Peach’s Picks Rating
Title:
Shiver
Author:
Maggie Steifvater
Illustrator:
None
ISBN:
978-0-545-12326-6
Publisher:
New York: Scholastic Press
Copyright:
2009
Length:
392 pages
Plot Summary:
Grace lives in a house bordering the woods. During the winter of her ninth year, she was attacked by wolves while playing on a tire swing in her backyard. They dragged her towards the woods, but one wolf with gleaming yellow eyes saved her from the attack. Now Grace is 17-years-old and has watched wolves silently moving in and out of the trees behind her home for years. She is captivated by one particular yellow-eyed wolf. Strangely, he has a sense of familiarity to her and seems to be longing for her. When a teen from the neighborhood is killed by wolves, a vigilante-style hunting party is formed to kill all the wolves in the forest. Grace fears for the wolf that is are so familiar to her. To her surprise she finds an injured yellow-eyed boy on her back porch. The boy is Sam, the wolf who saved Grace from death and has been watching her. Sam is a werewolf who is rapidly losing his ability to assume human form. The love between Grace and Sam grows as they struggle to stay together, but the threat looms that Sam will revert permanently to being a wolf. The book is the first of a trilogy.
Critical Evaluation:
This is a paranormal love story in the manner of the Twilight series by Stephenie Meyer. Grace and Sam struggle to undo the curse upon Sam in race-against-time. The story is told in alternating chapters from Grace and Sam’s point of view. This literary style works very effectively to create the main characters, Grace and Sam, and develop sympathy for them. The chapters range from one page to several pages and move along at a fast pace. There are funny moments when Grace hides Sam in her bedroom. There are also frightening and suspenseful moments when Grace is confronted by a female werewolf who considers Sam to be hers. The real suspense lies in the race against time to save Sam as a human in his human form. Twists and turns keep the reader on the edge of their seat. Grace is a refreshingly strong young woman with a sense of self and purpose unlike Bella in the Twilight series who seems weak and helpless by comparison. The book promises to be engaging and is enjoyable to read, but just misses the mark that will make it as popular as its competition, Twilight.
Reader’s Annotation:
Grace watches wolves that roam the forest behind here house. There is one wolf with gleaming yellow eyes that stands out from the pack and seems almost familiar to her.
Author Information:
Lives in Virginia
Married with two children, two dogs, and one cat
Drives a 1973 Camaro named Loki
Enjoys reading, drawing, and playing musical instruments including the Celtic harp, bagpipes, and piano
Former jobs include waiting tables, calligraphy instructor, and technical editor
Genre:
Paranormal
Curriculum Ties:
Use in literature classes
Booktalking Ideas:
If you enjoyed the Twilight series you will enjoy the romance between Grace, a 17-year-old girl, and Sam a handsome werewolf.
Read the opening of the book (page 1) where Grace, the female protagonist talks to the reader, “I remember lying in the snow, a small red spot of warm going cold, surrounded by wolves. They were licking me, biting me, worrying at my body, pressing in. Their huddled bodies blocked what little heat the sun offered . . . One wolf prodded his nose into my hand and against my cheek, casting a show across my face. His yellow eyes looking into mine while the other wolves jerked me this way and that.”
Reading Level/Interest Age:
High school
Additional Books by Author:
Lament: The Faerie Queen’s Deception
Ballad: The Gathering of Faerie
Challenge Issues:
Sexuality, paranormal
Deal with challenge by having a challenge policy in place, selection policy in place (ALA policies). Meet with library administration if necessary. Provide positive review(s) from professional publications.
Why this work is included in Peach’s Picks:
This book is included because it received a starred review in School Library Journal and a positive review in Booklist. It receives four peaches for being an entertaining story.
Amazon link:
http://www.amazon.com/Shiver-Maggie-Stiefvater/dp/0545123267/ref=sr_1_1_oe_2?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1273548526&sr=1-1
References:
Stiefvater, M. (2010). “me.” Maggie Stiefvater. Retrieved May 3, 2010, from http://www.maggiestiefvater.com/me.php
Shiver
Author:
Maggie Steifvater
Illustrator:
None
ISBN:
978-0-545-12326-6
Publisher:
New York: Scholastic Press
Copyright:
2009
Length:
392 pages
Plot Summary:
Grace lives in a house bordering the woods. During the winter of her ninth year, she was attacked by wolves while playing on a tire swing in her backyard. They dragged her towards the woods, but one wolf with gleaming yellow eyes saved her from the attack. Now Grace is 17-years-old and has watched wolves silently moving in and out of the trees behind her home for years. She is captivated by one particular yellow-eyed wolf. Strangely, he has a sense of familiarity to her and seems to be longing for her. When a teen from the neighborhood is killed by wolves, a vigilante-style hunting party is formed to kill all the wolves in the forest. Grace fears for the wolf that is are so familiar to her. To her surprise she finds an injured yellow-eyed boy on her back porch. The boy is Sam, the wolf who saved Grace from death and has been watching her. Sam is a werewolf who is rapidly losing his ability to assume human form. The love between Grace and Sam grows as they struggle to stay together, but the threat looms that Sam will revert permanently to being a wolf. The book is the first of a trilogy.
Critical Evaluation:
This is a paranormal love story in the manner of the Twilight series by Stephenie Meyer. Grace and Sam struggle to undo the curse upon Sam in race-against-time. The story is told in alternating chapters from Grace and Sam’s point of view. This literary style works very effectively to create the main characters, Grace and Sam, and develop sympathy for them. The chapters range from one page to several pages and move along at a fast pace. There are funny moments when Grace hides Sam in her bedroom. There are also frightening and suspenseful moments when Grace is confronted by a female werewolf who considers Sam to be hers. The real suspense lies in the race against time to save Sam as a human in his human form. Twists and turns keep the reader on the edge of their seat. Grace is a refreshingly strong young woman with a sense of self and purpose unlike Bella in the Twilight series who seems weak and helpless by comparison. The book promises to be engaging and is enjoyable to read, but just misses the mark that will make it as popular as its competition, Twilight.
Reader’s Annotation:
Grace watches wolves that roam the forest behind here house. There is one wolf with gleaming yellow eyes that stands out from the pack and seems almost familiar to her.
Author Information:
Lives in Virginia
Married with two children, two dogs, and one cat
Drives a 1973 Camaro named Loki
Enjoys reading, drawing, and playing musical instruments including the Celtic harp, bagpipes, and piano
Former jobs include waiting tables, calligraphy instructor, and technical editor
Genre:
Paranormal
Curriculum Ties:
Use in literature classes
Booktalking Ideas:
If you enjoyed the Twilight series you will enjoy the romance between Grace, a 17-year-old girl, and Sam a handsome werewolf.
Read the opening of the book (page 1) where Grace, the female protagonist talks to the reader, “I remember lying in the snow, a small red spot of warm going cold, surrounded by wolves. They were licking me, biting me, worrying at my body, pressing in. Their huddled bodies blocked what little heat the sun offered . . . One wolf prodded his nose into my hand and against my cheek, casting a show across my face. His yellow eyes looking into mine while the other wolves jerked me this way and that.”
Reading Level/Interest Age:
High school
Additional Books by Author:
Lament: The Faerie Queen’s Deception
Ballad: The Gathering of Faerie
Challenge Issues:
Sexuality, paranormal
Deal with challenge by having a challenge policy in place, selection policy in place (ALA policies). Meet with library administration if necessary. Provide positive review(s) from professional publications.
Why this work is included in Peach’s Picks:
This book is included because it received a starred review in School Library Journal and a positive review in Booklist. It receives four peaches for being an entertaining story.
Amazon link:
http://www.amazon.com/Shiver-Maggie-Stiefvater/dp/0545123267/ref=sr_1_1_oe_2?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1273548526&sr=1-1
References:
Stiefvater, M. (2010). “me.” Maggie Stiefvater. Retrieved May 3, 2010, from http://www.maggiestiefvater.com/me.php
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