Gathering Blue, by Lois Lowry

Somewhere in the distant future, Kira (who has always been an outcast in her village because of a bad leg) must find a new future when her mother suddenly dies. Miraculously, not only does she find a means to support herself, but it as as the honored embroiderer of the Singer's gown that he wears each year to sing the history of the people. But as Kira becomes more familiar with the new world she is in, she also begins to suspect that things are not quite as they seem.

This interesting piece of fantasy, deep with metaphors, is a companion to Lowry's The Giver. It's an original and fully-developed world that we get to see, so fans of fantasy literature will like it. I'm not much of a fan myself, but moreover, I tend to find the style (which is written in a rather distant 1st-person narrative) hard to relate to. There are characters and they do interesting things, but you never quite end up caring what they are doing.

When Jeff Comes Home, by Catherine Atkins

At the age of 14, Jeff is a rising baseball star, revered older brother, and the jewel in his father's eyes, but then he is kidnapped and held captive for two and a half years. When he returns "home" to his family, he has to learn to come to grips with what he lost and what he has become. And his family must also learn that his return is only the beginning of a long recovery.

A gripping and unusual story. Not as strong as Atkins's later writing, but original and compelling. There are no simple solutions and no punches pulled (although I am personally a bit maddened that the family never seeks professional counseling!). In some ways, the lack of easy answers makes the story a bit harder (and more mature) than even YA lit usually is. Definitely for older readers, but a book for everyone to talk about.

A Heart Divided, by Cherrie Bennett and Jeff Gottesfeld

When Kate's family moves from New Jersey to a suburb of NAshville TN and tears her away from her fledgling playwright training, Kate is sure that she will hate it. At first every stereotype of the South seems to come true -- from her rich antebellum boyfriend to the Confederate flag flying overhead. But as Kate tries to understand her new ome well enough to write a play about it, she discovers that the more she learns, the less she knows.

I'm inherently distrustful of books about the South. They are either written by Southerners and depict romantic views, or they are written by Yankees, explaining either the superiority or inferiority of the South. Neither approach really gets at the truth and I leave dissatisfied. But this novel gets at the greater complexity of things (and deals with the whole Confederate flag issue to boot!). It tosses in a nice romance story as well. Surprisingly good and recommended.

Homeroom Exercise, by Jana Striegel

Regan is a dancer and a good one. In seventh grade, she wins an audition to host a morning aerobics class broadcast on closed-circuit TV. The program is a success and catapaults her into city-wide fame, and gets her noticed by the in-crowd. But then her joints start to hurt and she starts to suffer from fevers. As her pain brings on a nightmare of tests, hospital visits, misdiagnosesm, and uncertainty, Regan has to face a possibility that she might not be able to dance again.

Much better than My Brother Made Me Do It, Striegel creates a nice middle reader book on Juvenile Rheumatoid Arthritis. It gets a bit preachy towards the end and just starts downloading facts about the disease (a common occurrence in these illness-books where the author feels rushed to tell the story) but there is a nice introduction to JRA here and young readers will like that. The subplots make the story interesting and believable but don't distract.

Amalee, by Dar Williams

Amelee doesn't have any friends at school that she's comfortable with, and she has a pretty unusual life at home. Her father and his friends are raising her and she spends much of her time with them. Things change when her father gets sick and she has to rely on others for help, discovering unusual and unexpected allies, and making a new friend or two.

Being a big Dar fan, I'm trying (with some difficulty) to ignore who the author is, but you can certainly see the similiarity between the book and her songs. Full of optimism about the strength of kindness, and full of complicated thoughts about human nature and seeing the world through other people's eyes, this is a warm story. However, it is also a bit preachy for many of the same reasons, and more about the adults than the kids. There are nice lessons here but it will be a bit hard for younger readers to relate to them. Amalee never quite comes alive and things pop out of her mouth that just don't seem in character. So, I guess this was something of a disappointment.

Bras & Broomsticks, by Sarah Mlynowski

When Rachel finds out that her little sister Miri is a witch (and that her Mom is too), her first thought is how amazingly unfair it is that she didn't get the same powers, but then she realizes that magic could do wonders for her popularity and maybe even help her keep her Dad from marrying Jennifer (the STB). But quickly, Rachel learns that popularity and magic can have some pretty harsh consequences.

Part recycled Grimms Tale (and what good story isn't?) but with some modern cred behind it, Rachel will remind readers a lot of Cyd Charisse (the heroine of Gingerbread and Shrimp) but a bit younger. She's as boy crazy but maybe not as boy lucky. And the writing is snappy and fast paced. I'm not too bonkers for the story which seems a bit predictable and well-trod, but it's a fun read.

The Truth About Sparrows, by Marian Hale

When Sadie's family is forced to sell their home and travel in search of a new life at the height of the Depression, Sadie hopes the change will be temporary. She hopes that soon they'll be able to return home to Missouri and to her best friend Wilma. But as time goes by, Sadie realizes that there is no going back, and that she must make a new home on the Texas coast, with new friends and a new life.

Hale's story of coming of age in the midst of economic dispair has all the makings of assigned reading. It's a good story if you're into historical fiction, but one can't help but wonder how many readers end up reading it because they have to write a book report for school. The strengths are the crisp writing and tone that never misses a beat, but there isn't much that will grab and hold you.

My own reading experience was interrupted as I started reading this book a month ago and had to stop because the copy I was reading was missing pages -- so there was a gap in my experience. That said, I didn't find myself gripped with suspense at what I was missing, so while this is a good book, it's no page turner.

Harley Like A Person, by Cat Bauer

Harley think she may be adopted [didn't we just read that two books back?] and it would explain how her eye color differs from the rest of her family, and why her parents have lost her birth certificate and get all weird when she brings up her suspicions. But mostly Harley needs it to be true, to help her cope with the spiraling nightmare of her life which is causing her to lose touch with who she is. Instead, she tries alcohol, smoking, and drugs, climaxing is a last ditch effort to sort everything out which takes her to New York.

This is a pretty dark and melodramatic book. It's not bad. The writing is good, the characters are believable. I bought the motives and all, but the payoff at the end will disappoint as you just hoped for so much more, and the plotlines developed early just seem to die in the end. As far as "mystery of where I came from" stories, this is lightyears ahead of the Face on the Milk Carton.

Keeping You A Secret, by Julie Anne Peters

Holland Jaeger is the senior class president, on her way to majoring in pre-law at Stanford, and the apple in the eye of her mother. She dates Seth (also on Student Council) and has a great set of friends. But then she meets Cece, a very out-of-the-closet teen lesbian, and Holland begins to have feelings that she has a hard time explaining to her mother, her friends, or herself.

Peters scores again with a touching book about coming out in high school, and the difficulties of being gay, when you're still trying to figure out what you want to major in in college, let alone what your sexual orientation is. It's not instant classic material, but it's a good book. I'll have to fault it slightly for dragging a bit at parts and then speeding to catch up. Maybe some editorial assistance? But these are the type of quibbles that shouldn't lead anyone to not read this book. Peters hasn't really expanded herself very much from Define "Normal" but she's in a very good place.

The Anybodies, by Julianna Baggott [N.E. Bode]

Fern has been convinced for most of her life that she was raised by the wrong parents. They are dull and boring while Fern is certainly not. They talk endlessly about lawn care, while she is able to make crickets emerge from books, witness a nun turn into a lamppost and an umbrella, and sees evil clouds and watchful birds. Then, much to her delight, her suspicions are revealed to be true when her long lost real father Bone shows up and swaps her for the Summer with the boy who is supposed to be living where Fern is. And she acquires a mission: to find a powerful book called The Art of Being Anyone, before it falls into the devious hands of The Miser. There are angry fairies, dinosaurs, and all of your favorite children's book characters to deal with before Fern is done.

Julianna Baggott (writing as N. E. Bode) has obviously had a great deal of fun with this book, telling a story that will amuse children and put a smile on the face of lovers of kid lit. It's full of references to all sorts of classics (and more than a few knowing jibes at pretentious MFA creative writing programs as well!). Ine wonders if the whole thing isn't a bit too precious, but it's a quick read. Nice if you like fantasy, and a welcome break from so much of the other much-less-clever stuff out there.

Looking for Alaska, by John Green

Miles Halter comes to Culver Creek, a boarding school in Alabama with few friends and fewer regrets. His great accomplishment so far is his obsession with people's last words. But his life changes as first he meets his new roommate (the colonel) and then he meets the enigmatic and emotionally volatile Alaska -- the young woman who would be the Love of His Life if only she would stop making fun of him for it. In this very touching and insightful look at growing up from a boy's point of view, everything is about Alaska. Everything, that is, until After.

I remain very very torn about this book. I hate boy books, especially books about boys written by boys. So, I really want to hate this book, but I now understand why this book is getting all the buzz this year from the librarians. John Green is truly an outstanding writer and I can see this winning the Printz (at least, it SHOULD win it). You will laugh and you will cry -- I rarely do when I read, but this was a major exception. I'd ding it if I could, but it deserves all four stars. stunning!

Ola's Wake, by B. J. Stone

Josie and her Mom travel to the Ozarks to attend Great-Grandma Ola's funeral. Josie never met Ola when she was alive, but now she wants to get to know her. Through listening to other people's stories and learning about live in the Ozarks, Josie is able to do so.

It cute and quaint and a fast read. It's also disjointed and never really develops into a real story.

Belle Teal, by Ann M. Martin

Belle Teal is growing up in the South in the late Fifties. Her grandmother is going senile and her mother is studying at secretarial school while trying to support them all, so there's really no one at home for Belle Teal to tell about the new colored boy at school or snooty new rich girl. As she confronts her classmate's blatant racism with the help of her friend and a sympathetic young teacher, Belle Teal does a lot of growing up.

Probably one of Martin's better novels, this one still has some rough spots, almost as if it was rushed and underedited. It is enjoyable enough as a read for middle readers, but gets a bit scrappy at parts. Like other novels about racism in the past, this novel seems suspciously like one of those books you get assigned to read, rather than choose to. Might make a good book report subject but for enjoyment I'd go for something more contemporary and relevant.

Tae's Sonata, by Haemi Balgassi

Taeyoung is a very self-conscious eighth-grader, but she has reason to be so, as one of only two Korean-Americans in her school. She copes with discrimination (some real, some imagined) and with a sense of isolation and loneliness, struggles with friendship and shifting loyalties, and a growing sense of herself.

A nice, charming, and short book about growing up Asian in America. Nothing terribly deep, but not a shallow book either. A good read.

See You Down the Road, by Kim Ablon Whitney

Bridget is a Traveller, a group of modern day nomads who travle in trailers, making a living largely by ripping people off and then moving on before they can get caught. But 16 year old Bridget isn't sure that this life is for her. The stealing is part of her concern but it's also her upcoming marriage to Patrick that makes her question who she is and what she wants to do with her life.

Based on a real subculture, Whitney carves out an amazingly fresh landscape to tell her story. And being such an unusual background, the characters operate in ways we aren't accustomed to. How many teens worry about engagements, bride prices, and stealing to make their parents proud of them? I'll give the book high marks for originality and presenting a compelling set of characters.

But I think my reservations come mostly from personal problems with the story. It's hard to care about Bridget's fretting about getting married when she's defrauding and outright robbing people right and left and lives with such a distorted moral compass that this is OK. When you think of how these people live, this is a very difficult group to feel sympathy for.

Quiver, by Stephanie Spinner

Atalanta is a divinely-blessed huntress and athlete, accompanying Jason and his Argonauts on hunts and a favored mortal of the Goddess Artemis. When Atalanta's father, the king, comes to claim her from the woods where she was abandoned, he demands that she marry. And she replies by setting up a contest, a race which every suitor must run (and win) if he wishes to stay alive. Many suitors dies until Atalanta meets her match.

The story is classic Greek myth, with Spinner's psychological interpretation superimposed on the story. The result is uneven. Some scenes (like the boar's hunt) are nicely drawn, but the characters are sketchy and undeveloped. The most interesting parts end up being the squabbles of the gods themselves.

My Father's Summers, by Kathi Appelt

In a series of short, poetic passages, Appelt tells the story of her childhood, growing up in Houston with a father who went to Arabia to escape his family, returning only to divorce her mother and marry another woman.

This really is not a YA book, but rather a book for adults about looking back on a childhood. The passages are all quite bittersweet, but it is not a tough task to make a brief segment come off that way. And it doesn't really create a story per se, just a collection of ideas. Nice writing, but not really storytelling either.

Lucas, by Kevin Brooks

Caitlin's life on the island is fairly quiet. She goes out drinking with her friend Bill and she dreads the return of her older brother Dom from university. But then a strange and cryptic vagrant boy named Lucas shows up and changes everything, threatening the stability and peace of life.

This is a very dark and violent story (and a long one!) -- one of my very infrequent outings into stories written by male writers. There's a reason for that: they tend to be dark and violent. The sheer amount of rapes, assaults, and so on in this book is enough to just disgust. I'll take my mushy heart stories anytime. Is Brooks a good writer? Yes, but you need a strong stomach.

Anastasia Krupnik, by Lois Lowry

Anastasia loves lists and she's creating a list of things she loves and things she hates. There are lots of things to classify: her soon-to-be-born baby brother, her ailing gradmother, the nutty and seductive Washburn Cummings, and her parents. For a fourth-grader, there's a lot to say.

A little odd to go back to middle reader material again, when I've been doing so much teen reading lately. Weirder to read a book that is actually contemporary with my childhood. The book dates itself in numerous places (teachers and students smoke in Anastasia's father's college classroom), but it has tremendous heart. A contemporary equivalent would be the Judy Moody series and that probably accounts for some of the enduring popularly of Lowry's writing. A nice diversion.

Joyride, by Amy Ehrlich

Nina and her mother Joyce never seem to spend very much time in the same place. That was fun when Nina was younger, but lately she's begun to yearn for some time to just make friends and have a life. But the more she yearns for that, the harder it becomes, it it all goes very very badly.

In what is ultimately a very sad book, Ehrlich does a wonderful job of creating characters and situations that we really care about. It's a challenge to generate a place full of memorable and believable characters, and she does so several times in such convincing detail that you feel as much wrenched from the setting as Nina does when they are forced to move again. The ending is a bit weaker, but still quite haunting.