PRE-PUB REVIEW: Of Monsters and Madness by Jessica Verday

A mystery tale based on the life and works of Edgar Allan Poe has so much promise, which is sadly not fulfilled by this mediocre and somewhat sloppy attempt to emulate the master.  Oh, the names (Annabelle Lee, a scary raven scratching at the window, references to famous Poe stories) are all there, but the setting is off, and the idea that Poe would work as a maniacal doctor’s assistant seems too convenient.  The author did not bother to do the basic research necessary for a historical piece, and I find this disturbing as well.  The story is set in 1826 and she refers to the protagonist’s father as a doctor practicing without a license—something supposedly illegal, when in reality, Pennsylvania did not regulate the practice of medicine until well after 1850. If there were licenses granted at all it would have been by medical associations, not legal entities, so that is a total red herring.  Then, there is the whole Jekyll and Hyde split personality thing, and well, it’s all just too much.  It’s a shame, really, because middle school students often read Poe and enjoy him in English class, and it would have been nice to have a well written modern piece to give them once they’ve read through Poe’s own tales.   This short novel would only work for grades 7-9, and they would have to be desperate.   Try giving them something more subtle and nuanced, like Nathaniel Hawthorne or Poe himself.  There are always the Schwartz books (Scary Stories, Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark, etc.)  

Of Monsters and Madness will be available on September 9, 2014.

June’s Rating System:  Language—G; Nudity—G;  Sexual Content—PG;  GLBT Content—G;  Violence—R, there is  serial killer skulking about;  Substance Abuse—PG

 

CINDER, SCARLET, and CRESS, by Marissa Meyer

The story: Cinder is a cyborg mechanic in a futuristic world where a plague has killed millions and soldiers from another planet are waiting to invade. Kai is the emperor's son, about to be offered to the lunar queen as a husband to keep her from unleashing that storm of soldiers. There's no way the two would ever meet. And yet...they do. Could a prince ever fall in love with a cinder girl? And if he did, could they ever live happily ever after?

Watch my book trailer! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bRmxQxfIaGc

June Cleaver’s ratings: Language PG; Nudity G; Sexual Content G; Violence PG-13; Substance Abuse PG; Magic & the Occult PG; GLBT Content G; Adult Themes (exploitation of kids by adults) PG; overall rating PG.

Liz's comments: Here's a Cinderella story unlike any other you might have read. Meyer takes the original elements of the classic fairy tale--girl forced to work hard by a stepmother who's looking for a good marriage for her own two daughters; a ball, and an unlikely romance--and weaves them into a futuristic action and romance novel that boys and girls alike will enjoy--grown-ups too! Keep an eye out for the sequels: Scarlet (based sort of on Red Riding Hood); Cress (based sort of on Rapunzel) and, coming in 2015, Winter--maybe based on the Snow Princess? Each one adds a new heroine and hero into the mix, riffs on a classic story, and--unusually--gets better as it goes! What's not to like?

WONDER SHOW, by Hannah Barnaby

The story: Portia's family has disappeared, and the girl has been abandoned at a "Home for Wayward Girls". It's run by a creepy man who has...designs...on her best friend Caroline. When Caroline commits suicide rather than marrying Mister, Portia runs away--straight into the Freak Show. But what she finds there defies all expectations: surprisingly, she discovers friends, stories, and maybe even a home.

June Cleaver’s ratings: Language PG; Nudity G; Sexual Content G; Violence PG; Substance Abuse PG; Magic & the Occult G; GLBT Content G; Adult Themes (abandonment and suicide) PG; overall rating PG.

Liz's comments: This was a very strange story, and at the same time, quite fascinating. Placed in a setting that society now finds morally unacceptable (a freak show in the 1930s, which showcased "human oddities" like a bearded woman, Siamese twins, and a family of albinos). Portia is able to escape her stifling life at McGreavy's Home for Wayward Girls--her form of "waywardness" involves having an active imagination and a strong personality) to find an alternate definition of family that works for her.

PRE-PUB REVIEW: Tell Me by Joan Bauer

And now for something completely different!  I turned to Joan Bauer, because I can always count on her to be funny and uplifting.  She does not disappoint in this latest novel for middle grades about a girl who sees someone in trouble and has to figure out what to do.  Bauer delivers with the sweetly humorous voice of Anna, a middle school student who is also an actress.  Anna’s parents are working through some difficulties, so she goes to stay with her grandmother, Mim.  While at Mim’s, she gets a volunteer gig at the public library as a dancing petunia, don’t ask, just read it, and sees a girl who may have been taken against her will.  She calls the authorities, some of whom take her seriously, while trying to determine what she saw.  Fortunately, Winnie, the librarian, saw the girl and her captor, too, so they are able to work together.  It doesn’t hurt that Winnie’s grandson works for Homeland Security. Despite some obvious sucking up to librarians—libraries are “where things happen!”—and at least one slight anachronism—Winnie goes to the back room to get out a Vietnamese dictionary, rather than doing a language search online, the story is fun while at the same time exploring the responsibilities we all have to help each other and including a very brief primer on human trafficking, suitable for the middle grades.  I would not go to this as a sure fire winner, but it will be great for Bauer fans and for other middle schoolers who like a mystery with a happy ending.  Proof that an author can tackle sensitive and important subjects without resorting to bad language and graphic violence.  Thanks Joan!

Tell Me is slated to be published on September 16, 2014

June Cleaver’s Rating System:

Language—G; Nudity—G;  Sexual Content—G; GLBT Content—G;  Violence—PG;  Substance Abuse—G; Adult Themes—Human trafficking; social responsibility.  Both are handled with middle school students in mind. 

COUNTING BY 7s, by Holly Goldberg Sloan

The story: Willow Chance thinks her world has come to an end when her parents are killed in a car crash. But strange events in her life keep her from getting placed in foster care--and these same strange events also change the lives of everyone around her, from slobby Dell Duke (transformed into someone who cares!) to nail technician Pattie Nguyen and her kids, Mai and Quang-ha, and the taxi driver, Jairol, who might actually end up with a college education after all these years. Chance, or fate? (...and does it really matter which?)

June Cleaver’s ratings: Language G; Nudity G; Sexual Content G; Violence G; Substance Abuse PG; Magic & the Occult G; GLBT Content G; Adult Themes (death of parents) PG; overall rating G.

Liz's comments: On the surface, this is a deceptively simple story about a super-smart kid whose comfortable world comes to an end when her parents are killed in a car accident. Its charm comes from Sloan's skillful weaving together of the many separate life threads. Recommended!

THE GREAT TROUBLE, by Deborah Hopkinson

The story: Eel scratches out a living finding and selling things buried in the mud of London's river Thames, which is like a huge outdoor sewer. Little does he know that it's also the breeding ground for a deadly epidemic that will kill people he loves--and little does he know that he'll play an important part in solving the mystery of how the sickness spreads. Can a "mudlark" ever hope to escape the gruesome disease stalking London's filthy poor?

June Cleaver’s ratings: Language G; Nudity G; Sexual Content G; Violence PG; Substance Abuse PG; Magic & the Occult G; GLBT Content G; Adult Themes (death of parents, abuse by stepparents) PG; overall rating PG.

Liz' comments: Hopkinson attaches Eel's adventures to the real-life detective work of John Snow, a London physician with ideas about the spread of disease (as well as a pioneer in the use of anesthetics)to whip up an interesting historical thriller that combines mystery (what's the cause of the disease? And who's the creepy Fisheye Bill Tyler?), false accusation, and hint-of-gruesome descriptions of cholera. Too bad it's so hard to convince kids to read historical fiction!

RETURN TO ME, by Justina Chen

The story: Reb longs to get away from her controlling, list-making mother, and she's planned her escape: attend a college at the opposite end of the country. The only drawback is leaving Jackson, a boy who could be her soul mate, behind. But when her dad gets an unexpected job offer in New York City, mom kick starts the family into moving mode--and it turns out they're all going to be living less than an hour away from her college dorm: plenty close for Mom to be making unexpected visits. Even worse, once the family's boxes are delivered, her father delivers some earth-shattering news: he's leaving. Now what? Betrayed by her father, separated from her best friends, and stuck in a new place with a mom who drives her crazy, Reb has to learn to cope with her new reality. Or even harder: figure out how to make herself an all-new reality.

June Cleaver’s ratings: Language PG-13; Nudity PG; Sexual Content PG; Violence G; Substance Abuse PG; Magic & the Occult PG (psychic abilities); GLBT Content G; Adult Themes (parental abandonment and infidelity)PG-13; overall rating PG-13.

Liz's comments: Justina Chen (formerly Chen-Headley) is also the author of "North of Beautiful". Both books deal with difficult issues in ways that make them very girl-friendly. Reb learns to appreciate her mother and grandparents in unexpected ways, and also learns to accept and embrace things about herself--mostly, her visions and premonitions--that she's just brushed under the rug before. Though most girls won't have unexpressed psychic abilities to master, there are lots of things here that will resonate for readers of Sarah Dessen's books.