A Much Needed Update

Now that we've begun book clubs in class, I try to spend time reading along with you.  That has allowed me to read several good books recently.  I've got a wide variety of types of books to recommend to you.

Let's start with a nonfiction title.  Admittedly, I don't read lots and lots of nonfiction, but I do try to read a few nonfiction titles a year.  I recently read I Am Malala: The Girl Who Stood Up for Education and Was Shot by the Taliban, by Malala Yousafzai with Christina Lamb.  I'd been seeing it on a lot of book lists and was intrigued by Malala's story.  Malala tells the story of growing up in Pakistan and the hold the Taliban took of her area of the country and the changes that brought about.  Malala was the daughter of an educator and her education was the most important thing in her life, but when the Taliban banned girls from going to school, she stood up for her right to an education in very public ways.  As the title states, she was shot by the Taliban - in the face - and survived to tell the story and to continue to speak for the rights of girls in her country.  This is an incredibly eye-opening story.  We in this country take for granted the rights and responsibilities we've been given.  I hope if you read this story, you will recognize the advantages we have living in a country that offers us incredible freedoms.  I checked this title out through MCPL's Overdrive and read it on my Kindle, and they also have this in regular book form if you're interested.

On to a totally different genre, I recently read John Flanagan's The Outcasts, Book 1 of the Brotherband Chronicles.  I've had several students who love Flanagan's Ranger's Apprentice series, so I decided to try out his newest series, which is a spin-off of the RA series.  This is a fantasy/action-adventure type story and I really enjoyed it.  The story follows Hal, who's father was killed on a raid when he was a baby.  Hal is nearly 16, the age when boys go to Brotherband training.  Hal, though, is an outcast (hence the title) whose mother is a foreigner, so he's never been accepted by the boys in his town.  When he begins brotherband training, he and seven other "outcasts" are joined together and are the underdogs in the competitions.  Can Hal pull this group of oddballs together and make them into a winning team?  You'll have to read The Outcasts to find out.  If you like the book, there are 4 more books in this series currently.  I expect there will be more beyond that, as well.  I checked this title out through MCPL's Overdrive, but it's also available in book form and is in our Congress Library, as well.

If you're more into realistic fiction, you might like Morgan Matson's Since You've Been Gone.  In this story, Emily has always been the quiet one...her best friend Sloane was the one everybody noticed.  But Sloane and her family disappear right at the beginning of the summer before their senior year.  She doesn't return Emily's calls or texts, and Emily has no idea where she's gone.  A few days after Sloane disappears, Emily gets a letter from her in the mail.  Actually, it's a list...things Sloane wants Emily to do over the summer.  Things like "Go apple-picking at night" and "Dance until dawn".  Emily decides that no matter how uncomfortable it makes her, she's going to complete everything on Sloane's list...and maybe if she does, she might just find her way to wherever Sloane is.  I absolutely loved this title...it was  a fun read!  I again checked this one out through MCPL's Overdrive, but you can find it on their shelves too.

I talked about this next title in class earlier this week, but I'll mention it again here.  In Jackaby, by
William Ritter, we meet detective R.F. Jackaby through the main character, Abigail Rook.  Abigail has just arrived in the fictional New England town of New Fiddleham after a brutal murder has taken place.  She signs on as Jackaby's assistant and watches the quirky investigator go to work.  He doesn't work for the police - he's more of a private detective, and he sees more than just what the human eye sees...he also sees the paranormal, which makes most people think he's crazy.  This is a fun fantasy/mystery to read.  I checked out my copy (again) through MCPL's Overdrive, but they have copies on their shelves, and I have a copy of this one as well, if you're interested.

Finally, let me recommend Rachel Hawkin's Rebel Belle.  This is the first book in a new series, and it is action-packed.  The ending will leave you wishing for the next in the series!  In this story we meet Harper Price, who is about to be crowned Homecoming Queen.  But when she detours to the bathroom to put on a little lip gloss, something crazy happens.  The school janitor comes into the bathroom - he's been stabbed and is dying.  When Harper tries to help him, he grabs her and kisses her - well, not exactly kisses - he breathes something into her.  All of a sudden, Harper has supernatural, super-hero like abilities she never had before and she discovers that the janitor passed on his Paladin skills to her and she must protect someone at all costs.  Whom must she protect?  David Stark, her life-long competitor and enemy.  Chaos and adventure ensues...and of course, maybe Harper and David don't hate each other as much as they thought they did. :)  I checked out a copy of this title from MCPL - yes, I actually read it in book form!

Hopefully, that gives you some ideas of titles you'd like to look for next time you're at Mid-Continent.