From: Todd Krueger <toddbcpl_at_gmail.com>
Date: Thu, 05 Apr 2012 14:37:33 -0400

A few quite excellent verse titles from 2011 that I haven't yet seen mentioned are:

I'LL BE WATCHING, by Pamela Porter; KARMA, by Cathy Ostlere; and ORCHARDS, by Holly Thompson

Each one of them has a distinctive writing style. Pamela Porter takes the vantage point of many residents of a small town in 1940s Saskatchewan, with amazingly effective turns of phrase and word choice. The bitter cold of winter is clearly painted, as are the feelings and deeds of various townspeople, in particular the family at the core of the book.

In Karma, two main characters, a teenage girl returning to India after her mother's suicide, and a teenage boy who she meets after being separated from her father, describe the events in India during the chaos in 1984 immediately following the assassination of Indira Gandhi. The sights, sounds, and aromas of India come through palatably.

Holly Thompson uses the tragic aftermath of a bullying-related suicide to explore how a teen girl comes to terms with her friend's death in a summer spent in Japan with her mother's relatives. Her writing style is more succinct but is used to great effect and drama.

-- Todd Krueger Collection Development Baltimore County Public Library Towson MD 21204 toddbcpl_at_gmail.com
Received on Thu 05 Apr 2012 02:37:33 PM CDT