The Crowns of Croswald: Unboxing Video!

I was contacted by author D. E. Night's publicist the other day about her upcoming middle-grade fantasy The Crowns of Croswald, with an offer to send me a "magical book surprise." Of course, with that description, how could I resist?

So without further ado, here is the unboxing that I filmed! Thanks very much to D. E. Night and her publicist for sending this my way :)

The Humming Room: A Close-Up Review

"Hiding is Roo Fanshaw's special skill. Living in a frighteningly unstable family, she often needs to disappear at a moment's notice. When her parents are murdered, it's her special hiding place under the trailer that saves her life.

As it turns out, Roo, much to her surprise, has a wealthy if eccentric uncle, who has agreed to take her into his home on Cough Rock Island. Once a tuberculosis sanitarium for children of the rich, the strange house is teeming with ghost stories and secrets. Roo doesn't believe in ghosts or fairy stories, but what are those eerie noises she keeps hearing? And who is that strange wild boy who lives on the river? People are lying to her, and Roo becomes determined to find the truth.

Despite the best efforts of her uncle's assistants, Roo discovers the house's hidden room--a garden with a tragic secret.

Inspired by The Secret Garden, this tale full of unusual characters and mysterious secrets is a story that only Ellen Potter could write." (from Goodreads)

The Humming Room by Ellen Potter

Premise: My ARC (and Goodreads' description) says that it's inspired by The Secret Garden. I'd like to take a moment to say: this book is more than "inspired" by that classic. This book is basically a retelling of The Secret Garden with the names and details changed. This was my number one problem with The Humming Room, because really — The Secret Garden is a classic for a reason. Sure, Ellen Potter has modernized the story a little, and yes, the behaviour of the character of Colin in the original has been given a more practical, plausible explanation. But apart from that, this book doesn't really add anything new to the story!

Characters: Be warned, I will be referring to The Secret Garden characters a lot (from my memory of the 1975 film version, though, to be perfectly honest).

Roo: She's a gritty character and I liked her, perhaps more than Mary from the original because Mary was selfish and bossy, and Roo isn't like that (she doesn't come from the privileged background Mary did). She does share other characteristics with Mary, though, like tenacity and curiosity. They're both sort of prickly with others, determined and stubborn, and know their own minds. Roo barely takes the point here, but since she's not all condescending like Mary, she does.

Jack: otherwise known as "The Faigne," he's obviously supposed to be Dickon's counterpart. He's a natural with animals, lives on the river, and doesn't really need the company of people (although he likes Roo). Jack's a cool guy, but Dickon wins this one, for being such a sweetheart. (It doesn't hurt that as a kid I thought the actor who played him was cute.)

Phillip: he's The Humming Room's take on Colin. He's pretty similar to Colin in terms of personality — a whiny, bossy child who feels sorry for himself. The biggest difference between them (and indeed, between the two novels) is that instead of being a physically disabled boy with a bad attitude, he is a depressed, grieving boy with a bad attitude. Making the character's challenges about mental illness and grief rather than a physical problem actually makes more sense given how The Secret Garden ends (spoiler for The Secret Garden, highlight to read: it was always a little far-fetched that the garden helped him walk again). Anyway, I liked him more than Colin because I didn't find him quite as irritating. Point goes to Phillip.

Violet: Cough Rock's equivalent of Martha, the maid from the moors. No contest here: I liked Martha better. To be fair, this might be partly because she had an awesome accent. But I didn't think Violet's personality shone, and it honestly doesn't feel like her role is that necessary. We also don't see much of a connection forming between her and Roo like we do in the original.

The squirrel: the requisite animal friend that helpfully leads the main character to the hidden garden. In Mary's case, it was a robin; in Roo's case, it is a black squirrel. I like robins and squirrels, so they cancel each other out. 

Plot:  

I don't think it'll come as a large surprise that The Humming Room follows a lot of the same plot points as The Secret Garden. Roo is an orphan, taken in by her uncle, who finds a secret garden (have I spoiled anything yet?). Really, I just don't see the point of, essentially, rewriting The Secret Garden without doing anything radically different with it. This is not even just a "loosely based on" sort of retelling. You can pretty much map out, plot point by plot point, how the storyline matches up with the original. If you don't know beforehand there's a connection to The Secret Garden, perhaps it isn't so obvious; I couldn't say because I knew going into it. At the start I didn't think it was so strongly reminiscent of the classic, but the parallels become blatantly obvious midway through. You couldn't really get much closer to the original if you tried.

Ellen Potter does handle Roo's character transformation well here. It's really brought home towards the end — how much more lively and open she is with people, rather than being closed-off and withdrawn, trusting only herself, as she was at the beginning. She's become much more motivated and optimistic, embracing the world, and that was a wonderful change to see.

The ending seemed a little bittersweet to me, ultimately happy but with a revelation containing a sad irony (which is in keeping with the original). There's also arguably a very slight magical realism element involved, but I think it works within the context of the story. Cough Rock has a certain sort of mystical charm to it, after all, where you believe miracles can happen. I think the end was missing a much-needed father-son discussion, however. We never get to see them spilling their emotional guts out to each other, for the sake of some closure.

Writing style: The writing is, for the most part, one of the marks in the book's favour. Some of the descriptions are quite picturesque, giving the reader a good visual and sense of the atmosphere without lapsing into purple prose or becoming too detailed. The garden sounds really beautiful and I'd love to hang out there (spoiler: minus the creepy spider, of course).

However, sometimes there's a weird POV switch that happens. We're getting it 3rd-person attached to Roo, and then all of a sudden it will sort of abruptly "head-hop" to someone else, right in the middle of a scene. I found it a little awkward and jarring at times.

Final verdict: 3 shooting stars. Certainly, the storyline is decent...we know that already because it's been done before! I'm just not sure why anyone would pick up The Humming Room and prefer it to The Secret Garden, except perhaps for the fact that the language is likely more accessible to young readers nowadays, since it wasn't written in the 1900s. It's not a bad book in and of itself, but it shouldn't have been marketed as anything but a retelling — and even as that, it's not exceptional.

Disclaimer: I received an ARC from the publisher for review.

A Monster Calls: A Snapshot

A Monster Calls by Patrick Ness

"The monster showed up after midnight. As they do.

But it isn't the monster Conor's been expecting. He's been expecting the one from his nightmare, the one he's had nearly every night since his mother started her treatments, the one with the darkness and the wind and the screaming...

This monster is something different, though. Something ancient, something wild. And it wants the most dangerous thing of all from Conor.

It wants the truth." (from Goodreads)

 
The subject: the struggles of a boy whose mother has cancer. Don't kid yourself — while there's a magical realism element at play here, like any terminal illness story it's a tough, depressing read. I found this book emotionally draining, so be prepared for that. (And yes, it even made me cry a little — which is saying something, because I don't cry very often at books.)

I liked that Connor wasn't ashamed of loving his mom and being close to her. He was willing to put her needs above some of his own (like his need for friendship and social interaction). It was really sweet to see their connection and the kind of pure parent-child love that exists.
 
The setting: I think it's kept purposely vague, to make the story more generalizable...but I'd say it's somewhere in England where they have yew trees.

Shutter speed: fairly slow, but evenly paced. There isn't much exciting plot going on here, and the content is inarguably weighty, but the simple writing style helps keep the reader from getting bogged down.

What's in the background? Amazing illustrations that really made this book special. I wasn't so enthralled with the story at certain points, but I would always be looking forward to the illustrations, because they're just fantastic. Grayscale and done in an impressionistic sort of style, they manage to be very atmospheric, striking and textured.

Zoom in on: the sub-plot about bullying. Frankly, I really didn't "get" the character of Harry and his mindset, but I thought the discussion surrounding Conor's desire to be punished and fear of being alone and invisible was very interesting. Also, I appreciated the acknowledgment of Conor's guilt over the warring desires within him; I thought this was insightful and true, and something many people experience.

An interesting sidenote: there's a fair bit of psychology in here, and something resembling cognitive retraining at the end. The monster distinguishes between the unimportance of thoughts and the importance of actions, and the idea of conflicting thoughts (which might be seen as cognitive dissonance) is also broached.

Anything out of focus? Not really. A Monster Calls accomplishes what it seems to set out to do: tell the story of a parent with cancer in a fresh way. We never find out how the magic works, but that's not really the point; the magic is more of a vehicle for Connor's psychological and emotional development. The writing style is simple, yes, but very effective and powerful. I think Patrick Ness chooses his words quite carefully, and a simple writing style really suits the subject matter.

Ready? Say... "Tissue?"

Click! 5 shooting stars. A Monster Calls is one of those books that has a "timeless classic" sort of feel to it. I can imagine this might be a book a teacher could read to their class, or a parent and child could read together. However, even though it's illustrated, it deals with some deep, heavy themes and concepts in a serious tone — giving them the respect and space they deserve — so younger kids might not fully understand or appreciate it. 

Forget-Me-Nots: The Nose From Jupiter

 

Forget-Me-Nots is a feature on my blog for highlighting books I enjoyed in childhood and the teenage years that I don't see getting much attention nowadays.

I haven't done one of these in so long!

The Nose from Jupiter by Richard Scrimger

Goodreads' description:

"How do you shut up when your nose is doing all the talking?

Alan is not big or strong. He hates playing soccer and can barely keep up in math class. Moreover he’s fodder for every bully for miles around. But all that changes the day Norbert, an alien from Jupiter, comes to earth on an exploration mission and moves into – Alan’s nose. Soon Alan isn’t acting like himself, but is Norbert really to blame? Loud, pushy and hilarious, Norbert teaches Alan to stand up for himself, even when the odds are stacked against him."


I was first introduced to this book in elementary school, when my teacher read it aloud to us. She did a great job of the voices (especially the squeaky voice of Norbert) and it was hilarious! Since then I've re-read it multiple times and still enjoy it. It's a great MG read, full of humour and a male protagonist who's an underdog you'll enjoy rooting for. And of course, there's no one quite like the unforgettable Norbert, who steals the show. There are a couple more in the series, but the original is still the best! (And bonus: the author's Canadian :D)


Anyone remember this one?

Forget-Me-Nots: Nobodies & Somebodies

This is a feature on my blog for highlighting books I enjoyed in childhood and the teenage years that I don't see getting much attention nowadays.

This week's pick: Nobodies & Somebodies by Doris Orgel

 

Goodreads' description:

"Popularity and friendship are the themes of this quietly assured tale. Beth, Liz and Vero--the girls with whom everyone in fifth grade wants to be friends--have formed a secret club and won't let anyone else in. Janet and her friends start their own club, the Nobodies (Nobs for short). Laura, a new student, is caught in the middle: she wants to be friends with both Janet and Vero. Told from the alternating points of view of Janet, Vero and Laura, this tale of friendship and rivalry is fresh and authentic. In the course of the narrative, all of the characters are allowed to develop; even snobbish Beth and Liz are revealed to be vulnerable as well as mean and glamorous. Readers will recognize themselves in this slice of upper elementary school life."

I re-read this middle grade title several times when I was younger. It's such a classic tale of cliques and outsiders, and one that is so familiar in those years of elementary school. The way it's told from three different perspectives really lets the reader identify with the characters and get a strong sense of their individual personalities. This is a great story for anyone who's ever felt "out" and longed to be "in"...or conversely, anyone who's been "in" and has started to question whether it's worth it.

Anyone remember this one?  

Forget-Me-Nots: Please Remove Your Elbow From My Ear

This is a feature on my blog for highlighting books I enjoyed in childhood and the teenage years that I don't see getting much attention nowadays.

This week's pick: Please Remove Your Elbow From My Ear by Martyn Godfrey

Goodreads' description: "Stormy Sprague and the other kids in detention form a floor hockey team and have the nerve to compete against the unbeatable Screaming Eagles, who do not take Stormy's team seriously."

 

This one's a short but hilarious middle-grade read about a boy, Stormy, who teams up with a bunch of other "misfits" in the school to take on a floor hockey team of bullies. There are plenty of laugh-out-loud moments, and it's a feel-good story of geeks triumphing over the "cool" kids.

Probably pretty obscure, so I doubt a lot of people have read it, but I used to pull this one out whenever I needed a book that was guaranteed to make me laugh!

 

Plus, the title? Awesome.

Forget-Me-Nots: The Fairy Lair Series

This is a feature on my blog for highlighting books I enjoyed in childhood and the teenage years that I don't see getting much attention nowadays.

This week's pick: The Fairy Lair series by Anne LeMieux (The Fairy Lair: A Special Place, The Fairy Lair: A Hidden Place, The Fairy Lair: A Magic Place)

Goodreads' description of the first in the series:

"A packet of mail-order seeds called "Magic Meadow Medley" involves Sylvia Widden in a fight to preserve a fairies' habitat threatened by drought. She finds an unexpected ally in a neighborhood bully with problems of her own."

This series was one of those hidden gems that gets virtually no buzz and unfortunately goes out of print quickly. My memory is a little fuzzy for this one, but as I recall it was a sweet read incorporating themes of friendship, magic and environment. I had the first two in the series, but was never able to get my hands on the third one, even from the library :(

Does anyone remember these books? *looks around hopefully*

Forget-Me-Nots: Pippi Longstocking

This is a feature on my blog for highlighting books I enjoyed in childhood and the teenage years that I don't see getting much attention nowadays.


This week: Pippi Longstocking by Astrid Lindgren

Amazon.com review:

"Pippi is an irrepressible, irreverent, and irrefutably delightful girl who lives alone (with a monkey) in her wacky house, Villa Villekulla. When she's not dancing with the burglars who were just trying to rob her house, she's attempting to learn the "pluttification" tables at school; fighting Adolf, the strongest man in the world at the circus; or playing tag with police officers.

Pippi's high-spirited, good-natured hijinks cause as much trouble as fun, but a more generous child you won't find anywhere. Astrid Lindgren has created a unique and lovable character, inspiring generations of children to want to be Pippi. More than anything, Pippi makes reading a pleasure; no child will welcome the end of the book, and many will return to Pippi Longstocking again and again. Simply put, Pippi is irresistible."

All right, who here remembers Pippi Longstocking? She rocked! I loved this book when I was younger - so much so that I made a Pippi Longstocking mask at art camp and dressed up as Pippi Longstocking (complete with stuffed monkey) one Halloween. I especially loved the scene where she attends school and gives hilarious answers to all the math questions the teacher asks (I was never big on math). Also the part with the police officer chase always made me laugh!

I don't believe I ever read the third, Pippi Goes On Board...I should look it up!

Forget-Me-Nots: The Plant That Ate Dirty Socks

This is a feature on my blog for highlighting books I enjoyed in childhood and the teenage years that I don't see getting much attention nowadays.

This week's pick:

The Plant That Ate Dirty Socks by Nancy McArthur

 (This was the cover of my copy...totally old-school style :D)

Goodread's description:

"The plant which Michael grows from mail-order seeds develops an appetite for dirty socks. Sloppy Michael and his neatnik brother convince their parents to let them keep the voracious greenery."

Okay, that description is way too short and doesn't do justice to the hilarity that is this book. Seriously, what could be more awesome than a plant that eats dirty socks? It's really funny, especially when you add in the fact that one brother is a neat freak, one is a slob, and there's a science fair going on at their school...

Plus, the title should win an award or something. 

I'm kind of doubting anyone else has read this one but...any takers?

Forget-Me-Nots: Half Magic

This is a feature on my blog for highlighting books I enjoyed in childhood and the teenage years that I don't see getting much attention nowadays.

And I'm using this to be a post for BBAW's 'Forgotten Treasure' Day as well (although I'm a little late, sorry).  To find out more about Book Blogger Appreciation Week click here.

My pick this week: Half Magic by Edward Eager

(This was the cover of my copy of the book).

Goodreads' description:

"Edward Eager has been delighting young readers for more than 40 years with stories that mix magic and reality. Half Magic, the most popular of his tales about four children who encounter magical coins, time-travel herb gardens, and other unlikely devices, is a warm, funny, original adventure. The title refers to a coin that the children find. Through a comical series of coincidences, they discover that the coin is magic. Well, it's not totally magic — it's only (you guessed it) half magic. That means there's a certain logic to the wishes one must make to generate a desired outcome. Imagine the results emerging from inaccurate efforts: half invisible, half rescued, half everything! Half Magic is never too cute, and with just enough emotion to complement the magic, this classic is sure to hold a special place in any child's library."

There are others in the series, but Half Magic was the only one I owned. I think the concept of the magic doing everything by halves was fabulous, and resulted in quite a bit of humor - I remember really enjoying this book! So if you haven't read it and can get your hands on a copy: do!

Anyone else have fond memories of this one?

Forget-Me-Nots: The Last of the Really Great Whangdoodles

This is a feature on my blog for highlighting books I enjoyed in childhood and the teenage years that I don't see getting much attention nowadays.

This week's pick:

The Last of the Really Great Whangdoodles by Julie Andrews Edwards

This book has officially the most awesome title ever. Seriously.

Also, it's written by Julie Andrews. That's right. THE Julie Andrews. From the Sound of Music.

Review from Amazon.com:

"What on earth is a Whangdoodle? A "fanciful creature of undefined nature," it was also once the wisest, kindest, most fun-loving living thing in the world--until people stopped believing in it. When that lack of faith became widespread, the last of the really great Whangdoodles created a special land full of extraordinary creatures: furry Flukes, the sly High-Behind Splintercat, and the wonderful Whiffle Bird. But when an open-minded professor--the one adult who still believes in the Whangdoodle--joins forces with three children with active imaginations, they become an unstoppable team on a fantastic and sometimes terrifying journey to Whangdoodleland.

Readers who have explored Narnia, Oz, or Willy Wonka's chocolate factory will be thrilled at this new destination--a marvelous land that will inspire and stimulate creative and scientific minds. And who better to expose young readers to new ways of seeing, smelling, and hearing than Julie (Andrews) Edwards of Mary Poppins and The Sound of Music fame? Her lively and clever style pulls readers along effortlessly; she, like the professor, is one grownup who can teach children never to close their minds to possibility."

Pure and simple, this book is all about imagination, creativity, and believing in what everyone else thinks is impossible. There are so many fabulous make-believe creatures in this book! It is aimed at middle-grade readers (ages 9-12), and the kids do learn some 'lessons' throughout the story...but you can't help but love the Whangdoodle (and the Whifflebird!!)

Anyone else enjoy this book when they were younger?

Children's/YA Books That Creeped You Out

I came across a description of a book I read when I was about 11 or 12 that I found really disturbing. It got me thinking about other books that freaked me out when I was younger. These are books that weren't necessarily meant to be scary, but for some reason they left a fairly strong and horrifying impression on my mind (at the time). Thought I'd blog about it and see if anybody else had the same reaction!

So, I remember the following books as being pretty creepy...

Eva by Peter Dickinson

The girl gets turned into a monkey. Something about that just didn't sit right with me.

Wizard's Hall by Jane Yolen

There's a very weird secret at the wizard's hall and some pretty sick-minded people. I kind of had a horrified fascination with this book.

Castle Tourmandyne by Monica Hughes

The dolls come to life and the girl gets trapped inside the castle, from what I remember.

The Half-a-Moon Inn by Paul Fleischman

This poor mute boy gets totally mistreated by this abusive inn-owner. I believe I had to read this one for school and I seriously found it quite horrifying.


James and the Giant Peach by Roald Dahl

I know this isn't the most obvious choice (being a much-beloved children's book by many people) but I found it a little too bizarre for my liking. Plus I really dislike bugs, and there were so many bugs in this book. I don't believe I ever finished it.

Nell's Quilt by Susan Terris

The title hardly sounds frightening, but the girl starves herself for a long, long time in order to get out of an arranged marriage. Something about her wasting away like that really made an impression on me.

And when I was really, really young, I found a few Robert Munsch books disturbing, in particular:

Purple, Green and Yellow - The girl draws on herself and the ink just won't come off, and then eventually she turns invisible and has to color herself to look normal again.

50 Below Zero - The boy's dad sleepwalks outside on a cold night and the boy finds him pretty much frozen outside.

So, thoughts? What kinds of books made you shudder when you were younger? Any books other people seemed to enjoy that you found positively creepy?