Teen

Review: Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda by Becky Albertalli

| Tasha

Simon vs the Homo Sapiens Agenda by Becky Albertalli

Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda by Becky Albertalli (InfoSoup)

Simon has been exchanging emails with Blue for awhile. Simon doesn’t know who Blue is, just that he goes the same school. They have agreed not to try to find one another because they are both not out publicly yet. When Marty discovers Simon’s emails with Blue, he uses them to blackmail Simon by threatening to out not only him but Blue as well. Marty demands that Simon set him up with one of Simon’s best friends. Abby is a new part of Simon’s group of friends and the dynamics are getting more problematic as Leah seems to be more and more jealous of Abby, especially where Nick is concerned. Meanwhile Simon is starting to put together clues about whom Blue might be and keeps on dropping clues of his own accidentally about his own identity. But before Simon can fully figure it all out, Marty makes one final desperate move that outs Simon to the entire school in a very public way, one that might scare off Blue entirely.

I fell hard for this book. Simon is a delight of a character, a brilliant mix of teenage angst, intelligence, great taste in music, and a winning personality. Throughout the book, the writing is bright and sparkling with wit. Albertalli has worked with teens as a clinical psychologist, specifically those who are gender nonconforming and that expertise is reflected throughout this book. She understands teens at a deep psychological level that gives this book a solid foundation from which to build.

One element I have to mention is a spoiler, so look away if you need to. But this book allows two gay teens to actually fall in love, revel in their connection, flirt outrageously with one another, talk about sex, and yes eventually meet and be happy. There are kisses and making out, and both are happy and thrilled to be together. It’s pure bliss to find this in a novel for teens, since it is so affirming. All is not perfect in this world though, there is bullying from other kids at school, the blackmail over sexual identity and a parent who makes gay jokes. It’s complicated and that is the truth of life captured in this novel.

Funny, painful, and pure dynamite, this novel is one of the best teen reads of the year. Appropriate for ages 14-18.

Reviewed from library copy.

Review: Illuminae by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff

| Tasha

Illuminae by Amie Kaufman

Illuminae by Amie Kaufman and Jay Kristoff (InfoSoup)

Released October 20, 2015.

Kady picked the worst time possible to break up with Ezra: just as their planet was attacked. The two of them manage to survive and are taken into space on two different ships in the fleet. The fleet must keep moving in order to escape the final ship from the attacking forces. As they travel, Kady becomes a hacker, looking at files and documents that only the commanding officers of the fleet would usually see. Ezra becomes a pilot, manning a small spaceship in battles. The two of them can only communicate through texts with one another and when communication between the two ships is shut down, it is up to Kady to reconnect them using her hacking skills. But connecting with each other may be the last thing on their minds as a combination of a deadly plague and an insane artificial intelligence threatens all of them.

This brilliant novel uses documents that recreate the events on the fleet, the hacking of Kady, the piloting by Ezra, and their communications with one another. They are documents from an investigation that takes place afterwards, piecing together what happened to the people aboard the ships. The documents are an amazing mix of different formats which keeps the long novel fresh and fast moving. The documents create a story of mysteries and then horror as the plague takes effect. Horrible and devastating choices must be made that have consequences for many, the tension is tremendous throughout the book and just grows even more ferocious as the novel continues. It’s diabolically plotted in a wonderful twisted way.

The design of this book is gorgeous. Pages loop with text as missiles and space ships weave and fight. Other pages for heartbeats, images made of words. For me, the best part of the book is the artificial intelligence after it has been damaged. It is beyond human, smarter than us all, asking questions that an AI should not be posing, and feeling things that no AI should feel. It is death, life and wonder rolled into one. Brilliance and darkness at the same time.

A glorious science fiction read for teens, this book has romance yes, but at its heart it is a dynamic horror story set in the vacuum of space. Appropriate for ages 14-18.

Reviewed from ARC received from Alfred A. Knopf.

Review: The Rest of Us Just Live Here by Patrick Ness

| Tasha

The Rest of Us Just Live Here by Patrick Ness

The Rest of Us Just Live Here by Patrick Ness

The town that Mikey lives in has been hit by more than its share of strange things. There were the vampires, soul-eating ghosts and the zombies. But Mikey isn’t one of the kids who would get caught up in those situations. He’s not an indie kid, just a normal kid who wants to graduate from high school in a few weeks, maybe kiss one of his closest friends, go to the prom, and just spend time together with the people he loves. But life isn’t that simple and strange things are happening around the town with blue lights glowing, angry cops with blue glowing eyes, dead deer that come back to life, and much more. Mikey is all ready to blame the new kid for everything, including his own inability to date Henna. And Mikey is having to deal with his own OCD returning, unable to stop washing his hands until they are bleeding. Then there’s the problem of his dad’s drinking and his mother’s inattention as she runs her new political campaign. Even Mikey’s older sister is struggling again with her eating disorder. As graduation nears and the town gets even more unstable, Mikey must learn more about himself and his friends before he can realize just how amazing life really is.

Ness adroitly combines several genres in this novel for teens. There are the real-life teen elements of parental dysfunction and mental illness. Those are cleverly combined with a fantasy novel that has children of cat gods, magical elves, and bodies that are used as vessels. And finally, there is the perfect ironic twist of being a parody of popular teen novels like Twilight. Ness does this final piece by having the events of a Twilight-like novel happening around the characters but rarely to them, the story of those events is told in quick manner at the beginning of each chapter and then left aside as Mikey and his story takes center stage with its brilliant mix of magic and normal.

It is that delightful genre bending that makes this book so special. But it is also the fact that though Ness is poking fun at some of the more popular genre tropes, he is also writing a great book that will please fans of those books too. The parody is there yes, but underneath that is a novel that has truly human characters who love one another, struggle with their own failings, yearn for more in life, and work hard to make sure that those they love are protected and cared for. It’s a novel with a true heart, one that is not ironic in any way, but gorgeous and honest.

A fascinating read, this teen novel will have you laughing at the parody while all the time enjoying the real depth of its characters. Appropriate for ages 14-17.

Reviewed from ARC received from HarperTeen.

Review: The Scorpion Rules by Erin Bow

| Tasha

Scorpion Rules by Erin Bow

Scorpion Rules by Erin Bow (InfoSoup)

400 years in the future, the world is ruled by an artificial intelligence named Talis who has the ability to blow up cities if they fail to follow his rules. Talis also demands that any ruler in the world give up a child to be held hostage. That child is raised as a Child of Peace in small schools called Preceptures. If their parent decides to go to war with another region, that child is immediately put to death. Greta has been living in a Canadian Precepture since she was five. She is the Duchess of Halifax and the Crown Princess of the Pan-Polar Confederation. She knows her destiny is either to die or to leave the Prefecture at age 18 to become the ruler of her confederation. But everything changes when a new boy enters the Prefecture, a boy not raised to be a ruler but instead raised on a sheep farm and a boy unwilling to submit to the rules of the school or the world. As Greta grows closer to Elian, she begins to question the rules she has embraced all of her life. But their countries are about to declare war upon one another, so Greta’s time is coming to a close alongside Elian and before Greta has truly learned to live.

I am in awe, seriously. I adored Bow’s previous book that merged Native Americans with zombies. So I was happy to see another book by her and then shocked to have it so wildly different. Shocked in a good way, where you realize the breadth of a writer’s vision and skill. Bow manages to create a world where machines rule and it all makes sense. She casually throws around technology terms and they all work as well. This is not a world that is a strain to see coming, but rather one that is so psychologically logical as a result of our current world that it is bruisingly beautifully complete.

Greta is a an elegant character, a bundle of contradictions held together solely by the constraints of the world she finds herself in. She is a natural ruler, even among other teens who are born to lead. She comports herself with dignity always, her greatest fear being to let her people down. And then into that constricted life comes Elian, filled with humor, laughter and bravery. Greta changes, slowly and steadily, from ruler to human in the greatest sense. It is beautiful to witness, believable and tragically timed.

I would do this book a disservice if I didn’t talk about its diversity. The characters are all diverse and unique, the group of older teens come from all parts of the world. And the diversity doesn’t end there, because there is also a lush and lovely lesbian romance alongside a gay one where it is portrayed with all of the beauty and romance one could want.

Masterful science fiction with grand world building and one hell of a protagonist, this is one of my top science fiction reads of the year. Appropriate for ages 14-16.

Reviewed from ARC received from Margaret K. McElderry Books.

Review: One by Sarah Crossan

| Tasha

One by Sarah Crossan

One by Sarah Crossan (InfoSoup)

Tippi and Grace are conjoined twins. They have two arms each, but share two legs together. They have spent their childhood being homeschooled, but now the money has run out and they have to start school. It’s a private school, but still much more exposed than they have been before. The two of them literally do everything together. They go to therapy where one twin wears headphones while the other has private time with the doctor. They share dinner with one another but never desserts. Still, there are things you want to be private about, like what boys you like and how sick you are feeling. And Tippi and Grace are feeling sicker and sicker, leading to a decision that is impossible to make.

Told in verse, this novel is compellingly written entirely in Grace’s voice. She clearly tells a story of being an individual and a separate person, but also the meaning of being that close to someone your entire life.  The book celebrates the closeness of these sisters and their battles with one another but also their care too. While they are unique from one another, they are also a single one being too. This will resonate with teens growing up themselves and experiencing new things away from close family.

In the end though, this is Grace’s story and it is made fascinating by the details of being conjoined and the unique way that this impacts every day life. Grace’s voice is clear and vivid. She has a specific point of view that is all about the way she lives with Tippi alongside her. Crossan embraces the necessary optimism of a conjoined twin but also offer Grace skepticism and a healthy sense of humor that gets her through the day. Crossan is also not afraid to let these two twins be teenagers, giving them opportunity to drink and smoke with the friends they make. It’s touches like that that make this book really work.

An honest and awe-inspiring look at being a conjoined twin and also a devastating decision, this book is impossible to put down. Appropriate for ages 14-16.

Reviewed from ARC received from Greenwillow Books.

Review: Apple and Rain by Sarah Crossan

| Tasha

Apple and Rain by Sarah Crossan

Apple and Rain by Sarah Crossan (InfoSoup)

Apple has lived with her Nana for eleven years, ever since her mother abandoned her at age 3. Nana is strict and won’t let Apple even walk back home from school. When Apple’s mother returns, she is sophisticated and charming and not strict at all. She wants Apple to live with her and it seems like a great idea, after all she will let Apple wear makeup, walk home from school, and even shares some sips of wine. Apple agrees to move in, leaving Nana living alone, and then she discovers that she has a younger sister, Rain. Rain carries a doll around with her and pretends that it is a real baby. As the sisters grow closer together, Apple’s mother starts to spend more time away, leaving Apple caring for Rain and missing school. When tragedy almost strikes, it will take a serious choice by Apple to figure out what sort of family she really wants to be a part of.

Nominated for the British Carnegie Medal, this novel’s writing is clear and lovely. Throughout this novel, Crossan deals with serious situations and large emotions. She uses metaphors to show the depth of emotion and also ties Apple’s emotions into the poems she writes. The images she uses are strong and compelling, allowing the reader to truly understand what Apple is feeling even when her emotions are at their most turbulent.

Crossan also excels at creating relationships between characters and this book is all about relationships on a variety of levels. We have friendships both budding and decaying, maternal relationships that are troubled, and sibling relationships that are problematic yet positive. In each of these, the people are human and real. They are invested in the relationship in their own unique way, often either unable to speak to its importance in their life or unable to see beyond themselves to its importance. Apple is a strong protagonist, longing for a relationship with a mother who even after she returns cannot be the mother than Apple needs. Apple is capable, caring and wonderfully like her Nana in many ways, a touch that I particularly appreciated.

This novel about families, abandonment, and freedom will resonate with middle school readers who may be feeling their own need to be a little less monitored too. Appropriate for ages 12-15.

Reviewed from ARC received from Bloomsbury.

Teens’ Top Ten Voting Open!

| Tasha

teens top ten

The Teens’ Top Ten list is entirely nominated and voted on by teens. Books are from the previous year. Voting opened on August 15th and runs through Teen Read Week which is October 18-24.

Visit the Top Ten Tumblr page.

Head here to see the nominees and to vote if you are a teen.

Review: All the Rage by Courtney Summers

| Tasha

All the Rage by Courtney Summers

All the Rage by Courtney Summers (InfoSoup)

When Romy is raped at a party after having too much to drink, no one believes her that it happened. After all, she accused the sheriff’s oldest son and she’s the daughter of the town drunk. A year later, Romy has tried to put her life back together. She and her mother have moved in with her mother’s new boyfriend and her alcoholic father has left town. Romy works at a diner where no one knows about the scandal that she was involved in. But all is not good, she is bullied mercilessly at school for the “lie” that she told and she can’t trust anyone at her high school to have her back. Romance starts to bloom with the cook at the diner, a boy whom Romy is not sure she can trust and knows that she can’t let anyone at her hometown know about. As the annual senior party approaches, Romy knows she can’t attend but news that another girl may have been raped in a neighboring town sends her into a downward spiral, one that she may not survive.

This is one incredible read. The prose is beautiful, roaming and wild with a lusciousness that lingers in the mind. Summers makes the act of putting on finger polish and lipstick into one of battle paint and bravery. She also has a distinct feminist point of view that is a delight to read, one that shows the violence towards women and girls and rejects the notion that women are to be used and thrown away. She does that all by having a story where women are abused, raped, objectified and thrown away and where girls are called names, bullied and beaten. It is a story that is brutal in its fierce honesty and burning with anger at what we are allowing to happen to ourselves.

Romy is a spectacular heroine. She is a ball of ferocious pain, painted with makeup that allows her to control things, searching for a way to be a new person and finding it impossible to leave her anger and herself behind. Add to the appeal an African-American love interest where that is not the issue at the heart of the book. And a mother who is involved and cares deeply but is unable to save her daughter from the world they live in together. And a stepfather who is kind and lovely, disabled and disrespected. These people make up Romy’s family and heart. They hold her together when she cannot, though she fights to stand alone always.

A piercingly compelling read, this is a compelling feminist book that teenagers need to read to understand our society and what has to change. Appropriate for ages 15-18.

Reviewed from library copy.

Review: Honor Girl by Maggie Thrash

| Tasha

Honor Girl by Maggie Thrash

Honor Girl by Maggie Thrash

Released September 8, 2015.

Maggie attends the same summer camp that her mother did and her grandmother did. Camp Bellflower for Girls is one of the oldest camps in the South, and nothing has changed there since it was founded in 1922. Maggie spends her summer with friends she made there previous years. She hates the tether she has to wear to keep herself from sleepwalking at night and she’s really into the Backstreet Boys. Maggie lies the rifle range and finds herself getting better at shooting at least when she can stop herself from thinking too much. That gets a lot harder when she notices Erin, a counselor in the younger girls’ camp. Maggie struggles with her feelings for Erin and though she tries to disguise what she is feeling, other girls at camp notice. Some are supportive while others think that it is very wrong. As Maggie’s summer plays out, she finds ways to deal with the pressure of the rifle range, an angry rival, and also to explore her sexuality.

Thrash’s memoir is told with a broad humor about Christian summer camp and how it feels to be a girl different from most of the others there. At the same time, the humor is never pointed and the girls around Maggie are supportive most of the time and in their own ways. Some want to protect Maggie from her crush, others want to just tease. Yet there is no hate here, which is very refreshing. Thrash also does a nice job of allowing a crush to play out, naturally and tantalizingly. Their feelings for one another are clear even as they themselves feel confused by them. The result is a book about the confusion of being a teen, the tensions of both friendships and attractions with the added dimension of being a lesbian. It is a beautifully done memoir.

Thrash’s book is in full color, but the advanced copy I received is in black and white only. Even with that limited color palette, the illustrations are clear and clever. The characters are unique on the page, which is not easy to do with a camp full of teen girls. Each has a distinguishing feature and it all works so that heroine, her crush, her rival, her friend and others are easily recognized. Throughout the entire book, a river of humor carries through and that same humor is evident in the illustrations. This is a book that could have been heavy and still is emotionally charged. The humor helps that be bearable and makes the book a great read.

A strong and important graphic memoir, this book belongs in every public library graphic novel collection for teens who will enjoy meeting such a strong protagonist. Appropriate for ages 12-14.

Reviewed from ARC received from Candlewick Press.