Cherie Priest Loves Steampunk

Last month, the postergirlz recommended Cherie Priest's novel Boneshaker alongside our feature pick for March, Leviathan by Scott Westerfeld. I recently interviewed Cherie for my blog, Bildungsroman, and wanted to share a piece of our conversation here:

Little Willow: How were you introduced to steampunk?

Cherie Priest: I've always really loved the Victorian aesthetic, particularly the fun tech aspects of it -- so as steampunk has come into its own I went right along with it. Though it's been around for a long time (in movies, TV shows, video games, books, and more) it feels like the last five or ten years have really seen it gain serious pop culture traction.

I guess one of my earliest "awareness" moments was probably the 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea ride at Disney World, which has since been revamped to a "Finding Nemo" themed ride -- much to my personal horror. The 20K LUTS had the whole nine steampunk yards going for it -- the look, the sound, the tech, the villains, the heroes ... all of it. The first time I ever went on that ride I was a kid (early to mid 1980s), and I remember thinking that one day I wanted a house decorated just like the Nautilus.

Click here to read the entire interview!

March: Round Up of Discussions

Just in case you missed any of the great discussion with Scott, check out these links and drop your comment!

March Newsflash
Welcome, Scott!
Leviathan terms and definitions
What is Steampunk?
Leviathan art by Keith Thompson
rgz TV
1910s Scrapbook
Leviathan Audio Book with Alan Cumming
Poetry Friday: Steampunk
Leviathan Playlist
Party It Up: Leviathan Book Club Party Ideas
Things to Know About Scott
Street Team Review: Vanessa
postergirlz recommends

Discussion questions

Living in a different time?
Hiding who you are?
Reading illustrated books
What if history changed?
Do you "cheat" with illustrated novels?
Favorite fashion period?

What beastie?
Keeping Secrets from Friends
Overprotective parents?
Want to Grow up as Royalty?

Thank You, Scott Westerfeld!

Here's a big, bubbly THANK YOU to the awesome Scott Westerfeld for joining us at readergirlz this month!

We loved hearing stories from Scott and learning more about steampunk and Leviathan.

Some highlights:

1. Learning a Scott secret during the LIVE chat: "I am only 6'1". I would be taller, except I'm missing a vertebra."

2. Alan Cumming narrated the audio book for Leviathan!

3. Rgz TV got behind the scenes with Scott and his bubbly water.

We've so loved having you here this month. Thank you, Scott!

March: postergirlz recommends

Did you totally heart Leviathan? Are you steampunk to the core? Check out these additional postergirlz recommends. They are great companion reads!



Fiction
The Cabinet of Wonders by Marie Rutkoski
Skybreaker by Kenneth Oppel
The Explosionist by Jenny Davidson
Skin Hunger by Kathleen Duey
Boneshaker by Cherie Priest

Non-Fiction
Gothic Charm School: An Essential Guide for Goths and Those Who Love Them by Jillian Venters

March: Would You Want to Grow Up Royal?

Leviathan author Scott Westerfeld asks, "Would you want to grow up as royalty, if it meant you couldn't have any friends your own age?"

Rgz Street Team: Vanessa Reviews Leviathan by Scott Westerfeld

The rgz Street Team is a group of teens who bring YA reviews to our blog, led by Postergirl Miss Erin. Find out more.

Today, Vanessa reviews our featured title, Leviathan, by Scott Westerfeld!

"Opening the covers of Leviathan opened a whole new world to me. It didn't take more than a few chapters before I felt like I was in a new universe filled with spectacular animals and monstrous machines.

"First there's Alek, an illegitimate prince who is taken out of his room to be set on a journey he never expected. Along the way, Alek learns many new skills that will prepare him for the dangerous days that have begun. Then there's Deryn, a girl who dares to follow her dream of working on an airship, even if it means disguising herself as a boy to do so. Deryn takes to the skies and proves herself to be more of a man than the rest of the crew.

"When both Alek and Deryn are thrown into situations they never expected, they never back down from their new roles. And when these two individuals from opposite sides of an impending battle eventually meet and work together, there's no stopping them. Leviathan not only brings an exciting new world right to your fingertips, but inspires you to be the best you can be, no matter what you're facing." -Vanessa

Thanks, Vanessa!

March: Are your parents ever overprotective?

Leviathan author Scott Westerfeld asks, "Have you ever felt, like Alek, that your parents have tried to protect you too much?"

March: Things to Know About Featured Author Scott Westerfeld

On the nightstand: About 20 books, three pairs of reading glasses, water.

Favorite drink while you write: Water with bubbles in it. (Just got a machine to make my own.)

Favorite bookstores: Kinokuniya in Sydney, Australia. Huge YA section, lots of manga and graphic novels as well. Half Japanese and half English.

Pets: A telescope shaped like a penguin.

Place to write: In my study on an old Chesterfield couch covered in cracked leather.

Inspiration: Human beings. We're hilarious, and often awesome.

Cure for writer's block: Blow something up (in the book).

Favorite outfit: Pajamas.

Next up: Behemoth, book 2 of Leviathan.

Website: www.scottwesterfeld.com

Read more about Scott in this month's full issue!

March: Have You Ever Hidden Something From a Friend?

Leviathan author Scott Westerfeld asks, "Have you ever had a friendship with someone who you couldn't tell something important about yourself?"

Party It Up: A Leviathan Soiree!

Planning your own Leviathan book group/get-together? Here are some party ideas from author Scott Westerfeld.

Invite: Something with gears, or Victorian wallpaper.

Décor: Match the invite.

Attire: Victorian clothes: corsets, bustles, long dresses, fancy hats. Check out some pieces of steampunk jewelry and ensembles here, there, and everywhere.

Food: Anything shaped like gears.

Movies: Sherlock Holmes, The Golden Compass, Wild Wild West

March: What Beastie Would You Choose as a Pet?

Leviathan author Scott Westerfeld asks, "If you could make any animal in the world into a loyal pet, what beastie would you choose?"

rgz LIVE! with Scott Westerfeld

Welcome to our rgz LIVE! chat with Scott Westerfeld! We're super excited to have him visit FROM AUSTRALIA, and the chat will start at the top of the hour--make sure you're here with your steampunk goggles on, rgz!

rgz LIVE! chat with Scott Westerfeld tonight!

Stop by the readergirlz blog tonight for a LIVE chat with Scott Westerfeld, author of the very cool steampunk novel, LEVIATHAN!

The live chat starts at 6pm PST/9pm EST - hope to see you there!

Meet Will, the real-life steampunk readerboy

I am pleased to introduce our very own steampunk readerboy: Will, the first mate of the H.M.A.S. Dauntless, pictured here with some of the crew, bosun Johnny "One-Button" and Sasha, at the PAX convention. They had a blast at this event, where they hung out with Harley Quinn, used the force with some Jedis, and ran into Frank from Donnie Darko, among others.

Oh, see those cool googles Will's wearing? He made those himself.











Leviathan by Scott Westerfeld, this month's featured title at readergirlz, has joined the crew's bookshelf. You should have seen Will's face when I told him we got in a new steampunk title, back when the book first arrived in the store.

A mutual friend of ours, Brendan, would have loved this book. You are missed, Brendan.

The Steampunk World's Fair!

Speaking of Scott Westerfeld and LEVIATHAN, this event sounds amazingly cool:



Such a tempting reason to go to New Jersey in May! Think you might want to go? Here's the official site.

March: What's Your Favorite Fashion Period in History?

Leviathan author Scott Westerfeld asks, "What's your favorite period of history for clothing?"

March: Do You "Cheat" With Illustrated Novels?

Featured author Scott Westerfeld asks, "While reading Leviathan, did you ever 'cheat' and skip ahead to the next picture?" (Or have you done this with other illustrated books?)

March: What if history changed?

Leviathan author Scott Westerfeld asks, "Have you ever imagined 'what if' history had changed in some way?

Leviathan Audio Book with Alan Cumming

Our March featured read, Leviathan, is also out in audio book! It's narrated by Alan Cumming (left), who was Fegan Floop in the Spy Kids movies and Nightcrawler in the X-Men films.

Want to hear a sample of the book, plus Scott reading the afterward? Head to Scott's site, where you can have a listen!

Leviathan by Scott Westerfeld: The 1910s Scrapbook

While writing Leviathan, this month's featured book, Scott Westerfeld did plenty of research on the places and time period in which the story is set. One of the nonfiction books he turned to was The 1910s Scrapbook by Robert Opie.

Opie's mini-bio, courtesy of Amazon: "Since the 1970s, Robert Opie has amassed an unrivaled collection of packaging and paper materials which are now housed in his museum of packaging in Gloucester. He is the author of numerous publications and has given many talks to schools, as well as on radio and TV." A bit more insight from his own site: "Initially, as a teenager, Robert Opie gathered together contemporary packaging, everything from cereal boxes to cigarette packs. The first item in the Collection was a Munchies pack bought by Robert on Inverness railway station in 1963, when he was 16."

Interested in imagery from the Great War and other time periods? Check out the various scrapbooks in The Robert Opie Collection.