Title: Fade

Author: Robert Cormier

Pages: 320

Summary (from AllReads.com):

At the age of 13, in the summer of 1938, Paul Moreaux discovers he
can
"fade" -- that is, cause himself and his clothing to disappear from
the
sight of others at will. He lives in the small Massachusetts town of
Monument, in the working-class Canadian Catholic quarter known as
Frenchtown. At
first, he is
thrilled with the things he can do -- spy on
his beloved but
loose Aunt Rosanna, and the wealthy twins across town,
Emerson and Page Winslow
-- but there are larger problems swirling about
him: The comb factory where his
father is employed goes on strike, and
Rosanna's lover Rudolphe Toubert is a
brutal
hoodlum who controls much
of the criminal activity in town. Paul also
learns that his "gift" brings
him knowledge about others and himself that he
wishes he never had.

Paul can Fade.

One second, he's there, the next he isn't. Just like that.

At first, he's thrilled: we've all wished we had the ability to vanish from sight, spy on our friends and family (if you say you don't, your a liar). He now has the opprotunity to observe his Aunt Rosanna, attractive and proud of it. He can watch the people in his town behind closed doors, discover who they really are without risking being caught. Every teenage boy's dream, right?

But then, as time goes on and more and more dark secrets are revealed, Paul begins to wish he never had the Fade.

This novel is definetly not for the easily offended. There are some touchy subject matter such as incest, depictions of minor sexuality, murder, mental illness, and child abuse. While accesable, it is pretty disturbing at times. Okay, really disturbing at times.

This story has a total of three narrators; Paul, a young up and coming publisher (and distant cousin of Paul's) who discovers Paul's (who had become a writer) final manuscript before his death---which proves to be the rest of the novel thus far. As she reads it, she begins to wonder. Is this really an autobiography? Did all this happen?

The third narrator, I feel, will definetly spoil it for anyone who has not read it yet, so I'm not going to mention him. But, trust me, his narrative is probably the most unsettling of the three.

I think the highlight of Fade is master storyteller Robert Cormier's ability to take these dreary--often horrific--subjects and themes and make them incredably easy to read. Things like incest and adultary is described in a way that kids can understand. I first read Fade when I was eight, and I remember thinking, "wow, this is wack" while, only days earlier, I had read a book about the exact same subject matter, and having no idea what they were talking about. Cormier's ability to connect with a younger audience is astounding, and his charactors and prose just add to his status as one of the best YA authors of all time.

It's impossible to describe much of Fade because everything about is twisted together in a way that makes near everything a spoiler. I guess you'll just have to take my word for it; Fade will leave you breathless with it's surreal, eery tone and it's strong, layered characters.

Rating: 9 out of 10---an instant classic.

Also: If I were you, I'd go out right now and buy all of Cormier's books--most notably After the First Death, Tenderness, We All Fall Down, and The Rag and Bone Shop.

Title: Eyeleash

Author: Jess C. Scott

Pages (on .pdf copy): 260

Summary (from eyeleash.wordpress.com):

Jade Ashton is a sassy virgin. In her private blog, she vents about “fitting in” a world where superficiality reigns supreme.

Suddenly all logic flies out the window when she meets Novan: the former geek, who’s morphed into a delicious songwriter-musician.

They decide to be “friends-with-benefits”. But it’s Novan, with his poems and riddling passages on his own blog — which *isn’t private* — that backs out.

EyeLeash captures self-discovery in the 2000s, and showcases the colorful, intricate drama in two youths’ relentless search for themselves — and what’s really in their hearts.

I'm going to be honest. When I first heard of a "blog fiction" novel, I immediatley thought it would be another IM fluffy rom-com, like TTYL by Lauren Myracle. But, once I read the description, I was intrigued.

Jade is a virgin--much to her dismay--pining over the idea of love while still holding her 'indepednent women' ideals. She makes no secret of her self-satisfactory practices (then again, it is her private blog) and the conversations she and her friends have about sex. She's worried about her seemingly endless virginal future, listeninng with both curiousity and envy to her friend's account of their recent *ahem* activity.

But then, an old middle school fling (Noven) sends her an IM:

[novan]: hey hey
¤Jade¤: helloo
¤Jade¤: haven’t seen u online in a while =)
[novan]: oh yea
[novan]: i’ve been busy with a friend’s band, lol
[novan]: so how u doin
¤Jade¤: i’m good. how abt u?
¤Jade¤: and wow cool ur in a band??
[novan]: been listening to the same song for hours... trying to
get the tabs right
[novan]: yea!... we’re ‘the blah blah blahs’ (super creatively
thought of by myself)

And this is the cataylist that sets the rest of the plot in motion; he invites her to catch his band playing. She goes, only to find the geeky fourteen year old she remembers has transformed into a...well, he's hot. And she wants him. Bad.

After some mutual flirtation (and several nude pictures) they agree to be "friends with benefits"

They book a room at a 5-star hotel. Unexpectedly, Novan backs out at the last moment. Though he wants to explain his decision, he backs off due to Jade’s subsequent hostility.

At loveXpress.com [a fictitious site parallel to www.secondlife.com], Jade starts to chat with another guy—Hawke, a fitness trainer. His online avatar’s name is “Tyler Weed”.

Jade shifts her attention from Novan to Hawke. Still, she struggles to define her own feminine identity in today’s sex-saturated culture. (from Eyeleash synopsis)

I think the spotlight on Eyeleash should be on Ms. Scott for her representation of todays high-tech world, capturing perfectly the John Hughes-like angst every teenager goes through like any real teenager would--through the internet. Jade has a voice all her own, not like the drabble most teenage girls usually put in their blog; again, this is private, for her eyes only. She's stripped away her filter, giving an uncensored account of her journey to losing the ever-loving virginity.

I love this especially because, let's face it, we've all rambled on about our love-lives on some blog or another, we've all been in these kinds of situations before, we've all been in Jade or Novan's shoes. It's so easy to relate ot Jade's narrative. Personally, I've grown up in the technology era--I learned to type when I was seven--and this so truthfully protrays how love is these days. I've had entire relationships based around hour long chats and emails. If it sounds like I'm saying the same thing over and over, that's because it's all I can think about: how alike Jade is to me and so many of my friends. This really is a book for any teenager living in Cyber-America.

My only gripe? Even I, who will probably forget how to communicate audibley with my fellow human being by the year 2012, didn't understand some of the lingo and abbreviations. While it doesn't completely draw away from the story, it is a bit distracting and messes up the flow of the narrative. Again, not a complete deal-breaker, but still. I like to read books without having to go on the Urban Dictionary.

Overall, Eyeleash is a heartfelt, honest read that every teen can relate too--though, due to the content, I would probably only suggest it for 14 and up XD

And stick around later for...

AN INTERVIEW WITH JESS C. SCOTT ABOUT HER DEBUT NOVEL, EYELEASH: A BLOG NOVEL!


About the Author (from her site):

Hello, I’m Jess. I’m primarily a writer/novelist/poet.

I lived in Singapore for the first two decades of my life. Currently I’m in Maine, USA. Permanent location would be “in my head”.

I don’t like labels but the MBTI is fascinating; according to that, I’m an INFJ.

I’m working on my fourth book (as of May 2009). In June 2009, I decided to publish my first book myself (some stats on its history here), after realizing that my work isn’t “commercially categorizable” enough, for the current publishing industry’s standards.

Also: Here's a book trailer Ms. Scott created (pictures and all) for Eyeleash




And: I thought this was cute, a song/poem Novan posted on his blog about Jade;

[pinkstar]
pink & sweet
what a treat
if we were in high school
i’d go ‘what the hell’
and we’d be both expelled
at your mercy
when you show off like that
don't you think that hint of pink
slipping out's
so
so
so
(ohh...)
you're cosmic rocks glass
too hot to handle
too cold to touch
yea, i wanna impress
yea, this boy’s a mess
all i gotta say is…
you look fabulous.

If you like this: you might like Just Listen by Sarah Desson. Both are about two girls having issues in their love life (albeit, completely different problems) who fall for a guy in a band. Don't know why, but I thought of it as I was reading Eyeleash. Another one you might like, also music oriented, is Mosh Pit by Katilyn Dunnion, reviewed here. It's also a very raw coming of age tale, though a bit more graphic then Eyeleash.

Rating: 8 out of 10---an excellent, original novel that I suggest to anyone, whether their tech-savvy or not.

Title: Mosh Pit
Author: Kristyn Dunnion
Pages: 270

Summary: (from back)

Juliet meets her Juliets in this raw look at punk, young love and the sometimes cloudy road to adulthood. Mosh Pit, a compelling story of rebel girls in the modern city, stars Simone--torn between her loyalty to her heart-throb Cherry and her feelings for Carol, streetwise and distant enough to be alluring. The edgy young adult novel takes Simone through the modern equivalent of Hades where she gradually gains a sense of who she is and more importantly who she can be.

There's a lot of things one could call Mosh Pit; traditional publishers and authors might call it terrible, might call it disgusting and vulgar and inappropriate. Luckily, I am not a traditional publisher/author. I am a teen and, as a teen, Mosh Pit was probably the most honest novel I have ever read.

Simone's voice is completely raw, stripped of worldly description, stripped of traditional 'teen angst'--she is a character all her own, completely believable in her honesty, her vulnerability, and her fears. Simone is a young lesbian, struggling through high school and thriving in the local punk scene with her self-destructive friend/love interest Cherry. This book is not for the conservative or the weak of heart; there is cursing, and lots of it. While this is one of the main reasons I'm able to relate to it so much (I have a mouth like a sailor who stubbed his toe on a rock), I know a lot of people have problems with it. There's high levels of sexuality, underage drinking, underage sex, drugs, implied rape, etc. There's also alot of slang used between quotations. If in the wrong hands, this can be either annoying or cliche, but Ms. Dunnion uses it in a way that further allows the reader to relate to Simone. How many of us have used IM lingo whle narrating our daily life?

I think the most sincere part of Mosh Pit is Cherry. From beginning to end, Cherry slowly descends into a world of drugs, sex and rock n' roll. In between sever la chapters, their are post from her Livejournal, to help catch us, the reader, and Simon, on what Cherry is up to as she and Simone gradually drift apart. You watch her descend further into her destructive relationship with her drug dealer boyfriend, slowly giving in to the drugs themselves.

Usually, I try to veer away from books self-published or published to a smaller company, just because, from my experience, they're usually not very good. But now, I might be more convinced. Many big time publishing houses tend to avoid books like Mosh Pit, not because they're not good, but because they feel as though it would cause an uproar. And it probably would. Parents don't want their kids reading books like this, completely uncensored, completely stripped of everything but the heart of the novel; the characters. This is a completely, 100% character driven novel. Once more, the characters are relatable. I know a Simone, I know a Cherry, and I know a Carol. The entire thing is a twisted, punk rock Juliet and Juliet love triangle, uplifting one moment and heartbreaking the next. The musical undertones just add to the surreal, yet readable atmosphere. I can't recommend Mosh Pit enough.

Also: Here's a poem Cherry wrote on her Livejournal (page 172)

We run, woolly pack animals
abandoned by our fathers
betrayed by our mothers
raped by our uncles
now we storm the jailer, run wild, rabid, into the night.
Diseased.
We are the night.
we bite the hand that never feeds.

Rating: 10 out of 10