Review: The Fury

The Fury by Alexander Gordon Smith
Available now from Farrar, Straus and Giroux BFYR (Macmillan)
Review copy
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I enjoyed Alexander Gordon Smith's Escape from Furnace series and looked forward to THE FURY.  But then, I almost put it down immediately because I had a major Do Not Want in the first couple of passages.  Daisy, one of the main characters, mentions that she's almost thirteen.

I know I'm getting old when that's enough to make me hesitant to keep reading.  I mean, I knew I was signing up to read a novel where teens faced a great deal of violence, but almost thirteen?!

I'm quite happy that I stuck with it, however.  THE FURY is not a conventional horror novel at all, and it almost becomes an outright fantasy adventure at the end.  It takes several unconventional turns that keep things interesting and fresh throughout the many pages.  This book is an absolute brick, but it reads surprisingly fast.  I finished the last five hundred pages in half a day.

There are a lot of characters.  The main three, initially, are Daisy, Cal, and Brick.  They have very different temperaments, and readers are likely to identify with at least one of them.  The characters, minor, major, likeable, unlikeable, multiply quickly after that.  I didn't find it too hard to keep track, but I warn you not to become too attached to anyone.  I did like how Smith managed to develop a variety of characters amongst all the plot.  Everyone with a scene through their point of view has a personality and independent motivation.

I quite liked THE FURY.  It's fast, thrilling, and ultimately optimistic.  I don't think I could take all the scares and brutality if the book weren't kind in the end.  And Cal and Daisy's budding brother/sister relationship is absolutely adorable.  It's a different sort of read, and I suspect it will attract reluctant readers despite its hefty size.

Review: The In-Between

By Barbara Stewart
Available now from St. Martin's Griffin (Macmillan)
Review copy

Sometimes I'm just not sure how I feel about a book.  Barbara Stewart's debut THE IN-BETWEEN is one of those rare books.  Elanor Moss, her mother, and father were in a car wreck on their way to their new home.  Ellie and one of her parents survived.  But ever since the accident, Ellie's been seeing this girl, Madeline, around - her other half, who has a plan for her.

I liked the unreliability of the narrator.  There's a question of whether the things happening are supernatural, all in Ellie's head, or some combination of both.  Ellie has a family history of depression and a recent tragic event, on top of a friendship that went horribly awry and led to a suicide attempt in her old hometown.  Ellie needs help, but it's hard to know what kind of help she needs.

The writing is wonderfully poetic and creates a terrific atmosphere.  THE IN-BETWEEN is well suited to more elaborate prose, reflecting the chaos in Ellie's head and the confusing atmosphere.  It's a nice atmosphere, one that portends bad things coming, but also offers hope for Ellie.

But did I enjoy THE IN-BETWEEN?  Not that much.  I read it quite quickly because I didn't feel an urge to linger over the words, no matter how pretty they are.  I had my ideas about what was real and what wasn't fairly early, and I cared more about what would happen next than deciphering the veracity of Ellie's journals.  At the same time, I felt there was a lot to enjoy about THE IN-BETWEEN.

This book didn't work for me.  But I'm glad I read it, because I always enjoy books that take chances.  THE IN-BETWEEN is a strange book.  I think that makes it less suited to wide audiences, but at the same time will make it more meaningful for the people it clicks with.  I'm not sure I've read another YA novel that approached (probable) mental illness quite like this.  And I just want to love books that are ambitious, even if they fall short.

If THE IN-BETWEEN sounds like your kind of thing, give it a read.  If not, it isn't essential.

Review: Sorrow's Knot

By Erin Bow
Available now from Arthur A. Levine Books (Scholastic)
Review copy

Sometimes I wonder about myself.  Somehow I was surprised that a book named SORROW'S KNOT, a book about a young woman who binds the restless dead, was often creepy and sad.  I read it right after finishing two cute books about magic kids who have adventures, and I think I was just expecting more of the same.  SORROW'S KNOT is the best kind of different.

Otter, Kestrel, and Cricket are best friends on the cusp of adulthood.  Something is going wrong, however.  Otter's mother Willow, one of the tribe's two binders, is going mad.  Otter always knew she would grow up to be a binder, but her future is beginning to look uncertain.  Otter's journey to find her place and master her power is but one of the journeys in this book, however.

I find that I don't want to say too much.  SORROW'S KNOT is a lovely book, and I think my confused expectations made it even better.  I could often see Erin Bow setting the pieces up, but it was so lovely to see them fall into place.  I fell headfirst into SORROW'S KNOT and let it tug on my heartstrings willy-nilly.

I will say that I particularly liked the romance in SORROW'S KNOT.  For one thing, there are three best friends and no love triangle!  Kestrel and Cricket love each other, and Otter is totally cool with that.  (In fact, she finds it a little odd, because there are few married couples in their community.  Men often move on because they have no binding power and are vulnerable to the dead.)  When Otter does meet someone, they grow close due to desperate circumstance, but I didn't feel that the relationship proceeded too quickly.

I also loved the setting.  There are not that many novels that draw on American Indian folklore.  I thought Bow did a good job creating a fantasyland not entirely based on European culture.  I liked that the main tribe was imperfect, but that they were trying to do their best to keep everyone safe.  I liked that the matriarchal society Bow set up allowed her to focus on many different relationships between women.  I like that there were other tribes who had very little in common with Otter's tribe.

I also loved the emphasis on story.  I love stories about story, and SORROW'S KNOT is no exception.  It's unsurprising that stories become important, given that Cricket is a storyteller, but they're used in such wonderful ways.  And it meshes so well with the theme about secrets.  After all, secrets are stories we don't tell.

SORROW'S KNOT is a wonderful book.  And despite the darkness and sadness, it remains appropriate for kids.  I might not hand it to a particularly sensitive or easily scared reader, but it is suitable for both middle grade and YA audiences.  I'm sure it will show up in next year's Cybils race.

Review: Crabtree

By Jon and Tucker Nichols
Signed and personalized copy available from McSweeney's McMullens
Available elsewhere Nov 19, 2013
Review copy

CRABTREE is the story of Alfred Crabtree, a man who has lost his teeth and much find them among the many things he owns.  The summary reminded me of HARRY HOYLE'S GIANT JUMPING BEAN, one of my niece and nephew's favorites.

I'm glad I gave it a chance, because I loved CRABTREE and think it's perfect for the niece and nephew.  The art took a few pages to grow on me, but it actually reminds me of children's drawings.  The simplicity is somewhat deceptive, but it looks like line art slightly messily colored in by markers, which is very approachable.  And I love how much there is to look at on every page.  I'm sure after having to go through the book discussing what everything is multiple times I'll love it less.

One of the best touches is the labels marking what each object is.  Some are straightforward, like a gold hat labeled "golf."  Others are more whimsical, like the chef's hat labeled "I cook only scrambled eggs in this hat."  It adds a lot of extra interest.  Plus, the dustcover unfolds into a giant poster.  A giant poster chock full of objects to find and name.  It's a little bit of I SPY with an actual narrative.

And the story, while simple, does have a decent lesson.  I mean, children's books don't have to have lessons, but it's got some decent basic life advice.  When you lose things, go through your belongings bit by bit, organizing and putting away things that aren't the object you're looking for.  You'll find it eventually.

I think CRABTREE is a book many adults will enjoy reading with kids.  It's a format that's appealing to kids and provides new excitement and discoveries upon rereads.  (It's also good for counting and colors!)  I think there's enough humor to keep the adults entertained through several readings.  I really like this one.

Review: Fractured

Book Two of the Guards of the Shadowlands
By Sarah Fine
Available now from Skyscape (Amazon Publishing)
Review copy

When tons of bloggers I trust, like Wendy Darling, were going crazy over SANCTUM last year, I knew I had to read it.  I agreed that it was one to love.  The writing was excellent and the plot a roller coaster.  Lela Santos was a fantastic heroine, devoted to her best friend and willing to go to great lengths to achieve her goals.  And the world was fantastic, an utterly believable afterlife.  FRACTURED takes the action back to our world, where the villainous Mazikin have started to recruit.

Lela's now in charge and trying to get used to setting the strategy.  She and her beau Malachi are joined by two new guards who were in a different afterlife.  All three of the boys are having trouble adjusting.  Malachi, for instance, has a great deal of fighting Mazikin, but not in the real world.  He's never had to worry about cops or killing people who weren't already dead.  Meanwhile Lela has to get back into the swing of being a regular high school student.  Due to the events of SANCTUM, she's a bit more popular now and unused to interacting that much with other people.  At the same time she's making friends - friends who can be used against her.

I thought I knew what to expect when I picked up FRACTURED, but I was wrong.  Sarah Fine takes the sequel in several unexpected directions.  Of course, the characters don't anticipate what's going to happen to them either, and it's terrific.  There was one twist I really didn't like that thankfully resolved before the novel was over.  Unfortunately, I think Fine was buttering me up for the shocking ending.  Lela's journey definitely isn't over.

I absolutely cannot wait for the third book.  I have no idea how Fine is going to resolve the mess her characters are in, but I have no doubt she's going to do it with flair.  I just adore her characters, and I really hope Lela and Malachi somehow manage to live happily ever after.  SANCTUM and FRACTURED are true underrated gems.  I know most bookstores don't carry Amazon Publishing books, but this is one worth asking to get special ordered.