Fantasy isn’t usually my “go to” genre but I’ve been trying to expand my repertoire so that I can reccomend a variety of titles to students. Various book podcasts expounded upon the wonder of this novel. Needless to say I was expecting great things the moment my eyes settled on the first sentence…but I was a bit disappointed. I didn’t find it immediately riveting. But, I stuck to it (I have a “give a book 100 pages before giving up” rule), trooping through backstory and antecedent action.
Then…

I met Prunella

(no worries, Prunella showed up well within the first 100 pages).

Prunella has become my new favourite character making the story’s protagonist Zacharias more complex and interesting. After meeting Prunella I soon fell in love with this story and found myself completely immersed in the world of “old England” and the land of Fairy.

This novel reminded me a lot of Susanna Clarke’s “Jonathan Strange and Mr. Norrell” another favourite of mine but “Sorcerer to the Crown” is far more accessible in length for my students.

I cannot WAIT for the next in the series. I will definitely be adding this title to my little classroom library and have already reccomended it to our school librarian.

Zen Cho has become my front runner in fantasy favourites.

 

Last night I couldn’t sleep. So I did what most people do I in the darkest, loneliest hours of the night… downloaded free books on my iPad. Now, I always knew the selection of free books available to the public was extensive but I never realized how wonderfully accessible it all is. So, like a kid in a candy store, I downloaded works by Kate Chopin, and F. Scott Fitzgerald, Virginia Wolf and Joseph Conrad. Kipling and Kafka and Carroll. It was my childhood junk food response all over again

– consume until satiated.

I knew no moderation.

I’ve mentioned before that growing up in small town Alberta we had no REAL bookstores to speak of and then the one that did finally pop up had a collection of “young adult” fiction that extended the length of one shelf of one bookcase. Thank goodness this miniscule collection included Nancy Drew Mysteries and works by the goddess of young adult literature, Judy Blume.

What filled the huge, cavernous gaps between the acquisition of reading material was the fact my mother had a little collection of literature that she accumulated before she was married and kept it neatly shelved in the storage room beside the “big freezer”. Mom was smart, when she was a young woman it too was impossible for her to purchase books in the middle of the Saskatchewan prairie during the early 1960’s, so she became part of the “Reader’s Digest Book Club” . She was shipped classics like “Wuthering Heights”, and “Gone with the Wind” every month or so.

Mom was very free in letting me peruse her volumes, reading whatever caught my eye. Once in awhile I’d find a trashy paperback loaned to her by one of her friends (or so the name inside the front cover showed) and I’d secretly read it sitting atop of the freezer consuming all sorts of mild debauchery I couldn’t understand…as well as frozen cookies. I’d quickly replace it (and the baking) if I heard her footstep on the staircase.

And I still haven’t gotten over the fact the public library wouldn’t allow “farm kids” to get library cards. I’d LIVE for library time at school so that I could sign out books to my heart’s content (that would be two, two books. One fiction, one nonfiction). Needless to say I now abuse my public library privilege and download with a frenzy seen only at blue light specials at Kmart.

As a kid, if I would have known my future would include immediate accessibility to all sorts of stories I would have found the wait torturous and willed myself to fast forward in time. But alas, I would have had to appease my impatience with the world of H. G Wells… if finding a volume wasn’t as impossible as time travel.

I’ve always loved reading. The acquisition of a good story sitting at my fingertips is one simple thing that truly makes me happy. Maybe it’s because it was a struggle to simply find a book and doing so was like finding a treasure, a glittering gem in a pile of ash. Needless to say the fact that today a plethora of tales lies at my immediate disposal is like a dream come true and I find myself behaving like a little kid at Christmas surrounded by wrapped gifts…. so giddy and excited she starts unwrapped one gift, then notices another with glittering paper and starts unwrapping it just to drop it for another – often have three or four books on the go because I need to consume as many stories as I can for fear they will be taken away.

I used Classicly to feed my free book obsession.

I am someone who believes in the magic of books I am a passionate advocate for giving sharing, and buying books for every occasion.  As a teacher I have a little classroom library and I’ve seen how a collection of books can create a safe place for my students. The shiest student can be standing in front of my bookshelves and be spontaneous met by another student where an impromptu conversation starts around “what to read”. Other times if a student has no place to “be” during lunch or break I often find him/her wandering into my classroom to look at my books and then finding a quiet corner to read. EVERY human should have their own little library at home even if it’s just a collection of a few books. What better occasion to help contribute to this library than Christmas! Because I always have people ask “what should I read?” I’ve decided to gather some of my favouites this year and post them for you! Please include any of your own suggestions in the comment section.  It’s always a good thing to share title suggestions.

 

I have to admit most of my titles are for young adult and adult readers, however  I HAVE  to mention “The Good Little Book” by Kyo Mclear for young readers, especially young reluctant readers.  It’s a charming story about how a book can be a young boy’s friend.

 

Young Adult titles

1. “Dumplin’” by Julie Murphy.   LOVE this novel!  A great story about a plump high school girl with THE most positive body image.  Love Willowdean’s voice. She’s funny and smart and a warrior princess at heart.
2. “Sorcerer to the Crown” by Zen Cho. Who doesn’t like magic and British folklore? Another book with a strong young female character who, although is not our protagonist, is one of my favourite characters that I’ve met this year.
3. “The Nest” by Kenneth Oppel. I’d describe this as a “supernatural allegory”. Creepy but beautiful at the same time. A story about the love of family told from the perspective of a young boy.
4. “Belzhar” by Meg Wolitzer Literary summer school for troubled youth where the author for discussion is Sylvia Plath.  A book that possesses enchanted journals as a plot device.  
5. The “Unwind” series by Neal Shusterman …all four of them. You want to generate a great discussion with your kid?  Read the series with him/her. Seriously one of my favourite series EVER!
6. “Lumberjanes” graphic novel series by Noelle Stevenson, Grace Ellis and Shannon Waters and Brooke Allen.  A group of “kick-ass” girls who go to summer camp and fight supernatural creatures. LOVE the art, love the story with a diverse cast of characters.
7. “Nimona” by Noelle Stevenson. a graphic novel that again possesses a VERY strong (and hilarious) character that can morph into other beings. So funny and sarcastic.

Deep reads

1. “A Little Life” by Hanya Yanajihara I can’t remember the last time a book made me cry but this one had me sobbing on a number of occasions. Brutal but beautiful. It’s a long and emotional read with unsettling topics.  
2. “The Girl with all the Gifts” by M. R. Carey.. I didn’t know I would enjoy “zombie literature” until I read this book. A story about a gifted little girl who just happens to be a “hungry”.  One of my favourites…so much so I had our High School librarian buy 6 copies for students.  Like “Unwind” it is a novel that conjures up some deep topics of discussion.
3.  “X: The Southern Reach Trilogy” by Jeff Vandermeer.  I had to go on discussion sites to get my head around what I read, especially in the first (Annihilation) and the third (Acceptance). Science fiction and allegorical.  Environmental themes as well as conspiracy theories.  
4. “Far from the Madding Crowd” by Thomas Hardy.  A good classic!  I admit I hadn’t read Hardy’s novel until after I watched the movie (Amazing by the way!!!).  The book has become my new “old” favourite.
5. “The Illegal” by Lawrence Hill.  Ok I admit I haven’t read this one yet…I’m saving it for my holiday BUT reviews are amazing and everyone I’ve talked to who has read it has raved about it.  I LOVED “Book of Negroes” by the same author so I expect good things from this one.
6. “My Brilliant Friend” by Elena Ferrante. Easy enough to read but deep in theme, especially regarding relationships. Fair warning, it’s first of a series called “The Neapolitan Novels” of which there are 4 and they are addicting.
7. “The Sparrow” by Doria Russell.  Science Fiction. Theological. Heartbreaking. Jesuits in Space.  Sounds intriguing doesn’t it?

 

Escapist reads:

1. “Omens” (first of the Cainsville series) by Kelley Armstrong.  One of my “dessert” reads.  I downloaded and started reading “The Omen” after I met Kelly Armstrong at a book fair.  20 pages in I thought it was drivel, 30 pages in I was hooked and now I own all three (downloaded the third one the day it was available).  I want to be friends with the main character…I find her so amusing.
2. “Krampus the Yule Lord” by Brom Art…who doesn’t like a nice Christmas horror story? (amusingly creepy). Don’t worry, Santa is pretty kick ass in this story.
3. “The Son” by Jo Nesbo. Not as gory as his Harry Hole series. One of my favourite of his.  Mystery, crime and suspense.  A story about an escaped murderer junkie who just happens to remind people of Jesus.  Oh, and he’s the son of a policeman.
4. Any Jack Reacher Novel by Lee Child.  If I’m in the mood for a quick crime story these novels are my “go to” books.  Easy to read and there are 34 titles to choose from.
5. “The Searcher” by Simon Toyne.  Toyne deviates from his “Sanctus” trilogy (Which are “unputdownable” by the way) and writes a story about a mysterious albino man who arrives at a small town the same time an airplane crashes just outside the town’s boundary.  This man knows all…but remembers nothing.
6. “The Girl who Couldn’t Read” by John Harding.  Weird things are happening in a insane asylum where “progressive” treatment means submerging a patient in ice cold water for endless hours.  Murder, secrets, and insanity. I read this one in a day.
7. “The Martian” by Andy Weir.  I bought 6 copies for my classroom…they are all missing.  My 10th grade boys LOVED this novel.  I stayed up all night reading it.  My students say the book is better than the movie!

 

I have just brushed the surface but I hope this little list helps you in your book gift buying adventures! Please write your own favourites of the year in the comments of this post!  

 

Merry Christmas and Happy Reading!