Switch by A.S. King

A.S. King books are difficult to describe. The stories exist in a world similar to reality but always with some impossible element that is treated as mostly normal. And there are several in this one. The first being that time stopped several months ago - for everyone. Not that everyone and everything is frozen in place. Time just stopped - no moving clocks or watches. So many questions, but best to accept it and move on. 

Truda's life is literally upside down (like sometimes her house rotates). Again, best to just roll with it. Her mother left and her father is not handling it well. He cooks and builds. He builds boxes within boxes to cover the switch on the wall in the house. Truda lives in one of the boxes and so does her older brother. Their sister is never in the story but has caused so much pain that she is central to the narrative. 

The world is not right. Truda spends her time in school in a group trying to find ways to restart time - the group's focus is psychology. She joins the track team and becomes a javelin thrower. She hangs out with her friend Carrie. Mostly normal, but not really. Time stopping has messed up everything in her life. 

I enjoy A.S. King books. They are odd enough to keep me interested without going too far. Even when they are difficult to visualize, I know there is a point being made. Like the characters are living in a giant metaphor. 

For more info, check out the Indianapolis Public Library catalog and the author's site. 

Dig by A.S. King

Starting a A.S. King book is always interesting. I never know where the story is heading and what reality warping aspect will she include. In this instance, there is a girl who can transport herself to other places; although the destination is not always totally under her control. One moment she is her room and the next she is in Hong Kong.

The story is not really about that girl, per se. She is just one teen interwoven with the lives of the others (who at first seemed to not be connected). They all seem lost in their own way - like the boy who shovels snow and decides that he will hold onto the shelve wherever he goes even when there is no shoveling to do. And the girl who sells weed out of the drive through window. I could attempt to go on, but I couldn't do any of them justice or describe them as interestingly as the author. Suffice to say that this, like her other books, is mind bending but worth it if you like stories that cut to the heart of difficult matters (like neglectful families and racism).

While I realize that this story would not appeal to a lot of people, I hope that readers of quirky stories would at least give it a chance.

For more info, check out Indianapolis Public Library catalog and the author's site.

Still Life with Tornado by A.S. King

Once again, A.S. King gives us a realistic story with twist of fantasy thrown in. Or does it even happen? Maybe it doesn't even matter because it works.

Sarah likes art, but one day she just can't do it anymore. She can't draw the pear her teacher tells the class to draw. She can't draw her own hands for another assignment. She can no longer do any of her art projects. Sarah also decides she can't go to school anymore, so she stops going. Her parents (who have always supported her artistic talent) are not happy, but no matter what they do Sarah will not go.

What does Sarah do instead? She wanders around the city, follows a homeless artist and eventually runs into a younger version of herself. And then an older version of herself. The younger Sarah wants to talk about the family trip to Mexico and Sarah's brother who went away. But current Sarah doesn't want to talk about her brother and how he never calls. At home, it's like her brother doesn't exist.

Older Sarah tries to reassure current Sarah, but it's not the past or future that is the problem. Sarah doesn't want to deal with all the stuff in her life happening now. Over the course of this unconventional story, we learn the truth about her missing brother, her angry father and the reason she walked out of school.

The story is off beat enough that I had second thoughts for the first few chapters. It is odd even for A.S. King (whose books I generally love). But I am glad I continued because it is a remarkable story.

For more info, check out the Indianapolis Public Library catalog and the author's site.

Glory O'Brien's History of the Future by A.S. King

I have no idea how A.S. King comes up with her ideas. Her characters are so different from anything I could ever think up and they live in such unique circumstances (that are often somber). And the things they think and do are so intriguing. For all these reasons and more, she is one of my favorite authors.

So much to say about Glory's life. Let's start with her mother who committed suicide by sticking her head in the oven when Glory was only 4. Her mom was talented photographer with a deep interest in the process of developing pictures. Glory takes picture, too, and aspires to be like her mother.

Glory lives with her father in the same house where the suicide occurred (the stove is gone and never replaced). He was an artist who now spends his time sitting on the couch doing tech support from his laptop. He does not talk about Darla (Glory's mom) and has left Glory with a lot of unanswered questions.

Across from their house, there is a commune where Glory's best friend, Ellie lives. Ellie's mom, Jasmine, runs the commune. Ellie stopped going to school a long time ago and will not be graduating with Glory in a few days. Glory wonders if their friendship should continue. Pretty normal stuff so far...

I will not elaborate how, but Glory and Ellie do something that allows them to see a person's past and future when looking at their face. Not just the person, but generations in the past and future.Glory sees what is going to happen to people and society in the not too distant future, and it isn't pretty (if its even real).

Glory's life is in transition as she is graduating. She wonders about her mother, discovering more about her through things left behind in her dark room. She questions her relationship with Ellie. She writes down her visions of the future. She wonders where she fits in the world. It's confusing enough for any teen without having to see the future of mankind.

Another good one from this author who bends reality just enough to make things interesting.

For more info, check out the Indianapolis Public Library catalog and the author's site.

Please Ignore Vera Dietz by A.S. King

This an early book by one of my favorite authors. It was written before I discovered her. Like her other books, this one blends a realistic setting with just a slight bit of fantasy. I don't mean elves or magic, but an element of the unreal going on in the life of Vera Dietz.

Vera's best friend Charlie died - as she says, she lost him twice: first as a friend and then for real. We learn all the details as the story progresses (with flashbacks thrown in to help). We also hear from Vera's single dad (whose wife left both of them when Vera was twelve), Charlie (speaking from beyond the grave) and the town's landmark pagoda (yes, it is quirky).

Vera just wants to be ignored. She lives in fear that someone will find out her secret - her mom used to be a stripper. The fact that her mother moved away years ago doesn't matter. The people Charlie calls detentionheads would make her life hell if they knew.

So Vera goes to school and works nights delivering pizzas. Other than Charlie, who lives next door, she has no friends and no extra activities. Her dad has insisted that she have a job since she has been legally able to do so. He wants her to learn responsibility, so she won't become an alcoholic or turn out like her mother. Ya, he makes Vera's life a lot of fun. Thankfully, he doesn't know that Vera is not always follow his wishes.

Vera gets mixed messages from her father. Be responsible, but ignores the fact that Charlie's father abuses his mother. Everyone has their own issues, but are not necessarily dealing with them in the healthiest way.

For more info, check out the Indianapolis Public Library catalog and the author's site.

Reality Boy by A.S. King

A.S. King once again gives us a teen with a troubled life who finds a way to escape even if only momentarily. When things get tough for Gerald, he zones out and goes to Gersday, an extra day just for him. All Gersdays are good days. He envisions eating ice cream and spending time with his sister, Lisi (who in reality has moved to Scotland just to escape the family). Why Gersday...

Gerald was only five when his family agreed to be on a reality show. It was one of those where they bring in a nanny (in this case an actress) to help the family deal with the children's behavior. For reasons I will not discuss, Gerald becomes known as the Crapper - not just in school, but nationwide. It is a name he is still called as a teenager. He was the focus of the show because he was the troubled one (or was he?).

The family already had serious issues (like Gerald's oldest sister Tasha being able to do no wrong in their mother's eyes). She would do something, blame Gerald and he would be punished. The reality show made it all worse. It manipulated the reality seen by the public, placed blame on the wrong people and didn't really solve anything.

Gerald cannot wait to escape - really escape like his sister Lisi.  For now, he works at a concession stand at the local arena. He works register #7 and often finds himself looking at the girl on register #1, but his anger management counselor tells him to stay away from girls because they will just cause him to get angry.

A.S. King creates such incredible characters and complex lives for them. You want so much for them to sort out their issues and find contentment. They are often trapped by their age with parents who are making their lives hell.  This author keeps getting better and better.

For more info, check out Indianapolis Public Library catalog and the author's site.

Ask the Passengers by A.S. King

Astrid is not having a happy life. She moved from New York City to a small town in Pennsylvania. Just try to be different when everyone wants to know  your private business.

Not that her family is much better. Her mom, a work from home workaholic is constantly telling Astrid what she should do and is obsessed with whether Astrid has a boyfriend. She has the audacity to befriend Astrid's best friend Kristina who she chats with often. Astrid's dad secretly smokes pot when he is not at his low level office job. Her younger sister can do no wrong in her mother's eyes.

And so Astrid hangs out with her friends Kristina and Justin who are the perfect high school couple - at least in appearance. They are both actually gay and dating other people. The small minded people of their little town would never forgive them if the secret was revealed.

Astrid knows this and is scared about her own secret - she is extremely attracted to her co-worker, Dee. Astrid's never been attracted to another girl before, so she's not sure she is gay or not. Dee is gay and out to everyone and wants more from Astrid than she is ready for.

Astrid is truly confused by all that is going on around her and all the people telling her what to do. Her only escape is to her backyard picnic table where she lays on her back and looks at the sky. She sends love to the people traveling overhead in passing airplanes. Like the author's other book, Everybody Sees the Ants, this bends reality just a bit. In this case, the passengers receive the love.

Astrid's story is about more than questioning her sexuality or coming out to her parents. Astrid is struggling with many issues. Astrid's story is all too familiar to teens who trying to deal with classmates, friends, siblings, parents and even themselves in world that sometimes seems totally against them.

For more information about this book, check out the author's site and the Indianapolis Public Library catalog.

Everybody Sees the Ants by A.S. King

I don't recall ever reading a book quite like this. It is mostly realistic but has a touch of surreal bits thrown in. These bits come in the form of Lucky's dreams where he 'travels' to Vietnam to rescue the grandfather that never came home from the war. Lucky's dad never seemed to recover from growing up without his father and puts the MIA/POW emblem on everything. He also spends so much time at his restaurant that Lucky feels like his father is missing, too.

Lucky and his mom leave to spend time with her brother and his wife in Arizona after Lucky is attacked again by Nader, the bully that has been terrorizing him for years. Lucky has tried being friends with Nader and ignoring him, but nothing helps...except escaping with his missing grandfather.

Lucky's grandmother never accepted that her husband died in Vietnam and she asked Lucky on her deathbed to rescue him. So Lucky drifts off and visits his grandfather who lives in a constant state of being a prisoner of war. It could be just elaborate dreams, but Lucky always 'returns' with something physical on him like a makeshift headband or dirt.

Away from the bully and his dad, Luck and his mom try to sort things out in Arizona - a nasy face wound, a strange aunt, a sympathetic uncle and a beautiful rebellious girl are all part of the journey...and what about those ants that Lucky sees everywhere...

Click here for more info about this book from the Indianapolis Public Library catalog.