Sarah Jamila Stevenson's Blog: Blog - Sarah Jamila Stevenson, page 81

Thinking About Going to KidLitCon 2011?

KidLitCon--the annual conference for children's and YA lit bloggers--has attracted bloggers, authors, illustrators and other kidlit enthusiasts for the past four years. This year, the conference will be held in Seattle (yay--back in our neck of the woods, relatively) and the organizers are LOOKING FOR YOUR INPUT!

If you haven't already, don't forget to take the
Personally, I'm looking forward to some sessions on issues in blogging and children's/YA lit--maybe a discussion on diversity (in literature and in the blogosphere), or ways bloggers can contribute to the conversation.

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Also, MotherReader's and Lee Wind's Comment Challenge 2011 has started. Haven't signed up yet? Go here. I may have to take a pass this year...I haven't even been able to read many blogs lately, let alone comment, although I probably have been commenting on most of the posts I've actually managed to read. Gosh darn those other obligations...I should've made a New Year's resolution to ditch some of 'em...

(Edited by your blogging partner to add: Of course, if one's BOOK has just come out the first month of the year, one is excused from all other obligations other than panicking and doing PR for it, so one can give oneself a break, perhaps??)

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Toon Thursday: The Unnecessarily Triumphant Return!

Weeeee'rrrrre baaaaacccckk....and we're bad. Good bad. Not bad bad. I don't think.


Yeah, that felt good.

I had some links I was going to post, but I'm kind of worn out now. I'll limit it to this: Check out new site Diversity in YA Fiction, pioneered by authors Cindy Pon and Malinda Lo. It's "a book tour and website devoted to celebrating diversity in middle grade and young adult books," particularly those with characters of color or LGBT characters. Right up our alley here at FW, and a truly excellent endeavor!

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Drum Roll, Please....

Today, gentle readers, is Thursday. For quite a while here at Finding Wonderland, Thursday has simply been, well, Thursday. The day after Wednesday and before Friday. Nothing special.

Oh, but it used to be. Thursday used to be special, and it will be again. I used to do a little something called Toon Thursday, in which I posted a cartoon (usually writing- or blogging-related) just for fun, for a change of pace, to amuse the two of us in our ongoing writing endeavors--and hopefully amusing a few others along the way. The poets had Poetry Friday, and, not being much of a poet myself, I was, I admit, a bit jealous. So I started up Toon Thursday.

For a variety of reasons, I stopped posting the 'toons. But for a while now, I've been thinking about starting up again. Probably not weekly like I was doing before--that was pretty ambitious--but maybe twice a month. And I'm excited about it. In preparation, I've put together an archive of every Toon Thursday I've drawn so far, sorted alphabetically by title, which I'll update as I continue drawing cartoons.

In honor of re-starting Toon Thursday--next week, if all goes according to plan--here's a reprint of the first cartoon I ever posted. Enjoy!

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Monday Middle-Grade Magic

Parts of these reviews were initially posted to Goodreads. (Yes, I'm plagiarizing myself.) And--this kicks off a new format for writing reviews here at Finding Wonderland. We're trying to be a bit more focused, a bit more distinctive...and hopefully a bit more interesting as a result!

Found: Magic Thief #3 by Sarah Prineas

Reader Gut Reaction: I've really enjoyed all three of the Magic Thief books, and the third book didn't disappoint. In fact, I was pleased that this volume held some new and fun surprises. I haven't been keeping up with the sections written in code, but I haven't found them to be essential to the story, so I think I'll be OK there. Readers who are big code fans will no doubt enjoy it—my childhood self would have probably loved it. (I spent ages making bookmark "cheat sheets" of both the runic and elven alphabets in the Lord of the Rings books.)

Concerning Character: What continues to impress me about this series is the author's ability to convey so much atmosphere and feeling through a very laconic narrator. At the same time, Conn is very likable, stubbornly doing what he knows is right even when very few people seem to be on his side. All of the major side characters are nicely fleshed out and 3-dimensional. Okay, sure, there are a few faceless interchangeable thugs, but they aren't critical to the story. It's characters like the wizard Nevery—so much more prickly yet relatable than the very distant-seeming Dumbledore—and his knitting, biscuit-baking housekeeper/bodyguard/manservant Benet, and the tough, no-nonsense Duchess-to-be Rowan, that lend uniqueness to what could be just another fantasy adventure about a would-be wizard.

Recommended for Fans Of: I've already kind of hinted at it, so I might as well say it: fans of Harry Potter or Lord of the Rings-style epic fantasy adventures might well enjoy these, especially if you're looking for a quicker read. They'd also be great in the hands of readers who aren't quite ready for those two series. I think Tamora Pierce fans would also dig these—there are some similarities in the world-building and in how the characters relate to the world's magic.

Buy The Magic Thief: Found from an independent bookstore near you!

Theodosia and the Eyes of Horus by R.L. LaFevers

Reader Gut Reaction: Another enjoyable installment from a series that is truly charming, appealing, fun and adventuresome. Don't expect the books to stick perfectly to historical accuracy—that's not the point. Just know that you'll be following a plucky and determined heroine whose agenda of saving the world from ancient curses does not necessarily align with her parents' more prosaic museum-managing duties. The latest adventure finds Theodosia encountering a mysterious Egyptian magician while trying to avoid the usual crop of nefarious enemies.

Concerning Character: Theodosia continues to exhibit the sort of spunk and sense of adventure we expect from her, and she continues to face an assortment of threatening baddies and unexpected setbacks in her latest adventure. Fortunately, she's got a rather interesting collection of allies to help her along the way. Most exciting, though, about this book were the revelations and hints about who Theodosia is and why she ended up with her curse-detecting powers. (That's all I'm going to say about that!)

Other Writerly Thoughts: I loved the setup of having Theodosia come up against her mentor, Wigmere, who is being aggravatingly adult and bureaucratic about the whole thing. For one thing, he's sidetracked by the fact that Theo is an eleven-year-old girl, forgetting that she's no ordinary girl but somewhat of a genius with rather unusual abilities. I was just waiting and waiting for Wigmere to get his comeuppance at the end and to see Theo proved right after all, and I was so NOT disappointed. Sweet vindication! It's a thematic device that a lot of successful classic children's books employ, and it's used to good effect here.

Recommended for Fans Of: If you enjoy Egyptology, secret societies, and Victorian/Edwardian settings, and you like mysteries, this is a fun series. Fans of Joan Aiken's Wolves books, Frances Hodgson Burnett, and other children's classics featuring strong girl heroines may enjoy these. If you like edgy-but-heartwarming children's fantasy like Neil Gaiman's The Graveyard Book, this might also appeal.

Bonus Linkage: Shrinking Violet Promotions - writerly self-promotion for us introverts! Starring R.L. LaFevers and friends.

Buy Theodosia and the Eyes of Horus from an independent bookstore near you!

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Happy Holidays and a Happy New Year!

Warm wishes from Tanita and Aquafortis for a very happy holiday season filled with love, books and MMM COOKIES! (Check out the link for a little holiday cookie fun.)
Photo: Christoph Niemann, New York Times

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Attn: Attolia Addicts!

Just cruising by to say, if you're a fan of Megan Whelan Turner, don't miss her Five Questions interview with the Horn Book's Martha V. Parravano. It's in the latest newsletter. You can read it online, and you can subscribe to the Horn Book newsletter here.

And, some more nerdtastic stuff: Mystery Science Theater 3K co-creator Trace Beaulieu wrote a children's book! Check out this interview with him on Literary Asylum.

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Steampunk/Alt History Week: One Last Hurrah

Our final (I think) steampunk/alt history week post is all about linkage. If you're looking for a full roundup of this week's steampunk links, check out the list at Chasing Ray.

As for us, here, today--we wanted to give another shout-out to some of the books and authors that have been discussed this week, here and around the blogosphere, by highlighting various steampunk/alt history-ish posts we've done in the past. So, all in one place for your edification and entertainment, here you go:

This week, here on Finding Wonderland, we had an extravaganza of multicultural steampunk, steampunk couture, Edinburgh through the eyes of The Explosionist's Sophie Hunter, and reviews of Jenny Davidson's Invisible Things and Cherie Priest's Boneshaker. In the past, we've reviewed other steampunk and alternate history stories (click each link for the review): The Explosionist, D.M. Cornish's Monster Blood Tattoo/Foundling's Tale books (Foundling, Lamplighter and Factotum), Flora Segunda and Flora's Dare by Ysabeau Wilce, Cassandra Clare's Clockwork Angel, and Sporeville by Paul Marlowe. Probably others, too... We've also interviewed some of the above authors (and others who've written steampunk and steampunk-ish stories): D.M. Cornish, Ysabeau Wilce, and Kazu Kibuishi (who wrote the steampunk graphic novel Daisy Kutter and other great stuff). Hopefully it'll be useful to you as well as to us to have all of our steampunk-related stuff in one place, the better for fanboys and -girls to be fanboyish and fangirlish. Or something.

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Steampunk Week Reviews: Invisible Things and Boneshaker

As part of our contribution to Steampunk/Alternate History Celebration Week, I picked out two books in the genre that I hadn't read before, but have been meaning to read—one newly released, one that's been out for a short while; one YA, one not-strictly-YA but more of a crossover. And it's been a fun journey; the two books couldn't have been more different, despite sharing the same overarching genre.

Invisible Things by Jenny Davidson is a sequel/companion book to The Explosionist. It will be a bit difficult for anyone who hasn't read the first book to get their bearings within the ongoing story events, but if alternate history is your thing, then you'll no doubt want to chase down both books. The story presents readers with an alternate pre-World-War-II, one with a very different set of political alliances but some of the same motivations of aggression, greed and desire for control. It's an intriguing setting that blends the developing nuclear technologies of the time period with neo-Victorian spiritualism, and poses a number of interesting what-if questions about the history and the scientific politics of the era.

After the events of The Explosionist, the main character, fifteen-year-old Sophie Hunter, is living with the Petersens in Copenhagen, Denmark at the Niels Bohr Institute. Although the momentum in the early chapters is a little slow, the story gains speed when Sophie receives the unexpected and shocking news of the death of her great-aunt Tabitha back in Scotland. And then poor Sophie is bombarded with one shocking revelation after another, finding out secrets about her family that shake her identity to its very foundations and have ramifications for international security. Her role in the ultimate resolution of these thorny situations is a little less active than I'd have liked—I wanted her to show a little more grit and determination rather than everything constantly happening TO her—but the depiction of Sophie's unique world, populated with famous-name physicists and political intrigue, will be hard for alternate-history fans to resist.

Oh, and I absolutely adore her cat, Trismegistus, who evidently demanded an ongoing presence in the book. I, too, have an overfed but muscular cat, but she's not nearly as imposing.

Buy Invisible Things from an independent bookstore near you!

Cherie Priest's Boneshaker is not strictly a YA book, but crosses over very, very well. With both a steampunk-alternate history Seattle setting and a plague of ravening Blight zombies, I'm hard pressed to think how this book could be made more tantalizing. As someone who has very little patience for the zombie genre (for various reasons I won't go into here), Priest's convincing explanation for their origin and the fact that they're more a part of the atmosphere or context or circumstances rather than a major part of the story makes them not only tolerable but enjoyable. They create action and suspense by which the main characters—Briar Wilkes and her teenage son Zeke—test and prove their mettle.

And, trust me, there's a lot of mettle-testing to be had in this world. While the States further east are struggling with the depredations of the Civil War, the Pacific Northwest is suffering the aftermath of a horrific incident: a runaway ice-drilling machine that ravaged the center of Seattle. Inventor Leviticus Blue invented the Boneshaker to drill for gold in the frozen Klondike, but when his invention ran amok, it destroyed the city center and released a zombie-producing Blight gas from underground. Years later, Blue's widow, Briar, has been trying to raise and support her son outside the walls of the poisoned city center. But Zeke gets it into his head to try to find out more about who he is and who his father was—and to do that, he starts on a mad journey back into the city center to Leviticus and Briar's old house. Briar wrangles a spot on an illicit pirate airship in order to go after him, and it's nonstop adventure and action from then on; from the very beginning, actually.

Boneshaker has it all—a fully realized, detailed setting; a consistent tone (with only a few tiny anachronisms here and there) that's established down to the tiny details of language; well fleshed-out and relatable main characters; and a rip-roaring good story that's just plain fun. Priest's alternate Seattle is populated with sympathetic side characters, a scary Dr.-Mengele-like villain, and, of course, wandering hordes of the living dead. What more could you want?

Buy Boneshaker from an independent bookstore near you!

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Conference Alert!

Have you ever heard of Narrate Conferences? I hadn't, but I just learned today about this remarkable nonprofit, which describes their mission as presenting

innovative conferences and events for teens and adults. The mission of our organization is to provide unique opportunities for scholars, students, professionals and readers to discuss books, television, films, other media and popular culture. We aim to challenge and inspire a wide range of individuals, from the seasoned academic to the literary enthusiast, and our events combine aspects of academic conferences, professional retreats and fan conventions.

Their past events include Harry Potter conferences, but perhaps even more exciting is an upcoming conference on the theme Sirens, dedicated to women in fantasy literature. It's an annual event, and this year's topic is "monsters." Guests include Justine Larbalestier, Nnedi Okorafor, and Laini Taylor, and the conference will take place October 6–9, 2011 in Vail, Colorado. Presentation proposals will be accepted until May 7, 2011. It's a pretty reasonably-priced conference, too...ahem, fantasy fans! Hopefully it won't overlap with the Kidlitcon...

I found out about this intriguing event thanks to fellow Cybils Fantasy/Sci-Fi judge Hallie Tibbetts of Undusty New Books--a fun perk of being Cybils blog editor is getting to cruise around the kidlitosphere and get acquainted with new (to me) blogs.

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The Foundling's Tale, Part Three: Factotum...and a Contest

If you're a fan of D.M. Cornish's unique and astoundingly detailed world of the Half Continent, as portrayed in the Monster Blood Tattoo trilogy—now known as The Foundling's Tale—you'll be pleased to know that A) the third book, Factotum, is out THIS MONTH, and B) it's a truly satisfying end to the tale of foundling-turned-lamplighter-turned-monster-fighter's-assistant Rossamünd Bookchild.

One of my favorite aspects of this trilogy is the fact that the world Cornish has created is so rich and so utterly unlike anything else, down to the use of language at the individual word level. It's not just that characters and places are named in an unusual way (like J.K. Rowling, he's got a talent for naming people), but even the terminology for technology and social structures in this semi-industrialized setting is unique to this book. Words are put to use in new and connotative ways, related to the meanings we might already be familiar with, but not quite the same, with a pure enjoyment of the very sounds of the words themselves. The words are decontextualized, but somehow all of this adds to the feeling of atmosphere in these books—and, as an unrepentant word nerd, you'd think that would annoy me, but instead, I'm happy to go along for the ride.

I don't want to give too much away about this book, but the one of the central themes revolves around the definition of what is, in fact, a monster—and whether in fact all monsters are nefarious and to be universally reviled, or if there may be some (as we learned in book 2) that help humankind and coexist peacefully.

But now that he's the factotum (assistant, sidekick, and pharmacist) to the monster-fighting fulgar Europe, he's in a pretty awkward position. And he's also managed to make a few more enemies—very powerful ones this time. Rossamünd will have to gather all of his friends and allies around him—and make a few more unexpected allies—if he's to get out of this jam without losing his head...literally. Perhaps my only complaint is that the ending felt abrupt...but it could be because I was so reluctant to see the books end. On the other hand, I'm left feeling a clear possibility that we might return to Rossamund's story, or at least to the Half Continent. There are a few ends left suspiciously loose...

Buy Factotum from an independent bookstore near you!

Source: I received a review copy of this book from the publisher.

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Ranging from fantastical and whimsical to grim, gritty and industrial, this trilogy has a very Victorian feel, and as such, it fits well with books in the steampunk genre. There are guns and explosive devices; ships run using harnessed biological power with synthesized muscles called gastrines; and goggles and other strange headwear abound.

Many of us around the blogging world feel that books like Cornish's, which don't quite fit into the traditional steampunk groove, are sometimes overlooked and deserve a little more attention. That's why we've organized Alt History/Steampunk Celebration Week starting December 13th—to celebrate steampunk titles and other similar books that we love and that we think deserve some props. If you liked the Flora Segunda books, Jenny Davidson's Explosionist, Cherie Priest's Boneshaker and other similar titles, mark your calendars for the week of December 13th, and if you'd like, join in with a post of your own.

But what would a Celebration Week be without a contest? This time it's a really good one—a create-your-own-steampunk-book-cover contest. You can read all the details at Bookshelves of Doom. All you need to do is select one of the eligible titles, fire up Photoshop or what-have-you, and show us your artistic chops. Ever thought you could design a better book cover, or wished that a book's cover weren't so boring/girly/irrelevant to the story? Now's your chance to be the designer. December 15th is the deadline, and you could win your choice of books by D.M. Cornish, Jenny Davidson or Ysabeau Wilce. Read all about it here.

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