The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer

Students at school have heard me say many times, I’m sold by great cover art. You may not be able to judge a book by the cover, but it sure can convince me to read it. The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer sold me through cover art alone. The story didn’t disappoint.

When they asked the ouija board how Rachel would die, the board spelled out M-A-R-A. Sixth months later Mara is the only survivor of a building collapse, her best friend Rachel, their friend Jude and his sister Claire dead in the rubble. Mara wakes form a coma but remembers nothing of that night.  What was the Tamerlane? Why had they gone there? But that is only the beginning. Mara begins to hallucinate. She sees her dead friends in mirrors. After changing schools to avoid the stressful memories of her dead friends, Mara’s hallucinations follow her. The first day of classes at her new school, she experiences the collapse of the classroom including falling face first and bloodying her nose in front of a room full of strangers. She then discovers it is a fresh round of horror produced by her own mind. Mara is willing to accept the diagnosis of these images as Post Traumatic Stress Disorder until they start meshing with physical reality. After imagining a choking accident for a brutally cruel teacher, the teacher dies of anaphylactic shock – just as she has imagined. Mara begins to question herself. She begins to accept the possibility that she killed her best friend. Somehow she must be causing the violence. As Mara struggles with her personal demons, real or imagined, Noah enters her life. Secretive and bound to break her heart, Mara just can’t resist his charms.

The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer is a thriller with a touch of romance. It will have you looking over your shoulder in the dark and holding your breath. The romantic element is hot and sultry enough to catch the attention of plenty of romantic hearts but tame enough to happily live in any high school library. Additionally, the romantic element buoys the story. In the hands of a different author, the story of a girl’s hallucinations about her dead best friend and questions of her own guilt could be brutal and tragic. But here it is thrilling, surprising and compelling. Since Mara narrates her own story, realities are revealed as she learns them keeping the reader guessing and wondering along with her. 

If you enjoy stories that are unpredictable, read The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer. One of the most compelling parts of Mara Dyer’s story is its capacity to keep the reader off balance. Every time it appears the story will slide into familiar predictable patterns, it shifts just enough to turn the pages a little faster. If you prefer stories that contain both mystery and romance, read this. If you like your romance with a touch of heart racing intensity but without the R rating, read about Mara Dyer. Whatever your preference, read it. You won’t be disappointed.

After the Golden Age by Carrie Vaughn

If The Incredibles was told from Violet’s perspective. Only, she was 25 and had no super powers, it might look like After the Golden Age. Celia has struggled for years to come to terms with her superhero parents. Unfortunately, she feels largely like a failure since she has no super powers of her own. Celia has lived her whole life in the shadow of her fantastical, crime fighting, super power wielding parents. After a particularly shameful incident in high school involving their arch nemesis: the Destructor, Celia went to college, became an accountant and put all of it behind her. Her now quiet day to day life interrupted only by regular kidnapping on the part of local villains who target her knowing her family's reputation. Celia is drawn back into the family business when the Destructor is arrested and faces trial. The Prosecution brings in Celia to examine all of his financial records. Her past relationship with the Destructor, her complicated relationship with her parents, and the very real feeling of being on stage as the whole community watches the embarrassment of her life play out all feel much like high school drama set on a much larger stage. 

You may remember Carrie Vaughn from an earlier post regarding Steel. After the Golden Age, is published as "adult" rather than "young adult" literature. Don't be fooled, you will still love it.  Celia's struggle to be her own person and live a successful life outside the enormous shadow of her parents will ring true. Her struggle to demystify the romantic possibilities with Mark the police chief and Arthur Mentis, the mind reading hero who has always stood steadfast and true to her, will resonate with all ages of readers. After the Golden Age is a little campy, a little tongue in cheek humor, and a lot of opportunity for Celia to spread her wings and become the hero we average, ordinary humans seek to be everyday. Sure to be a hit in the style of YALSA's Alex Awards, After the Golden Age has a little bit of everything: mystery, romance, action and adventure. What really happened in the laboratory all those years ago? How many super heroes lurk in Commerce City? Who really gets to claim Celia's heart: the heartthrob son of the Mayor or the the long time family friend who has championed her all these years? Can you fight crime and save the city with nothing more super than your abilities as a forensic accountant? Read After the Golden Age to find out.   

If you loved either of Carrie Vaughn's books, you may want to check her website out and look for other titles you might enjoy.

Ten Miles Past Normal by Frances O'Roark Dowell

Be careful what you wish for when you are nine. It might come true and ruin your life when you get to high school. Janie Gorman knows this truth. Her nine year old self wished for a farm. Now she lives with her family on a “farm-ette, mini-farm”, which brings her continuous shame. Remnants of her farm life are always traveling with her to school: straw in her hair, goat poop on her shoe. Even more mortifying is that her mom, a freelance journalist, documents the family’s farm trials on her blog.  9^th grade has brought a change in Janie's relationship with her mother, who loved high school. Janie feels overwhelmed, insignificant, and ostracized in her enormous high school. As a result she shares less and less with her mom about school. “I thought it was possible I might actually punch my mother if she said one more positive word to me about the wonders of freshman year.” Instead of confiding in her mom, Janie now talks more to her goats Loretta Lynn and Patsy Cline. Janie struggles, like many brand new ninth graders, with fitting into a new gigantic high school. She eats lunch in the library because none of her middle school friends eat during her lunch period. Her best friend has virtually no classes with her. All Janie wants is to be normal, to fit in, and avoid drawing shameful attention. The farm makes it impossible. 

Like a basket full of baby chicks in the sunshine, Ten Miles Past Normal will warm your heart. Janie struggles in ways many of us have. Grounded, insightful, and courageous, Janie continues to make good choices. If you’ve ever spent your lunch period in the library because the social scene of the cafeteria overwhelmed you, read this book. If you desperately want to find, as Janie puts it, the “magical land” populated by “cute, smart boys who are interested in girls for their minds”, read this book. If you’ve ever struggled to maintain old friendships while rediscovering yourself in a whole new way, read this book. If you have ever wanted to learn how to play bass guitar, read this book. Struggling to find your own unique path in life? Read this and be encouraged.

Ten Miles Past Normal  is a great end of the school year read. Short chapters with great titles like: “Meanwhile Back at the Ranch” and “The Bus Ride of Doom” will keep the pages turning. What is "authentic funkiness"? Who is this Monster Monroe? Can he be trusted? Can Jam Band save your life?  What is  a klezmer band? Can you survive a hootenanny hosted by your parents? The 209 pages will pass like a breezy afternoon spent swinging in a hammock.

Ten Miles Past Normal would pair well with non-fiction books about farming and sustainable food. Readers who love Janie's story may be interested in books that inspired her parents move to the farm or about what it would really be like. Here are some good choices: Barbara Kingsolver's Animal, Vegetable Miracle; Food, Inc.; Wisdom of the Radish by Lynda Hopkins; and Jenna Woginrich's Made from Scratch.

 

I am the Messenger by Mark Zusak

Since I mentioned it yesterday, I should explain I Am the Messenger. The Reading Rock Stars and Bookaneers will not be surprised when I say this is one of my favorite books – ever.

I am the Messenger is the story of Ed Kennedy. Ed is 20; drives a cab; fights with his mother.  She cusses him out regularly while pursuing her life’s work: convincing Ed that he has no future and his life is worthless. Oh, and Ed is in love with his beautiful, yet romantically unattainable, best friend Audrey. Ed’s life is run of the mill average until he foils the bank robbery and becomes briefly famous.

In the collapsed robbery’s wake, Ed begins getting playing cards. The first playing card has four addresses and four times. As Ed visits each address, he discovers situations he feels compelled to do something about. Later, there are more cards, late night visits from men in masks who assault him. Ed embarks on what can best be described as a hero’s journey that changes him.

I am the Messenger is by turns, funny, heart pounding, and bittersweet. It is full of characters that will endear themselves to you including Ed’s dog: the Doorman. It is a story about friends and how well we really know them. It is a book about amazing opportunities that present themselves unexpectedly in life and how they change us. It is a book not to be missed. You will never see the end coming – ever. Read it. Read it. Read it.