Measured in Millimeters

Like most of the rest of the civilized world, France uses the metric system. So diminutive Toby Lolness, the protagonist in Timothee Fombelle's fantastic Toby Alone (translated from the French by Sarah Ardizzone), is described as "one and a half millimeters tall." That's better than "3/32 of an inch," although I had to wonder how the people of Toby's world, who are confined to the landscape of a single tree, ever figured out what a millimeter was.

Toby's world is one in which water runs like rivers through the canyons created by tree bark's texture, in which birds are almost immeasurable monsters that descend from the sky like a mythical dragons, in which everyone lives on or in or at least fastened to one truly enormous (to the little people anyway) Tree. The Tree provides everything. Of course there are those who appreciate what the tree gives them, and then there are those who just want to exploit the Tree for their own gain. Sound familiar?

Toby, our 1.5 mm hero, is on the run, being hunted by nearly every other citizen of the Tree (all of whom are in the single digits, millimeter-wise). Toby's parents are in prison and some of his closest friends have turned on him. Why? Because Toby’s father is an inventor who has discovered an almost magical source of energy within the Tree's sap, an energy source that, if harvested, may cause irreparable damage to the Tree. Toby's father, more concerned with the health of the Tree than with the benefits his discovery could bring to the Tree's people, refuses to reveal the secrets of the energy source. Led by big time construction contractor Joe Mitch, the people of the Tree turn on Toby's father and drive him into exile amongst the distant lower branches. Down there, Tree people must contend with the savage Grass People who constantly threaten to invade the Tree—at least that’s what Toby has heard. But finally, Joe Mitch considers exile not punishment enough for the Lolnesses and Toby's parents are captured and Toby is left to flee on his own.

Toby's adventure is well-paced and while the narrative jumps around quite erratically in time, its elements unfold organically. The reader sweats and pants along with Toby whether he is fleeing or facing his enemies, in either case relying on superior cleverness to defeat them. Each time someone betrays Toby, the reader feels the knife in his own back. Toby also grows organically, becoming, by the end, an almost entirely different character. And yet the change occurs so subtly that it's difficult to pick out a single point in the narrative where the change takes place. Toby's world is masterfully presented and de Fombelle has no end of fun in finding tree corollaries for many of the technologies that we larger people (measuring approximately 1,753 millimeters) enjoy. While we milk cows, the Tree people milk insect larvae. While we have bulldozers, the little tree people breed and train giant weevils. The reader begins to believe that if people really were that small they could indeed live off the bounty of such a tree. Thousands of species, after all, do exactly that. De Fombelle seems to understand bugs and vegetation well enough to make the story perfectly believable.

I did find some of the themes of the book cause for . . . maybe not concern but at least careful consideration. Toby's father does not exactly act as a censor of information; he promises not to stand in the way of other scientists and inventors who seek the secrets of the Tree's sap. But I wonder what his moral obligations are regarding this information. While of course I agree with the book's environmental message that the Tree should not be mindlessly and limitlessly tapped for its energy, I don't like the idea of an elite individual privy to knowledge which isn't shared with the larger populous. Still, that Toby Alone's plot centers on such an issue is laudable. It's one of the more complex treatments related to science and environmentalism that I've seen in a book for young people and it certainly leaves the door open for debate on what's right.

I also found the violence in the book mildly disturbing. While in general de Fombelle seems to emphasize the use of brains over brawn, and his good and noble characters usually fret over situations in which they must hurt people in order to survive, there are also instances of particularly brutal violence being treated as funny, as a kind of slapstick pratfall which might leave every bone in your body bruised or broken. Again, this inconsistency is at once unsettling and an invitation to the reader to consider the consequences of physical confrontation.

The book has a satisfying ending, but leaves a number of unanswered questions likely to be addressed in the forthcoming sequel, Toby and the Secrets of the Tree.

Crossposted at Critique de Mr. Chompchomp

Say hello to my literary friend: interviews with Al Pacino

I love reading about the creative process. I'll devour critical analyses of writers I've never read (and some times never heard of). I feel cheated if a DVD doesn't have a commentary track. If I like something, I want to know how it came about.

A lot of artists (in the broadest sense) try to write about their own creative process. One of the best is Stephen King's semi-autobiography On Writing, but then again, writers should be good at putting their process into words. Musicians generally fail at this; visual artists do somewhat better. But the absolute worst tend to be actors, who combine a thin level of intelligence with an over-inflated sense of self and a deep-seated belief that, to put it rather crudely, their own farts don't smell.

But there are exceptions, and one of them is Al Pacino.

There's no denying his status (he's played Michael Corleone, Frank Serpico, Tony Montana, Big Boy Caprice and Satan) but what Lawrence Grobel's collection of career-spanning interviews makes clear is that Pacino is both talented and extremely intelligent about his craft Al Pacino, the book, is as surprising at Al Pacino the actor.



Pacino started as a theater actor, and even after movie stardom he continues to tread the boards. He's knowledgaeble about Shakespeare, understands the core of contemporary drama and has even financed and directed a couple of films based on stage plays, unreleased until a recent DVD box set.



The interviews span his career from the late 70s to the mid 00s. His perspective matures as he does, and changes dramatically when he has children. There are personal, gossipy bits, but the book is mostly interested in finding how Pacino the person channels into Pacino the actor, and how that actor views his craft.



All teenage boys know Pacino from Scarface, even if it's only from the omnipresent posters or quotes ("Say hello to my li'l friend!") that have permeated hip-hop culture. They might even know him from Heat, or the classic Godfather films. What they might not know is how far from the "real" Pacino these characters truly are. The man revealed by these interviews is both talented and lucky, that's true; but he also, even as he closes in on age 70, continues to challenge himself. Not many of his status, in any field, dare to do the same.

The Rock and the River -- Kekla Magoon

Chicago, 1968. As the son of a famous civil rights activist, 13-year-old Sam Childs' life is complicated as it is -- living in the public eye is difficult, his father's expectations are high, and there isn't much room for differing opinions. Luckily, Stick, his older brother and best friend, understands and supports him.

But then Stick changes -- he has new friends, spends more and more time out of the house, is more quick to challenge his father's beliefs and actions, is openly critical about the non-violent methods used by the civil rights movement, and, more upsetting than anything else, is clearly keeping secrets from Sam.

When Sam finds and reads some Black Panther literature hidden under Stick's bed, he realizes that he needs to understand Stick's new way of thinking for himself -- regardless of what his father thinks.

I've read quite a few books about the civil rights movement written for middle grade and teen audiences, and I'm pretty sure that The Rock and the River is the first one I've read that deals with the beginnings of the Black Panther Party -- or the Black Panther Party at all, for that matter. I'm also pretty sure that it's the first one I've read that explores the differences of opinion within the civil rights movement. I found both of those aspects of the book completely fascinating.

I did feel that to some extent, the characters took a backseat to the history -- that they served as props in a lesson, rather than the history serving as a backdrop for a story about people -- but I do feel that not all readers will share that opinion. And even though I felt that the characters were more archetype than human, that isn't to say that there was no tension in the book -- from the moment of the gun's introduction, I worried about how it would eventually be used. So, while I didn't find it an amazing read, I found it a compelling read -- and it's certainly one that I'll keep in mind when I'm helping young patrons find historical fiction.

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Book source: Review copy from the publisher; Cybils nominee.

Notable Boy-Friendly Books Read in 2009

At the end of the week, when one year ends and another begins, I will post my Best Books of 2009 list at Bildungsroman, my book blog. I have a sneak-peek version available at Amazon: Best Books of 2009 (So Far) - but, as I've read over 300 books this year, that's just the tip of the iceberg.

Today, for GuysLitWire, I thought I'd post a list of some good books I read this year which were written by men and/or feature male protagonists. These are all works of fiction, though some are inspired by true events. (Hurrah for historical fiction!) I've included graphic novels and novels with artwork, dramas and comedies, sequels and series, first-person narratives and ensemble pieces. The titles are in the order in which they were read, so a title's placement is not indicative of anything other than when I read it. No rankings here -- just recommendations.

* This is What I Want to Tell You by Heather Duffy Stone
* The Waking: Dreams of the Dead by Thomas Randall
* The Map of Moments: A Novel of the Hidden Cities by Christopher Golden and Tim Lebbon (Note: This is adult fiction, not YA, and thus shelved in the sci-fi/fantasy section of bookstores and libraries.)
* Dancing on the Head of a Pin by Thomas E. Sniegoski (the follow-up to A Kiss Before the Apocalypse)
* So Punk Rock (and Other Ways to Disappoint Your Mother) by Micol Ostow with art by David Ostow
* Adventures in Cartooning: How to Turn Your Doodles Into Comics by James Sturm, Andrew Arnold, and Alexis Frederick-Frost
* Legacy by Tom Sniegoski
* Jumping Off Swings by Jo Knowles
* The Storm in the Barn by Matt Phelan
* Love is the Higher Law by David Levithan
* Bug Boy by Eric Luper
* After Ever After by Jordan Sonnenblick (coming out in February 2010, this is the follow-up to Drums, Girls & Dangerous Pie)
* Operation Yes by Sara Lewis Holmes

I'm throwing in four bonus titles - two picture books and two non-fiction titles - which may not be typical GLW fodder but are completely worth your time:

* Peg Leg Peke by Brie Spangler, a sweet picture book about a dog whose injury is overshadowed by his wonderful imagination and upbeat attitude;
* Hug Time by Patrick McDonnell, another adorable Mutts book about a happy-go-lucky dog named Earl
* Guardians of Being, with powerful words by Eckhart Tolle and lovely art by Patrick McDonnell
* The Complete Professional Audition: A Commonsense Guide To Auditioning For Musicals and Plays by Darren R. Cohen with Michael Perilstein (and a foreword by Jason Robert Brown), one of the best resources I've ever read on the subject. I highly recommend it to any and all of my fellow stage actors.

Break a leg, GuysLitWire folks, and crack open a good book!

Gone by Michael Grant

Gone, the first novel in a planned six book series by Michael Grant, starts off with a bang. Or, to be more accurate, without a bang, a flash of light, or an explosion. But, wow, is it an exciting start to a series.

Sam Temple is in history class when his teacher suddenly disappears. As in, was there one moment, and the next he was gone. Sam and his classmates soon realize that EVERYONE over the age of 14 disappeared from the town of Perdido Beach, California.

While the other kids in town quickly look to Sam for leadership, Sam just wants to find a way to escape and find out what really happened, worried about his recently discovered ability to create light from his hands. Into this leadership void step the Perdido Beach School bullies and, eventually, a small group of students from Coates Academy, a boarding school for wealthy troublemakers, who have an agenda of their own. Led by the charismatic Caine Soren, they quickly move to consolidate power, enforcing order and creating new rules. Caine immediately realizes Sam is their biggest obstacle, both because of how the Perdido Beach kids look to him and because the strength of Sam’s superpowers may rival Caine’s own. And if the Coates kids need to eliminate Sam to retain power, well, they don't see anything wrong with trying to do just that.

Even at 558 pages, Gone is a very fast read. Despite its length, though, there isn’t much character development, something that didn't actually bother me since it’s plenty entertaining on plot alone and this is the first book in a series, setting things up for future books. Grant manages to sustain the fast pace by combining multiple sources of suspense—why did the adults disappear? What do the hours and minutes running down before each chapter mean? Will they have enough resources to survive? What caused all the superpowers and mutations? Will there be a Coates Academy vs. Perdido Beach showdown? and more—in such a way that enhances the momentum of the story instead of bogging it down. He doesn't let up on the tension, and the fast pace of the story will have many readers racing through the pages, eager to find out what will happen next.

Once you've read Gone, you'll want to pick up the second book in the series, Hunger, which was published this past May. You will, however, have to wait until May 2010 for book three, Lies.

Let's hear it for the Second Line

Poppy Z. Brite had a collection of two novellas come out from Small Beer Press in October that are both excellent. Second Line includes both The Value of X and D*U*C*K. The Value of X should be particularly noteworthy for teens, as it is the coming out and coming-of-age stories of two of Brite's long time characters, future chefs (and restaurant owners) Rickey and G-Man. Here's a bit on the collection from Small Beer:

These two short novels bookend Poppy Z. Brite’s cheerfully chaotic series starring two chefs in New Orleans. The Value of X introduces G-man and Rickey, who grew up in New Orleans’ Lower Ninth Ward and who are slowly realizing there are only two important things in life: cooking and each other. Rickey’s parents aren’t quite so taken with the boy’s plans and get him an impossible-to-resist place at the Culinary Institute of America.

In D*U*C*K, Rickey and G-man’s restaurant, Liquor, is doing well but there are the usual complications of running a kitchen: egos get bruised, people get fired . . . and then Rickey is jumped in an alley by one of their ex-waiters.

On the mend, Rickey takes a side job to cater the annual Ducks Unlimited banquet, where every course must, of course, include the ducks the hunters have bagged. Rickey’s crew are ready to meet the challenge, but Rickey’s not sure he can do it all and deal with the guest of honor—his childhood hero, former New Orleans Saints quarterback Bobby Hebert.

Originally published in limited hardcover editions by Subterranean Press, these two novels are full of the pure joy of love, hard work, and great food and are a tremendous extension (or introduction) to Brite’s series.

Brite's books and stories about New Orleans are some of my all time favorite comfort reading and fans of southern writing and food should not let this collection pass them by. Great stuff, for sure.

I KILL GIANTS by Joe Kelly + JM Ken Nimura

You go to school and announce to your fifth grade class that you kill giants. Really. You kill giants. What do they say?

You are crazy. A nutcase. A freak.

Barbara Thorson is a skinny kid with bunny ears and a heart-shaped purse holding her magic hammer named Coveleski. With that hammer she kills giants. And she is angry, so she may be the worst (or perhaps the best) kind of giant-killer: an angry giant-killer. So, you would do yourself a favor and not get Barbara pissed. But giants can do exactly that to all of us. We never really know when our own giant will rear its ugly head. So, wouldn’t we all be lucky to have our own magic hammer?

I Kill Giants started life as a short series of comic books, and now, wonderfully for all of us, it’s available as a single graphic novel. It’s tough to review this book without giving away key elements to the plot, but I’ll dance around those and give you just a taste of the story. First and foremost, don’t assume too much from the title. Barbara may slay giants, but the world is filled with so many different kinds of towering beasts.

Tormented at school, without a friend, and struggling through her own private turmoil, Barbara’s life is a bowl overfilled with grief and fury. But no matter the words people say or the cruelty they inflict, Barbara refuses to back down. After all, she can confront those enraged giants and eliminate them with the mighty Coveleski hammer.

Two people become important to her. Sophia, a new girl in town, is the friend she desperately needs. Mrs. Molle, the school social worker, refuses to give up on Barbara – even after the girl lands a vicious slap across her face. There is a beautiful scene I just loved. Barbara learns that Mrs. Molle did not tell the principal about the slap. They sit together and Mrs. Molle says, “Tell me about giants.” So they talk about giants. Barbara tells Mrs. Molle about the magic hammer, and she asks to see it. Barbara says no. “Because I like you… I don’t want you to hurt yourself. When Coveleski speaks, the world cries.”

The black and white artwork is splendid. Messy. Intense. Angry. It perfectly captures life inside Barbara’s brain. We see the world through Barbara’s eyes – not just what she sees, but how she sees it. I Kill Giants is a perfect example of the power of graphic novels to not just tell stories, but to tell different kinds of stories. The images are as vital to the story as the words. And don’t let anyone tell you graphic novels can’t be about important ideas. Read I Kill Giants and you will find plenty of ideas. Filled with humanity and emotion and grace, this story will resonate with all of us as we move through life confronting our giants.

You will listen... Candor

Prepare your brain.

*Incoming message transmitted.*

You must read Candor. This book is different. This book has a clever boy. Too clever if he thinks he has a chance against a town's (his father's!) subliminal messages.
So I think I have discovered my favorite read of 2009. Candor by Pam Bachorz.

We all love stories about boys who fight against the system. After all, when we're on the sofa or at the beach reading, we're basically just loafing about, so if we can live vicariously through a hero facing incredible odds, we're cheering on the inside as we flip the page.

Oscar Banks is my new hero. He's the worm in the pretty apple that is Candor, a town that is seemingly perfect. Too perfect. No crime, no violence, everyone listens. That's because Oscar's own father has invented a system of messages that the brain picks up. Yep, good ol' brainwashing. At school the kids are told not to be late to class, not to cheat, not to disobey. At home, the kids hear (without ever being aware of it) to eat their veggies, do their homework, make their beds.

Oscar's aware of what is going on and fights every day to keep control. If he fails, he'll slowly become one of the grinning good boys. If his father ever finds out he resists, he'll be hauled off to the Listening Room for a complete mental wipe.

In other words, the stakes are dire.

Why does he stay? Well, he's a bit mercenary and been running an underground freedom train for rich kids who want out (parents pay a million dollars to buy a house in Candor).

Things start to go awry when Nia moves into town. She's rebellious when she arrives and Oscar's attraction is sudden and fierce. Which leaves him in a dilemma: if he helps her out of town, he probably won't ever see her again; but if she stays, she'll become a drone and what he likes in her will be destroyed. What's a schemer to do?

Complications like a dreadful rich kid client who is jealous of the attention Oscar's giving Nia as opposed to helping him escape Candor, Oscar's old girlfriend, and dealing with the family dysfunction that drove the father to create a "perfect environment safe from harm" mean that the book has plenty of moments where you'll go damn. In a good way.

I love so much the many subliminal messages. For instance:

Saturday night is family night. Save your weekends for family time. Make your family a priority.

Always be courteous.

Respectful space in every place.

The great are never late.

Kinda chilling in a numb, whitebread way, right?

This is Bachorz's debut novel. I'm impressed. I'm envious. I didn't want to stop reading. Oh, and what an ending... but I can't tell you that. I want to, I so do. But something is keeping me. Like a whisper at the back of my mind...

Candor by Pam Bachorz

Librarians love lists. They especially love making lists of books. More than anything though, they love lists of "if you like book A, then you will also like books B, C and D." Candor by Pam Barchorz will soon be on numerous read-alikes lists for Lois Lowry's The Giver.

While Candor will never be the classic must-read that The Giver is, it fits in a lot of the same themes. Oscar Banks is the most popular kid in Candor, Florida. Oscar's father built Candor, a town where parents bring their troubled families to live their ideal life. What the town's children don't know is that they are being manipulated and re-programmed by messages piped into the city through music. The only way to leave Candor is through Oscar, who knows how to neutralize the messages and sneak other teens out of town. Oscar has carefully crafted his life in Candor to please his father and provide a cover for undermining his father's "perfect" creation. Eventually he meets Nia, an amazing girl who he wants to save from Candor, but he is not sure he can accomplish that without exposing what he is doing.

Candor is a smart and occasionally creepy Sci-fi novel about individuality and the problems in any modern society. This is a very solid debut by Bachorz, though readers will need to suspend some belief in order to keep up with a couple of the book's unrealistic premises.

Candor is for fans of The Giver and The Sky Inside by Clare B. Dunkle.

The Maze Runner

James Dashner's The Maze Runner is about as action-packed as a book can be. If you are at all inclined to start reading a book at bedtime and then just keep on reading because it is way too exciting to stop, then make sure you don't have to set your alarm when you settle into bed with this book. It has "all-nighter" written all over it (also because it's seriously freaky. You won't be doing any sleeping after you meet Dashner's "Grievers." Trust me).

The Maze Runner is the first book in a trilogy, with book two, The Scorch Trials to be released in fall 2010. Maze Runner begins when a boy wakes up in a lift, with his memory almost entirely gone. All he knows is his name. This boy, Thomas, can't remember anything of his former life beyond the vaguest traces that seem to hover at the very edge of his consciousness. His new home is a vast open area enclosed by high stone walls, called the Glade, where other boys like him have found themselves likewise stranded with no answers about their past lives or present situation. Every thirty days another boy is brought to the Glade in the lift, deposited there like all the others before him. Beyond the stone walls of the Glade is a maze. During the day, the stone walls open up for the boys to access the maze. At night, the walls seal up again which is just as well, because fearsome creatures called Grievers crawl through the maze at night, hunting anyone who remains inside. The Gladers believe that solving the maze is the only way they will be able to find their way home again so they assign some boys to become Maze Runners. These boys run the Maze everyday trying to map its shifting patterns. When Thomas arrives, everything starts to change. Escape and survival seem more distant than ever.

Here's the snazzy book trailer:





Pretty scary stuff. The book conveys all of that menace and "you-can't-see-what's-out-there-in-the-darkness" tension. Over and over again as I was reading I was impressed at the tight pacing in the novel. Dashner sure knows how to end a chapter so perfectly that you simply have to turn the page to see what happens next. Closing the book seems impossible. The characters are well differentiated, with a dynamic that is a believably complex mix of camaraderie and ruthlessness. The Grievers have got to be the creepiest monsters I've come across in a really long time. Since you are as clueless about the true nature of the Glade and the Maze as the boys, it makes for a disorienting reading experience - thought not in a bad way. By keeping you in the dark, always guessing and wondering, Dashner jacks up the tension and helps you to sympathize all the more with the characters' feelings of futility and powerlessness.

There is a website devoted to the book, where you can read the latest news, see what others are saying about it, and even play a game where you "map the maze" and avoid getting squished and stung by the Grievers. It's fun/terrifying - a lot like the book itself. The Maze Runner is an ideal choice for someone who is a fan of The Hunger Games. Like that bestseller, this is a survival story, with intrigue and nonstop action. This is a downright frightening read, backed up with strong themes exploring justice, freedom, ingenuity and hope.

The Maze Runner is published by Delacorte Press.