Teen reads
Graham Hepburn
MAKE A HARD FIST
by Tina Shaw (OneTree House, $20) One of the first books from newly launched and already award-winning NZ publisher OneTree House, this is an empowering, gritty story about teenager Lizzie Quinn, whose tough attitude is badly shaken when she gets attacked in a park on her way home after receiving mysterious anonymous notes. The attack isn’t just a cheap plot device. Shaw writes convincingly about the devastating effect it has on Lizzie and follows her slow but determined progress as she pieces her life back together with the help of a self-defence class. It’s refreshing to read something that is unashamedly Kiwi, rather than aimed at an international audience. Shaw does a nice job of fleshing out Lizzie’s life with the vagaries of her family dynamic and the difficulties of high school relationships and peer pressure. One of the first six books from this new independent publisher, it’s a highly promising start.
THE 1,000 YEAR OLD BOY
by Ross Welford (HarperCollins, $17) Aimed at younger teens, this engaging novel is packed with warmth and wit — and spearheaded by an instantly likeable protagonist in Alfie Monk. With his mother and his cat, Alfie has been alive for more than 1000 years thanks to the magic of life pearls. He has been frozen at age 11, which eventually raises suspicions as people age around him, forcing him and his mother into a life of solitude. His story begins in the time of Vikings but most is focused on the present with the narration shared between Alfie and Aidan, who befriends him after Alfie’s mother dies in a fire. A heart-warming tale of friendship.
THE HAZEL WOOD
by Melissa Albert (Penguin, $23) Seventeen-year-old Alice’s woes seemed to be tied to a spooky book of fairy tales — Tales from the Hinterland written by her grandmother — with bad luck and bizarre incidents dogging her and her mother, Ella. Whenever misfortune befalls them, they keep moving to outrun it. Ella marries a New York millionaire for security and stability but when she is abducted, Alice must act to find her. With the help of rich kid Ellery Finch, who knows a lot about the Hinterland, they set off for her grandmother’s mysterious estate, The Hazel Wood, where they are sure they can find answers. American author Albert writes with panache and the premise of fairy tale characters breaking into the real world is a good one, but the story takes a long time to get going and it’s hard to stick with it.
MISSING
by Sue Whiting (Walker Books, $20) An article about how many people went missing in Australia sowed the seed for this exploration by Whiting about how 13-year-old Mackenzie deals with the disappearance of her mother in Panama.
The novel starts about four months after Mackenzie’s mother disappears and flashes backwards and forwards in time, filling out the story and drawing the reader in. It begins with Mackenzie being woken by her father in the middle of the night after he decides they are going to Panama right then to find her mother. With the adults in her life withholding information, and other strange incidents to deal with, Mackenzie’s imagination goes into overdrive as she tries to work out what happened to her mother. An absorbing read if a bit melodramatic at times.