inkcrush: aimee said

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Sunday, May 8, 2011

Little Sister by Aimee Said

Al Miller wishes she was an only child.

Al Miller is counting down the days until her over-achieving older sister Larrie finishes Year Twelve and leaves Whitlam High School for ever. Then, Al is certain, people will finally see her as more than just “Larrie’s little sister”. But when a rumour about Larrie spreads around school, Al finds herself in the spotlight for all the wrong reasons. Who’s behind the rumour? And will it kill Al’s chances with school hunk, Josh Turner?

A new title from the author of Finding Freia Lockhart
Teenagers will relate to the themes of acceptance, bullying and friendship
A sharply observed and unmissable novel about standing up for what’s right (from publisher's site)

I was pretty thrilled to get my hands on Aimee Said's sophomore novel LITTLE SISTER after reading such a lovely review for her debut FINDING FREIA LOCKHART over at My Girl Friday last year.

LITTLE SISTER is an Aussie YA novel that will appeal to mature MG students and high school teenagers.

It's one of those books that just feels like teen life: high school, homework, after school job, teachers, crushes, friendship, parents, social media and at the heart of the story: sibling issues. (Oh! and did I mention cute boys playing soccer?)

It blends a fun and vibrant tone with plenty of teen angst and real issues -- for a taste of that, here's the opening lines:

Monday morning: Whitlam High School assembly hall. Welcome to another week of ~~mind-numbing boredom~~ higher education.

The prose was easily accessible and the cultural references and social media stuff felt spot-on (there were these cute little status updates at the end of each chapter which were funky and clever). I think the whole social media was handles with finesse ~ not try-hard of likely to date the book.

As for the characters... while the secondary characters all had their own distinct personalities, some of them didn't feel quite fully fleshed out (although that was fine ~ the plot bounced along nicely with them being there). But Al ~ oh my gosh ~ being inside her head took me riiiiiight back to those teen years. The angst and emotion in the book is like climbing inside a girls mind and living it with her. Sometimes the little things are the big things when you're a teen. It made me simultaneously nostalgic and also relieved that you do come out the other side, you know?

And then, when the Big Things happened ~ they were just handled with such heart and honesty.

I always loved reading home-grown YA when I was a teen, which feels so much closer to home than imported stuff and this book just screams Aussie. It's firmly written for teens (I don't think the cross-over appeal is strong). LITTLE SISTER is easily relate-able, fun and ultimately empowering. And it made me want to fly down south to see my sister and give her a hug :)

Little Sister @ goodreads
Little Sister @ Walker Books

my gorgeous little sister & I :)

For all you fab Melbournians ~ you can celebrate the release of Little Sister @ The Sun Theatre:

Oh ~ and one last thought. While I was reading Little Sister is for some reason reminded me of J C Burke's FAKING SWEET. I'm not sure why that was because stylistically they are quite different in voice and subject matter. I think maybe my mind pairs them because they are both absorbing books for teen girls set in high school dealing with real things ~ both capturing the essence of teen girls in that chapter of life... or, maybe it's just me, heheheh.

Thanks to the lovely Aimee Said and Walker Books for sending a copy my way :)

Monday, May 2, 2011

Squee! An author interview with Aimee Said

I am thrilled to be a part of a Very Special blog tour celebrating the upcoming launch of Aimee Said's second Aussie YA novel LITTLE SISTER.

(the purple bits are me butting in on her answers :)

1. Can you share with us that first little nugget of inspiration that inspired LITTLE SISTER?
Let’s just say I still feel slightly bitter and twisted about the fact that I wasn’t allowed to make a sound in my bedroom during my sister’s final year of high school. And that she moved out of home before I had a chance to get my own back.

2. Can you list a few things readers can look forward to finding inside LITTLE SISTER?
As well as a story about sibling rivalry, cyberbullying and genetics, a few things you can look forward to are:
- hot guys playing soccer
- a battle of the bands competition
- an introduction to the fortune-telling game of Lucky Cats
- a sweet recipe for revenge.
(I loved the battle of the bands! And we can always do with more hot guys playing soccer ;)

3. LITTLE SISTER has so much energy in it ~ in parts it’s light-hearted and yet it also deals with some serious issues. Did you find it easy to juggle the fun with the serious?
When I was writing Al’s story, I didn’t think of it in terms of ‘fun bit’ or ‘serious bit’ it just came out that way, so there wasn’t any conscious juggling to do. I do try to keep my characters’ sense of humour though, even when things aren’t going the way they’d like them to, because I find reading (and writing) page after page of unmitigated seriousness exhausting.

4. You must be so thrilled about launching LITTLE SISTER this week. How does the launch of your sophomore novel feel compare to your debut launch? And, most importantly, how will you be celebrating?
Thrilled is an understatement! It’s almost a year since I sent the manuscript of Little Sister to my publisher, so it’s been a long time coming. When Finding Freia Lockhart came out I didn’t really know what to expect from the launch, or what it would be like to read people’s reviews. This time round I’m actually a lot more nervous because I know what I might be in for.

Of course, it’s a great excuse to celebrate - so great that I’m having two:

one in Sydney (where I grew up) next Friday, 6 May, and one in Melbourne (where I live now) the following Saturday, 14 May.

Both events are open to anyone who’d like to come; check out my blog for details (or click above links).
(good luck with your nerves! ~ you have nothing to worry about :D)

5. As an author what is your absolute most favourite part of the process?
Believe it or not, unlike a lot of writers I LOVE revising. I find writing the first draft a long, hard slog but once I have the whole story down going back and rethinking or rewriting is much easier. And the revised bits are always way better, which is really satisfying.

6. Are you currently working on anything? (have you any secrets to share with us regarding what is next in store?)
I’ve been meaning to start my third YA novel since about a week after I handed in the manuscript for Little Sister (about 48 weeks ago!), which is possibly some kind of record for procrastination. A lot of people have asked whether there’ll be a Freia sequel, so that’s something I’m thinking about, but there are a lot of stories vying for attention in my head. We’ll have to see which one wins out in the end.
(Haha ~ I had a good chuckle hearing about your procrastination. Classic! [you are in good company here ~ I have a few procrastination records of my own])

FINALLY: We love hearing brilliant recommendations on inkcrush. Can you share a few of your favourite Aussie YA titles (past or present)?
I’m trying to keep the list short, so here are just a few of my Absolute All-time Faves:
- ALL of Jaclyn Moriarty’s books - her writing is lovely, her characters are fabulous and I love her humour (!!! Jaclyn Moriarty is my number one author crush!)
- Graffiti Moon by Cath Crowley (my #1 read of 2010) (I picked GRAFFITI MOON as my #1 read last year too! My end of year post...)
- 48 Shades of Brown by Nick Earls
- Beatle Meets Destiny by Gabrielle Williams
- Notes From the Teenage Underground by Simmone Howell