Close Encounters with Authors and Heroes; a Celebratory Evening in Review

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“They say everybody has a book in them. I don’t know about that; I couldn’t write a novel. But everyone has a memoir in them. Everyone has a story.” That’s what I overheard author Anthony Martignetti say as he signed a copy of his newly published memoir, Lunatic Heroes. Seated next to his longtime friend, Amanda Palmer and her husband Neil Gaiman, Mr. Martignetti greeted each person that eagerly waited in the line that snaked around the columns of the lobby of Cary Hall in Lexington, MA. The book signing was the final note to the book launch party that had been as much a celebration of life, love, and friendship as it had been about the book.

Martignetti  moved in next door to Amanda Palmer when she was 9, she informed us as she opened the evening with the foreword that she had written for the memoir. And yes, when I say Amanda Palmer, I do mean that Amanda Palmer, of the Dresden Dolls. She and Martignetti have had a friendship since then that, as she said, is difficult to describe, but is best put to words as something like this “Anthony moved in next door when I was nine and taught me everything I know about love and knows me better than anybody and we still talk almost every single day even if I’m in Japan.”

Machine Hearts and Magic Arts: Needing More LGBTQ YA Literature

www.malindalo.com

I recently read Ash, a novel by Malinda Lo in which the main protagonist is not only female but also a lesbian. Lo’s modern take on Cinderella pulls us into a world of fantasy and royalty. Instead of Ash falling in love with prince charming, she slowly develops feelings for Kaisa, the King’s Huntress. In this version of Cinderella, tales about faeries run rampant amongst the country, and these stories mix with those of the Huntress, who hunts wildlife with other hunters. They provide for their people, while magic hides in The Wood, the place Ash first meets Kaisa.

This novel dealing with coming of age, family trauma, and realizing one’s sexuality really touched a soft spot in my heart. We read the struggle of losing both parents and feeling lost without them, and we can relate to Ash’s pain. When I read what Lo said about her book, the feeling of nostalgia hit even harder.

On her blog, Lo describes how her story came to fruition. It began with her just working on a heterosexual take using Cinderella.

Traveling with Harry: An Interview

I love Harry Potter.

J.K. Rowling has been my hero ever since I was a little kid. Her stories made me truly love reading. I would devour those books, and waiting years for each one to come out was absolute torture. Where was Rowling going to take me next? What was going to happen to Harry? Were Ron and Hermione ever going to get together? And could Voldemort actually die this time?

Let’s just say that I was invested. That’s why it was extremely exciting when my friend and fellow Harry Potter fan, Jackie, told me about her Harry-Potter-related quest this semester. We are both studying abroad in the Netherlands, and the program's set-up allows for most students to jet off to various locations every weekend in the name of experience and good times.

Jackie's quest? To get a Harry Potter book from every country she visited.

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Italy and the Brownings

How do I love Florence? Let me count the ways….

           

A few weeks ago, I took a short tour of Italy, stopping in Venice, Florence, and Pisa all within five days. It is true that you can’t see everything in that short amount of time, but what I did see convinced me that what novelists, painters, and poets have often said is valid—Italy is a one-of-a-kind place. Its balmy weather and ancient atmosphere inspires all kinds of creativity. It is no wonder why famous poets Elizabeth and Robert Browning moved to Florence as soon as they were married. And it was fortunate for me that their old apartments are still maintained by a museum open to the public.

Elizabeth was born in England in 1806. She was a very well educated child, studying Latin and Greek. As a very young girl, she was also exposed to Shakespeare and Milton. These studies certainly nurtured her creativity and supported her future literary pursuits. In fact, by age twelve she had already written four books of couplets, showing poetic potential before she was even a teenager.

However easily writing and scholastics came to Elizabeth, she was also destined to struggle throughout her life with a mysterious disease.

Book Review: The Last Child of Asgard by Shane S. Almond

Nocturnal Press Ltd.

Shane S. Almond’s the Last Child of Asgard: Delta is a YA novel that puts a new twist on old myths. With its release date on October 26^th in the UK and on November 15^th in the US, the book is fresh off the shelves and ready to create success for this first time author. Almond was born in London, England in 1986, and worked on the first book in his series for the last ten years. He’s had interviews in various newspapers worldwide, first in the Epping Forest Guardian in London and most recently in the Lincoln Eagle in New York. He’s been very passionate about his debut novel and currently writes the sequel.

The Last Child of Asgard: Delta focuses around young Max Turner, who comes to realize that he isn’t just an ordinary boy. Max is the son of Apollo, the Greek god of the sun; and Fridr, the Norse goddess of serenity. With the Greek and Norse gods at war with each other, Max finds that he is caught in the middle, sharing the blood of both. Thus, he is sent to Moonrise Academy, a school for heroes and demigods, to learn of his power. It is there that he discovers a prophecy that foretells of a final battle on Mount Olympus and he discovers that only he has the power to stop it. It’s the perfect story for someone interested in the ancient myths.

“When I was little, my dad showed me videotapes of Greek Mythology classics such as Hercules, Clash of The Titans, and Jason and The Argonauts,” Almond states. “As I've grown, I've noticed that people just keep retelling these classics; nobody has ever written what happens next. That's why I started The Last Child of Asgard series. I want to tell new Greek Mythology stories, not just retell the classics.” And, The Last Child of Asgard: Delta is precisely that. Taking around ten years to complete, Almond can certainly say that this is one of his biggest accomplishments. “It’s been a long process. I started writing as part of my GCSE English coursework.” Almond says that over the ten years it took to write the novel; rain ruined it once or twice, his computer has reset itself causing the story to be erased, and there was a point when he was homeless and carried his manuscript with him to the library to work on. “It’s been a long process,” Almond says with a chuckle.

Some of the authors that Almond says are his inspiration are J.R.R Tolkien and JK Rowling. “I grew up reading The Hobbit. I loved that book so much that I just couldn't put it down until I finished it. I think in total, I've read that story about seven times,” Almond comments. It isn’t surprising that Rowling is listed as one of the top inspirations on Almond’s list. The Last Child of Asgard could easily be described as Harry Potter meets Percy Jackson. It’s definitely a rollercoaster ride from beginning to end, full of action and unforgettable characters. Readers are sure to be on the edge of their seat, eagerly awaiting the second book in the series. Almond has kept things pretty quiet about it, but he’s currently planning it out.

The Last Child of Asgard: Delta is a fast-paced novel, full of action and adventure. It will have you on the edge of your seat while you root for young Max and his friends as they take on Queen Artemis and the other gods of Olympus that plan to destroy Moonrise. It’s a vivid page-turner, fit for anyone who is interested in Greek and Norse mythology. You’ll learn more about the gods and goddesses from their original stories, as well as new tales of them in the present day. It’s certainly not a book to miss out on; one that will leave you eagerly awaiting the sequel.

The Last Child of Asgard: Delta is now available online and soon-to-be in retail stores across the US. Be sure to pick up a copy and continue the myths as you join Max in his adventures at Moonrise Academy. 

By Erin Sinnott

Book Review: In the Time of Butterflies by Julia Alvarez

Google Books

Mama sighs, but playfulness has come back into her voice. “Just what we need, skirts in the law”

“It is just what the country needs”…It’s about time we women had a voice in running our country.

You and Trujillo, Papá says a little loudly, and in this clear peaceful night they all fall silent. Suddenly, the dark filled with spies who are paid to hear things and report them down at Security. Don Enrique claims Trujillo needs help running this country. Don Enrique’s daughter says it’s about time women took over the government. Words repeated, distorted, words recreated by those who might bear them a grudge, words stitched to words until they are the winding sheet the family will be buried in when their bodies are found dumped in a ditch, their tongues cut off for speaking too much.

(Alvarez 10)

In the Time of Butterflies is the story of Mirabal, Patria, Dede, and Minerva. This story takes place in the Dominican Republic and although the four sisters really did exist, it is a work of fiction. This novel follows the story of the sisters using flashbacks and the third person. However, what makes this story so compelling is the plot: four young women who are fighting for a political cause. What is also interesting about this book is the reader able to learn a lot about Trujillo’s dictatorship. The way in which the history plays out in the novel is very subtle; an example of this is in the book the Mirabal family discuss how everybody in the country has to have a picture of Trujillo on their living room wall if they do not it shows that they are not loyal to him. While I was reading I noticed the book was teaching me something new, but not in a boring way. It is also important to note that the audience does not have to research the history as it is explained in detail in the book.

Although the story has a lot of history there is a narrative that is easy to follow as well. A woman who was born in the Dominican Republic, but grew up in the United States, has gone back to find out more about the sisters since she wants to write a book about them. People in the United States don’t know about the sisters and the woman believes their heroic story is worth telling. There is only one remaining sister left alive and that is Dede. The story is told through the memory of Dede, but each chapter is titled for one of the sisters as well as a time period. Dede talks to the writer although at first she is somewhat reluctant since she has spoken to so many people about them before. Dede works at a museum dedicated to her sisters, and therefore assumes she knows what the writer is going to ask her. However, we learn from the book the questions were different than that of what she had been expecting. Because it is history we know from the beginning what is going to happen at the end, which is three of the Mirabal sisters are going to die, but what encouraged me to read the story is the book does not focus on their death but on their lives. The book starts with the sisters at young ages and develops until their fatal deaths. The story is also about their non-political lives, their lives as young women meaning their crushes, feuds, happy moments and sad moments. This is what makes the story so great. It is a book I recommend since it is a story of something that we unfortunately do not learn in our history books and depicts four young women fighting against all of the odds to make their country a better place to live in. Anybody who picks up this book even if they are not interested in history will enjoy it.

By Gilma Velasquez

Book Review: Endangered by Eliot Schrefer

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Endangered by Eliot Schrefer is a novel about a fourteen-year-old girl named Sophie who lives in the Democratic Republic of Congo. Early on, Sophie establishes the many ways in which she is different from other young Congolese women. She is half white, comes from a wealthy family, and is a United States citizen. Sophie’s mother also operates a sanctuary for bonobos, a type of chimpanzee that resides only in the Congo and has DNA 99% that is similar to humans.

When civil war erupts in Congo during the summer Sophie is there, she chooses not to flee with the other American evacuees. Instead, with her mother away and her father still in the U.S., Sophie frantically runs away in order to rescue Otto, the Bonobo she’s connected with. Sophie rescued Otto from a trafficker and became his adoptive mother; she explains throughout the novel how sensitive bonobos are, and how they can die of heartbreak if their mothers abandon them.

Sophie and Otto then embark on a quest to survive in the war-torn country. They spend weeks hidden away in the Bonobo enclosure in the sanctuary, where Sophie has to learn to survive in Bonobo society. When the rebels discover them, Sophie and Otto flee. Eventually, they manage to make their way to the river to track down Sophie’s mother, who is secluded on an island and out of contact.

Endangered tackles several very heavy subjects such as war and human nature in a way that is relatable. The voice of fourteen-year-old Sophie remains slightly innocent throughout the novel, but her maturity and intelligence allow the reader to vaguely get a handle on what’s going on. Sophie isn’t naïve because of her background, but she acknowledges she is not as accustomed to the life most Congolese lead. Her ability to be both inside and outside a situation is what moves the novel; in one scene, Sophie dives headfirst into the city of Mbandaka to save Otto when hunters kidnap him. Sophie winds up in the middle of the destroyed city. In a town filled with soldier, Sophie notes the danger of being a girl during the war, “There was no reason why a young woman should be alive and intact.” This scene offers the closest look into the war’s effects, but Sophie, despite being aware of the danger, is able to remain collected. With death as a likely possibility, the reader continues to see an objective view on what’s going on around the main character. This is why the reader understands why Sophie fights so hard to keep Otto safe and alive; because despite what’s happening in the present, Sophie is still able to evaluate the scenario and determine the consequences. More so, she is determined to maintain her humanity through her treatment of animals.

While the book could be classified as young adult, themes like death and war take it to a deeper and more universal level. Overall, Endangered is an enticing read and will certainly move any reader, especially if they have equal respect for animals and people.

By Carrie Cabral

Book Review: The Iron Witch by Karen Mahoney

www.kazmahoney.com

Following in the footsteps of Alyson Noel’s Evermore and Melissa Marr’s Wicked Lovely, Karen Mahoney tackles the modern fairytale in her YA novel, The Iron Witch. The first in a series of four, this “urban fantasy” introduces Donna Underwood, a magically gifted teenager, whose attempts at a normal life fail miserably when she encounters a group of evil fairies. Like the alchemists in her story, Mahoney skillfully combines her ingredients. Themes of friendship and romance are mixed with well-paced adventure, strong characterization, and the fascinating idea of an ancient war between a fey race and magicians. “Once upon a time” doesn’t even begin to cover it.

Left parentless by a violent fey attack, 17-year-old Donna struggles through the trivialities of high school while hiding both her horrific past and her future as an alchemist. When her best friend, Navin, with whom she shares quite a bit of romantic tension, is kidnapped by skin-changing fairies, Donna is forced to face her nightmarish history. Along the way, she begins to question the very foundations of her family’s alchemical order, as well as the placement of her loyalties, when friendships are put on the line. She also meets Alexander Grayson, a super-hot halfling, who spends a lot of the novel shirtless. So, maybe the fairy-stealing-Navin stuff isn’t that bad.

Readers will admire Donna’s strength and independence, while appreciating the realism of her teenage character. Her romance with Xan, although not quite as “sensual” as author, Richelle Mead suggests, will make them go “Aw!” on several occasions. While fans of Michael Scott’s The Secrets of the Immortal Nicholas Flamel may be disappointed with Mahoney’s lack of research, the constant suspense leaves little room for historical information. Those who enjoyed the romantic toil of Ever and Damen in Evermore or the fairy-human dynamic in Wicked Lovely will fall for this novel as fast as Donna falls for Xan.

Better luck next time, Navin. Maybe there are some hot chicks in Fairy Land.

By  Erin Arata