By:
On:
In: On the Edge, Realistic Fiction (YA), Romance (YA), Young Adult Book Reviews
With: 0 Comments

Jennifer Brown is making a name for herself with striking, poignant novels about hard-to-face topics.  Her latest novel, following her fantastic debut Hate List, is Bitter End, which explores with wide-open eyes and complete candor, the emotional roller coaster of a young woman in love with an abusive boyfriend. High school senior Alex is haunted by the tragic accident that killed her mother when she was a young girl; the fact that her father will never talk about the circumstances that lead her mom out onto the road to Colorado so many years ago, and the isolation she feels in her family at being the only one whoRead More →

By:
On:
In: Ideas You Can Use, Reaching Reluctant Readers, This is interesting
With: 0 Comments

From Publisher’s Weekly (May 23, 2011): James Patterson, the bestselling author on Earth, doesn’t want to talk about writing today. He wants to talk about reading. For a man with scores of blockbuster books under his belt (it might be north of 70, but even the author isn’t sure how many he’s written at this point), Patterson is now fascinated with a new challenge: hooking kids on books. And his latest effort, “Read, Kiddo, Read,” aims to do just that. “For most kids,” Patterson tells PW, “The best way to get them to read is to find books that are going to turn them on.Read More →

By:
On:
In: Mystery & Suspense (YA), Romance (YA), Supernatural & Horror (YA), Young Adult Book Reviews
With: 0 Comments

The Goodnight farm is engulfed by the McCulloch’s ranch – a pretty good metaphor to describe Amy Goodnight’s life. Her family is different; all of the women are practicing white witches. This is a source of embarrassment for Amy, who sees it as her job to be a liaison between her family and the “normal” world that surrounds them.            Amy and her sister, Phin, are spending the summer caring for the ranch while their aunt is away. What should be an uneventful summer full of chores turns into just the opposite with a series of unexpected events: a ghost comes to visit Amy, humanRead More →

By:
On:
In: This is interesting
With: 0 Comments

Happy Birthday PBC! Six short (or sometimes long) years ago, Jade & Cori embarked on a new adventure – creating and growing our own business.  It’s been wonderful meeting so many fantastic, dedicated, and amazing educators, some of whom have become good friends. It makes us really proud to be able to support these great folks who spend their time and energy passing along the gift of reading and the possibilities that come from a good education to students all over the US.  We wouldn’t have come this far without the help of a hardworking team of people.  Thanks to each of you who’ve helped PBCRead More →

By:
On:
In: Romance (YA), Sci-Fi & Fantasy (YA), Young Adult Book Reviews
With: 0 Comments

After four years of separation, Gwendolyn “Dough” Riley’s best friend, and long-distance boyfriend, is moving back to town! The only problem is that while Wish has gotten tall, handsome and charismatic, all Dough has gotten is fat. Wish’s arrival changes Dough’s status at school from pariah to a fringe member of the It Crowd. While she enjoys her lost anonymity, Dough begins to wonder about Wish. It is almost like Wish is a different person; he seems somehow more distant and he is almost too beautiful. Wish is so bright and golden; it’s almost like looking at the sun. Just as Gwendolyn begins to buyRead More →

By:
On:
In: On the Edge, Young Adult Book Reviews
With: 0 Comments

Josh had sex with his teacher. As a 12 year-old seventh-grader his history teacher selected, groomed and eventually manipulated Josh into a sexual “relationship”. As Mrs. Sherman is brought to justice and the entire town learns of the sordid details Josh retreats into his own head. Now a senior in high school, a gifted baseball player with an amazing mind, Josh is having a hard time breaking away from his seventh grade self. For six years he has felt like the proverbial elephant in the room- the one that everybody notices and is curious about, but won’t address. Perhaps the redemption/conclusion he craves will comeRead More →