Rules of Civility

Set in the upper levels of Manhattan society from the years 1937 – 1940, Rules of Civility follow three friends from a change meeting at a jazz club.

Tinker Grey lives in the world of the wealthy. He is a banker who seems not to spend much time at work.

Kate Kontent grew up in Brighton Beach. She now has a roommate from the Midwest, Evelyn Ross. They stretch each dollar to have the best time they can in Manhattan – and it seems to have paid off when they meet Tinker.

Towles has written a period set story filled with beautiful sentences and a glimpse of the upper, upper crust of the time. Gatsby fans will love this book.

Towles, Amor. (2011). Rules of Civility. New York: Penguin.

Disobedience

Disobedience by Naomi Alderman is a book that will stay in your thoughts for a long time after you finish reading. 

Ronnit Krushka grew up in an orthodox Jewish community in London. She was raised by her father after the death of her mother. Ronnit always pushed against the role she was given as a girl in that community. Now she lives in New York City. She has not been back home to Herndon for years.

When her father dies, she decides to go back. She wants her mother’s silver candlesticks, the things that remind her the most of her mother. Since the rift with her father is no longer a factor, she tells her cousin Dovid that she will be coming. Ronnit wonders where her best friend from childhood is now, she surely left the community like Ronnit.

Ronnit plans to spend a week or two in the place she grew up. She will clean out her father’s house and see some old friends, as well as her favorite cousin. But the community seems strange after so long away. And the men who run synagogue and community – not because they are especially pious, but because they are rich – are not as scary as they once were.

Alderman has written a thought-provoking novel. The three main characters are well developed and humanely flawed. Each has a decision to make. While I was not in love with all the characters for the whole book, that may be why I am still thinking about them well after finishing. This is a great book. (Based solely on the movie preview, they have changed the story quite a bit for the screen version.)

Alderman, Naomi. (2006). Disobedience. New York: A Touchstone Book.

The Pregnancy Project: A Memoir

The Pregnancy Project: A Memoir by Gaby Rodriguez is the story of one young woman faking a pregnancy during high school to study people's reactions.

Gaby Rodriguez grew up in a family where her older siblings were setting a trend of becoming teen parents. Gaby felt like it was expected that she would follow this pattern, but she had already decided she wanted to go a different route - college.

When considering her upcoming senior project - on a topic of her choosing - one of her brothers made a comment. He said that he drank because his father drank. It was genetic. He got Gaby to thinking about who people are perceived by others and the stereotypes that form - and that people did not have to live up to.

Convincing her school to let her do the project, she told only a few people what she was planning. Her boyfriend had to be in on the secret. Her mother knew. And one sister and one friend from school who could keep track of the comments said about her. Gaby was convinced she could handle the comments because the pregnancy would not be real.

The Pregnancy Project is the story of Gaby's project and how people reacted - both during and after she announced the truth. Her project gained so much attention that she ended up on nation wide news and Lifetime made a movie about her story.

Rodriguez, Gaby and Jenna Glatzer. (2012). The Pregnancy Project: A Memoir. New York: Simon and Schuster.

Soulless (Parasol Protectorate #1)

Soulless by Gail Carriger is the first book in her Parasol Protectorate - set in an alternate, steampunk Victorian London.

Alexia Tarabotti is a spinster. She is twenty-six - much older than the average marriage prospect. Her mother and half-sisters have convinced her she will never wed because of both her forceful opinion and her Italian heritage.

While Alexia is at a ball, as chaperone for her sisters, she sneaks off to the library - her favorite room in any house - where she is attacked by a vampire. What the hungry vampire did not know, and what saved her, is that she is preternatural. Vampire and Werewolves can be changed because as humans they had an excess of soul, which refuses to die. Alexia has a lack of soul and neutralizes any supernatural creature she touches.When the vampire is not convinced to stop, Alexia hits him with her parasol - which accidentally kills him.

Lord Maccon, Alpha of the Woosley Werewolf Pack and in charge of supernatural investigations for Queen Victoria, is not surprised to find Alexia at the center of any controversy. They have been butting heads for months. New vampires have been appearing and rove werewolves have been disappearing, but Maccon does not think Alexia the cause.

Carrige has created a wonderful world of alternative history in Victoria England. Her werewolves and vampires are not the norm, but great characters who are within the stories instead of at the fringe of society. The Finishing School series (YA) takes place in the same world, roughly twenty years earlier. Carriger's books are fabulous! Read them for a refreshingly original, highly entertaining read.

Carriger, Gail. (2009). Soulless. New York: Orbit.

Mudbound

Mudbound by Hillary Jordan is a look at two families in the South in 1946.

Laura McAllen was surprised when her husband Henry announced that he had bought a farm on the Mississippi Delta. They had been married for a while, had two daughters, and he had never mentioned his desire to own land. His grandfather was a farmer and Henry always thought he would inherit the farm - until he went to war and his father sold it. Laura grew up in a small city. She had no desire to move to the middle of nowhere - away from her family and friends.

Florence and Hap Jackson are sharecroppers on the land that Henry bought. They work the land with their twin sons and daughter while their eldest son, Ronsel, is fighting in WWII. Ronsel is part of the first group of black soldiers to actually fight for the modern US military. He is part of the 761st Tank Battalion - the Black Panthers - fighting under General Patton.

Henry's brother, Jaime, joins them on the farm after he returns from the war. While friendship between black and white men is still as taboo as it was during slavery, Ronsel may be the only person who understands what Jaime went through in the war. But any version of a friendship between them will cause trouble - not least of all from Jaime's father who has no respect for anyone, least of all a black man.

Jordan's debut novel was praised all over the literary world and won the Bellweather Prize. While this time period in our history is never a comfortable read, she has created a great novel that looks at many types of people in the South in 1946.

Jordan, Hillary. (2008). Mudbound. New York: Workman Publishing.

The Grapes of Wrath

The Grape of Wrath by John Steinbeck is the Great American Novel. The story uses one family to tell of the awesome migration of 250,000 people from the middle of the US to California at the end of the Depression.

Farmers in the middle of the country owned the land their forefathers had gotten through the homesteading acts. But as times were tough, they slowly borrowed money from the bank against poor crops. Eventually, the banks owned all of the land. So when the banks decided to collect the land and make huge farms that could be plowed and planted by one man on a tractor, farmers and their families were forced off of the land.

At the same time, business practices in California - where the land was also owned by banks or very large landholders - advertised across the country that they were looking for workers to pick cotton/peaches/grapes. The more people who responded, the lower they could pay in wages as there would always be some hungry enough to work for any hope of food.

In The Grapes of Wrath, one family is followed from their farm in Oklahoma on their way to California to find work. When Tom Joad gets out of jail after four years, he finds his family's farm abandoned. The house is leaning to one side and appears to have been push over by a great force. Cotton is planted right up to the front door. An old neighbor who is passing through tells Tom about families being forced off of the land by the tractors and that his family is at his uncle's farm about to leave for California.

Tom joins his family and together the 12 of them plus a family friend pile into a newly purchased truck with all of the belongings they cannot leave behind or sell. Both Tom and his brother Al have some mechanical knowledge to keep the used truck running if they can afford parts.

What follows is the heart-wrenching tale of a family - that always thought of itself as being part of the land - set adrift with the hope of finding a new home. With no land to hold them together it will be a battle to keep the family intact.

Steinbeck has long been haled as one of the Great American Authors and this book is an excellent example of why. Though the pace of novels has increased through time, this novel holds its own in terms of plot, characterization, and suspense. Though history determines that the Joad family will not have an easy life - readers will be up late hoping that they beat the odds. Reading The Grapes of Wrath is like learning the roots of American as it is today and watching a train wreck in slow motion all tied up into one astounding novel.

Steinbeck, John. (1939). The Grapes of Wrath. New York: Penguin Classics.

Skinned (Skinned trilogy #1)

Skinned by Robin Wasserman is the first book in her Skinned trilogy. The series takes place in the future United States - after a nuclear war when people have rebuilt.

Lia Khan is a force to be reckoned with - she doesn't follow trends, she creates them. Anything she wears to school becomes an instant fad. In a high school peopled by the very wealthy, Lia is the one everyone wants to be.

When Lia's car malfunctions her parents make the decision to do whatever it takes to save her life - including scanning her entire brain into a mechanical body.

But how will people react to the new Lia? Though she has all of her memories and her personality, not all people will see her as human.

Wasserman has created a series that is fascinating and thought-provoking in a package that is as fun to read as Scott Westerfeld's Uglies series. I cannot wait to read the second book!

Wasserman, Robin. (2008). Skinned. New York: Simon Pulse.

Captain Jack's Woman (Bastion Club prequel)

Captain Jack's Woman by Stephanie Laurens is the prequel to her Bastion Club series.

Kathryn "Kit" Cranmer has spent the six years since her grandmother's death in London. She was under the impression that her grandfather had sent her away. In reality her aunts tricked her into going to London to find a husband with whom they could share her future inheritance. But now she is back at Cranmer Hall with her grandfather and determined never to get married.

Kit has always been a bit wild. Her grandparents raised her and let her get away with a lot. Since her return she has taken to dressing as a boy and sneaking her horse out at night to go riding. Soon she is the head of a small band of smugglers bringing in rum and lace, but a rival gang wants to absorb them into one large gang.

Captain Jack, the head of the larger gang, knows right away that Kit is a woman. But he thinks she is a illegitimate grandchild of Lord Cranmer - and therefore, fair game. Before he can find out the truth he crosses a line that will link himself to Kit for life.

Laurens is a prolific historical romance writer. Captain Jack's Woman is entertaining, sexy, and a great read while on the beach during a vacation.

Laurens, Stephanie. (1997). Captain Jack's Woman. New York: Avon.

Fat Cat

Fat Cat by Robin Brande is about a science project gone right.

Cat is a science fanatic. She loves science class and even works at the poison control hot line. But this year her science project is about to get a lot more personal. In class, each student has to choose a picture from the pile the teacher has collected, and the project idea has to come from the picture.

When Cat chooses a picture of Homo erectus - 1.8 million years ago - she designs a project (using herself as the subject) to go back to a diet that could have been eaten by early humans. The results are not too surprising - weight loss, more energy, and self-confidence.

Fat Cat could be seen as a plot to get readers to eat better, but for the fact that it is a great story - the fact that I now feel like eating more healthfully is just a coincidence! This is a great book with well-written characters that will appeal to readers. Brande has proven that her first novel's acclaim was not a fluke.

Brande, Robin. (2009). Fat Cat. New York: Alfred A. Knopf.

The Body of Christopher Creed

The Body of Christopher Creed by Carol Plum-Ucci is a Printz Honor book of 2001 (the most prestigious book award for young adult fiction).

Christopher Creed is missing. He left an email note, sent from the school library to the principal, that could be read as both a suicide note or an intent to run away. In the email he mentioned some of his classmates - not as the people driving him away, but as the people he would rather be like than himself. One of those classmates is Torey (Victor) Adams.

Now that he has read the note, Torey feels responsible for finding out what happen to Chris Creed. He and two friends start to investigate. But that they find out will lead to more misery and despair in the town of Steepleton.

A fast-paced, thought-provoking mystery/thriller that explores name-calling and prejudice, The Body of Christopher Creed is another amazing book by Plum-Ucci. It seems she could not write a bad book if she tried!

Plum, Ucci, Carol. (2000). The Body of Christopher Creed. New York: VOLO.

Wounded

Wounded by Percival Everett is a look at prejudice in the United States.

John Hunt lives on a horse ranch in Wyoming. When he first bought his ranch, a black cowboy was a curiosity. Now most locals know him as a great horse trainer.

When a young gay man is killed outside of town, one of John's ranch hand is arrested for the murder. John never much liked the hired man but does not see him as a killer.

When the son of John's best friend from college comes to town with his boyfriend to march in a rally about the killing, tensions are high. When other hate crimes start to occur, the sheriff does little to help.

Soon the black cowboy, the Native Americans who live on a reservation at the edge of town, and David, the gay friend who is staying with John, are tied together more than ever.

Everett's look at intolerance in the face of race and sexuality takes a meandering, western novel approach to an important discussion in today's world. Balanced with ranch life, including an escape-artist mule and a three-legged coyote, this is story of life is an accurate and insightful look at the people who make up the United States.


One sentence description: The unhurried life of a black rancher in Wyoming is the setting for this riveting look at the pervasiveness of prejudice in America when local skinheads murder a gay college student.

Everett, Percival. (2005). Wounded. Saint Paul, MN: Graywolf Press.

What Happened to Lani Garver

What Happened to Lani Garver by Carol Plum-Ucci is an interesting look at how people put others into boxes and don't understand what to do with the people who don't neatly fit into those boxes.

On Hackett Island there is a glaring line between the locals and the summer people. When a new mom and teen move to the island it causes a stir. In the case of Lani (pronounced Lonnie) Garver, it is more of a hurricane.

Claire, a local, is part of the popular crowd. She feels like an outsider sometimes because she missed a year and a half of school in junior high while she was having chemo treatments. Now her decision to make friends with the strange new kid - who no one is even sure if Lani is a he or a she - may push her out of the in crowd and off of the island.

This is a fascinating look at gender, identity, popularity, and deciding whether it is better to fit in or be yourself. Plum-Ucci is a great author.

Plum-Ucci, Carol. (2002). What Happened to Lani Garver. New York: Harcourt, Inc.

Movie: Gypo

Gypo is a film that breaks all conventions of film making - it was the first British film shot in Dogme95, there was no script, and it tackles major social issues.

Dogme 95, for those of you (like me) who know nothing about film except how to watch, is a throwback to old style movie making. Using Dogme film means that there is no chance to add voice overs or do special effects - it has the feel of a documentary: gritty and real.

Helen (played by Pauline McLynn who is best known for her comedic genius) is an unhappy wife and mother of three. Her youngest daughter, still living at home, now has a baby. Helen feels like she takes care of everyone and does nothing for herself. When her daughter brings home a classmate, Tasha, she sees the chance to talk to someone who has a different and fresh perspective on life.

Paul, Helen's husband, is also stuck in a rut. His marriage is not working. He feels his only role is bring money home. He is not the most sympathetic character even when the story is being told from his point of view.

Tasha (Chloe Sirene) and her mother (played by the amazing Rula Lenska) are Romany Czech and have escaped to England to get away from an abusive father/husband. They are waiting on passports that will free them from having to worry about being found. Tasha has done everything she can to help keep food on the table for her mother. Without working papers she was left little option as to a career choice. When she meets Helen, her outlook on life changes.

Gypo is the story of how one person can open the eyes of some and bring out the prejudice in others. Though a hard film to summarize, it is a thought provoking look at prejudice, refugees and bigotry. It is told in three overlapping parts from the points of view of Helen, Paul and Tasha.

Gypo
Pauline McLynn.
Chloe Sirene.
Rula Lenska.

Camouflage

Joe Haldeman's 2005 Nebula Award winning Camouflage is the story of two aliens living on Earth.

2019: An artifact has been found in one of the trenches on the ocean floor. It was under ancient coral that was at least a million years old. A team of scientists raises the artifact - a oblong sphere of some reflective metal, heavier than any known on the periodic table.

1931: The changeling is from a planet that is so extreme that its kind has learned to evolve to live in any conditions. Now on Earth, it has lived in the sea for longer than it can remember. It formed itself into various sea creatures and learned to live among them. Now it will attempt to learn about the strange creatures who live on land. It has seen sailors and fisherman but doesn't understand their complexity. Once forming its shape into a human, it will have to learn language and social skills along with the everyday functions we take for granted.

Pre-Christian Era: The chameleon has lived on Earth for as long as it can remember. It is in the form of a human male. It can change its appearance, but can only be a human male. Living through every period of human evolution, its base instinct is always survival. Since it cannot die, it feels it is superior to humans.

The artifact lifted from the ocean will likely draw the attention of both aliens. One who has always been attracted to the Pacific Ocean and one who wants a greater challenge than killing humans. Each who has looked for another like itself.

Haldeman, Joe. (2004). Camouflage. New York: Penguin.

Freak

Freak by Marcella Pixley is about the battle between staying true to yourself and giving in to peer pressure.

Miriam is in seventh grade - the worst grade there is. Her older sister is now in high school and doesn't talk to her. The popular girls make fun of her. Her parents are clueless. And she is about to reach the breaking point.

Will reaching the breaking point make her a different person? In a good or bad way? Will it cause the kids at school to taunt her more or less?

Pixley, and eighth grade teacher, explores the line between being yourself and trying to fit in. And the point at which you find something to believe in when you look in the mirror.

Pixley, Marcella. (2007). Freak. New York: Melanie Kroupa Books.

Fresh Girl

Fresh Girl by Jaira Placide is the story illustrating how the coup in Haiti affected those living there.

Mardi was born in the US to Haitian parents. When she was four, she went to Haiti to live with her sister and grandmother. When rebels attempted to kill the president, her family fled to NYC to live with her parents.

Since Mardi has returned to the US she is not the same. She is angry and sad. No one knows why she has changed.

When her Uncle Perrin is found in a refugee camp in Cuba and reunited with the family, Mardi cannot keep her feelings hidden. With the help of her uncle, she is able to face what happened in Haiti.

Placide, Jaira. (2002). Fresh Girl. New York: Wendy Lamb Books.

The Host

Stephenie Meyer has done it again - The Host is a great science fiction novel. For a fairly new writer she has started at the top, first with the Twilight series and now this.

Earth has been invaded by a species who call themselves
"souls." To humans they are like shiny metallic centipedes - small enough to look harmless. But when they are inserted into the human brain stem, the souls take over the human bodies - forcing the existing personality away.

Melanie Stryder is one of the humans who has hidden out and avoided getting caught by the seekers. When she sees her cousin in a news clip about Chicago, she is compelled to find out if she is alright. But once she gets to Chicago she is caught by a seeker. Seekers are the only aliens who show any aggression - their job is to find the remaining native species - humans on Earth - and uses the bodies as hosts for the souls.

Wanderer is a soul who has lived on more planets than any other soul, hence the name. Now that she has come to Earth, her request to be placed in an adult female has landed her in Melanie's body. But Melanie refuses to leave.

Can two beings exist in one body? How will the influence of Melanie and her human memories affect Wanderer? Melanie will never give up trying to find her brother Jamie and the love of her life, Jared. Wanderer will have to face a species that even she is not completely prepared for. Writen from the first persons of Melanie and Wanderer, this internal struggle within the larger human struggle for survival is a thought provoking look at what makes us human and where the soul fits in that dynamic.

The Host is the best science fiction I have read in a while. It reminds me of the genius of Nicola Griffith or Kelley Eskridge (without the lesbian parts).

Meyer, Stephenie. (2008). The Host. New York: Little, Brown and Co.

Evolution, Me & Other Freaks of Nature

Evolution, Me & Other Freaks of Nature by Robin Brande is a great book. It is one I never would have picked up on my own (it is on the reading list for my YA Lit class) and I would have been missing out.

Mena Reece has been looking forward to high school for a long time. Now that she has finally arrived, it is not quite what she expected. None of her friends are speaking to her. She followed her conscience and others were implicated. Now she has been kicked out of her church and no one is speaking to her.

When she is partnered with Casey in her science class, her outlook on life will begin to change. Though she has never had much contact with people outside of her church, Casey decides it is his job to get her caught up on the important things in life - like seeing the Lord of the Rings movies.

Through a science project, Mena is introduced to Casey's family and a new way of life. She still believes in God, but is starting to see that there is more than one way to be a good person.

When her ex-friends stage a protest in science class - by turning their chairs backwards at the first mention of evolution - Mena has a chance to examine her own thoughts about life, science, religion and friendship.

Brande, Robin. (2007). Evolution, Me & Other Freaks of Nature. New York: Alfred A. Knopf.

American Born Chinese

American Born Chinese by Gene Luen Yang is the first graphic novel to win the Printz Award - the American Library Association's Young Adult Literature Award.

This look at stereotypes and learning to be who you are meant to be is a powerful and beautiful novel.
Parallelling the stories of a monkey king and Jin Wang, a young Chinese American boy in San Fransisco, Yang examines the ability to love yourself as you are versus the stereotypes thrown at you. Interwoven with these two stories is a third, the story of Danny, an American boy whose Chinese cousin visits each year in the US. Danny is greatly embarrassed by this cousin who resembles all of the stereotypes about Chinese people.

Beautifully illustrated by Lark Pien, American Born Chinese is a must read for everyone. This novel, along with Maus and Fun Home, have led me to the discovery that I actually enjoy graphic novels.

Yang, Gene Luen. (2006). American Born Chinese. New York: First Second.

The Chocolate War

The Chocolate War by Robert Cormier.

It is not often you read a book where two of the main characters grow in such a way that they were better off at the beginning of the book. But that is my take on what happens in The Chocolate War.

Trinity High School is not really run by the monks who teach there, though they do have control over the students. Trinity is run by a group of student - juniors and seniors - know as The Vigil. The Vigil assigns students to tasks and pranks during the school year. No one would dare refuse the order to do something, no matter how crazy.

One student, Goubert, is told to remove all of the screws from the furniture in one classroom. Another, Renault, is told to refuse to sell chocolate for ten days. Once the ten days are over, he is supposed to sell his quota of chocolate like all other students. But he refuses to sell chocolate after the ten days. Now The Vigil must do something or others will begin to refuse their influence.

What started out as one student standing up for himself, with only a single friend to support him, turned into a war. Renault is attacked, taunted, and made an outcast. Goubert is so disgusted by the actions at his school that he quits football and any other voluntary activity. Renault ends up in an ambulance.

The interesting thing about this book is that the bullies don't seem to receive any punishment for their actions. Two students are broken and will never be the same, but nothing is done about it. If Cormier's intent is to make readers think about how this is wrong, then he has succeeded with this reader. The book left an unfinished, disappointed feeling in me. Any book where the revenge on someone it to tease him and call him queer is not my idea of progressing social ideas.

Cormier, Robert. (1974). The Chocolate War. New York: Random House.