Strength in what remains Tracy Kidder New York : Random House, 2009.

Truly a great book. So well written that the lovely words flow and you are lulled into forgetting the truly horrific history of the events that took place in Burundi and Rwanda. Until Deo (through Kidder) reminds us. The narrative flips back and forth between Burundi and Rwanda and New York and while primarily documenting events in the 1990s, includes Deo's personal memories from the 1970s nad 80s, as well as some historical background to the genocide of the 90s. i had forgotten what a great writer Kidder is. A strong and powerful work-- a memoir, an urban tale, africana , world affairs and social justice all in one book. great literature-- i highly recommend it to eveyone who has an interest. A total stranger was thrilled to see me with it and then disappointed that it was not really out in soft cover yet-- Not to be missed

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.

A Frog in the Bog by Karma Wilson. McElderry, 2007. 32 pages

Karma Wilson with another winner-- Frog in the Bog has everything a storytime favorite needs-rhythm, rhyme, alliteration, numbers, repetition humor and a surprising (to kids) ending. "There's a small hungry frog sitting on a log in the middle of the bog". As frog eats 1 tick, 2 fleas, etc., he gets bigger and bigger until he realizes the log is an alligator. When frog opens his mouth to yell, all the insects jump out in reverse order. Joan Rankin's illustrations lend a muted, watery feel that works very well. Cute and fun-- flows better than some of Wilson's work. Reminiscent of Root's One Duck Stuck.

Life Sucks by Jessica Abel. First Second, 2008. 192 pages

Fun and quirky new graphic. Think of a vampire CLERKS. Dave is a young, depressed emo vampire boy-- a vegetarian vampire who refuses to kill- he lives on past date blood bank blood. Unlike the Anne Rice world of wealthy, educated, sophisticated vampires, the real vamp world is a lot like our own--Dave works the night shift at a quicky mart-- the owner is his vampire master who has en-wage-slaved him for eternity-- an eternity of sweeping the parking lot and pouring plastic cheese on nachos. Dave falls for a goth human girl named Rosa but so has his rival-- a jerky surfer boy vampire who is very strong. Who will Rosa choose.
Clever and witty-- the book is very clerks--i loved it and the subtle humor and dead end job focus will appeal to older more irreverent teens. An award winning graphic.

Shock Doctrine; the rise of disaster capitalism by Naomi Klein. Metropolitan Books, 2008.

Hole In My Life by Jack Gantos. Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2002. 200 pages

How many children's book authors would write a memoir about serving time in federal prison for drug running during their young adult years? Jack Gantos would-- and did so brilliantly with this Prinze and Siebert award winning book. Written in a style that is very reminiscent of the Joey Pigza series, Gantos gives an honest and frank account of his late teen life and the actions and choices he made that led to his being convicted of drug running at age 19 and sentenced to federal prison for several years. The story is well told and compelling; funny and horrifying and sad and uplifting. We like Gantos and we care what happens to him, even as we cringe for him as he makes what we all know are terrible decisions that will have terrible consequences. And prison is tough-- Gantos is quite skillful in his ability to portray prison as a very violent and scary place-- full of sex and drugs-- and he does so honestly (important for all of us, yes, but especially so for young adults) but without sensationalizing it. No easy feat. And it was the constant violence and fear and hopelessness of prison life that forced Gantos to soul search and, finally, to make a decision to get serious about what he had always wanted to do--to write, to become a writer...a decision that not only carried him through the rest of his sentance, but one that Gantos credits with carrying him through the rest of his life. YES, YES, YES