Empress of the World [Paperback]

Sara Ryan (Author)

Book Description

Release date: May 26, 2003

Nicola Lancaster is spending her summer at the Siegel Institute, a hothouse of smart, intense teenagers. She soon falls in with Katrina (Manic Computer Chick), Isaac (Nice-Guy-Despite-Himself), Kevin (Inarticulate Composer) . . . and Battle, a beautiful blond dancer. The two become friends--and then, startlingly, more than friends. What do you do when you think you're attracted to guys, and then you meet a girl who steals your heart? A trailblazing debut, reissued with an introduction by acclaimed author David Levithan, and copious back matter, including three graphic novel stories by Sara Ryan (and artists Steve Leiber, Dylan Meconis, and Natalie Nourigat) about the characters.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

While the characters in this first novel are not fully developed and the dialogue often feels clunky, Ryan nonetheless surpasses many of the trappings of stereotypical gay teen representations. At a summer school program for the gifted, anthropology student Nicola, or "Nic," pens everything in her "field notes," from over-scripted exchanges with her dimensionless new friends, like outspoken redhead Katrina and spacey music student Kevin ("It's like we're in a chat room and he's got a really slow connection") to painfully detailed descriptions of their clothes. Nic's driving need to label everything wears at her fledgling relationship with Southern belle Battle (tension comes to a head on their "two-week anniversary"). Ryan is to be applauded for taking this story beyond an identity struggle; at story's end, Nic is unsure if she is a lesbian or bisexual, but she comes to accept her feelings without having to label herself, and learns to tolerate outsiders' judgments. Mostly she grapples with the ordinary drama and traumas of teen romance. Ryan also does not shy away from describing the physical relationship between Nic and Battle (though nothing beyond kissing is made explicit). Her story unfolds slowly and, ultimately ends up feeling unpolished, but many teens will be drawn to the subject matter, and Nic herself is an appealing heroine. Ages 12-up.

Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From School Library Journal

Grade 9 Up-Written with understanding, humor, and heart, this first novel explores a teen love relationship bounded by time, inexperience, and an enclosed community setting. Nicola goes away to a summer program for gifted students, expecting to explore her interest in archaeology while also continuing her artwork. On the very first day, she is attracted to another girl, but she refuses to be labeled as a lesbian because she thinks she's also attracted to boys. And that is the rub with which Nic is faced in this realistically flowing plot: she thinks and analyzes everything she feels, everything others say to her, things left unsaid. This, rather than the gender orientation of her first serious relationship-which does unfold, collapse, and then bloom again before summer's end-is what she learns about herself. Ryan places Nic not only in a romantic relationship with a girl who herself is willing to explore sexuality with a girl and a boy in the same summer-school period, but also in credible friendships with an evidently straight girl and a couple of straight boys. The strength of this novel lies in this interweaving of types of partnerings: the ones driven by desire, those driven by respect for emotional understanding, and others that teens undertake for reasons-frustratingly for Nic-that simply can't be analyzed. These characters seem to breathe in their realism, and the setting of a secluded campus, inhabited by brainy teens for a couple of months, is evoked in sensual detail.
Francisca Goldsmith, Berkeley Public Library, CA
Copyright 2001 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Paperback: 224 pages
• Publisher: Speak; Reprint edition (May 26, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0142500593
• ISBN-13: 978-0142500590
• Product Dimensions: 8.2 x 5.5 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (64 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #111,851 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Sara Ryan is the author of the novels The Rules for Hearts and Empress of the World, and of various comics and short stories on themes including but not limited to teen angst, Hellboy, joining the military, the 1962 escape from Alcatraz, and circuses. Her first graphic novel, Bad Houses, with art by Carla Speed McNeil, is forthcoming from Dark Horse Comics.

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

22 of 23 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Likeable characters, believable plotting, & smart writing. August 24, 2006

By N. Kline

Format:Paperback

Publisher's Weekly is usually a reliable, objective source, which makes the review above all the more disturbing: this is one of the most competently written & deftly characterized young adult novels for lesbians I've seen in a long while. (I've been reading such books for 30+ years.) It's a shame the review is so out of step with the book's tone, given how influential it gets to be just by virtue of sitting here, on Amazon. The reviewer claims the characters are flat & the dialogue 'over-scripted' (huh? oh please) yet gives only 1 (very peripheral) example--which in context works quite well, as it happens. And as for "painfully detailed descriptions of their clothes"--I'd bet money the (anonymous) reviewer was a man: this is a book about teenaged girls, hello?

Ryan's characters are both distinct and quite believable; the language she uses is specific to each character, a pretty impressive accomplishment for any book but especially a Y/A one; and the (fairly low-key) trials of the two lead girls feel real without the tedious melodrama of so much teen writing. It's a refreshing and well-told story with a credible ending: as a debut novel, it's terrific. This business about 'one-dimensional' characters strikes me as either a writer so unfamiliar with the genre he had no business reviewing this, or as just plain old poorly-masked homophobia: if you don't want to read about gay teens then... don't. If you do, give this book a try--especially if you're interested in writing about Y/A lesbian subject matter. Heaven knows such books are and remain scarce on the ground. This is one of the good ones.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Great, Beautiful and humorous June 12, 2003

By Zoi FTF, 13

Format:Hardcover

I picked up this book at [a local store] thinking it looked alright, but really, it was so much more for me than just "an enjoyably read." The discription is almost magical in that it is stark, not wordy or "lacey" but simple, getting the point accross simply and elegantly. It doesn't shy away from anything; it's confronting and outspoken, something i like. something i noticed and appreciated were the small little details of the main character's thought process, for instamce, "I look at the carpet. It's dull gray with black diamonds. Probably they picked it because it wouldn't show the dirt. I wonder how many diamonds there are per square foot." This remark would seem desultory and entirely non-sequitorial, but actually, it demonstrates quite well what you you do when you're awkward: you hook on to the nearest most insignificant thing possible, and become apparently inerested. things like this in writing enforce a kinship with the book from the reader; if the author uses experiences that aren't strangely far from our own experience, then the reader can sympathize, understand, and get more enjoyment out of the book. Though the plot may seem sad or daunting sometimes, there is never a failing of comic releif; again stark, simple, and allowing the reader to empathize. this book is wonderful, addressing highly argued issues, (issues that need to be addressed and thought about!!) in a way that isn't boringly and passively diplomaitc, but not altogether with a "you are stupid, i am right" attitude either. this is one of those books that enables you to get more out of life. it is an understatement to say i reccomend it!

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Author makes characters believable July 17, 2003

By E. L. Weinhold

Format:Paperback

An endearing look about a young lesbian (she is still coming to terms with her sexuality), and her friends at a gifted youth program. It is a coming of age story, and the main character, Nicola, writes journals about her friends, and her feelings. I enjoyed the book, and I felt that the author did a terrific job in identifying with the age group.