Artichoke's Heart

Author: Suzanne Supplee
Pages: 276
Rating: PG

Summary:It's not so easy being Rosemary Goode and tipping the scales at almost two hundred pounds, especially when your mother runs the most successful (and gossipiest!) beauty shop in town. After a spectacularly disastrous Christmas break when the scale reaches an all-time high, Rosemary realizes that things need to change. (A certain basketball player, Kyle Cox, might have something to do with it.) So begins a powerful year of transformation and a journey toward self-discovery that surprisingly has little to do with the physical, and more to do with an honest look at how Rosemary feels about herself.

My Thoughts: I really enjoyed this book. Rosemary is a character that is easy to identify with, at least in some way. She has extremely low self-esteem because of her weight, and seems to think that everyone in her life is just disgusted by how fat she is. She also has this idea that if you are skinny and beautiful, your life must be easy and perfect.

After Rosemary finally decides to start losing some weight, she begins to make friends, and even gains the attention of Kyle Cox, the cute new basketball player. What she doesn't seem to understand is that her new friends and Kyle don't care at all how much she weighs. They're interested in her because of who she is, and that's a nice, funny, and caring person.

This is definitely a fantastic teen read, because it really teaches a lot about how to have your self-esteem come from just being who you are, instead of thinking you have to be like someone else in order to be accepted. I would totally recommend this one.

Stargirl

Author: Jerry Spinelli
Pages: 186
Rating: G

Summary: Stargirl. From the day she arrives at quiet Mica High in a burst of color and sound, the hallways hum with the murmur of “Stargirl, Stargirl.” She captures Leo Borlock’s heart with just one smile. She sparks a school-spirit revolution with just one cheer. The students of Mica High are enchanted. At first.

Then they turn on her. Stargirl is suddenly shunned for everything that makes her different, and Leo, panicked and desperate with love, urges her to become the very thing that can destroy her: normal. In this celebration of nonconformity, Newbery Medalist Jerry Spinelli weaves a tense, emotional tale about the perils of popularity and the thrill and inspiration of first love.

My Thoughts: I know this book is supposed to be on the middle school literary must-read list or something, but this is actually my first time ever reading it. It's definitely a good one. Stargirl is just something else. She's indescribable. A little kooky, but she seems to care so much about other people, no matter who they are. The whole book is just a lesson in being yourself, no matter what other people think, and that caring about other people is more important than being popular. The book has a really good message, and could probably start good discussions with middle school aged or even a little younger kids. 

In the back of the book there was a preview for the sequel, "Love, Stargirl" which I totally want to read now, and I'll post the review when I do!

The Berlin Boxing Club

Author: Robert Sharenow
Pages: 400
Rating: PG - a few bad words, mild violence

Summary:

Karl Stern has never thought of himself as a Jew; after all, he's never even been in a synagogue. But the bullies at his school in Nazi-era Berlin don't care that Karl's family doesn't practice religion. Demoralized by their attacks against a heritage he doesn't accept as his own, Karl longs to prove his worth.
Then Max Schmeling, champion boxer and German hero, makes a deal with Karl's father to give Karl boxing lessons. A skilled cartoonist, Karl never had an interest in boxing, but now it seems like the perfect chance to reinvent himself.
But when Nazi violence against Jews escalates, Karl must take on a new role: family protector. And as Max's fame forces him to associate with Nazi elites, Karl begins to wonder where his hero's sympathies truly lie. Can Karl balance his boxing dreams with his obligation to keep his family out of harm's way?

My Thoughts: I happen to love novels about Nazi Germany. I think the entire period is just completely facsinating. I love the different tilt to this novel, with Karl being someone who not only doesn't practice any religion, he doesn't even look like the stereotypical Jew. He feels like he shouldn't have to suffer through all the difficulties of his time, because he doesn't consider himself Jewish. Boxing is the way he feels he will prove himself to the world.

This is a really great novel, mixing the world of sports and one of the most difficult historical periods in history. I would recommend it to anyone, even if you're not interested in boxing. You don't have to be to enjoy this novel of a young boy just trying to prove his worth and understand the confusing world around him.

Christmas Jars

Author: Jason Wright
Pages: 149
Rating: G

Summary:
Where had it come from? Whose money was it? Was I to spend it? Save it? Pass it on to the someone more needy? Above all else, why was I chosen? Certainly there were others, countless others more needy than I...Her reporter’s intuition insisted that a remarkable story was on the verge of the front page.
Rising newspaper reporter Hope Jensen uncovers the secret behind the "Christmas Jars" – glass jars filled with coins and bills anonymously given to people in need. But Hope discovers much more than she bargained for when some unexpected news sets off a chain reaction of kindness and brings above a Christmas Eve wish come true.

My Thoughts: This is  a very short, quick and easy read, but so sweet and awesome. If you have not read it before, it should definitely be a part of your holiday collection. It really encompasses the spirit of Christmas and of giving to others. I read it one Christmas Eve with my family. We just passed the book around the family and read a little until we were finished. If you're an emotional kind of person, you might cry. It has such a sweet ending. You'll love it. =)

Evolution, Me & Other Freaks of Nature

Author: Robin Brande
Pages: 265
Rating: PG - mild language

Summary:
Your best friend hates you. The guy you liked hates you. Your entire group of friends hates you.

All because you did the right thing.

Welcome to life for Mena, whose year is starting off in the worst way possible. She's been kicked out of her church group and no one will talk to her—not even her own parents. No one except for Casey, her supersmart lab partner in science class, who's pretty funny for the most brilliant guy on earth.

And when Ms. Shepherd begins the unit on evolution, school becomes more dramatic than Mena could ever imagine . . . and her own life is about to evolve in some amazing and unexpected ways.

My Thoughts: I absolutely love this book. I read it for the first time in high school and it helped me actually change my opinions about evolution.

Anyway, I'm getting ahead of myself. Basically, Mena starts off her high school career with everyone hating her because in middle school, there was a kid in her school named Denny who may or may not have been gay, and Mena's pastor starts this campaign to root out homosexuality in their schools. The kids from Mena's church group are extremely mean to Denny, with one girl even dropping to her knees in front of him in the hallways to loudly pray for his soul. This kind of treatment drives Denny to attempt suicide. Mena feels so bad about it that she writes him a letter explaining everything and apologizing for her involvement. Well, Denny's parents then sue the church and all the families involved in the torment, and Mena gets the blame for it, and is kicked out of her church. Her parents are mad at her because they hold the insurance policies for all these church members, and the policies don't cover this type of lawsuit, causing the other church members to want to sue Mena's parents. It's all just a big huge mess.

So, Mena starts high school as a total outcast, and when her former church peers begin a campaign to stop the teaching of evolution in their school, Mena somehow finds herself on the other side of the conflict. My favorite part about Mena is that even though she realizes that her former friends and pastor are total hypocrites when it comes to religion, she doesn't let that ruin her personal belief in God. She still believes in Him, she loves to read her Bible, and genuinely misses going to church. But she knows that what her former friends and pastor are doing is wrong and un-Christian.

Mena's own beliefs change a little too. She realizes that it is possible to be a scientist and still be a good Christian. You can believe in evolution AND God. Because who knows HOW God actually created everything. He probably used evolution! Anyway, I just really love this book because of how it manages to combine science and religion in a way that makes sense and doesn't hurt anyone's feelings. It's super good.

Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close

Author: Jonathan Safran Foer
Pages: 326
Rating: PG-13+ (for some language, and sexual references. No graphic sex scenes, but there are still a few references to characters "making love" with some vague descriptions. Also, Oskar informs the reader what he knows about sex from looking it up on the internet.)

Summary:Nine-year-old Oskar Schell has embarked on an urgent, secret mission that will take him through the five boroughs of New York. His goal is to find the lock that matches a mysterious key that belonged to his father, who died in the World Trade Center on the morning of September 11. This seemingly impossible task will bring Oskar into contact with survivors of all sorts on an exhilarating, affecting, often hilarious, and ultimately healing journey.

My Thoughts: So I read this book and then watched the movie. Personally, this book was not life-changing. It was interesting and definitely moving in a way, but I didn't feel like anything was really resolved at the end, or even that Oskar had healed in any way. I felt like the movie did a much better job of providing closure and healing in the end than the book did.

However, if you've only seen the movie, the book has the whole entire side story involving the Grandmother and Grandfather, who are much bigger characters in the book, and you get to hear their entire, sad story. Which really doesn't have much to do with Oskar, but it's interesting nonetheless.

I think the point of the whole book was for Oskar to realize that he is not the only person in the world who has suffered some sort of loss or sadness in his life. All of the people he come into contact with have dealt with a trial or tragedy of their own. We all just do the best we can to get through it, and if we can help other people out along the way, even better.

It also points out the senselessness of violence in the world. There's a part where Oskar plays for his class at school an interview with a Japanese person who survived the atom bomb. The horror she describes is just gut-wrenchingly awful, and there's almost a question of why do these things happen? But now that we can't change them, what do we do about it in the future? How do we go about living our lives without being scared of everything, like Oskar is?

In the end, I felt like I had to dig a little to get some meaning out of the book, but I think it was still worth reading. If you've seen the movie and were happy with it, then I don't think the book is necessary. But if you're interested in the grandparents' stories, then you need to read the book. It's quite the story.

Messenger

Author: Lois Lowry
Pages: 169
Rating: PG

Summary:
For the past six years, Matty has lived in Village and flourished under the guidance of Seer, a blind man, known for his special sight. Village was a place that welcomed newcomers, but something sinister has seeped into Village and the people have voted to close it to outsiders. Matty has been invaluable as a messenger. Now he must make one last journey through the treacherous forest with his only weapon, a power he unexpectedly discovers within himself.

My Thoughts: This book is third in a larger series by Lois Lowry. The Giver is the first book, and then Gathering Blue is second. The final book, which I haven't read yet, is Son. While The Giver and Gathering Blue are both books that can stand completely on their own and almost don't seem connected at all, Messenger seems to be the book that is starting to bring it all together, so I think it will probably make the most sense and work the best if you read the other two first. It's more of a transitional story, and I don't think it has too much merit just on its own.

You get the idea that Village was founded by Jonas (from The Giver) and he is now the leader of the village. I'm almost positive this is true, because randomly mentioned in the book is "a mischievous eight-year-old named Gabe" who I took to be the same Gabe that Jonas saved back in The Giver. I got the feeling that Village was the Elsewhere that Jonas found.

Also in the book is the girl from Gathering Blue. She is brought to Village at the very end of the book. I thought the ending was actually very sad and a little bit vague in how it all came together, but as a whole, I did enjoy the book. It's a quick read, and now I can't wait to read Son to see how everything finally comes together.

Elantris

Author: Brandon Sanderson
Pages: 615
Rating: PG-13 (for violent scenes)

Summary: Elantris was the capital of Arelon: gigantic, beautiful, literally radiant, filled with benevolent beings who used their powerful magical abilities for the benefit of all. Yet each of these demigods was once an ordinary person until touched by the mysterious transforming power of the Shaod. Ten years ago, without warning, the magic failed. Elantrians became wizened, leper-like, powerless creatures, and Elantris itself dark, filthy, and crumbling.

Arelon's new capital, Kae, crouches in the shadow of Elantris. Princess Sarene of Teod arrives for a marriage of state with Crown Prince Raoden, hoping -- based on their correspondence -- to also find love. She finds instead that Raoden has died and she is considered his widow. Both Teod and Arelon are under threat as the last remaining holdouts against the imperial ambitions of the ruthless religious fanatics of Fjordell. So Sarene decides to use her new status to counter the machinations of Hrathen, a Fjordell high priest who has come to Kae to convert Arelon and claim it for his emperor and his god.

But neither Sarene nor Hrathen suspect the truth about Prince Raoden. Stricken by the same curse that ruined Elantris, Raoden was secretly exiled by his father to the dark city. His struggle to help the wretches trapped there begins a series of events that will bring hope to Arelon, and perhaps reveal the secret of Elantris itself.

A rare epic fantasy that doesn't recycle the classics and that is a complete and satisfying story in one volume, Elantris is fleet and fun, full of surprises and characters to care about. It's also the wonderful debut of a welcome new star in the constellation of fantasy.

My Thoughts: If you're into fantasy novels, this is definitely one to try out. I admit, I was a bit skeptical, and at first I was a little confused by what was going on. Sanderson has dreamed up a world so different from anything you've ever read before, it's a little difficult to stop trying to make it fit into a category that already makes sense. You have to come at this book with a clean slate in your head. Don't try to impose any ideas you already have about history, religion, magic, etc, because you'll just end up a little confused. 

This book took me several weeks to read, because it is pretty long. The good thing about it is that it's not part of a series. Also, it's written in short segments, so it's easy to just spend a few minutes reading it before having to put it down again.

Sanderson does a great job of describing each of his characters completely. You don't ever feel like someone wasn't developed enough as a character, and you manage to feel something about each person as well. For instance, part of the reason I was confused at the start is because Hrathen, who I assumed was supposed to be the bad guy, was actually so likeable and easy to understand, that I didn't know if he was really supposed to be bad or not.

Even though it's a long book, at no point does it seem to get slow or too detailed. Something is always happening that furthers the storyline, even though all of the main action happens in the last 50 pages. The fact that Sanderson managed to stretch only a few months of story into 600 pages without making it seem overly drawn out is pretty impressive to me.

I particularly liked the love story going on between Sarene and Raoden (btw...I absolutely have NO CLUE how to pronounce most of the names in the book. A pronunciation guide in the back would have been helpful, but there wasn't one). Their story is sort of a background thing, and even though it's important it never got too cheesy or dumb for me. It felt very realistic.

This is really not the type of book I usually read, but I was pleasantly surprised by it. My life wasn't changed or anything, but I was definitely entertained and completely hooked on the story.

Before Midnight: A retelling of Cinderella

Author: Cameron Dokey
Pages: 193
Rating: G

Summary:
Etienne de Brabant is brokenhearted. His wife has died in childbirth, leaving him alone with an infant daughter he cannot bear to name. But before he abandons her for king and court, he brings a second child to be raised alongside her, a boy whose identity he does not reveal.
The girl, La Cendrillon, and the boy, Raoul, pass sixteen years in the servants' care until one day a very fine lady arrives with her two daughters. The lady has married La Cendrillon's father, and her arrival changes their lives.
When an invitation to a great ball reaches the family, La Cendrillon's new stepmother will make a decision with far-reaching effects. Her choice will lead La Cendrillon and Raoul toward their destiny -- a choice that will challenge their understanding of family, test their loyalty and courage, and, ultimately, teach them who they are.

My Thoughts: A quick and cute read, definitely a nicer twist on Cinderella than you've heard before. The stepmother and sisters are actually nice, although they are not aware at first that Cendrillon is anything more than a servant. Her father, Etienne, has never mentioned her existence to anyone, and her homely appearance at the arrival of her new family leads them to believe she is a serving girl. However, they are not overly cruel to her, and when she does eventually reveal who she is, the family is very accepting and loving.

Again, Dokey has a problem of spending the entire book on buildup and not enough on climax and ending stuff, but I still enjoyed it, even though I figured out who Raoul really is very early on in the story. There's a lot in this book about wishes that are powerful and really come true, and love at first sight. I think it's probably one of the better ones I've read in the Once Upon a Time series.

13 Gifts

Author: Wendy Mass
Pages: 339
Rating: G

Summary: When Tara, a self-proclaimed shrinking violet, steals the school mascot, a goat, in order to make some friends with the popular crowd and gets caught, she gets herself in a heap of trouble. In addition, her parents decide that instead of taking her on their summer trip to Madagascar to study the courtship rituals of the Bamboo Lemur, she must go stay with her aunt, uncle, and bratty cousin Emily St. Claire in Willow Falls. Tara thinks it's a good time to start over; she'll be turning 13 after all, so she might as well make the best of it and perhaps even attempt to break out of her shell (in a non-criminal manner). What Tara doesn't know is that this charmed town has something big in store for her on her 13th birthday. It's not a typical birthday. But then again, nothing is Willow Falls is exactly typical!

My Thoughts: Eh. This is a book that's all well and good for a preteen. I'd say it's definitely interesting, with weird twists you don't expect, but I felt like some of it was overdramatic, and a lot of the stuff Tara does or has to deal with in the book just works out WAY too easily. There aren't really any true obstacles. Everything she comes up against seems like an issue for all of like 10 minutes and then the problems are solved in some quick and simple way that in real life would probably never happen.

Also, I was annoyed because there are a few mysteries in the book that don't really get solved because they have to do with other characters and apparently they have their own books, 11 Birthdays, and Finally. So that bothered me. You get to hear the end of Tara's story, but there are these two odd characters Leo and Amanda and something fishy is going on with them the entire book, yet it ends without you ever getting to find out what's going on with them.

Like I said, this is definitely a clean and wonderful book for the 10-14 age group, but I found a lot lacking in it from an adult perspective.