Wednesday, March 6, 2013

Some More Best Books

Although the challenge is long over, I'm still working my way through the 2012 Best of the Best ALA lists. Whenever I finish I'll probably start the current years -- it looks like it won't be 2013, though.

Super Human, Michael Carroll.  This Best of the Best choice took me forever to get to, much to my son's chagrin, since he recommended it highly. In fact, we saw the next two sequels at the bookstore before I even finished this one. My favorite part was the world building, which was done with pleasing subtlety. The details of the super-hero rich world, with both smart inventors and heros with special powers, is revealed through the matter-of-fact actions of the main characters, both super and non. But the very end, where the basic foundations and morality of the society are questioned, throws everything into doubt in a very interesting way. I'm very glad I have the next book waiting for me. (I wrote this last December or so, and I have to admit I haven't yet started the next one, although I know where it is. I am looking forward to it, though.)

Curse of the Wendigo, Rick Yancey. Narrated by Steven Boyer. This horror story was far too grim for us, with the eleven year old dropping out early and even the fourteen year old saying I could listen ahead without him. The dead baby floating in a sea of excrement in the last disc was just the last and worst of a series of really gross scenes that kept throwing me out of the story. It got so that we just hung out waiting for the next icky thing. Nice vocabulary, though. Both boys think I'm insane for insisting on finishing it.

 
Scorpio Races (audio) Maggie Stiefvater.  Narrated by Steve West and Fiona Hardingham. X and I have both read and enjoyed this novel before, and P had fun listening along, although he didn't blink when I listened ahead without him. The dual narration worked very well, which at first I worried about. I could hear where the narrators made some different choices than I had when I read it, but not in an annoying way. Both X and I noticed the love story much more in audio format, although I'm not sure whether that's a rereading thing or an listening thing. Also, I'm a sucker for British accents saying "Sawrn" or "Puck Connolly." This one is highly recommended as a written or audio book.

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