Jenny Rae Rappaport
Just got back from the start of the last week of Odyssey and heard about Charles Brown.
Locus has a
piece here.
He was the reason I started reading Locus--his editorials were witty and well-informed. I looked forward to them every month because I was interested in what he was reading and what operas he was seeing. I liked reading about him meeting with the authors and editors who came to the Locus offices to be interviewed.
I only met him once, at a party at the 2006 Worldcon in Anaheim. He was very kind to me, talked to me for a bit, and didn't seem to mind that I was a little fledgling agent. He always seemed to me like the kindly grandfather of my sci-fi magazine. I shall miss him and his editorials.
Jenny Rae Rappaport
Happy belated release day to LIBYRINTH, which is the wonderful debut novel from my client, Pearl North. I could tell you how incredibly good this novel is,but I thought it'd be better to let the critical reviews speak for themselves. Suffice it to say, this is the novel I would want my daughters to read instead of TWILIGHT. If I had teenage daughters, that is. =)
Reviews start here!
Publisher's Weekly, July 6, 2009:
Libyrinth Pearl North. Tor Teen, $17.95 (336p) ISBN 978-0-7653-2096-4
In this complex and rewarding novel set on a decaying, far-future colonial world that barely remembers Earth, Haly is an apprentice Libyrarian, dedicated to protecting the countless books housed in the enormous and decrepit maze known as the Libyrinth. Opposed to her order are the Eradicants, a powerful civilization that defines books as evil. When Haly—who has the ability to hear the contents of books, letters and other pieces of writing without reading them—learns that the Eradicants have discovered the location of the near-mythical tome, The Book of the Night, which “held the secrets of the Ancients, all of their machines and miracles,” she sets off to recover it and save her society. Among this novel's pleasures are the many anonymous quotations scattered throughout, snatches of prose that Haly hears as she goes about her chores, from such sources as Anne Frank's The Diary of a Young Girl, Charlotte's Web and Fahrenheit 451, all of which are carefully identified at the end. The complex moral issues posed by this thoughtful and exciting tale are just as fascinating. Ages 13–up. (July)
From Booklist:
Libyrinth.
North, Pearl (author).
July 2009. 336p. Tor, hardcover, $17.95 (9780765320964). Grades 8-11.
REVIEW. First published June 17, 2009 (Booklist Online).
Haly, clerk to the Libyrarian Selene, can hear books. As the Libyrarians care for and study the books in the Libyrinth, the Eradicants uphold their belief that books are evil by burning them, and Haly experiences both great joy and terrible sorrow in the books’ living and dying voices. In an Earth-based future where those who protect the books of the Ancients are at war with those who believe they should be destroyed, Haly holds firmly with the Libyrarians until she sets off with Selene and her friend, Clauda, to save a very important book and finds things are not quite as they seem—including her own identity and purpose. Although rough in spots and a bit too tidy in the wrap-up, this is a complex and imaginative tale for sophisticated readers who enjoy fantasy and science fiction. An interesting twist on the themes of societal opposition and integration, and perhaps an intriguing companion to Ray Bradbury’s Fahrenheit 451.
From Kirkus (and it's good too!):
LIBYRINTH
Author: North, Pearl
Review Date: JUNE 15, 2009
Publisher:Tor
Pages: 336
Price (hardback): $17.95
Publication Date: 7/1/2009 0:00:00
ISBN: 978-0-7653-2096-4
ISBN (hardback): 978-0-7653-2096-4
Category: CHILDREN'S
This complex novel depicts the final conflict between major subcultures of an Earth colony long divorced from its origins. Fifteen-year-olds Haly and Clauda and their slightly older companion Selene pursue the long-lost Book of the Night hoping to provide redemption for their deeply divided society. The novel combines many science-fiction tropes—the quest, dystopian governments, degenerated society—into a clever, original story. The page-turner plot and themes of the abuses of authority, the nature of prejudice and the power of the written word provide the primary focus. The main characters, all strong, individualized young women, are convincingly drawn, but some of the secondary cast are hard to differentiate. Who cares? The dramatic, satisfying climax and deftly handled resolution of the many plot threads will convince and exhilarate readers. Some mature language and frank discussions of sexual relations (though no descriptions) will age this up. Give it to readers of William Nicholson's books, the His Dark Materials trilogy and teens who loved The Giver. A bibliographic "Guide to Quotations" nicely wraps up this book-lover's delight. (Science fiction. 12-15)
LIBYRINTH is available at many fine bookstores near you, and you can also purchase it online at Amazon.
Jenny Rae Rappaport
...of rain. Everlasting, blasted rain. Welcome to New Hampshire this year. Welcome to Odyssey.
It rains. A lot. So much rain. We have had three days without rain since I arrived on June 6th.
It's the morning of July 3, 2009, and I'm writing this while wearing flannel pajama pants, fleece socks, and a heavy sweatshirt because my window fan registers the temperature at 59 degrees. Have I mentioned that we have no heating in the dorms where we're living? It is July and I'm dressed like this.
I'd almost imagine that I'm in some sort of post-apocalyptic world, but I'm told that other parts of the country have sun. Seattle, for instance. And NYC seems to be in a rare tropical period, where it's sunny and humid, then pouring rain, then sunny again. But at least it's warmer than it is here. It gets to 75 or 80 degrees some days, but only for a few hours at a time. I may freeze to death before this workshop is done.
And how is the weather by you guys? Do you have summer, yet?
(Yes, really, I just wrote an entire blog post complaining about the weather, but it is seriously putrid here most days.)
Jenny Rae Rappaport
I have my third story due on Wednesday morning at 7:30am, so I'm only popping in really briefly here...
I wanted to let you know about a wonderful thing that my friend, James Maxey, is doing to support breast cancer. He lost his partner, Laura, to the disease in 2005, and has been a passionate supporter of breast cancer research ever since. Now, he's offering a signed copy of his latest book, DRAGONSEED (Solaris, 2009), to anyone who donates to the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation through "Team Dragon", which is the fundraising team he's set up.
Many more details can be found here, at his blog post about
Books for Breasts.
If you have a little bit to spare, it's well worth it. One of our good family friends had breast cancer, and my husband's grandmother died of it two years ago. It affects everyone, in every walk of life. Almost everyone knows someone who knows someone who's lost a relative or a friend to this disease. Now you know me. Please go read James' post.
Jenny Rae Rappaport
Have I mentioned yet that Odyssey is everything I hoped it would be and more? It is exhilarating and stimulating, at the same time that it is fatiguing, and I'm learning a million and one things about writing. Melissa Scott is coming as this week's lecturer guest, and we're rolling along on writing new things and discussing our strengths and weaknesses with Jeanne Cavelos (who runs Odyssey).
Plot is one of my weaknesses, which I knew before I came here, and she is so good at helping me with it that I want to put her in a box and take her home with me. =)
The best part of Odyssey though is that I'm surrounded by wordnerds. There are sixteen of us, all passionate about writing, and wanting to talk about it all the time. We have conversations at lunch, in class during our break, walking back and forth from the dorms, and even in the car on the way to dinner (we had a 21st birthday to celebrate today). I can't tell you how much I enjoy being around people who I find intellectually stimulatng, and who are also funny and kind. I would post pictures and names, but I don't want to do that without asking people first. There will eventually probably be a picture of us in Locus at some point, since there usually is of the class as a whole.
Everything has been lovely here, with the exception of the rain and the unseasonable coolness (down to 50-55 degrees at night!). It's supposed to rain the rest of the week, so we've been making a point of going outside to eat our lunches, and then sitting and soaking up the sunshine on the lawn by the dorms, while we read stories for critiques.
I think you can say I'm having fun, and I'm going to come back with a bunch of stories to revise and submit. If you can, seriously think about applying next year. =)
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