Shiver by Maggie Stiefvater

Title: Shiver

Author: Maggie Stiefvater

Publish Date: August 2009

Publisher: Scholastic, Inc.

Pages: 400pp

IBSN: 0545123267

Classification: Fiction

Genre: Fantasy/Supernatural

Age Range: 13 and up

Price: $17.99

Amazon: $10.79

Annotation: Grace is fascinated with the wolves who hang out in the woods behind her house. There is one wolf, her wolf, whom she connects with, the one with the yellow eyes. When Grace meets a boy with those same yellow eyes, she knows he is her wolf.

Summary: When Grace was younger the wolves in the woods attacked her behind her house. Ever since then, she has been fascinated by them and has kept a watchful eye. There is one wolf she has always felt a special connection with, the one with the yellow-eyes. Meanwhile, Sam has always lived two lives, in the summers he is human, but in the cold winter months he turns back into a wolf. Sam has watched Grace from afar for most of his life. After changing back to his human form, he finally meets her, in which startles Grace as she instantly notices his yellow-eyes and feels a familiarity takes her breath away. Grace knows Sam is her wolf. The two of them share an unlikely relationship and a fight against the cooling months, as Sam must stay warm in order to remain human.

Evaluation: A well-written love story about a werewolf, Sam, and a once bitten but never changed girl, Grace. I liked the alternating narratives between Sam and Grace. In fact, this allowed me to develop feelings from both characters points of view, and because of this I found myself more engrossed in the story.

Bibliotherapeutic Usefulness:

Teen angst.
First love.
Yearning love.
Feeling intense emotions.
Problem solving.
Having a difficult upbringing.

Reason this book was chosen: I love supernatural/paranormal stories, especially ones that involve a romance. Yes, I’m that person. With that said, Shiver is a captivating story with a good amount of angst and chilling romance.

Similar Titles:

Beautiful Creatures by Kami Garica

Fallen by Lauren Kate

Need by Carrie Jones

Author Website: Click HERE

http://www.maggiestiefvater.com/

Series:

Shiver (2009)

Linger (2010)

Awards:
ALA Best Books for Young Adults, 2010
ALA Quick Picks for Reluctant Readers, 2010

Lush by Natasha Friend

Title: Lush

Author: Natasha Friend

Publish Date: November 2006

Publisher: Scholastic, Inc.

Pages: 192pp

IBSN: 043985346X

Classification: Fiction

Genre: Realistic Fiction

Age Range: 13 and up

Price: $16.99

Amazon: $8.99

Annotation: Samantha is thirteen years old and navigating her way through junior high while keeping her alcoholic father a secret.

Summary: Thirteen-year-old Samantha is carrying a big emotional secret: her father is an alcoholic. She wants to reach out to someone, yet she doesn’t want anyone to know her secret. Desperate for help, Sam decides to write a letter to unknown person she finds finds at the public library she frequents. When her father’s drinking gets worse, Sam finds herself in a bad situation and nearly gets taken advantage of. She discovers her mysterious pen pal from the public library and ends up coming clean to her friends, who support her.

Evaluation: A compelling read that details the emotional struggle of a girl dealing with her father's drinking problem. I think this is an excellent book for anyone going through a similar problem as well as friends of anyone going through a similar problem as it provides some insight and awareness on the pain alcoholism causes. Additionally, the story moves quickly, which makes this a good read for reluctant readers.

Bibliotherapeutic Usefulness:

Growing up with an alcoholic parent.
Embarrassed for people to know your home life.
Being desperate for help.
Getting bullied.
Ignoring a problem, even when it doesn't go away.

Reason this book was chosen: I originally grabbed this book because of the delicate subject matter of growing up with an alcoholic parent. In addition to the subject matter, I came across several reviews, all of which had good things to say and many of them insisting people to read. The book is very short, only 192 pages and moves quickly, while incorporating many crucial issues.

Similar Titles:

The Rules of Survival by Nancy Werlin

Inexcusable by Chris Lynch

Right Behind You by Gail Giles

Author Website: Click HERE

Awards:

ALA Quick Picks for Reluctant Young Readers, 2007

International Reading Association Young Adult Choices, 2008

Pretties by Scott Westerfeld

Title: Pretties

Author: Scott Westerfeld

Publish Date: November 2005

Publisher: Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing

Pages: 384pp

IBSN: 0689865392

Classification: Fiction

Genre: Science Fiction/Fantasy

Age Range: 12 and up

Price: $14.00

Amazon: $8.99

Annotation: In a perfect society, where everyone is brain-damaged into being happy all the time and transformed into the universal pinnacle of beauty, how do you rebel?

Summary: In part two of the Uglies series, Tally Youngblood has just become a Pretty. Being Pretty isn't just superficial though, the operation has deeper consequences as she struggles to retain her mental acuity after undergoing the operation. She is re-connected with her best friend Shay and joins a new Pretty clique of friends where she; challenges authority, falls in love (again) and discovers how to stay “bubbly” as she uncovers her past. When she is bubbly she is able to think more clear, in opposition to being Pretty-minded. .

Evaluation: I am a HUGE fan of the Uglies series. Pretties is my favorite because we get to explore Tally’s world a little more—why the world is the way it is and how the rebel came to be. I love the relationship between Tally and Zane. I thought the concept of starving yourself and cutting yourself in efforts to wake up (and feel something) to be interesting and actually a very dark aspect of the story. The running themes in the series display freedom to think for yourself and that beauty comes from within.

Bibliotherapeutic Usefulness:

Fighting for what you believe in.
Losing someone you love.
Being caught in a love triangle.
Beauty is on the inside.
Friendships are not always easy.

Reason this book was chosen: After reading the Uglies, you almost just have to read the Pretties. The subject matter it’s quite interesting and though provoking as it deals with concepts of perfection and erasing the pain and depression from all human beings in order to have a “happy” society.

Similar Titles:

The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins

The Adoration of Jenna Fox by Mary E. Pearson

Extras by Scott Westerfeld

Author Website: Click HERE

Series: The Uglies Series

Uglies (2005)

Pretties (2005)

Specials (2006)

*Extras (2009)

*Extras is not necessarily part of the series, though there are references and similarities.

Awards:
ALA Popular Paperbacks for Young Adults, 2010

Paranoid Park by Blake Nelson

Title: Paranoid Park

Author: Blake Nelson

Publish Date: September 2006

Publisher: Penguin Group (USA)

Pages: 176pp

IBSN: 0670061182

Classification: Fiction

Genre: Realistic Fiction

Age Range: 13 and up

Price: $15.99

Amazon: $6.99

Annotation: A young skateboarder finds himself mixed up in a gruesome death of a security officer. Unable to deal with his emotions, he finds himself writing letters as a way to release the guilt.

Summary: Written in a series of letters by an unnamed skateboarder that recounts the events that lead up to the horrific murder of a security guard, including his actions to cover up his part in the crime. It all started when he went to Paranoid Park by himself because his friend blew him off. He is intrigued by all the skaters and what everyone is doing. He gets approached by a "streeter" who asks if he can use his board. He lets him. They end up hopping a train to a trainyard and then it happened. The security guard who was chasing them gets murdered in a gruesome way. Throughout the story the skateboarder is tormented about the event, but cannot bring himself to take responsibility.

Evaluation: This was an eerie and suspense-filled read that provides the reader with a psychological ride inside the mind of a tormented teen who found himself in the wrong place at the wrong time. The narrator’s internal monologue was very real. I thought it was an interesting choice for the narrator to not resolve the issue (as in confess), rather he came to terms with his guilt.

Bibliotherapeutic Usefulness:

Carrying a secret around.
Feeling guilty.
Trapped in fear and paranoia.
Coming to terms with guilt.

Reason this book was chosen: I actually saw the movie by Gus Van Saint before I even knew this was a book. I thought the movie was brilliant and wanted to read the novel. Additionally, the story exposes an underground skateboard world that I found interesting.

Similar Titles:

Rock Star Superstar by Blake Nelson

Beige by Ceil Castellucci

Vandal by Michael Simmons

Author Wikipedia Page: Click HERE

Awards:

ALA Quick Picks for Reluctant Young Adult Readers, 2007

Here is the film trailer.

The Adoration of Jenna Fox by Mary E. Pearson

Title: The Adoration of Jenna Fox

Author: Mary E. Pearson

Publish Date: April 2008

Publisher: Henry Holt and Co. (BYR)

Pages: 272pp

IBSN: 0805076689

Classification: Fiction

Genre: Science Fiction

Age Range: 12 and up

Price: $16.95

Amazon: $8.99

Annotation: Jenna Fox has just awaken from an eighteen month long coma to a life she doesn’t remember, a body she doesn’t recognize, and two parents and a grandmother she doesn’t really know.

Summary: Jenna Fox was in a horrible car accident that led to her eighteen month coma. When she awakened, she didn’t remember anything—who she was, where she came from, why she was in a coma. Her mother encourages her to piece her life back together by watching home videos of herself that span every year of her life - each neatly cataloging every moment of Jenna’s growth and development, though she does not relate to the Jenna she see’s in the videos. She struggles with remembering facts and school curriculum's, but not her most deepest and personal memories. She remembers historical facts, yet was told she was never into history. This sets Jenna off questioning her parents, and her being. Little by little Jenna begins to remember things of her past, like her close relationship with her grandmother Lily, though her grandmother is cold and distant with her now. As Jenna learns the secret her parents have been keeping from her, she does not like what she learns, in fact she is furious and confused as this raises more questions for her, like is she even human?

Evaluation: The Adoration of Jenna Fox is imaginative and haunting as it stirs up moral and ethical questions. I liked the way the author has the reader discovering exactly who Jenna Fox is right along side Jenna Fox. This made the story more intriguing as every clue was turned over.

Bibliotherapeutic Usefulness:

Identity.
Acceptance of you’ve become.
Recovering from a traumatic event.

Reason this book was chosen: Set in a dystopian world with moral and ethical boundaries being pushed and questioned, need I say more? I also love the amnesia aspect of the novel and finding out what happened to Jenna, as Jenna herself discovers what happened.

Similar Titles:

Impossible by Nancy Werlin

Memoirs of a Teenage Amnesiac by Gabrielle Zevin

The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks by Emily Lockhart

Author’s website: Click HERE

Awards:
ALA Best Books for Young Adults, 2009
SLJ Best Books for Children, 2008

Derby Girl by Shauna Cross

Author: Shauna Cross

Publish Date: September 2007

Publisher: Henry Holt and Co. (BYR)

Pages: 240pp

IBSN: 0805080236

Classification: Fiction

Genre: Realistic Fiction

Age Range: 12 and up

Price: $17.99

Amazon: $8.99

Annotation: Bliss Cavendar is a blue-haired punk rock indie teen who is stuck participating in beauty pageants in a small town in Texas. When roller derby enters her world, everything changes and Bliss learns some hard realities in life.

Summary: Bliss Cavendar is sixteen-years-old and a misfit in her small town of Bodeen, Texas. Her mother is instant on her succeeding in beauty pageantry, as that is what she herself never succeeded in—a dream that is far from what Bliss wants. On a shopping trip in Austin with her mother, Bliss snags a flyer about roller derby. She devises a plan with her best friend Pash to go back to the derby for try-outs. She remembers back when she was younger she loved roller skating. After making it on the team, Bliss begins sneaking out twice, saying she has SAT prep, for practice. She becomes Babe Ruthless and a fan favorite for the Austin Roller Derby scene. She meets a musician, falls in love, experiences all the pain/excitement first love can bring, and most importantly she discovers her strength from within.

Evaluation: This was a fun read, mainly because I love the derby. The story is sort of the same old misfit living in a town that doesn’t understand her but she finds a group of new friends. You can tell the author was a former derby girl as her descriptions of the derby are spot on. I like that the romance subplot took a backseat to the strong female friendships. This story is about self empowerment, friendships, and self discovery.

Bibliotherapeutic Usefulness:

Self Discovery.
Empowerment.
How to be your own hero.
Be proud of who you are.
First love.

Reason this book was chosen: Well, I love roller derby. I go to the Dollhouse once a month to see the LA Derby Dolls! When I heard Drew Barrymore was making a movie about roller derby I was pumped, even more so when I heard “Whip It” was based off the young adult book, Derby Girl.

Awards: Similar Titles:

Beige by Cecil Castellucci

The Waters & the Wild by Francesca Lia Block

Wondrous Strange by Lesley Livingston

Click HERE for the LA Derby Doll website.

Author Wikipedia Page: Click HERE

Awards:
ALA Best Books for Young Adults, 2008
ALA Quick Picks for Reluctant Young Adult Readers, 2008

Check out the Film Whip It!

The Gospel According to Larry by Janet Tasjian

Title: The Gospel According to Larry

Author: Janet Tasjian

Publish Date: May 2003

Publisher: Random House Children's Books

Pages: 256pp

IBSN: 0440237920

Classification: Fiction

Genre: Realistic Fiction

Age Range: 13 and up

Price: $16.95

Amazon: $6.99

Annotation: Josh Swensen is a bored seventeen-year-old genius who creates a website, "The Gospel According To Larry," where he posts all of his rants about our celebrity-obsessed culture, anti-communism, and any other random thing that he thinks of.

Summary: Seventeen-year-old Josh Swensen is highly intelligent, bored, and dealing with the average teenage issues of fitting in, developing secret crushes and worrying about social placements in the hierarchy of high school. Out of boredom, Josh decides to create a website where he write about all his thoughts about the world. He names his website “The Gospel According to Larry.” He used the name Larry in irony to being the least likely holy name.

Evaluation: This is an intelligent and humorous book that details the thoughts and feelings of a seventeen-year-old boy. I really enjoyed everything about this book. From the writing style, to the the visual presentation, this was an all around enjoyable book that provided humor and provoked thought on ones own beliefs.

Bibliotherapeutic Usefulness:

Unexpected success.
Losing a parent.
Having a crush on your best friend (and they don’t know).
Not wanting to be known when everybody wants to know you.
Going after things you feel passionate about.

Reason this book was chosen: A seventeen-year creates a website where he post his opinions about consumerism, religion, & politics in America—need I say more. I am down with “Larry” and so is Bono from U2!

Similar Titles:

Godless by Pete Hautman

Son of the Mob by Gordon Korman

Vote for Larry by Janet Tasjian

Series:

The Gospel According to Larry (2003)

Vote for Larry (2008)

Larry and the Meaning of Life (2008)

Author’s Website: Click HERE

Awards:
ALA Popular Paperbacks, 2005
ALA Best Books for Young Adults, 2002

Wintergirls by Laurie Halse Anderson

Title: Wintergirls

Author: Laurie Halse Anderson

Publish Date: March 2009

Publisher: Penguin Group (USA)

Pages: 288pp

IBSN: 067001110X

Classification: Fiction

Genre: Realistic Fiction

Age Range: 13 and up

Price: $17.99

Amazon: $9.99

Annotation: It all started with a pact between two friends, Lia and Cassie were going to be the skinniest girls in their high school, until there friendship fell apart and Cassie lost her life.

Summary: Lia has just found out her best friend Cassie was found dead in a hotel room. Lia and Cassie were best friends for years, they called themselves wintergirls as they made a pact to be the skinniest girls in their high school. Cassie was bulimic and struggling with family issues. She decided she could not be friends with Lia anymore. Lia was anorexic and Cassie was her only friend. Lia lives with her step mom, Jennifer, Emma her half sister, and her never-home-father. Lia’s mother is a doctor who seems to make Lia’s life more complicated. Lia struggles with her anorexia, she cannot seem to control it (which is ironic because anorexia is a controlling disease). Everywhere she turns she is haunted: by food, by the scale, by Cassie, by the thirty-three missed calls. She cannot escape herself or her pain so she focuses on ways to not eat, to fake a scale reading, to pretend like everything is all right. But everything is not all right. Lia must come to terms with Cassie’s death before she dies herself.

Evaluation: A portrayal of an anorexic teen, which gives the reader an understanding into the mindset of someone dealing with this disease. This was an extremely sad and haunting read. It was hard for me to get through it, not because it was bad, but because it was painful to get inside the head of a young anorexic girl. I have a couple of friends who battled (are battling) these kinds of issues and learning more about it just broke my heart into a million little pieces. I feel I have to make it a point to say I did not feel this was a “how-to-guide” for anorexia. If anything, it is a scary and very real view of the disease that provides a warning.

Bibliotherapeutic Usefulness:

Having an eating disorder.
Knowing someone who has an eating disorder.
Suffering in silence.
Wanting to get better, but not knowing how.
Grieving over the loss of a best friend.

Reason this book was chosen: Laurie Halse Anderson is a well-known award winning young adult writer. When I found out she wrote a book about the struggles of a young girl dealing with anorexia and her best friend (who suffered from bulimia), I thought this would be an important read.

Similar Titles:

If I stay by Gayle Forman

What I saw and How I Lied by Judy Blundell

After by Amy Efaw

Author Website: Click HERE

Awards:
ALA Best Books for Young Adults, 2010
ALA Quick Picks for Reluctant Young Adult Readers, 2010

Invisible by Pete Hautman

Title: Invisible

Author: Pete Hautman

Publish Date: June 2005

Publisher: Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing

Pages: 160pp

IBSN: 0689868006

Classification: Fiction

Genre: Realistic Fiction

Age Range: 12 and up

Price: $16.14

Amazon: $7.99

Annotation: Douglas MacArthur Hanson, “Dougie,” is the nerdy weird kid in high school, while his best friend, Andy Morrow, is a popular football player and theater. They discuss everything accept what happened at Tuttle Place three years ago.

Summary: Douglas MacArthur Hanson, “Dougie,” and his best friend Andy Morrow share everything. They have been best friends since they were children, though they are both in different places in their life as Dougie is the weirdo kid in school, being picked on by everyone and Andy is the popular kid, into football and theater. The two discuss everything, except for what happened at Tuttle Place three years ago. Meanwhile, Dougie is obsessed with his trains and building a bridge between East Madham and West Madham. He feels bridges are good things as they connect people. As he begins to question his memory and why his parents and psychologist have him on meds, he starts to uncover what happened at Tuttle Place.

Evaluation: This is one of books that I would recommend to a reluctant reader because A.) it’s only 160 pages and B.) it’s brilliantly constructed. I really enjoyed this tense story--it was painfully sad and left me questioning the ending (I love when that happens—deep contemplation hours after the story has ended). Did Dougie die in the end or not? I’m thinking he did die and the "Madham Burn Unit" is the place he wakes up in, in his afterlife. Though, he could have also survived and been using his imagination again. In any event, this was a quick story with vast amounts of suspense and lots of deep contemplation. This would be an excellent book to use for a group discussion as the ending is up for debate and the symbolism of the train and title of the book have plenty of deep

Bibliotherapeutic Usefulness:

Emotional damage of a traumatic event.
Being a loner.
Obsessing over something.

Reason this book was chosen: I was attracted to the psychological suspense of this realistic fiction story. Additionally, the length of the book makes this read an easy commitment (and one you won’t regret).

Similar Titles:

Inexcusable by Chris Lynch

I am the Cheese by Robert Cormier

Fat Kid Rules the World by K.L.Going

Author Website: Click HERE

Awards:
ALA Best Books for Young Adults, 2006
Kirkus Editor's Choice, 2005

Catching Fire by Suzanne Collins

Title: Catching Fire

Author: Suzanne Collins

Publish Date: September 2009

Publisher: Scholastic, Inc.

Pages: 400pp

ISBN: 0439023491

Classification: Fiction

Genre: Urban Fantasy/Supernatural

Age Range: 12 and up

Price: $17.99

Amazon: $10.52

Annotation: After surviving the Hunger Games, Katniss Everdeen and Peeta Mellark are back in District 12, planning a wedding, and facing rumors of a rebellion.

Summary: The second installment of Suzanne Collins’s Hunger Games sweeps you right back into that iron grip of the Capitol, a totalitarian government that has become angry and seeks retribution. Victor's Katniss and Peeta find themselves facing rumors of a rebellion, an inevitable circumstance after reading about their haunting participation in the games. In the interim, Katniss struggles with her love interest between Gale and Peeta--not really having time to discover what her true feelings are.

PLEASE BE ADVISED: Do not even think about starting this book until you have read THE HUNGER GAMES. This is a masterful journey of terror, love and loss.

Evaluation: I literally could not put this book down. Suzanne Collins enhances the sequel to The Hunger Games by capturing the same dark edge and intensifying jaw-dropping lure. I have to say, the ending KILLED me in that you are pretty much left hanging, and there is nothing you can do but wait till August 23th.

Bibliotherapeutic Usefulness:

Having feelings for more then one person.
Struggling to protect the ones you love.
Not knowing how you feel about someone, romantically.

Reason this book was chosen: After reading The Hunger Games, I had absolutely no choice but to read the highly anticipated sequel. This story is violent and dark and definitely frightening to think about—how could anyone pass this up?! Currently dying for the Mocking Jay due out August 23, 2010.

Wintergirls by Laurie Halse Anderson

The Maze Runner by James Dashner

Author Website: Click HERE

Series: The Hunger Games Series
The Hunger Games (2008)
Catching Fire (2009)

Mockingjay (August 24, 2010)

Awards:

ALA Best Books for Young Adults, 2010
Locus Recommended Reading (Young Adult Book), 2010