FINISHED:

North, Joan. (1965). The cloud forest. New York: Farrar, Straus & Giroux.

[.]

STARTED:
Rodgers, Mary, and Hach, Heather. (2009). Freaky Monday. New York: HarperCollins.

[This is apparently the year where I read all of the Rodgers body switching books - and here's a BRAND NEW one!]

*

FINISHED:

Westerfeld, Scott. (2009). Leviathan. New York: Simon & Schuster.

[My ACL review posted here soon. I LOVED it, though.

After Prince Alek’s parents, Archduke Ferdinand and Princess Sophie, are murdered in Serbia he is whisked away by fellows of the court for safety purposes aboard a metal walking machine. Meanwhile, a girl named Deryn poses as a boy, Dylan, so that she may join the Air Service and fly aboard the Leviathan, an organic, hydrogen powered, genetically created whale-beast. Alek and Deryn’s parallel stories finally converge (halfway through the novel) when the Leviathan crashes on a mountain glacier near the outpost castle where Alek is being hidden away from possible assassins, and both have a secret about their true identities to keep from each other. This is an alternate take on the events surrounding WWI wherein this time, in addition to war breaking out between countries, there is a divide between the Clankers, who rely on man-made oil and metal war machines, and the Darwinists, who have aircraft and vehicles born of genetically combined and modified beasts. In the end, Westerfeld has Alek and the other Clankers, and Deryn and the other Darwinists, being forced to combine their efforts and their machines while leaving plenty of unanswered details (such as some mysterious eggs that the Darwinists are keeping safe) for further installments of a planned series. Westerfeld, author of the Uglies series (Thorndike, 2005-2008) has constructed a richly detailed steampunk world with vivid action sequences to match, and it’s all augmented by Keith Thompson’s intricate illustrations. This one has great crossover appeal for boys, girls, and fans of science fiction, fantasy, and historical fiction – and all will be hungry for Westerfeld’s next tome in this exciting new series.]

STARTED:
North, Joan. (1965). The cloud forest. New York: Farrar, Straus & Giroux.

[Recommended as a classic favorite by a colleague.]

*

FINISHED:

Crutcher, Chris. (2009). Angry management: Three novellas. New York: Greenwillow/HarperCollins.

[ACL review to come...

An overweight teen takes a facially scarred girl to Reno to confront the mother that abandoned her with an abusive father; a goth girl who writes for the school paper fights censorship and falls for the school jock while looking out for her foster sister; and a gay, African American student in a white, rural school finds a pink noose on his locker. These three short stories comprise Crutcher’s latest which also happens to bring back and throw together characters from some of his earlier novels. It’s all quite timely and important, but at the same time overly ambitious, incredibly didactic and message-y: even a devout Christian gives a monologue on how racism and homophobia are wrong (“Jesus didn’t care whether you were some other color than pasty white, or whether or not you were gay. His Father made them and He loved them all.”) In addition, there is a bracketing device involving a teen counselor which goes nowhere and has very little to do with the stories themselves. While it’s appreciated that Crutcher has brought up for discussion a number of pressing issues, it feels a bit overstated and preachy.]

STARTED:
Westerfeld, Scott. (2009). Leviathan. New York: Simon & Schuster.

[Reviewing for ACL.]

*

FINISHED:

Beil, Michael D. (2009). The red blazer girls. New York: HarperCollins

[.]

STARTED:
Crutcher, Chris. (2009). Angry management: Three novellas. New York: Greenwillow/HarperCollins.

[Reading to review for ACL.]

*

FINISHED:

Cooper, Susan. (1965). Over sea, under stone. New York: Simon & Schuster.

[.]

STARTED:
Beil, Michael D. (2009). The red blazer girls. New York: Alfred A. Knopf.

[With a title and cover like the ones this has, how could I possibly resist?]

*

FINISHED:

Korman, Gordon. (2001). Island: Escape. New York: Scholastic.

[I was surprised at how much I enjoyed this short series. Really, they took no time at all to read (perfect for reluctant readers!), the kids were varied in their personalities and knowledge-bases, and there was a decent amount of action and suspense. Six young people who have been deemed as "troubled" for various reasons by their families converge on a small boat for an "Outward Bound"-ish adventure. Soon after setting sail, the weather turns nasty, the ocean waves begin to swell, and then all hell breaks loose with the kids eventually finding themselves stranded on a (seemingly...) deserted island. Will and Lyssa are violently feuding brother and sister, Luke is the smart and misunderstood (and framed!) hero, Ian is the TV kid whose survival know-how comes from watching countless hours of the Discovery Channel, Charla is a super-fit all-sports star, and J.J. is the delinquent and spoiled son of a famous Hollywood actor. Together these 6 battle the elements, each other, and... other things (don't want to spoil the fun!!)... in this breezy, tense, and compelling survival series. I think I may try one of Korman's other short series.]

STARTED:
Cooper, Susan. (1965). Over sea, under stone. New York: Simon & Schuster.

[Thought that it was about time I gave this classic series a try - seems like it should be right up my alley.]

*

FINISHED:

Korman, Gordon. (2001). Island: Survival. New York: Scholastic.

[.]

STARTED:
Korman, Gordon. (2001). Island: Escape. New York: Scholastic.

[.]

*

FINISHED:

Korman, Gordon. (2001). Island: Shipwreck. New York: Scholastic.

[.]

STARTED:
Korman, Gordon. (2001). Island: Survival. New York: Scholastic.

[.]

*

FINISHED:

Teague, Mark. (2009). The doom machine.. New York: Blue Sky/Scholastic.

[.]

STARTED:
Korman, Gordon. (2001). Island: Shipwreck. New York: Scholastic.

[Giving the three in this series a go. I don't think I've read anything by Korman before, and this series has always intrigued me. Must be due to my overwhelming love for LOST.]

*

STARTED:
Teague, Mark. (2009). The doom machine.. New York: Blue Sky/Scholastic.

[Reviewing for ACL. Review to follow...]

*