Threader (YA Fic)

AUTHOR: Rebekah Turner (AUST)
PUBLISHED: Harlequin Teen ; 2016.
PAGES/ILL: ~320 pages.

PLOT:
In the year 2050, life is not easy, especially for those designated "non-citizens". The government is also starting to monitor people with "talents"; those with extraordinary abilities like reading minds or traveling through time and space.
Orphan Josie Ryder is discovering she has a "talent": she is a threader and can link her talent with others'. She is trying to stay off the grid, a promise she made to her late father, but when push comes to shove, she ends up at Helios Academy, a training school for "talents". There, she struggles with her intense attraction to another student, one to whom she should not be so attached.
In a complicated series of event, Josie finds herself at risk, manipulated by those who seek power and control.

REVIEW:
I read an ARC, and there were quite a few grammar and punctuation errors which did detract from the flow of reading. These may or may not be picked up and edited for the final edition.

Besides that, the story has a really interesting premise and leaves you wanting to know what happens next. The romance was a little too contrived and "high-schooly" for me, but her target audience will likely love it.

AGE: 13 or 14+.
GENRE: Science fiction.
RATING: 3 1/2 - 4 stars.

My Sister Rosa (YA/Adult Fic)

AUTHOR: Justine Larbalestier (US)
PUBLISHED: Allen & Unwin ; 2016.
PAGES/ILL: ~400 pages.

PLOT:
Teenager Che has a lot of things he wants to do. Improve his boxing. Get a girlfriend. Leave New York and go back home to Sydney. But the most important thing is keeping his little sister, Rosa, in line.
Rosa is cruel. She delights in deception and making other people hurt. Che is convinced she's a sociopath, but Rosa's sweet outward disposition easily fools the people around them. Che's life gets increasingly complicated as Rosa's games lead to horrific consequences.

REVIEW:
This is being advertised as a YA novel, but I would emphasise that it is for OLDER young adults (17+).

This is one of the best books I've read this year. I'm writing this a few months after I finished the book and it has still stuck with me. It's a great story if you can handle sociopathic children completely devoid of empathy who delight in manipulating others (and the reality that they DO exist).

AGE: 17+/Adult.
GENRE: Realistic psychological/thriller fiction.
RATING: STRONG 5 stars.

Series: The Lunar Chronicles (YA Fic)

AUTHOR: Marissa Meyer (US)
PUBLISHED: Puffin ; 2012-2016.
PAGES/ILL: ~550 pages.
SERIES: The Lunar Chronicles - Cinder; Scarlett; Cress; Winter [and an additional prequel, Fairest].

PLOT: (third book: Cress)
Cress has been a prisoner on a satellite for the last 7 years, doing the bidding of the Lunar queen, Levana. When a rescue mission led by Cinder, along with Scarlett, Wolf, and Thorne (characters from previous books) goes awry, the five are separated. Cinder is determined to carry through with her plan to stop the wedding between the Emperor and Levana. {I don't want to give away spoilers, so this is as much plot as I'll give away}.

REVIEW:
This series uses the characters from old fairy stories. The first two books introduce us to Cinder (Cinderella) and Scarlett (Red Riding Hood), and in this third book we meet Cress (Rapunzel).

It's a coincidence that I picked this up after finishing Spinning Starlight, as they are both sci-fi fantasy based on fairy tale characters. I really enjoyed this book, too, but wish I'd started with the first book in the series. This book ends on a bit of a cliffhanger, so now I have to read the next book in the series, Winter!

AGE: 15+.
GENRE: Fantasy/Science Fiction/Adventure.
RATING: 4 1/2 stars.

Spinning Starlight (YA Fic)

AUTHOR: R.C. Lewis (US)
PUBLISHED: Disney Hyperion ; 2015.
PAGES/ILL: ~330 pages.

PLOT:
Sixteen-year-old heiress and paparazzi darling Liddi Jantzen hates the spotlight. But as the only daughter in the most powerful tech family in the galaxy, it’s hard to escape it. When she escapes a kidnapping attempt and can't get in contact with her brothers, she's drawn into an inter-planetary conspiracy she could never have imagined. When her brothers' captor implants a device in Liddi’s vocal cords to monitor her speech, their lives are in her hands: One word and her brothers are dead.
Liddi travels to another world, where she meets the one person who might have the skills to help her bring her eight brothers home — a handsome dignitary named Tiav. But without her voice, Liddi must use every bit of her strength and wit to convince Tiav that her mission is true.

REVIEW:
I have to admit that this book drew me in and I read it in an afternoon. It is based loosely on Hans Christian Andersen’s The Wild Swans. I think, though, that it would be better to read Spinning Starlight before The Wild Swans so that you aren't trying to draw comparisons and can take the story for what it is on its own.

This is an enjoyable, compelling story. Young teen girls would especially like it.
The author has written another work in the same vein - retelling the story of Snow White in 'Stitching Snow'. I'll be looking out for it.

AGE: 13+.
GENRE: Fantasy/Science Fiction/Adventure.
RATING: 5 stars.

21 Book to Movie Adaptations

Here's a great list of book-to-movie adaptations of 2015.

Series: Endgame (YA Fic)

AUTHOR: James Frey (US)
PUBLISHED: HarperCollins ; 2014.
PAGES/ILL: ~460 pages.
SERIES: Endgame. The Calling, Sky Key, (third book title TBA).
TIE-INS: Website, Game, Movie.

PLOT: (First book: The Calling)
At the beginning of civilisation on Earth, "They" descended from the sky. They needed gold and they built our earliest civilisations to mine it for them. Then They left, but they told the the 12 lines of the human race that they would be back, and when they did, a game would be played, with a teenaged Player from each line. For ten thousand years the lines have each had a Player prepared at all times. They have trained generation after generation after generation. In weapons, languages, history, tactics, disguise assassination. Together the players are everything: strong, kind, ruthless, loyal, smart, stupid, ugly, lustful, mean, fickle, beautiful, calculating, lazy, exuberant, weak.
Now the game has started. It started in death and will end in death, with only one winner. The one whose line will continue. The Players must find three Keys, in order. In the first book, The Calling, they are searching for the first, Earth Key. Some bonds will form. Some Players will die.

REVIEW:
This book is like the Hunger Games with aliens. Teenagers who like maths and geography will particularly like it. The books, together with the accompanying website, give clues so that the reader can play along with the characters to solve the puzzles. In fact, there is a competition where if you solve all the clues you can win half a million dollars! (Competition ends on or before October 7, 2016).
This is a book that would probably need librarians to promote it, especially to teens who are interested in codes and puzzles.

Overall, it's an appealing dystopia for sci-fi fans.

AGE: 14+.
GENRE: Science fiction, Dystopia, Adventure.
RATING: 4 1/2 stars.

Series: The True Trilogy (YA Fic)

AUTHOR: Gary Meehan (UK)
PUBLISHED: Quercus ; 2015.
PAGES/ILL: 390 pages.
SERIES: True Trilogy.
BOOK 1: True Fire.

PLOT: (Book 1: True Fire)
When Megan's village is destroyed by witches, she goes searching for her twin sister, believing her to be kidnapped. Together with new friends, she discovers that what she was taught about the witches and the history of her land is laden with secrets and falsehood, created by priests who will do anything to protect their power. As she uncovers the truth, she realises that her sister hides an even darker secret. Her sister is actually leading the witches (who, incidentally, don't use magic - at least, not in the first book), believing that her child, together with Megan's child, will lead the witches to rule the world.

REVIEW:
This story didn't grab me. The plot is ok. The writing is ok (but could be better). It has its moments, but overall, the story drags and character development feels forced at times. Megan has basically never held a sword in her life but all of a sudden is killing people left right and centre. I wouldn't recommend it, but a 15 year old might find it exciting. It is part of a trilogy, so perhaps the story gets better as it goes. I'm not going to waste my time to find out.

AGE: 14+.
GENRE: Fantasy.
RATING: 2 1/2 stars. It's average. Nothing brilliant.

Prince of Afghanistan (YA Fic)

AUTHOR: Louis Nowra (Aust)
PUBLISHED: Allen & Unwin ; 2015.
PAGES/ILL: 162 pages.

PLOT:
When a rescue mission goes horribly wrong, an Australian soldier and a dog must embark on a journey to safety. Working their way through rough terrain and enemy territory, they depend on each other to survive.

REVIEW:
Written in the first person, present tense, this is a story with strong themes of endurance and survival in war. The bond between man and dog grows stronger as their journey progresses, which touches the heart strings at times. It provides a small glimpse into one view of the war in Afghanistan. Themes include war, soldiers, dogs, survival and death as well as family relations (a mother's death) and drug use. It would be a book you could read aloud in a high school class with discussion of the themes.

AGE: 14+.
GENRE: Realistic fiction.
RATING: 4 1/2 stars.

Non-Fiction That Reads Like Fiction

Readitforward had a great little list of non-fiction that reads like fiction (Also known as narrative non-fiction). While these titles adult, not juvenile, I can see this list being gobbled up by older teens, especially those who are not really into science fiction or high fantasy.  (Of course, not all adult fiction is suitable for all young adults, so knowledge of the particular child and the particular title would help before recommending these books to teens willy nilly).

Titles include:

• The Devil in the White City by Erik Larson (The incredible events surrounding the 1893 Chicago World's Fair)
• In the Garden of Beasts by Erik Larson (Portrait of Berlin during the first years of Hitler's reign)
• Dead Wake by Erik Larson (Story of the sinking of the Lusitania)
• A Spy Among Friends by Ben Macintyre (Portrait of Kim Philby, the greatest spy in history, a brilliant and charming man who rose to head Britain’s counterintelligence against the Soviet Union during the height of the Cold War — while he was secretly working for the enemy)
• In Cold Blood by Truman Capote (Reconstructs the murder of four members of the Clutter family in Holcomb, Kansas, and the investigation that led to the capture, trial, and execution of the killers)
• Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil by John Berendt (About a murder at Savannah's grandest mansion, 1981
• Into the Wild by Jon Krakauer (Also made into a movie. About Christopher McCandless, who died in the Alaskan wilderness)
• The Hot Zone by Richard Preston (account of the first emergence of the Ebola virus)
• Behind the Beautiful Forevers by Katherine Boo (Story of families striving toward a better life in Mumbai)
• The Boys in the Boat by Daniel Brown (Story of the University of Washington’s 1936 eight-oar crew and their epic quest for an Olympic gold medal at the Berlin Olympics, 1936)
• The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot (Henrietta Lacks, as HeLa, is known to present-day scientists for her cells, taken without her knowledge, and used for developing the polio vaccine; uncovered secrets of cancer, viruses, and the atom bomb’s effects; helped lead to important advances like in vitro fertilization, cloning, and gene mapping; and have been bought and sold by the billions)
• Into Thin Air by Jon Krakauer (First-hand account of a fatal expedition up Mount Everest, 1996)
• Pilgrim's Wilderness by Tom Kizzia (True story of a modern-day homesteading family in the deepest reaches of the Alaskan wilderness)
• Black Count by Tom Reiss (Biography of General Thomas-Alexandre Dumas)
• Unbroken by Laura Hillenbrand (Made into a movie. Story of WW2)
• Two Lives by William Trevor (Made into a movie. Actually two books: Reading Turgenev, a lonely country girl escapes her loveless marriage in the arms of a bookish young man. In My House in Umbria, a former madam befriends the other survivors of a terrorist bombing)
• Liar, Temptress, Soldier, Spy: Four Women Undercover in the Civil War by Karen Abbott
• Columbine by Dave Cullen
• A Girl Named Zippy by Haven Kimmel (Memoir describes the childhood of the author who grew up in the 1960s in the small town of Mooreland, Indiana)
• The River of Doubt by Candace Millard. (An expedition is led by Teddy Roosevelt down an unexplored river to see if it connects to the Amazon)
• The Circus Fire by Stewart O'Nan (Account of tragedy and heroism-the great Hartford circus fire of 1944)

Other suggestions include:

• Scoop: Notes from a Small Ice Cream Shop by Jeff Miller
• The Demon in the Freezer by Richard Preston
• Five days at Memorial by Sheri Fink
• The Innocent Man by John Grisham
• Under the Banner of Heaven by John Krakauer
• Red Rover by Deirdre Mcnamer
• Dewey: the small town library cat who touched the world by Vicki Myron
• The Blooding by Joseph Wambaugh
• Two Lives by Vikram Seth
• The Warmth of Other Suns by Isabel Wilkerson
• In the Garden of Last Days by Andre Dubus III (About 9/11)
• Zeitoun by Dave Eggers
• Schindler's List by Thomas Keneally
• The World's Strongest Librarian by Josh Hanagarne
• The Professor and the Madman by Simon Winchester
• Confederates in the Attic by Tony Horowitz
• The Bounty, the true story of the mutiny on the bounty by Caroline Alexander
• Hot Art: Chasing Thieves and Detectives Through the Secret World of Stolen Art by Joshua Knelman
• Dial M: The Murder of Carol Thompson by William Swanson
• The Orchid Thief by Susan Orlean
• One Summer: America, 1927 by Bill Bryson
• The Devil's Highway by Luis Alberto Urrea
• A Civil Action Aug 27, 1996 by Jonathan Harr (True story behind the scenes of a civil action lawsuit against environmental pollution and big money)
• Chasing The Scream: The First and Last Days of the War on Drugs, by Johann Hari

The one that comes to my mind would be

• In Search of the Source by Neil Anderson (About missionaries in Papua New Guinea).

Series: Death & Co. (Fic)

AUTHOR: McCune, D.J. (Ireland)
PUBLISHED: Hot Key Books, c2013.
PAGES/ILL: 279 pages
SERIES: Frankie Death & Co.
FIRST BOOK: Death & Co.

PLOT:
Lumen are charged with guiding souls down their Light after death. Luman can move fairly freely between the real world and the Hinterland where they meet the souls. Adam belongs to a Luman family, but he's not sure he wants the job. He likes being 'normal' - having friends, going to schools, and beginning to date girls. But Adam has a special gift, and when he starts to embrace it, he realises he can change more than his own destiny. But not without a price...

REVIEW:
This is one of those books which, for the most part, I liked, but which didn't live up to potential. Some parts of the story I'd give a strong 4 stars. Other parts get a 2.
For the potential appeal to children, I give it 4 stars.

The premise of the plot (adapting the 'Ferryman' folklore) is great and it's such a pity that the author didn't do it justice. The target audience is supposed to be teen, but it reads more like a middle grade book.

I found Adam and his friends fairly juvenile. A sub-plot has Adam and his friends playing pranks on a head teacher, fooling and humiliating him. The story shows this teacher as a bully and dumb enough to fall for the pranks - a very juvenile idea. This sub-plot was not necessary and just took time away from the main story line (exploring the world of the Lumen). Sure, it introduced us to the 'normal' part of Adam's life, but it wasn't done particularly well. It felt too lower and middle grade (Captain Underpants-esque) compared to the other themes (you'd think a boy who has grown up with the responsibility of helping souls move on after death would have a little more maturity).

There were missed opportunities for character development and world-building. Children won't notice the lack of development so much, but it would have contributed making the book higher quality (obviously).

Overall, I did enjoy reading the book and will read the next one. Unfortunately, it could have been so much more (hopefully the next book/s will build a bit more guts into the story line).

I can see that it does have appeal for children (suitable age depends on the child). While it's promoted for YA, it's more pre-adolescent (9 or 10+), although you'd have to know the 9 y.o to know how much 'death' is ok for them (for example, in one scene Adam and his family are in the Hinterland, helping souls who have just been mass-executed in a military coup). It's for kids who have moved way beyond Diary of a Wimpy Kid/Captain Underpants, but are no where near ready for Hunger Games. It's about on par with the early Harry Potters or Skulduggery Pleasants.

AGE: 9-14.
GENRE: Fantasy fiction.
RATING: 3 1/2 - 4 stars.

My Brother's Secret (YA Fic)

AUTHOR: Dan Smith (UK)
PUBLISHED: London : Chicken House, c2014.

PLOT:
Germany, 1941. 12-year-old Karl Engel is looking forward to joining the Hitler Youth, like all boys his age.

But when his father is killed, and his family moves in with his grandparents, he discovers things that leave his faith in the Führer shaken. Everyone seems to know something he doesn't. When he joins his brother in rebellion, his life will never be the same.

REVIEW:
This book is very interesting (I read it on my lunch break over a week and it was very difficult to get back to work :) ), and could be recommended to reluctant readers and to tweens/teens interested in history. It could be included on the reading list when introducing WW2 - certainly it lends itself to further discussion about Germany and the war, and how it may have felt to be a German at that time.
I liked the progression of the main character (from a very naive and rather irritating boy to a character with courage and convictions) and the inclusion of factual information about the Edelweiss Pirates.

This book could be a class read-aloud with 6th or 7th graders.

Also in this vein (war): Boy in the Striped Pajamas or Then.


AGE: 12-15. While the actual reading level is around age 10 or 11, the topics require a little maturity if you want children to read this and understand the implications in the broader context of a complex real-life war.
GENRE: Realistic fiction / Historical fiction.
RATING: 4 - 4 1/2 stars.

Series: Monster Blood Tattoo (YA Fic)

AUTHOR: D.M. Cornish (Aust) PUBLISHED: 2008+
PAGES: ~600 pgs. SERIES: Monster Blood Tattoo
BOOKS: Foundling, Lamplighter, Factotum

PLOT (Lamplighter):
A young boy becomes an apprentice lamplighter: people charged with lighting the lamps lining the roads in order to keep people safe, and deter the monsters who live in the area. One night he witnesses a carriage attacked, and he forges an unsteady friendship with one of the occupants.

REIVEW:
The language is archaic and new vocabulary is added. Different names are given to known objects, tasks, etc, making it a difficult read, even for those who love to do so. Overall, the story drags. It is a very long book (599 pgs, not including appendices), and a tedious read.

Links to a website.

The Ranger's Apprentice is FAR better.

AGES: 11+
GENRE: Fantasy
RATING: 3 stars. It holds little appeal overall, but some may thoroughly enjoy it.

Series: Vampire Academy (YA Fic)

AUTHOR: Richelle Mead (USA) PUBLISHED: ~2008
SERIES: Vampire Academy
FIRST BOOK: Vampire Academy

PLOT:
The story is told through the eyes of Rose: a Dhampir - half vamipre, half human; guardians charged with protecting vampires. The first three books are set in high school, where the Dhampirs learn the art of guardianship and the vampires learn... school things. Other characters include Lissa, Rose's vampire best friend who brings her back from the dead, and Dimitri, another Dhampir, Rose's trainer, and the object of her love.

REVIEW:
With some twists on vampire lore, it's enjoyable if you can get past the "tortured teenager" threads (which, of course, will hook the target reader - the tortured teenage girl).

AGE: 13+. Some sex in the third book.
GENRE: Fantasy, Adventure
RATING: 4 1/2 stars

The Graveyard Book (Fic)

AUTHOR: Neil Gaiman (UK)
PUBLISHED: 2008

PLOT: As his family are being murdered, a toddler wanders into a graveyard. Pursued by the murderer, the ghosts of the graveyard are charged with his safekeeping, and there he is raised.
As he grows, he learns about the other ghosts in the graveyard, the dangers in and out of the graveyard, ghouls, witches, himself, and his would-be murderer.

REVIEW: A wonderfully-written story that can make you laugh and cry.  It has horror themes, and might be genuinely scary for some children, but these parts are quickly resolved, and any conflict always ends on a high note.

This would be an ideal read-aloud for 7th or 8th grade.

AGES: 11+ (I'd hesitate before recommending this to under 11s or 12s - it really depends on the child's maturity and what they have previously read. This book is perfect for high school reluctant readers, with enough appeal to engage adults).
GENRE: Horror
RATING: 6 stars!!

Series: The Bromeliad (Fic)

AUTHOR: Terry Pratchett (UK)
PUBLISHED: ~1998
SERIES: Bromeliad
BOOKS: A three-book series (Truckers, Diggers, Wings)

PLOT (Truckers):
A group of nomes (not Gnomes) are forced out of their hole in the ground and discover tribes of other nomes living in a store. When they discover the store is to be demolished, they make plans to leave, and thus begins the adventure.
Along the way, the nomes find out a lot about the world, humans, and themselves.

REVIEW:
BRILLIANT social commentary and satire on everything from why people wear name tags to the development of language, religion, and egocentricity. The knowledgeable child (or adult) will adore it.

AGES: From whenever reading ability allows it, but the satirical undertones will go over young children's heads. Probably from ages 11-12 will get the most out of it.
GENRE: Fantasy, Humour, Adventure
RATING: A strong 5 stars.

I am the Cheese

AUTHOR: Robert Cormier (Aust)

ISSUES: death, family, trust, running away, psychology.

PLOT/NOTES: Slightly disjointed (not chronological). A psychological thriller, with a twist at the end. Follows a young boy in two slightly separate stories; one in an interview with a psychologist in the third person; one a recount in the first person.

AGES: 13+ GENRE: Realistic Fiction, Thriller RATING: 4 1/2 stars

Boy In The Striped Pajamas

AUTHOR: John Boyne (Ireland) (2006)

NOTES: A perfect beginners introduction to the topic, and pertinent to any age child studying the 2nd World War, written from the perspective (and in the language) of a 9-year old boy. It also lends itself to discussion, as much of the detail is only alluded to (people falling down and not getting up, people disappearing after going on marches) and exact names are not used ("the Fury" and "Out-With"); a 9-y.o. reporting on something he doesn't fully understand.

ISSUES: friendship, family, the holocaust (death, starvation, etc).

PLOT: Written from the perspective of 9-year-old Bruno whose father is a commandant in the German army and assigned to work at a concentration camp, living in a house just outside the fence of the camp. Bruno ends up befriending a Jewish boy through the fence.

AGE: For ages 9-109, but intellectually and emotionally the child needs to be mature enough to process it.

GENRE: Historical Fiction. RATING: 5 stars

Harry Potter series

AUTHOR: JK Rawlings (UK)

ISSUES: friendship, trust, magic, good vs evil, family, 'coming-of-age', choices, shouldering responsibility, child-adult mentor relationships

NOTES: a 7-book series, together with movie versions. Incredibly well-written and detailed.

PLOT: A young boy who sees himself through the eyes of his aunt, uncle and cousin as a nobody discovers that he is actually a wizard, and a famous one at that. As the character develops through each book, we discover that he has been destined practically from birth to battle the most evil wizard the world has ever known.

AGE: Read-aloud from age 8 (depending on child's maturity and ability to handle elements of terror). Children can read for themselves from as young as their reading ability allows them (generally about 10). The increased length of the later books naturally attracts an older reader.

GENRE: Fantasy, with elements of sci-fi, horror, and supernatural. RATING: 6 (out of 5) stars!!!

The Sandman Library series (GN)

AUTHOR: Neil Gaiman (USA)

NOTES: A dark series comprising 10 volumes. Topics deal with death, sex, dreams, killing, legends, mysteries. Contains nudity and violence.

AGE: Recommended for mature readers only (not only because of the topics, but the language used is also fairly advanced). Young adult (15/16+).

GENRE: Graphic Novel, Fantasy, Horror, Thriller RATING: 5 stars.

We All Fall Down

AUTHOR: Robert Cormier (Australia).

ISSUES: teenage alcoholism, extreme vandalism (home invasion), assault, sexual attraction/first love, divorce, abduction, murder. Quite graphic at times. Not recommended as a read-aloud.

NOTE: it is on some schools' "banned book" list.

PLOT: A gang breaks into a house and vandalises it. When a young girl returns home unexpectedly, she is assaulted and pushed down stairs, going into a coma. The story follows her sister, and one of the vandals.

AGES: Recommended for highschoolers, ages 15+, for mature audiences only/parental guidance recommended.

GENRE: Thriller. RATING: 5 stars.