Monday's Muse, 21st edition.

Current Theme Song (aka what's playing on my ipod right now): So Far Away by Staind.



This was originally an idea from Au Courant started in March, an idea she has graciously let me run with. (Note: Since Au Courant is no longer continuing her blog and hasn't been for some time, after this week I will be taking this part out and adopting this as my own, though I will leave the link still active in the early posts. It is a wonderful idea she had, and I want to thank her very much for it).

The idea is to introduce you to unknown, forgotten, or overlooked fiction that has been lost from regular radar. I am WriterGirl. I am in the business of saving lives, one book at a time.

What I do is go to amazon, narrow it down to a YA field and type in a random word, any word that comes to mind. I then take a sampling of some I have never heard of before, or only vaguely heard of (and hopefully you as well). No infringement is intended for any description I take for the books. It's purely for promotional reasons. I will try and cover as many genres as possible that are fitting for the random word. Simple but it really uncovers some incredible gems. I will be doing this every other Monday. If there are any words you want to prompt me with, go ahead and fire away.

Today's random word:
Clock.

The 13 Clocks by James Thurber

"The great New Yorker humorist James Thurber wrote a few children's books, the best of which may be The 13 Clocks, a 1950 tale of a wicked duke who thinks he has stopped time. Newly reissued, with an intro by Neil Gaiman — who calls it ''probably the best book in the world'' — Clocks is the equal of any modern kid classic. By the time he wrote The 13 Clocks, Thurber was too blind to provide his own usual scratchy but vivid illustrations, so he enlisted his friend Marc Simont to do the drawings. Simont provided beautifully cartoonish yet subtle mini-paintings that convey Clocks' varying moods of gloom, menace, surprise, and joy." --Entertainment Weekly.

Counter-Clock World by Philip K. Dick

Released in 1967 and 1956, respectively, these volumes offer Dick's usual bleak outlook for the future. In CounterClock World, time begins moving backwards, and, as a result, there is a reanimation of the dead, including a religious leader who has amassed a sizable number of followers since his demise. Back above ground, he finds himself worshiped by millions who will do anything he says, making him quite dangerous. Japed follows a similar theme in the character of Allen Purcell, a highly placed politico who has the power to change the world. Dick fans and Blade Runner nuts will be glad to see these. --Library Journal.




The One O'Clock Chop by Ralph Fletcher

It's the summer of 1973 and fourteen year old Matt spends his days working on a boat as a clam digger to earn extra money. His nights are another story--he spends time with his free-spirited cousin Jazzy who is visiting from Hawaii (and just happens to be beautiful). Matt can't deny that his affection for Jazzy moves beyond a crush, and everyone knows you can't fall in love with your cousin. Just when Matt decides to act on his feelings, Jazzy does something that changes everything between them.

Like the one o'clock chop--the strong breeze that blows across the Long Island Sound--Matt's summer proves to be as inevitable as a force of nature. Told with pitch-perfect angst and realism, Ralph Fletcher tells a gripping story of a teenager's life-altering summer.



The Wonder Clock by Howard Pyle

Famous and influential as a preeminent illustrator, Howard Pyle was also a gifted writer beloved by millions — young and old — for his endearing and enchanting fairy tales. The Wonder Clock is a delightful, magical collection of whimsical stories: twenty-four stories for twenty-four hours. And each a timeless masterpiece. Peopled with jolly kings and queens, lovely princesses and evil witches, sly foxes and mischievous ravens, ogres and giants, dashing princes and nasty dragons, these are old fashioned fairly tales in the best and most beautiful sense that can be enjoyed by readers of any age.



Pandora's Clock by John J. Nance

Imagine that a man carrying the deadly Ebola virus is aboard an international aircraft that is headed for New York and full of people eager to be home for Christmas. Nance, accomplished pilot, author, and currently aviation consultant for Good Morning America, brings such a nightmare to life in this unforgettable thriller. Captain James Holland has his hands full trying to get his packed airplane safely home yet he also has to deal with a cocky young copilot and demanding passengers (including a jabbering TV evangelist and an important U.S. ambassador). These obstacles are nothing, however, compared to the pressure he faces when he's forced to make an emergency landing after a passenger dies of a heart attack, and he discovers that every country, including the U.S., is refusing him entry. It seems that the man who died had been exposed to a rare virus strain crafted by the Soviets--an omega strain with a mortality rate of 100 percent. Captain Holland is a sympathetic character; the reader detects his primal fear yet respects his commanding demeanor. A uniquely suspenseful and terrifying story. Mary Frances Wilkens, Booklist.

The Clockwork Three by Matthew J. Kirby

Three ordinary children are brought together by extraordinary events. . .

Giuseppe is an orphaned street musician from Italy, who was sold by his uncle to work as a slave for an evil padrone in the U.S. But when a mysterious green violin enters his life he begins to imagine a life of freedom.

Hannah is a soft-hearted, strong-willed girl from the tenements, who supports her family as a hotel maid when tragedy strikes and her father can no longer work. She learns about a hidden treasure, which she knows will save her family -- if she can find it.

And Frederick, the talented and intense clockmaker's apprentice, seeks to learn the truth about his mother while trying to forget the nightmares of the orphanage where she left him. He is determined to build an automaton and enter the clockmakers' guild -- if only he can create a working head.

Together, the three discover they have phenomenal power when they team up as friends, and that they can overcome even the darkest of fears.