Keesha's House

Keesha's House

By: Helen Frost

Published by: Farrar, Straus, and Giroux

Reading level: Young Adult

109 Pages

Summary: Stephanie is pregnant and is scared to tell her parents. Jason has his whole life ahead which includes a basketball career, and is not ready to be a father. Dontay has run away from another foster family. Carmen got caught drinking and driving again and is now in jail. Harris was kicked out of his house by his father who couldn't except the way he was. Katie ran away from home, away from a mother who is oblivious to her new husbands wondering eyes and ways. And Keesha ran away from a drunk father. What do all the kids have in common? They can all live at Keesha's house. Although it is really Joe's house Keesha is the one to let the teenagers know that there is always a safe place to stay.

Personal Review: Keesha's house is a book written in poems. It was very intriguing and keeps you entertained and wanting more. It made me very thankful for my life and the fact that i have a good home to go home to. I highly recommend it!

Warnings: Sexual references, Language

Wintergirls

Wintergirls

By: Laurie Halse Anderson

Published by: Viking Juvenile

Reading level: Young Adult

288 Pages

Summary: When Cassie Lia's ex best friend dies, it all goes down hill from there. Lia a recovering anorexic, starts to elapse back into old habits. What she doesn't realize is that she is hurting everyone around her. Lia avoids eating at all costs, and even finds ways to fake her weight each week when her step mother Jennifer weighs her. But why did Cassie die? This is the question Lia sets out to find when she visits the hotel where Cassie was found. You watch as Lia slowly gets worse and worse and soon hits rock bottom and is rushed back into recovery, will she finally recover this time?

Personal Review: This book was incredible, and written very well. It is a hard issue to touch on but Laurie Halse Anderson hits it right on the nail. The way the story is told from the mind of Lia and what she really goes through on a day to day basis really struck me. I think every teenage girl needs to read this book and see the effects eating disorders can have.

Warning: Crude language, and graphic scenes.

Below is a link to a video about Eating disorders and there effects.

Facts about eating disorders

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Harriet Tubman, Secret Agent

Harriet Tubman, Secret Agent

By: Thomas B Allen

Published By: National Geographic Children's Books

Reading level: Young Adult

192 Pages

Summary: Did you know blacks were secret spies during the civil war? Neither did i until i read this book on Harriet Tubman and other blacks who helped the Union during the civil war. Harriet became a slave at a very young age, and at a young age she also suffered head trauma that they believe caused her to be an epileptic. She married at a young age to a free black man who refused to help her escape. She was a strong stubborn woman and was sick of being bossed around so she took matters into her own hands. She not only escaped but then became a conductor of the underground railroad and helped many others escape. She then became a spy for the union, along with other slaves who would spy on there owners and so forth to get as much information possible for the Union army.

Personal Review: When i first got this book i thought well even if it is boring it will count as a biography. But it was not boring at all. I really enjoyed this book and all the information it provided. It was very informative but did it in an interesting way that kept your attention. I never knew all the spying that went on and that was also very interesting. If you ever want to learn about the other side of the Civil War this is a great book to read.

A Long Way From Chicago

A Long Way From Chicago

By: Richard Peck

Published by: Puffin

160 pages

Reading Level: ages 9-12

Summary: Joey and Mary Alice are not excited to leave the busy city life for a week at grandma's down in Missouri. But boy are they in for a treat. They have no ordinary grandma who likes to sit around and nit all day. Grandma is tough as a boot, crazy, independent woman. She is very adamant about staying out of the towns business but it always seems to find her. But being the genius she is she always seems to turn the drama away from her. Whether it is holding a funeral at her home, feeding the homeless workers, or fishing illegally she is doing it. Each chapter is a story from there week at grandmas as they grow up. And in each chapter you see the children enjoy their stays even more, and even come to really love their grandma.

Personal Review: Richard Peck is one of my favorite authors. He always manages to make me laugh, and this book is no different. Such a good hardy book, with good hardy humor. This is one of those books you can turn to on a bad day to cheer you up. I can barely put it down when i read it. If you ever get the chance to read it you will not regret it.

Warning: Crude language.

Journey To Jo'Burg

Journey to Jo'Burg

By: Beverley Naidoo

Published by: Reed business information, inc.

Reading Level: ages 9-14

96 pages

Summary: When Naledi and Tiro's Baby sister Dineo get sick they know the only way to save her is to go get their mother who works in Johannesburg. They leave with nothing but a small amount of food on this long journey. They are very fortunate along the way meeting people who are always willing to help them. When they arrive they are guided by a young girl names Clara to there mother. Their mother is happy to see them but cannot leave right away. They go home with Clara for the night, and have their eyes opened to the real world of corrupt police, lack of freedom, and poverty. The next day they make the journey back with their mother to save Dineo. Through this journey they learned a lot though about the real world.

Personal Review: This is not a book i would recommend. I found it very fast moving, vague, and uninteresting. At times i often felt as if i was reading a children's book because it was so simple. Even though it was boring this book did have a good story line, and a good moral point and was a very fast read.

Touching Spirit Bear

Touching Spirit Bear

By: Ben Mikaelson

Published by: Harper Trophy

287 Pages

Reading level: Young Adult

Summary: Cole Matthews is a trouble child, and has been since he was little. Always fighting, stealing, and do anything else that will get him attention. He comes from an abusive home, where is father takes out his problems on him and his mother just watches and makes up for it by shopping. He is usually able to talk, or have his father pay his way out of trouble, but not this time. When Cole Matthews beats Peter Driscal almost to death he must pay the punishment of jail. This is until his parole officer Garvey suggests the Native American Circle of Justice. After a long trial in which Cole pretends that he wants to be forgiven and learn from his mistakes he is assigned isolation on an island off the coast of Alaska. It is here he runs into the mythical spirit bear, and it is here that he gets a taste of his own medicine and is beaten almost to death by the bear. Does he survive? Will he ever learn his lesson? Can people really change? Can you really overcome anger? Touching Spirit Bear answers these life questions and lots more.

Personal Review: This was one of those books that at points is impossible to put down. You are constantly wondering what is going to happen next, and wondering if Cole Matthews will really change. A book i highly recommend.

Warning: Touching Spirit Bear does have some graphic violent scenes, and crude language.

The Giver

The Giver

By: Lois Lowry

Published by:Random House Childrens Books

192 Pages

Reading level: Young Adult

Summary: The Giver is a story of a utopia, where everything and everyone has its place. They are told what they are supposed to do, when they are supposed to do it, and how they are supposed to feel. Each person is assigned a job at th

e age of 12, later on in life they can apply for a companion, and following that they can apply for a child, in which they get one boy and one girl. Jonas is one of these people who has always been told what happens and does not know any different. He has parents who were assigned to each other, and a younger sister that was given to them. At the age of 12 Jonas is assigned the job of the giver. They

tell him it is the most honorable job to have, but he does not even know

what

it is. This story takes you on his journey of becoming the giver of this utopia and the problems and blessings that come with it such as seeing the color red,

something we take for granted every day.

Personal Review: A book i would highly recommend. It really made me think and kept me

guessing. It made me very thankful for this world i live in and the free agency i have been blessed with to make my own decisions.