It's been a while since I read fantasy! I often find it hard to get into fantasy because of the detailed world-building that it demands. I think that's one of the reasons writing Uncontrollable in verse worked so well for me. In the same way that I don't get sucked into a fantastical world easily, I can't write complex worlds without it feeling like some kind of info dump!But of course, well written fantasy draws you in slowly. The Girl Who Drank the Moon was like that for me, as was The Last Windwitch. Even though much of it was predictable, I enjoyed the book and the way the story plays out, bringing together gentleness and wonder.Brida does not know much about her past. She knows that Mother Magdi, a powerful hedgewitch, took her in, but that's about all. And somehow, green magic doesn't work for her at all. She can't remember which herb is which, and she feels like a … [Read more...]
Pax, Journey Home
I haven't read Pax, but I picked up Pax, Journey Home from Kahaani Box. It's a lovely book, but I have a warning - don't read the blurb!I don't often read the blurb before I read a book, and so often when I do, I regret it! A huge chunk of what is mentioned in the blurb happens in the last twenty pages of the book, and I would have loved to discover it through the book rather than before I started reading!Pax, Journey Home is the story of a boy and a fox, both of whom have suffered immense losses. The boy Peter is determined never to love again, never to find family and never to get attached. The fox Pax, on the other hand, is quick to forgive and quick to make friends. As the story unfolds, we walk two parallel journeys of healing. Pax and Peter walk side by side, never meeting, but forever aware of each other. And in their own ways, they trust, love, and find home.I … [Read more...]
Other Words for Home
Search for 'verse novels for middle-grade readers', and Other Words for Home is bound to come up. It's a Newbery Honor Book and a New York Times bestseller. However, just like I said when I reviewed Red, White and Whole, I wasn't sure if I wanted to read yet another immigration story.And perhaps that was why it fell short for me. I've read too many of these - Inside Out and Back Again, In the Beautiful Country and Red, White and Whole come to mind immediately. While Other Words for Home is a sweet story, I was not drawn into it the way I was into the last two.When unrest begins to mount in Syria, Jude's family makes a decision. Jude and her mother will move to America, where her uncle lives. But her father and brother stay back. And so begins the story of a family divided by the ocean, struggling to figure out what home is. Jude sometimes feels like her mother doesn't want her … [Read more...]
Mirror to Mirror
Stories about sisters are incredibly special. And sisters who would do anything to win each other's heart? You have me with the premise itself.I read Mirror to Mirror only because I attended an author talk that Rajani LaRocca gave for the Neev Literature Festival Reading Challenge. Listening to her read from the book and then talk about her book, I knew that this was a book I was likely to enjoy.I didn't just enjoy it; I loved it.Maya and Chaya are identical twins. But when Maya tries to hide her anxiety from Chaya and even refuses to let Chaya talk to their parents about it, Chaya knows she must act. She must reinvent herself so that she isn't a shadow, an image pulling her twin down. They must be different, so different that Maya can shine with her own light.Maya, on the other hand, must be perfect. If she isn't perfect, the world will crumble. Even as she creates … [Read more...]
Mascot
Mascot by Charles Waters and Traci Sorell is the third and last book I read because it's on the required reading list for an online workshop on revising your verse novel that I will be attending later this year thanks to my Highlights Foundation scholarship. A nuanced story in verse exploring multiple perspectives, Mascot reminds us that activism must be intersectional for it to be meaningful.Ms Williams, an eighth grade teacher, invites her class to debate whether the mascot of the school should stay. Callie is convinced that there's no room for debate. It's absurd that people think it's okay to appropriate to use a copper-toned, muscled, tomahawk-wielding caricature as a mascot. Others, however, believe that the mascot honours Native American tradition and it is absurd to replace it with something else. Six eighth-graders from a variety of backgrounds and beliefs begin to talk … [Read more...]
A Melody in Mysore
With Independence Day just around the corner, it's the perfect time to read A Melody in Mysore by Shruthi Rao, a new addition to the Songs of Freedom series. I've thoroughly enjoyed most of the books in the series, some more than others. Set in different parts of the country in the first half of the twentieth century, each book is a snapshot of what it might have been like to be a child during the independence struggle.Growing up in Mysore, Leela is relatively cocooned from the British rule. Under the Maharaja, many feel safe. The British struggle isn't relevant to their lives. But as the freedom struggle sweeps across the nation, questions emerge. How long will they be sheltered? And if Leela wants to join the movement, how can she?The answer is in the title itself: through music. Music isn't for everyone, but Leela discovers just how powerful it can be. Leela's bond with … [Read more...]
Restart
What if you got the chance to start your life all over again? Would you make any changes?Restart by Gordon Korman is a powerful story about getting a second chance. The story opens with Chase Ambrose in hospital. He's fallen off his roof and forgotten everything about who he used to be. And when he returns to school, he doesn't know what to make of the way everyone reacts to him. Slowly, he discovers he was the worst kind of bully. Even as he remembers who he used to be, he needs to decide who he wants to be.I've read just one other book by Gordon Korman, Schooled. Just like in Schooled, it's the characters who drive the story, although the plot is gripping too. Chase Ambrose, erstwhile bully, has us feeling for him, wanting to forgive everything he's done, no matter how bad it may have been. More, each character is vividly drawn--from the other bullies to the girl who's … [Read more...]
Red, White and Whole
Red, White and Whole has been on my wishlist for ever so long. I kept dithering. Would I enjoy the book? Would I not? I honestly wasn't sure I wanted to read yet another immigration story. Yes, a sense of identity is important. Yes, many of us struggle with it; I know I do too. But the whole idea of being caught between two worlds is one I've read about a little too much.Even so, I kept coming across people talking about this book, so I picked it up. I was prepared not to love it, even more so because I was surprised into liking In the Beautiful Country by Jane Kuo.And yes, there were moments that I didn't like--not because they were not well written, but because they seemed to be about the same things we've read before. Yet, as I turned the pages, I got sucked into the story. Even with the overarching themes that I didn't want to read about, I found myself drawn into Reha's … [Read more...]
Starfish
On nearly any list of "must-read" verse novels for middle-graders, I come across Starfish. I finally read it, and I completely understand why it's on so many lists. There are so many things -- some small, some big -- that make this book special.Twelve-year-old Ellie has Fat Girl Rules to protect herself. She must never draw attention to the way her body jiggles. She should try to be invisible, never make waves. She even holds a pillow in front of herself without even realising it to hide her body as best she can.She knows, however, that her problem is not her being fat. Rather, it is how other people make her feel because she is fat. And the other people, unfortunately, start with her family. Specifically her mother who uses fridge magnets to draw Ellie's attention to articles about losing weight. And her brother, who loses no opportunity to mock her or look at her with … [Read more...]
In the Beautiful Country
Verse novels are beautiful. I love how sparse and hard-hitting they are, and I've been reading them all the more because I've been writing verse too. Uncontrollable came out last year, and Fishbowl will be out later this year. But I read In the Beautiful Country by Jane Kuo because it's on the required reading list for a workshop that I'm excited to attend later this year. I'm honoured to have received a Highlights Foundation scholarship for an online workshop of my choice, and I've chosen one on revising my verse novel. In the Beautiful Country is the first book I've read for the workshop!The United States of America is the beautiful country. At least, that's what it is called in Taiwan, which is where Anna, aka Ai Shi, is from. But is it a beautiful country when she cannot understand what her schoolmates are saying? Is it a beautiful country when she is teased and bullied for … [Read more...]