Aaron StarmerBesprekingen

I wish I hadn't gone into this book on false pretenses. Jon told me that it was one of his favorite books from 2016 and that "A girl either lives in a fantasy book and it's not clear which." Only to me, there was absolutely no ambiguity. At all. Yes, Alistair, the ostensible protagonist, thought it might be that she was being abused, but his narratives of how that might make sense of the situation were at least three times more far-fetched than just taking Fiona's story at face value. In fact, if not outright told that there was supposed to be ambiguity, I would have taken for granted that it was a fantasy novel.

And honestly, once I got over being annoyed at the lack of ambiguity, it's a fine fantasy novel. It's a little cliche in parts, but there is something really unique about reading a fantasy novel from a point of view other than that of the clear protagonist. What is it like to bear witness to someone else's story? To be an outsider to time passing in non-linear ways? These are really interesting questions and place a new spin on the time-worn tale of Girl Finds a Fantasy World and Can Stay There Indefinitely, While Time is Paused in the "Real World," But the Fantasy World is Threatened and Only She Can Save it. Starmer also takes a really morally grey, dark tone with the real world and it infuses the whole atmosphere of the book with a kind of creepy overtone, which plays well with the duality of the narratives that he intended, even if it wasn't fully realized.

I haven't decided yet whether I'll continue on with this series. My concern is that all of the innovation is done in Riverman and the future books will only have the tired tropes of fantasyland to play with. But ultimately, while Riverman wasn't the book I thought it would be, I'm glad I read it.

Good YA. Ok, but the ending was ambiguous....may need to read again to clear up my confusion...

Not sure why I enjoyed this book so much because nothing was resolved. Engaging characters and unique storyline.

children's tween/middlegrade fiction; fantasy/spooky. Ok, this Fiona character gets on my nerves. Clearly, she's got a story to tell, but do I really care to read pages and pages about this non-imaginary land she's created? No. These details may prove critical in the pages to come, but in an of themselves, about as interesting as hearing about the belly button lint of one's imaginary friend (NOT interesting!). By the time I get 80 pages in, I expect to be riveted by this mysterious Riverman person--who is he, and why are so many kids in danger?

I guess I will never find out, because I quit reading on page 81.

Pardon my language but holy shit. Like, I think this book just wrecked my whole life. I have so many thoughts on this book I literally finished like maybe ten minutes ago, I'm gonna have to do a full blown blog post about it, so please look forward to that. Spoiler alert: this book is so dang good, I am legit surprised at how much I ended up enjoying it (if 'enjoy' is the right word)!

UPDATE: That was fast --- the review is now live!

Senior year of high school should be a blast for Mara, but not the explosion kind. It's odd and tragic enough when one of her AP classmates explodes in the middle of class, but one by one other members of the senior class spontaneously combust, and it feels like a waiting game until Mara is the next to blow. Her best friend Tess and her new boyfriend Dylan join her grief, problem-solving, and distraction, and her parents are supportive, even when she goes off the rails with drugs and alcohol. The strength of this YA novel is the first person voice; the ending is usettlling.½

Everyone knows fourth grade is the best at Hopewell Elementary, especially if you get the good teachers. After all, fourth graders are the top grade and the only ones to get access to... Locker 37. It's a magical locker that can solve all your problems - and Carson has just found the combination.
Which is lucky for him, because he has a LOT of problems, ranging from not being able to multiply fractions to the worst problem of all - a stain on his pants. In a VERY embarrassing location. Hoping to find a spare pair of pants, he opens Locker 37 and starts on a wild ride. Before it's over, he and his friend Riley will have the first day of their lives. He'll run across the gym in his underwear, get stuck in a rain of cockroaches, sort of accidentally-on-purpose erase the school bully, and even learn how to multiply fractions.

This is just over 200 pages, which is a little long for a younger middle grade book, but it's a small, compact size and broken up with green and black illustrations, not to mention a few chapters explaining math (feel free to skip those if you've already figured out how to multiply fractions) and the myth behind Locker 37.

This is a school with a cafetorium (it's used as an auditorium at night) and such gems as, "I can promise you I'm not an evil wizard," Carson said. "Or else why would I need to borrow your jeans?" It was a good point. Conjuring a pair of jeans would be well within an evil wizard's capabilities."

The magic of Locker 37 isn't done - there's a sneak peek at the next book, featuring perfectionist Keisha James and her own experiences with the unpredictable locker.

Verdict: Funny and oh-so-relatable for fourth graders everywhere, this is sure to be a hit. Recommend to fans of Dav Pilkey, Dragonbreath, and anyone who's ever dealt with fractions and cockroaches all on the same day.

ISBN: 9780593094280; Published July 2020 by Penguin Workshop; Borrowed from another library in my consortium; Purchased for the library

There is not enough praise for The Riverman and the two books that follow, The Whisperer, and The Storyteller. You will need to check all three out at the same time- they are that good. If you like mysteries that involve other worlds or parallel universes then this is for you. I did not figure out the ending until about halfway through the third book and even then there were twists that I did not predict. I read a lot of books and I will read this series again.

4.5 stars This was a very compelling, imaginative, thought-provoking (definitely upper) middle grade read. I would not be surprised if this book ended up winning some awards. There are some questions raised in the narrative that I will be pondering for quite some time. However, I did have some issues with a few of the characters and there was something about the narrator's voice that didn't gel for me, which kept this from being a 5 star OMG LOVED it read. But I have no doubt there will be many who disagree with me on this because it is really well done.

A perfectly melancholy, inconclusive ending to one of the weirdest trilogies I've ever read. I only recommend Riverman to my favorite weirdos, and no one who's loved it has been disappointed by the sequels.

I am a huge fan of the movie Heathers which makes me the perfect reader for this book. It's funny, in that dark, morbid way that Heathers is. It's smart and subversive, snarky and serious. It is, in short, a highly enjoyable read for anyone whose humour skews toward the darker side. (Kids spontaneously exploding is hilarious, no matter what you say.)

HOWEVER. There's a lot of talk about the origins of the "curse" and the true motives of Rosetti and neither one of these major plot threads gets resolved by the end, which was very frustrating for me. It left me feeling both like it needed a sequel and like a sequel would be a bad idea. I don't need everything to be tied up in pretty bows, but maybe if the whys and wherefores were less heavily emphasized, my frustration would have been less.

But, damn. Overall, this book was amazeballs and if you want a book that's a bit Monty Python, a large dollop of Heathers, and a scoop of Andrew Smith, this is definitely the book for you.

Imagine your senior year, saying goodbye to all of your friends, not knowing when you'll see them again--but then add in the suspense of not knowing who will actually make it through senior year. This becomes reality for Mara Carlyle when her fellow classmates begin to spontaneously combust, quickly drawing national attention. But Mara isn't going to let the impending doom of spontaneous combustion get her down. She lives her senior year to the fullest, falling in love, attending crazy parties, and organizing events so she gets to experience her senior year like every other senior in the country.

I first heard about this book when John Green posted about it on Facebook, and it sounded hilarious and fantastic, and out of the box from what I've been reading lately. I was definitely not disappointed; I was drawn into Mara's narration right from the beginning. She's funny and witty and wildly sarcastic. Maybe she's not always likable, but you can always count on her to be honest and real. The story itself is unique and not something I've seen done before, and it was refreshing to read. The narration sucks you into the suspense of wondering who is going to combust next, and it's that aspect that really drives the plot forward.

However. Yes, there is a "however." Towards the end of the novel, some of the plot seems to fall apart, probably about the last 50ish pages or so. Mara goes off the deep end, and the explanations for the spontaneous combustion just get more and more ridiculous, in my opinion. I'm not sure how I wanted this novel to end, but it just kind of--ended. Normally, I'm a fan of open-ended stories, because it makes you continue to think about the story once it's finished, but this one just felt unfinished, leaving me confused more than anything else. I just wanted a bit more, and I wanted Mara to remain true to her character until the very end.

Despite the plot failings at the end, I still really enjoyed this book, and if you're looking for a fun, humorous read, definitely pick this one up!

Dnf. A little disturbing and I read about a third before I skipped to the end and read the last chapter and the conclusion.

THIS IS A mixture fantasy and realistic fiction. for me the fantasy part was just too out there.

The seniors at Covington High School are cursed. Classmates are spontaneously combusting and Mara Carlyle, the brash narrator of Aaron Starmer’s novel, Spontaneous, is determined to find out why. At times poignant, mostly silly, and often crass, Starmer’s view of teens today comes through strongly here and if, like me, your high school days are far behind you some of the angst, the excitement, and yes, the narcissism will quickly return and stir up memories. At times the plot seems to run away with itself and the entire sequence of events surrounding the FBI investigator and the isolation tent is even less believable than a student exploding in pre-calc. In general, though, Spontaneous is an entertaining and easy read.

Spontaneous by Aaron Starmer is a good read. Mara is snarky, funny, sometimes inappropriate, but basically a good kid. She and her friends are seniors in high school when things start going to pieces. Or more accurately, when people start blowing up. Not just one, but individuals students blow up in public. This book is the story from Mara's point of view.

The story draws you in immediately, and the pace keeps you from wanting to put it down. Besides being snarky and funny, this book has deeply sad moments, and it allows you to feel the fear of the classmates who are waiting to see if they might be next. Oh, and teenagers, so someone's got to fall in love, right?

Then, there is the ending.

This was a dark and disturbing, but well written story. It's on my Printz list as the content pushes it well out of Newbery territory.

Listened to the audiobook and was ultimately disappointed. Unlike the first book, which had a delicious sense of rising paranoia and a tantalizing mystery, The Whisper felt rather disjointed as it went back and forth in time explaining the beginnings of Aquavania and the worlds created within it. Main character Alistair felt a lot like Alice down the rabbit hole, meeting up with a bevy of strange, new creatures. As he bounces around these worlds in his search for his missing friend, Fiona, interspersed are Alistair's memories of events that took place back in their hometown. While there is action and danger, too much backstory on the worlds and creators bogs down the pacing and distracts from the search.

Unfortunately, I had a hard time following the storyline. The audio wasn't engaging and there were probably significant events that went right over my head because of my disinterest. Sadly, all the things that I liked about the first book--the characterizations, the pacing, tension and mystery--don't hold up when I listened to this second book. Most notably lacking is the innuendo in the first book that Fiona's stories were masking a family secret, one that some may feel is more appropriate for a young adult, rather than juvenile, audience. Since that whole train of though by Alistair proved to be wrong, it dies in book one. Regardless, readers will need to read (not listen to) The Riverman first as I don't feel The Whisper stands up well on its own.

Really enjoyed the prologue and first chapter of this one. I need to go back and read book one, but this is clearly a middle grade fantasy series perfect for me and I'm pumped! It has a delicious darker tone and rich world-building that I can't wait to dive into.

I liked this book a lot. However, I do feel like too much is jammed into the story and it gets a little tough to follow at times. This book would need to be for an advanced elementary reader. I love the idea of this book and the machine though and I loved the quirky characters that show kids how awesome it is to have their own talents and be unique.

I considered “The Riverman”, book one of the trilogy, one of the best books of 2014 (and one of the best tween books I'd ever read), so I couldn't wait to get book 2. Traditionally, book twos of trilogies tend to be the most boring for me, and often result in simply setting up for book 3. I found that “the Whisper” took a different approach. I think instead of a “book 2” it might be better explained as a “companion” to book 1. Instead of moving the plot forward leaps and bounds it instead goes back and develops the characters more wholly. I’m not saying that it’s lacking action – that’s not the case. In fact, the book moves ahead 25 years. But what I mean is more that the action is less consequential for the reader than going back and gaining a new perspective on…well…everything. Characters, motivations, actions, the tiniest details: you now feel like you’re in a completely different place than you were in book one, and that’s a good thing.

I rarely give books 5 stars, but I think Aaron Starmer deserves it on this one. If you haven’t read his other, “Only Ones”, you should. His books have a very dark tone. I found them all to be melancholy, and you kind of feel like you’re under a blanket of shadows. But this is what makes him, as an author, so great – you’re completely involved in whatever world he has created. I can’t wait for more from him.

Alistair Cleary used to play with Fiona Loomis when they were little kids, but over the past several years, they have drifted apart. And then Fiona comes to Alistair and tells him that she has chosen him to write her biography. The story that Fiona has to tell is weird and scary, and Alistair starts to wonder what she's trying to tell him. Is Fiona's tale of a magical world and a menacing villain really a cry for help related to real-world events?

This is a book that's difficult to review, and even difficult to categorize. I might call it a fantasy, but it's possible, based on how you interpret the story, that the fantasy elements are all in the characters' heads. I'm impressed at the writing in this book, but frustrated by the ambiguity of the ending. I also feel that setting the book in the '80s is a cop-out -- perhaps this is just my own reluctance at accepting that my childhood is fast approaching the realm of historical fiction for today's readers. But I can't find a compelling reason for choosing that setting, so I suspect there's an element of nostalgia to it. Other reviewers love, love, love this book, so I'm questioning my own reading of it: did it just go over my head? Is it just not my thing -- too dark and gritty for me? I mean, I adored last year's Far Far Away which also had fantasy mixed with dark real-world stuff. Did I miss some key paragraph that should have made everything clear to me? I don't know. It's not that I don't recommend it -- if it sounds appealing to you, definitely give it a try. It didn't work well for me, but I recognize that it has some excellent elements, and that some readers will appreciate it much more than I ever will.½

Adult Worthy~

**Starred Review** Kirkus
**Starred Review** GoodBooksforKids (booksforkids-reviews.com)

THE RIVERMAN was amazing. I received it as a review copy and I have to say that it's one of the best books I read this year. And if I get a chance again in my schedule, I'd love to read it again.  It was that good!

BACKSTORY
It all sounds rather sweet at first. There's a small town where children bike in the summer and throw rocks and do the things that are reminiscent of gentler times. But it all goes scary and scarier when a girl named Fiona Loomis asks 12 year old Alistair Cleary to write her biography.

It's such a curious request that Alistair agrees. And that is how he discovers that there's a land called Aquavania and that Fiona and other children have been escaping there on-and-off for months. It's a wonderful place on the surface of it. A place to get away, where every imagining can come true. ONLY there's a problem. The Riverman.  As Fiona spins the tale she tells of how the Riverman is stalking her -- threatening to suck her soul out with a straw.


The wonderful, wonderful part of this story is that like Alistair it's difficult to tell how 'disturbed' Fiona is. And thus we follow Alistair as he waits and watches and tries to find Fiona's real world threat.  He's down to studying the relatives that Fiona lives with, when his own life becomes jeopardized.

So I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE THE RIVERMAN.  It's a layered story that is very well written. The author captures the feel of growing up in a small town, and he draws the characters --good, bad, first- and second-string-- perfectly.  Alistair and Fiona's relationship is realistic and charming. And perhaps most importantly, it's not clear what's real and what's fantasy --who or what the danger is.

Creepy enough for adults and young adults. It might be too intense for some middle-graders.

DEFINITELY RECOMMEND.

Alistair Cleary, a 12 year old boy from small town Thessaly New York, narrates his own story and the story of his community. The story begins with the acknowledgement, true enough, that all towns have experienced the loss of a child, and Alistair tells of his small part in the story of Luke Drake, who drowned in 1979. Alistair is a bright kid but somewhat of a loner. Charlie, an odd ball of a neighbor, has declared himself best friends with Alistair, but Alistair's closest friend as the story progresses becomes the singular young girl who lives down the street, Fiona Loomis.

Fiona chooses Alistair, just as Charlie does, but she chooses him because he is trustworthy and she has a serious story to tell. She is a no-nonsense type of girl and tells Alistair that she chooses him to write her biography, including her secret life in Aquavania. In Aquavania, Fiona's imagination is the only limitation to what and who she meets there, that is, until she discovers a neighboring land that is the product of another child's imagination.

Alistair (and the readers) spend the rest of the book figuring out if Aquavania is real, merely a product of Fiona's rich imagination, or perhaps the reshaping of memories too horrible to face head on.

Even as Fiona slowly tells her story, life continues to happen in Thessaly. Charlie experiences a serious injury, his older brother Kyle, who is always just a step ahead of the authorities, befriends Alistair, trusting him with some pretty deep plans of his own. Seems like both Charlie and Fiona are products of pretty dysfunctional families.

What is real and what is not becomes even foggier, as Fiona's stories of Aquavania take on an ominous tone, with real people from the "real" world disappearing from Aquavania. And even more frightening, Alistair and Fiona come to believe that the villain of Aquavania, The Riverman, is someone they know from the real world. Only thing is, they suspect different people.

A mystery, a fantasy, just scary enough, and not to mention just enough bathroom humor to remind you that this is after all, written for middle schoolers, this story is richly drawn and is anything but predictable as it draws to a close. Lots of rich opportunities for group discussion after all is said and done. Kids and adults alike have plenty to ponder, perhaps hoping that author Aaron Starmer will delve deeper into the lives of the folks in Thessaly, particularly those who choose to spend time in Aquavania, in a second book.

Read this one friends, and let's talk about it!

REVIEW ALSO ON: http://bibliomantics.com/2014/03/11/stranger-than-fiction-cassie-la-dives-into-t...

I have to admit, The Riverman (which GoodReads claims is the first in a trilogy) originally caught my attention because the cover looked super similar to the artwork on Colin Meloy's trilogy Wildwood (illustrated by Carson Ellis), which is about some magic woods and their relation to the lives of the hipster children (kid hipsters and the children of hipsters) living in Portland. You can see a comparison of those two covers below (waaay below) if the mood strikes you.

However, I am extremely glad I was pulled in by Yelena Bryksenkova's artwork, because author Aaron Starmer's premise was just the right level of intriguing and creepy, seeking to explore a boy and a girl fighting against the forces of the mysterious Riverman, who steals the souls and stories of imaginative children. Or so it would seem on the surface. Kindly insert your dun dun duns here.

Sure on the outside the novel seems like a book about a boogie man that children need to fear, but it goes so much deeper than that, exploring the flawed nature of memories (although the majority of this occurs in the opening of the novel and the epigraph) and even more so about how the unbelievable stories people tell themselves in their own imaginations are merely coping mechanisms to deal with the world at large.

This is explored through Fiona, who comes to her childhood friend Alistair and claims that she is able to travel to a world called Aquavania (through some floating water near her radiator), where her imagination can actually create worlds. As she explains, Aquavania is the place "where stories are born" and travel into the minds of artists and writers to come to fruition. The children who enter Aquavania use their imagination to fill their needs -- as they seek to do in the real world, but in this case their imaginations are made flesh. Or as real as they can be in this other dimension. I'm a little fuzzy on the exact mechanics.

Unfortunately, her friends, other children inside Aquavania are being destroyed by the nefarious Riverman, who uses his pen to steal their souls. In this case their souls (their essence) are their very selves, their imaginations if you will, which he takes to suit his own needs. They don't quite know what he wants, all Fiona knows is that her friends are disappearing in Aquavania and going missing in the Solid World as well.

Ever the realist, Alistair takes this fantastical tale and assumes that Fiona is attempting to cope with her deranged Uncle, who rumor has it -- thanks to the town gossip -- returned from the war a tad altered. Furthermore, Alistair sees the Riverman as not only a physical person threatening Fiona but as a metaphor for those who seek to steal that which we most need in our lives. Happiness? Love? Pick your poison.

But could Fiona's story be real and her Uncle merely the adult version of the class weirdo? When Fiona says she's now aged mentally while in Aquavania does she mean this literally or does she mean that the situation at home has made her an old soul? These are questions that Alistair spends the majority of the novel unpacking on his own. As the ever helpful adults in the story he is recalling to the reader tell him, "Cries for help aren't always cries. Sometimes they're stories."

The Riverman isn't just about all that however, it's also about young and first loves, which seem cute to the adults watching them blossom, but hold a greater meaning to those who are experiencing them. Just ask Romeo and Juliet and their notions of true love. Alistair experiences this more than most as he goes around asking his elder sister if girls need boys to save them. As most boys raised in our society, he is under the false belief that girls need protection from monsters and may be in need of a Lancelot of their own, although he seeks to save Fiona from her own personal demons which are a little more real than most.

That's rough, buddy.

Bonus: the entire novel takes place over the course of six weeks, from October 13, 1989 (Friday the 13th to be precise) all the way through November 20th. So expect plenty of fun '80s tidbits like tape players and neon jackets and white leggings. I'm having flashbacks. Horrible, horrible flashbacks.