The Evolution of Calpurnia Tate - Jacqueline Kelly

Title: The Evolution of Calpurnia Tate
Author: Jacqueline Kelly
Publisher: Square Fish (Henry Holt and Company), 2011 (Paperback)
Length: 338 pages
Genre: Children's Historical Fiction
Started: June 4, 2015
Finished: June 5, 2015

Summary:
From the back cover:

The summer of 1899 is hot in Calpurnia's sleepy Texas town, and there aren't a lot of good ways to stay cool. Her mother has a new wind machine, but instead, Callie's contemplating cutting off her hair, one sneaky inch at a time. She's also spending a lot of time at the river with her notoriously cantankerous grandfather, an avid naturalist. But just when Callie and her grandfather are about to make an amazing discovery, the reality of Callie's situation catches up with her. She's a girl at the turn of the century, expected to cook and clean and sew. What a waste of time! Will Callie ever find a way to take control of her own destiny?

Review:
I've seen this title for years and have finally picked it up. It turns out I missed out on a very charming book all these years.

Calpurnia Virginia Tate, called "Callie Vee", is about to turn twelve in 1899 in Fentress, a small town in Texas. With six brothers, she is the only girl in a fairly well-off family (they harvest cotton and pecans) with a cook and a housekeeper. The story opens in the beginning of the summer, with a brutal heat everyone is trying to seek shelter from. When Callie becomes interested in Darwin's book The Origin of Species and tries to ask her grandfather why they have two different types of grasshoppers on their land, he tells her to discover the answer herself. Prevented from borrowing Darwin's book from the closest library, Callie eventually figures it out on her own, which leads her science-minded grandfather to take an interest in her education. They spend much time together over the summer, even discovering what they believe is a new plant species. This is all done to the dismay of Calpurnia's mother, who would prefer her only daughter show some interest in the feminine arts that she must one day master. But as Callie becomes more and more fulfilled by her explorations and discoveries, she realizes her options are severely limited as a girl in her time period.

Callie is a great character and role model, she's curious and intelligent, and not afraid to follow her own desires instead of bending to the whims of others. Her grandfather, a captain in the Civil War, though surly at first and barely knows Callie exists, eventually becomes bonded to her through their shared interests to the point where he lets it slip that he considers her his only true grandchild. Callie's brothers are quite cute and have a couple of their own side stories, like Harry courting girls and several of the boys developing a crush on Callie's friend Lula.

I really liked the exploration into the idea of gender roles and women's rights in relation to this time period. Callie is relatively privileged in that she is the only girl from a well-off family so she is educated and able to get away with more being surrounded by boys, but even she is still reminded of the injustice of it all. She is expected to sew, cook, and clean, and do all those things well if she expects to get married and have a family, but Callie really wants to go to the university and study science, which was rare for women at the time. I love that her grandfather, seemingly someone who would balk at her interests, actively encourages them and proves himself quite the turn-of-the-century feminist. The novel doesn't really give any closure to this idea, it ends on a positive note but I would like to see what happens to Callie in the future. There is a sequel coming in July, so I will have to pick it up to continue the story.

Recommendation:
Wonderfully written, with great characters and themes, a joy all around.

Thoughts on the cover:
I like how Callie is silhouetted in black with the branches and all the insects and animals around her, very appropriate given the content of the story.

Becoming Beauty - Sarah E. Boucher

Title: Becoming Beauty
Author: Sarah E. Boucher
Publisher: Streetwater Books, 2014 (Paperback)
Length: 248 pages
Genre: Young Adult; Fairy Tale
Started: June 3, 2015
Finished: June 3, 2015

Summary:
From the back cover:

Self-centered Bella focuses her attention on beautiful dresses and fabulous balls rather than helping her family earn a living. And her siblings have finally had enough! To pay off their father's debt, they send Bella to a far-off castle where the owner is more like a beast than a man.

As their personalities clash, Bella comes to realize that there's more to the Beast than she could have ever dreamed - if she's willing to look beneath the surface. And then there's Jack, the kind servant who helped Bella adjust to her new life, someone Bella could easily fall in love with. But pursuing true love may cost Bella her dreams of wealth and beauty. And that's not a price she's willing to pay.

Becoming Beauty is an imaginative retelling of the classic fairy tale that's sure to entertain readers of all ages.

Review:
I'm a sucker for all things Beauty and the Beast, so when I saw this new retelling, I had to pick it up. There are a lot of parallels to the original tale, but with quite a few unique twists.

Bella is not what you'd expect as the "Beauty", she's spoiled and manipulative, but also clever and refuses to be ordered around. When her requests for shiny, pretty things lands her father in debt to a beastly sort of man, her siblings force her to return as a servant in their father's place. The "Beast" as Bella calls him is surly and berates Bella in her role as his scullery maid. After Jack convinces Bella not to run away, Bella encourages the Beast to recover from his grief. As the three spend time together, the Beast (later known as Philip) falls in love with Bella, while Bella falls in love with Jack. All this while Bella has dreams of a girl named Rosalind who is connected to both Philip and Jack.

I was not a big fan of Bella at first, she's not the type of character I root for, but she does feel guilt over her actions and goes fairly willingly to the castle, so she does have some redeeming qualities. Philip is fleshed out fairly well as a character, as is Jack, but the relationship aspect left me hanging a bit. I thought Bella and Jack's relationship wasn't explored enough to be believable, but Bella and Philip's was done quite well. There were some parts that had me laughing so hard, particularly the section where Bella tries to get Philip back into regular hygiene practices and has to clip his fingernails, toenails, and matted hair with hedge clippers. The writing is generally great, and the interactions between the characters were well done and quite witty. I like how the author wrapped everything up in the end, it's a very sweet ending (not saying more for fear of spoilers).

Recommendation:
A very quick retelling of Beauty and the Beast but quite satisfying.

Thoughts on the cover:
I like how Bella is posed on the settee against the decrepit background.

The Queen of Bright and Shiny Things - Ann Aguirre

Title: The Queen of Bright and Shiny Things
Author: Ann Aguirre
Publisher: Feiwel and Friends (Macmillan), 2015 (Hardcover)
Length: 328 pages
Genre: Young Adult; Realistic Fiction
Started: May 29, 2015
Finished: June 2, 2015

Summary:
From the inside cover:

Sage Czinski is trying really hard to be perfect. If she manages it, people won't peer beyond the surface or ask hard questions about her past. She's learned to substitute causes for relationships, and it's been working just fine...until Shane Cavendish strolls into her math class. He's a little antisocial, a lot beautiful, and everything she never knew she always wanted.

Shane just wants to be left alone to play guitar and work on his music. He's got  heartbreak and loneliness in his rearview mirror, and this new school represents his last chance. He doesn't expect to be happy; he only wants to graduate and move on. Though he never counted on a girl like Sage.

But love doesn't mend all broken things, and sometimes, life has to fall apart before it can be put back together again.

Review:
I picked this up purely for the title, I won't lie.

Sage is sixteen and trying hard to be as good as possible so her aunt won't be tempted to send her back to a group home or foster care. Since moving in with her aunt Gabby three years ago, Sage has managed to project a completely different persona than she was during her difficult past. No one would guess that the "Post-It Princess" that leaves encouraging notes for people on their lockers would have the kind of record Sage has. She does a pretty good job at it, though at the expense of a well-rounded social life. When her best friend betrays her and she meets Shane for the first time, it sets off an effect that allows Sage to blossom. Her grades improve through Shane's tutoring, she forgives her friend Ryan, and she makes more friends and actually socializes. Sage is incredibly happy, until she stands up against a bully and both parties threaten to expose secrets about the other. When everything is falling down around them, will Sage and Shane survive?

Sage is incredible as a character, she's very down-to-earth and realistic with her troubled background, but still adorable and quirky that you can't help falling in love with her. Shane is troubled too, but easily opens up to Sage and allows her influence to soften his edge. Their relationship together is really quite sweet and almost gave me cavities, but it's quite a good model for a teenage relationship: They communicate and compromise, are caring and considerate of each other, and really are each other's rock in everything. Most of the book is purely character-driven, with Sage and Shane at the wheel, so if you get hooked on these two, you'll have a great ride. The writing is well done, the supporting characters are great as well with good personalities, and the author did a really good job with Sage and Shane's back stories, I was almost on the verge of crying when everything unraveled.

Recommendation:
An coming-of-age romance that is just amazingly awesome, you need to read this...right now.

Thoughts on the cover:
I love how they incorporated Sage's trademark post-it notes into the cover, and the black and white pics of Sage and Shane are a nice added touch.

Solitaire - Alice Oseman

Title: Solitaire
Author: Alice Oseman
Publisher: HarperTeen, 2015 (Hardcover)
Length: 357 pages
Genre: Young Adult; Realistic Fiction
Started: May 25, 2015
Finished: May 26, 2015

Summary:
From the inside cover:

My name is Victoria Spring. Sometimes I hate people. This is probably very bad for my mental health.

Tori has friends. She has brothers. She has parents. Sometimes she can be bothered to talk to them. Most of the time, though, she would prefer not to have to deal with other people.

Until the day she follows a trail of Post-its from her locker to a deserted computer lab, where she finds a message from a mysterious group called Solitaire. It's also where she meets Michael Holden. Irrepressibly cheerful, weird, and determined to be her friend, Michael is everything Tori normally hates.

And that's it. That's where it starts.

Soon Solitaire has launched a series of pranks across the school. For once, Tori feels connected, like someone is on her wavelength - making jokes about her favourite movies, blasting her favourite song on repeat over the intercom. Then Solitaire's pranks start to go too far, and no one else seems to be concerned. Tori doesn't like getting involved. But this time,the idea of doing nothing is even worse.

Solitaire is a novel about finding friends, finding yourself, and discovering that one person can change everything.

Review:
This is a coming of age novel that sparked my interest when I read the blurb a while ago. What really stood out was not only that this was a debut novel, but that the author wrote this while still a teenager herself.

Tori is a fairly normal sixteen-year-old girl, but a bit of a downer. She's caustic, pessimistic, apathetic, and critical of practically everyone. She hates reading but enjoys movies, blogging, and her younger brothers. One day while trying to escape a conversation with her friends about Harry Potter fandom, Tori follows a trail of post-it notes to an old computer lab where she uncovers an empty blog called Solitaire, while at the same time meeting Michael Holden, who is odd, spontaneous, sweet, and everything Tori is not. As Tori and Michael get to know each other, Solitaire begins staging pranks around the school that seem to relate to Tori and her interests, like photoshopping the headmaster's head onto a Star Wars character on screen during an assembly, and playing Madonna's Material Girl over and over again on the intercom. Soon the pranks turn a bit darker, like encouraging a group of students to get revenge on the homophobic bully who beat up Tori's younger brother, Charlie. When several students including Tori are hurt during a Solitaire gathering gone wrong, she decides to get to the bottom of who or what Solitaire is.

Though Solitaire as a group takes up a good chunk of the plot and conflict within the book, this is largely a character-driven novel. Tori, though not the most likeable character, is by far the most realistic. I feel like Tori could be any one of my students, and I'm pretty sure a lot of my students could pass for Tori any day of the week. Michael is just irksome in the sweetest way, and I feel his character was very well done. I like how the author even had a bit of a focus on Charlie and his battle with mental illness, an eating disorder, and suicide, while also being gay (yay for more LGBTQ characters in YA). Also, I have to give the author credit for the lovely geeky references throughout the book: Harry Potter, Sherlock, Dr. Who, plus she managed to work in Beauty and the Best to boot (she included all my favourites), and managed to insult Pride and Prejudice (though I'm an English teacher and a literature major it's well established that I dislike Jane Austen's works).

Recommendation:
A wonderfully realistic look at an apathetic teenager and what it takes to get her to wake up to those around her. If you can tolerate Tori as a character, you'll be in for a great ride.

Thoughts on the cover:
The version I have is okay, but I'm more fond of the other covers I've seen circulating online.

The Heir - Kiera Cass

Title: The Heir (Book 4 in The Selection series)
Author: Kiera Cass
Publisher: HarperTeen, 2015 (Hardcover)
Length: 342 pages
Genre: Young Adult; Dystopian Fiction
Started: May 22, 2015
Finished: May 23, 2015

Summary:
From the inside cover:

Princess Eadlyn has grown up hearing endless stories about how her mother and father met. Twenty years ago, America Singer entered the Selection and won the heart of Prince Maxon - and they lived happily ever after. Eadlyn has always found their fairy-tale story romantic, but she has no interest in trying to repeat it. If it were up to her, she'd put of marriage for as long as possible.

But a princess' life is never entirely her own, and Eadlyn can't escape her very own Selection - no matter how fervently she protests.

Eadlyn doesn't expect her story to end in romance. But as the competition begins, one entry may just capture Eadlyn's heart, showing her all the possibilities that lie in front of her...and proving that finding her own happily ever after isn't as impossible as she's always thought.

Review:
I have to admit I had the fangirl squeals when I finally had this in my hands, very few series manage to cause me to revert to a teenage girl in ecstatic anticipation. I first discovered this series last year and even succeeded in making several other grown women sing its praises. The Selection, The Elite, and The One made up the first arc of this series, focusing on America Singer and her journey through the Selection to become Maxon's queen. I had thought the series was complete at that point and was sad to see it end, but to my surprise, the author continued it with this new instalment (with more to come thankfully).

The Heir takes us twenty years into the future in the book's universe, focusing on America and Maxon's only daughter Eadlyn, who is also the heir to the throne. Eighteen-year-old Eadlyn accepts her duties reluctantly, angry that her twin brother Ahren wasn't born first and therefore the heir, but takes them very seriously. She has a unique personality that I quite liked: she is hesitant to become involved with anyone lest the populace consider her weak, isn't quite sure anyone can be her partner and handle what she encounters everyday, and is so consumed with upholding the image of strength as the first female heir that she doesn't allow herself time to really unwind and be vulnerable to anyone. When riots over reinstating the caste system erupt over the land (America and Maxon revoked it when they ascended the throne), the royal family is at its wits end over how to potentially solve the problem. To buy themselves some time and distract the people, Maxon and America convince Eadlyn to endure a Selection, even though the process was abolished along with the caste system. Eadlyn agrees, but only on the condition that she not be forced to marry anyone if no one there strikes her fancy. Planning on simply going through the motions for the three-month process, Eadlyn doesn't realize exactly how her opinion will change as she gets to know the boys, some of which are pretty swoon-worthy.

First off, I have to give the author credit for making Eadlyn a really admirable character with a personality different from typical YA heroines. She is a person thrust into a position of power she doesn't really want because she knows she isn't necessarily the best suited for it, but does her duty and does it wonderfully well. She has to deal with sexism and harassment when she displays the hardened resolve that previous male rulers possessed but isn't necessarily warm and fuzzy like people expect a woman to be regardless of her position. And she does all this with wit and charm and determination. I love that she is the only girl with younger brothers, it's the dynamic I would've wanted had I had siblings, and Ahren, Kaden and Osten are all pretty fleshed out character-wise and are very likeable.

The Selection boys that had most of the focus in the book (Kile, Fox, Hale, Henri, Baden, Ean, and Erik, and yes I'm counting Erik) were wonderfully developed and oh so sweet, and even the ones that didn't get as much of the spotlight had their heartwarming moments. It's hard to develop a handful of characters well, let alone one or two dozen, so I have to give the author credit for doing that incredibly well.

The book of course leaves off on a massive cliffhanger, so I will be not-so-patiently waiting for next year's instalment, all the while peddling this series to anyone who hasn't yet fallen under its spell.

Recommendation:
If you're a fan of The Selection books, you've already read this or are trying to get ahold of it. If you haven't read The Selection books yet, do it, you need a new obsession anyway.

Thoughts on the cover:
I like the continuity between America's covers and this one, highlighting Eadlyn's very different look compared to her mother.

Acquainted With Squalor - Nath Jones

Title: Acquainted with Squalor: Short Stories
Author: Nath Jones
Publisher: Life List Press, 2015 (Paperback) (Review copy is an ARC from the author)
Length: 274 pages
Genre: Adult; Realistic Fiction
Started: May 14, 2015
Finished: May 15, 2015

Summary:
From the back cover:

Acquainted with Squalor delivers astonishing power of body-and-soul. Meteors fall, and old neighbour tosses an infrared Phoenix beacon into a cup of loose  change, and a woman on the phone with a friend mentions nothing about her eviction notice. These nine stories nourish our sense of wonder and acknowledge our deepest despair. Who has the endearing audacity to call a lover "Governor General"? Who will sit down on a hot day to eat frozen blueberries on a country lawn? Nath Jones captures what it means for us to be at home and still awash in the world.

Review:
I received a copy of this from the author about a month ago, but unfortunately due to craziness at work (midterm reports and literary essays) I had to put off reading it until this week. It's unfortunate I had to put off reading it, because once I finally did, I was struck by how amazingly true-to-life and emotionally powerful these stories are.

There are nine stories included in this volume, and I definitely have my favourites. "Blindfolded on Some Old Pedestal" is quite funny, and I was amazed at Marguerite's gall towards the old woman. As a mother, "How to Cherish the Grief-Stricken" really hit home about grief and mourning the loss of a child, with the cruel twist that the children's deaths were actually caused by a parent. "Rogues" was immaculately accurate in terms of its perspective of a teenage girl dealing with her first crush and interference from her friends. As a teacher, I felt like this could have been picked out of the mind of any of the girls I've taught. "The Nightmare State of Leduc" is another story that can be uniquely appreciated by parents, this time about a husband and wife debating smashing open their young son's heirloom piggy bank in order to retrieve his mother's rings that were placed inside.

The writing style here is honest and at times, gritty. Seemingly everyday things witnessed through an intricate lens makes for an engrossing read. Normally I'm not a fan of most short stories because I feel I never quite get attached to the characters like I should to the point where I care about what happens to them; I never had that issue here. I actually ended up crying when I was reading "How to Cherish the Grief-Stricken", and found myself smiling in fond remembrance when reading "Rogues"; I found myself quite invested in the stories and the characters, which is an impressive feat in my opinion for a short story collection.

Recommendation: 
Well-written with a variety of unique voices and true-to-life scenarios, this collection has something for everyone to enjoy.

Thoughts on the cover:
Simple yet intricate, just like the book itself.

The Fangirl's Guide to the Galaxy - Sam Maggs

Title: The Fangirl's Guide to the Galaxy: A Handbook for Girl Geeks
Author: Sam Maggs
Publisher: Quirk Books, 2015 (Hardcover)
Length: 207 pages
Genre: Young Adult/Adult; Nonfiction
Started: May 12, 2015
Finished: May 13, 2015

Summary:
From the inside cover:

This handy little guide to the geek life is filled with everything a savvy fangirl needs to know, including:

• How to make nerdy friends
• How to rock awesome cosplay
• How to write fanfic with feels
• How to defeat internet trolls
• How to attend your first con

And more! Plus, insightful interviews with fangirl faves, like Jane Espenson, Erin Morgenstern, Kate Beaton, Ashley Eckstein, Laura Vandervoot, Beth Revis, Kate Leth, and many others. It's good to be a geek!

Review:

My husband pre-ordered this for me for Mother's Day (brownie points for hubby) because I'm a big fangirl and have been since childhood. My main fandoms are anime/manga, YA books, and Disney; with additional minor ones like Dr. Who, Sherlock, gaming, comics etc. I actively feed the fandom amongst my students too, I got some major looks from some of them when I wished the classes a happy Star Wars Day and offered them stickers, but the geeky ones appreciated it.

My husband picked this up because the author is also the editor for The Mary Sue, a geeky pop culture site with an awesome feminist edge (plus the author is Canadian, yay!). This book is a great little introduction to fandom in general for girls and women just starting to discover what they like. The book is divided into 4 sections: general info on geek culture (the fandoms, the unique language, etc.), online fandom communities, everything about conventions, and geek girl feminism. Since I'm not a complete newbie and attended my first convention almost 15 years ago, the part of the book that really appealed to me was the chapter on feminism. Geek culture isn't the most welcoming towards women, it wasn't when I was a teenager and it still isn't now, though it is getting better. The chapter gives you the skills to critique the media you consume, like if it passes the Bechdel test, and how to call out something that's misogynistic. Plus, there is an awesome little geek girl manifesto included that is just pure awesomeness, especially the part about being the Doctor and not a companion (that always bugged me):

Recommendation:

Buy this for every geeky female you know, especially the young and emerging ones that need some guidance.

Thoughts on the cover:

Love it. Plus, can I say how happy I was that the character is drawn with larger hips, thighs, and calves?