Pee's YA Boot Camp - Day 1

My penance for taking such a long hiatus from reading (YA at least) is to put myself through a grueling boot camp. Between now and early December, I will read as many of the YA novels nominated for the Cybils as possible AND...wait for it:

Provide a mini-review. Mini because boot camp is all about intense workout bursts, not marathon training. So my reviews will be true to the boot camp mentality - my bare thoughts on the book and what sort of reader I think they'll appeal to.

Why yes, I am a little crazy. But I'm also way behind on reading YA. I believe the last I read was the Hunger Games trilogy.

How much has the landscape changed since my last book hit shelves in 2009? I can tell you I'm still not seeing a boat load of brown YA - which may explain why they're also missing from Cybils noms.

I know you're out there, books!!!

So here we go. Day 1 reads...

Blink & Caution by Tim Wynne-Jones
I love a good suspense novel. Among the adult fic I read, it's my go-to genre. So, I was looking forward to reading a story revolved around young characters. The premise of Blink & Caution sets the reader up well - two "street" kids find themselves in over their heads. Blink is the only witness to a crime that involves corporate intrigue and Caution has stolen a guap (i.e. a lot of money) from her drug dealing manfriend. No not boy. He's a grown man.

What I thought right away is - wow how will they get out of this? Suspense novels are all about that ride you take as you see how the characters emerge (or not) from the mess they stumble upon.

That's where I walked away unsatisfied. I overlooked the revolving POVs even though Blink's chapters - told in second person - distracted me. Caution's chapters, in third, flowed more organically. I cared about the characters, but can't help but wonder if Blink would have been more rounded out had his chapters not been in second. That lack of well-roundedness played a part in why I felt the story was wrapped up too neatly and there were some character trait inconsistencies (Caution vacillated between tough girl and innocent) that stilted my believability.

I'll admit, as a hard core suspense fan my expectations were pretty high. It kept me turning the pages - and for sure that counts for something, but in the end I walked away less satisfied then I'm used to when I read that genre.

The Absolute Value of Mike by Kathryn Erskine
I'm not one of those adults who thinks all kids are totally naive. I know that mature characters such as fourteen-year-old Mike not only exist but may be more the norm than the not-so-worldly characters often portrayed in fiction. Problem is, there's maturity because of circumstance...which exists in Absolute Value:

* Mike's mom has died.

*His father is an engineer and genius who processes facts only, never emotion. My first thought was, how did this man ever got married and sire a child?

*Because of his father's total lack of connection, Mike has pretty much raised himself and taken care of his father.

So it's ripe for this kid to be mature. But then there's maturity because every adult around you is so loopy and over the top, that the character is forced to be the most reasonable person in the room. The difference is, the latter comes off contrived. Had it been left at the above facts, the reader would have understood why Mike is such a fixer/problem solver.

Instead, added to the mix, nearly every adult Mike comes into contact with is portrayed as half off their rocker or rocked by some past tragedy.

The Absolute Value of Mike is a warming story. Kid goes to live with distant relatives and finds himself needing to help an entire rural town get its act together. Nice, right? Yes. Pee isn't heartless, after all.

But the story is more MG than YA. It's all about how something is presented. And had I read it in the vein of MG, I wouldn't be so tough on it. I often forgive MG books that are so sweet they're syrupy or whose "lesson" is worn proudly on its sleeve. Though I must say, MG is getting edgier and my views on that may have to change with the genre. Still, traditionally you can get away with that vibe in an MG. Not so much in YA.

The Absolute Value of Mike came off as one of those books that adults want kids to read. I'd recommend this for an avid 9 or 10 year old reader. But the average YA reader may find it too tame.

Flirt Club by Cathleen Daly

Flirt Club is cute.

I almost ended that review there, then thought - wait, that's not fair. Used the wrong way, cute comes off as a total back-hand compliment. And I don't mean it that way.

Flirt Club's story is told through letters and emails passed between the characters and journal entries. I think the story's structure will really appeal to eleven year old readers. I'd say ten but these young ladies are dealing in matters of the heart, so for parents who don't want their ten-year-old discussing the art of flirting...it may not be for them. Eleven year olds are either most definitely dealing with that in middle school or know a friend who is.

The note passing and journal entries are ultra girly and I think most tween readers will relate to the characters' silly, yet edged with growing maturity, outlook on school, friends and flirting. But its structure would likely turn off older readers. If this were an MG book, this mini-review would be all positive no neg. It's however, competing against traditional YA for the Cybils so that's how I approached it.

I think MG and Tween novels can get away with either being deeply character driven or totally driven by devices such as an entire novel in Instant Messages. However, when we're talking competition, story and character development have to be expertly melded in YA novels. And because of the book's style it took about 50 pages before the actual story emerged. Once it did, I found myself wanting to know the outcome. But 50 pages is a long time to wait for the "real" story to begin.

Censorship Whoomps

If ever there was a case for how ridiculous banning books can get, just check out the books in the poster above. These were some of my favorite children's books. Sure those old hags in James and the Giant Peach were scary as hell, but it made the story all that more delicious!

Pee's celebrating Banned Book Week by sending you this PSA:

Don't give kids one more reason not to read. Support Banned Book Week!

If I have time, I plan to participate in the Virtual Read-Out.

Interested in my longer view on banned books? Check out my post Eff The Censors at The Brown Bookshelf.

This PSA has been brought to you by the National Stop Hating on Books Foundation. Yes, I totally made that up. But please, by all means, return your regularly scheduled program.

Welcome to my World

If you've found your way here you must love young adult fiction or you were looking for publishers clearinghouse, whom I unfortunately share initials with. If you were looking for pch dot com, sorry. Visiting here won't make you eligible for a million bucks, but it will introduce you to a great series. So if you're into reading, stay awhile.

My website tells you pretty much all you need to know about me and my books, but it's been awhile since I've updated the JORT and you've come all this way, so I thought I'd do a little tutorial.

Picture This
My author head shot is hella old. I took it back in 2006 right before Kensington Books launched the Del Rio Bay clique. At the time I had an 11 year old and a 2 year old and rocking a short curly 'do was the ultimate in time saved, come mornings. It also really fit my pie-face. But now I'm in the midst of the great twist experience. The goal is to grow out my perm and go back to natural hair but longer. Eeks!

This is my first try at the spiral twists.

A little more hair than I care for, but you have to start somewhere.


What's Up
If you're a first time visitor to the JORT it only takes a tiny scroll down to see it's been over a year since I last blogged. I could ignore that fact or I could claim the usual - I've been busy. But the truth is, if you're living life you'll always be busy. So it's a pretty lame excuse.

My life is always a whirlwind. Whether or not that wind includes writing is the X factor. From 2002 through 2008 I juggled writing the series with raising my family, coaching my daughter's competitive cheer squad and working as a local government PR chick.

2008 marked the year my life took a decidedly downward spiral and writing didn't just sink to the bottom of my priority list, it fell off altogether.

I won't bore you with the details, but between 2008 and March 2010 I had a major car accident which left me out of work for nearly 3 months and unable to walk, Kensington decided not to renew my contract so I had to end the Del Rio Bay story one book earlier than I wanted, my dad passed away and I was laid off from my job.

Many writers turn life's turmoil into good fiction. But the constant flow of challenges thwarted my ability to write and crippled me creatively. I never lost faith that I'd go back to writing, but writing took a backseat to my issues. I don't know if that's what it feels like to "find yourself," but it was three long years of constant unpleasantness.


Back in the ring
I started a new job last August (yay, I can pay my bills now) and thanks to a small circle of writing friends, I stayed connected (just barely, mind you) to the writing community. I officially started writing again about three weeks ago.

While things don't yet flow nearly as seamlessly as they used to, they're cranking up nicely. I'm loving my new WIP and if the writing Gods deem it so, in no time I'll be back to the crazy world of submitting my work and complaining about the level of promotion involved in pushing a new book. Stay tuned.

The Series
The Del Rio Bay series is my debut work. I love this series. And since this is my blog and they're my books, I don't need to be modest - they're damned good books.

They're as good as any of the bestselling pop lit series. But publishing isn't as logical as all that. If you hit a bookstore to look for my books, you'll have a hard time finding it on shelves. Don't ask me to explain why, the distribution of my books has always been a mystery shrouded in a riddle. Since I can't control it, I've always simply encouraged readers to order it online: Books-A-Million, Barnes and Noble and even though I'd much rather you pay full price for it then like twenty-five cents, I still give Amazon love.

And there's always the library. Remember libraries? Well they're still holding on and they've always had the series at the ready for readers. *mwah* Love 'em for that.

Next...

I don't know the answer to that. I'm taking it one step at a time. Being an author is exhausting. Writing books is only step one in the entire process. So even before I ran into all those bumps in the road, several years ago, I was feeling the burn out from churning out and promoting five books in a short window. I learned a lot about publishing that I hope will help my experience the next go-round. For now, I'm just happy to be writing again.

I won't promise to blog regularly. But I'll attempt to when I have something to share. Meanwhile, go grab a good book...preferably one of mine.

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Raising a Princess

There used to be a time when the word Princess had a certain dignity to it. That was before the tiara - world wide symbol of princess status, became associated with bridezillas screaming for obedience from their wedding party and vendors and twenty-one year olds wearing them in a bar on their birthday in an attempt to hold on to a youth quickly slipping past them.

Now you call somebody a princess and it's almost tantamount to a backhand compliment.

That's the problem with how fast the world changes and people's ignorance of the past. Too many words have been permanently redefined based on changing behavior.

But I still hold on to princess as a positive. In royalty, a princess is someone who is groomed in not only social etiquette but community awareness. Real princesses are aware that the world does not revolve around them, but that they're fortunate for their status and must continue to nurture the world and people around them. Pay it forward and back, simultaneously.

I'm raising two princesses. Yes, they're slightly spoiled. In my opinion, every kid should be to a degree. But they're also aware that there's a difference between good fortune and good luck and that the bulk of their lifestyle and values are based on the former.

They're being taught to treat others as they want to be treated. To have good judgement without being moralistic and to surround themselves with those who love them and can be trusted.

One day they'll be queens of their own household and maybe have little princesses of their own. And maybe by that time the true definition of the word will have righted itself.