September 2013

Our September pick is....

It happens at the start of every November: the Scorpio Races. Riders attempt to keep hold of their water horses long enough to make it to the finish line. Some riders live. Others die. At age nineteen, Sean Kendrick is the returning champion. He is a young man of few words, and if he has any fears, he keeps them buried deep, where no one else can see them. Puck Connolly is different. She never meant to ride in the Scorpio Races. But fate hasn’t given her much of a chance. So she enters the competition — the first girl ever to do so. She is in no way prepared for what is going to happen.

August 2013

Our August pick is......

Liam MacGregor is cursed. Haunted by the wails of fantastical Bean Sidhes and labeled a demon by the villagers of Dòchas, Liam has accepted that things will never get better for him—until a wealthy heiress named Annabel Leighton arrives on the island and Liam’s fate is changed forever.

With Anna, Liam finally finds the happiness he has always been denied; but, the violent, mythical Otherworlders, who inhabit the island and the sea around it, have other plans. They make awager on the couple’s love, testing its strength through a series of cruel obstacles. But the tragedies draw Liam and Anna even closer. Frustrated, the creatures put the couple through one last trial—and this time it’s not only their love that’s in danger of being destroyed.

June/July 2013

Our June/July pick is.....





The Shadow Fold, a swathe of impenetrable darkness, crawling with monsters that feast on human flesh, is slowly destroying the once-great nation of Ravka.  Alina, a pale, lonely orphan, discovers a unique power that thrusts her into the lavish world of the kingdom’s magical elite—the Grisha. Could she be the key to unravelling the dark fabric of the Shadow Fold and setting Ravka free?  The Darkling, a creature of seductive charm and terrifying power, leader of the Grisha. If Alina is to fulfill her destiny, she must discover how to unlock her gift and face up to her dangerous attraction to him.  But what of Mal, Alina’s childhood best friend? As Alina contemplates her dazzling new future, why can’t she ever quite forget him?

May Selection Follow-Up

We had a small group this month since we met right after the Memorial Day holiday, so I decided to gather a few sentences from everyone as a summary of what they thought.


Kate:
Birthmarked is one of my all-time favorite series.  I love the character development and teh world where water is a valiable commodity and used to create a sort of underclass.  I was immediately drawn in my the whole worl of teh midwives and some of the heartbreakingthings that they had to do.  Gaia is niave, but her bravery shines through!

Christine:
Overall-interesting world but a flat and boring main character. The 'bad' guys didn't seem that evil but there is a lot of potential for the next two books.

Maura:
I read through Birthmarked very quickly.  It was fast paced and kept my interest.  I was a little frustrated with Gaia's parents for keeping her in the dark (for no apparent reason).  As a mother, this was a hard read.  I couldn't imagine having to choose one of my twins.  I wished the author had added more decoding into the story line.  I really enjoyed that part of the book!

May 2013

Our April pick is......

In the future, in a world baked dry by the harsh sun, there are those who live inside the walled Enclave and those, like sixteen-year-old Gaia Stone, who live outside. Following in her mother's footsteps Gaia has become a midwife, delivering babies in the world outside the wall and handing a quota over to be "advanced" into the privileged society of the Enclave. Gaia has always believed this is her duty, until the night her mother and father are arrested by the very people they so loyally serve. Now Gaia is forced to question everything she has been taught, but her choice is simple: enter the world of the Enclave to rescue her parents, or die trying.

April Selection Follow-Up

The List inspired a lot of discussion about body image, high school cliques, and how we see ourselves vs. how others see us.

Which one do you feel most sorry for? Admiring of? Dislike?

The character that seemed to touch everyone the most was Bridget, who seemed trapped in her simultaneous desire to be admired and get help for her disordered eating.

Danielle was a favorite of everyone because of her ability to bounce back from the name calling and break-up and the way that she ultimately decided to be ok with who she was. 

Jennifer was universally disliked, but when the question of empathy was posed, everyone agreed that she was also an object of pity.

What role did the teachers/adults have in the book?

The role of adults was the basis of a larger discussion about whether something like this could keep happening under the eye of adults at home and at school.  The teachers/principal in the book existed behind the wall of silence that was put up by the girls and while the principal may have thought she was making progress, as a reader we knew that there was no way anyone was going to give out any information. 

The parents of the girls ranged from smothering to completely out of touch.  Even the parents that seemed to be involved in the lives of their kids didn't really know what was happening.  Everyone agreed that there was a certain amount of realism in the way the teens in the book gave the impression of being ok even when everything was falling apart.

Which girl did you identify with the most?

A few identified with Danielle and the place she found on the swim team, but many people also saw a little bit of themselves in each girl on the list

Observations
When we discussed The Fault In Our Stars, a point was made that Hazel Grace could have been a boy and the story would have had the same structure and impact.  However, The List seems to be a book that really works within the world of the high school girl experience.  Reading this book made many people realize how much the worries about looks stay with you, even as an adult with a career. 

Additional Discussion Points
Why girls are always the victim of these types of lists
The difference between the way boys and girls value looks and reputation

April 2013

Our April pick is.....




An intense look at the rules of high school attraction -- and the price that's paid for them.

It happens every year. A list is posted, and one girl from each grade is chosen as the prettiest, and another is chosen as the ugliest. Nobody knows who makes the list. It almost doesn't matter. The damage is done the minute it goes up.

This is the story of eight girls, freshman to senior, "pretty" and "ugly." And it's also the story of how we see ourselves, and how other people see us, and the tangled connection of the two.

Follow my blog with Bloglovin