Segullah’s 2009 Whitney Favorites

Posted by Emily M. | March 30, 2010 | 20 Comments

This year I have had the great pleasure of reading the Whitney finalists with Shelah. We agree about enough of the books to have fun discussing them, and disagree enough to make it interesting. After much emailing and talking, these are the Official Segullah Whitney Award Choices. Ballots are due April 3, and the winners will be announced April 24 at the Whitney Awards Gala.

Space constraints prevent me from saying more than a line or two about each book. For more detailed and insightful reviews, check out Shelah’s blog.

So, without further ado, our favorites:
Romance:
Emily: All the Stars in Heaven. Michelle Paige Holmes tells a great story, more suspense than romance, but the romantic elements were strong and compelling. I read it instead of making dinner. Not so happy for my family, but a great indicator of a good book. I’m also giving a shoutout to Santa Maybe, which was a fun read.
Shelah: Going into this experience, I never thought that one of my favorites would be a romance. But Counting the Cost is much more than just a romance. It has a rich, western setting, compelling characters, and a story that’s about working at a marriage and not just riding off into the sunset to live happily ever after. Adair based the story on her parents’ courtship, and she doesn’t shrink from accurately portraying a hard-living cowboy’s life, and also writes well about the couple’s burgeoning conversion to the church.
Emily: Much as I enjoyed All the Stars in Heaven, and found Counting the Cost more work to appreciate (the main female character bugged me), I am a sucker for gorgeous, lyrical writing, and Counting the Cost was beautifully written.

Consensus: Counting the Cost.

Mystery/Suspense:
Shelah: I’ve read enough mysteries by now that I’m rarely surprised when the killer is revealed, but Josi Kilpack’s Lemon Tart kept me guessing again and again. Kilpack’s writing was also smart and tight, and her characters deep enough to surprise me too.
Emily: I agree with Shelah on Lemon Tart as my favorite. I loved Sadie, the detective character, and I enjoyed her strong, consistent voice. I also want to mention Altered State as a book that felt fresh and unique among the mystery finalists. It had an engaging scientific mind-control plot, and kept me turning pages.
Consensus: Lemon Tart.

Youth fiction:
Emily: The Chosen One. Wrenching, lyrical story of a thirteen-year-old girl escaping polygamy. I loved this book. The ending jarred me a little, but overall this was exceptional writing.
Runner up: Princess of the Midnight Ball. I love a good fairy tale retelling, and this was a great reworking of the 12 Dancing Princesses.
Shelah: I’m with Emily on this one. Deceptively simple writing The Chosen One was both direct and haunting, and Williams did a wonderful job getting into the mind of Kyra, and showing the challenges of life on a polygamous compound.
Consensus: The Chosen One

Speculative fiction:
Shelah: If I had to choose one book among the thirty that was the freshest and most fun to read, the decision would be easy, it’s definitely Dan Wells’s I am Not a Serial Killer. I couldn’t put the book down, and can’t wait for my kids to grow up a little so I can force them to read it too. But I also really enjoyed Brandon Sanderson’s ambitious, complicated, epic Warbreaker, and that’s saying a lot for someone like me, who normally shuns sci-fi and secondary creation.
Emily: Do I really have to choose? Dang, I don’t know. I am Not a Serial Killer is creepy and gory but the writing is beautiful and John Wayne Cleaver, the teenage boy fighting against his inner serial killer, broke my heart. But Warbreaker is the one I read on Brandon Sanderson’s website till two in the morning when I broke my leg, and I think it’s brilliant. I loved its romance and satisfying ending.
Consensus: Serial or Warbreaker for the win? Warbreaker wins out. By a nose.

Historical Fiction:
Emily: In the Company of Angels, David Farland’s self-published story of the Martin and Willie handcart company. It’s honest, it’s well-researched, it’s beautiful and sad and holy and all the things that our best pioneer stories have. I’m recommending it for my book club next year. A great work.
Shelah: I’m with Emily on this one. I especially loved the way that Farland approached the story from the point of view of three very different members of the handcart company, as well as the way that he didn’t gloss over some of the harder parts of the historical account of the story.
Consensus: In the Company of Angels

General fiction:
Emily: Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet, the story of a Japanese internment camp and a lost love. My book club loved it, and I did too. I also really enjoyed Gravity vs. the Girl, about a girl haunted by past versions of herself. I am that girl.
Shelah: My heart wants to vote for Jonathan Langford’s moving No Going Back, the story of a gay Mormon teen who struggles between his desire to stay faithful to a faith he has a testimony of and a sexual orientation he can’t deny. But my brain forces my nod to go to Jamie Ford’s Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet for the quality of its writing.
Consensus: Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet

Best Novel by a New Author:
Emily: I am not a Serial Killer. See above comments. It’s an impressive book.
Shelah: Totally. It’s Twilight for boys (and girls, but boys can read this without hiding it inside a magazine), with writing chops to match the storytelling.

Consensus: Serial Killer

Best Novel of the Year:
Shelah: The Chosen One
Emily: In the Company of Angels
Consensus: This is a really tough call. The Chosen One has stunning writing. Spare, beautiful, haunting. But I love it when people write about Mormons and really get it right, and In the Company of Angels is one of my favorites ever.

We’ve got our opinions, but we’d love to hear yours, too. Which of the Whitney finalists were your favorites? What sounds interesting to you? Do you plan to read any of these? What other books by LDS authors did you enjoy this year? Also, if you live in Utah Valley, the Orem library has purchased many of these books, including some harder-to-find independently published ones, so you can hop on over and see whether you agree with us or not. Either way, it’s great to see the increasing excellence of LDS writing. Congratulations and good luck to all the finalists!

Comments

20 Responses to “Segullah’s 2009 Whitney Favorites”

Angela
March 30th, 2010 @ 8:41 am

Great recap, you two. Thank you so much! I love having people I trust point me in the direction of LDS fiction I might like to read. The only one on this list I’ve read is The Chosen One, and I agree that it’s really good. Hotel on the Corner, I Am Not a Serial Killer, and In the Company of Angels are all on my reading list, too. (Once I finish Cutting for Stone–not a Mormon book, of course, but DANG it’s good.)
Melissa Y.
March 30th, 2010 @ 9:17 am

This was fun–I like having two people’s perspectives. It’s nice to have a solid recommendation on LDS lit.
Michelle L.
March 30th, 2010 @ 9:28 am

Wow, thanks for all the reviews. I’m going to read all your choices and maybe a few of the runner-ups as well.

Maybe we should start a Segullah library and mail these to each other?
Michelle L.
March 30th, 2010 @ 9:30 am

oh, and I think Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet should win best cover design as well. Why oh why– with so many talented Mormon designers out there– do so many LDS books have cheesy covers?
Amira
March 30th, 2010 @ 9:30 am

My library doesn’t have most of the Whitney nominees, but I was able to read Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet (which is rightfully very popular in Seattle). I really enjoyed it and am planning to read it with our RS book group this summer.
Rose
March 30th, 2010 @ 10:15 am

I haven’t read any of those.
Blue
March 30th, 2010 @ 11:13 am

i read “serial killer” last night and while i can see why you liked it, i kind of didn’t. it WAS well-written, and there was good character dev, but for the first 100 pages there isn’t anything to make you think you’re reading a completely fantastical story. it’s set in this world, with this world’s rules. then suddenly it starts breaking those rules, but by then i kind of expected there to be some rational explanation (like he’s psychotic and none of this is happening or something). but then the end happens and you can’t even use THAT as an excuse, so i don’t know. i think i approached it from the wrong perspective…and kept thinking it would resolve itself to fit neatly into my reality.

i absolutely loved Counting the Cost. So well-done. Nothing but praise.

Lemon Tart was a fun read. I read it a long time ago (or at least a lot of books ago) and recall it being enjoyable, but not one of those stories that will have any kind of lasting impact. I think of it as popcorn book.

No Turning Back was very compelling. As a flight attendant, I have a LOT of gay friends, many of whom have stayed true to the faith, and others who have wandered. This book was one of those that will stick with me, and gave me peeks of insight into what kinds of experiences they would have gone through. It also increased my awareness of tolerance and prejudice issues.

I read Princess of the Midnight Ball last year, as did my daughter. We both loved it and thought Jessica did a great job telling a familiar tale with a fresh take. Totally recommendable!

Those are the only ones on your list that I’ve read so far. Thanks SO much for the work you’ve done. Shelah, your blog reviews of them are all fantastic. What are you going to do with all your extra time now that this project is done?!
Shelah
March 30th, 2010 @ 1:01 pm

Blue, I know where you’re coming from with serial killer. I had exactly the same impression after reading the second of Carlos Ruis Zafon’s books. I think serial killer mentions on the back covet that there are “two monsters” in town, but it’s hard to know how literally we should take it.

Angela, isn’t cutting for stone fantastic?

As for what I’ll do next, grad school starts in four weeks, so I’ll be plenty busy.
Emily M.
March 30th, 2010 @ 1:42 pm

I agree, Michelle, it’s good to have two different perspectives. That’s one thing I enjoyed a lot about reading books together–having someone else to bounce my opinions off of. I think it would be fun to have a mail-order LDS book club.

Amira, nine of the finalists were nationally published, so they are more likely to be available at your library. The entire Speculative Fiction category was published nationally, as well as three of the youth fiction finalists.

Blue, I totally get your reaction to serial killer too. I listen to the author’s writing podcast (Writing Excuses. Great fun.) and I think I’ve heard enough about this book that I kind of knew what to expect going in. I don’t know that I would have enjoyed it as well if I had not anticipated the supernatural elements.

Everyone, feel free to comment anonymously on who you liked best, if you don’t want to use your name.

One final thing I didn’t mention: each book can only win once. So if Company of Angels wins Best Novel, it can’t win Best Historical too. In that case, I think Undaunted would win.

Same with Serial Killer: if it won Best Novel by a New Author, it couldn’t win Best Speculative.
FoxyJ
March 30th, 2010 @ 2:25 pm

I’m reading The Chosen One right now and really liking it. Everything I’ve read by Carol has been great, both the funny stuff and the serious stuff.

I actually didn’t like Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet as much as I thought I would (I read it last year and didn’t know the author was Mormon). Too many of the characters felt like stereotypes/cariactures to me. I thought it was an OK book, but not on my favorites list. I do agree that the cover is nice.

I really liked No Going Back a lot, although I have my personal biases and I know the author, so that often influences my opinion of things. I do think it is one of the best books out there on being gay and Mormon, either fiction or non-fiction.

That’s about all that I’ve read of this year’s books so far. I’m still trying to catch up on the last few years’ titles, since I rely on the library and don’t have a big budget for buying books. I also don’t usually read much speculative fiction or other genre fiction (like mystery or romance). But if a recommendation is good then I’ll try it. I am going to put in a purchase request for Orem library to get In the Company of Angels so I can read it
Emily M.
March 30th, 2010 @ 2:37 pm

Foxy J, I did request In the Company of Angels at the Orem library, and they have been pretty good about getting my other Whitney requests. I haven’t heard back from them about that one, though. They do have Counting the Cost (I’ll be returning it soon), and Gravity vs. the Girl, and several others. I love that place.
Selwyn
March 30th, 2010 @ 3:16 pm

All of the books have to be ordered from overseas, and so I love these recommendations so I can carefully choose what to spend the (astonishing cost of) shipping on. I may have to buy a couple when I’m over there!

I DID buy & read Lemon Tart last year. I enjoyed it, though it is more ‘popcorn’like Blue said than Josi’s other books.

Thanks for the help!
Melissa M.
March 30th, 2010 @ 8:00 pm

I loved your reviews, Shelah and Emily. You’ve given me lots of titles to add to my list. Thank you!
Liz Adair
March 30th, 2010 @ 9:05 pm

Oh, wow. Thanks for your endorsement. Blows me away. I’m stunned.
Cecily Markland
March 30th, 2010 @ 10:58 pm

Great reviews. Makes me even more excited about the prospects of being at the awards ceremony. Can’t wait! By the way, I don’t know about the other books, but Counting the Cost is being offered for a special price on http://www.inglestonepublishing.com and you can read there about how to go about getting a free download of this great book!
Darlene
March 31st, 2010 @ 8:48 am

Wow, you guys put in a lot of time reading in order to review for us. I really appreciate it.
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April 2nd, 2010 @ 8:02 am

[...] M. and Shelah discuss their favorite finalists in each of the Whitney Awards categories over at Segullah. Although I don’t agree with all of their picks (more on that later), on the [...]
Davey
April 2nd, 2010 @ 9:12 am

I need to read some of these. This is a great source to give me an idea for which of this year’s crop of nominees I’m most likely to enjoy (since I’ve still got years of Mormon literature–not to mention literature-in-general–to catch up on). Thanks! And good luck to the finalists!
Blue
April 2nd, 2010 @ 1:04 pm

just finished off In The Company of Angels, Wings, & Gravity Vs. The Girl since my previous comment. I loved all three of them.

I think Gravity was good for me because I’ve been pretty depressed this past 2 weeks…it was an interesting way to try and motivate myself to do something (besides reading Whitney books)

Company of Angels handled the topic of those handcart companies in a way that I’m sure will make it hard to ever forget. I’m also likely to mix fact and fiction about those events together in my mind (as happened with The Giant Joshua, among other historical fiction accounts). As I contemplate the events of this Good Friday that took place so long ago, and the suffering of so many through the ages in an effort to find and follow God, this story was a good perspective check.

Wings was delightful, light, fun…a nice change from the books about oppression, persecution, depression, serial killers, and prejudice that preceded this book. The 2nd in the series comes out May 4th…looking forward to it.

I really shouldn’t be reading as much as I am right now. Unlike Shelah, who I’m not convinced hasn’t cloned herself, I don’t know how to read five pages a minute while simultaneously writing (book reviews, blog posts, tweets etc), cleaning house, running 20 miles a day, hosting parties, folding laundry, doing home decor, watching Tivo’d TV, and nurturing four wonderful kids all at the same time. It’s probably time to pull back a bit and get some fresh air and sunlight (just as soon as I finish the final installment of the Fablehaven series) ♥
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April 7th, 2010 @ 10:28 am

[...] Segullah’s 2009 Whitney Favorites [...]