Books! Plural!

Funny How Things Change
Farrar, Straus & Giroux, April 2009
ISBN-10: 0374302332
ISBN-13: 978-0374302337

Remy Walker has it all: he found the love of his life at home in crumbling little Dwyer, West Virginia, deep in his beloved Appalachian Mountains where his family settled more than one hundred and sixty years ago. But at seventeen, you’re not supposed to already be where you want to be, right? You’ve got a whole world to make your way through, and you start by leaving your dead-end town. Like his girlfriend, Lisa. Lisa’s going away to college. If Remy goes with her, it would be the start of everything they ever dreamed of. So when a fascinating young artist from out of state shows Remy his home through new eyes, why is he suddenly questioning his future?

Over the course of a summer, Remy learns how much he has to give up for a girl, and how much he needs to give up for a mountain.

Awards and Honors

* YALSA Best Books for Young Adults 2010 * Kirkus Best Young Adult Books of 2009 * Capitol Choices Noteworthy Books for Children and Teens 2010 * Maryland Black-Eyed Susan Award Nominee * PaLA Carolyn Field Award Nominee * 2011 Kentucky Bluegrass Award Master List * Maine Cream of the Crop 2010

Praise for Funny How Things Change

• *Starred Review* "Laconic but full of heart, smart, thoughtful and proudly working-class, Remy makes a fresh and immensely appealing hero. Wyatt's prose is tautly evocative throughout; her plot is a welcome departure from the stale conventions of the hero's journey."—Kirkus
  
• "Good writing drives stellar characterization of this strong but introspective protagonist struggling with his own version of the universal questions of who he is and what matters most. Wyatt creates a vivid sense of place where nobody has much, but the land is an organic and awesome presence in the lives of people with ties to it. Kinship with Remy will come easily to readers facing similar decisions about growing up and leaving home"—School Library Journal
  
• "Beautifully spare language portrays the quiet story of a good guy, perhaps lacking in worldly ambition but honest and real, who wonders where his place in the world ought to be. Remy will attract both male and female readers, and the setting takes on character as issues of the environment and the true value of land become central to the story. It is refreshing to find a young person capable of contentment, willing to wrestle with issues larger than himself, and sensitive to family history and elders yet still believably imperfect."—Voice of Youth Advocates 5Q
  
• "Wyatt deftly manages to maintain a deep sense of realism while throwing multiple complications in [Remy's] way, making for a genuinely moving conflict. Subtleties are drawn out in small but significant details. This timeless drama of a teen trying to make the right decision about his future is credibly set against timely issues about bad local economies based on unsustainable mining practices, making for a memorable and truly compelling coming-of-age-story."—Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books
  
• "Remy is a careful creation, a good old boy who’s not entirely good, and who must come to terms with the nature of teen romance...Readers will identify with Remy and his feeling of being torn between a comfortable past and uncertain future."—Booklist
  
• "Wyatt's prose is simple and poetic, a perfect match for a quiet, reflective story about the tug of home and the lure of the road. The dialogue is pitch-perfect, the third-person voice perfect for dissecting the complexities of relationships and life-changing decisions. It's a beautiful gem of a book."—BookPage, Notable Title
  
• "Funny How Things Change is a revelation in many ways and a book I highly - highly - recommend. Remy is a very engaging and relatable protagonist"—GuysLitWire.com
  
• "Oh the praises I sing about this book. It really has so much going for it...a beautifully written male character that even female readers are going to enjoy the plot with, a locale that doesn't often show up in young adult books, a great cast of characters, a believable plot, and such HOPE. Go get this one. Seriously. I loved it."—Amanda Snow, librarian, A Patchwork of Books
  
• "Remy is one of the most well-developed characters I’ve read about. Wyatt really dug beneath the surface, [creating] a novel with a lot of feeling."—Tower of Books
  
• "Intense, spare, and gorgeously written."—Nancy Werlin, author of Impossible
  
• "Remy Walker is someone you’ll remember and care for long after the last page is turned."
  —A. M. Jenkins, author of Repossessed
  

Read an Excerpt!

Backstory

Also by Melissa Wyatt:

Raising the Griffin
Wendy Lamb Books/Random House
2004; ISBN: 0-385-73095-0

What's it really like to be a prince? To his horror, 16-year-old Alex Varenhoff is about to find out.

"To see, to do, to prevail." The motto of Rovenia stands for bravery and honor. But none of this matters to Alex. He's always been aware of his tie to the ancient monarchy of Rovenia, though his family was tossed out of the country long ago, when the Communists took over. But Rovenia now finds itself in need of the leadership of a king and Alex must leave the only home he's ever known in England and assume his role in Rovenia as...Prince?

Alex is thrust into a life he was never raised for. He hates the pomp and circumstance and the hordes of screaming girls that wait everywhere. And this new life is dangerous, for there are Rovenians who oppose the monarchy. Becoming a true prince presents Alex with a heartbreaking challenge far beyond anything he ever expected, one of the greatest challenges that any Varenhoff has ever had to face.

Back by popular demand: History of Rovenia

Honors and Awards:

2005 New York Public Library Books for the Teen Age List

2005-2006 Tayshas List

2004 Best of the Best, Missouri Library Association YASIG

2005 Michigan Library Association Thumbs Up! Award Nominee

Nominated for 2005 Best Books for Young Adults

Critical Praise for Raising the Griffin:

"Packs a punch" - Kirkus Reviews

"Powerfully affecting...This is a compulsively readable book that lingers in the mind long after the final page." - School Library Journal

"This serious, realistic debut novel will draw plenty of young readers with Alex's taut, first-person narration of his predicament, as well as the detailed creation of a non-existent, yet totally plausible Eastern European country." - Booklist

"The characters ring true in this novel and the pace is nonstop." - KLIATT

"This is an exciting action filled story that is very well told. The reader will have difficulty putting this book down as the drama builds to an unexpected climax and a moving ending." - Children's Literature

"First time novelist Wyatt is definitely one to watch. Her stunning debut will resonate with teen readers. The audience who enjoyed the change made by Cole in Ben Mikaelsen's Touching Spirit Bear will enjoy the transformation Alex makes in his life in Raising the Griffin." - Di Herald, Genrefluent

"RAISING THE GRIFFIN is thoughtful, compelling, romantic, and suspenseful. A dazzling debut for Wyatt; clearly an author to watch. HIGHEST RECOMMENDATION." - Cynthia Leitich Smith Children's Literature Resources

"...A compelling and polished read, and one which rarely goes in expected directions. Wyatt's presentation of Alex's dilemma -- personal freedom versus living up to a responsibility he never wanted -- is fair and thought-provoking...And if you can put the novel down with only the last few chapters left to go, no matter how late it's getting, you're a stronger woman than I." Rachel Manija Brown, Green Man Review