Her entry begins:In the past five years I’ve experienced great success as a writer, but I’ve found that it comes at the cost of reading for pleasure. I have a stack of books that I’m reading for research which, lined up, stretches across the room. The research relates to my current work in progress, a middle-grade non-fiction book about the women who flew as combat pilots for the Soviet Union during World War II. It’s fascinating reading, but it’s not reading for pleasure.About The Pearl Thief, from the publisher:
I’ve also received a lot of requests in recent years to provide endorsements for books for my fellow writers. This is a real honor, and it’s also a task I greatly enjoy. Still, there’s pressure: there’s always a deadline and responsibility involved, and I don’t choose these books myself. It’s still work rather than recreation, even if I’m lucky enough to have a job I love.
Then, about three months ago I received a surprise gift in the mail from one of my best friends. It was a stack of five very fat books, all by the same author, with matching covers each in a different color. The books are a series by Elizabeth Jane Howard called the Cazalet Chronicles. At an estimate I’d say that the complete series contains over 3000 pages – not a quick weekend read! With the gift of the books, my friend included a note saying...[read on]
Before Verity ... there was Julie.Visit Elizabeth Wein's website.
When fifteen-year-old Julia Beaufort-Stuart wakes up in the hospital, she knows the lazy summer break she'd imagined won't be exactly what she anticipated. And once she returns to her grandfather's estate, a bit banged up but alive, she begins to realize that her injury might not have been an accident. One of her family's employees is missing, and he disappeared on the very same day she landed in the hospital.
Desperate to figure out what happened, she befriends Euan McEwen, the Scottish Traveller boy who found her when she was injured, and hisstandoffish sister, Ellen. As Julie grows closer to this family, she witnesses firsthand some of the prejudices they've grown used to-a stark contrast to her own upbringing-and finds herself exploring thrilling new experiences that have nothing to do with a missing-person investigation.
Her memory of that day returns to her in pieces, and when a body is discovered, her new friends are caught in the crosshairs of long-held biases about Travellers. Julie must get to the bottom of the mystery in order to keep them from being framed for the crime.
This exhilarating coming-of-age story, a prequel to the Printz Honor Book Code Name Verity, returns to a beloved character just before she first takes flight.
The Page 69 Test: Black Dove, White Raven.
The Page 69 Test: The Pearl Thief.
Writers Read: Elizabeth Wein.
--Marshal Zeringue
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