Amy Reed Fiction

YA Author of The Boy and Girl Who Broke the World, Our Stories, Our Voices, The Nowhere Girls and other books.

I nominate Ellen Hopkins Queen of Banned Books Week 2009

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Hi all,

In honor of the last day of Banned Books Week, I’m re-posting this blog by fellow writer Ellen Hopkins. Maybe by this time next year, Beautiful will be on the list of books that gets folks’ panties in a bunch because of its “controversial” content. I would be honored. I would be proud to be grouped with YA authors like Ellen who dare to explore difficult subject matter in an honest and thoughtful way. No one benefits when we pretend painful stories don’t exist. And no teen I’ve ever known responds to “I told you so” as a valid reason to not do something. I don’t know about you, but I need to trust someone before I can take their opinions seriously, and I certainly cannot trust someone I know is withholding information and not telling the truth.

Would you trust someone who refuses to talk openly with you?

Would you follow the rules of someone who won’t let you read a book because they think you can’t handle the content?

I didn’t think so.

Amy

[Read more…] about I nominate Ellen Hopkins Queen of Banned Books Week 2009

HELLO!

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Hello world!  This is Amy.  My book Beautiful is being published next week and I can’t wait!  I got my first copy in the mail a few days ago, but my mom stole it before I could show it off to everyone.  Luckily, I should be getting more any day now.  I can’t believe how gorgeous it turned out.  Everyone at Simon Pulse did an incredible job.

I’ll be posting a lot more soon about myself, Beautiful, writing, updates about events, and anything else that comes to mind, including photos, interesting links, and works-in-progress.  Check back often! I’m really excited to get to know you, so feel free to contact me with any questions or comments.

In the meantime, here’s a synopsis of Beautiful, my debut YA novel, which is being released October 6, 2009!  It’s available for pre-order NOW anywhere you buy books online, and should be showing up in bookstores next week.


When Cassie moves from the tiny town where she has always lived to a suburb of Seattle, she is determined to leave her boring, good-girl existence behind. This is Cassie’s chance to stop being invisible and become the kind of girl who’s worth noticing.

Stepping into her new identity turns out to be easier than Cassie could have ever imagined…one moment, one choice, changes everything.

Cassie’s new existence both thrills and terrifies her. Swept into a world of illicit parties and social landmines, she sheds her virginity, embraces the numbness she feels from the drugs, and floats through it all, knowing that she is now called beautiful. She ignores the dangers of her fast-paced life…but she can’t sidestep the secrets and the cruelty.

Cassie is trapped in a swift downward spiral tinged with violence and abuse, and no one—not even the one person she thought she could trust—can help her now.

Yikes.  That stills gives me shivers.

That’s all for now.  Will write again soon.

Smiles,
Amy

P.S.—Here’s a picture of me with my dog Peanut on her first hike.  My husband Brian and I adopted her the day before from the Berkeley, CA SPCA.  You’ll probably be hearing a lot more about her.

Peanut and me at Tilden Park (Summer, 2009)

Me and Peanut at Tilden Park (Summer, 2009)