What I Read This Week

What I Read This Week . . .

Battle Magic by Tamora Pierce -- Young Adult Historical Fantasy

Briar, Rosethorn and Evvy have been traveling in the kingdom of Gyongxe, a kingdom high in the mountains were people come to built temples to be closer to the gods. While Evvy practices her magic and learns about ancient shaman magic, Rosethorn is suffering from the altitude and homesickness. Briar can't wait to get his teacher back home where she will be healthy and he can be with his plants. Before they begin their final journey home they receive an invitation from the Emperor of Yanjing to come view his gardens. Rosethorn and Evvy chafe at the restrictions placed on women but Rosethorn feels it will all be worth it once she sees the famous gardens. Behind the beautiful facade of court life, the travelers discover there is a darker side to the Emperor. Evvy befriends a slave, Parahan, a captive prince from a nearby kingdom. Just as the travelers leave Yanjing, Evvy reveals startling news: the Emperor plans to attack Gyongxe. Rosethorn is sworn to defend the First Temple of the Living Circle and she must warn her friends. Briar won't leave without his beloved teacher and Evvy feels the need to stay too. Rosethorn is given a difficult and dangerous task while Briar and Evvy must use their magic to defend their friends. This story is much darker and violent than I remember the previous Emelan novels being. It's more mature in tone and definitely for older readers. The violence is frightening and some really horrific things happen in the novel. I was a bit put off by all the violence and it took me a few nights to get through the book. I wanted to know what happened but it was a difficult read. I knew the outcome since I read Will of the Empress and Melting Stones. As usual, the characters' relationships with each other provide much needed humor. I love Evvy and her cats. This story also contains more overt sensuality and sexuality than previous novels. I was surprised by something that happened in the plot and it seemed to come out of nowhere. What Tamora Pierce really excels at is world building. I could easily imagine a world like ancient Asia, high in the Himalayas. The magic building is really strong but I don't care for Evvy's stone magic and a lot of what happens in this story is just too hard to believe. It's more fantasy than the previous novels (except Melting Stones). I also didn't like how the story jumped around from Briar to Rosethorn and Evvy. I feel like Evvy was the most developed of the three and I really felt for her. We already know Briar and Rosethorn so I guess it makes sense to develop Evvy the most but I felt like there needed to be something more there. The story stands on it's own somewhat but it's best if you know the characters and the world. I feel like the world of Emelan is just not a good fit for my interests. It started off nicely with the whole ambient magic thing but the magic has gotten crazy and way too out there for me. This isn't my favorite Tamora Pierce novel but it's not my least favorite. 

Roast Beef Medium: The Business Adventures of Emma McChesney by Edna Ferber -- Classic Fiction

 First written in 1911, this book is a series of adventures and misadventures in the life of Emma McChesney, a traveling petticoat saleswoman. Emma is a 35-year-old divorced mother of a 17 year old son. Though Emma sometimes wearies of life on the road, she loves her job and the thrill of making a sale and beating her competitors. She's well liked and respected by everyone, including her boss and her biggest rival. Emma is determined to give her boy every advantage which sometimes doesn't work out as she had planned. Emma takes no nonsense from anyone and she lacks any romantic illusions about life. She's a been there, done that, decided against it type of person. Roast beef, medium, is her philosophy in life. I liked Emma's toughness. She has moxie and can handle anything that comes her way. Sometimes she gets depressed and it doesn't seem to fit her character. She's usually very accepting of whatever is happening in her life. She's a bit too obsessed with her son, in my opinion. She lives for her boy and doesn't allow him to grow up. The chapters are episodic so you can pick the book up and put it down and read it again when you have time. The end of the story surprised me a lot. The illustrations really help the modern reader envision the fashions of the day. I liked the book well enough. Some parts were a bit too dated in attitude (there's some antisemitic language) to be relevant today but I think modern career women will identify with Emma. The writing style is quick and easy to read but didn't make me want to rush out and read more of Edna Ferber's writing. I recommend this book to those who love early 1900s fashions! I loved the descriptions of the changing fashions. 

Young Adult Reviews

Past Young Adult Reviews

I'm cleaning house and moving some reviews around. 




Bloodhound: Beka Cooper Book 2 by Tamora Pierce -- YA Fantasy/Adventure
Set in Tortall 200 years before Alanna, Beka Cooper, a common-born girl from the city slums is now a full fledged officer of the law, a Dog. When she discovers someone is forging silver coins and the economy is in trouble, Beka and partner Goodwin are assigned under cover duty in Port Caynn to sniff out information, Beka is accompanies by her "birdie" Slapper the pigeon, as well as a new friend, Achoo, the scent hound. Beka detests playing the part of a silly young girl but it helps her make friends, and enemies, in Port Caynn. She and Achoo must work their hardest to find the forger and stop them before it's too late. This is another great offering from Tamora Pierce. A new fan could read it without knowing much of the background and long-time fans will enjoy learning more of the history of Tortall. This story has romance as well as adventure and a cute dog. I enjoyed it as much as Terrier and hope the third volume doesn't take as long to be published!

A Voice of Her Own: Becoming Emily Dickinson by Barbara Dana -- YA Historical Fiction

A fictionalized biography of Emily Dickinson. The author uses Emily's writing to flesh out the reclusive offer and show the reader how she came to be the great poet she was. I had a really hard time getting into this story. I just couldn't get into Emily's head. I finished the book but don't remember anything about it. My original review is lost in the ether somewhere!

Northern Light by Jennifer Donnelly -- YA Historical Fiction

Set in the Adirondocks in 1906, sixteen year old Mattie Gokey helps run the family farm and look after her younger siblings now that her mother has passed away and her older brother ran off. Encouraged by a forward thinking teacher, Mattie devours words and dreams of attending college and becoming a writer herself. She's torn in her loyalties between duty and dreams which are further complicated by a romance with a local boy. Mattie also feels drawn to a young woman who is a guest at the hotel where Mattie works in the summer. When the young woman turns up drowned, Mattie is even more drawn to her and learning this young woman's story. Mattie tells her own story alternating between past and present using her favorite words from the dictionary to highlight the important happenings of the last year. This is an incredibly well-written novel with rich details that sucked me into the story and didn't let go. I had incredibly sympathy for Mattie, being a literature lover and a college educated woman. I, too, was torn in what I wanted her to do. The murder subplot is only a small part of the book but it shapes Mattie's life and helps her decide where her place is. I have seen this book on the shelves since it was first published and I don't know why it took me so long to read it. It's one of the best YA novels I've read. I especially enjoyed all the literary references to my favorite writers.

 

Last Dance on Holladay Street by Elisa Carbone -YA Historical Fiction

In 1878, when Eva's adopted parents die, she must make her own way from the Colorado prairie to Denver in search of her birth mother whom she believes was unable to support a child back when Eva was born, but surely must be able to by now. Eva receives a big shock when Denver and her mother are not what she expected. She is befriended by a fellow "colored" person who helps her find her path to freedom. This is an interesting, mature look at the women in the Old West. My heart went out to Eva as she struggled through life and couldn't put the book down to see how she found a way out of her difficult situation. This book is well-written and seems realistic. I enjoyed it.

 

What I've Read This Week Part II

What I've Read This Week Part II

Mastiff : The Legend of Beka Cooper Book 3 by Tamora Pierce -- Young Adult Historical Fantasy

It's been two years since the events of Bloodhound and Beka Cooper has just buried her fiance. While everyone around her weeps, she feels guilty because she was about to break off the engagement. When Lord Gershom calls Beka on a Hunt, she is happy to get out working again, doing what she loves the most. She and her partner, Tunstall, are accompanied by Achoo, the faithful scent hound and Pounce, the Constellation cat. They are joined by Farmer Grange, a young mage who acts the country bumpkin, but Beka suspects has hidden depths no one can see. Lady Sabine Macayhill, the Lady Knight and Tunstall's lover also comes along on the Hunt. The King and Queen of Tortall are in residence at the Summer Palace which has been attacked and their only son kidnapped. The Dogs suspect an inside job: a conspiracy of mages and nobles who are angry at the King for his recent interest in politics. Beka vows to the Queen that she will get little Prince Gareth back to his mother alive. Soon they're on a lengthy journey to find the prince with Achoo leading the way with her nose. Not much happens for 500 pages. The story is more of a quest novel than an adventure story until then. Around the 500 page mark the plot becomes filled with intrigue and danger. It's hard to keep up with all the nobles and mages who suspect that the Dogs knows what they're up to. The noblewomen despise Beka for her unladylike work. They follow the cult of the Gentle Mother and expect ladies to be gentle, soft and far removed from any violence. Beka is disgusted by the noble ladies and is eager to get back on the Hunt. With some help from her Birdies, dust spinners and of course, Achoo, she picks the trail back up and discovers that the young prince is in the hands of ruthless mages who treat the prince a slave. With every beating he receives, a magical bond threatens the welfare of the King and Queen threatening to plunge the country into a civil war. Beka is determined not to let that happen but she suspects there is a traitor in their midst and hates to think one of her friends could betray her. She knows her duty and will stop and nothing until the prince is returned home. There are some big surprises towards the end that provide the action sequences and human side of the plot. This story is very violent. There are many gruesome deaths along the way which bother even Beka at times. I had to skip a few descriptive passages. The animal companions provide the humor that lightens the story somewhat but it still remains a dark and difficult tale. Though there is not a lot of action, I couldn't put the book down. I liked the new character, Farmer. He's a very different sort of mage than the academic mages and his teacher was the first to identify wild magic. I liked seeing Beka develop from a young woman to a mature woman who knows what she wants and goes after it, despite pressure to be otherwise. She realizes that she is who she is and she needs to be respected for that. I didn't quite like the surprises at the end. One was out of character and an awful shock and the other surprise involved a romance I didn't see coming. The epilogue is not Tammy's best writing. It's not as dreadful as the Harry Potter epilogue but it's awkward. It links Beka's story to George Copper at the moment where he first meets "Alan." I enjoyed the book and I am sad to see the series come to an end.

What I've Read This Week

What I've Read This Week . . .

Tortall and Other Lands: A Collection of Tales (Beka Cooper) by Tamora Pierce -- Young Adult Fantasy/Contemporary

This anthology of fantasy tales by popular YA author Tamora Pierce features 11 short stories, most of which have been published before. There are three new tales to continue the Tortall legends and a sneak preview of the new Beka Cooper novel. (Lets out an unladylike squeal of delight).

I will focus on the three new stories. Nawat is a sequel to the Trickster books. Aly gives birth to three live, human babies while Nawat struggles with his identity as a crow man. His ideas of child rearing clash with those of the human nurses and even the Queen. The Rajumat flock is angry and Nawat has to deal with them one way or another. This is a bittersweet tale about Nawat from his point-of-view. It's sometimes funny but also a bit sad and even makes you think in spots. Nawat has to make some difficult choices in this one as he struggles with his identity. I loved seeing Aly and Nawat again and finding out what happened next. I think Aly grows more like her mother as she gets older, though she would hate to hear anyone say that!

Lost: Adria, a girl from Tusaine is a math genius. She's made to doubt her abilities by an abusive father and an incompetent teacher. She's befriending by a Darking who helps her realize her worth. This is a cute story full of girl power. As much as I hate and don't understand math, I felt sorry for Adria and loved how Lost helped her find her way. It was an extra awesome bonus to read more about Darkings. (They're also in Nawat). I just love this magic world Tammy has created!

In Mimic, Ri, a young shepherdess is content with her freedom to roam the hills despite her grandfather's wish for her to learn healing and her brother's pleas to take over the sheep. When Ri rescues a strange creature from a hawk, she vows to keep it alive no matter how ugly it is. The strange creature turns out to be full of surprises and wisdom for Ri. This story teaches some great lessons to teen girls about doing what is right and about growing up. The creature is amusing and the story is a fun read. 

The other stories included are:

The Dragon's Tale about Daine's dragonling, Kitten

Elder Brother: about the repercussion of Numair using a word of power at the end of the Immortals Quartet

The Hidden Girl: A companion to Elder Brother, paralleling the Taliban's treatment of women

Huntress: A contemporary fantasy set in New York City

Plain Magic: A short story which teaches that appearances can be deceiving.

Testing: A contemporary non-fantasy about troubled teen girls testing their new house mother

Student of Ostriches: About Shang warriors

Time of Proving: A short story that doesn't appear linked to any other legends thus far. A girl helps a creature in need but not without payment. She learns a few things along the way about proving herself.