Uglies

Westerfeld, S. (2005). Uglies. New York: Simon Pulse.

I didn't love Uglies as much as I loved Hunger Games – it just didn't grab me in the same way. Tally isn't as appealing a character as Katniss, and the world isn't as believable, I didn't think. Uglies is good, I think, just not when it's compared to Hunger Games. In Uglies, people are convinced that they are ugly unless they have an operation to make them “pretty”. I guess it's kind of like growing up in Beverly Hills or Orange County, California. ;) Tally wants to become pretty, and sneaks out to see her old friend, who is already pretty. There, she meets Shay, and her life changes. When Shay runs away, Tally's forced to find her, and goes on her hoverboard to find the rebels at The Smoke. The novel kind of lost me here; I got bored. She meets David, and she has a moral dilemma. I didn't hate this book, I just did not love it, or Tally. The message of nonconformity and questioning authority instead of blindly accepting things is a decent one.

Hunger Games

Collins, S. (2008). The Hunger Games. New York: Scholastic Press.
In the Hunger Games, we meet Katniss Everdeen, a teen girl who lives in District 12 of Panem, a future version of the United States.  The districts rose up against the Capitol long ago, but lost, so the Hunger Games are their punishment.  Every year, children ages 12-18 put their name into a drawing, and each district sends one boy and one girl to the Games.  Life in District 12 is hard, and Katniss has been providing for her mother and little sister since her father died several years ago.  She sneaks out of the city with her friend Gale and hunts with a bow.  Her sister Prim is chosen for the Games, but Katniss replaces her and is sent with Peeta, the baker's son.  Life in the Capitol is very different; people are vain and shallow, but Katniss grows fond of her style team, particularly Cinna, who dresses her in fire.  The Games are a brutal fight to the death, and over the days in the arena, the tributes die one by one.  Her relationship with Peeta grows, as they work together.  In the end, they both survive, but that has angered President Snow.

I can't say enough about this book.  It is wonderful, and  really makes you think about our society and whether we might be headed towards a future like this.  My daughter wanted me to read this for a while, and I'm so glad that I finally did!  I can't wait to see if the movie does it justice.

Beautiful Creatures

Garcia, K., & Stohl, M. (2009). Beautiful creatures. New York: Little, Brown.

Beautiful Creatures was okay, but not as good as I thought it would be. I kept thinking that it was a cross between the TV show Vampire Diaries (with the Civil War stuff) and Twilight. I guess I couldn't help thinking it should be more original. I gave it to my daughter after I read it though, and she liked it a lot. That's actually strange because she hated Twilight, and hasn't ever seen Vampire Diaries. There were lots of cliches here, and I didn't find Ethan to be very believable as a character. I couldn't really tell, however, that the book has two authors, so they wrote together well. My daughter will be reading the sequel, but I will pass.

Graceling

Cashore, K. (2008). Graceling. Orlando, FL: Harcourt.

I loved Graceling. This book was spectacular.  Katsa is a graceling, someone with a gift.  Her gift is combat, and specifically killing; she can not fail.  This is a mixed "blessing", and Katsa is forced into life as an assassin for the king.  She meets Prince Po in a secret organization, and they slowly become friends.  Po is looking for his grandfather, and he is graced in fighting.  The two are almost evenly matched, which is new for Katsa.  Though the two fall in love on their quest, Katsa refuses to marry, as she thinks women lose their independence.  They prevail against the mind-controlling evil king in the end.  I can't wait for the sequel!

Along for the Ride

Dessen, S. (2009). Along for the ride: A novel. New York: Viking.

I liked this book a lot, and think that older teens will like it.  It's definitely a girl book, and one that will especially appeal to academically inclined girls.  Auden, the main character, has two college professor parents who expect great things for her education.  She has had a socially stunted life, with her entire focus on school.  The summer after she graduates high school, she goes to stay with her father, stepmother, and newborn baby sister.  Heidi, her stepmother, is very girly, but smart and successful at her clothing store.  Auden goes to work there, and makes friends with other girls who work there.  The others teach her how to be a girl, and how to have fun.  A local boy named Eli, a fellow insomniac, hangs out with her every night, and they check off things Auden never had a chance to do as a kid, like learning to ride a bike.

November Blues

Draper, S. M. (2007). November blues. New York: Atheneum Books for Young Readers.

I did not love this book.  It's about November Nelson, a teenager in Ohio, whose boyfriend has just died.  Josh and November had been a teenage "power couple" in their school, and he died in a hazing incident.  Soon after, November realizes she is pregnant.  The discomforts of pregnancy are realistic, but I thought the slang was forced.  November has a disabled brother, which has made her interested in a career helping the disabled, but there's no other mention of him... where he lives or anything.  November's mother is devastated, but supportive.  School friends named Olivia and Jericho also lend their support.  The climax, a roadside labor and helicopter evacuation, with Josh's parents trying to buy the baby, seems forced. 

Tequila Worm

Canales, V. (2005). The tequila worm. New York: Wendy Lamb Books.

The Tequila Worm is a great book about Mexican-American culture.  The main character, Sofia, has grown up in the Texas valley town of McAllen.  She has a close, loving family, and she excels academically.  In high school, she is offered a scholarship to go to a private school in Austin, and she agonizes over whether to accept.  When she finally does, she has to earn $400 in order to go.  Her "comadres" help her, and she eventually earns the money and moves.  There, she experiences culture shock, but succeeds and moves on to Harvard.  The title is somewhat deceiving - the tequila worm represents her culture, but the focus is definitely not on alcohol.  The book seems somewhat autobiographical, as the author has a similar story.

Ender's Game

Looking at this picture, I'm glad that I read this on my Nook, or I would not have wanted to read it.  I guess I do judge books by their covers!  With that said, however, I am really glad that I did read this one - I loved it.  Loved.  It. 

I had always avoided Ender's Game, because “boy books” are not usually high on the never-ending list of books I want to read (Harry Potter being a glaring exception!) I always just heard it described as sci-fi, and probably would have read it sooner if I had known that gifted children played a prominent role in the story. I have very mixed feelings about gifted education, and have struggled with my own issues when deciding whether or not to let my kids participate in gifted classes. Granted, they're not “save the human race” gifted like Ender, but I do see some of the same isolation/social issues. I think that this is what makes this book a classic – the timeless themes of exceptionality and responsibility. As with many books, reading (or re-reading) them as a parent shines a whole new light on the book. If I had read this as a child, I would have been angry on Ender's behalf for what he missed. I still felt that as an adult, but it was also heartbreaking to feel Graff's agony at what he was doing.

The resolution seemed a little bit rushed to me,  but I get that it needed to be that way to be a successful revelation.  I wish we had a little more about Peter and Valentine's adulthood.  Those are really my only complaints about the book.  I even enjoyed reading the foreward.