Ma Bell's Books and stuff

By chance I again read two books concurrently that have lots of links one to the other. Of course this is often the case but it did enhance both of them for me. When I finished them both on the same day I was sad to let the characters go. In both books the main character is a very likeable teenage boy around the age of 16, who is dealing with conditions that cause both of them to stand out as different from peers and have even more than the usual problems getting through adolescence. AND both boys fall in love with all the bittersweet intensity of first loves. In Bone Gap, the problem is face blindness. I never knew there was such a disorder but look it up even if you don't read the book. It is very interesting and causes problems throughout life for people afflicted. The protagonist in 13B has a problem to which most of us can relate...OCD. I think our crazy world makes everybody a bit OCD, and I know I have my quirks. But poor Adam has it in spades. He also has an even more messed up mother and a slightly less messed up but needy little stepbrother. The whole combination is a huge mess and poor Adam tries to fix everybody's problems as well as his own because that is his nature. He also worries about his first love, and fellow OCD therapy group member, Robin. This story has some hilarious as well as poignant moments and will absolutely bring out your OCD tendencies. It made me think about the fact that mine, while minor, are also pretty silly and I should not let them bother me much. I started listening to it in the car driving to San Marcos and had to pull over TWICE to check to see if I had everything, even though I knew deep down I did. This is one of my "favorite" quirks. If you have a friend or loved one suffering from serious OCD, this book will give you insight into the difficulties that presents. But with all this, it's a darn good story!

A major difference between the two books is that Bone Gap has a touch of magic that causes the strange occurrences that complicate the lives of Finn, his brother Sean, and their two true loves, Petey and Roza. If you did not notice already, this book is by Laura Ruby, author of We Were Liars. That should tell you from the get-go that it's gonna be good. I like it just as much, and find both stories memorable.

Ahhhhh you say....trivial YA books. I only read books for ADULTS. Well go ahead with your fine sophisticated self and miss some of the greatest stories around. YA books rock! Remember Number the Stars??? I'm just sayin'...