My Most Excellent Year by Steve Kluger

My Most Excellent Year by Steve Kluger

Somehow I completely missed this title when it was published, but the cover of the paperback (pictured below) caught my attention in a Spring 2009 catalog, and I'm very glad it did.

My Most Excellent Year  is the story of three high school freshmen, Augie, T.C., and Alejandra.  T.C. and Augie have been best friends since they were six years old (soon after T.C.'s mother died), and are such good friends that they call each other brothers and have become permanent fixtures in each other's households.  Alejandra, the daughter of a Mexican diplomat, is the new girl in town and the object of T.C.'s affections.  Augie is coming to terms with his sexuality and his new crush on his friend Andy. 

This may sound a bit complicated, and it is (and more), but that's really what makes this novel great.  Kluger seems to be making the point that life is complicated, and that family is more than just the people you happen to be related to by blood.    The novel is written primarily in journal entries with IM conversations, e-mails, and other random methods of correspondence interspersed here and there, and this style works perfectly for portraying the intricacies of the relationships between the characters.   I would definitely recommend this novel to teens (and adults), even if they're not particularly interested in baseball!

Readers may also enjoy...

• Other epistolary novels like Jaclyn Moriarty's Feeling Sorry for Celia, The Year of Secret Assignments , and The Murder of Bindy Mackenzie , and  Mark Dunn's Ella Minnow Pea   (which is a bit more absurd, but still one of my favorite novels)
• Other novels about sports, like Dairy Queen and The Off-Season by Catherine Gilbert Murdock (and here's hoping for a third one soon!)
• And other novels about teens and politics (the Kennedy Family plays a rather large role in this one), Wide Awake by David Levithan, Born to Rock by Gordon Korman, and First Daughter: Extreme American Makeover by Mitali Perkins.

Around the blogs:
Reviewer X, The YA YA YAs, Librarilly Blonde, Emily Reads, Bookshelves of Doom, Jen Robinson, Book Dweeb, A Hundred Visions and Revisions, Midwestern Lodestar, Park Ridge Library Children's Staff, Through a Glass, Darkly, worducopia, Snarky Title Not Included, WSU reading now, Erin Reads.  

Graceling by Kristin Cashore

Graceling by Kristin Cashore
I'm always a little wary of reading novels that have been getting a lot of buzz, afraid that they might not live up to my expectations, but like The Hunger Games,  Graceling certainly lived up to the hype.

In the world of the Seven Kingdoms, some children are born with special gifts, or graces.  These children can be easily recognized by the fact that they have two differently colored eyes (Katsa, for example has one green and one blue, while Po has one gold and one silver).  Katsa's grace is one for killing, and her uncle, King Randa, has used her gift to intimidate his adversaries.  Katsa has found her own rebellion, however, and using her powers to help those in need.  As the novel opens, she meets Po, a young man with a grace for fighting, and they form a rather unusual friendship.

I loved it.  I loved the way Cashore depicted the relationship of Katsa and Po and the worries of Katsa that an intimate relationship would, in some way, mean giving up her independence, the idea that marriage is not necessarily the only option for a happy relationship.*  For me, the adventure and action in the novel, as exciting as it is, takes second place to the exploration of Katsa and Po's relationship.

And I'm completely torn between the US and UK covers.   And about whether this should be a teen book or an adult one (Cashore actually discusses this issue on her own blog ).  The main characters ages are never mentioned (that I can recall, correct me if I'm wrong!) -- though I was imagining Katsa as being in her late teens or early twenties.  There are some intimate scenes in the novel, that while very tasteful, might be seen by some as not appropriate for teens, but are not as graphic as what may be found in adult novels.   This novel may in fact be part of a trend towards more older YA novels (as described by Jonathan Hunt in Hornbook)  Either way, I'd recommend the novel to both teens and adults, and I've already pawned it off onto several of my co-workers.

There have been obvious comparisons made by other reviewers to Tamora Pierce and Shannon Hale...but besides those, readers might also enjoy The Princess and the Hound by Mette Ivie Harrison and Summers at Castle Auburn and the Safe Keeper's Series, both by Sharon Shinn.  Any other titles that you think Graceling readers might enjoy?  Leave a comment!

Other Blog Reviews:
Shelf Elf (and author interview), Fantasy Book Critic, Abby (the) Librarian, Kids Lit, Sandstorm Reviews, Bookshelves of Doom, AmoxCalli, Avid Teen Reader, The Magic of Ink, Omnivoracious (author interview)

*I could make a snide comment here about another fantasy novel, but I'll refrain.

Ten Things I Hate About Me by Randa Abdel-Fattah

Ten Things I Hate About Me by Randa Abdel-Fattah
 

Now, I don't know that much about international publishing, but this just doesn't make sense.  

Ten Things I Hate About Me was  published by Pan Macmillan in Australia in 2006.  The audio was then published by Bolinda Audio (also an Australian company) in 2007.   The US edition will finally be released by Orchard Books (an imprint of Scholastic) in January 2009. 

That  all makes sense.   What I don't understand is why US libraries seem to be able to buy audio books from Bolinda (through Baker and Taylor), but not books from Pan Macmillan.  Anyone out there with insider knowledge?


Long story short, while I'd been waiting for the book to be published here, the book on CD had been sitting on the shelf at one of our other branches. 

Like Does My Head Look Big in This?,  Ten Things I Hate About Me  is the story of a teenage girl of Muslim descent growing up in Australia and dealing with issues of cultural and individual identity. 

Jamilah dies her hair blond and goes by Jamie at school to avoid the ridicule that other Muslim students face.  Even her closest friends (who obviously aren't that close) have no idea about her Lebanese background.   Only her e-mail friend, John, knows the truth about her family heritage.

Outside of school, however, Jamilah/Jamie attends Madrassa (Arabic school) and plays in a Lebanese band.  When her band is asked to play at her school's spring formal... things start to spiral out of control.

Sometimes it seems like I'm saying this about every book that I enjoy, but the characters were well-developed (including the other family members, and friends).   One of the things I liked best was that Jamilah was aware that by dyeing her hair and changing her name she was hiding her identity.  (I've seen other novels where characters did something similar in order to fit in, but never saw their own actions as being representative of deeper issues).   I also love the fact that both of Fattah's novels show a wide range of Muslim characters, even within the same family. 

While it won't be availible here in print until January 2009, I definitely recommend Ten Things I Hate About Me to those who are interested in learning more about the culture of Lebanese Muslims in Australia -- or those who just enjoy a good teen romance.

Edited to add:  In my haste to post, I completely forgot to add a few "read-alikes" and other blog reveiws, so...

If you enjoy the e-correspondence between Jamilah and John, try:
The Year of Secret Assignments by Jaclyn Moriarty
From e to you by Chris D'Lacey and Linda Newbery

If you're interested in reading more about Muslim or Islamic culture, try:
Does My Head Look Big in This? also by Randa Abdel Fattah

Persepolis by Marjane Strapani
Kiffe Kiffe Tomorrow by Faiza Guene
Ask me no questions by Marina Budhos (I'm hesitant to recommend this one, since I haven't read it yet, but there are so few books on Muslim teens that I wanted to include it anyway)

Other blog reviews:
kissthebook, Lowly's Book Blog

If you love Nick and Norah, you might also like...

As I'm sure most of you already know, the movie version of Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist was
released last night. I'm waiting until next weekend to see it (while visiting Matt in New York), but in honor of this exciting occasion, I wanted to post some recommendations for other books you might like if you enjoyed Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist.

The obvious first recommendations would be Rachel Cohn and David Levithan's other novels. They have collaborated on one other novel, Naomi and Ely's No Kiss List, and each has written several novels individually:

David Levithan	Rachel Cohn
Boy Meets Boy	Gingerbread
The Realm of Possibility	Shrimp
Are We There Yet?	Cupcake
Wide Awake	You Know Where to Find Me
Marly's Ghost	Pop Princess
How They Met and Other Stories	and The Steps and Two Steps Forward (for tweens)

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But, some of you may have already read all of those, so I have a few other recommendations:

If you like the way the novel takes you on a virtual tour of New York City...

• Suite Scarlett by Maureen Johnson (midtown, around Fifth Ave.)
• Fly on the Wall by E. Lockhart (at a fictional High School for the arts in Manhattan)
• Things Hoped For by Andrew Clements (Upper West Side/Morningside Heights)
• Tyrell by Coe Booth (Brooklyn and the Bronx)
• It's Kind of a Funny Story by Ned Vizzini (Brooklyn)
• and there's always Gossip Girl (Upper East Side)

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If you like the complex relationships between the characters (and not just the romantic relationship, but the friendships with secondary characters as well)...

Looking for Alaska by John Green
Saving Francesca by Melina Marchetta
The Astonishing Adventures of Fanboy and Goth Girl by Barry Lyga
I am the Messenger by Markus Zusak
and again, Suite Scarlett by Maureen Johnson

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If you like the fact that Nick is in a band...

Born to Rock by Gordon Korman
King Dork by Frank Portman (Tom might never actually form a band... but he comes up with great band names and song lyrics)
The Last Days by Scott Westerfeld (a band and some vampires... lots of fun)

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And last... since you all love them so much... a few more of my favorite quotes from the novel (first post of quotes can be found here):

"Things are going so well. We're volleying words back and forth. Everything she says, I have something I can say back. We're sparking, and part of me just wants to sit back and watch. We're clicking. Not because a part of me is fitting into a part of her. But because our words are clicking to form sentences and our sentences are clicking into each other to form dialogue and our dialogue is clicking together to form this scene from this ongoing movie that's as comfortable as it is unrehearsed" (Nick 75).

"Maybe that's it... With what you were talking about before. The world being broken. maybe it isn't that we're supposed to find the pieces and put them back together. Maybe we're the pieces" (Nick 145).

Newes from the Dead by Mary Hooper

Newes from the Dead by Mary Hooper

I don't know if its the cooler weather, the start of school, or the fact that I bought a memory-foam mattress pad that makes my bed unbelievably comfortable...  But whatever the reason, I think my reading slump might finally be over.   I picked up Newes from the Dead  a couple nights ago (like Suite Scarlett it had been sitting in my library basket for way too long), and finished it in one night.

The premise of the novel would be unbelievable -- if you didn't know that it was based on a true story.  Anne Green has been hanged in punishment for an unnamed crime (which is explained later).  She has been declared dead, and her body is being prepared for a dissection.  Robert, a young medical student, is anticipating his first dissection, when he sees her twitch...

Anne is still alive.

Told in alternating chapters, from the perspectives of Anne (as she regains consciousness) and Robert, the novel completely captured my attention.  The voices of both narrators were easily distinguishable, and the story moves at a quick pace (partly because the reader just has to keep turning the pages!)

I would definitely recommend Newes from the Dead to fans of historical fiction -- but I think the appeal of this novel may be broader than that, and could be a good pick for students who normally prefer thrillers (but have to read historical fiction for a book report!)

Readers might also enjoy:

Witch Child by Celia Rees
At the Sign of the Star and A True and Faithful Narrative by Katherine Sturtevant
The Minister's Daughter by Julie Hearn

Other Reviews:
Kids Lit,  InteractiveReader's interview with the author, Sarah Miller, InteractiveReader, The Reading Zone, Book Obsession 

Suite Scarlett by Maureen Johnson

Suite Scarlett by Maureen Johnson

I've been reading Maureen Johnson's blog for ages  (especially enjoyed this post on the importance of sex education), and had read one of her books (Devilish ) which I enjoyed but didn't especially love, and I was beginning to worry that I might actually like her blog better than her books (gasp!). 

But, I checked out Suite Scarlett... and then it sat in my basket of books for months, waiting to be read. I was this close to returning it unread, but figured I should be a good sport and give it the first fifty pages.  I read the first chapter, and I was immediately drawn into Scarlett's world.

Scarlett, age 16, lives in a hotel, owned and run by her family, in New York City.  This may sound glamorous, but as is immediately evident, it is not. At all. The hotel's financial troubles are so bad that the only staff left is the family: Scarlett, perfect older sister Lola, actor-wannabe older brother Spencer, and cancer-survivor younger sister Marlene. 

When each sibling turns sixteen, they are given a particular suite in the hotel to care for -- and Scarlett's suite comes with an unusual guest -- Mrs. Amberson, a former actress, with a few tricks up her sleeve.

And then, there's Eric -- Spencer's new friend and fellow actor, who just happens to be very interested in Scarlett...

Johnson demonstrates a gift for bringing characters to life, and I found myself just as interested in the stories of the secondary characters as I was in Scarlett's*.  There were so many moments where the novel could have become predictable or cliche, but then something completely unexpected would happen instead.  Suite Scarlett is engrossing and original and highly recommended.

And, as if I needed one more reason to love the book, there was even a mention of Joe's Shanghai and their famous soup dumplings !**

Readers might also enjoy:
The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau Banks by E. Lockhart    (another strong female character and an unpredictable plot)
Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist and Naomi and Ely's No Kiss List, both by Rachel Cohn and David Levithan    (life in New York City)
The Joys of Love by Madeleine L'Engle    (also centered around the  theater)

Also, completely unrelated, but I just realized this morning (thanks Josie!) that I forgot to restart the e-mail subscription, so those of you who read this via e-mail may have missed a few posts! So sorry!!!

*If I might make a request -- maybe a sequel about Lola?  or Marlene? (maybe about when Marlene gets her suite at sixteen? Pretty please?)

** These dumplings are the real reason I go to New York City -- even if I tell Matt otherwise ;)

Airhead by Meg Cabot

Airhead by Meg Cabot

Now you all know I love Meg Cabot (wait, seriously? I've only reviewed one of her books? This is a travesty that I must remedy posthaste!) But I do.

I just don't know how she does it. I read once that she can write a first draft in two weeks, which is absolutely incredible. But what makes it even more incredible is that despite that grueling pace, the writing just doesn't show that at all (unlike *cough*James Patterson*cough*)

I started listening to Airhead a couple weeks ago on the way to work, but found that I kept wanting to listen to music in the car, and so ended up checking out the book and finishing it by the light of the window while our power was out on Saturday (thanks to Tropical Storm Hanna)

And I can't tell you much about the plot, since half the fun is figuring out what one earth is going on. But, 17-year-old Em Watts is totally not interested in fashion or celebrities. She spends most of her time playing Journeyquest (an online role-playing game) with her best friend Christopher (who she might have a tiny bit of a crush on). While accompanying her sister to the grand opening of a huge department store, she is the victim of a freak plasma-screen tv accident, and when she wakes up in the hospital a month later, she finds that her life has been strangely intertwined with that of supermodel Nikki Howard.

Like all of Cabot's novels, Airhead is funny and fluffy, but it is also somehow a bit darker. The situation that Em finds herself in is a bit more complicated than, say, finding out that you're the heir to the throne of a small European principality. The stakes in this case are just a little bit higher, and readers may find themselves thinking about profound questions about the meaning of life (and then, a few pages later, laughing out loud at the antics of Lulu Collinsworth -- Nikki's best friend)

One warning... the ending is definitely a cliff-hanger, so do yourself a favor and wait until the sequel comes out!

Readers may also enjoy:
Anything else by Meg Cabot (obviously)
Things Not Seen by Andrew Clements
Memoirs of a Teenage Amnesiac by Gabrielle Zevin

Around the blogs: Librarilly Blonde, And Another Book Read, YA New York, The Ravenous Reader, The Book Muncher, The Compulsive Reader, Em's Bookshelf, The YA YA YAs, The Book Vault, Reader Rabbit, Liv's Book Reviews,

Round Up #1 -- Why I really, really, really want to go to Australia!

Must. Go. To. Australia.



Now, I know this is a huge generalization, but the more Australian YA fiction I read, the more I'm convinced that this is the future of the "genre". I still have yet to find an Australian author that I don't absolutely fall in love with upon reading their books. And I've read a few of them in recent months (yes, my blog post back log goes back to January)...



And first, about these round-up posts, I realized that many of my readers were coming from google searches for specific titles, so I wanted them to leave my site with a few ideas for other titles they might like, and of course, all of the recommendations are novels that I have read.

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48 Shades of Brown by Nick Earls



While his parents are living in Switzerland, Dan moves in with his mother's much younger sister, and spends his senior year of high school battling calculus and falling for his aunt's other roommate.



After Summer by Nick Earls

After graduating from high school, Alex spends the summer at the shore waiting for his college-entrance results and meets a beautiful girl on the beach.



Other blog reviews (of both of these titles):

Chasing Ray



Readers might also enjoy:

Looking for Alaska, It's Kind of a Funny Story

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Secret Scribbled Notebooks by Joanne Horniman



In three journals, Kate describes her daily life, the birth of her niece, the books that she reads, and her first experiences of love,



Other blog reviews:

Bookshelves of doom, Writings of the Loud Librarian, I'll eat my words medium rare, thank you,



Readers might also enjoy:

Anne of Green Gables -- something about Kate's dreamy ramblings reminded me so much of Anne

This is All: The Pillow Book of Cornelia Kenn -- journals, teenage girls... but a bit, um, bigger?

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The Wolf by Steven Herrick



In this novel of poems, Jack and Lucy go out into the woods in search of a legendary wolf, where an accident causes them to learn about themselves, and each other. (apparently, they don't have wolves in Australia?)



Other blog reviews

The Small Picture (this reviewer also links to an interview with the author)

The Lick and Sniff Reviews



Readers who enjoy novels in poem form may also enjoy Sold, The Braid, and A Bad Boy Can be Good for Girl

Also, something about the woods and the friendship between Jack and Lucy really reminded me of Ronia: the Robbers Daughter .

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One Whole and Perfect Day by Judith Clarke



In one of this year's Printz honorees, Lily hopes that her entire family will be able to get along and share one "whole and perfect day" despite all their differences; through a series of coincidences, this day is more than anyone could have imagined.



Other blog reviews:

Liv's Book Reviews, In the Pages, The Goddess of YA Literature



Readers might also enjoy:

Looking for Alibrandi and Saving Francesca by Melina Marchetta (and her new book is finally coming out here in August!)

Feeling Sorry for Celia and The Year of Secret Assignments by Jaclyn Moriarty

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Spell Book of Listen Taylor by Jaclyn Moriarty



A story of family secrets, espionage, and magic, The Spell Book of Listen Taylor is completely unique. I do agree with many of the other bloggers that this title might be better suited to adults, not because it is inappropriate for teens, but because the main characters are closer to middle-age.



Other reviews:

Bookshelves of Doom, Roger Sutton's review from the NY Times, Interactivereader



Readers might also enjoy:

This book is so original that I have absolutely no idea... feel free to leave suggestions in the comments!

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The Red Shoe by Ursula Dubosarsky



The story of three sisters growing up in Australia in the period immediately following WWII, a time when the fear of communism was rampant, and a polio outbreak was sweeping the country.



Other reviews:

Lowly's Book Reviews



Readers might also enjoy:

The Loud Silence of Francine Green (same time period, but here in the US)

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Notes from the Teenage Underground by Simmone Howell (ummm... I think I read this one last summer, but somehow I never blogged about it)



Gem, a film buff, plans to spend the summer after her final year of high school making a film with her two best friends.



Other blog reviews:

Pages Et Cetera, Chasing Ray



Readers might also enjoy:

novels by Melina Marchetta and Nick Earls (see links above).

Angus, Thongs, and Full-Frontal Snogging by Louise Rennison

Angus, Thongs, and Full-Frontal Snogging by Louise Rennison Is there a series that you keep looking at on the library shelves, meaning to read, and putting off for fear of committing to a multi-book series? For me, that series is the Confessions of Georgia Nicolson, a hilarious look at daily life in England, through the eyes of 14-year-old Georgia. The novel, begins just as Georgia is getting ready to go back to school, and her diary entries are full of typical teenage worries, boys, friends, make-up, the size of her nose, and the antics of her crazy family (including her cat, Angus, who is part Scottish-wildcat, and likes to attack the poodle next door). And then, a few days before the start of school, she meets Robbie (aka the Sex God).... Rennison has somehow managed to capture that teenage voice perfectly. Georgia's diary reads like it could be any teenage girl's diary, lots of very short entries, random ramblings, and very quick mood changes (with plenty of UK slang thrown in). I wish these books had been around when I was 13 or 14* If you like Angus, Thongs, and Full-Frontal Snogging, check out:

• The Princess Diaries by Meg Cabot (also in diary-format, and hilarious)
• The Boyfriend List by E. Lockhart (another girl's tale of boys and crazy family members)
• Older readers might also enjoy the Stephanie Plum series by Janet Evanovich (speaking of crazy family members...)

Other blog reviews: Book Adorer Blogging for a Good Book *Actually, I just checked the publication date... I was 15 when they were published, but by then, I was reading all that silly adult fiction stuff, for some reason.

edited to add: And there's going to be a movie

Beastly by Alex Flinn

Beastly by Alex Flinn
I'm baaaaack! (and it is technically still the beginning of May, right?). I'm going to try to keep the next couple reviews short and to-the-point, so, here goes it:

Kyle Kingsbury is a jerk. He is superficial, mean, and messes with people for the fun of it. And, you can't really blame him, since he has clearly inherited these traits from his father. After playing a trick on goth-classmate- Kendra and pretending to invite her to a school dance, he finds himself turned into a beast. Literally. Hair, claws, the whole works. The catch? He has two years to find (and kiss) his true love.

Set in New York City, this modernized version of Beauty and the Beast plays with the conventions of the fairy tale (Kyle planting roses, having a magic mirror, etc), while also poking fun at society today. For example, in one of the most humorous scenes of the novel, Kyle is trying to find his "true love" by browsing on my-space, and starts using his magic mirror to spy on some of the "teenage girls" that he finds, only to find that one is a 10 year old girl, one a 40 year old man, and so on. At the same time, Flinn accurately portrays Kyle's coming-of-age and his developing friendships.

While I would definitely recommend this novel to fans of fairy-tale re-tellings (and I'm beginning to get the sense that there are a lot of us out there), I think that it could potentially appeal to fans of urban YA romantic titles, such as Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist. Other blog reviews: The YA YA YAs, Cysnations (author interview), YA Authors Cafe (author interview), YA@heart, Mrs. Hill's Book Blog, Read, Read, Read, The Book Muncher

Memoirs of a Teenage Amnesiac by Gabrielle Zevin

Memoirs of a Teenage Amnesiac by Gabrielle Zevin

As you may recall, I didn't exactly love Elsewhere , but I was still looking forward to reading Gabrielle Zevin's sophomore novel: Memoirs of a Teenage Amnesiac.

Like Elsewhere, the premise of Memoirs of a Teenage Amnesiac is a bit unrealistic (though less so).

Naomi is walking down the front steps of her high school when her precious camera slips out of her hands. Rushing to catch it, she slips and falls. Next thing she knows, she is waking up in a hospital bed, and doesn't remember anything beyond sixth grade. At her bedside is Will, her co-chief on the Yearbook staff and her best friend. She does not remember that her parents are divorced, or that her mother has a new family, or the friendship-altering event that happened the weekend before her fall.

Unlike Elsewhere, however, in Memoirs, Zevin fully examines Naomi's emotions and identity crisis, and doesn't shy away from serious issues. In fact, I was actually surprised by how dark this novel was, and how compelling. I picked it up, intending to just start it before class,* but then ended up picking it up during every spare moment in both classes (professor wanted to wait a few minutes for people to log-in -- read another chapter, class let out half an hour early -- read another 50 pages...) After getting out of class at 10, I ended up staying awake until 1 to finish it.

In other words, I found Memoirs to be much more well-rounded than Elsewhere, with both an unusual premise, and strong writing. I would recommend it highly to teens who enjoyed Elsewhere, but also perhaps to teens who enjoy Sarah Dessen or Tara Altebrando's The Pursuit of Happiness. If you can think of any other good read-alikes, feel free to leave a comment!

*my classes are online

Spells and Sleeping Bags by Sarah Mlynowski

Well, you see, my copy of Lean Mean Thirteen just happened to appear on my shelf at the library... and then that little movie about our favorite boy wizard* was showing in the theater, so my plan to get caught up sort of went out the window.

I read the first book in Sarah Mlynowski's Magic in Manhattan trilogy while I was in college. I'm not sure how I heard about it, but I remember staying up way later than I should have because I just couldn't put it down. I wasn't especially impressed by the writing, but I just couldn't wait to see how it would end.

So, when I got Spells and Sleeping Bags from the library, it jumped to the top of my ever-growing to-be-read pile. I actually ended up reading it all afternoon on the 4th (so patriotic, I know), and completely ignoring my boyfriend (though I found him a book to read**, so he didn't seem to mind). And I enjoyed this third entry in the series just as much as the first two.

WARNING: If you haven't read the first two, stop reading immediately and head to your local library. This may contain SPOILERS!

Okay, so Rachel, who has finally gotten her powers, and Miri, her little sister who is also a witch, are headed off to Camp Wood Lake. Rachel is very excited; after all, this is the camp that Raf (her crush) has been attending for years. But of course, things are not exactly smooth-sailing for Rachel (or Miri). She can barely swim, her bunk-mate Liana seems to be trying to steal both her crush and her little sister. Not to mention that her mother, her father, and her new stepmother are all coming for visitors day.

I think I may have actually enjoyed this a little more than the last two, and I was definitely laughing out loud at times. For example, when the campers have movie night, they watch the newest Harry Potter movie, and Rachel says something about how she was hoping for a romantic comedy, not the story of her life. (I was going to include the actual quote, but I already returned my copy to the library, and all the copies are now checked out). And the banter between Rachel and Miri reminds me so much of my own conversations with my younger step-sister.

My only complaint is that this seems to be the last book in the series (the author's website does refer to it as a trilogy after all). But the ending seems to leave it open enough for more (or maybe a series about Miri... please!!). A perfect beach read for younger readers (I know my middle-school self would have adored these books), this is a fun antidote to all the heaviness of Harry Potter (and all the other young-hero-has-to-save-the-world fantasies).

*Loved it, by the way.

**Epic by Conor Kostick -- I'm working on convincing him to guest-review for me

Pants on Fire by Meg Cabot

I have this huge pile of books at home waiting to be read, but recently, I just haven't been in the mood for any of them. What have I been in the mood for?

Fluff.

Pure fluff.

What can I say? It's summertime (or it feels like it anyway). And that's just what I do in the summer. I give up all those "serious" books that I had to read for school, and I read stacks upon stacks of romance novels (teen and adult).

So, of course, I was very excited last week to see Meg Cabot's newest waiting for me on my shelf at work.

Kate Ellison is planning on having the best summer of her life. She is dating the hottest guy in school (who is also the star of the football team), she has a job at the most popular local restaurant, her best friend is the most popular girl in school, and she is a contestant in the Quahog Princess Pagent. But then, Tommy Sullivan, who left town 3 years ago after "Tommy Sullivan is a Freak" appears in spray paint on the side of the new middle school gym. And, suddenly, Kate's life becomes a lot more complicated.

And then, there's her little lying problem. Kate has told so many lies that she can't even keep them straight anymore. From her simple lies (pretending that she loves Quahogs when she really thinks they taste like rubber) to the more complicated (telling her best friend that the hot guy they saw on the beach went to football camp with her brother when he is, in fact, Tommy Sullivan).

And Pants on Fire is everything I was looking for in a fluffy read. The plot, as is common in Meg Cabot's novels, is a bit over-the-top, but that's just part of the fun. Definitely recommended as a light summer beach read!

Starcrossed by Mark Schreiber

Last week, I was writing the date on all of the newspapers in the library, when I suddenly realized that it had been exactly ten years since my very first boyfriend asked me out. (For those of you trying to do the math... yes, I was twelve). My first thought was "I must be getting old"... and my second thought was of how lucky I am that that "relationship"* never worked out.

Which made me start thinking about teen relationships, and how they're depicted in YA novels. I used to get so frustrated with YA romance, when I was a teen** because the novels would normally end with "the first kiss" or some sort of declaration of "love," but no indication that the relationship would actually work out. (And walking the halls of my high school, it was pretty obvious that most of these relationships didn't).

But in Starcrossed, Mark Schreiber starts the novel with the beginning of the relationship. And it's an interesting beginning: Christy and Ben meet for the first time in the waiting room of a plastic surgeon's office, and both are waiting to have tattoos removed, tattoos of each others' names. When they meet again in a bike shop, Christy decides that it must be fate, and takes Ben to meet her astrologer. Ben, with his more scientific mindset (he plans to be an astronomer), doesn't believe in astronomy astrology, but likes Christy enough to go along. And thus begins their relationship, with all its twists and turns.

Schreiber explores many of the themes from Romeo and Juliet: fate vs. free will, love vs. lust, etc... even playing with R&J in the novel's title, and in doing so, he portrays a very human relationship. Even in the end of the novel, there's still no guarantee that Christy and Ben's relationship will last, but Schreiber makes us believe that what they have runs deeper than simple infatuation.

And while we're on the subject of YA romance novels, head over to Becky's Book Reviews for an amusing post on what she looks for in teen romance novels.

*Calling it a relationship is definitely stretching it, when you never go out on a date, never kiss, and he generally hangs up the phone when you call him.

**This is probably why I had started reading adult romance novels by the time I was 13. Of course, this was 10 years ago, and there wasn't nearly as much variety in YA literature as there is now.

Goy Crazy by Melissa Schorr

Rachel Lowenstein is at a hotel for her younger brother's bar mitzvah, and not very happy about it, when she happens to meet Luke Christiansen. And she falls head-over-heels in "love".

The problem? Luke happens to be Catholic (does the name perhaps give that away?) and attends St. Joseph's Prep School.

Rachel, believing that her parents (and grandmother) would never approve of her dating a "goy," starts seeing him secretly. Instead, she tells her parents that she is going to the dance with Howard (the nice Jewish boy next door who is actually just giving her and Luke a ride)

While a bit predictable, this novel is pure fun. I mean, as soon as Schorr even mentioned Howard, I was pretty sure how it would all turn out. But it was fun getting there, nevertheless.

One little gripe, however -- the cover. It looks like a page out of yearbook, with Rachel and Luke next to each other which makes no sense because 1. yearbooks are usually in alphabetical order, and 2. they don't even go to the same school!

At the Sign of the Star and A True and Faithful Narrative by Katherine Sturtevant

I could have sworn I had already reviewed these two... but apparently not...

Since A True and Faithful Narrative was a cybils nominee, and I can be a little bit anal about series, I just had to read At the Sign of the Star first.

At the Sign of the Star

In At the Sign of the Star, we meet Meg, the only daughter of a widowed bookseller in Restoration London. She spends most of her time in his bookstore, helping him -- but then he remarries, and his new bride has different ideas for the proper upbringing of a young girl.

To me, this novel seemed almost like an extended prologue for A True and Faithful Narrative, introducing us to the characters, setting, and time period. But it is a very sweet little novel (only about a hundred pages) -- and an enjoyable read. (Also, of note -- while this is shelved as YA -- it would be completely appropriate for middle grade readers -- though the sequel is more challenging)

A True and Faithful Narrative

In A True and Faithful Narrative, we find our heroine, Meg, three years older, and now with several younger brothers and sisters -- not to mention two different suitors.

When Edward (her best friend's older brother) comes to tell her that he is leaving for Italy (and to hint that he might be interested in marrying her when he returns), Meg flippantly tells her that he should get captured by pirates so that he'll have stories to tell her when he comes home. But when her words come true, Meg feels horribly guilty and works tirelessly to get the ransom money to bring him home.

Edward does finally return home, but he is a changed man, having experienced so much, and he asks Meg to write his story for him.

This is a fantastic work of historical fiction -- I knew very little about this time period -- but Sturtevant has described it in such wonderful detail and really brought it to life, as good historical fiction should do.

And I'm keeping my fingers crossed for a sequel!

Estrella's Quinceañera by Malín Alegría

Estrella's Quinceañera by Malín Alegría

In the list of cybils nominations, there were several books that deal with multicultural issues, including Koyal Dark, Mango Sweet (which I reviewed a few days ago), Goy Crazy (which I will review soon), Nothing But the Truth (and a few whtie lies), and Estrella's Quinceañera.

Malín Alegría's first novel, Estrella's Quinceañera tells the story of Estrella, a girl from a Hispanic family who goes to a prestigious private school -- and who wants to keep those two worlds as separate as possible. But unfortunately, she's about to turn 15, which is a pretty big deal when your family is from Mexico. Estrella's mom is hellbent on giving her daughter the best quinceañera ever, while completely ignoring what Estrella wants for the big day.

Estrella's school friends on the other hand, not knowing anything about her family's plans (since she doesn't want them to), decide to throw her their own party for her birthday, and to set her up with a cute boy from school... but as always happens in these sorts of books, things don't go quite as planned. Add in Estrella's two former best friends (from before she went to the prep school), and Speedy, a very cute boy from the barrio... and you're in for a very fun ride.

While a little predictable, Estrella's Quinceañera is a fun introduction to Hispanic culture. I especially enjoyed the definitions of the Spanish words at the beginning of each chapter -- which not only define the term, but also contain Estrella's rather sarcastic comments about her family.

Romeo's Ex: Rosaline's Story

Romeo's Ex: Rosaline's Story by Lisa Fielder

Apparently, reading Shakespeare is good for you*.

So, reading novels based on Shakespeare must be good for you too, right?

A couple weeks ago, when I reviewed Ophelia, Colleen (from Bookslut)* commented and suggested that I might like Romeo's Ex, which I actually had checked out and sitting in a basket in my room, just waiting for the Cybils madness to die down.

Honestly, I was a little concerned about this one before I started -- the title seemed to modern for me, since I seriously doubt that the term "ex-girlfriend" was in use in Shakespeare's time, but Rosaline, Fielder's heroine, won me over immediately.

Rosaline doesn't care about boys or parties like her silly younger cousin Juliet -- she has just one ambition in life -- to be a healer. Romeo happens upon her at the healer's cottage and decides on the spot that he is in love with her. (Though, as we all know, this infatuation doesn't last long -- as Romeo soon falls head-over-heals in "love" with Juliet). Of course, when Rosaline is rescued by Benvolio (though she thinks it's Mercutio who rescued her) she quickly changes her mind about boys!

With wonderful Shakespearean twists, like cases of mistaken identity (Rosaline thinks she's in love with Mercutio, even though she's really in love with Benvolio), Fielder stays true to the spirit of the play -- while making it more accessible to teen readers. At the same time, those teen readers who have read and loved Romeo and Juliet will enjoy this "behind-the-scenes" look at one of Shakespeare's most beloved plays.

*Thanks to Michele (of Scholar's Blog) for the link

*Go read her article, "Revisiting the Classics"

Poor Little Witch Girl by Marie Desplechin

Poor Little Witch Girl by Marie Desplechin*

As soon as I saw the title, I knew I just had to read Poor Little Witch Girl. I adore books about witches (might I also recommend Bras and Broomsticks, Frogs and French Kisses, and my all-time favorite:The Witch Family). And what a cute little book this is.

Verbena is a witch, just like her mother, and her mother's mother, and every woman in her family. At 12 years old, however, all Verbena wants is to be normal, to be liked by the cute boy at school (Soufi), and to find her father. All her mother wants is for Verbena to be a powerful witch. Thus, one could say that there is a bit of tension in the family home (and when there are witches around -- tension can be dangerous!)

The really interesting thing about this novel is the point of view. The story is told from several points of view -- the mother's, the grandmother's, Verbena's, and even Soufi's, and while switching POV isn't something new -- this is the first time (that I can think of) that I have ever read a youth or teen book from the parent's POV. And in this one, it really works.

This is an adorable modern fairy-tale, and I would definitely recommend it for pre-teen girls (and older too -- since I loved it).

Marie Desplechin has published many books for children and adults in France -- this is her first to be published in the US. I liked it so much, I was actually tempted to try to buy some of her other titles in French (but apparently, I was overestimating my French abilities -- I couldn't even understand the summaries on Amazon!)

*yes, I do realize that the Wikipedia page is in French, but it has more information than the English version.