Wednesday, August 19, 2009

The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks by E. Lockhart

When Frankie, a sophomore, begins to date Matthew, a senior, she is completely smitten. She soon learns that Matthew is hiding something from her: he belongs to an all male secret society at their school. A combination of boredom and hunger for power leads Frankie to spy on the meetings of the society and, as a result, she devises a plan to secretly control it and the pranks it plays on the school. As she gains more control over the society the pranks start to go a little too far and trouble occurs. If you like books that have a little bit of adventure, a little bit of romance, and a strong female character then put this book on your list. You won't be disappointed.

Ms. Amy (SCPL Librarian, Lake Mary Branch)

Thursday, August 13, 2009

Sold by Patricia McCormick

13yr old Lakshmi, a poor girl from a remote Nepal village in the Himalayas, is sold into sexual slavery to a brothel in India. This is her account of her life, told in short diary-type snippets. Harrowing and yet inspiring, the detail in this riveting tale reflects the research done by the author. Each year thousands of girls are sold into prostitution, this book is dedicated to some of them. It was a National Book Award finalist, A Quill award winner, and on the ALA top 10 books for Young Adults.

Ms. Marie (SCPL Librarian, Casselberry Branch)

Tuesday, August 11, 2009

The Great Gatsby is a classic and one of the best books I've ever read. A man named Nick moves next door to a very wealthy man named Gatsby. Gatsby throws lavish parties and has a mysterious past. As time goes on Nick learns more about Gatsby and gets a look into the lives of people from the East coast. This book is a good representation of life in the 1920's and the American dream.

Haleigh (Oviedo, FL. 12th)

Monday, August 10, 2009

The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins

The Hunger Games takes place in the futuristic world where the government controls every aspect of our lives. Although the story revolves around this idea, it focuses more on the heroine of the story and her will to survive. Katniss Everdeen is a very likeable character who literally has to fight for her life. The government punishes its citizens by taking two teens from each district and setting them against each other until only one is alive, all the while taping everything and forcing the citizens to watch. There is romance, action, and horror... a little bit of everything to satisfy everyone. I was very suprised how much I liked this book and quickly recommend it to anyone. This book was recommended by Stephenie Meyer (author of the Twilight saga), which is where I originally heard about The Hunger Games.

Melissa (Hagerty, FL. 10th)

My Sister's Keeper by Jodi Picoult

13 year old Anna was born to save her sister, Kate. Kate has a rare type of Leukemia and was diagnosed at age 2. She needed cord blood, and siblings or parents make the safest donors. Since nobody in her family was a match, Kate's parents had to have another baby. With the help of doctors, they were able to ensure that the baby (Anna) would be a perfect match for Kate. Throughout Anna's life, she had to undergo many surgeries and transplants to save her sister. Now, 13 years later, Anna is being forced to do a risky kidney transplant that has a slim chance of even helping Kate. So Anna files a lawsuit against her parents for rights to her own body. My Sister's Keeper follows the story of Kate and Anna's family and lawyers, and how sometimes decisions that are good for one person may hurt another.

Alana (Hagerty, FL. 9th)