REVIEW - 'A Monster Calls', Patrick Ness (Walker Books, 2011)

Lonely thirteen-year-old Conor is going though some more dramatic-than-usual upheavals for a teenage boy. When he is awoken one night by an unexpected visitor, he begins a painful journey. But can he face up to it's conclusion?

I yanked this book from the shelf of my local library with a giddy head - I've only completed the first third of Ness's Chaos Walking Trilogy (a more about my slow-coach reasoning later), but this one book was more than enough to get me mega-excited about this offering.

Based on an idea by the Carnegie-medal-winning author, Siobhan Dowd, Patrick Ness was asked to turn the idea into a novel after Dowd tragically died of cancer.

This book sat heavy on my heart. But in a good way, if that makes any sense whatsoever. Conor's long, often silent days of solitude, at home and at school are bleakly atomospheric. The gradual reveal of the reasons behind his suffering is skillfully done. He is not necessarily a lovable character - he is stubborn, his own worst enemy - but I just wanted to give him a great big bear hug. Probably exactly the sort of reaction that would repel him. You get the picture.

The structure builds up the tension magnificently - The arrival of the monster in the dead of the night kicks of the telling of three fables that lead up to the unveiling of Conor's own truth. The irony is, being a book filled with the most achingly beautiful monochrome illustrations, that nothing in this story is black and white. Everything serves to remind us of the complications and contradictions that are tangled up in the big decisions we have to make in life.

Ness uses his words to great effect - fully formed three dimensional characters leap from the page with just one line of dialogue. The monster, in particular, is like a prickly Dumbledore with twig fetish, if you can imagine such a thing.

One of the most important, most striking things about this book, is that it is a BOOK. 'Yes. I know' I hear you cry. 'This is a book blog, I am reading a book review, you silly mare. Of course it is a bloody book.' Now, I love my Kindle, I covert an iPad, but there is nothing like cradling a proper hardcover than relishes it's physical status. I mentioned Jim Kay's amazing illustrations earlier. They don't just compliment the story - but it would be half the book without (yes, apologies for stating the bleedin' obvious again). This aren't dainty pretty pictures by any means, but they are just perfect.

I mentioned my delay in reading the last two thirds of the Chaos Walking Trilogy. Well this also stems from beautiful book syndrome - I was fortunate enough to find a pristine hardcover copy of 'The Knife of Never Letting Go' in the second hand bookshop where I used to work. Now, I can't NOT buy equally pristine copies of the other two, but this shall have to wait until funds permit me to do so. Gosh darn it.

Why I Love Skins...(or where I go a bit fangirl on your ass)

First off, apologies to anyone reading this who

a) doesn't have the foggiest what this 'skins' thing I write about is
b) who hates skins with a passion (but I guess you wouldn't have clicked on the link anyway, so I'm addressing this one to thin air)

Well, Skins in a British TV show about a group of teenagers residing in the lovely city of Bristol. It contains mucho sex, drugs, general naughtiness and it goes without saying that I LOVE IT.  It started in 2007 and is now about to air it's 6th series. You can get a bit more of a back story here. Needless to say, it's pretty damn good and, in my opinion, essential viewing for anyone who writes/loves contemporary YA.

It's unique structure, in which the cast iS changed every two series, has been praised/critisised/attacked with crazed vitriol, but it has made sure it has stayed fresh and noticed.

For me, in the context of writing YA, well, I wouldn't be if it wasn't for this TV show. Some of the first stories I developed stemmed from me attempting to think up a new, hypothetical cast and story lines for the show. Everything about it, the writing (definitely the writing), the acting, the photography, the way it uses music, just send shivers down my spine.

Now, I may not be it's target audience. The great stand-up and occasional Skins supporting actor, Chris Addison, recently said that Skins is only for teenagers. As much as I think he's a bit of a dude in every other respect, I am living testament to the fact that he is wrong on this count. I'm sure I'm not the only *cough* early thirty-something *cough* who can't get enough of it. I'm certain the fact that I read and write YA is a clear indication that a small/large part of personality has clung onto the seventeen-year-old mentality and refused to shake it off. Why have I become so obsessed with this show? Well, my theory is that when the first series was broadcast, I had just given birth to my first born. I have vivid memories of being heavily pregnant and not being able to switch on the telly without 'Standing in the Way of Control' shouting out at me. And, consequently, me pouring scorn over trendy looking try-hard trailer in my overly-hormonal state.
Well, I missed the first episode. Probably something to do with new-baby-woolly-head (it's a recognised condition - look it up), BUT I was intrigued enough to tune into the next one, focusing on the troubled Cassie. And from the moment we see her drifting down the college corridor, walking her fingers along the handrail, I was properly, utterly HOOKED. I think realising that that stage of my life was well and truly over made me want to cling onto this fantasy version even more.

Well, enough of the cod-psychology bollocks. Here's my top things about SKINS -

THE MUSIC

I never come across a TV show that uses music to such brilliant dramatic effect. Not just in terms of a well chosen soundtrack, but inspired musical set-pieces that move the story along and make us love the characters even more. So many, many to choose from (Cook doing Barry Manilow, JJ and his Ukelele Orchestra), most, unfortunately not on YouTube, so I'll give you the classic climax to the first series...*hits massive gong* WARNING, SPOILERS!



THE CHARACTERS

SOOOOOOOO PRETTY.......

Yes, we all know the magnificence of YA rests on the shoulders of the characters and this is no different. And what set we've had. I won't go into details on all of them, but my faves have been (in no particular order) (actually, in a sort of chronological order) Sid, Chris, Effy, JJ, Naomi, Alo & Mini. BUT my all time, top Skins bloke has to be COOK. Because, well, HE'S COOK!
And most of them are pretty easy on the eye too.

THE WRITING

Ok, ok, so, it's not necessarily a completely realistic portrayl of teenage life. I, for one, never partook in a granny steeple chase or attacked my frenemy with a rock to the noggin. Or, ahem, other stuff. But what it does do is so completely articulate specific emotions without patronising, whether it be getting your heart blown into smithereens, falling for the wrong person or the acute pain of friendship. The unique structure of the series, where most episodes focus on a particular character make the viewing experience so much more intense. More favourites, this time episodes -

Series 1 - Chris, Effy, The Finale
Series 2 - Sid (Just one hour of some of the finest TV you will ever witness), Effy
Series 3 - Thomas, Naomi, JJ, The Finale
Series 4 - Emily, Freddie, JJ (I think this one has to be my top pick - it has everything)
Series 5 - Alo

I have to admit, I'm a Gen 2 girl. Series 3 was just brilliant. It finds it's feet - just a little bit more outrageous, intense and beautiful. Here's a great fan vid I found today that sums it up - *hits even bigger gong marked 'SPOILERS'*



Series 5 came under a bit of stick - I have to say, I thought it played it a bit safe, but it still had moments of genius, and Series 6 looks pretty bloody amazing. I will be tuning in in, oh, just under an hour. And I hope you will be too...

And on a more literary note, I'll be doing a double review of the Skins Gen 2 and Gen 3 novels at some point in the not too distant future. Watch this space...

Home is Where the Jaffa Cake Is...

You may or may not have noticed, there has been a substantial delay between now and my last post. I have not been a lazy heffer. Well, not all of the time. After just over two years of Australian living my brood and I have decided that a life Down Under what not what we want right now. We missed London. We missed seasonal weather. We missed Marks and Spencers. And Boots. (you UK peeps know what I'm talking about) We missed living in a cramped little flat in our little corner of West Laaarrnndon. Cramped, but close to everyone and everything we love. It's remarkable how you have to travel to the other side of the world to realise where your heart truly lies. And it turns out mine rests in the Hammersmith/Shepherds Bush borders.

Yes, you don't know what you've got 'til it's gone, the grass is always greener, blah blah blah. But what about the BOOKS, I hear you ask. Well, if you're not, it's what you should be asking. And if you're not that fussed, well then I'll tell you anyway.

Here's what might be turning up on this blog in 2012 -

I'm planning a couple of themed months in the next few, er, months. First up, seeing as I won't be doing much of it in the near future, I will henceforth be designating February (or possibly March, depending on how lazy I am) the MONTH OF TRAVEL. Seeing as it's a bit of a non-month in many respects, my aim will be to brighten your dark mornings and early evenings with tales from far-flung shores and some closer to home. I'll be reviewing a bit of a mix - some travel-themed YA (coz that's what I loves reading), travel biographies, some classic travel literature. Pretty much anything that takes my fancy.



I'm also planning to do a month of Young Adult Classics. I haven't always been a YA nut. This is only a fairly recent development. So I feel like I should be genning up on the genre. I'll be looking at some big, proper classics and stuff which I, personally, consider essential reading. And maybe some books that I read as a Young Adult (because those days are long gone).


Just a quick mention of another post I'll be doing in the next couple of weeks - in honour of the impending news series one of my favourite telly shows, the magnificent SKINS, I'll be telling you all exactly why I love it so much and why I wouldn't writing YA without it. And just a bit of an excuse to post of my top clips.

And as for me, I'm hoping 2012 will be the year I knuckle down with this whole writing lark. Seeing as I won't emigrating again any time soon, I plan to be penning more articles, finishing my novel (nearly done with first draft - exciting times!) and generally being a right bore about it all.

Anyway, I'll let you know how it goes. Toodles for now. xx

REVIEW - 'There Is No Dog', Meg Rosoff (Penguin, 2011)

It turns out that God is a teenage boy, a spoilt brat called Bob, whose whims and urges have resulted in a rather erratic existence on Earth. Only his unassuming assistant, Mr. B, is there to try and clear up any disasters that occur. When Bob falls in love with zoo-keeper, Lucy, how far-reaching will the consequences be for life on Earth?

Bit of an oddity, this one. Not entirely unsurprising given this is Meg Rosoff, and I never know quite what to expect when I pick up one of her books. It can vary between automatic entry to top 5 books of all time (How I Live Now), to 'is that it?' (Just In Case). This one definitely falls closer to the latter, but didn't quite hit the mark in the heart-breaking stakes. But it's just not that sort of book...

I've never come across a YA book quite like this one. It breaks all the rules of the genre (head-jumping mid-page, paragraph, sentence) but gets away with it. Only just, mind. This is down to the skill of the writer - I'm sure I've said this before, but I don't think I've come across an author who can say so much with so few words. Her prose is so intelligent and succinct and I found myself marveling at it at least once a chapter. This involves much eyebrow raising, in case you were wondering.

Hopefully you've read the synopsis as I'm not sure I'll do a great job of explaining it. In short, god is a teenage boy, which explains why earth is so f****d up. Whenever he falls in love, or lust, natural disasters ensue. Or 'sex weather' as it is so brilliantly put.

In this scenario, we get the perspectives from pretty much all the supporting characters - his depressed right-hand pleb, he pet 'Eck' (a sort of furry penguin creature), his sozzled mother, the secret love of his would-be girlfriend's mother. You get the picture. At times, it felt more like I was watching a play rather than reading a novel. You never really get under the skin of any of the characters, but this didn't really matter too much, as it never felt like the sort of book you are supposed emotionally invest in. More like a fable of human nature.

A unique, thought-provoking read. Big ideas. It makes me happy to think of this book creating discussions and debates between teenagers.

REVIEW - 'Graffiti Moon', Cath Crowley (Pan MacMillan Australia, 2010)

After finishing Year 12, Melbourne teenager Lucy celebrates by embarking on a night of possibilities with her friends. Always on her mind is the possiblity of catching sight the mysterious street artist, Shadow, a boy she has set her heart on, despite never actually setting eyes on him. Instead, her path crosses that of Ed, a guy from a her past she would rather just forget...

And so, my quest to absorb as much Aussie YA as my brain can cope with in the next six weeks continues...

There's been so much contemporary YA from this country that being shouted about at the moment that's it's been tricky to decide what to feast on next. I've been reading and hearing many a positive word about this one. And I have been taking note and listening to these words studiously and have picked up a copy from trusted local library.

The downside of reading good reviews before you actually read good book - RIDICULOUSLY HIGH EXPECTATIONS. I try and I try to wipe away all preconceptions, but they do creep in, those little pesky critters and feast on my objectivity. I've read so much stuff recently that I have adored and I have to admit, this doesn't fall into that catagory. Definitely more of a like that than I love. It ticks all the right boxes, but it just didn't break/melt/ignite my heart in the way I expected it to. Just made it ZING just the teeniest bit.

I didn't really feel a great connection with Lucy from the start. The whole premise of falling for a myth, yes, I can buy that. But telling everyone about it? Would you? Really? I think not. She took this crush a little bit too seriously and comes across and a little bit too naive, which I just couldn't get past. Although I did start to warm towards her closer to the end, especially with her confusion and stress over her parents very confusing, very stressful relationship (a nice little sub plot there too).

Now, Ed, on the other hand... my kind of boy, without a doubt. I love my boy characters who wear their flaws on their sleeves. Man, if I was seventeen again... A great example of a well-rounded, complex YA hero, and I'm pleased the author gave up half the novel to his voice.

I'm a big fan of different story telling devices, and I liked the addition of Poet's little entries to break up the narrative. Although I wasn't that interested in the sub plot between Leo and Jazz (not a big fan of that name either, by the way), they gave us a little more insight into his relationship with Ed, and the book was all the better for it.

Overall, a good story, well-told. Just didn't get me into a emotional tizzy, I'm afraid.

REVIEW - 'Brown Skin Blue', Belinda Jeffrey (UQP, 2009)

Seventeen-year-old Barry Mundy, growing up with no father, a white mother and brown skin, is now a drifter, trying to come to terms with his darkest secret. When lands a job on a croc-jumping river cruiser in the 'top end' of Australia, how can he make sure that his past doesn't determine his future?

Anyone who assumes young adult fiction is all fluff and nonsense (we all know it is anything but, but many do not, or don't really want to know) should pick up this book and get completely lost in it. They really should.

I was a bit worried about starting this - I had the good fortune to attend a recent YA workshop run by the author - she was brilliant - encouraging and really inspiring, but part of me felt I wouldn't be able to completely enjoy the book because I'd been given an insight into the thought processes behind it. Is this a common worry? Anyway, I was being slightly ridiculous, because the writing is so damn good, I had no problem whatsoever getting lost here and had a fair few problems trying to find my way out again.

On the face of it, this is pretty bleak stuff. Barry is the recovering victim of a paedophile, struggling to come to terms with his past as he embarks on his sexual maturity. He decides he need to fill in the blanks of his family history and sets off to discover the identity of his father, escaping into fantastical story-telling when the reality never lives up to what he hopes.

Yes, weighty stuff, I think you'll agree. But as with most of the more serious, thought provoking reads, there is always a heavy dose of hope to get us through the rougher stuff. The balance here is just right - the author doesn't shy away from any of the more controversial material, and so she shouldn't, and Barry's pitch perfect matter-of-fact voice makes this all the more heartbreaking.

I love different story-telling devices and they're used to great effect here. Barry's thoughts on his potential father figures translate into fables reminiscent of those told in his childhood. This adds adds an ethereal layer to the stories, bringing together the themes of memory and fantasy. Just brilliant.

The supporting characters are all skillfully put to good use, fellow lost soul Sally, in particular showing us  how everyone has a story to tell and a secret to hide.

Just such an Australian book (and this is a major compliment, by the way) - the dusty setting, the dialogue, the vulnerability to the forces of nature, the isolation. I could almost smell the muddy river!

Very much recommended for pretty much everyone. In fact, I'm going to change my goodreads rating from 4 to 5 as soon as I've posted this.

Has anyone else read this one?

REVIEW - 'Looking For Alaska', John Green (Harper Collins UK, 2005)

Quiet outsider Miles Halter gets his wish of being transferred to the exclusive, unconventional boarding school, Culver Creek in order to seek out the 'Great Perhaps'. There, he falls under the spell of the equally unconventional Alaska Young...

This is my second encounter with John Green. Last year I picked a copy of 'Will Grayson Will Grayson' (collaboration with David Levithan) off the library shelf and thought it was bloody amazing  - a touch on the schmaltzy side, yes, but it had a feel good ending to beat all others. And it was intelligent, it didn't preach, it didn't patronise. I loved it.

Ok, I'll stop writing about that book and start writing about this book. Needless to say I had high expectations. And for the most part, they were met. Our narrator, Miles, or 'Pudge', as his is christened by his new best friends, it a good narrator - a reliable observer on a steep learning curve with plenty of 'firsts' to experience and plenty of questions to ask. He is likable and ever so slightly on the right side of annoying.

The structure is very clever and introduces an element of mystery - the first half leads up to the pivotal event of the book and the last half depicts the emotional aftermath. The pace doesn't sag and the whole thing kept me guessing (or am I just being a bit thick?). Yep, it ticks all the boxes so far...

HOWEVER, as with WGWG, these teenagers have a touch of the Dawson's Creeks about them - wordy, precocious, a bit....well, irritating, if I'm honest. This sort of pontificating just doesn't ring true as a teen experience for me. I found it very difficult to sympathise with Alaska, for instance, even after her back story is revealed. I'm pretty sure if I went to school with such an attention-seeking little madam then I would have avoided her like the plague. Consequently, I didn't really feel very emotionally involved with the story or most of these characters. For me this prevented a good book becoming a great book.

Right up until the last few pages I was bracing myself for a monumental anti-climax - I just couldn't see where the story could really go. But the last little nugget is brilliant - just keep reading, please. I think this is a book that would definitely benefit from a second read - not because I completely adored it and my life would not be complete without it, but because I think this is a case of the my personal enjoyment of the story improving with a better understanding of it - there are so many themes going on here, that I didn't really feel  their emotional whack until these final paragraphs.

Great writing, great plot, it just didn't grab me in the way I hoped it would. (But maybe it will in the future?)

Can I just mention the cover? I was reading the Harper Collins UK edition and I just loved it. I've discovered I'm a bit superficial when it comes to the packaging but this one is just PERFECT.