Corrine Jackson's Blog, page 15

Bookanista Review: STORY OF A GIRL

Here is the official blurb from the publisher:

STORY OF A GIRL by Sara Zarr

When she is caught in the backseat of a car with her older brother's best friend–Deanna Lambert's teenage life is changed forever. Struggling to overcome the lasting repercussions and the stifling role of "school slut," she longs to escape a life defined by her past. With subtle grace, complicated wisdom and striking emotion, Story of a Girl reminds us of our human capacity for resilience, epiphany and redemption.

****

At the tail end of 2009  I was going through a reading drought where I read a lot, but I couldn't find anything I loved. I started a lot of books, but nothing grabbed me. The voices fell flat or the stakes were low or the characters were ones I couldn't relate to. I'd just moved to San Francisco, and I was going through this intense period of loneliness because I hadn't made friends here yet. One of my favorite things to do that first December was to drive down Highway 1, grab a hot cocoa from McDonalds (drive thrus are a novelty in SF), and head over to the shore to watch the sun set over Pacifica in a very startling, dramatic fashion. When I came across Story of a Girl at the library, I was excited to read it because it takes places in that sleepy coastal town.

The first thing that struck me was how real the characters felt. Deanna's pain leaps off the pages at the reader. I ached for her as I read. First, she is taken advantage of by her older brother's best friend. She is angry at the boy, but mostly she blames herself for it, though she was too young to even realize the position she'd been put in or the repercussions of it. Her father catches her and the boy together and that moment becomes the catalyst for the heartbreak she suffers over the next years. When the book opens, her father is so disillusioned that he's checked out. He can hardly look at her while she feels this incredible yearning to be his little girl again. Her older brother is another family disappointment, as he lives at home with his girlfriend and their baby. This family is broken, but oh so authentic. They are working class and just struggling to get by. Dreams are a luxury.

Deanna's friends, her parents, her brother, her brother's girlfriend, and the boy who used her could have been people I knew. This girl's story could have been mine if I'd taken another path, and that is the wonder of literature. That we get to see our lives play out in another way, even if it's only on the page.

I cried buckets reading Story of a Girl. Not just a little sniffle, but actual crying with sound effects and snot. This story tugged at something in me and refilled that empty space in me that hadn't loved a book in too long. Now I own a copy of it and I can't visit Pacifica without imagining Deanna and her family there, and I have to believe that things have gotten better for them. At least I like to think so.

***

Check out the links below to see what the other Bookanistas are talking about!

 

Christine Fonseca  gives a shout out for REGRET

Carrie Harris swoons for STRUCK

Stasia Ward Kehoe loves up THE LIBERATION OF MAX MCTRUE

Katy Upperman delights in GRACELING

Tracy Banghart shares some CLARITY and PERCEPTION

Jessica Love delights in THE SCORPIO RACES

Hilary Wagner hosts a Guest Post by Author Aaron Kato on YA Voice

Bookanista Review: THE TRUTH ABOUT FOREVER

Here is the official blurb from the publisher:

THE TRUTH ABOUT FOREVER

 a long, hot summer… 

That's what Macy has to look forward to while her boyfriend, Jason, is away at Brain Camp. Days will be spent at a boring job in the library, evenings will be filled with vocabulary drills for the SATs, and spare time will be passed with her mother, the two of them sharing a silent grief at the traumatic loss of Macy's father. 

But sometimes unexpected things can happen—things such as the catering job at Wish, with its fun-loving, chaotic crew. Or her sister's project of renovating the neglected beach house, awakening long-buried memories. Things such as meeting Wes, a boy with a past, a taste for Truth-telling, and an amazing artistic talent, the kind of boy who could turn any girl's world upside down. As Macy ventures out of her shell, she begins to wonder, Is it really better to be safe than sorry?

****

"There is never a time or place for true love. It happens accidentally, in a heartbeat, in a single flashing, throbbing moment."

I read this book some time ago. It was published in 2004, but it was new to me in 2010 when I read it. I'd heard a lot about Sarah Dessen, and usually it was in reference to her books being sweet and light. So basically, I didn't expect much when I picked up this book. What I discovered was that people underestimate Sarah Dessen because she makes a difficult story look easy.

In THE TRUTH ABOUT FOREVER, Dessen creates a whole cast of characters that surround Macy. Her real estate-selling mother, Caroline the older sister, Jason the ex, Wes, and the catering crew. These people all impact Macy in various ways. She's grieving for her father and these people crash into her life and help her to find the desire to live again. So much of this book is about control. When people are grieving or scared, they feel like they're spinning out without anything to hold on to. People try to regain control in different ways. I like that several of the characters are holding on to different things – for Caroline it's the desire to move on by redoing the beach house, for the mother it's pouring herself into her career, and for Macy it's trying to be perfect – the perfect daughter and perfect girlfriend. All of this grieving is quiet and pushes them apart. Dessen does a wonderful job of skipping out on the melodrama and letting things take the course of time.

The romance is incredibly sweet, too. Wes and Macy both have significant others. They start out as friends, and their gradual realization of feelings is slow and natural. I loved all of their getting-to-know-each-other scenes. They are imperfect and mess up, but these two genuinely like each other. It's not all sparks and attraction. This book isn't just a romance. It's a full-circle look at a girl's life and none of the characters are alike – not an easy thing to do with a cast this big.

I think the biggest surprise for me in this book was the humor. Monica, with her timely one line answers, had me cracking up at the end. This is a book that goes on my shelf to be reread when I'm in the mood for quiet comfort and a laugh.

***

Check out the links below to see what the other Bookanistas are talking about!

Christine Fonseca  is wow'd by WANDERLOVE

Stasia Ward Kehoe reads for National Poetry Month

Katy Upperman delights in SOMETHING STRANGE AND DEADLY

Tracy Banghart honors THE HEX HALL trilogy

Hilary Wagner deems the DANNY DRAGONBREATH Series Fantastic!

If I Lie

A powerful debut novel about the gray space between truth and perception.

Quinn's done the unthinkable: she kissed a guy who is not Carey, her boyfriend. And she got caught. Being branded a cheater would be bad enough, but Quinn is deemed a traitor, and shunned by all of her friends. Because Carey's not just any guy—he's serving in Afghanistan and revered by everyone in their small, military town.

Quinn could clear her name, but that would mean revealing secrets that she's vowed to keep—secrets that aren't hers to share. And when Carey goes MIA, Quinn must decide how far she'll go to protect her boyfriend…and her promise.

Publisher: Simon Pulse

Debuts: August 28, 2012

Buy the Book:

Amazon | Indiebound | Barnes & Noble | Books-A-Million

Add to Your Shelf:

Goodreads

The Reading Room

 

Touched

Remy O'Malley has the power to heal people with her touch, but her ability comes at a steep cost because every illness or injury she heals becomes her own. This is Book One in the Touched trilogy.

Remy O'Malley heals people with touch—but every injury she cures becomes her own. Living in a household with an abusive stepfather, she has healed untold numbers of broken bones, burns,and bruises. And then one night her stepfather goes too far.

Being sent to live with her estranged father offers a clean start and she is eager to take it. Enter Asher Blackwell. Once a Protector of Healers, Asher sacrificed his senses to become immortal. Only by killing a Healer can a Protector recover their human senses. Falling in love is against the rules between these two enemies. Because Remy has the power to make Protectors human again, and when they find out, they'll becoming for her—if Asher doesn't kill her first

Publisher: Kensington/KTeen

Debuts: November 27, 2012

Buy the Book:

Amazon | German Amazon

Add to Your Shelf:

Goodreads

 

Touched will also be released in the following languages:

Thienemann Verlag (German hardcover) – February 21, 2012

HHV Hamburg GmbH (German audio book) – February 23, 2012

Ullstein (German paperback)

Dogan Egmont (Turkish)

German Promotion:

Facebook Fan Page – Remy und Asher

Website – www.remy-und-asher.de

Lovelybooks.de Leserunde (Reading Round)

German Reviews

(Untitled) Touched 2

Summary to come.

Publisher: Kensington/KTeen

Debuts: TBD

Buy the Book:

TBD | German Amazon

Add to Your Shelf:

Goodreads

 

Touched 2 will also be released in the following languages:

Thienemann Verlag (German hardcover) – October 29, 2012

HHV Hamburg GmbH (German audio book)

Ullstein (German paperback)

Touched 2: Die Schatten der Vergangenheit – German Cover Reveal

It seems like just yesterday that I posted the cover for Touched 1: Der Preis der Unsterblichkeit.

Well, guess what? Thienemann Verlag has done it again. I love the cover for Touched 2: Die Schatten der Vergangenheit just as much, if not more. And it's already available for pre-order on Amazon.de if you speak German. Here it is!

 

Oh, the green! And the girl! And the beautiful! I find it absolutely stunning! What do you think?

Amazon Milestone

So you know how authors obsess about Amazon rankings and reviews and posts about their books? I've been doing that, but I have to translate everything from German because my first book debuted in Germany on 2/21. TOUCHED – DER PREIS DER UNSTERBLICHKEIT is available now from Thienemann Verlag. And I'm so relieved because people are liking it. They are writing fun reviews and vlogging. And just now THIS happened.

 

Which means that German TOUCHED is 1,427 in all Amazon.de eBooks. Which is AWESOME. And then there's this…

TOUCHED is #92 in Children's and Teen books. DUDE. I'm in the top 100 YA Youth eBooks on Amazon.

WOOOOOTTTT! Ahem. I could be a little excited.

I just want to thank Thienemann for all that they are doing to support TOUCHED. Have you seen this AMAZING site they did? And this Facebook page? And a Reading Round begins on 3/24 on lovelybooks.de where I'll be answering reader questions.

And ginormous thanks to the readers! Your emails make my day!

 

Change Write Now – Round 2

Back in December I invited book bloggers, writers and book industry people to join me in the Change Write Now challenge. We had an astounding 90+ people sign up. As part of this challenge, players were assigned to teams and each player earned points for the following:

The points categories are (for a total of 100 points each day):

Eating Healthy –25 points
Exercising for at least 20 minutes – 25 points
Sleeping at least 6 hours – 10 points
Consuming 64 oz of Water – 10 points
Checking in with your teammates – 10 points
Adopting One Good Habit – 10 points
Tossing Out One Bad Habit – 10 points

Now that we are coming up on the end of the first challenge, we took a poll of the current players to find out what they thought. We had an overwhelming response. People said they had more energy – some even during very stressful times. Some saw their health improve exponentially. Others lost weight – for those who made that their goal. And still others changed some big habits like giving up cigarettes. Overwhelmingly, the players found that being part of a team made a huge difference. Whenever they felt like blowing off exercise or eating unhealthy, they remembered that their team was counting on them.

So, we are doing the challenge again.

What You Need to Know:

1. To learn more about how the challenge works, please visit our rules and guidelines.

2. Understand that the challenge requires a big commitment, and your team will come to depend on you. Be ready to take this seriously.

3. Signups will be open through Friday, March 9.

4. Round 2 of the challenge will begin on Sunday, March 11.

If this sounds like something you want to join in on, please sign up!

Check out what the other Bookanistas are saying!

Christine Fonseca  interviews author L.K. Gardner-Griffie

Carolina Valdez Miller adores UNDER THE NEVER SKY – with giveaway

Jen Hayley has a passion for PARTIALS

Debra Driza falls for THE FAULT IN OUR STARS

Jessica Love shares some TIME BETWEEN US cover talk

Tracy Banghart jumps for CATCHING JORDAN

Stasia Ward Kehoe contemplates middle grade series

LiLa Roecker are is enthralled with THE NIGHT CIRCUS

Bookanista Review: CHOPSTICKS

Here is the official blurb from the publisher:

CHOPSTICKS

 

After her mother died, Glory retreated into herself and her music. Her single father raised her as a piano prodigy, with a rigid schedule and the goal of playing sold-out shows across the globe. Now, as a teenager, Glory has disappeared. As we flash back to the events leading up to her disappearance, we see a girl on the precipice of disaster. Brilliant and lonely, Glory is drawn to an artistic new boy, Frank, who moves in next door. The farther she falls, the deeper she spirals into madness. Before long, Glory is unable to play anything but the song "Chopsticks." 

But nothing is what it seems, and Glory's reality is not reality at all. In this stunningly moving novel told in photographs, pictures, and words, it's up to the reader to decide what is real, what is imagined, and what has been madness all along…

****

CHOPSTICKS is a love story told through visual cues. The reader is given an intimate, almost voyeuristic view into the world of piano prodigy Glory and her neighbor Frank. Glory is almost a prisoner to her music as her father pushes her harder and harder and they embark on a world tour. One day she disappears and the book tells the story of the events leading up to her disappearance. The story is relayed through photos, letters, images, IM's between characters, emails, plus other images like ticket stubs and announcements. We see Glory and Frank fall in love through their correspondence and then we see Glory's slow descent into seeming madness as she begins to play "Chopsticks" at her concerts.

The reader is put into the role of sleuth, trying to uncover what the images mean and which clues matter. One of the great aspects of the book are the links that send you online to find additional content (ie. videos on Youtube). There's also an accompanying app (which I didn't play with and am not reviewing here) that unlocks additional content. It is our job to figure out what happened to Glory, and the reader becomes an active participant.

All the while I was reading, I kept having these flashbacks to another series (not YA) that I was obsessed with in the nineties. There are strong parallels between the format and the stories, so I didn't get the sense CHOPSTICKS was as wholly original in concept as some claim it is. In the Griffin and Sabine series, Griffin is a postcard designer and Sabine is a stamp illustrator. Their love story is told through artistic postcards and letters. Real envelopes are pasted to the pages of the trilogy and you pull the love letters out for a read, giving you a unique tactile experience. I was fascinated by these books and spent hours unfolding the notes to reread them because – like CHOPSTICKS – you are never sure if the love story is real or a figment of Griffin's (or Glory's) imagination.

I think CHOPSTICKS is the 21st century evolution of Griffin and Sabine – emails, IMs, and Youtube links, in place of postcards and letters. I love the internet – hai, I'm on it umpteen hours a day –  but maybe I'm a bit old-fashioned because I missed the sensation of opening those envelopes and unfolding those letters. I may be reading a larger context into the novel while comparing these works, but I saw how our society has evolved in this age of technology – and not always in a good way. I was left with an urge to write someone a letter and send it the old-fashioned way.

Overall, the book was intriguing albeit leaving behind a hint of yearning for answers. If you are the kind of reader who likes definitive resolution to a mystery, this book will drive you crazy. However, if you want a reading experience that takes you beyond the page, this is definitely a book for you.

Full disclosure: I received this ARC from the publisher.

***

Check out the links below to see what the other Bookanistas are talking about!

Christine Fonseca surrenders to THE SECRET OF SPRUCE KNOLL

Stasia Ward Kehoe  presents a Stunning Seconds interview with A MILLION SUNS author Beth Revis

Jen Hayley gives a shout-out to the classics

Debra Driza celebrates CINDER – with giveaway!

Katy Upperman raves over JELLICOE ROAD

Hilary Wagner is all about LEXAPROS AND CONS – with giveaway

Carolina Valdez Miller talks about the tremendous cover of TEN

Jessica Love has high ratings for THE STATISTICAL PROBABILITY OF LOVE AT FIRST SIGHT

One Year After the Book Deal

First, I want to say that I know how lucky I am, and I try to never take it for granted. I've had more success in the last year than I know how to cope with on most days. I've sold four books, some with foreign and audio rights. I'm going to graduate with my MFA in July in Paris, and I get to visit Germany while I'm in Europe. I have amazing editors and an agent who are all very supportive, even when my Type A personality rears its ugly head in the form of charts, spreadsheets, and too many emails. I couldn't ask for better friends and family. From my local critique group to the writers and bloggers I've come to love online, I've found myself rich in friendships and support. And I have two books coming out this year. Some weeks I'm hit with so much exciting news that I'm riding on a good news high. I actually glow. I know because NASA has proof of sighting me from space.

Of course, that only lasts until I sit down at my computer to write. I had a mini-meltdown about a week ago. I'm super at looking like I have everything handled, and not so good at sharing how I'm freaking out on the inside. When I had my mini-meltdown – the kind where my friends could tell from my emails that I was most likely (a) crying when I wrote them and (b) eating ice cream straight from the pint with a spoonful-of-peanut-butter chaser – several people wrote me to say how it made them feel good to see me losing it. And they meant that in the nicest way, which is exactly how I took it.

My fake superwoman act kind of made my friends feel bad because we're all prone to comparing ourselves to others. (I want to be as funny as Tahereh Mafi and Maureen Johnson. I also want to be classy and handle myself like Veronica Roth. And I want to move people like Laurie Halse Anderson. See? We all do it.) By only sharing the great happenings, I gave off this air of having it together. Juggling two book deals with school and a full time career? No problem! Piece of cake. *finger snap* At least, that's what it looked like when I hid my struggles.

And it's not much better on this blog. I've been posting less and less frequently, partly because some things seem shrouded in secrecy once you get a book deal (you simply can't talk about some things), but mostly because I once used this blog as a place to share my struggles, and now I feel like there's a perception that if you have a book deal, you no longer have struggles. Or at least, your struggles are ones that others would volunteer for, so please, please stop your whining, stupid author. The first I can't do much about, but the second, I'm getting over because of what happened after my mini-meltdown.

See, I've been struggling to write the sequel to TOUCHED. My first two books (TOUCHED and IF I LIE) I wrote in this vacuum where all was sunshine and love of words. It was a magical place where the pressure to sell out an advance, critics, Goodreads ratings, and deadlines didn't exist. The only expectations placed on me were my own. Now, I have others to think about, and I'm such a people pleaser. Man, I hate to disappoint anyone and, when I had to ask for a deadline extension, I cried. I was hugely disappointed in myself that I couldn't MAKE myself deliver on time. And despite me crying, my agent was lovely and reminded me that my life has undergone some major changes this year, and that truly I didn't let anyone down.

I thought about that after I got off the phone with her and then processed it over the next few days. Last Valentine's Day – it seems so apropos to post this almost a year to the day after I sold – I sold my first book. A month later I sold a trilogy. I have balanced edits, line edits, copy edits, first pass page review, school, book marketing, a full time career in marketing, writing the sequel, family obligations, a crit group, and more. On top of that, my father passed away seven months ago. And I've only been in San Francisco a couple of years, so there's that adjustment. If you back up to 2010, it's like someone shoved me in a snow globe and every few months, they've taken complete run-through-a-meadow joy in giving it a good jolt. Upheaval, even good upheaval, is still upheaval. There's no shame in that. See how I'm admitting that finally?

Taking all of those stressors into account, I've acclimated well. I think. I work hard. I regularly put in 15-18 hour days on a computer. In retrospect, beating the hell out of myself for not working hard enough is laughable and shows how I lost perspective. You can only demand so much of yourself.

Sometimes I need to pause and take stock. Look at where I've been and then readjust my expectations of myself. And I need to share my struggles, both to help myself and to let others in. When I had my crying jag, I discovered at least six other YA writers who are struggling to write their sequels with all the pressures that didn't exist when they wrote their first books. It turns out that I am not alone.  I'm ridiculously normal, as a matter of fact. And knowing that I was struggling helped those other writers see they were normal, too. It's so nice to find out that you're not alone in the boat sans paddles.

Really we're all doing the best we can. Nobody ever tells you what comes after your dream comes true. Stories always seem to end with "And they lived happily ever after…" But there's a lot of effort, sweat, and tears that goes into that ever after. And, this is so huge for me, it's time for me to come up with a new dream, a new goal to strive for. This seems so presumptuous, right? I never thought the first dream would come true, so how dare I reach for a second one? But you know what? I'm going to do it anyway.

So yeah, that's what's been going on with me.