For those who enjoy the works of Scott Westerfeld, he has a new novel set in the world of his series, The Uglies, In this new novel, Imposters, twin sisters have been raised to live one life. The two girls are inseparable, and they exist as one. Rafi has been raised to be the perfect daughter and she is in the public eye. Frey has one purpose, she is to protect her sister. She has been trained to kill in defense of her sister. So, when a dangerous situation arises, Frey is the one who attends. But, things don't always turn out as planned. Frey finds herself having to chose whether or not to stay anonymous, or reveal herself in order to save herself, and ultimately save her twin.
0 Comments
Each year the Iowa Center for the Book chooses a book that will be promoted across the state. The purpose of the All Iowa Reads is to promote a sense of unity through reading by encouraging people across the state to read and discuss a single book. This program was established in 2003 and for the first time, in 2017, they added a Young Adult and a Children's selection. This year, the Young Adult selection is A Land of Permanent Goodbyes, written by Atia Abawi. A Land of Permanent Goodbyes is a timely story of refugees. It is a story of war and survival. It follows the journey of Tareq and his family as they realize that the only way to survive is to leave. They have seen their homeland torn to pieces and have left Syria to find safety and a future in Turkey and Greece. This is one refugee families story, but this story could be told hundreds of times just with different names. There are sayings that talk about old becoming new again like, "There's nothing new under the sun," and, "What goes around comes around." Well, I think this is true in literature also. Personally, I love a retelling of a familiar tale and today, I'm highlighting a book I read several years ago and a new version.
Scarlet by A.C. Gaughen is not a new story. It is the telling of Robin Hood, but with a twist. Will Scarlet is not the character that you expect. Because, Will is a girl. She has been running the streets and posing as a boy as she hides among the thieves of Nottingham. This is a creative and exciting telling of Robin Hood from the viewpoint of Will Scarlet. Now, transport yourself to the present, and what was old is new again. The Forest Queen by Betsy Cornwell is a fresh retelling of Robin Hood. This story follows Silvie, whose brother is the new Sheriff of Woodshire, as she runs away from his cruelty and joins up with others to create a community and family of her own. I have to confess. I have a love and hate relationship with series. I'm right there with a lot of Young Adult readers in that I love series. I love the time that a series gives to an author for the reader to develop a relationship with the characters. I love that they can thoroughly develop a plot line. There doesn't have to be jumps of assumption because they can completely develop the story line. So, why do I hate series. I hate having to wait. I may start a series and by the time the last book comes out, I may have to reread to get back into it. Or, it may take me the first few chapters to really jog my memory and get me back into the story. But, I still love series.
One series that I'm working on the first couple chapters of book three is An Ember in the Ashes. The third book is A Reaper at the Gates by Sabaa Tahir. It's been two years of waiting for book number three. When I started reading this series, I couldn't hardly wait to finish the first book. I'm reading book number three a little slower as I reacquaint myself with the characters. I'm already starting to pick up speed as I am remembering events that led me to love these characters and their story. If you want to read a really good series, and haven't tried An Ember in the Ashes, I recommend it. Another series that I thought was finished, but now has another book coming soon is from author, Leigh Bardugo. If you liked the series Shadow and Bone, you will look forward to King of Scars. This book comes out in January and will continue the story of Ravka, and secrets, and dark magic. |
Categories
All
AuthorHi! I'm Sonya, the Young Adult Librarian at Algona Public Library. I'll be sharing about YA books - old and new. Archives
June 2022
|