Young Adult – Page 43 – My Good Reads

‘The Ones that Disappeared’ – Zana Fraillon

I first came across Fraillon when I read The Bone Sparrow for the 2017 Carnegie Awards. Here we have another novel where the author takes on the voice of the dispossessed: three street kids-Miran, Esra and Isa.

We don’t know the exact details of their home lives, but these three could be any child kept in poverty and forced to work for criminal gangs. The children are kept in a locked-up home, forced to tend the marijuana plants and harvest the drug ready for sale. They are beaten, slowly being poisoned by the chemicals used in the process and under constant threat that they might be used elsewhere or turned onto the streets when they outlive their usefulness. One can only imagine the heartache their families might endure as they believe their child has been taken abroad to be educated, and they’re not heard of again. And they’re the lucky ones, as many of these kids will come from war or other terrible experiences and have no family.

These three have to run after an accident ruins the crop they were tending. Miran is taken by the police – the police they have been trained not to trust – and their life on the run means Esra and Isa are in constant fear of being found by their ‘owner’. Determined to find Miran, the children never lose hope.

This is a bleak read. The story behind what we’re being told is truly upsetting, and told through the childrens’ eyes their story becomes even more touching. They should not be facing these experiences.

Perhaps to offset the bleakness of a story about human trafficking we get the character of Skeet, a young boy who’s as lost as they are but who does have potential to help. There’s also the David Almond-esque magical character of Riverman who looks out for the kids and helps them on their quest.

Not an enjoyable read in terms of content, but beautifully told and very very necessary.

Thanks to NetGalley for the advance copy in exchange for my review.

‘Indigo Donut’ – Patrice Lawrence

Indigo and Bailey…very different, with totally different backgrounds, but this story focuses on what they have in common.

Indigo is fed up of everyone thinking they know her. Sent from foster carer to foster carer, Indigo knows most people who meet her will immediately google her and discover she was found as a toddler by her mother’s dead body and her father was imprisoned for the murder.

When the mean girls at yet another new school pick up on this and start giving her grief, Indigo expects to go it alone. But then we have Bailey. A mixed-race kid known for his ginger Afro and his ‘cool’ social worker dad, Bailey can’t stand by and say nothing. After sticking up for Indigo on the bus one day Bailey starts to draw closer to her, and we’re left wondering about the identity of the mysterious homeless man who seems to be following her (and who knows more about her than he probably should) .

A moving tale that explores family and identity. I haven’t yet got round to reading Lawrence’s debut Orangeboy, but after this it’s a definite addition to the TBR pile.

Thoroughly recommended, and a huge thank you to Hodder Childrens’ Books and NetGalley for the ARC.

‘The Hazel Wood’ – Melissa Albert

Due for publication in January 2018, I am DESPERATE to get my hands on a copy of this.

I’ve heard lots of people talking about it, the phrase ‘creepily captivating’ has been bandied around and I have just had my request to read an ARC on NetGalley rejected (nothing personal, I’m not in the US but it was worth a shot!)

I’ve found a link to the opening chapter:

w.com/books/2017/06/07/melissa-albert-the-hazel-wood-excerpt/

‘Moxie’ – Jennifer Mathieu

An unlikely teenager starts a feminist revolution at a small-town Texan high school…Vivian Carter is fed up. Fed up with a school administration at her small-town Texas high school that thinks the football team can do no wrong. Fed up with sexist dress codes, hallway harassment, and gross comments from guys during class. But most of all, Viv Carter is fed up with always following the rules.

Viv’s mom was a tough-as-nails, punk rock Riot Grrrl in the ’90s, and now Viv takes a page from her mother’s past and creates a feminist zine that she distributes anonymously to her classmates. She’s just blowing off steam, but other girls respond. As Viv forges friendships with other young women across the divides of cliques and popularity rankings, she realizes that what she has started is nothing short of a girl revolution.

Moxie is a book about high school life that will make you wanna riot!

Whatever your take on this, it’s an important book that should be read – by boys and girls – and then discussed. It’s not perfect, but it is realistic…and definitely something that I can see teen readers relating to (sadly).

Seeing the school day through the eyes of the girls it was evident that this particular environment had more than its fair share of problems. The Principal was a somewhat exaggerated creation, solely to fit the purposes of the story, but the sexist slogans on shirts, the silly corridor games and the lack of discussion about these attitudes is quite a common issue. It’s the kind of thing that will never be challenged if we don’t talk about it.

This is one of those books that I think should be read, because even if there’s not an obvious problem it raises questions about our assumptions and beliefs. It will, I think, get readers fired up.

‘The Disappearances’ – Emily Bain Murphy

Due for publication in July 2017, I was provided with an advance copy of this by the publishers via NetGalley. This might not be to everyone’s taste, but I found it a mesmerising read.

Aila and her brother, Miles, are sent to their mother’s home town of Sterling after her death. Sterling is a place like no other. For reasons unknown to its inhabitants, every seven years something disappears. Colour, the sense of smell, stars…every time, something different and nobody knows why. For many of those who live in Sterling it is logical to blame Juliet, the children’ mother, as she is the only one who has been able to leave Sterling and break the curse.

We watch as Aila and Miles try to settle into their new environment. We see the impact of the disappearances on the inhabitants of Sterling, and we watch with curiosity as at least one person has found ways to reverse the effects (in time). There were passages featuring characters that we don’t see in the story – and it is only when the links between those characters and those whose fortunes we follow become clearer that we start to get the answers we crave.

The style of this debut was remarkable assured. There was a poetic quality to parts of the writing, and I fell a little in love with the characters – even the less pleasant ones. While I, personally, found the Shakespeare links intriguing I can see that it might be a tenuous step too far for some readers.

‘All American Boys’ – Jason Reynolds and Brendan Kiely

In this Coretta Scott King Honor Award–winning novel, two teens—one black, one white—grapple with the repercussions of a single violent act that leaves their school, their community, and, ultimately, the country bitterly divided by racial tension.

A bag of chips. That’s all sixteen-year-old Rashad is looking for at the corner bodega. What he finds instead is a fist-happy cop, Paul Galluzzo, who mistakes Rashad for a shoplifter…There were witnesses: Quinn Collins—a varsity basketball player and Rashad’s classmate who has been raised by Paul since his own father died in Afghanistan—and a video camera. Soon the beating is all over the news and Paul is getting threatened with accusations of prejudice and racial brutality. Quinn refuses to believe that the man who has basically been his savior could possibly be guilty. But then Rashad is absent. And absent again. And again. And the basketball team—half of whom are Rashad’s best friends—start to take sides. As does the school. And the town. Simmering tensions threaten to explode as Rashad and Quinn are forced to face decisions and consequences they had never considered before.

Having not long finished The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas, this popped up on my recommendations list.

Another timely call to not sit back and passively accept injustice, as that’s just as bad as carrying out the act in the first instance. This is the story of Rashad, a young black student, who is beaten up by a cop who thinks he was stealing. It’s also the story of Quinn, a young white student, who witnesses this attack and has to decide what to do about it.

Sadly, the very fact that this story has been written – and the ongoing news stories – show this is not an issue that has been resolved. Race and attitudes towards race, from both sides, are complex.

If I’m being honest, though this was an engaging story and one that certainly encourages people to think about where they’d stand, it didn’t quite work for me as I hoped it would. The story was split between two viewpoints but it meant certain ideas/concepts were rather glossed over. There was little attempt to consider the role of the cop (apart from a rather similar anecdote from Rashad’s father) and I would have liked to gain more of a view of the media coverage.

Still, it’s an important story and could be a way in for people to consider their attitudes towards race and police brutality. Wouldn’t it be nice if we didn’t have to do this?

‘The Hidden Oracle-The Trial of Apollo’ – Rick Riordan

After angering his father, Zeus, Apollo is cast out of Olympus, and banished to live life as a human. This isn’t the first time it’s happened…but it is the first time Apollo hasn’t been left with any of his immortal powers, and been given silly hair/acne/a flabby stomach and a silly name. As you can imagine, this hurts. A lot.

While this is a stand-alone, it will probably mean more if you’re familiar with the characters/stories referenced.

From the opening – where Apollo realises he’s been sent to earth as a spotty 16 year old – I was highly entertained. There’s a fine blend of humour and action, and Riordan gives the Greek/Roman tales a new spin.

Apollo is saved by Meg, a street girl with a rather strange set of skills. Clearly, there’s more to her than meets the eye. His only hope is to make it to Camp Half-Blood and to ask for help from the other demigods.

Watching Apollo try to come to terms with his humanity was painful, but well-handled. Meg was a worthy companion, though I was surprised at the direction of the story. A rather bizarre final battle, but looking forward to seeing where this goes.

Now I just have to wrestle the copy of book two from my son so I can get to read it!

‘All in Pieces’ – Suzanne Young

A story that will pluck at your heart-strings, even as you realise you’re being shamelessly manipulated.

I’ve only read The Program by Suzanne Young, and this strikes me as something of a departure in subject matter – though the need to get you rooting for a character who’s struggling is there in spades.

In this story we focus on Savannah, a young girl dealing with things anybody would find tough. Her younger brother – who she has a strong bond with – has some kind of developmental disorder which causes untold difficulties. Her mother has left them, and her father blames Evan for this. He has descended into alcoholism, neglecting his children and basically acting like someone who has given up. It is up to Savannah to deal with the day-to-day things, and to try to prevent her younger brother being sent to live with their aunt.

The background to the story would be tough for anyone, but Savannah has been sent to a special school for troubled teens after stabbing her boyfriend with a pencil when he mocked Evan. Here she’s judged on her previous actions and nobody is prepared to look beyond the label she is given.

Savannah and her friends are the kind of kids who are labelled as trouble, and who slip through the cracks because nobody cares. Yet they all exhibit amazing qualities, and a resilience that is admirable. Of course, it also means that when things reach their inevitable conclusion we feel it is all desperately unfair and are hoping for someone to come in and save the day. If only…

After finishing this I did feel as if I was in pieces. This was brutal. Suzanne Young introduces us to these messed-up teenagers, makes us see beyond the judgement…and then throws everything at them. No matter what they have to endure they get up, and keep going.

This made me so sad in many ways. The adults, and some of the kids, were awful. Then you get a good one.

I was blinking away tears by the end. Very emotional.

‘Glass Houses (The Morganville Vampires #1)’ – Rachel Caine

Originally published in 2006, this was a book I picked up as part of an online reading challenge. It’s part of a fifteen book series (which, in itself, suggests it won’t maintain my interest for more than a few books) focusing on Claire Danvers, a young student who moves to Morganville for college and discovers that the town has some mysterious links to vampires.

There’s an awful lot to gripe about here.

Claire, our young academically gifted student, is beyond stupid at so many points in the book. When the book opens she is being mercilessly bullied by her peers. We’re not talking the kind of attacks you might brush off – acid being thrown at her, pushing her down stairs etc – and she insists on staying! Her parents leave her at college after several attacks; we have a town run by vampires that humans let get away with killing off people and doing nothing about it; there’s no attempt to explain some of the characters’ situations; they’re hunting for a book that vampires have spent years looking for, and just happen to stumble across it…and I could go on.

The fact is, Morganville is not a particularly well-constructed place. The story twists abruptly if it fits what’s needed, which can cause some confusion. The main character is pretty infuriating.

And yet I found myself carried along by this.

Superficially entertaining, and I did enjoy this (as long as I don’t think too closely about it). I’ll try one or two more because, as is often the case, you become slightly invested in what happens to these characters.

‘White Hot Kiss (The Dark Elements #1)’ – Jennifer L. Armentrout

Originally published in 2014, this is the first in a trilogy which is something of a must for paranormal/fantasy fans (though it seems hard to get your hands on a physical copy in the UK in the usual outlets).

Layla is our main character-a seventeen year old who has the ability to steal people’s souls with a kiss. She lives with Watchers (gargoyles who kill demons), is half Watcher but is also half demon, so we immediately guess there’s a bit more to this story.

The beginning sets up the paranormal elements fairly well, but covering up any anomalies with the idea that the Watchers are keeping these ideas from humans. When Layla’s presence starts to attract all manner of demons, things become rather frantic.

There’s no denying Armentrout gives you exactly what you expect (and want) and does it well. We have Layla, who has potential (though she’s a bit whiny for my liking); a cute best friend who cares for Layla but doesn’t show it until there’s a rival for her affections; her trusty human sidekicks (thinking Buffy) and a very very attractive but snarky rebel who should be the bad boy but who shows himself to be pretty decent.

The story carried me along at breakneck pace. I think I fell slightly in love with Roth, Bambi and the cats. My big bug was Abbott and the Watchers who were clearly hiding a lot of things, and whose rigidity caused some real issues. A blistering climax, which has ensured I will get book two because I can’t leave it hanging there!