Recent Reads and Happenings

How can it possibly be December already? I've got our Christmas shopping done (all books, of course) but somehow I still find myself surprised that we're heading into the final weeks of 2012. It's been a busy year!

So what have I been up to lately? Working on the grant application to seek funding for my Eureka! Leadership Program project, reviewing books for School Library Journal, accepting taskforce/committee appointments for YALSA and my state library association, blogging for The Hub (my latest post is about gender-neutral names in YA novels).

What have I been reading? 

The Raven Boys, by Maggie Stiefvater
I've read some of Stiefvater's previous works, and I liked them, but none hooked me as much as her latest book did. The Raven Boys is a most excellent blend of eclectic elements-- a family of psychics, a group of elite boarding school boys, and a quest to find a legendary Welsh king said to have been buried in the hills of Virginia. I was riveted. Stiefvater's prose is always lush and gorgeous, and the plot elements really clicked for me in this one. It may be personal preference- I'm just not that into werewolves or horses- but I think this is her best work yet.

The Fire Horse Girl, by Kay Honeyman
Historical fiction lovers, keep an eye out for this title in January 2013. Honeyman's debut novel tells the story of a headstrong girl who leaves her small village in China with hopes of a new life in San Francisco during the 1920s. I haven't seen many YA books addressing the difficulties Chinese immigrants encountered in coming through Angel Island to enter America, so this was a refreshing read. Honeyman's historical research shines on every page, and the characters are interestingly flawed and three-dimensional. Also, how gorgeous and eye-catching is that cover? I love it! (ARC for review generously provided by Scholastic via NetGalley.)



What have I been up to?

Last weekend, I went to the grand opening of the Whittwood Branch Library in the City of Whittier. The director of Whittier's library system is one of the mentors I was honored to meet at the 2012 Eureka Leadership Program, and I wanted to take part in celebrating her success.

It was fun and interesting to observe a library event as a spectator-- I'm used working these types of events as a librarian, so I really liked being able to step back and witness this community's deep appreciation for their library.

Maybe the best part of the event was seeing how many people came out on a Saturday morning- during the holiday season, when they could have been shopping, no less!- to support their new public library. Hundreds of eager library patrons lined up to enter the building, as soon as the ribbon cutting ceremony was done, they streamed into the building and immediately started using all the resources the library offered. It was truly inspiring. Congratulations, City of Whittier!

Giveaway Winners & Other Stuff

Thanks to everyone who entered the Dear Teen Me and Diviners giveaways on my blog over the past couple of weeks! The winners have been contacted. Congrats, Ashley R. and Tina Crossgrove!

I was also the lucky winner of a blog giveaway recently, and just wanted to publicly thank Rori of Rori Roars for the Ballet Beautiful Blast Series DVD! I like doing the Ballet Beautiful exercises to build up strength between actual ballet classes, so I'm really grateful to have won this prize. If any readers of my blog are also into ballet, you should check out Rori's awesome blog. (By the way: I am happily back to my ballet classes after injuring my toe a couple months ago, for anyone following along. Whew!)

What else? Obviously, I've slowed down in my blogging lately. I've been busy! Still reviewing books and apps for School Library Journal and blogging for The Hub. And in September, I was one of 32 California librarians to participate in the Eureka Leadership Institute. After an intense week of learning, discovering, and making connections with amazing people in the library field, I am now embarking on the implementation of a year-long, grant-funded project that will benefit my library's community. I am so honored to be a part of the Eureka Leadership Program and I know I'm going to learn so much through the experience.

In other news, I just went to an awesome author event at the beautiful Encinitas Library in San Diego county: YA in the Sun.

Twenty amazing authors were there to mingle with readers and sign books, and everyone had such a great time. We'll have coverage of this event up soon at Authors are ROCKSTARS!

Book Review and Giveaway: The Diviners, by Libba Bray

Bray, Libba. The Diviners. 592 p. 2012. Little, Brown. Hardcover $19.99. ISBN 9780316126113.

What can I say about The Diviners? It's like Libba Bray sat down and said, "Now, Allison, I know you're a big fan of my work. What would YOU like me to put in my next book?" Because I swear this book was practically tailor-made for me! Let's take a little inventory of the things I loved about this book:

• Extensively researched 1920s setting. 
• Plucky heroine with snappy dialogue. 
• Diverse cast of characters. 
• Fascinating Victorian/early 20th century spiritualism.

Yep, it's awesome! And creepy. Awesomely creepy! Creepily awesome? It may seem a little daunting at nearly 600 pages, but the intricate plot and strong pacing kept me riveted. Bray introduces a large cast of characters, and juggles their intertwining storylines with grace. This is the first volume in a four-book series, and I am definitely looking forward to the sequel.  

I was thrilled to get a chance to meet Libba earlier this year at the ALA Annual Conference and chat with her about The Diviners. She is just as awesome as you would expect!

Be sure to catch our podcast interview with Libba and her amazing editor, Alvina Ling, on Authors are ROCKSTARS!

While I was reading The Diviners, I kept thinking about Black Phoenix Alchemy Lab, a small retailer that creates all-natural, hand-blended perfume oils with a "dark, romantic Gothic tone." I could see the Lab having a field day crafting the most incredibly evocative scents to compliment the eerie imagery from this book. In fact, there are already several scents in the Black Phoenix catalog that remind me of The Diviners. For example...

OUIJA 
Lush parlor rooms draped in thick velvets and gilded in gold, unearthly whispering in the distance, fleeting flashes of wraithlike figures rushing just outside your vision, the chill of a phantom presence brushing by your cheek, the inscrutable knowledge that disembodied eyes are peering at you from darkened corners-- this is the essence of Victorian-era spiritualism: rosewood, oak and teak notes with wispy blue lilac, tea rose, dried white rose and ethereal osmanthus.

OMEN
Deep, mysterious, and full of dark portents: oakmoss, juniper berry, myrrh and patchouli.

THE RAVEN
Sleek, dark, and ominous. Violet and neroli mingled with iris, white sandalwood and dark musk.

INTRIGUE
A sultry, exotic scent that inspires devious plotting and clandestine affairs. It is a scent painted in artifice, veiled in deceit, and slithering with whispered secrets. Black palm, with cocoa, fig and shadowy wooded notes.

VEIL
A quiet scent, soft, calm and enigmatic. A perfume of mystery, of whispers, and of secrets behind secrets. White sandalwood, lilac, gardenia, violet, orris, lavender and ylang ylang.

Are you convinced that Black Phoenix Alchemy Lab goes perfectly with The Diviners? Then I have a giveaway for you!

This giveaway includes the following:

• A Diviners pendant on a black cord, in a small burlap bag.
• Sample vials of Ouija, Veil, and a few other Black Phoenix Alchemy Lab perfumes that remind me of The Diviners. (To be honest, I have quite a collection of sample vials, so I'll throw in some random ones just for fun!) 

To enter, just comment on this post and tell me:
1. Your favorite thing about The Diviners (or what you're most looking forward to about this book, if you haven't read it yet).
2. The Black Phoenix Alchemy Lab scent that tempts you the most. (Take some time, browse their catalog! They offer hundreds of scents and the descriptions are alluring. And no, I am not affiliated with this company in any way- just a big fan.)

Be sure to leave your email address with your comment so I can contact the winner. Contest is open to US residents only. Enter by November 8th for your chance to win.

Blog Tour Stop: Dear Teen Me

Anderson, E. Kristin & Keneally, Miranda (ed.). Dear Teen Me. 192 p. 2012. Zest Books. Paperback $14.99. ISBN 9781936976218.

I'm thrilled to be a part of the Dear Teen Me blog tour!

This book, based on the awesome Dear Teen Me website, hits bookstore shelves on October 30th from Zest Books. Distributed by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, Zest is one of my very favorite publishers of teen nonfiction. I know I can always count on something edgy, entertaining, and informative from them, and Dear Teen Me is no exception. It's a compelling read.

Dear Teen Me is an anthology of letters from authors of young adult fiction giving advice and insight to their teen selves. Contributors include Ellen Hopkins, Lauren Oliver, and Sara Zarr, among many other fantastic authors. Ranging from heartbreaking to hilarious, their letters share the most soul-baring, cringe-inducing, and life-altering moments they experienced during their teen years. There is an overall message of hope and affirmation in these letters-- a reminder that we all experience ups and downs in the process of growing up, and we can all come out on the other side, older and wiser.

It's the perfect book to curl up with on a contemplative evening. If you're an adult, this book will make you think about what you would want to tell your teen self, and remember what it was like to be at a such a pivotal point in your life. If you're still a teen, it will make you think about what you're trying to get through right now, and encourage you to realize that you're not alone.

Now here's the part where I take you on a nostalgic pictorial tour of my own teen years... 

But before we journey back in time to the 1990s, I should mention that if you read all the way through this post, there's a giveaway at the end! Okay, here we go--

I was a teen in San Diego during the mid-'90s, and I remember those years fondly. I was kind of a bookish geek, but given the fact that I'm a librarian now, that's no surprise, right? Middle school was hard for me. I had trouble figuring out who I was and where I fit in. But by high school, I was feeling more comfortable in my own skin. Not perfect, but pretty happy.

I had really long hair.

I reveled in wearing pleated miniskirts and Mary Jane high heels Thank you, Clueless, for that fashion aesthetic!

I did a lot of plays and musical theater, and absolutely loved performing. Every theater experience was so important to me-- from playing an extra in Our Town as a freshman to getting the lead role in Steel Magnolias during my senior year. (I can't quite explain my fashion choice in this picture from a musical revue, but I'm pretty sure vests were considered stylish at the time.)

I was a cheerleader. Mostly to earn the PE credit, and certainly not because I was an amazing dancer. I wasn't! It took me forever to learn each routine (and also, I never actually understood football). But I tried really hard, got to know a great group of girls I might never have spoken to otherwise, and had so much fun.

I had an awesome group of friends. We used to pass notes in class, use ridiculous code names to talk about cute boys, and laugh at inside jokes built up over layers of years.

If I  were writing a letter to my teen self, a la Dear Teen Me, I might include the following...

• Study harder. Seriously!
• You're not the only one feeling angsty. It's just part of being a teenager. You'll be okay.
• Do me a favor and stick with ballet instead of quitting after 6 months. 
• Please don't wear this outfit:

The dress is cute, but why the hat? Why?? Oh, 13-year-old self, bless your heart. I'm pretty sure you were exceptionally pleased with that ensemble.

Since leaving my teen years behind, I like to think I've matured and maybe even gained some wisdom along the way. But... well, confession time: I used to get in trouble with my high school librarian for spinning the giant world globe in the library. It absolutely begged to be spun! It rumbled in the most satisfying way with each spin... which was, of course, the reason I got shushed and scolded.

Last weekend, I visited my high school for its centennial celebration and had the opportunity to peek into the gorgeous, brand-new library during the festivities. What did I see? THE GLOBE.

What did I do?

Well...

Some things never change.

Do you think my high school librarian would believe I'm a librarian now?

Hey, Teen Me, you did all right.

Giveaway alert! 

Now that you've gotten a peek into my teen years, I'm sure you're eager to read the (much more insightful) letters in Dear Teen Me. Well, lucky you: Zest Books is giving away an awesome Dear Teen Me prize pack to one reader of my blog!

To win a copy of Dear Teen Me (autographed by 4 - 5 contributors, plus postcards and bookmarks!), comment on this post by Monday, November 5, and tell me about your favorite or most regrettable fashion choice of your teen years. Pictures earn a double entry. Be sure to leave your email with your comment so I can notify the winner. Contest open to US residents only.

Be sure to visit all the stops on the Dear Teen Me blog tour, and take a look at the Dear Teen Me events page to see if there's a book signing at a location near you!

Book Review: Red is a Dragon, by Roseanne Thong and Grace Lin

Thong, Roseanne & Lin, Grace. Red is a Dragon. 40 p. 2001. Chronicle. Hardcover $15.95. ISBN 9780811831772.

Having been a fan of Grace Lin's work for years, I'm so pleased to introduce her work to my children. I'm hoping they will become equally devoted fans. We've started with Red is a Dragon, which was illustrated by Lin, and written by Roseanne Thong.

Thong's text and Lin's illustrations complement each other beautifully to celebrate the wide variety of colors found in the world around us. What I love most about this book is the way it presents a uniquely Asian American identity. Some pages introduce elements of Chinese culture, such as incense, a festival with firecrackers and a dragon, or dumplings. Other pages are more universal, with images such as a taxi cab, sand castles at the beach, or flowers in the garden. The text includes Auntie and Grandpa, subtly showing the importance of extended family in Asian cultures.

My children are half Vietnamese, and I really value the way this book speaks to my children's Asian-American experience just as naturally as we incorporate both sides of their cultures into their daily lives.

Books can be a mirror of our own experiences or a window to another world-- and this book is both. It doesn't appeal to my children just because they're Asian-American; children of all cultural backgrounds can enjoy it. The reader might learn something new, see something familiar, or just enjoy the vivid colors and bold, lively illustrations. Whichever way a young reader approaches it, they will surely regard this book as the treasure that it is.

In Which I Finally Get Hooked on Eaudiobooks

I am basically addicted to audiobooks. With the right narrator, an audiobook can be such a fantastic way to experience a story. And what can beat the convenience of "reading" a book on your commute? Indeed, most of my audiobook listening is done in the car. But there's a little problem with that. My car is stuck in the last decade: it only has a CD player. No iPhone hookup. And audiobooks are increasingly becoming available as electronic downloads these days.

I love the concept of eaudiobooks-- so convenient, having the audiobook on your phone! You can listen at the gym! (I'm not a fan of the gym.) You can listen while you walk the dog! (I don't have a dog.) You can listen while you do housework! (My kids are usually right under foot.) Short of putting a pair of portable iPhone speakers in my car so I can listen on my commute (which I can never seem to remember to do), I haven't found a good solution for working eaudiobooks into my routine. Until now.

Last week, I had a little run-in with a heavy door. Literally. The door won, and I injured a toe pretty badly. Um, yes, I know that sounds pathetic. But even though a toe may not sound like a big deal... it kind of is. A lot of things are off-limits for me right now while I heal up, including my beloved ballet classes.

(Allow me a brief woe-is-me moment here: my poor ballet bag has been exiled to a closet for the next few weeks. SIGH.)

Anyway, so, what to do with an injured toe? I was told to rest and keep my weight off it for the first few days, and I thought the silver lining would be lots of time to sit back and read. But I was on a fairly intense dose of painkillers for the first few days after the injury, so I couldn't concentrate on a book for very long.

What then? I turned to my one and only gaming addiction: Tetris. It was like the early 90s all over again! And what to do while playing game after game of Tetris on my phone? Why, use my phone to listen to an eaudiobook, too! The combination of Tetris and an eaudiobook turned out to be the perfect thing to get me through the first few days of recovery. The Tetris would have gotten boring quickly on its own, and likewise, who wants to just sit and stare into space while listening to an audiobook?

So there you have it: my strategy for working eaudiobooks into your daily routine. Tetris. 

You don't need to wreck your toe to implement this solution, though.

Book Review: The Dark Unwinding, by Sharon Cameron

Cameron, Sharon. The Dark Unwinding. 318 p. 2012. Scholastic. Hardcover $17.99. ISBN 9780545327862.

I was introduced to this book at the Scholastic brunch at this year's ALA Annual Conference, in which Sharon Cameron and other authors performed an excerpt, readers' theater style, to give the audience a taste of the story. She was fabulously funny and the scene piqued my interest, so I knew I had to read this one! And it did not disappoint.

This is a wonderful debut novel, filled with lush prose and a plot that stands out from the rest of the YA shelves these days. Young, orphaned Katharine finds herself saddled with the daunting task of checking up on an uncle to verify that he is insane, and have him committed to an asylum so he will stop frittering away the family fortune. Only, when she arrives at his countryside manor house, she discovers something quite unexpected: a workshop of wondrous clockwork creations and a community of people who desperately need her uncle to continue with his inventions.

The story is full of mystery, self-discovery, and romance set against a sometimes-cozy, sometimes-eerie English manor backdrop. It's an absolutely delicious setting, and I loved the book's period feel. The language is straightforward enough for a contemporary reader, but Cameron employs turns of phrase that ring true to the mid-1800s setting. Also, it's important to note that there's lots of gorgeous costume description. (I don't know about you, but when I read historical fiction, I want to read about the clothes!)

With the steampunk genre on the rise, Scholastic is really playing up the clockwork machinery aspects of this book in their marketing, but it's not actually a steampunk-heavy novel. On the whole, it's more like an Austen or Bronte novel that just happens to have some mechanical goodies in it. I would recommend this book for any fan of historical fiction who doesn't mind a dash of fantasy.

The story wraps up nicely, but a few hanging threads deliberately leave the door open for a sequel. It was so lovely I didn't want it to end, and I look forward to reading more from this promising new author.  

The Dark Unwinding hits bookstore shelves on September 1st. ARC for review received from Scholastic.