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More Than This by Patrick Ness

20 Monday Jul 2015

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Recommended, Young Adult Fiction

Okay so this is an interesting one to review.

I’m not going to tell you what this book’s about. Nothing. Nada. Zilch.

Because I can’t without spoiling it.

I’ve been reading children’s and young adult fiction – professionally – for eighteen years. And this is the sad, secret song of every librarian – there’s nothing that surprises us. We can pretty much always guess where a story is going, even if the how is a bit fuzzy. It doesn’t mean that we don’t enjoy what we read, but it’s simply that we’ve read so much, we’re either tuned in to the author’s wavelength, or know the conventions of the genre – and how to subvert them – inside out.

And then along comes Patrick Ness and blows me away.

He’s an absolute genius and he SHOULD have won the Carnegie for More Than This. His Chaos Walking trilogy is mind-blowing and remains my absolute favourite science fiction series for teenagers of all time. He treats his readers with utter respect and weaves a vibrant tapestry of challenging ideas and themes with words that are so precise, so cutting, you feel them – like a gentlest caress or the most sudden, violent punch. He is an author that can and will surprise you.

Discussing this novel with a colleague today we both felt the same – reeling with the shock and the perfection of it, you can’t promote this book in the normal way. morethanthisIf only, we lamented, the cover was more eye-catching. But then how could you design a book cover for something so surprising, without hinting at what’s within? It does make a kind of sense by the end, but ignore the cover, and just read it, as the quote from John Green so rightly says.

Patrick Ness, I salute you.

It takes a lot to surprise a librarian. And More Than This really does live up to, and surpass, the promise of it’s title.

Rating: *****

Walker Books, 2014, ISBN 9781406350487

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Books of delight

12 Sunday Jul 2015

Posted by Anniseed in Childrens Book Review, Uncategorized

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Adolescence, Adventure, Crime, Cults, Fantasy, Folklore, Horror, Humour, Serial Killers, Suicide, Thriller, Young Adult Fiction

Well, it’s been a crazy six months, but I’m finally back where I belong, working as a children’s specialist. Over the past month I’ve been knee-deep in books for children and young adults, which has been a pure delight. So much to read, and so few hours in the day! But the world of children’s publishing just gets stronger and stronger. So here are a few of the books I’ve particularly enjoyed over the past month…

I confess to always being a little sceptical when a celebrity turns to writing books for young people, but Simon Mayo has got it right in Itch, the first in a new series of action adventure novels. We start with Itchingham Lofte (Itch) having lost his eyebrows; he burnt them off by accident when he blew up his bedroom, experimenting with phosphorus. But that’s the least of his worries when his obsession with the chemical elements leads him to acquire a rock which is radioactive. His sleazy teacher in particular is very keen to get hold of it. With governments and gangsters on his tail, will he manage to get the rock somewhere safe, save his sister’s life and not die of radiation poisoning? It’s not looking good for our hero… This is genuinely tense stuff, with our protagonist in very real danger. Mayo isn’t afraid to portray serious threat and doesn’t talk down to his audience, making this a compulsive read. (Corgi, 2012, ISBN 978-0552565509).

Meanwhile my passion for spooky horror was very well met by Alex Bell’s Frozen Charlotte. Sophie and Jay download a Ouija board app and suddenly everything gets spooky – and by the next day, Jay is dead. Sophie is convinced that the spirit of her dead cousin Rebecca is responsible, so visits her remaining cousins on the Isle of Skye to find out the truth. Cameron, Piper and Lilias are seriously weird, and claim that a collection of tiny dolls called the Charlottes are possessing frozen charlotteBthem…  What’s really going on in that spooky house and are the dolls really capable of driving people to murder? This is a truly creepy story with some shockingly violent moments. Not to be read before bedtime! If you find dolls scary like me, this will freak you out. Just my sort of thing! (Stripes Publishing, 2015, ISBN 978-1847154538).

Tension of a different, but equally disturbing kind, is the theme of Becca Fitzpatrick’s Black ice, one for older readers. Britt thinks that one way to get over her broken heart is to go backpacking over the mountains with her best friend Korbie. She didn’t count on her ex, Calvin (Korbie’s brother), tagging along too. But before the girls get to the cabin on the mountains, a snowstorm forces them to abandon their car and take refuge in another cabin, where they meet handsome Shaun and Mason. Something’s not right about these guys… and suddenly the girls are taken hostage. black iceBBritt convinces them she knows the mountains well and is their only hope of escaping whatever it is they’re running from. But forced outside, she has to fight to survive, and figures her only chance is to build a bond with Mason. But can he be trusted? Britt has to use every ounce of ingenuity as she tries to outwit her kidnappers, but when she’s falling for one of them, it’s harder to see the truth… Very tense story which I couldn’t put down, with a shocking twist in the tale – I did see it coming, but it was still utterly compelling and in no way spoilt the ending. (Simon & Schuster, 2015, ISBN 978-1471118166).

seedBSeed by Lisa Heathfield is one of those stories that makes your skin crawl. Pearl lives a simple life at Seed and is looking forward to the day she’ll become a companion to Papa S. But then newcomers come, and Pearl feels an attraction to one of them, a boy called Ellis. He tells her that Seed is wrong, is evil, and that she must escape – but surely Papa S wants the best for all of them, even though he sends her to the Punishment Room…. A disturbing tale of life in a cult, with a horrifying ending. Not for the faint-hearted! (Electric Monkey, 2015, ISBN 978-1405275385).

Tim Bowler is a stalwart of young adult literature and Game changer is another excellent, gripping story. Mikey lives in his wardrobe. It’s safer there. Especially since the last time he dared to venture out, and saw something terrible. But now they know where he is and he can’t escape the flood of text messages threatening to kill him. Even at school he’s not safe. But then they take his sister Meggie, and Mikey is forced to confront his worst fears to try and save her. Gripping thriller that gives you a tense feeling right in your gut, as you wonder if Mikey and Meggie will survive… Impossible to put down, and like Mayo, Bowler does not shrink from putting his characters in very scary situations. (OUP, 2015, ISBN 978-0192794154).

Taking a totally different tack from the books above, Jasmine Warga’s My heart and other black holes is a tear-jerker. Aysel (pronounced Uh-sell) wants to end it all, but doesn’t want to do it alone. She meets a boy online who is also looking for someone to help him, and before long she and Roman have made a pact to commit suicide on April 6th. But in spite of herself, she starts falling for him – and realises that she has far more to live for than she ever imagined. But will she convince Roman in time? Very moving story that makes you cry, yet also makes you realise how precious life is; Warga’s story tackles a difficult subject with sensitivity and insight. (Hodder, 2015, ISBN 978-1444791532).

Margo Lanaghan in The Brides of Rollrock Island delves into folklore, another staple ingredient in children’s literature. Misskaella doesn’t look like the other pretty girls on Rollrock Island and is teased and bullied by them. But Misskaella has a secret – she can charm the seals on the shores into shedding their skins and becoming human. bridesBTo get her revenge on the girls who look down on her, she gives each young man a beautiful seal wife – for a price. But the selkies pine for the sea, and the strange, enchanting seal women of Rollrock Island will find a way to return to the water… A beautifully told tale, quite a challenging read, but if you are enchanted by fairy and folk tales this unusual story will capture your imagination just as Misskaella captures the seal women. (David Fickling, 2013, ISBN 978-1849921121).

Melissa Marr is one of my favourite young adult authors and her latest is Made for you. Eva’s the queen bee at school, with a coterie of loyal friends and a handsome boyfriend. Then she’s nearly killed by a hit and run driver. Not only scarred, she discovers that when someone touches her, she has a vision of their death, and not just that – she’s having visions of her friends being murdered. When the visions start to come true, she realises that the hit and run driver was a serial killer – and now he’s obsessed with Eva, and killing her friends to get closer to her. But can Eva’s visions save everyone she loves? And is the killer closer than she thinks? A very disturbing tale about love gone wrong, with adult content. (HarperCollins, 2015, ISBN 978-0007584208).

Kim Slater’s Smart is for fans of The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night time. Kieran is a little bit different, which means that his stepfather Tony and stepbrother Ryan hate him. He spends his time down at the Embankment where he befriends homeless Jean, but when another homeless person is found dead in the river, he resolves to play detective and find out what happened. His investigations will lead him to fall foul of Tony and Ryan even more…  But Kieran is different, not stupid, and his quirky view on life sees more than anyone realises. Moving and satisfying story, very heartwarming. (Macmillan, 2015, ISBN 978-1447236672).

Another delightful spooky tale: Frances Hardinge’s The Lie Tree. In Victorian times, girls weren’t supposed to be clever – and Faith’s a clever girl, who takes after her scientist father. No one listens to her though, especially not her father. But then he then dies in mysterious circumstances, and Faith is convinced he was murdered. lie treeBShe discovers that her father had acquired a rare plant, which feeds on lies, and rewards the liar with visions revealing the truth of things. She starts to tell lies, big, dangerous lies, in the hope that she’ll find out who killed her father; but telling lies changes you. As Faith falls further in darkness, will she find the truth she seeks, and will it be too late to save herself? An unusual thriller with an unearthly twist; I really got lost in this one. (Macmillan, 2015, ISBN 978-1447264101).

And one for younger readers which I thoroughly enjoyed: Stitch Head: The beast of Grubbers Nubbin by Guy Bass. Stitch Head is a small, gentle monster living in the spooky Castle Grotteskew with lots of other monsters created by mad scientist, Professor Erasmus. Looking after a horde of hungry orphans is no easy task for the monsters; their attempts at cookery aren’t too successful to say the least! So they hatch a plan to steal the villagers’ food, food that’s being saved for the feast of Guzzlin’ Day, but they didn’t reckon on a wild and scary beast getting in their way… Mad and hilarious adventures with Stitch Head ensue! There is a whole series of these and they are a delight. (Stripes Publishing, 2015, ISBN 978-1847156099).beastB

Riot by Sarah Mussi

22 Sunday Jun 2014

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I’m reading this Young Adult novel the day after participating in a protest against library cuts, so its message is especially hard-hitting. Riot is chillingly relevant – and I hope, not prescient. It’s 2018 and after years of recession, Britain is facing a population crisis. The government’s response is to impose sterilisation on all teenagers who are not in employment or training (those pesky NEETs…). Society is about to go into meltdown.

Tia is angry and at the forefront of organising protests against the “Snip Bill” as it’s known; but shot in a demonstration, she is recued by Cobain, leader of a notorious movement of thugs and thieves. As the government sanctions shoot to kill policies, Tia and Cobain go into hiding, desperate to find a way to stop the inevitable slaughter and to scupper the government’s plan. Just one problem – the government official responsible for the sterilisation policy is Tia’s father….

This is an action-packed, fast-paced and utterly plausible thriller. There are many obvious parallels with the current state of our nation and this is where the novel gets its raw power. Government documents filled with dehumanising jargon, identifying the poorest and most socially excluded as being responsible for the crisis – ring any bells? It’s so horrifyingly familiar. As it becomes clear to Tia that the government are engineering the crisis in order to cement the power of the privileged few, her outraged disbelief that this couldn’t be happening in Britain gives way to the determination to stand up for the people, at whatever cost. We’re aren’t at the same point (I hope) but this novel makes it abundantly clear that we’re not that far away. Dystopias lurk just over the horizon, and yes, in Britain too. It’s the power of public protest – shockingly depicted here – that is the only power we have. I hope this novel inspires many young people to develop a questioning attitude and interest in politics and human rights. When you compare events in this story to the landscape of British politics today, it’s clear that horrendous things can be done to human beings in the name of “austerity”, in the face of “national crisis”, and that we can reach that point far, far quicker than we imagine. Wake up and pay attention – this is real life, and not just a story.

Hodder, 2014, ISBN 9781444910100

And in case you were wondering, this was my placard!

 

Forthcoming….

29 Tuesday Oct 2013

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Hollow City: the sequel to Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children….. due out on 14th January 2014!

I can’t wait!

This week you can also vote for this spooky cover on www.mrripleysenchantedbooks.com, #bookcoverwars

A Song of Stone by Iain Banks

27 Sunday Jan 2013

Posted by Anniseed in Book Review, Uncategorized

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Apocalyptic Fiction, Dystopia, Thriller, War

Reproduced with kind permission of Little, Brown Book Group

Reproduced with kind permission of Little, Brown Book Group

It’s been a long while since I was gripped by The Wasp Factory, and thought it was time I returned to Iain Banks. A Song of Stone caught my attention as a post-apocalyptic tale – I’ve long been fascinated by such stories, having been hooked by the 70’s TV series Survivors and the 80’s adaption of Day of the Triffids as an impressionable child.

The story is told by a man fleeing his castle in the midst of a un-named war. Abel and his wife Morgan are captured by a band of soldiers led by the fierce and ruthless Lieutenant, who insists that her troops take over the castle. What follows is a battle for power as the Abel tries to subvert the Lieutenant’s authority, and she tries to topple everything he’s ever believed in. The results are shocking, gruesome, and inevitable. Abel’s very educated, privileged background makes him a not entirely sympathetic character; although his world has been invaded, as he tells his story it becomes clear that the rot and decay in the castle is not simply the result of the war, but of the system that caused it – and the rot in heart of him is inextricably linked to the stones within which he’s sought to protect himself.

This is a thought-provoking novel and the ambiguity surrounding the war gives it resonance, as it could be equally set in the distant past or the far future. While the violence is graphic, it is finely judged to create a sense of collapse in society and morality, and as such does not seem gratuitous. Like The Wasp Factory, this is a challenging book, and while disturbing in its concept, in execution it is both gripping and haunting.  Rating: ****

Abacus, 1998, ISBN 9780349110110

Amos in the Snow

20 Thursday Dec 2012

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Merry Solstice from Amos and Anniseed!

Hello world!

26 Monday Nov 2012

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Welcome to The Tangled Leaves of Anniseed! My name is Jo and this is my book blog. I’ll be posting regularly on the books I’m reading, my opinion on events in the publishing world, and anything else book-related. Plus, hopefully some photos from the weird world of Anniseed…

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Welcome to the world of Anniseed, bibliofiend and librarian, chaos gardener and allotmenteer, who sometimes finds caterpillars in her hair. This is my blog – what I’m reading and what I think about it, plus commentary on the world of books, and occasional rambles into the garden.

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