{"id":13902,"date":"2014-09-02T08:00:23","date_gmt":"2014-09-02T12:00:23","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blogs.publishersweekly.com\/blogs\/shelftalker\/?p=13902"},"modified":"2014-09-02T08:00:23","modified_gmt":"2014-09-02T12:00:23","slug":"a-scandalous-book-and-its-disreputable-trailer","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/blogs.publishersweekly.com\/blogs\/shelftalker\/?p=13902","title":{"rendered":"A Scandalous Book (and Its Disreputable* Trailer)"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"<\/a>At first glance, Julie Berry’s books might seem to be all over the map in terms of subject matter, tone, and intended audience. Her\u00a0debut novel,\u00a0The Amaranth Enchantment<\/em>, was a sparkling fairy tale for ages 10-14; her\u00a0Splurch Academy middle grade series was unusually fresh and funny, comic kid-vs.-monster hijinx adventure fare for 7-10-year-olds; and her\u00a0All the Truth That’s in Me<\/em>\u00a0was a startling, powerful, gorgeously written young adult novel in stark, poetic prose for ages 12-17. When I heard she had a new novel coming out this fall, I perked up; what on earth would she have in store for us this time?
\nTurns out, it’s something different once again: The Scandalous Sisterhood of Prickwillow Place<\/em>\u00a0is Jane Austen meets Frances Hodgson Burnett by way of Edward Gorey. It’s a gleefully farcical, Victorian-era boarding school story with a hint of romance\u00a0for ages 11-15, featuring seven female students and a twist:
\n
\nthe villainous headmistress and her brother, instead of tormenting their poor victims through the length of the book, drop dead almost immediately, victims of a poisoned dinner. (Since none of the students were allowed to eat the veal, of course, they were spared a sudden end.) The rest of the book is spent with the students \u2014 Smooth Kitty, Dull Martha, Dear Roberta, Disgraceful Mary Jane, Pocked Louise, Dour Elinor, and Stout Alice \u2014 trying to keep the pair’s demise secret so the girls won’t be sent home to their miserable existences. Meanwhile, there’s the matter of the murders: did one \u2014 or more \u2014 of the girls have something to do with it? If not, who’s the murderer? And will one of them be the next victim? This is indeed a “fizzy romp,” as Julie Berry describes her intention for the book in the acknowledgements; fizz flavored with, if not acid, then tonic.
\nWhen you look at Berry’s books as a whole, it turns out that what binds them all together is her sharp wit, not to mention her nimble, lively intellect and utter commitment to whatever story she chooses to tell. \u00a0She’s that rare bird: a writer’s writer AND a terrific storyteller. Brilliant but not precious, able to wield language seriously or exuberantly with equal deftness.
\nFor a teaser treat, take a look at the trailer for the Scandalous Sisterhood<\/em>:
\n