Review of Everybody Sees the Ants, by A. S. King

Award Challenge, Award Winners, Contemporary, Starred Review, Teen Fiction Review 0

Everybody Sees the Ants

by A. S. King

Little, Brown, and Company, 2011. 282 pages.
2011 Cybils Finalist
Starred Review

Since he was seven years old, Lucky Linderman has dreamed about his grandfather, who was Missing in Action in Vietnam so many years ago that Lucky’s father never had his father around. These dreams are dream-like, with dream-like impossible things happening in them. But when Lucky wakes up, he has things in his hand that he was holding during the dream. His grandfather gives him a cigar, for example, and he’s holding it when he wakes up. If he steps in mud, he’s dirty when he wakes up.

That’s not why Lucky’s gotten in trouble at school, though. Here’s how he explains what happened:

All I did was ask a stupid question.

Six months ago I was assigned the standard second-semester freshman social studies project at Freddy High: Create a survey, evaluate data, graph data, express conclusion in a two-hundred-word paper. This was an easy A. I thought up my question and printed out 120 copies.

The question was: If you were going to commit suicide, what method would you choose?

This was a common conversation topic between Nader (shotgun in the mouth), Danny (jump in front of a speeding truck) and me (inhaling car fumes), and we’d been joking about it for months during seventh-period study hall. I never saw anything bad in it. That kind of stuff made Nader laugh. And Nader laughing at my jokes meant maybe I could get through high school with less shrapnel.

I think you can see why this survey led to “concern,” but the fallout also leads to bullying. And he gets some answers to his survey from surprising places.

As the book continues, Lucky deals with more bullying and a trip with his Mom to Arizona to stay with his mother’s brother and wife, crazy Aunt Jodi. All the while, he’s dealing with these dreams that are somehow real. And the ants? Well, the ants are a sort of Greek chorus that Lucky sees, who watch and comment on his every move.

They first appear when he’s being bullied:

Ants appear on the concrete in front of me. Dancing ants. Smiling ants. Ants having a party. One tells me to hang on. Don’t worry, kid! he says, holding up a martini glass. It’ll be over in a minute!

All of this may sound strange, and it is. The book is strange, and the phenomena are never explained. But somehow it all adds up to a powerful and moving story about a boy growing up and learning to face tough things. By the end of the book, you’re completely on the side of Lucky Linderman, and confident that he’s going to make it through high school.

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Source: This review is based on an Advance Reader Copy I got at an ALA conference and checked against a library book from Fairfax County Public Library.

Disclaimer: I am a professional librarian, but I write the posts for my website and blogs entirely on my own time. The views expressed are solely my own, and in no way represent the official views of my employer or of any committee or group of which I am part.

Review of Keeping the Castle, by Patrice Kindl

Historical, Romance, Starred Review, Teen Fiction Review 0

Keeping the Castle

A Tale of Romance, Riches, and Real Estate

by Patrice Kindl

Viking, 2012. 261 pages.
Starred Review

I was so delighted to discover a new Patrice Kindl book coming out. I love her earlier books without fail. With the title Keeping the Castle, I expected this to be a fantasy novel. However, it turned out to be a straight — but incredibly funny — tribute to Jane Austen and Pride and Prejudice, with just a touch of Cinderella (two not-so-nice stepsisters).

This is a historical romance, set during the Regency era. Althea needs to marry well in order to keep the castle her great-grandfather built on a cliff by the sea. Her four-year-old brother will inherit the castle, but without money soon, there will be no castle to inherit. The opening scene will give you an idea of the humor in this book:

We were walking in the castle garden. The silvery light of early spring streaked across the grass, transforming the overgrown shrubbery into a place of magic and romance. He had begged me for a few moments of privacy, to “discuss a matter of great importance.” By this I assumed that he meant to offer me his hand in marriage.

“I love you, Althea — you are so beautiful,” murmured the young man into my ear.

Well, I was willing enough. I looked up at him from under my eyelashes. “I love you too,” I confessed. I averted my gaze and added privately, “You are so rich.”

Unfortunately, I apparently said this aloud, if just barely, and his hearing was sharper than one would expect, given his other attributes.

The gentleman in question does withdraw his proposal. But then Lord Boring comes into the neighborhood and promises a ball. Hijinks ensue.

I think my favorite sentence was this one, that shows how she is playing with even the names:

From Lesser Hoo to Hasty, and from Little Snoring to Hoo-Upon-Hill, nearly everyone under the age of ninety was looking forward to the event.

Yes, it’s quite predictable whom Althea will end up with (by whom she doesn’t like; this is a tribute to Pride and Prejudice after all), but getting there is so much fun, and some surprises are definitely included along the way.

patricekindl.com
penguin.com/teens

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Source: This review is based on an Advance Reader Copy I got at a library conference and checked against a library book from the Fairfax County Public Library.

Disclaimer: I am a professional librarian, but I write the posts for my website and blogs entirely on my own time. The views expressed are solely my own, and in no way represent the official views of my employer or of any committee or group of which I am part.

Review of Palace of Stone, by Shannon Hale

Children's Fiction Review, Fantasy, Starred Review, Teen Fiction Review 0

Palace of Stone

by Shannon Hale

Bloomsbury, New York, August 2012. 321 pages.
Starred Review

This year, I keep changing in my hopes about the Newbery Medal:

First, I read Wonder, by R. J. Palacio, and hoped it would win the Medal. Next, I read The One and Only Ivan, by Katherine Applegate, and hoped it would win the Medal. Then, I read Summer of the Gypsy Moths, by Sara Pennypacker, and hoped it would win the Medal. Finally (???), I read Palace of Stone, by Shannon Hale, and hoped it would win.

I think this will be my final choice, but I’m proving awfully fickle. I’m not sure I completely trust myself over Palace of Stone, because I like Shannon Hale’s writing so much, and I’ve met Shannon and like her so much, and she sent me an Advance Reader Copy of this book with a tremendously nice inscription and signature, so I may well be biased. But I am going to have fun making a case for Palace of Stone for the win on the Heavy Medal mock Newbery blog, and maybe I can partially express here why I think this book is outstanding.

Palace of Stone is the sequel to Newbery-Honor-winning Princess Academy. Princess Academy on the surface seems like a trite idea: A bunch of mountain girls training at a school because one of them is going to be chosen by the prince to be his princess. But Shannon’s books are definitely not trite. She paints a picture of Miri loving her mountain yet wanting to learn more, of Miri learning how to help the village get out of poverty, of Miri learning to be a friend, and of Miri figuring out the magic in the stone of the quarry on Mount Eskel.

In Palace of Stone there’s also a rich mix of things going on. Miri is going to the capital city, along with some other girls from Mount Eskel, to help her friend prepare to be the princess. She gets to study at the school at the Queen’s Castle while she is there. Peder is going at the same time, to be apprenticed to a wood carver.

But when Miri and her friends arrive, they learn that rebellion is brewing. And when the king’s advisors tell him that now Mount Eskel is a province, they should be taxed, Miri can’t help but have sympathy with the rebels. A kind fellow student introduces her to a Salon of plotters, and that handsome student seems to have a lot more time for Miri than Peder does.

In both books, I’ve been a tiny bit annoyed with how simplistic Miri’s thinking is at times. But on reflection, she has lived on the mountain without any education at all except the one year in the princess academy. It would be silly for her to use sophisticated concepts.

And Shannon Hale weaves sophisticated concepts into the setting of this book. Why does a king rule? What right does he have to tax his people? How does government work? There are also implications about the Palace of Stone. Only the king’s quarters are made from linder blocks from Mount Eskel, and common people are not allowed to go there at all.

Like before, Miri still characteristically pulls big ideas from books:

Timon had said first Asland; the rest of Danland would follow, and then all the world. His promises felt as real as paper in her hands, just awaiting the ink strokes of action.

But Miri was not the only one who took sick that winter, and revolution proved no match for a head cold. Salons emptied, as did the Queen’s Castle. Now Miri found time to haunt the palace library.

Master Filippus had said they needed to study History to understand what had worked in the past. Miri found the Librarian’s Book and started to read all she could on tributes, hoping for clues on how to defend Mount Eskel. There were laws that limited how much tribute a noble could take from a commoner, but as Miri had seen from the Grievance Official’s ledger, if they took more anyway, no one could stop them. And no laws limited the king.

This is a sequel to Princess Academy. I think you’ll enjoy it more if you read the first book first, though I’m sure you can understand what’s going on even without that. But as with all of Shannon’s books, why would you want to? In fact, I used this as a delightful excuse to reread Princess Academy. I enjoy her books more every time I read them, and now here’s one more to return to again and again.

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bloomsburykids.com

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Source: This review is based on an Advance Review Copy sent to me and signed by the author.

Review of A Confusion of Princes, by Garth Nix

Adventure, Audiobooks, Science Fiction, Starred Review, Teen Fiction Review 0

A Confusion of Princes

by Garth Nix
read by Michael Goldstrom

Listening Library, 2012. 9.5 hours on 8 CDs. Unabridged.
Starred Review

This book had me mesmerized as soon as I turned it on. I brought a CD into the house to listen to the next complete disc not once, but twice when I got home from work.

Khemri tells you right from the start that this is the story of his first three deaths. Khemri’s a Prince of the Empire, and Princes are mostly immortal. Of course, the Aspect of the Discerning Hand does not have to choose to bring a Prince back to life. If the Imperial Mind is not witnessing the death, they will not come back. And if a new Prince is killed before they gain their contact with the Imperial Mind, they will not come back. But no one tells the Prince candidates that.

So Khemri’s in for a big surprise when his candidacy is over and he’s an official Prince. He doesn’t get to roam the galaxy in his own ship. Fortunately, he has an excellent Master of Assassins, who can help him survive the initial attacks. You see, others of the millions of Princes hope to advance by eliminating some of the competition. In a mere two years the Emperor is abdicating, and one of those Princes will become the new Emperor.

Much of this book is taken up with a fascinating look at mankind’s future in this world. They have mastered three technologies — MechTech, BiTech, and PsyTech. And Princes are enhanced in all three ways. But Khemri gets into a situation where he needs to learn how to live and work in an unenhanced body. He needs to learn how actual unenhanced humans think. That may be the greatest challenge of all.

Through most of the book, I was afraid I was going to get to the end and then hear, “To Be Continued.” But, no, this book is stand-alone, fantastic, and hugely satisfying.

Part of the brilliance of this book is the elaborate future world created. It all works, all makes sense. As Khemri deals with having and not having his enhanced powers, you come to understand what they are and how they work. Another level is what happens inside Khemri. When he’s acting as a regular human, he encounters people who hate Princes and you see him learn to understand and care about them. You see Khemri change and understand why he’s changing.

I also enjoyed the production. There is plenty of telepathic messaging between the Imperial Mind and the Princes and some of the BiTech engineered machines. Those messages are easily designated with a sound effect on the CDs so you can easily understand what is going on.

This is an outstanding science fiction tale that covers what is most important about being human.

garthnix.com
listeninglibrary.com

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Source: This review is based on a library audiobook from the Fairfax County Public Library.

Review of Cinder, by Marissa Meyer

Fairy Tale Variant, Science Fiction, Starred Review, Teen Fiction Review 0

Cinder

The Lunar Chronicles: Book One

by Marissa Meyer

Feiwel and Friends, New York, 2012. 390 pages.
Starred Review

I’ve always loved fairy-tale retellings, but this science fiction version of Cinderella is even better than most. Once again, I stayed up all night reading to finish the book, even though I know that’s not good for me. But the book was so good! Since I was able to take a nap the next day, I’m afraid my bad behavior was reinforced, and it was totally worth it.

Cinder is set in New Beijing, 126 years after the end of the fourth world war, after which the kingdoms of the earth have been at peace. They’ve been at peace, but not without problems. There’s a plague raging, and even the Emperor of the Eastern Alliance is sick with it.

Linh Cinder is a cyborg, which is why she’s a second-class citizen. She’s 63.72% human, but she has some machine parts, like her left hand and foot, and some brain and sensory enhancements. She doesn’t remember anything from before the accident and fire that burned her when she was eleven years old.

Since her adoptive father died, Cinder’s been the one making a living for her family as a mechanic. She’s a good mechanic, as her cyborg enhancements give her special abilities, but she’s surprised when Prince Kai brings in an old android that needs repair.

Cinder barely heard him above the blankness in her mind. With her heartbeat gathering speed, her retina display scanned his features, so familiar from years spent watching him on the netscreens. He seemed taller in real life and a gray hooded sweatshirt was like none of the fine clothes he usually made appearances in, but still, it took only 2.6 seconds for Cinder’s scanner to measure the points of his face and link his image to the net database. Another second and the display informed her of what she already knew; details scribbled across the bottom of her vision in a stream of green text.

There’s something important about the android, but Prince Kai has many other things to worry about. The evil queen of the Lunar Colony wants to marry an earth emperor. But the people who live on the moon have evolved the ability to control the minds of others. If she marries Kai, she will enslave the people of his country as she has her own. But she can apply powerful pressure.

In the meantime, there is a draft of cyborg “volunteers” to test potential plague antidotes. When Cinder’s stepmother decides it’s time for Cinder to “volunteer,” Cinder learns some surprising new things about herself. But she also runs into the prince again.

This book takes the framework of the fairy tale and plays with it. I don’t think it’s too much of a spoiler to say that instead of losing a shoe when she leaves the ball, Cinder loses a foot. I admit I was sad that there wasn’t a fairy godmother in this story, because I wanted that for Cinder, but it’s quite amazing what she manages to accomplish herself.

And there’s no Happily Ever After yet for Cinder, but the title page warned that this is Book One, so I didn’t expect it. But at the same time, it tells a satisfying story, following the Cinderella basic framework, yet adding in an intricate plot all its own. The future world is credibly and skilfully built. And the romance between Cinder and the Prince is done well.

I’m going to want to read the next volumes just as soon as they come out. Though I will definitely try to start very early on an evening when I have no other plans.

thelunarchronicles.com
macteenbooks.com

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Source: This review is based on a book I got at a library conference.

Review of Wisdom’s Kiss, by Catherine Gilbert Murdock

Fairy Tale Variant, Fantasy, Starred Review, Teen Fiction Review 0

Wisdom’s Kiss

A Thrilling and Romantic Adventure, Incorporating Magic, Villainy, and a Cat

by Catherine Gilbert Murdock

Houghton Mifflin Books for Children, 2011. 284 pages.
Starred Review

Here’s another fairy-tale-type story set in the world of Princess Ben. In fact, Princess Ben, as a grandmother, makes an appearance, though you don’t at all have to have read her story to understand what’s going on.

Wisdom’s Kiss centers around two princesses, named Temperance and Wisdom. They are granddaughters of Queen Benevolence and share the tradition of character-based names in the kingdom of Montagne. The story is also about Trudy, a young maid with the Sight. She loves the miller’s son Tips, who has gone off to learn to be an acrobat, and an excellent one.

Despite his mother’s machinations toward the throne of Montagne, Duke Roger of Farina is betrothed to Wisdom, the younger sister. She must travel to Farina for the wedding, and along the way she gets a new lady-in-waiting, Trudy, even though when Trudy looks at Wisdom, she feels great pain.

But then Tips’ troupe is performing in the capital of Montagne, and when Wisdom sees him, she finds out what she really aspires to. But royal betrothals are not easily gotten out of.

This is a fun story, with very creative story-telling, including several different perspectives, The Imperial Encyclopedia of Lax, letters, and a play script. The plot moves along with nice twists and turns and is never the least bit boring.

A lot hinges on love at first sight, which I wasn’t crazy about, but mostly everyone’s actions seem true to character, and even that love seems to have a basis in the characters of the people involved.

This is an entertaining tale, creatively told, and does include romance, magic, and villainy to delight all readers.

catherinemurdock.com
hmhbooks.com

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Source: This review is based on an Advance Reader Copy I got at a library conference.

Review of Front and Center, by Catherine Gilbert Murdock

Contemporary, Starred Review, Teen Fiction Review 0

Front and Center

by Catherine Gilbert Murdock

Houghton Mifflin, 2009. 256 pages.
Starred Review

This book was a lovely end to the Dairy Queen trilogy. I was disappointed the library didn’t have this one on CD, but that was a cool excuse to purchase the book at get it signed by Catherine Gilbert Murdock when I got to hear her speak.

DJ’s back to school, and hopes to just melt into the woodwork, but she finds herself the center of attention. She’s trying to figure out where to go to college, trying to improve her basketball game, and trying to forget Brian Nelson. But then Brian starts acting differently, actually willing to be seen with her, while her good friend Beaner wants something more than friendship. DJ’s got life and college and romance to figure out, and it all makes a lovely conclusion to the trilogy.

I don’t really need to say a lot about this book, because those who have come through the first two books with DJ will definitely want to know what happens next. I promise you’ll enjoy the final installment!

catherinegilbertmurdock.com
www.hmhbooks.com

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Source: This review is based on a book I purchased and had signed by the author.

Review of The Seven Towers, by Patricia C. Wrede

Adventure, Fantasy, Starred Review, Teen Fiction Review 0

The Seven Towers

by Patricia C. Wrede

Firebird, 2008. Originally published in 1984. 324 pages.
Starred Review

Here’s another book I bought as soon as I heard about it, because I love the author and everything she writes. Then I didn’t get it read because it’s a library book and doesn’t have a due date. When I decided that really shouldn’t stop me from reading wonderful books, I finally got this read. I was not surprised to find it delightful.

The book begins with Jermain on the run. He falls off his horse and wakes up to find a very interesting woman named Amberglas. Then the Border Guard that has been chasing him rides up and asks the lady to step aside while they execute Jermain. But Captain Morenar doesn’t know who he’s dealing with:

“The woman looked critically down at Jermain, then back at the Captain. ‘Not at all,’ she said firmly. ‘He does not look in the least dangerous. I’m quite willing to believe he is extremely foolish, but a great many people are, and I have never heard of anyone being executed for it, though I couldn’t say for sure that it’s never happened. Of course, if he continues to run about with that wound bleeding all over everything and making such a mess, you won’t have to.’

“Morenar frowned and tried again. ‘Lady, we have been chasing this man for four hours; I assure you there is no mistake.’

“‘Well, it is certainly rude of you to contradict me, and I don’t believe you at all,’ the woman said flatly. ‘At least, I believe you have been chasing him, but not for four hours, and certainly he’s not a criminal. Though I can understand why you say so; it would probably be very awkward for you to explain. So many things are; awkward, I mean. Large kettles, for instance, and carrying three brooms at once, and those fat brown birds with the red wings whose names I can’t remember just at present. They waddle.'”

Jermain was formerly the Chief Advisor to King Marreth of Sevrain, but after she saves him, he explains to Amberglas what went wrong:

“‘Terrel and His Royal Highness Prince Eltiron convinced Marreth that I was guilty of treason. As a result, Marreth stripped me of my lands and position and awarded them to Terrel. Isn’t that enough?’

“‘I do see that you might think so,’ Amberglas said. ‘Were you?’

“‘Was I what?’

“‘Were you guilty? Of treason, I mean; there are a great many other things you could be guilty of, but since you weren’t accused of any of them, they don’t really matter. Well, no, they do matter, certainly, but I’m not particularly interested in them at the moment, though if you happen to think of anything else you want to mention, it’s quite all right with me.’

“‘I am no traitor,’ Jermain said stiffly.

“‘I didn’t think so. But of course, you could still be guilty of treason. That’s why I asked about it,’ Amberglas said.

“‘No, I was not guilty,’ Jermain said after a moment. ‘Unless it’s treason to believe an old friend’s warning, and counsel that preparation be made.’ Absently, he fingered the place where the short scar on his left arm was hidden by his sleeve.

“‘That doesn’t sound much like treason,’ Amberglas said. “Of course, it would depend on the friend. And the warning. Telling someone that his dinner is burning isn’t treason, at least, not in most places, though I couldn’t say for certain about Navren. The King there has made such extremely peculiar laws that one never knows what is treason in Navren. Or what isn’t,’ she added thoughtfully, and looked at Jermain.”

Meanwhile, back in Sevrain, Prince Eltiron gets his father angry by mentioning Jermain. And his father insists he marry Princess Crystalorn. Then Princess Crystalorn shows up at Amberglas’s tower saying she does not want to marry this prince she knows nothing about.

There are plots and counterplots, treachery and the appearance of treachery. There’s also a looming magical danger over the land. Jermain and Eltiron and Crystalorn need to know who they can trust and how to stop the magic.

Seven kingdoms with seven towers are involved in the magic and the danger. This book has an intricate plot with suspense and danger and even some romance. Though there are many characters to keep track of, like Amberglas they are all distinct personalities, and that only makes it more interesting.

This is an interesting and entertaining fantasy tale from a true master of the form.

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Source: This review is based on my own book, ordered from Amazon.com.

Review of The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks, by E. Lockhart

Award Winners, Contemporary, Starred Review, Teen Fiction Review 0

The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks

by E. Lockhart

Hyperion, New York, 2008. 345 pages.
2009 Printz Honor Book
Starred Review

I took an online course about the Printz Award, and the course finally got me to read this wonderful book.

Frankie’s father is sending her to the exclusive prep school where he attended. Her Dad still meets with his buddies and talks about their secret society, the Loyal Order of the Basset Hounds. Unfortunately, it was only for men, so he can’t reveal to Frankie where they hid their record of their escapades, The Disreputable History.

When Frankie’s new boyfriend invites her to a party after curfew and the invitation has a seal with a picture of a basset hound, it’s pretty easy for her to figure out what he’s up to. She doesn’t like it when he won’t tell her anything about his involvement. He thinks of her as a pretty little thing, and that what he does with his friends shouldn’t concern her.

Here’s the letter that opens The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks:

“To: Headmaster Richmond and the Board of Directors, Alabaster Preparatory Academy

“I, Frankie Landau-Banks, hereby confess that I was the sole mastermind behind the mal-doings of the Loyal Order of the Basset Hounds. I take full responsibility for the disruptions caused by the Order — including the Library Lady, the Doggies in the Window, the Night of a Thousand Dogs, the Canned Beet Rebellion, and the abduction of the Guppy.

“That is, I wrote the directives telling everyone what to do.

“I, and I alone.

“No matter what Porter Welsch told you in his statement.

“Of course, the dogs of the Order are human beings with free will,. They contributed their labor under no explicit compunction. I did not threaten them or coerce them in any way, and if they chose to follow my instructions, it was not because they feared retribution.

“You have requested that I provide you with their names. I respectfully decline to do so. It’s not for me to pugn or impugn their characters.

“I would like to point out that many of the Order’s escapades were intended as social criticism. And that many of the Order’s members were probably diverted from more self-destructive behaviors by the activities prescribed them by me. So maybe my actions contributed to a larger good, despite the inconveniences you, no doubt, suffered.

“I do understand the administration’s disgruntlement over the incidents. I see that my behavior disrupted the smooth running of your patriarchal establishment. And yet I would like to suggest that you view each of the Loyal Order’s projects with the gruntlement that should attend the creative civil disobedience of students who are politically aware and artistically expressive.

“I am not asking that you indulge my behavior; merely that you do not dulge it without considering its context.

“Yours sincerely,

“Frances Rose Landau-Banks”

How does Frankie manage to out-prank the pranksters? What are these intriguingly named escapades? In what sense were they social activism? And what happens when she pulls them off?

All is revealed in this delightful book. It’s amazing how gripping the plot is, even when you’re told what happens right at the outset. You can’t help but love Frankie and will keep reading to see what clever stunt she accomplishes next, and if her boyfriend and his buddies will learn to take her seriously. Along the way, she has lots to say about our patriarchal society.

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Source: This review is based on a library book from the Fairfax County Public Library.

Review of Bunheads, by Sophie Flack

Contemporary, Teen Fiction Review 0

Bunheads

by Sophie Flack

Little, Brown and Company, New York, 2011. 294 pages.

This book begins:

“My name is Hannah Ward. Don’t call me a ballerina.

“Ballerinas are the stars of the company. They dance center stage under the spotlight, and they get their own curtain calls. Their head shots are printed in the program, with their names in large print. Me, I’m a dancer in the corps de ballet, just one of the dozens of girls who dance in graceful unison each night. My mother thinks I’m a star, but she’s biased.”

Hannah Ward is 19 and a member of the prestigious Manhattan Ballet Company. She’d like to be promoted to soloist, but that will mean around-the-clock hard work, as well as competition with her friends, the other members of the corps. She’s lived in New York City since she was 14, when she went to the Manhattan Ballet Academy. She’s living her dream; is it worth it?

Hannah’s happy with her lot until she meets Jacob, a non-dancer and a student at NYU. He seems to think that if she likes him, she should be able to spare some time with him. But ballet is her life, and that’s the way it’s supposed to be, isn’t it?

Novels that question what a person wants out of life are always absorbing. This one provides an authentic look into the world of ballet, making it all the more interesting. I didn’t like the present tense narration, but that’s a personal quibble. The plot seemed a little spotty, with Hannah going through waves of determination to get a promotion, followed by periods where it didn’t seem so important, but I’m sure that’s how it would be in real life, even if it didn’t make as strong a plot arc.

I never took a ballet class and still enjoyed this book. I imagine that any teen who ever took a ballet class will particularly enjoy it.

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pickapoppy.com

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