Ask the Passengers - A.S. King

::Post by Jackie Lindert::

Synopsis: Astrid Jones desperately wants to confide in someone, but her mother's pushiness and her father's lack of interest tell her they're the last people she can trust. Instead, Astrid spends hours lying on the backyard picnic table watching airplanes fly overhead. She doesn't know the passengers inside, but they're the only people who won't judge her when she asks them her most personal questions . . . like what it means that she's falling in love with a girl. As her secret relationship becomes more intense and her friends demand answers, Astrid has nowhere left to turn. She can't share the truth with anyone except the people at thirty thousand feet, and they don't even know she's there. But little does Astrid know just how much even the tiniest connection will affect these strangers' lives--and her own--for the better. In this truly original portrayal of a girl struggling to break free of society's definitions, Printz Honor author A.S. King asks readers to question everything--and offers hope to those who will never stop seeking real love.

*Standing, teary-eyed ovation* This is an amazing book. This is an important book.

If I am ever an English teacher, I will have my students read this book. As I sit here, I honestly don't believe my simple words can do A.S. King justice. But if I can get anyone, just one person, to pick this up after reading my review, I will be a happy girl. I would carry this book around with me all day, just to be close to it--but then my bag would be even heavier, and I just know I'd keep giving my copy to someone and having to buy another. I'm just too broke for that.

If you've seen Shrek (if you haven't, please go ahead and do that now), you'll understand when I say this book was an onion. All the layers! Ask The Passengers hits the nail on the head when depicting small-town life better than so many other books that give you the overdone, small town, big dreams scenario. It's the little things in this book that make it so real and so perfect.

My favorite part about this book was Astrid's family dynamic. Her oversensitive, reputation-obsessed mother, her job challenged father, and her athlete sister, and Astrid all trying to live as one unit. At first, when Astrid's secrets start becoming public, her family seems horrible. They are more concerned about how what's being said about Astrid will affect their lives instead of being there for their daughter/sister. I definitely related to this, coming from a town where everyone's families know each other. There are a lot of consequences to living in a small town. People think you're tame, but I bet city slicker teens would have cried their eyes out after a week at my high school.

I also just absolutely love the unique way Astrid looks at stereotypes, and what "fitting in" really means. Nobody fits into one of those predetermined boxes perfectly. What if the jock isn't dumb? What if the geek is coordinated and could school the jock at basketball? What if the plain jane girl likes other girls instead of the boy next door? There is just too much pressure to be a certain way once you develop a hint of a personality, but it's not natural and teens should want to break those molds to be whoever they are and feel good about themselves.

The last thing I want to gush about is the actual passengers in Ask the Passengers. Somehow, this author got me to cry after reading a couple paragraphs to a couple pages about characters not even related to the main story. They were just flying over Astrid's head from time to time. Seriously, these tiny stories within the book were incredibly powerful.

Read this book. This is one of the ones I've read this year that I would recommend to anyone without reservation. Read it, and love it like I did. You'll be so glad you did.

Altered - Jennifer Rush

Synopsis: Everything about Anna’s life is a secret. Her father works for the Branch at the helm of its latest project: monitoring and administering treatments to the four genetically altered boys in the lab below their farmhouse. There’s Nick, Cas, Trev . . . and Sam, who’s stolen Anna’s heart. When the Branch decides it’s time to take the boys, Sam stages an escape, killing the agents sent to retrieve them. 
Anna is torn between following Sam or staying behind in the safety of her everyday life. But her father pushes her to flee, making Sam promise to keep her away from the Branch, at all costs. There’s just one problem. Sam and the boys don’t remember anything before living in the lab—not even their true identities.Now on the run, Anna soon discovers that she and Sam are connected in more ways than either of them expected. And if they’re both going to survive, they must piece together the clues of their past before the Branch catches up to them and steals it all away. (From Goodreads)

This book took me completely by surprise. There's all these things and feelings that I feel like I need to sort through, but I hardly know where to start. Every time I thought I knew what was going on, or where the story was going, I was totally taken by surprise. I don't really remember the last time this book kept me so completely on my toes. By the time I was heading into the last half of the book, I was flipping through the pages so fast. Jennifer Rush is amazing at making intense situations ambiguous so you have to keep reading so you can know how it turns out.

Oh. And have I mentioned yet that there isn't just one hot boy, or even just two. THERE ARE FOUR. And I love them all. Each one has his own personality, quirks and little things that just make me want to squish their cheeks and tell them how adorable they are. Even Sam, who's all business, is endearing. Nick is pretty much the only one I wouldn't go all squishy-cheeks over. He's scary. But in a way that makes me question my sanity because all I can think about is how hot he is when he's being scary. He's actually my favorite, mostly because I just want to know more about him and what he's thinking. Because he's always just on the verge of saying something revealing and meaningful, but he never quite gets there.

This is a story that just gets better and more complex as it goes on. It's like Sam's tattoo (a whole scene of birch trees on his back...which sounds incredible - can someone draw this please?) which is so much more than it seems. With all the memory loss there's just so much to find out when it comes to government experiments and secrets. It's all fast paced, but it's not breakneck. The beginning takes off pretty quick and the end happens so fast, but there's a nice plateau in the middle so there's a chance to get to know and connect with the characters.

This book is well written and entertaining. I'm definitely going to need more of this story - because the complexities raise so many more questions. Plus, I NEED to know more about why Nick is so intense. If you liked False Memory by Dan Krokos, definitely check out this book. There are some of the same things going on - memory loss, government experiments to turn people into weapons, and all the things that go along with such scenarios.

The Diviners - Libba Bray

Synopsis: Evie O'Neill has been exiled from her boring old hometown and shipped off to the bustling streets of New York City--and she is pos-i-toot-ly thrilled. New York is the city of speakeasies, shopping, and movie palaces! Soon enough, Evie is running with glamorous Ziegfield girls and rakish pickpockets. The only catch is Evie has to live with her Uncle Will, curator of The Museum of American Folklore, Superstition, and the Occult--also known as "The Museum of the Creepy Crawlies."
When a rash of occult-based murders comes to light, Evie and her uncle are right in the thick of the investigation. And through it all, Evie has a secret: a mysterious power that could help catch the killer--if he doesn't catch her first. (From Goodreads)

Libba Bray is a storytelling master. She's genius. She's so awesome that I will read her ginormous book and love every single second of it. Because she doesn't seem to be satisfied with just telling a story - she goes beyond and puts you into the lives of the people involved in that story. Even better, this book acts more like a portal directly into 1920's New York where you can put your face to the glass and really feel like you're seeing it all play out first hand.

Evie is such a fun character. Shes kind of crazy, but she just doesn't let other people stop her from doing what she wants to do. As a person who colors within the lines and follows rules, I kind of admire this. Even as a rebellious teen, she's still not like any character I've read before. Evie commands most pages in this book, but a few other characters get some pretty decent face time as well. There's Memphis, the healer, and Theta, the beautiful dancer with a mysterious past. I loved these subplots that added such great dimension and depth.

This book is all fun and games until people start dying in terrifying ways. I actually had nightmares while I was reading this book. I'd fall asleep reading (because it was late, not because the book is a sedative) and then wake up completely terrified. But this book is so worth the nightmares. The villain will make your skin crawl. The settings will make your heart pound and your breath a little quicker.

Libba Bray has long been one of my favorite authors. Her acknowledgements are even incredible written works. I'll forever read anything that she writes and every time I read her books, she again earns her place in my favorites list. She's incredible, and this book is such a powerhouse and exemplary piece of fiction. I'm blown away and completely enamoured.

Secondary Character Saturday (10)

I've started a new weekly meme here and I'd love for you to join me. Saturdays are now dedicated to honor the characters that don't always get their voices heard, who support (or work to destroy) our beloved protagonists. This is for the third wheel in the love triangle (can you have wheels on a triangle?), for the BFFs, the family members, or even just the kind and loving (or deceitful and creepy) stranger who shows up and changes the game. We all know these stories wouldn't hold up without support so I'd like to take the time to highlight the best secondary characters I come across. This is an opportunity to talk about what makes these characters special, maybe to speculate what their world would be like without them, or maybe cast them in their own primary roles. If you'd like to create a SCS post leave your link in the comments and I'll check it out!

So today it's all about:

Georgia from Bitter End

This book affected me quite a bit - if you want more on that read my review. But it was the parts with Georgia that really broke me down. If you haven't read Bitter End, it's about a girl in an abusive relationship. Her mother is dead, her father is distant, and she's isolated from her friends. So Georgia becomes very important in Alex's life. She's her boss, but she's the closest thing Alex has to a mother figure.

It was through Georgia that I really related to the story. I've always worked for families and I've always felt a little like a part of those families. But when I was at school, I worked at a coffee shop. I worked for this amazing woman and she became my mother away from home. She was always caring, she took time to know what was going on with me, she always offered advice, and more than once she voiced her concern when I was hanging around with the wrong boys. So I recognized the importance of Georgia's role in Alex's story.

Since Alex was so isolated, it was easy to see how she got inside her own head and rationalized the violence and anger in her relationship. It was easy to put up a haze around those incidents and give them dream-like qualities. But when she's around Georgia, who can see through her veils and who is able to listen when Alex decides to talk, she makes it real. And then it became devastating.

I just hope that everyone has a Georgia in their life. Whether you need a Georgia or not, she's always a good person to have. It's beautiful when someone cares for you that much, with no strings attached. 

Bitter End - Jennifer Brown

Synopsis: When Alex falls for the charming new boy at school, Cole -- a handsome, funny, sports star who adores her -- she can't believe she's finally found her soul mate . . . someone who truly loves and understands her.
At first, Alex is blissfully happy. Sure, Cole seems a little jealous of her relationship with her close friend Zack, but what guy would want his girlfriend spending all her time with another boy? As the months pass, though, Alex can no longer ignore Cole's small put-downs, pinches, or increasingly violent threats.
As Alex struggles to come to terms with the sweet boyfriend she fell in love with and the boyfriend whose "love" she no longer recognizes, she is forced to choose -- between her "true love" and herself. (From Goodreads)

I read this book knowing before hand that it was going to rip me to shreds. I don't know why I put myself through things like this, but I always feel a little different when I read these intensely powerful books. And I do feel different after reading this one. It seems like a new beginning, after enduring something hard - even if it wasn't actually happening to me.

I don't know why, but my number one fear is getting into an abusive relationship. There's no logical explanation for this fear - I've never felt unsafe and I've never actually seen much violence. I just can't stand the thought of someone that you love and trust taking away your power and your control.

I hesitate to even say that this book is amazing, because it feels a little wrong to put out examples of abuse and say - hey this is great. But I will say that this book is strong. It's a story that carries a heavy weight, but Jennifer Brown doesn't ever make her readers wade through psychological pain and drama. It begins with Alex before Cole, goes through meeting him, falling in love, and then finding herself becoming isolated and her control slowly leeched away from her. Alex is a strong and beautiful character. It's easy to see an abused woman and incredulously wonder why she doesn't fight back, or leave. But I never felt that way with Alex. Brown follows her mental status through the whole thing and you can see the way her mind becomes altered between her emotions and physical abuse.

When reading about abuse, the focus always seems to be on the girl. But I couldn't help wondering through this book - what goes through the abuser's head? Do they choose a certain type of girl? Or is it just whoever seems to come into their path? Do they see that she has friends and family and actively think - I need to get rid of them? Do they hit and then think - oh, I better do something nice to keep her around? I've never really thought of these things, but for some reason I was yearning to get into Cole's head so I could analyze and understand his actions.

I think the reason this book was so effective in breaking me down was Brown's incredible portrayal of Alex's interior process. I found myself getting upset with her friends for abandoning her - even though it makes perfect sense why they do. I was frustrated with her father and sister for giving Alex reasons for finding solace elsewhere. And I was thoroughly shocked that I was able to distance the actual abuse, as if it was happening somewhere else. It was when people said things that indicated they knew something was going on, or Alex actually talked about it out loud, that it became real. I couldn't believe I hadn't felt that intensity when it was happening, but only when others saw it as well. When the people who cared about her became involved, I lost it. Alex is a strong character, but the people who can pick you up when that strength is tested are just as important.

I don't know how others will react. My reactions were intense and emotional because of my own fears. Even so, Brown has an impressive skill for dealing with a touchy subject. She is a wonderful writer, and I'm going to pick up Hate List as soon as I can and I'm definitely anticipating Perfect Escape, out in July. Based off Bitter End, I believe she has a talent for telling the stories that need to be told, to be heard.