A Boy Named Queen by Sara Cassidy. Groundwood Books, 2016. 77 Pages.

The Impossible Knife of Memory by Laurie Halse Anderson. Viking Books for Young Readers. 2014. 391 pages.

PTSD in the family. Daughter and her very messed up Dad. Frightenly realistic.

Rules by Cynthia Lord. Scholastic, 2006. 200 pages

Saw Cynthia Lord at MLA once, years ago. Loved her and resolved to read RULES. She has a daughter who is sister to a sibling with autism. A great and quick read, I have been recommending it- and telling Lord's story-- for years. only just read it now. Wow! and it was the first of a whole slew of excellent books with main characters having disabilties, Rules was the first.

When You Reach Me by Rebecca Stead. Yearling, 2010, 208 Pages.

Audio, so, so good. Reads like a book written for adults.

Nothing But The Truth: a documentary novel by AVI. Avon Books, 1991. 212 pages

School Room classic recommended by an 8th grade class. Realistic Fiction is still my favorite. I loved it. For thoughtful and sophisticated readers.

Because of Mr. Terupt by Rob Buyea. Delacorte Press.2010, 268 pages.

I was so disappointed with this-- I liked the first half of the book-- the classroom, the kids, the types, the issues, the new teacher who is not easy to fool, etc. I did notice though that it is not written in an authentic voice of kids-- not like Sharon Draper or Judy Blume or Rita Garcia Williams-- but i still did like it alot. Then,-- the accident--and it becomes very heavy handed cautionary tale-- Play Nice or someone you love might have a terrible accident .   I wanted to love it but was disappointed instead. Am interested to find out what the kids think of it.  

The Dreamer by Pam Muñoz Ryan. Scholastic Press, 2010. 334 Pages

Fictionalized account of the sad childhood of the Great Latin American Poet, Pablo Neruda. Young Pablo is a sickly frail boy growing up with a loving but subservient grandmother and an overbearing, bully father in early 20th century Chile. Young Pablo's gift with words was noted early and often, but his father considered the field of "letters" feminine and unsuitable for a son of his.

Big Mouth & Ugly Girl by Joyce Carol Oates. HarperTempest, 2002. 266 pages.

A wonderful tale of two unlikely friends told in two voices: Big Mouth-- a fairly popular boy, good student, make-em laugh type boy who impulsively jokes about a bombing his high school and finds himself in serious trouble and Ugly Girl-- the sharp witted, plain faced, big boned and friendless loner who stands up for a boy she barely knows because it is the right thing to do. Matt and Ursula become friends-not quickly or easily-- but when the entire town turns on Matt and his whole world collapses, Ursula, who is used to being ostracized and is very strong-- but not happy-- about it, becomes his only and his true friend. Two teens who struggle with friendships and family issues and social pressures and real danger. Oates is a master storyteller and her characters are well thought out and nuanced. we care about every imperfect one. i really liked the book, a quick read with lots of place for conversation about society, rumors, true friends, schools, police, families, and feelings. i will say that the end seemed a little rushed and too neatly tied up, but this is still a great book and a good choice for middle and high school aged.

Crash by Jerry Spinelli. Random House Children's Books, 1996. 162 pages.

Newbery Medalist author Jerry Spinelli's love of sports come through again with this entertaining and thought provoking, realistic, hopeful and very readable book for middle readers. When we first meet Crash Coogan he is sports crazy and obsessed with living up to his questionable reputation-- he crashing into everyone he comes across-- his friends, his sister, his family, his problems. When you have no feelings, nothing can bother you. But as the years and the story progress, Crash has some choices to make-- about strength and courage and bullying and pain and family and friends. A great coming of age novel especially, but not exclusively for boys. Think Blubber for boys. upper elementary/early middle school reading lists.

Ellen Foster by Kaye Gibbons. Vintage Books/Random House. 1987, 126 pages.

11 year old Ellen tells her own story of abuse and neglect in mid-20th century North Carolina. Her mother commits suicide to escape her abusive father, and young Ellen learns to take care of herself-- literally putting food on her table and paying bills so she doesn't lose the house and hiding from her Daddy and his drunken friends. Strong implication of sexual abuse--no detailed abuse scenes (this is not A CHILD CALLED IT). Ellen bounces back and forth-past to present-- which is comforting because she is in a new foster home-- a good home-- at the end of the story-- the abuse is significant. Ellen grows through out the story-- sub plot of her only friend, a poor black girl names Starletta- lots of growth there too. A quiet, compelling book, sometimes funny--you really like Ellen-- a strong survivor. Has one of the best opening lines i ever read: "When I was little I would think of ways to kill my daddy."
Good book. Quick Read.

Fourth Grade Rats by Jerry Spinelli. Scholastic, 1993. 96 pages.

Blubber by Judy Blume.

In a fifth grade class that could be anywhere in the western world, Wendy, the class alpha-female, uses her power to make life miserable for Linda---aka Blubber. All the girls allow it and encourage her, either actively or passively. Jill learns the hard way that wrong is wrong-- it doesn't matter who the players are, and before she knows it, the shoe is on the other foot.
Judy Blume is amazing-- everyone knows that. Written in the voice of Jill, it is hard to believe a 10 year old did not write this herself--the language and characters and the situations are so authentic. Blume never preaches, but lets Jill tell a story as it occurs-- as the days pass we see her grow and start to question what is happening-- she moves from discounting the victim to feeling compassion for her and begins to challenge the Alpha's hold on their 5th grade world, only to find herself-- as so many other girls have-- the new victim. It happens so easily. This kind of first person growth is always a style i enjoy. It reminded me of the LOUD SILENCE OF FRANCIE GREEN by Karen Cushman-- which i also recommend,.
Loved it, loved it, loved it. Highley recommend.

Joey Pigza Loses Control Jack Gantos Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2000, Hardcover, 208 pages

The second in the Joey Pigza series, please read JOEY PIGZA SWALLOWED A KEY first. Joey is now on good meds that control his adhd and he is receiving support services to understand his illness and help with coping strategies. His dad has reentered his life and a court has granted him summer visitation-- so Joey is going to visit the dad he has not seen for many years-- a man who is clean and sober, has a job and a new girlfriend, and desperately wants to make up for lost time. But Joey's dad (and his grandma) have the same ADHD issues that joey does, but they remain untreated and it is not long before the dad becomes unglued and convinces joey to stop taking the meds that have given him back his normal life. joey wants a relationship with his dad-- what boy doesn't? But he can see feel himself losing control and he is so far from his mom. what to do?
Another great chapter from Gantos in the Joey Pigza story. Gantos tells the story through Joey's voice and we draw our own conclusions-- i love that. No preaching or heavy handed morality. Subtle and funny and endearing and frightening. Very imperfect characters that are at once unlikeable, mean, funny, endearing and sympathetic. All of them. Even grandma.
I love this series. Highly recommended.

There's a Boy in the Girls' Bathroom by Louis Sachar. Random House Children's Books, 1987, 195 pages.

A very well written book-- funny but much more serious than i had anticipated. Bradley Chalkers is the oldest kid in the 5th grade- a well known and always avoided "serious behavior problem" that no one (not even the teachers) likes. Every one is afraid of him and they avoid him at all costs. Enter Jeff, the new kid who has to sit next to him in class, who has no friends yet, does not know Bradley is a social pariah and befriends him. But this is realistic fiction, and Bradley does not know how to be a friend, Jeff makes friends quickly and doesn't want to become a social outcast and a new young school psychologist shakes things up in more ways than one. Winner of 19 children's choice awards, There's a Boy in the Girl's Bathroom is funny and moving and with the notable exception of the the corny ---basketball -let's all be friends now --scene--very realistic portrayal of upper elementary and early middle school social horror show that most kids will relate too. Not fluffy at all-- a good solid read. Highly recommended.

Dear Mr. Henshaw by Beverly Cleary. HarperTrophy, 1983. 134 pages.

12 year old Leigh has been writing to Mr. Henshaw off and on since a school assignment in 2nd grade mandated he contact a published author. Now in 6th grade, Leigh begins writing in earnest--ostensibly for another school project-- revealing the unhappy details of his life. It is Mr Henshaw's brief, but thoughtful, response that leads Leigh to start keeping a letter-journal and it is through these letters--some sent (Dear Real Mr. Henshaw) and some journaled (Dear Fake Mr. Henshaw) that we learn about his struggle with his parents recent divorce and separation, the move to a new house, a new school, his loneliness, and the unreliable father that he loves and misses. As in real life, things improve for Leigh by the end of the book--he meets a new friend and comes to terms with the new living situation but, just as important, there is no happily ever after and his parents do not get back together----instead, they all move on.
Well written and brilliant--this is a great book for individual reading and for book club and class room discussions. The issues of divorce and unhappiness and alienation are very common in YA books, but much less so for this age level--when many children are aware of family issues but do not know how to talk about them, leaving them full of fear and anxiety. Thoughtful and moving, Dear Mr. Henshaw is popular and well received by children and adults and serves as a great introduction to the works of Beverly Cleary. Recommended

Bully Buster (Jake Drake). Aladdin Paperbacks (2001) 73 pages.

Jake Drake recounts how he managed to stop being a "bully magnet" and became a "bully buster". A fairly realistic account of the problems kids have dealing with bullies...no solution that we as adults offer seems to work--not telling, not keeping quiet, not being nice, not avoiding them, etc. Kids often feel on their own with this stuff--as Jake does. The bully ends up needing Jake's help when they are partnered together for an assignment and while Jake and the bully never become friends (thank goodness..that's so lame at this age!) Jake is no longer a victim. Not great literature or deep thinking, but i do love Andrew Clements for school age kids and the Jake Drake series is great for the younger chapter readers..advanced 2nd graders, 3rd and some 4th graders. And, of course, bullies loom large in all of our lives.

The Jacket by Andrew Clements. Aladdin (2002), Paperback

A white student, Phil, sees a black student, Daniel, wearing his brother's jacket and assumes the boy has stolen it. Daniel is righteously angry and Phil, in questioning his own actions, begins to see his entire world--including his family--in the context of racism and white privilege. it is not great literature and the story line is a little pat--Phil suddenly sees and understands subtle racism in himself, his family, his society, and in the end, he and daniel become friends. Yes, i agree--clumsy and hoky--BUT, this is a great message--a real, complex message about racism in our society that IS very complex and that occurs right now and that involves otherwise good people. The Jacket is a great book for class discussion and begs to be assigned to a 4th or 5th grade book club. The adults, in general, do not want to talk about the incident that bothers Phil so much, and with the exception of Lucy, Phil's family maid and Daniel's grandmother (a little contrived, i know!) they all fail in their response in some way--the principal, phil's mother, his father...
A wonderful book that will read well for most in the age group--a great book for encouraging a REAL discussion about racism in the age group. Realistic realistic fiction...I love Andrew Clements!

The Chocolate War (Readers Circle) by Robert Cormier. Knopf Books for Young Readers (2004), Paperback, 272 pages

Jerry Renault is a freshman at Trinity School, an all-boys Catholic jock school who bucks the system by refusing to sell chocolates; his life is unhappy now that his mother is dead and his father is depressed and emotionally distant and Jerry refuses to sell because he is inspired by a poster in his locker that asks “Do I dare disturb the universe?” Although Jerry initially refuses to sell because the Vigils, a group of bullies unofficially sanctioned by Brother Leon, the new interim director, tells him he must refuse, Jerry continues to refuse even after the Vigils tell him to accept. Leon uses the Vigils to isolate Jerry, by then becoming a local hero and overnight Jerry turns form local hero to pariah. No happy ending here, the Vigils continue to harass and isolate Jerry culminating in a public fight between Jerry and the school’s big physical bully, Emile, where students decide who hits whom with which punch. Jerry is badly beaten as Brother Leon watches and he learns, not only that you pay an enormous price for universe disturbing, but also that the adults around him are hypocrites; A dark and powerful book, The Chocolate War will appeal to many teens who often feel powerless and often seem to have an innate ability to sniff out hypocrisy, I loved this book and would recommend it to any middle or high school student individually or as a group. It would generate some interesting and honest discussion about issues important to teens that most of us forget as we become the adults and gains some semblance of control over our lives. This is the kind of book that would have spoken to me like a bible if I had read it when I was young.

Shooter by Walter Dean Myers. Amistad (2005), Paperback, 256 pages

I love contemporary issue books. Myers does here what he does so well, he tells the story of an unstable, alienated white student who takes a gun to school and kills the school bully who has been tormenting him. Myers tells the story through various official records of the incident (autopsy report, police report, psychological interviews) as well as newspaper accounts and the killer’s diary. We see the same group of incidents through the eyes of three different teens; Len, the unstable killer who showed lots of warning signs that were not properly dealt with by any of the adults he came in contact with; Carla, his maybe girlfriend who was treated so badly and Cameron, his best friend, one of the few black students in the school who is also an outsider and subject to bullying. Cameron was in the school with him the day of the shootings. Looking at the same incident through the accounts of different sources is very effective to stimulate thoughtful reflection, for example, in the news paper story the murdered bully’s father says: “you don’t send your kid to school, teach him the right things to do, to have it end like this.” (p156). But Brad appears very different in Len’s diary “At the ranch, Brad called me a faggot. He pushes and pushes into me” (197). The different viewpoints -focus reinforces that people and events are not black and white; they are much more nuanced and, I hope it will promote a more thoughtful examination in everything teens read and hear. Could lead to good discussions of important topics. 12/06

Push: A Novel by Sapphire. Vintage (1997), Paperback, 192 pages

This is the story of Clareece Precious Jones, a black, illiterate middle-school student molested by her mother, physically beaten and pregnant for the second time by her father. When she is sent to an alternative program for at risk girls she meets a lesbian teacher who teaches her to read and to love herself, and she leaves her abusive family to find a new family with her teacher and classmates. As she learns to read, her tolerance and understanding expand and Clareece-- once classified as mentally retarded-- makes huge gains intellectually, emotionally and spiritually. But, no happy ending for Clareece; she finds out she is HIV positive and the future for her is uncertain.
I loved this book. The language is authentic and flows easily—I can hear her voice! This is not a book to read; it needs to be spoken aloud. It is powerful. I really love contemporary issue books and I especially like the way the text changes with the literacy level of Clareece. It reminded me somewhat of Hesse’s Music of the Dolphins where the language and fonts change with that characters ability to use language. It is a powerful work, already popular with YA audiences; libraries cannot keep it on the shelf. Lots of sex and raw language.