Mini Reviews: Ghost Child, Dash and Lily and Jade Green

I only managed to finish two books while I was away (in my downtime in the hotel, I tended to be totally distracted by the trashtasticness that is TLC). I also finished one right before I left for the USA and didn't have time to review it. But because I finished them all couple of weeks ago (I've been slowly reading The Emerald Atlas by John Stephens since then) and I’m still kinda in holiday mode (well, my brain is, at least), I’ve decided not to do full reviews on these ones. Here are some general thoughts, instead!

Ghost Child by Caroline Overington
The gist: Told from multiple perspectives, it follows the fallout of a young boy's death and the effect it has on all involved, from the police who investigated the crime and arrested the boy's mother and her boyfriend; to his siblings, who are rumoured to be less innocent than they seem; to the foster families that take them in after their family falls apart. 
My thoughts: I read this for Aussie Author Month but, as I mentioned, with all the craziness of preparing for my trip/a month off work, I didn't have time to review it. I DID, however, make time to read it, because I literally couldn't put it down (I'm talking book in one hand, trying to pack with the other). I was tempted a few times to read the last page, because I was dying to know what really went down that caused the boy to die, but I'm so glad I didn't. The twists and turns and the varying points of view of the same event - and it's after-effects - were completely compelling. Overington does a remarkable job of creating a unique voice for each character and crafting a suspenseful and intriguing plot. I'd definitely recommend it if you love a good mystery and a character-driven story. 4/5

Dash and Lily's Book of Dares by Rachel Cohn and David Levithan
The gist: Dash is spending Christmas in self-imposed solitude - until he finds a red notebook on the shelf of his favourite New York bookstore, The Strand, and dares to follow the instructions inside from a mysterious girl, Lily. To Lily's surprise, he leaves a dare of his own, and what ensues is a completely cute epistolary romance that leads both Dash and Lily to discover more about the amazing city of New York, each other, and, of course, themselves (aw)!
My thoughts: This was a really fun read, made doubly so by the fact that I read it during my trip to NYC and could picture, right down to the bookshelf, Dash and Lily on their travels. It totally made me wish I could have a book of dares with someone, though I don't know if I'd be game enough to follow through in real life. I loved Lily - loved that she was quirky but not in an off-putting way, loved that she loved to bake and read, loved that she loved her family, and loved that she LOVED Christmas. Dash took awhile for me to warm to - he was a tad snarky for my liking, and I like snark - but he came good in the end. It was refreshing to read a relatively angst-free, triangle-free teen romance! 4/5

Jade Green: A Ghost Story by Phyllis Reynolds Naylor
The gist: Set in the 1800s (I think, it's never specific), the orphaned Judith is taken in by her uncle on the condition that she doesn't bring anything green into the house. Judith thinks one little green photo frame, with her mother's picture in it, won't do any harm... until she starts hearing and seeing spooky things. She begins to wonder if she's being haunted by her uncle's previous ward, Jade Green, who died by her own hand (or did she?! DUN DUN DUNNNN).
My thoughts: I picked this up randomly at a secondhand bookstore in NYC, because it looked like a quick, easy read and I haven't read a good ghost story in aaaaaaages. Well, it was a quick, easy read - perfect for a holiday - but unfortunately it wasn't very scary. Mainly because it was completely predictable, even if Judith was a bit slow on the uptake (wake up, girl!). Although the year is never explicitly stated, it's implied to be set in "ye olde times", so I found the language and some of the characters' actions to be a bit jarring and inauthentic; for instance, the way everyone addressed everybody else - even people they'd just met, and elders - by their first names just seemed off to me. It wasn't terrible, but it definitely wasn't great. 2/5

Review: Not Meeting Mr Right by Anita Heiss

This book took waaaaaay too long to read.

It was second in my Aussie Author Month endeavours, and I started in on Thursday, April 7. Like I said, waaaay too long. An easy, light chick-lit read, I thought I'd be finished by the following Sunday and could launch into the rest of my Aussie author list with gusto. But here I am, two weeks later and nearly at the end of Aussie Author month (at least for me - I'm leaving the country on Monday and will be away from the blog), and I've only just finished book two. I'm a bit disappointed, but these things happen. For one, I've been ridonkulously busy in the leadup to my holiday. For another, I kinda struggled with this book.

It was an easy read, don't get me wrong - and quite well-written. Unfortunately, I just couldn't stand the main character. I tried, oh, I tried REALLY hard - she's a history buff, dammit, I should be able to relate! - but she just annoyed me more than anything. See, Alice is a Sydney-sider in her late 20s who loves the single life... until she goes to her high school reunion and is disgusted by all the married women who can't talk about anything but their husbands and babies. So disgusted is she, that she promptly decides she wants to be one of them. Oh, but she'll be better at it than them, of course, and she'll even manage it by her 30th birthday - two years away. What ensues is a looooooooong string of bad blind dates, failed singles events, relationship drama, flirtations with the classifieds and internet dating, attractions to the wrong guys and rudeness to the nice ones.

I think that was my main problem with Alice - to me, she came across as quite rude and judgemental. Sure, it was funny a few times, but it just got very, very grating after awhile. Even at the beginning, she's uber-judgemental of her former classmates; first, she ridicules stay-at-home mums for having no careers, then turns her nose up at a working mum for "abandoning" her kids. And after spending the evening looking down on everyone, she decides she wants what they have?! It's probably not a good thing when the whole premise on which a story is built annoys you. I wanted to like this book, but I guess, like the gazillion men Alice meets, it just wasn't the right one for me.

Rating: 2.5/5

Talking Points

• I don't tend to read many Aussie books (certainly not enough), so it was a novelty to read something that was set in my hometown. I could not only picture the general city easily, but also specific bars, beaches, streets and everything! That was kinda cool.
• It was good to see a heroine who was a strong, powerful, successful Indigenous woman. It's just a shame she was so unlikeable.
• There's a sequel to this book called Avoiding Mr Right, apparently told from the perspective of Alice's friend Peta. I'm kinda curious to read it - I liked Peta as a character. Especially because she seemed to get just as annoyed at Alice sometimes.

Fine Print
Genre: Chick lit
Publisher: Bantam
Published: 2007
Get It: Fishpond

This post is part of Aussie Author Month, which supports the Indigenous Literacy Project.

Review: The Nest by Paul Jennings

Reading this book was like catching up with a childhood friend.

Paul Jennings was one of my favourite authors when I was a kid, so it was wonderful to return to his writing with The Nest, his first book for older readers (it's aimed at the late teens). From page one I recognised his distinctive style, and it gave me a feeling of, "Oh, so there you are". Now I want to go dig up and reread my old Jennings collection, even though I'm waaay out of their target demographic.

But let's talk about The Nest. It tells the story of Robin, a troubled teen living in the Victorian Alps with his cruel father. His mother disappeared from his life when he was young, something that still profoundly affects him. He's plagued by worrying thoughts, and while he's trying to get a grip of them and deal with his dad, he's also navigating the tricky territory of first love (and first lust).

This book is a lot darker than most of Jennings' other work (hence the older audience), but it still bears his trademark humour, straightforward storytelling and, of course, an incredible twist. The snowy setting was unusual for an Australian story (definitely not the typical beach or outback environment), but the stormy weather added to the growing sense of turmoil in Robin's world. A writer himself, the plot is spliced with the stories Robin writes, which themselves reveal small hints of what's to come. I also enjoyed them because they reminded me even more of Jennings' own short stories (nostalgia points!).

I loved this book. Even without the nostalgia, it would be a great read. The story is simply told, but powerful. I read in an interview with Jennings that he wanted to write this story to let teens, who might be going through a similar experience to Robin, know that they're not alone. And he's done a brilliant job - I really connected with Robin and felt his pain. There were quite a few times that I just wanted to give him a hug and tell him that he wasn't alone, and that everything would be OK.

Rating: 4/5

Talking Points (Spoiler Alert!)

• I loved the way everything was connected, especially the way Robin's stories were interwoven with the plot. The only one I didn't quite get the significance of was the champagne bottles - I saw the connection with Robin's images of champagne corks popping, but I was expecting that to play a more significant part in the end, and when it didn't, I wondered what the point was.
• The final lines were amazing, and really summed up the whole book for me: "And he must walk in the night for a while, for without the dark there is no day, nor star to see, nor tale to tell... to show the way."
• Jennings stated in an interview that Robin has OCD (exactly what his problem is is never mentioned in the book), but I didn't pick up on that at all. Maybe I just don't know enough about it, but I thought Robin was depressed, or perhaps even schizophrenic. But I guess that's a minor point, because either way, the portrayal of Robin's feelings of hopelessness and his inability to control his own thoughts was really powerful and effective.

Eye Candy
Probably because I've recently seen him in I Am Number Four, Callan McAuliffe was Robin for me. He's got the right dorky/cute look:

 
Robin repeatedly describes his friend/crush, the compassionate "greenie" Charlie, as beautiful. For some reason Ashleigh Brewer, a.k.a. Kate Ramsay on Neighbours, kept popping into my head. I don't know why - I don't even watch the show. But she is very pretty:

Sophie Lowe really pulled off the creepy/selfish/temptress vibe in Beautiful Kate, so I thought she was the perfect fit for Verushka:

Fine print
Genre: Young Adult
Publisher: Penguin Books Australia
First published: 2009
Best deal: Book Depository

This post is part of Aussie Author Month, which supports the Indigenous Literacy Project.

Aussie Author Month

I can't believe we're in April already! This year is going so fast. But one good thing about it being April is that it's Aussie Author Month. Organised by Book Thingo, Fangbooks, and a Writer Goes on a Journey, it's all about supporting and promoting Aussie authors, as well as raising money for the Indigenous Literacy Project.

I've decided to take part because it sounds super-fun, and I've realised that I definitely don't read enough local authors. Unfortunately I didn't finish Stefan's Diaries in time to start with an Aussie book straight away (I've been mega-busy this week), but as soon as I'm done with that - hopefully this weekend - I'll be focusing on reading and reviewing only Aussie authors for the rest of the month. Here are the options I have lined up:

• The Nest by Paul Jennings.
• Ghost Child by Caroline Overington.
• Jasper Jones by Craig Silvey.
• Not Meeting Mr Right by Anita Heiss.
• On the Jellicoe Road by Melina Marchetta.
• My Brilliant Career by Miles Franklin.

I don't know if I'll manage to squeeze them all into the month, but I'm going to give it a go. I've also decided to join the Aussie Author Challenge run by Booklover Book Reviews - the deadline for this is not until the end of the year, so whatever I don't read during the month I'll definitely get to at a later stage - and then some! I'm aiming for "True Blue" status - you have to read and review at least 12 Aussie books (from at least nine different authors) by the end of the year. I'm really excited about this - Aussie, Aussie, Aussie! (Sorry, that's the bogan in me coming out).