LSSL 5385 Books 9-16 Reviews
Winger
by Andrew Smith
Smith, Andrew. (2013). Winger. New York: Simon and Schuster.
Ryan West is a high school junior at a boarding school for wealthy teens. At only 14 years old, Ryan is younger than his peers. Like most teenagers, he just wants to fit in. Unfortunately, Ryan gets caught up in the wrong crowd in the process. His roommate is the biggest prankster and bully of them all, which is causing him to make some bad decisions. With his love interest, Annie, always on his mind, Ryan must figure out how to survive this school and be his own person, especially when tragedy strikes close to home with the loss of a close friend.
This realistic fiction book is great for opening up dialogue about hard subjects, including sexuality, peer pressure, and loss. It’s a great mentor text for teaching characterization, tone, and point of view. The author’s style of writing brings a unique voice to the text that perfectly fits with the storyline. The incorporation of illustrations are complementary to the story as well. Overall, this book is a realistic look into the life of a teenage boy that is both comical and deep.
Other selections by Andrew Smith:
100 Sideways Miles
Stand-Off
Grasshopper Jungle
Click here to view the book trailer.
Ask the Passengers
by A.S. King
King, A.S. (2012). Ask the passengers. New York: Little, Brown, and Company.
Astrid Jones is lonely. Ignored by her father completely and with her mother favoring her younger sister, she has no one to talk or turn to. To the outside world, Astrid’s family is picture perfect, but the reality is far from that. On top of everything else, Astrid is hiding her relationship and the fact that she is gay. To cope, she spends most of her time with her eyes in the clouds, imagining herself talking to passengers on the planes flying high above and asking them her deepest questions. These daydreamed conversations provide her an escape from the world she is stuck in and the emptiness she feels.
This book addresses the subject of sexual orientation with grace. Many readers may not feel comfortable reading about a teen girl questioning her sexuality, but it’s a great book to include in a library collection for those students experiencing similar thoughts and emotions. Even for students who cannot identify with that component of the storyline, they will be able to identify with Astrid’s struggle with friends, family, love, and loneliness. This book is a great mentor text to teach point of view and figurative language. It’s a good book to use for social-emotional learning, as it highlights self-acceptance, family dysfunction, and coping skills to deal with what life throws at you.
Other Selections by A.S. King:
Dig
Reality Boy
Everybody Sees the Ants
Please Ignore Vera Dietz
Click here to view the book trailer.
Bomb: The Race to Build and Steal the World’s Most Dangerous Weapon
by Steve Sheinkin
Sheinkin, S. (2012). Bomb: the race to build and steal the world’s most
dangerous weapon. New York: Roaring Brook Press.
It all started in a lab in Germany in 1938 when a chemist discovered a unique reaction of Uranium. This spurred a race amongst the world’s leading countries to be the first to create an atomic bomb. This Excellence in Nonfiction for Young Adults award-winner explores the inner workings of the atomic bomb and the history of its creation. It looks at all of the plotting, deceit, and genius that it took to create the most destructive weapon known to man. It also explores the reasoning behind the creation of the bomb and how it works.
While Bomb’s subject matter is quite specific, it offers a fascinating glimpse into the history of the infamous atomic bomb. Most of us are familiar with the devastating consequences of the atomic bomb, but we aren’t as familiar with the events that led to its creation in the first place or why world leaders felt it was so necessary to create. The spectacular visuals and presentation of information are sure to hook readers’ attention and hold them throughout. The information is presented sequentially as to not overwhelm the readers. It’s no wonder that this book has been repeatedly recognized by awards; it is truly a treasure no library should be without.
Other selections by Steve Sheinkin:
Most Dangerous: Daniel Ellsberg and the Secret History of the Vietnam War
The Port Chicago 50: Disaster, Mutiny, and Fight for Civil Rights
Undefeated: Jim Thorpe and the Carlisle Indian School Football Team
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The Crossover
by Kwame Alexander
Alexander, K. (2014). The crossover. New York: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt.
Jordan and Josh Bell are twin brothers trying to survive middle school as best they can. Their normal daily life encompasses navigating things like crushes, homework, family tension, and basketball. Both brothers have always loved basketball, thanks to the fact that their father used to be a pro basketball player. As the book goes on, basketball becomes more than simply a passion or game to play for fun, it becomes an outlet for dealing with life and the great loss they ensure in their father’s death.
You will both laugh and cry when reading The Crossover. The novel-in-verse format makes the story approachable even for the most hesitant of readers. Kwame Alexander seamlessly melds everyday life lessons all young adults could benefit from learning throughout the pages of the book and uses basketball jargon as a cross-referencing tool. It tackles tough topics such as the loss of a family member and focuses on the evolution of relationships. The story is relatable and endearing, so much so that I would recommend all middle grade and young adult readers partake in it. It would be a great mentor text for teaching poetry, literary devices, and verse writing.
Other selections by Kwame Alexander:
Booked
Rebound
Solo
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The Crazy Horse Electric Game
by Chris Crutcher
Crutcher, C. (1987). The crazy horse electric game. New York: Greenwillow
Books.
Willie Weaver has it all. He has an incredible talent in baseball that makes him the star of the town. His expert pitching skills lead his team to victory, taking the championship away from the previous three-time winning team, Crazy Horse Electric. In the blink of an eye, Willie’s whole world is turned upside down. He becomes paralyzed after a tragic accident and has impaired speech and movement. His dreams of baseball stardom fade away and he is stuck in an unknown world that’s crumbling to bits around him. His parents’ marriage falls apart, he loses friends, and a town that once held him in high esteem abandons him. Unable to deal, Willie runs away to California where he must overcome a new set of challenges on his road to redemption.
The vicissitude of Willie’s circumstances are great for social-emotional learning in the classroom, specifically on overcoming obstacles. Students who have dealt with hardships of their own will identify with Willie and his emotional journey. The book is relatable to all types of students and is sure to stir up many talking points.
Other selections by Chris Crutcher:
Deadline
Staying Fat for Sarah Byrnes
Whale Talk
Period 8
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Drama
by Raina Telgemeier
Telgemeier, R. (2012). Drama. New York: Graphix.
Callie is a middle schooler who loves theater and wants to be a part of the school’s production of Moon Over Mississippi. There’s just one problem--she can’t sing! Instead, she joins the tech crew and is in charge of designing the sets for the play. She sets the standards for the sets almost too high, desiring for them to be Broadway-level quality, but only has a small budget to work with. The story follows the journey from rehearsal to performance and all the “drama” that ensues in between, including crushes on cute boys and issues Callie has to overcome.
It’s no surprise that Drama is still one of the most popular middle grade books to this day. Telgemeier’s knack for tackling serious topics with humor and colorful illustrations make her books true treasures, and this book is no different. It’s a graphic novel that’s great for readers of all abilities, but will appeal especially to reluctant readers. Students enjoy this story because of its humor and relatability. It perfectly captures what the middle school theater experience is like. Telgemeier handles LGBTQIA representation well and incorporates it seamlessly within the story line. I highly recommend you keep multiple copies in your collection, because they will always be in high demand.
Books by Raina Telgemeier:
Sisters
Smile
Ghost
Guts
Click here to view the book trailer.
Paper Towns
by John Green
Green, J. (2008). Paper towns. New York: Dutton Books.
Quentin Jacobsen is your stereotypical teenager. He has supportive parents, thinks inside the box, and is not too adventurous. Margo Spiegelman, his neighbor that he has spent a lifetime crushing on from afar, is the complete opposite of him. She’s wild, adventurous, and lives by her own rules. One night, Quentin wakes up to Margo in his room asking for his help, the two share an unforgettable night together. She has always been an enigma to him but becomes a full-blown mystery to him when she goes missing the next day. Quentin is determined to find Margo and follows the clues she left behind to solve the mystery once and for all.
We can all relate to having a major crush on someone who is unattainable. I believe this is the wide appeal of this book to readers. John Green has a talent for writing believable, relatable characters, and this book is no exception. The mystery aspect of Margo disappearing and Quentin trying to solve that mystery is sure to hook readers and hold their attention until the very last page. This would be a good mentor text for teaching voice, plot, and dialogue.
Other selections by John Green:
Fault in Our Stars
Looking for Alaska
An Abundance of Katherines
Will Grayson, Will Grayson
Click here to view the book trailer.
It’s Perfectly Normal: Changing Bodies, Growing Up, Sex, and Sexual Health.
by Robbie Harris
Harris, R. H. (2009). It’s perfectly normal. Boston: Candlewick Press.
As children grow up and go through puberty, they are sure to have countless questions about sex and their changing bodies. With these subjects considered taboo, real answers can sometimes be hard to find. This nonfiction text presents accurate answers to many questions young readers are likely to have. With cartoon visuals to support the text, subjects like human anatomy, sexual reproduction, and changing bodies are presented in a reader-friendly format that is approachable and easy to understand. It’s Perfectly Normal lives up to its namesake, showing young readers that much of what they are going through is perfectly normal. It tackles a topic that can be difficult for parents to address in a harmless, unbiased way. It’s a great resource for breaking down the information in a sequential order and would be valuable to include in a middle grades library collection.
Other selections by Robie Harris:
Before You Were Three: How You Began to Walk, Talk, Explore, and Have Feelings
It’s So Amazing!: A Book about Eggs, Sperm, Birth, Babies, and Families
Maybe a Bear Ate It!
It’s Not the Stork!: A Book about Girls, Boys, Babies, Bodies, Families, and Friends
Who’s In My Family? All About Our Families
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