Staff Review: Breaking Wild by Diane Les Becquets

I plucked Breaking Wild off the library shelf by chance, while selecting books for a wilderness display. I love stories set in wild places and this one garnered some nice reviews. It's a story of search, survival, and rescue. The book is fast-paced and the plot delivers rapidly mounting suspense. Both main protagonists are women, strong women more than capable on their own in the wild. The novel's backdrop allows author Diane Les Becquets to paint luscious portraits of Colorado's hinterlands, an area she knows well and clearly loves.

The novel is told from two points of view, Amy Raye's and Pru's. Amy Raye is a troubled individual. Happily married, ostensibly, she cannot stop herself from seeking out encounters with strange men on the side, the consequence of an unfortunate childhood event. Her actions torment her and threaten her marriage. To clear her head, she heads off alone with a compound bow to redeem her elk tag. She gets hurt and then lost in a craggy wilderness of ice and snow, coyotes and mountain lions. A massive search effort ensues.

Pru is an agent of the Bureau of Land Management, and she and her dog, Kona, are part of the search-and-rescue team. Pru, whose own past includes plenty of heartache and loss, finds herself unusually compelled by Amy Raye's disappearance. Her diligence and persistence in tracking the woman are unflagging, even after the official search is called off.

We move back and forth between two points of view, one woman's search and the other's efforts at survival, with both women's histories fleshed out as the gripping story moves forward.

I recommend this novel to anyone who enjoys a good, suspenseful read and particularly for readers entranced by nature, in this case the gorgeous but harsh, high desert landscapes of southwestern Colorado.

~Ann, Adult Services

#ComicsWednesday: Primates: the fearless science of Jane Goodall, Dian Fossey, and Biruté Galdikas by Jim Ottaviani & Maris Wicks

Jim Ottaviani has made a career of taking the lives and complex discoveries of scientists and mathematicians and translating them into accessible graphic novels (with the help of various talented artists). In Primates, Ottaviani worked with Maris Wicks to tell the story of three groundbreaking primatologists: Jane Goodall, Dian Fossey, and Biruté Galdikas.

This book will appeal to anyone with an interest in natural science, women's history, or animals, whether or not you know the difference between a chimpanzee and an orangutan. Ottaviani and Wicks captured some of the difficult realities of scientific fieldwork in remote locations, while giving the highlights of our relatively recent understanding of primate behavior.

While this comic is kept in our children's collection, I'd recommend that parents read this book along with younger readers who might have questions about such difficult topics as sexism, gorilla poaching, and Dian Fossey's death. Though Wicks's engaging, cartoon-ish art helps to keep the tone from becoming too dark, this book is probably a better fit for tweens, teens, and interested adults.

Primates serves as an excellent introduction to the lives and works of three incredible, inspiring female scientists that readers of all ages are likely to enjoy. You'll probably find yourself looking through the provided bibliography in order to learn even more!

~Sarah, Adult Services

#ComicsWednesday: Princeless Vol. 1 Save Yourself by Jeremy Whitley & M. Goodwin

A princess, locked in a tower, guarded by a dragon, waiting for a prince to save her so she can marry him and they can live Happily Ever After. It's a familiar story, which is why it is such a delight when Princeless by Jeremy Whitley and M. Goodwin turns the trope on its head.

Princess Adrienne is sick of waiting for a knight to come rescue her. In fact, she never wanted to be rescued in the first place. In an attempt to get their daughters married off, her father has locked up Adrienne and all of her sisters in different prisons around the land. Guarded by fearsome beasts and tricky riddles, this will make sure that they are only rescued by someone strong enough to rule.

After berating a knight who attempts to rescue her, Adrienne finds a sword hidden in her tower. She decides to make an escape, and flies off on Sparky, the dragon who guarded her tower. Adrienne sets off to rescue her sisters on her own.

Adrienne has a few misadventures before she gets to her sisters, and she picks up help along the way. When she needs armor, she runs into Bedelia Smith, a half-dwarf blacksmith. (Their
hilarious discussion about the practicality of armor for women has been distributed in geek circles for a few years now.) Once Adrienne's father finds out she is missing, and that the "knight" responsible probably killed her, he sends the most vicious bounty hunters in the kingdom after her.

Princeless is a great all-ages comic. It's perfect for parents and kids to read together. Adrienne and Bedelia are funny, and are great role models for young kids. It explores gender roles in a fun and accessible way that is sure to spark conversations about why there are "girl things" and "boy things." Most of all, you will cheer for Adrienne as she makes her way to each sister and finds out that nothing is as clear as it seems.

- Libby, Youth Services