A Game for Swallows

A Game for Swallows: To die, to leave, to return by Zeina Abirached. Published 2012 by Graphic Universe.

This book has been compared to Persepolis and it is very similar having to do with war in the Middle East and in black and white graphic novel form. Where Persepolis takes place over years as one girl grows up amidst war in Iran, this novel takes place over the course of a night with subsequent flashbacks for different characters. This book explores the war in Lebanon in the 80s and how one apartment complex takes refuge in the foyer of one family's apartment sharing in their fears, hopes and anxieties.
The drawings are very rounded and seemingly simple creating a cartoon like feel but the claustrophobic crowding of the panels creates the feel of the apartment as more and more people come in for comfort and refuge. The speak bubble literally create the tension in the air as they wait to hear from the children's parents who have been missing for hours.
I think this book is a great history lesson and companion to other books on the subject of war in the Middle East or war in general.

Intended reading level: Grades 7+
Genre: Non-fiction, Graphic Novel, Memoir, War

Questions to the Reader: Would you want to stay in your family home and city or would you want to leave under similar circumstances? Why or why not? Why do you think all the neighbors gathered into the one home?

Read-alikes: Persepolis 1 and 2, Maus I and II

Far Far Away

Far Far Away by Tom McNeal. Published 2013 by Knopf Books for Young Readers.

Fairy tales give us warnings, they tuck us into bed at night and reassure us that good prevails. Fairy tales are also old, dark and spooky. Fairy tales have a power all their own. What happens when the real world twists and turns like the creepy corners of a dark tale. This novel by Tom McNeal explores this concept. The ghost of Jacob Grimm narrates the tale of his friendship with a boy who can hear the voice of ghosts in a small American town. The rich language of Jacob Grimm moves the reader through the tale, but it's the mystery of the missing children and the strange bakery that delivers Prince Cakes after a green smoke emits from its chimney that keeps us wondering what will happen in this tale.

A mystery, romance, dark fairy tale and more. The beautiful narration and the fully imagined characters make a novel that is complete and satisfying from start to finish.

Interest level: Grades 6-8
Genre: Mystery, Horror

Questions to Readers: Would you want to have the same talent as Jeremy? Why or why not? What would you have done if you were on the TV show and in Jeremy's shoes?

Read-alikes: The Book of Lost Things by John Connolly, Wildwood by Colin Meloy

Boy Meets Boy

Boy Meets Boy by David Leviathan. Published 2005 by Alfred A. Knopf.

This is a sweet tale of budding high school romance but not with your usual cast of boy meets girl. As the title tells us, this is boy meets boy. How do you deal with a romance that is new? How do you learn to trust each other? How do you let go of a hurt past? These are all questions similar to anyone no matter what type of relationship you're in. This book, while realistic fiction, also seems to live in the author's version of the perfect world. I know I can't wait till a time when drag queens will also be respected football quarterbacks.

If you're looking for a tale of romance with friends helping out other friends, go not further than this title. Butterflies in the stomach, breakups, heartache, winning the love of the guy...it's all here.

Interest level: Grades 6-8
Genre: Romance, Realistic Fiction, LGBT

Question to the Readers: Have you ever been hurt in the past and not wanted to trust your friends or loved ones? How do you choose to trust again? Describe the feelings of having a crush.

Read-alikes: The Summer I Learned to Fly by Reinhardt, Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe

An Abundance of Katherines

An Abundance of Katherines by John Green. Published 2006b by Speak.

I've already sung my praises for John Green and I'm sticking to it, but at a certain point with so much expectation, not everything can live up to such a high standard. That is a horrible way to start this review, as this book had nothing wrong with it and kept to the Green oeuvre, yet had I read it first or second I may have enjoyed it more than I did reading it third. The characters are quirky and realistic. They are flawed yet grow in just the right way over the course of the novel--not so much to be absurd. There is humor and footnotes of interesting information. All this and more, yet something didn't speak to me the way Fault in Our Stars and Paper Towns did. Maybe it was the way the main character is slightly detached from reality, living in his own prodigy brain or maybe I just needed a break from this sort of teen, finding yourself novel, but it took me longer than usual to get through this one.

For plot summary: Colin Singleton is dumped by his 19th Katherine when his best friend Hassan convinces him that a road trip is the only thing that will cure him. They don't make it far when they decide to pull over and see Arch Duke Ferdinand's suppose burial place outside Gutshot, Tennessee. After meeting Lindsay, who doesn't match up with first impressions, they are asked to stay and work for her mother for $500 a week. The boys stay and Colin uses his extra time to come up with a theorem to predict future relationships based on the beginning and end of each relationship with a Katherine. If he succeeds, he will prove that he was not just a prodigy, but in fact, a genius.

Intended reading level: YA (HS)

Questions to the readers: Would you rather be the dumper or the dumpee? Why or why not? What does it mean to truly be yourself? Do you ever feel your in a situation where you are not acting like your genuine self? How do you know the difference?

Read-alikes: See other John Green titles. Perks of Being a Wallflower.

Requiem

Requiem by Lauren Oliver. Published 2013 by Harper Collins.

I was so excited to finally finish up this trilogy from Lauren Oliver. Her writing is head and shoulders above a lot of other YA authors in my opinion. There's a lyrical richness to it and the character's emotions pull you through even the most absurd situations. The premise of the whole trilogy is that love, or amor deliriosa, is a disease and must be eradicated through brain surgery when you turn 18. The trilogy follows a Romeo and Juliet style relationship in this world where love shouldn't happen with twists, turns and intrigue along the way. The last book picks up in the Wilds with Lena faced with confronting her first love triangle. I don't want to go into too much detail in case their are readers who haven't picked up the first two books yet.

This book switches point of view in every other chapter between Lena and Hana. I appreciated this choice because I was able to go back into the world we saw in the first novel. This is a device that Oliver employed throughout each book but has changed in some small way. In the first book we were given passages from the Book of Shhh and in the second the switches were between past and present from Lena's point of view. In any trilogy, the story shifts in the second book and pulls us away from what we loved about the first, losing some readers, but the third comes back in full force and brings us full circle to where we started.

Intended Reading Level: YA-Grade 7+ (I have sixth graders that have read it, but I think it would be better appreciated by older readers)
Third book in series

Question to Readers:
Do you think the surgery was effective on Hana? Do you think she may have a relapse like Lena's mother did? What do you think will become of Portland? What do you think will happen to the rest of the republic after the end of the book? Who would you have chosen if you were Lena?

Read-alikes:
Matched Series by Ally Condy, All These Things I've Done, The Giver series

Skim

Skim by Mariko Tamaki and Jillian Tamaki. Published 2010 by Groundwood books.

This was a superb graphic novel. Having won the Best Illustrated Children's Book Award by the New York Times, its already proven its caliber. The artwork is so filled with fluid and delicate dark lines that it reminds me of calligraphy. The backgrounds are extremely detailed and the way panels will be placed above them in a smaller space makes it feel like poetry in images. There are a lot of close-ups and variety of angles used by the illustrator. These  aspect to aspect and moment to moment shots slow the action down and let us feel what the characters are feeling.
The story is about a girl, Kim, known by Skim to the girls at her school, and her friendships and budding love affair. Like all good teen stories, it is a novel about identity and finding our true selves and our true friendships as well as what love means and how it can so easily tear our heart apart.

While the below image might ruin part of the story, I just have to share it because I think it is so beautiful. It reminds me of two flowers blooming inside a patch of thorns, a briar rose, if you will:

Interest level: YA - because of smoking, drinking and adult concepts I would say Grades 8-12

Questions to Readers:

What choices did Ms. Archer make, bad or good? Would you have done anything differently? What changed between Lisa and Kim? Why do you think Lisa was so angry all the time? What different things do you think Katie was feeling over the course of the novel? Why was Kim able to sympathize? 

Read-alikes: Page by Paige, Friends with Boys

Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe

Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe by Benjamin Alire Saenz. Published 2012 by

Simon and Schuster. American Book Award winner. Pura Belpre Winner. Stonewall Award winner. Printz Honor Book.

This book is precious. Just really precious. I don't know why that's the right word for it, but it is. It is such a sweet, specific love story, but it's also about finding ourselves, discovering our identities and learning how to love and be loved. And to top it all off, its about two young Latino boys who all this is happening to.

The book takes place in 1987 in Texas so we have the context of teens in gangs, rampant homophobia and cultural stereotypes that circle the characters and the story line. Because the characters feel so timely and exist within their own bubble, I sometimes forgot that this book took place in the past.

I don't want to give away much more than that, but as you can see, it's been on almost every single award list, so give it a try.

Intended reading level: YA (High school level, mature 8th grade)

Questions to the Readers:
Have you ever felt you were in love with someone? How did you feel when you were in love? Was it reciprocated? Have you ever felt love for someone but was too afraid to tell them? Where did that fear come from?

Read-alikes: 
Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie.
Compare this book to Openly Straight

Scott Pilgrim: Volume One and Two

Scott Pilgrim's Precious Little Life and Scott Pilgrim vs. the World by Bryan Lee O'Malley. Published 2004 and 2005, Oni Press.

I have to admit, I saw the movie first, and ever since then I've wanted to read the comics. The movie sticks closely to the humor and the style and even the story line. The comics add more as each volume is only about one fight or so. Manga-influenced, video game influenced, punk influenced, all those things rolled together.

The story is that Scott Pilgrim meets Ramona Flowers and finds that if he wants to continue to date her he has to battle the League of her Evil Ex-Boyfriends. But Scott's no angel either and his ex-girlfriends keep making appearances as well. Scott doesn't have a job, he lives in a one room apartment where he shares a bed with his gay roommate, he's in a band with one of his ex-girlfriends and the band's biggest fan is the high schooler he used to date. Throw in magical elements like travelling through sub-highways in people's brains and doors appearing out of nowhere and the fact that you can battle to the death for a small collection of coins and you get the Scott Pilgrim novels. Fun!

Intended reading level: YA (HS, some sexual situations)
First and second volumes in series of six.

Questions for readers: Do you think it's fair that Scott has to battle Ramona's exes? What would you do if you were Knives Chau? What do you think the phrase, "all's fair in love and war" means? Do you think this is an apt expression for these comics?

Read-alikes: shonen manga titles

Openly Straight

Openly Straight by Bill Konigsberg. ARC. Publish date June 2013. Arthur A. Levine Books.

I grabbed this book at the ALA Mid-Winter conference through a flurry of other librarians all asking the same questions around the baby blue cover. We were all thinking the same thing. This can't actually be offensive, it must be a positive look at homosexuality, but what's with that title? The representative went through her spiel and reassured all of us to give it a try and see what it was about.

Rafe is openly gay in his Boulder community, but finds that he is fed up with being "the gay kid." To get away from labels, in an attempt to just be himself without anything else attached, he moves to Boston to go to an all-boys prep school. He knows that he doesn't want to lie about his sexuality, but he doesn't want to come out either. His family and friends back in Colorado are appalled once they know what he's done and he finds he must navigate who he is from both sides of his Boston identity and his Bolder identity. Things get complicated when he begins to make closer connections with boys at school.

In the beginning of the book, I was wary and kept noticing how many labels Rafe attached to others for someone who is so against labels. I was hoping this was a tactic on the part of the author and we'll just say he knew what he was doing. As an adult reader, I sometimes find this challenging to determine what the author wants you to know compared to what the character may not know yet. Overall, I think Konigsberg did a good job of letting Rafe explore identity crisis issues in his own way, even if that way may seem absurdly backwards at first. There is definitely growth and exploration of thought for the main character.

For issues exploring homosexuality, identity and first love, this is a great read.

Intended reading level: YA (HS level because of alcohol, some drug use and sexual situations-though they are very mild and only implied, not detailed)

Questions for the reader:

What do you think? Did Rafe come to understand his true identity? Was the experiment worth it or should he have stayed home?

Read-alikes: Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian, Songs of a Teenage Nomad

Monster Calls

Monster Calls by Patrick Ness. Published 2011.

This is another one of the books from this year that has been on everyone's must read list. I joined the band wagon.

The premise of the book is that a young boy is being haunted by a nightmare each night and when the book opens, a monster is calling him from outside his window. We know there is something wrong with his mother but it isn't named. It doesn't take long to figure out that she is dying and the boy is trying to deal with it in his own way. The monster tells him that the boy called him and not the other way around and he will only leave after he has told three tales and the boy has told the monster the truth of his nightmares. As the novel progresses, the boy's mother grows worse and so does the boy's actions and the ways he tries to cope with her sickness. And at that, I will leave off.

This is a great book to deal with the subject of sickness, death and grief. It is full of anger and denial and truth without sappiness or lessons. The illustrations are creepy to the perfect degree and the short chapters have you pushing along no matter how hard the subject matter becomes. The listing says its YA, which I would agree on the level that the content is of a mature understanding, but there isn't anything younger students in the 5-8th grade bracket couldn't read in this book.

Interest level and reading level: YA
Genre: Hard to categorize--Fairy Tale Fantasy because of the use of the monster and the tales, but also realistic in its portrayal of loss and grief.

Comparable Titles: Between Shades of Gray, Jasper Jones, Noah Barleywater Runs Away

Book Connections: folktales, grief/death, Yew Trees, Old World Medicine

The Last Unicorn: Graphic Novel

The Last Unicorn by Peter S. Beagle adapted by Peter B. Gillis. Art by Renae de Liz. Published 2011.

I have not read the original The Last Unicorn but I'd be interested to do so. I'd been hearing good things about this graphic adaptation and couldn't help purchasing it for my library after taking a look at the great artwork at my local bookstore. While the book is marketed as YA, I included it in Tweens because there isn't any graphic violence, sexuality or harsh language. I think older Tweens would still like it more than younger ones but younger ones may just enjoy the pictures. There are a few scantily clad pictures of women but nothing inappropriate is shown in the illustrations.

Being that this is an adaptation, my main problem with it is that it seems to graze over the plot and not explain some parts completely while jumping around more than I would assume the novel would. It seems to be more of a teaser for the novel than anything else. While it took me a while to piece some things together, everything made sense to me in the end and the climax was fulfilling and exciting. Honestly, the climax seemed to be the one place I fully understood what was going on.

As a summary, the Last Unicorn goes on a search for the rest of the unicorns and on her travels meets a magician who helps her escape from a crone. They eventually make their way to a dark castle where the unicorn is turned into a woman, Lady Althea, by the wizard to save her life. The prince of the castle falls in love with her while she is in human form, but to save the unicorn kind, she must turn back into a unicorn, forsaking her human love, and battle to the death a magical red bull under the power of the evil king. I thought this book would be great for both boys and girls but based on the title and cover I feel like girls will pick it up first and hopefully pass it on to the boys.

Intended reading level: YA Interest level: Grades 7 & 8
Genre: graphic novel, fiction, fantasy

Comparable Titles: Rapunzel's Revenge, Return to Labyrinth

Book connections: bull and unicorn figurines

Persepolis

Persepolis: The Story of a Childhood by Marjane Satrapi. Published 2003.

This graphic novel has been on everyone's radar for a long time and for a good reason. While the material is definitely for upper tweens (think 8th grade) and YA, it should be on everyone's must read list. The perspective of the narrator, Marji, as a child in Iran during the Islamic Revolution is at both times poignant and humorous. The black and white illustrations and the form of a graphic novel make it easy to read and easy to absorb the stark illustrations while leaving room for depth of feeling. We see her witness violence at demonstrations, the death of friends and family, threat of imprisonment, as well as some childish antics and rebellion.

I enjoyed this story mostly for its history. Having been born during this time period, I didn't know anything about the revolutions in Iran. I read a little on this topic as an adult but the frame of this story makes it easier to understand and have an idea of what it was like from a child's perspective.

Interest level: Grades 8-12 Intended reading level: YA
Genre: Non-fiction, Graphic Novel
First book of a series

Comparable titles: Maus, Maus II