Review: The Weight of Water - Sarah Crossan

The Weight of Water by Sarah Crossan, published by Bloomsbury on 5th January 2012

Goodreads synopsis:
Armed with a suitcase and an old laundry bag filled with clothes, Kasienka and her mother leave Poland and head for the UK to find her father. Life is lonely for Kasienka. At home her mother's heart is breaking and at school Kasienka finds it impossible to make new friends. While the search continues, Kasienka is kept afloat by William, a boy she meets at the local pool who understands what it means to lose someone and who swims with Kasienka towards her new life.

Review:
This is the first book I've read which is written entirely in verse.  I thought at first that I was going to find that difficult because I imagined it would feel disjointed to read but in actuality the verse flowed beautifully, the story unfolded smoothly and each separate verse was interconnected to the next so in some ways it was just like reading normal prose but with even more lyrical prowess.

The story is about a young girl called Kasienka who comes to England with her mother, to seek her father who left and abandoned them.  Her mother is desperate to find them and believes they can do so by trawling the streets with a map and knocking on people's doors - just one of the many touching and heartbreaking moments in the book.  Kasienka is bullied at school by another girl called Clair for being too white, having too short hair, having the wrong bag but essentially for being different.  She eventually finds peace with a new friend and a boy called William who she meets at her local swimming pool.

Swimming is Kasienka's solace and it's when she's in the water that she feels sleek and self-assured and she can momentarily forget the many troubles which weigh heavy on her young shoulders.  I loved the way in which her character develops throughout the book and although she has many issues to face she does so with her head held high.

The book is about immigration and alienation and trying to fit in with people who judge you on appearance without getting to know the real you and the person inside.  Kasienka has to deal with peoples' prejudices, even those of the adults around her and an example of this is the way that she's initially put in a lower grade at school because her English isn't fluent but in reality she's actually extremely bright and intelligent and capable of studying at the same level as other people her age.  The story teaches us to be accepting of people from different cultures and to not make snap judgements about others.

I thought 'The Weight of Water' was extremely moving and a powerful read which really touched me.  I was drawn into the story and felt a great sense of empathy for Kasienka.  Although this isn't normally the sort of book I'd pick up as the subject matter isn't one which would usually appeal to me I found it a lovely debut by an exciting new talent. 

Top 10 Books of 2011

2012 is just around the corner so I want to wish everyone a very happy new year!!!

I can't believe that my blog has been up and running for over a year now (16 months to be precise!) and in that time I've read some incredible books, discovered amazing new authors, met wonderful fellow bloggers and generally had an awesome time reading and blogging my way through the year.  Thank you to all my followers for your lovely comments and for taking the time to stop by my blog every once in a while.  I do really appreciate it!

This post took me a long time last year (because it was so hard to narrow down all my favourites) but I thought I'd repeat it by selecting my 'Top 10 Books of 2011'.  These are titles that I've read this year and fallen in love with but they haven't necessaily been published in 2011. They're in no particular order because it was just too tough to do.

1. Dark Inside by Jeyn Roberts

2. Forgotten by Cat Patrick

3. Ashes by Ilsa J. Bick

4. Stealing Phoenix by Joss Stirling

5. Unearthly by Cynthia Hand

6. Across the Universe by Beth Revis

7. The Power of Six by Pittacus Lore

8. Starcrossed by Josephine Angelini

9. Firelight by Sophoe Jordan

10. Sisters Red by Jackson Pearce

News: New YA imprint - Strange Chemistry

For all of us YA fans here's some exciting news about a new YA imprint called Strange Chemistry which will be launched in September 2012. 

Angry Robot, the award-winning publisher of SF, F and WTF are pleased to announce their newest venture – a sister imprint, Strange Chemistry, which will publish Young Adult genre fiction.

The imprint will launch in September 2012, with five titles appearing before the end of that year, before settling down to one book each month. Subject matter will include fantasy, science fiction, supernatural and horror, and as with Angry Robot the lines between those genres are likely to be very blurry at times.

Running the imprint will be Amanda Rutter, until recently best known as the tireless blogger behind genre review site, Floor-to-Ceiling Books.  Angry Robot’s managing director Marc Gascoigne said: “The key to any truly successful genre imprint is the personality of its editors. In Amanda we’ve found the perfect mix of
editing skills and wild, wild enthusiasm for the subject. Her first signings are already making us jump up and down in excitement. We’re beyond delighted to welcome her to the team.”

Amanda Rutter commented, “Angry Robot have quickly become one of the most exciting and challenging genre publishers around, and I have so much admiration for the types of novels that the guys are bringing to the world of speculative fiction. I’m absolutely thrilled that I have the opportunity to join the team, and create a list full of Young Adult novels that share the same sharpness and passion as those in the AR list.”

More information can be found at strangechemistrybooks.com and angryrobotbooks.com. You can meet Amanda at floor-to-ceilingbooks.blogspot.com.

Waiting on Wednesday #50

Waiting on Wednesday is a weekly event hosted at Breaking the Spine that spotlights eagerly awaited upcoming releases.  Head on over there to take part or to check out all the other fabulous books that people are looking forward to reading! 

Smoulder by Brenna Yovanoff

Published on 5th January 2012 by Simon and Schuster

 

 

Being the youngest daughter of the Devil has never been easy. Daphne's father has no time for her, her mother no interest, and her status in the upper echelon separates her from the working-class demons that populate Lucifer's metropolis. When her brother and only confidante goes missing, life in the restrictive city of Pandemonium becomes intolerable. Now, in an attempt to find him, Daphne sets out for Earth - and finds it larger and more chaotic than she imagined: a dazzling expanse of noise, dirt and random violence. Despite her bewilderment, she navigates the mortal world with growing fascination, gaining an ally when she saves a dying boy from her father's minions.

For Truman Flynn, the last year has been one long downward spiral, but when Daphne arrives just in time to save his life, he finds himself unexpectedly glad to have another chance. Together, Daphne and Truman go in search of her brother, braving the hazards of Las Vegas and the perils of first love, even as it becomes increasingly clear that her brother might have had a secret and compelling reason for leaving. Lucifer's agents aren't the only creatures on the prowl, and Daphne soon finds herself the target of a plan to rid the world of demons for good. Now she must evade a demon-eating monster, rescue her brother from an angelic zealot, and save the boy she loves from his greatest enemy - himself.

This sounds absolutely brilliant and is top of my list of books I want to get my hands on in 2012.  The cover is incredibly striking and really caught my eye but the story sounds great too!

Trailer: Hallowed - Cynthia Hand

Here's the gorgeous trailer for 'Hallowed' which is the sequel to Cynthia Hand's brilliant debut novel 'Unearthly'. I can't wait to read 'Hallowed' and find out how the love triangle between Clara, Tucker and Christian is going to be resolved!



For months part-angel Clara Gardner trained to face the raging forest fire from her visions and rescue the alluring and mysterious Christian Prescott from the blaze. But nothing could prepare her for the fateful decisions she would be forced to make that day, or the startling revelation that her purpose—the task she was put on earth to accomplish—is not as straightforward as she thought. Now, torn between her increasingly complicated feelings for Christian and her love for her boyfriend, Tucker, Clara struggles to make sense of what she was supposed to do the day of the fire. And, as she is drawn further into the world of part angels and the growing conflict between White Wings and Black Wings, Clara learns of the terrifying new reality that she must face: Someone close to her will die in a matter of months. With her future uncertain, the only thing Clara knows for sure is that the fire was just the beginning.

Review: Torn - Cat Clarke

Torn by Cat Clarke, published by Quercus on 22nd December 2011

Goodreads synopsis:
Four girls. One dead body. A whole lot of guilt.

Alice King isn’t expecting the holiday of a lifetime when she sets off with her classmates on a trip to the Scottish wilderness, but she’s not exactly prepared for an experience beyond her darkest nightmares…

Alice and her best friend Cass are stuck in a cabin with Polly, the social outcast, and Rae, the moody emo-girl. Then there’s Tara – queen of mean. Powerful, beautiful and cruel, she likes nothing better than putting people down.

Cass decides it’s time to teach Tara a lesson she’ll never forget. And so begins a series of events that will change the lives of these girls forever.

Review:
‘Torn’ by Cat Clarke is an amazing read, following hot on the heels of her successful 2010 debut ‘Entangled’. I was incredibly intrigued by the premise of this book which sounded a bit like Mean Girls but with a twist. I had a feeling that I wasn’t going to be disappointed and I proved myself right because I absolutely loved every second of reading ‘Torn’. I found it totally gripping from start to finish. What I really loved was the fact that you knew something terrible was going to happen but you didn’t know exactly what and that in itself was enough to get me reading long into the small hours of the night. I kept telling myself that I was just going to read one more chapter and then one more, but in the end I couldn’t stop until I’d reached the conclusion of the story.

Clarke’s writing is incredibly strong and powerful and this helped me to identify with all the characters, even those who I didn’t immediately find particularly likable. My favourite was definitely Alice who narrates the events of the book and who seems to carry the biggest burden of guilt around with her about the tragedy which occurs. As a reader, I felt a great sense of helplessness that I could only watch as she becomes involved in something which spirals out of her control. She’s not a bad person at all, but Clarke shows that even good people can sometimes stray off the right path and much of Alice’s story is about her trying to put things right and face up to her actions.  Her feelings and emotions are explored in detail throughout the book, as is the psychological impact of the event that takes place and I found myself empathising with her and the terrible decision she has to make. 

There’s romance in ‘Torn’ as well, with Alice becoming involved with Jack, the brother of her former best-friend. The way their relationship was written was incredibly realistic and they made a great pairing. They didn’t instantly fall head over heels in love with each other and this made the way the romance developed between them much more true to life.

I thought the ending of the book was absolutely spot on and I can’t imagine a more perfect way of concluding the story.  It actually moved me to tears!  'Torn' manages to be shocking, moving and gripping all at once and provides both mystery, thrills and romance. Cat Clarke has made a true fan out of me and I shall be waiting with anticipation for whatever she decides to write next.