The Iron King

The Iron King by Julie Kagwa follows Meghan as she travels into the never never to rescue her brother. While there she encounters many creatures and the Faeries from A Midsummer Nights Dream. The book is exciting and Meghan is a very strong character who is tricky and smart and won't let anything stand in her way.

One of the best things that teen literature can do is to encourage teens to read more and to explore even more difficult literature in the same genre. This book uses the characters from A Midsummer Nights Dream without the reader needing to know anything about the story. This will hopefully encourage the readers to watch or read the classic that it borrows from (which would make their English teachers jump for joy).

Appropriateness: There is nothing in this book that will irritate parents. There is no sex, no drinking no drugs and no graphic violence.

A Touch Mortal

A Touch Mortal by Leah Clifford follows Eden a girl with a lot of power.  Eden is sitting on the beach when she meets Az, they fall in love in about three pages.  AZ is an Angel that is half fallen and he is friends with Gabiel an angel who works upstairs.   Az finds out from his friend Gabriel that Eden has no path and is destined to kill herself, that she will be a sider.  So Az and Gabriel work together to make Eden upset so she will kill herself.  When Eden wakes she finds herself in a strange house.  She finds out that she's a sider and has a touch that can cause others to kill themselves.  She is also able to kill other siders (who since had thought they were invincible and were all suicidal to start with) with a kiss.

Sound complicated?  Well the book is worse.  There are an excessive amount of characters, many who are important but do not show up often.  The mythology is strange and badly explained with lots of talk of upstairs and downstairs and siders which are never fully explained and it takes about half of the book for the reader to understand what is going on.  The two romances are very passionless and none of the characters are very likable.   

Appropriateness:  There is no drugs or alcohol or sex in this book.  However the book seems to glamorize suicide.  In the mythology that the author created suicide is looked upon as a path that one is destined to follow and two of the characters create a false tragedy to encourage Eden to kill herself.  All of the siders (who have powers) are people who committed suicide.  One of the characters talks about how romantic her suicide pact was.  The ability that Eden and the other siders have is spreading a touch, the touch compels people to be extremely depressed and suicidal, one of the characters watches as someone she touched jumps from a bridge while others make bets over if he'll do it or not.  I'd be sure to talk about suicide with a child who reads this book.  The book is not good enough that a teen is going to fall in love with any of the characters and want to be like them but a talk can't hurt.  I would put the interest level as 14+

If you're looking for a book about Angels I suggest Unearthly (Unearthly - Trilogy) or Halo  If you would like a book about fallen angels I suggest Fallen or Hush, Hush.  All are much better than this book.  I will give it two stars because I was interested enough to finish the book.

Review copy obtained from Amazon Vine

The Iron Witch

The Iron Witch by Karen Mahoney follows Donna who has hands that are laced with iron giving her extra strength.  Donna whose father died while saving her from wood elves and whose mother is insane has been dealing with the alchemist world alone and unable to tell anyone when her best friend Navin finds out about the world.  She also meets Xan a half breed fairy who helps her find Navin when he is kidnapped by the wood elves.


This book suffered from too much world building and introduction.  It takes half the book before anything major happens and much of what we are told is unnecessary for the plot, I'm not sure if the author was setting everything up for the trilogy but it made for a very slow read.  About three quarters of the way through the plot sped up and it became more interesting.  The book ended nicely with room for a sequel.


Appropriateness:  There are some vague drug references that I missed on my first read though.  The main character is in her late teens.  I would place the interest level at 13+ and I would only recommend this book for hard core fairy fans.

PaperToy Monsters

PaperToy Monsters is a book full of punch out paper monsters that can be assembled with nothing but glue.  Each monster has two pages, one glossy page with a picture and instructions and the cardstock page with the monsters that is perforated and ready to punch out.  There are four sections of monsters:  Monster Legends, Earth Ocean and Space Monsters, Mutant Food and Thing Monsters, and Human Monsters.  There is also a nice paragraph describing each monster's story and a set of templates in the back of the book so you can design your own monster.  The PaperToys come in Intermediate, Easy and Advanced difficulty and I was able to complete both an intermediate and an easy monster without much trouble and I'm one of the least crafty people ever.  It was a lot of fun.

My first two monsters:

Appropriateness:
 I would recommend this book for kids ages ten and up (although younger kids will be able to help and play with the monsters).  Any younger and the parent will end up doing most of the work.  How to books are great for kids to work on reading carefully and following directions.

The False Princess

The False Princess follows Sinda, a girl who is kicked out of the castle after it is revealed that she is not really a princess but a girl taken from her family to take the princesses place because of a prophecy that the princess would be murdered before her sixteenth birthday.  Sinda returns to live with her aunt who is not happy to have her there and then moves by herself to the city where she must solve a mystery with the help of her best friend Kiernan.

This is a delightful fairy tale of a story.  The author does a fantastic job of building a world full of magic and royalty that readers will enjoy.  The plot developed slowly but in a way that allowed readers to become invested in the character and the romance.  Sinda starts off as a fairly spineless girl who doesn't make a bit of a fuss when she is forced to leave her life and everything she knows.  She slowly grows as a character and becomes strong both physically and mentally and is able to stick up for not only herself but those that she feels have been wronged.

Appropriateness:  This is a delightful book that will be enjoyed by readers of all ages.  The romance involves just a bit of kissing and there is no substance abuse.  There is a bit of magical violence but not enough to scare even the youngest of readers.  I would recommend this to readers aged 10 and up (with the main audience being middle school girls) with it being appropriate for younger advanced readers who can handle the length or who are listening to the audio book.

Sugar and Ice

Sugar and Ice by Kate Messner follows thirteen year old Claire as she receives a scholarship to work with a prestigious figure skating coach.  Claire, thrust into this high stress environment has to learn to deal with a crew of backstabbing girls and trying to figure out a way to balance her new schedule with the rest of her life.

Messner does a fantastic job with creating a world that readers can get lost in.  Claire's love of skating and her fight for confidence makes her a character that girls can relate to.  She has a great relationship with her parents and is understanding of their needs.  It is refreshing to see an author paint a young character that has such a healthy understanding of their parents financial and time constraints.   

Appropriateness: This book has no objectionable content.  The book was much more complex than I would expect for the recommended age.  The main character is thirteen and her story is not simple and silly.  While I think nine and ten year olds would enjoy this book I think it would be more appreciated by a middle school aged audience of 11-14 than the 9-12 that the publisher recommends.

Lily of the Nile

Lily of the Nile by Stephanie Dray is a fictionalized account of Cleopatra's daughter Selene.  When Cleopatra kills herself Selene is taken to Rome to live with the emperor.  Selene faces religious persecution and sexism as she enters her new life and grows from a young girl to a powerful woman.

This isn't the type of book I usually read and honestly I bought it because the cover was pretty and it sat on my shelf for a while before I got started.  It is a fantastic story.  This is the type of novel that makes one want to do some research.  The author did a fantastic job with characterization and managed to keep the book moving throughout.  Selene was in her teens during the time of the book and the issues she faces are interesting and the themes of feminism and religious freedom are ones that young people can be passionate about. 

Appropriateness:  This book was marketed as an adult novel with crossover appeal for the young adult audience.  It was a more difficult read than most young adult novels (but not as difficult as anything you'd read in a high school literature class) but I think it certainly could appeal to high school readers.    This would be a great mother daughter read and the discussion questions at the end of the book would be great book club starters.  There isn't anything in this book that would disturb a young adult.  There are some big historical issues (mistreatment of slaves, whippings) but nothing that would be a problem for anyone who had the desire to get through the book.  It is a little slower than most YA books (there is no frantic plot or angsty romance) as it is a fictionalized biography.

Positively

Positively by Courtney Schiinmmel tells the story of Emmy a young HIV positive girl whose mother has just died of AIDS.  The first half of the book follows Emmy trying to deal with her mothers death and her subsequent move into her father and pregnant stepmother's house.  Emmy is angry and depressed and destructive because she is so hurt, then her parents send her to a camp for girls with HIV.  Emmy is upset to have been sent away to camp but it ultimately ends up being a great help and comfort to her.

Positively does a fantastic job of creating a engrossing story around a difficult topic without turning into a cookie cutter lifetime movie like story.  When Emmy is lashing out and acting destructively the reader can see how much she is hurting.  Her journey is presented in to educate young people to the daily struggle that HIV positive kids have while also presenting the readers with engaging characters and an interesting plot.

Appropriateness:  There is nothing inappropriate at all in this novel.  Emmy is thirteen so I'd put the interest level to be middle school age with it not being inappropriate for even younger readers.  There is educational information about how HIV is transmitted as part of the plot and parts of the book are sad but not to the point where they would be traumatic.  I would of course recommend that parents use this as an opening to discuss HIV (and perhaps even other STD's) with your child.  The lexile is 670 putting it around a fourth grade level.

Keep Sweet

Keep Sweet tells the story of Alva Jane, a girl who is initially happy with her polygamist life as she faces the realities of her community.  The author tells a very realistic tale of life for a girl in a FDLS community with a character that middle school girls can relate too.  The book opens with a happy girl, her fathers favorite, who has the same hopes and dreams that all girls have.  Alva likes math and she's got a crush on a boy who likes her back. When she's caught giving the boy a kiss her world falls apart and she's assigned to marry her creepy abusive uncle she realizes she has to escape.

Appropriateness:  While this book is clearly written for a middle school audience there is some very adult content in this book that might disturb some young readers and parents.  There is a graphic and disturbing rape scene where the act is described (it's not as much as you'd see in a book for older teens but there is a description of the act).  A supporting character is very badly beaten and Alva herself is beaten and tortured.  While I do not think the book is inappropriate at all for the intended middle grade audience these scenes could be upsetting for some readers.  It is a powerful book and the horrors will speak to the young audience and encourage them to learn more about the topic.  The lexile is 930 putting it at a mid sixth grade level.

Review copy received from Amazon Vine

Dragonsdale

Dragonsdale by Salamanda Drake follows Cara, a girl who lives on a dragon farm.  Cara's mom died while flying a dragon so Cara's father has forbidden her to ride.  It is a nice combination of a dragon and a horse story.  You can read a longer summary here.

My daughter picked this one up at our local book fair and I wasn't thrilled.  The cover is very pretty and fancy and it was about dragons (the book she was reading at the time was also about dragons) and she thought it looked terrific.  However, this  book is huge (almost three hundred pages and the print is not large) and it was signifigantly more difficult than the usual things she reads.  I reminded her several times that she could quit if she wanted (it took her about a month to finish) and she had several other books she could read instead and she refused each time.  Even though this was a very long book with difficult vocabulary she was so interested in the story that she would not stop reading.  That tells me that this is an excellent book.  


Scholastic states the reading level for this book at 5.6 and a lexile at 900 (compare that with the young adult books I review!).  The book uses difficult vocabulary words but does a fantastic job of putting them in context so that young readers can figure out what they mean and there are pictures to help the reader visualize Cara's fantasy world.  I would recommend this book to upper elementary school students and to young advanced readers.  It would also be an excellent read aloud for younger kids who will enjoy Cara's story.

Insatiable

Insatiable by Meg Cabot follows Meena, an independent young woman who loves her job writing for the soap opera Insatiable. She hates vampires and is not happy when her boss tells her that she is going to have to write one into the storyline of her soap. Later while taking her dog for a walk she is attacked by a horde of bats and is protected by a handsome stranger. When she meets him later at a dinner party held by her neighbor she falls instantly for him. After their lovely night together she finds that he's a vampire and all the hi-jinks start happening.

Insatiable is different than Cabot's previous adult fiction. While it is about a young woman who knows what she wants it's missing much of the humor that I've come to expect from Cabot. It is much darker than one would expect from Cabot. It's more than just a fun love story. It is a fantastic paranormal fantasy and it's a different take on the vampire craze and will introduce a new set of fans to Cabot's work.

Appropriateness:  This is an adult book but it is written by Meg Cabot who is one of the best young adult authors.  For the parents of Cabots young adult fans who are unsure if this novel is appropriate for their child this book has some sex and violence but nothing excessive or different than you'd find in most of the popular young adult vampire series that are geared towards older teens.  

The Hate List

The Hate List follows Valerie deal with the aftermath of a school shooting caused by her boyfriend.  Valerie, who was extensively bullied, had a notebook in which she and her boyfriend wrote down the name of anyone that insulted or irritated or hurt them which she called the hate list.  Little did she know that her boyfriend would take that list and use it to shoot students at their school.  The novel follows her (in flashbacks, newspaper articles and in the present) as she deals with the aftermath of her boyfriends actions, his death, difficult experiences at school and tries to pull her life back together. 

The Hate List is very well written and engrossing.  It is thought provoking and asks many questions of the reader and the ending is very emotionally draining.  It would be excellent for reading groups and almost demands discussion as to the many issues that the characters face.  The author is brave enough not to wrap everything up in a pretty little bow and make everything turn out all right at the end and that adds to the brilliance of the novel.

Appropriateness:  The book contains many sensitive issues.  There is suicide, self injury, bullying, substance abuse, violence and sexual assault.  It can be a very difficult read even for adults and can be very upsetting.  If your younger teen wants to read the book I would encourage them to talk to you about the different issues that the characters face and what different decisions each could make and how they could have changed the outcome by their actions.  I would gauge the interest level as 13+ .  Scholastic lists the reading level as 5.6 with a lexile of 760.

Sun and Moon, Ice and Snow

Sun and Moon, Ice and Snow by Jessica Day George is a beautiful retelling of the Norwegian folk tale East of the Sun and West of the Moon.  An ice filled fairytale of a girl who lives in an ice castle with a polar bear and has to fight the troll queen.

This is a beautiful retelling that fills in the holes in the original story. I was unfamiliar with the fairy tale when I read this book and fell in love.  The princess is smart and crafty and strong and has to save her prince from the evil troll queen.

Appropriateness:  This is a book that will speak to all ages.  The content is G rated (the prince does sleep on the other side of the bed with the girl but it is innocent) and the tale is so sweet that I checked to see if they had the audio version at the library for my six year old daughter to listen to.  On the other hand when my English teacher father was here for Christmas he read the book and declared that he enjoyed it very much (which is a lot for him).    The lexile is 810 which puts it at a mid fifth grade level which is perfect for middle school readers and the content makes it acceptable for upper elementary school advanced readers who would like a little romance (and a strong princess for once!).

Zombiekins

Zombiekins by Kevin Bolger follows Stanley who finds a zombie stuffed animal.  When Stanley takes Zombiekins to school and it bites the school bully and a bunch of kindergartners are bitten Stanley and his friends have to figure out how to save the school.

My daughter loved this book so much that she drew pictures of Zombiekins for weeks.  She was excited to tell me what happened next and thought it was hysterical.  The pictures are funny and well drawn and make the book perfect for kids who are reluctant readers or for younger advanced readers. It's much more funny than scary and is great for young readers who want to read "scary" books like their older brothers or sisters.

Zombiekins is written on a middle-fifth grade reading level (but has plenty of pictures to make it accessible).  I sent it to my cousin who hates to read and he was so excited that he jumped up and down.  This is a great book for reluctant readers and for younger advanced readers.  I can't stress how wonderful this book is or how much your kids will love it.

Across the Universe

Across the Universe by Beth Revis follows Amy a young girl unexpectedly awakened from her cryogenic chamber aboard a space ship and Elder, a boy who is destined to lead the next generation aboard the ship.  Elder is slowly learning the truth about their mission when he stumbles upon a room full of small doors.  He opens one and sees Amy.  He rushes away and hears an alarm and finds Amy waking up.  When Amy wakes up she is disturbed to still be on the ship.  Others on the ship find her hair and skin color strange and she is disturbed by all the changes that have happened while she has been sleeping.  As Amy and Elder start to find out the truth in the secrets of the ships operations and why everyone else acts so strangely they also must solve the mystery of who awoke Amy and who tried to kill others in the cryo-chambers.  

This book fits into lots of categories.  It's a dystopian, science fiction, murder mystery with a hint of romance.  The society that Revis has created is creepy and she provides good explanations as to why the leaders have insisted on using such extreme means of maintaining control and having one of the main characters be a leader who is willing and able to make changes to society is refreshing.  The book is short on action but perfect for readers who enjoy science fiction or dystopia.  I found it to be a quick read and I was very interested in what would happen next as we learned the secrets of what was really going on behind the scenes.

Appropriateness:  This one is difficult.  Starting with the easy part, there are no drugs or alcohol or graphic violence.  However, not unlike other recent books in this genre such as Dark Parties, XVI, Matched and Birthmarked government control over sex and procreation is a major theme in the book.  The workers on the ship are all born at certain times and procreate by having a season in which members of that generation have sex everywhere.  These giant orgies (which are described as bodies thumping and groups of people writhing on the stairs and in fields) make Amy very uncomfortable.  At one point she is seconds from being gang raped by a group of men (to which a girl next to them shouts "don't worry, it only hurts the first time).  While I wasn't bothered by the orgies (much because Amy finds them gross) the near gang rape was disturbing and there was little emotional consequence to the near rape and Amy is able to go around trying to figure out what the problems are on the ship like she'd just gotten in a little tussle.  Because of that section alone I'm not sure that I would give this book to a middle school aged reader.  However, there is nothing erotic in the public sex descriptions and the near rape wasn't horrific to read which does make it readable for mature readers in that age group and a parental discussion of the entire subject would certainly make the whole situation sit easier with young readers.  I would put an interest level of 13+ on this novel and I feel that boys would find it equally enjoyable as girls would.

Trapped

Trapped by Michael Northrop follows a group of seven kids as they are stuck inside their school during a massive snow storm.  At first the kids treat the experience like a sleepover, but as the electricity goes out, the pipes freeze and the roof starts to shudder the teens face many difficult decisions.

Trapped is a engrossing adventure novel that teens will enjoy.  It is a very fast read that even reluctant readers will feel compelled to finish.  The author does a fantastic job creating realistic characters that will speak to teen readers (epically the boys). 

Appropriateness:  This isn't a book that parents will find upsetting.  While there are some gross jokes and gross topics the book is sex and drug free.  The romances that do develop are short and uneventful.  I would gauge the interest level at 12 and up and it is a book that will be of special interest to boys.  The lexile score is 740 putting it at a sixth or seventh grade reading level.

Sophie The Awesome

Sophie the awesome follows Sophie as she decides that she needs a new name and she picks Sophie The Awesome.  She tries all sorts of things so that she can become Sophie The Awesome with little success.

This book is the first in a series that my daughter loves.  She is excited to read each book and jumped with excitement when the last book in the series arrived in the mail.

These books are written at a beginning third grade level and are perfect for youngsters who are just starting chapter books.  

The Darlings Are Forever

The Darlings are Forever by Melissa Kantor follows three best friends as they have to separate for the first time as they attend different high schools and face different problems.  Jane is a talented actress attending a performing arts high school dealing with the pressures of being the only freshman in the big school play.  Victoria is the daughter of a senate hopeful who is looking to find an identity and a voice in her life.  Natalya is a genius who has won a scholarship to a very exclusive private school where she has to deal with being true to herself or molding herself to fit in with others.  The girls face tests to their friendship but ultimately realize that their friendship is forever. 

 This book is very well written quick read that pre-teens girls will enjoy.  The author follows a different girl in each chapter and ends with a minor cliff hanger that leaves the reader wanting more.  Each girls plot was interesting and they merged into a full story very well.

Appropriateness:   This is a delightful book that is perfect for the female middle school audience.  The girls are written realistically and their problems are not wild and crazy and unrealistic.  There is a very sweet romance that is a nice addition to the story but this book is ultimately about friendship and about making the right choices.  The girls are nice and good role models.  While they do not always make the best decisions they don't make any horrible decisions and they are honest and true to themselves.  Except for an incident where one of the girls puts a condom on a banana (as a learning exercise) there is no behavior that would trouble parents of even the youngest readers.  I would rank the interest level at 11+ 

The Princess Diaries

The princess diaries is a great middle grade series by Meg Cabot.  The series follows Mia from the beginning of high school through her high school graduation.  While the idea is the same as the Disney movie the books follow a different path and are a great coming of age story.

In the start of the series Mia finds out that she's the princess of a very small European country and her mother starts dating her geometry teacher.  Throughout the series she tackles many of the same problems as your average teenager.  She has her first kiss, she obsesses about sex and who is having it, fights with her friends, has boy problems, she tries to find what she is good at, she is bullied and she has to come to terms with her Mom dating her geometry teacher.  She also has to take princess lessons from her crazy Grandmother (who is nothing like Julie Andrews) and deal with the stresses of being a teacher.

Appropriateness:  Meg Cabot approaches the topic of sex in this book (as well as most of her other YA books) in a very healthy manner.  Mia (like other girls her age) obsesses about sex and has grand ideas of how perfect her first time will be (which she imagines to be on prom night) and has all kinds of opinions when she finds out her friends are not virgins anymore.  Mia is also extremely knowledgeable about birth control and believes that in order to have sex she needs to be older, protected and in love.  Mia is a caring responsible girl who while not being perfect is someone that a young girl can look up to.

Scholastic lists the reading level as 6.2 and the series is appropriate for and will be enjoyed by the middle and high school YA audience.  I would have no problem giving the books to a high achieving fourth grader (provided they've had the sex talk).

Vampire Crush

Holly is excited about the new school year and a chance to be the editor of her school paper when she is assigned to interview a set of strange new students that have arrived at her high school. Their strange behavior and the appearance of her (surprisingly cute) childhood neighbor that has moved back to town who is also acting strangely causes her to become suspicious.

The story is a humorous one, and Holly has a great sense of humor and there are several comedic moments such as Holly arming herself with a wooden spoon after running through the school cafeteria, the principal starting the new school year with a ban on pointy shoes and a character who carries a hamster in his pocket.

Vampire Crush is a great vampire book for the younger middle grade set. The story while excessively predictable is one that will be enjoyed by readers that are not old enough for the more mature YA vampire novels and as a plus the book contains some advanced vocabulary which will make their English teachers happy. The romance is sweet and the sexual content is limited to a kiss or two. There aren't any adult themes that are explored in the book although it's humor will speak to older readers.

Review copy provided by Amazon Vine

Unearthly

Unearthly follows Clara, a teenage angel, as she moves to Wyoming to find her Angelic purpose, rescuing a popular boy named Christian.  Clara's friends consist of another teenage angel named Angela whose research has given her more knowledge on their kind than Clara's mother has and Wendy whose brother Tucker becomes very important in Clara's life.

I greatly enjoyed this newcomer in the YA paranormal romance Genre.  The mystery and mythology was well thought out and interesting.  Clara's mother is half blood angel making her only a quarter blood.  The romance was surprising and healthy (as opposed to the obsessive relationships that are commonplace in YA) and the mountain setting made for a beautiful backdrop.  The ending was final enough to be satisfying but the mythology and mystery leaves the reader excited for the next book in the trilogy. 

Appropriateness:  The heroine is the type of girl that you would like your daughters to be strong, smart and confident.  There is one short scene involving teenage drinking at a party (Clara accepts a mixed drink at a party but does not get drunk) and there is no sexual content outside kissing or any mentions of drug use and the relationships are normal and healthy.  The book is appropriate for the entire YA audience.

This book will be enjoyed by readers who enjoyed Halo and Hush, Hush.

Review Copy received from Amazon Vine.

2011 Debut Author Challenge

I will be participating in the Story Siren's 2011 Debut author challenge and try to read at least 12 YA books by new authors.

Sounds like fun!