Please note that An Abundance of Books will no longer accept ebooks for review.
I apologize for any inconvenience this change may cause.
Wednesday, May 25, 2011
Tuesday, May 17, 2011
Review: Between Shades of Gray
Title: Between Shades of Gray
Author: Ruta Sepetys
Publisher: Philomel Books
Pub Date: March 2011
Genre: Historical Fiction
Lina is just like any other fifteen-year-old Lithuanian girl in 1941. She paints, she draws, she gets crushes on boys. Until one night when Soviet officers barge into her home, tearing her family from the comfortable life they've known. Separated from her father, forced onto a crowded and dirty train car, Lina, her mother, and her young brother slowly make their way north, crossing the Arctic Circle, to a work camp in the coldest reaches of Siberia. Here they are forced, under Stalin's orders, to dig for beets and fight for their lives under the cruelest of conditions.My Thoughts:
Lina finds solace in her art, meticulously—and at great risk—documenting events by drawing, hoping these messages will make their way to her father's prison camp to let him know they are still alive. It is a long and harrowing journey, spanning years and covering 6,500 miles, but it is through incredible strength, love, and hope that Lina ultimately survives. Between Shades of Gray is a novel that will steal your breath and capture your heart.
-- Goodreads
I was incredibly excited to read Between Shades of Gray, and it was so much better than I hoped it would be. The subject matter is so difficult and depressing, but the book was so much more. I'm not even sure how to describe how much I liked the book and what a wonderful writer Ruta Sepetys is.
The main character Lina really made the story for me. Seeing everything through her eyes; through her struggles made the horrible things that happened to her and family more real and heartbreaking. She continues to find strength in her fellow Lithuanians and in her artwork. Although she is forced into a horrible life and struggles to remain hopeful, she doesn't lose what makes her her. Lina is strong, but she does lose hope briefly and struggles to remain who she is, which makes her so real. You can't help but relate to her and feel her anger, fear, sadness, and her strength.
The writing is wonderful and mixes Lina's current struggles with flashbacks to her previous life before the Soviet occupation. This mixture helps create a richer story of what was happening in Lithuanian in the 40s, but also keeps the story from being too much.
Everyone needs to read this story, not only because knowing this terrible history will help us insure that it doesn't happen again, but because it is a beautifully written story about hope.
Rating:
Wednesday, May 4, 2011
Author Interview: Siobhan Nichols
Darling Rebels Summary:
When Charlotte returns to her hometown of Asebrook from boarding school,
she knows what she can expect from her days--lessons from tutors,
criticism from her mother, and listening to the same gossip from the
same people. But there seems to be something different in store for
Charlotte when she meets Adam and Jack, the two boys who will change her
forever. However, when Jack and Charlotte fall in love, they realize
the fight that they are going to have to put up if they want to be
together. During a time when money, society, and how one is viewed as
everything, Charlotte stops at nothing to be with the boy that she knows
she loves. Even so, Jack seems unwilling to sacrifice her future and
happiness since he knows he has nothing to offer. The Darling Rebels
tells the story of bravery and resilience in the face of insurmountable
odds and how far one girl will go for love, even if it means leaving her
seemingly perfect life behind. -- Goodreads
Interview:
What's your writing process (do you generally go through a lot of drafts and revisions, are you part of writing group)?
I start with little snippets of scenes, which usually come to me while I'm lying in bed trying to go to sleep. So I'll jot down dialogue in my Moleskine and then flush it out later in the actual document. I do do a lot of revisions, but it's a sort of "clean as you go" thing. If I see something that needs fixing or if I suddenly get inspired to add on to it, I'll go and revise it. I read something by Zadie Smith, I believe, that said you should leave a fair amount of time in between writing and revising, and I really should start doing that because the perfectionism messes with my head. I am not part of an official writing group, but I have friends who read scenes or chapters and give me comments/critiques, and I do the same for them.
What made you want to become a writer?
There's a stereotype that all writers always knew that they wanted to write. I didn't. I always enjoyed writing, I was always good at English when I was in grade and high school. I wrote because I had ideas, but I never thought that they would amount to anything. When I started showing scenes from Darling Rebels to my friends and they kept asking for more, that's when it dawned on me that something I had been doing for myself could actually be shared with other people. Today, I want to be a writer, because it's the only thing that could be classified as work that I enjoy doing. Pursuing an artistic career and lifestyle is the only thing that interests me, now that I'm about to graduate from university.
Where did the idea for Darling Rebels come from? How did you start the novel?
I was on the bus home from school when I was a sophomore in high school, I believe. I was daydreaming and it's the first time I actually remember physically needing to write my idea down. I started the novel with the scene that popped into my head, which is midway through the story. I wrote a little more and it was like the characters were already developed in my head. Then I went back and started from the beginning. I write sporadically--beginnings and endings are very easy for me to write. It's the middle stuff that always poses a challenge.
What drew you to write a historical fiction novel?
It was just always that way in my head. The clothes, the scenery, and the mannerisms--it was just always not in modern day. I know that I didn't write the most historically accurate novel, but if the story was set in modern times, there would really be nothing rebellious about the characters' actions. And the rebellion is obviously the whole point of the story.
A lot of YA authors today are really involved in the marketing of their books; they're on Facebook, Twitter, and have their own blogs. What sort of marketing for Darling Rebels have you been a part of?
I used to have an official Twitter, but I didn't really find that it was helping to market the book. I do have a website--siobhannichols.com--as well as an Amazon Author Central page. I'm planning on designing a Facebook fan page for the book, so that people can 'like' it.
Any really particularly memorable or difficult moments in the writing or publishing process you want to share?
Actually, once I figured out that I wanted it to be a book, it came very easily to me. I was really lucky that I didn't struggle through writing it. I still can't stop writing about those four teenagers; I have their whole lives planned out for them. The difficulty for me has only come recently, because as I've gone through university and grown as a writer, there are many things that I would like to change or embellish about the book. I want a bigger, more layered, and more historically accurate story. Like George Lucas always wants to rewrite Star Wars, I always want to rewrite Rebels. So I'm going through the difficult moments right now, where I have to learn to let go and write about something else for a change.
What one piece of advice would you give aspiring writer?
Never give up, no matter who tells you that you can't do it. Prove them wrong, because it feels fantastic. The best advice that I ever got was from Elizabeth Gilbert's website. She has a section called "On Writing" and I highly recommend it, because it puts everything about your dream into perspective for you.
Were you an avid reader as a teen, and what were your favorite books?
Like I said before, English was my best subject in school (which is why I majored in it in university), so I did read a lot. My two favorite books ever are Stargirl by Jerry Spinelli, and The Outsiders by S.E. Hinton. Harry Potter also changed my life. I have a picture of JK Rowling on my wall to inspire me to keep writing and to just always do the best work that I can.
What are you reading now?
I just finished The Hunger Games trilogy by Suzanne Collins, as well as City of Fallen Angels by Cassandra Clare. I recently got into John Green's work and I'm always on the lookout for good historical fiction novels. I really wish Phillippa Gregory would write a book about Queen Victoria, because that's my favorite time period and queen. Oh, and I cannot wait for Sarah Dessen's new book, Whatever Happened to Goodbye? I'm really into memoirs and books that are about more than just love. I need to find some books about people who have just gotten out of university and how they manage it, because I graduate in three weeks and I'll need loads of help adjusting to the real world.
Thank you Siobhan and best wishes!
Review: Darling Rebels
Title: Darling Rebels
Author: Siobhan Nichols
Publisher: Diversion Press
Pub Date: May, 2009
Genre: Historical Fiction
Rating:
When Charlotte returns to her hometown of Asebrook from boarding school, she knows what she can expect from her days--lessons from tutors, criticism from her mother, and listening to the same gossip from the same people. But there seems to be something different in store for Charlotte when she meets Adam and Jack, the two boys who will change her forever. However, when Jack and Charlotte fall in love, they realize the fight that they are going to have to put up if they want to be together. During a time when money, society, and how one is viewed as everything, Charlotte stops at nothing to be with the boy that she knows she loves. Even so, Jack seems unwilling to sacrifice her future and happiness since he knows he has nothing to offer. The Darling Rebels tells the story of bravery and resilience in the face of insurmountable odds and how far one girl will go for love, even if it means leaving her seemingly perfect life behind. -- GoodreadsMy Thoughts:
I must say I had a really hard time getting into this one. I think I would have liked it a lot more if it was set in the present day. Too much what was going on and the characters' dialog and actions just didn't feel "nineteen hundreds" to me. I liked the characters and the basic plot, just didn't feel like the time period choice fit. I like historical fiction, but it really has to feel historical to me, right down to the slang. I know not everyone feels that way, but it's one of my reading pet peeves.
That said, once I got into the novel I did like the characters and found it to be a fun read. I haven't read many romances recently (been on a dystopia kick lately), so it was really refreshing to read something with a love triangle that didn't also involve the world ending or society collapsing. And the love triangle in Darling Rebels was interesting not too over-the-top. It actually felt realistic, like three teenagers could find themselves in this sort of situation.
Check back later today for an interview with Siobhan
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)