Reader's View: My Ebook Price Rant

I recently read a post over at Camille Picott's Blog that asked when an ebook is too expensive. At the time I didn't really think too much about the topic because I'm not in a position to spend big on anything and there wasn't anything I wanted to read that was over the usual $2.99 ebook price tag (I don't buy traditionally published books as ebooks because I think that's kooky).  
       Then a few days ago I read a review of a book that's been really popular. It was a glowing review in a long line of  glowing reviews that I've seen pop up all over the place. I started to get really keen so I jumped on to Amazon to give it a shot. To my horror I clicked on the Kindle edition and the price came up close to $9. At first I thought it was a mistake. So I checked again. Nope. Then I looked to see if maybe the book had been snapped up by a traditional publisher and hence the now hefty price. Nope.
       It could be crossover annoyance at having to type all day as part of NaNo but I found myself getting really irritated. I totally understand indies wanting to make money off their books the way any other author would. I get that if something is in demand it should be priced to match. But be reasonable. I won't buy a traditionally published ebook for over $5. What makes you think I'll buy your ebook for $9?? Especially when I can just get the paperback for the same amount of money.
      Before anyone asks, I've put myself in the author's shoes and totally believe that if I were in the same position I wouldn't even dream of pricing my book so high. Mostly because I know that in doing so I'd make it inaccessible to a lot of readers. I would prefer for more people to read my book even if it doesn't make me as much.
      Maybe I'm delusional in my belief that indies tend to price their books lower in order to entice readers to buy. Maybe the author no longer needs to have a cheap ebook in order to move her stock. Whatever the case, there is no chance in hell I am going to buy this book now. Neither the ebook nor the print version. EVER. I just don't understand the necessity. Angelfall by Susan Ee has been an immensely popular ebook and yet I've never seen it go over the $2.99 mark.
      I hope this isn't the way ebooks are going in the future because I am one reader that won't stand for it.


*PM if you'd like to know what book I am referring to. I can't be bothered naming names on here as I don't want to encourage trolls.

Writer's Corner Guest Post: Multiculturalism in YA by Camille Picott

Since I read Camille Picott's children's book Raggedy Chan a while back, I've had questions about multiculturalism in YA books and in books in general rolling around in my head. IMO not only is there not enough multicultural representation happening in books/TV/media in general but when it is done, we tend to Westernise it anyway to make it more palatable. So, when Camille offered to do a guest post on my blog, I jumped at the chance to get her views on the topic!

 ***

I was thrilled when Lan asked me to write about multiculturalism in YA. It’s a topic that’s near and dear to me. My personal speciality is speculative fiction with Asian influence, but I love all multicultural YA.

I’ve seen multiculturalism explored several ways in YA fiction. Here are some examples I’ve found:

Direct: The author reveals the ethnicity of the character and weaves the experiences of that ethnic identity into the story. The Direct method is generally found in stories with a contemporary aspect and portray “real” ethnicities. (As opposed to fictional ethnicities, like elves and orcs.)

A great example is Rick Riordan’s Kane Chronicles. The two main characters, Sadie and her big brother Carter, are half black, half white. Sadie shares the experience of being raised by her white grandparents and never feeling like she fit in.

It’s been a while since I’ve read the first book in the series, The Red Pyramid, but I remember feeling very connected with Sadie’s experience of being mixed. I appreciate the fact that the author tackled a multicultural subject in mainstream fiction.

Indirect: Multiculturalism and ethnic minorities are portrayed in fictional worlds with fictional races.

The example that comes to mind here is Uglies by Scott Westerfeld. Again, it’s been a while since I read this book, but I do recall that the main character, Tally Youngblood, is not white. Ethnicities and races as we know them today do not exist in this world; instead, the world is divided between those who are Ugly, and those who are Pretty.

I did enjoy the Ugly versus Pretty divide that Westerfeld explores. In this fictional world, the fact that Tally isn’t white doesn’t matter to the story at all; the fact that she is Ugly is what matters.

I enjoy the indirect approach when it’s done well. With this story, I think many readers can identify with being Ugly. But if one is looking to connect with a character because she’s non-white, this isn’t the book for you. 

Passing: When a character has a multicultural or minority background but essentially passes for being white.

I first learned about “passing” in college from my roommate. You can read an in-depth article on it here. In a nut shell, “passing” is when a person from a minority or mixed heritage attempts to pass as part of the main “white” majority.

In Marie Lu’s Legend, the main character Day is primarily of Mongol descent. But he has blond hair. This rings true to me—in my own family, I have cousins who are 25% Chinese, yet they have blond hair and blue eyes.

I have to admit, I was personally disappointed that Day doesn’t “look” Mongolian. For me, it strips away the coolness of having a minority main character. Even though the way his looks are portrayed is totally realistic, I would have loved for his ethnicity to have been more apparent in either his looks, tastes, or actions. But that’s just my personal preference. This isn’t meant to be an insult to Lu’s book, which I enjoyed.

What are some multicultural YA books that you have read? Have you encountered any of above-mentioned multicultural examples in other YA books?

***
Thanks Camille for the great insights. I haven't read the Uglies series but I want to give it a go to see how Westerfeld handles the issue. On my part I think self published authors do a much better job at cross cultural representation than traditionally published authors. Possibly because they're not hindered by publishers who want to whitewash so that books are more marketable.
      I come from a non English speaking background and even I seek out books where the characters are essentially Caucasian.  It would take a much greater mind than mine to psychoanalyze that but I think part of it has to do with the greater representation of Caucasian characters in books and movies. I've been especially disgusted by Hunger Games Controversy as well as the supposed outcry of the casting of an Asian actor in The Mortal Instruments movie. It's funny because I think most readers would like more diversity in these mediums. It's only the select few who ruin it for everyone (as usual!). Thankfully, with the emerging popularity of ebooks and titles like by Sulan: Episode One: The League Camille and Telesa: The Covenant Keeper and its sequel When Water Burnsby Lani Wendt Young, I think multiculturalism is going to take books by storm very soon!

Review: Sulan by Camille Picott

THE STORY:

Sixteen-year-old Sulan Hom can’t remember life before the Default—the day the United States government declared bankruptcy. As a math prodigy, she leads a protected life, kept safe from the hunger and crime plaguing the streets of America. She attends the corporate-sponsored Virtual High School, an academy in Vex (Virtual Experience) for gifted children.

Beyond the security of Sulan’s high-tech world, the Anti-American League wages a guerrilla war against the United States. Their leader, Imugi, is dedicated to undermining the nation’s reconstruction attempts. He attacks anything considered a national resource, including corporations, food storage facilities—and schools. When Sulan witnesses the public execution of a teenage student and the bombing of a college dorm, she panics.

Her mother, a retired mercenary, refuses to teach her how to defend herself. Sulan takes matters into her own hands. With the help of her hacker best friend, Hank, Sulan acquires Touch—an illegal Vex technology that allows her to share the physical experience of her avatar. With Touch, Sulan defies her mother and trains herself to fight.

When Imugi unleashes a new attack on the United States, Sulan finds herself caught in his net. Will her Vex training be enough to help her survive and escape?

MY THOUGHTS:

I can sum up my thoughts about Sulan: Episode One: The League in one sentence: Traditional publishing is in serious trouble. I don't know where the industry is going to go when authors like Camille Picott are starting to choose to self publish. Sulan is such a high adventure, easily accessible story that I didn't come across many of the issues I tend to have with other YA novels. That's got to be saying something when you guys know how picky I can be.

The Basics

Sulan's world is a world like no other that I've come across in the YA genre so far. It boggles my mind the amount of research and imagination that has gone into writing this book. I can see dystopunk taking off in a big way. Though I'm not a huge fan of sci-fi, I think Camille has done well to make the science is Sulan accessible to the layman reader. Especially since I can really see the world going in this sort of direction in the near future. A great deal of care has gone into the world building in Sulan and I think that is reflected in the slower pacing of the first half of the book. Though this isn't necessarily a bad thing, the story does take a little bit of time to really rev up but it's well worth the wait for the thrilling second half. If I had one complaint about the world building, it would be that there isn't much explanation of how the world really works outside of Sulan's immediate surroundings. It would have been nice to see what life for the underprivileged was really like. Though I'm sure these themes will be more clearly explored in later books.
      Camille's writing was one of the aspects I enjoyed most about Sulan. I'm not big on huge literary tomes and while overly pretty writing is okay sometimes, I am all for accurate metaphors and succinct sentences. I flew through the book in a matter of days and that's saying a lot for someone who reads at a snails pace.

The Characters

Sulan: I must admit I started reading Sulan with a sense of trepidation. So often minority characters are portrayed in a very stereotypical way. I don't know why I was so worried. Camille does an excellent job of creating a heroine with depth and although the story has strong Asian influences, the theme is not rammed down readers throats every few sentences as a lot of other stories do to overcompensate.For all intents and purposes Sulan is a normal teenager struggling to balance other's expectations of her against what she wants for herself. Sulan manages to have a healthy and close relationship with a female friend who isn't secretly a plot device in disguise.

Gun & Taro: I can feel a love triangle coming on. Not sure how I feel about that at the moment, but I will say that if this is where the story is going, it's getting there at a respectable pace. No insta-love in sight. Whilst I am not a big fan of love triangles, I can see the merits in both boys and would be interested in seeing how the romance plays out. 

The Smaller Players:
I would have to say that some of my favourite characters in this book are the minor ones.  One of them especially (I won't reveal who for fear of spoiling the story) is so hilarious and vivid that I wouldn't be surprised if Camille knew someone like that in real life. That Camille is able to give him such animation in such a short part of the story is incredible. In fact, the only character I didn't really feel was fully fleshed out was Imugi. He doesn't have much page time and we never get a real sense of the motivation behind his devastating attacks. I get the feeling he won't be the big bad of this series at all.

The Minor Details

I really enjoyed reading Sulan and these points are probably just me being really nit picky but there were a few things which didn't quite ring true for me. For example, Sulan is a math prodigy and has managed to achieve a perfect score on her Vex school entrance exam. I'm not sure how she does this unless the entire exam is based on math. Which I don't think it is considering the vast array of talents exhibited by other students. Also, I'm still at a loss as to why Sulan's mother refuses to let her train to defend herself. It would seem like a logical step considering the dangers Sulan faces in her new world. 

On the whole, I really enjoyed Sulan and am looking forward to the next books in the series coming out. Anyone who enjoys dystopian or cyberpunk and is tired of the cookie cutter YA novels being published these days should really give this book a try!

THE RATING:

4/5

Sulan: Free For A Limited Time!!

Next month I'm going to be participating in my first ever book tour for Camille Picott's new YA Dystopunk Novel: Sulan, Episode 1, The League.

It just so happens that Sulan, Episode 1, The League -- is available free download on Amazon from August 16th to August 20th. Download a free copy and tell all your friends! If you don’t have a Kindle, you can download a Kindle Reader for free onto your computer here.

About Sulan, Episode 1: The League: Sixteen-year-old Sulan Hom can’t remember life before the Default—the day the United States government declared bankruptcy. As a math prodigy, she leads a protected life, kept safe from the hunger and crime plaguing the streets of America. She attends the corporate-sponsored Virtual High School, an academy in Vex (Virtual Experience) for gifted children.

Beyond the security of Sulan’s high-tech world, the Anti-American League wages a guerrilla war against the United States. Their leader, Imugi, is dedicated to undermining the nation’s reconstruction attempts. He attacks anything considered a national resource, including corporations, food storage facilities—and schools. When Sulan witnesses the public execution of a teenage student and the bombing of a college dorm, she panics.

Her mother, a retired mercenary, refuses to teach her how to defend herself. Sulan takes matters into her own hands. With the help of her hacker best friend, Hank, Sulan acquires Touch—an illegal Vex technology that allows her to share the physical experience of her avatar. With Touch, Sulan defies her mother and trains herself to fight.

When Imugi unleashes a new attack on the United States, Sulan finds herself caught in his net. Will her Vex training be enough to help her survive and escape?

Camille and I will be discussing multiculturalism in YA novels so be sure to stick around for that hot topic!

Review: Raggedy Chan by Camille Picott

THE STORY:

Emma Chan-McDougal receives a special gift from her Auntie Gracie: a rag doll named Raggedy Chan. But Raggedy Chan is no ordinary doll. She is a beautiful Chinese princess who lives in a jasper palace on the enchanted isle of Kunlun. The peace of her island home is threatened when Drought Fury steals Winged Dragon, bringer of rain. Without Winged Dragon, Kunlun will wither and die. To save her stricken homeland, Raggedy Chan sets forth alone. Her quest leads her to America, where she meets people who distrust her because she’s different. Can Raggedy Chan adapt to the strange ways of this new land and rescue her beloved dragon? In this 10,000-word modern fairy tale, Chinese-American author Camille Picott draws on her heritage to weave a story of magic, adventure, and sacrifice.

MY THOUGHTS:

It's All In The Plot

Raggedy Chan is first and foremost an adventure. Though it's aimed at younger children, I couldn't help but admire how incredibly complex it was. It's got notable mythical animal characters to entice children and exciting plot twists for those of us who are on the other side of childhood (sniff).  Just when I thought things were going to be smooth sailing another obstacle would arise and Raggedy Chan would have to think of a clever way to resolve the dilemma. The Princess/Raggedy Chan shows all the desirable qualities of a strong heroine who would do anything to protect those she loves. 

Themes And Symbolism

I'm the first to admit that when I read it's purely for pleasure. Mostly because 1. I don't care if your book is a satire of the current political climate/trendy social justice topic. I can see that stuff on the news and I deal with it every day at work. 2. I'm not deep enough to delve into your heavily embedded symbolism so if you tell me your farm is run by pigs that's all I'm going to get out of it. With that being said, I couldn't help but notice that I actually got this book. Like, really got it. Camille has added just the right blend of storytelling, thematic influence and symbolism for the book to be both a compelling adventure story and a useful learning tool. This is a book that's not just for children my friends.

Everyone Is A Bit Racist

I think it's high time the whole world admitted to this fact. Heck, I'm half Chinese and I felt slightly racist reading this book. I kept thinking to myself, "why is Auntie Gracie talking like that?" and then I realised that both my parents speak exactly the same way and if I was having that kind of reaction imagine how other people would view it? Camille does such a great job of integrating her cultural influences into this book and I would argue that the skeleton of Raggedy Chan could be used to highlight the experiences of any immigrating culture. Kudos for the use of food as a way to teach about a culture. I think we can all agree that food brings everyone together.

Fish Out Of Water
What's truly genius about this book is that at one time or another in our lives we will all feel the way Raggedy Chan did after returning home from abroad. Whether it be from an adventure/travel/moving house/moving school. For a short time we feel tethered to both the past and the present, who we were and who we've become and life gets confusing and even scary. So much so that we consider not going forward to save ourselves the worry. Raggedy Chan does a marvelous job of reminding us that it's a scary world out there but we're missing out on great friendships and big adventure if we close ourselves off to it. We all want to belong and sometimes it's only by leaving the place we're most comfortable that we find where we truly fit in.

 THE RATING

5/5