Review: Between You & Me

By Marisa Calin
Available now from Bloomsbury
Review copy

Actress Marisa Calin's young adult debut is a fun, creative novel.  BETWEEN YOU & ME is written in a hybrid screenplay/direct address format that expresses main character Phyre perfectly.  She's an actress and someone who manages to be much more eloquent in her head than in real life.  She analyzes her words deeply but rarely thinks about the things people say to her.  Except for Mia.

Phyre is crushing hard on the new drama teacher, Mia.  She tries to talk to her as much as possible, waiting in places she's seen her before, but often fails to say anything more than "Hi."  If she does say more, it's a babbling mess.  I loved that Phyre is never fazed that she's crushing on a woman.  She doesn't ponder whether this means she's a lesbian or bisexual or any other sort of label.  She's more confused by the depth and strength of her passion.  It's obviously the first time she's truly been infatuated with someone.

(Also good: BETWEEN YOU & ME never goes for some sort of creepy Mia-likes-her-back or Mia-acknowledges-the-crush storyline.  Mia acts professionally.  Do not expect any sort of LOLITA action due to the heart-shaped sunglasses on the cover.)

Waiting in the wings is Mia's best friend, addressed only as you.  Much like Steve Brezenoff's BROOKLYN, BURNING the gender of the significant other is never revealed.  You clearly likes Mia, but never says it clearly enough to pierce Mia's crush bubble.  I liked that you calls Mia out whenever she acts egregiously insensitive, but hoped Mia might call you out a few times.  They're both guilty of communication issues.  That's part of what makes the direct address so effective.  It implies you and Mia have reached a point where they can talk about their feelings frankly.  It gave me hope for their future as a couple and, more importantly, as friends.

BETWEEN YOU & ME is a terrific story about young love.  It may depict the world a bit too rosily - Phyre is teased for liking a teacher, but not for liking a woman - but it still feels authentic.  Phyre's voice is unique, but her story resonates because her confusion and longing and elation seem so familiar.  Calin is an author to watch.

Movie Monday: Dollhouse

Avengers officially made this the year of Joss Whedon.  He now has mainstream success and the long-shelved Cabin in the Woods was finally released.  He built up a fanbase through classic, much loved shows like Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Angel, and Firefly.  (And Firefly's big-screen sequel Serenity.)  But I am here today to champion his least-loved television show: Dollhouse.  It only lasted two seasons - Fox learned their lesson from Firefly - but never found a real audience.  Critics opinions were up and down.  But I loved it and it's still one of my favorite shows.

The premise of Dollhouse is that a company (the Rossum Corporation) exists that can wipe people's personalities and replace them.  Some people sign contracts to let this corporation use their bodies.  Between jobs, they are kept blank and childlike.  Others hire the "dolls."  They use them for companionship, to look after children, as bodyguards, anything you can think of.  Government agents want to find the Dollhouse and shut it down, because , of course, this is all very expensive and highly illegal.  The action centers around Echo (Eliza Dushku), a somewhat defective doll.  She's very popular with customers, but seems to be developing her own personality.

My favorite episodes were always the ones that explained how the employees came to the Dollhouse.  What could possibly make you put your life on hold for years?  Why would you let your body be used?  And believe me, Dollhouse was all about questions, ethical and philosophical.  Dollhouse rarely took a stand on the issues it explored, aside from making it clear that the Rossum Corporation was evil.  It just put the questions out there.  My absolute favorite part of the show was probably debating the episodes the next day with a friend and deciding how I felt about them.

Dollhouse had very low lows.  The start of both seasons was rocky.  Eliza Dushku got the show made.  But she wasn't versatile enough to play all of the characters she was given convincingly.  But the highs were very high indeed.  "Epitaph One" is probably the best thing Joss Whedon has ever done.  And the supporting cast was absolutely amazing.  Harry Lennix, Fran Kranz, Amy Acker, Reed Diamond, and Olivia Williams killed as employees of Rossum.  And Enver Gjokaj and Dichen Lachman were amazing as fellow dolls falling in love.

Right now, both seasons of Dollhouse are available to stream for free through Amazon Prime.  I recommend that you start at "Man on the Street" (Episode 6) and then watch it all if you're intrigued.

Better Basics

The Alabama-based Better Basics puts more than 40,000 books in the hands of children, teachers, and parents each year.  Their programs aim to help elementary and middle school students in Central Alabama develop the tools they need to graduate from high school. 

Various positions are open, if you live in Alabama or plan to move there and need a job.  You can also donate, volunteer, or intern for college credit.

Better Basics has a four-star rating from Charity Navigator.

Book Blog Olympics: Best Alternate Ending for a YA Book

Kate Kaynak decided to host a Book Blog Olympics.  Competitors write a post, submit it, then the top three are voted upon.  Sounds pretty fun, right?  The second event, ending tonight at 12 PM EST, is to write the best alternate ending for a YA book.  I was immediately inspired, but decided not to write about that book as it's too new and I would be spoiling it.  Thus, I chose a book on the wibbly-wobbly YA/middle-grade line with an ending everyone who doesn't live under a rock knows:

HARRY POTTER AND THE ORDER OF THE PHOENIX: The Better-Ending Version

Then, Sirius tottered on the edge of falling through the Veil, but he recovered his balance.  He laughed, shooting a curse back at Bellatrix.  "You forgot my dog-like reflexes!" he said, jumping well away from the edge (and dodging another curse as a consequence).

Harry had to dodge a curse himself since he'd spent too long watching his godfather.  He'd put all of his friends' lives at risk because of his pride.  He needed to work on that, but only after defeating Voldemort again. 

Review: Throne of Glass

By Sarah J. Maas
Available August 7 from Bloomsbury
Review copy courtesy of Lyndsey of Strangemore

You've probably already heard the story behind THRONE OF GLASS.  The first draft was posted on FictionPress as QUEEN OF GLASS by S.J. Maas.  I read that version, although it's been a long time now.  It was taken off the net in December 2008, when I was eighteen, but I never reread it after the last chapter was posted in April 2007, shortly after I turned seventeen.  I do remember loving QUEEN OF GLASS.  But do I like it as much now that I'm not sixteen?

It's hard to compare the two.  Sarah J. Maas revised quite a bit between the first draft and the published version.  I remember there being less of a love triangle since QUEEN OF GLASS was a high fantasy retelling of Cinderella and Celaena Sardothien, the heroine, was clearly going to end up with Prince Dorian Havilland of Adarlan.  All that's left of the Cinderella plotline are lots of fancy dresses.  There was a tournament of assassins in the original, for those decrying THRONE OF GLASS as a HUNGER GAMES clone.  But I suspect there is a difference in how I read Celaena.

Celaena seems very young.  Her stated age is eighteen, and she went to the salt mines as a slave when she was seventeen - not like she learned any social graces there.  But she is very, very bad at subtlety, a trait you would think went hand-in-hand with being the best assassin in the land.  Celaena is arrogant and vain.  The prince retrieves her from the salt mines to serve as his champion in a tourney to become the King's Champion.  To compete, Celaena must hide her true identity and skills.  It is almost beyond her not to be recognized as the greatest assassin ever, despite the fact assassins aren't known for their braggadacio.  I did love that Celaena is a girly-girl.  She's tough but still loves frilly dresses, which isn't a type represented in books much.

The aforementioned Dorian is a bit of a playboy, but he longs to escape his father's control.  Somehow, Celaena winning the tournament will allow him to do so.  Chaol Westfall, the Captain of the Guard, is in charge of keeping her under control and in the palace.  As he helps her train and regain her strength, respect and romance blossom.  Also key is Nehemia Ytger, Princess of Eyllwe, a country conquered by Adarlan.  She's rumored to be part of her country's resistance and quickly becomes friends with Celaena when she's sent to the palace.  She might be an ally or an enemy, but she's definitely a forceful, clever woman.  (Celaena could take some lessons in deception from her.)

As far as the plot goes, there is a lot to take in.  In addition to the tournament, the champions are being gruesomely murdered.  In addition to the mystery plot, Celaena is discovering some of the magic thought to be banished from Adarlan.  And of course there are hints that all of the characters are pawns in a bigger plot involving the fate of their countries.  All the action kept me reading; I finished THRONE OF GLASS in a single evening.

I've heard mixed things about THRONE OF GLASS, which truly worried me since I was a fan of the original.  (My taste at sixteen was more questionable than it is now.)  But I thought Maas's debut was a good read.  I'm eager to find out what happens next for Celaena, Nehemia, Dorian, and Chaol.  And okay, okay, since I love fairytales I'm a little disappointed the Cinderella aspect is gone.