True Grit

True Grit (2010) is faithful to Charles Portis' book of the same name which originally appeared as a serial in The Saturday Evening Post in 1968 but was reprinted in book form later on. The 2010 remake which stars Jeff Bridges as Reuben J. "Rooster" Cogburn and Hailee Steinfeld as Mattie Ross.

The story is told by spinster Mattie Ross who as a fourteen-year-old year old girl goes after the murderer of her father, Frank Ross. Mattie and her family lived on a farm near Dardanell in Yell County, Arkansas. Her father hired Tom Chaney, a drifter, to help on their farm. When Frank and Chaney travel to Fort Smith to purchase horses, Chaney turns on Ross and kills him, robbing him of $150 and two gold pieces. Chaney then flees into Indian Territory (present day Oklahoma).

When Mattie arrives in Fort Smith to claim her father's body she is determined to see justice done and to see Tom Chaney hang for the murder of her father. She learns that Chaney has joined the notorious Ned Pepper gang. Upon hearing that Rooster Cogburn is the toughest US Marshall in the area she manages to convince him to help her find Chaney. Mattie Ross is convinced Rooster Cogburn has "true grit" despite his appearance as a foul-mouthed, overweight, aging, drunkard who likes to shoot his quarry dead rather than bring them in alive. A Texas Marshall, La Beouf, joins Rooster and Mattie in the hunt for Tom Chaney as he is wanted in Texas for the murder of a Senator and his dog.

This remake of the 1969 film is very enjoyable and is directed by Joel and Ethan Coen. The pacing was better than the 1969 version and the film was more faithful to the book both in storyline and in setting. The quality of the acting was greatly improved and that comes as no surprise.The cast of True Grit (2010) was chock full of academy award winners and nominees that included Matt Damon as La Beouf,  Jeff Bridges as Cogburn and Josh Brolin as Chaney. Jeff Bridges was a believable Rooster Cogburn, gruff and wise but he did a much better job than John Wayne. Kim Darby was cast as Mattie Ross in the 1969 version of True Grit, and although she received much praise for her pertrayal at the time, she was too old (she was twenty-years-old when she was cast) to be realistic as a fourteen-year-old. In contrast, newcomer Hailee Steinfeld was believable as fourteen-year-old Mattie (partly because she was 14 when she filmed the movies) who had enough "grit" of her own!

True Grit (2010) like its literary counterpart was told from the point of view of Mattie and there's closure at the end that was lacking in the 1969 movie.
In Canada, this movie is rated 14A and rightly so. There is a great deal of violence and gore in parts of the movie and some swearing. Not for children under 14 to be sure.

Search and Destroy by Dean Hughes

Rick Ward has just graduated from Milliken High School in Long Beach, CA - Class of '69. He has no set plans. He hasn't applied to college like his girlfriend Judy who will be heading to Cal, Berkley in the fall. He thinks he's like to be a writer but he doesn't have much to write about at this point in his life.
He's on the cusp of adulthood; life is changing and his relationship with Judy is changing too. Judy looks more like a hippie now in bell bottom jeans and peace beads. Rick still wants to hang and have fun.

Rick is curious about experiencing war and with the ongoing Vietnam War this might be his chance. He hopes some life experience will give him something more substantial to write about and what could be better experience than that of war. He's filled with self-doubt though.

When he quits his job and gets thrown out of the house by his abusive dad, Rick impulsively decides to enlist. He decides he wants in to Special Forces - a goal he ends up achieving. But both Vietnam and war is not what he ever thought it would be. The stifling heat and sheer terror of each recon mission is almost more than Rick can handle.

Assigned to Charlie Rangers near Phan Thiet, Rick is befriended by Kent Richards, a young Mormon draftee whose gentle demeanor and maturity provide Rick with an anchor. Kent is the male role model Rick lacked in his father. Both men suffer devastating wounds but despite this it is Kent who helps Rick put his life back together.

Discussion

Author Dean Hughes read numerous books on war, the Vietnam conflict and also reconnaissance units and this is quite evident throughout. Search and Destroy accurately portrays the realities of war and the dehumanizing element for soldiers from both Vietnam and the US as well as the Vietnamese people. The book brought back memories of watching the nightly newscasts on American TV and the fear it brought into my life (since I was too young to understand fully what I was watching).

Hughes also effectively relates the disconnect that existed at the time (early '70's) between the peaceniks in the US and the Vietnam veterans who returned home after fighting in the conflict. The idea that the veterans of this war were heroes was a preposterous one to the average civilian like Ricks girlfriend Judy. Thankfully, it no longer remains so.

Short and to the point, well written and a great read for teen guys.

Book Details:

Search and Destroy by Dean Hughes
Simon Pulse 2005
216pp

OH NO She Didn't by Clinton Kelly

Straight-shooting Clinton Kelly, cohost of the American version of What Not To Wear (officially my favourite TV show of all time!), sets out to rid America (and the Western world) of the worst 100 fashion faux pas' imaginable. In his book, OH NO, She didn't, Clinton takes on (among other things)

• tattoos and evening wear - they don't mix
• gnarly feet (hide them)
• tracksuits (forget them unless you're in the mob)
• hairy legs under hose (ewwwww)

Clinton is irreverent, funny and desperate to eliminate these and much, much more! He's also quite insightful:

"Animal print wearers, based on my vast experience, have strong opinions, enjoy their feminity and usually like to have a good time." 


This certainly applies to the one person I know who wears alot of animal prints. She even went skinny dipping which is quite risque for my crowd.....

Although Clinton's attack is hiliarious he really does believe that all women can and should dress properly. Most of the mistakes here are simply from a lack of common sense.


A great book, with great fashion tips and lots of sage advice!


Book Details:
OH NO She Didn't, The Top 100 Style Mistakes Women Make and How To Avoid Them by Clinton Kelly
New York: Gallery Books  2010

202pp.

you are not here by Samantha Schutz

you are not here is a wonderfully written exploration of a young woman attempting to make sense of her life and her brief relationship with a young man who suddenly dies.

AnnaLeah and Brian's relationship was a clandestine one - neither of their families knew about it. AnnaLeah's friends were not supportive of her relationship with Brian, telling her to find someone else. But when Brian dies suddenly, AnnaLeah finds that she has no outlet for her grief and because the relationship was secret, she cannot grieve publicly. She has no one to share her grief and loss with. So AnnaLeah takes to visiting Brian's grave regularly.
As AnnaLeah withdraws more and more, her friends who are concerned, give her a book about grief and encourage her to reach out. This combined with a few choice words of wisdom from Brian's grandmother who tells her at Brian's gravesite that "Nothing grows here besides grass." help AnnaLeah to free up some of space in her heart for the rest of her life.
New information about Brian also helps AnnaLeah to revisit the nature of their relationship and to see it in a more realistic way. And a new blossoming relationship with Ethan at her new job help to convince AnnaLeah that she must move on.

Samantha Schutz's free verse is elegant, poignant and on the mark. Excellent and considering the subject matter, a great read. I thoroughly enjoyed this book and loved the poetry. Beautiful!

There are spaces in my heart
that are being filled
by what could have been with Brian,
and the stories
about my father and the Dearly Departed.
I think I need to free up some of the space
for the people in my life
that are actually here.
I need to not keep that space reserved
for people who are never coming.

Book Details:
you are not here by Samantha Schutz

New York: PUSH 2010
292 pp.

Girl, Stolen by April Henry

Lying in the back seat, Cheyenne is sick and waiting for her stepmother to pick up a prescription at the pharmacy. Her stepmom has left the car keys in case she gets cold. Covered up with a blanket, Cheyenne hears someone enter the car and start it up, racing out of the parking lot. From the way the person is driving she knows this is not her stepmom. Who is this person and what is happening? Cheyenne doesn't know because she's blind.
Griffin is a young man a few years older than Cheyenne. He lives with his dad Roy who runs a chop shop. Griffin's mom use to be around until he was seriously burned in an accident when she mysteriously left to go live with her family. When Griffin sees the Cadillac Escalade SUV with the keys in, he knows he just has to take it. He wasn't there to steal cars, only Christmas packages from the cars at the mall. How could he be so stupid not "to see past the keys dangling in the ignition." Now he has a bigger problem on his hands - a blind girl in the backseat. He can't just let her go. The cops will find him too quickly.
So Griffin takes her back to his dad's house and shop. Griffin wants to let Cheyenne go, but when his father learns that she is Cheyenne Wilder, the daughter of the president of Nike, he is determined to ransom millions from him.

But things turn ugly quickly and both Griffin and Cheyenne must make difficult choices. Will Griffin help Cheyenne escape? Can Cheyenne trust Griffin to protect her from Roy and his men?

April Henry's book is another twist on the kidnapped girl theme that is currently very popular in YA fiction. It follows books like Stolen (Lucy Christopher), Living Dead Girl (Elizabeth Scott) and The missing girl (Norma Fox Mazer).

In Henry's tale, there is the added tension of not knowing just where Griffin's loyalties lie. Griffin is portrayed as a basically good kid caught in bad circumstances. He is a thief but Henry shows us that he does have some redeeming qualities. He seems to want to do the right thing but is terrified of his father. He develops a growing attraction to Cheyenne whose helplessness and illness seems to bring out the protector instinct in Griffin. When Griffin gradually comes to the realization of what his father is planning to do, he realizes the situation has escalated far beyond auto theft.

The twist at the end seems highly implausible. But Henry leaves it open to the reader's interpretation. Told from both Cheyenne and Griffins perspective, Girl Stolen is an enjoyable, suspenseful read!

Book Details:
Girl, Stolen. A novel by April Henry
New York: Henry Holt & Company 2010
213 pp

Girl, Stolen

The year of finding memory by Judy Fong Bates

Synopsis:
Judy Fong Bates came to Canada with her mother in 1955, reuniting with her father who had lived in Canada on and off since 1914. Her father ran a hand laundry business in small-town Ontario.
In 2006, after both her parents were dead, Fong Bates returned to China with 12 other relatives and more than thirty pieces of luggage in what she thought would be a kind of tourist trip to see her parents ancestral villages and to learn more about her family history. She was also interested in learning more about her parents and why they were so unhappy in their marriage. What led these two very different people to marry in the first place. What WAS their story?
What Judy Fong Bates discovered offered a very different picture of her parents lives. She was able to fill in many blanks and to uncover some shocking truths about her mother.

I wanted to enjoy this memoir but I felt in some ways it didn't meet up with my expectations.

First off, I found the number of family characters simply overwhelming. It was hard to keep track of who belonged to whom despite the list of family at the beginning of the novel. Perhaps a family tree would have been beneficial. After finishing the book I felt that I didn't know any of the authors family, including herself and her husband, any better than when I started. The lone exception was the mother to some degree. None of Fong-Bates family are portrayed with any depth, including her husband whom she seems to adore. I also didn't know she had two daughters until well into the book.

Fong-Bates mother married at age 16 to a handsome but "very no-good man" who had a serious addiction to opium and was abusive. She left him and went to live with her brother. Eventually in 1930, her mother was hired by her father to teach in his village of Ning Kai Lee. After many years, and a very convoluted life in which circumstances worked against her, her mother married her father who was much older and was living most of the time in Canada working as a launderer. They soon had a daughter, Judy. When she and her mother joined her father in Canada in 1955, life was difficult and her parents fought a great deal of the time. Judy was often caught in the middle. This made her wonder why they had married in the first place and whether they had ever loved one another.Thus the trips to China.

Through meeting her many relatives in China Fong-Bates was able to piece together her mother's life and why she entered into this marriage. Unfortunately, we know little of her father's story, which also would have been interesting since he came to Canada in 1914 and was, at the end of his life, a broken man who eventually committed suicide.

The story that emerged was one of thwarted dreams and of two people who were victims of circumstances and events well beyond their control. There is great tragedy in both lives. The sense of tragedy comes out in The year of finding memory but at times gets lost in the telling. This is because the revelations are mixed in with a sort of touristy account of visits to various relevant areas of China, intermingled with conversations of relatives, Fong-Bates life in Canada, and her mother's life. It made the storyline of what is primarily her mother's life very difficult to follow. In fact, I found at times I had to go back a reread portions of the story to help me fit in the new information as it was revealed. Still, there are some parts of the book that are particularly heart-rending; the account of Fong-Bates father's suicide is one such portion.

Another difficulty is the author assuming that readers will know their early 20th century history of China. To this end, a prologue perhaps outlining this period would have been most helpful for setting the background. As an example, I am sure there will be some readers asking who are the Kuomintang?

The map at the front of the book was bland and too small to be useful. The book could have been significantly enhanced by larger photos of family members as well as pictures of her parents ancestral villages, the homes, rice fields and even some photos of family members they encountered on their two trips to China. After all, we got a verbal account of this part of the whole discovery process so why not enhance it visually?

All in all, this was an average book done in the form of storytelling that I felt could have been truly exceptional if done in a different manner. I still plan to read her "Midnight at the Dragon Cafe".

Book Details:

The year of finding memory by Judy Fong Bates
Random House Canada 2010
296pp

Amy By Any Other Name by Maureen Garvie

Amy By Any Other Name is a kind of redo of "Freaky Friday" that doesn't end quite so happily.
Two teen girls have accidents on the same day in May; 15 year old Goth girl Krystal Maria Marques steps in front of a car in downtown Toronto while 16 year old wealthy over-achiever Amy Wexford dives off a cliff in a quarry hitting a rock. Both girls begin to die and when they are brought back to life at the same hospital in Toronto, their out of body souls collide and they end up switching bodies. This soul switch leads to some serious identity crises for both girls, which in my opinion is somewhat glossed over in the novel. I would think anyone undergoing this experience would have some serious emotional and mental health issues. Instead, Amy seems to approach the entire situation with a maturity that seems almost super-human.

Despite this, I thought  Amy By Any Other Name was well written and fascinating. The story is told from the point of view of Amy inside Krystal's body. Amy and Krystal are complete opposites both in body type, looks and likes. Although both girls have been seriously injured, Krystal's body has suffered the more severe injuries. Amy not only has to cope with being in a different body that's injured but also with being in a body that is completely unsuited to the life she led as Amy. Amy essentially has to remake Krystal's body to fit the person she was in her own body. But she also now has Krystal's life, which was not going well and which was not a privileged as Amy's former life. Amy tells a few people whom she thinks she might be able to trust, what has happened to her. These people do not really believe her because the whole idea is preposterous.
We eventually learn how Krystal is coping with being in Amy's body and adapting to Amy's life when the two meet later on. Although Krystal gets the better deal, in some ways her life is just as much a struggle as Amy's is.
Amy is determined to recover her body and sets out with a plan and the same sort of determination she had when she was Amy the elite rower and top student. But will her plan succeed or will she be forever trapped in a body that is not hers? Either way, she and Krystal will face many challenges.

This story has us consider what defines us. Are we just our souls, thoughts, feelings and experiences? Do our bodies matter? Can we really exist in another body? What Garvie wants us to consider is both disturbing and unique.

A well crafted book suited to teens and adults.

Book Details:
Amy By Any Other Name by Maureen Garvie
Key Porter Books
256pp.

Tangled

I went to see Tangled on Friday night and thoroughly enjoyed myself. Generally I'm not a big fan of Disney movies and especially their fairytale animations. I saw the Frog Princess in the summer and thought it was terrible. The two lead characters were frogs for most of the movie. Not exactly exciting to watch. I also wasn't keen on the use of voodoo in the movie which my younger daughter thought was creepy.
Tangled was in a different class all together. Tangled is the title Disney gave to it's animated version of the fairytale, Rapunzel. Although initially the studio focused on the female character, Rapunzel, it was decided to redo the movie from the point of view of the prince. The story begins with the king and queen of a country having a baby. When the queen has difficulty during the birth, the citizens of the kingdom scour the countryside looking for a rare healing flower. Once found, the queen is given the essence of the flower to help her recover. A baby girl, Rapunzel is soon born. However, that flower had been hidden for years and used by an old witch to remain young. Now that the flower is gone she decides to kidnap Rapunzel who retains the flower's power to heal and restore youth. Rapunzel is imprisoned in a tower hidden deep within the forest. The story picks up when Rapunzel is 18 years old.

Along comes Flynn Rider, not a prince but a thief on the run after stealing the princess's crown and who escapes into the forest to hide. He finds Rapunzel in the tower. This "prince" however is NOT interested in rescuing Rapunzel and she must convince him to help her escape so that she can see the special lanterns that float into the sky every year on her birthday.
What follows is a series of exciting adventures leading to Rapunzel eventually reuniting with her royal parents.

In many ways, Flynn Rider is typical of many modern young men - self-absorbed, immature, uncommitted and interested in only saving himself. But Rapunzel is not to be put off. She is a take-charge kind of girl whose virtues of loyalty, purity and honesty gradually rub off on Flynn. For Rapunzel the decision to leave the tower is a difficult one because she is torn between being an obedient daughter and doing what she so desperately wants – to be a grown up making her own decisions in life.

Gradually Flynn Rider changes and becomes a “knight in shining armor” in part due to Rapunzel’s influence on him. She is the classic young woman of virtue and beauty who redeems a man. In the end, there is a "happily ever-after"!

This movie was excellent because it had an interesting plot, absolutely incredible animation, excellent singing, and some great characters. The horse, Maximus, stole the show in this movie. He was hilarious and most of the adults in the theatre seemed to enjoy this character the most. The medieval bar characters are also well done.

The animation is beyond belief especially well done when combined with the 3D. The lantern scene has to be one of the best to date.

Enjoy the trailer and then go see Tangled!

Behemoth by Scott Westerfeld

The much awaited second book in Westerfeld's WWI steampunk trilogy, Behemoth was exciting but at times, confusing.
Like the first book, it was jam-packed with action, racing from one exciting adventure to the next. While this kept me as a reader engaged, at times it was confusing to follow and difficult to see just where Westerfeld was going with the plot.

The book opens with the Leviathan encountering two German warships and almost being destroyed by a Tesla cannon - a type of electrical weapon whose purpose is to ignite the hydrogen warships that Britain flies, thus destroying them.

Eventually the Leviathan reaches its destination of Constantinople, Turkey where Dr. Barlow has a secret mission to the Sultan. At this time, Alek, Volger, Klopp, Hoffman and Bauer attempt to escape the Leviathan as they come to realize that they are now in fact, prisoners of war. Alek, Klopp and Bauer are successful but instead of going into hiding, Alek becomes involved in with the revolutionary Committee of Union and Progress to overthrow the Sultan. While in Instanbul they come to realize that the Germans have managed to bring the Sultan to their side and have heavily mechanized the city.  The Germans are also constructing a enormous Tesla cannon above the city. The Germans wish to block the supply lines to Russia, thus starving the army and preventing them from aiding the British in the war. To accomplish this they want to close the Dardanelles.
To prevent this from happening, Deryn (as midshipman Dylan Sharp) is sent on a secret mission to open up the Dardanelles Strait so the Leviathan can lead the Behemoth in to destroy the German warships and thus keep The Straits open. Deryn's attraction to Alek, leads her back to Istanbul to try to locate and help him. She too is eventually drawn into helping Alek and the revolutionaries in overthrowing the Sultan. This all builds to an exciting confrontation on various levels.


To be honest I don't feel the book is accurately titled. There is very little in the way of build-up as to what the behemoth is and in fact, the Behemoth plays only a very small part in the overall storyline.

There is no doubt that the book has breathtaking action, imaginative creatures (vitriolic barnacles and Spottiswoode Rebreather, "an underwater apparatus created from fabricated creatures...."), outrageous machines of all types including djinns, golems and elephants, and colourful characters (Eddy Malone, an American with a talking bullfrog). There are the wonderful pencil illustrations by Keith Thompson which add to the overall visualization of the storyline, although a map would have been a welcome addition to the book since geography is pivotal to the plotline.

It is interesting to see how Westerfeld has created two societies who are the extreme opposite of each other. Clankers have taken technology to an extreme with their highly mechanized society. The Darwinists have taken genetic engineering to its extreme with their fabricated creatures. Of the two cultures, the Darwinist culture seems to be the more humane in some ways, showing an understanding of the ecological relationship between living things they have fabricated. The Leviathan is an ecosystem by itself. The Darwinists however, draw the line at these creatures not being capable of independent thought.

Although both Clankers and Darwinists show repulsion for the other's society, it seems that when each is exposed to the other's culture their views are modified somewhat. This is especially true for Alek who tells Dylan "Perhaps I'm putting this stupidly. But it's almost as though...I'm in love with your ship (the Leviathan)." It feels right here." Alek shrugged. "As if this is where I'm meant to be."

Overall, a good second part to this trilogy and highly recommended!

Book Details:
Behemoth by Scott Westerfeld
Simon Pulse: New York 2010
485pp.

The Chosen One by Carol Lynch Williams

The Chosen One is one of several titles released in 2009 that deal with plygamist cults. Sister Wife explores the issue of forced marriage of young girls in these cults in Canada while The Chosen One is set in rural United States.
Kyra Carlson, 13 years old, is part of a polygamist family made up of 20 children her father and his three wives. The story opens with her family receiving a visit from The Prophet, Mark Childs and his Apostles who inform Kyra's parents that she will be her Uncle Hyrum's 7th wife! Kyra is horrified and determined to avoid this marriage even if it means leaving the cult. But she is fearful too becuase she knows people have disappeared in situations similar to hers where there was resistance and she knows the girl is always forced into the marriage.
Complicating matters is the fact that Kyra is attracted to 16 year old Joshua Johnson, whom she has been secretly meeting for the past 7 months.

Kyra's father attempts to intervene for her but is unsuccessful. Joshua's request to marry Kyra is disastrous, leading to violence and his being run out of the cult. The entire situation further escalates to the point where Kyra must make a decision that may place her not only herself but her family in great danger.

Through a series of flashbacks, we learn that Kyra has been secretly visiting the Ironton County Mobile Library van that has been stopping on a rural road near her cult's commune. She befriends the driver, Patrick and it is he who offers to help her in her dire need. But the cult is not willing to let Kyra get away so easily.

The Chosen One deals with the many concerns the we as a society have about polygamous cults including issues of control, forced marriage, violence, isolation and the social displacement of young men who are referred to as "Lost Boys".

Overall, this novel was well-written and fast-paced. We walk with Kyra as she explores her options and how she reasons her way through, hoping to find a solution. A few loose ends could have been tidied up by the author but otherwise this was a good presentation of an unusual, but important topic.

Sister Wife and The Chosen One are very similar in many ways but the subject matter is more realistically portrayed and better balanced in the former novel. Both touch on the difficulties former members of polygamous cults must face when attempting to assimilate into modern culture. In these novels we see how young children are conditioned to accept forced marriage and how every aspect of life is controlled. Kyra seemed less troubled by the effects her choices might have on her family than Celeste in Sister Wife.

It's hard to understand how such cults have continued to exist in our society today when it's obvious that they cause great harm to both young women and men.

Book Details:

The Chosen One by Carol Lynch Williams
St. Martin's Griffin: New York 2009
213pp.

Double Identity by Margaret Peterson Haddix

Double Identity is a strange exploration of the issue of cloning and especially cloning humans.
Just before Bethany Cole's 13th birthday, her parents pack her into the family car and drive thousands of miles nonstop to the small town of Sanderfield, Illinois. Once there, she is left with Myrlie an aunt she has never met, with no explanations, some strange bits of conversation overheard and no idea when or even if her parents will return. Overhearing her father mention that she "does not know about Elizabeth" only adds to her fears. Who is Elizabeth?
The puzzles deepens as Bethany discovers her aunt seems to know many of her personal perferences and that she seems to resemble someone familiar to Sanderfield residents. When Bethany receives a package from her father containing 4 different sets of ID and a large amount of cash, the mystery and fear escalate. Who are her parents running from and why have they hidden her here?
Haddix gradually reveals who Elizabeth is (although the reader likely figures this one out very quickly), who Bethany is and the tragedy that led to the secret now unraveling Bethany's family and life. But the mystery of why her parents are in hiding is not revealed until the very end and in a somewhat contrived manner.
Double Identity explores issues of identity, selfworth and especially how new reproductive/scientific technologies might impact the people created by their use.
Athough this novel was written in 2005, we are beginning to experience a consideration of these issues in society at large today. Children created through the use of artificial insemination (AI) from anonymous sperm donors are seeking the right to know details about their biological father. They are asking society to consider the rights of the child and the right to know who he or she is.
Similarly Bethany feels betrayed and as though she has no real, unique self or value. But by the end of the novel, she begins to discover that her life had meaning before and will continue to do so.
I am thirteen years old now - nearly thirteen and a half. And with each second that passes, I mover further into territory Elizabeth never entered. Nobody knows what Elizabeth would have been like at fourteen, at fifteen, at sixteen. She is a ghost that will haunt me less and less, the older I get.

Although the ending is somewhat contrived and it seems that events come together in a too easy manner, this conclusion is typically satisfying. There is lots to think about here, in particular, the age old question regarding the use of scientific technology; just because we are capable of doing something, does this mean we ought to do it?

Book Details:

Double Identity by Margaret Peterson Haddix
Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers: Toronto
218pp

Turnabout by Margaret Peterson Haddix

Turnabout explores the themes of ageing and perpetual youth. Could we live forever? Would we want to? What if we could unage or stop aging altogether?

Turnabout tells the story of two of 50 elderly volunteers at a nursing home who are selected to participate in Project Turnabout. They will undergo a series of injections of PT-1 - a drug that caused laboratory rats to unage. The unaging process was then stopped in middle age and the rats simply stopped aging. Among the volunteers are 100 year old Amelia Lenore Hazelwood and 102 year old Anny Beth Flick. Unexpectedly, there are glitches from the beginning of the experiment. But when the second stage of the experiment fails, Amelia (Melly) and Anny decide to leave "The Agency" nursing home and live their unaging lives in freedom and quietly.

Haddix tells her story in alternating time frames. The first time frame is from a current perspective, from April 21 to June 3, 2085, as Melly and Anny try to cope with unaging from adolescence. Melly having just had her 16th birthday is becoming increasingly distraught over who will be her caretaker as she unages to babyhood. The second time frame tells the story in flashback from 2000 when the experiment was undertaken, to the present in the story which is the year 2085. So although time moves forward from 2000; instead of aging, Amy and Melly are growing younger and reliving their lives.

This book was fascinating to read because the author explores how we might feel if we had a chance to live our lives over again. The two main characters, Melly and Anny have different perspectives on this. The novel also explores the idea that when we go against our nature, disastrous things often happen.