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2 new YA titles that will release in June explore the challenges of building a new life in America after fleeing the turmoil in the country of one’s childhood.   Inspired by true refugee experiences, these two novels are interesting and thought-provoking explorations of challenge, change, and resilience. The Red Umbrella by debut novelist Christina Diaz Gonzalez is set in 1961, when Lucia’s carefree life in a small Cuban coast town is about to change. She’s 14 and dreams of her school-crush, her 15th birthday celebration, and of one day travelling to Paris.  But when Castro’s revolutionary soldiers come to her town, everything changes: people are arrested and executed; neighbors spy on neighbors; freedomsRead More →

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Guess who’s coming to Phoenix? Richard Harland will be visiting Phoenix on May 28th, 2010. Visiting all the way from Australia, his presentation would be enjoyed by all middle school students. To host Richard at your school, please call Jade Corn at 602-740-5637. There is no charge for Richard’s presentation. About the Book: Worldshaker Col Porpentine knows his place in the world; at the top. He is a child of privilege, born into the Upper Class. When he is named as successor to his grandfather, the Supreme Commander if the juggernaut Worldshaker, his bright future has never been more assured. But when a Filthy girlRead More →

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I’ve wanted to read Rick Yancey’s new book, The Monstrumologist, since it first came in last Fall, but never got around to it. Then it was named a Michael L. Printz Award Honoree, and I finally decided to make time to sit down with this intriguing looking book. And although it’s not quite what I expected, I am glad I did.  The Monstrumologistis the account of the spring of 1888 when Will Henry was a apprentice/assistant to the brilliant, but perhaps mad, Dr. Warthrop, who studies and hunts real-life monsters.  The story is framed by Rick Yancey’s present day acquisition of the notebooks from a doctor who caredRead More →

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Every 100 years humanity is tested and it’s up to 4 teenagers to pass the test and save the world: that’s the premise behind Italian author P. D. Baccalario’s adventure series out this spring from Random House.  It’s December 29th, in Rome, and 12 year olds Harvey from New York, Mistral from Paris, and Sheng from Shanghai are to share a room with their hotel owner’s daughter, Elettra. The four kids discover an amazing coincidence—they all have birthdays on February 29 and that is just the beginning of the strange events that soon engulf them. Mysteriously, they seem to have caused a blackout in Rome,Read More →

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Debut author Alyxandra Harvey’s Hearts at Stake is the first of a series of books about the Drakes, a charismatic, sexy and morally upright (they don’t feed on humans) family of vampires whose children are born mortal and turn into vampires when they reach the age of 16.  This first installment focuses on 15 year old Solange, the beautiful Drake daughter whose birth has been prophesied to upset the whole vampire world, and her best friend, Lucy, a spunky tough mortal teen who tries hard to help her friend lead a normal life.  When Solange is kidnapped, Lucy joins forces with the Drake brothers (includingRead More →

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Catherine Fisher’s latest fantasy novel, Incarceron, has recently been released in the US by Dial, and this The Times’ Children’s Book of the Year (2007) is worth picking up. Incarceron is a prison unlike anything you’ve ever imagined: its inmates live their whole lives, from birth to death, in an entirely enclosed world with a vast network of cities, underground tunnels, metal forests, and unbound wilderness, all under the ever-present, all-seeing, sentient Eye of Incarceron.  It has been sealed for centuries and only in legend has anyone ever escaped.  Finn, a 17 year old prisoner, has no memories before waking up in a cell 3 years before. EveryRead More →

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16 year old Penny Lane Bloom’s heart has just been crushed: just when she’s ready to give the ultimate gift to the boy she’s loved for years, she catches him with another girl.  Reeling from the hurt and betrayal, Penny Lane runs to the guys she’s loved more than any: John, Paul, George and Ringo.  And she is inspired to stand up for herself, her heart, her dignity, and her woman-power; she forms the Lonely Hearts Club – a club for girls who want to let go of the boy-centric roller coaster ride of high school dating and focus on themselves, their girlfriends, and their own hopes & dreams.  NowRead More →

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In Mary Amato’s ninth book, Invisible Lines, the reader is drawn into the world of Trevor Musgrove, a smart, funny, artistic 7th grader who has to learn how to navigate the rough waters of jealousy, deception, and poverty.  Trevor is no stranger to life’s hardships: his dad is in jail, his mom is barely keeping the family afloat, he’s responsible for babysitting his siblings and the family is broke.  When Trevor, his mom, younger brother and baby sister arrive at their new apartment in the run-down complex nicknamed “Deadly Gardens,” things maybe about to turn around for Trevor. The school he attends is much better than anyRead More →

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13 year old Sherry Holmes Baldwin is back (reluctantly) for another detective adventure with her ghostly mother and best friend Junie.  Turns out someone is stalking her stepmother, Paula (The Ruler) and the Academy of Spirits has assigned Sherry and her mom the case.  It’s a bad time for Sherry, though, because she’s totally in love with her boyfriend, Josh, and is worried about an 8th grade girl who’s trying to steal Josh away and Junie is starting to show an interest in fashion, make-up and guys. To top it off, her mom is competing the Ghostlympics, where the first prize is five minutes of “Real Time”,Read More →