Messed Up

Messed Up by Janet Nichols Lynch

We meet the adorable R.D. who happens to be stuck in limbo in the San Joaquin Valley school system. He's repeating 8th grade again and he is sick of seeing the same old crap day after day. Those who wear red and blue find ways to hide it under their clothes and they fight each other for no reason at all. On the first day of school R.D. gets suspended for helping a teacher break up a fight. One tiny girl is getting her rear kicked by a much bigger girl and R.D. feels bad for the little girl. He later regrets helping her because now she thinks that he is her man. In the meantime, R.D. is living with his grandmother's boyfriend Earl who takes really good care of him, but Grandma is off doing the town with her new boyfriend Hairy. Also, to make matters worse his mom is in the State Pen. Then things get much worse than having a mom in prison. Earl up and dies on R.D. and he's afraid to let anyone know because he knows he will end up in an orphanage and who will want to adopt him? He's part Mexican and part Cheyenne and he thinks that's quite a mixture. I love this story because this kid has got a great heart. He does some messed up things, but he is just trying to get by in life and some how- some way- you just feel like this guy will do great things. He figures out how to take care of himself, feed himself, make money and he also takes care of Earl's burial in a kind and loving way that not even Earl's sister would do for him. R.D. is one heck of a great main character and I think that the author really brings to light the difficulties of growing up in hard times and in diverse communities. He also ends up making some great friends and deep connections that will last beyond this book. I really enjoyed the end of the book and wished that it would not end and that I could go on hearing about how R.D. is doing from time to time. R.D. reminds me of many of the kids that I work with in my library and I know that if you give a kid a chance they will overcome their adversities. I love that the author allowed R.D. to achieve his highest heights!

The Summoning

The Summoning by Kelley Armstrong

This book is a nice twist on the girl meets ghost and freaks out story. Our heroine is Chloe Saunders who at first has no idea that she has the power to see ghosts and to make contact with them. After a surprise visit from a burned up custodian ghost at her school she has fit and flips out. She can't figure out why this scary dude is chasing her. When she fights to get away from the teachers and principal, she is taken out in a straight jacket and sent to the hospital. Poor Chloe, the doctors think that she is crazy and she herself isn't quite sure if she is or not. She is sent to a home for mentally ill teens called Lyle House and it's there that she realizes that there are other kids that have special abilities too. She really likes Liz, but Liz can't control her special power and she is taken away. Suddenly, Chloe starts to see Liz in ghost form and she is very alarmed. Simon is the cute guy that has a unique power that is usually undetected by others. Derek is the huge neanderthal dude that has everyone wondering if he can control his temper and he is eating all the time. Tori is of course the nasty nemesis of Chloe, although she doesn't really know that Tori has a power and we don't find out what that power is in this book. I hope the sequel will prove to be as exciting and as interesting as this first book in the Darkest Powers series by Armstrong.

The characters are great in this book and Chloe has a strong personality that the reader can really fall in love with. She is caring, sweet and strong willed. Derek is very likable even though you feel like he might be a bad guy you can't help but feel that he has strong feelings for Chloe. As you learn more about the supernaturals you find that each one has a unique power. Chloe seems to have one of the strongest powers as she can summon the dead which as Derek says is called a necromancer. It was Garth Nix's Sabriel that first got my attention with necromancers being in the spotlight. Sabriel was able to go into the world of the dead and fight them off. Chloe is able to talk to the dead. She has to be very careful because she can actually bring them into our world.

I highly recommend this book to anyone that likes a good story that revolves around mystery and intrigue and yes especially if you like ghosts and creepy things that go bump in the night. Watch out for the click clack click clack!

Bad Girls Don't Die

Bad Girls Don't Die by Katie Alender

Allright! Cue the creepy eerie ghost music right now. This book rocks the house with it's creepy haunted house, scary deaths, brakes being cut, possessed little sister, and main heroine with hot pink hair! I didn't quite know what to expect with this one but I was really pleased by the end. The story starts out with Alexis who is kind of wannabe bad girl. She is trying to not get hurt by the preps at school so she's striking out and becoming the bad girl before they can even say anything bad about her. She is cutting class and has dyed her hair bright pink all in the efforts of showing the school that no one tells her what to do. Meanwhile, back at home she has parents that don't pay any attention to her. Mom is a workaholic and Dad watches sports on t.v. to block out that his wife is always at work. She has a little sister named Kelsey who really annoys everyone with her whining and sensitivity and she's totally obsessed with dolls and wow is that creepy. So one night Kelsey is wigging out about Mom's lack of mothering and Alexis tries to comfort her but instead she is taken over by this weird story that she starts telling Kelsey and she has no idea where this is coming from. The story goes on and on and mentions all kinds of people and it takes place at the house they live in and then bam! the girl in the story dies. Ok, so anyway not too long later Kelsey starts acting absolutely whackadoo and the next morning Dad almost dies because the brakes in the car have been cut. Come to find out later... Kelsey is being possessed by a super evil ghost that lives in the house. I like this book because there is a lot of depth to the characters and as you get to know Alexis you find that she is a very strong girl and she can and will do anything to fight off this evil spirit. She also bonds with one of the cheerleaders who she hated before and this is all because of a common bond that they have which you find out about later in the story. And, Alexis finds that she gets along really well with a boy that runs into her head with a door. For some reason she has been trying to fight off forming friendships with people and now it seems that she has to trust others in order to get rid of the evil spirit. I really recommend this book because it is a suspenseful mystery and an awesomely creepy ghost story.

The Chosen One

The Chosen One by Carol Lynch Williams

Oh wow this one is intense. The book takes you on a journey through the eyes of a 13 year old girl named Kyra who lives in a community of polygamists. Now she of course doesn't really know any other way of life. But through the course of the book she starts to learn that she lives a very different life than others on the outside. Her life is pretty fine with one dad, 3 mothers and 20 siblings. However, one day the head of their community, he's called The Prophet comes to their house to speak to her dad. In a very distressful meeting Kyra finds out that she is to be married to her 60 year old uncle. He already has 6 wives and she will be the 7th. That's when the story heats up and we find out that Kyra will do anything she can to not marry her uncle. She also has a love interest in a boy close to her own age named Joshua and he wants to try to talk The Prophet out of marrying Kyra off. Things do not turn out well for the two young people and they are both beaten badly. That's when you find out that the community they live in has a lot of secrets and a lot of control over their people. It's all a very sad story when Kyra decides to run away she can't even do that because they catch her and bring her back. It has been said that if you try to run away they might even kill you. The story has a bitterweet ending that does show you that Kyra has been saved but the price she has to pay is very very dear. I recommend this book because it is not only shocking but very intense to find out that people actually do live in this kind of setting and practice the same beliefs. I would have to say that this book definitely opened my eyes to different ways of living.

The Comet's Curse

The Comet's Curse by Dom Testa

I was very excited to read this book. It has a lot going for it. The scenario is that a terrible and deadly comet that makes anyone over the age of 18 get very sick and eventually die. So that's it, the end of the world is near. The book flashes back and forward from the present to the past so we can get an idea of how things got to be the way they are. We find out that a man decided that he was not going to let the human race die out and created what they called the Galahad. 251 teenagers were selected and trained for two years in preparation for a five year journey to a distant planet on the Galahad, which was made special for the voyage. The teens have to be very responsible, actually as responsible as aduts because they are in charge and not one of them is older than sixteen.

This is a very good story and it reminds me a lot of Star Trek and The Next Generation. The reader is pulled in emotionally by the characters and how they have had either a loss in their lives or how they are cut off from everyone. The five main chaaracters called the Council are specially appealing, their dialogue is hip and sounds authentic, and we get to share their very realistic emotional responses to this life and death situation - having to leave their home, parents, etc. and find ways to cope with the huge responsibilities they must take on.

Eon Dragoneye Reborn

Eon Dragoneye Reborn by Allison Goodman


The lead character in the book is 12 year-old Eon who has had some serious setbacks, his leg is mangled, and he has many deep dark secrets that he is holding on to. However, all might not appear as it seems once you get step into Eon's world. Eon’s master Brannon has trained him well to become an apprentice Dragoneye. When Eon tries out he finds he has much more power than anyone ever thought he had. Dragoneyes are the lucky 12 chosen to be the human link to the dragons of magic or Hua that are represented in the twelve year cycle of power beginning with Rat, Ox, Tiger, Rabbit, Dragon, Snake, Horse, Goat, Monkey, Rooster, Dog and Pig. Each year, the ascendant dragon chooses a new apprentice to be trained in this magic. The magic of the dragons is a power used to keep monsoons at bay, minimize earthquakes and keep the well being of the Empire. As Eon ascends into a royal state of court, he tries to hold on to his secret. However, when the evil Lord Ido seeks to destroy Eon things get pretty dangerous. Eon must turn to his new friends he has made to help him stay alive. With his secret dangling in the wind his and their lives are all at stake. This book takes you on an exciting journey through the world that Eon lives in and shows you how the power of one’s own self worth can actually help you achieve a winning hand.

The setting is quite mystical and has you visualizing colorful auras of Chinese dragons and 12 tweens trying to harness the power of these mystical beings. This book is fast-paced and full of exciting surprises. Eon goes beyond the normal fantasy book because it encompasses so much more in a world that does not exist yet has many similarities of the world we know. It starts out with Eon as a boy who is hiding a secret and a lame leg and transcends to an epic saga of a girl who finally realizes that she must stop hiding her true identity to prevail and that takes more courage than she ever knew she had.

Wintergirls

I'm back!! I read a lot of books over the winter break and I have been inspired to start reading again on a weekly basis.


Wintergirls by Laurie Halse Anderson

This is an amazing book. The writing is excellent and the story is extremely gripping. Basically you'll be on the edge of your seat while reading this book. It is the story of Lia who is a senior in high school. Lia suffers terribly from anorexia and she hurts herself by cutting. She has already been in the hospital for her sickness and she is under careful watch by her dad and step-mom. She has to be weighed everyday and she has to try to stay at a healthy weight. Lia has visions of weighing less than 80 pounds and she sneaks around at night doing exercises and starves herself. She has no idea that she is hurting herself to the point of nearly dying. Meanwhile, we find out that Lia's best friend Cassie has died mysteriously and everyone including Lia is wondering what really happened. Lia goes back to the place where Cassie died, which actually spurs her to start to go into a backward spiral. Can Lia turn her life around? It will take more than just hope and wishes. She will have to make the choice herself and build up all the trust that she has lost from her family.

I highly recommend this book as it touches on a very serious and disturbing disorder that is now not only related to young women, as is reaching out and affecting young men as well.

Long time no blog

Wow, I can't believe I haven't been on since January. So much has been happening I can't quite believe it myself. I start a MLIS program in January and it basically took up all my time. Work has been very busy for the last two months and I haven't had much time to do any reading really. We had a book fair in May and I was able to read a few good books during that week. One of the books that I highly recommend is a novel called The Godmother. I was entrance with this book and I think that it's a really good read. I am currently reading The Ghost Huntress by Marley Gibson and this is really good as well. It's a modern day girl can hear ghosts story that's got all the chills and thrills like The Sixth Sense. I am going to be off of work for the summer and I will be reading a box of books that I received from a bookstore. I look forward to posting their reviews!

Looking Beyond Fantasy

I had a student ask me the other day to recommend a book for him to read. I asked him what subjects he liked and he said he didn’t know. I asked what other books he had read that he liked and again he didn’t know. I knew that I was going to be digging deep on this one and trying to figure out the just right book for this guy. He finally decided that he liked fantasy and proceeded to ask me if I knew what the book about “dust” was called. Immediately my brain was searching for a book about dust – hmmm let’s see is it "The Golden Compass"? The student was astonished. He asked me how did I figure that out just by me saying “dust”? Well, I have read the book and love it very much and I know that Lyra is a journey in search of dust. When I read the book a few years ago I was amazed by the cosmic references to dust and how it related so much with my master’s degree in Consciousness Studies which was all about the “dust”. But to my dismay the student did not want to read "The Golden Compass".

So, the search was on again. We talked about "The Alchemyst" by Michael Scott and "The Graveyard Book" by Neil Gaiman and even "The Lightning Thief" by Rick Riordan but none of these tickled his fancy. It was in a desperate moment that the student asked me, “What is your favorite book?” I knew I better search my mental favorite book list and think about this very carefully. Taking in the statistics, 8th grade student, looking for book probably with action and adventure and then it hit me! One of my favorite books is "Ender’s Game" by Orson Scott Card would you like to take a look at it? As the student read the back of the book I heard him saying oh aliens and oh this looks good. And then I told him the best thing of all is that it has an ending that will jump out and grab you. You will be totally surprised at the outcome. He looked inside the book and saw the chapter Thirds and had a very quizzical look on his face. I said you have to read about the thirds it’s so cool. And that was that. He was hooked on the book and I can’t wait to hear back from him to see his reactions on one of my all time favorite book.

The great thing about science fiction is that it can really captivate the fantasy lover as well. There are so many great elements in science fiction that you don’t see in fantasy. Some of the main elements are technology and invention, which are weaved into the story and it may be set in the future or the past, and includes all time travel. The cool thing about science fiction is that it can be set on other planets, dimensions, and can include catastrophes or natural or manmade disasters. I believe the main point of this genre is to allow the reader to draw conclusions on the characters and how the scientific possibilities affect their fictitious world. Also, the interesting factor in science fiction is that it introduces ideas that are wild and out there that can include the past or present.

The difference between science fiction and fantasy is that the latter is a world that does not exist in our reality. In other words, it is a place that is made up and is imaginary and its existence will never be possible. A few ideas that go hand in hand with science fiction are the point of disconnection from our life which is considered mainly normal and in the science fiction world we would say that way of life is not normal such as robots or machines coming alive or travelling through time and getting stuck in Dracula’s castle. The other point in science fiction that makes it stand out from the other genres is the understanding that as the whole planet Earth is connected as a race, we are also constantly moving forward with technology and really this advancement has progress massively over the last ten years. We are also always trying to find ways to move forward in finding cures to diseases and making ourselves live longer and this plays into a lot of ideas for many new science fiction books such as, Life As We Knew It by Susan Beth Pfeffer, "The Adoration of Jenna Fox" by Mary Pearson and "Double Identity" by Margaret Peterson Haddix. Now, I just want to say that I am a big fan of the fantasy genre and it seems to be the area that I enjoy reading the most. However, I feel that science fiction offers an interesting alternative to fantasy and gives the readers much satisfaction in knowing that there is something else out there. Cue the weird space odyssey music - ooh eee ooh.

Love & Vampires

In "Breaking Dawn" by Stephenie Meyer, our beloved Bella finally is forced to make the most ultimate and final choice in her life. She and Edward are married in old world style with the help of her true friend Alice. While Bella and Edward are honeymooning Bella begins to feel very ill and their trip is cut short when she feels that there is something growing inside of her. The tension of the story grows as the little "nudge" grows larger and larger itself. The chain of events from this point on lead up to the most amazing transformation I have ever seen in a character. Let’s just say that Bella becomes the main focus of the story and her drive to protect not only Edward and her family but any other vampires that support her family is truly incredible. I have to say that I have heard and read negative reviews of this book and I do not agree with those reviews. I think that "Twilight" fans will find all that they have been waiting for in this final installment of the series. There is a complete and solid ending and everyone in this story does end up happy and that's what I had really wanted for all these wonderful characters that Stephenie Meyer has created. Will Bella’s dream of spending an eternal life with Edward finally come true? I can’t tell you that! It’s up to you to read this book to draw the conclusions yourself. With a mighty bit of blood and ewww the story really lends itself to the true nature of what being a vampire must really be like. This book leaves me thinking that for the vampire the blood is the most motivating goal and that love is the unending desire to protect those you love.

He Aint Just Nobody

"The Graveyard Book" by Neil Gaiman is one of the most refreshing books I have read in a long time. We begin with an eerie story about how a horrible man murders a family quietly sleeping in their home. However, the man can’t seem to find the baby who has mysteriously slipped out of the house and into the graveyard across the street. When the baby is found by a pair of old married ghosts in the graveyard they decide to raise him and call him Nobody Owens. Now, he must stay in the graveyard because the terrible man named Jack is the one that killed his whole family and he is still after him. At any time he could strike terror in the graveyard. As Nobody grows up he begins to refer to himself as "Bod". Bod has a good time at the graveyard and makes many ghostly friends. He also makes friends with Scarlet who happens to be the exact same age as he is. Sadly, though Scarlet thinks that Bod is a ghost and her parents make her move far away. As time goes on, Bod grows into a strapping young boy and must face his worst and greatest fear, the man called Jack. He is prone to going on many interesting and ridiculous journeys that always bring him straight back to the graveyard. Will Bod ever get out of the graveyard and live a normal life? This book is a fun and intriguing tale that will definitely have you rooting for Nobody Owens.

Get the Doll Rolling

Decapitated doll heads and aliens are the focus in "Carlos Is Gonna Get It" by Kevin Emerson. Trina and her friend Sara are really tired of Carlos and his strange antics. It seems like 6th grade couldn’t get any worse except that it can when Carlos has one of his “Day After” episodes. Trina can usually tell when it’s going to happen right away. Carlos comes into class late and then he starts to fall all over the floor and on top of his classmates.

The problem is not that Carlos is so clumsy; no it’s that Carlos says he is visited by aliens at night. This makes the class think he’s so weird that no one wants him near them.

Tired of all of the alien talk and crazy outburst, Trina and her friends begin to hatch a plan that they think will teach Carlos a lesson. The plan is to teach Carlos a lesson that he will never forget.

Unfortunately, as the plan is being mapped out Trina and Carlos get hooked up as science partners. They are assigned to do an oral presentation on any subject they like. Trina’s reaction to finding out that Carlos is her partner is not a pretty one. She is really upset. Her friends think this is perfect because Trina can learn more about Carlos so they can execute their plan.

When Trina visits Carlos at home she sees that his home life is not so great. He has a little sister who bites the heads off of dolls and a teenage cousin who babysits them while his mom works. Trina starts to feel sorry for Carlos and that means that she really starts to question the need to continue with the plan.

After a lot of hard work, Trina and Carlos are ready for their presentation. Carlos has drawn some great pictures and is prepared for his part of the talk but something goes drastically wrong and Carlos has a meltdown right there in class in front of everyone. Trina is humiliated and vows never to speak to him again and she immediately thinks to herself – the plan is on!

Taking into consideration the difficulties that young adults face in middle school and the challenges of fitting in this book covers a lot of emotions that many people can relate to. The issues that Trina is faced with and the decision that she makes will decide her fate as well. Can she live with the consequences that the plan leaves her with? Can Carlos help himself for things he says and does? Read this book to find out and watch out for aliens and flying doll heads!

If He Looks Guilty Is He Guilty?

"Falling From Grace" by Jane Godwin in an amazing mystery that will have you on the edge of your seat right from the start. Sisters Grace and Annie are trying to help a dying penguin on the beach at Point Nepean in Australia. Grace and Annie are 11 months apart and for one month out of the year they are the same age so at the time they are both 12. On the other side of the beach 14 year old Kip is dealing with his own issues, his thoughts, his feelings on being a teenager, and then there is this strange man that appears from nowhere. The man says his name is Ted and he’s bleeding and in need of help.

These young people’s stories collide when Kip finds a backpack in the water with a ringing cell phone. Kip drastically changes the course of his destiny when he answers the phone and hears the panicked voice of Grace and Annie’s father on the other end. Back at the point, Annie has lost Grace, there is a heavy mist and Grace has fallen through the sand on a cliff. Annie panics as well and runs home to find her father.

Kip’s life becomes a whirlwind of secrets, lies, and grunge rock. After the police begin to interrogate him, he begins to look very guilty in the eyes of everyone including his own parents. The police have been searching for days for Grace, but they have not found her. There were only a few clues, her pants were found on the beach with blood stains and her backpack that Kip said he found.

Finally, Kip has had it with all eyes focused on him and decides to try to find Grace himself. It would be a miracle if Grace was alive. Told in the perspective of mainly Annie and Kip, this book is riveting. It rocks you to the core and is sure to have you wondering – did Kip really do it???

Protons Do Die

In "Smiles To Go" by Jerry Spinelli,
Will has so much going
for him
He is a chess champ,
skateboarder,
monopoly lover,
stargazer,
proton thinker,
He even contemplates
his existence in the
Universe
So why does he
Find it so hard
To deal with
His
Little
SISTER!

Vlad Might Be Glad

In "The Book of Time" by Guillaume Prevost, Sam is on a mission to find his father who’s been missing for 10 days. Searching through his father’s things, Sam finds an old book, a strange statue, and an ancient coin with a hole in it. After he inserts the coin in the statue he is transported through time to a place called Iona during Medieval times. Trying to escape Vikings he lands in France during World War I, then in ancient Egypt. After he returns, Sam realizes that his father must be stuck in the past and as he looks at the old book he sees on every single page the castle of Vlad Tepes a.k.a. Dracula. The book is very captivating and readers will be scrambling for the second book of the planned trilogy.

Tricky Tricky That's Not Nice

In "Runemarks" by Joanne Harris, it’s been five hundred year since the gods fought at Ragnarok which was an epic war between the Norse gods. A new group called the Order took over and has put everything back into place, but the only thing it’s their view of what is wrong and what is right so basically it's their way or the highway. Maddy Smith was born with a copper mark on her hand which makes her an outcast or a witch you might say. When she meets a friend whom she calls One Eye, she asks him to teach her about the gods and her mark which is called a runemark. After several years of teachings and conversations Maddy is faced with a dilemma. One Eye wants Maddy to open Red Horse Hill and descend into World Below to retrieve something called the Whisperer. He tells her if she fails, it is likely to be another Ragnarok. Hesitantly she decides to go on her quest. Her first meeting is with a intensely nervous goblin named Sugar-and-Sack. He rants about how the General is going to be so mad that she is down there and that she needs to get out fast. Maddy ignores the terrified goblin and continues on her way. Further on she meets a strange boy with fiery red hair. The boy seems to trick her into giving up her plan to find the Whisperer. Well, trick is the perfect word for this character because in reality he is no other than the Norse god Loki. Loki and Maddy seem to have very much in common and as time goes on you will find that there is a long lost secret that binds not only Loki and Maddy, but One Eye as well. Will Maddy have what it takes to stop a return Ragnarok and will she find out her true calling? This book is an epic tale that delves into the heart of Norse mythology with excellent characters such as Loki the trickster, Hel of the Underworld and Odin the General. A true believer of mythology will really wrap their minds around this one.

Rain brings new beginnings

My oh my, I just finished The Day of Tears today and I must say it was quite wonderful. The book was written in diaglogue and was a touching story of many different individuals that were slaves. The people in the story were such strong personalities and I found myself becoming very emotional in many different parts of the book. One of the parts that touched me the most is one a young girl named Emma was sold to a woman who lived in Kentucky and she was not allowed to say goodbye to her mother and for the rest of her life she never saw her mother or father again. I highly recommend this book to young adults to read. It is a wonderful display of literature and I wouldn't be surprised if it won the California Young Reader Medal.

The new job is going really well. I will be doing my first booktalk tomorrow and I am excited and a bit nervous as I always am when embarking on new challenges. The theme I am presenting is love, so it should be fun for the students. I am also doing more booktalks next week on historical fiction and biographies/autobiographies.

Got to be real

In Rules, by Cynthia Lord, Catherine is a twelve year old girl who thinks that she must have rules for her brother David who has autism so he will not embarrass her in front of people. This story has so many heart- tugging moments such as when she strikes up a friendship with a boy who can’t talk and volunteers to write picture cards with words for his communication book. Catherine is a deep and thoughtful girl who learns a lot from her new friend Jason. Read this book to find out if Catherine will rewrite her rules or completely throw them out to start a new way of thinking and living all together.

King Arthur is the bomb diggity

Jane Yolen’s Sword of the Rightful King is an imaginative reinvention of the old legend of King Arthur. The book includes familiar character such as Arthur, Merlin, Morgause, and Gawaine. There are also elements of the traditional story, which include the trusty sword in the stone Caliburn and Thomas Malory’s wonderful phrase "He so pulleth the sword from the stone" is mentioned as well. Yolen manages to revise this legend and turn it into an original that works for a younger audience without any silliness or modern day slang. Read this book and you will experience a bit of magic, treachery, and romance, and you will also find out who pulls the sword from the stone this time.

Dreams are Fierce

In Gossamer by Lois Lowry, Littlest One creeps around in the middle of the night practicing dream-giving on an elderly woman and her sleeping dog. Toby is training to be a dream-giver, which is someone who gathers shreds of memories and gives them back as dreams. Then the elderly woman takes in a foster child who is an eight-year old boy named John. Littlest One now has to take on a great challenge, she must try to help John with his bad dreams. This book is an interesting fantasy that offers a clever view on how dreams can help us heal. This book can help us all to open up to our dreams, and not be afraid of our nightmares.

Catcher in the Fly

King Dork by Frank Portman is a fun and crazy story about a young man named Tom Henderson who doesn’t even go by his real name. He was nicknamed Chi Mo in the 7th grade and no one calls him anything else. Tom happens to find his recently deceased dad’s copy of the Catcher in the Rye and his life begins to change. He thinks that he sees little tips and signs of long forgotten code that maybe his dad left for someone to figure out. Tom discovers lots of exciting things like how much fun making out with a girl is and also how to play a guitar and rock with a band even if they are losers. Finally, in the end Tom accidentally becomes a hero. Read ths book to find how he becomes a hero and to find out if gets the mystery girl he’s been dreaming of.

From Riches to Rags

Esperanza Rising is about a young girl named Esperanza that was born into a privileged family. Esperanza lives a fine life with beautiful clothes and dolls on a ranch that has gorgeous roses on it. In the beginning of the story she and her family seem to have a close relationship, all intertwined within each other. Her father Sixto is portrayed as a kind man that looks out for his family and loves his homeland. Her mother Ramona is portrayed as a dignified woman that likes to cook and throw parties. There is also Abuelita the grandmother who is portrayed as all knowing and she totally adores Esperanza.

Esperanza’s parents are extremely giving to Alfonso and Hortensia the couple that works for them. There is a relationship there that is deeper than it looks. Alfonso and Hortensia are deeply devoted to Esperanza and her parents. Their son Miguel is also very connected to Esperanza, for even at a young age she said she was going to marry him. Pam Munoz Ryan gives us a feeling of contentment and love that this family and extended family share on the Rancho de las Rosas.

The way this book begins you would think of it as a fairytale world for a girl and her family that seems as if it will never end. Then, after her father is tragically killed Esperanza has to totally redefine her entire life as she loses everything that she has ever known. When her uncles show up they are mean, soulless creatures that only want to take over her land and take her mother as well. These men are depicted as ruthless and cruel and they will not stop at anything to get what they want. They even burn down Esperanza’s house and threaten to send her away to boarding school. The uncles’ behavior is completely oppressive and in the beginning of the story they have total control over Ramona and Esperanza.

Esperanza’s mother must come up with a plan to escape from the tyranny of the uncles. With the help of Alfonso and Hortensia, Ramona and Esperanza are able to sneak out of Aguacalientes and off to California to live and to work with Alfonso’s cousin Juan. However, they must leave Abuelita behind because she been hurt and can’t travel. When they arrive in California and see how the Mexican families live it is very surprising. They living conditions are poor and there are absolutely no amenities like Esperanza had at home. She and her mother have to share a bed and they live in a little cabin. Her family has now changed and Esperanza, Ramona, Hortensia, Alfonso, Miguel, as well as Juan, Josefina, Isabel, and the babies are all one big family. They are all concerned about one thing and that is doing whatever it takes to keep the family with a roof over their heads and food on the table.

Esperanza is not willing to admit that she is no longer rich. She continues to hang on to the doll that her father gave her and she thinks that she will be able to go back to her old life very soon. When she finds out that she has to take care two babies and sweep a platform while the adults go to work she has a meeting with reality. She has never had to take care of anybody, not even her own self. Ramona must also go to work with Hortensia and the other women. The women in the story go to pack fruits in the sheds and the men pick the fruit in the fields. Miguel must also look for work with the railroad and even though he is a skilled mechanic he is passed by for good jobs because of his ethnicity.

The main character of this story is definitely Esperanza and the main emphasis is how she deals with her plight of being rich and becoming penniless. To add to her pain, her mother becomes very ill after a big dust storm hits the area. Ramona becomes weak and depressed and she must be hospitalized. Here is where we see Esperanza step up and take on the role of responsibility for herself and her mother. Her motivation is that she will work with the women make money so she can bring Abuelita to California to help her mother get better.

Through working and achieving a sense of her own self, Esperanza begins to see the world in a realistic view. She can see that justice is not always given, but that each person can make a difference in his or her own way. I believe that Esperanza accomplishes more than she ever dreamed of. Yes, she may miss her old life but she has built a new one and that one includes her being able to be with Miguel on a level of equality which she would have never had before back in Aguacalientes.

This story is very inspiring and also wonderfully written. Esperanza is a great role model and I think children could identify with her and want to overcome obstacles as she did. When reading the book children might feel sad or sorry for her because so many awful things happen to her. However the bad things that did happen like the death of her father, being driven out of her homeland, leaving Abuelita behind, her mother’s illness, working in the sheds, being looked down upon by others are all experiences that help Esperanza to grow and learn about herself.

Pam Munoz Ryan wrote this book from stories she had heard about the life of her own grandmother when she was a young girl. She mentioned in the Author’s Note that her grandmother had told about when she grew up in Mexico and how she had been rich and then had to move to California to work on a farm camp. Esperanza’s story is fictional, but Ms. Ryan took some of the names and places from her grandmother’s childhood. The main point is that the author is familiar with this time period called the “Mexican Repatriation” and wanted to write about it because there is not much literature that focuses on Mexicans and Mexican-Americans. This story had a very balanced approach because it told of how some families immigrated to the U.S. and how they lived in camps and worked in the fields.
Esperanza Rising was published in 2000. Ms. Ryan did a wonderful job relating the way that a young woman would have to acclimate from living a privileged life to having to start life all over again. She did not use any loaded words and I think she portrayed the Mexican culture in an extremely dignified and elegant way. The way that she portrayed the strength of the characters and their love for one another was really intense. I also thought that there was a great intensity with many of the thoughtful things that the characters did like when Alfonso and Miguel replanted the roses outside the cabin in California. That was such a sweet and touching thing to do. When Miguel secretly took off to Mexico to get Abuelita and bring her back to California I knew that there was a bond between he and Esperanza that could never be broken no matter what. These were acts of love that really spoke to me in this story.

I can see your aura

Move over Mean Girls there's a newer and better story in town! I just finished reading the book Golden by Jennifer Lynn Barnes. This book is really fantastic. The story begins with a girl named Lissy James who's mother and grandmother have what they call the Sight. The Sight comes in different form and Lissy's happens to be that she can see people’s auras. She sees different shades of colors like purple, green, blue, and the worst and evilest of all an aura with no color at all. Lissy has to move from California to Oklahoma and start a new life with her family and when she arrives in town she meets the girls who call themselves Golden and believe me, they make the girls in the movie Mean Girls look like pussycats! On the first day of school, Lissy realizes that her aura power is becoming stronger and she now has the power to make auras connect. Another problem for Lissy is that when she sees her math teacher she sees that awful colorless aura she call garn. His aura is so evil that it makes her sick to her stomach. What could have made his aura so awful? And, are there forces of evil at work at her new school? This is a really intriguing book with powerful images of extra sensory perception and other magical qualities that might just jump out and grab you. I think you might want to add this book to your Spring reading list!

Take a bite out of this one!

Vampire High by Douglas Rees is a nominee for the California Young Readers Award.
In this story, Cody Elliot is a self-destructive flunk out who is quickly on his way to becoming a high school drop out. His Father is sick and tired of his smart mouth and ridiculous tactics and gives him the choice of going to Our Lady of Perpetual Homework or Vlad Dracul Magnet School. Cody decides to go Vlad Dracul because the idea of perpetual homework just does not sit well with him. Maybe he should have thought his decision over a little better. What ever do you think the Dracul stands for? Cody finds out quickly that the students at Vlad Dracul are definitely not the same as he is. Slowly, he realizes that his fellow classmates are vampires and that his view of vampires was not quite correct. Cody makes friends with Justin and Ileana who have been long time childhood friends. Quirky and silly at times, this book has the essence of a hero that just didn’t know that he was until he puts forth the effort to succeed. Highlighted in the story are the drunken swim coach, the belligerent headmaster, the annoying bully vampire, and the mysterious wolf that follows Cody around campus. Read this book and find out how Cody saves the swim team from disaster and puts Vlad Dracul on the map!

The Fair Ones

In legends and folk lore, fairies are magical beings who can sometimes be seen by humans, they can be friendly, and quite often they behave impishly. The name fairies means the fair ones and they hail mainly from England and Ireland. Presently you can find a lot of fairies in children’s literature because they are a great source of fun and are very imaginative. Authors can place fairies in different worlds with numerous amounts of magical powers and powerful lessons that can be learned from fairies. One author brought fairies into New York City and had them peddling fairy drugs. However, that was not always so. Fairies in the past were feared as dangerous and powerful beings who could often be very cruel.

Morgan LeFay was known to be a cruel and malicious fairy. She was the half sister of King Arthur and she was said to have sought after him for most of his life. She lay in wait for him and stole Excalibur and changed herself into a rock so he couldn’t find her. She tried many times to kill her own half brother. In the end, it was said that she took Arthur away to Avalon after their son Mordred mortally wounded him in battle.

It was said that fairies would also carry off babies and leave their own sick babies in their place. The sick fairy child is called a changeling. The strange thing is that the changeling did not look like a human child so the parents knew right away that something was wrong.It is thought that the fairies lived in our world and were hidden under rocks or in streams nearby. They had tricks too such as when they danced in a circle if a human joined in they would never be able to break the circle and they could never stop dancing.

Different fairies have different powers. Some like Morgan Le Fay have what is called foresight, which means they can see into the future. Some can grant wishes and worst of all some send out curses for any reason they feel suits them. There have been stories in Ireland about fairies that appear and ask for food. If they are denied then they will curse the person for life. Fairies are also interconnected with the names little people, elves, gnomes, leprechauns, and witches.

Fairies have been around for many hundreds of years in some form or another. The idea of fairies was made popular in Europe in the Dark Ages and was used to describe fairy women lovers that appeared in the night, similar beings have existed in both folklore and written literature for thousands of years. This is the time that Sir Thomas Malory wrote his Le Morte De Arthur in which he featured Morgan LeFay as the fairy witch that enticed King Arthur and his knight. Today in England, Ireland, and Scotland they stand true to their fairy ties and keep the fairy legends in mind as they are never sure who might be lurking nearby in a cave or a bog.

Gods & Goddesses

Today is a dark and stormy day! I am reminded that the Greek gods and goddesses are a source of infinite wisdom. With that in mind I would like to recommend the book Greece, Rome, Monsters by John Harris. In this great book, twenty mythical monsters are featured along with a supporting cast of gods, goddesses, heroes, and heroines. The book begins with a warning telling you that you are about to embark into the land of creepy creatures. There is the Basilisk, if you see him run for your life! Keep away from the Cyclops, he’s a very big and very mean guy. You’ll not want to look at Medusa because there’s that poor option of turning to stone. The book does offer a few nice creatures such as, Pegasus the beautiful white horse with wings, and the fiery Phoenix who is reborn out of the ashes over and over again. Calef Brown’s artwork is fun and playful with shades of sour-apple green, turquoise blue and terracotta orange.

Of course, this brings on a surge of memories of The Lightening Thief featuring the notorious and wonderous Percy Jackson. Our hero, as A.D.D. as he is , is always finding a ways to get nasty creatures to chase after him. Percy soon finds out that his life as he knew it is not really the truth. He has been cloistered away from the world of gods and goddesses in which he really should be involved with since he is related to one of the most famous gods of all. As Percy learning how to deal with his new half godliness, he decides to go on a quest to find out who has stolen Zues' lightening rod. The book is excellent and full of great surprises. You'll want to read this one just to catch up on your Greek Mythology!

Pumpkin Queen Girl

I know that October has passed and we have long moved on from Halloween, however I recently I had the extreme pleasure of reading this sweet book. I think it is a definite keeper and could be quite special for any pumpkin lover. I love the fall and I wish I could have pumpkins all year round.To honor her Mother who passed away when she was six, eleven year old Mildred is determined to win the Circleville, Ohio, Pumpkin Show in Me and the Pumpkin Queen by Marlane Kennedy. Unfortunately, something awful always happens to her pumpkins and they turn to mush. Mildred´s obsession with pumpkins alarms her Aunt Arlene so she tries to get Mildred interested in clothes instead of pumpkins. Will Mildred´s dream of growing a prize-winning pumpkin ever come true? This book is a sweet coming-of-age story that also introduces readers to pumpkin growing competitions. As Mildred finds out, it requires much more than luck to produce a thousand pound champion! If you are interested in this topic, take a look at the website featured in the book www.pumpkinshow.com.

Hope this makes you hungry!

My other hope is to start evaluating magical characters in children's literature. This evaluation is going to be called "Magical dudes and chicks in children's literature" and will focus on any character that has magical abilities. This will also include telekinetic and spiritual powers as well. We shall see how this goes! Here is a review I just wrote for work and I hope it makes you hungry and want to read this book as well!

In "The Perfect Hamburger and other Delicious Stories" by Alexander McCall Smith, you get three hilariously cooked up tales all in one book. First, in The Perfect Hamburger, Joe's favorite hamburger joint is going to go out of business unless he can figure out the ingredients for the perfect hamburger. Will he get it right before it's too late? Second, in "The Spaghetti Tangle", John and Nicky would love to eat spaghetti all day long, but instead they get vegetarian dishes. To get a decent meal they enter a recipe contest. When they win a visit to Mr. Pipelli’s spaghetti factory they are thrilled! You'll never guess what happens when they come face to face with the spaghetti spinner! And third, in "The Doughnut Ring", Jim tries to help Mr. Pride by coming up with a fundraiser to sell doughnuts. He decides to send out tons of emails asking for donations. This seems to work, but it soon gets out of control and Jim finds himself practically covered in doughnuts! Will he be able to sell all of his yummy treats, or will he be stuck with the sticky goods forever?

This is the place!

This is the place, this is where it all happens! I am so excited to be writing on my blog again. It has been a long time and I have so much to tell. I have gone on a journey that has exceeded all possibilities. Tomorrow I start a new job that has been a dream of mine for quite a while. I am going to be working in a middle school library. I will be surrounded by young adult books which is so fantastic.

I am hoping for lots of luck on my new adventure, but I'm pretty sure I won't need it!

YA Literature Rules

I am a great fan of Young Adult Literature. I would like to cover YA books that I have read and review if I like them or not, and what I think teens would like or not like about the book. I would also like to highlight YA authors and their current as well as up and coming works. Young adult books fascinate and intrigue me. I am here to tell you that I read at least one young adult book every few weeks and I just can’t get enough! Maybe that’s because I work in a library and I have supreme access to all kinds of wonderful young adult books. I find library books to be like gems you pull out of a lost pirate’s treasure chest and then later you return them to the chest so that someone else can get a chance to experience the joy that you have had.
Some of the books I have read recently are:
Someone Like You by Sarah Dessen Twilight by Stephanie Meyer
Ender’s Game and Speaker for the Dead by Orson Scott Card
Life in the Fat Lane by Cheri Bennett
The Truth about Forever by Sarah Dessing
Artemis Fowl the Opal Deception by Eion Colfer
The First Part Last by Angela Johnson
Inexcusable by Chris Lynch
Poison by Chris Wooding
Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince by J.K. Rowling