How to Save a Life (epigraph by Flannery O'Connor)

How to Save a Life by Sara Zarr (audiobook):  And this, THIS, is why I read fiction.  Because I can read the quote about how we need to be kind to everyone because they're all fighting battles, and I can nod and feel that twinge of sympathy, of empathy and compassion like a kick in the tail to remember to try a little tenderness.  But this story, alternating between two voices transforms that gentle kick in the butt into a brutal punch in the gut.  THESE ARE THE KINDS OF BATTLES PEOPLE ARE FIGHTING.  Their anger is not about you.  Your kindness matters.  Your restraint when you could start yelling in frustration at the customer service lady matters.  Because people are dealing with things like this and worse every day, and you never know what odd behavior is a result of these terrible things you know nothing about, love, kindness, tenderness, and grace are never wasted when you give them to others as a gift.  They say the sermons we preach the most are the ones we need to hear the most.  Amen.  I need to hear this a million times a day, every time I open my mouth, every time I sit down to write.  I need to write it on my forehead and bind it on my wrist, etc.

As for the audiobook itself,well done.  Had a few minor problems with the production, but overall it was very good.  They had different readers play each of the POV characters.  This worked very well because the voices were very different and appropriate for their parts.

• They don't let you know when a disk is over, so it just goes from the last track back to the first one, and you loose the thread of the story.
• They didn't always make it clear whether something was thought versus said aloud, which in this story was VERY important and the lack of clarity was often very confusing.  (When I read my copy of the book some day, this will not be a problem, and I will have their voices in my mind, which will be a win.)

And this is why I read YA: because the process of thrashing your way to better understanding and better choices doesn't simply stop when you become an adult.  Maybe coming of age novels resonate with adults not just because they bring nostalgia but because they remind us it's always been this hard.

Guardian of the Dead: the first book I've read with an important asexual character

b Guardian of the Dead by Karen Healey: You know, mythology is so R-rated.  I forget that sometimes because the United States' national myths are kind of weak in the violence and weirdness department.  (Not that I mind.)  This book is set around a boarding school in urban-ish New Zealand.  Ellie is 17, a bit overweight, and apathetic.  Her best friend Kevin has just told her that he's asexual, and she has an increasing crush on Mark, the school's dark and odd mystery boy.  Then there are these murders and this extremely creepy woman and the fact that Ellie starts seeing things no one else seems to see.

Those things are out of this world.  I like reading books that involve myths (real or fictional, as in the Queen's Thief books by Megan Whalen Turner).  These kinds of stories peoples tell about themselves are a fascinating way to learn about other cultures.  There is the added interest here in that the mythology is from the aboriginal culture, and Ellie in particular is from the culture that conquered the old one.  I am coming at it from a totally different culture, but it's a conquering culture as well, so there is an echo for me of the richness of the native cultures that were over-run when mine took over.

Mostly, this is just a weird fantasy adventure.  I found out about it in the comment thread of a publisher's weekly post about the need for diversity in YA literature.  (I wrote 5 responses to it, starting here.)  I was surprised there were any books that featured important asexual characters.  That this one's asexuality was actually central to part of the plot impressed me.  At first it just seemed like a clumsy attempt to tack on an unusual sexual orientation, but then it was necessary, and I was more impressed.  And then kind of taken aback by the mythology, which was, well, as dark as some of the really dark European stuff and way more explicitly sexual.  Definitely an interesting read with some real tragedy mixed in.

The Clockwork Princess or how can I cry during this much of a single book?

b Clockwork Princess by Cassandra Clare: If I thought the last book was full of sad and heartwrenching, it was light, fluffy cake compared with this final book.  I think there were maybe, oh, 35 pages I read while I was not crying.  Even Magnus Bane's awesomeness could not keep the tears from falling. 

More of the past is revealed, and pretty much none of it is happy.  There are some touching redemptive sacrifices and some satisfying deaths.  There is a nicely surprising resolution to the evil plot.  Many other loose ends are tied up.  There is a happy ending, and then there is a lovely epilogue that I totally also cried through.  The epilogue is apparently tied in with the last book of the Mortal Instruments series, which is coming out next year, so I guess I will have to re-read them all again when that one comes out.  Oh, darn.  Maybe I won't get so dehydrating on the second reading . . .

When I was online trying to find out when the last Mortal Instruments book would come out, I found out that there will be a book of short stories.  Oh, Magnus Bane, you are awesome.  Finding out that you will get your own book of short stories makes me happy.  Short stories seem the right amount to showcase what makes you great without you getting on my nerves.

Also, there will be a new series with different characters from Mortal Instruments.  And there will NOT be a love triangle.  Whether that means there will not be romantic geometry is a bit unclear.  I'm looking forward to it anyway.

I've read online reviews claiming that this series isn't worth reading because it is exactly like The Mortal Instruments because it has Shadowhunters, Downworlders, and a love triangle.  Seriously, people?  Of course there are similiarities.  It's a prequel.  It's supposed to be connected to the later-in-time MI series.  And love triangles are at the dramatic heart of any number of stories through the ages. And the construction of the two triangles are very different.  The resolutions are really different, too.  I appreciate the idea that one can love two people equally, and I'm glad that particular triangle worked out eventually into a happy sort of ending.  Anyway, maybe you just need to space the readings out to not get burned out on the same author's works?

The story was compelling, the characters were interesting, there was humor and drama and a good mix of interesting elements.  I was glad it was a trilogy and that things wrapped up well in that time frame.

The Clockwork Prince: Vindication of the demon pox theory

b Clockwork Prince by Cassandra Clare: Demon pox totally exists!  So, bad stuff happened at the end of the first book.  There are those within the Shadowhunters who decide to use that as a reason to try to kick Charlotte out as leader of the London Institute.  Lots of politics and intrigue get thrown into the mix of action, romance, drama, and mystery.  There are some unexpected betrayals and some unexpected loyalties.  Tessa learns more about who she is, and some of the Shadowhunters suck even more in this book.  There were certainly some stinkers among them in the Mortal Instruments series, but I feel like a lot of these folks are even more vile, sometimes making me hope they have terrible deaths.  Then I feel bad about that.

I expected the choice from the love triangle to be dragged out, but it resolves itself in a horribly messy fashion in the second book.  For now.  Oh, it's heart-wrenching.

I haven't read the other series in a while, so I don't always remember names, but there are some that I just seem inclined not to trust from the beginning.  And some that confuse me (wait, wasn't that the name of a bad guy later, but this guy seems really good?).  A lot happened in this volume, and I'm looking forward to seeing how it all concludes in the last volume.  There are a lot of unhappy people at this point, and I really want them to be happy in the end.  Right now, it doesn't seem possible.

Reading the Clockwork Angel again

b Clockwork Angel by Cassandra Clare: I read this first book in the trilogy when it was released.  Then I waited for the rest of the series to come out.  Will is a Shadowhunter with a bad attitude; his parabatai Jem does his best to keep Will's recklessness in check while dying from an addiction to a demon drug that he can't live without.  Tessa is an unfortunate American who came to England at the behest of her brother Nate after the death of her only other living relative, her Aunt Harriet.  Upon arriving, she is forcibly picked up by two very creepy individuals and forced by them to learn how to control a power she never even knew she had.  She is rescued by Will and Jem and then taken to the London Institute where she learns about Shadowhunters (in all their ugliness and glory) and Downworlders while trying to discover who (and what) she really is.  And who she loves.

Magnus Bane is awesome.  There are a lot of other good characters in here with familiar names (if you've read the Mortal Instruments), and things are rather mysterious.  There is amazing loyalty alongside awful betrayals, action, adventure, mayhem, and manners in an interestingly steampunk-tinged Victorian England.  I liked it.

This Rough Magic

This Rough Magic by Lackey, Freer, and Flint: More magic, mystery, treachery, and mayhem in a Renaissance alternate history world where Christianity and magic are intertwined.  (And fewer obvious seams where the authors split the story.)  We venture away from Venice and to an island with its own magic and its own problems.  There's piracy, sieges, satanic rituals, witches, bitches, babies, ill-tempered goats, sword fights, sacrifices, heroism, love, politics, etc.

I have to say that the tension in this book was frequently unbearable.  There's this woman who decided to choose a safe marriage for her coming baby.  The husband is a really nice man, very stable, very kind, very dedicated to his work and his new family.  And you feel terrible because for all that, you are sort of waiting--slightly hopeful and vaguely guilty--for the ax to fall, so she can get back together with the person you suspect is the father of her baby, the man she really loves, the man who went to the far edges of young, stupid, wild, and unstable when she chose the other guy out of left field.  He's still off balance, but he's growing up, becoming a responsible person, the kind of person who can do what's best for the people he loves even if that doesn't lead to his own personal happiness.

Lady Knight

Lady Knight: One of the things I love about this series is the truth that being entrusted with protecting people is hard, dangerous, often unglamorous work, and the people you're sacrificing yourself for are frequently, er, ungrateful at best.  Then there's the youth aspect.  Kel is relatively young to be given the responsibility that she is given.  It's a really tough job, honestly, but those who have been helping her train and watching her grow know that she can handle it.  She's been dealing with hostility for her gender for quite a while, so having people be hostile more because of her age is somewhat novel.  Her development as a good leader is compelling even as her road is hard.  And in the end, her commitment to protecting the small ones who cannot protect themselves is what saves everyone.

Squire

(Protector of the Small) Squire: Oh, Raoul. You still crack me up every time you give variations of your little speech about the glory and glamour of being a knight (that there really isn't much, and it's a lot of hard, dangerous work, and nobody really thanks you for the slogging part of it). I love the way the characters in the Tortall universe cross over. It's been a while since we last met Raoul, and he has done a lot of living in between the Alanna books and these. I really want to know what happened in between, but in a lot of ways, these book series are a woman's world (at least as far as the author usually goes), so it remains a mystery. And that's okay because Raoul is great.

I love that the skills that Kel has been developing and the talents she has start to shine publicly here as she grows up. Jousting. Sigh. No way.

Page

(Protector of the Small) Page: No more special (bad) treatment for Kel. She's a legitimate page, and she's still taking on the protecting of the small (the new squires, animals, maids, etc.). Neal is still great, though his constant crushes are wearing. Kel continues to be practical, laconic, self-contained, and heroic.

"It's just--"she shrugged. "No place is perfect."
---
"She had trouble nodding off that night. She couldn't get rid of her anger with Vinson and with a world in which servants didn't matter. It wasn't right." 

Whenever I read the Alanna books (Pierce's first series), I sometimes find myself wondering how awesome they would be if she re-wrote them now in this time of YA bounty when she's allowed to write a single book longer than the Alanna quartet. How rich the characterization, how lively the world would be!

I don't find myself thinking that so much about the Protector of the Small books. Their more compact length sort of fits Kel. She's very reserved but also somewhat straightforward; she gets to the point and then finishes.  She doesn't say any more than she has to.  She just lets her actions speak.  As a result, the briskness of her books does not necessarily bother me. They don't feel as abridged as Alanna's books. I love reading an author's books in order and watching the author progress.  : )

Yes, I seriously read the Protector of the Small books again

(Protector of the Small) First Test: I like Kel.  She's just so practical.  About everything, really.  She understands choices and consequences.  And then she grits her teeth, makes the choices, and takes the consequences, no matter how unfair.  I like that some of the villains are really villainous for reasons that make sense.  I like that some of the good guys have to make tough choices they don't like because of politics.  And I like that one major antagonist is just a war hero who really thinks he's doing the right thing.  I like that Kel succeeds because of who she is (how she was raised, her innate skills and talents and guts, and her willingness to work hard).

Sweet Bitterblue

Bitterblue, oh Bitterblue.  So the evil villain has been slain and his reign of terror ended, and now everything can be lovely again, right?  Oh, so very, very wrong.   That only happens in kids' stories.

Bitterblue's father was a very evil man who possessed a dangerous grace: he could make people believe anything he said.  His words literally had that power.  And he used it to take power over a kingdom and commit the kinds of atrocities that haunt a nation for generations.  Now he's been gone for years, and his daughter is struggling to pick up the pieces as a young queen.

Things start to turn around when Bitterblue starts going out to actually see how her people are living and what their lives are like in reality instead of from the stale and sterile numbers reported to her by her advisors.  Unfortunately, she finds out that the truth is very messy.  There are so many lies to undo, so many wrongs with no clear way to right.  And she's just a young ruler.  What is she supposed to do?  How can she fix her broken and hurting people?

I like realistic fantasy like this: Aftermaths can be brutal, and they don't get fixed overnight.  Messy politics and tragic situations and a variety of relationships make for a good read.   I also like worlds like this where peripheral characters visit each others' stories.  It was lovely to see Katsa and Po and lots of the others being active and finding purpose and working out their footing with each other.  It was wonderful to see the places where Fire intersected, as well.  These people are still growing people, not static, constructed characters.  There is a lot of shouting and making up and some unexpected visitors from afar and a lot of hard, sad choices and great bits about art, truth, and honor.  Good, good stuff.

Now I just have to wait for her next book.  Siiiiiiiigh.

What I've been reading lately

The Off Season by Catherine Gilbert Murdock: In this volume, DJ sort of dates this guy, and that ends badly.  Mostly she keeps dealing with her screwed up, silent family, as they deal with a real crisis or two.  I love this narrator's voice and the way she comes to realize things about herself and the people around her and starts to act on them in small but powerful ways.

Book Girl and the Wayfarer's Lamentation: So what does a book series do after it resolves what you thought was going to be its main conflict?  Well, I'll have to find out in the next volume because this was the volume where some big showdowns happened, and it gets pretty brutal.  There are a lot of reversals in this book as characters and motivations are twisted and shown to be not exactly what you were led to believe.  Lots of emotional tension and some great book-related information, as per usual.

Newton's Cannon by J. Gregory Keyes: Ben Franklin + Alchemy = pretty entertaining. Unless you're London.  At least he's really sorry.

Margaux with an X, Now Playing: Stoner and Spaz II, and Deadvilleby Ron Koertge: The endings are never cheaply happy.  Each protagonist is so unique.  All the books are united by their common excellence.  Not perfect, mind you, but great.  I am impressed by his ability to make convincing characters who so easily move the plot along while narrating in first person.  I need to study this; if done right, the books just seem to hum along even if there's not really much action.  I am also impressed by his ability to create realistic adult characters, use interesting family groups/dynamics, and seamlessly include characters with various kinds of disabilities.  Well done!

Mere Christianity by C.S. Lewis: This book is always an interesting read (especially if you're me and forget everything between readings).  Ponder once again these clear examples, this lack of theological buzzwords, the thought-provoking ideas grounded firmly in a time past.

Let's Pretend This Never Happened by Jenny Lawson: If you are easily offended, this one is not for you; the language is frequently R-rated, as is the content (sometimes more "R" for ralph-inducing).  As the Bloggess, Jenny Lawson tells stories about her screwed up life.  And it is screwed up. 

People who think they grew up with quirky parents will be put in their places by this book.  There are baby racoons in jams, lessons in couch etiquette, more than you really wanted to think about cow artificial insemination, dead babies, saint-worthy husbands, feeling stabby, and more neuroses than you can shake a roadkill puppet at.  You will find that you really love your job (unless you work in HR).  You will be grossed out and offended for sure.  You might also laugh hard enough to have an asthma attack.  More than once.

Best served in small doses, this one nonetheless adds up surprisingly well into something akin to a memoir.  However, you really need to know what you're getting into when you read this, or you will be disappointed.  It's not Shakespeare, and it's not trying to be.  If you read it like a blog (a little bit every so often), you'll probably end up with a better opinion of it than if you try to read it like a normal memoir or novel.  If it starts getting tedious, stop reading and come back to it later when you need a really weird pick me up.