First the official mini-bio:Margo Rabb's novel Cures for Heartbreak was recently named one of the Best YA Books of 2007 by Kirkus Reviews. Visit her online at www.margorabb.com.

I first encountered Margo's work when I read her girl detective series which led to an an interview at Bookslut. When her novel, Cures for Heartbreak, was released I was very excited to review it. That book had a very personal and powerful impact on me - here are some of my initial thoughts from a post at Chasing Ray:

In Margo's book the mother dies from melanoma (it happens in the very beginning). I had melanoma when I was 27 years old. I grew up in Florida and was a major body surfer and beach girl - it was a huge part of my life. I grew up in the 1970s and 80s when the sun was not perceived as dangerous so sunburns and suntans were part of my everyday. I know how I got this disease. But reading about melanoma in this book has not been easy. It's a wonderful book (Jen is the latest to love it) but it's so raw, so close to what losing someone can be like, that it fairly hurts you with its own pain. In the story entitled "The Healthy Heart" teenage Mia thinks she sees a difference in a mole on herself - she suspects that it might be cancerous. I tried to get through this on the first try but it was too close. Every day I think I see something that has changed; something that is may not be right. Everyday I panic just a little. Trust me when I say that Margo has perfectly nailed what that kind of worry is like. It's as real as it gets in this book and a couple of times it just got a little too real for me.

Can I give a book any higher recommendation than that? Sometimes it was fiction that was so true it became real. Amazing.

Margo Rabb is one of my favorite writers and I think she deserves way way more notice than she has received from the general reading public. She will break your heart and give you hope all in the same breath. It's an awesome talent Margo has, and I look forward so much to what she does next.

Now here is what Margo has been reading and enjoying this year:

A Big Storm Knocked it Over by Laurie Colwin. Laurie Colwin is one of my favorite writers on earth. This novel is about a book designer named Jane Louise, "who was almost relentlessly domestic, whose idea of a good time was to stay home," and how she grapples with marriage and motherhood. A cup of tea, a snowy day and a Laurie Colwin novel = perfect contentment.

The Group by Mary McCarthy. I read this for the first time many years ago, and it was so much fun to read it again now. A classic.

Life Among the Savages by Shirley Jackson. Jackson (author of the short story "The Lottery") wrote this in 1953, and it's a great memoir about family and motherhood. My favorite part is when she lights a cigarette in the taxi on the way to deliver her baby in the hospital.

Magic or Madness by Justine Larbalestier. The writing in this book took my breath away. I can't wait to read the rest of this trilogy.

(Not That You Asked) by Steve Almond. These essays (and rants) are so funny, smart, and irreverent. If you ever have a chance to hear Steve speak in person, by all means go. His passion for art and writing is contagious.

Snuggle Puppy by Sandra Boynton. I've been a lifelong fan of Sandra Boynton's ever since I read Chocolate: The Consuming Passion. Now that I have a baby daughter I have an excuse to read all of her children's books. My daughter will follow me around the apartment waving this book at me until I read it to her.

It's All Too Much by Peter Walsh. I come from generations of hoarders, and though I'm doing pretty well considering this legacy, I can still use a little assistance. This book has helped me deal with my tendency to inexplicably save things such as, um, Anthropologie shopping bags (Sometimes I do re-use them, though...)

Solve Your Child's Sleep Problems by Dr. Richard Ferber. This was my first year as a mother, and without this book I wouldn't have had enough energy to read ANYTHING.
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I love Peter Walsh - did you see him on Oprah with that family who filled a warehouse full of their stuff? It was amazing (in a "well, at least I'm not that bad" kind of way). Just about everyone I know has a hoarding problem to some degree or another (even the ones who keep nothing - to me they are almost so paranoid of having clutter that they repel it with some level of fear. ) Anyway, very cool guy and I'm sure his book is great.

I have walked past Shirley Jackson's Life Among the Savages so many times and really I need to just read it. She's such a good writer and the original cover photo alone makes this one hard to pass up. (Of course I can't find one online, but it's a great shot of the kids all in a row.) As for my thoughts on Justine Larbalestier's trilogy, well here's a bit from my post earlier this year:

As the best SFF authors do, Justine has created a wholly viable and believable world with her Magic series. But beyond that, she has tweaked big time the ideas of good and evil when it comes to magic and also played a bit with the idea of religion (not nearly as indepth as say Philip Pullman, but way more than the average fantasy book). Also, in the third book, she shows her Science Fiction roots a bit and creates almost a Sci Fi and Fantasy blend - something that is really uncommon in the two fields. They get thrown together a lot as a category, but readers know that the books are often very different. Few authors can write a fantasy novel that incudes Sci Fi aspects, but I really think that Justine has done that with Magic's Child.

Thanks for stopping by Margo - back tomorrow with Liz Noland of Feiwel & Friends.