Bookanistas: CODE NAME VERITY by Elizabeth Wein

Plot without spoilers...Is this possible? Britain. WWII. Two young girls--one a pilot, one a society girl--find themselves behind enemy lines in Germain-occupied France.

Of literary interest...The book deals with dualities in both structural and thematic ways. Two nations, two young women, two narrators, two identities (not gonna give you more on this, just trust me). Yet, like the story itself, the dualities shift and slide, narrators name themselves then reveal other identities; good and evil, right and wrong, hope and despair, are continually questioned and redefined. A breathtakingly well-written book--a breathless read.

Finally, just gotta say...This is an astonishing, well-crafted and finely-researched novel.  It is a spy story, laden with twists, so it's difficult to say too much without giving something away, which would be very unfair to the many readers this book should have. Sometimes I read a highly-hyped book and kind of finish with, "huh, well, a good read but maybe not the great read I was expecting." CODE NAME VERITY lives up to its praise and exceeds expectations. Definitely destined for "Best Lists."

Back-to-Business Monday: ALA Winter 2013 is in Seattle!

Wherever you are on your publishing journey, the American Library Association is an important resource for you. And, if you happen to run across an opportunity to visit an ALA conference sometime, YOU MUST GRAB IT. I am thrilled that ALA Midwinter is back in Seattle this January and even though I don't have a book coming out this year, I'll be meeting up with some writer friends to prowl the exhibit hall (a one-day exhibit pass is pretty reasonable), fan-girl some favorite writers, say hi to some amazing publishing professionals, and generally celebrate the awesome that is ALA.

If you're going, leave a comment here and let me know when we're doing coffee ;)

Whether or not you live close enough to Seattle to make this winter YOUR ALA, click this link to learn more about the conference, upcoming venues, and why you should listen to librarians!

Bookanistas: TARNISH by Katherine Longshore

DISCLAIMER: Katherine Longshore and I share an amazing editor at Viking. Since both our debut novels pubbed, I've had the opportunity to hang out with Katy in person. She is incredibly sweet and beyond smart. Naturally, I was thrilled to have the opportunity to read an arc of her next book. But I was again nervous about my response to the novel. My worries were for naught.  I read GILT in one sitting and did the same with TARNISH. Without further ado, herewith some thoughts on another gorgeous book.

Plot without spoilers...Anne Boleyn cannot hold her tongue, cannot follow the courtly crowd and be content with the best marriage match her father can make to benefit the family, cannot be simply a female pawn in a man's chess game. Instead, in search of real power and recognition, she finds herself in a complicated love quadrangle. Anne is deeply drawn to two men: one who offers to make her the star of the Tudor court; and the other who is England's king and her older sister's lover.

Of literary interest...I was first surprised to see that this novel does not pick up where GILT left Kitty but is actually set further back in time. TARNISH begins just before the start of the romance between Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn. Henry is is still married to his first wife, Catherine of Aragon.  That said, fans of GILT will be thrilled to return to Tudor England. And the language--the poetry and wordplay of courtly romance and power politics--honestly makes you want to read aloud, letting rich phrases shimmer on your lips like the jewels described in the novel. TARNISH, the title, is a metaphor that works on so many levels--from Anne's evolving perception of courtly life to her courtiers' perceptions of Anne herself.

Finally, just gotta say...My reading preferences tend toward the contemporary but Katy has this magical way of making girls from history come alive for present-day readers while getting them totally hooked on worlds of the past. TARNISH makes the workings of the Tudor court feel not unlike the dynamics of an elite boarding school. The characters, despite their gowns and hoods, are beauties and plain girls, the empowered and the victimized, the hopeful and the hopeless...richly drawn, real people. I would be unsurprised if readers found themselve longing to read a thick, nonfiction history of England after spending 400 pages with Longshore's Anne Boleyn--if only to prepare for the next breathless journey to the past Katherine Longshore will surely take us.

GENRES: And again, we ask...

WHAT MAKES A BOOK YA (versus adult)?

After returning home from an awesome ski vacation, I picked up the Wall Street Journal's December 15/16 weekend edition and discovered that among the ten "Best Fiction of 2012" picks were Shani Boianjiu's THE PEOPLE OF FOREVER ARE NOT AFRAID ("a simple coming-of-age story" WSJ); Carol Rifka Brunt's TELL THE WOLVES I'M HOME (protagonist is 14 years old); and Lawrence Norfalk's JOHN SATURNALL'S FEAST (begins when John is age 11).

Just for fun, I popped over to SLJ to find an epic list of "Best Adult Books 4 Teens 2012" which also includes Brunt's WOLVES.  Kirkus Reviews' 25 BEST OF 2012 (general category, not kids/YA) includes Karen Thompson Walker's THE AGE OF MIRACLES (protagonist: grade 6) and, again, TELL THE WOLVES... PW's 10 Best of 2012 list includes Louise Erdrich's THE ROUND HOUSE, featuring 13-year-old Joe, and its top fiction roster features Walker's THE AGE OF MIRACLES.

As if this weren't confusing enough, I refer you now to Liz Burns' excellent, SLJ-linked blog A CHAIR, A FIREPLACE & A TEA COZY in which she ponders the question "What is New Adult?" for a view of the question from the flipside. Yes, another fab phrase to join Steampunk, Paranormal Dystopian, Crossover and the erstwhile Young Adult in your filing wordbook.

I'm all for categories. My first-grader proudly announces each time he moves up a letter to a more challenging reading level. I like to know my fiction from my nonfiction (although, er, memoir, autobiography, as-told-to/by, the Petraeus book...?).  Many an email from a librarian asking whether to shelve AUDITION under "W" for Ward of "K" for Kehoe (btw, it's "K"!) makes me know I'm not alone in my desire for order and understanding in the book-o-sphere.

As an author, though, the question I want to pose today is: DOES THE RIGHT CATEGORY MAKE A BOOK MORE SUCCESSFUL?

Here are a few other ways to put it...

• Would a high YA novel do better "crossing over" from Adult back to Teen or vice versa?
• If a book is mostly mystery and only a little paranormal, from which shelf will it be most often lifted for actual purchase?
• Does an author/editor/publisher really choose a book's category or does the category choose it?
• As an author, should I advocate in any way for my book's genre?

Whadya think?

PS: I think I'd really better read that WOLVES book!