How I am spending my summer vacation ...

Haven't written for a while, but I have been busy (such a subjective word!).  Off to ALA, which was great! Followed by several weeks of nonstop reading.  Over the next few postings I will share some of the titles that have made an impression on me.  Here are the first two:

The Peculiar by Stefan Bachmann. Greenwillow, publication date: September 1, 2012.

I picked this advanced reader’s copy up at ALA, what an amazing story from an author who was 16 when he wrote it.  It is fantasy with a capital F, set in a place where an opening was created between two worlds that allowed fae (fairy world creatures) to enter ours.  Alas, this was not a good move for these fae, they are essentially exiled in one town and a child of mixed heritage can be beaten or killed.  This story is about one “boy” Bartholomew and the lengths to which he goes to save his sister from a powerful individual who wants to change the balance of power between fae and human.  A great combo of fantasy, steampunk, and coming of age; all in all I thought this story was great.  It was rough in a few spots, a few parts in the story got confusing and rambling, but not enough to make me put down the book.  I hope this author continues to write, I would love to see what he comes up with next.

  Ashfall by Mike Mullen.  Tanglewood Publishing, 2011.                                           

One of my guilty pleasures is disaster movies, natural disasters.  So when my local children’s book store owner told me about this book (with a sequel coming soon), I was hooked.  Ashfall is about the consequences of an extreme volcanic eruption in Yellowstone.  Communication is nonexistent, survival is paramount, and finding one’s loved ones is the plan.  This story was one nonstop action ride, at times I found myself literally holding my breath.  This author has a gift of description, the deep drifts of ash that Alex plows through with his face covered so as to not breathe in the deadly ash fall, feeling each of his trials, I was so involved with this book I barely put it down.  I almost think this is the book that will give Hunger Games a run for the money.