Waiting on Wednesday: Stir it Up!

Stir it Up! by Ramin Ganesham

Release Date: August 1, 2011

A Trinidadian-American girl’s dream is challenged by her family

Thirteen-year-old Anjali's life is rich with the smell of curry from her parents' roti shop and an absolute passion for food. More than anything, Anjali wants to be a chef who competes on a kids' cooking reality TV show. But Anjali must keep her wish a secret from her family, who thinks Anjali's passions are beneath her. Thank goodness for Deema, Anjali's grandmother, whose insight and love can push past even the oldest family beliefs. Woven with recipes that cook up emotions and actual culinary recipes that make food, this novel is as delicious as it is satisfying.

-A MG debut novel about a girl with Caribbean heritage who loves to cook, sounds good. I don't know anything about Trinidad, I'm not even sure I could locate it on a map so I'm hoping I'll learn a little more about Trinidad. Just remember to have some food handy while reading :)

Breaking the Spine hosts this meme

Nerds Heart YA: Interview with B.A. Binns

B.A. Binns is the author of Pull, a book nominated for Nerds Heart YA

Did you ever worry that your story would not be easy for many teens to relate to? Many YA readers may be shocked by how hard David has to work to support his family and how quickly he had to grow up...

I believe teens are aware of their world, even parts of it that appear different from their own lives. Mostly they understand universal feelings of familial love and worry about the future. My favorite reader quote came from a girl who “picked up the book because of the hunk on the cover” and then found herself relating to his problems with his loved ones. No, she said she wouldn’t make the same final choice that he did, but she completely understood him.

In that same vein, you had him make a very difficult decision between working out of high school or going to college. What made you decide to give David such a tough decision?

This story came to me in pieces, and the first piece was David as an adult who had made that tough decision, and managed to survive and thrive (He’s the future founder and CEO of Albacore Construction). I walked into this knowing David’s future, and that college at this point in time would have been difficult for him. The tough part came when I gave him the possibility of a scholarship, but that’s what I wanted readers to debate. I’ve seen too many people pushed into things they weren’t ready for, and I wanted to use David to give a voice to kids who have to make difficult decision.

David and his sisters grieve in different ways. Why did you not want them to all grieve together as a family the same way?

Different people are different. I don’t want readers thinking there is a right or wrong way to grieve. David, Barney and Linda had different experiences with loss. Their gender, ages and personalities play a part in how they handled that loss. Just like in real families.


Which character was most difficult for you to write?

Yolanda Dare. I knew so much about her and literally cried over her self-esteem issues. I needed her to be hard and vulnerable and sympathetic, to have a heart and the potential for being stronger than even she knew. And I needed to reveal this to the reader without ever getting inside her head. It was hard just letting her evolve through David’s eyes. I got my satisfaction when she finally realized she what she was really worth.

Why did you decide to write stories only with guy main characters?

That was not my original intention. What David says about girls being mysteries went double about guys as far as I was concerned. In order to write what I know, I had to learn about teenaged boys to have a believable teen male protagonist. I wanted him to be real, and I wanted boys to want to read him. The more I learned, the more important it felt that this story come 100% from him. In the end that not only led me to write first person, but to write the entire book from his POV.

I don’t think all of my books will follow this path. But I’m glad I did this one. I think there are more than enough authors writing the adventures of female characters. Guys bring a different set of issues, needs and quirks. They’re fun to write about, too. And they write amazing fan letters.

You write very vividly about David's construction experiences. Did you learn so much about construction by using first-hand knowledge or lots of online/literary research?

I lived in an area that had almost constant construction going on for a three-year period. Lots of research and stimulation and people to talk to, including one unnamed young worker who earned a spot on Pull’s acknowledgement page after we shared a pizza and his story.

You are currently working on a story featuring Malik, the main antagonist of the story. Do you foresee also writing about Yolanda Dare or a follow-up to David's story?

The story I’m working on now involves the further adventures of both Malik and Barney, they both have more growing up to do. Their paths are parallel in the book, but they don’t really intersect, so I need both of them as main characters. After that Neill gets a book. David and Yolanda will make an appearance in Malik’s story, and probably in Neill’s as well.
I felt Yolanda completed her arc and matured enough not to need her own spot, but I’ve had a fan ask for more on her, so I may rethink that.

Which of your characters do you relate to the most? What were you like in high school?

Linda. That may be why I didn’t include as much about her as I originally intended, she’s too much like me and I’m not yet ready to be autobiographical. I was the quiet kid in high school, the “A” student teacher’s pet, envious of the kids who had fun and the nerve to get in trouble, and perfectly content to sit at the loser’s table..

David and Yolanda really connect through a Marriage Class. Did you ever have to take one of those?

I didn’t, but my daughter did and her experience inspired that class in Pull. I have a sneaking suspicion that class is the reason she’s in no hurry to make me a grandmother although she’s in her twenties.

One of my favorite quotes from the book is "People think cakewalk means easy. But real cakewalks were difficult as hell according to my grandmother. They required endurance, balance and training, and only the best lasted until the end." Do you know how to cakewalk?

I don’t have the stamina. I saw one when I was little. We’re having a family reunion next month, maybe I’ll suggest we resurrect the practice. If so, I’ll contribute a cake, but sit out the competition.


Thank you so much Ms. Binns!

Waiting on Wednesday: Shadows On the Moon

Shadows on the Moon by Zoe Marriott

Release Date: July 7, 2011

"On my fourteenth birthday when the sakura was in full bloom, the men came to kill us. We saw them come, Aimi and me. We were excited, because we did not know how to be frightened. We had never seen soldiers before."

Suzume is a shadow-weaver. She can create mantles of darkness and light, walk unseen in the middle of the day, change her face. She can be anyone she wants to be. Except herself.

Suzume died officially the day the Prince's men accused her father of treason. Now even she is no longer sure of her true identity.

Is she the girl of noble birth living under the tyranny of her mother’s new husband, Lord Terayama? A lowly drudge scraping a living in the ashes of Terayama’s kitchens? Or Yue, the most beautiful courtesan in the Moonlit Lands?

Everyone knows Yue is destined to capture the heart of a prince. Only she knows that she is determined to use his power to destroy Terayama.

And nothing will stop her. Not even love.

-I don't even know what to make of this book except that it sounds phenomenal. Sort of Cinderella like but cooler because it's set in Feudal Japan.

This meme is hosted by Breaking the Spine

Luminous

Luminous by Dawn Metcalf
Dutton Books/Penguin

Release Date: July 7, 2011

Rating: 3.5/5

IQ "No one had ever thought of her as anything but Mexican American. She'd never been mistaken for Caucasian, but without skin...skeletons all looked the same. He thought I was white, like him. Big deal. But was that supposed to be a compliment? Or was it just something everybody assumed when they didn't know for sure-that people looked like them by default?" Consuela pg. 96


Flowing from The Book Butterfly, the next stop on the MundiMoms' Luminous Blog Tour is here at Reading in Color

Consuela has found herself immersed in the world of the Flow and she is losing her grip on reality. The Flow is a part of our world, although it is distant and separate from the real world. Consuela meets other teens in the Flow who have powers and she quickly discovers her own power of being able to step out of her Earthly skin and wear new skins. Not only can she wear any kind of skin but she can make skin from water, air, fire and other objects. The teenagers job in the Flow is to protect strangers who are going to change the world who might be in danger of dying before their time. The balance of the Flow has been upset however with the murders of the teens in the Flow and the Watcher asks Consuela and V (another teen in the Flow) to discover who the killer is and him/her. However the killer knows something Consuela wants, a way to return to her family while living in both the Flow and in the real world.

I thought there was an over saturation of similes in the writing. I had mixed feelings about the writing, at times I was in awe of the elegant prose and other times I almost rolled my eyes because it seemed like a stretch. Lines such as "the three-way mirror in the corner bent out of shape like clocks in a Dali print" (pg. 4, perhaps that line wouldn't have bothered me if I knew what a Dali print was?) and "He had black hair and olive skin like an Italian oil painting" (pg. 53) were peppered throughout the book. I didn't like how characters like Consuela's best friend, Allison were briefly mentioned in the beginning and then completely forgotten. The romance between V and Consuela was random, it seemed like they were attracted to each other in the book because they were the only two semi 'normal' available people in the Flow. They weren't even friends first, they just seemed to quickly become infatuated with each other. The book definitely lags in the middle, the beginning and ending however are well-paced with action. Finally, I think that the author should have explained why each chapter started with an Octavio Paz quote. The name was familiar to me and his quotes were fascinating (my favorite was "Everything in the modern world functions as if death does not exist. Nobody takes it in account, it is suppressed everywhere..." (pg. 31) but I was curious as to why this particular man's (who I later Googled to learn that he was a Mexican poet) quotes were chosen.

The Flow is confusing for both Consuela and the reader (or at least this particular reader) which I actually liked because I learned about the Flow alongside Consuela. I think this book has to be read slowly because a lot will be missed, certain parts REQUIRE being re-read. It's difficult to discuss this book without being too spoiler-y but I was very intrigued by the attitude the characters (The Watcher, V, Wish, Tender, Joseph Crow, they are all 'members' of the Flow) held towards death. Most of them did not fear death, which is a mentality that I think the author wants more readers to understand (I say this based on quotes used and dialogue) and the concept behind the Flow and how people ended up in the Flow is quite impressive.

Luminous covers the immense, terrifying concept of death in an exceptional way that adds something very special to not just the paranormal genre, but books in general. don't completely understand the Flow but there's plenty of material for this to be a series and I would definitely want to learn more about the Flow. The author has subtle bits of diversity ranging from ethnicity to religious beliefs (I especially loved the idea behind the character The Yad) but I do wish all the secondary characters had been more than just their purpose in the Flow. Consuela only hangs out with V and The Watcher (aka Sissy) but even those two characters remain somewhat of a mystery aside from their powers. At times the writing seemed to be less concerned with keeping the story moving and more concerned with sounding poetic. Consuela is a fairly normal main character which I liked, she's confused about the Flow (although I do wish she didn't mysteriously have unique powers and be a sort-of 'special child') and she's confused about V. She doesn't continuously make heroic gestures nor does she cower in fear, a realistic main character with an odd love interest.



This review on the MundiMoms' LUMINOUS Blog Tour was brought to you by the letter: W Collect all the letters along the blog tour, unscramble the puzzle, and win a secret surprise as well as an extra entry in the LUMINOUS Grand Prize Giveaway, June 30th! Details at www.dawnmetcalf.com."

Disclosure: Received from author/publisher as part of a book tour. Thank you!

Barefoot in Baghdad

Barefoot in Baghdad by Manal M. Omar
Sourcebooks

Incredible Quote (IQ) "Years of humanitarian work had taught me that the smallest intervention could set loose an avalanche of unexpected consequences. I knew better than to dive in on a whim. The key was to anticipate and plan for worst-case scenarios and to take calculated risks to improve people's lives. Even the most experienced aid workers could find themselves stuck in some intractable situation. My organization's motto was 'Underpromise and overdeliver.'" pg. 142

Manal Omar is an American aid worker of Palestinian descent and when she moves to Iraq as part of her work with Women for Women International her particular Arabic heritage and beliefs present a bit of a problem. It's hard for many of the Iraqi women to relate to her wearing the veil this is a story about her efforts to gain the trust of Iraqi women (and men) and her friendships with the three men (Yusuf, Fadi and Mais) who help her get started set during the time when things started to go terribly wrong for Iraq.

I thought this book was oddly devoid of what Ms. Omar DID exactly in Iraq. It all seemed very vague, she talked about setting up women's centers but mostly this book focused on the difficulties aid agencies faced working in Iraq. Which was disappointing to me because I had hoped the story would be specifically about what Women for Women International did in Iraq or even touch on what NGOs in general did in Iraq. Instead (and I guess it makes sense since this is a memoir) the story very much focuses on relationships but personally I cared more about her work than her personal life. Which sounds way harsh and I don't mean to say her personal life isn't interesting but I wish she had found a better balance. I wasn't a fan of the writing style either the book opens up moving fast with an engaging and heartbreaking story and then the story is dropped. I honestly couldn't remember who Ms. Omar was talking about once she resumed the story (after a looonnnggg pause in which she discussed her family and her first few months in Iraq) and I had to flip back to the beginning.

I was captivated by the fact that the author had such difficulty gaining the trust of American soldiers as well as the Iraqi women because she wore the veil. The men she worked with were disappointed because at first they didn't view her as a 'true American' and the Iraqi women feared she might be a religious fanatic. The point is continuously made that Iraq is a fairly secular country compared to the countries around them (they often say they are not like Iran) and that is a point of immense pride for the Iraqi people, especially concerning women's rights "They [Iraqi women] had paved the way for women in the region by being among the first to vote, the first to participate in the judiciary system, and the first to demonstrate their economic power. Women from the rural areas became legendary for devising methods to survive the sanctions of the 1990s." (pg. 17). Furthermore the author did an excellent job portraying her relationships with the Iraqi people, they all came alive and the inevitable deaths quite literally broke my heart. I obviously didn't suffer as much as Ms. Omar but I did get so wrapped up that I was near tears.

Barefoot in Baghdad was a disappointing story because I had different expectations. I would recommend going into this story with the mindset of having no expectations or expecting a strong focus on personal relationships between the author and certain people as well as a discussion of American policy flaws in Iraq. I personally admired Ms. Omar because her career path is one I would LOVE to follow. I want to major in international relations and work for an aid agency and travel around the world. However I was hoping to read a story that concentrated largely on aid work and it did not. From a cultural aspect I had a really hard time understanding Ms. Omar deciding to get married so suddenly but she explains that in her culture women don't date. Which I knew from other YA books I'd read but I guess I just assumed adult women would date if they wanted to, but Ms. Omar's culture and religious beliefs are very important to her and I respect that immensely. She asks for her parents blessings on everything but if they say no, she will fight them on it if she believes it's truly important. A striking story that looks at the time when Iraq began to crumble and the danger aid workers faced in Iraq as well as the even greater danger faced by the Iraqi people. I walked away from this book wanting to learn more about this amazing country. The story also reads like a how-to guide for humanitarians imparting lessons such as the IQ and this "As much as we thought we knew what was needed, in the end only the communities we planned to work with really knew" (pg.22).

Disclosure: Swapped with Helen from Helen's Book Blog

*I will be in Guatemala from June 10-20 with no Internet access

Throwback Thursday: Monsoon Summer

Monsoon Summer by Mitali Perkins
Delacorte Press/Random House

Rating: 4/5

IQ "But the line had gone dead, I walked home replaying our conversation, sheltered in the privacy of my umbrella. What had those missing words been? If only the connection had stayed clear! Now the words were drifting in outer space somewhere, and I'd never find out what they were." Jasmine pgs. 110-111

Jazz Gardner has a great business going with her best friend, Steve Morales (a guy she's secretly in love with), they sell Berkley Memories and their business is doing quite well. Unfortunately (or is it?) for them both, Jazz's mom wins a grant for her and the family to travel to India and set up a women's clinic near the orphanage where Jasmine's mom was adopted from. Jazz doesn't want to go not just because she doesn't want to leave Steve but because she's not a big fan of volunteer work (after all how do you know the person you're helping really needs help?). Jazz doesn't have a cell-phone or a laptop so she will have to rely on rare long-distance phone calls with Steve and hope that he won't start dating another girl. Jazz is not, however prepared for the madness and magic of monsoon season in India, the countryside is lush and the people are a bit crazy but crazy isn't always bad.

Something that's really starting to get on my nerves about girls in books is when they constantly complain about their bodies (which I get believe, I hate my body) but then there are AT LEAST 2-3 guys interested in them. In Jazz's case, she goes to a dance club and every guy wants to dance with her and I understand that before that she thought she was ugly but after that she should have felt way better about herself. And yet she continued to believe she was ugly, it especially pained me that she thought that because she was tall. I really don't think a person's height should affect how good they feel about themselves. It was hard for me to relate to Jazz though because she's not a 'do-gooder' and while I don't do all I can to help people, volunteering is a huge part of my life so it was hard for me to fathom someone so dead set against it, even after her motive is explained. Plus who wouldn't jump at the opportunity to visit India? Yes it would be tough being without technology (I'm spending 10 days in Guatemala with no phone and I think I'm already going into withdrawal and I haven't left yet....) but this is a chance for Jazz to see a new country, learn more about her heritage and make a 'small' difference. I was sympathetic though to her being worried that Steve would start crushing on a girl while she was away. I can definitely empathize. But I was a bit peeved that Jasmine was 'in love' with Steve at the age of fifteen. *sigh*

Steve was an one-dimensional crush (well Jazz would say his flaw is that he's too nice/too caring) and that made it hard for me to take him seriously, but the other characters were well-drawn, especially members of Jazz's family and that made me happy. Granted Jazz was spending the summer with her family in close quarters so they needed to be described in great detail but I liked that their personalities were shown through their actions or Jazz's observations, not just Jazz talking to the reader. I also loved that a rich girl character we are introduced to wasn't a complete brat, she shows that she's privileged but she's nice to Jazz and as someone who is tired of the rich-girl-is-a-bully storyline I really appreciated the character. Jazz starts out the book being quite selfish so that makes her transformation all the more sweet to read about and Jazz isn't whiny selfish, she's just very cautious which leads to her being selfish. Reading about Jazz slowly opening up to the wonder and madness of monsoon season in India is cheering and India is described with resplendent detail, especially the scenes where Jazz describes the marketplace and Karthak dance.

Monsoon Summer's magic lies in reading about Jazz's maturing, it's a truly captivating coming-of-age because I wasn't always sure she would come around. *Spoiler: highlight to read* Is it selfish/mean of me to say that I was happy this story didn't turn into a miraculous meeting between Jazz's mom and her biological parents? That would have been incredible but not very realistic *End of spoiler* This is an absolutely perfect summer read since it's deep but I didn't drown in the depth and there are enough light-hearted moments that the story is entertaining. It's interesting to read about Jazz's struggle to balance two very different standards of beauty, American standards and Indian standards. The author shows the ridiculous American (thin is everything) and Indian ideas (dark skin=bad) of beauty that are ingrained in the respective cultures and how they hurt girls in both cultures. And as much as I thought Steve was unrealistic, he's still adorable and a great friend. Danita was my favorite character because how can you not like someone whose a hard-worker and is determined to keep her family together, even when the monsoon affects her and makes her almost-agree to something crazy? Jazz's parents are in my top ten favorite parents in YA because not only are they vividly present but they go on a date night. And Jazz treats her parents like human beings. *Happy sigh* Read this book for the setting of India and one of the most rewarding coming-of-age stories in YA. Plus the food sounds phenomenal.

Disclosure: Received as part of Goodreads BookSwap

*I will be in Guatemala with no Internet access from June 10-20. All emails/comments will be answered upon my return.

Waiting on Wednesday: Wildefire

Wildefire by Karsten Knight

Release Date: July 26, 2011

Every flame begins with a spark.

Ashline Wilde is having a rough sophomore year. She’s struggling to find her place as the only Polynesian girl in school, her boyfriend just cheated on her, and now her runaway sister, Eve, has decided to barge back into her life. When Eve’s violent behavior escalates and she does the unthinkable, Ash transfers to a remote private school nestled in California’s redwoods, hoping to put the tragedy behind her. But her fresh start at Blackwood Academy doesn’t go as planned. Just as Ash is beginning to enjoy the perks of her new school—being captain of the tennis team, a steamy romance with a hot, local park ranger—Ash discovers that a group of gods and goddesses have mysteriously enrolled at Blackwood…and she’s one of them. To make matters worse, Eve has resurfaced to haunt Ash, and she’s got some strange abilities of her own. With a war between the gods looming over campus, Ash must master the new fire smoldering within before she clashes with her sister one more time… And when warm and cold fronts collide, there’s guaranteed to be a storm.

-While I'm not Polynesian but I can definitely relate to being 'the only' something (Black/Latina) somewhere so there's that bit to intrigue me. Plus it's PARANORMAL with a MAIN character of color. Can you say rarity? Ignoring that though I think it sounds like a fun read and I look forward to reading how the author incorporates Polynesian gods into the story. I know nothing about Polynesian gods (are they like Greek/Roman/Egyptian gods? Are all gods the same? Probably different?) and I love learning especially about other cultures so yay! My only fear with this book is that it sounds like the ending might be suspenseful and I HATE cliff-hanger endings :)

Meme hosted by Breaking the Spine

Male Monday: Sunrise Over Fallujah

Sunrise Over Fallujah by Walter Dean Myers 2008
Scholastic

Rating: 2.5/5

IQ "From a distance, say the eight feet between eyes and television screen, or perhaps at the silent impact of a long-range missile hitting a newly framed target, combat seemed so simple. There was good and there was bad and the clear distances between the two held their own comforts. But as those distances narrowed, as they came within the range of smell and the feeling of warmth as a shell hit a target or the gentle shaking of the ground beneath you that stirred the constant fear within, the clarity disappeared." Birdy pg. 117

Robin "Birdy" Perry is the nephew of Richie Perry (the hero of another Myers novel, Fallen Angels) and he writes to his Uncle Richie from time-to-time as he tries to work out the complexities of war. His uncle will understand he reasons because he served in Vietnam. Birdy's father did not want him to join the Army and has not contacted him, his mother worries daily about his safety in Iraq. Birdy is part of the Civilian Affairs Battalion and his job along with that of his fellow soldiers is to help stabilize and rebuild Iraq and gain the trust of the Iraqi people. Birdy has no idea why he joined the army, but he does know that war is a lot harder and more complicated than it looks especially the Iraq war in 2003.

There is little camaraderie in this novel. Birdy talks about the members of his battalion but I never got the impression that he was that chummy with anyone, except Jonesy. Jonesy was a well-developed character but everyone else mentioned (Captain Miller, Major Sessions, Ahmed, Marla) remained one dimensional. I wanted more interaction between characters and to get a grasp for their personalities. They all remained very closed-off and I don't think everyone in the army is tight-lipped, there has to be more than one fun-loving Blues man like Jonesy in a battalion. It was also really hard keeping everyone's rank straight but that's not the author's fault, it's my own slow brain. The story did seem a bit predictable to me concerning the death of a character, obviously a character is going to die and I thought who it was going to be was clear. I also didn't like the one-sided letters. Birdy told us what his mom said in emails but we only read his letters. I think it would have been interesting to read his uncle's responses to his letters, especially as a war veteran. Furthermore I wanted to know more about his father who was against Birdy entering the army. This is odd because it's a novel about war but I found it dull at parts which was unfortunate.

The story is exciting though even when no action is occurring. It's exciting and saddening to read Birdy's thoughts on war, exciting because he never really THOUGHT about what being in a war meant so it's nice to see him try and sort out his many different feelings but it's sad because it's WAR. Birdy asks good questions "When I was a kid, maybe eight or nine I wondered why God mad the insides of people. Why not just make solid people that could do the same things we did instead of all the little parts, veins, arteries, hearts and things that could go so wrong. Why didn't God just keep it simple?" (pg. 117), ones that I don't believe answers exist. The author does an excellent job of explaining what was going on in the early, tumultuous days of the Iraq War through the ideas of CA soldiers (well I think it's accurate but I wasn't there). This is vital for teen readers because most of us are too young to understand and remember the beginning of the United States' invasion of Iraq.

Sunrise Over Fallujah offers look at a war that has only recently ended (and some may argue is still going on) in a thoughtful, intriguing manner. The author remains satisfyingly neutral, simply reporting the facts, representing various perspectives through the group of soldiers we (briefly) meet. The only message the author has is that soldiers are courageous and deserve the utmost respect which no one would argue against. I also appreciated that the author shows how quick the enemy can change, it's not always obvious who/what is the enemy as much as the two sides going to war want to make it seem clear-cut. The story didn't always hold my interest, especially at the beginning and the ending wasn't that great either but the middle kept a steady pace that held my attention. I would have liked (well I don't think I could like a book about war) to better understand the backgrounds and motives of the characters, even the main character was a mystery which isn't interesting. Overall I just had a meh reaction to this book and it's hard for me to explain why, and for that I apologize.

Disclosure: Purchased

New Crayons (I'm Out of Town-No Internet Access)

Hosted by Color Online

There's so much to do. I have a post about whitewashing to write, a post about Jane Austen & people (specifically teens of color), some interview requests to send. I love being busy and it's summer so I don't feel too overwhelmed :) Although I do have ACT/SAT studying to do and college application essays. Bleh



Breadcrumbs by Anne Ursu

Once upon a time, Hazel and Jack were best friends. But that was before he stopped talking to her and disappeared into a forest wth a mysterious woman made of ice. Now it's up to Hazel to go after him. Inspired by Hans Christian Andersen's "The Snow Queen," BREADCRUMBS is a story of the struggle to hold on, and the things we leave behind.


-From the author, thank you so much Ms. Ursu! I really enjoy fairy tale retellings and I'm not familiar with 'The Snow Queen' so I look forward to reading this magical, wintry tale :)




My Own Worst Frenemy by Kimberly Reid

Straight outta the Mile High City, Chanti Evans is an undercover cop’s daughter and an exclusive private school’s newest student. But Chanti is learning fast that when it comes to con games, the streets have nothing on Langdon Prep.

Chanti can’t believe she’s gone from rocking the hottest gear to sporting J. Crew. But after trouble in her neighborhood, her vice cop mom wants her safe. Now, she’s across town at Langdon Prep, where rumor and gossip are the real lethal weapons…

With barely a foot in the door, Chanti gets on the bad side of school queen-bee, Lissa, and the snobbish Headmistress Smythe. And when a series of pricey thefts puts everyone on edge, Chanti is under major suspicion. But the last straw comes when she and her new Langdon crush, dangerously fine heartthrob, Carlos, are set up to take the heat for a burglary…

Now Chanti will need her detective skills to uncover the real culprit and clear her name. But with her BFF mysteriously turned on her, and a drug dealer gunning for her, Chanti will have to figure out who’s got her back—and who’s out to stab it—or this too-fierce sleuth won’t have any kind of future at all…

-I started reading MOWF already which was a bad idea because I'm not taking it on my tip but I'm hooked! It's really good. I was afraid there would be too much whining and slang I didn't know but Chanti makes some literary references that are fun to catch and her friends are really funny. I have great hope for the rest of the book.

What did you get this week?

*I will be in Guatemala from June 10-20 with no Internet access. All emails/comments/Tweets will be answered upon my return.

Summer 2011 Reading List

I love summer, reading and making lists so this is what happens when I combine my two lists!

Here's my summer reading list for 2010 I didn't get very far but I'm going to update it with a few comments below


Classics Reading List

1. Middlemarch by George Eliot (I downloaded this book on my Ereader but I rarely use my Ereader. I continued reading this book on my Spring break road trip with my family but I haven't picked it up [or my Ereader] since. I think this would be the biggest achievement of my summer if I could finish this book)

2. Kindred by Octavia Butler (I own this book now so no excuses!)

3. One Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel Garcia Marquez

4. Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe

5. Don Quixote by Miguel de Cervantes

6. Persuasion by Jane Austen (Oddly enough this is the Jane Austen book I laughed the most at, I would have thought that honor would go to Pride & Prejudice but no....and I didn't properly review it haha)

7. A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens (Read for school, I don't absolutely LOVE it but it's my 2nd favorite book we read, next to The Importance of Being Earnest)

8. Invisible Man by Ralph Ellison (currently reading and it is VERY SLOW GOING. Don't expect a review anytime soon. Although I am bringing it to Guatemala so maybe....)

9. Pygmalion by George Bernard Shaw (I want to read this next so badly)

10. The Living is Easy by Dorothy West

Adult Fiction

1. Bless Me Ultima by Rudolfo Anaya
2. The House of Spirits by Isabel Allende
3. Children of the Waters by Carleen Brice
4. Sag Harbor by Colson Whitehead
5. Tryin' to Sleep in the Bed You Made by Virginia DeBerry and Donna Grant
6. Devil in a Blue Dress by Walter Mosley (Book 1 in Easy Rawllins series)
7. White Teeth by Zadie Smith
8. Waiting to Exhale by Terry McMillan
9. Feminista by Erica Kennedy (plan to read next)
10. Bloody Waters by Carolina Garcia-Aguilera (Book 1 in Lupe Solano Mystery series)

Off Color (To reiterate: These books will not be reviewed here. I may review them on Goodreads)

1. Before I Fall by Lauren Oliver (We own this book so I have no excuse not to read it sometime) 2. Graceling by Kirsten Cashore
3. Rampant (Killer Unicorns #1) by Diana Peterfreund
4. Eyes Like Stars by Lisa Mantchev
5. The Deathday Letter by Shaun Hutchinson
6. The Daykeeper's Grimoire (Prophecy of Days #1) by Christy Raedeke
7. Violet on the Runway by Melissa Walker
8. The Eternal Kiss: Vampire Tales of Blood and Desire (anthology), edited by Trisha Telep (Read never reviewed on Goodreads, one day....)
9. White Cat by Holly Black
10. Levithian by Scott Westerfield

2011 Summer Reading List (this is not school-required)

Classics

1. Middlemarch by George Eliot (MUST FINISH)

2. Invisible Man by Ralph Ellison

3. Pygmalion by George Bernard Shaw

4. Kindred by Octavia Butler

5. Northanger Abbey by Jane Austen

6. One Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel Garcia Marquez

7. Great Expectations by Charles Dickens

8. The Richer, The Poorer by Dorothy West

9. Quicksand by Nella Larsen

10. Plum Bun by Jessie Redmon Fauset

Adult Fiction

1. Becoming Madame Mao by Anchee Min (Madame Mao absolutely fascinates me)

2. Empress Orchid by Anchee Min

3. Under Fishbone Clouds by Sam Meeking

4. Half of A Yellow Sun by Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie (taking on the trip to Guatemala)

5. Bless Me Ultima by Rudolfo Anaya

6. The House of Spirits by Isabel Allende

7. Drown by Junot Diaz (taking on the trip to Guatemala)

8. Onaedo-The Blacksmith's Daughter by Ngozi Achebe

9. Who Fears Death by Nnedi Okorafoar

10. The Namesake by Jhumpa Lahiri

No-poc Main character (This summer has been dubbed my Summer of YA Contemporary. Thus all the books are contemporary so as much as I love recs if it's YA historical mystery or something it's not going to be added but it will stay in my mind)

1. Not That Kind of Girl by Siobhan Vivian

2. Violet on The Runway by Melissa Walker

3. Mostly Good Girls by Leila Sales (Lived up to the hype but didn't WOW me, fun read)

4. Anna And the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins

5. The Boyfriend List: 15 Guys, 11 Shrink Appointments, 4 Ceramic Frogs and Me, Ruby Oliver by E. Lockhart

6. Sloppy Firsts by Megan McCafferty

7. Revolution by Jennifer Donnelly (ok so this is half historical fiction and half contemporary I think so I'll add an extra contemporary book to make up for it :)

8. Going Too Far by Jennifer Echols

9. Papertowns by John Green

10. Jellicoe Road by Melina Marchetta

11. If I Stay by Gayle Forman

So what do you think of the books on my list? I'm ready for a summer of fun reading mixed in with some deep reading!

*I will be out of town with no Internet access from June 10-20. If it's urgent you're out of luck haha. But I will respond to all emails/comments/Tweets as soon as I can upon my return.

Waiting on Wednesday: Dreams of Significant Girls

Dreams of Significant Girls by Cristina Garcia

Release Date: July 11, 2011

Brought together each summer at a boarding school in Switzerland, three girls learn a lot more than just French and European culture. Shirin, an Iranian princess; Ingrid, a German-Canadian eccentric; and Vivien, a Cuban-Jewish New Yorker culinary phenom, are thrown into each other's lives when they become roommates.

This is a story of 3 paths slowly beginning to cross and merge as they spend the year apart, but the summers together. Through navigating the social-cultural shoals of the school, developing their adolescence, and learning the confusing and conflicting legacies of their families' past, Shirin, Ingrid, and Vivien form an unbreakable bond.

This story takes readers on a journey into the lives of very different girls and the bonds that keep them friends.

-This meme is hosted by Breaking the Spine and this is the debut I want the most at the moment. I made the mistake of reading some rave reviews and now I want it so bad. Boarding school with teens of color. Set during the '70s in Europe, sounds divine!

Where the Mountain Meets the Moon

Where the Mountain Meets the Moon by Grace Lin 2011
Little, Brown and Company/Hachette Book Group

Rating: 4.5/5

IQ "Moonlight misted over the rough floors and made the sparse room glow silver, the goldfish bowl looking like a second moon. The shabby walls and worn stones seemed to shimmer as if a translucent silk veil covered them, muting any flaws and transforming the house into a dwelling of luminous light and delicate shadows. Minli had never seen her home look so beautiful." pg. 265 Isn't that just such a....lush description?

Minli lives in the Valley of Fruitless Mountain with her parents, they spend their days hard at work in the fields. her father is never too tired to tell Minli stories, especially about the Old Man of the Moon who knows the answer to everything. Minli sets out on a journey to find the Old Man of the Moon so that she can discover how to bring fortune to her family. On her quest to help her family she meets a talking fish, dragons, a powerful king and some mischievous twins.

There is nothing wrong with this book and yet I didn't LOVE it. I would say it's because I'm too old and while I'm not the intended audience I know of many reviewers/older (than MG) readers who adore this book. I'm not sure what my problem with the book is exactly, which is most unhelpful, a reviewer not being able to explain why they didn't like the book. I do think though that maybe this book should have been made a picture book. The illustrations were superb and I think this book was made for being big enough that you can flip whole pages and simply admire the lovely pictures. I liked that not only were there colorful illustrations in each chapter, but each chapter had a simple and small drawing that was relevant to the story within each chapter. I think my main problem was that I was hoping for some elaborate plot twist that would have shocked me, and there wasn't and so I became bored. What is elaborate are the tiny details in the pictures and in describing people and objects (like Minli's house in the Incredible Quote). I wanted Minli to succeed so I was emotionally invested in her story, but I was also bored with her story.

I loved the descriptions of people, places and objects "The goldfish man looked a third time at Ma and Ba, and this time they felt it. Under his gaze, Ma and Ba suddenly felt like freshly peeled oranges, and their words fell away from them. Inexplicably, they felt ashamed" (pg. 61). The author has an eye for making seemingly subtle situations and low-key people become alive with superb detail. I was pleased that the parents weren't just left at home to sit and twiddle their thumbs. The mother is demanding but not cruel, the father is a dreamer who aims to please his wife and daughter and when Minli leaves their home, they both set out to look for her. The mother goes through character development which is wonderful because how often do parents even get mentioned?

Where the Mountain Meets the Moon definitely has that timeless air about it, reads like a fairytale, a good ol quest that involves making lots of new friends and using your wits. The dragon Minli meets can't fly which is cute and while the story isn't all that hard to figure out (especially the end bit concerning the dragon) I really appreciated the stories within the story. Some of the stories within the stories are real myths, others are myths that the author embellishes, adding her own touch (not that I would have been able to tell but this is helpfully explained in the author's note). Minli is a sweet girl that it will be easy to relate to, she craves independence and she wants to help her family (and the adventurous aspect of finding the Old Man in the Moon certainly doesn't hurt). Minli is also quite clever and clever main characters always make for fun reads. This book overall is absolutely majestic from the beautiful cover to the creamy pages, enchanting illustrations and the meticulous attention to detail within the story.

Disclosure: Received from the publisher for review. Thank you!

Waiting on Wednesday: Sister Mischief

Sister Mischief by Laura Goode

Release Date: July 12, 2011

A gay suburban hip-hopper freaks out her Christian high school - and falls in love - in this righteously funny and totally tender YA debut, for real.

Listen up: You’re about to get rocked by the fiercest, baddest all-girl hip-hop crew in the Twin Cities - or at least in the wealthy, white, Bible-thumping suburb of Holyhill, Minnesota. Our heroine, Esme Rockett (aka MC Ferocious) is a Jewish lesbian lyricist. In her crew, Esme’s got her BFFs Marcy (aka DJ SheStorm, the butchest straight girl in town) and Tess (aka The ConTessa, the pretty, popular powerhouse of a vocalist). But Esme’s feelings for her co-MC, Rowie (MC Rohini), a beautiful, brilliant, beguiling desi chick, are bound to get complicated. And before they know it, the queer hip-hop revolution Esme and her girls have exploded in Holyhill is on the line. Exciting new talent Laura Goode lays down a snappy, provocative, and heartfelt novel about discovering the rhythm of your own truth.

-When I read the summary of this book I was ecstatic, it sounds so original and fun and I love hip-hop. Then I started to grow apprehensive about this book. Would I like reading original hip-hop lyrics? Are Christians going to be demonized? Um who actually uses the words fierce and bad in the same sentence? But I'm once again at a happy anticipation stage after reading a few reviews on Goodreads. Plus I really admire that these teens sound like such go-getters, I don't think I'd have the courage to be different if I was deemed to be outside the norm of my small town...yay rebels :)

Breaking the Spine is the creator and host of this meme