Dr. Lindsey Warren

For the first time on this blog, I am posting about a non-book issue. A great man in the field of Communications passed away yesterday and my heart is a little heavier. Dr. Lindsey Warren was my Great Speeches professor in University and he will be missed. Looking back at my time as his pupil, I realize that he helped shape me to become the woman I am today. Everytime I said, "But how can I know who I am?", he would try to help me figure it out. Dr. Warren was a brilliant man, an amazing professor and most of all a devot Christian and I know that he is enjoying Heaven with God and the angels above and I hope that one day, I will meet him again in Heaven.

And know we will get back to posting about books. . .

Unwind by Neal Shusterman

In a society where abortion is totally illegal, parents have few options when dealing with an unplanned child. They can choose to "dump" the baby on a strangers doorstep after it's born (and that family would HAVE to raise the child), they can drop the kid off in a state home (StaHo) where the child basically has to compete for the right to live' or raise the child until they are 13 and then have them unwound.

Unwinding is only an option for children between the ages of 13 and 18 and when the Unwind orders are finalized, the child is taken to a special center where they await their bodies being harvested piece by piece while they are still awake.
For 3 kids, the Unwind orders are signed, sealed and they are being delivered to the harvest. Lev is the 10th child of 10 children and he is being offered as a tithe to God. Risa, who grew up in a StaHo is being Unwound to make room for the babies because she's not special enough to live whole. And Connor finds tickets for his parents and brother to go on a vacation and finds his unwind orders for the day before the vacation.
A chance meeting binds these three children together and their survival becomes interdependent on each other.
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This book was what I like to call a mind-trip in a book. I will admit that reading this book angered me a bit and caused me to think about it for days. The thought of dismembering teenagers haunted my dreams for at least a week, but I think that's exactly what Neal Shusterman wanted. This book really did make me think about where I stand on certain issues and made me realize that maybe everything is a simple issue. . .

Impossible by Nancy Werlin

Lucy Scarborough has a hideous family secret. The women in her family are all cursed to become pregnant at age 17, give birth at 18 and then slip into madness. And unfortunately, Lucy is not an exception. While visits from her birth mother are sporadic, they are filled with trouble and strife, and a weird old folksong.

Lucy's journey begins with an ill-fated prom date ending in her being raped to conceiving her child (even after taking emergency contraception). Once her mother's journal is found by her friend Zach pieces begin to fall into place and the folksong takes on a new haunting and horrible meaning. . .

Lucy has to figure out the song and how to perform the tasks that are in it, all before her baby is born. If she doesn't, she and her unborn daughter will be forced to follow the footsteps of the other women in their family history.

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Let me just say this: I LOVED this story. I found myself researching Scarborough Fair and The Elfin Knight to try to piece the puzzle together at the same time Lucy, Zach and their family tried to. I know for one, I will never be able to listen to Scarborough Fair the same way again. I never realized how haunting that song could be.

I've joined a reading challenge!

I have joined my first official challenge! The Green Bean Teen Queen has issued a Georgia Nicolson reading challenge. All you have to do is read all 10 books by June 18, 2010. That gives me a little over 10 months. So, each time I read one, I'll post about it here and hopefully I will get through the series in time. I'm so excited!!!! Find out about the challenge here: http://www.greenbeanteenqueen.com/2009/06/georgia-nicolson-reading-challenge.html

Nothing by Robin Friedman

Parker Rabinowitz has a problem. More than one actually. Between trying to do his best in school, meeting with his college consultant and trying to keep up with his father's ridiculous standards, he just can't do everything. With all sorts of pressure on him from every side, Parker strives to control the one thing he can. . . his food intake.

As Parker struggles to keep his food down or to not overeat, he finds his control slipping. While others watch without really seeing, only his little sister Danielle realizes something is seriously wrong with Parker. But even she has her own problems. . . namely that when her brother is around, she's invisible, silent and borderline non-existent.

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I was hesitant to read this book once I realized part of it was in verse, but I'm glad I did. Too often, books are published with serious issues and most of them are about girls. I was encouraged to find another book (similar to Target by Kathleen Jeffries Johnson) that brought a so-called Girl issue and showed that boys can suffer from it too.

Looking back, I'm actually glad that Danielle's portion of the book is in verse form because it tended to be more powerful than if it had been in a regular story form. I was able to appreciate the feelings behind her words and feel the suffication she must have felt being Parker's little sister.

This book has an interesting way of dealing with eating disorders, but in a not too graphic way and stresses that there is no such thing as a "girls only" issue. . . eating disorders and diseases can affect both.

Shark Girl by Kelly Bingham

Fifteen year old Jane Arrowood's life changes drastically when she is attacked by a shark during a routine trip to the beach. When Jane wakes up from her 10 day coma, she finds the doctors had to remove her right arm from her elbow down. Now Jane has the task of getting on with her life and attempting to do what she was able to do before. Jane has to learn how to live without her dominate hand and learn to draw again.

Told through a series of poems in three parts, Jane chronicles her new school, new relationships and getting to know her new body.

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I really liked the way Kelly Bingham brought Jane to life. I was able to see her struggle with a normal everyday routine. I liked how Jane seemed to be very realistic. She struggled with losing her arm, struggled with learning how to wash dishes again adn struggled to not be defined by what she lost.

2009-2010 Sunshine State Reader List for Grades 6-8

The 2009-2010 Sunshine State Reader's Award Program list is out now and the new titles look interesting. Some of them are definitely for younger teens while others will be great for the older ones. Drum roll please. . .

Wing Nut by Mary Auch
The Misadventures of Maude March by Audrey Couloumbis
Into the Wild by Sarah Beth Durst
Dragon Slippers by Jessica Day George
Found by Margaret Peterson Haddix
All the Lovely Bad Ones by Mary Downing Hahn
Airball: My Life in Briefs by Lisa Hakrader
Gabriel's Horses by Alison Hart
Go Big or Go Home by Will Hobbs
La Linea by Ann Jaramillo
Schooled by Gordon Korman
Hot, Sour, Salty, Sweet by Sherri L. Smith
First Light by Rebecca Stead
Runaway by Wendy VanDraanen

It will be interesting to see how the middle schoolers will vote at the end of the next school year.