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Rosati, Gina. AURACLE New York : Roaring Brook Press, 2012 IL YA ISBN 1596437103 Seventeen-year-old Anna has a unique hobby. She can astrally project out of her body. This is especially useful when class is boring or she needs to get away from her dad’s drinking. Rei, her best friend since forever, worries for her when she projects. Anna thinks Rei is just jealous. Leaving her body, she has traveled around the world, into the cosmos, to the mouth of an erupting volcano.One night, Anna travels to the nearby waterfall where Taylor, a predatory “party girl,” has lured Rei’s buddy Seth. Attempting to seduce Seth, Taylor moves closer to him and slips on the wet rocks.... She falls off the cliff and crashes to her death. Anna returns to her body, only to find it occupied by Taylor, a reluctant spirit who was drawn to Anna’s body. Taylor (as Anna) accuses Seth of murder and tries to seduce Rei. Will Anna figure out a way to exorcise Taylor from her body before it’s too late?Auracle is a suspenseful debut novel by New Hampshire Author Gina Rosati (New Hampshire Isinglass Teen Book Award, 2014)
Sunday, July 14, 2013
Book of the day 07/14/2013
Saturday, July 13, 2013
Book of the day 07/13/2013
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Poblocki, Dan. GHOST OF GRAYLOCK
Poblocki, Dan. GHOST OF GRAYLOCK New York : Scholastic, 2012 IL 3-6, RL 4.9 ISBN 0545402689 Neil and his older sister Bree are sent live with their aunts for a while while his parents “sort things out.” He meets Wesley, a boy his age, who tells him rumors about Graylock Hall - the abandoned asylum in town - that it’s haunted by the ghosts of several young patients who died under mysterious circumstances, murdered by one of the Nurses who worked there. Awesome -- Exploring Graylock Hall will be the perfect way to spend his summer because Neil is an avid fan of the Ghostly Investigator TV show.Neil, Bree, Wesley and Wesley’s brother Eric band together to visit Graylock and strange things start to happen..especially in Room 13. Their camera stops working. Their flashlight suddenly dies. Bree is overcome with a strange sleepiness in Room 13...Neil thinks he sees a ghostly figure...is it murderous Nurse Janet?When they return home, Nick and Bree can’t explain the strange events that seem to have followed them back...mysterious puddles of lake water, ghostly images of a young girl...the nightmares...Someone is trying to tell them something, but who? And what is their message? (New Hampshire Isinglass Teen Book Award, 2014)
Friday, July 12, 2013
Book of the day 07/12/2013
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Meyer, Marissa. CINDER New York : Feiwel and Friends, 2012 IL YA ISBN 0312641893 Cinder is an updated Cinderella story with a sci-fi twist.In the future, Cinder, a gifted mechanic, is a cyborg. She works in a small stall in the crowded streets of New Beijing. Her reputation has spread as far as the palace, because even Prince Kai (you knew there would be a handsome prince) seeks her out to repair a broken android before the ball. A nice twist on the fairy tale is that Cinder has a mechanical foot that doesn’t quite fit, because her stepmother - of course there’s a stepmother! - her stepmother won’t replace the one Cinder got when she was a kid.Along with her stepmother, she lives with two stepsisters (of course) -- one, Peony, she actually has a sisterly relationship with- the other, Pearl, not so much.Earth’s governments are urging Prince Kai to marry the Lunar Queen Levana to establish an alliance between the Earth and the Moon. Some believe that the Lunar people have developed a cure for the mysterious, deadly plague that is sweeping through New Beijing. Prince Kai’s father is stricken, as is Peony (the nice stepsister) is infected. As revenge, Cinder’s stepmother volunteers her for plague research...which unlocks secrets about Cinder, the Lunar people that have been buried for years.Cinder is the first book in a four part Lunar Chronicles. (New Hampshire Isinglass Teen Book Award, 2014)
Thursday, July 11, 2013
Book of the day 07/11/2013
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Maas, Sarah J. THRONE OF GLASS
Maas, Sarah J. THRONE OF GLASS New York : Bloomsbury, 2012 IL YA ISBN 1599906953 A chilling yet romantic fantasy set in a world ruled by a tyrannical king. When the story opens, our teen heroine has been imprisoned in the salt mines. No one lasts long there. So, when she is offered the chance to compete for her freedom, she takes it, even though the competition is to become the despised king’s personal assassin. It’s just for 4 years. She will find a way to get through this. It’s her only chance, and she has a good chance at winning. She is highly trained.She is sent to the castle along with 23 other infamous criminals, and begins training for the competition. Her sponsor is the crown prince and her trainer the loyal captain of the king’s guard. Neither is going to be the kind of person she expects them to be, and an interesting love triangle will emerge as the story progresses.And the story is complex. There are hidden forces at work in the castle. Someone is killing the assassins, and, a presence she can’t explain is emerging in her room. (New Hampshire Isinglass Teen Book Award, 2014)
Wednesday, July 10, 2013
Book of the day 07/10/2013
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Lewis, Richard. THE KILLING SEA
Lewis, Richard. THE KILLING SEA New York : Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers, 2006 IL YA ISBN 1416911650 Drawing on his experience as a relief worker after the 2005 tsunami in Indonesia, Lewis spins a harrowing tale of disaster and survival, but also a story of human compassion and cultural awakening.Ruslan, an Indonesian teen is drawn to an American girl when her family's sailboat docks in his town for mechanical assistance. The girl doesn’t even notice him. Boat fixed, her family sails off. Both teens are about to be caught in a massive tsunami.The girl survives, but her mother is killed, her father is missing, and her little brother badly injured. Ruslan also survives the wave and immediately begins to search for his father, who had gone inland on an errand hours before the wave hit. The island has become an unfamiliar landscape of devastation. When the two teens happen upon each other, the little brother is failing. They band together to search for a doctor and their missing fathers. A friendship develops and when the girl, who’s safety is big news, is discovered, she uses the news media’s attention to speak out for what she now understand is the important disaster story - the islanders and their island. (New Hampshire Isinglass Teen Book Award, 2014)
Tuesday, July 9, 2013
Book of the day 07/09/2013
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Klaven, Andrew. CRAZY DANGEROUS
Klaven, Andrew. CRAZY DANGEROUS New York : Thomas Nelson, 2012 IL YA ISBN 1595547932 Like “The Last Thing I Remember,” this is about a boy thrown into a puzzling and very tough spot, trying to figure out both how to survive and how to solve a reality that seems surreal. Sam is the son of a preacher. He has to deal with kids who think they couldn't possible relax around him, or include him, or, feel the need to test his goodness. He has very few real friends.One day while out running he is intercepted by the local tough group. They intend to hurt him, but impressed by his spunky responses, end up inviting him to join them. He knows this is not a good idea, yet it seems his best option in the moment, and, he is sort of drawn to it. No one would make fun of him. Eventually he crosses them when they try to hurt a student who is known to be a bit crazy. With this act he becomes her hero, and their no 1 enemy. After all he now knows some of their secrets. She begins telling him about visions she has of impending disaster, and he gets drawn into trying to figure out whether she is hallucinating or is trying to warn him about something real. Trying to find out the truth in time is essential, at times illegal, and quite dangerous. (New Hampshire Isinglass Teen Book Award, 2014)
Monday, July 8, 2013
Book of the day 07/08/2013
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Khoury, Jessica. ORIGIN New York : Razorbill, 2012 IL YA ISBN 1595145958 Deep in the Amazon, in a top-secret compound known as Little Cam, a group of scientists discovered a possible key to immortality. They have labored for years to create an immortal human with the thought of beginning a new human race. Pia, now 16, is the result of their work. She has lightning-fast reflexes, inexhaustible stamina, a quick mind, and a beautiful body impervious to sickness or injury. She is their perfect creation and has been carefully schooled and groomed by the scientists, whom she calls uncles. She is also a kind of lab pawn, and her adolescent still-human soul has started to chafe at and question the restrictions and isolation. When a storm causes a break in the electric fence, Pia ventures into the unknown jungle, where discovers Eio, a boy her age belonging to a nearby tribe. Oddly enough Eio speaks English, and, he knows more about Little Cam and the outside world than Pia. How could this be? Why are her uncles hiding so much from her? About that time a new scientist comes to work at Little Cam. She encourages Pia's curiosity and independence. Pia is going to uncover the secret discoveries and actions that led to her immortality. These will not bring her comfort. (New Hampshire Isinglass Teen Book Award, 2014)
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Kincaid, S. J. INSIGNIA New York : Katherine Tegen Books, 2012 IL YA ISBN 0062092995 Tom Raines life is screwed up. Dad is a down-on-his-luck gambler who loses more money than he wins, so often, Tom must win money for food and hotel room thru his prowess betting on the results of Virtual Reality games. His luck finds a turn - whether for better or worse is up to the reader to decide - when the government taps him for special training. His amazing gaming abilities will be used as a force for the Indo-American alliance in World War III. Since having battles on the earth would obliterate all resources, teenagers have been enlisted to fight space battles via VR type consoles. Tom agrees, but initially balks when the concept of an internal (as in brain) neural processor installation is discussed. However, he realizes the safety and protection of the Pentagonal Spire and the importance he will gain as a member of the Intrasolar Forces will finally show the world he has worth. But with all the speed and intelligence he has gained, what will he be asked to give up?Kincaid has given the YA environment a humorous glimpse at dystopia, to the point that at times I actually laughed aloud. As YA books can be way to serious & angst-y, particularly dystopia, humor is MORE than welcome. The books pages seemed to turn themselves as the reader watches Tom evolve from a short, gangly, acne-riddled kid into a tall, muscular, and confident teen. I totally disagreed with the Booklist review that Tom was a “flat character from a story-driven plot”; rather, I see much character growth and a character driven to make the best place for himself in his world. Technology and gaming abound in this book, which will delight the gamers visiting our libraries. (New Hampshire Isinglass Teen Book Award, 2014)