Books for the Beast

I know I haven't posted in a while and then two in one day - well I actually have something to say. On Saturday, I went to the biannual Books for the Beast conference near Baltimore. It is a Young Adult Literature conference where participants read a group of books from two genres and then get together to discuss them. They even recruit teenagers to come free to event. I picked Real Life and Science Fiction/Fantasy. I found that it was very interesting to discuss these with professionals from Virginia, Maryland, D.C. and beyond. There was only one teen in my Real Life discussion but I enjoyed getting a better handle on some books for reader's advisory.

I wasn't able to get or read all 10 books, and found that like the teen lit I remember, they are pretty predictable but enjoyable.

Boy Proof by Cecil Castellucci
Victoria, a.k.a. Egg, is living in a fantasy world of her own creation. Living in Hollywood with an actress mother and creature creator father, she idolizes her movie heroine and is a loner until she meets the new boy Max and realizes that there's more to life than being "boy proof."

Jason & Kyra by Dana Davidson
This was the steamiest of the books on the list and I think my teen audience may really like it despite the happy ending. Good looking, popular and sporty Jason happens to actually be smart and falls for Kyra. Kyra smart, happy and actually pretty (once you get past other characters prejudices) falls for Jason. Once the girlfriend is out of the picture, the relationship story centers on sex, trust and forgiveness.

Sleeping Freshman Never Lie by David Lubar
This book had me laughing out loud. It's always hard to pick books for guys unless they are SF/Fantasy but I think this one may work. Scott Hudson and his friends are beginning high school and trying to stay friends, get a girlfriend and survive the year. This story hinges on the fact that life changes and that you can't control where it goes just find out how to enjoy the ride.

So Hard to Say by Alex Sanchez
Xio (C.O.) and Frederick are locked in that first relationship figuring things out struggle. Set in a Latino community, Frederick arrives from Minnesota and begins to worry if he is really gay. Not an easy book to recommend to someone who's in the same situation but a good read for anyone as it deals with stereotypes and uncertainties. The story gains by alternating chapters told by the two main characters. Much is unresolved but so much always is.

Tithe by Holly Black
An interesting modern faerie tale as the subtitle announces. Kay is going along semi-happily with her wannabe rock star mother until an odd attack leads them back to her grandmother's in a dying New Jersey town. She has always known faeries but gets drawn into their world and finds everything is not as it seemed as a battle ranges between faerie courts and subjects. The writing style is overdone at times and some scenes feel forced but some in our group said Black's other books in the series get much better.

The Witch's Boy by Michael Gruber
This was a major fractured fairy tale. The beginning had me stumped as to where we were going but I enjoyed the ride. Lump, a very ugly baby, is found and raised by a witch. He is spoiled and ungrateful and spends the rest of the novel on his journey to redemption. The cast include Hansel and Gretel, Rumpelstiltskin, a little Midas and more.

Black Juice by Margo Lanagan
I read this book first as it was short stories and I thought it would be a nice starting place for my Books for the Beast journey. The stories were very odd though. Some I really liked (My Lord's Man and Wooden Bride) and wanted so much more and others (Red Nose Day) were just too strange. I also felt that the story unfolded too quickly while still leaving details out; it felt like when you catch a movie in the middle and not knowing how the story got there. Many in our group reread them several times to find the details. As a group we thought that it should be recommended for teens to read the ones that they liked but not necessarily the whole. The stories are so different that there is a little for everyone touching on prejudice, hatred, greed, betrayal, sacrifice and loss.

E-Austen

I get a little email every day called Library Link of the Day with link to a news story of interest to libraries. Yesterday I found this one in my mail and thought it was a great mashup of my favorite things: libraries, technology and Austen. Two comments even let readers know that they can get these things FREE from the public library - YEAH!!!

http://featuresblogs.chicagotribune.com/technology_internetcritic/2007/10/reading-jane-au.html
Reading Jane Austen on a BlackBerry -- Reader, I Liked It [Chicago Tribune]



To get your own Library Link of the Day http://www.tk421.net/librarylink/