This post is an article from the Spring 2017 issue of the OYAN Review and has been edited slightly for publication on the blog. It was written by Ian Duncanson of the Beaverton City Library and Lisa Elliot of the Tigard Public Library.
Lisa: On January 21, 35 folks attended the 2017 Mock Printz work shop at the Central Branch of Multnomah Public Library. Meanwhile, 100,000 people descended on downtown Portland for the Women’s March. That’s right, 100,000 demonstrators, 35 workshop attendees, and I still got a parking spot. For next year, we’ll work a little harder to anticipate political upheaval, thus avoiding major advocacy schedule conflicts. For this year, however, I was happy to spend the afternoon in a warm, dry room with 35 librarians and teens in solidarity over our love of good books. Ian, how was your day?
There’s always a catch with Colt’s father Rex. The kids in his new neighborhood are totally charmed by Rex’s easy manner and generosity, but Colt is not fooled. When he and his family moved to this working class neighborhood, it was clear they did not quite fit in, but Rex launched a campaign to win everybody over by sharing the products of their wealth. The toys, the bikes, the backyard pool. Always the best that money can buy. All are invited to partake, but Colt suspects the point is not to ensure that he and his brother Bastain have friends, but rather that they are envied.
It is the 13th Century, and war has ravaged the people of what is now France and Spain. Wars of land and treasure, but also wars of religion, with entire villages and the people within them burned as heretics. Though people are still afraid, that time has mostly passed. Botille and her sisters have carved a peaceful living amongst their neighbors in the small fishing village of Bajas. Botille’s older sister, the beautiful Plazensa, brews and cooks in their tavern. Her baby sister Sazia tells fortunes with uncanny accuracy. Botille is a matchmaker.
As Hitler rose in power and embarked on a mission to take over Europe and wipe out any people that did not fit the “Aryan ideal,” one group of college students risked their lives to create an underground grassroots movement of resistance, to unify those Germans that did not believe in the Fuhrer, but were too afraid to raise their voices in protest. And rightfully so: If they did, they would most likely be jailed or killed.
Zen Starling is a thief. He’s pretty good at it too. Until the day a red head dressed in a trench coat follows him across the galaxy to his home. He had hopped the rails as usual and zipped across the cosmos on the Interstellar Express, a sentient train that travels planet to planet using wormholes that only the Guardians understand. He was sure that he had lost her when the train passed through the first gate. Everyone knows that nothing can follow through a dark hole. But, surprise, surprise, the redhead is soon standing outside his crummy apartment on his home world. Zen may be a thief, but he will do anything to protect his disabled mother and bossy older sister, including leaving home. But can he run far enough and fast enough to evade the trench coat? Who, or what, is she? The police? A rival thief? More importantly, if she’s not police, what does she want?
Fifteen year old Sefia has been on the run for years, ever since her father was brutally murdered. The only clue to the assassin was the heavy smell of copper in the air. When Sefia found him, she automatically followed the instructions that he had drilled into her: Run to her room in the basement, dig out the heavy, cloth-covered square hidden behind a wall and run to “Aunt Nin.” She and Aunt Nin had been moving ever since. Aunt Nin taught her how to hide, pick locks and live in the wild. But one day, Sefia returned to camp and smelled copper … again. And from the bushes, she watched as Aunt Nin was taken away. Vowing to follow and free her, Sefia lost the trail in a heavy rain. Alone, now Sefia wonders, “What is it that is worth killing over?” And finally, she opens the package buried deep in her pack and finds … a book. Knowing that your parents were killed over this, would you teach yourself to read? Would you still try to rescue Aunt Nin? Would you try to find out why someone wants it? Who knew that reading was such a dangerous act? The Reader, the first in the new series: Sea of Ink and Gold.
“If you knew the world was going to end, but you had the power to stop it, would you?” That’s a pretty powerful question. But the answer isn’t obvious to Henry. His dad abandoned the family, and his mom is trying to hold it together. His grandma lives with them, but she’s got dementia and is slowly losing her memories. His brother is a lazy jerk with no real goals. His boyfriend committed suicide last year, and Henry really doesn’t understand why. He’s being bullied by some of the popular guys, who call him “Space Boy” because he gets abducted by aliens occasionally, the same aliens who told Henry the world is ending in 144 days unless he pushes a button to prevent it. Did I forget to mention that part? But this isn’t an aliens book, or a scifi book, and we never meet E.T. If I had to give a quick summary of the basic message of this book, it would be this: Everyone is screwed up in some way. The best you can do is try to deal with it and let other people help.
It’s 1977, and summer in the city means heat. Everyone’s on edge, not just because of the heat, but because no ones knows when the serial killer “Son of Sam” will strike again. He’s been targeting couples out on dates, shooting them and then sending taunting notes to the police. But Nora’s got other things to worry about. She’s about to graduate and there are decisions to be made. Her teachers are pushing her to go to college, but she just wants to get away from her violent younger brother. And get away from the mother who doesn’t try to stop him, even though mom wears the bruises he inflicts. One thing she does want to deal with is Pablo, the new guy at work. But with a serial killer on the loose, is it safe to date? This summer Nora has to grow up fast. Will she decide that growing up means you suffer in silence or that you can choose your own future?
OYAN - Oregon Young Adult Network 