YA Magical Realism Pick: Winterwood

Winterwood
by Shea Ernshaw
Simon Pulse
2019
319 pages
ISBN: 9781534439412

Ethereal, mysterious, magical, and poetic, Winterwood will be your YA favorite read!

Nora Walker was born near the wild woods. Her family has been a part of the woods since before the woods themselves. The Walker women have a mythology of their own. Townspeople claim that the Walker women are witches and to be feared.

When a brutal snowstorm comes, Nora knows she'll be snowed in for weeks. There is no way to access the town for supplies or help and no contact with the outside world. She's not afraid; that's just the way things have always been, but when she finds an unconscious boy in the woods, she knows she has to save him. Her mother and her grandmother before her have left Nora with a spell book and book of healing cures. She works her magic, and the boy comes back to life. He's from the boys' camp on the other side of the lake, but doesn't remember much else.

Oliver has no memory of why he was in the woods or how he could still be alive. He's been missing for weeks, and there's no way he could have survived the wild woods. Nora knows something is wrong and the woods begin acting stranger than usual, but Oliver is so alone, Nora feels herself drawn to him. When a white moth begins to seek her out, she knows death is not far behind. What happened that night?

Suzy, a girl from Nora's school, one who has never spoken to her before, arrives on her doorstep, seeking a warm place to weather the storm. She has a tale of her own about the boys' camp. There is one boy dead and one boy missing. Nora knows she'll have to confront Oliver. What does he know about the dead boy? Did he have anything to do with his murder? The unexpected TWIST at the end is EPIC! I LOVE THIS BOOK!

Masterful storytelling and compelling, poetic prose that seems to sing off the pages make Winterwood the best YA read of 2019! This one will be up for awards season.

Beautiful cover art is a masterpiece of graphic design and marketing.

Highly, highly recommended. A must have and a MUST READ. 5 STARS!

Middle Grade Pick: The Serpent's Secret

The Serpent's Secret
Book 1: Kiranmala and the Kingdom Beyond
by Sayantani Dasgupta
Scholastic Press
2018
368 pages
ISBN: 9781338185720

Available February 27, 2018

The vibrant cover catches the eye, but the words inside will captivate and control middle grade readers as they race to finish this one. Book #1 is so much fun and filled with heart and voice that Dasgupta will have to dig deep into her writer's bag of tricks to top this one.

It is her birthday and twelve-year old Kiranmala (Kiran) has no idea that she's about to be the hero of her own destiny. She never believed stories that she is a real princess and that there are demons who will want to kill her. Demons called rakkhosh speak in rhyme no less! Kiran comes home from school and discovers her house has been ransacked. Well, worse than ransacked. It looks  destroyed. Her mother has left her a birthday card with a note telling her to trust the princes, some rupees and a weird piece of paper. In a few minutes said princes show up on her door step and promise to keep her safe. Oh, and it's also Halloween. So, there's that.

A rakkhosh is inside her house and means to devour Kiran and the princes if they don't escape immediately. Kiran finds the courage and spunk and defends herself and the princes. They climb onto flying horses and go in search of her parents even though the note said NOT to look for them. The princes assure Kiran that she is the real deal princess.

They travel into another dimension to find her parents, and Kiran discovers the princes have no idea where to search. As she finds her strength, Kiran becomes the princess her parents always knew her to be.

The voice of Kiran is hilarious and spot on. She is self-deprecating and genuinely funny and a joy to read. This is not a "girl" book. This is an everybody book for readers of fantasy. Give this book to those who love Rick Riordan's Percy Jackson series. They will have another series to collect.

This book will be on Scholastic book fairs this spring and will likely hit the bestseller list. It's going to be HUGE.

Highly, highly recommended grade 5 and up. Grade 4 readers who are good readers will enjoy this one also.

FTC Required Disclaimer: I received the ARC from the publisher. I did not receive monetary compensation for this review.

Percy Jackson PIck: Percy Jackson's Greek Gods

Percy Jackson's Greek Gods
by Rick Riordan
Illustrated by John Rocco
Hyperion
2014
311 pages with index
full color illustrations
ISBN: 9781423183648

Visit the world of Rick Riordan



Told with humor and a healthy helping of snark,  Percy Jackson--hero of the Lightning Thief series and demigod  son of Poseiden,-- tells the story of the Greek myths. Percy is a lovable narrator, making fun of the ancient myths at every turn. Mixing the old myths with teen humor and pop culture references makes this retelling fresh and compelling.

Beginning with the time before the gods, Percy tells of the creation of the world and the Titans. It all begins with Chaos and Gaea. A sky is formed and names itself Ouraos, Percy says, "...and, yeah, that's another spelling for Uranus. There's pretty much no way you can pronounce that name without people snickering. It just sounds wrong." Percy wonders why a god didn't choose a more palatable name "like Deathbringer or Jose..."

Kronos and the Titans rule in a time Percy calls "The Golden Age of Cannibalism." Kronos not only is in control, he is also associated with time itself. Although, "He couldn't pop around the time stream like Doctor Who or anything...," he does rule the earth and sky until the rise of the Greek gods.

Zeus and the others defeat Kronos with the help of the Hundred handed Ones,  and Zeus becomes the leader of the gods taking Hera as his wife.

Each Greek myth  is told in detail by Percy and peppered with hilarious barbs and comments. Percy opens the chapter on Demeter (goddess of the fields and wheat) by saying, "Try not to get too excited, because this chapter is all about the goddess of wheat, bread and cereal. Demeter just flat out rocks when it comes to carbohydrates."

Readers will be entertained and laugh out loud as they read each chapter. The lively street banter between Zeus and Poseidon sounds like an 80s comedy skit from SNL. Chapter titles are cute, too. "Poseiden Gets Salty" for the god of the sea. "Ares, The Manly Man's Manly Man" for the god of war. "Dionysis Conquers the World With a Refreshing Beverage" for the god of wine.

Highly, highly recommended for fans of Rick Riordan and the Percy Jackson series. Mythology lovers will want to add this to their mythology collection. A must have for library collections. Book lovers will fall in love at first sight.

When I saw a display of this book at the local Barnes and Noble, I was impressed. And kids will be, too! It's oversized, colorful, and beautiful and a copy would be an impressive thing to own. Fans of the Percy Jackson series will have to have a copy of this book. Illustrations by John Rocco are outstanding.

Grade 4-up.

FTC Required Disclaimer: I purchased this book for the school library. I did not receive monetary compensation for this review.

This review has been posted in compliance with the FTC requirements set forth in the Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising (available at ftc.gov/os/2009/10/091005revisedendorsementguides.pdf)

Mythology Pick: Fury

Fury
Book 1, The Fury Trilogy
By Elizabeth Miles
Simon Pulse
2012
370 pages

Fury captivates from the first pages; teens are likely to be swept up in the teen gossip and behavior, popular cliques and mean girls, hot guys and buff athletes, Christmas parties and double dating. This novel is a guilty pleasure for “Gossip Girl” junkies.

Ascension High School has its “ins” and “outs,” and once you’re out there’s no getting back in. Chase has learned the hard way to put on a false front in order to be popular. No one gets too close to Chase—he doesn’t want them to know his family’s problems and poverty. He pretends to be part of the rich crowd and playing football has made him part of their crew.

Em is happy that Zach is finally noticing her, but she can’t give in to her own selfish passions. Zach is her best friend’s boyfriend after all. Three beautiful and mysterious girls keep showing up on the scene and soon it’s pretty clear they’ll stop at nothing to get revenge.

Once you’re marked, you’re theirs. And they don’t forget. And they don’t forgive. Revenge is sweet.

The cover has beautiful teen eye appeal with the fire-red haired temptress, and this itself will likely help the book jump off book store shelves. The ending sets up nicely for the next in the series. Although the book is supposed to be about revenge and the Furies, they are only a small part. I expected them to make an earlier and more pronounced presence. Maybe book 2 will unleash their full potential.

Recommended grades 9-up. Some talk of sex, teen partying, drinking, bad behavior, suicide. Not for middle school.

FTC Required Disclaimer: I received this book from the publisher. I did not receive monetary compensation for this review.

This review has been posted in compliance with the FTC requirements set forth in the Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising (available at ftc.gov/os/2009/10/091005revisedendorsementguides.pdf)

Action Pick: The Serpent's Shadow

The Serpent's Shadow(Kane Chronicles, book 3)
by Rick Riordan
Disney (Hyperion)
2012
401 pages with glossary of Egyptian terms

Exciting, fast-paced, and brilliantly executed, the newest, and last, book in the trilogy wraps up the story of Sadie and Carter Kane, squabbling siblings who have each other's back, no matter what.

Sadie and Carter are once again joined by old friends Walt--who is fighting for his life, Bes--who is in a nursing home for gods--which is pretty funny in and of itself, Ra, the sun god, who is losing his marbles, and tending the home fires--cat goddess Bast--who looks after the kids.

The giant snake Apophis is evil and threatens to end the world but Carter and Sadie have to gather their friends and figure out how to defeat him. Chapters are told by Sadie and Carter with funny digs and satirical comments and asides from each of them. Riordan is at his comic best when describing Ra's behavior as a doddering old man or the gods residing at the nursing home.

Fans of Riordan's earlier books will HAVE to read this one for the ending to the series. What can't Riordan do? He's already tackled the Greek gods and now the Egyptians. Hmmmm... that leaves the Viking gods, I guess.

From one librarian and reader who met Riordan early in his writing career just before the release of The Lightning Thief, I couldn't be happier for his success! He continues to bring entertaining stories, imaginative characters, intriguing plots, and biting wit to nearly forgotten myths.

The entertainment value of The Kane Chronicles is huge--many readers, including me, are not as familiar with the Egyptian gods as we are with the Greek gods. I had a great time reading the novels and learning about the Egyptian myths.

Highly, highly recommended grades 5 and up and for Rick Riordan's fans! You must read books 1 and 2 to have any idea of what is happening in the series. If you're a parent or grandparent and haven't heard of these books, grab the set for your sons, daughters, or grandkids. The books are hugely entertaining and will help develop better and more interested readers.

FTC Required Disclaimer: I purchased this book for my library. I did not received monetary compensation for this review.