Our favourite fashion blogger, Chris Glabb, has his own YouTube channel, which is growing in popularity all the time. Check out his vids and find out what it’s like to be a young (kinda cool) single teen living in Canada.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AfEppWxCEhg

Kendra, fifteen, hasn’t felt safe since she began to recall devastating memories of childhood sexual abuse, especially because she still can’t remember the most important detail– her abuser’s identity. Frightened, Kendra believes someone is always watching and following her, leaving menacing messages only she understands. If she lets her guard down even for a minute, it could cost Kendra her life. To relieve the pressure, Kendra cuts; aside from her brilliantly expressive artwork, it’s her only way of coping. Since her own mother is too self-absorbed to hear her cries for help, Kendra finds support in others instead: from her therapist and her art teacher, from Sandy, the close family friend who encourages her artwork, and from Meghan, the classmate who’s becoming a friend and maybe more. But the truth about Kendra’s abuse is just waiting to explode, with startling unforeseen consequences. Scars is the unforgettable story of one girl’s frightening path to the truth.

Hardcover, 248 pages

Published March 24th 2010 by Westside Books

The story begins with Kendra remembering what happened to her as a child. Problems at school and then home issues add to that, all culminating in a powerful climax. Cheryl Rainfield pushes Kendra to her absolute breaking point to fully explore the emotions she’s experiencing. The release of those emotions and the choices she makes, are the whole focus of this book.

Books with subjects like abuse and self harm are not necessarily as popular as other realistic fiction/contemporary books are, and the combination of issues in Scar adds to its intensity. The writing is excellent, especially when describing Kendra’s needs and feelings. The need to cut and find release from the emotional pain is very well detailed, and is told on different levels so everybody can relate to her.

I recommend this book for those that have an interest in exploring what goes on in a person’s head when they are thinking of self harm. Kendra has moments of real breakthroughs, and great insight into her mind space is given throughout the story. I think it’s an important read and well done.

Bec Stafford interviews Aussie YA Shaheen from Speculating on Spec Fic for the Escape Club.

At what age did you first get into spec fiction, and what was the first book you read in the genre?

I loved books from a very young age – the Grug and Little Miss/Mister Men books helped me learn English when we moved to Australia. I remember reading Enid Blyton’s The Magic Faraway Tree and its sequels, and asking the librarian for other books with magic in them. So I guess, that’s when I fell into Speculative Fiction.

The other vivid memory I have is getting to study The Hobbit in Year 7. I think that rekindled my love of speculative fiction, and I read The Lord of the Rings for the first time that year.

How did OzYAChat come about, and what are some of your favourite titles from the 2015 checklist line up?

OzYAChat – a fortnightly Twitter chat about all things Aussie YA – was inspired by other twitter chats that were around at the time. There was one for 2014 début titles, there was #UKYAChat, and of course, #PTAChat hosted by our very own PenguinTeenAustralia. Mands at The Bookish Manicurist and I wanted to create a space where readers, authors, and publishers could come together, easily access each other.

The book I most anticipate on the #OzYAChat check list is Their Fractured Truth by Amie Kaufman and Meagan Spooner. I love the Starbound series! I’m also desperate to read Illuminae by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff. And I can’t forget Burn by Paula Weston, Fearless by Marianne Curley, and The Fire Sermon by Francesca Haigh, which are all available now.

It’s well known that Young Adult fiction is enjoyed by older adults, too. What do you think it is about the YA genre that appeals to the older crowd?

I love YA because it focuses on such a transformative stage of our lives, when we are in the process of finding out who we want to be. I don’t think that hope for the future, mingled with uncertainty, ever goes away, so it’s not surprising that a non-YA audience would be drawn to it.

You study astronomy and astrophysics. I know that fantasy, paranormal, and dystopian are your favourite sub-categories of spec fic, but which sci fi authors and books are your faves, and how important is it to you as a scientist that they get their research right?

I need all books to be logical and internally consistent, which for science fiction, translates to needing the science to be accurate. Which means research, sometimes lots of it. For example, with a story about a generation ship, I want the author to have at least casually looked into space travel, into population theory, into food sources and recycling of resources. I think they’re important things to consider.

One of my favourite examples of non-YA science fiction is Gemsigns by Stephanie Saulter, and I also enjoy C. J. Cherryh’s works – my favourite is Cyteen.

For YA science fiction, I don’t think I can go past Under the Never Sky by Veronica Rossi, Cinder by Marissa Meyer, and These Broken Stars by Amie Kaufman and Meagan Spooner.

You’ve said that Aladdin would be your fictional dream hubby. Who’d be your bestie and why?

Kotara, from Avatar: The Last Airbender. I thought about Tris and Katniss, all the usual suspects, but I think I’d get on best with Kotara because our world-views match a lot, whereas I don’t see the world the way the others do.

Who are some of your favourite YA bloggers and why?

All of them? Is that an acceptable answer? But iI must choose —

Cuddlebuggery Book Blog–  http://cuddlebuggery.com – because Kat, Steph and Meg never fail to make me laugh.

The Bookish Manicurist – http://thebookishmanicurist.blogspot.com.au/ – Books and manicures, what’s not to love?

Diva Booknerd – http://www.divabooknerd.com/ – I think Kelly’s reviews are always insightful; I like hearing what she has to say.

Tsana’s Reads and Reviews – http://tsanasreads.blogspot.com.au/ – Tsana’s my go-to person for Aussie titles. She reviews broadly and our views on the importance of science in books align very well!

Thrive continues my foray into reading dystopian YA fiction. A few months ago Havoc, by New Zealand author Jane Higgins, jolted my senses into recognition of this wildly popular genre, which explores future worlds (ones where twisted societal developments reign and hope is generally in short supply). I can report that I have now been on a second eye-opening dystopian adventure.

At the centre of Aussie author Mary Borsellino’s Thrive is teenager Olivia. Introspective and awkward, Olivia feels lost in her life as the daughter of wealthy parents. It’s an existence where privilege, looks, and conformity are valued over everything else.

Being kidnapped and held for ransom by a gang of misfits turns out to be an unexpected gift for Olivia. Here she meets Hannah, a teenager who is totally unlike herself. Hannah lives hand-to-mouth, reads banned hard-copy books like John Wyndham’s 1951 post-apocalyptic classic Day of the Triffids and conceals herself from those she doesn’t trust behind a red rabbit mask.

When Olivia is rescued and returned to her family she has trouble letting go of Hannah. She also can’t give up her new appetite for books. It isn’t long before Olivia is fleeing her stifling surrounds in search of a life less ordinary.

‘From the depths of factory oppression to the dizzying heights of vigilante rooftops, Olivia travels the margins of society, where the misfits gather and build homes for themselves out of whatever they can get their hands on – and fight to make a life worth living.’

Olivia is an engaging heroine, but I must say that by book’s end, I wanted to know her better than I did. Her relationships with the young people around her are definitely interesting but as a reader there were times when I wished more depth of feeling would come at me from the page. One example is a fleeting reference made late in the book to Olivia’s sexuality. I really felt this could have been an important thread in the story had it been explored. It may have also helped frame Olivia’s sibling-like relationship with Sam, who is one of the key characters.

The book has a kind of staccato feel to it, and for the most part I think this jumpy style works well with the broken and often bleak world Olivia and her loosely-formed tribe of revolutionaries inhabit. A couple of times though I yearned for a bit more flow, or perhaps follow-through.

On the plus-side I really did enjoy Thrive. There were many parts where both the writing and the story simply soared. The author’s interweaving of references to classic novels and literary fairytales was beautifully done,and this made them both poignant and important to the story being told. Olivia’s period as a masked vigilante known as the Candy Butcher who delivers nourishing soup and clever words to those starving in the streets is electric.

If you’re a dystopian/post-apocoliptic YA enthusiast this one is definitely worth a read.

In a more traditional format of one episode being released weekly on the popular website, Netflix, is the sci-fi drama, Between.

The small town of Pretty Lake is struck down by a mysterious virus that kills anyone 22 or older. So you literally have a modern teen friendly mix of Lord of the Flies, Gone, and Under the Dome.

There are the usual suspects, the rich family, the poor family, the smart family, the religious family and the farming family; each with their own internal struggles as well as their fight to make a place in the new pecking order.

Throw in a few conspiracy theories and you have an intense mix of angst and suspense to keep you coming back for more.

The one stand out character for me was Krystal Hope Nausbaum who plays Amanda. I am impressed that the writers bothered to add such a complex character into the fracas. I have great respect for a script to include a character with Down’s Syndrome, and not only make the character intelligent, but have the other characters interacting in a way where the character’s differences aren’t pointed out in an overt way. She just is. No apologies, no explanations.

Kudos to Michael McGowan on creating an addictive program. I have a feeling we’ll see more stuff like this from him in the future.

I hope you’ll all give Between a chance and let me know what you thought.