A Monster Calls (MG/YA)

A Monster Calls. Patrick Ness. Inspired by an idea from Siobhan Dowd. 2011. September 2011. Candlewick Press. 224 pages.

The monster showed up just after midnight. As they do.
Conor was awake when it came.
He'd had a nightmare. Well, not a nightmare. The nightmare.
The one he'd been having a lot lately. The one with the darkness and the wind and the screaming. The one with the hands slipping from his grasp, no matter how hard he tried to hold on. The one that always ended with--

There's a part of me that doesn't want to tell you anything at all about this book. The part that says that there is nothing I could say that would do it justice. The part that says this one is best discovered by readers in the moment. That knowing even the littlest things about it--the things the reader can conclude from the second or third chapter--would be knowing too much.

So I could simply tell you that it is beautiful and haunting and emotional and original. I could ask you just to trust me that it's worth a read. But would you believe me?

Conor, our hero, has been having nightmares. But it's the monster he meets shortly after midnight--on more than one occasion--that intrigues him the most. For it is this monster that he's brave enough to face. This monster that he's brave enough to speak with face to face. And if the monster is to believed, this is the monster that the boy called himself. This is the monster that both promises and threatens. He's got three stories--three tales--to share with the boy. But in return, he asks the boy to tell him a true story, his true story. And it is the threat of having to speak the truth out loud that causes Conor anxiety.

I could say more. I could mention the things going on in Conor's life--his daily life in his home and at school. But I really do think this is one you need to read for yourself, to experience for yourself.

© 2011 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

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Posted in 2011 , bullies , bullying , Candlewick , Death and Dying , grief , review copy , YA Fantasy , YA Fiction , YA realistic fiction

The Story of Britain

The Story of Britain From the Norman Conquest to the European Union by Patrick Dillon. 2011. Candlewick Press. 352 pages.

From the introduction: Long ago, on the eastern edge of the Atlantic Ocean, there were two islands.

The title for this one says it all. The introduction takes readers from 55 BC to 1066 AD. And the remaining chapters cover the years 1066 to 1999. There are six sections: "The Middle Ages," "The Tudors," "The Stuarts," "The Georgians," "The Victorians," and "The Twentieth Century." So what kinds of things get covered in the entries? Well. Kings. Queens. Parliaments. Wars. Revolutions. Invasions. Religious Conflicts. Politics. Economics. Social class divisions. Scientists and inventors. Explorers and empire-builders. A few influential authors. A little bit of everything really. It isn't just about the monarchy. It isn't just about the wars Britain has taken part in through the centuries. Though both of those take up a significant place in the book. The book also tries to cover Scotland and Ireland and Wales.

The Story of Britain is concise and creative. Within the entries themselves, readers will find it almost impossible to find a date. (I'm guessing that the author did NOT want to be like a text book and use dates to bridge together sentences like "And then this happened. And then this happened. And then this happened.) The dates are instead found within the timeline at the end of each section. The text itself is casual and conversational. And you might say creative. He gives voice to a variety of people in society--groups of people and individuals--by using dialogue. (Most entries have quotation marks--but many of these quotation marks are not quoting a *real* source. Though of course some are. The quotation marks that rely on primary sources or reference materials use italics so readers know what's what.) I'm not sure how I feel about this really. On the one hand, I think it keeps the book light and conversational. But on the other hand, I like to keep fiction and nonfiction separate from one another. And the narrator of this one definitely is not as objective as he could be--as he should be perhaps? I could definitely see some of his statements as having an agenda. For better or worse. I mean when you write with a message, with an agenda, with a slant--readers will either already agree with you because they share your views OR not agree with you because they don't share your viewpoint on that particular issue. While I suppose any history book--any text book--could be seen as having bias, of not really being as objective as it could be, I found this one noticeably so.

Did I like it? In places. I found it informative and reader-friendly. There were gaps in my education--and my education for British history basically came from my literature courses and my love for historical fiction--and this book helped me connect the dots. I don't think I loved it. Not as much as I was hoping. But. It was still an entertaining read.

© 2011 Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

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Posted in 2011 , Candlewick , Nonfiction , review copy , YA nonfiction

Beowulf by Gareth Hinds

Beowulf. Gareth Hinds. 2007. Candlewick Press. 128 pages

In the days of old, the House of the Scyldings ruled in Denmark.

The good news? It was a quick read. The bad news? I was disappointed with this graphic novel adaptation. There are many pages that are all action and no text. The fight scenes between Beowulf and Grendel, Beowulf and Grendel's mother, and Beowulf and the dragon. For those that enjoy graphic novels, that enjoy illustrated fight scenes, then Beowulf may not disappoint. The lack of text might even be considered a good thing by many readers. It may make Beowulf more reader-friendly.

After loving Gareth Hinds adaptation of The Odyssey, I was hoping to find something similar. I loved how he adapted the text for the format. The Odyssey is a thicker graphic novel. It's a long story; yet I was never bored. Beowulf, though shorter, though action-packed, never made me care. I didn't connect with the characters, the story.

While I love, love, loved the art for The Odyssey, I just didn't care about the art in Beowulf. 

© Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

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Posted in 2007 , Candlewick , classics , graphic novels , library book

The Odyssey (YA/Adult)

The Odyssey. Gareth Hinds. 2010. October 2010. Candlewick Press. 256 pages.

Sing to me, O Muse, of that man of many troubles, Odysseus, skilled in all ways of contending, who wandered far after he helped sack the great city of Troy. Sing through me, and tell the story of his suffering, his trials and adventures, and his bloody homecoming.

Gareth Hinds newest graphic novel is an adaptation of Homer's Odyssey. I loved it. I really loved it. It is beautifully done. The story. The art. Everything is just so amazing. It was hard for me to put this one down! There's action, adventure, and romance.

The story begins by introducing readers to the family Odysseus left behind: his faithful wife, Penelope, and his son, Telemachus. They are having a difficult time. Penelope has many suitors. Men who have been trying to "woo" her for over a decade. Meanwhile, these "suitors" are enjoying their hospitality. Telemachus decides to go on a quest to find news of his father--to learn one way or the other his father's fate.

But this isn't just his story. No, readers learn of Odysseus' journey from Odysseus himself, as he is telling it as a story. A wild series of misadventures--expect violence, danger, sex, and seduction. Will Odysseus ever make it home? Will Penelope still be there waiting?

I definitely recommend this one! I think it adapts well to the graphic novel format. I wasn't intimidated by it at all. The story was easy to follow. It was so exciting.

© Becky Laney of Becky's Book Reviews

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Posted in 2010 , Candlewick , graphic novels , review copy