Witches and shapeshifters and teenagers oh my

I am trying desperately to read Young Adult books along with all of the other things I want to read, just so I will have some knowledge of what to recommend young readers. Sometimes there are great books, like the Book Thief, and other times there are just entertaining reads like Hex Hall. The idea is a school for magical kids who have used their powers in ways that could call attention to the society of magical people to its detriment. So kind of a reform school for the magically endowed teens. The main character is a witch. At her last school she tried to help out an awkward female classmate by casting a love spell and it went disastrously wrong. Now she is at Hex Hall - her roommate is the only Vampire allowed in the school, and someone is killing witches! Plus she has a crush on a guy with a girlfriend and is being illegally tutored by the ghost of a dead relative at night in the graveyard nearby! If it sounds ridiculous, it is. But it was also escapist and harmless and entertaining. And I like the idea of a reform school with magical kids in it. Kinda genius :). Anyway, sounds like it is the first in a series and I'll definitely hang around for future adventures.

The Girl

So, you know I love mysteries. And you know I love my Scandinavian mystery writers. Most of the time I am one of a smallish group of devoted readers but with this particular series, I am part of the fanship of a blockbuster bestselling series. I read the Girl with the Dragon Tattoo a couple of years ago. It was the first in a series of three, written by a Swede (Steig Larsson) who died before the books were published. When I got back from Bali in June, I quickly tore through the remaining two; The Girl Who Played with Fire and The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest. Great series, love the characters - especially Lisbeth Salander, who Larsson is said to have modeled after his idea of a grown up Pippi Longstocking. They are dark, and violent and filled with conspiracy and intrigue and government involvement. Apparently Larsson drew a lot from his own life. He was the editor of a leftist magazine much like his main character Mikael Blomkvist, and he purportedly felt his life was in danger because of his political activism. Anyhoo, terrific reads. Kinda like watching an exciting movie (which actually they have made the Swedish movies and are going to remake into American movies which probably will suck - I like the first Scandinavian one and need to see the others). I could go into plot but basically the books revolve around the relationship of a troubled yet highly skilled computer hacker and a determined and highly skilled investigative reporter. He's in danger, she's in danger, the government wants to kill them, she kicks a lot of ass. Highly satisfactory and more literary than your normal bestselling mysteries. I approve.
I forgot you read two of these thus wrote review like you hadn't. Oops!

Veronika Decides To Die by Paulo Coelho

Coelho is a brilliant writer. He never fails to touch me deeply with his work; I feel magic in his words and stories, and he makes me believe that everything I believe exists, the things that many don't see or can't see. He makes me believe that everything my heart desires is possible, and that I am other-worldly. I am grateful for his prose, and continue to feel inspired by his work.

This story is about twenty-four year old Veronika, who one day decides that she wants to die. She fails at this attempt, however, and wakes up in a mental hospital. It is beautiful and well worth a read.

Zeitoun by Dave Eggers

I love this tragic, beautiful story. Eggers is a rare gem - I love when I read books that I fall in love with, and find out the author is worthy my love. I love that he stands behind his story, his words, the Zeitoun's, and that he is not only about words. He is about action, and I admire that deeply.

You read this, so I don't have to say anymore about it.

A Short History of Women by Kate Walbert

I had a difficult time following the story, and think for that reason it didn't impact me the way I thought it might. Here is the blurb from the back:

"A profoundly moving portrait of the complicated legacies of mothers and daughters. A Short History of Women chronicles five generations of women from the close of the nineteenth century through the early years of the twenty-first. Beginning in 1914 at the deathbed of Dorothy Trevor Townsend, a suffragette who starves herself for the cause, the novel traces the echoes of her choice in the stories of her descendants - a brilliant daughter who tries toe scape the burden of her mother's infamy; a great-granddaughter who wryly articulates the free-floating anxiety post-9/11 Manhattan. In a kaleidoscope of characters and with a richness of imagery, emotion and wit, A Short History of Women is a thought-provoking and vividly original narrative that crisscrosses a century - a book for "any woman who has ever struggled to find her own voice; to make sense of being a mother, wife, daughter and lover"(Associated Press)."

Losing Mum and Pup by Christopher Buckley

I thought this story was about how the author coped with losing his parents roughly a year a part, and became an orphan at age 55. On my reading list for a long time, I was looking forward to diving into his story. And sadly, I found this to be a most disappointing read.

If you are a fan of Chris Buckley (and know who his is), and if you were a fan of his parents (and how well known they were), you might enjoy this somewhat egotistical story, complete with consistent name-dropping and political tales. If not, I would recommend skipping it.

I am sorry for the author's two losses - I can't imagine the pain and sorrow that comes with losing both parents in such a short time period, at any age. But this story is not a story about becoming an orphan, and it is not a story about death and loss and grieving. It is a man in mourning, who has recorded "the story" of his family, and of their illnesses, so that he doesn't forget it. Rarely, if at all, does the author actually expose himself and his feelings - the story is so full of names that there isn't any room for his emotions.