Songs for a Teenage Nomad

Songs for a Teenage Nomad by Kim Culbertson 

Naperville, IL: Sourcebooks Fire

256 pages

4 out of 5

After living in twelve places in eight years, Calle Smith finds herself in Andreas Bay, California, at the start of ninth grade. Another new home, another new school...Calle knows better than to put down roots. Her song journal keeps her moving to her own soundtrack, bouncing through a world best kept at a distance.

Yet before she knows it, friends creep in--as does an unlikely boy with a secret. Calle is torn over what may be her first chance at love. With all that she's hiding and all that she wants, can she find something lasting beyond music? And will she ever discover why she and her mother have been running in the first place?

The hook with this novel is the "soundtrack" of Calle's life. It's a completely relatable hook, too. How many tines have you heard a song that thought, that's just what I needed to hear? Exactly.

Calle's been yanked all over the state of California for most of her life. She usually does her best to be aloof and ignored by her fellow students at the newest new school. Unfortunately for Calle, drama kids are pushy, and before she knows it, she's made friends and maybe even has a boyfriend. Almost.

It's a mystery to Calle why she and her mother are constantly on the move. Calle's pretty sure it has to do with her mother's personality, but the secret is finally revealed to her. I'm not much of a spoil sport, so if you want to know what's up you'll have to read the book. (I feel like LeVar Burton all of a sudden).

Anyway, Calle and the other characters feel authentic and I enjoyed discovering new friends, love, and the secret with her. There's only one moment that's a little deus ex machina, but overall the story works.

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Disclosure: I bought this title for my own personal enjoyment.

Fall for Anything

Fall for Anything by Courtney Summers 

St. Martin's Griffin, 2010

224 pages

3.5 out of 5

When Eddie Reeves's father commits suicide her life is consumed by the nagging question of why? Why when was a legendary photographer and a brilliant teacher? Why when he seemed to find inspiration in everything he saw? And, most important why when he had a daughter who loved him more than anyone else in the world? When she meets Culler Evans, a former student of her father's and a photographer himself, an instant and dangerous attraction begins.  Culler seems to know more about her father than she does and could possibly hold the key to the mystery surrounding his death. But Eddie's vulnerability has weakened her and Culler Evans is getting too close.  Her need for the truth keeps her hanging on...but are some questions better left unanswered?

Meaning. We all search for it or believe it is tangled up in our day to day. But we look for, beg for meaning most when the unthinkable happens. Eddie's search for meaning takes her on a journey with her father's former assistant, Culler Evans.

The search for meaning is primarily what this book is about. Death changes the people left behind. Some become bolder, while others turn inward.Watching Eddie and her mother cope (or not) with the sudden loss of her father is heartbreaking, but impossible to look away from.

The turn of events in the novel is surprising. Without giving away some necessary details, I can't comment further. So I'll skip ahead and say that some of the best endings are in the form of beginnings. 

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Disclosure: I borrowed this title from my local library.

The Future of Us

The Future of Us by Jay Asher and Carolyn Mackler 

New York, NY: Razorbill, 2011

368 pages

4 out of 5

It's 1996, and Josh and Emma have been neighbors their whole lives. They've been best friends almost as long -- at least, up until last November, when Josh did something that changed everything. Things have been weird between them ever since, but when Josh's family gets a free AOL CD in the mail, his mom makes him bring it over so that Emma can install it on her new computer. When they sign on, they're automatically logged onto their Facebook pages. But Facebook hasn't been invented yet. And they're look themselves fifteen years in the future.

By refreshing their pages, they learn that making different decisions now will affect the outcome of their lives later. And as they grapple with the ups and downs of what they're doing right -- and wrong -- in the present.

I have to partly blame nostalgia for how I feel about this book. As the description says, this book is set in 1996 when households with the internet were much fewer than they are today. In 1996, my grandparents house was one of those homes and it was with the help of free AOL hours and Yahoo Messenger that I kept in touch with my friends and how I learned to type very quickly. As soon as I finished this book, I couldn't stop gushing about how nostalgic is made me. Though it also shows me how much has really changed. Email was the thing when I was in middle and high school. Now it's text messages because most people have a cell phone.

Fortunately, I like this book for more than the trip down memory lane. It gives an interesting perspective on this thing most people have and feel the need to check frequently--Facebook. Early in the book Emma and Josh are reading whiny posts about life and what they made for dinner. Their response: "Um, why are people posting this one the internet?" This is often a question I wonder, yet am guilty of as well.

Because this book is set in '96, it's very low-tech by today's standards. The whole premise is that Emma getting her first desktop computer and happens upon this wacky site called Facebook that shows her the future. Also, only one person has a cell phone, and she happens to be the most popular girl in school.

Personally, I enjoyed this novel quite a bit. It's well written and covers many of the problems faced in high school.  Intermixed with the technology aspect are elements of romance, friendship, family, and all that other stuff to deal with in high school and life in general.


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Full disclosure: I borrowed this title from my local library.

Ten Things We Did (and Probably Shouldn't Have)

Ten Things We Did (and Probably Shouldn't Have) by Sarah Mlynowski 

New York, NY: HarperTeen, 2011

357 pages (ebook)

4 out 5

2 girls + 3 guys + 1 house - parents = 10 things April and her friends did that they (definitely, maybe, probably) shouldn't have.

If given the opportunity, what sixteen-year-old wouldn't jump at the chance to move in with a friend and live parent-free? Although maybe "opportunity" isn't the right word, since April had to tell her dad a tiny little untruth to make it happen (see #1: "Lied to Our Parents"). But she and her housemate Vi are totally responsible and able to take care of themselves. How they ended up "Skipping School" (#3), "Throwing a Crazy Party" (#8), "Buying a Hot Tub" (#4), and um, "Harboring a Fugitive" (#7) at all is kind of a mystery to them.  -- Description from Amazon.

Every teen's dream is to have freedom while still in high school. I had a taste of this myself and it was way cooler then than it is now, primarily because someone else was paying the bills.

April and Vi work out the perfect plan to be roomies! after April's father and step-mother opt to move to another state. April cannot stand the thought of being torn away from her school, her friends, and most importantly, her boyfriend Noah.

This is definitely an "I learned my lesson--kind of" book. I know I couldn't have pulled something like that off, but April and Vi manage to work it out. And the way to go about it, it's awfully fun to do "bad" things. Well...most bad things.

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Full disclosure: I purchased the ebook of this title for my own reading enjoyment.

Sunrise Over Fallujah

Sunrise Over Fallujah by Walter Dean Myers

New York, NY: Scholastic Press, 2008

320 pages

3.5 out of 5

Robin "Birdy" Perry, a new army recruit from Harlem, isn't quite sure why he joined the army, but he's sure where he's head: Iraq. Birdy and the others in the Civilian Affairs Battalion are supposed to help secure and stabilize the country and successfully interact with the Iraqi people. Officially, the code name for their maneuvers if Operation Iraqi Freedom. But the young men and women in the CA unit have a simpler name for it:

War

This was one of our Battle of the Books selections this year and work is one of the few things that could get me to pick this one up. Don't get me wrong, Walter Dean Myers is an excellent author who should be read, but war stories in general are not for me.

It is as realistic at they come. The dread, fear, and hope reduced to sadness are all palpable. There were times when I had to set the book aside due to the images I was conjuring up. (Having loved ones who are in the military and have been shipped out doesn't help matters).

The emotion most conveyed is that of confusion as the enemy is hard to spot and the rules have a tendency to change--even in the middle of combat. The most surprising aspect of this is that it's not overly bloody; though that's not to imply that it isn't violent. Much of the violence is discussed after the fact, or by a third party, or it happens very quickly. There is one major moment of violence that serves to punctuate the issues that arise throughout the novel.

The writing is well done and I do like the characters, but the subject matter is not what I typically gravitate to. I am glad I read it, and I think if others are not too put off by the subject matter, they will enjoy it.

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Disclosure: I borrowed this book from my local library.

Tween Tuesday: Gossip from the Girls' Room

Tween Tuesday is a meme hosted over at GreenBeanTeenQueen.  This meme highlights great books for tweens.

Gossip from the Girls' Room: A Blogtastic Novel 

by Rose Cooper 

New York, NY: Delacourt Press

199 pages
4 out of 5

Gossip from the Girls' Room fills readers in on all there is to learn about middle school life at Middlebrooke, where Sofia has her very own blog and discusses all the juicy gossip that comes out of the Girls' room; read along to find out just what happens when class is not in session.

In Sofia's words...

Mia St. Claire is only the most popular girl in all of Middlebrooke Middle School.  For three very obvious reasons:

1. She's very rich.

2. She has ton of money.

3. She can buy anything and everything she wants. And she does.

I'm sure people like her for other reasons too, but none of those reasons are obvious enough for me to really know. Or care about, for that matter.

If books could mate, this book would be the love child of Diary of a Wimpy Kid and The Popularity Papers. It is formatted as Sofia Becker's pre-blogging notebook, where she keeps track of gossip she overhearss, her thoughts on that gossip, as well as updates on other happenings in her life and around the school. It also has cute little doodles that, much like DoWK, often finish a sentence.

I like the blogging element of this story, because you get to see what Sofia considers blogging about and what she actually ends up blogging. Choosing to reveal gossip can lead to trouble so it's interesting to see the decisions she makes in terms of letting something slip or keeping it to herself. Also, a book like this would not be complete without some kind of parental embarrassment. This element adds humor, and makes me glad that I am no longer in middle school.

To sum up, this is an enjoyable story that is a perfect read-a-like to other series listed above.

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Disclosure: I borrowed this title from my local library.

Teenage Waistland

Teenage Waistland by Lynn Biederman & Lisa Pazer

New York, NY: Delacorte Press, 2010

317 pages
4 out of 5

"You all believe that losing one-hundred-plus pounds will solve everything, but it won't.  Something heavier is weighing on you, and until you deal with that, nothing in your lives will be right.  - Betsy Glass, PhD, at first weekly group counseling session for ten severely obese teens admitted into exclusive weight loss surgery trial

Patient #1: Female, age 16, 5'4", 288 lbs

- Thrust into size-zero suburban hell by remarried liposuctioned mom.  Hates new school and skinny boy-toy stepsister.

- Body size exceeded only by her mouth.

Patient #2: Male, age 15, 6'2", 335 lbs.

- All-star football player, but if he gets "girl surgery," as his dad calls it, he'll probably get benched.

- Has moobies - male boobies.  Forget about losing his V-card - he's never even been kissed.

Patient #3: Female, age 15, 5'6", 278 lbs.

- Mobidly obese and morbid, living alone with severely depressed mother who won't leave her bed.

- Best and only friend is another patient, whose dark secret threatens everything patient #3 believes about life

Told in the voices of patients Marcie Mandelbaum, Bobby Konopka, and Annie "East" Itou, Teenage Waistland is a story of betrayal, intervention, a life-altering operation, and a long-buried truth that proves far more devastating than the layers of fat that protect it.

This was an everything novel. Yes, the main focus is on four teens who have lap-band surgery in order to lose weight, but within the lives of those four teens, just about everything happens.  There's sibling rivalry, a parent living vicariously through his child, the big game, familial distance, and a terrible secret.  Describing it in a list like that makes it seem like it's the description for the next episode of some popular soap opera. The good news is that all of these issues fit the characters and the novel without it feeling like it's trying to do too much.

Multiple voices allow for this to not feel quite so overwhelming.  Marcie, Bobby, and East all take turns telling their portion of the story.  There is a fourth character, Char (short for Charlotte), who does not narrate, but is still an integral part of the story. Plus, the fact that all her information is rolled up with East's is a wonderful method for showing how closely the two have bonded and is a perfect set-up for what's to come.

The characters are interesting and dynamic without coming across as cliche. This is tough when you have the jock, the big mouth, the wild girl, and the shy girl.  Even the ancillary characters (like Marcie's perfect, modelesque step-sister) don't necessarily fit the mold you would expect.

I was sucked in to their stories and struggles. Some scenes made me laugh, some made me sad or angry, but mostly I just wanted to know what happened next.

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Full disclosure: I borrowed this title from my local library.

Marcelo in the Real World

Marcelo in the Real World by Francisco X. Stork 

New York: Arthur A. Levine, 2009

312 pages
3 out of 5

Marcelo Sandoval hears music that nobody else can hear -- part of an autism-like condition that no doctor has been able to identify.  But his father has never fully believed in the music or Marcelo's unique perception of reality, and he challenges Marcelo to work in the mailroom of his law firm for the summer...to join "the real world."  There Marcelo meets Jasmine, his beautiful and surprising coworker, and Wendell, the son of another partner in the firm.  He learns about competition and jealousy, anger and desire.  But it's a picture he finds in a file -- a picture of a girl with half a face -- that truly connects him with the real world: it's suffering, its injustice, and what he can do to fight.

I'm still not completely sure what I think of this novel. It took a second start for me to get into it, but even then it didn't always keep me.  It's well written. I like Marcelo and Jasmine. I want to punch Wendell in the face.

Marcelo is an interesting character, trying to get through life with an autism-like disorder. He manages well but it often bewildered by facial expressions and literal phrases that people use. The shift in his perspective is best part of the novel. He goes from his self-restricted world of his tree house, Paterson and the ponies, to the "real world" where he learns more than he thought possible. The understanding that eventually sets in is actually very sad.  It's the same as watching a child lose his innocence. And once it's gone, it cannot be retrieved.

Some of the plot points of the novel came up a bit short for me though. The mystery element was interesting for a bit, but then it began to feel like it was included simply for set-up and not for its own merit.  This element in particular redeems somewhat redeems itself.  For much of the second half of the novel, it felt like a lot was happening all at once but the conclusions were not completely satisfying.

Leap

Leap by Jane Breskin Zalben

Knopf for Young Readers, 2007

272 pages
4 out of 5

Daniel says: You know how life goes along and you don't always stop to think, is it okay? You're just too busy doing everyday stuff: homework, hanging out, watching TV, going to the movies. Well, life caused me to grow up fast.  Real fast. Like overnight.

Krista says: I remembered number one: Help Daniel.  A promise is a promise. I just didn't want to lose Bobby by taking sides with Daniel.

Daniel and Krista used to be inseparable.  Swim buddies. In the Barracudas.  Now that they're older, they've drifted apart--but when an accident leaves Daniel temporarily paralyzed, he needs Krista's help to swim again.

Things aren't as simple between them as they used to be, though, especially when Krista's feelings for another boy keep getting in the way of their friendship.  Now Krista and Daniel must both take leaps--leaps that take them to places they never imagined.

The story is cute. It provides details on how the accident happened and the immediate aftermath, but the story seems to pick up a bit later, when Daniel is able to go back to school. Along with the usual problems twelve-year-olds encounter, Daniel's friends and classmates struggle to figure out how to act around Daniel.  The accident isn't the only problem Daniel has either. He's got a crush on a girl who is clueless and his mother all of a sudden makes changes to her life that severely affect Daniel's.

The auxiliary characters add dimension to the overall story. Daniel's parents and their struggles following the accident; Lainie's relationship with her mother; the tension between the Kaufman's and the Rosen's; and the dynamic of Krista's group of friends. I like that the novel doesn't completely center around Daniel in his temporarily handicapped state because individuals who are handicapped (temporarily or otherwise) have more to their lives than that.  

This is an enjoyable audio book.  Daniel and Krista are represented by different readers, and they both do a good job of expressing the characters emotions and changing their voices to represent other characters. Overall, I enjoyed this story and having it read to me.

Family

Family by Micol Ostow 

New York: Egmont, 2011

384 pages

5 out of 5

One the surface, it is a day like any other when seventeen-year-old Melinda Jensen hits the road for San Francisco, leaving behind her fractured home life and a constant assault on her self-esteem.  Henry is the handsome, charismatic man who comes upon her, collapsed on a park bench, and offers love, a bright new consciousness, and -- best of all -- a family.  One that will embrace her and give her love. Because family is what Mel has never really had.  And this new family, Henry's family, shares everything. They share the chores, their bodies, and their beliefs.  And if Mel truly wants to belong, she will share in everything they do. No matter what the family does, or how far they go.

I was happily surprised to discover this was a novel in verse (otherwise known as poetry). The cover captivated me from the moment I first saw it and the verse element meant that I had to read it. Right now. I read this in a few hours because it was just too good to put down (and short sentences make for quick reading).

The verse gives an authentic feel and voice to Mel. It feels like memories in snippets. For many people it is difficult to imagine why a cults are appealing. This style, to my mind, helps show (as opposed to just tell) how and why Mel finds herself feeling safe and secure as a member of Henry's family.

The family is supposed to share everything and the leader is God. This point is well made with the both the lack and use of capitalization. Repetition is also used very well. It brings urgency to certain passages and understanding to others.

Though the subject matter isn't the happiest, this is a fantastic read.

Thirteen Plus One

 
Thirteen Plus One by Lauren Myracle 

New York: Dutton Children's Books

272 pages

Winnie has finally gotten the hang of junior high - gaining two fabulous BFFs and a perfect (OK, sometimes perfect) boyfriend in the process. And with graduation just around the corner, the countdown to high school has begun. Not that Winnie is obsessing about it, since she has a whole bunch of things to check of her To-Do-Before-High-School list.  But things, like owning her heart's desire, helping the world, and - oh, yeah - growing up.  With so much to do and only a summer to do it, one thing is for sure: eleven, twelve, and thirteen were big, but fourteen is going to be epic! (Description from Amazon).

This is a wonderful book and a perfect little summer read. The book begins with Winnie turning 14.  She's on her way to high school soon; she's got two great friends and a sweet boyfriend. What more could a girl want?  To grow up for one. 

Winnie's voice is honest and true. She sounds and acts just like a fourteen-year-old while trying to figure out what it means to be a grown up--or at least a little more grown up. The dynamic between Winnie and her friends, Cinnamon and Dinah is also well done.  Cinnamon is the loud and slightly pushy one.  Dinah is the quiet one, and Winnie fits somewhere in between, though she's not perfect either.  They have spats and confrontations but actually think about the problems and get them worked out. I don't remember many girls doing that when I was in a school, but it's a nice addition. Girls don't have to be, er, witches?

Also, the relationship with Lars seems a bit of a stretch.  I don't remember anyone in middle school (or even high school for that matter) dating for more than three months, but the lesson that comes along with the relationship is a good one.  There is some joking and mention of sexual things in this book, but it's not graphic.  It's an honest depiction of how middle school girls joke and discuss sex and boys.

This is the fourth book in the Winnie Years Series and events from earlier novels are mentioned (especially Amanda, the ex-bff). The accompanying explanations caught me up perfectly so I didn't feel like I was missing out. Still, I might just have to read the others. 

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Disclosure: I borrowed this ebook from my local library.

Dirty Little Secrets

Dirty Little Secrets by C.J. Omololu 

Walker & Company, 2010

212 pages

5 out of 5

From the outside, Lucy's home looks normal.  Inside the front door is where the secrets begin.  Towering piles of magazines.  Bags of junk flooding every inch of open space.  The rotting smell permeating the air.  This is what she's kept from everyone--that her mother's compulsive hoarding has reduced their lives to garbage...literally.

With just two years until graduation, Lucy finally feels like a normal life is within her grasp.  Her new best friend, Kaylie, and her longtime crush, Josh, make a future seem almost possible.

The one morning Lucy comes home to find something she never expected, something that will change her life forever.  And she must ask herself--how far can she go to protect her family's secret?

Wow.

This is currently the only title* that covers the topic of compulsive hoarding.  This topic has increasingly been brought to the forefront with various TV shows literally airing out the dirty laundry of compulsive hoarders.  The kids in these instances are affected by it, and although emotions are touched on, the problems usually focused on are health related and/or the threat of losing the children if the mess is not cleaned up.

Lucy's story is a different dynamic.  She has been taught to live with while still being ashamed of her mother's secret.  She fears the day that someone sees into the house and realizes the awful conditions in which she lives.  She fears that day that the stink she's become accustomed to follows her to school and someone notices.  I felt incredibly sad for Lucy.  The only day she looks forward to is high school graduation, when she can just leave the mess behind like her older siblings.

Kaylie and Josh are excellent additions to the story.  Kaylie stands by her side even though Lucy never asks her to spend the night and inexplicably and often bails out on plans.  Josh and Lucy finally get some time to get to know each other, and Josh's candor about his own mother's affliction seems like it should be eye-opening for Lucy.  You just want her to realize that she is not responsible for or defined by her mother's compulsive behavior.

But she can't.  And so she must find a way to keep the secret forever. 

This is a truly wonderful book.  I love that a well-written, emotional title on this topic exists. I highly recommend it.

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*At least not that I could find in my library or with WorldCat.


Disclosure: I borrowed this title from my local library.  I'll be posting a modified version of this review to my library's website.

Tween Tuesday: Cheesie Mack is Not a Genius or Anything

Cheesie Mack is Not a Genius or Anything by Steve Cotler 

Random House Books for Young Readers, 2011

240 pages

3 out of 5

Ronald "Cheesie" Mack is not a genius or anything, but he remembers everything that happened before, during, and after fifth-grade graduation, and he's written it all down in his own unique and hilarious way--with lots of lists, drawings, and splenderful (that's splendid plus wonderful!) made-up words.

Cheesie--with a little help from Steve Cotlet--writes about family, friendship, and tough choices in an unforgettable voice that will have kids laughing out loud.  Readers of Diary of a Wimpy Kid will love both the clever humor and the black-and-white-illustrations throughout. (Description from Amazon).

Overall this book is quite enjoyable with a nice, easily wrapped up story featuring the shenanigans of eleven-year-old boys.

Cheesie's voice is honest and does feel kid-like, but it also comes across as a little know-it-allish.  Though this can be an accurate depiction of eleven-year-old boys, the inclusion of vocabulary words immediately followed by their definitions just felt condescending (perhaps this is just me knowing all the big words already), but it was not my favorite approach.

My major pet peeve was the constant mention of the website.  It seemed that every few pages the words "visit my website" appeared together.  I understand the importance (and need) to promote the book and the character (especially in the instance of a series), but I made audible annoyed sounds every time I read those words.  My suggestion might be to include a symbol or some other easily-scanned-over-if-I'm-not-interested-in-sharing-something-related-to-this at the end of appropriate sentences and keep the "Visit cheesiemack.com" section at the end as a final reminder.

Even with my dislikes, I did enjoy the book and I'm happy to see that it's being ordered for my library.  The next time someone asks for Diary of a Wimpy Kid, and it is inevitably checked out, I have another back-up to suggest.

Out today!
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Disclosure: This review is from the ARC pilfered from the orphan ARC shelf at work.  (As in a colleague received it and placed it there for others to enjoy.)  Also the ARC edition does not include final illustrations, so I cannot make comments about them.  If they are anything like the book, I'm sure they will be entertaining.

Tween Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted by Sarah at GreenBeanTeenQueen.  The purpose is "to highlight great reads for tweens!"

The Hate List

The Hate List by Jennifer Brown 

Little, Brown Books for Young Readers, 2009 (Pbk. 2010)

408 pages

4 out of 5

Five months ago, Valerie Leftman's boyfriend, Nick, opened fire on their school cafeteria.  Shot trying to stop him, Valeria inadvertently saved the life of a classmate, but was implicated in the shootings because of the list she helped create.  A list of people and things she and Nick hated.  The list he used to pick his targets.

Now, after a summer of seclusion, Val is forced to confront her guilt as she returns to school to complete her senior year.  Haunted by the memory of the boyfriend she still loves and navigating rocky relationships with her family, former friends and the girl whose life she saved, Val must come to grips with the tragedy that took place and her role in it, in order to make amends and move on with her life.  (Description from Amazon)

Intense.  That is the best word I can think of to describe this book.  The book begins with Valerie's first day back to school after the shooting.  She is still recovering, awkward, and afraid of her classmates reaction to her return.  The rest of the story is told through Valerie's flashbacks and newspaper reports.   

This book features a topic that I find terrifying.  I was in middle school when Columbine happened and lived a bit of history as I experienced changes in policies and school safety as a result.  I can't say that I was or was not worried about it actually happening, but I remember it leaving people keyed up on the subject.  Those feelings returned as I was reading this book.

I felt sorry for Valerie.  She found herself caught up in a scheme planned and executed by the person she loved; the person she thought understood her best in the world.  Valerie's journey is a slow one, but also interesting.  Ultimately, this book is about learning to live again.

There were parts of the story that I feel could have been fleshed out more: Be, the lover of all things purple, and Nick's weird older friend, for example.  Everyone came down on Valerie, but it seems no one asked questions about that guy.

All in all though, I think this topic was handled quite well.

I Can't Keep My Own Secrets

I Can't Keep My Own Secrets: Six-Word Memoirs by Teens Famous & Obscure by Larry Smith and Rachel Fershleiser

HarperTeen, 2009

ISBN: 9780061726842

192 pages

5 out of 5

One life.  Six words.  What's yours?

True tales of love, loss, good friends, and bad hair days filled Not Quite What I was Planning, the New York Times bestselling first book in the Six-Word Memoir Series--and an international phenomenon.  Some of the most compelling were by teens, so now SMITH Magazine has compiled a book written entirely by these bold, brash truth-tellers.  From cancer to creativity, prom dates to promiscuity, and breaking hearts to breaking laws, the memoirs in this collection reveal that often the youngest writers have the most fascinating stories to tell.

Met online; love before first sight.

Hair's pink to piss you off.

I fulfilled my awkwardness quota today.

I'm seventeen, engaged, and not pregnant.

My mom had my boyfriend deported.

Late for school every single day.

According to facebook, be broke up.

From the moment I read this first memoir,  I could not put this book down.  This book contains some of the funniest, saddest, and most heartfelt sentiments I've read in a while, and it's all done in six words.  To some that might seem easy, but can you explain your life in just six words?

This is an excellent book for any teen to read.  If you read straight through it's pretty quick, but the beauty is that you can read these in any order.  Start from the back, the front, the middle or somewhere in between.  Any way you choose to read it, you'll be sure to read them all.

Split

Split by Swati Avasthi

New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 2010

ISBN: 9780375863400

288 pages

4.5 out of 5

Sixteen-year-old Jace Witherspoon arrives at the doorstep of his estranged brother, Christian, with a re-landscaped face (courtesy of his father's first), $3.84, and a secret.

He tried to move on, going for new friends, a new school, and a new job, but all his changes can't make him forget what he left behind.  His mother is still trapped with his dad.  And his ex-girlfriend is keeping his secret--for now.

Turns out there are some things you can't just walk away from.

Swati Avasthi gives us a riveting portrait of what happens after.  After you've said enough, after you've made the split--how do you begin to live again?  Readers won't be able to put this page-turner down.

This book had me from the first line, "Now I have to start lying."  Going into a novel cold and catching that line is as close to magic as you can get.

Jace has lived his entire life in a home where his father took out his aggression on his wife, on his oldest son, then finally his youngest.  But this is not the story you'll be reading.  As the description says, this is a novel about what happens after. Usually when someone finds a way out, that's the end, but this novel reveals that there is so much more.  Even Christian, who escaped years before, continues to struggle with his former life. 

Jace's voice is honest and open. The greatest part of this perspective is that it allows the reader to know not only what he does and says, but what he thinks and feels.  This, to me, is one of the most important aspects of this novel.  It's clear that his experiences forced him to grow up too soon, but it's also clear that he's still just a kid trying to figure it all out. 

Split takes a serious look at what it's like to be trapped by domestic violence even after you've escaped.  I highly recommend it.

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Split is the second novel I've read for the Debut Author Challenge.
A "booktalk" version of this review will appear on my library's website.  I can't help but share great books!

Do Not Pass Go

Do Not Pass Go by Kirkpatrick Hill

Margaret K. McElderry Books, 2007

ISBN: 9781416914006

229 pages

4 out of 5

Deet's world turns upside down when his father is arrested for drug use.  It doesn't seem possible that kind, caring Dad could be a criminal!  After all, he only took the pills to stay awake so he could work two jobs.  Now what will happen?  How will Deet be able to face his classmates?  Where will they get money?  And most importantly, will Dad be okay in prison?

Hurt, angry, and ashamed, Deet doesn't want to visit his father in jail.  But when Mom goes back to work, Deet starts visiting Dad after school.  It's frightening at first, but as he adjusts to the routine, Deet begins to see the prisoners as people with stories of their own, just like his dad.  Deet soon realizes that prison isn't the terrifying place of movies and nightmares.  In fact, Dad's imprisonment leads Deet to make a  few surprising discoveries--about his father, his friends, and himself.

With moving realism, Kirkpatrick Hill brings to light the tumultuous experience of having a parent in jail in this honest and stirring story of a young man forced to grow up quickly.

This is one instance where I feel the above description does not do the novel justice.  Most readers realize that these blurbs are meant to get your interest without giving away everything, but there are many more elements to this story that are more interesting than Deet visiting his father in jail.  Don't get me wrong, the approach the novel takes to this subject is very compassionate and could be helpful to someone who's parent/other relative/friend has landed in jail for a non-violent crime. 

The novel is set in a small town in Alaska, so when someone gets arrested everyone recognizes the name in the paper.  This is something Deet is terribly afraid of, but Deet is terribly afraid of quite a few things.  Deet's introduction actually establishes him as being a bit OCD and critical of the way his parents manage their lives.  As the story progresses, Deet learns a lot about what it takes to keep up a household while keeping up with school. 

One of my favorite elements from this book is the conversation between Deet and his English teacher.  Throughout the novel Deet keeps a quotations notebook for class.  He selects quotations and writes about that quote, and his English teacher responds. It's is through this "conversation" that Deet reveals what the experience has taught him. 

As might be noticeable from my disconnected thoughts above, I'm having trouble writing about this book.  I really enjoyed it.  It's a book that I want to tell all about so to not ruin it I'm trying to keep my fingers in check.

This is a 2010-2011 Sunshine State Young Reader's Award nominee.