Jamieson Wolf
Number-one bestselling author
The Silver Star by Jeanette Walls
It is 1970. Sisters Bean and Liz are in a bit of a fix. Their mother, more focused on her “musical career” abandon them, leaving them only $200.00. Deciding that their mother isn’t coming back, they take the bus across the country to Virginia to live with their uncle Tinsley in her mother’s old home town.
Fitting in comes easy to Liz and Bean; after all, it’s where their mother grew up. But not without its complications. They decide they need jobs, but the only one who will give them positions is Mr. Maddox. Uncle Tinsley is dead set against them working, especially working for the M
addox’s. Bean and Liz just wish they understood why.
As if all the adjustment in their lives isn’t enough, the town is going through forced integration of black and white folks. This sets of a powder keg of emotion, prejudice and racism and the littler town of Byler will never be the same.
As Bean comes closer to finding herself, something happens that destroys Liz and she withdraws further into herself. Will Bean be able to do what’s right, and heal her sister? Or will they both succumb to the darkness that threatens them?
I loved The Silver Star
and read it in two days. It’s a quick breathless read that tackles some really heavy issues: Abandonment, nervous breakdown and mental illness, family secrets and lies, bullying, race segregation and then some. But to be sure, it’s a book that should feel long but because of Walls skill asa a writer, the book just flies by.
What I love is how effortlessly Walls has shifted from memoir to fiction and yet her writing hasn’t lost any of her power
It’s more than a novel about racial intolerance, family illness, and then some. This is a novel about the power of the human heart.. It’s stronger and more sure within the bounds of fiction. The Silver Star is quite simply an amazing book.
I had to opportunity to go and hear Jeanette Walls speak about her writing and The Silver Star. In a word, I was spellbound. She was so personable and when I went up to get my book signed she was lovely enough to let me grab a picture with her (I felt very fan boy indeed).
My lovely autograph….and the lovely author herself
Mythbound: The Argonaut’s Almanac Volume One by Darren Craske
Myths have been around for as long as time-but who knows where they really came from? People have always been telling stories, spinning tales since time began. But what if they were all real?
Eddie Sparks does not have it easy. After his father loses his job, he moves from London to Cornwall, transplanting him from the only life he knows. Not that it was any good. Eddie wants a do over.
When he get into trouble with some of the other students, his grades begin to suffer. One of his teachers, Mr. King, sees that Eddie is suffering. He gives Eddie the chance to make up some of his grades: he had the weekend to write a short paper on mythology and can illustrate the paper any way he pleases.
It’s this that inspires Eddie to run to the bookstore. If there is anything that brings Eddie solace, it is the sound of his pencil scratching on the paper that to him. He’s always drawn. In fact, it’s one of the reason’s he had gotten into trouble with Mr. King. It’s pretty bad when your passion in life brings you trouble. Eddie just doesn’t know how much trouble.
For when he gets to the bookstore, he finds that the caretaker is a man he’d seen before, a strange one eyed man. The caretaker claims that myths have a basis in fact. In fact, he offers Eddie a book called The Argonaut’s Almanac to help with his project. It holds all the myths in written form between its pages and, to Eddie’s delight, tons of illustrations.
When he goes to bed that night, his sleep is filled with myths and visions of a one eyed man. When he wakes, however, his world changes yet again: A man is sitting on his bed who calls himself Will Scarlet. Merlin has sent him to retrieve The Argonaut’s Almanac. Will requires Eddie’s help to take the book back to Merlin.
This is just the start of Eddie’s adventures. And things go from weird to bizarre pretty quickly. Eddie must act fast, with the balance of all the myths hanging in the balance…
Mythbound: The Argonaut’s Almanac Volume One by Darren Craske in one word? Awesome. More than one word? One of the best young adult novels I have ever read, period. Craske has always had a handle on plot and characters but this time around the story just shines.
Personally I think that has a lot to do with Eddie as a main character. You can’t help but like him and root for him as he works his way into the world of myth. Part of that has to do with the way that Eddie grows up and matures in the book. He is at once resourceful, endearing and someone to cheer for. Though he gets in trouble, he always finds his way out of it and into even bigger trouble (which makes for one heck of a book).
What surprised me most about Mythbound was the sheer size of its story. My meagre plot summary doesn’t even come close to covering the plot of the novel and nor should it. It’s a novel that should be experienced without a plot summary. So much happens in it and at breakneck speed that it goes beyond the realm of amazing and reaches for the incredible. This book is absolute magic from start to finish. A thrilling story told at a breakneck pace, fabulous characters that you really grow to care for and a fantastic plot that you will never see coming. What more could you ask for in one of the best young adult novels that I have ever read.
I can’t wait for book two! So what are you waiting for? Read this book and experience the magic and the myth.
Paper Thin Thoughts – Side Tales #1
He missed paper.
Just the feel of it in his hands, the smell of age and words on the page. He missed the thickness of the paper, even if he did have to squint at the words. Everything was electronic now, but he remembered them.
Just the thought of one of the books he used to hold brought a warmth to him. Sure, he had his electronic iEverything. A guy had to read, right? However, he remembered books. He thought of the thrill of words unfolding into story across the page but they were gone now.
It was all about progression. He thought of the black and orange computer screens of his youth, of laser discs and Beta and VHS. He remembered the moment he had first really taken in television. He figured it had been an episode of Three’s Company.
He remembered playing his first 3D game in an arcade. It was as if the people were made of air and light-it looked really cool, but the controls were crap. He thought of playing Where In The World Was Carmen Sandiego? He had spent hours playing that game-he wasn’t very good at the game, but it took him away trying to solve puzzles.
Then he remembered the world just exploding with technology: there were iPods and Walkman’s all around. He had a yellow one that he had gotten from Consumers Distributing, a sprawling catalogue store. He used to go there with his aunt. It had shone like the sun and ran on two batteries for hours.
That was when the transition began to speed up. Eight tracks and records became tapes and CD’s and even those were gone now. First the video stores had started to close, stopping rentals. Then the music and video stores started to close. People no longer bought video’s or compact discs. They downloaded it.
They had become a sea of faces, looking into screens. No one talked anymore, they just sent an email. He couldn’t remember the last time he had received an actual phone call. He saw people, sure, he had a social life-but he spent the rest of his time staring into a screen.
He worked on one, read on one, listened to music and watched television on one. The change had become so gradual, he almost hadn’t known he ha given up paper. He was reading Harry Potter for the zillionth time when it occurred to him that he’d like to read the books again. The real ones. He couldn’t remember where he had put them.
Looking around him, all he had seen was a dozen or so electronic devices. His bookshelves were empty. How had this happened, he thought. Where had all of his books gone?
And still, technology progressed: devices where you could hold your entire library in your hand, where you could carry your whole music collection in your pocket. Want to watch a movie? Sure, hit a button. The possibilities were endless.
The thing was, none of it was real. Sure, you downloaded whet you wanted, streamed what you wanted to watch, but none of it was real. It was only megabytes and pixels and HD or 3D. Whatever you downloaded, someone owned a part of it. That’s why books had mattered. They held memories when nothing else could.
What’s more, you owned that book, it was yours. With all these electronic thing, you didn’t. All you had was…..
Do you believe in Magyk?
Anyone who knows me is aware of the fact that I’m a bit obsessive about books. Not only do I read anything and everything (with Young Adult, Fantasy, Romance and Magic Realism being favourite genres), I also collect books. I have signed first editions, special order books and more eBooks than you can shake a stick at.
I do have my favourites though. I always find my way back to young adult books. It seems, as of late, to be the genre I live in most. Harry Potter, The Hunger Games, The Twilight Saga, Skeleton Creek and Dark Eden, The Iron Fey Series, The Blood of Eden, Prophecy of the Sisters. The list goes on. I’ve read and re-read all of these books many time each. One of my favourite series’, though, is Septimus Heap.
When Septimus Heap Book One: Magyk came out in 2005, I almost didn’t read it. It sounded like a young reader version of Harry Potter and I wasn’t too keen on it. But the book came with a nifty CD Rom (what was on that, I wondered) and as I flipped the book over I noticed a quote from Clive Barker. The quote read thusly:
Septimus Heap: Magyk is a book full of wonders, charms, and surprises. Beautifully written and richly imagined, it invites us into a world we never want to leave. Marvellous.
Now, I am a lifelong fan of Clive Barker. Unlike Stephen King, Barker does not do a lot of cover blurbs. And unlike Stephen King, I thought Clive Barker’s blurb would be truthful. So, because of Clive Barker’s quote, I ended up getting Septimus Heap Book One: Magyk.
I’m not sure what I expected, really. I thought I would read a few chapters and go “Well, that was cute.” I didn’t expect to open the book to the first page and get immediately and completely pulled into the story. The hours faded away as I fell under a Magyk spell that Angie Sage had weaved and I have looked forward to each book in the series as if Christmas came early.
Make no mistake, this is not a Harry Potter knock off. The Septimus Heap Series stands on its own merit. It you took a tiny bit of Harry Potter magic, mixed it with a world so well imagined much like Game of Thrones and added wonderful characters that you care for much like The Hunger Games and stirred in a magic so real, so captivating, like the Iron Fey. The Septimus Heap Series is all of that and more. It’s spellbinding, page turning, magical fun. I haven’t had such a good time with a series of books since Harry Potter.
As each book was published (Magyk, Flyte, Physik, Queste, Syren, Darke) my anticipation for the last book (Fyre) mounted. Angie Sage constantly topped herself, making sure that each new book was better, more thrilling and more magical than that previous one. There are even two add on books to the series: The Magyikal Papers, which is sort of like a prequel or a companion to the series as a whole, and The Darke Toad, an eBook that takes place between Magyk and Flyte.
I was anxiously awaiting April 16th so I could get my copy of Fyre. I haven’t been so excited for the last book in a series since Deathly Hallows, Mockingjay and The Dark Tower Book VII. By a happy accident, the ebook is still on pre order with release tomorrow; but the physical copy of the book was already in the bookstore down the street from me.
There was no choice, really. I had to have it. I took it home with me and ignored chores I should have been doing to lose myself in the story that Angie Sage had created. After only an evening and one morning of reading, I’m 102 out of 702 pages and I can’t wait to find out what Angie Sage has in store for me.
I can’t wait to find out what happens. After eight long years, the wait is over and the series will end. I’m trying to take my time with the book, to savor it as much as possible, but that won’t happen. If you haven’t discovered the Septimus Heap Series yet, what are you waiting for?
Learn more, play games, collect cards and more by clicking below:
The end is near. Won’t you read along with me and have a bit of Magyk for yourself? I have fallen in love with this series, with the world that Angie Sage has created so realistically.
I can’t wait to read the whole series over again, once I’m done with Fyre!
Guest Post: Interview with Caroline Smailes about The Drowning of Arthur Braxton!
I have a real treat for you all today. The lovely Caroline has stopped by for a quick chat about her new book, The Drowning of Arthur Braxton, which is published today! Happy Publication Day Caroline! So she’s taken time out of her busy schedule today to pay us a visit. Without further ado, on with the interview!
Jamieson: Hey Caroline! Welcome to the blog! It’s so lovely to have you visiting!
Caroline: It’s my absolute pleasure to be here. I’ve brought you a slice of lemon drizzle cake, topped with almonds.
Jamieson: Oh, lemon cake. One of my absolute faves. I’ll try and share, really. So, the reason we’re all here: Happy Publication Day! Can you tell me about your new release The Drowning of Arthur Braxton?
Caroline: Thank you! The Drowning of Arthur Braxton is what others have described as an unflinching account of the pain of adolescence. I’ve tried to layer in some dark humour, but the story is about the power of first love, about how that love can transform the most unhappy of lives into something extraordinary.
Jamieson: Now, as you know, I absolutely loved this book. It’s so different from your other books. A modern retelling of myth with portions of it told in dialogue, like a Greek morality play. It even had an audience with two of my favourite characters in the book, Kester and Pollock. You chose the Greek myths of Apollo and Daphne, Pollux and Castor, Jason and Medea. What was it about these particular myths that inspired you to entwine them together?
Caroline: A truly difficult question, simply answered by the fact that I adore all Greek mythology. I am obsessed with the tragedy and the beauty, I’m fascinated with how Greek mythology has changed over time to accommodate the advancement of their culture. All I’ve done is take three established myths and weave them into a very modern story. I wanted the stories in the novel to be able to stand-alone, I hoped that not knowing the Greek myths wouldn’t detract from the read, but that knowing the myths would offer an additional layer.
In terms of those specifically chosen myths, Medea has fascinated me for years. I’ve had a Post-it note to retell her story stuck to a corkboard since I wrote my debut. Her tragedy is compelling. I touch on Pollux and Castor in a minor way, creating characters bonded by love and sacrifice, a theme that threads through the novel. And finally the Daphne myth – being hunted by Apollo slotted into Laurel’s story with ease. It is possible that the myths chose me, but I fear that makes me sound somewhat insane.
Jamieson: You have always created such amazing protagonists. First it was Jude and then it was Ana and Nina and then Kate. This is your first male protagonist, though others do get page time. What inspired you to tell Arthur’s story?
Caroline: I was never going to write a male protagonist, if I’m honest the thought of
creating a convincing teenage, male voice terrified me. I write in first person, which would mean no escape from creating an undoubted voice and view of the world. Originally the novel was called ‘Madame Oracle’ and it was Laurel’s story. Arthur was a late addition, he happened when I faced up to the fact that something was missing from my narrative. I researched male voices for months and months, then I asked my teenage son far too many embarrassing questions in an attempt to get the character right. Creating Arthur Braxton has been my biggest challenge as a writer, but also one that I thoroughly enjoyed creating.
Jamieson: Can you tell us why language plays such an important role in your stories? In The Drowning or Arthur Braxton, you tell portions of the story in play like format. You’ve also used sign language, definitions, foreign dialects and more. In your first two novels, In Search of Adam and Black Boxes, you didn’t just use language, you played with the very form of the page and used it as a canvas. What is the inspiration?
Caroline: Language is my passion, my academic background is in linguistics. Storytelling is art, you’re right the blank page is a canvas, the words can be presented and formatted in so many different ways. In the past I’ve used white space, I’ve used altered fonts, I’ve used sign language to show silence and in ‘The Drowning of Arthur Braxton’ I use play script for Delphina’s voice. I have three protagonists – Laurel, Delphina and Arthur, but only Delphina’s voice is heard in this way. My reasoning is to offer an indication that Delphina is not as she seems, that she isn’t as rounded, possibly as real, as the other two characters. For the reader to not be able to step into her head, for the reader to not be able to see through her eyes, suggests that the reader is incapable of fully understanding Delphina. I do not open her up for scrutiny, she isn’t ever fully seen or heard.
Jamieson: Now, can you tell everyone where to get their hands on a copy of The Drowning of Arthur Braxton? I got mine from The Book Depository and I can’t wait for it to arrive! It’s got an eBook edition too, right? I already know it’s available from all good bookshops, of course. 🙂
Caroline: Asking at a local bookshop for them to order the novel would be very ace. Or
failing that, it is available on Amazon.co.uk in both Kindle and paperback editions. For those not in the UK, The Book Depository will ship abroad free of charge. It’s available in Canada on 12 April and in Australia on 1 June.
Jamieson: Oh! And where can people find you out and about? I know you’re on Facebook and are far more active on Twitter than I am
Caroline: Of course, I’ve an author page on Facebook and a website www.carolinesmailes.co.uk or I am often (too often!) found on Twitter at twitter.com/Caroline_S
Jamieson: I absolutely loved The Drowning of Arthur Braxton. It was breath taking and wonderfully gorgeous. I hope you sell millions of copies because everyone should get a copy of this book. If you want an amazing book to start your Spring off right, it’s this one. I understand that there might also be a movie?
Caroline: Thanks so much for your beautiful words! And yes, the novel was optioned for movie after the first draft was read by a rather perfect director. At the moment we’re waiting for news, so I’m keeping everything crossed and trying hard not to fantasize about my ideal cast.
Jamieson: Thanks so much for stopping by Caroline, it’s been an absolute honour!
Caroline: Oh Jamieson, the honor is all mine! Thank you for being such an amazing support. Now, let’s eat cake and tell each other more secrets.
Jamieson: Mmmm, cake.
Buy Little Yellow Magnet from Amazon and Kobo!
Jamieson Wolf has written a compelling story about navigating multiple sclerosis and cerebral palsy. His story will touch your heart, make you cry, then laugh, and inspire you. A touching memoir with a bit of magic…and tarot! ~ Theresa Reed, author of The Tarot Coloring Book
Jamieson Wolf 