Adult/High School

By Staff -- School Library Journal, 1/1/2007

Fiction

Adult/High School—Sisters, living and dead, loom large in Berne's tale of family secrets unraveled. Cynthia Fiske writes a series of historical fiction for girls, depicting the lives of remarkable women through the eyes of their slightly less-remarkable sisters. An invitation to her own sister's house for Thanksgiving in New England coincides with her need to visit Mark Twain's home in Hartford to research a new novel on the writer's daughters, whose story of a charismatic father and three troubled siblings parallels the Fiskes' history. Complicating the usual holiday tensions is the presence of their elderly father, once brash and manipulative, now disabled and facing a divorce from his much-younger wife. As the family struggles with generations of dysfunction and unspoken secrets, including the mysterious death of their mother decades earlier, Cynthia rebels by sharing the most sordid details of the long-gone Clemens family. Although she is nearing middle age, her feelings of isolation and rejection that began in childhood have left her a perpetual adolescent in relation to her family. Much like the child narrator of Donna Tartt's The Little Friend (Knopf, 2002), Berne portrays a confusing, comic, even sinister family dynamic and eschews a pat, happy ending in favor of a very real, if provocative, choice that will appeal to teen fans of family dramas.—Jenny Gasset, Orange County Public Library, CA

Adult/High School—Every year, animals great and small from across the world set aside their natural differences to compete in a dramatic game of football. To those that take part-from powerful lions to hopping kangaroos-the Beast Bowl means respect throughout the animal kingdom. When the coach for the East Team retires, its quarterback, an idealistic chimpanzee named Sammy the Slinging Simian, takes up the challenge to keep the team going. He and Carl the Elephant travel from Africa to North America to recruit an unemployed college football coach. There's only one problem: speaking to a human will break one of the most sacred laws of the wild kingdom and may mean banishment for the two creatures. For Sammy and the East Team to succeed, animals and a human being will have to learn to trust and respect each other for the first time in hundreds of years. From the quick-thinking tactics of a quarterback to the severe body blows of a lineman, the sportswriting will satisfy the pickiest of fans, yet has the humor and dramatic flair needed to appeal to readers who don't know the difference between a safety and a field goal. Well plotted and with memorable characters, this novel is a clever and thoughtful parable about humanity's responsibilities to the natural world—Matthew L. Moffett, Pohick Regional Library, Burke, VA

Adult/High School—She is 14 years old, small, thin, desperately poor, always cold, and always hungry. Her name is Sarah Frank, and she's a Ute-Papago orphan living in Tonapah Flats, UT, "on the lonely side of Big Lizard Ridge." Casually cared for with little love by her older cousin and with much disdain by her cousin's universally despised boyfriend, the teen barely registers any notice in the adult world outside of her dismal household-until she is accused of murder, assault, and theft. Then, despite considerable odds, little Sarah manages to vanish with a one-of-a-kind family heirloom. The richest and most sinister person in that part of Utah wants it, and wants it badly. The law is after the girl, and at least some of "the law" are operating outside of the parameters of their sworn duty. Although Sarah proves surprisingly resourceful, the cards are heavily stacked against her. Also looking for her are Charlie Moon, a part-time tribal investigator and full-time rancher; Moon's girlfriend, FBI Special Agent Lila Mae McTeague; and Moon's aunt, Ute shaman Daisy Perika. The latter's search is conducted more through dreams and visions than by more conventional means. In this 11th mystery in the series, Doss skillfully weaves a story full of suspense, humor, greed, and local color, with a few touches of mysticism. Teens will appreciate the fast pace and mounting tension, and are likely to identify with Sarah's struggles against an adult-dominated world.—Robert Saunderson, Berkeley Public Library, CA

Adult/High School—In this collection of stories (and a few poems), storytellers and the act of storytelling have prominent roles. The anthropomorphized months of the year swap tales at their annual board meeting: a half-eaten man recounts how he made the acquaintance of his beloved cannibal; and even Scheherazade, surely the greatest storyteller of all, receives a tribute with a poem. The stories are by turns horrifying and fanciful, often blending the two with a little sex, violence, and humor. An introduction offers the genesis of each selection, itself a stealthy way of initiating teens into the art of writing short stories, and to some of the important authors of the genre. Gaiman cites his influences, and readers may readily see the inflection of H. P. Lovecraft and Ray Bradbury in many of the tales. Horror and fantasy are forms of literature wrought with clichés, but Gaiman usually comes up with an interesting new angle. This collection is more poetic and more restrained than Stephen King's short stories and more expertly written than China Mieville's Looking for Jake (Ballantine, 2005). Gaiman skips along the edge of many adolescent fascinations-life, death, the living dead, and the occult-and teens with a taste for the weird will enjoy this book—Emma Coleman, Berkeley Public Library, CA

Adult/High School—Tirzah Rubin, set designer for Israeli television, is found dead under a fallen marble pillar. Michael Ohayon, the quiet, introspective Chief Superintendent of the Israeli police, arrives on the scene to begin an investigation of what first appears to be an accident and soon becomes a crime. When the killing is followed by a second and then a third death at the studio, Ohayon and his staff delve further into the deeply intertwined lives of the victims and the other major players in this closely knit television family. Was the murderer's motive love, politics, or something else? The story is rich in the culture of modern-day Israel and gives a vivid depiction of the behind-the-scenes drama of a television station, including a masterfully written scene depicting the hour before airtime. The characters are well fleshed out, though American teens might find the Israeli names initially distracting. However, young adults will soon be drawn into the love entanglements, the multiple mysteries, and the everyday lives of people in a war-torn country so often in the news. Teachers of world history will want to include this title on reading lists of fiction about current world issues, and English teachers can add it to the list of accessible books by foreign authors.—Ellen Bell, Amador Valley High School, Pleasanton, CA

Adult/High School—This novel about the members of an elite school community is told from multiple viewpoints. "Lazy" Hoffman, headmistress at the prestigious Griffin School in New York City, is having an affair with one of the teachers, despite the fact that she has a prince of a husband. Julianne is a scholarship student whose mother, Dee, is a former novelist who now drives a cab. Julianne's boyfriend, Michael, is the perfect Griffin student-brilliant and Harvard-bound-but also a victim of bipolar disorder. Michael's mother, Susan, seems to care more about her dog than her son. And Julianne's best friend, Morgan, has just lost her mother to cancer. The school year progresses, and each of these situations develops, the most painful of which is the relationship between Julianne and Michael. She feels that she is the only one who understands him, and that she must not, under any circumstances, let him down. The relationship is doomed to end tragically, and it does. There are not any major surprises here, but the book is well written, and the characters are appealing. Some of the themes (and even the title and cover art) are reminiscent of Curtis Sittenfeld's Prep (Random, 2005). Like that book, this novel presents more of an adult than a teen view of high school life, but it will nevertheless appeal to teens, with its strong rendering of the major relationships and its fast pace, aided by lots of dialogue and a smattering of e-mail exchanges.—Sarah Flowers, Santa Clara County Library, CA

Adult/High School— Lords picks up right where the much-acclaimed Demon of the Air (Minotaur, 2005) leaves off. In mid-16th-century Mexico, Yaotl, an ex-priest and now a slave, solved his first mystery, only to discover that his grown son was involved, however innocently, in the crime. Now, caught up in more Aztec politics, religion, and cultural issues, he must solve another mystery while trying to protect his son. Back at his master's house, he learns that the god Quetzalcoatl has been seen staggering down the streets of the capital, in full-feathered splendor, and Yaotl ends up sleuthing in the rarified atmosphere of the feather workers. Levack has created a memorable detective; this Aztec equivalent of the seen-it-all canny gumshoe barely manages to escape most of the wrath of his owner, Lord Feathered in Black. The author has included helpful explanations, with maps, information on Nahuatl (the Aztec language), and access to the Aztec calendar, but it is Levack's writing that makes it surprisingly easy to find sure footing in this very alien culture. It would be best to begin with the first book; this novel ends with Yoatl facing an uncertain future as well. The book is fascinating, but teen historical fiction and mystery readers may have to be encouraged to pick it up. They will be glad that they did.—Jane Halsall, McHenry Public Library District, IL

Adult/High School—The lives of several interconnected people in St. John's, Newfoundland, appear to be both ordinary and off the beaten path. Readers first meet teenage Colleen, who has just put sugar in the gas tanks of forest-clearing equipment-and been caught. Through her, they meet her aunt Madeleine, a middle-aged, self-absorbed indie filmmaker in the midst of making her crowning achievement. The woman leads the peripatetic life of an artist who is also responsible for finding the money to finance her projects. Widowed Beverly, Colleen's mother and Madeleine's sister, is trying to cope with her sorrow and not quite paying attention to her daughter. Other characters include Frank, who grew up poor and is saving his hard-earned money, and, living above him, Augustin, a ruthless Russian sociopath who's seen and done it all. He meets and sleeps with Isobel, a fading actress whose final "big" role will be in the film. The eponymous alligator appears in one of Madeleine's films that Colleen sees early on; near the book's end, she goes to Louisiana in a quest to meet the man attacked by the animal, who survived and runs an alligator farm. The plot is just sufficient enough to form a book, although there is a fiery climax. However, the best part is the fresh writing. There are frequent flashbacks, done seamlessly. With lively, real, expressive writing that pulls readers into the story, this slice-of-life novel will be popular with teens.—Judy McAloon, Potomac Library, Prince William County, VA

Nonfiction

Adult/High School—This oversize pictorial work profiles various canines; color photos on every page show them at work. Comments from the owners describe the dogs and what they did. Many individuals mention how hard it was for the animals not to find survivors, but what a comfort their presence was for the many firefighters and other rescue workers on the scene. Besides searching at the World Trade Center and at the Pentagon, dogs were used to locate remains at the Fresh Kills Landfill site. The book also has information about dog search and rescue and FEMA certification. A compelling browsing item that will attract teens.—Teri Titus, San Mateo County Library, CA

Adult/High School—Burau provides a fascinating glimpse into the lives of the dispatchers whose job alternates between stretches of boredom and episodes of fear, stress, and chaos. Although she doesn't provide many specific stories, she conveys what it is like to answer the phone, become involved in a crisis, and maybe never learn how it was resolved. The author's path to working as a dispatcher was circuitous. In high school, she became involved with drugs and an abusive boyfriend. After a three-day jail stint, she returned home, got sober, graduated college, and found the love of her life. Inspired by a desire to help people, she studied nursing but couldn't stand the sight of blood. After a brief career as a reporter at a local paper, she applied to work as a dispatcher-a difficult, demanding job she is still not sure she is good at, much like (step)motherhood. Burau ably shows what it's like to be responsible for lives when one is miles from the emergency. This is a fast, fascinating read.—Susan Salpini, formerly at TASIS-The American School in England

Adult/High School—Calonius tells with gripping detail the history of the black-market slave trade that persisted after the United States made the business illegal in 1808. The author focuses on the Wanderer, a speedy pleasure yacht owned by a sugar tycoon. In 1858, a trio of pro-slavery radicals calling themselves "the fire-eaters" transformed it into a smuggling boat and used the vessel to carry 400 captured slaves from Africa to the sales block at Jekyll Island, GA. The federal government captured the fire-eaters, uncovering a plot led by New York businessmen and Southern operatives not only to continue the slave trade, but also to split apart the country. The book follows the outcry from Northern media sources like the New York Times, the dramatic court trial, and the ironic ending when the federal government transformed the Wanderer into a gunboat for the Union during the Civil War. Photos of the key players and plans of the ship are included. Written in a fast-paced style more reminiscent of thrillers than history books, the highly accessible text digs deep into the motivations for the Civil War and illuminates some of the darkest corners of our nation's past.—Matthew L. Moffett, Pohick Regional Library, Burke, VA

Adult/High School—Born Clare Malone into a family in which alcohol and neglect flowed in abundance, the author found that her dark skin set her apart from her five blond siblings. Not until the children were permanently removed from their working-class Liverpool home to the scarcely improved conditions of a church-operated orphanage did the nine-year-old child learn that her appearance was inherited from her mother's momentary affair with a Chilean sailor. Clare briefly lived as a foster child with a disturbed but middle-class couple and then found independence as a nanny for several years. In her late 20s, she attended a nursing program but suffered a breakdown that led to years of medication, hospitalizations, occasional homelessness, and, only in middle age, to a therapist who helped her unlock the secret demons of her childhood. Having changed her name with each new chapter in her life, Childs now sees herself as successful and, while emotionally frail, is beyond the period during which cutting and bulimia were her only reliable outlets. She writes with simple eloquence and neither sentimentality nor self-pity. Readers who flocked to Dave Pelzer's memoirs of growing up abused will appreciate this story with its added complexities of gender and race issues.—Francisca Goldsmith, Berkeley Public Library, CA

Adult/High School—Karpf, a sociologist and BBC journalist, argues that although much attention has been paid lately to speaking styles, surprisingly little focus has been on the voice itself. Here, in lively prose, she goes a long way toward filling that gap. The author discusses the mechanics of the sounds people make; what distinguishes human sounds from those of other animals; the effects of emotions on voices; cultural and gender differences; and how technology has been changing the ways we express ourselves. Hot current topics such as voiceprinting and the importance of voice in the workplace are addressed, as are the social effects of cell phones and musical experimentation on the new "audio-aware generation." Karpf shines a clear light on Hitler's speaking style and shows how crowds were manipulated by it. Through analyses of Tony Blair and the American politicians Reagan, Clinton, Gore, Kerry, and both Presidents Bush, she challenges readers to understand what they are really hearing in the voices of today's politicians-where, she asserts, the voice is no longer an instrument for argument, but for seduction. This is fine popular-science writing, and it will leave teens with a fresh and useful perspective on an important aspect of life that might have been, until now, misunderstood or unquestioned.—Christine C. Menefee, formerly at Fairfax County Public Library, VA

Adult/High School—Alas, Shakespeare did not write "Alas, poor Yorick. I knew him well." The textually correct reading is: "Alas, poor Yorick. I knew him, Horatio." So why the change and why do we remember "well" instead of "Horatio?" Knowles provides an explanation for this misremembered quote and about 150 others in her enjoyable and informative collection of things not said or not quite said. The author also includes incorrect attributions and several apocryphal remarks that scholars have not been able to find in the works of their supposed originators. The selections range from the extremely common ("nice guys finish last," "let them eat cake") to the lesser known ("laws are like sausages," "he once shot a publisher"). Throughout, the tone is more casual than scholarly, more informative than authoritative. Knowles strikes a good balance between thoroughness and brevity when tracing the origins of these quotes and sayings. The entries are arranged in an A-Z format, with a simple alphabetical listing of the misquotations at the beginning and a name (author) index at the back. A helpful introduction offers keen observations on how misquotations tend to enter our collective consciousness. The book makes a good circulating volume and can also serve on the reference shelf.—Robert Saunderson, Berkeley Public Library, CA

Adult/High School—This breezy romp through 19th-century American history touches upon the colorful lives and careers of women who are largely unfamiliar now. Most, however, were widely celebrated in their time, if not downright infamous. An artistically talented and sometimes delusional eccentric, wealthy Elizabeth Ney built her Xanadu in the wilds of Texas. Adah Isaacs Menken ("The Menken"), a gifted actress, cut a dash through the society of artists and poets while scandalizing and entertaining the public. Some wrested a remarkable life from poverty, like the legendary dance-hall denizen known as "Silver Heels" and the famously voluptuous Sarah Bowman, who rose from camp follower to proprietor of a "full service hotel" for soldiers during the war with Mexico. As for some better-remembered names, such as Ann Rutledge (Abraham Lincoln's mysterious lost love) and Margaret "Molly" Brown (of Leadville and Titanic fame), the author corrects misconceptions and provides details that make the women spring into focus for today's readers, while Lydia Pinkham, entrepreneur, and Fanny Fern, writer, are shown to be surprisingly modern figures. Filling out the collection are gritty pioneers of medicine, photography, law, finance, and other fields and walks of life. Adding a little spice to history and biography, this book takes its place alongside Barbara Holland's They Went Whistling: Women Wayfarers, Warriors, Runaways and Renegades (Pantheon, 2001) and Sara Lorimer's Booty: Girl Pirates on the High Seas (Chronicle, 2002), though it isn't in the same league with Milbry Polk and Mary Tiegreen's outstanding Women of Discovery: A Celebration of Intrepid Women Who Explored the World (Clarkson Potter, 2001).—Christine C. Menefee, formerly at Fairfax County Public Library, VA

Adult/High School—Kansas City's Central High is a designated underachieving Missouri school with a dismal record. It has, however, a strong debate team that has qualified to compete in the Tournament of Champions on the national level. Miller spent several years in the city's debate scene while writing this book, although his primary focus here is on one season with the top team. He follows the students as they cope with the highs and lows. To his credit, the author admits that his journalistic objectivity was compromised by spending so much time with his subjects. However, it is that commitment that makes this book an engaging read. Debate on the national circuit is political, occasionally nasty, and as much about style as it is about substance, and Miller exposes these facets, while taking readers into the lives of four teens surviving in a poor school and poor homes. The story is about race, teens, and the art and science of debate; it is also an indictment of public education. YAs will find the lives of the participants, particularly aspects of college recruitment and the daily school environment, as interesting as the details about how the team wins.—Mary Ann Harlan, Arcata High School, CA

Adult/High School—This volume provides an overview of the use of propaganda and bias, and the historical accuracy in more than 350 films and film series. The author chose works that are based on personal stories, or that portray documented historical incidents. The majority of films discussed deal with 19th- and 20th-century events. Organization is by broad topics such as the military, sports, music, race relations, labor, business, politics, and crime. Entries range from about a half-page to two pages. The extensive index includes film titles, actors, and others involved in the filmmaking process, historical characters and events, awards, and more. Film and history students and those researching social and cultural themes will find this a useful resource.—Madeleine G. Wright, New Hampton School, NH

Adult/High School—This book examines 100 years of race relations, using 20 athletes as a lens on American society. Some names are familiar-Muhammad Ali, Jackie Robinson-but others are mostly unknown today-Jimmy Winkfield, Ora Washington. Each entry contains information about the athlete's career and post-career life, as well as an analysis of the role race played in the individual's success. The focus of the essays is sociological rather than biographical. The overarching thesis is that there were two basic types of African-American athletes: those who subscribed to the Booker T. Washington school of thought of slow integration prompted by displays of equality, and those who subscribed to the W.E.B. DuBois philosophy of immediate integration by demanding equality. Some may find this to be an oversimplification of a complex topic. The examination of contemporary athletes is directed toward identifying society's changing relationship with African-American athletes in terms of corporate sponsorship, using Michael Jordan, Tiger Woods, and the Williams sisters as examples. This is an academic collection that should find a place in larger libraries.—Mary Ann Harlan, Arcata High School, CA

Adult/High School—As much about business practices as about personal discovery, this book lives up to its name as it details how the author traded in the executive lifestyle to champion his own nonprofit organization, Room to Read. Wood describes his life at Microsoft as a marketing director for Australia and, later, China. Young business enthusiasts familiar with Steve Ballmer and Bill and Melinda Gates will be entertained by the glimpse into their respective management styles and by the author's efforts to pattern himself in their likeness. He also describes his lack of personal fulfillment and his eventual redirection, brought on by a visit to the mountains of Nepal. With vignettes from profitable fundraising activities for Room to Read, he documents how to successfully start up a nonprofit organization and how to sustain it. Originally named Books for Nepal, Wood's organization focused initially on providing books to the disadvantaged schools of Nepal, but eventually he expanded its scope (and renamed it) so as to include the building of schools, Tsunami relief, and educational programs for the children of Asia. Corporate-minded adolescents interested in giving back to society will enjoy this title and glean practical advice from it.—Brigeen Radoicich, Fresno County Office of Education, CA