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Posts Tagged ‘historical fiction’

A Librarian Reads Huge

Friday, May 7th, 2010

hugeHuge by James W. Fuerst

Eugene Smalls is a troubled 12 year old boy growing up in the 1980’s. He has a history of violence (he once hit his art teacher and knocked her out), is highly paranoid (he believes his sister has become a drug mule for the nefarious Darren, a high schooler who  tags the town with graffiti) and rides around on his handmade bicycle (it resembles a chopper and has a banana seat) with his best friend (who is named Thrash and is actually a stuffed animal).

What makes life so bad for Eugene? It is hard to say. It could be that people refuse to call him by his chosen nickname, Huge. It could be because his dad left when he was younger. Or it could be that his grandmother forced him to read lots of pulp crime  and mystery novels (the works of Raymond Chandler, Dashiell Hammett, and even Sherlock Homes) after he was suspended from hitting his teacher. Or it could be that he has a penchant for interpreting his life like Philip Marlowe would a case (distant, distrusting, a bit too self-serious).

But whatever is bothering him, his summer before the sixth grade is going to be a doozy. His grandmother lives at the local retirement home, and she just so happens to have a case for the aspiring private eye. Someone has tagged the retirement home’s sign, and now the sign reads retarted home. Huge isn’t sure what pisses him off more, the tagging or the misspelling of retarded.

But he takes the case and sets off to nab the perpetrator. The fiend is out there, and it could be anyone, because Huge knows that everyone is out to get him. He just has to narrow the list down. With his stuffed animal to help him, and his sweet ride of a bike, Huge is going to knock heads, grill the suspects, and watch out for the damsel in distress, that is unless his mother doesn’t get him a babysitter first.

This is a great book and I highly recommend it for anyone who wants a humorous coming of age story or an homage to the great pulp detectives of the past. It is appropriate for ages 16 and up.

A Librarian Reads Burn My Heart

Monday, March 22nd, 2010

burn-my-heart2Burn My Heart by Beverley Naidoo

Imagine one day a group of well-to-do people arrive to your home and claim it as their own. In fact they decide to keep you around so you can take care of the house for them, and in exchange they will help educate you and promise to raise you, your family, and community to a better more civilized way of living. How would you feel? They take your home from you, and then make you work for them. And what if you had no way of protecting yourself from these different people? What if they could threaten you with violence and you had no way of stopping it?

To make it more complex, what if your neighbors decided to fight them with any means at their disposal? What if they decided to force you into fighting as well? What if both sides began hurting and killing each other? What would you do?

This is the question at the core of Burn My Heart, a story of British colonialism in Kenya during the 1950’s and at the height of the Mau Mau Rebellion. There are two boys: Mathew, the British white son of a wealthy land owner, and Mugo, an African teen who helps as a kitchen aid in Mathew’s estate. There is history between them. They have grown up besides each other and have come to share an odd friendship. Mathew is in charge, even though he is younger and less experienced, because he is white and the son of the white master. While they care for one another they will never be able to cross this rigid caste system between the white colonists and the tribal people of Kenya.

To make matters worse Mathew’s grandfather “bought” the land his father’s farm is on. But the land in fact belonged to Mugo’s grandfather and his tribe. Mugo’s heritage and land were taken away from him before he was even born. Other people in the same position as Mugo, who work for white masters that have taken their ancestral land become understandably upset; enough to rebel.

As the Mau Mau Rebellion envelopes more and more of the land daily life begins to change as it is infected with a culture of fear. Mathew and his family fear rebels coming to kill them and begin to distrust the tribal people who help run the farm. On the other side Mugo fears the Mau Mau will force them to fight or that the white master will accuse him and his family of treachery at any moment. But the boys are young and can make a choice, do they allow their hearts to be burned and give into hate or do they try to live life in peace? Or could their lopsided friendship become a sacrifice to all the worst things that humans can inflict upon each other. There is no easy answer, and it is chilling that a culture of fear and mistrust are still present today.

I enjoyed this book a lot, however it was rather brief. It is a good introduction to the effects of colonialism and the history of Kenyan independence.  It is recommended for fans of historical fiction who want a real slice of life of another culture and time. Appropriate for ages 12 and up.

A Librarian Reads the Monstrumologist

Wednesday, February 24th, 2010

monstrumologistThe Monstrumologist by Rick Yancey

Are you ready for monsters? Are you ready for unstoppable killing machines who only feed on human flesh? Then this is the book for you.

The main character is Will Henry, a 12 year old boy living in 1888. His mentor and guardian is Dr. Warthrop, a bizarre doctor who studies monsters. However these aren’t monsters of myth or religion, but of nature. Warthrop is a above all a scientist and there are logical explanations for all the gruesome things normal people would rather ignore. And that is how the good doctor reacts to a recent outbreak of anthropophagi in their small New England town.

Anthropophagi are vaguely human shaped, but bigger and headless. Their face is rather on their chest. With a black eye on each shoulder and a maw with shark-like teeth in the middle of their torso, these monsters have been feasting on humans since before written history. They have elongated fingers that end in barbs, and can easily leap forty feet. In short, they will rip you limb from limb, and scoop out your brains before you even think about running away.

Dr. Warthrop though seems more interested in how anthropophagi arrived to America (they only live in Africa) then stopping the threat. After a family is viciously torn asunder the local constable needs the monstumologist’s help in eliminating the man eating horde. Fortunately, Warthrop has already called in a veteran monster hunter, Dr. Jack Kearns. Unfortunately Kearns’ methods are almost as inhuman as the anthropophagi.

It is up to young Will Henry to not only witness of the events that will transpire, but to reconcile the methods of the two doctors, and ultimately help them find the alpha female who is in charge of the anthropophagi pod. He will need courage, logic, a strong stomach, and most of all lots of luck. A small 12 year old boy is a quick snack to these monsters. Let’s hope our hero is up to the challenge.

This book is highly recommended. However it is a very grisly tale, so if copious amounts of gore makes you queasy you may want to take a pass on this one. Also it is written as a diary of the 1800’s so the vernacular and pace of the prose may be a hindrance to less experienced readers. Appropriate for ages 16 and up.

A Librarian Reads Leviathan

Monday, January 18th, 2010

Leviathan by Scott Westerfeld

This is an incredible book, full of action, wonder, and adventure. Leviathan tells the story of the Great War (World War I), but with a twist.

In this novel history developed in a alternate path than ours. On one hand Darwin not only discovered evolution, but DNA as well. On the other hand eastern Europe has increasingly developed more efficient and powerful engines. Two cultures develop that represent these changes: The Darwinists and the Clankers.

Darwinists rely heavily on genetically modified animals for all levels of society, from getting around town, to giant floating whales that act like dirigibles.

Clankers on the other hand rely on motors, engines, and especially walking machines (armored vehicles like tanks that walk on mechanical legs instead of metal treads).

These two cultures will collide in 1914 when the Archduke of Austria is assassinated. His son, Aleksander, must flee his homeland because he threatens the Austrian Emperor as an heir to the throne. Austria and Germany chase him with their giant mechanical war machines.

On the other side of the war is Deryn, a young woman who masquerades as a boy in order to join the British Air Service.  She loves to fly but isn’t expecting the harsh realities of war.

Unbeknown to them, their stories will intertwine and they will need to rely on one another in order to stay alive and do their part for the war effort.

This is an awesome book, highly recommended and appropriate for all ages.

A Librarian Reads Prophecy of the Sisters

Tuesday, October 13th, 2009

prophecy-of-the-sistersProphecy of the Sisters by Michelle Zink

It is the late 19th century and Lia and Alice are twins who are from a wealthy family in New York. They have also just lost the last remaining parent in their lives, their father. With his passing Lia has discovered that the twins have fallen into the hands of fate in the form of an ancient prophecy.

The prophecy is simple; one twin will defend mankind while the other will aid an ancient evil in destroying the world. But which twin is good and which is evil?

And then there are the strange dreams that affect Lia. She is flying in her dreams, but there are also monsters who seek her ill will. Soon she learns that they aren’t dreams at all and that she is actually exploring the many worlds of the astral plane, the places between life and death. Then she encounters the remnants of a strange occult ritual performed by her sister. She is almost certain that Alice is the evil sister and she vows to stop her. In order to do that she must learn all she can about the prophecy that binds them, but to gain the knowledge she needs she will need to make friends outside of her sheltered life. But the more she trusts people the more she endangers them because Alice is there and is just biding her time before she strikes.

This is the first book in a new Gothic horror series.  As with every first book of a series it is slow to start. But other than that Prophecy of the Sisters is a dark and spooky horror story of not just supernatural evil, but the true evil that lies within us. Recommended for those who like horror or are looking for an intriguing tale that isn’t the typical Twilight fare that is being published right now. Appropriate for ages 14 and up.