Smile & Sisters by Raina Telgemeier

Smile and Sisters have been two very popular books at work with 11-14 year old girls. Now I see why. Raina Telgemeier has created two very personal, engaging stories from two significant events in her pre-teen years. Smile details her rather horrific orthodontic work, while Sisters not only features her relationship with her younger sister, but explores a period of time in her early teen years when their parents marriage was on the rocks.

Most of us have a ghastly orthodontist story from our childhood, but not many readers would be able to take on Telgemeier's lengthy, painful and traumatic experiences in the dental chair. Via her and artwork, Telgemeier shows us the ordinariness of teen life as well as the individual self-consciousness that infects most teens anywhere in the world. She explores image, belonging (I was so glad when she finally moved on from that first group of friends - they were awful) and embracing who you are.

It was a surprisingly touching coming of age story with bucket loads of courage and perseverance.

Sisters wasn't quite as success to my mind. Here Telgemeier explores why her relationship with her sister may have been strained throughout their younger years. It felt believable and authentic, but also a little like she was stretching to find another book.

We've all had those challenging relationships with siblings at different times, when two very different personalities constantly rub up against each in daily family life. Sometimes things improve when you're no longer living together under the one roof; sometimes things don't.

But the thing that can bring you together is shared fear and shared adversity - when you think your parents may be about to split up.

In this case, Raina gave her sister a draft of this story several years prior to publication for approval. She also allowed Amara a chance to share insights into her side of the story.

I'm not normally a big fan of graphic novels, but these two books were easy to read and I really liked the colourful artwork. The simple designs were capable of conveying quite a lot of emotion.

Smile was the winner of the Eisner Award for Best Publication for a Teen Audience in 2011 and a finalist for the Children’s Choice Book Award.

Sisters won the Eisner Award for Best Writer/Artist in 2015.

Books 15 & 16 of my #20BooksofSummer (winter) challenge - drop-in titles
25℃ in Sydney
16℃ in Northern Ireland
I read these books during the July #reversereadathon

First Love by Gwendoline Riley

I have yet to read Turgenev's First Love, so I cannot assess the claim made by Alan Warner on the back cover of my edition of Gwendoline Riley's First Love that they are not too far apart. According to Warner they have 'the same panoptic, all-too-human lurches, afflictions and doubts, gorgeously exposed.'

I'm not sure how 'all-seeing' and 'all-too-human' Neve's story is. But for anyone who has found themselves in an unsavoury, bullying relationship, this story would contain many truths.

Fortunately I've only ever witnessed bullying relationships from afar, but Neve's story made me feel so claustrophobic and so caught up in the drama of her stumbling from one poor choice to another, that I felt like I was intimately involved in the dysfunction.

Riley deftly draws the line between adult Neve's unhealthy relationships to those between her parents and the way they parented her and her brother. Edwyn's life is less exposed, but we are given enough clues to see that he also suffered from poor parenting and relationship models. He is the classic case of someone who is only able to see the world through his own lens. Everything he throws at Neve verbally and accuses her of is actually an insight into his own thoughts and feelings.

There were times when I wanted to shake Neve out of her complacency and learned helplessness. It was frustrating to see so little personal growth and awareness in a character. By the end, it felt like she would always be nothing more than the product of her environment and upbringing.

I'm not sure if that's the lesson Riley wanted us to get from her novel. That the individual is doomed to live out the mistakes that their childhood inflicted on them seems terribly sad and fatalistic. But maybe free-will, self-responsibility and choice is only something that those lucky enough to have a safe and loving upbringing can claim?

First Love was provocative and challenging at times, but it wasn't really a 'story of love' like the blurb suggested. It was more like people searching for their idea of love, but not being capable of recognising it or participating in it in a healthy way.

I'm not sure why this book was shortlisted for the Baileys Women's Prize this year. Yes, it has some fine writing, but Neve's stuck-ness and despair was never overcome and I ultimately felt let down by the ending that resolved nothing and allowed no-one to move forward. I still have no idea why Neve chooses to stay with Edwyn, except for the usual psychological reasons that any abused person chooses to stay with their abuser. But it's not love, no matter how they dress it up.

For another point of view about this book try Simon@SavidgeReads (who might help you see some layers that I didn't) and My Booking Great Blog.

Fifth book completed and fourth book reviewed for #20booksofwinter

Auggie and Me: Three Wonder Stories by R J Palacio

I loved Wonder when I first read it almost five years ago.

I devoured it in one night and knew that it was a winner straight away.

Even my non-reading youngest booklet (sigh) loved Wonder and even went so far as to say that if there were more books like this he might actually read more.

High praise indeed!

However, I was a little sceptical last year when Palacio published a sequel of sorts that features three of the characters not given a voice in Wonder.

Was this just milking a sure thing? Could these three stories add to and enhance our time in Auggie's world?

In her Introduction to Auggie and Me, Palacio says that this book

is an expansion of Auggie's world. The three stories in Auggie and Me - The Julian Chapter, Pluto and Shingaling, all originally published as short ebooks - are told from the perspective of Julian, Christopher and Charlotte, respectively. They are three completely different narratives...they all do have one thing in common, though, which is Auggie Pullman.

 As it turns out though, these three stories are just as wonderful as the original story.

They give us insight into why Julian bullies Auggie. Palacio creates a nuanced, complex character with a backstory of his own.

Through Christopher and Charlotte we experience the wider world that Auggie lives in but is not always aware of. Both Christopher and Charlotte have a lot going on in their own lives which makes it difficult for them to fully engage with what Auggie's world. Christopher's chapter also gives us a chance to see Auggie as a young child as he remembers some of their early adventures.

If you loved Wonder, you'll love Auggie and Me too.

It evokes similar heart-warming feelings and continues the theme of kindness that has made Wonder so special to so many readers around the world.

8/20

The Cat with the Coloured Tail by Gillian Mears

The one and only adult novel by Gillian Mears that I tried to read many, many years ago was The Grass Sisters.
I simply couldn't get into.

Maybe it was the wrong book at the wrong time, maybe I was too young to appreciate it properly (although 28 isn't that young!)
Whatever the reason, I haven't picked up another Mears since...

...until The Cat with the Coloured Tail that is.

And I'm so glad I did.

Packaged as an early reader, this poignant, delicious, heart-felt fable will actually appeal to a much wider reader range than 6-8 yr olds.

This is a book with layers of meaning, or perhaps more accurately, layers of feeling. Kindness and sadness, loss and caring, hope and despair weave together to offer all of us a sense of healing and fellowship.

The cat lives with Mr Hooper in an almost symbiotic relationship. They give each other love and happiness and security. They also give out kindness and love to all in need. The cat's tail would only ever change colour to help people feel happy. Depending on the colour of his tail, Mr Hooper would then create a corresponding moon ice-cream for the person in need.

To eat a moon-cream was like licking love and happiness both at once. After a moon-cream, life would always be luckier.

Mr Hooper and the cat help some very sad, desperate folk, but how can they help the very heart of the world when it too sickens and becomes sad?

Some of Mears' cat descriptions are so perfect you can almost feel the cat curled up in your lap or poking his head out through the top of your jumper. His kitten-like way of chasing his own tail of happiness is an image that I will cherish for a long time to come.

Dinalie Dabarera's sweet pencil drawings add to the charm and mood of this book. She includes many heart-shaped designs for Mr Hooper (and for us) to find. Her colour palette moves us through the many feeling phases within this story.

Finally, the author quote on the cover.

Some famous authors have been known to write cover quotes that barely rise above the 'great book, you should read this' baseline.

Imagine Mears' delight when she read Tim Winton's quote for her book for the first time.

Gillian Mears’ distinctive voice is undimmed and her yearning fable is a sweet and gentle reminder of the two great forces that lie dormant within us – kindness and hope. Her work hasn’t just described life; it’s enhanced it. And we owe her thanks.

— Tim Winton

That is a cover quote to die for!

This post is part of #AusReadingMonth and my Australian Women Writer's challenge.

The Apple Tart of Hope by Sarah Moore Fitzgerald

You know how it is when you read a really, really good book?

You love it soooo much, that you want everyone you know to read it & love it too.

But you don't want to give away too much of the storyline, because you want everyone to discover it with the same fresh innocence as yourself.

Therefore, I'm only going to tell you that this wonderful, gut-wrenching, beautiful story is about apple tarts and hope.
It is about Meg and Oscar.
It's also about truth and lies, friendship and bullying, manipulation and trust.

It has been a very long time since a book had my gut all twisted up with anguish and anger. It has been a very long time since a book has made me want to scream out at the characters "Watch Out! Beware!", to scream out the secret, to reveal the dastardly deed, to save them!

The saving grace that makes all this despair worthwhile is Fitzgerald's upholding of Kate DiCamillo's belief that all writers for children are ultimately, duty-bound to finish with hope.

The Apple Tart of Hope deals with some tough issues (depression, suicide & emotionally manipulative bullying) but it does so in a gentle, insightful way.
I will be recommending it to 13+ readers simply because of these mature issues.
Very mature 11+ readers who love their books to have an emotional roller-coaster edge could manage this though.

I love a book that makes me feel so deeply & care so much about the characters. I love being dragged through an emotional wringer. I also enjoy coming out the other side with a smile on my face.
I always have & I always will.

This is one of those books.

Jane, The Fox and Me by Fanny Britt & Isabelle Arsenault

I'm not a huge graphic novel aficionado, but every now and again, one comes along that grabs my attention.

Maybe it had something to do with the Jane Eyre reference or maybe it was the rave review from the rep that had stuck in my mind, but when I saw this book displayed on our shelves, I knew I just had to read it.

Helené is a recently rejected girl at school. Once popular with friends, she suddenly finds herself on the outer. She is taunted, teased and bullied.

Her loneliness, confusion & sadness are beautifully depicted in the grey wash illustrations by Arsenault. This is a graphic novel that is still also a picture book at heart.

The thing that keeps Helené going, that offers her respite from the taunts, that fills the void of friends, is books.

And one book in particular speaks to her - Jane Eyre.

All of a sudden we turn the page to find a little bit of Jane Eyre's story as seen through Helené's eyes.

The illustrations change - we see colour, lovely old-fashioned fonts & we also see hope.

Helené sees Jane as a kindred spirit - a connection is made through the pages of the book. Through Jane, Helené feels understood. Jane's story not only gives Helené respite, but hope.

During a ghastly school camping excursion, Helené spies a fox in the woods.

She reaches out & makes a connection with the fox.

This encourages her to make a connection with one of the other girls, Géraldine, also on the outer with the popular group.

There is nothing particularly new or earth-shattering about this classic tale of bullying & loneliness.

Or the redemptive power of a good book.

But Jane, The Fox and Me is told so tenderly that I defy anyone to resist its charms.

I certainly couldn't!

Fanny Britt is from Quebec.
The book was translated into English by Christine Morelli & Susan Ouriou.

This book has mature themes but would be suitable for good 10+ readers as well as high school students.