All tagged Dennis Lehane
Links + Things: "Sick Lit," Writing Economics, Book Cover Woes and More
In addition to these links, there are a bunch of recaps of the ALA Midwinter Meeting and Exhibits, including my own, popping up.
Anna from Verity Books rounded up links to a few posts and Liz Burns has a comprehensive list of all the award winners.
Onward, ho!
Links
The Controversy over “Sick-lit” (The Hub)
However, although the term “sick-lit” may be new, the range of situations the teens in these books are experiencing certainly aren’t. Abuse, depression, suicide, terminal illness; YA authors aren’t fabricating these topics. Many teens throughout the world have already been, and still are, living these tragedies every second of every day.
Over at The Hub (the Young Adult Library Services Association's blog), Dena took a look at the idea of "sick lit" as criticized in a recent Daily Mail column. She hits the nail on the head in critiquing original piece.
Honestly, some "sick lit" bothers me because it feels a bit (or a lot exploitative), but some is done very, very well. Ultimately, like so much related to literature, it's all in the execution.
List-O-Rama: 7 Spooky Reads for Halloween
I am a tremendous wimp. So it really doesn’t take a whole lot to scare me. As a result, I tend to avoid anything that’s too scary or creepy because I don’t have the fortitude for it.
But, in getting in the spirit of Halloween (because I am most definitely not dressing up), I thought I’d share a few of my recommended spooky or just plain scary reads.
Summoning the Night by Jenn Bennett (Arcadia Bell #2)
This is the second in my new favorite Urban Fantasy series—I chose this one instead of the first book because 1) it’s way scarier than the first and 2) it takes place during Halloween. It also gives you a great excuse to read the very awesome first book in the series, Kindling the Moon.
{CEFS Review | Amazon | Goodreads}
Texas Gothic by Rosemary Clement-Moore
I recommend the hell out of this standalone upper-YA novel about a teenage witch. It’s a bit spooky, but not terrifying, and is also pretty darn funny. It’s a great choice for lightweights like me. Also, it’s features a completely fun rural Texas setting that I really enjoyed. (I have such a fondness for Fake Texas, as we know.)
Review: Live by Night by Dennis Lehane
I’ve long been a fan of Dennis Lehane’s novels.
I was solidly hooked once Sarah introduced me to his first book, A Drink Before the War, so by the time I held his fourth novel Gone, Baby, Gone (which is also an excellent movie), the hook was set. When I saw he had a new book, Live By Night, coming out, I preordered it with great expectations.
I have no concerns about disappointment when a Lehane book is in my grip.
Live By Night features minor characters created in The Given Day, his lengthy previous novel, though it is not necessary to read that novel prior to reading this one. Lehane’s writing treats his readers with exact historical background. While reading The Given Day, I would pause in my reading to Google details from the book. They were always meticulously researched.
Yes, there was really a Molasses Flood in 1919 Boston. That’s right. Two-and-a-half million gallons of crude molasses heated up to the point where an eruption from the tower holding it resulted in a thick, hot flood of the sticky stuff traveling at 35 miles per hour with waves of eight to fifteen feet. Twenty-one people died in the scalding river of molasses.