Book Reviews by Young Adults
RSSSneak Peek Reviewers Club
This issue's reviews are bookended by two "Z" authors—Gabrielle Zevin and Sara Zarr. The Sneak Peekers that read their new releases have nothing but high praise for these two end-of-the-alphabet authors. In between Zevin's and Zarr's latest offerings, you'll find stories about kidnapped babies, schizophrenia, and evil doctors, all due to hit the shelves next month and be discovered by your young readers. ZEVIN, Gabrielle. All These Things I've Done. Farrar, September 2011. Tr $16.99. ISBN 978-0-374-30210-8. CD $29.99. ISBN 978-1-4272-1358-7. Gr 8 Up—It's 2083 in New York City and this once great place is suffering from a drought and filled with crime. Caffeine and chocolate are illegal. This is Anya's Balanchine home. The 16-year-old daughter of New York's most feared mafia and chocolate boss, Anya tries her best to keep her notorious family out of the limelight. Then her ex-boyfriend is poisoned by her family chocolate, and all the cameras and spotlights are on Anya and her crime family. Anya tries her best to conceal her secrets and protect her siblings from their own family, and along the way, ends up falling in love with the district attorney's son, Win. I fell in love with this book right from the beginning. The story pulls you in right away! It has a nice blend of action and romance—neither overpowers the other. I'd hoped for a surprise, twist-of-plot ending, but the conclusion is as perfect as it gets. I've read some other books by Zevin, and she'll always be a favorite of mine.—Andriana M., age 15 EDWARDSON, Debby Dahl. My Name Is Not Easy. Marshall Cavendish, October 2011. Tr $17.99.ISBN: 978-0761459804. This story is a heart-wrenching tale of how even when people mean well they still can hurt others. This book was a bit slow at points, but overall it's well written and the ending is perfect. The cover also represents the book well with Luke in a dorm room writing in the mirror. I recommend this book for everybody—and particularly for those who enjoy historical fiction.—Christopher L., age 14 KEPHART, Beth. You Are My Only. Egmont, October 2011. ISBN: 978-1606842720. Tr $16.99. Gr 7 Up—You Are My Only is a story like no other. Emmy Rane marries when she's only 19, and the following year, she has a daughter whom she names Sophie. One day, when Emmy turns briefly away from her baby, the child is stolen from her. We meet Sophie again 14 years later, when she's just finding the courage to understand her past. The author really went above and beyond with her use of imagery—a make or break factor for me. Kephart's words flow so wonderfully. She also makes very effective use of another literary device—personification. I loved reading the story, because it's so unique. I was especially drawn to 14-year-old Sophie's point of view. Her story is full of all sorts of different emotions, and most teenage girls will find her journey interesting and compelling. In fact, many people will find Sophie's journey inspirational. I'd say that this book will suit a girl or boy aged 13 and up. Overall, You Are My Only is a wonderful book, and I give it four and a half stars out of a possible five. This book is one you definitely don't want to miss out on!—Brianna M., age 16 PIXLEY, Marcella. Without Tess. FSG, October 2011. Tr $16.99. ISBN: 978-0374361747. Once Tess realizes she can't live in her own mind forever, she decides that she'd rather be dead than live in the real world, so she kills herself. All that's left of Tess is her journal, full of poems and drawings, and the memory of her left with Lizzie. Lizzie goes to the school psychologist to deal with Tess's death, and there she learns how to use Tess's journal and work with the psychologist to help her cope with her sister's suicide. The book is really well written—a third of it is poems, a third is present-day, and a third is Lizzie's memories of her sister. Also, the word choice, sentence structure, and overall flow of the book express Lizzie's emotions well without being too predictable or overdramatic. The plot is extremely unique, and it's never really been done before, which makes the story even better. Everything just fits together well—the characters, the plot, and the execution. This book's rating is a 10 out of 10, a really great read.—Tess B., age 13 SLEATOR, William. The Phantom Limb. Amulet, October 2011. Tr $16.95. ISBN: 978-0-8109-8428-8. This book follows the basic storyline of many other mystery books in which the character starts finding clues to figure out what's really going on. Overall, I found the story to be alright. It's a decent mystery book with its ups and down. The upside of the book is that it gives the reader a chance to connect with the main character and the person behind the mystery. The downside is that the basic storyline is too common for a mystery book. But if you'd like to try a short mystery book, The Phantom Limb may be right for you.—Wesley L., age 16 STEVENSON, Robin. Escape Velocity. Orca, October 2011. pap. $12.95. ISBN: 978-1554698660. Escape Velocity is a well-written book, and a touching story about a mom and a daughter. It's an intriguing tale with brilliant characters and surprises the reader on every other page. The ending was a bit of a shock though. The story ends a bit abruptly, and it seems that there could have been more content to the story. But all in all, this is a great book for teens.—Moiré B., age 12. ZARR, Sara. How to Save a Life. Little, Brown, October 2011. Tr $17.99. ISBN: 9780316036061. Gr 8 Up—This book was simply amazing, hands down. I was hooked right from the beginning, and it continued to the last page. Zarr sets up two completely opposite characters, altering their viewpoints. Two teenage girls, Mandy and Jill, are both struggling with grief and loneliness. Mandy Kalinowski, on the other hand, is pregnant. She needs a home, instead of constantly moving around. Now that she's pregnant, she wants to make sure her baby gets all the love that she never had. Therefore, after the baby is born, Mandy plans to give the baby to Robin, Jill's mother. Robin believes there's still hope and love for the world after her husband died, and she volunteered to adopt the baby. Jill, however, thinks this isn't a good plan. This brilliant novel alternates the perspectives of these two troubled teenagers, and how each of them ultimately finds what she needs. Zarr is, by far, one of my favorite authors. She does an excellent job of showing how messy most lives really are, and how complex it can be to relate to another person. Both girls, Jill and Mandy, really moved me. How to Save a Life is a beautiful and honest story. It made me pause and think about the way I see things. Even though this is the first book that I've read by Zarr, I'm sure it won't be the last!—Jenny C., age 17 This article originally appeared in School Library Journal's enewsletter SLJTeen. Subscribe here.<
Gr 9 Up—At Sacred Heart boarding school in Alaska, students come from all walks of life from around the state to further their educations. This novel tracks the lives of a few of those students—Luke, an Inupiaq Eskimo; Chikie, who is white, but was raised as an Eskimo; Sonney, who's an Indian and whose schooling was paid for by scientists; and Amiq, the leader of the Eskimo students. After Luke's little brother is taken from him at the beginning of the school year by the school's nuns and given to a family in America, Luke enlists the help of his other brother, Bumma, and his newfound friends at Sacred Heart and works desperately to find him.
Gr 7 Up—Without Tess is a heartbreaking novel about two sisters, Lizzie and Tess, who love each other more than anything. When they're little, Lizzie looks up to, respects, and even envies Tess because of her extremely vivid imagination; Tess can take her anywhere with her words alone. As they grow older, though, Lizzie begins to move away from that fantasy world and into reality, but Tess refuses. She wants to stay away from the real world and just live in her imagination, with selkies and pegasuses.
Gr 6–11—In The Phantom Limb, readers meet a young boy named Isaac, who's living with his crazy grandpa while his mother is in the hospital. He discovers a mirror box that was designed to help amputees. Mysteriously, a phantom limb reaches out to him from the box. From the limb, he learns that his mother's life is in danger. With this mirror box, he sees his life turning around for the better as he solves the mysteries of the box and saves his mom from danger.
Gr 8 Up—During the long hot weeks of summer, all Lou can think about is escaping—then an unexpected accident involving her father's health gives Lou just that. But it isn't the kind of escape she was dreaming of. Lou is forced to leave her father and live with the mother that never wanted her. During her stay there, Lou looks for reasons as to why her mother never wanted her and left her dad.
Jill MacSweeney's life is going downhill: her father has recently passed away—she has lost her best friend, who has always given her support and inspiration. Now, she keeps her distance from the very people she was most comfortable with. Jill wants to make sure that nothing will ever replace her father's absence.
