Book talk: Eleanor and Park by Rainbow Rowell

[In an effort not to reveal their romance or any spoilers, I limited myself to the earliest part of plot.]

It really, really irritates me when people read over my shoulder, especially if I’m on a bus or a train, because then it’s harder to get rid of them. Park takes the bus to school every day, and he’s sort of considered a cool kid, but he’s also sort of an independent. You know how high school is.  A decidedly not cool girl -- Eleanor (even her name is uncool) --  has been sitting next to Park on the bus – every single day: to school and back home – and he just figured out that she’s been surreptitiously reading his comics while he’s reading them: that’s brazen. 

 Eleanor’s the kind of girl you’d feel sorry for if she wasn’t always sitting right next to you in closed quarters. She dresses really, really oddly (a giant men’s shirt with seashells all over it?!), seems to have no friends, and is already a bully target. Park feels as if he should say something to her – in fact, he’s always felt that way about her, which is odd and unexplainable because he’s never felt that way about anyone, ever – and he wants to say something to her, but he’s gone so long now without speaking to her that he doesn’t know what to do. Something is up with him, you know. And something must be up with her, as well, or she’d sit next to someone else. For now, he makes sure she can see the books and he turns the pages a little more slowly.

Eleanor and Park by Rainbow Rowell. St. Martin's Griffin, 2013. 336 p. Booktalk to high school; has crossover appeal for adults, as well.

Booktalk: The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane [Kate DiCamillo; 3]

[Hide the book cover.] Abilene LOVED Edward. She loved him with all her heart and soul. [Now show cover.] Edward is _not_ a person. He's a beautiful china rabbit, made out of the finest porcelain china. And Abilene was the little girl who owned and loved him.

But there were two problems. The first was this: Edward doesn't really love anyone or anything, even though he's smart and capable of love. The second problem happened on a ship. As you know from stories, bad things can happen on the sea. Abilene was taking a cruise with her parents, and she was taking excellent care of Edward. Sadly, though, two boys grabbed Edward and started throwing him around. Edward went overboard. He sank like a log, deep into the depths of the sea. Months passed. He had lots of time to think. He felt very, very alone. You could even say he missed Abilene. Sometimes the sea spits out its treasures, though. An old fisherman named Lawrence found him, and Edward's adventures started back up again. But I want you to remember the most important fact: Abilene loved Edward. And the love had finally lodged itself into Edward's formerly cold heart. The title is your first clue: The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane.

The Miraculous Journey of Edward Tulane by Kate DiCamillo. 228 pages. Candlewick, 2006. Booktalk to intermediate grades [3rd-6th].

Booktalk: Jane by April Lindner [Teen Chick Lit; 1]

If you've read Jane Eyre by Charlotte Bronte, you'll remember that Jane Eyre is a young 19th-century English woman who has had a tough childhood and is an orphan. As a young woman, she goes to work as a nanny for Mr. Rochester, a brooding, handsome, temperamental, and wealthy man who seems to be single but has a mysterious past. It's part ghost story and part romance: Jane and Mr. Rochester are both intriguing, strong-willed characters. This novel, Jane by April Lindner, locates the story in modern America: the original Jane Eyre inspires the story but doesn't dictate it. Jane Moore is 19 and has dropped out of Sarah Lawrence College. Both of her parents died recently in a car crash, and she doesn't have the money to stay in college. She applies to a nanny agency, and due to complete lack of knowledge in rock music [plus her total disinterest in rock stars], she gets an interesting nanny assignment. She's to be the nanny to the daughter of the country's most famous and most influential rock star, Nico Rathburn. Nico has a past of wild living, drugs, and failed marriage. He lives on a huge, somewhat isolated estate, Thornfield Park. Jane is a good nanny to his daughter, but she's confused when she starts having feelings for Nico, and especially confused when he show genuine interest and affection for her. What would a glamorous, rich rock star see in a plain Jane like herself? And more perplexingly, who has he stashed away on the forbidden third floor of his mansion, with a ghostly, female-sounding laugh?

Jane by April Lindner. Poppy/Little, Brown: 2010. 373 p. Booktalk to older teens [be aware of adult content issues] and to adults.

Riotous Roald Dahl: Booktalk 3

People will do strange things for love, and Esio Trot is the perfect example of this. It’s a weird title, isn’t it? Anyone know the trick behind it? It’s actually the word “tortoise” spelled backwards and split in two. Tortoise, you know, like a turtle. Mr. Hoppy is a very shy and lonely man who lives by himself. Every day he talks to the lady on the balcony below his apartment’s balcony. Her name is Mrs. Silver, and she has a little tortoise called Alfie. Mr. Hoppy is madly in love with Mrs. Silver, and she adores her little Alfie. Her goal in life is to get little Alfie to grow bigger. As you can imagine, tortoises don’t grow very fast. But Mr. Hoppy hatches a secret plan involving a tortoise airlift and over 100 tortoises. Mr. Hoppy may be shy, but he is pretty devious. Some people will do anything for love: Esio Trot by Roald Dahl.

 Esio Trot by Roald Dahl. 64 p. Puffin, 2009 [repr.]. Booktalk to elementary, intermediate, middle school reluctant readers.