Middle Grade Novel

Apr 29

The Goose Girl, by Shannon Hale

Rating: 4 out of 5

Ani, the crown princess, can whisper to horses and birds, but when it comes to speaking to her future subjects and living up to her mother’s expectations, she may as well be mute. Convinced that Ani could never rule her people, her mother ships her off to a neighboring kingdom as a bride, only Ani’s guard’s mount a mutiny led by her lady-in-waiting, Selia, to replace Ani with Selia. Barely escaping, Ani disguises herself as a goose girl, finds a position in the palace, and strives to overcome her insecurities and learn how to lead her people. But will it be enough to earn back her rightful place as princess?

The Goose Girl weaves together a wonderful fairy tale in a style reminiscent of Diana Wynne Jones. Based on the Brothers Grimm fairy tale by the same title, Hale reinvents this classic and adds an almost believable spin on this fantasy story. Ani, the princess who’s identity is stolen by Selia, her lady-in-waiting, is likable. You want her to succeed.The plot is intricate without become overwhelming in it’s complexity and there are enough twists and turns to keep you interested. If you are looking for a fun fantasy tale to get lost in for a couple days, the Goose Girl is a great option.

My one complaint is that the villains are a bit more two-dimensional than some other books I’ve read recently. Of course, this does keep with the style of an old-school fairy tale and the book is meant for a middle-grade audience. Middle-grade villains are often missing the complex motivation you are more like to find in young adult books. That being said, Selia is dealing with issues of wanting more from her lot in life and feelings of entitlement, very real feelings and realistic motivation for her actions beyond the standard villains are evil. When you couple this with Ani’s failings and her attempts to find her strengths and use them to her advantage, you find engaging characters with issues that are sure to speak to most readers.

The Goose Girl ends as any stand-alone book should, with a satisfying conclusion, only this isn’t the end of Ani and her friends’ adventures because the book is actually part of a series called The Books of Bayern. I think this is another one of the book’s strengths. You can feel satisfied if you only have time to read the first book, but if you find yourself thinking about it days or weeks later, you can find more of the wonderful world Hale has created by moving on to the second book, Enna Burning.

Apr 08

Knightley Academy, by Violet Haberdasher

Rating: 4 out of 5

Henry was just a servant boy, until a twist of fate allowed him to sit an exam that would earn him a spot at Kingsley Academy for knights-in-training and the title of the first commoner to be admitted to the elite academy. When Henry arrives at the school, he quickly learns that making his way to classes and finishing his school work is the least of his worries. Someone wants Henry out of the school, and they are willing to stop at nothing to get rid of him, including attempted murder. While trying to hunt down and stop his saboteurs, Henry stumbles upon a plot for war and realizes that things are bigger than just him, and that more than his possible expulsion is at stake.

I picked up this book because I saw a comparison of it to Harry Potter. Being a huge Harry Potter fan, I decided to give it a shot. And I’m happy I did.

Like Harry Potter, Henry Grim is an orphan. And like Harry, Henry learns that he is going to a special school. Only, Henry does not have magical skills. He merely is a very smart boy. And the school is not a school of witch craft and wizardry. It is a school for future knights.

Although Knightley Academy lacks the magic element from the Harry Potter books, I think it is still magical in it’s own way.

Haberdasher has created a world based off of an alternate history. Alternate histories are always interesting because they make you think about the importance a minor change in the past could have on your current life today. They also open up a world of possibilities, much like the existence of magic opened up possibilities for the world of Harry Potter.

Despite relying on the rags to riches story as the backdrop for Knightley Academy, Haberdasher has looked at this story with fresh eyes. Henry is not instantly given a better life. He still has to fight against the odds, fight against those who don’t want him there, and he has to prove himself every day. He did not wake up to a better world. He has to work every day to make his world better. And I think this provides a good lesson for kids. We make our own luck and our own fortune.

The characters are also well developed and exhibit growth and dimension. Even Valmont, the bully of the story, grows and we learn to understand the reasons behind his behavior. He is humanized and you can’t help but like him just a little.

Although the plot follows twists that seem similar to those in Harry Potter, I still find myself surprised by the outcome of the story. The plot kept me guessing as it opened up an intriguing mystery.

If you are looking for something with a similar feel to the Harry Potter series or just looking for a fun story with a mystery underlying the plot, I recommend giving this book a read.

Mar 06

The Maze Runner, by James Dashner

Rating: 4 out of 5

The Maze Runner begins with main character Thomas waking up in an elevator. He can remember nothing about his life, except his name. When the elevator opens, he finds himself in a world filled with about 60 teen boys. These boys have created a society in their world, sustaining on agriculture and supplies that show up weekly from the elevator. As Thomas starts to integrate himself into the society, he becomes frustrated by the secrets surrounding this world, and by the fact that some boys claim to recognize Thomas. When the first girl arrives only a week after Thomas’ arrival, the rest of the boys grow suspicious of Thomas, and it is up to Thomas to figure out what is going on and how they can escape the nightmare that has become their lives.

I tried reading this book a while ago and had a hard time getting into it. But I decided to give it another go. If for nothing else, I love trilogies and really wanted to find a new one I could get behind. And I’m glad I gave this book a second chance.

Dashner not only creates an engaging, different world, but he also creates a new, believable language. The voice of the characters is authentic and, once you get used to it, engaging. And the plot contains just the right mixture of mystery, action, and friendships to keep the reader wanting to know what will happen.

As a main character, Thomas is very likable. He worries that he has a dark past, but that doesn’t matter to the reader when we are shown his empathy towards others and his desire to help. Thomas is a true friend, despite whatever evil deeds might be lurking in the shadows of his unknown past. In addition to Thomas, the other characters are given dimension, each having a likable quality mixed with their own set of flaws.

The Maze Runner would serve as a nice companion book to William Golding’s Lord of the Flies. Whereas the society in Lord of the Flies disintegrates with the loss of adults, the boys in The Maze Runner show that society does not have to disintegrate and suggests that an ordered society may just be part of human nature. It could make for a very interesting discussion to read the two simultaneously.

And now for what you all want to know – should you read this book? Yes! I highly recommend this book and I cannot wait to read the rest of the trilogy.

Oct 05

I finally finished reading all the Percy Jackson books, and I’ve got to say, job well done. Although I personally did not relate to Percy Jackson, I found Rick Riordan’s use of voice captivating. Told in first person, you know who Percy Jackson is from the very beginning. The books are riddled with sarcastic and witty remarks and unexpected similes and metaphors, not to mention good ol’ fashioned imagery. Here’s a line I loved from the 5th book, The Last Olympian: “I hoped she wouldn’t get stuck. I couldn’t imagine how much Drano we’d need to un-stick a hellhound wedged halfway down a tunnel to the Underworld.” The reason Riordan’s voice is successful, though, is because he waits to throw out comments like this until you aren’t expecting them. They are not on every page. They creep up on you.

Another thing Riordan succeeds at is beginnings. He knows how to pull you in. Take another example from Book 5. Here’s the first line of the book: “The end of the world started when a pegasus landed on the hood of my car.” How can you not keep reading after a line like that?

As a series, these books were successful for many reasons:

Percy Jackson – although I did not relate to him, his voice was witty and interesting. I wanted to keep reading to see what things would come out of his mouth next.
Mystery – I know a lot of people frown up the use of prophecy to drive a story, but Riordan does it well, and, after all, these books are a retelling of Greek mythology, whose very existence relies on prophecy. Each book contains a prophecy, and the series is held together by one overarching prophecy that we don’t hear until the end of the final book. The use of a separate prophecy for each book gives each book a mystery that is solved by the end, but, because of the main prophecy, the reader wants to come back for the next book.
The world – Riordan has created a believable world, where mythological creatures exist and the Gods live above the Empire State Building. Without a successful world, complete with an explanation for how monsters that were killed in Greek myths have returned and why humans don’t know that there are monsters, demigods, and satyrs running around, the book would not have succeeded.

All-in-all, this was a successful series that wrapped up nicely. If you are a writer for MG/YA, i highly recommend reading the series if you haven’t already.

Sep 23

I resisted reading this book for quite some time. I can’t say what it was, exactly, that made me revolt against it, but whatever it was, I am glad I got over it. While there was no central plot to this book, I found the story to be incredibly engaging. I read it in one sitting. Jeff Kinney really captured the voice of a middle school kid, including the selfish acts middle schooler perform without realizing they are selfish and the way a middle school kid sees the world. I felt like it could have been my diary from when I was in middle school, assuming I had been born a boy, of course.

I thought this was a great book and I highly recommend it, especially to writers of MG looking for a refresher course on life as a middle school kid.

For all those in the New England area, Jeff Kinney will be a presenter at the Boston Book Festival this year, October 16. The schedule of events isn’t posted yet, but it should be up sometime in the next couple of weeks.

Sep 19

Scott Westerfeld’s Leviathan is an alternate history steam punk mg book, and I loved every minute of it.

Setting the Scene

The book takes place in Europe at the start of WWI. In fact, the book begins with the assassination of Franz Ferdinand and his wife, the spark that ignited the war. It then follows Alex, the fictional son of the archduke as he flees, running for his life to escape sharing the fate of his parents. Meanwhile, Deryn, a Scottish girl in England, disguises herself as a boy named Dylan in order to join the British air force.

Usually when a book is split between two main characters, following one for a couple chapters than another for the a couple more chapters, I find myself not caring much about what is going on with one of the characters. I just want to get back to the character I am relating to. In this book, though, I found both MCs to be equally engaging. I found both voices to be incredibly engaging and while I was upset when each character’s section ended, I was quickly wrapped back up in the story of the other character.

Great Use of Voice

And that brings me to the next thing I loved. The individual voices. I felt that Westerfeld was incredibly successful in creating two distinct voices. There was never a doubt in my mind as to which POV I was following. I have read a lot of literature urging authors not to split the POV, but if all authors were able to do it with the ease in which Westerfeld accomplished this, I think it would not be seen as such taboo.

My one complaint is that the book ends before the story is over, being a trilogy and all. But, for anyone thinking of picking the book up, which I highly recommend, the sequel, Behemoth, is coming out Oct. 5, so there won’t be much of a wait.

Sep 02

When writing for a younger audience, the words ‘move move move’ keep repeating through my head. I want the action to fly so the young readers don’t lose interest. But as a result, is my plot suffering?

I’ve been feeling like something is not working with the plot. The concept seems good, but there hasn’t been enough time to properly develop the characters, which is especially a shame since I spent days writing out character bios.

Filling out the Scenes

What do you do when you realize you have enough plot to move into a second book? Unfortunately, the only good answer I could come up with was to go back, start from the beginning, and add scenes. Make the action more action packed, make the build-up more of a build-up. And most importantly, give me room to let the characters grow.

Starting with the editing suggestion by Carmella on MiG Writers, (see my post from 8/7/2010) I printed the pages out as though it were a book (2-column, landscape). I then have been painstakingly sifting through my writing, searching for areas that are weak, areas where I can add another scene. In addition, I am compiling lists of additional scenes I can create, scenes that will really show what it is the characters are struggling with.

While this is slow going, I’ve gotta say I’m already feeling better about the book. And I love editing onto pages that are formatted like a book. It makes it feel more real; it allows me to believe that someday my WIP will be a book.

How do you flesh out your story?

Aug 31

There’s definitely an extra obstacle to writing for an audience in which you and your friends/colleagues do not belong.

The other night I had a brief moment of panic. What if what I think middle grade readers will like is not what they will actually like? Just because I like reading middle grade books and I like my story does not mean that it will be loved. But I guess this is the problem all writer’s face. It just becomes a bit more complicated when you are writing for a different age group than the one you fit into.

Reading books in my genre will only take me so far. While I may think my book is on equal footing with other successful ones, what if it’s not? What if I have completely missed the mark? Eventually, I’m going to have to make sure that my book passes snuff.

Although my first draft is a ways from being reader ready, (though I’m still aiming to have it submission ready by the end of the year), I’ve realized I’m probably going to need some 9-12 year old guinea pigs. My first thought was why don’t I have any kids? It would be so much easier. Of course, this would have raised a series of other dilemmas, such as finding the time to write, something that’s hard enough without extra people vying for it.

I remember when I was in fifth grade a kid’s dad came and read us a chapter from the middle grade book the kid’s mom was writing.The story was really interesting. Since then I’ve been dying to know what happened at the end (we only got to hear a couple chapters). As far as I know, the book was never published. If anyone knows of an undersea kids adventure book by an author with the last name Adams, please let me know.

I always thought this was such a good way to reach an audience. But do you need to do this before seeking representation?

What other ways are there to reach out to the middle grade/young adult readers? Do you need a test group of readers or should you just go straight to an agent? Any thoughts?

Aug 16

I just finished reading Jeanne DuPrau’s The City of Ember. From the very beginning, DuPrau pulled me into the underground City of Ember. I could smell, taste, and feel the city. As the book progressed, the growing tension throughout the city seeped out of the pages and I found myself becoming increasingly anxious for the citizens of Ember as their power and supplies begin to dwindle and the once wealthy City of Ember finds itself on the brink of collapse.

The two protagonists, Doon and Lina, are lovable, Doon with his ceaseless sense of doom (is his name just a coincidence?) and Lina with her childlike innocence and determination. DuPrau’s writing is clear and straightforward and her use of imagery conjures up just the right emotions. Although written for a middle grade audience, the themes of family, friendship, sense of community, and doing what you know is right resonate with audiences of all ages.

Aug 12

I was reading this great blog post from the Adventures in Children’s Publishing blog and thought I would share (I’ve also had a migraine for three days, so can’t come up with anything original). The post is a summary of the Workshop on the Middle Grade Novel from this year’s SCBWI conference. It’s a really great post full of tons of things any writer of middle grade novels needs to know.

Book Review Friday – The Goose Girl

Book Review Friday – Knightley Academy

Book Review Sunday – The Maze Runner

Review of Percy Jackson and the Olympians Series

Review of Diary of a Wimpy Kid

Review of Leviathan

Setting the Scene

Great Use of Voice

Slowing down the Action

Filling out the Scenes

Calling all 9-12 year olds

Book Review: The City of Ember

Writing for Middle Grades