Hush: An Irish Princess Tale, by Donna Jo Napoli

I was completely engaged with this book, but wonder about it's designation as a YA title.  There are two reasons for my concern--the content of the story and some of the features of the writing.

This wouldn't necessarily be an easy read for young adults.  Perma-bound recommends it for 5th-9th grades with a 570 Lexile estimate.  The plot begins with Melkora's (the Irish Princess), brother having his hand inexplicable cut off while shopping in Dublin.  Shortly after that Melkora and her younger sister are stolen by slavers.  The remainder of the book is about her long voyage as a slave.  Rape, physical abuse, and the lives of slaves are the backbone of the remainder of the plot.  I certainly wouldn't want to have a 5th grader reading this material.

The writing is also a bit of a challenge.  Napoli makes some leaps during the narrative that might well confuse less mature readers.  Occasionally there are jumps in time during the narration that aren't obvious.  They would be confusing to readers.  Readers might also be confused by the historical period.  I don't think many 5th-9th graders are familiar with Europe during the Dark Ages.  Napoli is not specific about her time frame, but it is during early Christianity but post-Roman Empire.  I believe the setting/tone/events of the book will provide a relatively accurate picture of the time period.  Certainly much more so than some of the popular movies right now.  The characters become relatively well developed through the book.  The ending was not tidy--many readers will finish feeling dissatisfied.

This would be a useful companion reading for a high school world history course.  I would, however, strongly advise students that there are some very "hard to read" parts of the book (based on content).  The rapes are not sexually explicit, but they are quite clearly rape.  Not all students or their families would find the content acceptable.

All that said--I am still haunted by the book.  I'm certainly not an historical scholar, but I believe that the rich portrayal of this time period in Europe and the Middle East is worth the challenging materials in the book.  It would certainly liven up the study of the Dark Ages!

The Demon King, by Cinda Williams Chima

A student (thanks Stephanie!) recommended this to me.  I'm hooked!  In fact, I had to exert a great deal of self-discipine to drive past the library this morning.  I badly wanted to pick up the next book in the series, but have four other library books stacked up that I need to read first.  (As well as mountains of papers/projects to read.)

I figured out much of the plot as I was reading, but Chima's story telling skills got me through to the end.  I now want to know what happens next as the two main characters, Han Alister, and Raisa ana'Marianna are drawn together toward what appears to be a disastrous attempt to escape the dangers facing them.  The characters in the book are given enough depth to move this book beyond the simple popular series format into something substantial that can be read as a parallel or entry level book into more classic books.  It will appeal to readers who like the Lord of the Rings.  I would use it as a companion piece to The Odyssey.

I think I had best wait until the end of the semester to pick up the next title in the series.  

Chine, by Franny Billingsley

This was a reading accident!  My local independent book store had it up on the end of an aisle.  As I was waiting for a book discussion group I picked it up and began reading.   In the 20 minutes before the discussion I got hooked and put it on my "to read" list.

The book is a sophisticated read.  It was a finalist in the National Book Awards competition this year (for young adults).  It is well deserving of the honor but won't be for every reader.  The main character, Briony, is the narrator.  Set in a bizarre rural England setting, Briony has suffered some sort of trauma that makes her first person narration quite unreliable.  I was able to predict the resolution, but not all the details.  Even so, I was captivated by the language and tone of the book.

Billingsley writes almost poetically.  Readers have to be sensitive to her use of unexpected terms and willing to expend the intellectual power to infer her meanings.  It is not a simple book to read.  For a sophisticated reader however it is a book that will haunt you during the day.  I found myself eager to return to the story each evening.  I developed quite an attachment to Briony and will be eager to read the next book.

The Lexile rating of this book (600) is prefaced with an "HL"--meaning high/low--and easy reading book that will appeal to older students.  They recommend it for ages 13-17.  I can easily see Billingsley becoming a favorite author of many late middle/early high school readers.

The Wise Man's Fear, by Patrick Rothfuss

The second book of in the Kingkiller Chronicles is almost as compelling as the first.  We get two stories in one--the current tale of Kote, the inn keeper at the Waystone Inn, his assistant Bast, and the Chronicler who has come through looking for good tales.  In this "real time" story the world is a dangerous place with some sort of impending doom.  Kote and Bast have what appears to be some secret roll in fighting off the forces of evil.

In the other story, Kote is narrating his history as Kvothe to the Chronicler.  In this book we take up his story after his first years at the University (a school for magicians).  During this portion of the story we learn more about his education, the political intrigues at he University and in the world at large, and travel with him through various adventures.  The story told is indeed worthy of an epic.  There is one rather lengthy episode that I might have edited for "mature" content.  As it stands I will hesitate to recommend the series to high schoolers--at least not in an official capacity.  I might recommend it to students outside of school who I know are mature enough to handle some mature content.  Rothfuss' decision to include this is unfortunate.  I don't think it was necessary for the story.  (I worry that I'm becoming a prude--or just old, but I become impatient when a good story is spoiled by unnecessarily explicit sex/romance.)  Sometimes it feels as if authors believe they need to include it to get market share.  It could also be that I'm underestimating the importance of sex/romance to the average reader.  I'd love feedback on this.

That aside, the book kept me reading devotedly--missing sleep and neglecting other duties.  I should know better than to pick up a 1,000 page book at the beginning of a semester.  There is a twist at the end that would have me going out for the next book, but Rothfuss hasn't published it yet.  I'll have to be patient and fill in the time with other books.  If it were available I would be buying it.

Side Jobs, by Jim Butcher

A collection of short stories featuring the main and supportive characters from Butcher's Dresden Files series.  Reading these made me yearn for the next book in the Dresden Files series.  As always, Butcher's humor tickles me and his plots/characters compel me to continue reading.  This collection of short stories may be an excellent way to pull adolescent readers into the series or Butcher's other series, The Codex Alera.  Although readers of the series will be able to bring a layered and complex understanding of the characters and plot to these short stories I also believe that readers new to this would find each story engaging and lucid. 

Mastiff: Beka Cooper Series # 3, by Tamora Pierce (2011)

I have long been a fan of Tamora Pierce's work.  The Beka Cooper series is a particular favorite.  Over the series of books Beka works her way up through the "police" system in the land of Tortall.  Readers will have to be able to tolerate some ambiguity.   Even as a long-time reader of Pierce's books, I found myself having to "wait for it" in some of the references.  In this book Beka and her police colleagues have to rush to their Lord's call on a mysterious and highly secretive mission.  It's a sort of "Mission Impossible" set in Pierce's fantasy land of Tortall.

I read Mastiff using the "read for free" option on my ebook reader.  That meant I had to go to the bookstore regularly to work my way through the book.  I'm getting to know the staff at the local store quite well.  I found myself scheduling an hour of time each and every day so that I could finish the book.

In this book Beka not only has to "save the day" but she also has to contend with several personal losses (I'm not going to be a spoiler here).  Overall this in one of the most satisfying books I've read in the YA fantasy genre in a long time.

The Wizard's First Rule, by Terry Goodkind

I bought this during "bargain sale" at the Audible site.  I listened to it as I walked, cleaned house, cooked dinner, and other activities.  Overall is was a good "listen" and encouraged me to get my exercise in.  This series is very popular.  I did note however that when it was first released Publisher's Weekly didn't give it a glowing review. 

The book is "epic" in scope and the series continues for eleven books.  I'm not certain I'm up for that much.  I was enjoying the book--although it was fairly predictable as far as "fantasy epics" go.  Then, near the end we ran into some sadomasochistic torture.  It discouraged me.  I was really enjoying the adventures of  Richard Cypher, Zedd and Kahlan.  If it weren't for the S&M near the end, it would be a book I could recommend to any teen who needed something after finishing Lord of the Rings. I won't be reading the next book right away.  Maybe an audio book for gym/greenbelt is something I will enjoy in the future, but I have quite a backlog of audio books from that Audible sale to get through.