as they are the only ones with whom he can truly relate.

Told from Levi’s perspective, we feel the same confusion, anticipation, and disappointment that Levi feels regarding his brother’s home-coming. It’s a little surprising how easy their travels unfold, but I don’t think readers will be bothered by it. There was a hint of romance that I don’t think was completely necessary, since the book is about Levi and Boaz, but it didn’t detract too much from the main problems.

One other minor thing that bugged me but wasn’t huge was that Boaz and Levi are Israelis, Levi goes to Hebrew school, his mom goes to synagogue, and the family celebrates Friday Shabbat. And yet, Levi uses phrases like “for Christ’s sake”. It was kind of jarring when it cropped up like that. I’m not Jewish, but do Jews use those kind of phrases? However, it’s a very minor quibble, and I enjoyed the story and the questions it raises, and I can see this as a good book discussion selection, especially for guys.

Stolen

Title: Stolen
Author: Lucy Christopher
ISBN: 9780545170932
Pages: 299 pages
Publisher/Date: Chicken House, an imprint of Scholastic Inc. c2010.

“Ty?” I said, trying out your name, liking the way it sounded. “So what’s it like anyway? Australia?”
You smiled then, and your whole face changed with it. It kind of lit up, like there were sunbeams coming from inside you.
“You’ll find out,” you said.
Things changed then. I slowed down, while everything around me sped up. It’s amazing really, what a tiny bit of powder can do.
“How are you feeling?” you asked.
You were watching me, your eyes wide. I opened my mouth to tell you I was fine, but I didn’t understand what came out. It was just a jumble of noises, my tongue too thick and heavy to form words. I remember the lights turning into blurs of blazing fire. I remember the air-conditioning chilling my arms. The smell of coffee smudging into the smell of eucalyptus. Your hand was tight around mine as you grabbed me and you took me and you stole me away. (9)

Gemma Toombs, sixteen-year-old daughter of wealthy parents, is taken from a Bangkok airport from an intriguing man named Ty. Drugged and bound and dragged out to a remote location, Gemma immediately recognizes that her situation is hopeless. That doesn’t stop her from maintaining hope that she will eventually escape, especially when Ty over time allows her to roam around the property. Relying on Ty for her survival, Gemma wonders which is worse; facing the harsh and unforgiving surroundings or facing her kidnapper whose obsession for her might have started long before the airport.

At the start of this book, I liked it. Yes, I’ll admit, Gemma was STUPID in accepting a drink from a stranger. Stupid, Stupid STUPID! BUT you have to admire how ingenious Ty’s plan was in getting Gemma where he wanted her. He had everything planned and figured out, down to where they’d stay and how they’d survive. I could understand Gemma’s initial reactions, which ranged through fury, desperation, depression, and self-pity. She fought, kicking and screaming, and attempted a few times to escape using various methods.

But then things changed. Gemma changed, and her relationship with Ty changed. And that’s when I got disgusted with Gemma. This might be considered a little spoilerish, but I recognized almost immediately that Gemma was suffering from Stockholm syndrome, which means that she’s sympathizing/empathizing/caring for her captor. Granted, I’ve never been placed in that sort of position where Stockholm syndrome might occur. But if someone drugged me and kidnapped me and held me against my will, and then you find out the things that he’s done previously, I don’t think I’d be sympathetic towards him. Stressed out, concerned, angry, depressed, yes. And even though Gemma recognizes her reaction, and is conflicted emotionally by what she’s feeling, I was disappointed that she can’t overcome that response.

Why can’t we have a strong heroine who doesn’t succumb to romantic aspirations?!

Sea

Title: Sea
Author: Heidi R. Kling
ISBN: 9780399251634
Pages: 323 pages
Publisher/Date: G. P. Putnam’s Sons, a division of Penguin Young Readers Group, c2010.

Dad cleared his throat again. “We’d like Sienna to join us for about two weeks at an Indonesian orphanage, a pesantren.” He turned back to me. “We think you could really help us with the kids who survived the tsunami, honey. Many of them suffer nightmares and other symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder, PTSD, and our goal, well, one of our goals, is to restructure the dormitories into a family-style system, with an older girl acting as a ‘mother’ or ‘big sister’ figure for the younger trauma survivors to improve their well-being. . . .”
His words spun into gibberish. [...]
“You should have talked to me about this first,” Oma said, slicing through the silence. “Isn’t there a war still raging in Aceh? Never mind the whole place is a disaster zone full of disease. How long have you been planning this?” Oma’s usually calm face flushed, her eyes angrier than I’d ever seen them. “You know how afraid she is of flying. I’m shocked you would do this. Especially after the way Hope was killed.”
Hope.
Mom. (9-10)

Sienna Jones lost her mom three years ago in a plane accident over the Indian Ocean, and has suffered from nightmares and fears of the ocean and planes ever since. So when her father surprises her with a plane ticket to Indonesia to assist her doctor father with relief efforts after the tsunami, she’s less than excited. Especially when she learns that her former therapist — emphasis on former — Vera is taking what used to be Sienna’s mom’s spot in the group. But after learning about the conditions that the orphaned children are facing, Sienna agrees. She’s in for more than culture shock after meeting Deni, a young man who serves as mentor to the younger boys. Sienna sympathizes with Deni, who is discontent with the way the orphanage is being run. When he hears word that someone might be looking for him back home, Sienna knows all to well the hope he feels and sets out to help him, even if it means disobeying her father and conquering her own fears.

I was surprised by how much I liked this story. I was expecting another boy-and-girl-meet-and-there’s-instant-mutual-attraction love story. (seriously, how many instant love stories are there in teen fiction right now? Has anyone done a headcount recently? There’s a LOT!). And you sort of get that in the beginning:
“I couldn’t stop staring at the tallest boy, the one pounding his drum like he was out for vengeance. I didn’t know how he did it, but his music throttled its way through me, straight to my core. He glanced up. Once. Caught me staring. His eyes electric, but steady. I still didn’t break his gaze. Instead I sucked in a breath. Blinked. Took in the sight of him. The sweat trickling down his temple, his square-boned jaw, his rippling arm muscles as he beat the crap out of that drum.” (70)

But readers, and even Sienna, know to some extent that this would never work out. Deni is literally worlds away from Sienna. Sienna is trying to rationalize this relationship because they find comfort in their mutual disasters and need for hope. With Sienna’s dad as a psychiatrist, readers are privy to that sort of psychological rational and reaction. Yet we still feel for the two teens, and no matter how hard you try to not admit it, you’re hoping that something happens that will solve their problems. There’s passion, and not the physical kind.

Then Heidi Kling throws in one major curve ball at the end. Like, you’re reading along, thinking okay, another cliché ending, and then …. wait, WHAT!? Did that really just… yes, yes it did. And I honestly don’t think it could have ended any differently. It made perfect sense, at least to me, that Kling ended it that way. It’s still a happy ending, but it’s more real, more engaging, and tugs at your heart-strings. And I don’t think readers will be disappointed.

Resistance

Title: Resistance: Book 1
Author: Carla Jablonski
Artist: Leland Purvis
Colorist: Hilary Sycamore
ISBN: 9781596432918
Pages: 121 pages
Publisher/Date: First Second, c2010.

Paul Tessier lives with his two sisters, Marie and Slyvie, and his mother in the free area of France during World War II. The rest of France is occupied by German soldiers, who are steadily entering the free area, rounding up Jews, and hunting out members of the Resistance. When Paul’s friend Henri gets accidentally left behind when his parents get taken, Paul hides him in their wine cellar. But the secret is hard to keep as the number of people who know Henri’s hiding place grows. Can Henri get out of France before the German’s find him?

By the subtitle and the open-ending, it seems that this is the first in a possible series. I have to admit though, the cover art is more intriguing than the story it contains. The cover features Paul aiming a slingshot (set apart from the rest of the cover with bright red elastic) at the back of a soldier’s head, which doesn’t happen in the book. The plot is less striking, imitating multiple other stories where Non-Jewish children help a Jewish child by hiding him away and sneaking him off to a safer area. I’ll admit there are details that intrigue, such as the trick with chocolate towards the very end. There are also scenes that steal your sympathy, most notably page 24 where Marie climbs into her older brother’s bed and he covers her with the comforter. But extreme close-ups of people’s faces make them look like exaggerated and distorted drama masks. The narrative is interspersed by Paul’s drawings, and while some of them make sense, others are just jarring to readers. There is a subplot involving Paul’s missing father that does not get explained at all, so you’re really not invested in his well-being. In my opinion, the most jarring scene on page 96 also gets glazed over, and loses the impact it could have had. The author’s notes at the beginning and the end of the book are informative, and provide the necessary background to understand and reflect on the story. If it’s your first exposure to Holocaust fiction, it works, but there are other options that would leave more of an impact.

Jump

Title: Jump
Author: Elisa Carbone
ISBN: 978067001858
Pages: 258 pages
Publisher/Date: Viking, an Imprint of Penguin Group, c2010.

And he walks out the door, just like that, kind of like an apparition. I’m left to make up a whole lot of lies about how he’s a friend of my cousin’s and his name is Paul and I was really surprised to see him here because he told me he only climbs outdoors, but I’m sure he’ll be a great guy to do this trip with because my cousin (do I even have a cousin?) has always said good things about him. Daria is eyeing me and I think she knows I’m lying. But she also completely trusts me, and my judgment, and I can almost hear her thinking that if I’m comfortable taking a trip with this guy–whoever he is–then she’s good with it. So why am I fine with running off with this “Paul” person? Something in his eyes tells me he is not an ax murderer, not a rapist, and that he is a better-than-average Sherpa. He seems trustworthy, except for the fact that he walked out wearing rental rock shoes–probably just an oversight. And he seems, well, nice.
Or maybe I just can’ resist running away with a gorgeous blue-eyed stranger. (18-19)

Critter has just escaped from a mental institution after finally getting enough drugs out of his system to function in a way that he thinks is normal. His first act of freedom is to stop in at a rock gym where he meets P.K. whose planning an escape of her own. Facing the inevitability of being shipped off to boarding school, P.K. is trying to have one last adventure and secretly go rock climbing out West until her parents catch her. She’s not stupid enough to go climbing by herself, so when none of her friends agree to the plan and Critter volunteers, she jumps at the offer. Now both sets of parents and the cops are after the two kids as they suspect the worst, while Critter and P.K. are intent on making the adventure last as long as possible.

What is it about quirky couples that appeal to me? I’m beginning to sense a theme amongst my reading choices, and I’m actually really tempted to put together a list of “Quirky Couples” based on recent experience. That, however, is for another post, but feel free to give me some suggestions of what should be included in such a list.

Having never really climbed in my life (the 40-foot climbing wall at high school retreat I don’t think counts) due to a lack of upper body strength on my part, I’m intrigued and impressed with what P.K. and Critter are able to accomplish on their trip. The climbing terms were explained extremely well, and I don’t feel like I missed out on anything. The pursuing police lends an extra sense of urgency to the story, and the adrenaline just keeps climbing until the climatic stand-off. And then, there’s a second climax as we wonder about the relationship, which is just as heart and gut-wrenching as the first.

I thoroughly enjoyed reading P.K. and Critter’s romance and how they influenced each other. Critter’s escape from the psych ward isn’t the only thing he’s hiding. That other secret has led him to have his unique, very optimistic way of viewing the world that I would love to have and experience… just without experiencing what he did in order to give him that outlook. For instant, he calls all those doubting voices in our head the hamster because he just keeps running the wheel and it doesn’t get you anywhere. He’s a very “in the present” kind of guy, which I’m not sure would completely work when you’re an adult, but here’s another example of his attitude.

P.K.: You seemed so calm up there, even when you kept falling. How do you do that?
Me: It’s easy. Don’t think about the past, don’t think about the future. There’s never any fear in the present.
P.K.: Oh yeah? What if you’re being chased by a grizzly bear?
Me: That’s fear of the future, of being caught by the bear. What if he catches you and just looks at you? Then see, there was nothing to be afraid of.
P.K.: Not likely. What if he catches you and crunches your leg?
Me: That’s not fear, that’s pain. You deal with that in the present, too.
P.K.: What if he eats you?
Me (shrugging): Then you die.
P.K.: So, duh. That’s something to be afraid of.
Me: Ha! That’s the biggest lie of all. (95)

It’s actually kind of amazing the turn around Critter went through; it’s like someone flipped a switch. But P.K. craves this optimistic outlook. Actually, I think Critter is perfect for P.K. BECAUSE of all he’s gone through. P.K. seems to have always thought her life was horrible, but Critter’s life is worse and yet he’s the way he is — and I’m not going to debate whether it’s in spite of or because of that past. Critter is something of a role model because it’s proof that things aren’t as bad as they might seem. And I think that’s a great message that doesn’t whack readers over the head, because the whole story is about living life in the present. And that’s what P.K. and Critter do, and it’s refreshing to see it play out that way.

Snap

Title: Snap
Author: Carol Snow
ISBN: 9780061452116
Pages: 221 pages
Publisher/Date: HarperTeen, c2010.

It wasn’t even a very good photograph.
The lighting was lame, for one thing. Midday light is never ideal, bt the problem wasn’t the overhead glare; it was the fog that choked the beach with a heavy whiteness. There were no shadows, no depth–nothing but a bleached-out deadness. [...]
Finally, there was the old woman standing next to the rocks, completely ruining whatever beauty the scene had to offer. In a bathrobe and slippers, she didn’t add to the beach vibe at all. Plus, she was looking at the camera, at me, as if I’d interrupted her somehow, as if it weren’t the other way around.
No, it wasn’t a very good photograph. I would have deleted it from my camera without a thought, except for one thing.
When I took the photograph, the old woman wasn’t there. (1-2)

Madison Sabatini’s family has suddenly decided to move to Sandyland for what she thinks will be a fabulous summer vacation. Instead, she quickly discovers that Sandyland is a sleepy little beach town with nothing of any real interest. When she stumbles across a camera repair and psychic shop, Madison meets up with Leonardo (named after the turtle), his sister Delilah, and their “virtual brother” Duncan. When Madison realizes that her newly repaired camera is taking pictures of people who subsequently die, without them even being present, the mystery keeps all four busy. But Madison is realizing that’s not the only strange thing happening, with her parents and friends back home keeping secrets from her. When someone Madison cares about appears in one of her pictures, will Madison be able to come to solve the mystery before it’s too late?

I wasn’t blown away by this story. The premise was interesting, but the resolution fell flat for me. Maybe it was the psychic and mysticism introduced in the beginning that affected my impression, especially since it played a role in the twist at the end of the story. Maybe it was that twist, which felt to me that the author painted herself in a corner and had to explain away the inconsistency at the end. The reason the people are appearing in the pictures is a little more complicated than the fact that they’re dying.

It’s the characters that save this story. I actually liked Delilah slightly better than Madison because Delilah had some attitude. She’s heard the jokes and the wise cracks about her mother’s psychic/camera repair shop, and actually penalizes customers for making jokes by making them wait for their pictures. But the interaction between Duncan and Madison is what really sells this story, because Duncan is such a mystery. I picture Madison as part of the cast of One Tree Hill, and Duncan being more on the cast of… I don’t know. Joey in the TV show Friends comes to mind. Obviously their interactions are interesting to say the least, and at every interaction you find out more about Duncan and Madison gets a little less clichéd. She’s not the spoiled brat that she starts off sounding like, although it’s realistically not a total transformation by the end of the book.

Sources of Light

Title: Sources of Light
Author: Margaret McMullan
ISBN: 9780547076591
Pages: 233 pages
Publisher/Date: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, c2010.

One of the black women seated at the counter was a tall, pretty college-aged woman who carried a purse and two books. She could have been one of my mother’s students, except that she was black. She stared down at the space on the counter in front of her, saying nothing. [...]
Those white men and boys were attacking her and she’d done nothing, but just by being there, by sitting there where she was not supposed to be sitting, she was doing something. They were screaming and getting so angry, their faces turned red. They made so much noise and their voices were so loud, you had to go quiet. I kept my eye behind the camera and snapped picture after picture. Then I quit taking pictures of what was happening. I took pictures of the crowd of angry white men yelling at the people at the lunch counter sitting there doing nothing. There were others in the crowd watching what was happening. They could have been looking at a circus performance or a child’s running race. They were smiling and cheering. They shared cigarettes. They were having a good time.
The policemen stood by and watched. (89-91)

Sam is a freshmen, starting Jackson High School after her mother moves there for a job teaching art following her father’s death in Vietnam. After living in Virginia, North Carolina, Florida, and Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, moving to Jackson Mississippi in 1962 is a big change. Sam’s mother’s new “friend” Perry gives her a camera as a gift to make sense of all the new stuff she’s seeing. New stuff like the lunch counter sit-ins, the protests against African-Americans registering to vote, and the rampant prejudice. Conflicted about her feelings, Sam tries to fit in, especially with the popular classmate and her older brother. But Sam’s not really sure she wants to change who she is in order to make friends with people she really doesn’t agree with.

I found myself comparing this book to The Help by Kathryn Stockett. It doesn’t help the comparison that I read both stories close to each other. I think the most effective aspect of McMullan’s writing is that she doesn’t mince words. Just reading the passage I included reminds me of how invested readers are in the events that Sam is witnessing. Other books and authors I’ve read have described the sit-ins in a second or even third hand way, with people reading a newspaper article or by off-handed remarks. But McMullan places Sam in the thick of things; she sees first-hand the abuse these people undergo, the hate that was thrust onto African-Americans, and you can’t help but feel empathy instead of apathy.

It’s not just the sit-ins that readers are privy to through Sam’s eyes. Her feelings towards her neighbors change after her mother does something that rile up the neighborhood. Sam’s teacher seems to be the passive aggressive racist, continually encouraging in the classroom the stereotypes that blanket the town. An act of unspeakable violence ends the novel, which affects Sam and her family. Through it all, Sam and her mother appear stalwart.

I think that’s my one quibble regarding Sam’s character; Sam seems wise beyond her sheltered fourteen years. I hesitate to say sheltered, because admittedly she has lost her father as a result of the war, but prior to Mississippi Sam had lived in Virginia, North Carolina, Florida, and Pennsylvania. While I’ll admit I’m not a fan of history lessons, I don’t think any of those homes could have prepared Sam for the hate that Mississippi showed her. She has a presence and a solid stance about life that belies her age, and even though she questions some aspects of Southern living, she is steady and grounded to the point where she sounds older than what she is.

All in all, I liked the story for its introspection and realistic portrayal of racist events, even if the voice didn’t ring entirely true to me.

Kiss Me Deadly

Title: Kiss Me Deadly: 13 Tales of Paranormal Love
Authors: Michelle Zink, Diana Peterfreund, Karen Mahoney, Justine Musk, Sarah Rees Brennan, Becca Fitzpatrick, Caitlin Kittredge, Carrie Ryan, Michelle Rowen, Rachel Vincent, Daniel Marks, Maggie Stiefvater, Daniel Waters
Edited by: Trisha Telep
ISBN: 9780762439492
Pages: 430 pages
Publisher/Date: Running Press Teens, c2010.

**FULL DISCLOSURE: I received a copy of this book free from the publisher. If I get it back in good shape from the teen I’m lending it to, it will be added to my library’s collection. I did not receive any monetary compensation for this review, and a positive review was not guaranteed.

“After death, mortal love lives on in the lover’s memory, a sweet, gentle reminder of the life-affirming splendor of everlasting devotion (aw…). But, is that it? Is that really love? A love that can…die? What kind of cruddy love is that?
Choose paranormal love and make your relationship last forever! I mean, shouldn’t all true loves be able to survive a reanimation…or two?” –Trisha Telep (7, Introduction)

Have you ever read a story that you initially were apathetic about, and then the book improved upon a second reading? This was that kind of book for me. Initially, I felt lost with a lot of the stories, because they’re set in worlds that are established and detailed in books that I haven’t yet read. “Dungeons of Langeais” by Becca Fitzpatrick bills itself as A Hush, Hush Story, “Errant” by Diana Peterfreund is set in the same world as Rampant, and “Many Happy Returns” by Daniel Waters is A Generation Dead Story. The only authors of this collection that I’d read previously were Daniel Waters (Generation Dead) and Maggie Stiefvater (Shiver).

That being said, I have a teen at my library who saw this book sitting on my desk and has been clamoring to read it ever since. So I decided that I’d better page through it a second time. It’s difficult to review a collection of short stories, and even more difficult when you like some of the stories better than others. It’s especially difficult when you’re not sure if reading the other works by those authors would have led to the short stories making more sense.

For instance, I thoroughly enjoyed Daniel Waters’ story about a father’s love for his daughter, and his coming to terms with her feelings of love towards a boyfriend. I liked the uniqueness and the idea behind Sarah Rees Brennan’s “The Spy Who Never Grew Up”, even though the main character has seemingly gone a little insane in his “old” age. “The Assassin’s Apprentice” by Michelle Zink moved along at such a clip that I was left wondering what exactly just happened. “Vermillion” is another story that, while I’m sure Daniel Marks meant well, I was never really sold on the setting or the story, although the characters were engaging and kept you guessing until the end. In contrast, “Behind the Red Door” by Caitlin Kittredge spans an entire six months, and builds suspense and tenson at a snail’s pace as it skims through the months, coming to a startling and fiery conclusion. Rachel Vincent’s “Fearless” will leave you with goosebumps and a fear of falling asleep at night, wondering what or who will be praying on your dreams when you do finally drift off to bed. The one with the best ending is Michelle Rowen’s “Familiars”, which has one character telling another “I feel the same as I did before [...] like I belong to you.” He smiled. “And that’s kind of hard to ignore.” (280) (Go ahead, you can say AWWWWWW, because I did.)

All in all, I think people familiar with the authors featured will get the most out of this compilation, but even people who aren’t familiar with any of them will ultimately find something they enjoy. Would I have recommended it after reading it just once? Probably not. But after seeing the teen’s reaction to just the cover, and flipping through them a second time, I recognize the teen appeal for the book. Just be prepared that at least one story will probably leave you scratching your head and asking yourself “What did I just read?”

The Unsinkable Walker Bean

Title: The Unsinkable Walker Bean
Written and Illustrated by: Aaron Renier 
Colored by Alex Longstreth 
ISBN: 9781596434530
Pages: 192 pages
Publisher/Date: First Second, c2010.

“Somewhere, in the middle of the ocean…off the coast of an uncharted island chain… there is a TRENCH. For miles it dives beneath the ocean’s floor… past smoke-stacks… spewing boiling, toxic sulfur… Here, where sunlight cannot reach… Here, live the strangest of the strange. Here, live the most evil of the evil Here, in the deepest, darkest spot, the very bottom of the ocean, dwell Tartessa and Remora, the evil Merwitch sisters. Slowly, in their pitch black cell, they began to lose their powers, which dripped out of them like silvery glowing molasses. Desperate to hold on, they devised a plan. They scooped up the remains of their enemies. And like an oyster forms a pearl, they swished the skulls and bones in their thick, nacre saliva… And when they were coated and transformed into magical bone-shaped pearls… they SPAT tem onto the seabed. And then stacked them up like a brick wall… Each enchanted skeleton reflected the secrets of its former life. The past, present, and future laid out before the sisters. Collectively the omniscient wall projected a near perfect picture of the world above. Their prison became their auditorium of knowledge. Even now… they can see us. The visions from the wall are so STRONG that only those with HEART and BLOOD as THICK as theirs can gaze into it without going into shock and dying. But what would be the price to pay to look into just ONE bone? A SNIFFLE? A COUGH? I’d risk that, to possibly get any answers to my long list of questions.” (1-8)

Walker Bean’s grandfather falls ill after coming into possession of one of the bones. The old Admiral tasks William, Walker’s father, to take the skull back to the Merwitch sisters, believing it’s his only chance of survival. Walker’s father is approached by a suspicious doctor with a better deal; sell the skull to a wealthy merchant. Complications arise though when pirates steal the skull to find the hidden treasures of Atlantis and Walker ends up on their ship. How is he going to get the skull away from a ship full of pirates?

I was engrossed by this graphic novel. The author’s note at the back of the book goes into great detail about how the illustrations came about, and that detail is taken on the actual story. It’s a great kick-off to what appears to be a series, with a sneak peek provided of the second book’s illustrations. While the main storyline wraps up nicely, there’s still enough intrigue and unanswered questions to keep readers waiting for the sequel. The artwork is stunning, and I chuckled at what appears to be references to Where’s Waldo and Family Circus in the market scene on pages 71-72. (Can you find the pirate Waldo?) Other supporting characters are also scattered throughout that double page spread if you look carefully enough.

Aaron Renier has created an entire mythology surrounding these Merwitch Sisters, and you can just hear the Jaws theme music when they make their first appearance. Readers will love the action, from lobster clawed merwitches to swashbuckling pirates and explosive battle sequences. In fact, the battle sequences have a comic book quality, with words like “POW!” and “CHH-PPA-KRAKK” splitting across the page in bright yellows, oranges, and reds that starkly contrast against the dark blues and purples that permeate the murky, moody, and watery depths.

There are some fantastical elements mixed in with Walker’s “scientific” inventions, including a mechanical kitchen appliance and a “message in a bottle” that seems to be its own postal service. You have to suspend your rationality regarding these items. It’s impossible to explain how experienced pirates don’t realize that they’re on the wrong course. It seems impossible that a crew of pirates can transform a beached ship into a water-worthy vessel in less than 24 hours. But that’s what happens, and you’re willingly to ignore those minor details as you pulled along and into the book. It’s MacGyver meets Harry Potter as the bespectacled boy and his two sidekicks rush to return a magical item to it’s rightful place. Pick up and enjoy.