Lily lives in a perpetual nightmare. The bullying she faces in and outside of school is horrific. The bullies take photos of her, attack her and call her names like pig, fatty and much, much worse. Lily's mum is morbidly obese and hasn't left the house in years out of fear and embarrassment. She's dealing with her own family trauma, her brother Ray is a cop, but not a cop you can really trust at all. Lily's dad works long nights at a tough job to keep things together at home. He's furious at those who are destroying Lily's life, but feels powerless to do anything about it. Meanwhile, Lily is spinning into a pit of despair. Then, her father has an idea, he brings out his old boxing equipment and starts to show her some moves. At first she thinks it's a ridiculous idea but when she gets to imagine she's punching the faces of the people that hurt her, her attitude changes. This leads Lily to a boxing gym, I don't want to spoil any more of this novel because it's so amazing you should read it yourself. Gloves Off is told in verse and alternates between Lily's perspective and occasionally her mother's. It's a very powerful look at fat shaming and the consequences that it has. Fat shaming is often overlooked as a "real" bullying issue, primarily based on the ridiculous claim that it will help the person being bullied to lose weight. It's known that high school students who believe themselves to be overweight or obese are more likely to suffer depression and attempt suicide. (source) There are other issues at play here as well. Lily's family can't afford to eat healthy. A report submitted in Sept 2018 by The Food Foundation showed that 3.7 million children in the UK live in households that earn less than £15,860 / year and are unable to afford the diet that is recommended by the government in order to stay healthy. As a School Librarian, I haven't really come across a novel that packs this much punch (pun intended). It's an important story that needs to be told. It's not just the message that rings home, the story is beautifully told. It's raw at times and so heartbreaking you'll need to read it in private unless you don't want to be blubbering mess in front of strangers. I can't recommend Gloves Off enough, it's published in August 2019, go get it.
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It's 1984 & Jo Kwan has just moved with her family to Coventry, UK to start a new life. However, it's not the life Jo had imagined for herself. She's going to live above the Chinese takeaway that her family owns and operates. She hasn't seen her older brother Simon for a few years because he was sent to live with their grandparents for reasons that are unknown to Jo. She has a younger sister Bonny who has taken to smoking and stealing money from the cash register in the shop. Jo also takes money but only when she really, really needs it. Jo's mother speaks little to no English, her father speaks both English and Chinese but rarely speaks. Throw in the fact that Jo and her sister can't understand Chinese and it makes for a very interesting family dynamic. Chinglish is told through Jo's diary entries and doodles. The story track's Jo's attempts to fit in at school and how she experiences casual and not so casual racism from both children and adults in her neighbourhood. Jo starts her diary by saying she is only going to include the nice memories. As the diary continues, more and more of the "bad stuff" creeps in, and man oh man there is a lot of bad stuff. I wanted to jump into this novel on several occasions and take Jo and her sister as far away from her parents as possible, more on that later. There are some genuinely hilarious moments in this novel which are always tinged with sadness. Jo never receives Christmas or birthday presents from her family, yet she's convinced that she did receive a chair shaped like a teddy bear when she was six years old. There's no evidence of the chair existing and her parents don't acknowledge that the chair was ever purchased. It's one of those moments that slowly burns inside your brain, it's terribly sad but I had to laugh at it because Jo has to ask herself if she's going insane, why would her parents decide to lie to her about buying a teddy bear chair? Who does something like that? Then there are the animal stories, many of which can be considered animal cruelty, which Jo fully recognises. I won't spoil any of them but one of them involves goats and again, made me laugh out loud and then wonder if I should be laughing but it's so tragic and bizarre that I just couldn't help it. Jo becomes needed more and more in the takeaway, and she has to experience real problems in there. Racist customers, drunk customers, customers who demand refunds and many other issues. Her school work slips, she starts taking more and more time off because of her life is simply spiralling out of control. Her father becomes increasingly sullen, despondent and abusive. As we learn more and more about his past (the little that Jo can piece together) Jo begins her quest to remove herself from the family. With the help of her friend Tina, she starts to trust herself and have a little self confidence, especially when it comes to her only respite: art. Jo's love of art transcends the absolute madness that is her home life. I really loved this story, it's hilarious and really heart breaking at the same time. Jo's life is completely unique and fascinating, it's like watching a car crash over and over again. You will definitely feel for her and her family, it's a story of tragedy, abuse, neglect and hope. I think it's amazing and can't wait for it to come out in September. Vera wants to be what she thinks is a "regular" person. But it's hard as a Russian girl living in the U.S. suburbs. All of her friends seem to have way more money than her and they get to go to cool summer camps. Vera? She's sent to Russian summer camp. Determined to fit in, Vera soon discovers that she once again starts to feel left out. There are cliques, boring history lessons and disgusting bathrooms that make life unbearable for her. Still, Vera puts her head down and tries to make the most of it, only the strong willed can survive, and she's a survivor. I really loved this comic from Vera Brosgol (Anya's Ghost), its her own memoir of her time at a Russian summer camp and you can feel the authenticity oozing off of every page. It's funny, sad and awkward all rolled into one great story. Any fan of Raina Telgemeier will absolutely love this amazing tale of adventure, hardship and outhouses from Hell. Loved it, don't miss it. Brody Fair is suffocating. He's falling behind at school and has no real plan for the future. His brother is a genius who spends every spare millisecond cramming his head full of knowledge so he can get into a good university. His father has agoraphobia and hasn't left the house in years. His mother takes on as many shifts as she can and is completely overwhelmed and exhausted. To make matters worse, Brody is bullied on a daily basis by a couple of girls who verbally attack him on a daily basis. When Brody meets Nico, everything changes. Nico introduces Brody to Everland, a magical world that exists in a kind of parallel universe in their home city of Edinburgh. In Everland, Brody meets like-minded people and can be himself. With Nico he feels free to explore his feelings and do what he loves most, drumming, making music and sitting in quiet. There is a catch to Everland, though. Brody can only visit it once a week, and he only has a limited time to enjoy it. There is a temptation, though, to leave his seemingly crumbling real world behind and stay in Everland forever. Brody finds himself faced with a choice that will alter his future forever. Last Bus to Everland is a stellar novel that covers several topics facing teens today in a subtle but very effective way. The pressure to succeed at school, poverty, mental illness, coming out, bullying and finding out who you want to be are all part of Brody's journey. You will feel for Brody, you'll want to join him in Edinburgh and tell him everything's going to be ok. Nico is a character that is also confused and troubled in different ways, with Brody he finds some kind of solace and you will be rooting for them as you fly through the pages of this novel. The relationship between Brody and his family were some of my favourite parts of the novel. Brody doesn't feel like he really knows his siblings and it takes a few traumatic events for him to have important conversations with them, especially his brother. He loves his father but can't help feeling resentment about the fact that he doesn't work, forcing his mother to have no life outside of her job. It's a very well written dynamic, the idea that haunts a lot of people with mental illness, that they should just "get over it" and get on with their lives. It's never that simple. The depiction of Everland itself is beautiful and haunting at the same time. It's in this dreamlike fog of bliss that Brody gets some respite from the pressure cooker that his home life. I really recommend Last Bus to Everland, it's a superb novel that will tear your heart out, but in a good way. Don't miss it. Mia Tang and her parents have just started running the Calvista Motel in sunny California. It's not a dream job. As Chinese immigrants, they are treated terribly by the motel's owner, Mr. Yao. They aren't allowed to use the pool, they have to pay for almost anything that breaks and Mr. Yao turns out to be a horrible racist that thinks of his customers and employees as dogs. Mia is undeterred, she both loves and is panicked by working on the front desk, as a ten year old, she loves the responsibility, but sometimes dangerous and scary customers come in, making the job risky. When Mia's parents start hiding immigrants who are desperate for a place to stay, it puts them all at risk. Mia decides to fulfil her lifelong dream of becoming a writer to enter a competition to win a rundown motel of her own, one her family can run without being under the thumb of Mr. Yao. It's a dream, and it's important to have dreams, no matter how far away they may seem. It will take every ounce of courage that Mia has in order to keep her and her family's head above water as they struggle to survive. FRONT DESK is without a doubt one of the best middle grade novels out there. Mia is a character that you will want to know more and more about the longer you read. She is gutsy and stubborn and can get in her own way but has a great heart and always sticks up for the underdog. I loved the weeklies, the characters who live permanently at the motel, Hank's story was infuriating and very well written, as was Mia's friend Lupe and Mia's parents, who sacrifice everything in order to try and make a better life for them all. If you haven't checked out FRONT DESK yet, go read it, you won't regret it! Maxwell is always in trouble. He can't seem to help himself, his best friend is his dog Monster (equally troublesome) and together they make great partners in crime. Maxwell's parents are constantly fighting, something that makes he and his sister miserable. His only respite comes from visiting his elderly neighbour, how never seems to remember who Maxwell is. When Maxwell pulls a terrible prank at school, he runs to his neighbour's house and, while messing around with a cabinet filled with strange antiques, wishes that he'd never existed, something strange happens. His entire world is thrown upside down, nobody knows him. Not his parents, his sister, his teachers, not even his friend Charlie at school. At first, he's happy, nobody knows him, no more fighting at home, no more getting in trouble, he can start from scratch. Then he realises that in this parallel universe he didn't save his dog from getting hit by a car and he's lost his best friend. Desperate to get back, Maxwell must piece together clues as to how he got here in the first place. Only then can he return to his normal life and redeem his past behaviour. I really enjoyed reading this novel, it's a fast paced read with lots of humour and a great message behind it. Maxwell is a trouble maker but also a likeable character once he starts clamouring to return to his normal life. The novel deals with family issues and even dementia in a respectful and interesting way. Fans of Lisa's other novels will really love this! When Theo's photographic exhibit is vandalised, there are five suspects. To get to the bottom of the mystery, all five along with Theo take part in a Justice Circle during the last week of vacation to get to know each more and try and figure out who committed the dastardly act. Theo has it in his mind who committed the crime, and has preconceived ideas about every single student. You've got the Nerd, the Princess, the Jock, the Weirdo, and the Screw-Up. He's got them all pegged, and he thinks the Justice Circle will be a waste of time. However, as the week moves along, the stereotypes start to crumble. Theo isn't sure who did the deed and even worse, he starts to like every single one of the students. The matter stands though, someone in the room destroyed his work, someone in the room hates him. I really enjoyed this novel, it's all about not knowing what people are going through behind the façade they put on in public. As Theo and the other students start to reveal their secrets, their fears and their hopes, we are kept guessing till the very end as to who did the act. It's a great middle grade novel that our students will really love. Kay Donovan & her friends are the most popular students at an elite private school. They run the place, they control the social atmosphere that is more important to most than grades. One evening, after a party, they find a dead girl floating in a lake by the school. None of them claim to know her, she was a student at their school but she wasn't high up enough on the pecking order to be important to them. However when Kay receives a coded scavenger hunt from the dead girl, her life becomes very complicated. She's plunged headfirst into a dangerous game where she must stab her friends in the back otherwise be framed for the murder. As the noose tightens, and the police begin to close in, Kay begins to unravel, and what is real and what is not becomes blurred. I really enjoyed People Like Us, Kay is a great character, she has several flaws and can be very unlikeable but I never stopped rooting for her. She has a melancholic yet determined nature that keeps her chugging along in the face of obstacle after obstacle. At the Library that I manage, students can't get enough of school-based mysteries so I know this novel will be extremely popular. I recommend it for ages 14 and up! Two high school students take the same bus everyday but they've never actually met. Then one day, one of the teens, Richard, takes it upon himself to act recklessly and lights the other students' skirt on fire. Sasha suffers 3rd degree burns and has their life forever altered. Richard is charged with hate crimes & faces a life behind bars. Both teens are forced to be in the spotlight as the press descends on them and their families. The strangest part? It's all true. The 57 Bus is a fascinating look at two people who are brought together because of a horrible event. I could not put this book down, I needed to know what was going to happen to Richard & reading about Sasha's recovery was painful and heart breaking. It's an important book about tolerance, violence and recovery. I have organised it so that all of our Year 9 students (over 250 of them) will be reading The 57 Bus in the new year as I know it will generate a lot of discussion. Do not miss out on this amazing story. Recommended for ages 13 and up! When a new boy named Ahmet joins the school, people initially think he's strange because he doesn't speak or join the other children on the playground during break times. They soon learn that Ahmet is a very special student because he's come to the UK from Syria. He has a foster mother who is taking care of him as he was separated from his parents when he arrived. As the students learn more and more about Ahmet, a group of clever and resourceful friends hatch a plan to reunite Ahmet with his parents. It might just be the greatest plan ever devised, or it might completely backfire and cause a lot more trouble than the students are prepared for. I absolutely loved The Boy At the Back of the Class. We don't know the narrator's gender or name for the majority of the novel and it really woks, having that kept a secret as their identity is slowly revealed. The novel tackles some serious issues including the refugee crisis of course but also home grown casual racism that in my opinion is rampant in UK society. There are cruel students who are mimicking their parents' bigotry and apathetic teachers who allow bullying to occur under their watch. It also sheds light on the generosity and kindness that will hopefully prevail in the end. It's an important book that I think should be required reading in Year 6 or 7! |
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