Wading Into Revision

High tide at Simpson's Point, photo by my husband

Midway through a Maine summer, the water is finally "warm" enough to swim without a wetsuit. I wade in slowly, giving my body time to acclimate.

Above me, an osprey is circling. Without any hesitation, she dives toward the sea with a big splash. Flapping in her claws is an enormous fish. She wings off to her nest before a bald eagle can steal her catch.

As greenhead flies buzz toward me, I plunge into the water. The islands are too far away, but the point across the estuary is close enough. I rest on the rocks, admiring the view, before swimming back to shore.

At home there's an email from my agent with editorial notes on my manuscript. She has reread my YA novel and is bubbling with enthusiasm. There are no major changes but a myriad of tweaks. Although her critique is excellent, I'm overwhelmed by the number of notes, listed chapter by chapter. Then I remember that rocky point within my reach. I wade into the first chapter.

I'm taking a blog break to finish my manuscript revisions. You may find me in the ocean or tweeting at day's end. I'll be back to blogging regularly in September. Enjoy your summer!

Bookstore Watch: Main Point Books is moving from Bryn Mawr to Wayne, Pennsylvania. I'll be helping my friend reopen her bookstore on Saturday July 30th for the midnight release of J.K. Rowling's Harry Potter and the Cursed Child. If you live nearby, stop in to say hello. I'll be wearing a witch's hat with a little black dress just because.

Blogging Tip: Recently an artist's lifework was erased when Google deleted his blog. To back up your Google content, including your blog archive, follow this link. It took me only a few minutes to create and to download a zip file of nearly a decade of blog posts. You may need to download an app to unzip it.

Time to Party for Spring

Before the inundation of tourists, the sand reveals only tideprints.

Waves break under bluebird skies.

Coastal estuaries cycle through mudflat and flood,

rocking clammer boats in empty currents.

Clouds whisk across the sky, 

bringing more rain but also brilliant greens.

In my garden, bumblebees hum over wild violets,

While chartreuse shoots tickle desiccated leaves...

And beer cans are tossed 

from the dorms next door.

I Crawl Through It by A.S. King

I Crawl Through It by A.S. King is a surreal young adult novel which satirizes education in the USA. Everyday is a new bomb threat with police dogs sniffing the halls. The principal is literally buried to her neck in paperwork. Teaching is geared only to standardized tests, and a naked man in the bushes is selling letter answers.

"When I was done with makeup exams, I broke all my number two pencils in half so they could feel how I feel every day." -Stanzi

Seeking to escape the chaos/boredom of school, Gustav is building an invisible helicopter to fly to a colony of geniuses. Stanzi, a biology prodigy, can only see the helicopter on Tuesdays (ha!), but she agrees to run away with her secret crush. Stanzi's alcoholic parents won't notice her absence. Her best friend, China, has turned herself inside out, wearing her guts like skin and expressing herself in poetry. Another friend tells only lies, making her hair grow. The unreliable narration alternates among the three girls.

"Your Number Two Pencil Has More Self-Esteem Than I Do." -China

Are you still following me? I Crawl Through It is not an easy book to summarize. This puzzle-cum-novel is built from paradoxes and metaphors with multiple meanings. In my reading, the invisible helicopter represented creative innovation. Only a genius can see what others cannot see or visit a place that few can find. However, King's isolated colony of geniuses is more of a dystopia than a utopia. As Stanzi asks, what's the point of discovering the cure for cancer if you can't save other lives?

"There is no such thing as individuality when one is part of a collective of people who think they're all individuals." 

I Crawl Through It is not for everyone; it was designed for kids who find answers that don't appear on standardized tests. The reader must suspend disbelief to take this book for a spin. Challenging novels like this one aren't usually written for teens, but it's wonderful to find an author who is willing to trust the intelligence and the imagination of younger readers.

A.S King writes in the acknowledgement pages, "Some people don't know if my characters are crazy or if they are experiencing something magical. I think that's an accurate description of how I feel every day."

Reviewer's Disclaimer: Upon my request to Little Brown Books for Young Readers, I received a digital galley through netgalley in exchange for an honest review. This book was released last month and has garnered starred reviews from Publishers' Weekly, School Library Journal, The Horn Book and Booklist. My photo is from Simpson's Point, where I read most of this book. It's too chilly for swimming now but still my favorite destination to bike from home at high tide.

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Good Summer Books for Teens, Tweens and Adults

Simpson's Point in Maine

Now that summer is finally here, you'll find me biking four miles to Simpson's Point to swim at high tide. It's paradise if you ignore the green head flies. Great blue herons and snowy egrets fish in the shallows while bald eagles and ospreys circle above. As I wait for my suit to dry, I perch on a warm rock with a good book. Here are my recommendations of books published this year in hardcover or paperback with links to my full-length reviews:

Literary Historical Fiction (paperback) 

Euphoria by Lily King: set in tropical New Guinea and inspired by Margaret Mead, this sensuous summer read was one of my favorite books from 2014 and is now available in paperback. Follow the first link to my review and interview of the Maine author.

All the Light We Cannot See by Anthony Doerr: this year's Pulitzer Prize winner alternates between a blind French girl and a German radio operator during World War II. This book would cross over well to young adults since the two protagonists are teenagers. Gorgeous writing and a well constructed plot makes this a compelling read. The author attended Bowdoin College in Maine. One third into this Dickensian story, I'm enjoying it. My husband will be reading this next for his book group. Thanks to all the people who recommended this book to me.

Commercial Fiction

Summer Secrets by Jane Green: I'm saving this newly released hardcover for Nantucket. Summer Secrets is set on that island and in Primrose Hill, London, where I lived on sabbatical with my family. This British American author knows her settings well. I've enjoyed five of Jane's novels; she writes the best beach books. You can read an excerpt from Summer Secrets here. Her last book, Tempting Fate, with my doppelganger as the protagonist, is now available in paperback.

Young Adult Fiction 

Black Dove, White Raven by Elizabeth Wein: this historical novel about a family of pilots in 1930s Ethiopia would appeal to adults as well as to older teens. The perspective alternates between an Italian American teenager and her foster brother, an Ethiopian American boy. Although slow to start, this literary book soars when it takes to the skies. Elizabeth Wein is one of my favorite authors (hardcover).

This Song Will Save Your Life by Leila Sales: this 2013 novel, recently released in paperback, is edgy, fresh and fun. An unpopular, depressed teen finds friends and romance while DJ-ing for a pop-up underground dance club. I loved this book and its alt rock music selections, stretching from now to decades past. The book includes thematic playlists and should have been sold with a soundtrack. I found this novel while browsing at Longfellow Books in Portland, Maine.

None of the Above by I.W. Gregorio: a homecoming queen discovers that she is intersex and is bullied at school when a friend reveals her secret. She turns to an online community for support. This novel will speak to anyone who doesn't fit in and will help others to be more understanding. The author is a urologist/surgeon who was inspired by a teenaged intersex patient (hardcover).

P.S. I Still Love You (hardcover) by Jenny Han is the follow up to last year's To All the Boys I've Loved Before (paperback). When Lara Jean's secret love letters are sent to her crushes, her love life gets complicated. The first book ends without much resolution, enticing you to buy the second one. These paired romances also focus on sibling relationships following the loss of their Korean-American mother. A good choice for reluctant readers.

One Thing Stolen by Beth Kephart: set in Florence and narrated from the perspective of a teen who fears that she is losing her mind. The style is poetic and dreamlike without much plot structure. Best for fans of literary fiction and psychology. I've read six other novels by this most unique author (hardcover).

I'll Give You the Sun by Jandy Nelson is the 2015 Printz Award winner about a family of artists was one of my favorite books from last year. Narration alternates between a gay teenaged boy and his twin sister. If you want to understand why realistic young adult fiction is so big right now and crossing over to adults, try this book. I love Jandy Nelson's writing style (paperback).

Shadow Scale by Rachel Hartman is the much anticipated sequel to the award winning Seraphina (2012, now paperback). In this literary fantasy, an unstable truce between humans and dragons is under siege. Seraphina, a half human/dragon music mistress, hides her secret parentage while trying to prevent war. These books reminded me of The Dragon Riders of Pern series by Anne McCaffrey. I loved Seraphina (my niece's favorite book) so much that I bought the sequel the day I finished reading the first book, and I don't usually like fantasy. I bought a second copy for my niece's fourteenth birthday. Although Seraphina is a teenager, most characters are adults so it would crossover well to an adult audience (hardcover).

Young Adult Nonfiction (hardcover)

I Will Always Write Back by Caitlin Alifirenka and Martin Ganda with Liz Welch: teenaged American-Zimbabwean pen-pals form a deep friendship over seven years in this inspiring memoir. The accessible style would appeal to younger teens and to tweens. Thanks, Main Point Books, for recommending this book to me.

Middle Grade Fiction (ages 10-12, hardcover)

A Handful of Stars by Cynthia Lord. An Hispanic migrant girl breaks traditions by entering the Downeast Blueberry Queen beauty pageant. Twelve-year-old Salma hopes to win a savings bond for college. No one captures small town Maine better than local author Cynthia Lord. This aptly named novel received a starred review from Publisher's Weekly, won a Best of Maine Children's Book Award from Downeast Magazine and is a Junior Library Guild selection. Halfway through, I'm reading a chapter a night to savor it; A Handful of Stars would make an excellent read-aloud bedtime story for the summer.

The Disappearance of Emily H. by Barrie Summy: this paranormal mystery set in a real world middle school would be a good choice for reluctant readers. The protagonist is a 13-year-old girl who reads sparkle memories on inanimate objects to find a missing girl.


Reviewer's Disclosure: I read/recommend mostly realistic young adult fiction since that is what I write myself. Beth Kephart and Barrie Summy are my blog buddies, and at my request, I received review galleys from their publishers. I also requested a review galley of Elizabeth Wein's novel from her new editor, who is my friend. All other books I purchased at indie bookstores (Gulf of Maine Books, Longfellow Books and Bull Moose) and was not compensated for my reviews. Jane Green is an art client. Cynthia Lord and her editor are my neighbors/friends. My daughter went to school with Lily King's daughters. Yes, the Maine literary community is basically a small town.

Blog Watch: for more recommendations check out the summer reading lists posted @From The House of Edward, @ The Cue Card and @ Midlife Roadtripper.

What are you reading this summer?

Winter Writing

This was the view out my window yesterday, following days of rain and thaw. Early January featured deep snow and subzero temperatures. Thanks to a polar vortex, all the USA was colder than normal. This wintery mix is not unusual for a Maine winter. Most days I ski or snowshoe with my dog and then warm my fingers at the laptop.

Fiction is the best escape. The young adult novel I'm writing takes place during the spring of senior year in coastal Maine. Every day brings more sunlight and revelations. While we were in England celebrating the holidays, I'd put aside my half drafted manuscript. The two week break made it easier to look at my work with fresh eyes. With time to reconsider, I realized that two secondary characters should be collapsed into one. It's working much better now, but one change creates a domino effect. I can't resist condensing, elaborating and polishing as I go along.

I much prefer revising to writing a first draft, but I have another 30K words, or more, to write before the first draft is complete. A contemporary YA novel is usually 60 to 80K words. There will be several more drafts before mine is ready to share with my agent in NYC. Maine is a good place to write a long book; bitter cold or icy days offer few distractions. The whiteness of a blank page is like fresh snow, waiting for me to leave my tracks. I'll keep writing and revising until the mist lifts.

Saving Simpsons Point & Watching the Tides

My town has several boat launches, but Simpsons Point is the only public access to ocean swimming. On hot summer days at high tide, a friendly mix of locals and summer visitors gather. Real Mainers don't seem to mind hypothermia, but I grew up in New York City. My idea of a two-piece bathing suit is this wet suit. Laugh at me through your blue lips.

My favorite time to swim is early morning, when the tide cooperates. Peeking through the mist, islands hide from the rising sun. Every stroke is a brush on canvas, rippling the placid blue. Sometimes my husband and I spot a kayaker or a harbor seal, but mostly we're alone with the shorebirds. To warm up, we bike 4 miles back to our house in town. There is no better way to start a day.

When in Maine, check a tide chart before swimming or boating. At low tide estuaries become mudflats. Simpsons Point is best within 2 hours of high tide.

Brunswick Residents: tonight the Marine Resource Committee is considering a proposal to re-open Simpsons Point to power boats. If you're a swimmer or a paddler, please come in support of Brunswick's only public swimming access to the sea. Tonight's meeting will be at Brunswick Station at 7PM on Wednesday August 5th (wrong date printed in the Times Record yesterday). A second meeting will be on Monday August 12th at 5PM. More info in The Times Record.

Good Summer Books, reading and swimming at Simpsons Point

One of my favorite summer routines is to bike eight miles roundtrip to the sea. A bunch of us locals and some summer people swim off the old boat ramp at Simpsons Point. We call ourselves the High Tide Club since the timing is key. At low tide, the estuary becomes mud flats, but the sun-baked mud warms the cold ocean at high tide (tip: swim within 2.5 hours of high tide either side). I painted this watercolor at Simpsons Point with a great blue heron for company. Other times I've seen bald eagles, snowy egrets, harbor seals and way too many green head flies.

If it isn't too buggy, I sit on a rock and read while my swimsuit dries. A good summer book is well written but not too heavy. It should be set in summer, ideally by the sea, or transports me to an exotic location. Most of my recommendations would appeal to both adults and teens so check all categories.

Fiction for Adults (with adult and teen characters)

The End of the Point by Elizabeth Graver (2013 hardcover). This three generation family saga is set in a summer house on Buzzards Bay, MA. The book opens in 1942 with soldiers stationed next door, narrated at first from the point of view of the Scottish nanny and her charges (8 to 16-year-old girls.) The upstairs/downstairs shifting perspectives, well developed characters, domestic focus and wartime setting would appeal to Downton Abbey fans (the writing is better than the TV show's script.) The sense of place is marvelous, and I adore the cover (click on the image to enlarge) with the rough edge binding. I'm reading this one only on beach days to savor it.

Swimming Home by Deborah Levy (2012 paperback) British vacationers in Nice, France are surprised to find a young woman swimming nude in their pool. The characters were well developed, but most lack moral fortitude. The most likable was Nina, a 13-year-old girl. At 156 pages this novella is physically light but emotionally heavy. I have mixed feelings about the message but appreciated the gorgeous setting and the fine writing: "Standing next to Kitty Finch was like being near a cork that had just popped out of a bottle. The first pop when gasses seem to escape and everything is sprinkled for one second with something intoxicating."

The Round House by Louise Erdrich (2012 hardcover) After his mother is brutally raped, a teenaged boy searches for clues on their reservation. Joe's summertime antics with his buddies add some much needed lightness and mirth. Erdrich has been a favorite author of mine since I read her first novel as a teen. I'd found some of her more recent books too grim, but this one has a good balance of gravity and hope, more similar to her earlier books. The Round House was written for adults but would cross over well to a teen audience, especially to teenaged boys. This 2012 novel won the National Book Award too.

Where'd You Go, Bernadette? by Maria Semple (2013 paperback). I reviewed this hilarious satire last month. The descriptions of rainy Seattle and ice-bound Antarctica will cool you down. Be prepared to laugh in public. Written for parents; my husband enjoyed this one too.

New Adult Fiction (ages 18 and up)

Such A Rush by Jennifer Echols (2013 paperback). Although the characters are high school seniors, this new adult novel was written for readers aged 18 and up. It includes life changing choices, gritty realism and safe sex. Leah has grown up in a series of trailer parks by airports. Not only does she dream of being a pilot, she works hard to make it happen. The evocative descriptions of her impoverished life juxtaposed with the joy of flight makes this book uplifting and inspiring. Her romantic involvements with the gorgeous twin boys, who inherit the airport, are soap-operatic fun. Leah is a wonderful, strong protagonist with a fresh perspective on life. The narrative voice is true to Leah's circumstances, but the writing is still very good: "To be ignored was a sentence without a period."

Just One Day by Gail Foreman (2013 hardcover). A college bound American girl has a fling with a Dutch Shakespeare actor in Paris. Reviewed April 2012.

Realistic Young Adult Fiction

The Summer I Turned Pretty by Jenny Han (2009 paperback). For years Isabelle has been chasing after two brothers, who are friends of her brother. This is the first summer the boys notice "Belly" as more than the silly younger sister. The author does a fine job of weaving in flashbacks from previous summers to build complex, shifting relationships true to adolescent life. The narrative includes the bigger issues of divorce and cancer but doesn't dwell on anything dark or deep. This light romance would be best for tween or young teenaged girls, especially for reluctant readers. Now available in a box set with the other books in the trilogy: It's Not Summer Without You (2010) and We'll Always Have Summer (2011).

Three of my favorites from 2012 are now available in paperback:

1. Code Name Verity by Elizabeth Wein. After her plane crashes, a young spy is captured by the Nazis in Occupied France. Best for mature teens and adults. Reviewed in September 2012. A Printz Honor Book and Edgar Award winner. One of the best books I've ever read. My husband loved it too. It was too scary for our 15-year-old daughter but her friend from Paris adored it. (This summer I'll be reading the companion book, Rose Under Fire, which is due out in September 2013.)

2. Small Damages by Beth Kephart. A pregnant American is sent to Spain to give her baby away before college. Simmering with secrets, savory flavor and dusty heat, this book is seasoned just right for summer. It would cross over well to adult fans of literary fiction too. I reviewed this novel on its release in July of 2012. Winner of the BEA Armchair Award, Best YA Novel of 2012. I reviewed two other Kephart paperbacks last week.

3. The Statistical Probability of Love at First Sight by Jennifer E. Smith. An American girl sits beside a charming Brit on a plane to England. One of my favorite romances. Reviewed in April 2012.

Paranormal Young Adult Fiction
New releases of 2013:

Invisibility by Andrea Cremer and David Levithan is narrated in alternating boy/girl chapters. A boy is born invisible and only one girl can see him. This original premise serves as a good metaphor for falling in love and being truly seen and understood for the first time. The setting is summer on the Upper West Side of NYC. I especially enjoyed Stephen's creative attempts to hide his invisibility from his oblivious girlfriend. I love this type of magical realism. Halfway through, the narrative shifts from comic/surreal to a supernatural dual between good and evil. Despite having a mid-book shift in tone and two authors, the writing is seamless. It has some good lines:
"I am like a ghost who's never died."
"I am in the middle of Times Square. Lit like the inside of a video game." 
"Just as a fever makes cold feel colder, love can make loneliness feel lonelier."
Invisibility was a Main Point Books recommendation for teenaged boys and girls.

Ink by Amanda Sun (paperback). First book in a new paranormal romance trilogy set in Japan. Update: review is now posted.

Reviewer's Disclaimer:  I received ARCs of Small Damages, Ink and Rose Under Fire, but I bought the other books myself, most at indie bookstores. A couple were ebooks to read on the go. Author Beth Kephart is a blog buddy. I was not compensated for my reviews.

More Summer Books Posts:

Books in the City: Top Beach Reads & Top 10 Books Featuring Travel

From the House of Edward: A Tale and a List of Good Summer Books

Please add your recommendations in the comments. If you have a summer books post, let me know, and I'll link to it. Happy reading!

Brunswick Residents, Swimmers and Paddlers: the Marine Resources Committee might ask the Brunswick Town Council to consider a proposal to reopen Simpsons Point to motor boats. Simpsons Point is the only public swimming access to the sea in our town. The nearby Mere Point Boat Launch is already open to motor boats.