STRONG Characters

STRONG, in all caps, characters are leaders that can be viewed as role models and influential people in literature. STRONG characters seek excellence, but not at the expense of others. They strive to be the best they can be, but understand their limitations. They display their generosity and teach others, but also realize when it’s their turn to follow instead of lead. They face their obstacles and succeed, or at least try, to defeat their fears and demons. STRONG characters are often liked, main characters in novels. However, any book character, much like any person, can be STRONG. Listed below are three STRONG female and male characters and what traits, skills, and values they possess.

Three STRONG Female Characters

• Evie, from Paranormalcy: Determined, thoughtful, and witty, Evie always does her job, containing paranormal creatures, in a timely manner. Assertive, but not harmful, she disarms her suspects, but always makes sure that they are properly treated and are set on the right track at the International Paranormal Containment Agency (IPCA). A good friend to her mermaid pal, Evie demonstrates a STRONG, powerful aura of stability and gratitude.

• Lanesha, from Ninth Ward: Young and independent, Lanesha must take lead over her elderly guardian, Mama Ya-Ya, her dog, Spot, and her friends, TaShon, Max, and Ginia, as the take cover in the heart of Hurricane Katrina: the poverty-stricken Ninth Ward of New Orleans. Lanesha has the ability to see ghosts, including her deceased mother. Despite be mocked for her ability, Lanesha remains kind, curious, and STRONG during such an uncertain time.

• Liesel, from The Book Thief: Facing a new foster family during a difficult time in the world’s history, WWII, Liesel must adapt to new surroundings and new ways of living. Hiding the majority of the time due to her religion, Judaism, Liesel teaches and occupies herself while living in conditions that would cause many to give up. STRONG till the end, Liesel’s story is one to be heard.

Three STRONG Male Characters

• Marcelo, from Marcelo in the Real World: Born with Asperger’s Syndrome (a form of autism), Marcelo is proud of his abilities. Enjoying taking care of animals and learning the Christian religion, Marcelo is not afraid to speak his mind. But when he’s forced to get a job in the mail room of his father’s law firm, Marcelo must enter a whole new world, where not everybody is kind or easy to understand. Marcelo must be STRONG to be prosperous.

• Doug, from Okay for Now: Between moving to a new house, attending a new school, and living with an abusive father, being STRONG is not easy for Doug. However, finding friends at the local library and solitude in drawing, Doug discovers how happiness and generosity can change people for the better.

• Brewster “Bruiser,” from Bruiser: An outcast, a loner. Teased, bullied. Brewster, better known to his classmates as “Bruiser,” is always silent, the bruises covering his body the only thing expressing that something’s wrong with him. When Brewster falls in love with a girl named Brontë and becomes best friends with her brother, Tennyson, he begins to feel like he is STRONG enough to reveal his dark secrets.

(images via and via and via)

John Green: Stories that Sing and Soar

“What sings and soars in this gorgeously told tale is Green’s mastery of language,” wrote Kirkus Reviews in a review of John Green’s novel Looking for Alaska. Looking for Alaska, the winner of the 2006 Michael L. Printz Award for Young Adult Literature, is John Green’s first published book, but not his only award winner. Green’s books have accumulated legions of fans, stunning reviews, and armfuls of awards.

Just because Favorite Author Month, May, is over here on The Bookshelf doesn’t mean I’ve stopped recognizing great, favorite authors. John Green, an author from Indiana, writes novels about facing difficult situations of identity in a realistic manner. Having written three books and co-written two more, John Green writes deftly, blending loneliness, sorrow, humor, love, and self-realization to create stories that soar high above the bar of standard young adult literature. Choosing abnormal situations that can be matched with more realistic ones, Green brings the words on the page into the mind of the reader, planting questions and harvesting ideas. I have all five of John Green’s books, and I give them all five out five stars. I think it’s agreed that John Green is an author worthy of recognition here on The Bookshelf.

Looking for Alaska tells the story of Miles “Pudge” (ironic because he is tall and lanky). Miles, a loner who thrills himself in learning the last words of famous figures, begins attending boarding school, in search for the “Great Perhaps” (part of Rabelais’s last words). At this new boarding school, Pudge develops many new friends, some of which you would not call the best of influences. These friends include Colonel, a roommate who acts, well, like a colonel, and Alaska Young, a colorful, mysterious girl. Surprised at how deep his new friends’ thoughts are, Pudge sees the world from a different angle. Finally finding happiness and friends, Pudge thinks he’s on his way to the Great Perhaps. Until, of course, something terrible happens. Using humor and an interesting storytelling method of counting the days before and then the days after a certain event, Looking for Alaska is a great book for mature readers about decisions and the impacts they have on yourself and others.

 

Two other books by John Green, An Abundance of Katherines and Paper Towns, also tell eloquent tales of trials and tribulations throughout the often harsh journey known as life. While these books pull key elements from Looking for Alaska, elements that made Alaska amazing, they are their own books, all completely original and diverse. An Abundance of Katherines won a Printz Honor.

Will Grayson, Will Grayson, co-written by John Green with David Levithan, and Let it Snow, co-written with Maureen Johnson and Lauren Myracle, are both fun, engaging reads that also contribute to Green’s repertoire.

Through a YouTube channel, Vlogbrothers, John and his brother, Hank, have been making vlogs (video blogs) since 2008. Quirky and different, these videos offer facts about current events, opinions about current events, news about John’s books, and other assorted facts. With 539,164 subscribers and counting, the fans of these videos call themselves “nerfighters.” And fight they do. Through raising money for organizations across the world, supporting terminally ill nerdfighters, and creating sayings whose meanings are only known to them, nerdfighters and John and Hank Green have made a big impact on the world.

With his incredible writing, expert symbolism, and excellent storytelling, John Green is an author like no other. His next book, The Fault in Our Stars was number one on Amazon for six days after Green he announced that all preorders would be signed by him personally. The amazing thing is that that book won’t be published until early next year. I will be preordering my copy soon, so I’ll be ensured that I will receive the literary world’s next masterpiece. 

(images via and via and via and via)

An Obituary for Borders

                Borders                           

Borders, 40-years-old, will be laid to rest later this year. He was pronounced dead on Monday, July 18th, 2011.

Borders, the second most visited bookstore in the United States, was a fighter to the end. Introducing many new products and ideas, Borders will be missed by many, especially in areas where he was the only major chain bookstore living. Trying to stay current and innovative, Borders made many attempts at new marketing and selling programs. However, in an uncertain business, rattled by a rocky economy and the ever-expanding eBook market, Borders was unable to make it. Still trying to please his millions of customers, Borders will be offering going-out-of-business sales throughout the rest of the summer and fall of 2011.

Beginning as just a single used bookstore in Ann Arbor, Michigan, Borders climbed his way up to success, creating a place, a home, where people of all ages could visit. Always encouraging reading and writing, Borders offered events, parties, and other engaging activities for the people of his community.

Borders is survived by his fellow book stores: Barnes and Noble; Books-A-Million, who will take Borders’s place as the second most visited bookstore in the U.S.; online stores such as, Amazon and Book Depository; and local independent book sellers.

It is unknown the official date of when the memorial service will be held. It is believed that after all liquidation sales are completed, separate services may be held at the locations of Borderses across the map.

In lieu of flowers, the family of Borders has requested that readers keep reading and book lovers remain loving.

Online condolences may be expressed to Borders’s family in the comments section.

 

My sincerest hope is that we remain in the hearts of readers for years to come.

– Mike Edwards, CEO of Borders

Wish You Were Dead: Be Careful What You Blog For

The first in Todd Strasser’s cyber “thrill-ogy”, Wish You Were Dead is a chilling mystery paired with a side of adventure, intrigue, and ever-bountiful plot twists. Recommended to me by my local library, Wish You Were Dead sows questions in your mind about social class, popularity, and the effect your words have on people.

Taking place in a ritzy neighborhood, Soundview, a community that isn’t often faced with crime, Wish You Were Dead follows Madison, a rich, but well-intentioned, high schooler. Madison, who volunteers with her community’s Safe Drives, an organization that offers ride to inebriated teens departing from parties, finds herself in a big mess after one fatal accident. Madison and her Safe Drives partner, Tyler, make the mistake of dropping a girl, Lucy, off without waiting for to enter her house. All Safe Drives volunteers are required to wait until the partygoer enters their house before leaving, but it was late, Madison was tired, and Lucy was being uncooperative. Leaving Lucy, Tyler and Madison returned to their homes to sleep. But when Madison waked up in the morning, she learned that Lucy had went missing, leaving no signs as to where she escaped to. Madison, shocked and guilty, was unsure what to think. Lucy, also another rich girl, used to be Madison’s best friend.  Madison called off the friendship because of Lucy’s extreme competitiveness and the mood swings that came from her bipolar condition.

the sequel to Wish You Were Dead

At first, Lucy is declared by the cops as a “runaway.” But as Lucy’s boyfriend, Adam, also another ex-friend of Madison’s, also goes missing, the cops, the parents, and the students of Soundview begin to worry. Madison, afraid that she will be the next “popular” to go, begins a search to find the kidnapper, who, as people begin to speculate, may be a murderer. Through a series of Facebook stalker messages, slashed tires, and handwritten notes, Madison begins to make some connections to the disappearances. However, for each connection made, a double amount of questions are created.  A culmination of plot twists and exposures causes Madison to view her former friends, her teachers, her best friend, Whitney, Tyler, and herself in a different light.

After the discovery of an anonymous blog, which, in detail, lists the cruel actions made and words spewed by the popular kids at Soundview High, Madison tries to improve her attitude, generosity, and friendliness in an attempt to avoid being the next one taken by the Soundview Kidnapper.

Using 21st technology to make an edge-of-your-seat, read-it-in-one-sitting-and-never-forgot-it thriller, Wish You Were Dead expertly weaves crime, loneliness, popularity, and rejection to create one engaging and horrifyingly creative story.

A companion to Wish You Were Dead, Blood on My Hands, another thriller that incorporates the cyber aspect, is now available.

Rating: 5.0 out of 5 stars

 (images via and via)

Mockingbird: Hope, Resilience in One Small Package

Mockingbird, by Kathryn Erskine, is the 2010 National Book Award recipient for young people’s literature. Sweet and emotional, Mockingbird is told by Caitlin, a ten-year-old with Asperger’s syndrome, a form of autism.  Caitlin, an exceptional artist, lives with her family, which now only consists of her and her dad. Her older brother, Devon, used to also be a part of Caitlin’s family. However, after a tragic school shooting, Devon is gone from Caitlin’s life. Forever. 

Devon was always a source of guidance for Caitlin. He offered her assistance, encouraged her creativity, and taught her how to act properly in world that is so strange to her. But now that Devon is dead and gone, Caitlin must fend for herself in a scary, cruel world. Her dad is of little assistance; he is too busy mourning the death of his son, the mediator of their abnormal family. 

paperback edition

 

Visits with the school’s guidance counselor do not help Caitlin understand or cope with her family’s tragedy. She is often teased and stared at in school. People call her “freak,” or try to sympathize with her, or just avoid her altogether. The only thing that helps Caitlin deal with her pain is her artwork. But people even try to change that. They ask her to add color or try different techniques that don’t appeal to Caitlin. For her, art is an escape, not a skill.

It is only after Caitlin meets Michael, a first grader, that she has someone to share her feelings with. Michael’s mom was also killed in the school shooting. Caitlin’s mind, an area of imagination and confusion, is a war zone of thought. While she will never be the same again, Caitlin learns to use situations thrown at her to make wise decisions and establish relationships.

A short, but deep, novel, Mockingbird draws references from Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird to create a touching story of a family of two that was once a family of three. The vivid first person narrative is an eye-opening experience of Asperger’s syndrome and how it makes difficult situations even more uneasy. Thoughtful, caring, and hopeful, Mockingbird tells a story of light after darkness. 

Rating: 4.0 out of 5 stars