Charming Child Narrator (reminds me some of my own charming child)

My Grandmother Asked Me to Tell You She’s Sorry

By Fredrick Backman

Hardcover: 384 pages

Publisher: Atria Books (June 16, 2015)

ISBN-10: 1501115065

ISBN-13: 978-1501115066

Approximate Lexile: 960

Publisher description:

“Elsa is seven years old and different. Her grandmother is seventy-seven years old and crazy, standing-on-the-balcony-firing-paintball-guns-at-men-who-want-to-talk-about-Jesus-crazy. She is also Elsa’s best, and only, friend. At night Elsa takes refuge in her grandmother’s stories, in the Land of Almost-Awake and the Kingdom of Miamas where everybody is different and nobody needs to be normal.

“When Elsa’s grandmother dies and leaves behind a series of letters apologizing to people she has wronged, Elsa’s greatest adventure begins. Her grandmother’s letters lead her to an apartment building full of drunks, monsters, attack dogs, and totally ordinary old crones, but also to the truth about fairytales and kingdoms and a grandmother like no other.”

When I saw this book mentioned in Bookpages, I rushed right over to NetGalley, hoping I could get my (figurative) hands on it. Lucky me—I did!

In some ways, the narrative style reminds me of Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close—a “special” child is the point-of-view character. The third-person limited point-of-view character in this case is Elsa, nearly eight years old and brilliant. In many ways, she reminds me of my very bright almost-eight-year-old daughter, but mine is not as precocious as Elsa. Elsa is gifted with an eccentric, strong-willed Granny who is her best friend. When Granny dies, Elsa is tasked with delivering letters of apology to the various inhabitants of their apartment building. On the way, Elsa discovers that the fairytales her grandmother told her explain the lives of the people around her.

The book is told in present tense, not my favorite narrative style, but it works for this story. (Still bugs me, but not enough to ruin my enjoyment in this case.) One surprise at the end was totally not surprising, but again, that doesn’t ruin the story.

I will read this one again.

Possible objectionable material: Mild cursing, mostly by adults, but occasionally by Elsa. Some violence and tense moments. A husband cheats on his wife. Elsa’s mother lives with a man she’s not married to.

Who would like this book: People who like child narrators (Room, Extremely Loud, etc.). People who like stories about family and finding one’s place in the world.

Easy sci-fi thriller

From a Distant Star

By Karen McQuestion

 

Print Length: 279 pages

ISBN: 1477830162

Publisher: Skyscape (May 19, 2015)

Approximate Lexile: 930

Publisher blurb:

“Seventeen-year-old Emma was the only one who hadn’t given up on her boyfriend, Lucas. Everyone else—his family, his friends, his doctors—was convinced that any moment could be his last. So when Lucas miraculously returns from the brink of death, Emma thinks her prayers have been answered.

“As the surprised town rejoices, Emma begins to question whether Lucas is the same boy she’s always known. When she finds an unidentifiable object on his family’s farm—and government agents come to claim it—she begins to suspect that nothing is what it seems. Emma’s out-of-this-world discovery may be the key to setting things right, but only if she and Lucas can evade the agents who are after what they have. With all her hopes and dreams on the line, Emma sets out to save the boy she loves. And with a little help from a distant star, she might just have a chance at making those dreams come true.”

In some ways, this book reminded me in many ways of the 1984 movie Starman—which I quite liked. While sometimes predictable, this story was enjoyable. There was just enough dramatic tension to keep things moving along, and one “duh” moment of problem solving for me that I really should have figured out myself.

My biggest objection to this book is that it taps into a pet peeve that has been growing over the last couple of years: the whole recurring “finding your one true love while still in your teens” idea. To be honest, I think that the constant preaching of this idea in so many books that I otherwise enjoy is damaging to our young women. One statistic I found says that only about 17% of people marry their high school sweetheart, but so much of our young adult fiction is showing girls that that guy they meet in high school is THE ONE. It puts a lot of pressure on girls, unnecessarily. (Trust me, as the mother of a very single 25-year-old daughter, I know this.)

Because of this bias, I found Emma’s constant musing on how she and Lucas are going to be together forever, and they’re SO MUCH IN LOVE to be grating. Otherwise, the characters are well-drawn and believable. I live in a world of teens, and Emma’s voice rings true, as does Eric’s.

All in all, this is a fun YA thriller-esque read.

Possible objectional material: Gunfire. Reference to teenage making out and almost having sex. Threatening situations. Disobeying parental authority. If there were any curse words, I don’t remember them, so maybe a couple of the mildest ones.

Who would like this book: Science fiction fans, teens, probably girls more than boys, thanks to Emma’s. Constant. Talk. About being in love with Lucas. Enough already!

Thank you, NetGalley, for the chance to read this one.