Interesting Reader Society - Book Reviews by Young Adults
-- School Library Journal, 8/19/2009
The Interesting Reader Society is a diligent bunch and has hit SLJTeen with a tsunami of book reviews for this issue. You’ll find a hearty helping of fantasy of every stripe with nary a single vampire, werewolf, or zombie in sight—and that seems to be just fine with these teen readers.Wooding, Chris. Malice. Scholastic. October 2009. ISBN: 978-0-545-16043-8. Gr 7-11.
Malice is a rumor—a comic book many have heard of, but nobody has seen. It is believed that when you say the words and perform the ritual, you’ll suddenly you find yourself in the dark world of Malice. When Seth and Kady’s friend Luke say the chant and go missing, they soon realize they’re about to be trapped inside something bigger than they’d ever imagined.
This book was like a breath of fresh air. The writing was descriptive and relaxed. I had low expectations, admittedly, because it was half comic book, but this book was better than I could’ve imagined. It was intense, thrilling, and creepy, and I enjoyed every minute of it. The twists took me completely by surprise, and everything just seemed to click. Wooding obviously thought it through.
This book went beyond the whole “getting trapped into another world” thing. I mean, a comic book? Seriously? I haven’t heard of that happening before. And the name “Malice” for a world? That’s what reeled me in. I loved how the cover provided a glimpse of Malice and how it included the terrifying Tall Jake. It’s as if he’s beckoning you inside.
The only problem was that the illustrations were a bit disappointing. Parts of them were good, but in most of the panels I had no idea what was going on, and I had to try and clue in during the next chapter. Havoc, part of the Malice duology, will be published in 2010.—Maike P., age 13
Golding, Julia. Dragonfly. Marshall Cavendish. October 2009. ISBN: 978-0-7614-5582-0. Gr 7 and up.
Princess Taoshira and Prince Ramil hate each other at first sight, and hate it even more when they find out they’re getting married. But Fergox, emperor of most of the known world, has other plans for the both of them. To create this world, Julia Golding pulled various elements into the book: she took the warships from the 1500s, and turned them into the Blue Crescent Navy; she took the weapons, clothes, and a lot of architecture from medieval times; and she added the idea of slaves from the 1700s to create the Dark Prince’s first army.
I was very pleased with the way the author wrote the book. I’ve never read a book where the author pulls together different elements from different times throughout history. I was also very pleased with all of the romance, action, and adventure, and if I ever become a producer/director, I’d like to make this book into a movie.
The cover is very beautiful, extraordinary, and above all, goes perfectly well with the title. But if I had the choice, I would make the dragonfly on the cover the origami dragonfly from the book—not a metal pendant that had no part in the book. Also, I never understood why the book was called Dragonfly.
I would like to personally thank Julia Golding for writing this book. I hope to become an author like her one day, and by reading Dragonfly, I’ve gotten tons of inspiration for books of my own.—Jordan H., age 13
Hale, Shannon. Forest Born. Bloomsbury. September 2009. ISBN: 978-1-59990-167-1. Gr 6-10.
Without a doubt, Shannon Hale is one of today’s most talented young adult authors. Her books are well-written, engaging, easy to read, and just plain fun. Her latest novel is Forest Born, a fourth addition to her Books of Bayern series. Forest Born focuses on Rin, sister of Razo, one of the primary characters of the earlier books. Rin is the baby of her family, and yet at the same time she’s the one that her mother depends on. But Rin is struggling with doubts about her own nature, and no longer feels as if she belongs in her forest home. So when Razo visits from the city and offers to take her back with him, Rin agrees. She becomes one of the Queen’s ladies, and ends up getting into problems that she never imagined. In the process of getting out again, she learns to accept herself for whom and what she is.
Like all of Shannon Hale’s books, Forest Born is a great, if rather light, read. While Rin’s own internal torment gives the story a somewhat darker cast, it remains true to the style that characterizes the rest of the series. After all, the first Book of Bayern was a fairytale retelling. Rin is not the first of Hale’s characters to have ethical dilemmas relating to her gifts, but she certainly has the hardest time of it. At times, her “poor me” routine gets a bit old, but it’s a necessary part of her character and as such must be put up with.
Because Forest Born is the fourth volume of a series, many events of the previous books are mentioned. However, this book could more than likely stand alone. It’s not the older characters who are important here, but Rin and her wholly unusual story.—Lisa M., age 15
Baratz-Logsted, Lauren. Crazy Beautiful. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. September 2009. ISBN: 978-0-547-22307-0. Gr 7-11.
Ever since the “accident,” Lucius has been used to the harassment, used to no one paying any attention to him. So when a girl named Aurora acts kindly toward him every day, despite the hooks he has instead of hands, he can’t help but fall in love. However, Jessup, a boy who also wants to be with Aurora, won’t let Aurora fall for Lucius without a fight. When he catches Aurora and Lucius holding each other out back at one of his parties, he devises a plan involving Aurora’s father that destroys everything.
This book shows that despite how people look, they’re still people, and it takes a toll on them when people act terrible to them. It really demonstrates the saying “Don’t judge a book by its cover.” The story makes you connect with all of the characters and fall deeply in love with each of them. The most gripping part of the book is the love that Aurora and Lucius share when it’s divided by the differences between them. The book is very compelling, emotional, and something that everyone should read. It gives you a sense of wanting to go out and be nice to everyone, no matter what.—Sarah S., age 13
Wollman, Jessica. Second Skin. Random. July 2009. ISBN: 978-0-385-73601-5. Gr 6-10.
Second Skin is an exciting novel about a girl who is very unpopular until she finds out a secret so huge that she has to seize it for herself—but what happens if the secret makes her ditch her friends to be popular?
I thought the book was good, but in the beginning it reminded me of the movie Mean Girls, which disappointed me. If you kept reading it got better. I did like that the author lets you know and understand 
the main character, Sam, pretty well before throwing you into the problem.
What I liked about the cover was that it showed that Sam is a cheerleader, which you learn toward the middle of the story. One of the most interesting aspects of the book was when Sam started not to be able to be outside without wearing the secret skin. She realized that the more she wore it, the harder it got to take the skin off.—Audrey B., age 12
The Interesting Reader Society (IRS--“teens, not taxes!”) is a library teen advisory and reading group of kids in grades 6 to 12 from throughout the Poudre River Public Library District in Fort Collins, CO. Currently, there are about 40 members. IRS is also one of the 15 2009–2010 national teen reading group appointees for the Young Adult Library Services Association’s (YALSA) Teens’ Top Ten/YA Galley project.
