The Saga of Larten Crepsley: Birth of a Killer

The Saga of Larten Crepsley: Birth of a Killer 

by Darren Shan 

New York: Little Brown and Company

ISBN: 9780316078634

272 pages

4 out of 5

Before Cirque Du Freak...

Before the war with the vampaneze...

Before he was a vampire...

Larten Crepsley was a boy.

As a child laborer many centuries ago, Larten Crepsley did his job well and without complaint, until the day the foreman killed his cousin as an example to the other children.

In that moment, young Larten flew into a rage that the foreman wouldn't survive.  Forced to live on the run, Larten now sleeps in crypts and eats cobwebs to get by.  And when a vampire named Seba offers him protection and training as a vampire's assistant, he agrees.

This is his story.

After the incident in the factory, Larten Crepsley is a lost, scared kid when Seba finds him.  He is given the choice of joining the vampire in his travels, and possibly in his lifestyle, and Larten accepts. He cannot return to his home and family and finds a purpose as a vampire's assistant.  What follows is the story of how Larten Crepsley the boy becomes Larten Crepsley the vampire in Cirque Du Freak.

I devoured this book.  It's well-written, fast-paced, and engaging.  In this first installment, Larten doesn't seem nearly as nasty as he does in the first Cirque du Freak novel, but he has quite a story to tell.  Fans of the series will enjoy learning of Larten's beginnings.  I think the series will also find new fans through this book.  As someone who has only read the first of the original series, you can start in either place.  In fact, reading Cirque Du Freak after Saga of Larten Crepsley will give you something to do while you wait for book two.

This title is available October 5, 2010.

New in October (Part 1)

So this time I'm just covering titles from September 30 - October 7 because I have a lot of titles for October.  I'll do another post for the rest later in the month.  Hope you see something you like!


Dust City by Robert Paul Weston
(September 30)

  

Havoc by Chris Wooding 

(October 1)

  








Annexed by Sharon Dogar
(October 4)

Behemoth by Scott Westerfield 

(October 5)

Halt's Peril by John Flanagan 
(October 5)

Birth of a Killer by Darren Shan 

(October 5)

DC Super Heroes: The Ultimate Pop-Up Book by Matthew Reinhart
(October 5)

Bloodthirsty by Flynn Meaney 

(October 5)

  

Tween Tuesday: Football Hero

Tween Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted at GreenBeanTeenQueen.  The purpose is "to highlight great reads for tweens!"

Football Hero by Tim Green 

New York: HarperCollins, 2008

ISBN: 978006112767

304 pages

4 out of 5

Ty Lewis can't believe it when Coach V recruits him for the football team.  This is Ty's big chance to prove how fast he is on the field, get a fresh start in a new school, and be like his older brother, Thane "Tiger" Lewis, who's about to graduate from college and is being courted by the NFL.

But Ty's guardian, Uncle Gus, won't let him play.  Uncle Gus needs Ty to scrub floors and toilets for his cleaning business while he cooks up gambling schemes with the local mob boss, a man called "Lucy."

When Lucy hears just how famous Ty's older brother is, he becomes suddenly friendly.  Are the questions Lucy is asking Ty really about fantasy football...or is the Mafia using Ty to get valuable insider info from his superstar brother?  Desperately worried, Ty must come up with a plan to save Thane's football career--and, ultimately, his life.

Author of the New York Times bestselling Football Genius, former NFL player Tim Green will have you on the edge of your seat rooting for Ty--and enjoying an upclose look at what it's like to be inside the NFL.

So Ty is this ordinary, poor, scrawny kid who gets invited to play football.  He's super-fast and has great hands.  Uncle Gus has other plans for Ty's hands--he has Ty join his cleaning business and Ty gets bathroom duty (no pun intended).  When Lucy takes an interest in Ty and the information Ty has access to, Ty is able to bargain for the opportunity to play but gets mixed up in more than he ever imagined.

Ty is only kid I can think of who actually measures up to his older sibling.  Most titles with this story line are about discovering how special they are in spite of a successful sibling, but with these two, football is in their genes.  Even though I'm not the world's biggest football fan, I enjoyed Ty's successes and felt empathy for his troubles.  

Even though this is a football book there are many other things that go on.  Yes, there are games and practices and football jargon, but there's also the story line with Lucy, Thane's entrance into the world of celebrity as a starter for an NFL team, and the two brothers are still coping with the loss of their parents.

Overall this is an enjoyable read and the next time I get asked about a good book for middle grade, I'll lead the parent to the Tim Green books.

In My Mailbox (5)

IMM is a meme hosted by Kristi at The Story Siren.  She was inspired by Alea of Pop Culture Junkie. Since the idea is to share titles, I'm including everything.  Sorry once again for no pictures; sometimes I'm just a slacker. 



Borrowed:


Cirque du Freak: A Living Nightmare by Darren Shan










I completely goofed on my last IMM post.  I'm dying to get my hands on Rise of Renegade X but, alas I don't have it.  I borrowed a different book with x in the title last week: X-Isle by Steve Augarde.








Given:


The Unidentified (ARC) by Rae Mariz -- Thanks to Jessica over at I Read to Relax for sharing some b-day love.

Banned Books Week

Today marks the beginning of Banned Books Week 2010.  In our department we have two different displays for banned books: one in the children's area and one near the young adult area.  They've only been out for a few days but we've gotten comments and surprised questions about some books that have been banned or challenged.

Those of us who truly love books understand how important it is to keep the freedom to read alive which is why we celebrate the freedom to read during banned books week.  It's a reminder that, by speaking loudly our favorites are available for others to choose and to love or to hate and disagree with.  But the fundamental element of freedom to read is the freedom to choose. 


Below are a few of my favorites:

Speak - Laurie Halse Anderson
A Light in the Attic - Shel Silverstein
The Harry Potter Series - J.K. Rowling
The Earth, My Butt, and Other Big Round Things - Carolyn Mackler
Catcher in the Rye - J.D. Salinger
A Clockwork Orange - Anthony Burgess
James and the Giant Peach - Roald Dahl
To Kill a Mockingbird - Harper Lee
King and King -  Linda da Haan

There are many more that I've read and/or enjoyed that I didn't add.  But it's safe to say I read banned books.  Do you?

Banned Books Week runs from September 25 - October 2, 2010.