Why I Fight by J Adam Oaks

Meet Wyatt Shreaves. He’s been out of school since he turned twelve and a half—and he hasn’t seen his parents (ma and Fever) since then either. Together with his itinerant uncle Spade, a traveling salesman with questionable morals, Wyatt crisscrosses the country, weaving in and out of cities, towns, trailer parks and suburbs.

One day, uncle Spade spots Wyatt throw a powerful punch and the dollar signs in his eyes light up. Thus begins Wyatt’s life as an underground fighter. As the wins, money, and injuries roll in, Wyatt begins to feel more and more estranged from his once-admired uncle. Without anyone to talk to and without anyone who truly cares for him, Wyatt withdraws deep into himself.

Wyatt’s voice is so authentic and gritty, his story so dark and heartbreaking, it’s near impossible to put the book down. The end is despairing—yet contains hope and optimism—and the reader is left with the question: What is Wyatt going to do now?

I highly recommend this book to everyone, but be warned that it will grip you tightly and wrench your heart. Filled with complex characters and ambiguities, the book will keep readers thinking of Wyatt and his fate long after the story is finished.

Oaks, J. Adams. Why I Fight. New York: Atheneum/Richard Jackson Books, 2009. Print.

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You Are Here by Jennifer E. Smith

Emma Healy has never really felt like she fit in with the rest of her quirky but brilliant family of academics and professors. All her life, she’s never felt quite whole, as if something was out of place in her life. Perhaps, she sometimes thought, it was because she was out of place. It’s hard to think otherwise when your parents throw birthday parties for you at poetry readings in New York City, or the invited guests are world-renowned professors of archeology, sociology, and anthropology (all of whom are your parents’ close friends).

One day, Emma comes across a birth certificate and a death certificate, both of which changes the way she sees herself, her family, and their shared familial history. Spurred by her discovery, she decides to go on a road trip to North Carolina—the place where she might find the grave of her recently discovered twin brother. Together with her neighbor Peter Finnegan—an unlikely car thief and civil war aficionado—and a three legged dog, Emma learns that there is a lot more to a journey than a destination, that there is a lot more to a family than meets the eye, and also, that the people who love you will always there for you.

As much Peter’s story as it is Emma’s, You Are Here is a well-written tale of two teenagers searching for answers to illuminate the unknown in their lives. Despite being well-developed characters, I occasionally felt that Emma and Peter’s lines were strangely adult, making them seem somewhat like talking mannequins. I also found the slow romance between the two teens unfortunately inauthentic, but Jennifer E. Smith manages to make it work towards the end of the novel, pushing towards a moving finish.

You Are Here is an accomplished book about family, grief, and love, and there is lots to like in the book. Yet despite its eloquence, I’m not sure it is quite authentic enough to find a place in my heart. I cannot bring myself to heartily recommend the book. Readers who enjoy slower-paced novels might be better able to connect with the story, but I could not find myself completely engaged.

Smith, Jennifer. You Are Here. New York: Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing, 2009.

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Lips Touch: Three Times by Laini Taylor

“Kizzy was so busy wishing she was Sarah Ferris of Jenny Glass that she could scarcely see herself at all, and she was certainly blind to her own weird beauty: her heavy spell-casting eyes, too-wide mouth, wild hair, and hips that could be wild too, if they learned how. No one else in town looked anything like her, and if she lived to womanhood, she was the one artists would want to draw, not the Sarahs and Jennys. She was the one who would some day know a dozen ways to wear a silk scarf, how to read the sky for rain, and coax feral animals near, how to purr throaty love songs in Portuguese and Basque, how to lay a vampire to rest, how to light a cigar, how to light a man’s imagination on fire.

If she lived to womanhood.”

Laini Taylor’s intensely beautiful short stories about, superficially speaking, the dangers of kissing are exquisitely written. Dark, terrifying, and mysterious, Taylor’s three modern fairy-tales will make you shiver in delight and despair.

The first, “Goblin Fruit”, is about Kizzy, the girl whose wanting is so strong, the Goblins scent her longing and come slavering for a taste of her soul.

“Spicy Little Curses Such as These”, the second in the book, tells the parallel stories of Estella and Anamique, two cursed women. Estella is the unfortunate woman charged with playing Ambassador to Hell. Amanique is the girl cursed by Estella to have the most beautiful voice in the world. But any sound she makes will be deadly.

Taylor ends the collection with her longest story, “Hatchling”. Complex and layered despite its brief length, “Hatchling” tells the tale of Esmé, Mab and the Druj, a sinister race of blue-eyed creatures. Without souls, the immortal Druj are fascinated by the life-cycle of humans, their ability to grow and to die, to love and to have children. This fascination leads the Queen Druj to keep a pet of her own in her lair: a human girl she calls Izha. One day, the Izha runs away and that's where the true story begins.

Taylor’s short stories are paired with Di Bartolo’s remarkable illustrations that not only enhance the beauty of the stories but also provides nuance. In fact, the stories would lose some of their power if the illustrations had not been included, not because the stories are lacking, but because Di Bartolo’s work is such an integral part of my understanding of the stories.

I highly recommend the book to all readers, young and old. The book is a collection of true gems, and I will not be surprised if it becomes a future award-winner. I think it will appeal to a broad audience, but for those who especially enjoy reading modern fairy-tales or light fantasy, Lips Touch: Three Times should definitely not be missed.

Taylor, Laini. Lips Touch. New York: Arthur A. Levine Books, 2009.

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The ABC's of Kissing Boys by Tina Ferraro

Parker Stanhope’s life is in the gutter. Junior year is about to begin with Parker’s previously solid social standing in serious danger. And it has everything to do with Coach Hartley’s decision to bump the whole JV soccer team up to Varsity. Except for two players. And one of them is (you guessed it) Parker.

Parker can’t understand the Coach’s decision—Parker has demonstrated her devotion and her talent on the field consistently for the past two years—and feels the injustice of the decision acutely. Even more importantly, Parker’s closest friends and teammates have, as a result of their now superior positions, decided to “cut her loose”.

Without much to lose (and her whole life to gain), Parker recruits her older brother and their childhood family friend in a crazy scheme to finagle her way back onto the Varsity roster. A scheme that involves a kissing booth and a very public demonstration of Parker’s kissing prowess. Unfortunately for Parker, her experience in that department is limited.

Enter Tristan Murphy, her neighbor, and son of her father’s nemesis. Although 354 days younger than Parker and a freshman, Tristan might prove to be the answer to her prayers. In more ways than one.

A story about love, friendship, and good sportsmanship, this modern take on Romeo and Juliet is sweet, cute, and surprisingly moving. Tina Ferraro’s characters are immediately likable and engaging. While the novel is not particularly unique in the YA teen romance genre, Tina Ferraro’s book is a solid, well-paced, feel-good teen romance that is better than most others on the market.

The ABC’s of Kissing Boys will appeal to girls and to readers of young adult romance.

Ferraro, Tina. The Abc's of Kissing Boys. Delacorte Books for Young Readers, 2009.

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Candor by Pam Bachorz

Candor, Florida is more than the perfect place to live: it is the answer to all your problems. Have an eating disorder, drug addiction, or rebellious teenager? Not to worry, come to Candor and within weeks the deformities of your previous, imperfect life will vanish, free will and all.

At Candor, everyone is happy and no one wants to leave. In fact, the waiting list to move into Candor is years-long. That’s the way Campbell Banks, founder of Candor, wants it. And that’s the way he intends to keep it.

The only teen who knows the secret of Candor’s brainwashing Messages is Campbell Banks’s son, Oscar. He’s also the only person, besides his father, who knows how to fight the subliminal brainwashing that occurs everywhere and every second in Candor. Oscar himself is a minor celebrity at Candor, and he uses it as a cover for his more nefarious dealings in Candor: helping rich, new kids leave. No one suspects Oscar, model teen, until the arrival of Nia Silva, an exciting and individualistic artist. Nia’s free-spirited ways makes Oscar want to keep her close to him, at the risk of revealing his dangerous secret.

And it is a dangerous secret: those who rebel, who cannot be controlled by the Messages, are sent to the Listening Room, where their minds are erased, with horrific side effects. Things unravel out of Oscar’s meticulous control as the couple hurtles towards tragedy, and Oscar finds himself forced to make tough decisions, ones that might cost him his mind and his free will.

Readers of dystopic fiction might find Pam Bachorz’s Candor interesting with its social criticism and resemblance to Aldous Huxley’s Brave New World. The characters are realistic and well-developed, but somehow the romance between Nia and Oscar seem forced and unnatural. While the last hundred pages or so are gripping and thoroughly engrossing, the novel takes its time to get into high gear. And as for the ending—readers will either find it chilling, or disappointing.

Bachorz, Pam. Candor. EgmontUSA, 2009.

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A Ring of Endless Light by Madeleine L'Engle

Not-quite-sixteen year old Vicky Austin finds that this particular summer on Seven Bay Island will be different from all the other summers she’s spent there. This summer, the Austin family’s yearly visit to Grandfather’s house on Seven Bay Island is without a definite end—because Grandfather, dying slowly from leukemia, isn’t expected to live past the end of summer. The book opens with the funeral, not her Grandfather’s, but of a family friend, Commander Rodney, and Vicky wonders if experiencing death is a part of growing up. This summer, however, Vicky also finds herself, for the first time, at the center of attention of three boys: loyal Leo (son to the recently deceased Commander), dangerous Zachary (whose cold, flippant exterior masks a deep loneliness and fear), and the enigmatic Adam (who treats Vicky alternatively as peer and as child). Vicky, a budding poet, becomes an important part of Adam’s summer project at the Marine Biology Station, where she makes new and wise friends in the dolphins Basil, Noberta, and Njord.

Called on to carry more crosses than she might be able to bear, Vicky feels both ready and overwhelmed. With the wise counsel of her Grandfather and family, however, Vicky manages to retain her lightness and joy in the world. That is, until she brushes a little too close to death, and darkness closes in around her.

Through Vicky Austin’s deft first-person narrative, Madeleine L’Engle portrays the emotionally difficult transition from childhood to adulthood delicately and sensitively. A Ring of Endless Light is a beautiful book about life and death, love and loss, about the metaphysics of time, and about knowing when to turn from darkness back into the light.

While I suspect this book might not appeal to boys quite as much as it will to girls, its timeless quality will delight both younger and older readers.

L'Engle, Madeleine. A Ring of Endless Light. New York: Farrar, Straus, Giroux, 1980.

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The Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan

Percy (short for Perseus) Jackson is a troubled 12-year-old. He can’t seem to last more than a year in any (and all) of his schools. He knows it’s because he’s special—ADHD and dyslexia cause most of his problems in school—but he never knew how special he was until the end of his sixth-grade year, the year he finds out he’s a descendant of the Greek gods. And that’s when his real troubles start. Accused of stealing Zeus’s master lightning bolt, Percy must go on a journey across America to find and return the bolt before a devastating war breaks out between the Gods. The summer solstice deadline looms ever nearer, but Percy is only beginning to master his newly discovered powers. To help Percy succeed on his dangerous quest, he will need to rely on the help of his friends, Grover (a tin-can-eating satyr) and Annabeth (the daughter of a rival Goddess). Traveling cross-country from New York to Los Angeles, Percy will meet charmingly modernized characters from Greek mythology, outwit monsters, and even battle Gods. Most importantly, Percy will also have to come to terms with his real father.

The first in a series of five books, The Lightning Thief is a clever mix of modern and classic worlds, all the more appealing for its likable characters and light humor.

I would recommend the book to younger readers because its conversational tone can occasionally come off to more mature readers as juvenile. That said, the story is fun and exciting, and will almost certainly arouse readers’ interests in Greek mythology.

Riordan, Rick. The Lightning Thief. New York: Hyperion Books for Children, 2005.

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