Alan Colvin Colvin itibaren Noapara, West Bengal 742226, Hindistan
Jerry Spinelli’s The Library Card. Four short and separate stories about lives changed by the sudden and mysterious appearance of a blank blue library card. Mongoose and Weasel the Taggers, Brenda, Sonseray on a tear and April Mendez the Mushie and Nanette the wielder of the razor’s edge. Taggers, a girl who once dumped a plate of spaghetti on her head and whose favorite color is yellow. One angry, mean and motherless boy. A hijacked bookmobile and two girls looking for a future. A bug and the speed of light, a biography of blank pages, the smell and look of mothers that aren’t yours. Nose rings, scarred wrists and the smell of poop and mushrooms. All these images and hurts and longings weave themselves in and out of stories with characters so strong and well drawn they keep playing in your head long after the book’s over and done with. I can think of few people who write more interesting stories about more interesting people doing more interesting things than Spinelli. Read this one for pure pleasure and the off chance you’ll find your own story woven in with the others.
Possibly the most heartbreaking of the three, this novel grapples with the question of what one person can accomplish in the face of the great industrial machine.
Patricia C. Wrede and Caroline Stevermer first published Sorcery and Cecelia under that that title in 1988. In recent years, thanks to reprints with shiny new cover art by Scott M. Fischer in the case of the edition I read as well as two new sequels, this book has regained popularity and visibility. Aside from that, one of the most important things to know about this book is its alternate title: The Enchanted Chocolate Pot: Being the Correspondence of Two Young Ladies of Quality Regarding Various Magical Scandals in London and the Country. Wrede and Stevermer wrote this book as a writing exercise of sorts called the Letter Game. Patricia C. Wrede wrote as Cecelia while Caroline Stevermer responded with Kate's letters. They did not plan the plot before they began writing. Almost every review I have found online describes Sorcery and Cecelia as a cross between the books of Jane Austen and those of J. K. Rowling. The comparison does make sense, but I might venture to say I liked this book better than any of the Harry Potter series. The year is 1817 in an England where magic is as much a part of life as letter writing. The latter is of particular importance to Kate and Cecelia as the cousins spend the novel in separate parts of England. While Kate and her more glamorous sister Georgina are in London enjoying a proper Season, Cecelia, much to her consternation, is left to languish in the country with her brother Oliver for company (at least until he's turned into a tree). Problems begin for both cousins when Kate accidentally intercepts a rather nasty pot of chocolate in a London garden that was, apparently, meant for the eccentric Marquis of Schofield. If only he would explain exactly why. Meanwhile, in the country, Cecelia finds herself following a shady figure spying on Cecy's new (and surprisingly popular!) friend Dorothea. When Cecelia repeatedly catches him in the act of spying, James Tarleton repeatedly refuses to offer any information. As the girls learn more about these mysterious men, and the mysterious events, it becomes clear that something big is happening--big enough that evidence of the plan can be seen in both London and the country. The only question is what, exactly, is going on and if Kate and Cecelia can stop it in time. Being an homage to Jane Austen, this novel has not one but two romances. Which couple is better has been a hot topic since the book came out. The librarian who recommended the book to me feels very strongly that the Mysterious Marquis and Kate are a more enjoyable match to observe. For my part, I preferred Cecelia and James. This novel avoids all of the traps that can make an epistolary novel awful. There is no repetition, there is dialogue, the narrative reads like a, for lack of a better word, normal book in that the narrative flows in a fairly traditional way. There is neither too much information nor too little. And, most importantly, the novel is filled with suspense, action, humor and romance that shines through both Cecelia's and Kate's letters. But then from two talented and well-known fantasy writers, what else can a reader expect but perfection? Sorcery and Cecelia is the first in a series of books featuring Kate and Cecelia. Their stories continue in The Grand Tour (2004) and The Mislaid Magician of Ten Years After (2006).
Really, when I picked up the first book in this series, I wasn't expecting too much. I generally stay out of teen fiction anymore, but the vampire thing intruiged me. This series has been so amazing, and I loved this last book. I honestly cannot wait for more. I haven't been this excited for a book since Phillip Pullman's "Dark Materials Trilogy".