The False Prince by Jennifer Nielsen

The False Prince by Jennifer A. Nielsen
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This is more middle school but oh is it GOOD! I think my high school boys (and girls) would love Sage's story. Imagine you are an orphan, busy trying to make ends meet and you are purchased away from the orphanage and you are told by this noble, Conner, you will compete with 3 other orphans to impersonate the supposedly dead prince of Carthya who really was not dead? Nielsen's descriptions of Sage, the other orphans, and Conner grip the reader from the first page and you are in Sage's head and heart as this wild ride of a story unfolds. As I read it I was reminded of The Whipping Boy by Sid Fleischman and I really enjoyed that book too. Sage was so real as an orphan who is prickly, nasty, honest, the best pickpocket, a faker, a thief but he is also compassionate and will do anything to help someone who is being taken advantage of. The events in the book hurtle along and I was quite content to be surprised, happy, then anguished, then filled with horror. Readers will want to read the next book in the series, The Runaway King.

View all my reviews

Game by Barry Lyga

Game by Barry Lyga
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

OMG, I couldn't put down this 2nd installment from Barry Lyga's I Hunt Killers. Jasper and Connie go to New York where murders are taking place and they are mimicking some of Billy Dent's and since he has escaped, Jasper is hoping to catch the killers and his father. But what he doesn't ever suspect is that there seem to be a few killers at work; each taking their instructions via throw away cell phones. When they are both sent home; Connie is forbidden to ever leave town and Jasper is now getting to know his aunt who came to take care of Jasper's grandmother while Jasper was in NY. When Jasper returns to NY; Connie is contacted by text and begins to sort out clues about Jasper's dad. When he finds out alarming information about Jasper's father; she returns to NY without her parents' permission. Things spiral out of control and the ending is crazy and I can't wait til the next book comes out; it is so not fair to have to wait to find out what happens. Read it and you WILL agree with me!!! The same sickening mind games; just when Jasper thinks he has it figured out-----he so doesn't!

View all my reviews

The Miseducation of Cameron Post by Emily Danforth

The Miseducation of Cameron Post by Emily M. Danforth
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Cameron Post is a lesbian when her parents die in a car crash and she is sent to live with her born again Christian aunt, Ruth. After being involved in several relationships, her aunt finds out and sends her to “be fixed” at a Christian camp. Cam’s compelling journey brings forth her challenges, her authentic voice, and her resolute resolve that she is who she is. A moving coming of age story.

View all my reviews

Eleanor and Park by Rainbow Rowell

Eleanor & Park by Rainbow Rowell
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Oh what a wonderful read, I am still smiling! Thanks to Mary Eileen for recommending this book and then giving me her ARC. I just loved Park and I grew to understand and love Eleanor. Eleanor is big, awkward with bad clothes and bright red hair. She is the oldest of a very large family. Her mother makes bad choices with men and her latest stepdad is a drunk who beats his wife and when Eleanor expressed her hatred of him, her mother sent Eleanor away for a year to live with her brother and his wife. Now Eleanor and her brothers and sisters all sleep in one bedroom; there is no door on the bathroom and Eleanor doesn’t even own a toothbrush. Park comes from a family that is the opposite of Eleanor’s; always enough food, and love and support. It is Park and Eleanor who slowly, but surely find one another first through comic books, then music, then conversation. None of their relationship and then their romance is easy, but they find each other and hold on. I didn’t want to put this book down; I loved both of their voices and I especially loved how Park protected and fought for Eleanor and how he saved her through his actions and words. I want to read this book over again and again and I don’t ever say that.

View all my reviews

Yaqui Delgado Wants to Kick Your Ass by Meg Medina

Yaqui Delgado Wants to Kick Your Ass by Meg Medina
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Thanks to Rory and the Goodreads Group, YA Reads For Teachers (And Any Other Adults) for this MUST read book, Yaqui Delgado Wants to Kick your Ass by Meg Medina. From the first sentence, “Yaqui Delgado Wants to Kick your Ass” (just like the title) to the last sentence, “And I’ve found my rhythm at last-strong and simple, constant and mine,” I was riveted and sickened by Piddy Sanchez’s plight of being in a new school and being threatened by a bully on the first day. Piddy doesn’t know Yaqui and therefore is clueless about why Yaqui is out to get her. Yaqui has a group of girls who terrorize Piddy at school and at her after school job. Worse to come is the brutal fight when Yaqui and her terrorists surprise Piddy on her way home from school, beat her to a pulp, and film the fight as they tear off her shirt. Piddy never tells her mother what has happened (she tells her mother she fell on the steps) but she does confide in her aunt and makes her swear not to tell anyone. As a result of this fight, Piddy loses herself. She begins to fail her classes, cut school, and her personality begins to change. What will happen to Piddy? This is a book for all high school students; one girl’s life was drastically changed as a result of the continued harassment she endured. I highly recommend it for all readers (plus reluctant readers and those who enjoy urban fiction), teachers, and parents. The author suffered through something similar in junior high and this book reaches out to teens and helps them find their dignity again.

View all my reviews

Drama by Raina Telgemeier

Drama by Raina Telgemeier
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Callie is the set designer in her middle school’s stage production of Moon Over Mississippi and with her can do attitude she will not let budget woes and squabbles between the crew members hold her back. This graphic novel takes the reader into the world of the school play; the fun, long hours and companionship leading up to the school play. A thoroughly enjoyable, funny look at middle school friends, crushes, and everyone “ behind” and “on stage” pulling off plays to entertain and inspire. I loved tis book and even though it is middle school; Callie is in 8th grade; I know my students who enjoy graphic novels will love this book!

View all my reviews

The Office Of Mercy by Ariel Djankian

The Office of Mercy by Ariel Djanikian
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Natasha has grown up in America-Five in a world that does not want anyone to suffer. She lives in a sterile, clean environment. There are many different offices in her world and the Office of Mercy is a coveted promotion Natasha enjoys as well as her relationship with Jeffrey who has been her friend since childhood and shown her special attention. But Natasha has always had tentative thoughts about the people outside the walls of America-Five and questions why those people are targets of the nova(s) that will take away their suffering; in other words, kill them. There are others in America- Five who are opposed to putting these tribes out of their misery (they are reviled) and when on a fact finding expedition outside the dome of America-Five, Natasha makes a mistake and is taken hostage by the clan. It is while she is their captive that she learns they think she will help them continue to live “free” and not be vanquished as “suffering” and to make things more difficult, Natasha sees they love their life and are not hungry, suffering, and in need of America-Five’s novas. Natasha is challenged throughout by her beliefs, her feelings, and her empathy towards these settlers; what will this mean for her future and her happiness? I couldn’t put this dystopian novel down.


View all my reviews