Congrats to the Edgar and Agatha Award Winners in #YALit and #MGLit!

I'm emerging from my winter writing cave to announce the Edgar winners and Agatha winners! For this blog (since we're YA Sleuth and all), I'll post the YA and Kid winners below:

The Edgars:

Best Juvenile

Audacity Jones Steals the Show by Kirby Larson (Scholastic — Scholastic Press)
Vanished! by James Ponti (Simon & Schuster — Aladdin)
The Assassin's Curse by Kevin Sands (Simon & Schuster — Aladdin)
First Class Murder by Robin Stevens (Simon & Schuster — Simon & Schuster BFYR)
NewsPrints by Ru Xu (Scholastic — Graphix)

Young Adult

The Cruelty by Scott Bergstrom (Macmillan Children's Publishing Group — Feiwel & Friends)
Grit by Gillian French (HarperCollins Publishers — HarperTeen)
The Impossible Fortress by Jason Rekulak (Simon & Schuster)
Long Way Down by Jason Reynolds (Simon & Schuster — Atheneum Books for Young Readers)
The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas (HarperCollins Publishers — Balzer + Bray)

Agatha:

Best Children’s/Young Adult

City of Angels by Kristi Belcamino  (Polis Books)
**Sydney Mackenzie Knocks ‘Em Dead by Cindy Callaghan  (Aladdin)
The World’s Greatest Detective by Caroline Carlson  (HarperCollins)
Audacity Jones Steals the Show by Kirby Larson  (Scholastic Press)
The Harlem Charade by Natasha Tarpley  (Scholastic Press)

You can find the Edgars winners for all categories and Agatha winners (announced at Malice Domestic) at their respective websites.

CONGRATS TO ALL NOMINEES AND WINNERS!!!

Congrats to the Edgar Nominees!

The Edgar nominees were just announced--congrats to everyone who made the list! Here are the top contenders in Juvenile and YA:

BEST JUVENILE

Audacity Jones Steals the Show by Kirby Larson (Scholastic – Scholastic Press)
Vanished! By James Ponti (Simon & Schuster – Aladdin)
The Assassin’s Curse by Kevin Sands (Simon & Schuster – Aladdin)
First Class Murder by Robin Stevens (Simon & Schuster – Simon & Schuster BFYR)
NewsPrints by Ru Xu (Scholastic – Graphix)
 
BEST YOUNG ADULT
 
The Cruelty by Scott Bergstrom (Macmillan Children’s Publishing Group – Feiwel & Friends)
Grit by Gillian French (HarperCollins Publishers – HarperTeen)
The Impossible Fortress by Jason Rekulak (Simon & Schuster)
Long Way Down by Jason Reynolds (Simon & Schuster – Atheneum Books for Young Readers)
The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas (HarperCollins Publishers – Balzer + Bray)

You can find the full list of all category nominees on the MWA Edgars site.

Congrats to the Edgar Award nominees!

A quick shout-out to the nominees of the Edgar Awards, announced today (Mr. Poe's birthday) by Mystery Writers of America! This list always send me to the bookstore to add to my ever growing TBR pile...

Here are the nominees for the YA and Juvenile (that's the kid and MG category) mystery novels; you can find the full list on the Edgars website.

Best Juvenile:

Summerlost by Ally Condie (Penguin Young Readers Group – Dutton BFYR)
OCDaniel by Wesley King (Simon & Schuster – Paula Wiseman Books)
The Bad Kid by Sarah Lariviere by  (Simon & Schuster – Simon & Schuster BFYR)
Some Kind of Happiness by Claire Legrand  (Simon & Schuster – Simon & Schuster BFYR)
Framed! by James Ponti (Simon & Schuster – Aladdin)
Things Too Huge to Fix by Saying Sorry by Susan Vaught
(Simon & Schuster – Paula Wiseman Books)

Best YA:

Three Truths and a Lie by Brent Hartinger (Simon & Schuster – Simon Pulse)
The Girl I Used to Be by April Henry (Macmillan Children's Publishing Group – Henry Holt BFYR)
Girl in the Blue Coat by Monica Hesse (Hachette Book Group – Little, Brown BFYR)
My Sister Rosa by Justine Larbalestier (Soho Press – Soho Teen)
Thieving Weasels by Billy Taylor (Penguin Random House –
Penguin Young Readers – Dial Books)

Again, congrats to all the nominees!

Congrats to the 2015 Edgar nominees for Best Juvenile and Best YA!

It's Edgar time! I'll admit that I'm not familiar with any of the Best Juvenile noms, but there were several in the YA category I recognized.

BIG congrats to everyone!

Here's the list:

BEST JUVENILE

Absolutely Truly by Heather Vogel Frederick (Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers)
Space Case by Stuart Gibbs (Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers)
Greenglass House by Kate Milford (Clarion Books – Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Books for Young Readers)
Nick and Tesla’s Super-Cyborg Gadget Glove by “Science Bob” Pflugfelder and Steve Hockensmith  (Quirk Books)
Saving Kabul Corner by N.H. Senzai (Simon & Schuster – Paula Wiseman Books)
Eddie Red, Undercover: Mystery on Museum Mile by Marcia Wells (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Books for Young Readers)


BEST YOUNG ADULT

The Doubt Factory by Paolo Bacigalupi (Little, Brown Books for Young Readers)
Nearly Gone by Elle Cosimano (Penguin Young Readers Group – Kathy Dawson Books)
Fake ID by Lamar Giles (HarperCollins Children’s Books - Amistad)
The Art of Secrets by James Klise (Algonquin Young Readers)
The Prince of Venice Beach by Blake Nelson (Little, Brown Books for Young Readers)

You can find the full list of Edgar nominees here.

Summing Up: Edgar Nominees For Best Juvenile

I finished reading all the YA and Juvenile Edgar nominees in time! I'm pretty proud of myself just for that accomplishment, to be honest--that's ten books, enough to make a little TBR pile side table.

But you didn't come here to hear about that; let me give you the skinny on the Edgar nominees for Best Juvenile. To refresh, here's the list:


BEST JUVENILE
Horton Halfpott by Tom Angleberger (Abrams – Amulet Books)
It Happened on a Train by Mac Barnett (Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers)
Vanished by Sheela Chari (Disney Book Group – Disney Hyperion)
Icefall by Matthew J. Kirby (Scholastic Press)
The Wizard of Dark Street by Shawn Thomas Odyssey (Egmont USA)

And at the risk of sounding lame, I should say that all of these books are winners. Think about it: of all the middle-grade mysteries published last year, only five could make this shortlist. That's quite impressive, no?

I'll add to this that it's extra-difficult to write a true mystery for the MG audience--not a fantasy, or a historical, etc. The age of the protagonist (usually 8 to 12 years old) makes it very challenging for a writer--I mean, what ten year-old you know goes around solving mysteries and catching bad guys? Exactly.

Which is why so many MG mysteries aren't mysteries first, and many on this list really weren't. Horton Halfpott and The Wizard of Dark Street are both fantasies first, I think. Icefall is more of a historical, Vanished a stronger coming-of-age story than a mystery. It Happened on a Train is the one solid, tried-and-true mystery here.

But this year, I did feel like the mystery wasn't just tacked on. Every one of these books relied on the mystery to carry the plot forward, which hasn't always been the case in previous nominee reads. So I'm pretty pleased after reading these Best Juvenile mystery nominees.

I do hope to see more realistic/contemporary MG mysteries in the future. We really need more books that are junior versions of the mysteries (and thrillers--I'll lump those in there) that are so popular with adults. Readers love mysteries--so why aren't there more solid mysteries for kids?

Alright-y, I'll kick myself off the soapbox here. Because I should really give you my prediction of the winner...

And I'm really not sure... I think It Happened on a Train is the strongest mystery here, so that's my pick.

But I'll add that all of these are really strong contenders... So don't call your bookie and blame me when it all goes south, okay? I'll post the winners here after the announcement on April 26 (that's tonight!)...

Review: Edgar Nominee For Best Juvenile: Horton Halfpott by Tom Angleberger

The last book of my Tour des Edgars! I didn't think I'd make it in time, but here we are: the last book in the Best Juvenile category. And another great cover, which made me open Horton Halfpott with anticipation.

The story is as fun as the cover: Horton Halfpott works in the Smugwick Manor kitchen, and falls right into chaos when one day, Lady Luggertuck (the lady of the manor) decides not to tighten her corset. The Luggernut Lump is stolen, and Horton is accused of the theft. Horton teams up with stable boys Bump, Blight and Blemish to solve the mystery and clear his name.

It took me a little while to get comfortable with the prose, but then found myself laughing at the little jokes and bits of wordplay throughout. The pacing is brisk--perfect for the younger middle-grade reader. In fact, I imagine this book would be fun to read aloud in class or at home, if you're up for the tongue-twisters in this book.

Verdict: Fun book for the younger MG reader who loves fantasy and whimsy.

Mystery Quotient: 4 out of 5; there was a solid whodunit, but the prose and whimsical fantasy overshadowed the mystery a bit.

Review: Edgar Nominee For Best Juvenile: Vanished by Sheela Chari

The third book on my list of Edgar nominees for Best Juvenile had me reading Vanished by Sheela Chari. Can I just say that this is one of the best covers I've seen this year?

But on to the story. Eleven year-old Neela has the most beautiful instrument: her grandmothers veena, an instrument from India with a magical past. When it gets stolen from Neela, she feels horribly guilty, and begins her quest to find the veena. She follows different clues like a true amateur sleuth: a magical teakettle, a link to a dead musician... Meanwhile, Neela is trying to figure out where she fits at home, at school and with her friends, as well as what's really important to her.

This story felt like a classic middle-grade: the coming of age story, the unique cultural insight, and a mystery to keep the story moving. The author added some notes in the back of the book about the veena and her research--great extra material that I think should put this book with the classics in MG.

Verdict: strong MG classic, a great insight into the veena and Indian culture, too

Mystery Quotient: 4 out of 5. Not a mystery first, but still a good contender.

Side note: This book should be on the various children's awards list, I think. Perfect coming-of-age story.

Edgar Nominee For Best Juvenile: The Wizard of Dark Street by Shawn Thomas Odyssey

The second read in my tour of the Edgar nominees for Best Juvenile had me reading The Wizard of Dark Street by Shawn Thomas Odyssey. This one made me smile: if Roald Dahl and Agatha Christie wrote a book together, this would be it. And that's a pretty big compliment, since both authors are childhood favorites of mine.

The story: 12 year-old Oona is the wizard's apprentice on Dark Street, a magical world that's hidden on the streets of New York City.
But Oona would rather be an investigator, so she leaves the world of magic to solve a mystery: who killed her uncle, the wizard?

The narrative flows perfectly, the characters are quirky, and the whodunit is fun and paced well. This was a well-balanced blend of magic and mystery for the middle-grade reader.

Verdict: Great for kids who like mystery and magic alike; paced for the reluctant reader.

Mystery Quotient: 4 out of 5, since it was as much mystery as fantasy. Solid amateur sleuth story, though.

Edgar Nominee for Best Juvenile Review: Icefall by Matthew J. Kirby

Every year when I read the Edgar nominees for Best Juvenile, there's a book in there that... Well, a book that I fail, to tell you the truth. There are some books that I just don't seem to get. This year that book is Icefall.

The story is a Nordic middle-grade fantasy. We follow Solveig, her brother (the crown prince) and sister, who are awaiting their father's return from battle. They're stuck in a fortress, while under guard by berserkers. These warriors are pretty shady, and it becomes clear after some time that there's a traitor in the fortress--someone out to destroy the kingdom.

As I said: I failed Icefall as a reader. Between the cadence of the prose and the slow-moving plot, it felt like the kind of book an avid fantasy reader would appreciate (note: this book gets excellent reviews on Goodreads, so it really is me). My love is more with the whodunit and thrillers.

That said, once I got into the story, I loved the cinematic writing--I felt like I was right there. I hope you'll give this book a try, and tell me what I missed.

Verdict: best for a middle-grade fantasy reader; unique look at Nordic times for a curriculum tie-in

Mystery quotient: 3 out of 5; there was a mystery in the plot, but slow pace and historical setting drowned out the whodunit feel.