Comments on: So. Many. Books.

By: Kelly

Kelly — Mon, 08 Oct 2012 01:20:53 +0000

I said I was writing that because no one would champion it, and then in the end, I won’t either. So it goes!

By: Kelly

Kelly — Mon, 08 Oct 2012 01:20:03 +0000

Time to dig my heels in and try to catch up on commenting a little bit. I figured start here since no one seems to be championing THE GIRLS OF NO RETURN just yet, and Karyn, it sounds like you’re curious.

I read this book in January and only read it once, but I’m still mulling it over. I think that it’s a classic unreliable narrator story. I went back and forth on whether or not Lida was reliable, but I think I’m ready to say she’s not. That’s where I can see the geography working for the story: we can’t know what’s really going on, if there is more going on. Lida’s so inside her head, so protective of her Thing that she’s entirely self-involved and doesn’t acknowledge a world around her. She is observant, as you note, but it’s to the extent that things relate to her.

I think the attraction to Gia is that she’s the thing that Lida can have other people can’t. Kind of like her Thing. I would agree the sexuality subtext isn’t dealt with entirely. But I do buy that Lida is so full of self-loathing that getting the attention of the girl that everyone wants to have the attention of works for her. It’s almost a bit of a toy she can hold over Boone’s head, too, especially given the fear she has for Boone. It feels like a lot of one-upping.

All of that said, I do not think Girls is a Printz. I dug it, I think it was risky and engaging, and I thought the writing was knock out. The non-traditional set up worked (though I felt that last chapter KILLED it and felt like a trick) but….it just doesn’t sing Printz to me. Like you, I suspect this one will be showing up in consideration for the Morris though. It was easily one of the best debuts this year.

By: tess

tess — Wed, 03 Oct 2012 00:45:13 +0000

I thought the Emily chapters were stronger than the Jesse chapters in DBYAM by a pretty wide margin. Neither of them were great characters, but Emily seemed more immediate to me and I think the first-person narration played a large part in that. Her chapters let George’s strength for dialogue come through – I loved the way Emily would use run-on sentences when she got frustrated or upset and the way she’d misuse words slightly (and that perfect “It’s great that in this school those kids feel just as welcome as normal kids!” line). It felt like a real person’s inner monologue. But George’s third-person prose seemed functional and not much else, and I got bored reading it. And oh God, I am really sick of “evil corporation” stories.

It’s a nice book and lots of kids will enjoy it, but it’s not Printzworthy.

By: Beth Kakuma-Depew

Beth Kakuma-Depew — Tue, 02 Oct 2012 15:52:47 +0000

I too loved DBYAM, but I would say the “Emily” chapters told in the first person seemed weaker than the “Jesse” chapters told in the third person. I think a stronger author could have written the “Emily” chapters in third person, and still have shown how she was deceiving herself. So I never expected this book to win any awards, but will definately be recommending this book!

By: Miriam

Miriam — Tue, 02 Oct 2012 14:55:44 +0000

I loved DBYAM–oh the wanting to hug the characters! Oh the wanting to smack the characters upside the head! Oh the kissing!–but I can see why it doesn’t rise above Nice Little Book.

While not for Printzliness, I think in general its youngness is a bonus–it’s nice to see a book with QUILTBAG themes that isn’t Heavy and Mature.

And if there was a prize for Best Kissing Descriptions in YA Lit… now for THAT DBYAM would be a strong, strong contender.

By: Karyn Silverman

Karyn Silverman — Tue, 02 Oct 2012 10:34:16 +0000

@Mark, I was looking at my spreadsheet again last night and almost crying. In all of the Jan-Mar pubs, I think Storyteller was the ONLY book I was really excited to discuss. Q2 is so much meatier! And not just because Code Name Verity is in that pile. The year started off with lots of “nice little books,” and I am so ready for the books that we can get up and duke it out over, rather than the ones we pat on the head and leave behind.

By: Karyn Silverman

Karyn Silverman — Tue, 02 Oct 2012 10:30:37 +0000

@Annie, we debated if we should bother covering Greyhound, but the huge variety in recommended ages in the professional reviews prompted us. In all honesty, if I hadn’t read it early in the year (before the pressure was on!), we might have skipped it after all. That said, I’m not sorry to have maybe put it on a few more radars; I think it’s a great fit in a middle school collection.

I also think it’s just the kind of book I’d be happy to see sporting Newbery bling, but it’s not eligible as Roddy Doyle is not American and the Newbery (unlike the Printz) has geographic limitations.

By: Annie

Annie — Tue, 02 Oct 2012 10:11:55 +0000

I loved A Greyhound of a Girl but I’m surprised to see it here, since I definitely consider it more of a MG book than YA. Do you think this is something the Newbery committee would take on instead?

By: Mark Flowers

Mark Flowers — Tue, 02 Oct 2012 03:13:54 +0000

Haven’t read the others, but definitely agree on DBYAM. Nice little book. Can see why it got some stars. Not really a contender. My biggest beef with it was what it didn’t do – there was huge potential to discuss some meaty political issues that was completely wasted. Oh well. On to the real contendas!