Monday=Book Review Time--For the boys out there

Up for today: Ranger's Apprentice: The Ruins of Gorlan (Book 1) by John Flanagan



Why I bought it? This question should probably be more along the lines of why I read it. I actually bought this several years ago. It was something my daughter picked out at the bookstore. Barnes and Noble--I think. I finally read it because my son kept pushing it on me.

Synopsis/Set up: 15 year old Will wants more than anything to be chosen as an apprentice to the battle school, but he's rejected for his slight size. He ends up being chosen as the Ranger's apprentice, and he's not sure he's happy about it. He learns that his natural talents and size are a perfect fit for the Rangers. It's the story of a kid finding his place in the world.

What I thought? I'm getting to be a big fan of all these Australian authors who have been showing up on our bookshelves recently. This is a fantastic read for a boy, and I didn't want to put it down either. The characters are great, fully realized with strengths and weaknesses. (On a side note: as a mom, I was glad my kids read it. The heros are the kind that I like my kids to identify with. Working hard, doing their best, striving to do what is right. But not perfect. Real.) The setting is detailed and you feel like you're really in a medieval environment. It's an engrossing, fun read. Flanagan's style reminds me a lot of Louis L'Amour--a non-western Louis L'Amour for kids and teens. Here's a great video of Flanagan talking about why he wrote this series and his writing in general.

My Rating: **** 1/2 out of 5

My Daughter's Rating (16 yr. old): ***** out of 5, She read it several years ago and kept recommending it to her brother until he read it.

My Son's Rating (14 yr. old):  ***** out of 5, "It's wonderful," he said when I asked for his comment.  He used to be a reluctant reader. (Can I tell you how happy I am to be able to say he "used to be"?) After he read the Percy Jackson series and finally realized that he could like reading, I was searching high and low for something else he would love. His sister brought this out for him and pitched it again. He bit this time and loved it. He has even taken up archery as a result of reading this novel and all the ones that follow. I recently bought 8 and 9, and 10 comes out in April.

Cleanness Score: 3 out of 10, This is mostly for the violence. There's enough to make it exciting for the older boys and teens--not so much that younger boys can't enjoy it. As for language, there may have been a mild expletive here or there, but there was nothing jarring to me. I wouldn't have a problem with my 10 year old daughter reading it, but she hasn't yet. She's busy reading Rick Riordan.

Break

I'm going to need to take a blog break this week. See you next Monday.

Being on a Panel

Wednesday's answer and winners: I was at the WNBA (not basketball but books) Panel on YA Literature in Charlotte, NC. I was actually on the panel and my illustrious co-panelists were (drumroll please) Tracey Adams (agent extraordinaire--she and her husband run Adams Literary), Beth Revis (up and coming author of Across the Universe), and Carrie Ryan (established author of The Forest of Hands and Teeth, The Dead Tossed Waves, and The Dark and Hollow Places). The moderator was Snow Wildsmith.

As you can see, I was low man on the totem pole, and people didn't come to hear my depths of wisdom about YA lit. Even still, I hope I added a few good things and some comic relief. It was a lot of fun. Samantha Vérant was the first to list 3 people in the picture and Patti was the first to guess where. Honorable Mention to Alexa who gave every detail about where I was. Y'all are on the ball. Go check out their blogs if you haven't. There's great stuff there. N.B. Tracey Adams is Kimberly Marcus' agent and that's where I heard about the book I reviewed on Monday.

Alexa actually asked for a recap of the event and so, since I know you time is limited, rather than do a photolife post today, I'm linking you to Carol Baldwin's post about it. Wow. Lots of links. Enjoy.

Where in the world is Lotus Girl?

The "where" may be hard unless you were there or heard about it, but you can also win by giving me the names of 3 of the people in the group shot.

Hint: There was book signing going on at the end.

If you missed Monday's book review, you really should go back and check it out. You don't want to miss this book.

Monday=Book Review Time--Terse and Gripping

Up for today: Exposed by Kimberly Marcus



Why I bought it? I didn't actually buy this one. It's not out until tomorrow. Disclosure: Kimberly Marcus' agent gave it to me when we were on a panel together last week and asked me to review it.

Synopsis/Set-up:  Photogirl, Liz, captures life and people in exposed moments on film. She is a senior in high school and wants to study photography in college. (Those of you who have been following this blog for a while or know me at all will understand how that was enough to pique my interest.) In the aftermath of a fight she and her "forever-best" friend, Kate, have at their monthly sleepover, their friendship seems to be unraveling. As secrets are exposed about the source of the friction, Liz is left questioning herself and all those closest to her.

What I thought? I LOVED this book, and it's not just because of the photography references (although I enjoyed those immensely). At the beginning I liked the clever ways the author put things and the spot on teen voice. As I got deeper into the story, it was as if my heart were being gripped in a fist that kept getting tighter and tighter. I'm sure my lips were thin and pale. The story is terse and gripping. It has been distilled down to its raw essence and is so compelling in its honesty that I think people will be talking about it for a long time. I found it incredibly thought provoking and enjoyed the different perspective on its hot button topic. I don't want my review to be a spoiler, so I'll stop there. Disclosure #2: I love books in verse (if they are done well), and this is in verse. Don't let that stop you from reading it, if you think you don't like that form. This is a well told story and the verse flows extremely well--like tightly honed prose with a little something extra. I'm rereading it right now, and I rarely reread anything any more. With all the great books out there, who's got time to reread? And yet! Here I am rereading. I'll grant you it is a quick read (even if you find yourself rereading certain pages over and over) but still...

My Rating:  ***** out of 5. If you couldn't already guess, I'm breaking out all 5 stars for this one. Rare for me these days, but that's how much I liked it. In fact this is one of the 3 books (that's our limit) I will take to recommend for my book club when we make our selections in June for next year's reads.

Cleanness Score: 5 out of 10. This is mostly for the themes, but nothing is shown explicitly. There are very few incidents of language and nothing super strong. This is something I think teens would do well to read, but if you are a very conservative parent, you may want to read it first. It won't take you long. I wouldn't have any problem with my teens (16 and 14) reading it, but I wouldn't give it to my 10 year old yet.

Friday's photolife--Aspects of an icon

Wednesday's Answer and winner: Hannah Beth was the first to get The Washington Monument. Congrats.

On to the Photolife:

When I'm taking pictures of iconic subjects like The Washington Monument, I like to capture as many different elements of them as I can.

With this view, everyone probably would have known exactly what the subject was.

This one would have been pretty obvious too.

It's good to get distance shots with other elements like the trees here.

Or up close, showing the variations in color in the surface and things like the security wires or even chips in the stone.

Here's a part that many of you may have never seen before. You have to go inside for it.

Another more obscure aspect. This is of the floor mosaic inside. I love that the stars are brass. These kinds of details are fascinating to me.

Getting up close and personal we can see what an icon is made of. Its mortar and imperfections.

Application to writing? This concept goes so well with characterization. It's important to include as many different aspects of our characters as we can to add dimension and authenticity to them. Show how most people see them. Their strengths and weaknesses. What they're like on the inside and out. What they're made of. 

What in the world?

Hint: This could be a "Where in the world?" too.