Carroll, Jenny
Shadowland:
The Mediator
2000
Summary
Our introduction to the heroine, 16-year-old Susannah Simon, finds her moving to Carmel, California from New York City after her mother remarries. Based on her internal dialogue, she comes across as a young woman with a good attitude about things in general.
Her mom, new stepdad and three stepbrothers pick her up at the airport. On the ride to her new house she finds out that she will be living in an old house (built in 1849) and going to a school that was about 300 years old. Suze is worried about going into either building.
- I guess I should explain. I'm not exactly your typical 16-year-old girl.
Oh, I seem normal enough, I guess. I don't do drugs, or drink, or smoke--well, okay, except for that one time.... I don't have anything pierced, except my ears, and only one on each earlobe. I don't have any tattoos. I've never dyed my hair. Except for my boots and leather jacket, I don't wear an excessivea mount of black. I don't even wear dark fingernail polish. All in all, I am a pretty normal, every day, American teenage girl.
Except, of course, for the fact that I can talk to the dead.
What follows is a revelation that Suze has been seeing ghosts since she was about 2 years old, and that these ghosts want her help as a "Mediator" in order to be released from wandering the earth. She doesn't like old buildings because they are often inhabited by these "undead". This is a big responsibility for a young person who dares not share her knowledge with anyone she knows, including the therapists to whom she is sent when her behavior sometimes seems abnormal.
Her mother is very happy about the move, thinking that perhaps Suze will get the opportunity to make a new start. She wants everything to go well for her daughter and is disappointed when Suze's face reflects unease upon her entrance to the newly redecorated bedroom at the new house. She doesn't know that Suze has seen someone in the room that no one else can see, the ghost of an attractive young man named Jesse who has a mysterious past.
The fun really begins when she arrives at her new school to find a ghost who won't leave, who is wreaking havoc at the school, causing destruction and threatening people. She also finally meets another Mediator--a Catholic Priest at the school--who promises to help her.
Commentary
The book may seem to start off a little slowly as it introduces its main character and her situation in the first chapter. After that, though, the book becomes a "can't put it down" type that kept me turning pages.
This is a very good book for teens, especially girls, who are interested in the supernatural. I say it's good for girls because the main character is a girl with confidence in her abilities and a down to earth world view which would be a great example to young women. Of course, young men would benefit from this example as well, but might not be as inclined to read the book!
It's a first person narrative in which the main character also shows normal teen anxiety about a variety of subjects--popularity, dating, school and getting along with other family members. She's obviously bright and independent, and very likeable. The author gives a good sense of this character's past
The writing flows in a manner appropriate to its teen narrator, and the dialogue involving other teens seems age-appropriate as well. All of the plot lines are tied up in the end (to the extent that is possible considering the ghostly aspects). There's plenty of action to keep the story moving with Suze escaping from one protective ghost to go fight another. The story of the mysterious and helpful ghost in Suze's house is left open-ended for further development in the next books in the series, of which three are planned.
The adults portrayed here are somewhat two-dimensional. I suppose that's pretty typical of books aimed at kids. At least they were shown to be supportive and of good intent.
The book is short. I read in transit during an afternoon's errands, including a stop for a cup of coffee. I think its length and degree of complexity would not strain the average young teen's attention span.
There are some obvious parallels here with the character and activities of Buffy of the TV show and movie "Buffy the Vampire Slayer," both of which, I believe, are very popular with teen viewers. It is a little surprising that there were no pop culture references like this in the book, or even much, if any, background on ghosts. Perhaps this is something that will be developed in future books, perhaps when and if Suze's friends get a little bit more clued in on what it is she does.
Conclusion
If you are looking for a book for your young teen (the book is aimed at ages 14 and up), I'd definitely recommend this one. I even liked it as an adult, finding it to be a much more pleasant and diverting read than some sex-filled romance novel. The characters were realistic, the writing was well done, I would be interested in reading the next book in the series.
I would rate this a "4" out of "5" because it is something which I would definitely classify as "light reading", even for the age group specified.
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Chandler, Elizabeth
Dark Secrets: Legacy of Lies
Young Readers
Release date: October, 2000
Pocket Books Paperback
This is the first in a proposed series of romantic suspense novels for young adults involving a heroine who becomes intrigues with the past, only to discover a dark secret kept hidden deep in her family's history.
When Megan is summoned by her grandmother to spend a couple of weeks with her, she looks forward to it, despite the oddity of the contact after many years of estrangement from the family. During her stay, she tries to figure out what happened in the past that split her family up. She finds that her grandmother is no gushing font of information, and several townspeople refuse to speak to her, thus causing her suspicions to grow.
Megan's cousin Matt is living at her grandmother's house. He's a little older than Megan and he gives her the cold shoulder upon her arrival. The tension in the house escalates when Megan begins having strange dreams and various objects mysteriously move about the house. Matt suggests that Megan leave before something dreadful happens; she suspects him of trying to frame her for these occurrences.
Meanwhile, Megan is working in town and manages to make some friends. One of them leads her to examine her dreams more closely. Unfortunately, these dreams have some ghostly counterparts which may be dangerous to the household occupants.
This is a well-written book that even I, as an adult, enjoyed reading. The characters are sensible, realistic and age appropriate. The pace is even. This looks like the start to a great series for teens, and would make a terrific birthday or holiday gift.
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Ericksen, Myrna
Silent No More
1999
Showcase Paperback
Do you have a young teenager who likes mysteries? This one, featuring a young man who has gone to live in the woods after he witnesses a murder, and a family who moves into town who try to help him, is a good book for this level. Some adults may also enjoy it.
See also the author''s web site at
http://www.geocities.com/Athens/Crete/5028/
Reviewed 12/13/99.
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Lauria, Frank
Girlfight
Buy from Amazon.com U.S.
Buy from Amazon.co.uk
This is a novelization by Frank Lauria.
This is a coming of age story of a teenaged girl based on a movie which I have not seen. It is a heart-tugging story of a young woman with a fierce temper who finds herself as a boxer.
This is aimed at a young readers, primarily, and I would recommend it except for the language in the beginning of the book. While movies may spew the language of the streets, this book did a very good job of getting its point across later, when the language was tempered, and it seems to me that the opening jolts, while meant to tease a person into thinking that it was more real, proved later on that interest could be held without this kind of device.
If this is what it takes to attract young readers to books, I'm scared for our future.
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Montgomery, Lucy Maud.
- Anne of Green Gables
I read this book numerous times as a girl and identified with Anne, whose growing pains mimicked mine despite their coming at another time and place. Thanks to my grandmother who introduced me to this book.
6/4/99: I have just discovered that the full text of this book is available on line through Project Guttenberg!
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Zindel, Paul
- The Pigman
I read this book as a teenager but have been thinking about it lately. In it, a pair of teenagers meet an elderly man by way of a prank phone call, befriend him, and finally betray him. It's not a big guns and bombs kind of book, but it must be pretty good if I'm thinking about it after over 20 years!
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