Marin is New York and feels completely alone. After fleeing her life in California, not even her best friends or her roommate know exactly why she decided to travel east to attend university. Now, with the Christmas holidays approaching, Marin decides to stay in the university dorm rather than return home. As the snow piles up, so does the grief, regret and anger. Raised by her grandfather, Marin has a past that clouds her every waking second, and when she discovers that her best friend Mabel is going to visit with her for a few days, she tries valiantly to put on her "normal" face so Mabel doesn't suspect that she's still grieving. Trapped together in a blinding east coast blizzard, it doesn't take long for Marin and Mabel to dig down to the vein and confront what is really going on with Marin. This is a simple yet powerful novel. Marin's feelings of angst and jittery anxiousness about her impending visitor drip off of every page. She is a real and vibrant character with grit in her belly that has had to deal with way too much for someone her age. As a school librarian I'm always looking for the kinds of books that don't pull punches and don't BS teens into subscribing to a particular point of view. We Are Okay transcends all of that because it rides a delicate balance of pain and hope, grief and overwhelming joy. I think this is the book that many students I interact with have been seeking for a long time. I recommend We Are Okay to ages 15 and up!
0 Comments
Griffin has just lost the love of his life. HIs best friend and soul-mate, Theo, has drowned in a horrible accident. Now Griffin is left to pick up the pieces, starting with the realisation that one of the only people that can help him cope with this tragedy is Jackson, the boy Theo grew to love after he left Griffin and moved to California for school. Griffin's suffering doesn't end there, his OCD has gone into warp speed since Theo's death, and he can feel himself quickly unravelling. In order to survive his grief, Griffin has to be honest with himself, and unleash the secrets that are tearing him apart. Written from the perspective of Griffin when Theo was alive and after he died, we slowly learn the things that Griffin has kept hidden from everyone he loves. I've never read Adam Silvera before and his writing is truly unique. Griffin is consumed with grief the entire novel, fading in and out between hopelessness and not-quite hopelessness as he retraces his time with Theo, remember the things that made them special as a couple. When his OCD rears its ugly head it's easy to imagine Griffin's world crumbling around him as he tries desperately to make the pieces fit in his mind. It's a brutally honest look at dealing with grief, teen angst, teen love and loss of all kinds. I recommend this book to ages 16 and up! Stewart is thirteen but has a brain that can rival most adults that I know. - academically at least. Socially he's a nightmare and unable to connect on a meaningful basis with most people. After his mother dies from cancer, he and his father move in with his father's new girlfriend and her fourteen year old daughter, Ashley. Ashley is popular, trendy, has a gaggle of frenemies and doesn't care for school. Her father has recently come out as gay and moved out - to the guest house next door. She's ashamed at her father's identity and reeling from having a new family arrive. Needless to say her and Stewart don't get along at all, making for some very uncomfortable nights at the dinner tables. Even worse for her, because of Stewart's academic prowess. he's put in Ashley's classes. Stewart on the other hand, just wants to survive gym class, where he's tormented by the school jock, Jared. It doesn't help that Ashley has a massive crush on Jared and will do almost anything to get his attention. I read this book in one setting, it's an easy, fun read with lots of humour and pleasant situations. That said, there are some very dark moments in the book as well which I won't spoil but would, in my opinion, make it a very interesting point of discussion for ages 14 and up. There's a lot of life in this book, and I know a lot of students that will really enjoy reading it. I recommend this book to ages 14 and up! George knows she's a girl. An elementary student, she was born a boy but can feel every fibre in her being that she was meant to be a girl. Nobody knows this, not her mother, her brother or her best friend Kelly. Then the school announces that they're going to be auditioning students for Charlotte's Web. George knows that if she can get the part of Charlotte, the kind spider, people will finally see her for who she really is. Before that can happen, though, she has to contend with bullies, her mum and a school administration that doesn't appear overly sympathetic. This is a short but powerful read about standing up for who you are. It's also about the power of friendship and understanding. George is a tenacious character that will stick with you for a long time. Fans of Wonder will really love this! I recommend George to Years 7 and up! Just before Pink Floyd move into "Comfortably Numb" on The Wall, Roger Waters' voice comes barreling through a filter asking, "Is there anybody out there?" That sound, that droning melancholy flowing out of his voice followed me around as I read Radio Silence by Alice Oseman. It's a great book. There has always been two sides to Frances. There's school Frances who studies like a machine in order to take English lit at the best universities in the country. Then there's private Frances who loves to make art and listen to her favourite podcast Universe City. When she meets the shy, stylish and mysterious Aled, both of those worlds start to overlap. Then she finds out that Aled is the creator of Universe City and her life changes forever. For the first time she can be herself and has seemingly found true friendship. When Universe City becomes internet famous, and France's role in it gets exposed by those around her. The bond she had with Aled becomes fragile. Throw in a friend who goes missing, a control freak mother and a couple of road trips and you have a great read about young people facing the pressures of success and the black void that is the question: "What do I want to do with my life?" I really loved this book. Although my school / university experience was way, way different in Canada, anyone not sure what they want to do with themselves after high school will relate. The writing is honest and sharp, the characters speak like real teenagers which is a refreshing change in a world of YA literature where fifteen year olds sometimes talk like university professors. Anyone that's ever felt like an outsider, that has felt the urge to create something while maintaining their integrity and not succumbing to the whims of public demand will feel something for this book and these characters. Don't miss it. I recommend Radio Silence to Years 10 and up. For most families, October brings sweaters, rubber boots, Halloween costumes and comforting soups to get you through the early dark that sets in mid month. For Cara's family, every October brings broken bones, burns, twisted ankles and close calls. No, they aren't a family of UFC fighters, Cara's family are victims of something they call The Accident Season. The Accident Season is a time when Cara and her loved ones are inexplicably beset by physical injuries. They try to take extra care by covering the floors in thick rugs and wrapping sharp edges in bubble wrap, but it never removes the threat completely. Haunting their every move is the fact that Cara's grandfather, father and uncle were all fatal victims of The Accident Season. It hangs like a thick black cloud over their heads every year. Running parallel to this story is the disturbing fact that one of Cara's classmates, Elsie, appears to have gone missing. Even more disturbing, nobody in Cara's school or neighbourhood seems to think it's very alarming that a young girl has seemingly been wiped from the face of the Earth. Like a fever dream that pulls you in and out of consciousness, The Accident Season is an eerie tale about love, loss, friendship and the ferocious power of family secrets. Fowley-Doyle's writing comes at you from a unique place, it's hard for me to put my finger on it but it's as if this novel could be read aloud in sections throughout a Pink Floyd album. I mean that in a good way. I recommend you pick up a copy and stick with it until the end, twists, turns and hauntingly cool writing. I'd suggest The Accident Season for Year 10 students and up! 1959 Virginia. The U.S. is locked into a fight between those that want black and white people to integrate, and those that want to keep them separate. Caught in the middle of this is Sarah, her friends and her family. Being the first black students to enter the halls of Jefferson High, they have only the slightest idea as to what are about to endure. It's clear they're not welcome, not by the teachers or the students. Even worse, the teachers look the other way when the meaner white students harass, threaten and attack the black students. On the other side of the coin we have Linda, daughter of a staunch segregationist and nominee for Worst Father in America 1959. Linda writes scathing articles in the school newspaper about the dangers of integration and how it will destroy white culture. However, when they're forced to work together for an assignment, both realise things about each other. First, that not everything is as plain as it seems on the outside. Second, the feelings Sarah and Linda start to have for each could have dangerous consequences. It's a book that will make you angry and happy all at the same time. I recommend this book to Year 9 and up although some Year 8s will probably enjoy it as well. |
Categories
All
Follow These Guys: 100 Scope Notes No Flying No Tights Pretty Books Reading Rants! Sophisticated Dorkiness Teen Librarian |