When Marnie Was There by Joan Robinson (Book Review)

Title: When Marnie Was There
Author: Joan G. Robinson     Illustrated: Peggy Fortnum
Publication Information: Armada paperback, original pub date 1967
Genre: Children’s Fiction / Time Slip

Plot: Lonely Anna, an inarticulate orphan who lives with a kindly older couple who do not understand her, goes to stay in Norfolk with their friends after being ill with asthma. Exploring the area, she is entranced by the Marsh House on a creek nearby and by Marnie, an outgoing girl her age who appears and disappears mysteriously from the house. When Marnie is there, she is the perfect friend – she is imaginative and comes up with great games – but the reader guesses she is not real and the locals think Anna is talking to herself. As in Tom’s Midnight Garden, the loneliness of two children in the same place but many years apart results in a friendship that transcends time. Although her friendship with Marnie is not without sadness (which she does not understand), it helps prickly Anna learn how to be a friend and how to accept affection. The outgoing Lindsay family that moves into the old house on the creek after Marnie disappears for good completes the process, showing Anna what it is like to be part of a large and lively family and helping her come to terms with her foster parents and the birth family she feels abandoned her.

A Girl Named Digit (Book Review)

Title: A Girl Named Digit
Author: Annabel Monaghan
Publication Information: Houghton Mifflin Hardcover, 2012
Genre: YA Suspense

Plot: Farrah Higgins is a gifted high school senior, already admitted to MIT, who learned the hard way that if she reveals that she is a math genius, she will seem like a freak and won’t have any friends. She escaped the dreaded nickname “Digit” by switching schools and camouflaging her intelligence to fit in at school, which saddens her father who had enjoyed sharing logic games with her. However, when Farrah notices an odd pattern of numbers shown on a TV show, analyzes it and unlocks a terrorist code, she suddenly finds herself on the run with a handsome young FBI agent. The terrorist plot is not incredibly convincing but the depiction of Farrah’s quirky family, John’s father (who, charmingly, approves of their burgeoning romance and really understands Farrah), and Farrah’s friend Olive (who she completely underestimated) make this a very appealing read.

What I liked: Of course, I love books about smart girls and guys who appreciate them! There are lots of books about girls who are aspiring writers but fewer about girls who are good at math or science. While I enjoyed the cute Princeton hero, what made the book for me were Farrah’s hilarious internal monologues. I added a few quotes to those already on Goodreads.

What I disliked: Ugh, I hated the character’s real name and her nickname. I guess it was meant to make the reader accept that a nickname suited her better than her name but still. Why would her clueful father ever have permitted such an absurd name? And aren’t FBI agents trained not to get into cabs that are trying to pick them up?  Please, John!

Source: I got this from the library after reading Ms. Yingling Reads’ review but plan to buy a copy for my nieces.  Disappointed I missed seeing the author speak in Newton in September.

The Secret Keeper (Book Review)

Title: The Secret Keeper
Author: Kate Morton
Publication Information: Simon & Schuster/Atria Hardcover, October 2012
Genre: Fiction
Plot: As her mother approaches death, Laurel Nicolson, an acclaimed actress, remembers a day and a secret from her childhood that has always haunted her – she was hiding in a tree when a stranger approached her mother, who stabbed him to death with the knife usually saved for birthday cakes. Laurel gave information to the police that supported her mother’s explanation of self-defense but is now determined to find out what really happened that summer day, causing her to leave home and never fully regain the easy, affectionate family life of her childhood.

Starting with just an inscription in a book and a photo from London in the 40s, Laurel traces the fatal friendship between her mother, Dorothy Smitham, a put-upon companion to a cranky but aristocratic old lady, and her glamorous neighbor, Vivien Jenkins. Dorothy’s sweetheart from the country, Jimmy Metcalfe, photographed Dolly and Vivien together as London faced World War II and the Blitz, providing one clue. As Laurel unlocks the secrets of the past, she finally understands what caused her mother to act so deliberately when her family was threatened and can console the dying woman.

The Summer of No Regrets (Review)

Title: The Summer of No Regrets
Author: Katherine Grace Bond
Publication Information: Sourcebooks, Trade Paperback, 2012, ISBN 978-1-4022-65044
Genre: Young Adult Fiction

Plot: Teenage Brigitta lives in a small town in Washington State and is home schooled so has only one friend, Natalie, who is obsessed with celebrity gossip and always thinks she “sees” famous people in unexpected places. So when Natalie becomes convinced that Brigitta’s new neighbor Luke is really movie star Trent Yves, Brigitta is unconvinced. Sure, there is a resemblance but why would Hollywood’s bad boy be living in rural Washington and why would he be interested – as he seems to be – in an ordinary teenager like her? Rescuing, or trying to rescue, two cougar cubs brings this unlikely pair together, and Brigitta ignores all the clues that indicate Luke is not an ordinary boy next door with an ordinary mother. Luke does not confide in Brigitta, and Brigitta does not confide in Natalie, which results in disaster, at least temporarily. When Brigitta feels that everyone in her life has abandoned her, she runs away to the one place she has always felt comfortable, the farm in Indiana which once belonged to her grandparents. Along with Brigitta, the reader waits anxiously to see if anyone cares enough to follow her.

What I liked: This was an unusual and vivid story, with quirky characters. Isn’t it every girl’s fantasy that a gorgeous movie star will move in next door and fall for her? Or even just that a mysterious stranger will move in next door and fall for her? (I guess this is a natural progression from the genre of books where girl hopes for a girl her age to move in – Betsy-Tacy, Amy Moves In, Little Plum and many others) While Brigitta’s parents were too busy with their weird new-age healing center (I would have liked them more if they seemed more sincere about their beliefs but the father especially came across as an opportunist) to pay attention to her, I liked her relationship with her older sister Mallory. I also enjoyed Brigitta’s blog entries and the pseudo-gossip magazine articles, which were very funny.

What I disliked: The story started slowly yet there was an awful lot going on: lonely homeschooled teenager in the midst of her first crush; father whose personality has changed after the loss of Brigitta’s grandparents; living in a new-age enterprise with parents who have become unfamiliar gurus; an older sister involved with a repulsive college professor; and a mysterious cougar that Brigitta identifies with in an unhealthy but convincing way – and that is before the handsome stranger moves in next door! I felt at times there were just too many plot lines going on and the author’s transition from topic to topic was a bit awkward, and it took a while to draw me into the narrative. Also, Brigitta was awfully dim about the identity of her neighbor and dim to think that a blog about him would not be discovered; while her cluelessness was important to the plot, it was kind of annoying.

Source: I got this from the local library (after I suggested the purchase). This is the first book I have read from Sourcebooks’ new YA imprint, Fire.

The Candidate (Review)

Title: The Candidate
Author: Paul Harris
Publication Information: Vantage Press, trade paperback, July 2012, isbn 978-1936467389
Genre: Suspense

Plot: Trailing in the polls, slightly before the Iowa Caucuses, Jack Hodges is a virtually unknown presidential candidate. Then, on one cold night, there is an assassination attempt – Hodges instinctively shields his wife and they survive the attack. Overnight, he is proclaimed a hero and his candidacy picks up steam and overtakes the female frontrunner. But his campaign manager, a crude but canny Louisiana native named Dee Babineaux, sends Mike Sweeney, an idealistic campaign worker, to figure out who the would-be assassin is and what she may be hiding that could damage Hodge’s ascent. Mike is the book’s most interesting character as he longs for a candidate he can support wholeheartedly. He believes Senator Hodges can deliver meaningful change, but as he investigates the mysterious assassin (languishing in jail in Iowa after the campaign has moved on to primaries NH and SC) he becomes more and more fearful of the truth. The investigation eventually takes him to Guatemala in pursuit of a dangerous secret that threatens to destroy more than Mike’s idealism.

The Garden of Eden

Flight from Berlin (Review)

Title: Flight from Berlin
Author: David John
Publication Information: HarperCollins, July 2012, ISBN 978-0-06-209156-7
Genre: Historical Fiction/Suspense

Plot: 1936: Glamorous swimmer Eleanor Emerson is on her way to the Berlin Olympics to defend her gold medal but parties so hard crossing the Atlantic that Avery Brundage bounces her off the team. Friends offer her a job as a journalist (her name/reputation as byline while real-life writer Paul Gallico provides the actual reporting) and at first Eleanor is happy to attend parties. She is not a fan of Hitler but is oblivious to what he represents until she overhears a threat to keep two Jewish American athletes from competing in the Games. She confides in a handsome English journalist, Richard Denham, and they become embroiled in two plots: 1) Hitler’s pressure on German fencer, Hannah Leibermann, a Jew who is forced to compete to protect her family; and 2) the Nazis believe Denham has come into possession of a mysterious dossier that threatens the Third Reich and they will do anything to obtain it. Eleanor and Denham are a good team as they strive to outwit their enemies -- and several times she rescues him -- which is nice role reversal.

What I liked: Jesse Owens has some cameos, but I would have liked a little more about the actual competition, not to mention background on Eleanor’s swimming career. Will and Kate saw more of the 2012 Olympics than Eleanor, who is supposed to be a correspondent sending reports back to the U.S. However, the characters are vivid, the plot and setting original, and the action fast paced. I especially appreciated the depiction of the American Ambassador and his family. I really enjoyed this debut thriller and recommend it to fans of suspense and historical fiction.

What I disliked: Eleanor is married to a popular band leader in NY (based on Art Jarrett) who is clearly a jerk. However, she sure fell out of love with him quickly and into love with Denham. The romance worked as a plot device but was somewhat improbable. Also, surely it would have been very embarrassing for a U.S. Senator’s famous, married daughter to live in sin in London? In addition, Eleanor’s speech pattern was a little too “ah shucks” for my taste; whether realistic or not, I cannot tell. Brits can’t always write American characters convincingly.

Source: I am a huge Olympics fan, so I was eager to read this book once I read about it. HarperCollins provided me with an advance reading copy.

Anthropomorphic Opossoms (Review)

Years ago, probably when I worked at Avon Morrow, I came across the charming Roses are Pink, Your Feet Really Stink by Diane deGroat, a picture book about the hurt feelings that sometimes accompany the exchange of valentines in elementary school. Gilbert, the hero of her books, everyone’s favorite opossum, is appealing, if not as charming as Frances the Badger, and the situations he finds himself in are also universal (first day of school, field trips, camping with a bully, a show-off relative, tricks that backfire) in her holiday-themed award-winning picture books.

While visiting Cape Cod recently, I checked out Last One In Is a Rotten Egg for my 4 year old niece, and was delighted to see it was autographed by the author. She had even drawn a Gilbert on the bottom right corner of the title page! When I returned the book to the library I pointed out to the library staffer that the book had been autographed and mentioned it might get tough treatment if it stayed in circulation, but she pointed out that is what books are for. I thought it would look nice on display!  I wondered how Ms. deGroat came to sign this book...