The Biblio Blogazine

Tuck Everlasting by Natalie Babbitt
Young Adult Fiction, 139 pages
Farrar, Straus and Giroux

Purchased (Friends of Washoe County Library sale)

I am not much for prologues, but this one set the hook quite well when I picked it up at the library sale. It is also a wonderful way to showcase the author’s style.

The first week of August hangs at the very top of the summer, the top of the live-long year, like the highest seat of a Ferris wheel when it pauses in its turning. The weeks that come before are only a climb from the balmy spring, and those that follow a drop to the chill of autumn, but the first week of August is motionless, and hot. It is curiously silent, too, with blank white dawns and glaring noons, and sunsets smeared with too much color. Often at night there is lightning, but it quivers all alone. There is no thunder, no relieving rain. There are strange and breathless days, the dog days, when people are led to do things they are sure to be sorry for after.

I had no idea until I began reading this book that it’s Young Adult fiction.

Was I put off? Not in the least.

As it turns out, the story and its theme are ageless. There is a kidnapping and murder, but it’s handled in a fashion that keeps this suitable for younger sensibilities. (And don’t worry, giving you this information in no way is a spoiler).

For us older folk? There are beautifully written passages, and a theme that will keep you wondering long after you put down this novella.

Yes, it’s a very short read, but it carries quite a punch.

It makes you think about mortality & ethics. It could go deeper, but why over-explain something we should figure out for ourselves? In addition, this is for a younger audience who aren’t quite prepared to jump so far out into the deep end of the pool. Think of this as a way to introduce them to it through the shallow end.

But if you do like stories that are deeply philosophical, then there are plenty of literary works that cover the same territory with bigger words and whose authors are happy for you to dive right in, sometimes over your head.

I think that is why I am so enamored with this book. It’s given me a lot to think about, but never overwhelmed me – not once.

As I noted on Twitter, this book can be the poster child to prove YA fiction can be anything but devoid of thought-provoking content.

A definite recommend to anyone who has never read it, or has seen the movie. I haven’t. Not sure I will. I have this thing about adaptations.

But if you have, and liked it, I’d love to hear your opinion – especially if you’ve read the book too.

A Certain Slant of Light by Laura Whitcomb (2005)
Young Adult Fiction, 288 pages
Graphia Books an Imprint of Houghton Mifflin Co.

Read for the Triple 8 Challenge

Plot:

In the class of the high school English teacher she has been haunting, Helen feels them: For the first time in 130 years, human eyes are looking at her. They belong to a boy, a boy who has not seemed remarkable until now. And Helen–terrified, but intrigued–is drawn to him. The fact that he is in a body and she is not presents this unlikely couple with their first challenge. But as the lovers struggle to find a way to be together, they begin to discover the secrets of their former lives and of the young people they come to possess.

Is this a love story or a ghost story? Both. And it works fairly well. What makes this book unique is its point of view, told from the perspective of Helen, a 130 year old ghost who haunts, and is haunted.

I couldn’t recall my past sin, that deed I had done before my death that had banished me from heaven.

Thinking she is alone in the world, she attaches herself to living “hosts” in order to avoid the unbearable pain of reliving her death.

The pain, once I was dead, was very memorable. I was deep inside the cold, smothering belly of a grave…Icy water was burning down my throat, splintering my ribs, and my ears were filled with a sound like a demon howling…I dragged myself, hand over hand, out of the earth…weeping muddy tears. All I knew was that I had been tortured in the blackness, and then I had escaped.

Then, one day her world changed: She was seen. She learned was no longer alone.

How was he doing this? Had he somehow chosen me? I had two strong and seemingly contradictory sensations. One was a fear of being seen by a mortal…The other was an almost indescribable sensation of attraction…I wanted to see him again, to see whether he really was that rare human who saw what others could not. Nothing was more disturbing to me, and yet nothing compelled me more.

This title has been rated for young adults (age range approximately 12 -18), however due to some strong language and sexual content; I highly recommend that it be read by those on the higher end of that range.

Other than, that I found no significant “cons” to this book. Yes, I have read reviews that thought the characters and plot weak, but I never thought I was reading anything other than an entertaining story with a unique twist: one that is targeted towards a younger audience. It is important as a reviewer to consider the intended target of an author’s work, and as such refrain from judging it with a skewed sense of standards.

I do admit that Whitcomb could have made this a much larger work. But would it have been as entertaining and had the same impact? Truthfully – who knows. However, I feel this is of no matter as I found this to be a good read and I loved how she took a well worn theme and made it unique and interesting.

There is complexity here, don’t get me wrong. This is apparent when one realizes the parallels between the lives (uh, well un-lives) of the ghosts James and Helen and those of their hosts, Billy and Jenny. In the end, one has to wonder if there really was randomness involved when these four come together, or a greater plan at work in order for each to find the personal peace they seek.

I had trouble starting this book, but not because of its story or writing. It was just a matter of timing. However, once I began, I did not stop until it was finished. I could not put it down, which normally would earn 5 stars, however as I said earlier, the story development is not what it could be – perhaps because it is the author’s first book. Thus I am going to give it 4 out of 5 stars.