Audience Pick!

Title: A Curse Dark as Gold
Author: Elizabeth C. Bunce
Category: Fiction, Young Adult
Rating: 4/5
Summary: Charlotte Miller’s father has passed away, and it’s up to her to protect the woolen mill that’s been in her family for hundreds of years. But everyone says the mill is cursed. How far will Charlotte go to protect it?

Review: This retelling of Rumpelstiltskin immediately reeled me in. The details of the mill operation brought the story to life, even though I didn’t know all the milling terms used. Looking back on it now, I think a diagram or two of the milling machines could have helped me keep the terms straight as I read. Hopefully in future editions, they will devote a page or two at the front to something like that.

A lot of fairy tale retellings can be unimaginative, but this retelling is fresh and original. That’s saying a lot for a story whose bones have been around for ages.

I also loved the strong female character who doesn’t go running to the men in her life to solve all her problems. And she’s a small businesswoman, to boot!

This is an excellent first novel from Bunce, and more than deserving of this year’s Morris YA Debut Award.

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Title: Nation
Author: Terry Pratchett
Category: Fiction, Young Adult
Rating: 3.5/5
Summary: A tsunami wave washes away an entire island nation, except one boy named Mau. But when much is taken, something is returned. Mau soon discovers he’s not alone on the island.

Review: Confession: This is the first book by Terry Pratchett that I’ve ever read. I know, I know. How can I call myself a YA-nnabe? (By the way, if you have a Pratchett fave, please let me know so I can add it to my to-read list!)

I love me some post-apocalyptic fiction. So I liked this book. It is extremely well-written. Actually, maybe it’s a little too well-written because I felt Mau’s desperation so vividly that every time I got a few minutes to read, I hesitated picking the book up. I didn’t always feel like being completely and utterly transported to that world.

But I think what always kept me coming back is the humor. Not laugh-out-loud funny, but a-quiet-chuckle-and-sometimes-a-groan funny.

Here, some survivors from another island are trying to explain horses to Mau, who’s never seen them before:

“…And the horses! Oh, everyone should see the horses!”

“What are horses?” [said Mau.]

“Well, they’re…well, you know hogs?” said Pilu.

“Better than you can imagine.”

“…Well, they are not like hogs. But if you took a hog and made it bigger and longer, with a longer nose and a tail, that’s a horse. Oh, and much more handsome. And much longer legs.”

“So a horse is not really like a pig at all?”

“Well, yes, I suppose so. But it’s got the same number of legs.”

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Title: The Spectacular Now
Author: Tim Tharp
Category: Fiction, Young Adult
Rating: 3.5/5
Summary: It’s senior year, and Sutter Keely is living large with a beautiful girlfriend and an endless supply of whiskey. His girlfriend wants him to do something he can’t quite remember, but why worry about that when you can live in the now?

Review: Sutter’s charm is simultaneously entertaining and heartbreaking. You get the feeling that it’s a front for something, which of course it is.

This is not a feel-good story, but it is a real story. A real snapshot into the life of a young man who drinks morning, noon, and night. Because if he drinks, he can be the life of the party and live in the moment. And if he can live in the moment, he doesn’t have to think about his past or his future.

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You can now use the Skribit widget in the sidebar to make a suggestion for what I should read next. Or you can just vote on what others have already suggested.

Every other book I read will be an audience pick, as long as the library hold timing cooperates.

You could suggest:

• One of your favorite YA books
• A book that just sounds cool
• A book you’re not sure about (I don’t mind doing the recon work!)

No matter what you suggest, I’ll go with the top vote-getter for every other book I start!

Photo by erin MC hammer.

Title: So Yesterday
Author: Scott Westerfeld
Category: Fiction, Young Adult
Rating: 3.5/5
Summary: 17-year-old Hunter Braque is a cool hunter who gets the find of his life when he meets a trend-setter named Jen. But then Hunter’s boss disappears, and the world of hunting cool doesn’t seem quite so cool anymore.

Review: This book reminded me a lot of Feed, which is an all-time YA favorite of mine. I prefer Feed—it explores these consumerist culture themes at their outer limits. But this book was still a great read.

The blend of internal and external conflict made for a rich story. And I also got a kick out of the random historical facts peppered throughout. (Did you know the whole “6 degrees of separation” thing was tested, and it worked? Check out page 148.)

However, I found myself wanting more exploration of the consumerist themes, especially when it comes to the Jammers. The ending felt a little like a set-up for a sequel, but this book has been out a few years now so this is probably it.

If you know of any other books like this or Feed, please let me know because I love books on this topic!

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