Have you ever read a book that you just couldn’t wait to recommend to a friend? We’d love to hear about it!
Tell us in the comments about your favorite book or (if you can’t pick a favorite) the last great book that you read. Make sure you include the title and author, add the genre and age range, then tell us why you loved it!
I have 2 great YA titles to recommend – first, for realistic fiction, you have to read John Barnes tales of the MADMAN underground. Definitely YA (lots of foul language) but one of the best portrayals of a teen guy going through the crap of life and managing to somehow keep it together (barely). Fantastic book – my review is at http://www.phoenixbookcompany.com/blog/?p=504
And then in my favorite genre, historical fiction, Ruta Sepetys’ Out of the Easy. It’s her second book and I think it’s even better than Between Shades of Gray. She creates a richly textured, vibrantly illuminated world of New Orleans in 1950 and her characters, especially Josie and Willy, are drawn with such skill and depth I could not believe I was reading about fictional people. Hope to have a review on the blog soon, but in the meantime, get this book today.
Enjoy! – Cori
Young or old, everyone will love Jon Klassen’s delightful I Want My Hat Back and This Is Not My Hat.
They are both beautifully illustrated picture books with fun twists in the plot that will make kids and adults laugh. If you need a quick pick me up, or have a young reader in your life, pick up these books today!
I just finished a couple great books that I couldn’t wait to recommend to our students, Death by Toilet Paper and Future Flash.
I loved Death by Toilet Paper because of it’s deceptive title and cover. It’s appealing to kids on the outside but on the inside awaits a pretty dramatic story about a young boy whose father has recently died, a grandfather with Alzheimers who shows up unexpectedly, and a mother who’s trying to keep her head above water with all the resposibilities of a single parent. This is the story of a young boy who tries to help his mother in this very challenging time of their lives.
I loved Future Flash because of the way it portrays the problem of bullying in our society. The message gets a little bit preachy at the end, but hopefully kids will be to engrossed in the story to notice. I highly recommend both of these titles.