Book Trailers from 9-26

If you'd like to see the rest of the book trailers from today's reading class, click here!

For Fans of the Stand Alone Novel

It seems like so many books these days are part of a series, and sometimes it's hard to keep up with them...or wait for the next book to release.  Because of that, I enjoy a good stand-alone title every once in awhile.  It's nice to read a book and just be finished with the story when you're done reading and not be left with a huge cliffhanger for months!  Let me share some good stand alone titles I've read recently.

Thanks to Netgalley, which provided me with a pre-release copy, I recently read The Bridge from Me to You, by Lisa Schroeder.  In this story, Lauren has recently moved in with her aunt and uncle to their small town from Seattle.  She came with a deep secret.  Colby has lived in this small town all his life, and though his life may seem charmed, he has some problems of his own.  When Colby and Lauren meet, they begin a friendship that helps each of them through the hardships they've been carrying on their own.  This is a sweet story of friendship that could be more.  Despite what the characters are going through, this book ends on a promising note.  It's a great feel-good read!

I was also able to read The Fourteenth Goldfish, by Jennifer L. Holm thanks to Netgalley.  This was a short and very entertaining read about a girl named Ellie, who has just begun the sixth grade.  One day, her mom brings home a teenage boy who proclaims to be Ellie's grandfather.  The boy, Melvin, has found the fountain of youth, but now that he's a teenager, he can't get into his lab to save his work.  He enlists Ellie's help  to try to save his work and bring his cure to aging to the world.  Ellie gets to know her grandfather in a way she never did before - and she learns a lot about herself as well in this humorous mis-adventure.  This is another light-hearted and feel good kind of book.

Netgalley also provided a copy of first-time author Esther Erlich's new book, Nest.  In this story that takes place in the early 1970's, Chirp is 11-years old and lives year-round in Cape Cod, Massachusetts.  She is watching her former-dancer mom fall apart before her eyes.  Her mom's physical health is in decline and because of that, her mental health is suffering as well.  When her mom has to go stay in a mental institution for several months, it's all Chirp can do to help hold herself and the rest of her family together.  She's trying to navigate the changes in her own life without the help and support of her mother, and it's not easy.  She finds solace in watching the birds in the forests and near the ponds near her home, as well as in her troubled neighbor and classmate, Joey.  This story is a sometimes humorous, sometimes deeply sad story of triumph and the power of family and friendship.  I absolutely loved Nest and Chirp is a character who I won't soon forget.

Nest reminds me of one of my favorite books that I read a couple years ago that also took place in the 1970's.  I think I read it before I started this book blog, so I've never written about it on here.  It's called Okay for Now, by Gary D. Schmidt.  It's about a 14-year old boy named Doug Swieteck who is basically a loser from a family of losers...at least that's how it appears to everyone around him.  When his dad gets fired from his job and they have to move, Doug is not happy.  When they move into a small town into a small, cruddy house, he knows that people will still look down on him.  His dad is abusive, one brother is fighting in Vietnam, and the other is a huge bully and juvenile delinquent.  Doug has problems of his own without even adding his family into the equation.  However, some key people take an interest in Doug and prove that a person is more than just the family they come from.  Every person has the capacity to excel and soar.  Honestly, writing about this book makes me want to read it again...it's just that good.  Don't take my word for it...read it yourself!  

Dystopia For All...and Two for the Girls

Along with Mrs. Gehrt and a couple of students from our team, I have committed to reading the 20 books being considered for next year's Truman nominations.  I've read about 7 of the 20 so far and several I've already blogged about on this site, but I read 2 new ones from the list over the weekend, so let me recommend them to you today.

First up, The Darkest Path, by Jeff Hirsch.  I've read 2 of Hirsch's other books and he writes great dystopian, stand-alone titles.  If you're not up for a series, Jeff Hirsch might be the author for you.  In The Darkest Path, a religious cult called "The Glorious Path", has taken over most of what was formerly the United States.  They come into an area and allow people to make "The Choice" - to either follow the path or not.  If not, let's just say they don't live too much longer.  Callum Roe and his brother were taken by the Path six years ago.  Cal has been looking for an opportunity for them to escape from the very beginning, so when an opportunity that he thinks will give them a better chance to get out doesn't come through, he finds himself desperate.  When Cal kills the man who is supposed to be in charge of him to protect an innocent, Cal knows he has to go on the run.  Can he escape the Path?  Can the United Commonwealth defeat the Path and regain ground in the country?  You'll have to read this exciting adventure to find out!

Another dystopian novel you might like is The Testing, by Joelle Charbonneau.  This is the first book in a 3-book series.  The good news is that all 3 books have been published, so if you like it, you won't have to wait around for the rest of the series to be published!  In The Testing, our main character, Cia, lives in a future United States that has been destroyed by nuclear and biological warfare.  Slowly, society has been rebuilding itself and trying to restore the Earth to what it was before it was destroyed.  In every community, students in the graduating class typically end up training with people in their community, but a lucky few get chosen for Testing.  If you pass the Testing, you can attend the University and continue your education.  It has been Cia's dream to go to the University for her whole life, so when she is chosen for the Testing, she is thrilled.  Cia comes to find out, though, that if you don't pass the test, you just might pay with your life.  This book is a thrill ride from the start, because you just don't know who Cia can trust.  If you like The Testing, you can check out book 2, Independent Study, and book 3, Graduation Day.

And I've got a couple of recommendations for the ladies.  No offense guys...I'm just not sure these books would be up your alley, but hey, feel free to give them a shot if you like a little romance. :)

You all know I love Kasie West (Pivot Point, Split Second, and The Distance Between Us).  Her newest book, On the Fence, didn't disappoint me.  In this book, Charlie has grown up with her dad and 3 brothers.  Her mom died when she was 6, but she doesn't really have any memories of her.  Her neighbor, Braden, is also around a lot, so much that Charlie almost considers him to be like an extra brother...until she doesn't.  When she has trouble sleeping because of strange nightmares about her mom's death, Charlie goes out to sit at her fence in the backyard and Braden starts joining her there and they have conversations between the fence.  Charlie realizes that maybe she has more than just sisterly feelings toward Braden, but does he feel the same way?  And why is she having these strange dreams about her mom's death?  You'll have to pick up On the Fence to find out.

And finally, if you're missing summer a little bit, you just might enjoy Jen Calonita's Summer State of Mind.  This is actually a companion novel to a previous book called Sleepaway Girls.  You don't have to read them in order - I haven't read Sleepaway Girls, but I want to now!  In Summer State of Mind, Harper's dad decides that she needs a reality check.  His idea of that reality check - send Harper to camp for the summer.  Harper knows right away that she is going to hate her time at Whispering Pines camp.  But a bet with her twin brother, who's also attending the camp, give Harper a reason to dig in and do her best to adapt and survive the summer camp experience.  This was a really fun read, and there is a love interest for Harper, as well.  If you want a light and enjoyable read, you'll enjoy Summer State of Mind.

There you have it.  Only The Darkest Path is available in our Congress Library.  I also have a copy of this one too.  If you're interested in the other titles, they're available at MCPL.  In fact, you can get The Testing, The Darkest Path, and Summer State of Mind as e-books on overdrive.  I have a link to MCPL's overdrive system on my reading page on our team website.  Happy reading!

Truman Nominee Book Trailers

If you want to re-watch the trailers for the Truman nominees that we saw this week, you can see them here!  It contains trailers for this year's 12 nominees, as well as trailers for the past winners of the award.  Enjoy!

An Overdue Update

I'm a little overdue in updating the book blog, but with the craziness of starting a new school year, I just haven't been able to find the time.  This 3-day Labor Day weekend is the perfect time to catch up on the blog and my reading!

I recommended The 57 Lives of Alex Wayfare, by MG Beuhrlen in class, but have yet to write about it here.  This was my favorite book I read this summer, and it was made all the better by the fact that I didn't expect it to be.  I'm honestly not even sure I remember how I came across this title in the first place, but I'm glad I did.  Alex Wayfare is 17 and has had visions of the past for as long as she can remember.  They're more than visions, though.  She has this sense of deja vu - that she's actually lived these visions from real times in the past.  She experienced the "Starving Time" at the Jamestown colony and rode the first Ferris Wheel at the St. Louis World's Fair.  Because of the visions, she's isolated herself and is considered a freak among her peers.  One day, Alex meets a man named Porter, who seems to know what she's experienced and he explains she's not crazy.  She was created to travel time - to visit her past lives, but not for warm and fuzzy reasons.  She's part of an evil plan and now that she knows, she has to find a way to make sure that this life she's currently living is not her last.  I'm not usually a fan of time travel books, but the author did it well and in a way that made sense.  There's lots of action, intrigue, and the beginnings of what might later turn into a romance in the later books in the series.  The next book The Untimely Deaths of Alex Wayfare will come out sometime in 2015.

I also really enjoyed The Prince of Venice Beach, by Blake Nelson.  In this story, Robert "Cali" Callahan is a runaway from Nebraska, who's been living on the streets of Venice Beach, California for the past 3 years.  He's technically homeless, but he knows every inch of Venice Beach and pretty much everybody who calls the area home.  He lives in a treehouse in the backyard of a friendly woman who reaches out to anyone who needs help and is living a pretty good life, despite his circumstances.  When private investigators start coming to him to ask him to help him find other runaways, he thinks he might have a future as an investigator.  When he's hired to help find Reese Abernathy, the troubled daughter of a millionaire, he has to decide if what he's doing is worth it.  This was an intriguing book with a really likeable main character.  It's not filled with a lot of action, but it definitely pulls on your emotions as you read what Cali is going through.

I also promised a summary of The Fifth Wave, by Rick Yancy.  In this story, aliens have set up a devious plan to take over the earth.  They are quickly annihilating the earth's population through different waves of attack.  In the first wave, they set off an electromagnetic pulse that kills anything electric or with a motor.  This kills around half a million of the world's population.  The second wave is a tsunami that takes out all the world's coastal cities.  The third wave uses birds to infect the remaining population with a deadly virus.  The story begins in the midst of the fourth wave, and our main character Cassie is on a quest to be reunited with her younger brother.  When they were separated, she promised she would find him.  She's not sure who else is out there, and she definitely doesn't know who she can trust.  Cassie is a dark and troubled main character, and rightly so, but you can't help rooting for her and all of humanity as they try to find a way to gain the upper hand against the aliens before the fifth wave can begin.  If you want a creepy story with nonstop action, this is definitely a book for you!  As with most books, this is book 1 in a series.  Don't worry, though - book 2, The Infinite Sea, is due out on September 16th!

Another good title I just finished was Jennifer Brown's Torn Away.  Brown is a local author - she lives in Liberty, MO!  In this story, Jersey Cameron lives in fictional Elizabeth, MO, which is somewhere near the KC area.  One May afternoon her life is completely changed when a monster tornado rips through her town destroying her home and her family.  Her mother and half-sister are killed, and her step-father says he can't deal with her, so he ships her off to the father she's never met and his family in southern Missouri. Already reeling from the things that have happened in her life, she finds herself living with her grandparents, her father and his wife and two daughters, and an aunt and her 3 children.  Her room is on the porch - practically outside - and it's clear no one wants her there.  This is ultimately a survival story - Jersey has to find the strength to endure and press on and find a way through what no one should ever have to live through.  This book is definitely an emotional roller coaster!

Finally, I'll leave you with a plug for Leigh Bardugo's Grisha Trilogy.  The first book, Shadow and Bone (click here to read about it) is one of this year's Truman nominees.  It is the story of Alina Starkov - an orphan who is so much more.  Book 2, Siege and Storm continues Alina's story.  I just finished the final book in the series, Ruin and Rising this afternoon.  This is a series that does not disappoint.  I recommend all three!

Book Trailer Presentation from 8-22

Click here to link up to the prezi I shared in class with you today.  The books I recommended were:


The 57 Lives of Alex Wayfare (written recommendation coming soon!)


Inhuman, Pivot Point, & The Eye of Minds


The 5th Wave (written recommendation coming soon!)


Blur


If I've already recommended them on the blog, you can click the titles to read a summary of the books.  Happy reading to you!

The Last of the Trumans and More

I have finally finished reading all the Truman nominated books for this school year and I have really been impressed.  I do have a couple that stand out for me as favorites, but you should read them yourself.  If you want to read up on the other nominees, I've linked most of the blogs I've done on those here.  To vote for the winner, you need to read at least 4 of the 12 nominees.





 I read The Raft, by S.A. Bodeen last summer, but somehow missed blogging about it.  In this story, our main character, Robie, is visiting her aunt in Honolulu, Hawaii.  Robie lives on Midway Island and frequently travels back and forth between there and Honolulu.  When her aunt gets called out of town on business, Robie originally decides to stay on her own.  But when she is nearly attacked when out on her own, she decides she wants to go home.  She decides to catch a flight on a cargo plane heading to Midway, but when the plane crashes, Robie has to figure out how to survive on the open sea with the copilot...and all they have for food is a bag of Skittles.  If you like survival-type stories, you'll enjoy The Raft.

Dead City, by James Ponti is about a girl named Molly.  Her mom died 2 years ago from cancer, but she passed on a lot of her characteristics to Molly, including her love for the morgue and studying the dead.  Molly attends the Manhattan Institute for Science and Technology where she is recruited by a fellow student and friend from the morgue, Natalie, to be a part of a secret group called Omega.  Omega's responsibility is to police the undead (ie - zombie) population of Manhattan.  Molly is skeptical of all this until she learns that her mom was actually the creator of the group and was grooming her to be a part of this group.  Molly decides to get involved...maybe a little too involved in some cases.  This is an action-packed story that was a lot of fun to read.  This is the first in a series.  The second book is out - Blue Moon.  The 3rd book is currently untitled but will be published in 2015.




Let me just start by saying that I love Jordan Sonnenblick.  I think he is one of the best authors out there for middle grade students.  I've read all but one of his books and I've enjoyed each one.  In Curveball: The Year I Lost My Grip, we meet Peter Friedman, who is about to begin his freshman year in high school.  He has great plans of being a start athlete, because he's a really talented pitcher.  However, over the summer, he injures his arm so seriously that he'll never be able to play ball again.  Life is not going the way he planned, but when he ends up in an advanced photography class with cute new student, Angelika, he realizes that maybe things can work out regardless of whether they fall into the plans you originally had for yourself.

Unstoppable, by Tim Green has some similarities to Curveball because they are both about athletes that aren't able to play their sports, but the similarity ends there.  In Unstoppable, Harrison is a foster kid who has been through multiple foster homes, each one worse than the last.  At his current home, he works like a slave and gets beaten when he doesn't do something right.  When a freak accident takes him out of this home, Harrison eventually ends up with a new family...a family that seems too good to be true.  His new foster father is the football coach of the local middle school team and encourages him to become a part of the team.  When Harrison joins, they discover that he has an unbelievable talent as a running back...he is unstoppable.  But when his knee is injured, and other problems are discovered, Harrison may not ever be able to play football again.  This story looks at his journey and his fight to get back to the game he loves.

One for the Murphy's, by Lynda Mullaly Hunt, is also about a foster child named Carley Connors. Carley has recently moved to Connecticut from Las Vegas, and when her step-father beats her badly, and her mother as well, Carley is moved into foster care.  She joins the Murphys a family with 3 boys and expects that they want her just as a free babysitter.  However, life at the Murphys' turns out to be very different from what Carley expected.  Mrs. Murphy treats Carley like one of her own kids and Carley realizes what she's been missing out on, a real mother.  But even while she likes this, she also wants to reject it because her mother is still alive and will eventually reclaim Carley.  Carley's just not sure, though.  Does she want to return to her mother or is it going to break her heart to have to leave the Murphys?

Cress, by Marissa Meyer is the 3rd book in the Lunar Chronicles.  Cinder, a Truman nominee, is the first in this series.  Scarlet, is the 2nd book in the series.  These stories combine a retelling of a fairytale with a science fiction twist.  Cress, our newest character is based on Rapunzel.  She's been living on a satellite for the past several years doing tech work for the lunar queen and she dreams of being rescued from her satellite by a handsome "prince".  She makes contact with Cinder and her crew, who attempt a rescue, and things start to get crazy from there.  I don't want to give too much away if you haven't read the first two books, but I highly recommend this whole series.  It will end in November 2015 with the publication of book 4 - Winter, a Snow White retelling.  I can't wait!

My final recommendation is not a Truman nominee or related to one - I just really liked it!  Previously, I recommended Bree Depain's Dark Divine series, which was about werewolves.  In Despain's new series, Into the Dark, book one is The Shadow Prince, and the story is based on Greek mythology.  Haden is the Shadow Prince and he has a job to do - leave the underworld and bring back a human girl, who must agree to return with him.  As the black sheep of his family, no one expected him to be the one chosen to do this job, so when he arrives in the regular world, he really isn't prepared for how to socially interact with girls, but he is determined.  Daphne Raines, his target, is just as determined to be her own person.  She has recently been moved to Olympus, California to live with her rock star dad, whom she has met around 4 times in her life.  She wants to become a singer herself, but doesn't want to rely on her dad to get her there.  And she definitely doesn't want to go to the underworld, but she can't deny that she has a connection to Haden.  Their story isn't finished by the end of book one and you'll be eager to get your hands on the next installment, which is yet untitled, but due out sometime in 2015.

There's lots to read out there!  There are 3 weeks until school starts.  Enjoy it!