Keesha’s House by Helen Frost (0-374-34064-1)
Remarkable! What reads at first as free verse is actually traditional poetry forms that make these poems true works of art. The poems follow seven teenagers through difficult times in their lives as they all find shelter at Keesha’s House, a home that is open to teen in time of crisis.
Recommended for teens who would be interested in teen crisis novels, because the poems are so easy to read. But also point this out to teens interested in writing. The skill here is so great that it is almost invisible.

Lois Lowry has a new book coming out in April. Messenger is a companion novel to The Giver and Gathering Blue. Hurrah! The Giver remains one of my top ten books of all time for children.

Opinion: Doug Moe: American Girl’s story an original
The American Girl doll and character Samantha will be getting her own made-for-TV movie on the WB sometime this year. To coincide with the movie, the Samantha series of books will be rereleased. There is also mention of a new series of books about a new girl.

Brainboy and the Deathmaster by Tor Seidler (0-06-029181-8)
This is the first new book I have ever read that my son, now 6, said, “Hey Mom, I already read that!” He had been the first to check it out at the school. Though he was dying to chat all about the plot while I was reading it, now he doesn’t want to talk about it anymore. Kids. 🙂
The basic plot, while giving nothing away, is that Darryl is an orphan living in a home after his family died in a fire. He is also a whiz at computer games. At the home, they are provided with a laptop in every room and when Darryl starts playing the new version on one of his favorite games, strange things start happening.
I enjoy Seidler’s writing. It is fast reading, fun and always exciting and quirky. This book has the added draw of being all about computers and computer games. The cover will be inviting to kids, and I see why my son picked it up immediately, with the boy playing on a laptop and a frightening head looking over his shoulder.
I would recommend the book to kids into computer games, adventure books, and just to anyone interested in a good read. Reluctant readers will appreciate the fast moving plot and the subject matter.

Guardian Unlimited: Granny Spice becomes queen of the libraries
Jacqueline Wilson has been announced as the number one author being borrowed from libraries in Britain. Wilson is the author of many books for preteen girls that are popular in the US as well. She knocked Catherine Cookson out of the number one position that Cookson had held for 17 years.
“Yesterday’s victory surprised and delighted her. “Every author is thrilled to know their books are selling, but I share with many authors an almost greater thrill when your books are borrowed from libraries”. ”
Other authors high on the borrowing list are mentioned towards the end of the article. The winning combination seems to be being both prolific and popular.
Via ACHOCKABLOG.

CourierPress: Valentine books celebrate love in its many forms
A list of several of the new Valentine’s Day books all about love, love, love.

Authors Among Us: Librarians as Children’s Writers
A list of authors of children’s and young adult books who are librarians. The list includes those who have been published, those with forthcoming first books, authors of other children’s material, and authors who are not yet published. Fascinating.

2003 SFWA(R) Preliminary Nebula Awards Ballot
The Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America have announced the nominees for the Nebula Awards. The awards will be presented April 15-18.

Let’s (Not) Get It On: Girls and Sex in Young Adult Literature
This article from VOYA is getting a lot of attention on children’s literature lists (it appears online as a pdf file, so you will need Adobe Acrobat to read it.) The article demonstrates the lack of positive sexual situations for girls in modern teen novels. Sadly, no one on the lists has been able to come up with many examples of positive sexual encounters either. It seems that there is an agenda to keep girls from thinking of sex as anything but a burden or worse a desperate situation. Boys are seen as constantly wanting sex and girls as the defenders of their virtue. What does this say about the novels that we all consider cutting edge? Where are the novels that would definitively destroy the standard that teenage female sexual desire is forbidden? Hopefully they will be written and published soon.