The Dream Thieves, by Maggie Stiefvater: Let's get lost in this summer dream together!

The Dream Thieves
Maggie Stiefvater
Scholastic Press: New York, September 17, 2013
ISBN: 9780545424943
ARC provided by publisher 

Picking up right where she left us agonizing over Ronan Lynch’s admission that he can bring his dreams to life in The Raven Boys, Maggie Stiefvater does not disappoint in her second entry to this unique, lavish yet subtly magical YA cycle.  The Dream Thieves begins with a new point of view: Ronans, and takes us straight back to Henrietta, Virginia.  It is summer vacation, and Gansey, Ronan, Adam, Noah, and Blue are still on the hunt for Glendower, though there have been subtle and not so subtle shifts in the group dynamic.  Adam’s rogue sacrifice and pride begin to affect his relationships with Gansey and Blue, who finds herself closer to exploring prophecy that has defined her life.  Ronan, meanwhile, struggles to control his newly admitted powers, but all, including the refreshing, interested adult psychics of 300 Fox Way, are challenged when a stranger arrives in town searching for the Graywaren.  Who, what, where this is will all be revealed in the scintillating new addition to the Raven Cycle.  It is a recommended read for humans over the age of 12, and all libraries, personal, public, and scholastic, wise enough to boast The Raven Boys as part of their holdings.  

Let’s cut right to the chase: holy sh*tf*re and tarnation, cowpokes.  Jonesing for a book I could get lost in, I loved The Dream Thieves, maybe even more than Raven Boys. Sophomore syndrome? What is that?  Aside from a setting for the climax best described as Hollywood dance movie meets Fast and Furious meets Alien v. Predator (which still, somehow, works), this book is allll a-game, no steroids (I’m looking at you, MLB).  
Continued:

Rollrock Island, by Margo Lanagan: Your momma's a seaweed lovin seal!

The Brides of Rollrock Island
by Margo Lanagan
Alfred Knopf BFYR, 2012
ISBN: 9780375869198

“Seals do not sit about and tell, the way people do, and their lives are not eventful in the way that peoples are, lines of story combed out again and again, in the hope that they will yield more sense with every stroke.” (p. 255).  Old Celtic fables tell of Selkies - seals who shed their skins and walk on land as people.  On Rollrock Island, the tales are part of island life.  Miskaella, a young girl, realizes there is truth behind the legends when she wakes one day with the power to lure seals from the sea, and eventually even the ability to call the bewitching selkies from their seal-skins.  Cruelly treated and branded a witch for her abilities by other villagers, Miskaella grows frustrated and contemptous from their mistreatment, vowing her revenge.  One by one, the men of Rollrock abandon the island women in favor of the mysterious seal-women Miskaella calls forth from the sea, paying her dearly for it.  The human female population of Rollrock abandons the island for the mainland, leaving it to the men, boys, and Selkie women, who long, silently to return to the ocean.  The sons of these women are not immune to this sadness in their mothers; they hatch a plan to return the skins to their mothers, who weave sea-skins of their own to bring their sons with them when they return to the sea.  This is a richly wrought and haunting tale, with beautiful descriptive language.  Though marketed as YA, it will find more success with adult readers who won’t be deterred by the alternating perspectives, sense that questions are left unanswered, and the serious tone.  

Hello, you had me at selkie.  No, seriously.  That’s why I requested and then raced through this one.  Plus, it sounds slightly more exciting in the publisher press then it actually is - it’s rather more of a slow paced, methodically haunting tale.  In a way, I really liked this.  In another way, I really was less satisfied with it when I finished it than I had been while reading it, if that makes any sense at all.  I loved the selkies and the myth-made-real nature of this story...but it didn’t entirely add up, for me (the story does wrap itself up, and hopefully).  I wanted to know if Miskaella was actually content, or why none of the Selkie mom’s tried to figure out where their seal-skins were, or...just more.  I think it would have helped to have one pov from one of the selkies, since we seemed to hear from a representative of every other faction (Miskaella, dudes paying her to get them a sea-order bride, the scored non-sea order brides, the kids,  etc.).  Again, I do believe that this is a book with far more adult appeal than teen appeal - I just plain think adults will connect with it better.  I’m not even sure what, if anything, makes it fall into the YA family.  There are as many, if not more, adult voices than teen/youth voices.  Does ….anticipate that more adult readers will just buy it if it is marketed as YA, since adults are buying more YA?  If so, good call.  Anyways, you can read this book if you like Celtic mythology, but then again, if time is an issue, just watch The Secret of Roan Innish.  And then let’s all go have a whiskey and talk about whether or not a grown lady could actual fit inside a seal skin.  My vote: no. Also, fish breath.  

American Born Chinese, by Gene Luen Yang: I have EXCELLENT taste.

American Born Chinese. Gene Luen Yang (2006).
NY: First Second. ISBN: 978-0312384487

I'm a reluctant reader of sorts, the graphic novel sorts. This is only the second graphic novel I've ever read, while I enjoyed the first, I wouldn't say I was eager to read another. This one caught my eye first, if I'm honest, because it is colorful, and second, if I'm honest, because it's short! By the end of the first section (it is in three parts), I was totally digging it for all the reasons I've avoided graphic novels in the past: the colorful, cartoony illustrations, the teeny thought bubble text, and the crazy emphatic action words. Perhaps it helps that this is a smart graphic novel, disguised as a comic book. This allows some weighty questions about racial identity and acceptance to sneak up on the reader, and not in an interfering way either.

Yang's story begins with three, seemingly unrelated stories: a retelling of the famous myth of the Monkey King, that of Jin Wang, the child of Chinese immigrants, and Danny, a Justin Timberlake lookalike with a crazy stereotypical Chinese cousin named Chin-kee (major play on words and into this stereotype) who is enrolling in Danny's high school during his extended visit. He gives each story ample air time, but the stories really shine when he begins to weave them together in an unanticipated fashion, which is really where the strength of the story lies. While each character has their own problems and challenges (the Monkey King desires equal god status, Jin Wang wants to fit in at his all white school, and Danny just wants to fly under the radar, while still getting the girl), these personal challenges have one common theme: acceptance, both of oneself, of others, and by others.

Best for: This book is fabulous and I highly recommend it. It covers weighty issues with no heavy lifting by employing the graphic and illustrative format, and consequently is an easy, yet sly sell to reluctant readers. This also makes it fun and accessible, and is great for both boys and girls of all YA ages. Also, I found out months after reading this that it won the Prinz in 2007. I salute you, my critically confirmed good taste. Self high five.

Book talk hook: The beautiful, colorful illustrations are all that I'd really need to sell this book to the audience I'd target for this at a book talk: young male readers. I'd probably do a summary, but since there is so much going on story wise, brevity is a wise choice.