Book Review: One Boy No Water by Lehua Parker

Book:  One Boy, No Water
Author:  Lehua Parker
Pages:   185
Format:  Hardcover, paperback
Publisher:  Jolly Fish Press
Book Source:  Provided by Publisher
Category:  Youth Fantasy
Style:  Easy, conversational style with lots of Hawaiian pidgin usage

Synopsis from GoodReads:

On the surface, despite his unusual allergies, Zader is an average eleven year old boy with typical challenges of fitting in with his peers, getting into a good prep school, and maintaining his relationship with his surfing crazed brother. In reality, Zader is Niuhi, a shark with the ability to turn into a person. As he matures and begins to adapt to his “allergies” in ways that make it easier to live a normal life, Zader’s world begins to turn upside down—he will not only have to come to terms with who he is, but what he is. . . . more

My Take:

What is the recipe for a really big hit in children's literature?  Below, I list what has been proven to work in the past.

• Make the protagonist a defacto orphan.  Kahana, an aging, skinny Hawaian steeped in the ancient ways, finds a baby boy out on a reef just hours after birth and convinces his great-niece (who has just given birth to a boy herself) to adopt him.  They name him Alexander Westin and call him “Zader” for short.  Surrounded by a loving, supportive family cannot make Zader anything but a fish out of water.

Book Giveaways: Incandescent Enchantments

The book blog Incandescent Enchantments is having a one-year anniversary celebration with a huge book giveaway.  There's plenty here for any fan of young adult fantasy: mermaids, magic, ghosts, time travel, guardian angels, alternate dimensions and telepathy, all involving youths from 13-24.

Authors include:  Amber Garr, Charlotte Blackwell, JA Templeton, Laura Eno, Deborah J. Lightfoot, RA McDonald, Victoria J. Hyla and Kathleen Harsch.

I haven't read any of these books and so do not endorse them, but if you would like to enter the three separate giveaways all on the same blog, visit:  Prize Pack One, Prize Pack Two, and Prize Pack Three.

If you have read any of these books or others by the above authors, leave a comment and tell us what you think. 

—A Chaotic Mind

Incandescent Enchantment update: Today, enter a brand-new giveaway with twelve books to choose from.  Follow the button below to get there.

Book Review: Supreme Chancellor of Stupidity by D. Ogden Huff

Book:  Supreme Chancellor of Stupidity

Author:  D. Ogden Huff

Pages:  287

Format: Kindle/ebook

Publisher:  Amazon Digital Services
Book Source:  Provided by Author

Category:  Young Adult Speculative Fiction

Style:  Character-driven but light

I had fun reading Ms. Huff's second installment of her Beau & Bryce Blair trilogy.  Like Master of Emotion which I reviewed here, this story is told in first person.  However, Supreme Chancellor of Stupidity speaks with the voice of Beau's twin brother, Bryce, a smart Alec, charmer, and terminal flirt.  

Nicely juxtaposed against Beau's brooding isolation and channeling of emotions without thoughts, Bryce, a semi‒ Big Man On Campus, reads  thoughts without the emotions.  He uses his talent to anticipate football plays and connect with the ladies.  Think What Women Want (Paramount 2000) with Mel Gibson and Helen Hunt.  Unfortunately, like all rakes with true hearts of gold, Bryce falls and falls hard for the one girl who refuses to give him the time of day because he's that kind of scoundrel. What's a guy to do?  Enlist the help of a dating coach, of course, and instigate a faux relationship to practice his new resolutions.

Novel Sequels: the possibilities are endless

Jane the Negligent.

Writing a sequel is a pretty simple business.  Your characters are all set up for you.  The conflicts, the impediments, the wild tangents, red herrings, and extraneous characters are all there.  One need but follow the path that is already laid out for them.  It is also rather important to stick to that path lest you lose your way altogether.  Writing a collateral sequel (or whatever they call telling the same story from a different character's point of view) is much the same.  When you decide to do such a thing, you have found another character at least equally if not more intriguing than your original protagonist.

Both endeavors are also expressions of dissatisfaction.  "Oh!  I love that book!  I think I'll write a sequel," isn't really accurate.  You love the characters, you love the plot line or the situation or the environment or society.  You love all those things, but you believe the author fell a bit short in the treatment of it.  You'll just tweak it a bit.

I am a pathologic malcontent when it comes to reading.  Nine times out of ten, a book finishes before I do.  I have been known to stay up the entire night reading, or losing an entire day immersed in some kinder, gentler, more civilized place (or, at the very least, more romantic).  I devour books that interest me like a starving man at a smorgasbord.  Then, I delve into the what-ifs and if-onlys scattered about in the debris.

Laura the Prolific

I believe since I was old enough to read more than Dick and Jane (which was pretty early), I have lulled myself to sleep at night continuing stories that ended too soon.  Little House In the Big Woods by Laura Ingalls Wilder was probably one of the first and only partially sated my thirst.  I thought she stopped just when things really got interesting.  Laura, by the way, published her first novel at the age of 65.  There is hope for me yet!