Snark and bullets fly!

Pageant queens find girl power…

They wave at danger!

Souls? Magic? Hell? The answer is:

This mesmeric book.

This book is an incredible example of voice guiding you through the story. Strangely, the title character is not the first person narrator (Tom), nor even the main character of the book. And yet the book revolves around Firegirl, a girl that has been horribly disfigured in a fire, and explores the way that a single person or single moment in time can define and change us for years to come.

More stunning than the distinctive and strong voice of Tom, is the way that Tony Abbott manages to show Firegirl in a light that always makes us feel empathy, rather than pity.  And despite the sensitive subject matter, there is not a moment of cheesiness in this book. How does Abbott manage to do this?

My best guess is that Abbott lets us see Firegirl through the eyes of a teenage boy who is trying hard to find his place in the world. Tom feels both revulsion and sympathy for this girl, without judging either emotion. His flaw is not callousness, but merely that this is the first time he’s ever imagined what it might be like to be someone else. Or what other peoples lives might be like. Tom is struggling with empathy, right in front of our eyes. It is this struggle that makes Firegirl so unique. And also what makes this story such a compelling read.

During the question and answer segment, a boy got up and asked her, “Why do your books always have sad endings?” Then he listed off the melancholy endings of book after book.

“Well, when you put it like that…” Kate laughed with the audience, looking a little sheepish.  Then she took a minute to really think about the question. She went on to explain that she didn’t mean to write sad endings,  but that life is full of the sad as well as the beautiful, and she tries to write what is in life.

This was a big difference from Meg Cabot (The Princess Diaries) who also talked about the sadness of life in her dynamic speech. But Meg Cabot’s answer to this uncomfortable truth about life, and especially childhood, is to write ‘pretty things.’ She said she wants strong girls and glitter and prettiness as an escape from what might be the bleakness of real life.

I found these differing answers to the same truth fascinating. And cleary, judging by the popularity of both their books, both are needed in our world, often by the same readers. Sometimes I want to read a world that has beauty and sadness that reflects our own, but whose stories often make more sense than the seeming randomness of our own lives. But other times, I want to escape, with glitter or dirigibles or princesses, to a world totally unrecognizable from mine.

What struck me the most in these two talks was that both writers, so different in their styles, their presentations, their books, knew why they wrote what they wrote. They were compelled by their subjects and it was this compulsion that led to the confidence in their speaking and in their writing.

Perhaps that is something it takes years to develop. Not just the courage to get your words down on the page or to stand up in front of readers, but a certainty in what you choose to write. Perhaps it is this, more than tears or glitter, that invites us into these authors’ stories. That, word-by-word, builds their worlds around us. And it’s this confidence that makes us want to stay.

It was the highlight of my summer and I always read a ton of Newberys cause they were worth more points.  It’s also how I discovered one of my favorite all-time books, Journey Outside  by Mary Q. Steele, which, tragically, pretty much no one else has ever heard of.  Luckily, I read it enough times for all of you.

Sigh.  Those were the days.

Well, there’s no prizes for this list, but if you’re going to the SCBWI Summer Conference or you just want a good summer read, these books might come in handy.  These are some of my favorite books written by authors coming to this year’s conference.  It’s YA biased and I’m only including books I’ve read, so some great ones are probably left out.  I apologize in advance!

Skin Hunger by Kathleen Duey -Awesomely dark fantasy, compellingly told in both first and third person.

King Dork by Frank Portman -Best made-up band names in the history of the world.

Catherine Called Birdy by  Karen Cushman -Cause medieval humor is the wackiest!

Tithe by Holly Black- Creepy fairies and teen angst…what better combination is there?

The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie – You will literally laugh and cry at the same time.

A Single Shard by Linda Sue Park -Exquisitely written, need I say more?

Millicent Min, Girl Genius by Lisa Yee – It’s funny cause it’s true.  Millicent’s humor is totally authentic.

And lets not forget picture books!  A couple of my favorite illustrator/authors are going to be speaking at the conference this year.

Every Friday by Dan Yaccarino – I can’t say enough good things about this simple, perfect father/son story.

Tuesday by David Wiesner – Flying frogs.  Let me just be clear about this.  Flying. Frogs.

Whether you’re a writer or a reader, summer is a time for sitting on the porch, munching on an Otter Pop, and falling into a book.  And each one of these is a perfect place to spend your summer vacation.

I’m going to be dedicating each day of February to a different great artist. A St. Valentine’s card of bookwormy wonder. Feel free to add your own praises and throw out suggestions. So lets start handing out some…

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Really wow.

I just listened to the amazing audiobook of Joey Pigza Swallowed the Key, read by the author Jack Gantos. I found myself laughing and tearing up at the same time. Joey Pigza, a kid with extreme behavior issues, is so friendly, so dynamic, and so exuberant that I fell in love with him, even while I saw how he disrupted the world around him. The way he tried and the way the world often misjudged him, or didn’t have the time or patience or understanding to give him, broke my heart. But Joey is unstoppable, and infinitely embraceable.

This first-person trip into the mind of Joey, filled with uncontrollable impulses, extreme fears and desires, and a very funny narrative, opened my mind and heart* to kid’s in Joey’s shoes. It gave me a window into attention deficit hyperactivity disorder in the same way The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time by Mark Haddon opened a window into autism. Joey Pigza Swallowed The Key is a masterful book, written with a quality and candidness that you don’t always see in stories for this age group.

Plus, Jack Gantos did an amazing job reading this book. He’ll always be Joey Pigza to me.

HaikuReview: Joey Pigza Swallowed the Key by Jack Gantos

Just sit. Just listen.
Just do the impossible.
Just wishes he could.

*I do realize that I’ve used the word ‘heart’ twice and ‘love’ once in this review. Because I heart heart heart Joey.

Defiant woman,
Pirouettes through the jungle.
Sweet, swirling story.