Zen and the Art of Faking It August 20, 2008

Title: Zen and the Art of Faking It

Author: Jordan Sonnenblick

Summary: Because his dad was a con man (now in prison), San has spent his life moving from school to school. Each time he transfers, San finds a way to blend in: In one school he’s a skater, in another a scholar, and so on. But when he moves to Pennsylvania, he adopts his most curious persona yet. Because he has already learned about Buddhism in social studies at his old school, he knows enough to convince his classmates he might be a Zen master himself. Now, instead of blending in, San stands out - and he likes it. With this new identity, he can fight for the little guys, impress his teachers, and maybe even win the heart of the guitar-playing girl of his dreams, Woody.

But it isn’t easy being Zen - not only does San have to study up with supersized library books on the subject, he has to embody principles like selflessness and tolerance all the time - which is next to impossible when you’re in middle school and you’re still really angry at your dad. How would Woody and the rest of the school react if they find out that San is just faking it?

Who will like this book?: Readers who like a big dose of humor in their stories. Anyone who ever ‘faked it’ a little to win hearts or make friends.

If you like this, try this: Stuck in the Middle, a great graphic novel by Ariel Schrag. Zen Shorts by Jon J. Muth.

Recommended by: Nicole, Teen Librarian

Keturah and Lord Death August 4, 2008

Title: Keturah and Lord Death

Author: Martine Leavitt

Summary: This is a great book for all of you readers currently (or soon to be) in Twilight withdrawal. When Keturah, the village storyteller of Tide-by-Root, wanders into the woods, she meets Death, who decides to claim Keturah as his bride. While there is something irresistible about the dark Lord,  Keturah has unfinished business in the village, and is able to use her storytelling abilities to spins a tale of a love so beautiful and enduring that it persuades Lord Death to give her another day.

With this gift of time, Keturah knows that in order to save herself, she must find the love she has described to Lord Death, even though she has never felt it herself.  While it sounds like a standard fairy tale, this book is full of suprises, including a breathtaking end that will haunt you long after you’ve closed the final pages.

Who will like this book?: Fans of impossible love stories, and readers who enjoy fantasies set in kingdoms or medieval villages.

If you like this, try this: The Twilight saga and The Host by Stephenie Meyer. Wildwood Dancing by Juliet Marillier. For mature readers, 1001 Nights of Snowfall by Bill Willingham.

Recommended by: Nicole, Teen Librarian

Into the Wild July 22, 2008

Title: Into the Wild

Author: Sarah Beth Durst

Summary: Living in a fairy tale isn’t ‘happily ever after.’ When the story ends, it just starts all over again. Julie knows just how different her life is from most teenagers. She has grown up listening to the stories her mom, Rapunzel, has told about how the fairy tale characters banded together to defeat ‘the Wild,’ the land of fairy tales that forced them to relive the same moments for hundreds of years. The Wild lives under Julie’s bed: A mess of branches and leaves that is constantly stealing her shoes. It is her job to make sure it doesn’t escape. 

When the Wild accidentally gets loose and begins to spread, trapping Cinderella, the witch, Red Riding Hood and all her family’s friends inside, Julie and her adopted brother, Puss and Boots, must go into the sinister forest to rescue them, keep from being captured in a story themselves, and prevent the Wild from turning the world into a never-ending fairy tale gone bad.

Who will like this book?: Fans of fractured fairy tales, or stories about when fantasy takes over the real world. People looking for adventure books starring girls.

If you like this, try this: The sequel, Out of the Wild. Books by Gregory Maguire, including his latest, What-the-Dickens. Dave Barry’s Peter series.

Recommended by: Nicole, Teen Librarian

A Northern Light July 3, 2008

Title: A Northern Light

Author: Jennifer Donnelly

Summary: Unlike many girls in the Great North Woods at the turn of the century, Mattie Gokey is gifted: She is a writer so talented she has been offered a full scholarship to Barnard College. But how can she leave? Since her mamma died, it has been Mattie’s job to run the farmhouse and look after her sisters, neighbors and her gruff pa. To earn money for the family, Mattie goes to work at the Glenmore Hotel. One day she is handed a bundle of letters by a guest named Grace, who asks her to burn them. Hours later, Grace’s body is found in the lake, and the boyfriend who took her out rowing is nowhere to be found. As Mattie begins to read the letters and piece together the mystery, she also begins to answer the questions of her own life: Should she stay and marry her gorgeous neighbor Royal, who doesn’t understand her love of books and words, or take her chances in New York and chase her dream of becoming a writer?  

The book is based on a real murder case that was the basis for the classic novel An American Tragedy and the film A Place in the Sun. But it is the fictional Mattie’s struggle to define herself in an era where girls had so few choices and little say in their futures that will linger long after the final page has been turned.

Who will like this book?: People who like fiction based on true stories. Fans of authentic characters with a lot of depth and honesty.

If you like this, try this: An American Tragedy by Theodore Dreiser. For another unforgettable, beautifully written historical novel featuring a book-loving heroine, try The Book Thief by Markus Zusak.

Recommended by: Nicole, Teen Librarian

Skin June 23, 2008

Title: Skin

Author: Adrienne Maria Vrettos

Summary:

These are the things you think when you come home to find that your sister has starved herself to death and you have dropped to your knees to revive her:
1. My sister is flat like a board.  There’s fat guys in the locker room with bigger boobs than she has.
2. When I scream my sister’s name into her face, I can hear my father’s voice in my own.
3. Where is it you’re supposed to press? In the middle, on the side? Left or right?

Fourteen-year-old Donnie has always relied on his older sister Karen to shield him from the harshness of life- be it lengthy and frequent parental fights or a miserable social life.  However, Karen is fading fast, wasting away from anorexia, leaving Donna to decide if he too will fade into the background via social isolation and bullying or challenge himself to carve out his own place of acceptance.

Who will like this book:  Fans of serious drama and family upheaval.  Told in the first person this book gives you the vantage point few anorexia stories do- that of a young male family member left behind. 

If you like this, try this:  Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher, Cut by Patricia McCormick, Skinny by Ibi Kaslik,  and Just Listen  by Sarah Dessen

Recommended by: Jen, Fairfield Woods Branch Teen Librarian

Story of a Girl June 6, 2008

Title: Story of a Girl

Author:Sara Zarr

Summary: A terrific book for mature readers about making mistakes and overcoming them. When Deanna was in the eighth grade, her dad caught her in the backseat of the car having sex with Tommy, her brother’s 17 year-old best friend. Tommy became a hero, Deanna got a reputation. That was two years ago, but she is still a slut in the eyes of everyone at her school, getting harassed every day by boys and ignored by her dad. The only people she can talk to are her brother and his girlfriend Stacy at home, and her old friend Jason and his new girlfriend Lee at school. A summer job at a pizza place threatens to set Deanna back. Will she let her life be defined by a poor choice made years ago, or strive to become the person she and all who love her know she can be?

Who will like this book?: Mature readers who like realistic fiction that doesn’t sugarcoat the issues. This is a quick, interesting read for people who don’t usually like books.

If you like this, try this: A Bad Boy Can Be Good for a Girl by Tanya Lee Stone. Forever by Judy Blume. And Ready or Not?, a non-fiction book for girls who want to know more about how to make good choices.

Recommended by: Nicole, Teen Librarian