Dig by A.S. King

Dig by A.S. King - 394 pages

Four teenagers -- The Shoveler, WhatCanIGetYou?, Loretta the flea circus ringmistress, and privileged Malcolm -- are guided by The Freak to better their lives and discover their connection.

This book won the Printz Award this year so I decided to try to read it.  It is told from multiple points of view including the five connected teenagers, a racist teen, and a couple who have lost connection with their family.  While the premise was interesting I was very distracted by the very heavy-handed way it conveyed its message.  There was literally a point in the book where a character starts yelling at the reader to wake up and stop being racist.  I also think the book did what too many "realistic" fiction books do -- stuff too many issues into a story including racism, abuse, death and more.

Please Ignore Vera Dietz by A.S. King

Please Ignore Vera Dietz by A.S. King-336 pages; Michael L. Printz Award Honor Book, 2011; Edgar Award Nominee, 2011

I read Glory O'Brien's History of the Future (also by A.S. King) for class during library school last summer and thought it was pretty weird, but decided to give this one a try when I saw it was a Printz Honor Book. I enjoyed reading this one a lot better. There was still a bit of strangeness, but it was believable strangeness. I especially liked the ending when Vera finally tells the police (and her dad) the truth about what happened to her best friend (most of the time) Charlie Kahn and who really burned down the pet store. Another thing I like is the reality in the story and how it could be very relatable, not only to teens but also to anyone reading it. Finally, I like that the protagonist comes to terms with herself and her relationship with her dad and her mom's departure (that was one good thing about Glory O'Brien, as well).