Great YA Reads for May

Spring and baseball the two just seem to go together. Mike Lupica is a nationally known sportswriter but he is also a gifted writer of YA novels. Most of his novels are sports related. His characters are placed in real situations and experience real emotions. Whether the hero is from the Bronx or from down south, readers will be able to relate to their circumstances. We meet one of these kids in Lupica's novel: Heat. This novel take place in the Bronx where many kids grow up dreaming of playing at Yankee Stadium. Miguel (Michael) Arroyo is a pitcher on his local Little League team. He is 12 years old but can throw a pitch like a high-schooler. When his team is set to attend the Little League championship game at Yankee Stadium, a coach from another team challenges Michael's age. Michael needs to produce his birth certificate. The problem is that Michael, his brother and their dad are from Cuba. When they left for the States, the certificate stayed behind. But Michael's problems don't end there. Read the book and find out how all this plays out.

The Big Field is another excellent baseball story by Lupica. This one takes place down in Florida. It is essentially a father and son story and about coming to terms with what life hands you.

Great YA Reads for April

Join Susan Beth Pfeffer has she imagines a world of struggle and hardship. With the publication of This World We Live In, Ms. Pfeffer concludes her sci-fi trilogy- The Last Survivors. Starting with the thoughtful, Life As We Knew It and continuing with The Dead and the Gone, the author tells the story of a cataclysmic event. A meter has hit the moon and shifted it to move closer to the Earth. As a result, tidal waves, volcanoes, and earthquakes have caused widespread devastation on Earth. Food rationing, gas shortages, famine and disease are commonplace. Readers will be drawn to the struggles of 16 year old Miranda Evans and 17 year Alex Morales. To stay alive each person must became someone they never would have imagined. How much longer can they hold out? What will the next day bring? What is the definition of family? Will the sun ever shine again? Will scientists be able to correct the Moon's orbit? The plot line in each of the three novels is fast paced. The characters are well-conceived. Of the three books, the last one seems the weakest however, once you start this series, it is impossible to stop without knowing how it will all turn out.

Great YA Read for March

Find your way back to the classics. This month why not try Lewis Carroll's great work of literature, Alice in Wonderland. My suggestion would be to read it before you see the movie version with Johnny Depp. The Alice in the novel is based on the real Alice Liddell. She and her sisters were friends of Charles Lutwidge Dodgson (Lewis Carroll). In the novel, Alice is a young girl of about 10. She and her sister are sitting by the bank of a river when suddenly, Alice sees something very strange and she is off on an adventure. The novel is full of humor, wild imaginings , nonsense verse and moral insight but it is just as easy to read the work has a wonderful piece of literature. Part of the fun of the novel is the rich detail Carroll incorporates into the story. Every age takes something different from the story. Go ahead and give it a try. As Alice says "curiouser and curiouser".

Great YA Non-Fiction for February

For President's Day, why not try these two titles from our Young Adult collection? The first title is: Washington at Valley Forge by Russell Freedman. This is an insightful retelling of the hardships encountered by Washington and his troops at Valley Forge during the Winter of 1777-78. The author uses first person accounts, paintings and photos of historical sites to guide the reader through this difficult period. Mr. Freedman's portrayal of Washington is of a man who not only was willing to share in the hardships with his men, but someone who was clear eyed about what was necessary to turn a rag-tag band of men into an effective army. Washington emerges as a hero. His troops looked up to and honored him.

The next title is: Chasing Lincoln's Killer by James L. Swanson. This work, based on Swanson's adult book, Manhunt, reads like a novel. The pacing, narrative and phrasing makes this work truly standout. We learn about John Wilkes Booth, how the assassination plot grew and what happened immediately after Booth shot Lincoln. We follow the government's attempt to track the killers and what happened to the persons involved in the investigation. This is a great read for YAs, willing to take a chance on non-fiction. It is full of photographs and period documents.

Great Young Adult Read for January

Shiver, by Maggie Stiefvater. An elegant, romantic Young Adult novel.
Grace has always felt a connection to the yellow-eyed wolf. It started that day, six years ago when the wolves attacked her. Now at seventeen, Grace is about to discover the truth about the wolves in the woods. Is it possible that werewolves really exist? Grace's wolf is human only in the summer and yet, here he is in the middle of autumn in his human form. Why didn't Grace change? Is there a "cure"? Why is the new werewolf so unstable? These are questions that Grace and Sam try to solve before time runs out and Sam is forever a wolf. The story is well-paced and well-written. The characters are drawn from the same element as in all good fantasy novels. This is a must-read for all those Twilight fans and anyone who truly enjoys a good read.