Bone Gap (354 Pages)

Author Laura Ruby has written an interesting novel about a small town called Bone Gap. She concentrates on Finn and Sean O'Sullivan, brothers who have been left on their own by their mother. Sean is older than Finn and is an EMT. One day a beautiful ,young woman named Roza turns up in their barn. Sean slowly falls in love with her. And then suddenly she disappears. Finn saw her kidnapping by a man who drove a black SUV. He can't describe the man. Why he can't and the mystery of what happened to Roza are covered in this book. It has mystery, romance, and fantasy all wrapped up in wonderful read!

Audacity (366 Pages)

Melanie Crowder, the author of Audacity, has written in free verse a wonderful book of historical significance. She focuses on Clara Lemlich's life. Lemlich was a Russian Jew who immigrated to the US with her family at the start of the 20th century. Arriving in New York, she found it necessary to get a job in a garment factory. The working conditions were horrible: seven days a week, only two toilet breaks a day, foremen who changed the pay at a whim, sexual advances by the man in charge, locked in the workroom with no way to get out, and any complaint led to immediate firing. Clara became a spokeswoman for women's rights. The labor movement holds Clara gratitude for paving the way to unions for female workers. The book also encompasses information about life in a lower East side Manhattan tenements and the religious values and strict observances of the Jewish men. Clara wanted to become a doctor, but she never realized that dream because of her work to create safe work environments. However, she was definitely self-educated and much of the book deals with her struggle against her father in her her desire to read, learn English, and write.

the thing about jellyfish (334 Pages)

Ali Benjamin, the author of this book, has written a winner that I am going to give to an extraordinary middle school science teacher. I thought of her throughout my reading  of this book. I believe Suzy Swanson probably falls somewhere on the autism spectrum. She is a kid who collects all kinds of information. She knows stuff that is incredible.  Her very best friend, Franny Jackson, loves to hear her talk about all of these fascinating things! But then she and her best friend find themselves in middle school and all of a sudden Franny is not interested in Suzy's information. They drift apart, and Suzy stops talking. She doesn't talk to her family, she doesn't talk in school. When she hears her friend Franny died by drowning when on a summer vacation in Maryland, she becomes convinced that Franny's death couldn't have been a result of drowning because Franny was an accomplished swimmer. So Suzy begins to do research on what could have happened. Her science teacher, Mrs. Thurton is her favorite teacher. She gives her students all kinds of information that is fascinating to most of the kids and certainly to Suzy. Mrs. Thurton requires her students to do a research paper and present it orally to the class. How Suzy handles this is presented in the rest of this book. It's a winner!

The War that Saved my Life (316Pages)

Kimberly Brubaker Bradley has written a wonderful book that reminded me of another similar book, Goodnight Mr. Tom, one of my all time favorite YA books! Ada Smith and her little brother Jamie are living in a very poor part of London. They live with their mother in a one room apartment. Their mother works nights in a pub downstairs. Ada was born with a club foot. Her mother will not allow her to leave the room. Ever. Her mother is humiliated by her. She constantly tells Ada that she is a horrible person, and people would be disgusted if the saw her foot. And then the children of London were evacuated out of the city. Ada and Jamie end up living with a woman named Susan Smith. For the first time in her life, Ada sees green grass and trees. The book continues to see the children not only grow and gain some weight, but Susan gets them new clothes, and allows them to go outside whenever they want. While outside, Ada finds a pony that belongs to Susan. She finds she is able to teach herself how to ride it. Oh, this book has emotional ups and downs. It is worthwhile for students to read it and learn new vocabulary along with Ada and Jamie. They will enjoy it immensely!

The Walls Around Us ( 319 Pages)

This is the first book I've read by Nova Ren Suma. I don't think I'll read another by her. She, herself . says that her books are weird! That's about all I can say about this book. It's just not character driven, as far as I'm concerned. And unlike other books of this same  genre, it doesn't ring true. I didn't like it.

Two Boys Kissing (196 Pages)

David Levithan has written a YA book that focuses on several boys. It is not just about two boys kissing. It is about loyalty, it is about acceptance, it is about rejection, it is about bullying, it is about goal setting, it is about a person's future, it is about love,it is about endurance, it is about true friendship. Harry and Craig once were a couple, but they no longer are. However, they want to set a record for the longest kiss. They are helped by friends, teachers, and some family. Why set this record? To make a statement that  there is nothing wrong with what they are doing. To accomplish this, they choose a special setting of the front of the high school. A friend assists by setting up recording equipment and lights. Another friend is there to help without touching them (that's one of the rules) they must keep their lips touching the entire time and no one may touch them. Their goal is to accomplish this in thirty-two hours, twelve minutes, ten seconds. During "the kiss" they can not go to the bathroom, they can not talk, they can not do anything that separates their lips. One of the most interesting things about the book is that it is told in the first person plural. Those men who died during the height of the AIDS pandemic "speak" to the reader and speak to all of the other characters in the book. What they have to say are incredible lessons about living, even if they can't be heard or seen. The book holds invaluable words of wisdom, without being preachy! It is a winner- in every sense of the word.