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Book Review UKYA

REVIEW: Lorali by Laura Dockrill

Posted on 3 July, 2015

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Let me tell you a story… I’ve always loved mermaids. Ever since I was tiny, I’ve devoured stories, TV programmes, and secretly wished that I could grow a tail. Lorali brought all of my fantasies back.

On the day of his sixteenth birthday, Rory finds a girl washed up on the beach. Naked, confused and convinced that she’s a mermaid. Isn’t she just a tiny bit too weird? With Lorali’s arrival comes freak weather conditions, pirates and even more strange visitors. Maybe Lorali isn’t a normal girl after all…

Dockrill writes with such ease and prowess that it’s hard not to instantly connect with her writing. Each character has been perfectly created so that it feels like they’re taking you along on the journey too. This is why Lorali will appeal to readers and non-readers alike – Dockrill has a way with words that can attract anybody.

By far, my favourite character was Lorali. I loved her perplexity towards the modern world and excitement as she learnt more about it. I craved the sections of the book written from her perspective – they were so much fun to read!

Although it took me a while to get into it, once I began to become familiar with the characters and plot direction, I LOVED it.

One of the most surprising things about Lorali is Dockrill’s wittiness and humour. Lorali really is one of the wackiest books I’ve read this year, and I mean that in the best way possible.

I loved Lorali for fulfilling all of my childhood dreams, and I’m definitely going to be seeking out more YA mermaid novels in the future. I’ve seriously been missing out!

Book Review UKYA

REVIEW BY RHIAN IVORY: Read Me Like a Book by Liz Kessler

Posted on 13 May, 2015

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Ash has a lot on her plate – warring parents, changeable feelings towards her new boyfriend Dylan, college work piling up, verbal warnings issued and to top it all a new English teacher to get used to. Her life is dominated by the very strong presence of her best friend Cat; house parties with her other close friend Luke and dates with Dylan after which she’s left with strange and unexpected feelings. So there’s definitely no time in her busy schedule for reading Wuthering Heights but the new English teacher Miss Murray breathes life into the novel Ash was ready to give up on. In fact Miss Murray does a lot more than that, she breathes life into Ash who has been operating on autopilot for some time.

‘You can see how her compliments make people feel. It’s like she switches a light on inside their eyes.’

Miss Murray’s arrival in Ash’s life coincides with an escalation in the arguments between her parents, a growing divide between Ash and Cat and the realisation that it isn’t Dylan she wants to be kissing. We’re only a few steps ahead of Ash as she starts to find out who she is and what she wants from life. Ash uncovers new possibilities when she meets Miss Murray forcing Ash to ask herself some big and awkward questions. Kessler doesn’t readily equip Ash with the ability to answer all the questions but instead allows her the strength and space to at least try and work some of them out.

‘Am I going to spend the rest of my life sneaking round, pretending to be something I’m not?’

Liz Kessler writes about people trying to work out who they are in an open, honest and unpredictable manner. I made assumptions about the choices I thought Ash would make but had to sit back and let the story unfold rather than try to jump ahead and work out where it would go and this made the book even more enjoyable.

I’m always looking out for really good novels to recommend to librarians, teachers and teen readers and Read me Like a Book is going to the top of the pile. This coming of age and coming out novel should be read, talked about and passed around much like Judy Blume’s iconic Forever. I can easily imagine readers discussing the issues raised about sexuality, friendship, families and identity whilst folding down certain pages. I found myself underlining passages which reflected universal themes about life as a teenager because Kessler deals with the real world, there’s no fade to black and she doesn’t leave the reader with a mass of unanswered questions, she really does tell it like it is. In this novel Ash is allowed to make mistakes, take risks and do the things a lot of readers might wish they could do too as they try and find their place in the world. As Ash says ‘the world is a lot bigger than I am’ but with novels like Read me Like a Book the world doesn’t seem like such a big and scary place any more.

About the reviewer

Rhian Ivory has written 4 novels published by Bloomsbury under her maiden name Rhian Tracey including The Bad Girls Club. Her new novel The Boy who drew the Future is published this September by Firefly Press.

You can follow Rhian on Twitter – Rhian Ivory

 

 

 

Book Review UKYA

REVIEW: Seed by Lisa Heathfield

Posted on 29 April, 2015

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I haven’t read a book in a long time that has completely blown me away and given me an “OMG!” moment. Seed completely changed that, however. It was AMAZING!

Pearl has always lived in Seed, a community that worships Nature. When a new boy and his family are welcomed into Seed, Pearl starts to notice the cracks in her seeminly perfect world. Why doesn’t she know who her mother is? Why aren’t they allowed medical care? Seed is a crazed cult, and Seed will never let her go.

Heathfield has created a dangerous but charming community with enigmatic Seed. I could feel myself sinking into Seed’s mindset whilst reading it and I could feel myself being pulled towards it. The worshipping of nature particularly appealed to me and so it was almost as if I was Pearl fighting to find out the truth behind a seemingly perfect world.

One part I specifically loved was the opening scene because it’s one of the only YA books I’ve read that talks about menstruation, which I think is important to be acknowledged because it barely is for something so major in a teenager’s life.

Whilst Pearl could be frustrating at points, I completely understood why. It was fascinating to see her internal struggle between wanting to love Seed and knowing that it was corrupt.

The ending had me reeling! It was SUCH a shock! You’ll know exactly what I’m talking about if you’ve read it; I still haven’t quite recovered from it!

I was so happy to have loved one of my most anticipated UKYA reads of 2015 so much and I can’t wait to read the next installment in 2016. Phenomenal!

 

Book Review UKYA

REVIEW: Crow Moon by Anna McKerrow

Posted on 23 February, 2015

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When you first hold a copy of your most anticipated read of the year in your hands, it fills you with dread. You think to yourself: will I like it? What if I hate it? Sometimes, though, you’ve just got to have a little faith.

In McKerrow’s debut novel, the world is split in two. There is the Greenworld – think environmentally friendly and self-sufficient – and the Redworld. The Redworld is your worst nightmare – filled with gangs, it’s made up of the people intent on finding a power source to sell to the world.

Crow Moon is absolutely, undoubtedly my dream novel. I’ve been searching for something just like it for years and it’s not until now that I feel satisfied that I’ve finally found my ideal book. I devoured it within hours because I was so engrossed in the story and I adored all of the characters, who were so easily imaginable.

It’s an incredibly diverse novel – both racially and religiously. Crow Moon challenges stereotypes put in place by the media, as well as cultural ideas of witches and paganism. I hope it sets the trend for similar books (as well as climate fiction) with a realistic portrayal because it’s so desperately needed in modern fiction.

Danny’s exploration of the Greenworld opened up wonderful doors for the reader, who learns with Danny in a very natural way.

Although Danny is the protagonist, Saba was my favourite character; I could see myself reflected in her and she stood out immediately to me as soon as she was introduced. She’s a reason all on its own to read the book!

I desperately want to live in the Greenworld because it seems like such an idyllic, perfect place. McKerrow has created a vivid land to fictionally escape to. I hope in the future it’s possible to move to fictional worlds!

I’m not entirely sure how I’m going to be able to wait another year to read the sequel! I expect I’ll have to re-read this novel before then because I can’t bear to separate myself from the amazing world!

Crow Moon completely blew me away and I’ll be recommending it to absolutely everyone this year. PHENOMENAL!

Book Review

REVIEW: Love Hurts, edited by Malorie Blackman

Posted on 9 February, 2015

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Recently I’ve loved reading anthologies, such as My True Love Gave To Me, edited by Stephanie Perkins, so when I came across Love Hurts I knew I wanted to read it.

To say I was disappointed would be an understatement. Here are just a few reasons why:

The majority of the book was made up of extracts from already existing books, and not new short stories.

I had read lots of the books already so there was no need to read the extracts for many of them, and I also had no interest in reading the extracts of the other books. So, really, I found the majority of the book seemed pretty useless to me.

The short stories didn’t stand out.

There was nothing about the short stories that made me want to read them. I couldn’t connect with them at all, and I was left feeling frustrated by the end. They felt so forced and there was no way to connect with them with only a few pages for it to reach its potential.

However, I do think Love Hurts will appeal to readers who are new to contemporary YA and want to explore the genre further. I’m also a big fan of many of the authors’ books, so my review does not mean any harm to them. It just wasn’t my thing, and so I was left feeling dissatisfied with it.

Book Review UKYA

REVIEW: Half Bad by Sally Green

Posted on 2 February, 2015

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I’ve owned a copy of Half Bad since it was released and have since wanted to read it regularly. I’m not entirely sure what was stopping me – possibly the huge buzz surrounding it – but I wish I had started to read it as soon as I bought it.

In a version of modern society, witches live among fains (humans) and there are two types of witch: black and white. The white witches outnumber the black, and the white witches are hugely prejudiced against the black. Nathan, the protagonist, is a Half Code – he’s half black witch, half white witch. In the witches’ eyes, Nathan will only ever be half black and therefore half bad.

The most striking thing about Half Bad is the beautiful way it is written. Green makes every single word matter, and there are so many different styles and techniques she uses to grip the reader. In particular, I loved the parts written in second person narrative. They really stood out!

I became so invested in Nathan’s story. The book covers a long timeline, from when Nathan is very young to him becoming a teenager. I loved this because it felt as if I was watching him grow up and the reader gets to see so many different sides to him. It was such a brilliant way to let the story flow.

I LOVED Half Bad SO MUCH and I am beyond excited to read the rest in the trilogy. I know they will be amazing!

Book Review UKYA

REVIEW: The Rain by Virginia Bergin

Posted on 30 January, 2015

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I’ve heard amazing things about The Rain in the past, but it wasn’t until I attended an event where Bergin spoke that I knew that I had to read it right away. Whilst I often don’t willingly choose to read dystopia and don’t actively seek it out, there was something about The Rain that urged me to start reading as soon as I picked it up.

Imagine this: It’s a warm, sunny Bank Holiday (rather unusual for the UK), you’re in a hot tub with the boy of your dreams, and it starts to rain. It’s not, however, normal rain. One drop can, and will, kill you.

The Rain reads like a totally crazy but completely realistic inner monologue from a protagonist who is the embodiment of annoying, teenage girls everywhere. I warmed up to Ruby instantly, seeing myself in her at many times during the novel. I know I would have reacted just as she did, and she had so much depth; it was hard not to love her and want to be her best friend.

Breaking out of the typical YA apocalypse mould, I couldn’t put the book down because Bergin has created such a scarily imaginative concept. I couldn’t go out for days without wondering why people were jumping in puddles when there was the chance they could get infected!

There was something so familiar about the way the novel was written that instantly hooked me. Although not the easiest subject to read about, I wanted to read more and more and more.

The book is set in South West England and it was obvious that Bergin knew every single detail about the places she was writing about. I loved spotting locations I knew about!

I loved The Rain and I’m incredibly excited to read the sequel. I’ll be recommending this to everyone!