teen reads
THE SEVERED LAND by Maurice Gee ( Penguin, $ 20)
In his mid- 80s now, Gee thought he had hung up his pen until the idea for this story began bothering him. It centres on Fliss, who lives with her peaceful people behind an invisible and impenetrable wall that keeps out the warmongering families on the other side. When the wall begins to fail, she sets off on a quest with a sworn enemy to save the wall and her people. Gee creates a rich fantasy world and conflicted characters in an entertaining adventure that would easily translate to the big screen.
THE ONE MEMORY OF FLORA BANKS by Emily Barr ( Penguin, $ 23)
English author Barr crafts a good set- up for this story of 17- year- old Flora Banks, who has not been able to retain memories after a brain tumour was removed when she was 10. Along the lines of amnesiac thriller movie
Memento, Flora has to write herself notes to keep up with what is going on in her life. Things change when she kisses her best friend’s boyfriend, Drake, before he leaves town — and the memory sticks. Sharply written and relatable.
ELIZA ROSE by Lucy Worsley ( Bloomsbury, $ 16)
Frenemy is not a term that would have been bandied about at the court of King Henry VIII but that is what Katherine Howard is to our titular and fictitious character, Elizabeth Camperdowne. Born into a noble, if somewhat impecunious, northern family, Elizabeth is sent off to learn the ways of a lady at the home of her cousin Katherine. The two butt heads but form something of an alliance when they become ladies- inwaiting at the royal palace. Elizabeth is a prickly character — proud and boastful — which makes her an engaging and enjoyable narrator.
FROSTBLOOD by Elly Blake ( Hachette, $ 25)
Fans of young adult fantasy will have trod this path before: girl with hidden, special powers who loses her guardian and must take on the evil rulers to save her people. Here, 17- year- old Ruby is a Fireblood ( with powers of heat and flame) who has suffered under the Frostbloods ( powers over ice and snow). She joins with the Frostblood rebels ( among them the moody romantic interest Arcus) to overthrow the Frost King. While well written, the plot is so familiar that it’s hard to stay with this one.
TROUBLE TOMORROW by Terry Whitebeach and Sarafino Enadio ( Allen & Unwin, $ 19)
Based on the experiences of Enadio ( a Sudanese refugee living in Australia), this story is as lyrically written as it is troubling. It follows 16- year- old Obulejo ( his name translates as Trouble Tomorrow), whose Sudanese village is overrun by rebel soldiers, forcing everyone to flee. The war eventually drives him and fellow refugees to venture through jungle — all the time threatened by soldiers and wild animals — to the hoped for safety of Kenya. A worthy read; recommended for the US President.