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The Golem and The Jinni by Helene Wecker

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  • Release Date: April 23 , 2013
  • Pages: 496
  • Genre: Historical Urban Fantasy
  • Publisher: Harper

Hey, did you read Erin Morgenstern’s The Night Circus?  Did you fall all over the magical aspects, charming side characters and nonlinear narrative? Well, I did and if you need something to fill that hole I highly suggest TheGolem and The Jinni. I grabbed this off my library’s Overdrive after seeing so many people reading it on vacation and it was just my kind of book.

Drenched in Kabbalah and Arabic folklore Wecker’s debut novel  is the unlikely story of two creatures believed to exist only folklore finding their way in the immigrant neighborhoods of 1890’s  New York. 

The  Golem is a newborn woman made of earth, who is quickly abandoned as soon as she is bought to  life. Hiding out in the Jewish populated Lower East Side, her only solace is trying to meet the wants of others without revealing herself first.

Once free to roam the deserts of Syria, the Jinni is now selfish, arrogant creature made of fire and smoke, who is bound to human flesh, and has inexplicably awoken in New York City’s  Little Syria.

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This Summer So Far….in Books

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I’m kind of breaking the rules by talking about books too but, oh well ! 

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Book Review : The Winner’s Curse by Marie Rutkoski

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  • Release Date: March 4th 2014
  • Genre: Historical/ AU
  • Pages: 355
  • Publisher: Farrar Strauss & Giroux

Synopsis : As a general’s daughter in a vast empire that revels in war and enslaves those it conquers, seventeen-year-old Kestrel has two choices: she can join the military or get married. But Kestrel has other intentions. One day, she is startled to find a kindred spirit in a young slave up for auction. Arin’s eyes seem to defy everything and everyone. Following her instinct, Kestrel buys him—with unexpected consequences. It’s not long before she has to hide her growing love for Arin. But he, too, has a secret, and Kestrel quickly learns that the price she paid for a fellow human is much higher than she ever could have imagined.

 For 10 years the Valorians  have ruled the Herrani, a race of people enslaved in their own land. At a slave auction Kestrel, a member of the  Valorian upper class, wins the Herrani of her choice and in that moment of winning she will also lose everything and she doesn’t even know it.



The story follows Krestel as she makes her way through high society and  how it often clashes with her candor and affinity for music and art.  She is also at war with her growing feelings for Arin the Herrani slave and the truth he is making her see.



Honestly, I think Krestel had a bit too much going on conflict wise. She’s at a crossroads she can either get married or become a solider but  wants to do neither, she likes music but that is not thought highly of by her people. She struggles with what how to treat Arin in addition to feuds with fellow Valorians. I  think I would have preferred to focus on one of these conflicts. 



The big winner in this book has to be the forbidden romance that forms between Kestrel and Arin , overall that was what kept me reading during the somewhat slow build in the novel. I don’t want to give to much away about Arin, but his character development in the book was one I enjoyed reading. I wish that the novel focused more on him.…

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The Summer Prince by Alaya Dawn Johnson

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  • Release Date: March 1, 2013
  • Pages: 289
  • Genre: Science Fiction
  • Publisher: Arthur A. Levine (Scholastic)

June Costa is the best artist in Palmares Três, the lush futuristic pyramid city built a midst a post post-apocalyptic South America. June’s art has always been about expressing herself and the things she loves, but her street art takes on new heights when she teams up with Enki, the 17-year-old reigning summer king of Palarmes Três who, as dictated by tradition, will be sacrificed at the end of the year. 

The Summer Prince is a fairly complex novel, there is just so much going on in this world and society I don’t even know where to begin. The world building can be a bit tough to get into, especially for someone like me coming from a Western world. Johnson’s  world  is so far from anything analogous to American society. The driving force of this novel is the tradition of the summer king; Palmares Três matriarchal society elects one boy to serve as the summer king alongside the Queen and he is sacrificed at the end of the year. The reasoning behind this tradition is a little fuzzy in the book, but this is based on some ancient South American traditions.

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Our YA Genre Kryptonite

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GENRE KRYPTONITE [zhahn-ruh kryptonite]

noun

1. That moment when your TBR pile is overflowing, your to-read list on Goodreads is overwhelming, and then  you see THIS TYPE OF BOOK it makes it’s way on to your pile, no excuses needed. 

Origin: http://bookriot.com/category/genre-kryptonite/

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We’re Going To BookCon 2014

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On May 31st you can find Kat and I at BookCon 2014  in New York City!

We’ve had our ups and downs about going but it is now a go. At the beginning of the year I immediately signed up for Power Readers day since I knew I couldn’t swing all three days of  BEA  due to another big trip.  So, when I got the e-mail  that Power Reader’s Day was now BookCon I was. . . skeptical

At first, I didn’t understand their focus on combining pop culture with books. I liked to think BookCon exists because of the popularity of Power Reader’s Day, and those who came to Power Reader’s day came with just the lure of books and reading.

BookCon’s lack of diversity in  programming also didn’t help. However, when #WeNeedDiverseBooksstarted their campaign, I was amazed by their accomplishments and how  BookCon got its act together and included more diversity plus a  #WeNeedDiverseBooks panel. 

We will be writing up our experiences and hopefully BookCon will grow into an event that stays after BEA leaves NYC and maybe even branch out to other cities. 

Let’s not forget to mention all the Virginia YA authors who will be in the house (Ellen Oh, Maggie Stiefvater, Lamar Giles) . If you live in the New York Area, tickets may still be available for $30.

Find Us At These Panels

10am- 11 am 

The World Agrees: #WeNeedDiverseBooks

11am-11:30 pm

MacMillian Reading Groups Editor’s Pick Panel

12:30pm – 1:30 pm

BookTuber On-site  Meet up

3:00 -3:45

The Evolution of A Book Cover

Book Blogger Happy Hour

 

 

We are also going to try and stop by the Book Blogger Happy Hour. #BEABloggermeetandDrink

You may also find us noming on a slice of NYC pizza, visiting theE.L.F Store  and The Warby Parker Shop