Wintergirls, Anorexia and Other New(ish) Books About Body Issues

Wintergirls is another outstanding read by Laurie Halse Anderson. The subject is grim - Lia is anorexic, living with her Dad's second family, and barely recovering, when her former best friend, Cassie, dies a rather horrifying death by bulimia. Because Cassie tried to call Lia 33 times the weekend she died, Lia flips into full guilt "I don't deserve to eat" mode. Watching her disintegrate is wrentching. Beyond the subject matter, though, the book is outstanding for its sharp, poetic prose which puts the reader in Lia's unique, twisted mind. I'd say this is top of the must-read YAs of the year. It also is destined for the kind of popularity Anderson's Speak maintains. Body issue books are always popular, as are books centered around particular adolescent problems, like Cut by Patricia McCormick. Unlike some adults who get all "Oh my God, it's a how-to manual!" about these books, I think they function far differently for their readers , who really want a peek into a particular mind-set that may effect kids they know. In other words, don't be afraid to recommend these books.

Other recent books that address body issues are North of Beautiful by Justina Chen Headley, and The Fold by An Na. Terra Rose, the heroine of North, was born with a port-wine stain that noticiably covers a portion of her face. Her struggles with it, her parents, her artistic ambitions, her boyfriend, and what she finds on a trip to China, make the book read like something by Chris Crutcher - there's just so much - maybe too much- in the mix. The Fold is a bit lighter, finding some humor in the dilemma of a Korean-American girl whose aunt is pushing her to have an operation that will make her eyes look bigger (and less Asian). The struggles of these girls over their looks will also strike a chord with many teen readers, and so are worth recommending, even if they don't touch Wintergirls' literary merits.

Westerns - The Devil's Paintbox

I love Westerns and I love historical fiction, so any book set in the West of the 19th-century automatically goes to the top of my "to read" list. The Devil's Paintbox by Victoria McKernan is one of the best YA Westerns I've ever read. It follows Aiden, a young Kansas orphan, who immediately after the Civil War winds up bound for Oregon on a wagon train along with his lively sister Maddie. On the way, he befriends a Native-American teen. The great thing about this book is that it doesn't flinch from the pain and hardship of the trek Westward. There are casualties along the way (one so sudden and surprising it stunned me). Aiden perseveres and winds up in a Pacific Northwest logging camp. He also commits himself to helping his Indian friends get a hold of the vaccine for smallpox (Indians call the disease the devil's paintbox). The writing is beautiful, especially when describing the landscape and the natural world. There's lots of action - river crossings, boxing bouts, etc. But this won't be every one's cup of tea because of its mature themes, its historical truthfulness, and its open ending. Completely different era, writing style, etc., but this reminded me of the Octavian Nothing books simply because of its bleak adultness. For the right reader though - high school history buffs? - this would fit the bill. Maybe older Will Hobbs' fans...

Marcelo update

Francisco X. Stork appeared in the New York Times book blog, Paper Cuts, recently, to talk about the music of Marcelo in the Real World. Click on the link to see what he has to say!

New Clique Read-Alike

This book, the first in a series, looks like a good fit for "Clique" fans looking for something similar. Just from the cover shot of Sloane Sisters by Anna Carey, you can tell this is going for the same demographic. From experience I know finding read-alikes for that oh-so-popular series is difficult because most of the fans are younger than YA (5th and 6th graders, trailing down to 4th graders!). You don't want to give them "Gossip Girl"!

Spooky Stuff - Creature of the Night

For those who like their mysteries mixed with the supernatural, Creature of the Night by Kate Thompson, would be a good fit. Bobby is getting into a lot of trouble in Dublin, so his mother moves him and his four-year-old half brother into a old house in the country. The previous tenant of the house disappeared without a trace, and long ago there supposedly was a murder there. Amid Bobby's angst (he longs to be back with his gang in the city, getting high and stealing cars), his brother begins to act strangely, insisting a little woman visits him in the night. She comes and goes through the dog flap set in the kitchen door and may or may not be a fairy. Bobby meanwhile begins to work with his landlord and his sons, gaining some competency to weigh against his criminal impulses. Still Dublin beckons, and no more so than when the teen finds the former resident's diary, which is filled with drawings of an odd little woman. Creeped out yet? I think Thompson does a great job of balancing Bobby's delinquency and bad impulses against his desire to do better than his mom, who owes creditors and is on welfare (the dole). The supernatural stuff is almost like a wake up call for him to try and protect his brother - and it all pretty much works. When you get a teen who wants something spooky, suggest this. Despite the salty language and drug use, I would say this could work for seventh grade - ninth grade.

The Undead - The Forest of Hands and Teeth

They've read Twilight, Hunger Games and even Graceling. What else to suggest to a reader who wants thrilling action, some romance, and elements of fantasy and distopia? The Forest of Hands and Teeth by Carrie Ryan may fit the bill. In a future that is divided into them and us - them being an army of zombies - Mary lives in an isolated village, which may be the last on earth. Life is dictated by the Sisters, and they keep many secrets from the community. One day, though, Mary finds the Sisters are hiding a girl who has come to their community from the outside. Does this mean there are other villages in the world? Can Mary travel to them? The night before she's bound to marry a man she doesn't love (the brother of the man she does), the village's defenses are breached, and soon she's on the run. Sometimes the narrative bogs down and becomes repetitive, but when those zombies are hunting the village's seemingly last survivors, it gets pretty exciting.

Those Wonderful Australians - Tales From Outer Suburbia

Is it in the water? Does it have something to do with Aboriginal songlines? I wish I knew. Suffice it to say, the YA lit coming out of Australia is so magical it simply amazes me. Think Zusak, Hartnett, Lanaghan and Tan. They are always worth reading. Which brings me to Tales from Outer Suburbia by Shaun Tan who also brought us The Arrival. Tales gathers illustrated short stories long on wonder and mystery. Remember the iconic mean old lady who confiscates children's toys gone astray? Doesn't every kid have such a tale? (The mean lady of my school days collected the kickballs that sailed over the schoolyard fence when we played at lunchtime.) Well Tan's diver from the book's cover just shows up one day in a bland suburb, and two children, as a prank, lead him to the mean lady's house 1) because he seems to be speaking Japanese and she is of Japanese descent, and 2) because he shows them a sliced up toy horse and the woman habitually cuts apart the toys that show up in her yard. However, something mysterious occurs here, just as it does in almost every other allegorical story in Tan's book. This is a read about wonder - how it exists in the most "outer" places, and how we need to be on guard against blandness and cliche. Who to give this to? That's the tricky part. Because some of the stories are told in pictures, it can go younger than YA, but older kids who like quirky books or the Twilight Zone might be more of an audience.

The Stolen One

The Stolen One, by Suzanne Crowley (due out in June), is a perfect read for any girl enamored of all things Queens and Princesses - someone who devours Carolyn Meyer (Mary, Bloody Mary) or is smitten by anything to do with the Tudors. It centers around a real historical mystery: what happened to the daughter of Henry Vlll's last wife? Catherine Parr - the one who survived - remarried after Henry's death, but died in childbirth. The trail of her daughter's life goes cold when the child turns two. Parr's husband also dallied with the Princess Elizabeth - later the Virgin Queen - when he was married. Crowley's conceit involves a girl named Katherine whose guardian dies without revealing some crucial secrets. However, there is a necklace.... When Katherine travels to London seeking to work as a highly-skilled seamstress, she catches the Queen's eye, and soon is made part of her court. Rumors - that she is Elizabeth's hidden child - swirl around the red-headed girl, who is determined to discover if she is truly the daughter of a past or present queen. There is plenty of intrigue and romance - and a touch of the supernatural - in a book that's beautifully atmospheric and true to its setting. And the cover is exceptionally appealing too!

"Dope Sick" and Walter Dean Myers

The ever prolific Walter Dean Myers, who has just been nominated for Ibby's prestigious Hans Christian Anderson Award along with Eric Carle, David Almond and Eoin Colfer, has a new book out. Dope Sick treads similar territory to Monster. An inner-city youth gets caught up in a crime and, hearing his story, it's up to the reader to decide his degree of culpability. This time there is more than a touch of magic realism. Cornered by the police in an abandoned drug lair, Lil J, is confronted by a young homeless man who's TV set can play back scenes of Lil J's life. Fans of Monster, Myers and authors like Paul Volponi (Black and White) are likely readers. This is a gritty look at the life of a kid, already a father and already deluding himself about his drug use, who may or may not, depending on the reader's viewpoint, deserve a second chance. Lot of stars for this one from reviewing journals, and it is highly readable, standing far above most YA lit. Yet, it doesn't outdo Monster, which remains, in my mind, Myers' best.

"L.A. Candy," aka Dreck

If you haven't heard of The Hills I kind of envy you. It's a reality show about beautiful, twenty-somethings living in the tony hills of Los Angeles. While ostensibly a real peek at real lives, the joke is it seems awfully scripted (and I do mean "awfully"). In any case, you'll probably soon be aware of it as Lauren Conrad, one of the show's "stars" has written a YA novel, excerpted in "Teen Vogue," called L.A. Candy.

Marcello is Exceptional

Another multiple-star gleaning YA title for 2009, Marcello In the Real World, by Francisco X. Stork, is so far - by leaps and bounds - my favorite YA book this year. I approached this title a bit reluctantly at first. It features an autistic teen who, in first-person narration, puzzles out the world and some mysteries concerning his father. Sound familiar? I was afraid this would be ...Dog in the Night-time lite. (Then there was last year's excellent Juv mystery, The London Eye, also featuring an autistic boy. Smell a trend? In any case, Marcello blew me away. Stork has created a wonder in this teen, who reluctantly is coerced by Dad into a summer job at the old man's Boston law firm. At stake is whether Marcello can stay at his beloved private school, Patterson for his senior year. If he can handle "the real world," Dad won't force him into mainstreaming into a public high school. Marcello is high-functioning, and probably has Asberger's syndrome. He can master the routine of the firm's mail room. But it's the people at the firm - including his young, female mailroom boss - who flummox Marcello. When he comes across photos from a personal injury case involving one of Dad's corporate clients, he takes on ethical issues that might be over his head. Stork creates a rich, involving world where questions about love, loyalty, family and friendship aren't easily answered. Recommend this to anyone who loved ...Dog in the Night-time or other readers, 8th grade and up, who like an involving character-driven read with complexity and some romance (fans of Joan Bauer, John Green, etc.). Warning: There are illusions to sexual politics at the law firm, and to the father's misjudgment and possible infidelity.

"Little Brother" and Flobat's song "Handlebars"

My daughter sent me this very powerful, animated video by Flobats. The song is called "Handlebars" http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AuK2A1ZqoWs and it reminded me of Little Brother by Cory Doctorow. This is a great book about technology and its abuse by the powerful. At the same time, though, that tech is being misused, a group of teenage rebels use their tech knowledge to organize protest. Some intense teen sex perhaps limits recommendations to 8th grade and up, but this is a great book for kids who want a fast-paced book that also is meaty and issue-oriented. Luckily the rebels in the book fare better than the protesters in the video - which I dare you not to be moved by.

Adventure Alert!

It's often hard to think up, on the spot, a book to recommend to boys from 5th-8th grade that features adventure and fantasy - something with the appeal of Kenneth Oppel's "Airborn" series (which, by the way has a new sequel Starclimber). That's where the next title comes in handy to know.

Heroes of the Valley by Jonathan Stroud (of the "Bartimaeus" trilogy) is about brave ancestors, a dull present, and a boy who wants to liven his life up by avenging the death of his uncle. Along the way he teams up with a spunky heroine and together they push the boundaries of old taboos keeping their clans nestled in a homeland no one ventures beyond. The opening is a bit slow, but once the adventure starts, the pace doesn't let up.

Get Out a Hankie

The first of my recommendations to keep you up to date on all things YA, this book has received multiple stars, catapulting it to the top of this year's YA "must watch" list:

If I Stay by Gayle Forman

The story of a teen whose family - Mom, Dad, younger brother -dies in the same car crash in which she is critically injured. In a coma, Mia's spirit, separated from her body, wanders unseen among her boyfriend, grandparents, and friends. As she flashes back on her life, Mia is trying to make a decision about "staying." Will it be worth it? Heartbreaking, yet despite the subject it steers away from melodrama . What's also nice - this wasn't a kid with lots of angst. She was very close to her parents and brother. She's also unsure about her relationship with the boyfriend, a rocker who's band is breaking out. His intense loyalty to her is endearing. Expect this to VERY POPULAR as it's gotten a lot of hype. Suggest for kids who like Jodi Picoult or books like Before I Die by Jenny Downham (about a girl dying of cancer) and Elsewhere by Gabrielle Zevin (about a girl killed in bike/car accident and her experience of heaven).