Showing posts with label Meg Rosoff. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Meg Rosoff. Show all posts

Books for Christmas 2016 - across courts, circuses, time and space - top teen and YA reads for Christmas

Ah Christmas! But wait - you need to buy a gift for a teenager, and you'd love to get him or her a book? What do they read? What would they like?

Relax, we've got you covered. Perhaps a sit-on-the-edge-of-your-seat adventure? Or a beautifully written fantasy novel filled with magic. Whether you are buying for a teen chomping at the bit to become an adult, or someone who still is really a child at Christmas - just pop into the shop and ask.

We've got some great titles to get teens reading - here's our pick for Christmas!


Crooked Kingdom - Leigh Bardugo
Imogen’s book of the year and the sequel to Six of Crows, this carries on the story of Kaz Brekker and his gang. After pulling off a seemingly impossible heist in the notorious Ice Court, criminal prodigy Kaz feels unstoppable. But life is about to take a dangerous turn - and with friends who are among the deadliest outcasts in Ketterdam city, Kaz is going to need more than luck to survive in this unforgiving underworld. The city closes in on them, with old enemies and new alike trying to hunt them down and stop them all, the cost of freedom is high in the sequel- and the cost of survival may be even higher.  With more twist and turns than the last book, as well as action, schemes and every single thing going wrong, it will have you on the edge of your seat and guessing right up until the last moment.


Beck - Mal Peet and Meg Rosoff
Both harrowing and life-affirming, the final novel from Carnegie Medal-winning author Mal Peet is the sweeping coming-of-age adventure of a mixed race boy transported to North America.

Born from a street liaison between a poor young woman and an African soldier in the 1900s, Beck is soon orphaned and sent to the Catholic Brothers in Canada. Shipped to work on a farm, his escape takes him across the continent in a search for belonging. Enduring abuse and many hardships, Beck has times of comfort and encouragement, eventually finding Grace, the woman with whom he can finally forge his life and shape his destiny as a young man. A picaresque novel set during the Depression as experienced by a young black man, it depicts great pain but has a truly uplifting, inspiring and hopeful conclusion with lessons for us today.


The Night Circus - Erin Morgenstern
This is a new, redesigned  version of The Night Circus, specially produced for teenagers and YA readers, with extras in the back for any lover of the book and of magic.

The circus arrives without warning. It is simply there, when yesterday it was not. Against the grey sky the towering tents are striped black and white. A sign hanging upon iron gates reads: Opens at Nightfall Closes at Dawn. As dusk shifts to twilight, tiny lights begin to flicker all over the tents, as though the whole circus is covered in fireflies. When the tents are aglow, sparkling against the night sky, the sign lights up: Le Cirque des Reves.
The Circus of Dreams. The gates shudder and unlock, seemingly by their own volition. They swing outward, inviting the crowd inside...

But the circus is not as we imagine it to be - it is transformed in this novel, where two magicians are tied together in a challenge. The circus is their creation and their stage, and the book is beautiful and dreamlike, the writing just as stunning as the story itself.
 

Lydia - Natasha Farrant
A spirited, witty and fresh reimagining of Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice! Lydia is the youngest Bennet sister and she's sick of country life - instead of sewing and reading, she longs for adventure. When a red-coated garrison arrives in Merryton, Lydia's life turns upside down. As she falls for dashing Wickham, she's swept into a whirlwind social circle and deposited in a seaside town, Brighton.

Sea-bathing, promenades and scandal await - and a pair of intriguing siblings. Can Lydia find out what she really wants - and can she get it? This is a fantastic idea, brilliantly realised. Lydia is perhaps the most appealing character for teens in Pride and Prejudice - but of course, nothing is ever that simple when you are young, head strong and imagine yourself to be in love...


Maze Runner: The Fever Code - James Dashner
The world has ended: the earth is scorched, and fever rages through the population. Out of the chaos, a boy emerges with the power to change everything: Thomas. This is the start of his story...

This is the second prequel to the original 'Maze Runner' trilogy, and there's plenty in here to satisfy fans, providing key pieces of the puzzle as to how the 'Maze' came to be built. And we have signed editions to make it an extra special gift.


Under Rose Tainted Skies - Louise Gornall
Agoraphobia confines Norah to the house she shares with her mother. For her, the outside is sky glimpsed through glass, or a gauntlet to run between home and car. But a chance encounter on the doorstep changes everything: Luke, her new neighbour. Norah is determined to be the girl she thinks Luke deserves: a 'normal' girl, her skies unfiltered by the lens of mental illness. Instead, her love and bravery opens a window to unexpected truths...

Full of twists, snark and unexpected humour, whilst this may be difficult reading for anyone who has experienced a social anxiety disorder, it's nevertheless a fantastic achievement and an uplifting, entrancing story.

Alpha: Abidjan to Gare du Nord - Bessora and Barroux
Alpha Coulibaly is just one of millions on the move, at the mercy of people traffickers, endlessly frustrated, endangered and exploited as he attempts to rejoin his family, already in Europe. With a visa, Alpha's journey would take a matter of hours; without one he is adrift for eighteen months. Along the way he meets an unforgettable cast of characters, each one giving another human face to the crisis.


The book is presented in graphic novel format, with artwork created in cheap felt-tip pen and wash, materials Alpha himself might be able to access. A powerful and important book.


Reckless 3: The Golden Yarn - Cornelia Funke
This is the third book in the thrilling adventure series 'Reckless' from German children's author Cornelia Funke, author of 'Inkheart'. As you might expect, there is violence, magic and the darkest of dark fairy tale at its heart - with amazing writing, and a story you really can't put down. The first two books have been re-issued with updated artwork as well.

After a perilous encounter with an Alder Elf - an immortal, trick-turning creature to whom he owes a great debt - Jacob must journey back into the enchanted Mirrorworld once again. Together with Fox, his beautiful shapeshifting friend, Jacob has no choice but to follow his brother on the trail of the Dark Fairy, who has fled deep into the East: to a land of folklore, Cossacks, spies, time-eating witches and flying carpets. But what exactly is the Dark One running from? Could it be the same danger that threatens Jacob and Fox? 

Stealing Snow - Danielle Paige
Seventeen-year-old Snow lives within the walls of the Whittaker Institute, a high security mental hospital in upstate New York. Deep down, she knows she doesn't belong there, but she has no memory of life outside, except for the strangest dreams. And then a mysterious, handsome man, an orderly in the hospital, opens a door - and Snow knows that she has to leave.

Channeling the spirit of Maleficent and Frozen, this is a great twist on 'Snow Queen' for YA readers, as Snow discovers where she is from, and the choices she has to make in a strange, icy land...

Our Chemical Hearts - Krystal Sutherland
This is a bittersweet, funny, sad story of friendship, first love, and heartache, all rolled into one spellbinding debut tale - think John Green, Rainbow Rowell and E. Lockhart.

Henry Page, a hopeless romantic and film buff, is smitten as soon as Grace Town walks into his classroom. But Grace - who looks in need of a good bath, is dressed in guy's clothing, and walks with a cane - is unlike any leading lady he's ever obsessed over. And when Henry and Grace are both offered positions as editors of their high school newspaper, the mystery of Grace begins to captivate him.

Why does she visit a graveyard every afternoon? What secret does she keep locked away in her bedroom? Above all, why is Grace Town so deeply sad? Before he knows it, Henry is sure that he is the one to unlock her happiness. But Grace is capricious, changeable, infuriating, and, above all, damaged. Henry will need to be the strongest he has ever been to survive this particular love story.

The Diabolic - SJ Kincaid
This is a brilliant, imaginative book packed with twists, turns, and viciously vibrant characters - and not only that, it comes with two different editions so there will always be a surprise what you get. 

It's the story of Nemesis, a Diabolic. She was made to protect Sidonia. So when Sionia's life is in danger, Nemesis goes in her place to meet their power hungry emperor at his Galactic court. But plans have been in motion for longer than anyone realised, and there is another reason all the heirs have been gathered together in one place. Sidonia was meant to be little more than a hostage to keep her father’s rebellion in line - or so they all thought.

Nemesis must protect her real identity while protecting those that she has learnt to care about, at the same time as gaining revenge on those that have hurt her. But the humans around her just as dangerous as Nemesis herself, and her humanity that might be the only thing that keeps her safe...

Girl Online: Going Solo - Zoe Sugg
This is book three of the wildly bestselling series from blogging superstar Zoella - and we have signed copies sure to thrill any fans you are buying gifts for!

I’ll be home for Christmas
The UK's top teen authors join together in this collection of new stories and poems on the theme of home. Contributors include: Holly BourneSita BrahmachariKevin BrooksMelvin BurgessCat ClarkeJulie MayhewNon PrattMarcus Sedgwick and Lisa Williamson - and others too.

£1 from the sale of every book will be donated to Crisis, the national homelessness charity.

Elementary, In Trouble - and Off The Leash: Our Mother's Day Book Selection 2016

At Mostly Books, we try to resist stereotypes, and let's face it, 'Mother's Day' can be full of them: cue lots of images of immaculately dressed elegance, 1950s throwbacks and Von Trapp-style children. But where's the frazzled, barely holding-things-together, 'technically-it's-not-drinking-alone-if-the-kids-are-in-the-house' reality?

Still, we reckon that buying Mum a book is a good bet whatever the reality.

Buying a book as a gift conjures up the promise of unplugging from the world (at least for a while) and opening a door onto a wider world. These things go down extremely well (along with the flowers, chocolates, cups of tea and inexpertly-made breakfasts in bed of course). And reading is officially very good for you.

We're here to help you give Mum the day she deserves - so here is this year's Mostly Books Mother's Day recommends from everyone at the shop (several of whom are mothers themselves, and hence know about these sort of things).

'How It Works: The Mum' is another brilliantly-written, subversive spoof Ladybird title from the team behind 'How It Works: The Wife' and 'How It Works: The Husband'.

With the genius combination of nostalgic original artwork from the genuine Ladybird books, and sardonic observations on modern life that worked in earlier titles, this is definitely going to generate a laugh or two on Mother's Day, and will tide you over until the eagerly-awaited 'How It Works: The Student' is published this Autumn...

Continuing on the subversive, satirical theme, 'The Trouble with Women' by Jacky Fleming is an illustrated gem of a book that tells an alternative history of the ‘women history wrote out’. From 'Fallen Woman' (those that strayed outside their Domestic Bubble) to the men who have proved womens ‘puny’ intelligence, this is subversive, genuinely eye-opening, and very funny with plenty of historically-significant mothers (many with tell-tale ‘genius hair’...).

There's loads of new fiction out at the moment, and here are a few of our favourites which we think make extra-special Mother's Day choices.

One of Nicki's favourite children's authors, Meg Rosoff, has written her first book for adults - 'Jonathan Unleashed' - and it's a total joy.

New Yorker Jonathan has got a job, an apartment, a girlfriend - what more could he want? But when suddenly he also has two dogs, his life starts to painfully and hilariously unravel. Jonathan starts to see his life differently and feels perhaps there should be more...

A smart, funny book and beautifully written book about modern relationships (and dogs). For anyone who loved the quirky humour of 'The Rosie Project', it's a book that will surprise and go straight to the heart.

Mrs Hudson’s role in the Sherlock Holmes books was always being the woman whose main role in life was bringing Sherlock Holmes tea. Well, what if she is secretly covering up another brilliant mind, listening in to all Sherlock’s cases and longing to be a detective herself? That's the premise behind 'The House At Baker Street' by Michelle Birkby.

When Holmes dismisses a case of blackmail, Mrs Hudson, with the help of Mary Watson leaps in, determined to finally fulfil her dream and solve a case of her own. There is plenty of Sherlock-inspired fiction at the moment, but this is a triumph of imagination, exciting and thoroughly satisfying as a mystery in its own right.

Like Meg Rosoff, Lissa Evans made the leap from children's to adult books, although she was already an accomplished television director and producer. 'Crooked Heart' is a delightfully quirky story about the relationship between a struggling wartime widow and the evacuee she doesn't really want.

Vee reckons everyone is doing well out of the War, but she just keeps getting caught out. She takes in evacuee Noel, feeling there are opportunities to exploit his limp. They form a deep and touching relationship that survives both treachery and bombings in this heart-warming drama infused with both charm and moments of laugh-out-loud comedy.

In 'A Year of Marvellous Ways', 89 year old Marvellous Ways is waiting. She’s not entirely sure what she’s waiting for - but she knows it’s coming. Then Francis Drake arrives, a soldier fresh from war, and she sets out to use the power of stories to help him heal his past. Sarah Winman's tale is full of magical realism which gives the book a hint of ‘fairytaleness’. All in all it’s a book that will definitely whisk the reader away.

A good book cries out for a associated beverage, and if it's a lovely cup of tea then why not consider one of our range of mugs? Our bookish range from Scribbelicious have books on one side and quotes on the other.

It’s the perfect way to sink into a drink. And a book.

Some people may not agree with them being relaxing, but we have a collection of jigsaws at the moment (see 'Mother and Child' at left). What better to make, either alone, or with the ‘help’ of a son or daughter?

And do take a look at our pop-up 'flower' cards - the perfect way to send flowers through the post when you can't send flowers through the post!

A perfect present from a child? Try the following:

In 'My Mum is a Supermum' a wonderful, imaginative story celebrates mothers everywhere, written by Angela McAllister and illustrated by 'Claude' author and illustrator Alex T Smith

Does your mother have eyes in the back of her head? How about X-ray vision? Milo’s definitely does, since how else would she always know what he was doing?

There’s also 'Just Like My Mum' (now available in a board book as well as paperback). It's an extremely cute story all about a little lion cub and how he wants to be just like her - all drawn with the warmth and charm of Hugless Douglas creator David Melling.

Whoever you are buying for, just come into the shop and let us find the perfect gift!

Meg Rosoff: What She Is

An invitation to sell books at a school talk given by Meg Rosoff is the sort of invitation you don’t so much need to think about as jump at. Meg Rosoff is author of some stunning young adult novels and has a rare talent that balances quality writing, memorable characters and plots that can fly off in such unexpected directions they can plummet into fantasy or leave you reeling from the brutal reality.

It’s hardly surprising that Meg Rosoff has been showered with awards and she was in Abingdon to talk to some school girls about books and the writing life in general, just before the final judging takes place for this year’s ‘children’s book of the year’ – which will be awarded the Carnegie Medal.

She was in Abingdon as the town’s schools have a growing reputation as one of the places where schools do Carnegie shadowing really well (a national scheme where schoolchildren read the books on the shortlist and learn to judge and review them). In Abingdon it’s a big thing – involving both state and independent schools, where judging takes place on which schools and individuals have performed well in written reviews and presentations, and prizes given.

As a recent survey showed many school librarians don’t read around children’s books and recommend only a narrow band of authors, it’s great to be in a town where the opposite is true. And this is particularly true of St Katherine’s and St Helen’s School, where the librarian, Donna Bell, gets her children reading all sorts of new and exciting writing.

This year’s Carnegie shortlist is also particularly strong with a choice of books that must surely have something for everyone, from epic historical battles to sensitive issues of race and class.

Meg Rosoff writes books where teenagers are often thrust into a world where they have to survive without adults. But her stories are not of long summers of picnics and freedom where the children round up a few baddies after a few scrapes. All sorts of horrific things happen to her young folk. But the thing they all discover is that they are survivors.

Her first, How I Live Now, was showered with awards, and her appeal has already spread into adult readership.

Her second, Just in Case, could have been the difficult second book after such a debut, but switching her voice to a teenage boy and involving fate as a character, made it just as original and succeeded in winning the Carnegie Medal last year.

Whether What I Was will make it a Carnegie two in a row will be decided on June 26.

Her audience on Thursday were treated into some great insights into her writing processes, including how and why she came to writing so late – an inspiring talk about following your dreams. She was in her forties and had never even tried to write, when her sister’s death from cancer made her realise she really ought to start doing what she wanted to do.

The result, she said, was a horse book that ended up having lots of sex in it, which got her an agent, but instructions to go away and try again. She was also given the advice not to ‘read around’ too much. She writes for a ‘young adult’ audience – a niche that is newly invented and her books do manage to successfully bridge that tricky gap by having as much appeal for adults as children.

This is probably why Meg Rosoff is also at the forefront of being one of the few children’s writers who have come down firmly in favour of age banding on books. She feels very strongly that children over a certain age will get a lot more out of her books.

It’s no real surprise to hear that she doesn’t plot her books implicitly beforehand, as they tend to fly off to new places with little sympathy or preparation for the reader. The cornerstone of the afternoon’s session, with an older and more feisty audience, was a masterclass in not being intimidated by the blank page.

She says her friend still has the email she sent while writing How I Live Now in which she said she felt things were getting a little boring and how she thought she’d introduce World War 3. As part of the lively afternoon session she also regaled her audience with plenty of entertaining stories about what life in advertising is really like.

Her vivid talk inspired bristling questions – from does she write her own blurbs to has she re-used characters in any of her books. And there was a scramble for books and signings for a full hour.

The ability to generate so much enthusiasm for taking a book away and reading it is a rich and rare talent. Those girls will take away so much from those books – whether they particularly love them or not – they will think about what went into them and all the other great and wise things the author said.

It was one of those occasions which reminds you that bookselling is such a pleasure and a privilege. So thanks to Donna, all the girls who took part, and to Meg Rosoff for such a brilliant and inspiring day.

It’s great that Abingdon’s efforts in this have been rewarded with such supremely good authors agreeing to speak to the schools. Another shortlisted author, Linzi Glass is to speak on Carnegie Day as well.

This year Mark has been invited to be on the judging panel and is really looking forward to being part of it all.