Curveball: The Year I Lost My Grip / Jordan Sonnenblick

Title: Curveball: The Year I Lost My Grip
Author: Jordan Sonnenblick
Author Website
Owned by CCLS? On order.

You're an all-star pitcher who loves playing baseball with your best friend. Playing gets you status, makes people take notice, and it's what you're really good at. Then during the league championship game, right before you're about to begin your freshman year of high school, you blow out your elbow. Your baseball career is over. You're in denial and find yourself unable to tell your best friend that you will never be able to play ball again (or any other sport for that matter). On top of all of that, your grandfather, who you're extremely close to and who came out to every single one of your games, is starting to show signs of Alzheimer's. Just like you with your injury, your grandfather is in denial and won't let you tell your parents that there's a problem. What would you do? (Oh yeah, and since it's high school, don't forget to add in a little boy-girl drama too.) How would you or how have you handled a similar situation? Read Curveball to find out whether or not freshman Pete Friedman was able to play ball again, save his grandfather, keep his best friend, and get the girl...

M's Verdict: Good read! Recommended to guys & girls and sports lovers or not. It's a relatable story of tragedy, disappointment, and being able to roll with the crazy punches that life sends your way, inevitably all at once. It's about being able to define yourself by your actions not by what sports you play or used to play; it's about the bigger picture. Great morals, a believable storyline, and likable characters make this a story you'll breeze through. If you read any of Sonnenblick's other stories and liked them, you'll love this one just as much if not more!

Ten Things We Did... / Sarah Mlynowski

TITLE: Ten Things We Did (And Probably Shouldn't Have)
AUTHOR: Sarah Mlynowski
OWNED by CCLS? On order.

Let me set the stage by providing some background...

April is your typical teen; sort of. She's a junior at a high school in Westport, Connecticut and like every other teen on the planet, it seems that her parents are out to ruin her life. Her mother's affair with another man is the catalyst that causes her parents to get a divorce. And before the ink has even dried on the divorce papers, her mother and father have both remarried. April moves in with her father and stepmother so as to avoid leaving Westport, her school, her friends, and her boyfriend Noah, and April's younger brother Matthew moves with their mother and stepfather to France.

Now let's get to the good stuff...

It's now halfway through April's junior year of high school and her father decides to take a job in Cleveland. April obviously will not let her father's new job title and salary cause her to leave behind all that she loves. So... April and her BFF Vi (a senior) manage to convince her father to let her live the rest of her junior year at Vi's house. April's father, under the assumption that Vi's mother will be present, agrees.

Picture this... you're a junior in high school living in a house on the beach with your best friend and fellow student; alone. Your parents are a few states away and you have the house to yourself for the next six months. What would you do?

Would you be the responsible one? The one who goes grocery shopping, does the laundry, and takes care of the house? OR... Would you be the "wild child?" The one who hosts the parties, has boys over and buys a hot tub?

Ten Things We Did (And Probably Shouldn't Have) chronicles three months in the life of April Berman. Everything that could possibly happen when two teenagers are living without adult supervision happens. This is a great story of what it takes to be a grown up; responsibility for your actions and your words. It's a true tale of teen angst, growing up, and forgiveness.

M's Verdict: If you're looking for a book with a hook, try this out. This is the first book I've read by Sarah Mlynowski and I was impressed. Great cover & title (which caused me to pick up the book) and a great storyline (which made me not want to put the book down).

I love that the book is so realistic, but not depressingly so. There is still plenty of comedy, but the reader is able to relate and connect to the characters without having that "Disney-feel". Mlynowski does a great job of making this story modern and believable. It involves underage drinking, sex, profanities, and plenty of totally irresponsible behaviors or minors, sp it's not for the more conservative crowd, but it's sure to hit close to home for many a teen.

Check it out... (coming soon to your library)

Shatter Me / Tahereh Mafi

TITLE: Shatter Me
AUTHOR: Tahereh Mafi
OWNED BY CCLS? On order.

Juliette is untouchable. (Scratch that.) Juliette's touch is lethal. Her special powers are actually to blame for the death of a young boy at a supermarket. Due to this particular incident, Juliette finds herself locked away by The Reestablishment (a futuristic type of government) with no hope of ever seeing the outside world. She has been deemed a monster and a criminal and even her parents were glad to see her go.

While Juliette is "living" in her cell, The Reestablishment offers her the chance to live a life free of cells in exchange for using her special power to torture other prisoners and parterning up with Warner, a Reestablishment leader.

Will Juliette's desire for human connection force her to choose to use her powers for evil or will a surprising encounter with a guard cause her to believe in a better life, and in love?

M's Verdict: I'm on the fence. The premise was interesting and the ending left me wanting more, but I wish the beginning had been more to the point and less wandering. It seems like Mafi took a long time working up toward the roller coaster romance between Juliette and Adam and the thrilling escape from The Reestablishment.

In regards to the actual writing, something that drove me absolutely NUTS in the beginning of the book was Mafi's lack of commas. I'm the first to admit that I am queen of run-on sentences, but come on! Plus the strike through text and repetitive phrases was kind of annoying too (I do understand that it was a way of understanding Juliette's thinking process, but I still found it bothersome). Here's what I'm talking about:

Just like all of the other new YA books I've read recently, I smell a sequel if not a series... So if you enjoy Shatter Me, find comfort in knowing there must be another one coming along shortly!

Click on the title header (above) to check out Tahereh Mafi's site (book trailer & more available online).

It's Not Summer Without You / Jenny Han

Okay, I'm not quite ready to write another book review, but I just had to post this:

Last week I read Jenny Han's The Summer I Turned Pretty.

This week I finished the second book in her Summer series, It's Not Summer Without You. I am not much for series, but I couldn't help myself! I breezed through both books and enjoyed every minute! You know you're reading a good book when you look forward to reading it and make a point of taking reading breaks throughout the day or at least once a day (because sometimes there just isn't enough time in the day).

There's one last book in Han's Summer series called We'll Always Have Summer and I am going to try to wait until next summer to read it. I feel that it's only appropriate that I save the finale for actual summer-time. It'll be a definite good read that I can look forward to.

For now here are the books that are in my possibly next pile:

An Abundance of Katherines / John Green
Batman: R.I.P. / Grant Morrison
New Ultimates: Thor Reborn / Jeph Loeb
Wolverine, Weapon X Vol. 2, Insane in the Brain / Jason Aaron

The Summer I Turned Pretty / Jenny Han

TITLE: The Summer I Turned Pretty
AUTHOR: Jenny Han
OWNED BY CCLS? Yes.

Belly, her older brother Steven, and her mother have been spending their summers at Cousins Beach ever since she can remember. They stay at Susannah's house (her mother's best friend) along with Susannah's two sons Conrad and Jeremiah. Every summer the boys go out and do fun things while Belly is often left at the house to hang out by herself. As Belly gets older she vies for Conrad's attention and is miffed when he not only does not give it to her, but goes out of his way to ignore her. The Summer I Turned Pretty is a great summer read about unrequited love, summer romance, and everything that a teen (or adult) could want in a summer. This book is sure to keep you counting down 'til summer break and looking forward to Belly & Conrad & Jeremiah's next summer @ Cousins Beach.

M's Verdict: Great read! If you're looking for something to read by the beach (or in the fall while pretending it's still summer) this is a great book for you. If you like Sarah Dessen and need something new--try out Jenny--it's well worth it and I guarantee that if you read this book, you'll go on to read book #2 and 3 in the series (#2--It's Not Summer Without You, #3--We'll Always Have Summer).

For biographical information or to stay posted on Jenny Han's upcoming books, check out her website:

http://www.dearjennyhan.com/

Elixir / Hilary Duff

TITLE: Elixir
AUTHOR: Hilary Duff
OWNED BY CCLS: Yes.

This is a hard book to summarize and explain. Oddly similar to something I've read before. Perhaps comparable to Lauren Kate's Fallen. See for yourself...

Clea Raymond, the seventeen year old daughter of a prominent U.S. politician (mother) and surgeon (father), leads an unusual life to say the least. Clea works as a photojournalist and travels the world taking photos that she believes "capture the soul." Both of her parents are also constantly "on the go" with their work, leaving Clea to fight the paparazzi on her own or spend time with her BFF Rayna and her bodyguard/best friend Ben.

During one of Clea's father's missionary trips to Brazil he goes missing. There are no answers, only questions surrounding his disappearance. Fortunately, one of Clea's photojournalist assignments takes her (and Ben) to the festival of Carnival in Brazil. Clea's trip morphs from a simple photo shoot expedition to a bizarre adventure of sorts that includes fear, love, mystery, intrigue and tales of 500 years past. Perhaps the trip to Brazil will provide Clea with some closure, but it sounds like it may only stir up more questions.

Check out Elixir today @ FRE--only 1 copy is currently available!

M's Verdict: A few things...
(1) This book is hard to explain/describe.
(2) This book leads well into a sequel (coming out this October : Devoted).
(3) I wish that when I had started reading this book that I hadn't known who wrote it. I'll admit that the only reason that I picked up this book is because I wanted to see if actor/singer/songwriter Hilary Duff could write. Unfortunately, I can't help but wonder if this didn't influence how I read this book.

For example, have you ever watched a movie or seen a trailer for a movie and then tried to read the book? How many of you picture what the characters look like? (i.e. When I read Twilight it was after seeing previews of the movie. This meant that as I read the book, I pictured Kristen Stewart as Bella and Robert Pattinson as Edward. I think this definitely changes how you read as well as how you think about a book. The same applies for when you see a movie after reading that book it was based on. More often than not I think--"that is soooo not what I pictured him/her as.)

Emiko Superstar / Mariko Tamaki

TITLE: Emiko Superstar
AUTHOR: Mariko Tamaki
OWNED by CCLS? Yes.
FORMAT: Graphic Novel

Emiko is a geek. With summer right around the corner, rather than head off to finance camp with her friends, Emiko decides she needs to figure out who she is. Her mother does not think this is going to happen while Emiko lays around watching TV, so Emiko gets a job babysitting.

It is through her babysitting job that Emiko finds a secret journal that gives her the inspiration that she needs to shine at a local underground "freak club." Will the change in friends and atmosphere be what Emiko needs to find herself or will she realize that being a geek isn't actually that bad?

M's Verdict: Emiko Superstar is a quick read. Although not particularly inspiring or thought provoking, it does provide homage to Andy Warhol and '60s culture. Perhaps readers new to graphic novels would be better served reading Cecil Castellucci's Plain Janes and Janes in Love, which were GREAT, had a bit more of a story line and certainly seemed to have a bit more depth to them.