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Age Range: 12 and up
Hardcover: 256 pages
Publisher: Clarion Books; 1 edition (April 4, 2011)
ISBN-10: 0618999833
ISBN-13: 978-0618999835
With their family home facing foreclosure, seventeen-year-old Clara Estby and her mother, Helga, need to raise a lot of money fast—no easy feat for two women in 1896. Helga wants to tackle the problem with her usual loud and flashy style, while Clara favors a less showy approach. Together they come up with a plan to walk the 4,600 miles from Mica Creek, Washington, to New York City—and if they can do it in only seven months, a publisher has agreed to give them $10,000. Based on the true story of the author’s great-aunt and great-grandmother, this is a fast-paced historical adventure that sets the drama of Around the World in Eighty Days against an American backdrop during the time of the suffragist movement, the 1896 presidential campaign, and the changing perception of “a woman’s place” in society.
Synopsis and Publishing Information Courtesy of Amazon.com
The Year We Were Famous is an unusual story, about a period of time that has lain forgotten for many years. Near the turn of the century, it chronicles the spirit of the frontier during the time of the Suffragist movement.
Clara and her mother’s journey is based on the author’s own family members, who took pedestrianism to new heights by walking from Spokane, Washington to New York City with only five dollars and the clothes on their backs. They didn’t do it merely as a publicity stunt, they did it to save their farm because of the debts piling up after several bad harvests.
Clara’s voice was unique, simple, and spoke of the true meaning of the frontier: survival. While it was her mother’s idea to walk across the U.S., it was Clara’s journey of finding what she wanted to do with her life that really dominated the trip.
Faced with trials and tribulations straight out of a Gary Paulsen novel, The Year We Were Famous is a true gem in the Young Adult genre. I only wish more of the story was there, but alas, Clara and her mother never did write the book they set out to do at the beginning. And with their deaths, a part of their story died with them too.
For more information about the author, please visit:
Age Range: 12 and up
Hardcover: 304 pages
Publisher: Feiwel & Friends; 1 edition (September 18, 2012)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1250011345
ISBN-13: 978-1250011343
Radley’s parents had warned her that all hell would break loose if the American People’s Party took power. And now, with the president assassinated and the government cracking down on citizens, the news is filled with images of vigilante groups, frenzied looting, and police raids. It seems as if all hell has broken loose.
Coming back from volunteering abroad, Radley just wants to get home to Vermont, and the comfort and safety of her parents. Travel restrictions and delays are worse than ever, and by the time Radley’s plane lands in New Hampshire, she’s been traveling for over twenty-four hours. Exhausted, she heads outside to find her parents—who always come, day or night, no matter when or where she lands—aren’t there.
Her cell phone is dead, her credit cards are worthless, and she doesn’t have the proper travel papers to cross state lines. Out of money and options, Radley starts walking. . . .
Illustrated with 50 of her own haunting and beautiful photographs, this is a vision of a future America that only Karen Hesse could write: real, gripping, and deeply personal.
Synopsis and Publishing Information courtesy of Amazon.com
This book was hidden, back among the shelves bursting at the seams with vampire romances and alien novels in the Young Adult section of my library. Tucked away in a forgotten corner of the library, something pulled me toward this book, with a mediocre cover and a not-uncommon premise. Of course he government is overthrown… Of course the teen protagonist must learn to deal with the beginning of a new way of life…
But wait, there’s more.
Interspersed with the authors personal photos as a way of telling the story instead of just illustrating it with pretty pictures, this was not a dystopian novel like I expected. It was a novel of surviving in the wild, on your own, and learning to build a life from the woods and wilderness around you. It reminded me of my deep-seated love for the My Side of the Mountain series by Jean Craighead George that I had loved years ago. It was a book more about the natural world of the wilderness than dystopian fiction. With Ms. Hesse’s way of writing I could smell the meadow that surrounded Radley’s new home, hear the sounds of the wind, and feel the coldness of the rain as it poured on the page.
Every once in a while, a book will come along that was meant for that time, that portion of our everyday lives. Safekeeping was exactly what I needed at that moment, and Karen Hesse’s writing captured me in every sense, so that I too, was safely kept in Radley’s world for a while.
To learn more about Karen Hesse and her other books, please visit:
Source: Library
Publisher: Poppy
Year: 2013
Rating: 9.5 (out of 10)
A forbidden romance. A modern mystery. Wuthering Heights as you’ve never seen it before.
Catherine is tired of struggling musicians befriending her just so they can get a gig at her Dad’s famous Manhattan club, The Underground. Then she meets mysterious Hence, an unbelievably passionate and talented musician on the brink of success. As their relationship grows, both are swept away in a fiery romance. But when their love is tested by a cruel whim of fate, will pride keep them apart?
Chelsea has always believed that her mom died of a sudden illness, until she finds a letter her dad has kept from her for years — a letter from her mom, Catherine, who didn’t die: She disappeared. Driven by unanswered questions, Chelsea sets out to look for her — starting with the return address on the letter: The Underground.Told in two voices, twenty years apart, Catherine interweaves a timeless forbidden romance with a compelling modern mystery.
Synopsis courtesy of Amazon.com
Like Jane, this new volume from April Lindner is full of intrigue, mystery and romance. Her stunning prose easily transports you into the world of post-post punk era New York City. Instead of the Moors of Yorkshire, the places where the protagonists Catherine and Hence meet are equally as beautiful, even in their quiet simplicity.
The voice of Catherine herself is assured, meaningful, and trustworthy, as if nothing she did had an ulterior motive other than being true to herself. Hence’s dark, brooding character is more relatable than Bronte’s Heathcliff, and he and Catherine fit together perfectly in a jigsaw puzzle way. Told by two different narrators, that of Catherine and her daughter Chelsea, the way the story unfolded with these dual narrations built the tension without jumping too much forward like the furious pacing of James Patterson. I did feel however, that the tragic, desperate love of Heathcliff and Catherine was toned down in Catherine, but thankfully left out the creepiness of the original Heathcliff character.
Ms. Lindner’s last novel, Jane, introduced readers to her unorthodox way of re-imagining Jane Eyre. It was met with rave reviews, but with Catherine out on shelves now, I believe Catherine could surpass the already-high bar that Ms. Lindner set with Jane.
Catherine did its job. It’s gripping from the first chapter, has a killer cover, and built the characters and plot in a satisfactory way that haunted me from its matter-of-fact opening to its stunning, ghost-ridden conclusion.
Laura DeLuca, author of “Phantom” has stopped by to bring us behind-the-scenes on her brand new short story, “Jessica.”
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Jessica is a little Halloween surprise my publisher arranged for my readers. Today, I thought I’d give you a behind of scenes look at how this short story came to be. I usually prefer to write full length a novel as opposed to shorts, but this one was sort of thrust upon me. I wrote this story almost two decades ago during my freshman year of college. The story was influenced by two very interesting people–Jessica Pirnik Gittle and James T . Kirk.
Jessica & Laura-Wildwood Catholic High School-1993
This is a photo of me with Jessica. She was one of my best and closest friends in high school. We did everything together. We were in the chorus, the yearbook staff, the school newsletter (I was editor, of course), the ecology club, and just about every other club that wasn’t a sport. I don’t do sports. We met when we were freshman in high school because we were seated alphabetically. Her name was Pirnik and my maiden name was Rice. Yes, it was a small school so there wasn’t anyone in between us in our homeroom. So, this is my best friend who I laughed and cried with, who always supported me in my writing and in all my crazy schemes. Yet, she never got a part in one of my books. She doesn’t even remember this, but she used to bug me about it all the time. It wasn’t until after we graduated from high school and I was in college that I finally put her name in a story. That story, of course, was Jessica.
Fall Formal at Stockton-I was 17
So this brings me to James T. Kirk. I bet you thought I meant the one from the spaceship. Well, no offense to the captain, but that’s not the James. T. Kirk I’m talking about here. I’m referring to a professor at my old college, The Richard Stockton College of New Jersey. I was in his creative writing class back in 1994, and one of our projects was to write a Halloween themed story that was set on the college campus.
This is me at Lake Fred-1994
At first, I wasn’t into this project at all. I like inspiration to flow naturally. I don’t like trying to force it. I remember sitting in my dorm, chewing he edge of my pen, coming up with nothing, and the deadline was the hours away. Then, feeling a homesick moment, I started to flip through an old photo album I had brought with me. I saw that picture of Jessica and me together. It reminded me that she had asked for her name to be a story. I thought it would be even better if her name was the title of that story. From that point, the idea flowed pretty flawlessly.
Nature Trail at Stockton
Bringing the campus into the story was even less challenging. It’s truly stunning, especially in the fall, and with its circling trails and lily covered ponds, it’s the perfect setting for all kinds of spooky happenings. I changed the name of the college for the story, but the scenery remains pretty much the same. Stockton is surrounded by acres of woods and there really is a beautiful lake there named Lake Fred. There isn’t really a White Lady haunting the lake, at least not that I know of. Still, I if I were a guy, I wouldn’t want to be wondering around Lake Fred all alone on Halloween night…
So that’s the story behind the story.
If you want to grab a copy of this short paranormal thriller for yourself, it’s available exclusively on Amazon in e-book format for only $0.99.
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B009RBJYL4
Beautiful Days: A Bright Young Things Novel by Anna Godberson
For the bright young things of 1929, the beautiful days seem endless, filled with romance and heartbreak, adventure and intrigue, friendship and rivalry.
After a month in New York, Cordelia Grey and Letty Larkspur are small-town girls no longer. They spend their afternoons with Astrid Donal at the Greys’ lush Long Island estate and their nights in Manhattan’s bustling metropolis. But Letty’s not content to be a mere socialite. She is ready at last to chase her Broadway dreams—no matter the cost.
Cordelia is still reeling from the death of her father at the hands of Thom Hale, the man she thought she loved. Now she is set to honor Darius Grey’s legacy . . . and take her revenge.
Promised to Cordelia’s half brother, Astrid is caught up in a world of dazzling jewels and glittering nights—and the sparkle is blinding. Charlie Grey is a gangster playing a dangerous game; and for Astrid, Cordelia, and Letty, the stakes could be deadly.
From the New York Times bestselling author of The Luxe comes the second book in an epic series set in the dizzying last summer of the Jazz Age.
—Summary Courtesy of Amazon.com
I love the premise of this series: the roaring twenties, booze, jazz, and flappers in New York City. It’s a refreshing view of a time gone by and one that isn’t addressed to often in Young Adult fiction. What I didn’t like, however, was something that could have been avoided:
I get the story lines of the Bright Young Things series mixed up with The Flappers series by Jillian Larkin. Why? The story lines are so similar, I don’t know which character was disgraced and humiliated at which party or who was the daughter of a bootlegger or which one is an aspiring night club singer. Because the story lines from the two series are so similar, I don’t feel each one will get the due that they deserve.
Beautiful Days could have used more of a climactic ending than the one that was written, but the characters are interesting in all of their 1920s glory. The character voices would be more realistic if they evolved into individual voices, because the alternating chapters all sound and read exactly the same. I would love to see how Anna Godberson pursues this series and if so, how differently it will turn out from The Flappers series.
In My Mailbox was created by The Story Siren. The idea is for book bloggers to come together once a week and post what books they have received in the mail/purchased/found at the library/borrowed from a friend. Anyone can participate!
Final Review Copy
Final Review Copy
Be sure to post your own In My Mailbox links in the comments!
