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Although Lauren Morrill’s debut novel, Meant to Be, tells the story of Julia Lichtenstein, a junior at Newton North High School in Newton, Massachusetts, it also tells the turbulent tale of teen relationship building, the random chaos of life and love. Julia, who doesn’t know the word fun because it wasn’t on the SATs, is a stickler for history and geography and rules.  Because of her reputation, she has earned nicknames like Book Licker, Professor, and Little Miss Guidebook.  When she signs up for the class’ spring break field trip toLondon, she hopes to immerse herself in the rich culture and history of the place, butRead More →

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Many of us dream of making a difference in the world, of leaving a legacy or inspiring important change.  Mark Peter Hughes demonstrates the reality of such a possibility in his new book, Lemonade Mouth Puckers Up, a sequel to Lemonade Mouth. Set in Opequonsett, Rhode Island, Hughes’ story features an eclectic quintet of teens that have could be called philosophers, social activists, and visionaries: Stella Penn on ukulele, Wendel Gifford on trumpet, Mohini Banerjee on double bass, Charlie Hirsh on drums, and Olivia Whitehead as soulful vocalist.  Inspiring devotion and revolution, the fabulous five play music that is wild and quirky.  On their journey toRead More →

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“You know what?” Minnie said with a dramatic pause. “This is how horror movies start.” (58) And so it is in Gretchen McNeil’s Ten.  A seemingly innocent weekend house party on exclusive Henry Island turns deadly in less than 100 pages where best friends since middle school, high school seniors Meg and Minnie, are two of 10 guests invited to the most popular girl in school’s private party.  Other guests come from 2 other high schools in town and while the hostess is delayed on the mainland, the group of 10 make themselves at home.  Predictably, a torrential storm sets in, knocking out the power,Read More →

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The voices in Ry Burke’s head have been quiet for nearly nine years following the trauma he suffered in the Black Glade forest which grows beside his family’s farm. During this time, he and his family has been able to return to a resemblance of normalcy, escaping Marvin Burke, the abusive father Ry helped to put in prison. But, with the oncoming of a meteor shower, Ry hears the voices of his “friends” rising to the surface again just as his family is informed of an explosion at the nearby prison. As the meteors begin to fall and the threat of Marvin’s return looms, theRead More →

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This book is not for the fainthearted.  It’s also not for people who get frustrated by what is either poor structure and editing or a purposeful writing strategy that is at best confusing and at worst, amateur.  I figured from the beginning I was in for a rough emotional ride, but from someone as accomplished as Joyce Carol Oates, I had expected a finer hand at what could have been a powerful, if not entirely original, story. Tink d**d in the spring of junior year, and pretty much everyone is convinced she k****d herself, but no one knows for sure.  Her closest friends, the girls whoRead More →

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I know when a book is good because it’s full of check-marks, underlining and dog-eared pages.  And the latest from one of my favorite authors, A.S. King, Ask the Passengers, has 14 page corners that I turned down and boatloads of check-marks and underlining throughout.  It’s full of funny quips, true-to-life sarcasm, poignant revelations, and emotional truths that kicked me in the gut. With an emotionally vacant set of parents (workaholic rarely-leaves-the-house mother and a pot-smoking dad), a younger sister who is a mystery to her, friends who have a secret life Astrid has sworn to protect, a rampant small-town rumor mill, and secret yearningsRead More →

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A lazy, last-day-of summer holiday was the perfect day to read Jane Smiley’s latest, Pie in the Sky.  An exquisitely crafted character-focused story, gently told, meditatively plotted and rich with detail, I couldn’t put this book down.  Its first fans will be young women in love with horses and all things equine, but readers who devour richly textured character-driven stories (my favorite!) will be hooked within the first few pages as well. As the summer of 1966 bleeds into Autumn, fourteen year old Abby Levitt, whose life revolves around the meditatively hard work of training and caring for her family’s horses, finds herself and her beloved geldingRead More →

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17 year old Jack’s summer job, as a “nanny” for an 8 and 12 year old brother and sister, seems like it would be a cake walk.  He’ll be making really good money and all he has to do is hang out with a couple of kids for a couple months.  The major downside is that the kids live on an isolated island off the mainland that’s devoid of any modern connectivity; sure, they have generator-powered electricity, but there’s no phone, no wi-fi or internet, and the only connection to the outside world is the twice weekly ferry that passes by the island.  Willing toRead More →

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In the sequel to his Printz Honor book, Stuck in Neutral, Terry Trueman takes us back into Shawn McDaniel’s life:  “Night before last my dad tried to kill me. At least, I’m pretty sure that was his plan. For weeks and months I’d been worrying about it. I guess Dad had his reasons, but he didn’t do it. Obviously. Lucky me, huh? Sorry, sarcasm is one of the few weapons I possess.” (1) The power of Stuck in Neutral  lay in the dynamic between Shawn and his dad, as both characters struggled to understand and connect with each other.  In Life Happens Next, Shawn’s dadRead More →