Tris is a sixteen-year-old Chicagoian in a very different Chicago. This dystopian read is set in a a society of factions. Each of the four factions haTris is a sixteen-year-old Chicagoian in a very different Chicago. This dystopian read is set in a a society of factions. Each of the four factions has a different quality that is valued and to possess an aptitude for more than one faction makes a person divergent, and thus dangerous to the powers that be.
This is probably the best Hunger Games read-alike I've seen. I thought Lauren Oliver's Delirium was great for Hunger Games fans, but this one I think will cross genders more effectively than Delirium. ...more
None of Dana Reinhardt's books have lived up to How to Build a House for me. I loved that book. This, however, was a sweet book about a young teen leaNone of Dana Reinhardt's books have lived up to How to Build a House for me. I loved that book. This, however, was a sweet book about a young teen learning about friendship and crushes and love in general. Ultimately a nice story, but probably forgettable (for me, anyway)....more
As others have mentioned, this book was a very abrupt ending. Overall though, this story of survival in a an era of extreme weather is pretty great. IAs others have mentioned, this book was a very abrupt ending. Overall though, this story of survival in a an era of extreme weather is pretty great. I saw a lot of reviewers doubt the realism of a snowstorm like the one described in the book, but let's be honest...six years ago we wouldn't have thought floodling like that of Katrina was possible or that towns in Vermont would be underwater from a hurricane. So, crazy things happen. I didn't have an issue with the premise, though the desperation was well drawn, and, ending aside, that the book was good....more
This book is super fun! Sophie Mercer is a half-witch sent to a boarding school for magical misfits after one spell too many went wrong. The problem iThis book is super fun! Sophie Mercer is a half-witch sent to a boarding school for magical misfits after one spell too many went wrong. The problem is, having been brought up by her human mother, Sophie doesn't actually know how to be a witch.
This book depicts a magical mystery underworld not unlike that of Harry Potter and is set at a boarding school but boot, but Hawkins definitely isn't taking herself, or her characters, too seriously. This book is all the stuff good supernatural novels are made of, but with enough tension between the in-crowd and the out-crowd to make it super relevent even to teens who don't normally read in this genre....more
Iris is desperate to help her father with his private dectective business. Since his injury in the war, she sees her services as indespensible to him,Iris is desperate to help her father with his private dectective business. Since his injury in the war, she sees her services as indespensible to him, but since he's been gone half her life, all he can see her as is a little girl.
There were elements of this book I liked very much. I love mid-century mysteries and I liked Iris. She was a plucky girl going for what she wants, making mistakes along the way, but learning as she goes. I was hoping to like this installment of noir historical mystery/drama as much as I liked Ten Cents a Dance and What I Saw and How I Lied, but this book just fell a little short for me.
Iris' mother had to be dead in order for she and her father to be put in the situation they are in, but the resulting plotline of her suicide felt extraneous to the rest of the story and while having it remain unresolved is realistic, it made the whole subplot feel unnecessary to me.
Without saying too much, I'll also so thatt the resolution of the mystery itself was also a bit unsatisfying to me, but all that said, it was a fast-moving plot with enough intrigue and good characterization to keep me going....more
This book had a little bit of the second-book syndrome. There was definitely a lack of action compared to the first book, but I imagine the relationshThis book had a little bit of the second-book syndrome. There was definitely a lack of action compared to the first book, but I imagine the relationship building and the background gained here will be important to what I expect will be an awesome conclusion to this super fun trilogy....more
This is a work of historical fiction focusing on Molly, a 16-year-old house parlor maid looking for a way out of what will certainly be a life of factThis is a work of historical fiction focusing on Molly, a 16-year-old house parlor maid looking for a way out of what will certainly be a life of factory work after she is framed for theft in the house where she works. Afraid of letting her family down, Molly makes a spontaneous decision to join up with the ranks of war nurses going to help Florence Nightengale in Crimea.
I thought the story here moved a little slowly. In addition to that, I found Molly's almost supernatural nack for nursing (a healing touch, if you will) to be out of place in a book that contained no other supernatural elements.
That said, I don't think a middle school historical fiction fan would be disappointed by this book, but I'm not certain that the lack of action would hold the attention of older YA readers....more
I didn't find the conclusion to this saga as satisfying as I had hoped to...perhaps it was just too much to hope that the passion between Sam and GracI didn't find the conclusion to this saga as satisfying as I had hoped to...perhaps it was just too much to hope that the passion between Sam and Grace could be sustained for 900 plus pages. I thought Linger moved forward with a lot of suspense, and Forever seemed to fall a little flatter. The beginning part of the story...realizing that the wolves were going to be hunted felt awfully drawn out and then the conclusion felt rushed. I thought the developing relationship between Cole and Isabel could have been given much more attention. I did like how Sam and Cole's relationship progressed, though.
I was longing to find out how things were going to end for these characters and although I liked the book, I hoped for more....more
This book is a really quick read. Asher and Mackler alternate voices as each chapter changes viewpoints bewteen Emma and Josh, former best friends tryThis book is a really quick read. Asher and Mackler alternate voices as each chapter changes viewpoints bewteen Emma and Josh, former best friends trying to find their way back to each other after an awkward encounter a few months prior to the start of the story.
Emma has just gotten her first computer when Josh brings her an AOL disc he's gotten in the mail. When Emma downloads the program, she discovers she has access to soemthing called Facebook, and she and Josh quickly discover that it's given them glimpses into their future in the form of one sentence updates. Both are shocked at what they discover, and equally shocked at how tiny changes in their present day-to-day lives can create massive ripples in their futures.
I thought the premise of this book was super interesting - and for me, having been right around Josh and Emma's age in 1996, it was super fun to read the book and really think about how much about the way we use computers and internet in that time has changed. I even found myself going to my facebook page and reading my wall...wondering what I would have thought about my future if I could have read the same thing in 1996...
All that said, I wonder how teens will take the book. The concept of your internet service coming from a disc isn't super well explained and that will be a totally foreign concept to them. I don't know that they'll really understand how that process worked. I hope they don't get hung up on that kind of stuff and just take the story for what it is...which for me was one about friendship and romance and recognizing that your decisions have an impact on your future, but if you worry about what that impact is too much, you'll make yourself crazy. Sometimes you just have to do what you want and trust that it will work its way out in your favor in the end....more
Russel is sure he is the only gay kid in his school...that is until he meets another one in a local gay chat room online. Soon Russel has discovered aRussel is sure he is the only gay kid in his school...that is until he meets another one in a local gay chat room online. Soon Russel has discovered a handful of other gay kids at his school, but they need a ruse in order to meet since they're all in different cliques. And so, Geography Club is born.
The chat room bit was a little dated. I don't know many teens who even still know what chat rooms are.
I didn't dislike this book by any means...and I would recommend it to anyone looking for GLBT books. I just think it's probably a little forgettable. It was an easy read and Russel discovers much about himself and his friendships through the story. If nothing else, it should certainly help gay teens understand that they may be surrounded by other gay kids...and it may not be who they expect....more
I'm not usually a super fan of books in verse, but I liked this one a lot. The story is about Liz and her "forever-best," Kate. Things go terribly wroI'm not usually a super fan of books in verse, but I liked this one a lot. The story is about Liz and her "forever-best," Kate. Things go terribly wrong after the girls get into a sleepover spat about boyfriends and college plans. Liz goes upstairs and Kate stays on the couch, and then everything changes. In the coming weeks, Kate accuses Liz's brother of raping her that night. Liz is faced with what her brother might be and with the loss of a friend who can no longer stand look at her because she looks a lot like the guy who raped her. This was a heartbreaking story about about finding yourself after everything falls apart....more
This book was lovely. It was like the "It Gets Better" project a few years early.
It's a coming-of-age story about romance and friendship. The story fThis book was lovely. It was like the "It Gets Better" project a few years early.
It's a coming-of-age story about romance and friendship. The story follows Dade, an 18-year-old, the summer before college. Dade is a closeted gay kid, with few friends and a secret boyfriend who has a girlfriend. His parents are on the skids and he feels like there's not much going for him. But when Dade meets a new friend, and a new boy, things start looking up, and he starts to realize that maybe there's life for a gay kid beyond high school....more
This book was really funny, but took me longer than usual to read because to read it was pretty over the top. It's pagaents meets Lost meets Lord of tThis book was really funny, but took me longer than usual to read because to read it was pretty over the top. It's pagaents meets Lost meets Lord of the Flies meets anti-capitalism and reality TV. Great satire about where we could be headed if we keep being so ridiculous....more