Caroline Moorehead builds her extraordinary narrative about 230 women who participated in the French resistance during World War II by weaving together first-person accounts from interviews, diaries, letters, and photographs. The first half sets the scene in France. The second follows the women to prison and then to concentration camps where their friendships and cooperation became crucial.
NPR’s All Things Considered carried an interview with the author in November, when she spoke about four survivors who were willing to share their stories with her. One was only 17 when she joined the resistance.
HarperCollins offers large parts of the book online here.
Recommend this one to teens fascinated by World War II, the Holocaust, or the role of women in war.
MOOREHEAD, Caroline. A Train in Winter: An Extraordinary Story of Women, Friendship and Survival in World War Two. 374p. HarperCollins. 2011. Tr $27.99. ISBN 978-0-06-165070-3. LC number unavailable.
Adult/High School–For many of us, our knowledge of the French Resistance is a vague idea about the Maginot Line and the Vichy government, and the movie Casablanca. A Train in Winter illuminates the Resistance for readers, focusing on 230 women caught, imprisoned and sent to “work camps” by the Nazis. The author’s painstaking research brings these women to life, making what might have been an unwieldy cast of characters seem much smaller. The story of these individuals, from their pre-German invasion lives, their actions during the Resistance, through imprisonment (all eventually ending up at Romainville, a fort outside Paris, before becoming part of the Convoi des 31000 sent to Auschwitz and then Ravensbrück) and death (49 survived their time in the camps) is interwoven with a history of the war from a point of view not widely known to today’s students. It is important to remember that these were political prisoners and thus treated somewhat differently than the Jews, Gypsies, and others rounded up as part of the Final Solution; for example, after a couple years they were allowed to exchange letters with, and receive packages from, their families. This book not only expands knowledge of the Second World War but is also a testament to human survival and ingenuity in the face of extreme evil.–Laura Pearle, Venn Consultants, Carmel, NY
“The Best Vampire Fiction Releases of 2011″, a recent post on Explorations: The BN SciFi and Fantasy Blog, highlights this series and looks forward to both the final book in the trilogy, due in September, and Justin Cronin’s The Twelve (to follow 2010’s The Passage), as titles to look forward to in 2012. Agreed!
GRIFFITH, Clay & Susan Giffith. The Greyfriar. Bk. 1. 301p. 2010. ISBN 978-1-61614-247-6.
––––. The Rift Walker. Bk. 2. 402p. 2011. ISBN 978-1-61614-523-1.
ea vol: (Vampire Empire Series). Pyr. Tr $16. LC number unavailable.
Adult/High School–This mashup of steampunk and vampires is an exciting new take on both genres. The Greyfriar sets the scene: during the Great Killing, vampires slaughtered countless humans and took over land in Europe, North America, and Africa. Humans are kept in herds to feed vampire communities. Gareth, a member of a ruling vampire clan, is sickened by this and defends humans in the guise of the Greyfriar. Gareth’s scheming brother Cesare hears about the planned marriage of Princess Adele of Equatoria to Senator Clark of America, a political union that will consolidate their armies against the vampires. In response he plots a massive attack. After Adele lands in his hands, Greyfriar rescues her. A skilled vampire fighter herself, Adele must decide whether she can trust this vampire to help save her people. The Rift Walker sees humans and vampires even more determined to go to war, each side going further and further to destroy the other. Adele and Greyfriar have their loyalties tested as Adele begins to harness powerful abilities hinted at in the first book. Where The Greyfriar focuses on vampires vs. humans, The Rift Walker advances Adele and Greyfriar’s relationship and explores more of the internal political gamesmanship on both sides of the struggle. Teens will enjoy this fresh vampire story, full of stunning battles fought with steampunk weaponry. The political intrigue and complex relationship between Gareth/Greyfriar and Adele widens the book’s appeal. Although The Rift Walker contains some exposition, the stories are much richer when read in order.–Carla Riemer, Berkeley High School, CA
DAVIS, Katie & Beth Clark. Kisses from Katie: A Young Woman’s Journey of Faith, a Remote Village, a Love Without Limits. 288p. photos. S &S/Howard. 2011. Tr $24. ISBN 978-1-4516-1206-6. LC number unavailable.
Adult/High School–Like many teens, Davis felt a stirring to do more with her life than gain the security of a good job and family. Unlike most teens, however, she acted on this in a big way. Traveling halfway across the world to a remote village in Uganda, she volunteered at an orphanage for three weeks during her senior year in high school. This turned out to be the higher calling that she was yearning for. After graduating, she moved to Uganda to start a kindergarten class. Four years later, she has learned to be, “…a teacher, a nurse, a handyman (plumbing and electrical work included), a cook, an exterminator, a maid, a servant, a mentor, a mother, and, most important, a daughter of the King.” As a deeply devout Christian, Davis does not relate her story in a strictly linear narrative, but as an ongoing prayer, reveling in God’s purpose and love. As such, Christian teens will find her story deeply inspirational. Other teens may be able to translate her spiritual outpourings into their own belief system. Davis is a genuine and appealing young woman, as evidenced by her YouTube videos, who has indeed brought positive change to a tiny piece of the planet.–Diane Colson, formerly at New Port Richey Library, FL
Booklist Magazine released its Editors’ Choice lists earlier this week, including the annual Best Adult Books for Young Adults. Booklist is the only other review journal that creates a list sharing our criteria — books published for adults that have interest for young adults — so it is always fun to compare the two.
Jamrach’s Menagerie by Carol Birch The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern Once Upon a River by Bonnie Jo Campbell Ready Player One by Ernest Cline Swamplandia! by Karen Russell When She Woke by Hillary Jordan Girls Like Us: Fighting for a World Where Girls are not for Sale, an Activist Finds Her Calling and Heals Herself by Rachel Lloyd
Booklist includes three titles that we did not review here: Wingshooters by Nina Revoyr, The World Beneath by Cate Kennedy, and Earth: The Operators’ Manual by Richard Alley. I had all of them on my list to consider. We did not receive review copies of the first two, and I failed to review the third myself. (Yes, I do sometimes assign books to myself then get side-tracked. I’m working on that!)
The others, those that we did review here but did not choose for our Best list, were all reviewed very positively. They simply did not stand out to their SLJ reviewer as a best. And I think I may reveal that Zahra’s Paradise was reviewed too late. It would probably have found a place on our list too.
I mentioned earlier what a strong year it has been for adult books with teen appeal. I am looking forward to the last of the triumvirate – the Alex Awards – to be announced at the Youth Media Awards during ALA Midwinter in Dallas on Monday, January 23rd. My observation is that the Alex Awards tend to emphasize appeal. To my eyes, the Booklist Best list tilts toward the literary. So I expect differences. And, of course, the Alex committee is only allowed to honor 10 titles. I can’t imagine narrowing the field to just ten this year. Of course, that’s why it’s a committee process.
What might be considered Alex shoe-ins? Oh, how I would love to speculate! I know what I would be fighting for, and I think I know what I would fight for in vain (if past experience is any indication). But it all comes down to those final discussions at the Midwinter conference itself. At least the Alex committee is now allowed to reveal a nominations list as well as the ten winners, which gives everyone more titles to recommend to teens.
from graphic novel guest blogger, Francisca Goldsmith:
Lynda Barry’s public career as a cartoonist began in a variety of alternative newspapers thirty years ago. Since then, she’s become well recognized, not just as a humorous and insightful comic strip powerhouse but also as a teacher who can encourage those who have never before explored their creative abilities to let down the guards of their own fears, pick up a pen or pencil and let it flow. The first volume of Blabber, Blabber, Blabber shows how these sparks and igniters all developed for Barry herself. Unlike some retrospective volumes, she isn’t looking back over the building of an empire; she is in midstream in her life and offering views of how she got to this point—and how readers can try stepping on the stones of chance and effort to get to midstream (and beyond) as well.
The loopy, naïf cartoons that give us almost frighteningly acute glimpses inside the selfishness of children, the ignorance of adults, and the interplay between folks carry a surprising amount of tiny detail: the titles of textbooks, instructions on placemats—here are funny bits that weren’t so evident when the comic was printed on cheap absorbent paper instead of this nice package.
Barry and her editors have got the mix and extent of this volume just right, too: the runs of Ernie Pook’s Comeek, Two Sisters, and other strips aren’t too long but just long enough to provide a substantial taste and whet the appetite for more. This is a series that stands a good chance of finding a place in many teen hearts and minds to come.
BARRY, Lynda. Everything: Comics from Around 1978-1981. vol. 1. illus. by author. 175p. (Blabber, Blabber, Blabber Series). Drawn & Quarterly. 2011. Tr $24.95. ISBN 978-1770-46052-2. LC number unavailable.
Adult/High School– Here’s a treasure trove for teens who are either cartoonists or sensitive to the quirks of irony, adolescence, and family and other hazards, or both. In what promises to be a multi-volume retrospective of her work, Barry shows readers the first inceptions of “Ernie Pook’s Comeek”; how she came to change up her original run of “Two Sisters,” another strip that ran in alternative papers 30 years ago; and “Boys and Girls,” yet another series that gave her the visual and insightful muscles needed to develop her later strips featuring Arlys and other realistically uncute children. The volume also offers pages from Barry’s high school and college scrapbooks, giving readers a view on what the cartoonist found interesting in the material culture of the period, as well as candid snapshots of her, her family, her friend Matt Groening (The Simpsons), and little cartooning exercises that can be understood either as gags or useful prompts for nascent artists. Nicely produced without turning the substance into glossy surfaces to be admired rather than mined, this is an excellent way to introduce a new generation to a master of self-exploration and good-humored absurdity.–Francisca Goldsmith, Infopeople Project, CA
How thrilling to discover another memoir with appeal similar to Jeannette Walls’ The Glass Castle (Scribner, 2005)! Still, when I am looking for something to recommend to a high school reader, I often find myself checking, “Have you read The Glass Castle yet?” If not, it almost always goes, after just a short description.
What is the common thread among great memoirs with appeal to teens? I believe that it’s not only the interest in lives on the edge, not only the extremes of neglect or strange behavior, it’s the love. In The Glass Castle it is the love of the author for her parents, in spite of their actions. In Jesus Land it is Julia Scheeres’ love for her brother. In Holy Ghost Girl, Johnson cannot entirely condemn Terrell for the way he treated her mother, or her mother for her own neglect. She is still somewhat mesmerized by Terrell herself.
For more about the book, take a look at the author’s website, which includes a book trailer, readers’ guide, author Q&A, and excerpt.
JOHNSON, Donna M. Holy Ghost Girl: A Memoir. 278p. Gotham. 2011. Tr $26. ISBN 978-1-592-40630-2. LC number unavailable.
Adult/High School–Charismatic traveling preacher Brother David Terrell had a wife and two children when Johnson’s mother ran away to accompany him musically on the sawdust trail, taking her daughter with her. Johnson’s memoir is framed by the announcement of her brother’s funeral and Terrell’s plans to raise him from the dead. In between the author grew up moving from extreme poverty to the height of Terrell’s success–revival tents at one point cover the size of two football fields and yield millions of dollars, private ranches, jets and multiple cars–to his inevitable fall. Much of the memoir details the author’s relationship with Terrell. Was he a con man? Prophet? Healer? When traveling together, he was a man of God and they rode in the car with his wife and children. When they were living together, she was supposed to call him “uncle,” which didn’t quite explain what to call him when he was kissing her mom on the lips. Johnson has a terrific ability to write details as seen through the eyes of a child, letting readers discern what is really happening before the narrator is able to understand herself, such as Brother David putting his hand on her mother’s knee in the back seat as he was driving and Terrell’s wife saying something sharp. Brilliant prose that is both precise and evocative of larger truths illuminates the normalized yet bewildering world. The story is not as dramatic but on par with Jeannette Walls The Glass Castle (Scribner, 2005) and Julia Scheeres’ Jesus Land (Counterpoint, 2005). Teens are going to love this book.–Amy Cheney, Alameda County Library, Juvenile Hall, CA
Alison Weir’s latest biography was published simultaneously in England as Mary Boleyn: ‘The Great and Infamous Whore’. This is not the first biography of Mary, but there are very few; her sister Anne usually gets all the attention.
The resurgence of interest in Mary does seem to be traceable to the publication of Philippa Gregory’s The Other Boleyn Girl in 2004, and Showtime’s The Tudors (2007-2010) didn’t hurt either.
Weir gave an NPR interview titled ‘Great and Infamous Mary: The Other ‘Boleyn’ Girl back in October. Even better is an interview in the Riverfront Times (out of St. Louis), in which Weir talks about Mary’s reputation and how it transformed during her lifetime and after. Weir has great sympathy for Mary. She believes, for example, that Mary was an unwilling participant in both of her rumored affairs, with Francois I and with Henry VIII.
WEIR, Alison. Mary Boleyn: Mistress of Kings. 364p. reprods. appendix. bibliog. index. Ballantine. 2011. Tr $28. ISBN 978-0-345-52133-0. LC 2011029091.
Adult/High School–Teens who have read Philippa Gregory’s The Other Boleyn Girl (Touchstone, 2004) and want to learn more about the young woman who was mistress to King Henry VIII will find many answers in this book. As sister to the more famous (or rather, infamous) Anne Boleyn, second wife to Henry VIII, our knowledge of Mary’s relationship to the king is filled with rumor and innuendo from those present at the court. Weir sets out to unravel the mysteries behind Boleyn by following court gossip, public records, letters, and historical discussion. Many historians have speculated on her private life not only with King Henry, but also on rumors of her earlier affair with the French king, and the theory that one or more of her children were sired by King Henry. That Mary was able to escape the notoriety of her sister and retire to a quiet life with a husband she loved is remarkable for her time and station in life. Because of its exhaustive research and attention to minute detail, the book can be difficult to follow. Dedicated YAs will follow the intricate relationships and the author’s meandering trail of events and people. And while not many teens will read this volume from cover to cover, it is compelling enough to entice history readers, and the author provides a good sense of what it must have been like to live under the shadow of this idiosyncratic king. Recommend it to students who want all the details on the happenings in King Henry’s court, and more specifically on Mary and her family. Appendixes cover the lives of her children and include portraits thought to be of Mary and her second husband, William Carey.– Connie Williams, Petaluma High School, CA
from graphic novel guest blogger Francisca Goldsmith:
Takako Shimura has a well earned reputation as a sensitive and sensible LGBT cartoonist. Bringing her 2003 series to American readers asks that readers in the U.S. be as sensitive and sensible. The gender orientations of eleven-year-olds just isn’t the stuff of stories here. In fact, it is the stuff of reality. Shimura balances a full plate in this story, all the while offering it with the kind of easy grace that makes the balance appear to be almost magical. Included in the balancing act: we become invested in the awareness and experiences of both a girl and a boy; we witness both “regular” kids and our two outliers acting and reacting to each other; manga glyphs of facial expressions and emoting mix with almost Western text-led storytelling tropes.
The last crossing has to be the reader’s: can you take responsibility for your own awareness, and be willing to read this first and judge it afterward? A host of kids could profit from you doing so.
TAKAKO, Shimura. Wandering Son. Vol. 1 tr. from Japanese by Matt Thom. 203p. notes. Fantagraphics. 2011. Tr $19.99. ISBN 978-1-60699-416-0. LC number unavailable.
Adult/High School–Preteens Nitori and Takatsuki meet and become friends quickly, in spite of the fact that most of their peers still prefer same gender companions. What Nitori keeps from Takatsuki–although one of his other female friends knows and many of his classmates suspect–is his strong desire to be a girl. Conversely, Takatasuki, who is a new student in their class, longs to be a boy. In Shimura’s sympathetic hands, this manga is neither gag nor message heavy: both main characters, their peers, and their family members are credible and developed with enough depth that readers can think about them beyond the bounds of the book. Appropriate to their age, these friends are concerned with the clothing and social behaviors suited more to the other gender than with anything explicitly sexual. And they are very lucky: their parents treat them with respect. In Japan, this story could be heartening, or enlightening for Niroti and Takatsuki’s generation, while in the U.S. we haven’t yet learned to play well with stories of gender identity for the prepubescent set. However, the book belongs in every high school library, as well as in public collections that are accessible to both youth and adults. Highly produced, with large clear black-and-white panels, it can also encourage teens who have been shy about diving into unflipped manga (imported Japanese comics that maintain the right to left flow of the original), as they will come to care about more about the story than the direction the page turns.–Francisca Goldsmith, Infopeople Project, CA
Theft of Swords is the first in Michael Sullivan’s Riyria Revelations series. Rise of Empire releases this week, and the third and final installment, Heir of Novron is expected on January 31st, all from Orbit.
The series was originally self-published in 6 volumes, and it is helpful to take a look at the author’s explanation of the progression and contents of each volume. He also offers plot summaries and free samples. A terrific article from sffworld.com explains the history of the books, and the blogger/reader popularity that led to their initial success.
SULLIVAN, Michael J. Theft of Swords. 704p. maps. glossary. Orbit. 2011. pap. $14.99. ISBN 978-0-316-18774-9. LC number unavailable.
Adult/High School–This old-fashioned adventure fantasy has had a long journey, from small press to self-published e-book and finally to print (three volumes planned). Throw in a little theft and a regicide or two and it would be a journey worthy of protagonists Royce and Hadrian, an independent thief and sword duo who find themselves becoming heroes when they must clear their names of a crime for which they’ve been framed. Wooden dialogue and misplaced modifiers galore should make for a clunky read, but in fact this is fast and fun, full of witty repartee and daring exploits, with enough big-picture mystery to keep readers hooked. The bad guys conveniently discourse in full paragraphs, so the plotting and machinations are easy to follow, and characterization tends to be fairly simple. Elves and dwarves make an appearance, just different enough to avoid feeling like a Tolkien clone but still familiar; the setting is quasi-medieval (but easier, and the sanitation seems better). Romance is thin on the ground as this is a buddy tale, and although the body count and gore are not lacking, any deep reflections on mortality are. The author’s note indicates that this was initially written with his 13-year-old daughter as the primary audience, so it’s no wonder that everything here lends itself to a perfect teen read. It’s strangely compelling fantasy for fantasy lovers, and likely to appeal to fans of Tolkien or Martin, Eddings or Rothfuss.–Karyn N. Silverman, Little Red School House and Elisabeth Irwin High School, New York City
The conclusion to Gregory Maguire’s The Wicked Years series does not disappoint. The series began with Wicked (1995), and continued with Son of a Witch (2005) and A Lion Among Men (2008). Out of Oz does stand on its own, but readers will appreciate it most if they are fans of the series.
MAGUIRE, Gregory. Out of Oz. Vol. 4. illus. by Douglas Smith. 592p. (The Wicked Years Series). Morrow. 2011. LC number unavailable.
Adult/High School–The concept of an alternate universe has been introduced to generations of children through stories of the fanciful Land of Oz. Springing from the imagination of L. Frank Baum, and then transformed into one of the most popular movies of the 20th century, the sights and characters of Oz are both strange and familiar. With Gregory Maguire’s series, these same characters are once again re-created but in unexpected ways. Teens who know the musical Wicked will already know the backstory: The Wicked Witch of the West is not evil but impassioned by an unpopular sense of justice. In Maguire’s Oz, the Wicked Witch has a name, Elphaba. She is not a mean-spirited loner, but embroiled in complex family relationships. She has a secret lover and a secret child. The bare bones tale presented by the musical version, however, cheats the audience of the magical chemistry of Maguire’s prose. The books in this series are epical, following the friends, enemies, and descendants of Elphaba through adventure after adventure. By the time this fourth volume begins, the cast of characters has expanded to include old faces, such as Brrr (aka The Cowardly Lion), and new ones, most prominently Rain, Elphaba’s granddaughter. Maguire provides readers with a quick synopsis of the first three volumes, as well as plenty of filler details during the course of the book, so it’s possible to begin the journey with this final book. Teens who enjoy sophisticated fantasy laced with humor and social conscience will be greatly satisfied with this reprise of a childhood favorite.–Diane Colson, Palm Harbor Library, FL
Angela Carstensen is Head Librarian and an Upper School Librarian at Convent of the Sacred Heart in New York City. Angela served on the Alex Awards committee for four years, chairing the 2008 committee, and chaired the first YALSA Award for Excellence in Nonfiction for Young Adult committee in 2009. Recently, she edited Outstanding Books for the College Bound: Titles and Programs for a New Generation (ALA Editions, 2011). Contact her via Twitter @AngeReads.
