Mockingjay

by Suzanne Collins. Scholastic Press (2010), hardcover, 400 pages, ISBN 978-054310604.

The Final Book of The Hunger Games trilogy. Katniss Everdeen is damaged but has survived the Hunger Games. Now she has made a bargain to be the star of the rebel propaganda campaign in exchange for a chance to exact her revenge on the Capitol by assassinating President Snow.

The final book is a heavy and emotional one. Post-traumatic stress disorder and the terrors of war have shaped many of the characters. The action is not always as intense as the previous books but in many ways, I found Mockingjay to be the most believable in the depiction of the characters and choices and actions.

Never Let Me Go

by Kazuo Ishiguro. Knopf (2005), Hardcover, 304 pages.

A quiet yet potent tale about three young people who are fated to brief lives because of their role in a society now free of disease. This story unfolds in an alternate version of the near past and much of it takes place in the remembrances of an idyllic (and disturbing) boarding school in a scenic English countryside. This novel is a heartbreak and the questions it leaves a reader with is why I highly recommended this book.

WIll Grayson, Will Grayson

by John Green & David Levithan. New York: Dutton, c2010, 310 pages. ISBN 9780525421580


Two teens with the same name meet on a fateful night out in Chicago. One Will is straight and one Will is gay but both are major characters in the life and the autobiographical musical by (the quite large) Tiny Cooper.

The story is told by both Will Graysons in alternating chapters. This is a very touching and accurate portrait of the complexities and anxieties of being a teen. It is also a great, hilarious depiction of male teen friendships and falling in love.

The Hunger Games

Title: The Hunger Games

Author: Suzanne Collins

Publication date: 2008

Number of pages: 384

Genre: Young Adult dystopian fiction

Geographical Setting: North America, now made up of 12 districts and ruled by the Capitol

Time Period: post-apocalyptic future

Series: book one, book two expected to be released September 2009

Plot: Katniss of District 12 is sixteen and a very adept hunter. Now her hunting skills will be tested as she volunteers in her young sister’s place for the country’s annual Hunger Games. A fight to the death is demanded by the Capitol and its citizens. Two tributes from each of the 12 districts are entered in the Games. Peeta, the baker’s son, is chosen as the male tribute from District 12. He has been in love with Katniss since the age of five and now must enter the arena prepared to kill—and it is all televised.

Subject Headings: dystopia, war, hunger, poverty, survival, death of a parent, first love, coming of age, reality television

Appeal: New York Times Notable Children’s Book 2008, Cybils Award for YA Fantasy and Science Fiction 2008, 2009 ALA Best Books for Young Adults Top 10, New York Times Bestseller, and numerous other award and best lists; film adaptation set to begin production in 2011; strong female character who is smart and ruthless, romantic subplot, thrilling pace, cliffhanger ending.

If you liked The Hunger Games, you might enjoy: Ray Bradbury’s Fahrenheit 451, Kristin Cahsore’s Graceling, Neil Gaiman’s Neverwhere, Ann Halam’s Dr. Franklin’s Island, Sonia Levitin’s The Goodness Gene, Meg Rosoff’s How I Live Now.

The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks

The Disreputable History of Frankie-Landau-Banks by E. Lockhart (2008), 342 pages, 2008 National Book Award Finalist

my review:

Elite boarding schools often provide a popular backdrop for young adult novels. They also provide the young adult novelist numerous opportunities to create situations where parental involvement and adult supervision is lacking; money and resources may abound for the characters. Many times, these characters live in a world that most young readers have never experienced--that of a life of privilege and status. All of these elements are a part of The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks but the title character of Frankie is such an odd (in a smarty, funny way) girl that she is more realistic and relatable for many readers than the usual prep or boarding school characters.

Frankie becomes obsessed with her plans to infiltrate and be a part of the all male secret society (the Loyal Order of the Basset Hounds) at Alabaster Prep. At the same time, she is experiencing her first love and a relationship where she struggles to not lose her own identity. More than just a pretty girl, Frankie fights for her place in the academic institution and in the world where the “Old Boys Club” rules.

The Disreputable History… is filled with clever wordplay and even more boarding school and college pranks, ideas of interventionist art, subverting the institutions of power and notions of gender roles and breaking the rules (whether written or just understood). Written in the third person, the narration is a welcome change from the usual first person narratives of many young adult novels. This is a coming of age book that defies many of the conventions of this genre.

2009 Michael L. Printz Honor Book

forever...

Title: forever...
Author: Judy Blume
Publication date: 1975
Number of pages: 192
Genre: Young Adult fiction
Geographical Setting: suburban New Jersey
Time Period: mid 1970s
Series: N/A

Plot Summary: Katherine meets Michael at a New Year’s party. There is an instant attraction between them and they soon begin dating each other exclusively. Katherine comes from a very open family without many rules including no curfew and a grandmother who sends her information from Planned Parenthood. She isn’t very wild though, gets decent grades, plays tennis very well and is still a virgin. Michael wants to have sex with Katherine but is understanding of her hesitance and takes things slow (as much as he can and as much as Katherine insists). As they negotiate and explore their romantic and sexual relationship, Katherine learns more about her own responsibilities that come with having sex. As their senior year is coming to an end, they have professed their love to one another and make plans for their summer together and their future afterwards.

Subject Headings: first love, high school graduation, first sexual experiences, teen sex, teen pregnancy, homosexuality, 1970s, birth control, Planned Parenthood

Appeal: written by one of America’s #1 children’s and young adult authors, frequently challenged book, candid discussion of sex and sexuality, colloquial language, sex in the 1970s before HIV/AIDS, experience of first love as a teen and belief it will last “forever,” giving a baby up for adoption as a teen, self responsibility to obtain birth control and use birth control, dilemma of the realization of sexual desires for someone other than one’s boyfriend

If you like forever..., you might enjoy: Judy Blume’s Deenie. Louise Rennison’s Angus, Thongs and Full-Frontal Snogging. Sarah Dessen’s Someone Like You. Stephie Davis’ Smart Boys and Fast Girls.

American Born Chinese

Title: American Born Chinese

Author: Gene Luen Yang

Publication date: 2006

Number of pages: 240

Genre: graphic novel
Geographical Setting: San Francisco’s Chinatown, an American middle class town, China of ancient folktales

Time Preiod: 1980s-90s

Series: N/A

Plot Summary: Jin Wang is a Chinese American middle school student who only wants to fit in with the rest of his white classmates. Rumors about his culture spread quickly amongst the other students making it difficult to pursue his first crush. He also resists being friends with the only other Asian boy in school who is a reminder of how different Jin is his classmates. Jin’s story of growing up as an outsider is intertwined with the Chinese folk tale of the Monkey King and the ethnic stereotype of a character named Chin-Kee.

Subject Headings: racism, assimilation, Chinese-American culture, first love, cultural stereotypes, puberty

Appeal: first graphic novel recognized by the National Book Foundation, first generation American story, colored by cartoonist Lark Pien, ethnic stereotypes, learning to be comfortable in your own skin, young boy’s experiencing the embarrassing effects of puberty

If you liked American Born Chinese, you might enjoy: Sherman Alexie’s The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian. Marjane’s Satrapi’s Persepolis.

Seventeenth Summer

Title: Seventeenth Summer
Author: Maureen Daly
Publication date: 1942
Number of pages: 285
Genre: Young Adult fiction/romance

Geographical Setting: Fond du Lac, Wisconsin
Time Period: early 1940s
Series: N/A

Plot Summary: After the summer, Angie Morrow is going off to college in Chicago. Her mother has never really allowed her to go out much but then Angie meets the handsome Jack Duluth. They start dating and the feelings of falling in love begin to stir in Angie for the first time. But she only has three months until college and along with the excitement of romance the tears of the end of her seventeenth summer may also come.

Subject Headings: romance, first love, summer, girl meets boy, the 1940s

Appeal: author credited with launching young adult literature, written when author was 2o and in college, young people’s experience in the 1940s, young woman’s life during the summer before college, Midwest experience in the 1940s, writing is diary-like, coming of age

If you liked Seventeenth Summer, you might enjoy:
Judy Blume’s Forever. Dandi Daly Mackall’s Eva Underground. Sarah Dessen’s Just Listen. Madeleine L’Engle’s And Both Were Young and Camilla.