This
book talk is intended for reluctant readers aged 10-14.
The
books featured in this talk are:
Garber, Stephanie. Caraval. Flatiron Books, 2017.
I chose Caraval
primarily because I think this kind of high-concept novel is an
easier sell to reluctant readers. A girl must navigate a mysterious
amusement park full of riddles and traps in order to rescue her
sister. Like, Strange, the Dreamer,
the writing is vivid and paints quite the picture, while still
allowing the story to move freely. There is also a romantic
sub-plot, a will they or won't they story, that is well executed and
helps to drove the novel forward while simultaneously giving the
reader reasons to invest in the characters.
Pastis, Stephan. Timmy Failure: Mistakes Were Made. Candlewick Press, 2013.
I chose Timmy Failure
because it tackles mystery from a completely different angle.
Whereas the other two books both utilize magical elements to fuel
their mysteres, Timmy Failure
tells the story of a real life mystery through the eyes of a wildly
imaginative child. Timmy puts a fun, dramatic spin on what would
otherwise be a fairly mundane story, leaving you wondering just how
much of the information that he gives you is accurate, and how much
was concocted inside of his mind. The illustrations in the book
match the humor of the writing, with plenty of sight gags that reward
the observant reader, encouraging them to get invested in the reading
experience.
Taylor, Laini. Strange, the Dreamer. Little, Brown Books for Young Readers, 2017.
I
chose Strange,
the Dreamer
for this book talk because it does an excellent job of establishing
the mystery right off the bat, while dropping several breadcrumbs
that give the reader some ideas of what might be happening,
encouraging them to continue reading to see if they were correct.
The initial mystery, that of the missing city, is solved within the
first third of the book, but this ends up creating more questions
than it answers, as a new point of view character is introduced, with
the two characters clearly placed on a collision course. The writing
in this book is very descriptive, but not overly dry or needles, as
often happens in fantasy novels. Instead, it shapes the world
without bogging down the pacing, making it an ideal choice for
reluctant readers.
The Book Talk Itself:
The script:
A great mystery can draw you in, keep
you guessing, and entertain you with twists and turns that you may
have never seen coming. If you sometimes find it difficult to get
invested enough in a book to want to read it all the way through,
then these three novels are worthy of your consideration.
Strange,
the Dreamer
tells the story of Lazlo Strange, an orphan who grows up in a
monastery, recounting tales of a distant, mystical city named Weep
that seems to have disappeared without a trace. Except, the city is
not called Weep. Lazlo is sure it had another name, but it seems to
have magically vanished. Lazlo's fascination with the city drives
him to the monastery's library, where he uncovers records of
travellers from Weep visiting his hometown, as well as adventurers
who attempted to cross the desert to reach Weep, only to perish on
the journey. Lazlo comes to realize that there are no records
referring to Weep in the past two hundred years, and begins to dream
of making the trek across the desert himself, in order to
investigate. Then, one fateful day, visitors from Weep arrive at the
monastery to ask the monks to travel with them to Weep in orer to aid
them.
*Passage from Strange, the Dreamer*
I chose Strange, the Dreamer because it does an excellent job of
establishing the mystery right off the bat, while dropping several
breadcrumbs that give the reader some ideas of what might be
happening, encouraging them to continue reading to see if they were
correct. The writing in this book is very descriptive, but not overly
dry or needless, as often happens in fantasy novels. Instead, it
shapes the magic-infused world without bogging down the pacing,
making it an ideal choice for reluctant readers. Speaking of
magically-infused worlds...
Caraval
is a magical, memorable event that occurs annually, in which
participants play a game of mystery and intrigue, while
simultaneously questioning how much of their experience is real, and
how much is illusion. Scarlett and Donatella, sisters from a
troubled home, are invited to participate in Caraval by a man named
Legend, the creator of the event. Though they are forbidden to
attend by their father, the sisters run away from home only a week
before Scarlett's wedding in order to attend. Unfortunately for
them, Legend kidnaps Donatella, offering her as the prize to the
winner of this year's Caraval. It is now up to Scarlett to follow
the clues, solve the riddles, and figure out who she can trust, in
order to win the game and rescue her sister.
*Passage from Caraval*
Like,
Strange,
the Dreamer,
the writing in Caraval
is vivid and paints quite the picture, while still allowing the story
to move freely. There is also a romantic sub-plot, a will they or
won't they story, that is well executed and helps to drove the novel
forward while simultaneously giving the reader reasons to invest in
the characters. But maybe this kind of fantasy novel isn't to your
liking. Well then here's something a bit more humorous...
Timmy Failure
is a graphic novel about a young boy, Timmy, and his business
partner/polar bear, Total. Together, they run a detective agency
called Total Failure, Inc., solving mysteries for those in their
community. Their primary competition is Corrina Corrina, a rival
detective and Timmy's archnemesis, whose agency utilizes the latest
and greatest technologies, thanks to her wealthy father. When
Timmy's mother's Segway, dubbed the Failuremobile, goes missing, it's
up to Timmy and Total to solve the case!
*Passage from
Timmy Failure*
Timmy Failure
tackles a mystery from a completely different angle. Whereas the
other two books both utilize magical elements to fuel their mysteres,
Timmy Failure tells the story of a real life mystery through the eyes
of a wildly imaginative child. In this way, Timmy puts a fun,
dramatic spin on what would otherwise be a fairly mundane story,
leaving you wondering just how much of the information that he gives
you is accurate, and how much was concocted inside of his mind. The
illustrations in the book are silly and fun, matching the humor of
the writing, with plenty of sight gags that reward the observant
reader, encouraging them to get invested in the reading experience.
All
three of these novels are excellent choices for anyone who has
difficulty committing to the idea of reading a book front to back.
These books will keep you engaged, dying to find out if your ideas
about the mystery were right. They will also keep you entertained
throughout, with characters that are worth getting invested in, and
stories that will leave you wanting more, which is good, since they
are all the first book in their respective book series.
