My Top Picks for Teen Books in 2015

January 8, 2016December 22, 2015 | Tasha

All American Boys by Jason Reynolds and Brendan Kiely

All the Bright Places by Jennifer Niven

All the Rage by Courtney Summers

Audacity by Melanie Crowder

Bone Gap by Laura Ruby

Challenger Deep by Neal Shusterman

Delicate Monsters by Stephanie Kuehn

Dumplin’ by Julie Murphy

Fell of Dark by Patrick Downes

Illuminae by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff

The Last Leaves Falling by Sarah Benwell

More Happy Than Not by Adam Silvera

Mosquitoland by David Arnold

One by Sarah Crossan

The Porcupine of Truth by Bill Konigsberg

The Rest of Us Just Live Here by Patrick Ness

Scorpion Rules by Erin Bow

Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda by Becky Albertalli

Six of Crows by Leigh Bardugo

A Song for Ella Grey by David Almond

There Will Be Lies by Nick Lake

The Truth Commission by Susan Juby

The Unlikely Hero of Room 13B by Teresa Toten

Untwine by Edwidge Danticat

X by Ilyasah Shabazz and Kekla Magoon

Review: Rules for Stealing Stars by Corey Ann Haydu

December 16, 2015December 4, 2015 | Tasha

Rules for Stealing Stars by Corey Ann Haydu (InfoSoup)

Silly is the youngest of four sisters and the older sisters tend to leave her out of a lot, like the secret boyfriend one of the twins has and what they are doing for hours in their bedroom so quietly. Their family has moved to New Hampshire to a home that used to be used just in the summer, the house where their mother grew up. But the move is not helping their mother who is quickly declining into alcoholism and abusive behavior. It isn’t until their mother turns on Silly too that the sisters bring Silly into their secret: their closet can take them to a different world. The sisters are shocked when Silly joins them and the magic becomes much stronger. As the sisters turn more and more to the closet for relief from their lives, they have to face the darkness they discover there as well. It may just be the answer for them all.

Haydu has created a lush book based loosely on The Twelve Dancing Princesses. She embraces the darkness of family life, offering a family dancing on the edge of something terrible, avoiding the truth about what is happening to their mother and what happened in her past, a father unable to cope with reality, and children trying to hold them all together. It is against that dark backdrop that the closets glimmer and glitter, beckoning the sisters and the reader to a different place where there is wonder and magic. But escaping into that place is not reality and Haydu shows this with a daring climax that speaks volumes about facing truth and being a family.

A book filled with four sisters can be challenging. Haydu pulls it off with grace and style, offering each of the girls a distinct personality but keeping them from being stereotypical. Silly is the main character, a girl who has been left out of much that the sisters have done and feels that she has no special sister to pair with the way the twins do. Silly feels alone even in a bustling houseful of people, which speaks volumes about her family. Silly is also the one protected from much of the abuse, but she witnesses more than the others do.

This brilliant starry novel takes a dark reality and a dazzling magic and creates wonder all its own. Appropriate for ages 11-14.

Reviewed from library copy.

Review: Dumplin’ by Julie Murphy

December 9, 2015December 2, 2015 | Tasha

Dumplin’ by Julie Murphy (InfoSoup)

Willowdean doesn’t spend her days worrying about how fat she is, though her mother’s nickname of “Dumplin'” can be a problem, especially when used in public. Her mother is in charge of the local beauty pageant and has never encouraged Will to enter, though she has told Will’s best friend Ellen that she could win. When a boy at her work at a local fast food joint starts to flirt with Will, she is shocked. Bo is a gorgeous guy and someone that moves in a different social level than Will. When the two of them start to make out after work in their own secret place, Will begins to question her comfort with her body. As Will’s confidence plummets, she makes a big decision. She’s going to enter the Miss Clover City pageant. As she reclaims her self-image, she ends up helping other girls do the same.

Murphy’s novel is simply brilliant. Willowdean is a wonderful protagonist and the claustrophobic setting of a small southern town is also perfection. It’s that setting that lets Will really shine, since it wears on her and the reader. Add in the Dolly Parton songs, the loss of a beloved aunt who served as a second parent, and a handful of red suckers, and this novel will have you head-over-heels in love with Will and everything that she stands for.

Murphy gets the fat-girl personality just right. The feeling of complete self-acceptance that you can have and then the way it can disappear as if it never existed. Murphy though does not accept that. Instead Will fights back, recovers from her funk about herself, insists on relationships on her own terms, and heck even falls in love for good measure.

A book that will have you turning on Dolly yourself, this novel for teens shines and dazzles. It’s for girls of every size, because none of us feel worthy enough. Appropriate for ages 13-17.

Reviewed from library copy.

Review: The Unlikely Hero of Room 13B by Teresa Toten

December 7, 2015November 24, 2015 | Tasha

The Unlikely Hero of Room 13B by Teresa Toten (InfoSoup)

Adam isn’t looking for romance at his OCD group therapy session but when Robyn walks in, everything changes. Adam has enough going on in his life with his divorced parents, a stepmother, and a little brother who needs Adam all the time. As Adam starts to teach Robyn about Catholicism, the others in his group become intrigued too. Soon Adam finds himself showing them all the church that he and his mother left years ago. Adam reassures himself that everyone lies, but his lies seem to be increasing each day, from lying to Robyn about where he lives to lying about his mother’s escalating condition. Adam wants to feel in control of his life and to get better, but it is all getting out of control, especially his OCD.

This teen novel won the Governor General’s Award in Canada. It speaks to the OCD condition and the difficult journey towards a healthier mental state. It also has a huge heart and a large dose of humor. Adam’s entire life could be seen as a tragedy but thanks to the writing here that keeps it from becoming morose, the book is triumphant and so is Adam. This is not a book that minimizes the impact of mental illness, instead it embraces the difficulties and concerns, showing how each and every day, each threshold and each twist of panic can change what is happening.

Adam and Robyn are beautiful foils for one another. Adam begins the book as the person with it mostly together while Robyn is freshly released from a residential program. But as the book and their relationship progresses, that changes in a realistic and heart-wrenching way. Throughout, readers see the depth of Adam’s issues and the strength it will take to stop lying to everyone, but mostly to himself.

Funny, deep and immensely satisfying, this novel deals with teens with OCD and how life just keeps on happening no matter how many lies you tell. Appropriate for ages 14-18.

Reviewed from copy received from Random House Children’s Books.

Review: All American Boys by Jason Reynolds and Brendan Kiely

December 2, 2015November 16, 2015 | Tasha

All American Boys by Jason Reynolds and Brendan Kiely (InfoSoup)

Rashad is just minding his own business, getting chips after school, when he is suddenly accused of shoplifting after a white woman trips over him. He ends up being brutally beaten by the police officer in the store and has to be hospitalized. At the same time, Quinn is heading out to a party with his friends from school and witnesses the beating first hand. Quinn considers the officer involved and his younger brother close personal friends and struggles with what he has seen. A video of the incident goes viral and Rashad finds himself at the center of the Black Lives Matter discussion. Both Rashad and Quinn have to figure out whether they are willing to stand up for change and what that means for each of them.

I have heard incredible praise for this book and it is all completely true. Reynolds and Kiely tell their story in alternating chapters, each narrated by one of the two teens. The book is so strong, the voices of each of the narrators are distinct and clear. The book fights stereotypes over and over again. It is done with care and consideration, each choice that is made fights against what our culture believes to be true. It is done though with such certainty too that the reader doesn’t notice that the very structure of the story itself is part of its message.

This is a stunning read. The authors do not duck away from the complexity of the questions being asked, instead adding nuance in some instances. Rashad’s father is a police officer and the story of why he left the force will resonate and show just how insidious societal racism is even in the African-American community itself. The two main characters also face difficult decisions but very different ones. The book is difficult, challenging and vital.

This is a must-read book for teens. It would make a great platform for important discussions that need to continue in America. Brave, incredible and riveting. Appropriate for ages 14-17.

Reviewed from library copy.

Review: A Step Toward Falling by Cammie McGovern

November 23, 2015November 2, 2015 | Tasha

A Step Toward Falling by Cammie McGovern (InfoSoup)

Emily prides herself on being a leader in a group at her high school that promotes good causes and explains larger issues. So she is very ashamed when she freezes in the middle of a crisis. When she witnesses Belinda, a developmentally disabled classmate, being assaulted at a football game, she does nothing to intervene. Now she and Lucas, a boy who also failed to come to Belinda’s rescue, have to do community service at a center for people with disabilities. As work at the center, they start to realize the damage that they did through their silence. They search for ways to also directly help Belinda, but Belinda is no longer at school. It will take one big idea that will stretch all of their abilities to start to see serious healing.

McGovern has written an amazing book here. The narration in the novel switches between Emily and Belinda, so readers are able to see the true impact of the assault on Belinda as well as the repercussions in Emily’s life. The book moves readers from the drama of the assault to focus much more on the aftermath and the need for understanding and advocacy.

Belinda is a great character. Her point of view is such an important piece of this novel, showing a bravery after taking time to simply disappear into Pride and Prejudice and Colin Firth for awhile. Her disability is never hidden and yet also not exploited in any way. The way she is shown honors the way her brain works and the intelligence that she clearly has. I also appreciate that Belinda is far from perfect. She is demanding of others, often rudely criticizing them in public, and is not subtle at all. Again, this rings very true and honest. She is not a victim but a survivor.

An important teen novel about stepping up and taking action and responsibility but also about the lives of people with disabilities and the place they deserve in our communities. Appropriate for ages 13-16.

Reviewed from ARC received from HarperCollins.

Review: A Song for Ella Grey by David Almond

November 19, 2015November 13, 2015 | Tasha

A Song for Ella Grey by David Almond

The Greek myth of Orpheus and Eurydice is transformed into a tale of modern English teens in this masterful novel. Claire and Ella are the closest of friends, in fact Claire is in love with Ella. The two spend all of their time together and with their larger group of friends. When Ella is forbidden to go on the trip with all of the friends to the beaches of Northumberland, Claire goes without her. Throughout though, Claire is longing for Ella. Then she meets Orpheus, a strange and handsome musician whose music is so powerful that all of nature seems to stop when he plays. She calls Ella and holds the phone out so that Ella can hear the music too. That one impulsive moment sets in motion a story of profound love, deep loss, death and beyond.

Almond’s own writing is like the music of Orpheus. It creates an intoxicating blend of timeless Greek myth and wild modern teens. The girls become legends, their longing the desire of ages, their love the love to last all time. Orpheus is directly from myth, a wanderer who is captured in a love that seems to have been in existence for all time. There is such beauty here, not only in the myth itself but in the characters too. This book speaks to the power in each of us to live a story, a legend, a myth and to love in that way too.

Almond’s language is exquisite. His writing flows around the reader, inviting them into the magic that is happening on the page. He focuses on small things, showing how the tiny things in life are the most profound from falling rain to trees in the wind to sand drifting by. It is Orpheus’ music that brings these things to life for his listeners. And the reader falls in love with him alongside Ella, never having heard the music itself but having felt its impact to their bones.

Beautiful, mystic, and mythical, this book is a love song for young people, capturing the tumultuous feeling of tumbling into love and the tenuous nature of life and death. Appropriate for ages 14-17.

Reviewed from ARC received from Delacorte Books for Young Readers.

Review: Willful Machines by Tim Floreen

November 18, 2015October 24, 2015 | Tasha

Willful Machines by Tim Floreen (InfoSoup)

Lee is the son of the President of the United States, but he isn’t a teen who is particular positive or popular. A year ago, he tried to take his own life and now is left with a fear of heights. So when he sees a new boy at school balancing on his hands only inches away from the edge of his elite school’s waterfall, Lee is shaken. Later, the boy approaches him and the two become friends. It helps that Lee is immediately attracted to Nico with his Chilean accent and loud laugh. It’s an attraction that his ultra-conservative father will not approve of and one that his father’s national policies has made illegal. In order to get to know one another better, the two boys manage to lose Lee’s security detail a couple of times. But things at school are starting to get weird with one of Lee’s robotic creatures attacking him and a threat from a sentient computer program promising continued attacks. Lee finds himself at the center of the battle for robot rights as the robots begin to turn on him.

Floreen has set his novel in the near future. It’s a future filled with clever devices that keep people connected to the internet at all times, robots that are nearly flesh and blood, and one where terrorist attacks are created by sentient computers. He keeps a tight rein on the setting, an elite prep school where security is tight and the security around Lee is even tighter. This creates a wonderful claustrophobia as well as a paranoia about being watched and spied upon. It’s a great setting for this nail-biting adventure.

Lee is a character I adored immediately. I love his morose sadness and his unwillingness to display emotions unless he is feeling them. He is deeply grieving for the loss of his mother and his suicide attempt is an adept mix of tragedy and humor. He is honest through and through, a complete disappointment to the men in his family, and they don’t even know that he’s gay. Floreen incorporates that aspect of his character throughout the book. His romance with Nico is wonderfully hot and deeply romantic.

A great mix of LGBT, robots and science fiction, this book offers a bleak look at America’s near future with the spiciness of one hot romance. I’m hoping there’s a sequel on its way! Appropriate for ages 13-17.

Reviewed from ARC received from Simon and Schuster.

Amazon Best of 2015 – Young Adult Books

November 12, 2015November 11, 2015 | Tasha

Amazon has released their lists of the Best Books of 2015. They have two youth categories and offer a Top 20 in both. Here are the top 20 books according to Amazon in young adult books

TOP 20 YOUNG ADULT BOOKS