LitBit Speaks

An incredible lineup of authors explore the lives and deaths of the wives of Henry VIII. A complex and in-depth examination of complicated people, each of whom has very different reasons for wanting to be queen ( or not ) and the sometimes bizarre behind-the-scenes reasons for their downfalls. Henry VIII - M.T. Anderson Katharine of Aragon - Candace Fleming Anne Boleyn - Stephanie Hemphill Jane Seymour - Lisa Ann Sandell Anna of Cleves - Jennifer Donnelly Catherine Howard - Linda Sue Park Kateryn Parr - Deborah Hopkinsons Queen Elizabeth I - M.T. Anderson This thorough collection of detailed accounts is a history-lover's dream. Each queen's voice is distinctive, exploring each woman's ascent to the precarious position of Henry's wife. Henry's obsession with a male heir fuels much of his unhappiness with each woman, but others are also working in the background for their own purposes, throwing out false accusations of infidelity, incestuous relations, an...

When Nina Faye was fourteen, her mother told her there was no such thing as unconditional love. Nina believed her. Now Nina is sixteen. And she'll do anything for the boy she loves, just to prove she's worthy of him. But when he breaks up with her, Nina is lost. What is she if not a girlfriend? What is she made of? Broken-hearted, Nina tries to figure out what the conditions of love are. She's been volunteering at a high-kill animal shelter where she realizes that for dogs waiting to be adopted, love comes only to those with youth, symmetry, and quietness. She also ruminates on the strange, dark time her mother took her to Italy to see statues of saints who endured unspeakable torture because of their unquestioning devotion to the divine. Is this what love is? Until now, I didn't realize how destructive the old poem was: "Sugar and spice and everything nice; that's what little girls are made of." But then I read this novel, and I saw Elana Arnold...

From acclaimed author Patricia Hruby Powell comes the story of a landmark civil rights case, told in spare and gorgeous verse. In 1955, in Caroline County, Virginia, amidst segregation and prejudice, injustice and cruelty, two teenagers fell in love. Their life together broke the law, but their determination would change it. Richard and Mildred Loving were at the heart of a Supreme Court case that legalized marriage between races, and a story of the devoted couple who faced discrimination, fought it, and won. At first glance, from the title and the description, this book appears to be about the landmark case for interracial marriage to become legal throughout the United States of America. Powell's work, however, is actually much more focused on the couple behind the lawsuit(s), Richard and Millie. Although many people have heard of the case and perhaps a little bit of the background, this book emphasizes the human story behind it all, through personal anecdotes, primary sourc...

Pinmei's gentle, loving grandmother always has the most exciting tales for her granddaughter and the other villagers. However, the peace is shattered one night when soldiers of the Emperor arrive and kidnap the storyteller. Everyone knows that the Emperor wants something called the Luminous Stone That Lights the Night. Determined to have her grandmother returned, Pinmei embarks on a journey to find the Luminous Stone alongside her friend Yishan, a mysterious boy who seems to have his own secrets to hide. Together, the two must face obstacles usually found only in legends to find the Luminous Stone and save Pinmei's grandmother--before it's too late. This National Book Award Finalist is an incredible book, weaving together stories told by various characters and creating a narrative of incredible depth and complexity. Lin's text is magical from start to finish, examining the ways that storytelling informs, entertains, and also contains grains of truth. As Pinmei and...

There would be blood. Blood for blood. Blood to pay. An entire world of it. For the resistance in 1950s Germany, the war may be over, but the fight has just begun. Death camp survivor Yael, who has the power to skinshift, is on the run: the world has just seen her shoot and kill Hitler. But the truth of what happened is far more complicated, and its consequences are deadly. Yael and her unlikely comrades dive into enemy territory to try to turn the tide against the New Order, and there is no alternative but to see their mission through to the end, whatever the cost. But dark secrets reveal dark truths, and one question hangs over them all: how far can you go for the ones you love? So much energy. So much awesomeness. So much action and fantastic twisty goodness. It is rare that a sequel holds up so well to a first book, but Blood for Blood  stands up spectacularly. I had no idea what to expect, but I certainly wasn't disappointed. I've been a fan of Ryan Graudin's for...

Arthur is a young gay man in Montreal at a crossroads. He gets lost in a blizzard of boys and endless possibilities—looking to fall in love and to experience devotion—but he finds himself increasingly immersed in a world of hedonism and deception, especially as he deals with the messy remains of his relationship with Jeremy, his chimerical ex-boyfriend and first love. He moves to New York in search of something more, but due to a lack of foresight and chaotic romantic entanglements, he finds he still yearns for authentic connections with others. In a world that celebrates youth and extended adolescence, what does it mean to grow up? I want to start this review by noting that while I normally review children's and YA on this site, I have reviewed adult fiction in the past. This is definitely not a book for a young adult audience, even though the protagonist starts out at seventeen years of age in the opening part of the book. There is a lot of sex... and I do mean a lot . That...

Dill has had to wrestle with vipers his whole life—at home, as the only son of a Pentecostal minister who urges him to handle poisonous rattlesnakes, and at school, where he faces down bullies who target him for his father’s extreme faith and very public fall from grace. He and his fellow outcast friends must try to make it through their senior year of high school without letting the small-town culture destroy their creative spirits and sense of self. Graduation will lead to new beginnings for Lydia, whose edgy fashion blog is her ticket out of their rural Tennessee town. And Travis is content where he is thanks to his obsession with an epic book series and the fangirl turning his reality into real-life fantasy. Their diverging paths could mean the end of their friendship. But not before Dill confronts his dark legacy to attempt to find a way into the light of a future worth living. At ALA Midwinter this year, I picked up this book from the Penguin booth. The cover intrigued me, ...