Adult Books 4 Teens: September 2011
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Fiction ARSENAULT, Emily. In Search of the Rose Notes. 384p. Morrow. 2011. Tr $14.99. ISBN 978-0-06-201232-4. LC number unavailable. CARRIGER, Gail. Heartless. Bk. 4. 400p. (The Parasol Protectorate Series). Orbit. 2011. pap. $7.99. ISBN 978-0-3161-2719-6. LC 2010041808. FINDER, Joseph. Buried Secrets. 390p. St. Martin's. 2011. Tr $25.99. ISBN 978-0-312-37914-8. LC number unavailable. HORLOCK, Mary. The Book of Lies. 368p. HarperPerennial. 2011. pap. $14.99. ISBN 978-0-06-206509-4. LC number unavailable. KAVA, Alex. Hotwire: A Maggie O'Dell Novel. 305p. Doubleday. 2011. Tr $25.95. ISBN 978-0-385-53201-3. LC number unavailable. KELMAN, Stephen. Pigeon English. 288p. Houghton Harcourt. 2011. Tr $24. ISBN 978-0-547-50060-7. LC number unavailable. MAKKAI, Rebecca. The Borrower: A Novel. 336p. Viking. Sept. 2011. Tr $25.95. ISBN 978-0-6700-2281-6. LC number unavailable. MARTIN, George R. R. A Dance with Dragons. Bk. 5. 1016p. (A Song of Ice and Fire). maps. appendix. Bantam. 2011. Tr $35. ISBN 978-0-553-80147-7. LC number unavailable. SAPPHIRE. The Kid. 373p. Penguin. 2011. Tr $25.95. ISBN 978-1-59420-304-6. LC number unavailable. SCHULMAN, Helen. This Beautiful Life. 240p. HarperCollins. 2011. Tr $24.99. ISBN 978-0-06-202438-1. LC number unavailable. VENDITTI, Robert. The Homeland Directive. illus. by Mike Huddleston. 148p. Top Shelf Productions. 2011. Tr $14.95. ISBN 978-1-60309-024-7. LC number unavailable. WILSON, Kevin. The Family Fang. 320p. Ecco. 2011. Tr $23.99. ISBN 978-0-06-157903-5. LC number unavailable. WINGFIELD, Jenny. The Homecoming of Samuel Lake: A Novel. 353p. Random. 2011. Tr $25. ISBN 9778-0-385-34408-1. LC number unavailable. Nonfiction BEASLEY, Sandra. Don't Kill the Birthday Girl: Tales from an Allergic Life. 240p. Crown. 2011. Tr $25.95. ISBN 978-0-3075-8811-1. LC 2010043724. DUTTON, Judy. Science Fair Season: Twelve Kids, a Robot Named Scorch... and What It Takes to Win. 271p. Hyperion. 2011. Tr $24.99. ISBN 978-1-4013-2379-0. LC number unavailable. GREENHOUSE, Lucia. fathermothergod: My Journey Out of Christian Science. 320p. Crown. 2011. Tr $25. ISBN 9787-0-307720924. LC number unavailable.
Adult/High School–Nora was only 11 in 1990 when she became the last person to see her babysitter alive. Rose left Nora at her house and continued up the road into terrible oblivion. Sixteen years later, Nora finds out from her best friend, Charlotte, that Rose’s bones have finally been found. Pulled back to the small town of her childhood, Nora relives the innocent days before the teen’s disappearance, when Rose, Nora, and Charlotte could spend hours perusing volumes from a Time-Life series on the supernatural. All of the mysterious, hidden elements of the universe seemed revealed in those pages. After Rose vanished, there continued to be an aura of supernatural influences surrounding her absence. Readers discover that something terrible happened during Nora’s high school days that cast doubt on her ability to accurately describe the past or the present. Enigmatic poems (written by whom?) and scribbled entries in Rose’s school notebook both blur and reveal the truth. Teens who like psychological thrillers will enjoy figuring out the puzzle. As the book circles around the events preceding Rose’s disappearance, the high school years of Nora and Charlotte, and the discovery of Rose’s bones in 2006, readers are continually challenged to sift through myriad strands of information, guarded conversations, and misleading perceptions. This is a great book for long summer days; once started, it’s very hard to put down.–Diane Colson, New Port Richey Library, FLA
Adult/High School–In this installment in the series, preternatural Lady Alexia Maccon is heavily pregnant and waddling her way through one adventure after another. This time the impending birth has the entire supernatural world in London on edge because her offspring, the product of her marriage to Lord Maccon, Woolsey pack leader and heart-stoppingly handsome werewolf, may just prove the undoing of the supernatural set. As in the earlier novels, of course someone is trying to kill Lady Alexia and that is where the fun always begins. The fine British wit that sparkles on every page will have readers laughing out loud as Lady Alexia, after a warning from a mad and disintegrating ghost, is off to uncover a plot to kill Queen Victoria. Her comical adventures unearth a plot even bigger and scarier than the one she imagines and the outcome, which will leave readers in stitches and begging for the 5th and final installment, will turn Lord and Lady Maccon’s world upside-down. Along with their somewhat steamy romance, readers also find out about other love affairs that shape the characters and the plot, including the moving story of Lord Maccon’s beta, Professor Lyall, and the deep and abiding love between Biffy, the newest werewolf cub in the Woolsey Pack, and the tartly fabulous Lord Akeldama, the flamboyant rove vampire for whom Biffy used to be a drone. These books just keep getting better and better.–Caroline Bartels, Horace Mann School, Bronx, NY
Adult/High School–Being buried alive is surely one of the most terrifying circumstances imaginable, but teenager Alexa is a severe claustrophobic and no one could have devised a more horrible fate for her. The scenes from her point of view, buried alive in a metal coffin beneath 10 feet of earth in an abandoned field, are effectively chilling--especially her slow and horrible understanding of what has happened to her. Alexa has a will to survive and clings to the knowledge that her multi-billionaire father is good for whatever amount the ransom demand may be. However, as private investigator Nick Heller frantically works to track down Alexa's location, it becomes clear that mere money is not the only objective and the investigation generates more questions than answers. How is the senator's daughter involved? Who is the man with eyes tattooed on the back of his head? And was the incident a few years ago when Alexa was kidnapped, driven around for hours, then released without any demands related? The shifting point of view between Alexa in the coffin, Nick's investigation, and the captor's mysterious motivation keeps this plot-driven thriller moving. A page-turning plot line that doesn't demand too much thought combined with a likable hero, a depraved villain, and a steady dose of action makes for an entertaining summer read for thriller-inclined teens.–Priscille Dando, Robert E. Lee High School, Fairfax County,VA
Adult/High School–Fifteen-year-old Catherine tells readers right up front that she is a murderer. The victim was her former best friend, Nicolette, an attractive, manipulative, mean girl. Not that anyone on the tiny island of Guernsey is accusing Catherine of murder, which she sees as further proof that the Germans were correct when they called the people of Guernsey a bunch of half-wits. The Germans had occupied the island during World War II. Catherine’s story alternates with that told by Charlie, her father’s older brother. He also begins his story by admitting to murder. He was about Catherine’s age when he was arrested by the Germans during the Occupation and later sent to a concentration camp. The two stories come together with an interesting twist near the end. Teens will appreciate the history of Guernsey, one of the tiny British Channel Islands that is geographically closer to France than England. No less interesting is Catherine’s depiction of everyday life there. Catherine’s dry wit and tough sassiness provide an intelligent narration. While her story seems disconnected from Charlie’s, they both include lies, guilt, and betrayals. Because of the two stories, this novel could appeal to fans of the “Clique” series (Little, Brown) as well as World War II history buffs.–Diane Colson, New Port Richey Library, FL
Adult/High School–Dawson Hayes is a teenaged cynic. He knows he's being used by Johnny and his girlfriend for his technical expertise when he's invited to a party deep in the woods. It's another initiation, and Johnny wants the group to try a new way to get high. Dawson is there to make sure everyone's trip is secretly recorded. Suddenly, in a flurry of piercing lights, the kids are ferociously attacked, leaving two dead, one bitten, and Dawson electrocuted and bleeding, wrapped in a barbed wire fence. FBI Agent Maggie O'Dell is in the area investigating mysterious cattle mutilations and now must piece together what happened--was this a human, an animal, or even alien attack? Maggie soon uncovers secrets that find her fighting for her life. Meanwhile, a seemingly unrelated crisis unfolds across the country when, after eating school lunches, hundreds of elementary students fall violently ill with a super strain of salmonella. An anonymous caller warns the CDC of other outbreaks and the threat of a bioterror attack is evident. There is much for teens to enjoy in this mystery, even if the narration is focused on an adult point of view. The teens are realistic, and the answer to what has happened to them is in question until the end. Area 51 type intrigue is appealing to many, and the explanation of how the government obtains meat for school lunches might have readers brown-bagging it from now on. YAs seeking a well-written mystery will be satisfied.—Priscille Dando, Robert E. Lee High School, Fairfax County, VA
Adult/High School–This novel opens with 11-year-old Harrison describing the scene as a classmate is found stabbed to death. Harri and his friend Dean know how to be proper detectives from watching CSI, and possess just enough knowledge to get themselves in over their heads. As they attempt to solve the murder by collecting fingerprints, making suspect lists, and conducting surveillance, they are doing what boys do–playing pretend. It’s when they don’t realize exactly how close they’ve come to solving the crime that things escalate to a disturbing end. The strength of this debut novel lies in Harri’s voice. An immigrant from Ghana living in the projects of London with his mother and sister, Harri provides a running monologue punctuated with colloquialisms that lend a distinct cadence to his commentary. As a bright and curious boy, he maintains a sense of innocence even as the crudeness of his environment threatens to become dominant. Some vulgar and sexual language peppered in Harri’s retelling of events is quite jarring as he often misunderstands what he sees and hears, but readers recognize the serious implications. Early on it’s apparent that Harri’s monologue is directed at a pigeon that lives near his building. The device doesn’t quite work, particularly when the bird’s thoughts are expressed, but this is a minor distraction. Overall, teens will appreciate Harri’s winning narration, his child’s-eye view of adult situations, and the rising tension when playing detective becomes a high-stakes matter.–Priscille Dando, Robert E. Lee High School, Fairfax County, VA
Adult/High School–At 26, Lucy Hull believes she has settled into just the right job, working in the children’s room in the Hannibal, MO, public library. She’s escaped her shady Russian mafia childhood home in Chicago and is delighted with an extraordinarily engaging ten-year-old library fan, Ian Drake. Then Ian is caught up in his fundamentalist family’s efforts to “cure” his likely homosexuality, and he runs away to hide in the library. Against her better judgment, Lucy takes him on a road trip that includes at least seven states, being chased by a shady tracker, listening to Ian’s ebullient riffs on children’s lit, roadside attractions, and living on the lam. In her debut novel, Makkai captures both Lucy and Ian with bittersweet realism, making this a story that teens who see themselves as either in need of rescue or as rescuers can take to heart. Readers will delight in Ian and Lucy’s shared thoughts on various children’s classics, while those in search of a funny, provocative road story won’t be disappointed. It’s a perfect pairing with the Belgian award winning film “Ma Vie en Rose” (1997), which also depicts a sensitively and sensibly treated youngster who has nontraditional concerns.--Francisca Goldsmith, Infopeople Project, CA
Adult/High School–Finally the wait is over! Dance is here, and it’s a doorstopper. Roughly half of the book provides the missing perspectives from A Feast for Crows (Bantam, 2005), most notably Jon Snow, Danaerys Targaryen, and Tyrion Lannister. The timelines meet up eventually, and the second half moves the narrative forward in time for everyone, whether in the North or the South, Westeros or Essos. In Essos, Dany struggles to rule Meereen but finds that it is much easier to conquer than to rule. Tyrion, meanwhile, is in exile and learns what it means to be a dwarf who is not a lord. In the North, tensions continue to grow between the Night’s Watch, the Wildlings, and Stannis and his men, leading to the inevitable explosion, and Bran finally finds the three-eyed crow. More than anything, identity limns each narrative in this volume. “You need to know your name” is one character’s refrain, and questions of self and family abound. This seems like perfect set up for the final two volumes, when the question of who has the right to rule will finally be settled, and the personalities tempered in these conflicts will have hardened or snapped. Difficult lessons are learned, prophecies begin to come to pass, and the white ravens fly: fans may not be pleased with every detail, but they can’t deny that things are happening. However, a series of cliffhanger endings (especially for Jon and the Night’s Watch) will make the bound-to-be-long wait for Wolves of Winter nearly unbearable, especially with so many characters poised on the edge of action.– Karyn N. Silverman, Little Red School House and Elisabeth Irwin High School, NYC
Adult/High School–This novel, the author’s follow-up to Push (Knopf, 1996), opens when “the kid” is nine years old and attending his mother’s funeral. After Precious dies, he’s put into foster care and immediately suffers physical abuse at the hands of another ward; sexual abuse soon follows as he goes to the Catholic orphanage where he receives an excellent education but is raped by the priests. He is in a dream state when he goes to the other boys at night, a state of power and joy as he repeats with them what has been done to him. JJ – as the kid is called at his point – has no sense of responsibility for or awareness of what he is doing. Completely and horrifically realistic, his voice is stream of consciousness–or unconsciousness as the case may be. It’s a jumble of fantasy, memory, justification, anger, and outrage. He tries to convince himself that his mother died in a car crash and his father in the war. He hates the “faggots” and he’s not one. He didn’t do anything. At 13, he is taken to his great-grandmother’s roach- and grease-filled house. Toosie has little interaction with him until, out of the blue, she tells her gruesome story, including her own rape that produced Mary (Precious’s mother), and Toosie’s subsequent life as a whore. JJ’s only positive outlet is dance, yet it is short lived as he struggles with identity, isolation, abuse, and sexuality and finally has a breakdown. This intense and difficult book is for exceptional teens– teens who love reading books such as Dostovesky’s Crime and Punishment or Morrison’s Beloved, and who need to know and understand more of Precious and her family’s world.—Amy Cheney, Alameda County Library, Juvenile Hall, CA
Adult/High School–Liz Bergamot and her family traded up their lifestyle from laid-back Ithaca, NY, for the high-powered social scene of New York City. As her brilliant and handsome husband immerses himself in his work, and their children, Jake, 16, and Coco, 6, move seamlessly into their new lives, Liz is left to work hard trying to fit in with the new social circle of which she is now a part. All seems assured for the family until the day Jake receives a sexually explicit email from Daisy, the younger girl he spurned the night before at a party. Without thinking, he forwards it to a friend for his response. From there, the email goes viral and Jake is held responsible for the action. His family must now deal with the issue legally, morally and emotionally. This story deals with an important and timely topic. The emotional depth of the story is with Liz and the impact on her family and her new friends, but Jake’s response of alternating fear, shame, and uncertainty is also portrayed. Richard tries to straddle his high-stakes job with trying to just make it all go away. And while she is in the middle of the situation, Daisy is not a central character. It is only at the end, years later, that readers are granted a small glimpse of what it might have meant to her. The language is graphic and the emotions are raw, but they are within the context of the story. Recommend this to mature teens who like stories that show the complexity of families and their responses in times of crisis.– Connie Williams, Petaluma High School, CA
Adult/High School–The premise in this genre-blending political commentary/thriller is compelling: the government’s various investigatory agencies have determined that U.S. residents can be more deeply probed for undertaking suspicious activities by mining everyone’s data DNA, the sum of each person’s online transactions and activities. Venditti’s tight plotting and well-developed characters, envisioned by Huddleston’s variegated artistic approaches, are perfectly suited to one another. The federal plot is in the hands of a few geeks depicted on pages with graph-paper backdrops; the heads of the plotting departments are shown in shadowy and fuzzy grays, with the added symbolism of red highlights; while the heroes are instilled with expressive faces and postures. Although kidnapped by the would-be band of whistle blowers, the necessary brains of the counter-insurgence is a female epidemiologist who is treated with respect by the multiethnic team of ethically minded counteragents. Pacing is steady and the story holds enough realism to prompt serious discussion of the differences between government protection and privacy invasion, where the line between inside and outside the law can be drawn, and where to go when you can’t trust the authorities.–Francisca Goldsmith, Infopeople Project, CA
Adult/High School–Caleb and Camille Fang live for their work, creating performance art that unleashes disruptive chaos on an unsuspecting public. The Family Fang has won grants and recognition, but they couldn’t do it without Child A and Child B, Annie and Buster. In Wilson’s offbeat, affecting, both funny and depressing novel, the kids are all grown up but still dealing with the effects of their dysfunctional family. The present alternates with flashbacks to significant “performances,” from distributing fake coupons in a mall food court to entering Buster in the Little Miss Crimson Clover beauty pageant. The children were used to further their parents artistic goals whether they wanted to or not, which they found simultaneously artistically satisfying and humiliating. Now Annie is a successful young Hollywood actress with no idea how to distinguish art from reality, or her public from her personal life. Buster is a freelance writer for various magazines, having written two novels, the first a critical success. Both end up moving back home after making disastrous career decisions. (Buster is rather hilariously shot in the face with a potato gun while researching an article.) And then their parents disappear. Were they victims of a crime, or did they stage their own deaths as part of a performance that only their children can complete? Annie and Buster’s simultaneous need to please their parents, to perform up to their standards, and to rebel against them will resonate with teens. Wilson’s performance is first-rate if not worthy of a standing ovation.–Angela Carstensen, Convent of the Sacred Heart. New York City
Adult/High School–When Papa John Moses decided to kill himself at the family reunion that summer of 1956, he left behind his wife, Calla; their son, Toy; and their daughter Willadee, her pastor husband Samuel Lake, and their three children: Swan, Noble, and Bienville. He also left behind his farm and the two businesses that kept it afloat: the general store and the all-night “Never Closes” bar. After Samuel learns that he no longer has a parish church to lead, he and Willadee decide to stay with Calla and Toy to help run the farm. The Lake children explore their surroundings with the innocence of childhood and the surety of their family’s love and care. But when their neighbor is shown to be a brute and bully to his son, wife and animals, Swan intervenes and discovers that not every family is like her own. Her intervention sets off a series of actions that changes everybody, and the intensity of the neighbor’s evil creates an edge-of-your-seat reading experience. Peopled with a rich array of characters and with a setting readers can almost touch, this novel is supremely crafted and compelling. Eleven-year-old Swan carries the day with her optimism and her inability to accept things as they are. Samuel Lake recalls the worlds created in books such as To Kill a Mockingbird or The Lovely Bones. Teens who like those books will surely be attracted to this one because it draws from the same understanding of place and time, and features characters who stay with their readers.–Connie Williams, Petaluma High School, CA
Adult/High School–More than 12 million Americans suffer from allergies, but few of them can possibly be allergic to as many things as Beasley, who chronicles her hyper-allergic life with wry and sometimes disturbing stories. From a childhood in which she could never taste a birthday cake (wheat flour) to adolescence when she couldn’t kiss her boyfriend (who might have eaten peanuts) and into an adulthood where even a secret ingredient in a bar drink (grapefruit juice) might cause a life-threatening reaction, Beasley has lived at risk of death from her allergies. She has survived by being vigilant and acutely attentive to her environment including every ingredient of each thing she ate. Despite living in a world in which just about everything seems to want to kill her, she writes with a sense of humor that sustains her insights and abundant research about allergies. She never whines about her condition or the difficulty of fitting into a culture that for so long was not interested in her affliction or much interested in protecting her (with ingredient listings and epi-pens in the classroom) from danger. Rather, she writes with a gracious invitation to readers to understand her challenges. Teens with allergies will appreciate how Beasley learned to adapt during adolescence when peer pressure was sometimes so powerful that she ate what everyone else was eating, even knowing it would provoke a serious response. High school students engaged in research on allergies will also find it a useful resource.–John Sexton, formerly at Westchester Library System, Tarrytown, NY
Adult/High School–In a brief introduction, Dutton entices readers with glimpses of high school science-fair contestants whose research has influenced everything from space travel to a cure for cancer. Each ensuing chapter portrays one contestant and his or her path to success. Six chapters follow the contestants on their way to the Intel International Science and Engineering Fair 2009; other chapters intersperse the stories of five 21st century teen science fair legends. They all culminate in Intel ISEF 2009. Which projects will prove worthy Best in Category, and which will win the ultimate prize, the coveted Young Scientist Award? The contestants come from varied educational, geographic, and economic backgrounds. Their projects are equally varied, from a girl who makes the most of contracting leprosy, to the former child actress whose study of honeybees changes her goals entirely, to the boy growing up on a reservation, inspired by his family’s need for heat and hot water. For several, the prize money is their only chance at college and a career doing what they love. Indeed, the money, acclaim, and patents involved are astonishing. Each story communicates the excitement of studying hands-on science. Dutton’s energetic, inspirational, upbeat tone does not gloss over the personal difficulties each student faces along the way. But ultimately, this is a book of success stories, emphasizing the rewards of participating in science fairs. It reads like a collection of engaging short stories about brilliant kids working toward their dreams against all the odds. For teens who want to know what it takes to succeed on a national scale, it will be an eye-opener.–Angela Carstensen, Convent of the Sacred Heart. New York City
Adult/High School–While Greenhouse was raised in the faith, the subtitle doesn’t do the book justice. She doesn’t document her journey as much as she does the impact Christian Science has on her family. Born to converts to CS, Loosh, like most readers, follows the faith of her parents without quite understanding it; she is aware that the rest of her family does not share their beliefs. As she ages, she begins to question what she does believe and the efficacy of prayer over modern medicine, placing her in direct conflict with her father. The Eyeglasses Rebellion, when Lucia realizes that she needs glasses, a direct contradiction of CS belief, is the first real break. Shortly after her college graduation, Lucia notices that her mother is not well, and the ensuing conflicts over her care (or lack thereof) and death are poignantly captured; her maternal grandmother and aunts and uncles are kept out of the loop until close to the end, leading her uncle to threaten to sue the family. It’s no surprise that the author and her father remained relatively estranged until his death. Rather than a journey out of a faith, this is the story of one woman’s questioning and anguish over her parents’ choices. Teens wondering about their own faith, their parents’ expectations, and how to marry the two will find that this book resonates with them. It will also appeal to anyone wanting to know what it’s like to grow up in Christian Science, although Greenhouse does not go deeply into the tenets and beliefs. Suggest that readers have tissues close at hand. They’ll need them.– Laura Pearle, Hackley School, Tarrytown, NY
