Book Review: Water: Tales of Elemental Spirits

This four-star collection of six short stories by husband-and-wife collaborators Robin McKinley and Peter Dickinson is imaginative, satisfying, and extremely well-told. The tales are filled with mer-folk, sea serpents, water horses, and more, however, these are not your average mermaid tales. The rendering of the various worlds of the merfolk abound with rich descriptions, satsifying plots, and variety. Personal favorites among these stories included Water Horse (McKinley), Kraken (Dickinson), and The Sea-King's Son (McKinley). This last one surfaces as an unusual retelling of McKinley's favorite fairy tale, Beauty and the Beast. Excellent! [266 pages.]

Book Review: Along for the Ride

Light enough for the beach but filled with characters that are fleshed out just enough to leave you wanting more, Along for the Ride is a good lighthearted read that's perfect when you just want to relax.

Auden West is a teenage academic pro and the daughter of Dr. Victoria West, English professor extraordinaire, and Robert West, an "in the works" writer. Her parents are divorced, and her father is remarried to a twentysomething young thing named Heidi. Auden's summer begins with an invitation from her stepmother to come visit them and the new baby, a girl named Thisbe. (It's from Shakespeare, Auden's dad explains. He likes names with character.) Uncharacteristically, Auden decides to visit, realizing that this could be her last chance to connect with her dad before college starts, and later, her life as an adult.

By the end of the novel, she's learned a lot about relationships with people (and not just the boyfriend kind-- her family and new friends as well). I liked this book because you get to see the main character grow as a person, but you also see the people around her grow as well. Most of the characters in this book started off being complete jerks, but as the novel progressed, they learned a bit from their mistakes and tried to become better people. As Adam and Maggie have taught her, it's worth it to keep trying.

Book Review: A Fairy Went A-Marketing

This beautifully illustrated version of Rose Fyleman's original poem is a nice change of pace from the ordinary. The artist, Jamichael Henterly, draws his inspiration from nature and creates a beautiful fantasy world. This is one of my favorite books from my childhood, so I'm a little biased in its favor... but if you can find it, the illustrations are wonderful!

Book Review: Gamer Girl

If it's possible to have a crush on a book, I think I have one on Gamer Girl! After picking it up off a library shelf at random, I tore through its 224 pages in three hours and forty-five minutes, because I just had to know what happened next. It's not that it's packed with action; it was just such a refreshing change from the average young-adult fare that I couldn't help but enjoy it.

Maddy is a skater/emo girl who loves manga (Japanese comics), drawing, and recently for her, video games. Her parents have just divorced, and she's going to a new school. Unfortunately, things at her new school take a bad turn on the very first day, and she has a hard time making new friends. She also won't get to see her dad as often due to the divorce, so for her birthday, Dad gives her the game Fields of Fantasy so they can hang out in the virtual world. However, Dad doesn't seem to be able to hang out much there either, and so Maddy (alias Alora in the game) ends up hanging out virtually with a kid named Sir Leo. Sir Leo is a lot of fun, and before Maddy knows it, Sir Leo is also Maddy's best (and only) friend.

The book is good with this, too, however. Maddy's dad tells her not to give out too much information to strangers online, pointing out that he could be anyone-- not neccessarily the sixteen-year-old guy he says he is. And later, the book points out the dangers of gaming too much when Maddy's dad ditches her for his online gaming buddies. Maddy clearly sees that there is a difference between being a gamer and being a computer addict. Conquering her fear of the bullies at school, she learns to stand up for herself, makes some new friends, and discovers Sir Leo's true identity.

The book, published in 2008, is written very much in the "now"-- you'll find references to things like Facebook, Myspace, cell phones, and actual manga titles like Fullmetal Alchemist. This part of it was especially well-done. Too often, name-dropping feels like an advertisement, but in this book, Mari Mancusi makes it work, adding to the feel that Maddy could very well be someone you actually know. I also felt that Mancusi did a good job with the 'internet dangers' part, making sure that her readers know to watch out, without lecturing. Overall, I really enjoyed the book, and felt that it was refreshing and well-written.

Book Review: Treasure at the Heart of the Tanglewood

This book by Meredith Ann Pierce has been one of my favorites for quite some time. I always finish it thinking that the ending was a little weak-- and weird-- but I like the beginning and middle so much that I always re-read it. Treasure at the Heart of the Tanglewood is about a girl named Hannah, who lives in the middle of the Tanglewood in a hut with her companions: Badger, Magpie, and three mischieveous fox pups. They can talk to her and she can understand them, unlike the local villagers, who keep their distance unless they need medicinal assistance (for Hannah is a healer). She is also the ward of a Wizard, and each month she must brew a special tea for him. Thus she has always done, for as long as she can remember.

Before long, Hannah starts to realize how odd it is that neither she nor Magpie nor Badger (not to mention the too-young fox pups) can remember how they came to be living in the Tanglewood. What is love? Who is the Wizard, really? And why do young, handsome knights keep venturing into the wood? As Hannah begins to discover the answers to these questions, she also eventually discovers who she truly is and the power that lies within her.