This is a powerful book. Short and direct, we get inside Shawn’s head and see just how intelligent this kid is. The fact that his father would even consider ending his life is shocking once you see how much value Shawn’s experiences have had for him, even if the outside world can’t see it. It’s heartbreaking to think of the people who are in this situation and how little we do know about what their internal life is like.

I didn’t realize how old this book was when I added it to the list but to this day it’s one of our most popular Walter Dean Myers books. It only feels the slightest bit outdated; Myers did an incredible job of having the language sound authentic without being slangy, preserving it for over 20 years now. (Jamal does wish he had enough money to buy a VCR but since he calls it a recording machine we can imagine he wants Tivo.) The relationships between Jamal and his sister and mother, in addition to his relationship with Tito, are just lovely. Jamal has a good heart and wants what’s best for his family but he’s young enough that he can’t seem to keep himself out of trouble. Jamal’s experiences at school being dismissed by his teachers, bullied by Dwayne, and put on Ritalin (wow, this feels contemporary) feel very authentic and heartbreaking.

My issues with the book lie in the fact that Jamal, at 12 years of age, is the “leader” of a gang. I can’t really buy the idea that this gang is all underaged kids because that way they can only get in so much trouble. I also don’t understand how Jamal was ever the leader, considering he said he was leader, and then didn’t do anything with the gang. Gang leaders don’t get to go home and draw pictures and argue with their sister. I feel like if Jamal had been put in a few more situations where he was in charge (like having to make a drug deal or figuring out logistics for a fight) I could have believed the rest of the story. If Jamal had been older than 12, I could have believed it. I could believe it if Jamal wasn’t in charge, but took a job selling drugs to make the money. I know we are meant to like Jamal and that’s why he didn’t do all of those horrible things, but it just seems unrealistic to me, particularly since this is a serious gang, where people die as a result of their actions.

In spite of my reservations, the ending is powerful and I can see why is resonates with today’s teens.

Boot Camp is a gut-wrenching book, but the thing that really gets you is the afterword that reminds you that places like this actually exist. Parents can sign their kids up, and the kids have no rights until their 18th birthdays. The torture that Garrett endures is unbelievable. I thought the major strength of the book is Garrett’s characterization; he comes across as a very real, mature teen who is left in the worst situation. This one has major booktalk potential.

I didn’t like this book as much as I expected to. I loved Breathing Underwater, but this was less successful for me. I couldn’t believe that in 2005, an entire school of students could be so misinformed about HIV. A few idiots, sure. But the fact that not one student knew that just talking to Alex wasn’t a way to catch his disease stuck out to me as improbable. Jennifer volunteers at a hospital, wants to become a doctor someday, and still has reservations? Maybe it’s because in the past five years enough has changed that people wouldn’t assume Alex was gay, and if they did, it wouldn’t be as big of a deal.

The two things I liked best about the book were the revelation of how Alex caught the disease – which made a lot of sense and felt completely authentic - and the character Clinton – because even though he is Grade A awful throughout the book, his narration is so honest I could really believe in him even as I hated him. Flinn has a talent for creating unlikable characters that you ultimately can feel for. Alex’s introspection about his disease and his mortality were also remarkable.

I was aware of the premise of this book partly from the movie How to Deal which I fell asleep halfway through, but I enjoyed how while the pregnancy was a thread throughout the whole novel, this really was Halley’s story. The progression of her relationship with Macon and his attitude toward her seemed to be ripped out of every teenage girl’s life, but didn’t feel unoriginal or boring either. The mother and daughter story worked very well; I loved the mother trying to force her teenage daughter to stay home for movie night with their friends. Scarlett’s story was heartbreaking and sweet and felt very authentic, especially in her feelings toward Michael after his death. I also enjoyed that Marion while initially seeming like the clueless single mother that is pervasive in ya lit really becomes a fully developed character. I was a little nervous about this book because I’ve enjoyed Sarah Dessen’s more recent books so much, and I wasn’t sure that her early writing would be as strong, but this definitely showed that she has been writing well for a very long time. Now I just need to get to Keeping the Moon and Dreamland.

After reading this, I will say that I totally don’t get the cover. At all. Pretty. But doesn’t really fit the book.

If you haven’t read Suite Scarlett, you need to read that first because the strength of this book is the characters and you need the backstory to really care about the Martin family. This is a solid continuation that leaves room for more.

Stork is just an incredible writer. I loved Marcelo in the Real World and this one is just as strong. The characters are rich, flawed and believable, and even though Pancho is initially reluctant to deviate from his revenge plot and let people in, you are instantly captivated by his story. This one will make the Mock Printz lists this year.

Reviewed from ARC provided by Scholastic at ALA Midwinter

The summary makes the book sound dry and preachy but it is absolutely a character driven novel and not a problem novel or religious screed. Saving Maddie is wonderful for one reason: Madeline. The character is so lovely and so well written. You feel for her completely throughout the book. My only complaint is that Joshua is a little bit TOO good in the beginning. Even a kid trying desperately to live up to his family’s (and the Bible’s) standards is going to fail sometimes; he didn’t have to be THAT good to have his changes be shocking to his parents. Their relationship feels very authentic though and you can see why the two of them are attracted to each other despite their differences.

As soon as I finished, I thought that this book desperately needs a sequel from Maddie’s POV. I mentioned this on Twitter and Varian responded that there’s one in the works!

Reviewed from ARC provided by Random House at ALA Midwinter

Struts and Frets didn’t wow me in the beginning and I almost stopped reading it. I think I do need to stop reading books about teen music fans as the band choices the author makes always annoy me (I just saw the Pixies in concert two months ago, and at 27 I was the youngest person in the room - but they’re famous enough that I can almost be persuaded a current high school student might know them. But Jesus and Mary Chain? Teens can be hip music fans without knowing the hip music of the author’s childhood).

In spite of this, I kept reading and really enjoyed this novel in the end. The things I liked most are:

1.) The romance was well-described, resolved relatively early in the book, and was flawed in a good way.
2.) The grandfather’s storyline - I loved the relationship the grandfather has with Sammy and how it progresses throughout the story. The resolution was surprising, yet fitting. And I completely bought Sammy’s jazz knowledge as a result of his relationship with the grandfather.
3.) Jen5’s father - another surprising and unique character.
4.) The resolution of the band storyline. I liked Sammy’s choices regarding crazy, angry Joe and I thought it was appropriate how it turned out.

The resolution to the novel definitely proved my initial reaction wrong and I’m glad I stuck with this moving story.