No, seriously, I am. Except I wear purple sneakers, not read ones. So maybe I am Princess Y? Or Princess...
Libby and Mai met in 5th grade, sidelined from gym. Strangers at first - then Mai grabbed a chunk of chalk. And Libby started drawing. And Mai started telling stories. Three years - and boxes and notebooks of Princess X comics later - Libby's mother drove her car, with Libby in it, off a bridge over the Puget Sound.
Now, Mai is sixteen and back in Seattle visiting her Dad. The first Princess X sticker takes her by surprise. And then, she sees another. But, here's the thing. All the notebooks, the boxes of comics? They were all thrown away after Libby's body floated to shore. So, who is drawing these comics?
Mai has never been sure that that body
was Libby. As she reads the webcomics about Princess X, Mai is thrilled to think that her best and truest friend might still be alive. But, why has she kept her survival a secret - especially from Mai?
Princess Y - that's who I am. I ask the questions. Why? Why is the computer nerd, Patrick, not going to UW in the Fall? Why didn't Libby's father find Libby? Why is that skinny pale skater watching Mai? Lots of whys, here.
The graphics inserted among the text give the reader and Mai clues to what might have happened. This book is a bit creepy, suspenseful, and off the wall.
At Powell's, our book buyers select all the new books in our vast inventory. If we need a book recommendation, we turn to our team of resident experts. Need a gift idea for a fan of vampire novels? Looking for a guide that will best demonstrate how to knit argyle socks? Need a book for [...]
This round of Required Reading is dedicated to the place we at Powell's Books call home: the great Pacific Northwest. Whether you're from the area or you simply appreciate the region for its beauty, history, temperament, or legendary bookstore, these titles will give you a more nuanced understanding of this peculiar corner of the U.S. [...]
This round of Required Reading is dedicated to the place we at Powell's Books call home: the great Pacific Northwest. Whether you're from the area or you simply appreciate the region for its beauty, history, temperament, or legendary bookstore, these titles will give you a more nuanced understanding of this peculiar corner of the U.S. [...]
Read his previous post, 10 Ways World of Warcraft Will Help You Survive the End of Humanity!
By Robert M. Geraci
Scientific American recently rocked the Internet with its editors’ piece “Death to Humans! Visions of the Apocalypse in Movies and Literature” but, in doing so, have missed half of the fun. In an article where the sublime (The Matrix) meets the atrocious (The Postman), the chief problem that SciAm’s editors suffer is that, to be honest, they do not know what an apocalypse is.
Threats to the world are not apocalyptic. In one of the apocalyptic texts par excellence, the Book of Revelation, the world isn’t just going to end…it’s going to transform in radical fashion (admittedly thanks to the seven seals that FBI and ATF members thought were marine mammals when David Koresh quoted them, the many-headed beast, and the whore of Babylon who will be drunk on the blood of the martyrs). Despite all the trials and tribulations, the end of the world is a good thing: it will end with the establishment of a wondrous new one.
So, how about some more apocalyptic films and books?
R.U.R. (1927; play) – Robots plan on killing us all. But after they’ve finished their noble work, they will explore an earth purged of, umm, us.
2001: A Space Odyssey (1968; film and novel) – In Kubrick’s and Clarke’s classic, David Bowman gets sucked into a galactic hotel and comes back a “Star Child” who can toss aside nuclear weapons as though they are paper airplanes. A new world shall dawn in the warm glow of the cosmic baby’s power.
Dark City (1998, film) – After John Murdoch psychokinetically conquers the aliens who have enslaved humankind, he remains stuck in a spaceship but uses its powers to provide himself with a West coast paradise where he will spend the future with a lovely woman whose memories have been tailored to match his own.
The Lord of the Rings (1954-1955 and 2001-2003; novels and films) – When two hobbits (one deranged and well past his prime, the other just twisted and tired after a noble quest) struggle at the flaming precipice of Mount Doom, they inaugurate a new world. In the end, lava purges the forces of evil and the friendly hobbits have a fighting chance to spend eternity blowing smoke rings and cheering for fireworks.
Down and Out in the Magic Kingdom (2004; novel) – Cory Doctorow paints us a future where we can spend an infinity in Disney Land, rejuvenating our bodies and, when necessary, restoring our minds to cloned bodies in the case of, well, an accident. And the line at the Pirates of the Caribbean ride won’t matter because you have an infinite amount of time to wait.
Accelerando (2006; novel) – After the machines take over the solar system, predicts Charles Stross, we can always ask a divine
Well, hello there! I know it’s been a long time since my last ATB post (and I know I promised an anti-Twilight edition; it’s still in the works…). But I’m back, and this one’s more fun than a barrel of… well, you know.
Now, I don’t claim to know a lot, but there are a few things I do know:
- Zombies are cool
- Airships arecool
- Steampunk is cooler than cool
- Seattle is cool (or so I’ve heard…never been there, actually)
So imagine how beyond cool beans with extra hot sauce a book would be if it threw all of these things together, and even had a cool teen protagonist (with an even cooler mom!)!
Enter Cherie Priest, and our latest ATB: The zombie and steampunk-filled tour-de-force, Boneshaker.
It has been 16 years since inventor Leviticus Blue, supposedly attempting to test a massive drilling machine (the ‘Boneshaker’) to support the gold rush trail between Seattle and Alaska, released a deadly gas that turns people into the living dead. The resulting cataclysm has left the Seattle of 1879 a walled-off dead zone, populated by shambling flesh-eaters (called “rotters” herein) and mysterious bands of survivors who have refused to leave. The name of Blue has become a curse to the inhabitants of the city outskirts, and life is particularly hard for Blue’s widow, Briar, and their teenage son Ezekiel.
After a lifetime of taunts and fights, Zeke is determined to clear the family name, and he sneaks into the city in search of his father’s house. Briar, angered and terrified, sets out as well, determined to bring him back safe. To find their way out alive they must find each other while facing air pirates, mad scientists, and an army of the groaning living dead! Helped along the way by the city’s strange and steadfast residents (as well as a few colorful and crusty airship captains), the two eventually make their way towards Leviticus’ workshop, where the final mystery is solved, and the terrible secret Briar has been keeping is revealed.
Beyond the obvious cool factors, the draw here for teens is Zeke – an angry, idealistic 15-year-old who is determined, bright and fearless – even if he has no bloody idea what he’s getting himself into. Much of the journey of Zeke and Briar is about a mother and son learning to trust, and be truthful with each other, even if it hurts; a journey many teens (and their parents) are probably going through themselves.
Boneshaker is a natural fit with Scott Westerfeld’s Leviathan, and Kenneth Oppel’s Airborn series. It’s been fairly buzzed about, and is likely already in your library’s adult SF section.
Now go steal it and put in your teen area.
