Spotlight List: Sisters

Sisters

I have a younger sister and I love her to pieces, so that may be the root of my love of sister books. My favorite sister stories are the type that show an endearing relationship that, while there may be realistic bumps and sister-fights, the strength of their relationship always shines through in the end.

The Penderwicks by Jeanne Birdsall
Release Date: August 15, 2004
Publisher: Yearling
Pages: 272
Goodreads Page

I always describe this book like this: If Little Women and Anne of Green Gables had a baby of a book and set it in modern times, the result would be The Penderwicks. The sisters here have all the spunk of Anne with all the sisterly camraderie of the March household. I love the way they bicker and gripe--just like real sisters--but at the same time it's clear how much they love one another.

If you liked the family conventions and labels for Events in Heather Dixon's Entwined, then I think you'll love the sisterly relations and cute phrases (like OAP, which is "Oldest Available Penderwick") found in The Penderwicks.

My review of The Penderwicks

Bewitching Season by Marissa Doyle
Release Date: April 29, 2008
Publisher: Henry Holt and Co.
Pages: 352
Goodreads Page

Set in a magical version of Regency England, Bewitching Season follows the delightful Leland sisters (and their adorable brother) as they practice magic, tangle with the queen, save their kidnapped governess, and fall in love.

It is the strength of their relationship that carries this story, as they team up together to solve the mystery. The way they tease and support one another adds levity and heart to this whimsical adventure of manners and mystery.

The Truth-Teller's Tale by Sharon Shinn
Release Date: July 21, 2005
Publisher: Viking Children's Books
Pages: 256
Goodreads Page

I know the cover is pretty awful, but this is one case where you'd be very wrong to judge the book by its cover. I adore this book! It's a quieter tale, having none of the rapid-fire action I usually look for in a story. The focus is instead on the relationships between the characters, with the relationship between the sisters at the very heart of the tale.

I was completely absorbed in their relationship. Their triumphs and loves, sorrows and fears all impacted me as if these were my own sisters. The subtle ways the sisters showed they cared for one another--tender embraces in times of need, quiet understanding, and fierce protectiveness--touched my heart.

Where I Want to Be by Adele Griffin
Release Date: April 21, 2005
Publisher: G. P. Putnam's Sons
Pages: 160
Goodreads Page

You could call this an "issues" book (and you know how I usually feel about issues books), but for me this book is much more about the relationship between the two sisters. Each sister is going through something totally different, but I was equally absorbed in both of their struggles.

I'm giving you the "Don't read this book in public" warning for tears of sadness. There might only be 160 pages to this book, but those are powerful pages. Each sister works her way through traumas filled with grief, confusion, anger, and, ultimately, acceptance.

My review of Where I Want to Be

Toads and Diamonds by Heather Tomlinson
Release Date: March 30, 2010
Publisher: Henry Holt and Co.
Pages: 288
Goodreads Page

This is a fairy tale retelling based on a French tale of the same name, reset here in a fictional historical India. The change of setting is beyond perfect, but one of my favorite parts of this story is the sister relationship.

Diribani is gifted with precious jewels that fall from her mouth as she speaks while her half-sister Tana is given snakes and toads. The sisters are parted early on as a result of their gifts, but their bond cannot be broken by distance. As Dribani travels far away from her home to a kingdom that follows a wildly different culture, her memory of Tana gives her strength in this foreign land. Tana's gift leads her on a path of exile, disease, and rebirth, but her relationship with Dribani guides her through.

My review of Toads and Diamonds.

Honorable Mention:
Rampant by Diana Peterfreund
Release Date: August 25, 2009
Publisher: HarperTeen
Pages: 402
Goodreads Page

Ok, so Astrid and Phil are cousins, not sisters, but their relationship is so sisterly that I'm including Rampant as an honorable mention. Astrid's mother is in-freakin-sane, so Phil often steps into the "guiding older sister" role. Their relationship is fun and light, but it's also fiercely protective. I was so happy Astrid had someone like Phil looking out for her, especially with all the crazy unicorn killing going on.

What are some of your favorite books about sisters? Have you read any of these books? Feel free to add links to your reviews!

Want more books about sisters? Check out Alex's list at A Girl, Books and Other Things!

Want to see more Spotlight Lists?
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Cover Crazy (1): Ascendant

Cover Crazy is a weekly meme hosted by Tawni at The Book Worms where a beautiful cover is featured each week for all of us to admire. I am going to use my Cover Crazy posts as an opportunity to review a book cover I love or review any cover (even the ones I don't love) from a book I've read. This week's Cover Crazy is for a cover I both love and have read the book: Ascendant by Diana Peterfreund.

 

My favorite kinds of covers are the ones that are both beautiful in their own right, but also compliment the story they are representing. The cover for Ascendant hits both marks. The girl is pretty and her sword is equally beautiful. Her pale blond hair sweeps across her face making her look innocent and calling to mind the silky mane of a unicorn. The lavender title evokes images of sweet, girly unicorns, but the font is strong and not frilly.

The contrast here between a sweetness and innocence (the girl, coloring) and battle strength (the sword, font, black background) suits the story very well. In Rampant and Ascendant, Diana Peterfreund takes the classic idea of a unicorn as a creature of purity and goodness and completely turns that idea on its head by making unicorns evil, deadly monsters. Likewise, the girls unicorns of myth were attracted to were symbols of harmless innocence, but Peterfreund's girls are warriors endowed with super slayer strength. This cover plays on the contrast between the mythological unicorn and girl and Peterfreund's unicorn and warrior. 

Going a step further, the contrasts in the cover also speak to the conflicts Astrid faces in Ascendant. If I had to sum up Ascendant in one word, the word I would use is "contrast." Astrid is a unicorn hunter where she deals out death, but she wants to be a doctor where her focus would be in preserving life. She is torn between her duties to kill unicorns, and the passion she shares with her cousin to preserve the unicorns as an endangered species. She despises unicorns, but she also loves unicorns like Bonegrinder and the new species introduced in Ascendant. She hates Gordian Pharmaceuticals, but she also wants to work with them. The contradictions in the cover art are a perfect representation of the conflicts Astrid faces. 

Plus this girl (unlike the girl on Rampant) looks a lot like how I picture Astrid. Always a sign of a good cover, I think.

Ascendant is the second book in the Killer Unicorns series.

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