The Different Girl

Dahlquist, G. (2013). The different girl. NY: Dutton Books.

ARC provided by Dutton Books via NetGalley -- Thank you!
Just published February 21, 2013!

YA Dystopian / SciFi / Fantasy

QuickNEasy, 240 pages, ages12 and up.

I gave this book 4 out of 5 stars on Goodreads.

What a THOUGHT PROVOKING, stand-alone book!  This is NOT your typical dystopian story. Dahlquist's very subtle release of details allows readers to draw their own conclusions about the characters, why they are on the island, and their future. One thing that was interesting to me was how the hints dropped over the course of the book caused my vision of the island girls' physical appearance to change.  It was masterfully done so that my end image was vastly different from when I started reading.  I loved the clever delivery of information instead of the typical in-your-face pages of catch-up and back stories.  Th

The book is dystopian, I think, though it's difficult to tell how far into the future the book is set -- or if it's the future at all.  Dahlquist intentionally leaves this vague, possibly because of the state of our intolerant society and the divisiveness about science "improving upon" humans. 

Impatient readers may find there's not enough action or information to keep them interested, but the careful reader will find much to ponder between the lines.  The story lingers long after the ending.

This would be a great book club choice because there is so much to talk about that's left to the readers' imaginations.  Plenty of points to debate!

CLEAN-O-METER RATING  9 out of 10.  No sex, sexual situations, thoughts, or references. Absolutely no vulgar language (except for "bloody hell"), and what little violence that occurs is mostly implied and not described.

About the cover -- COOL, COOL.  I am all about the covers, as anyone who follows my reviews is aware, and this one is neat. The subtle little button on the girl's ear is a nice tie-in.  Of course, I have a gripe: if redheaded Veronika was the narrator, why isn't she the one on the cover??

Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe

Sáenz, B.A. (2012). Aristotle and Dante discover the secrets of the universe. 
     NY: Simon and Schuster Books For Young Readers.

AWARDS: Stonewall Book Award (2013), Printz Honor (2013), YALSA Best Fiction for Young Adults (Top Ten) (2013, Pura Belpre Author Award (2013).

QuickNEasy, 359 pages, ages 14-17

I gave this book 5 out of 5 stars on Goodreads

So. . .  the reason I read this book was because I was asked to do so by a local librarian who wanted to know if it belonged in the collection or not.  My short answer is YES, YES, YES! READ THIS BOOK!

"Maybe we just lived between hurting and healing."   Wow. . . so much said in so few words.

This story and writing flow like honey out of a jar -- slowly, deliciously worth the wait.  The writing was absolutely beautiful, and though it flies in the face of logic that the narrator, a fifteen-year-old boy, would be so poetic in his narration, it works perfectly.  Ari is insightful, introspective, and angry, and it takes the full spectrum of the two years spanned in the story for Ari to figure out why he feels how he feels and recognize his feelings and reactions, which were sometimes misguided and at other times spot-on.

The strange thing about this book is that though Ari narrates it, I feel like I better know his best friend, Dante.  Both Ari and Dante are recognizable characters, as are both boys' parents.  In reading, I felt like these were people I'd met at work or church or down the street.  It was refreshing that though these families weren't perfect (find one that is) and slightly dysfunctional (again, whose isn't), these parents were THERE for their boys. They care, they love, they do the best they can and they are working to be better parents. There were times that my heart ached; it was painful to hear Ari's thoughts and his descriptions of what he was observing.  I just wanted to shake him and say "TALK to your dad! He is ready!"  And likewise, "Come on, Mom! Just tell him what he needs to hear!"

This book is about the often painful process of finding one's identity and finding acceptance of it -- both internally and from others.  The short chapters and lots of white space on pages made it very readable, which is why I labeled it a QuickNEasy book despite the number of pages.  So much to learn and think about including the value of family, friendship, trust, and love -- and the destructiveness of anger and silence.

The CLEAN-O-METER rating is a 7 out of 10.  There is some violence: a character gets severely attacked for being gay, but only the bodily injuries, not the attack is not described. There is a quick but bloody fistfight that results in a broken nose, and there are references to murders from fistfights. There is no sex, but there is some kissing between opposite sexes and same sexes. There is mention of masturbation, but no details.  There is discussion of sexual orientation and sexual identity with gay, lesbian, and questioning characters. As far as vulgar language, there is a bit of it, including the all powerful Fbomb, but sometimes it's used intentionally because Ari wants to see how his mom will react to it. One humorous use is in the word ba***rd, as it's in a William Carlos Williams poem that the boys like because they can say a swear word if it's in a poem.  There is underage drinking and purposeful drinking to get drunk, and also one incident of smoking pot and another of a person encouraging Ari to shoot-up heroine (he declines). 

Side Note:  I was fortunate enough to attend the Texas Library Association's 2012 Conference in Houston last year. Mr. Sáenz was on a panel of TAYSHA's authors, and though I had never read any of his works, I was impressed by the tips he gave for encouraging students to write.  He also talked about how life experience influences his works.  Now I see it in action, as he is a professor at UT El Paso, and this book's setting is El Paso and two boys' Mexican-American experiences there.  COOL!