Od Magic: A Review

The sign for the Od School of Magic sits in front of a cobbler’s shop on a busy street in the ancient city of Kelior. Brenden Vetch finds the door under the shoe.

It is hardly the momentous entrance he envisioned upon receiving a personal invite from Od herself to come to the school where all wizards in Kelior must be tested and trained before serving the kingdom of Numis. But Brenden isn’t there for magic. He’s there to garden. Brenden is gifted with plants–the one refuge he has left after his parents’ deaths and his brother’s departure to seek his fortune–and the school needs a new gardener. Simple.

Except Brenden is more than a talented gardener. More than anyone except Od herself imagined. As Brenden is drawn into the school’s secrets and intrigues he finds himself at the intersection of unrest that has been brewing for years and a crossroad that could change everything for the school and the kingdom in Od Magic (2005) by Patricia A. McKillip.

Find it on Bookshop.

Od Magic is a standalone fantasy with shifting, close third person points of view between the principle main characters. McKillip’s lyrical writing lends itself to this quiet, character-driven novel where the magic system and political situation in Numis slowly unfold.

Light romance, adventure, and plenty of intrigue will immediately draw readers into this story.  Audiobook readers should also check out the audio production which is excellent narrated by Gabrielle de Cuir.

Od Magic is a thoroughly engrossing slice-of-life fantasy perfect for readers looking for a new quiet story to get lost in. Highly recommended.

Possible Pairings: Finnikin of the Rock by Melina Marchetta, Howl’s Moving Castle by Diana Wynne Jones, The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern, The Scorpio Races by Maggie Stiefvater, Star Daughter by Shveta Thakrar

The Book Thief: A Review

Germany, 1939: Nazis are gaining ever more power. The country, maybe even the world, is holding its breath. Death, as he will tell you soon enough, has never been busier.

Liesel Meminger is fostered in a small town outside of Munich. Times are hard and money is tight. But it is a good life. Liesel lovers her foster father fiercely and, when the opportunity arises, she steals books to even the scales of the world.

But nothing lasts forever. Not pages in a book or friendships. Not secrets hidden in basements. Certainly not good moments in Nazi Germany in The Book Thief (2005) by Markus Zusak.

Find it on Bookshop.

There isn’t a lot to say about this book that hasn’t been covered already. The Book Thief has received wide critical acclaim. It was Printz honor title in 2007. It was made into a movie in 2013.

The problem with picking up a book after everyone has been talking about it (and loving it) for years is that it puts a lot of pressure on the book. That’s a lot of hype to stand up against.

In this particular case, it was too much. The Book Thief is a very clever book. Death is the narrator. There are illustrations. It does so many cool things. But it was just never quite enough.

Honestly, The Book Thief is a miserable, gutting book. Not necessarily in a bad way. But not always in a good way either. The first parts dragged unbearably. They were ugly and dense but it picked up in the last third and the transformation is obvious for all of the characters. I can see how when it came out (and still) it is groundbreaking and shocking. It’s a powerful book if not a perfect one or one I ever want to read ever again.

Possible Pairings: Alan and Naomi by Myron Levoy, Number the Stars by Lois Lowry, Traitor by Amanda McCrina, Tamar by Mal Peet, Saint Death by Marcus Sedgwick, Between Shades of Gray by Ruta Sepetys, Hitler’s Canary by Sandi Toksvig, Code Name Verity by Elizabeth Wein, Afterworlds by Scott Westerfeld, American Street by Ibi Zoboi

The Boyfriend List: A Chick Lit Wednesday Review

The whole mess started with Finn. But it started a while ago. Before Finn was all cute and tall and athletic. Well, technically it might have had more to do with Kim. But Finn is definitely involved. So is Jackson. And his four ceramic frogs. Tommy Hazard, as usual, is blameless. Angelo and Noel aren’t really involved. But they might have helped make everything worse. When it’s all said and done Nora, Cricket and Meghan are all not speaking to her. Kim isn’t either but that isn’t really a surprise.

And that’s almost all before fifteen-year-old Ruby Oliver starts having panic attacks that lead to her eleven shrink appointments.

The first step in stopping the panic attacks is probably understanding what happened. Which requires looking at how things started (with Finn, obviously) and where they wound up (losing her best friend Kim, again duh). And a good way to figure things out is by making lists, right?

It’s not like one list could make Ruby’s life even worse by ruining her reputation and making her a social outcast. Right?

Wrong. One list can actually make Ruby’s life even worse by ruining her reputation and making her a social outcast in The Boyfriend List: 15 Guys, 11 Shrink Appointments, 4 Ceramic Frogs and Me, Ruby Oliver (2005) by E. Lockhart.

Find it on Bookshop.

The Boyfriend List is the first book in E. Lockhart’s Ruby Oliver series.

Deceptively slim at 229 pages (paperback), The Boyfriend List is a complex story told out of chronological order. While Ruby’s life is essentially falling apart around her she also starts seeing Dr. Z and looking at her past interactions with boys to see what, exactly, happened. Lockhart moves seamlessly through distant and near past as she moves the story toward Ruby’s immediate present (the point from which she is narrating).

The resulting story is satisfyingly complex while still being straightforward. Despite what the title might suggest, this isn’t a book about boys. It’s about friendships and social interaction. And, okay, yes it’s also about boys. Lockhart brings humor and compassion to a book that is simultaneously zany and deeply authentic (I think, more on that in the Exclusive Bonus Content). Even more impressive: She does it all while creating a convincing cast of oddballs, smarties, and other likely suspects who are all fun to read about–even if some of them might be jerks (like Jackson). All in all a delightful book.

Ruby’s adventures continue in The Boy Book.

Possible Pairings: A Week of Mondays by Jessica Brody, Something Like Fate by Susane Colasanti, Boys Don’t Knit by T. S. Easton, The Lonely Hearts Club by Elizabeth Eulberg, To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before by Jenny Han, Life by Committee by Corey Ann Haydu, Girl at Sea by Maureen Johnson, Alice, I Think by Susan Juby, It Sounded Better in My Head by Nina Kenwood, The Museum of Heartbreak by Meg Leder, When We Collided by Emery Lord, Sloppy Firsts by Megan McCafferty, Love and Other Foreign Words by Erin McCahan, Vibes by Amy Kathleen Ryan, The Unwritten Rule by Elizabeth Scott, Absolutely Maybe by Lisa Yee

Exclusive Bonus Content: The truth? I was nothing like Ruby and her friends in high school (except maybe Nora). I had no interest in boys and no time for them. Did any boys even like me in high school? Still not sure. (Probably not. But since I doubt any of my high school classmates read this blog I guess we’ll never really know.)

So is this book authentic? I don’t know really but other people say it is so I’ll go with that. It’s weird reading books about the quintessential high school experience only to know your high school experience wasn’t like that. I’m starting to think I had a really skewed view of my high school life but who knows? Maybe the next big thing will be a book about a girl who spent all her time reading, working in a library, and doing homework instead of having boyfriend troubles or partying or whatever those authentic teens are doing. It could happen, right?

The Lightning Thief: A Review

Percy Jackson is used to getting in trouble at school and missing details about his surroundings. It’s kind of part of the territory when you’re dyslexic and have ADHD besides. Then there’s the fact that Percy isn’t just any twelve-year-old. He’s a trouble magnet–which might be how he wound up a private boarding school for troubled kids (his sixth school in as many years).2005

So, really, it probably isn’t that surprising when his evil math teacher blames Percy for a fight he didn’t even start.

What is surprising is when she sprouts wings and tries to kill him on a trip to the Metropolitan Museum to look at Greek and Roman artifacts. And his accidentally vaporizing her with a pen that turned into a sword is a bit of a shock as well.

Things only get worse from there.

It turns out all of the Greek and Roman myths Percy has been learning about aren’t so much myths as real. And kind of angry. And maybe ready to start a war over a suspicious theft.

With the help of some unlikely friends, Percy has ten days to find the stolen property, return it, save the world from the wrath of the gods, and figure out where he fits in this whole crazy mess in The Lightning Thief (2005) by Rick Riordan.

Find it on Bookshop.

This book is the first in Riordan’s series “Percy Jackson and the Olympians.” With its episodic chapters, snappy narrative voice (courtesy of Percy), and non-stop action, The Lightning Thief is an obvious choice for reluctant readers. Although the story is slow to get to the core of the story (or the Olympians of the series title), the plot does move along at a steady pace that will work for readers of any ilk. The plot’s twists and turns (and a surprise ending that fooled this reviewer) are also nice additions to a fun story.

On the other hand, readers might wonder how a twelve-year-old who is not a big reader himself or a fan of school will know words like “debunct” and “mournfully” and choose to use them in his narration. This incongruity was particularly vexing since Percy has such an authentic voice otherwise. Despite his exceptional circumstances, it’s always clear that Percy is thinking and acting (and talking) like a real twelve-year-old boy which is one of the huge strengths of Riordan’s writing. Except when he pulls out words like “debunct” of course.

While some of the mythological figures come across more as caricatures than characters, Riordan does present figures and facts from the ancient Greek (and Roman) mythology in an original way. This might be a New Yorker’s point of view, but there is something very fitting about New York City being the portal to Mount Olympus and Los Angeles leading . . . well, elsewhere. Nitpicks aside, The Lightning Thief is an interesting blend of mythology and a fun, exciting story with a lot of humor and heart. A promising start to a clever series.

Possible Pairings: Temping Fate by Esther Friesner, A Wizard of Earthsea by Ursula K. Le Guin, The New Policeman by Kate Thompson, Skulduggery Pleasant by Derek Landy, The Amulet of Samarkand by Jonathan Stroud

Exclusive Bonus Content: I’m 99% certain that this is just me, but I was a little put off by the term “half-blood” being thrown around to describe all of the demi-gods even if it does kind of make sense and doesn’t really have the negative connotations it might in a different context. I also didn’t love the rampant idolization of parents who abandoned their children (even if they had to because they were gods)–it just didn’t work for me as the daughter of a single parent.

Unrelated, but I really like the cover art here by John Rocco. I like how it picks up specific details from the story and also shows Percy as a young boy. It’s very evocative of the story itself.

Princess Academy: A Chick Lit Wednesday Review

Fourteen-year-old Miri wants a lot of things. She wants to be useful to her family. She wants to be taller and stronger. She wants desperately to work in the quarry and understand quarry speak the way everyone else on Mount Eskel does.

What Miri doesn’t want is to be a princess. At least, she doesn’t think she does.

There isn’t much room on Mount Eskel for princesses anyway. The mountain landscape is as beautiful as the linder stone the villagers mine for their livelihood but life there is hard. Lowland traders come to buy the mined linder, but it’s barely enough to secure food for the winter.

Be that as it may, the lowlander priests of the creator god read the omens and divined that Mount Eskel is the home of the Danland Prince’s future bride.

An academy is quickly established for the eligible girls to learn to be proper princesses. At the academy the girls will learn the finer points of commerce, politics, negotiation and the art of conversation. Poise, dancing, and etiquette will also be on the table among other things.

None of which interests Miri one bit. She doesn’t want to be a princess. She wants to stay on Mount Eskel with her family. Except . . . Wouldn’t she prove how valuable she really is if she becomes princess?

It doesn’t take long for the other girls to have similar thoughts and competition soon becomes fierce. Miri is determined to prove herself but it might not take a tiara and a fine gown to do that, it might take a little thing called pluck in Princess Academy (2005) by Shannon Hale–a Newbery Honor book in 2006.

Find it on Bookshop.

Despite what the title might suggest, Princess Academy is anything but girly. Miri and her friends are some of the toughest, most resilient characters around. The academy itself is also more than comportment and pretty dresses. There are arguments, bandits, and a very scary and very dark closet. No one said it would be easy becoming a princess.

Princess Academy is an honest, often funny book about learning that it takes more than physical strength to make a person strong. Miri is a real girl struggling to make sense of what it means to be a young woman instead of a girl while trying to make sense of what it might mean to be a princess. It is delightful to watch Miri’s world open up as she realizes there can be more to her life than Mount Eskel and see what this smart, brave character does with that knowledge.

Hale’s writing is snappy and engaging. Miri’s internal struggle with her desire to be a princess and her ties to Mount Eskel feel so real that most readers will not be able to guess  Miri’s true desires until the very end (let alone which girl will become the princess!).

Possible Pairings: Brightly Woven by Alexandra Bracken, Ella Enchanted by Gail Carson Levine, Journey Across the Hidden Islands by Sarah Beth Durst, Princess of the Midnight Ball by Jessica Day George, Just Ella by Margaret Peterson Haddix, The Hero’s Guide to Saving Your Kingdom by Christopher Healy, Princess of Thorns by Stacey Jay, Enchanted by Alethea Kontis, Soundless by Richelle Mead, Kiki Strike by Kirsten Miller, Esperanza Rising by Pam Muñoz Ryan, The Accidental Highwayman by Ben Tripp, A Well-Timed Enchantment by Vivian Vande Velde, Dealing with Dragons by Patricia C. Wrede

Stealing Henry: A Chick Lit Wednesday Review

The night Savannah brains her stepfather Jack with the frying pan is the night she decides to leave home for good. It doesn’t matter that she has no money and her eight-year-old brother Henry to take care of. It doesn’t even matter that her stepfather will probably follow them. Savannah can stand a few obstacles as well as she can a slap or two. What she can’t stand is the idea of becoming like her mother Alice.

Alice used to be someone Savannah admired, someone she could look up to. But that was  another life when Alice was still looking for her own future and finding nothing she expected.

Savannah’s life wasn’t always about listening before entering a room and not making eye contact or talking back. Her childhood homes could fill a road atlas. Savannah and Alice traveled all across the country before the fateful day their car broke down and the party stopped for good.

Savannah and Henry are journeying to a house they’ve never seen. Eighteen years ago certain events conspired to drive Alice to leave that same house for good; events that would eventually determine the course of both Alice and Savannah’s lives in Stealing Henry (2005) by Carolyn MacCullough.

Stealing Henry draws readers in right from the beginning with a shocking opening line and a truly evocative cover (designed by Rodrigo Corral–the mastermind behind the US covers for the Uglies series). Nothing about Savannah’s life is easy and it’s simple to assume reading about her won’t be either. But the opposite is true. MacCullough’s lyrical prose pulls readers in, quickly making Savannah and her unreal life completely believable.

Even passing scenes of the local emergency room, Alice’s current place of employ, are skillfully written with a high degree of authenticity. Everything about this story is evocative and compelling.

I read Stealing Henry shortly after the van incident and a generally not peaceful time in my own life. Reading about Savannah and her own journey was somehow entirely appropriate for that situation and often comforting. Much like MacCullough’s later novels, this story is always optimistic. Even at her lowest, Savannah remains hopeful; the writing itself becoming both peaceful and reassuring.

Possible Pairings: The Secret Side of Empty by Maria E. Andreu, How to (un)Cage a Girl by Francesca Lia Block, The Secret Life of Prince Charming by Deb Caletti, The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald, Blue Plate Special by Michelle D. Kwasney, The Piper’s Son by Melina Marchetta, The Miles Between by Mary E. Pearson, Damaged by Amy Reed, The Bride’s Farewell by Meg Rosoff, Eleanor & Park by Rainbow Rowell, The Unwritten Rule by Elizabeth Scott, Memoirs of a Teenage Amnesiac by Gabrielle Zevin, Little Voice by Sara Bareilles (music album)

13 Little Blue Envelopes: A Chick Lit Wednesday Review

Rule #1: You may bring only what fits in your backpack.

Rule #2: You may not bring guidebooks, phrase books, or any kind of foreign language aid. And no journals.

Rule #3: You cannot bring extra money or credit/debit cards, traveler’s checks, etc.

Rule #4: No electronic crutches. This means no laptop, no cell phone, no music, and no camera.

The rules were straightforward, sent to Ginny Blackstone in the first of thirteen letters from her eccentric Aunt Peg. Ginny is used to her aunt’s whims and willing to play along because Aunt Peg is the only person in the world who can make Ginny seem interesting–even if it is just by association.

The letters will take Ginny to England and across Europe on an adventure that starts in the hope of understanding her wayward aunt. Along the way she’ll get a behind-the-scenes tour of Harrod’s from one of the store’s employees, meet artist/sometimes-thief Keith Dobson, and encounter youth hostels of various ilks. She will also karaoke. At the end of the summer, Ginny might discover she’s more interesting than she thought–all because of those 13 Little Blue Envelopes (2005) by Maureen Johnson.

Find it on Bookshop.

Broken into chapters and separate headings for each envelope, this is a fast read that still has a lot of depth. The cover, along with some of Johnson’s other covers, is sometimes slammed for having a semi-headless, midriff-bearing girl on the cover. All the same, I love it. Not so much because it’s indicative of the story but of the novel’s overall vibe.

Equal parts travelogue, comedy, and Bildungsroman 13 Little Blue Envelopes is  jam-packed with excitement and appeal. It’s also a book about an ordinary girl discovering that sometimes just being herself can be extraordinary enough. Ginny is a persistent, resilient narrator that readers will be cheering for throughout this (sometimes) madcap novel.

Johnson is also working on a sequel called The Last Little Blue Envelope with a projected publication date in 2011.

Possible Pairings: Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher, Girl Overboard by Justina Chen, A Little Wanting Song by Cath Crowley, Dash and Lily’s Book of Dares by Rachel Cohn and David Levithan, Revolution by Jennifer Donnelly, Just One Day by Gayle Forman, Howard’s End by E. M. Forster, Two Summers by Aimee Friedman, Kitty Kitty by Michele Jaffe, Everything All at Once by Katrina Leno, Love and Other Foreign Words by Erin McCahan, Being Sloane Jacobs by Lauren Morrill, The Miles Between by Mary E. Pearson, The Square Root of Summer by Harriet Reuter Hapgood, Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell, The Geography of You and Me by Jennifer E. Smith, Roomies by Sara Zarr and Tara Altedbrando, Memoirs of a Teenage Amnesiac by Gabrielle Zevin

Dramacon Vol. 1: A Graphic Novel/Comic Book (Chick Lit Wednesday) Review

Christie isn’t sure what to think at her first comic convention in Dramacon Vol. 1 (2005) by Svetlana Chmakova. (Find it on Bookshop.) She’s excited for a chance to exhibit the comic that she writes and her boyfriend illustrates. But when they get to the comic-con, it turns out nothing is what Christie expected.

Her boyfriend is a jerk. He says he’s flirting so that more girls will buy their comic buy Christie isn’t so sure–especially with the way he keeps leaving her alone for long periods at a time. Then there’s the mysterious cosplayer who keeps popping up when Christie needs him and seems to understand her better than her boyfriend ever will. Christie tries to make sense of her mixed feelings about the con and her love life in the foreground of a story that offers a tantalizing behind-the-scenes look at an convention no one is likely to forget!

Manga always gets a bad rap as the the “junk food” of the comic/graphic novel world. Truth be told, the junk food analogy always seems ridiculous when applied to books. Reading is reading and, frankly, I’d rather see someone reading manga or Goosebumps or whatever than not reading at all. Furthermore, I challenge anyone to find a better format for reluctant readers. If I could read Dramacon in a day I’m sure a reluctant reader could motor through it just as easily. And what is more thrilling for a kid who thinks they are a “slow” reader or who doesn’t like reading than to find a title they can plow through?

That said, Dramacon is also a really delightful story that is cute, peppy and will leave you smiling. This crazy sense of optimism and cheer permeates the book that will make it impossible to feel gloomy while reading it–really! (And the artwork is really great and well-plotted besides!)

The first in a three volume series, Chmakova gives readers action, romance and a surprising amount of character development given the relatively short format. Christie and her zany cohorts are really charming characters that I can’t wait to read more about.

The crossover potential is also huge because Dramacon covers so many topics: comic conventions, cosplay, relationships, coming of age, and even rape are all briefly (tactfully) touched upon here. Girls might gravitate to the pink cover, but boys are sure to appreciate Matt’s brooding, macho character. Dramacon is, basically, one of those mangas that can literally appeal to everyone.

Alice MacLeod, Realist at Last: A Chick Lit Wednesday Review

There are many reasons this review was posted late and backdated which I won’t get into here. Suffice to say I have been meaning to write this review for months but have been putting it off because I knew that once I wrote the review I would have to admit that Alice’s adventures were done–no small task let me assure you.

Onward . . .

Alice MacLeod, Realist at Last (2005) is the stunning conclusion to Susan Juby‘s debut trilogy (preceeded by Alice, I Think and its sequel Miss Smithers). You might recognize Juby’s name from the 2009 Edgar Awards where Getting the Girl was a nominee.

This installment opens with the first scene from Alice’s screenplay “Of Moose and Men”–a creative work loosely based on her own life. Excerpts of the screenplay are sprinkled throughout the novel. The writing is overwrought, exaggerated, and provides hysterical insight into Alice’s psyche throughout the story. In addition to being Alice’s latest career of choice, writing her screenplay also helps this sixteen-year-old heroine make sense of the chaos that has become her life.

At the beginning of the story, Alice’s boyfriend Goose is moving with his family to Glasgow for an entire year only to go away to university on the other end of Canada when he finally returns. Dealing with this heartbreak is bad enough on its own. Then Alice’s mother, a somewhat aggressive environmentalist, is thrown in jail as a result of her activist activities. That leaves Alice, her younger brother, and her father on their own. To say that this development leaves the family less than functional would be a vast understatement.

The one constant in Alice’s life seems, ironically, to be Death Lord Bob–her ineffectual therapist from the Teens in Transition (Not Trouble) Center in town. At least until he too is called away leaving Alice with the surly Ms. Deitrich who doesn’t seem to understand anything about Alice’s life let alone her highly evolved sense of style.

With their matriarch breadwinner in jail Alice and her father find themselves, for the first time, looking for gainful employment. Alice’s job search, and eventual employment, throw her into the paths of two brilliant characters: Wallace and Vince. Negotiating these new romantic waters, Alice finds herself caught between two equally charming suitors–one five years her senior, the other considerably her junior. The dilemma is equally difficult for readers who will likely be as attracted to these guys as Alice herself.

Throughout the series, readers are able to trace Alice’s evolution as a character. The girl we meet in this novel is very different from the Alice entering a traditional school (or a beauty pageant) for the first time. She is more mature, and in some ways  more responsible and engaged with the world at large. More than that, though, Alice’s true depth as a heroine is really apparent in this story as she not only works through but even rises above all of the (screw)balls life throws at her.

Alice MacLeod, Realist at Last doesn’t qualify as truly “realistic” fiction because of the humor and general madness that surrounds Alice. But Alice is still an utterly real and engaging character with a quirky sense of humor (and style) that will leave readers smiling.

(I’d recommend reading the entire trilogy in sequence to fully appreciate how awesome it is, but the stories do stand alone fairly well if you happen upon them out of order.)

Possible Pairings: The Sweetheart of Prosper County by Jill S. Alexander, Don’t Ever Change by M. Beth Bloom, North of Beautiful by Justina Chen, Skinny by Donna Crooner, Friends With Boys by Faith Erin Hicks, The Popularity Papers by Amy Ignatow, Bad Kitty by Michele Jaffe, Suite Scarlett by Maureen Johnson, Don’t Expect Magic by Kathy McCullough,  I’ll Give You the Sun by Jandy Nelson, Lola and the Boy Next Door by Stephanie Perkins, Define “Normal” by Julie Anne Peters, Angus, Thongs, and Full-Frontal Snogging by Louise Rennison, Absolutely Maybe by Lisa Yee

Looking For Alaska: A review

Miles Halter isn’t sure what to expect when he arrives at his new boarding school in Alabama. All he knows for sure is that life at Culver Creek has to be better than the mundane subsistence he had in his Florida hometown. Memorizing famous last words can only take a young man so far in life, so Miles decides to head off into the great unknown–or, as Francois Rabelais put it right before he died, off to seek the Great Perhaps.

What Miles find is unexpected. In addition to earning a nickname (Pudge) and a place in this wacky school that’s now home, Miles finds Alaska Young. Possibly the hottest girl ever, Pudge knows that his life will never be mundane again. Not if Alaska has anything to say about it at least.

What Pudge doesn’t realize, what he can’t know, is that life after coming to Culver Creek and meeting Alaska Young will never be the same in Looking For Alaska (2005) by John Green.

Find it on Bookshop.

Looking for Alaska was Green’s first novel, followed by An Abundance of Katherines (2006) and Paper Towns (2008). It was also the 2006 Printz Award Winner for excellence in young adult literature. (An Abundance of Katherines was selected as  Printz Award honor book in 2007 making Green one of only two American authors to have received Printz Awards/Honors.)

Having read Green’s other books first, the writing style here was no surprise to me, but without that context the writing is really something different. The prose here is snappy. Pudge provides descriptions and anecdotes in his narration, but the story keeps moving along. The dialogue, in particular, has a lot of verve:

Finally I said, “Yeah, I went to public school. But I wasn’t hot shit there, Chip. I was regular shit.”

“Ha! That’s good. And don’t call me Chip. Call me the Colonel.”

I stifled a laugh. “The Colonel?”

“Yeah. The Colonel. And we’ll call you . . . hmm. Pudge.”

“Huh?”

“Pudge,” the Colonel said. “Because you’re skinny. It’s called irony, Pudge. Heard of it? Now, let’s go get some cigarettes and start this year off right.”

Having spent a bit of time reading/watching John Green, it seems safe to say that part of the unique writing style comes from Greens unique sense of humor. But a lot of it also just comes from his being a talented writer (as those nods from the Printz committee suggest).

Looking For Alaska is broken into two parts: Before and After. That breakdown, and the chapters that begin with how many days before (and later after), lend this novel a strong undercurrent of suspense. Even though Pudge is enjoying life and Culver Creek, the writing remains taut with tension because it is so clear that something is going to change everything. While reading the book I had expected the story to go one way only to have it turn in a completely different direction After. The narrative was so tight that I was left completely floored.

As the quote above illustrates, this novel does have teens smoking. They also drink, talk about sex, and often run amok. A lot of young adult literature endeavors to show the “real” lives of teens by having them go to a lot of parties and drink and what not which often leaves me wondering what “real” teens the author knew. While Looking For Alaska features some of the same behaviors, it works better here. Because the characters are at a boarding school in general. Specifically because Culver Creek is set up as such an eerie and mysterious place that, in some ways, it becomes irrelevant how realistic the events are (and I mean maybe they are, I never went to a boarding  school so I cannot accurately gauge).

Everything else aside, there is primarily one reason that I am very fond of this book. That reason is the Colonel. Within a few moments of his introduction it became apparent that the Colonel would be one of the best characters I ever encountered in a work of literature. Clever, acerbic, and even diabolical, he was like a character actor in a supporting role who quietly and indisputably steals the entire show.

Possible Pairings: Paper Towns by John Green, The Tragedy Paper by Elizabeth Laban, The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks by E. Lockhart, Jellicoe Road by Melina Marchetta, Fracture by Megan Miranda, The Beginning of Everything by Robyn Schneider