The Fold An Na

The Fold by An Na What is beauty? In every country the measure of beauty varies. The Fold opens with the main character, Joyce stressing over a pimple before school. I loved this beginning, no matter who you are or where your parents are from everyone can relate to pimples. Its the last day, Joyce wants to look perfect when she ask her crush John Ford Kong, one of the few popular Koreans in school to sign her yearbook. John mistakes Joyce for the least put together Korean girl in school. Joyce is devastated by this and begins to question her beauty. Not soon after Joyce Aunt Gomo wins the lottery. She gotten so much work done, Joyce and her younger brother, Andy call her Michael behind her back. Gomo shares are winnings with the family, buying them all self improvement gifts. Andy is given shark liver extract pills, so he can grow taller and play in the NBA. Joyce's dad is given lifts in his shoes. There is one day when half the family is injured thanks to the gifts. Gomo offers Joyce Blepharoplasty or plastic surgery to give the appearance of an extra crease in her eye fold. It would make Joyce's eyes look bigger giving her a more American look. I really enjoyed The Fold, Joyce goes back and forth about having the surgery but the author never forgets she's telling a story. The Fold will have a reader laughing, while considering what beauty is and what they're willing to change for it. Joyce is a very likeable and real character. An Na surrounds her with a wonderful caring family and a great best friend in Gina. Ages 12up

Too Funny

So I will do my best to write this so it doesn't lose anything in translation.

A customer comes in, right a way I know he's a tourist. 1st clue the small carry on with wheels, 2nd clue the accent. Mr. Tourist comes back about twenty minutes later. While ringing him up, Mr Tourist ask me about a co worker upstairs. At first I am confused why he's asking. In my confusion I missed the first half of the description. When he describes the person as having a big belly I know not talking about a coworker. So now I really confused and slighty worried since bookstores attract some very strange characters. Anyway Mr. Tourist said this non employee (NE) was following him why he shopped. Mr. Tourist in under the impession that this NE is undercover loss prevention employee (LP). When Mr. Tourist said this I wanted to say sir, they can barely afford to pay the staff as is, there is no LP. All I said was "we don't have anyone working undercover LP." I don't think Mr. Tourist believed me. And it didn't help ny case when Mr. Tourist said, he's right behind me now to my left. I look behind Mr. Tourist turns out NE is a former employee (FE). About 6 or 7 yrs ago FE was a shelver. My first thought when I saw who Mr. Tourist was talking about was why didn't you say he was Black to begin with. Anyway I thought it too long and unneccsary of an explantion to say FE worked at the bookstore years ago. So I simply told Mr. Tourist. that, the man wasn't undercover LP. Though I still don't think he believed me. And it didn't help my case any when Mr. Tourist went to leave , FE decided it was a good time to browse a table closer to the exit. Then Mr. Tourist walks back over, and says you "see, watch I'll go to the door and he'll follow." At this point I really had no idea what was going on, maybe the manager did rehire FE to work LP.
I was trying really hard not to laugh because it really did look like FE was following Mr. Tourist. And its not everyday a White customer swears they're being followed by a Black LP employee.

Mudville Kurtis Scaletta

Mudville by Kurtis Scaletta A rain out of rival game between Moundville and Sinister Bend turned into 22 straight years of rain for Moundville. Roy's dad was the last hitter before the rain began to fall. 12 yr old Roy is a catcher though thanks to rain there's no baseball in Moundville. The book opens with Adam returning from baseball camp. When he gets home his dad surprises him with a Sturgis, a foster brother. Strugis face is scared, and he's very secretive about his past.

"So Sturgis," my dad says, "do you want to tell Roy more about yourself?" Sturgis gives me a long, careful look. "I'm a foster kid. Yov'e probably seen TV movies about us" "I don't know maybe one or two." "Well there you go"

Roy's mom couldn't stand the rain, she travels the world has a flight attendant checking in with the occasional post card or phone call. Soon after Roy's return and Sturgis arrival the rain suddenly stops. The kids of Moundville form a baseball team with Roy as captain. Most have never played before, Roy must teach them the basics. Sturgis is the teams ace, striking out anyone with his fastball. The goodness of Mudville snuck up on me, its about more then baseball. In between the games Roy's dad teaches him to respect the hardwork of others. Roy learns what really goes into getting a baseball field ready.

"I knew you were in over your head when you talked about fixing up the old ball field, but I want you to thank the groundskeepers and sign autographs for their children. Those guys could be your own grandfather. Heck, they could be me. When fans turn out, think about how hard you weekend this week and remember they worked that hard all week to take their family to a ball game."

I loved Roy, he came across has the 12 yr old he was supposed to be. It was a joy watching him juggle captain and catcher duties. The Moundville team were an interesting bunch of characters including an ambidextrous infielder, who doesn't know left from right and a Cuban 3rd baseman nicknamed google -search me is his answer to everything. Though Roy likes the relief pitcher Rita who can't throw straight but has a wicked backward curveball thanks to a tennis injury, he doesn't let it affect his captain duties. Slowly the team gets better and the inevitable happens they are challenged by Sinister Bend. Moundville has lost over 100 straight games to Sinister Bend, the town rallies beyond the new team hoping for a different outcome. I really enjoyed Mudville, Scaletta's writing is very good and seamlessly layered. If the reader is willing there are lessons to be learned but the author doesn't force it. Roy's friend Adam from baseball camp sends him a signed baseball from Kansas City. There was a mix up the ball meant for Adam is signed by baseball great Buck Oneil. (I gotta love a baseball book that fits in a Negro League reference) Adam's coach is in aww of the signature, and Roy gets a different ball.

"I told Coach to keep that baseball, and I got another ball signed for you. My ball is signed by Montgomery Daniels, full time barber and part time baseball coach. "

I was a little choked up at this part, what can I say, I am no Tom Hanks. I highly recommand Mudville. Ages 10up

My Favorite Author Mudville Review

Skunkgirl Sheba Karim

Skunk Girl by Sheba Karim 15yr old Nina Khan is Pakistani Muslim girl who wants to obey her parents and have a little fun. The Khan's live in Deer Hook, a small town in upstate New York. Nina is not looking forward to junior year thanks to strict parents and older sister Sonia, the genius. She thinks this year to be a lot of SAT prep work and no parties on the weekend. Some YA second generation Americans books fall into a cliche trap. Where the main character must excel in academics, with strict parents they hate and a one dimensional story line In this debut novel Karim finds a beautiful balance avoiding the predictable. Nina is a very good student but her grades are never mentioned. She doesn't like all her parents rules but doesn't hate them for it. Karim doesn't portray the parents has strict and unfeeling, she remembers to show their softer side. Nina embraces who she is and is not ashamed of being a Pakistani Muslim. I also love that the author took the time to fully develop Nina's best friends Bridget and Helena with distinguishable personalities. Through their friendship we learn more about Nina, who is fun, smart and hairy. When puberty hits Nina hair follicles go into over drive.

"One, morning freshman year I woke up and was covered in hair. The hair was in vary degrees of thickness and density. I fell asleep a human and woke a gorilla."

Nina dubs herself skunk girl, after Asher, the boy she likes notices a strip of hair running down the center of her back. Skunk girl was a very fun read filled with a lot of laugh out loud moments. March 31 is the scheduled release date.
More on Skunk Girl

A Wish After Midnight by Zetta Elliott

A Wish After Midnight by Zetta Elliott I've started to wait a few days after finishing a book before doing a post. So I can marinate on what I've read and allow the words fully sink in. When I finished A Wish After Midnight I was very satisfied and felt it was a very good novel. Four days later with the novel still fresh in my head and flipping through the book , I realize I may not of given the book enough credit.
15 yr old Genna lives in a one bedroom apartment with her mother and three siblings. Her mother struggles to make enough money so the family can move to a better neighborhood. Genna does her part by staying out of trouble, getting good grades, looking after younger brother, Tyjuan. She finds solace in the Brooklyn Botanic Gardens. Genna befriends another Garden regular Mr. Christiansen an older white man. Mr Christiansen seemed like a nice man at first I couldn't understand why his appearance was so short. Then I remembered this isn't a book about a troubled black girl who needs a nice old white man to teach her importance of dreaming. I believe Elliott includes this character, hoping the reader will learn from Genna to judge individuals on their merits not their race, gender or other things they can't control.
Genna is not poisoned by her mother's hatred of white people.

"I don't want to think like Mama. I try not to lump Hannah and all white people together cause that's exactly what I don't want people doing to me. I want people to accept me for who I am with my own ways, and my own ideas and my own future that's separate from everything else going on. Separate from Rico dealing drugs and Toshi acting fast and Papi walking out on us. Separate from where I live or how I dress or the color of my skin. I'm not ashamed of none of those things. I just want people to see all of who I am, and not just the messed up parts."

With her wishes Genna dreams of a better future and forgets what waits for her when she leaves the garden. This book is essentially in two parts Genna in present day, Genna in 1863. When I finished the book, I enjoyed the second half so much I wished Genna time travelled sooner. Though now as I look back on it I appreciate Genna in the present day. Elliott fully developments Genna , allowing the reader to feel more connected to the character. This is a very smart move on the authors part, whether or not the reader is a fan of historical fiction is irrelevant because they'll be fulling invested in the character. Genna's tall, shy and thanks to a lack of slang her peers thinks she's not black enough. She doesn't hang out will anyone from school, until Judah comes along. Judah is different, and he appreciates Genna. Their relationship is steadily growing, then Genna makes the wish. It comes about in anger and confusion. When Genna's mom slaps her for a wrong not committed Genna goes to the Garden. Apparently Genna isn't the only one who uses the Garden as a sanctuary at the midnight hour Genna sees ghosts. I love the idea of lost souls finding peace in a Garden, there aren't too many quiet places in NY. Soon after Genna comes to grips with what surrounds her, she transported back to Brooklyn 1863. Before Genna can be sold into slavery someone claims she's a Reverends niece. Genna is taken to an orphanage, she needs days to recover from serious back wounds. I kept waiting for the author to say what happened to Genna's back, an explanation never came and feel like I missed a piece of the puzzle. Genna ends up working and living with the orphanage doctor, Dr Brant. Runaway slaves make their way to Brooklyn and Dr Brant does what he can to help. While helping one day Genna finds Judah. I love what Elliott did with the second half of the book. Genna stays true to who she is, even in 1863 she speaks her mind and fights back. Elliott gives Judah a little competition with Paul, a blued eyed black boy. Genna had the power to wish Judah into another century that's some serious love but I still found myself rooting for Paul. At times in 1863 Brooklyn Judah seemed a little stubborn, and he wasn't considering Genna's feelings. When I think of the civil war I usually think about the south. Elliott touches upon the unrest in New York. When the New York Drafts riots hits Manhattan many people flee to Brooklyn. Genna and Judah get caught up in the riot that threatens to find its way to Brooklyn. The author reminds us that there's much history to be found in Brooklyn beyond the Polo Grounds and the Brooklyn Bridge. A Wish Before Midnight is a wonderful novel, giving the reader much to enjoy, think about and learn.

A Wish Before Midnight is self published, (stop rolling your eyes) There are no typos or grammatical errors so don't be deterred that this book hasn't found a home yet. Just think of yourself has being ahead of the curve. So later when someone tells you they've read great new book A Wish After Midnight, you can say you've already read it. Zetta Elliott is also the author of the awarding winning children's book Bird, an ALA notable children's book of 2009
Buy A Wish After Midnight Now available at amazon

Read an excerpt

An Update (Oct 2009) I originally wrote this review in March. Several months later there are more reviews of A Wish After Midnight online. It's nice to see this wonderful story is finding an audience. I called it in March, when I said just think of yourself as being ahead of the curve giving A Wish After Midnight a chance. Now its catching on.

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All of these reviews for a self published book that's pretty darn good. And it doesn't end there -

Authors Thoughts on A Wish After Midnight

Neesha Meminger

Justine Larbalestier