{ArmchairBEA Day 5}: Genre Discussion---Middle Grade & YA

 

Design by Amber of Shelf Notes

Today's topic:  Our final genre of discussion is one that we know is a popular one these days: books for the younger crowd, from middle grade to young adult. If you do not normally talk about this genre on your site, maybe you want to feature books that you remember impacting you during this stage in your life. If this is where you tend to gravitate, maybe you want to list your favorites, make recommendations based on genres, or feature some titles that you are excited to read coming later this year.

I thought that today, instead of talking about my favorites, since I mainly blog about children's-YA books, I'd talk about WHY.

I started this blog to become more aware of great children's books that I can use in my classroom.  And I am.  I have just too many running around in my head to be more specific (though, if you have a specific genre or subject you'd like a book about, let me know, I'll give you some suggestions).

But, I find myself reading MG and YA in my "spare" time, too, since I've started blogging.  I could probably count on both hands the number of "adult" books I've read in the past 3 years. 

With "adult" books (which, when I say that, makes my mind go to a naughty place, but I do it anyway), I don't like being pushed into a genre---fantasy, romance, whatever.  In YA, I feel like the characters have much more depth and the stories are more interesting.  I also find myself identifying more with characters in YA books than women in--let's call them---grown up books. 

I think once people look past the label of YA, they'd find a wonderful world of complex stories and characters that I have a hard time finding in grown-up books. 

Review: The Princess Curse by Merrie Haskell

Image from Goodreads

 From Amazon:

Twelve princesses suffer from a puzzling (if silly) curse, and anyone who ends it will win a reward. Reveka, a sharp-witted and irreverent apprentice herbalist, wants that reward. But her investigations lead to deeper mysteries and a daunting choice—will she break the curse at the peril of her own soul? 

If you didn't already know, I love fairy tale or myth retellings.  They are my absolute favorite type of book to read.  You get both the familiar story that everybody knows, plus the added bonus of a twist!  However, it takes a skilled author to take the familiar tale and make it their own---and I feel that Merrie Haskell did just that.

The story of the Twelve Dancing Princesses isn't one that I know by heart.  Sure, I recognize the title, and I remember that they had to dance all night, but I didn't remember why (its explained in the book).  Our story, The Princess Curse, uses the Twelve Dancing Princesses as its backbone, but is now told by Reveka, the plucky herbalist-apprentice.  Delving further into the story, other myths that I recognized were the name Vlad Tepes (Vlad the Impaler, aka Dracula), Corvinus (in the Underworld movie trilogy, Corvinus was the father of both vampires and werewolves), Hekat (Hecate, the Greek goddess of the dark arts, I think), Persephone / Demeter / Pluto, and Romanian mythological figures.

So, taking parts of all of these myths, The Princess Curse, begins with Reveka in trouble for something that she did because she thought it would break the curse on the princesses (we later find out that nobody has been able to break the curse for 6 years and that the people who have tried are now in a deep sleep and dying off).  Reveka, even though she promises her father she wouldn't interfere, decides to wake those who are asleep and as a result, break the curse.  With the help of a friend who is a witch, she makes a hat made of ferns (as it will confer invisibility) and follows the princesses on their nightly journey.  What she sees, she doesn't know how to fix.  However, she follows them again the next night to try and help.  However, she ends up trading her freedom for the freedom of the princesses and all the people.  And, because I don't want to give anything away, that's where I'll stop.  But, don't be sad for Reveka.  She's happy with her choice.

I was thoroughly entertained by this book.  I'm a little sad that I read it at the end of the school year and I can't share it with my kids until September! 

I really liked Reveka's spunk and determination.  She was brave and fair.  

The only thing that I didn't like about the book was that Reveka was 13.  She fell in love and had to make some adult choices (there was nothing inappropriate at all---I can't beat around the bush---she promises to marry someone).  I think 13 is a little young to be doing that, and maybe a 16 or 17 year old heroine would have been a little more appropriate.  

That being said, I still enjoyed the book (a lot!).