Stolen

Stolen by Lucy Christopher, The Chicken House, 2010, 304 pp, ISBN: 0545170932

Recap:
When Gemma met Ty at the airport coffee shop, she was immediately struck by his easy manner and good looks. He was the perfect distraction from the petty disagreement she just had with her parents while waiting for their flight. 


But there was something that seemed a little "off" about Ty. For starters, he was definitely too old for her. And Gemma just couldn't shake the nagging feeling that she had met him before. But when she finally figured out why she recognized him, it was already too late...


Now Gemma is Ty's prisoner in the Australian outback. With no means of communication, no transportation, and no other human being around for miles, what hope does she have for escape?

Review:
Lucy Christopher's Stolen is unlike anything else I've ever read. The entire story is a letter from Gemma to Ty, recounting how they met and their days together in the desert. At different points throughout, I found myself surprised that their story was actually able to fill an entire book. I mean, there are zero other characters - unless you count the camel. 


Many have indicated that Gemma must have been suffering from Stockholme Syndrome, as she eventually came to appreciate - and maybe even love - her captor. Along those same lines, it seems that many of Stolen's readers have come to feel the same way about Ty. It seems like every time I talk to someone who has read Stolen, they say something along the lines of, "Oh, I couldn't believe it but I ended up really sympathizing with the kidnapper. In the end I wanted them to be together!" Honestly, those reactions piqued my curiosity and were part of the reason why I picked this book up in the first place.  


After reading the entire novel, my only response is, "Whaaaat?!" Ty was mentally ill. One could make the case that he never physically "hurt" Gemma, but he stalked her for six years, drugged her, kidnapped her, and held her prisoner in the middle of the desert. And people think Edward-and-Bella love is unrealistic? This is taking love stories to a whole new level of crazy. Ok, ok. I don't believe that this was actually intended to be a love story, but that end result is definitely a hinted-at possibility.


I can't say that I actually enjoyed this story, but it is one that I'll remember and reflect on for a long, long time.

Recommendation:
I would recommend Stolen to 8th grade readers and above - particularly to readers who are looking for something out of the ordinary. I have a feeling that Stolen could become an incredible literature circle discussion tool in the hands of the right ELA teacher!

All Unquiet Things

All Unquiet Things  by Anna Jarzab, Ember, 2011, 352 pp, ISBN: 0375855289

Recap:
Carly was murdered over a year ago. Everyone knows that her uncle, Audrey's father, was the one who killed her. Everyone except Audrey that is. She knows that all of the facts just don't add up. 


When Audrey begins digging into the details of the case, she enlists the help of Carly's ex-boyfriend Neily - the one person whom everyone else suspected in Carly's murder.

Together, Audrey and Neily will unravel a web of secrets and lies far more twisted than either of them had ever anticipated. One thing is certain, Carly was in way over her head.

Review:
I have to admit, I hadn't been too interested in reading All Unquiet Things. The cover struck me as more adult than YA, and the image is really pretty creepy. But when it was selected as one of the 2011-2012 Black Eyed Susan books, I decided to give it a shot. I had no idea I was in for such a treat!


All Unquiet Things is truly fabulous murder-mystery. The characters are a little Gossip Girl-esque, but without the emphasis on fashion: rich, spoiled, and attending one of the state's best private schools. Of course, this atmosphere of entitlement leads to way too much freedom and way too little accountability for anyone's actions. The narration switches back and forth between Audrey and Neily, which was initially a little confusing, but once I got used to it I enjoyed the different perspectives.

The best thing about this book? I truly had NO IDEA who actually killed Carly until the final few pages. As the mystery unravels, the reader is given more and more possible choices for the killer, but I definitely did not put the clues together to get the correct suspect. If there's one thing I love, it's a story that surprises me, and from start to finish All Unquiet Things is full of surprises.

Recommendation: 
Anna Jarzab's debut novel is definitely one I'd reserve for the high school and above crowd. That being said, I'm already eager to push it into the hands of any reader who loves a good mystery.

Fat Cat

Fat Cat by Robin Brande, Knopf Books for Young Readers, 2009, 336 pp, ISBN: 037584449X

Recap:
Cat Locke has something to prove. A couple of things, in fact. First, she is just as good of a scientist as Matt McKinney. Second, she is just as good of a person as Matt McKinney. Third, she does not need a boy in her life to be happy - especially not Matt McKinney. Is anyone else sensing a theme here?


Cat has decided to make herself the focus of her year-long Science project. She will take on the lifestyle and eating habits of early humans: no processed foods, no motorized transportation, no cell phones or internet. While Cat is fully anticipating a winning grade on her project, it's also sure to come along with a few unexpected side effects...

Review:
I've wanted to read Fat Cat by Robin Brande ever since reading this review from Write Meg! over a year ago. When it made Meg's Top 5 of 2010, I was reminded all over again of why I wanted to read it in the first place. Now, several months later, I finally got my hands on a copy... and I was not disappointed!


Cat is extremely easy to relate to. She is competitive and quick-witted, insecure and imaginative. She struggles with her weight, and struggles to admit her true feelings for the people in her life - especially people like Matt McKinney. Her Science project forces her to re-examine her diet, her exercise habits, the way she spends her free time, and the way she interacts with her classmates. 


At the same time, Cat's Science project made me re-examine those areas in my own life. She didn't quite convert me to vegetarianism, but she did convince me to widen the range of my diet and walk to the grocery store more often. 


It was pretty easy to predict the effects that Cat's new lifestyle would have on her body. She never revealed the exact number of pounds that she lost, but it was obvious that her body changed pretty drastically. Not surprisingly, her new image had a dramatic impact on the boys Cat had grown up with. It was interesting to see how Cat dealt with that attention. If I can say one thing, her actions were always realistic - if not always graceful! 


And you're probably wondering, what ever happened with Matt McKinney? Well, you're just going have to read Fat Cat for yourself to find out :)

Recommendation:
If you're looking for a laugh-out-loud read, with a truly relatable heroine, that just might give you a new perspective on your own life... Fat Cat is probably the book for you! I would recommend it for high school age and up.

Trash

Trash by Andy Mulligan, David Fickling Books, 2010, 240 pp, ISBN: 0385752145

Recap:

Raphael and Gardo are dumpsite boys. They've spent their entire lives eking out a living by picking through the mountains of trash that blanket Behala. The "best trash" consists of things like white plastic and metal. The worst? Stupp. Human waste. 

Then one day Raphael found something unexpected: a leather bag containing an id, a few photos, and a sum of money. He thought it was his lucky day... until the police showed up. The bag was only the tiniest piece of a puzzle - a far more complicated puzzle than Raphael, the police, or anyone else in Behala could have ever imagined. 

Review:

I first learned about Andy Mulligan's Trash through the Battle of the Kids' Books - one of my all time favorite sources for recommendations. As it advanced through round after round, even beating out my beloved Will Grayson, Will Grayson, I knew I had to give it a shot!

I was not disappointed. Trash is set in an undisclosed place and time. For some reason I read it as if it were taking place in the future, although Raphael's story could just as easily happen in the past or the present. I did learn through the author's notes that the fictional city of Behala is loosely based on the city of Manila in the Philippines. 

The poverty that these boys exist in is almost unthinkable. Homes are nothing more than crates piled one atop the other. From the time that they are old enough to wield their own "hook," small children are taken out of school and sent to scavenge through the trash. The government is greedy and corrupt, and it isn't at all unusual for members of the police to lock up (most likely) innocent children for years without hope of a trial. When Raphael finds the leather bag, it's no wonder that he chooses to keep his find a secret from the police.

But Raphael certainly wasn't in this story alone. Trash is told from many different points of view. In fact, pretty much everyone who was remotely involved in his story has their own chapter. This narrative collage of different characters adds depth and background to the overall mystery. 

As Raphael, Gardo, and their friend Rat piece together the different clues, the reader is treated to a rare story of hope and redemption. Trash's slender size leads you to believe that it will be a light and easy read, but only a few pages in you will quickly learn that this book is so much more.

Recommendation:

I will eagerly recommend Trash to readers of all ages. There is a strong emphasis throughout the story on the satisfaction gained through helping others, and the necessity of loving the people who much of the world would rather ignore. Combined with the complex codes and clues, Trash is a book for everyone.

Please Ignore Vera Dietz

Please Ignore Vera Dietz by A. S. King, Delacorte Books for Young Readers, 2011, 384 pp, ISBN: 0385738590

Recap:
Vera Dietz has always been the keeper of Charlie's secrets. Even after his death. Whether they were best friends, a potential love connection, or - more recently - bitter enemies, Vera could always be counted on to keep quiet. But as it turns out, sometimes keeping a best friend's secrets is the absolute worst thing you can do.


Review:
Please Ignore Vera Dietz by A.S. King is one of those books that I haven't heard a single negative word about. Every single review was absolutely glowing. And did I mention that it won a 2011 Printz Honor? When I found it on the "New Releases" shelf at the library, I snatched it right up.


My verdict? Please Ignore Vera Dietz is certainly a far cry from the dystopias, love triangles, and fantasy creatures that seem to fill the pages of most YA these days. Why was it so different? For one thing, one of the main characters spends the entire book... dead. For another, this book features a wide variety of narrators, including a pagoda. That's right, an inanimate object.


Much of the book was told in flashbacks, so that the reader could get a full picture of what Charlie and Vera's life together had been like, prior to Charlie's death. It was easy to see why Vera had loved Charlie for most of her life. He was strong and vulnerable at the same time, compassionate and adventurous while still managing to pull off that "rebel without a cause" vibe that girls always fall for.


But there was a darker side to Charlie. His family's history of domestic abuse and his own twisted money-making habits made him a figure who Vera wanted to protect, even after he betrayed her. 


Even so... I spent most of Vera's story just feeling frustrated with her: with her denial of her family's history of alcoholism, with her mental belittling of her father, and with the exasperating way that she refused to tell the truth about Charlie's death.  She had spent so much of her life trying to get the rest of the world to just ignore her, she couldn't see that it was finally time to step out and make herself heard. 


Ultimately, the end of the book left me with hope for Vera's future, but I still can't see Vera Dietz climbing its way to the top of my favorites list. I just like to see a little more girl power in my female protagonists.

Recommendation:
I would recommend Please Ignore Vera Dietz to high school age (or older) readers who are looking for something a little different in their book bag. While it may not be one of my top picks, King's award winning novel is creative and thought provoking, one that a reader won't quickly forget.

While You're Waiting for the Real Thing...

Satisfy your Katniss cravings with the Barbie Hunger Games!

I honestly cannot believe these people reenacted the entire Hunger Games with Barbie dolls. Yes, these videos are a little lengthy, but they are hilarious and super creative.

And here is Part 2...

Thank you to Madigan Reads for sharing them first!

"But That's Where We are in These Strange and Stupid Times."

More than 80 Los Angeles school librarians are being interrogated in a downtown basement. Much like many districts all over the country, the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) is facing drastic budget cuts that will force at least 85 school librarians out of their media centers and back into the classroom. That is, if they get to keep their jobs at all.

The interrogations are meant to determine whether or not these librarians have actually "taught" a class within the last five years. If they haven't, then it seems that they can kiss their jobs goodbye.

Now for those of us who actually understand the inestimable value of a truly great librarian, this whole process seems asinine. School librarians teach all subjects, work with all students, and collaborate with all teachers. But during these interrogations many must "confess" that they are not "real" classes because they don't have to take attendance. Wow.

For more information, check out "The disgraceful interrogation of L.A. school librarians" in The Los Angeles Times.

Image from here.

It's Not Summer Without You

It's Not Summer Without You by Jenny Han, Simon and Schuster Children's Publishing, 2010, 288 pp, ISBN: 1416995552

Recap (**Warning! If you haven't read Book #1, this will contain spoilers!):

Belly has spent every summer of her life at the beach house in Cousins. But this is the first summer of her life without the beach house, without Susannah, without Conrad and Jeremiah. Bec is dead, and life will never ever be the same.

At the same time that Belly is trying to cope with Susannah's death, she is still trying to come to terms with losing Conrad, the only boy she's ever loved. At the end of last summer, it seemed like things were finally working out between them, and things only got better and better over the course of the school year. Until Prom that is... 

And now Susannah's gone and Conrad's missing and everything in the world just feels wrong. The only way to make things right is to go back to where it all began.

Review:

I love, love, love Jenny Han. Nobody writes a great contemporary YA romance like Sarah Dessen, but gosh darn it if Jenny Han doesn't come close! I was absolutely wowed by The Summer I Turned Pretty. Belly is the quintessential "girl next door," pining after the boy she has always loved, even while plenty of other boys (including Conrad's brother Jeremiah!) would be only too happy to step in and try to win her heart. You know, there's something about Belly that reminds me a lot of Taylor Swift in the You Belong With Me video. Do you know what I mean?

But It's Not Summer Without You has so much more depth than your typical teen romance. This second book in the Summer trilogy deals with death and heart break, loss of friendships and loss of dreams. It just goes to show that the only thing one can truly count on is the love of your family - regardless of whether a person is family by blood or not.

I'm not sure how I feel about the end. The last pages of The Summer I Turned Pretty built into this huge crescendo that left me cheering, but this second ending left so many questions unanswered. That may be more like real life, but I need closure! I need We'll Always Have Summer!

I don't have a particular preference for who Belly ends up with: Jeremiah is clearly the safe choice, but there is just something about your first love. Either way, I just need to know what happens. But seriously, don't just tell me. I'm on a mission to track this book down for myself!

Recommendation:

I will enthusiastically recommend Jenny Han's entire Summer trilogy to any reader who enjoys a great contemporary romance. Fans of Sarah Dessen will quickly learn to love the wonderfulness that is Jenny Han!

PS: Don't you like this alternative cover?? I just found it through a Google image search and I love it!