edh's reviews
352 reviews

My first Hillerman book! I thought this was a great mystery/history/suspense hybrid... a quiet little disturbing story, if that's possible. (thanks I Love a Mystery ladies!) My dad and I read it together. We learned a lot about Anasazi civilization - who knew that pot fragments could tell you so much about the people who made them?! And who knew that there are pot hunters trawling around the land disturbing archaeological sites for profit? (I sure didn't.) We're looking for our next Leaphorn/Chee title, so any suggestions are welcome.

It's pretty hideously awful and inconsistent so far. I may not finish. Nope, didn't finish it. Part of the problem was his pop culture references... they were so hideously dated (sorry Osit, I don't know any teenagers who follow or idolize Friends - you're about a decade or so too late on that) that they made me doubt his advice or perceptions of other situations. Do you get what I mean?

I thought this was an ok book, and will likely be a great pick, say, years from now when this event begins to fade around the edges of our collective memory. But I am not sure teens who saw the news coverage will discover anything new from this narrative, wrapped around a jazz musician and his son surviving the Superdome ordeal post-Katrina. In many ways, their story turned out to be a lucky one. (hopeful ending, sorry about spoilers.) I will be very interested in reading books about those refugees who were unable to return to NOLA, or who were not as lucky as the characters in this book. Guess my personal preference is to hear the stories that were *not* told & re-told in mainstream media.

***SPOILERS!!!***
Alongside recently published novels like Unwind and the Adoration of Jenna Fox, Skinned is about a teen who has lost control of her own body. After a horrific freak car accident, Lia's body is un-salvageable. Her parents give the order to have her brain downloaded into a computer and she's given a newly constructed body, made of artificial materials. Uber-religious folks hate the "skinners," and believe they have no souls once their brains are downloaded. Lia agrees that she doesn't feel like herself, and is having lots of trouble mastering the art of controlling her new body's interface. For teens who really love out-of-body scifi, this might be a good pick. I'm not especially intrigued by the promised 2 sequels, as I just never really engaged with Lia's story. I much preferred the mystery/suspense angle of Jenna Fox, and would recommend that to the average reader over this pick. The ethical issues of perpetual consciousness (it's mentioned in the book that she can hop from body to body infinitely) and corporeal essence as part of being "human" are sidetracked by a romance with a skinner fetishist, racial conflict (several young Hispanic/African youths are early experimental recipients and are given white prototype bodies) and other random family conflict. If the sequels give all these issues their own space, then I may revisit this.

I know a lot of people are going to claim that this is a guy-bashing book, but I found it to be a lovely exploration of love and emotion. Quinn is turning 17 and, along with sister Sprout, has a tenuous relationship with her biological father. They've only been in each other's lives for a few years and the girls are fond of his newest girlfriend, Brie. Unfortunately, one day they show up for a visit and Brie has vanished - but a precious keepsake of hers was left behind. Quinn discovers that her father has a sort of trophy collection of objects from all the women he's loved and driven away, and together with half-sister Frances Lee the daughters set off on a crazy quest to return the objects to their rightful owners. The symbolism could have been heavy-handed, but isn't - both metaphorically and literally, their father has been manipulative in his relationships. Each woman has been robbed of an important sense of self as well as a physical object. Thankfully, men are not totally demonized and we do see some healthy examples of male-female interactions - and the story ends on a hopeful note for the future. Caletti leaves the reader with a strong sense of optimism that Quinn is not destined to live under the cloud of her father's failed relationships, and that integrity is the most important ingredient of love itself.

Tan leaves the reader breathless with these short pieces from the intimate, inner lives of those who live in the suburbs. Using a different style/technique to illustrate each story, the magical realism of Outer Suburbia merges in a disquietude that makes you doubt what may really be happening beyond the borders of urban life. An otherworldly foreign exchange student leaves behind an everlasting garden for his host family, neighborhood dogs exact revenge on a evil man, and a lost undersea diver is not the fish out of water that he seems to be. Poetry fragments take on a life of their own, a couple goes on an impossible quest to become married, and within their home a family discovers a mysterious courtyard that helps them escape the drudgery of daily living. The combination of words and pictures come together beautifully - where words don't suffice, the visual elements come to the fore and continue the narrative. Let Tan take you to the edge of the map and back in the stories of those who dwell in the suburbs (but whose stories live in all of us).

This was a nice debut from a new author. YA lit needs more books with rural settings, and this is a solid contribution. Libby Ryan, the heroine, lives on her family farm and discovers the hard way why you never *ever* name livestock. While experiencing the trials and tribulations of raising competitive steers, Libby feels a tad overshadowed by her successful older brother studying Ag at Purdue. The antagonists are the Darling sisters, whose personalities are just as gag-worthy as their names (Precious, Lil, and Ohma). Libby agrees to compete against the Darlings in the Beef Princess contest at the county fair, but doubts that she can outshine prissy girly-girls Darling and Lil. Meanwhile, her steers' days are numbered... soon, they'll be steaks and hamburger! Can Libby learn to let go of animals that she's lovingly raised by hand? Joan Bauer's Squashed is a great readalike. Recommended for younger YA readers and anyone who loves stories set 14 miles from Nowhere, Indiana.