March Recommendations

Novels:

YOU BRING THE DISTANT NEAR, by Mitali Perkins, is a multigenerational story beginning with two sisters, Sonia and Tara Das, who move from London to New York with their family. Their Bengali traditions and people’s expectations make it difficult for them to fit in. The story follows as they grow into themselves and fall in love, and then follows their children as they do the same. It’s in these later chapters that we actually learn more about the girls mother, through the eyes of her grandchildren. It’s a lovely look at the way one family thrives while balancing the old and the new. (YA)

TEMPESTS AND SLAUGHTER, by Tamora Pierce, is the first book in The Numair Chronicles. It begins the origin story of a powerful mage who previously appeared in Pierce’s Wild Magic (of The Immortals series). Ten-year-old Arram Draper is a talented student at the Imperial University’s School for Mages. He’s been moved ahead two terms, but he’s still bored. Until the day he taps into “the strange shove of power” within, loses control of his Gift, and nearly drowns his entire class. Together with “leftover prince” Ozorne Tasikhe, and Varice Kingsford, the three friends are seen as “the most rapidly advancing students in the Lower Academy,” brought together by “[s]ome special thread.” Pierce is a wonderful writer. (YA)

In THE CRUEL PRINCE, by Holly Black, when a tall stranger mysteriously appears in the home of seven-year-old twins Jude and Taryn, "as if stepping between one shadow and the next," he proceeds to murder their parents right in front of them. Then he whisks away the twins and their older half-fey sister, Vivi, to live with him in Faerie. Now seventeen, Jude knows that life as a mortal in Faerie will never be easy. When she’s recruited to spy for Prince Dain, she takes the opportunity to prove herself and is drawn into dangerous games of power and intrigue. Fabulous, fabulous fantasy!!!! (YA)

Picture Books:

WHEN I AM BIG, by Maria Dek, is a beautifully illustrated counting book. From the beginning, where the narrator will be "really big, like 1 big giant!” all the way up to the lovely finish for the number 25, this book perfectly channels the magic of a child’s imagination. Gorgeous color, design, and whimsy from the creator of A Walk in the Forest.

OWL BAT BAT OWL, by Marie-Louise Fitzpatrick, is a wordless picture book showing how Mama Owl worries for her babies when a bat family moves into their tree. The babies want to play. And then it gets windy… A sweet reminder not to prejudge others, and a good example of how to write an engaging book that’s got a message.

WHY AM I ME? with words by Paige Britt and pictures by Sean Qualls and Selina Alko, is an expressive, child-friendly meditation on what makes us who we are. With questions like “Why am I me…and not you?” and “If I were someone else, who would I be?” this stunning book, illustrated with acrylic paint, colored pencil, and collage, will have readers wondering, too.

--Lynn

Shelf Awareness--Blood Water Paint

YA Review: Blood Water Paint

Blood Water Paint by Joy McCullough (Dutton, $17.99 hardcover, 304p., ages 14-up, 9780735232112)

Seventeen-year-old Artemisia Gentileschi lives for the moments when she connects "the brush to the paint to [her] breath to the canvas." Her father, Orazio Gentileschi, is a professional painter of "mediocre" talent. Artemisia labors as his apprentice, touching up his commissions with "strokes/of [her] own choosing," while always striving to better her craft. It's Artemisia's skill that brings in the clients who pay for their bread, but she's virtually invisible, as Orazio Gentileschi, rather than Artemisia, signs the finished art. "

In this "world of men"--17th-century Rome--women are merely "beauty/ for consumption." So when Agostino Tassi, who's been engaged to give her art lessons, actually seems interested in Artemisia's skill, she's easily smitten. All too soon, though, "Tino" shows his real interest is in taking Artemisia for his mistress. Devastated, the girl spurns him, and Tassi rapes her: "I've no authority," the fictional Artemisia recounts, "He is teacher, I am student,/ man and girl/ power, nothing..../ The sudden realization/ of what's going to happen next/ descends."

The real Artemisia brought charges against Agostino Tassi, even though she knew it was unlikely she would win. This piece of historical fiction, told in luminous verse and based on transcripts from that trial, tackles issues of gender and power in a way that is relevant today. In the novel, Artemisia's mother, before her death, told her daughter stories of two women, Susanna and Judith, who triumphed over the monumental injustices they faced because of their gender. Susanna and Judith serve as Artemisia's spiritual mentors, and from them she draws strength to paint her own path. --Lynn Becker, blogger and host of Book Talk, a monthly online discussion of children's books for SCBWI."

Discover: Seventeen-year-old Artemisia Gentileschi struggles to make her way as a woman and a painter in a time where women are seen as little more than property.

Shelf Awareness--Tempests and Slaughter

YA Review: Tempests and Slaughter

Tempests and Slaughter by Tamora Pierce (Random House, $18.99, hardcover, 480p., ages 10-14, 9780375847110)

Ten-year-old Arram Draper doesn't have any friends at the Imperial University's School for Mages. Though he's a talented student who has been moved ahead two terms, he's still bored--until the day he taps into "the strange shove of power" within, loses control of his Gift and nearly drowns his entire class. Headmaster Cosmas recognizes that Arram needs to be given a more "engaging" schedule to keep him out of trouble, and moves the boy into a new dormitory with "leftover prince" Ozorne Tasikhe, the emperor's nephew and fourth in line for the throne (therefore not likely to ascend to it). Together with Varice Kingsford, "the most beautiful girl [Arram] had ever seen," they form an inseparable trio. Headmaster Cosmas confides in Arram that he believes the three are "the most rapidly advancing students in the Lower Academy" and have been brought together by "[s]ome special thread."

As Arram's studies progress, his talents become more prominent. He meets Enzi, god of the river crocodiles, who warns Arram that he has "a destiny"--a part to play in "the battle one day." Not long after Arram hears this prophecy, a teacher is found dead and secrets and lies begin to surface. Heirs to the throne are dying, and suddenly Ozorne is not so far down the line of succession. Tempests and Slaughter, the first book in the Numair Chronicles, begins the origin story of a powerful mage who previously appeared in Pierce's Wild Magic (the Immortals Quartet). This new saga, with its deeply compelling characters and nuanced magical world, will surely attract new fans while welcoming back the old. This is first-class fantasy from a master writer. --Lynn Becker, blogger and host of Book Talk, a monthly online discussion of children's books for SCBWI.

Discover: Mage scholar Arram Draper develops his extraordinarily powerful Gift while learning to deal with schoolmates, teachers and political intrigue in his roommate's royal family.

March's Book of the Month--Long Way Down

March’s Book Talk book is LONG WAY DOWN, by Jason Reynolds. LONG WAY DOWN was recently named a Newbery Honor Book, a Coretta Scott King Honor Book, a Michael L. Printz Honor Book, and the audio (narrated by the author) won an Odyssey Honor at the ALA Awards this year.

LONG WAY DOWN tells the story of fifteen-year-old Will, whose brother Shawn has just been shot. The sadness feels like a tooth, “somewhere in the back,/ one of the big/ important ones,” has been ripped out and now there’s a “new empty space,/ where you know/ a tooth is supposed to be/ but ain’t no more.” After all the screaming, and the sirens, and the questions, Will knows that it’s up to him to follow The Rules: no crying, no snitching, and, finally, “[i]f someone you love/ gets killed/ find the person/ who killed/ them and/ kill them.” Will finds his brother’s gun, and gets on the elevator to look for the kid he’s sure is responsible for his brother’s death. But on his way down to the lobby, Will is joined by some very important ghosts who make him question everything he thinks he knows.

I think the form of the novel is pretty brilliant. Telling it in free-verse and, for the most part, during a one minute elevator ride allows the author to cut straight to the heart of his story. The riders who join Will form a chain of violence, and readers will feel all the pain, panic, and despair that drive him to believe he must follow the same Rules that got these ghosts from his past killed. The ambiguous finish hints at a possible end to the seemingly inevitable cycle of violence. Hope is good.

--Lynn