Curse you, Tasman Sea

It was a sad day (for us) when Karen Healey left Melbourne to move back to New Zealand.

Sad because we can't have her round to the House for Friday drinks anymore, and sad because she is not in Melbourne and her AWESOME NEW BOOK SET IN MELBOURNE is now on the shelves in real live bookstores.

When We Wake is set in Melbourne, but not in a Melbourne that we know now, a possible Melbourne of the nearish future.

Is it a better Melbourne? Sometimes.

Is it worse? Sort of.

Is it an intriguing place? Yes.

Is it full of characters you will love? Oh yes.

Do any of those character love each other? YOU KNOW IT.

Is there any, say, danger for those characters in this new Melbourne? Guys, have you READ any of Karen's books? YES YES YES. Danger, love, the funny. Tension, suspense, the playful. It's ALL here.

And it's all so good.

Karen - if you weren't on the other side of the Tasman, we would pour you a glass of something, and say CONGRATULATIONS!

***UPDATED***

Just to hand, this awesome trailer from Little, Brown - Karen's lovely publishers in the USA! It's so cool that we'll even forgive Tegan's American accent.

Monday stuff and items

1) Don't you wish you were at the Edinburgh International Book Festival to hear Garth Nix give a sneak preview of Clariel, the prequel to the Old Kingdom trilogy which we will be publishing NEXT YEAR! Hurry up, next year!*

Also appearing at this fine festival is the marvellous Margo Lanagan and the splendid Shaun Tan. Where, oh, where is our portal to the other side of the world when we need it!

2) The Kill Your Darlings YA Challenge has been FABULOUS. Smart people championing their favourite YA novels: what's not to love? Here's Lili Wilkinson talking about Obernewtyn.

And Holly Harper on Sabriel and Andrew McDonald on Space Demons. 


3) CELEBRATION OF A NATION**

We are sending out huge congratulations and much love to Scot Gardner and Kate Constable because... 

The Dead I Know 

WINNER OF THE CBCA BOOK OF THE YEAR: OLDER READERS

Crow Country 

WINNER OF THE CBCA BOOK OF THE YEAR: YOUNGER READERS 

Two brilliant books and two wonderful authors. We couldn't be more proud to be their publishers.

But wait, there's more!

HONOUR BOOK, HONOUR BOOK, HONOUR BOOK, HONOUR BOOK!

A Straight Line to My Heart by Bill Condon (Older Readers)
That's Not a Daffodil! by Elizabeth Honey (Early Childhood)

The Dream of the Thylacine by Ron Brooks & Margaret Wild (Picture Book)
The Little Refugee by Anh Do, Suzanne Do & Bruce Whatley (Eve Pownall)

Hearty congratulations to Bill, Elizabeth, Ron, Margaret, Anh, Suzanne & Bruce. HURRAH!

*Although, in another, very real way, please don't hurry up, next year. How is it already late August? So many books to make!

** Trip down memory lane, anyone? 

Team Players

There may be no 'i' in team, but there's a 'u' in Team Human. 

Or there will be as soon as you grab hold of a copy, now that it is out in the world. OUT IN THE WORLD. 

How out in the world? Just, like, standing on the doorstep? Just edging down the garden path? Just opening the front gate?

NO! 100% in the world.

All over the world*.

Sarah Rees Brennan is talking about it in Ireland.

Justine Larbalestier is talking about it in Sydney.

Jordi Kerr is talking about it in Melbourne.

And Cory Doctorow is talking about it in Boing Boing.**

If you are in Sydney next week, get yourself along to Kinokuniya on Thursday 12 July for the Team Human launch  where Justine and Margo Lanagan will be talking about it too.

Unfortunately, Sarah is unable to attend this fabulous event, due to the world being large.***

If you are curious to know how two people on different continents collaborated to write such a fabulous take on the vampire novel, Sarah and Justine will be chatting with Scott Westerfeld here on Monday 9 July  at 10 am (Australians, don't be fooled by the fact that the website says Sunday at 8pm).

Or you can check out this Q & A with Justine.

And you can read the first chapter of Team Human here. 

And remember, people, friends don't let friends date vampires.

* Well, most parts of the English-speaking world, anyway.

** Boing Boing is basically a country, right?

*** It really is a long way to Tipperary, and Dublin is even further than that.

Friday Stuff and items

1) If you've ever met her, you'll know that that Lili Wilkinson is certainly FUN and FEARLESS and now her fun, fearless spirit has been recognised by the good people at Cosmopolitan magazine who have nominated her in the Author category of their Fun, Fearless, Female awards. It's a competition, people! Go forth and VOTE!

2) And speaking of FUN and FEARLESS, if you've ever been to one of his launches, you'll know that that Bernard Caleo is clever and funny and larger-than-life and REALLY knows how to put on an EVENT. If you haven't had the pleasure, you're in LUCK - because, not only is he making a documentary with filmaker Daniel Hayward he's presenting a Graphic Novels! Melbourne! benefit event at the Westgarth Cinema in Northcote on Wednesday 20 June at 6.30pm. Graphic Novels! Melbourne! is a film about, let's see, well, graphic novels. And, you guessed it, Melbourne. Book here for the benefit event, people, book here.

Herewith a trailer for the film - and it features two of our very own Onions. Enjoy!

3) And speaking of clever people AND trailers AND competitions AND magazines, did you know that that very clever Jodi Picoult and Samantha van Leer, her very clever teenage daughter, have written a young adult novel together. It's true! It's true! It's called Between the Lines and it's a wonderful story about Delilah - who hates school as much as she loves books - AND an unexpectedly real Prince Charming. It's chock full of romance, humour, fantasy and action and it will cast its spell over you. HOORAY!

Herewith, Dolly magazine are offering a chance to win tickets to Jodi and Sammy's events when they visit Australia next month. Hurry, hurry, hurry, people! Competition closes at midnight on 12 June.

Further herewith: a gorgeous trailer!

Just about the nicest thing anyone's ever said about us

Sometimes someone gives you a compliment that chirks you up for the whole day.

It makes the autumn sun warmer and the blue sky bluer.

It makes collating corrections go faster and gives the coffee more of a kick.

It gives a rosy tint to the mirror and lends sparkle to your wit.

Well... Jesse Andrews, author of Me and Earl and the Dying Girl, called us...

"the deeply ass-kicking people at Allen & Unwin." 

Deeply. Ass-kicking. So proud. We should definitely put that in our side bar, just like a book blurb.

"Deeply ass-kicking" Jesse Andrews

It will sit nicely alongside:

"Annoyingly obsessive" Friends and Family

and

"Almighty $%&wits"  Rejected Author 

Me and Earl and the Dying Girl is one of those rare books that makes you cry and snort food out your nose with laughter* at basically the same time. With all the snot and tears and partially masticated food, reading Me and Earl is truly a disgusting experience. A disgusting, uplifting, remarkable experience.

Greg and Earl and Rachel - you will take them to your heart. Even though at times it will be awkward, and maybe gross, and certainly piss-funny, it will be worth it to be part of The Worst Film Ever Made. 

Even if he hadn't sweet-talked us** and let us publish his terrific book, we'd probably still like Jesse Andrews because he thinks about YA fiction in a way that rings true around here. Here he is over at his US publishers, Abrams books, talking about how Young-adult fiction changed his life. 

'... this is what I learned, in the process of writing Me and Earl: writing for teens is the perfect antidote to what may seem like a terminal case of pretentiousness. Teens do not suffer pretense. They do not read books that aren't readable. If you are a writer, it is colossally helpful to write with them in mind as an audience, because if the book isn't fun, or engaging, or interesting, they're not going to read it.'

 Amen.

As if all this kindred spirit, synergy business wasn't enough, reading Jesse's post led us to discover another connection with Abrams. Are you ready for this? Because we were quite blown away. Well... you know how we made a cake in a cup?

THEY MADE A CAKE IN A CUP TOO!

Okay, so theirs turned out better than ours did, but that just means we have stuff to learn and share.***

And then there is the little matter of the cover.

Usually when we publish a book that was first published in another market we put a new cover on it. A cover that, you know, reflects the needs of our Australian market... and stuff.  But the artwork and design for this cover is just so perfect we let it stand.**** 

How could we not...

So thank you, Jesse. You made our day. We like your book heaps, and we are extremely proud to be publishing it in the antipodes. Come and visit soon.

* Don't eat and read, people. You have been warned.

** "Deeply ass-kicking" Jesse Andrews

*** Sharing cake is very important.You cannot be a friend of Alien Onion if you don't share cake. And learning is very important. For instance, we have learned that should we ever attempt cake-in-a-mug again, we (1) WILL NOT USE olive oil decanted from a separated vinaigrette and (2) WILL USE our Pantone coffee mugs - clearly the mug of choice for publishing houses across all the lands.

**** You can read all about the cover design process in this interview with Jesse and That Cover Girl.

Introducing... Brigid Kemmerer

We confess that our knowledge of some of the states in the USA is, ahem, not what one would call comprehensive.

Take Maryland, for instance. What comes to mind when we consider Maryland? Well, let's see. It borders Washington DC and boasts Chesapeake Bay. What else? Baltimore is in Maryland, and everything we know about Baltimore we learned from The Wire...* (Omar? McNulty? Kima? Stringer Bell? Are you out there?)  So, no, we are clearly not Maryland aficionados.

However, we do know one very important thing about Maryland. Maryland is home to Brigid Kemmerer. And Brigid Kemmerer is exactly who we want to introduce today. Why? Because Brigid Kemmerer has written STORM and it is HOT! HOT! HOT!** And advances arrived in the House today!

Four brothers. Four hot brothers. Four hot brothers who are able to control the elements: Water, Fire, Air, Earth.

AND a mysterious [hot] new guy in town.

And Becca Chandler - caught in the middle...

What's that you hear? That, dear readers, would be the sound of heart rate: UP! UP! UP!

Here's a sneak peek:

   'Scared of storms?'
   Becca jumped. The voice had come from behind her, and she forced her hands to her sides, ready to feign nonchalance. 'No,' she lied, starting to turn. 'I'm just - '
   Face-to-face with hotness.   Her tongue stumbled for a minute. She'd seen the Merrick twins around school, of course. But catching a glimpse down the hall wasn't the same as being six inches away from one of them, getting an eyeful of the way his long-sleeve tee clung to muscled shoulders, or of the faint shadow of stubble along his jaw, or the depth of blue in his eyes.
   Eyes that studied her a little too closely just now, a spark of amusement there.
   Nick Merrick knew exactly what he looked like, and he knew she was looking.
    She squared her shoulders and pretended she couldn't feel the flare of heat on her cheeks. 'Your brother got in a fight.' She gestured to her car, to where the scruffy guy was half kneeling on the backseat, one leg braced on the driveway. 'I brought him home.'
   Nick looked past her and sighed, almost with exasperation. 'Damn it, Gabriel.'
   His twin. She shook her head. 'Chris.'
   He'd been moving toward the steps, but stopped short and looked at her. 'Chris?'
   'Yeah. Your brother. Chris.' Could she possibly stop sounding like an idiot? 'He was in a fight behind the gym, and - '
   Boom! Thunder shook the house.

But wait, there's more: Yes! MOAR! Storm is part of a series. The Elementals series. So, after you have devoured Storm stay tuned for Spark and Spirit.

Brigid, we welcome you warmly to the House - and we CAN'T WAIT*** until May when Storm will sweep into stores across the land.

* And, ahem, Sleepless in Seattle...

** Wait. What? How hot? *whispers* Smokin' hot. We kid you not.

*** When we say CAN'T WAIT here, clearly we mean HAVE TO WAIT.

A Very Onion Christmas - Teen & YA

O come, all ye faithful, 

Joyful and triumphant, 

O come ye, 

O come ye to another Onion Christmas list... 

Behold - books that are sure to tempt the teenager in your life...

The Wilful Eye (Tales from the Tower Volume One) & The Wicked Wood  (Tales from the Tower Volume Two) Edited by Isobelle Carmody and Nan McNab  

First of all, we'll just give you a moment to be bowled over by the covers of this wondrous pair of tall volumes with their beautiful be-winged women... You won't even have to wrap them - they look almost exactly like Christmas presents already in their red and green finery. Now, on to the stories themselves - how to encapsulate the breathtaking result of combining the forces of a dozen formidable storytellers? Each story is a treat to savour, an escape to a different reality: dark, passionate, bewitching tales of obsession and mystery, and loaded with the remorseless resolution of fairytales. They're kick-arse stories, there's no denying it. Kick. Arse.

Who for? Well, not for the fainthearted! Any fan of fabulous fairytale retelling, aged 16 to 96, will luxuriate in this enchanted collection.

Drink, Slay Love by Sarah Beth Durst 

Pearl is your average teenage girl. Partial to car theft and high-speed driving. Confident unicorns DO. NOT. EXIST. And highly flammable in direct sunlight. Which is perfectly normal. For a vampire. Well, that is until a were-unicorn stabs her in the heart with his sparkly horn and her whole vampire world is turned upside-down. Tolerance to sunlight. Sympathy for her victims. Family conflict. High school politics. In other words: T-R-O-U-B-L-E. Twists - tick! Turns - tick! Clever - tick! Entertaining - tick! Funny - tick! Well-played, Ms Durst. Very well-played indeed.

Who for? 12-16 year old girls who are looking to escape into somebody else's life over the Christmas break.

Only Ever Always by Penni Russon 

Sometimes a gift is unwrapped, briefly regarded, then cast unceremoniously onto the I-will-never-care-for-that-item pile (otherwise known as ebay). But there are other times when a gift is so loved that you feel you may never be able to part from it - even if it's something you should have grown out of by now. Particularly if it was given to you by someone truly special.

In Only Ever Always, Clare has a music box given to her by her adored Uncle Charlie, and she's not sure she's ready to let it go - even though the intended recipient is Charlie's imminent new baby. Clare wants to cling to the music box, to childhood, for just a little longer. But then Charlie is in a terrible accident - and his life hangs in the balance. In her grief, Clare retreats into dreams and the music box transports her to another place, a broken place, where there is another girl, Clara, who is almost exactly like Clare, who is trying to survive in a broken world. Clare. And Clara. The dreamer and the dreamed.This book will stay with you long after you close the last page.

Who for? Any curious, thoughtful or philosophical reader in your life, especially those aged 12-16, and even more especially if you can sneak it off their Christmas pile - while they are distracted by post-gift-giving activities - and slip away somewhere quiet and curl up to enjoy this beautifully crafted little book.

Shatter Me by Tahereh Mafi

Warning! If this is the first book you open on Christmas day, you may be in danger of missing Christmas lunch. It is intensely addictive! Once you start reading, you won't be able to stop. Set in a crumbling dystopian world, it is the story of 17-year-old Juliette, who possesses inexplicable powers. Electrifying romance. Heart-stopping adventure. IN-CRED-IB-LY high stakes... Now. Anxiously. Awaiting. Sequel!

Who for? 14-18 year old girls who once upon a time may have loved Twilight,* but have moved on to romance in any genre they can find it. Okay, and girls in their 20s. And we *ahem* definitely know girls in their 30s and 40s who would love it...

The Coming of the Whirlpool: Ship Kings 1 by Andrew McGahan

 If you're reading this book on a boiling hot Christmas day, you will still shiver as the cold wind the whips down the sand dunes.
If you're surrounded by annoying siblings and too many cousins, you will still feel Dow's solitude in your bones.
If you're reading this in the heart of a continent, you will still smell salt on the breeze and hear the treacherous roar of the ocean in turmoil.
Because Andrew McGahan's writing is so good it will transport you from the Land of Too-much-potato salad to the mysterious world of the Ship Kings. This is a brilliant sea-faring tale - there's blood on the decks and death in the wind. There's a mysterious girl. There's treachery and destiny and following your heart even when it seems impossible. And Dow's adventures are just beginning, so get on board, people.

Who for? 15-18-year-olds, mariners - ancient or otherwise, and Andrew McGahan fans of all ages everywhere.

Taken Away by Celine Kiernan   

On Christmas day, when everyone else is snoozing after eating too much, somtimes all you want to do is to escape. So be transported to Ireland. 1974. 15-year-old twin brothers Pat and Dom are living in their seaside holiday house after their demented nan burned down their actual house. It's not the same without all the cousins and aunts and uncles crammed in, and things soon take a turn for the CREEPY.

'It was a boy. Maybe ten years of age. White face. Dark, dark eyes, underscored with deep lines, surrounded with purple shadows...It took a moment for him to register my presence. Then his eyes jumped to mine. I flinched, terrified by the certainty that we'd done this before: me looking up at him; him looking down on me - a solemn-eyed boy of ten, untouched by the wind and rain...'

Who for? 13-16 year-olds and anyone who loves un-put-downable ghost stories, historical mysteries, fabulous characters you can love to pieces, or all of the above.

 Sensitive Creatures by Mandy Ord

If you have not yet had the heart-lifting-ly wonderful experience of meeting Mandy Ord's One-Eyed Girl, get thee to a book shop immediately. Read snippets in the store, then buy it and have it expertly wrapped and ready for your favourite someone to enjoy on Christmas day. Mandy is truly special - one of Australia's most exciting young comic artists, and this collection of stories offers an intimate portrait of her attempts to make sense of the world. Herewith rave reviews over at The Book Show, in The Age, twice.

It's about dogs and girlfriends and bums and hoodies and bogans and bearded men and one of our all-time favourites: mean people on trains.

Who for? Comics and graphic novel enthusiasts, Melbourne-reflected-on-the-page enthusiasts, wonder-of-life enthusiasts... and anyone who is inspired by vivid visual storytelling.

Always-and-ever favourites

Yellowcake  by Margo Lanagan

A Pocketful of Eyes by Lili Wilkinson

The Shattering by Karen Healey

Being Here by Barry Jonsberg

The Golden Day By Ursula Dubosarsky

* Yes, dear reader. Contrary to what the interwebs may have you believe, there are, like, eleventy bazillion readers out there who LOVED Twilight - regardless of what they may have said about it in public...

Tuesday Stuff and Items

The weather is getting warmer.
There are Christmas decorations on the streets and in the shops.
Social calendars are filling up.
It must be time to get down to some serious planning...

It's not just Father Christmas who makes lists at this time of year. It is our feeling that you can't expect to get the most out of your summer if you don't carefully itemise what you intend to do. 

Herewith the beginnings of a list...

1) Watch THIS MOVIE*

Charlize Theron plays a writer of young adult fiction? SOLD!

Also, did you know Diablo Cody is deep in development of a Sweet Valley High movie?? *squeals*
Will they cast real twins to play Jessica and Elizabeth? Or will they pull the starring-Hayley-Mills-and-Hayley-Mills routine, also known as the Winklevoss Ploy.


2) Go to TJUKURRTJANU - Origins of Western Desert Art at the Ian Potter.

3) Read ALL THE BOOKS.
A nice, gentle, easily achievable goal this one.

4) Swim.

5) Swim.

6) Eat.**

7) Watch trailers for the Hunger Games movie as they are released. Comment loudly to anyone who will listen about what we think are the likely pros and cons (based on 2.36 mins of footage and some magazine articles).***

8) Devise (and consume) literature-inspired cocktails.

The Anne
2 parts Marilla's best current wine
1 part vodka
lemonade
Garnish with carrot tops.
If you're going to set your friends drunk, you might as well do it in style.

The Margo Lanagan
1 part champagne
1 part Gosling's Black Seal Rum
ice
Slice of lime or scattering of fresh sea wrack.
If you drink enough of them, you too will be seeing selkies.
 

The Fantasy shaker
1 flagon of mead (butterbeer will do in a pinch)
2 shots whisky
A dash of ichor
Serve with Lembas or whole suckling pig.

The Justine Larbalestier
Assemble a basic Manhattan.
Serve in a Vegemite glass in front of the cricket.****

The Renesmee
Pour tomato juice over ice cubes.
As you drink, crunch the ice between your teeth to simulate Bella's cracking ribs.
Make sure you put the empty glass in the dishwasher before your best friend can imprint on it. Cos that would be awkward.


What's on your list of things to do over summer?



* NB Australian release dates may make this *ahem* seemingly impossible. But we're with the US Army Corp of Engineers on this.
** At least an hour after swimming.
*** Pros: Lenny Kravitz, Woody Harrelson, the look of the thing, the vibe of the thing, Prim, Rue, Effie, Katniss, Peter.  Cons: Gale
**** Good work, Pat Cummins!

How Sweet It Is

In an unexpected, but by no means unwelcome, departure from her usual cakery, the Cake-Maker Virtuoso has been cooking her way through this:

Every few days the biscuit jar in the kitchen is filled up with new morsels of deliciousness. Chocolate, date, peanut butter - such much! And the speed at which they disappear is bordering on scary.

In honour of the all the lovely sweet nothings we are being spoiled with, and because it's coming up to Valentines Day, here are some of our favourite literary romances.

Sabriel and Touchstone, Sabriel by Garth Nix

Romance is not high on Sabriel's list of important things to worry about now that her father, the Abhorsen, is dead and so is basically everyone else around her - only not dead enough, most of them. It also doesn't feature in her impressive list of past accomplishments. But then there's this handsome young man with a curse on him, and the poor thing desperately needs her help, and one thing leads to... a scene in an inn where Sabriel thinks Touchtstone is, ahem, having it off with someone in the next room - GENIUS!

Tom and Alice, Somebody's Crying by Maureen McCarthy

It's wrong in some fairly major ways. Wrong, and yet so right. The chemistry between them is extraordinary. The scene where he's developing photos of her in a dark room (A DARK ROOM, people) and she comes in - but he has a cold and his nose is blocked and... and... KISSING!

Jem & Mackenzie, Always McKenzie by Kate Constable

Jem is an Invisible Girl. Mackenzie is a Golden Girl. And at school camp they solemnly swear never, ever to be friends, as long as they both shall live. And we all know what tends to happen when rash statements like that are made...

Katniss and Gale... and Peeta, The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins

We are Team Both! They each give her such different things. She needs both in her life. We, the reader, need both in her life. What if, in the new world order, Katniss shacked up with Gale AND Peeta? Gale would hunt, Peeta would cook and Katniss would be the president of Panem, coming home to have her... um... feet rubbed.

Amelia and Chris, The Good Oil by Laura Buzo

She's young and inexperienced and head-over-heels. He is a bit older and a good bit more streetwise, but a bit lost and a good bit infuriatingly attractive. The shifting viewpoint of this novel lets you see both sides of this relationship - and boy is that interesting!

Anna and Flynn, About A Girl by Joanne Horniman

What happens when bookish, daydreaming Anna gets her girl, Flynn, a rock chick gleaming with light and danger? Uncertainty and heartbreak, that's what. But such beautiful, wistful heartbreak to read about rather than live through. There are teapots, and guitars with names, and shabby share-house twilit kitchens with cats and bowls of apples on tables, and mother-of-pearl buttons that stand in for kisses like in Peter Pan, and real kisses, most tender ones...

Leah and Adam, Being Here by Barry Jonsberg

She has a powerful imagination and is lonely and lives on an isolated farm with a puritanical mother. He has scuffed boots, wild hair and a sense of adventure. They meet in the orchard. And what happens next is extraordinary.

Anna and St Clair, Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins

He's French-American with a British accent and great hair. WHAT MORE COULD YOU WANT?

Guy Bennet (Rupert Everett) and James Harcourt (Cary Elwes). Another Country by Julian Mitchell, directed by Marek Kanievska

1930s British public school. There is sneaking out of the boarding house in the middle of the night to recline together in boats. There is secret Public School Business. There is conspiracy. There is trouble. But there is also '... a little hollow at the base of his throat which makes me want to pour honey all over him, and lick it off.'

Oh my.

Margaret Mahy excels at good romance:

Laura Chant and Sorenson Carlisle, The Changeover - She remakes herself. He learns to be a better him. Together they are pretty much invincible. He has some rather odd romantic notions, but Laura gives him what-for, and gets to ride on his motor scooter.

Angela and Tycho, The Catalogue of the Universe - She is better looking than any person has any right to be. He is... not so much. But he knows about the stars; he is brave and true. And that makes all the difference.

Harry and all those Carnival brothers, The Tricksters - It's a little bit muddy exactly who they are. It's a little bit cloudy what they might be. But their magnetism is crystal clear.

And, of course, a bit of JA:

Lizzie and Darcy, Pride and Prejudice - NOTHING FURTHER , YOUR HONOUR.

Marianne and Willoughby, Sense and Sensibility - even though (or maybe because) he is BAD.

Elinor and Edward, Sense and Sensibility - oh wub.

Georgette Heyer

One Onion has only just dipped her toe in the crystalline stream of romance that apparently flowed from Georgette Heyer's pen. She read The Nonesuch and thoroughly enjoyed it.

What next?

Okay - so that's just a very small sampling. What else? What is compulsory Valentines Day reading?

A Very Onion Christmas - Teen and YA

Deck the House with boughs of holly...

Sadly there is a distinct lack of holly in the halls of the House. But do not despair. What we lack in holly, we make up for with books. So perhaps we should be singing, Deck the House with boughs of bo-ooks...*

So, if the teenager or young adult in your life is also likely to prefer books to holly, herewith a selection that's sure to please:

Three Things about Daisy Blue by Kate Gordon

Ages 13-16

We've already said many more than three things about Daisy Blue. So to sum up: Daisy Blue is pretty and popular. Paulina Gifford is smart and serious. They don't like each other. And they are going to Bali together. Perfect summer holiday reading.

The Abused Werewolf Rescue Group

by Catherine Jinks

Ages 14-18

The companion of the mighty Reformed Vampire Support Group, and a ripsnorter of a read, with never a dull moment! It's not easy being a

suburban teen...werewolf. Especially when your mates find out and want to use your unfortunate condition to wreak local havoc. It gets a whole lot worse for Toby before it gets better, though, which makes for hilarity and nailbitingness in one awesome package!

Mice by Gordon

Reece

Ages 16-18

If your all-Aussie Christmas is proving to be entirely too warm and comfortable for you, be chilled by Shelley's tale of isolation and terror deep in the English countryside. You won't be able to put it down until you find out what's next (WARNING: make sure not to miss out on the Christmas pudding)! Then present it to every one of your relatives so that you can have strident debate about the right and wrong of it all.

Happy as Larry by Scot Gardner

Ages 16-18

Happy As Larry is one of those special books that has struck a deep chord with many and diverse readers. So we're pleased to bring you some very special guest appearances by Sydney Onions and Affiliates:

'It broke my heart and healed it again.' - A&U Educational Marketing Coordinator

'Everyone around the office is just raving about this heart-wrenching, suspenseful and ultimately uplifting coming-of-age novel.' - A&U Marketing Director

'I have to say I have enjoyed every little morsel of this book! I am desperately sorry to have finished it!' - A friendly neighbourhood Bookseller

'Highly original and beautifully written.' - The Age

Zombie's vs Unicorns by Justine Larbalestier & Holly Black

Young Adult

Zombies! Unicorns! A duel! Muskets at dawn! Well, not so much with the muskets...and more with the shuffling undead, the mythical horned horses and a swag of excellent authors. This storytelling stoush sets out to sway readers from their stated sides. Time to choose people. Are you Team Zombie? Or Team Unicorn?

Dash and Lily's Book of Dares by David Levithan & Rachel Cohn

Young Adult

We've talked a lot about Dash and Lily. So we'll shut up for a change and let someone else do the talking.

'Basically this book is like a little piece of happiness in my heart.' <--*wub*

Fa la la la la, la la la la.

Always-and-ever favourites:

Abhorsen by Garth Nix

Pink by Lili Wilkinson

Worldshaker by Richard Harland

Guardian of the Dead by Karen Healey

Tender Morsels by Margo Lanagan

Beautiful Malice by Rebecca James

* Which reminds us of the fabulous tree the Tall Designer made in the House of Christmas past.

Tempus certainly does fugit

Onions: Oh hai. Look over there*!
Blog readers: Oh why. What’s over there?
Onions: Well, certainly more than what’s been over here lately.

We’d like to take this moment to apologise, dear readers.

We have neglected you. We have had very much of the busyness and the pressing deadlines and the post-Bologna-preparations catch-up of everything we had to let slide while we made dummies and updated blurbs and synopses and waxed lyrical about our forthcoming books so our wonderful Publisher & Rights people had plenty of gold to draw upon when they pitch our fabulous books at short sharp meetings with eager agents and publishers from around the world. Go little books go. Storm that castle.

Deep breath. And another one.

Because there is also this:




One Onion is on the eve of a rather intrepid outing. There will be mountains. There will be trekking. There will be much in the manner of new and exciting experiences.

And so, there has been much tidying of matters, meeting of pre-departure deadlines, peoples to contact, books to keep on track, lists to tick off, hiking boots to wear in.**

So, dear reader, we ask that you forgive us for our radio silence. We will recover our stride. Yes we will.

Yours faithfully,

Onions



*And over there you will find that Spike is discussing something dear to our hearts indeed - Tender Morsels (in its new Shaun Tan finery) and dark YA.
** And a certain amount of delegating to be done, too, we can't help but notice, mutters a stay-at-home colleague.

A Very Onion Christmas, part the third - Teen and YA fiction

We all know what teenage fiction is (don't we?). But, what is YA? What is YA? What is YA? (Indeed, Google has over 2,000,000,000 results for this question.)

As ever, we are here to help.

Teen & YA Fiction

Bloodflower by Christine Hinwood

This book grabs you by the heart and then, ever-so-gently, starts to squeeze. There is war and its aftermath, there is intensely real world building, but more than that there are characters that stay with you long after you've put the book down. Oh, Cam Attling - I think I'm in love.

Liar by Justine Larbalestier

Micah Wilkins is a liar. Micah Wilkins is not just an unreliable narrator, she is the monarch of unreliable narrators. She with tell you the truth. Then she will tell you the true truth. Then she will tell you the real actual truth. And she will ask you to trust her. And you will. But she's a liar. If you haven't read it, don't dip into it as you prepare to wrap it. Micah will wrap her lies around you until your head spins and your gifts will remain unwrapped until you finish. Don't say we didn't warn you.

Pink by Lili Wilkinson

Ava Simpson, on the other hand, is trying to be true to herself. She's just not sure what being true to herself means. But she's determined to find out. And, as Simmone Howell says, her efforts to do so are 'ouch-sharp' and 'cringe-in-corners funny'. Even the proofreader of this book was often derailed by laughter. Perfect for the teenage girl in your life - or the one who never quite left your heart.

The Poison Throne by Celine Kiernan

There is so much Moorehawke love in the House of Onion. Really, it has everything you could want: intrigue, suspense, romance, family drama, royalty court shenanigans, fighting, honour, cats. It's for boys and girls. The only shame is that at some point you reach the end. But then you realise there are two more books to go (Book II Crowded Shadows is out in Jan!) and you can breathe again.

The Devil You Know by Leonie Norrington
88 is angry. 88 is Damien's father. 88 is coming home.
'Run! You idiot! Run!
Leonie Norrington's writing is exceptionally vivid. Michael Camilleri's illustrations are incredibly compelling. Together they tell the funny, moving and sometimes terrifying story of a boy's fight to live with the violence at home and at school; a story of how he and his peers survive against all odds. This book will break your heart, and also fill you with hope and optimism. (A bit like Christmas really.)

The Winds of Heaven by Judith Clarke

This book is absolutely beautiful, and absolutely heartbreaking. It's the sort of book you could give to your teenager or your mother. I mean... Clementine thought her cousin Fan's house in the country had a special smell: of sun and dust and kerosene and the wild honey they ate for breakfast on their toast. But then there were the feelings: the anger that smelled like iron and the disappointment that smelled like mud.

Girlfriend Fiction

Imma just list some of the authors who write for Girlfriend Fiction:

Penni Russon, Scot Gardner, Barry Jonsberg, Lili Wilkinson, Kate Constable, Thalia Kalkipsakis, Melaina Faranda. And that's just for starters.

You could choose any book in this series for your favourite 13-17 year-old girl who loves stories about real girls, stories with heart and brain and guts. (And she doesn't even have to go all the way to the Emerald City!) Ruly truly good reads.

And the quick list of always-favourites that are worth revisting:

Rose by Any Other Name by Maureen McCarthy

Secret Scribbled Notebooks (and its companion, My Candlelight Novel) by Joanne Horniman

The Red Shoe by Ursula Dubosarsky

Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist by Rachel Cohn and David Levithan

The Whole Business with Kiffo and the Pitbull by Barry Jonsberg

The Old Kingdom trilogy by Garth Nix

Tender Morsels by Margo Lanagan (Have you SEEN the stunning Shaun Tan cover for the YA edition that's coming out next year??)

And the eagerly awaited* finale to our Introductions Series is...

Jonathan Walker and Dan Hallett, with Five Wounds, in stores May 2010! Woo hoo!

Sometimes it's an editor’s job to enthuse the team and show them just why a book is so special, so intense, so wonderful. But often, the closer we are to a book, the more we love it, the more convinced we are by its genius, the harder that is to do. There must be some kind of Law to explain this – not quite Murphy’s, but in that ballpark.

Anyway, with this in mind, we present to you Five Wounds: A Dialogue

Rights: So, Five Wounds. It's very beautiful. What's it about?
Editor: Um. Well, funny you should ask.
Rights: That's what this meeting is about...
Editor: Oh, yes, that's right. Well, it's difficult to say exactly what it's about.
Rights: Haven't you read it?
Editor: Many times. There are so many different ways to read it, you see. And they're all incredible.
Rights: Riiight.
Editor: Oh, look over there! A squirrel!
Rights: We're in Australia. That's not an apt diversionary tactic. You were saying?
Editor: Yes. Um. Look, there's simply nothing like it. It's inspired by many sources, from Jeanette Winterson to the Uncanny X-Men, with a bit of Buffy thrown in. It possesses layers upon layers. Like an onion, as Donkey in Shrek would have it. Like an Onion.
Rights: Okaaay. But what's it about?
Editor: It's postmodern, biblical, dark and beautiful. It's an Illuminated Novel.
Rights: Yesss. So it is.
Editor: Are you into heraldry, by any chance?
Rights: No, I'm not.
Editor: Oh, well, never mind. Well, it's about these five characters. They're all orphans of one sort or another. And each has a metaphysical wound. Sort of.
Rights: A metaphysical wound.
Editor: Yes. So this one character, his face is so malleable that he can look like anyone he chooses. But who is he himself? Another character used to have wings, but her father had them hacked off. Another was raised by a sect of dogs. And the thing is, all these wounds have significance. It's all about signs. There are clues, and riddles.
Rights: Now we're getting somewhere. I think.
Editor [on a roll now]: ...and it's possibly set in Venice or somewhere similar in a non-specific time. Sort of then, sort of now, like a fabulous fable. Magical realism as an oblique means of tackling trauma. It even has two endings!
Rights: Er...
Editor [frothing slightly]: And the artwork's amaaazing. There's Goya in there. Blake. Playing with perspectives like Escher. References to GK Chesterton, Egyptian hieroglyphics and mediaeval palmistry treatises.
Rights: Why are your fingers glued together?
Editor: Oh. Look, here's a dummy I prepared earlier with lots of spray adhesive whichmakesmetalkreallyfast. Take this and show the world.
Rights: Right. Yes, I'll do that, shall I? [exit stage right en route to Frankfurt, staggering slightly under enormous and spectacular dummy]



Jonathan grew up in England and now lives in Sydney. He began writing Five Wounds way back in 1994, when he was living in an attic on Venice's Lido. His interests include:

card games,
photography,
comic books,
cinema
and contemporary music.

And have a look at his gorgeous website.


Dan lives and works in Spain, and we're not sure what his interests are. [Mental note: schedule meeting in Spain to find out.]









So… Jonathan Walker and Dan Hallett – welcome to the House of Onion. We couldn’t be more pleased to be publishing this feast for the eyes, the mind and the soul.





*Confessions of the Cake-maker in Chief:
I confess it was all my fault that last week's steady serving of introductions was disrupted on Friday. But I managed to appease the blog goddesses with Torta alla Gianduia.



Tardy authors should note that with a little cake they can get away with anything short of murder around here. (It should also be noted that the weekend seemed to leave the blogesses in an unaccountably good mood.)

A glitch in the matrix...

So. Here. We. Are. All atremble. So much so we have to interrupt our regular programming (again).

Apologies to all those looking forward to the final installment of our current Introducing... series. But who doesn't love a good dose of antici...






pation.

Stay tuned next week for our final (for now) welcome to the House of Onion.

Instead join us on a nostalgic* trip down memory lane (made in a desperate attempt to distract ourselves from the BIG GAME).

As Steph Bowe so eloquently puts it, sometimes: It sucks to be a teenager.

Sure, I remember times when I was all, "Be still my heart and cease thy frenzied beating..." because the Object of My Desire tossed five syllables (yes, I was a syllable-counter) in my general direction. And yes, I am fortunate enough to be able to recall occasional triumph on the sports field and the odd quiet moment of academic pride (as long as nobody else found out). And, it's true, I was soothed by the obsessive satisfaction of songs on repeat in my mind.

But I also still have in my heart the memory of that terrible, terrible despair, the loneliness, the fear, the almost incapacitating self-loathing and the red rage that found its way to my very fingertips.

And yes, I kept a diary. And I'm sure many of the entries would have had the same feel and tone as these heart-achingly raw diary entries extracted from Cringe: Toe-Curlingly Embarrassing Teenage Diaries, Letters and Bad Poetry (Sarah Brown, ed).

I'll never know though. And not because I destroyed it, which many people do once they surface and find themselves on a more even keel. No. I'll never know because I wrote in CODE and I am now completely unable to decipher it.

And I was so excited when, during the clean-up before the sale of my family home, I found my fat, well-thumbed, red-and-white diary with a broken lock. Pages and pages of cramped writing squashed into every line. I was insatiably curious to revisit that time of my life, even though I knew so much of it would be excruciating. But when I opened it, I was devastated to discover my heartfelt outpourings were lost to me. Impenetrable.

It's hardly the matrix, in fact there are no numbers at all. It's all coded-abbreviations and made-up words. And recognisable cross-references and cross-outs. Lots of cross-outs. And it seems to be in the third person. Sigh.

And, I wonder if this inaccessible code is actually an appropriate representation of my teenage years because, often, that's what it felt like - that there was a code to life, and everybody else seemed to be in on it, and I just couldn't quite decipher it. Or if I did have moments of clarity, they were fleeting and then the code would slip suddenly from my reach again.

Oh, I am so glad I never have to re-live those years, and I'm also glad I can remember with empathy. And perhaps that's one of the reasons why this Onion landed in a world where YA is celebrated.

* Ha! The power of nostalgia, hey? The best days of our lives? Sure.

Introducing... Rebecca James

We who work in publishing are supposed to be good at words. People expect us to win at scrabble, and excel at the quick crossword, and be able to dredge up a good synonym when one is needed. We are supposed to be fluent, articulate, maybe even erudite.

Sometimes, however, when passion overtakes us, eloquence flies out the window.

Case in point:

Editor: 'Hey, you know how we're introducing Rebecca James on the blog? Well is there anything you particularly want to say about Beautiful Malice?
Publisher 'I love it'
Editor: 'Yes. I see. Anything else?'
Publisher: 'I love it. I love it. I love it.'
Editor: "..."
Publisher: "I love it."

What's more, it appears that publishers all over the world are being rendered just as speechless by Rebecca's novel Beautiful Malice. It's already been sold to the UK, and in Germany people are using very exciting words like bidding and war. We are happy happy happy to be publishing Beautiful Malice here in Australia in May 2010.

And the reason for that is that the novel is freaking awesome.

We know words like 'unputdownable' and 'page turner' are overused by us supposedly fluent, articulate and erudite publishing types. But what do you say when you are so swept along by a story that you genuinely feel unable to stop reading, when to stop turning the pages causes you physical pain? What are you supposed to say then??

Well one good idea is to let the book speak for itself:

'Truth or dare?' she asks me.
'Truth.' I laugh. 'Definitely. I can imagine one of your dares, and I don't fancy running down Oxford Street naked tonight.'
'Truth.' Alice says, slowly, drawing out the vowel sound as if she's savouring the word. 'Are you sure? Are you sure you can be completely honest?'
'I think so. Try me.'
'Okay.' And then she looks at me curiously. 'So. Were you glad, deep down? Were you glad to be rid of her? Your perfect sister? Were you secretly glad when she was killed?'

And therein lies the proof that writers should be the ones living with the pressure to be good at Scrabble - because they, specifically Rebecca James, have all the good words. Rebecca has stolen all the good words and woven them together into a completely gripping story about murder, love, loyalty and betrayal. Bring on May 2010!

Here are some things about Rebecca:

1. She has designed kitchens for a living.
2. She keeps an excellent blog.
3. At one point she was the mother of four boys under four.*
4. Her sister, Wendy, is also a writer.
5. Despite having four boys and being a self-confessed procrastinator, she is already writing her next book.

So... Rebecca James - welcome to the House of Onion. We are deadset thrilled to have you in the family.



*If we weren't speechless before, we certainly would be now!

Introducing... Karen Healey

If we could play the trumpet we'd be tootin'.

If we had bells, they'd be ringin'.

If there was music, we'd be jivin'.

And if we were Slash from Guns N' Roses* we'd be rockin' a 10 minute wailing guitar solo... because Karen Healey is in the House.

Which, my friends, is a fine thing indeed.

Here are some items of interest about Karen:

1. She grew up in a town which is famous for penguins.

2. She runs the feminist comics organisation girl-wonder.org.
3. As well as writing a novel and appearing regularly at an internet near you, she is also writing a PhD on superhero comics. (Hello, people - a PhD on superhero comics!) If you want to know more about that you'll have to ask Karen, because the whole thing about PhDs is that you have to know more than anyone else does about what it is that you know a lot about. (You can see why it's best if we don't explain these things.)

4. For a while she worked in a bookshop to support her books-comics-and-Diet Coke habit.
5. She is from New Zealand, which is also the home of many other cool things, like the chilly bin.

We have been so excited to have Karen in the House of Onion that we haven't been able to resist mentioning her already. But now it's time for her book to step into the spotlight: because Guardian of the Dead is a ludicrously good read, and we are publishing it in April** 2010. w00t!

So... what if we told you about a novel that has a main character called Ellie, who is smart and strong and courageous and funny?
And what if she is also a black-belt in taekwondo?
And what if she has interesting friends, and mortally scary enemies, and maybe a few other things in her life that are half-way in between?

If you are anything like us, you would say, 'Holy freakin' sweet, the only thing that could make this book any better is if it contained myth, magic, Māori and Pākehā , conflicting and complementary truths, the collision of the ancient and the modern, and different ways to view the world... oh and a love interest.'

To which we would reply... 'It's all there, INCLUDING THE HOT LOVE INTEREST.'

Then you would say, 'SIGN THIS WOMAN UP IMMEDIATELY'

And we would say, 'WE ALREADY DID. GUARDIAN OF THE DEAD IS OUT IN APRIL NEXT YEAR.

And then we would all relax and stop yelling and wait patiently with our hands clasped.

Our cover design isn't quite ready yet - so instead here is a picture of Karen herself:

I'm sorry, you may not take her home. But in April 2010, you may take home Guardian of the Dead.

So... Karen Healey - welcome to the House of Onion! We're delighted to have you, and we hope you'll put your feet up on the coffee table and make yourself at home.

* Don't even get us started on the missing apostrophe before the N
**It's entirely possible that if you read this post in the first 16 hours it was up you might have made note of a different pub date. Apologies for that. Editor-fail.