Unseen Companion

by Denise Gosliner Orenstein

     About a quarter of the way into the book, I saw that it had been written by a professor, which made a lot of sense.  This book is "high quality literary material," with symbolism and creative descriptions galore.  One motif is space, often connected to the theme of loneliness, which is perfect for the historical setting in 1969.  Volcanoes and eruptions are also used to symbolize the reason that a Native student, Dove, attacks his teacher in class one day.  His foil, Edgar's friend John Moran, commits suicide.

     The four narrators have distinctive, strong voices.  Lorraine Hobbs, the most prevalent narrator, is a teenaged girl excessively concerned with her appearance.  Her blue collar, irrepressible mother talks her into cooking for the local prison, then the Bethel receiving home.  As a dynamic character, her experiences bonding with the receiving home children and searching for Dove Alexie teach her to care more about others and less about herself.
     Annette Weinland is the 18-year-old daughter of a demanding minister who sees nothing but the faults and shortcomings of other people.  Annette cooks, runs the household, and raises her four younger brothers after their mother leaves the family.  She also volunteers at the local prison, where Dove Alexie is illegally incarcerated.  Edgar Kwagley is a Yup'ik boy who loses his way at Mt. Edgecombe High School and becomes addicted to drugs and alcohol.  Thelma Cooke, a 14-year-old girl at Mt. Edgecombe, longs for her young sister Rosie at the receiving home.  She is raped by her guidance counselor, becomes depressed, and refuses to get out of bed, but when she hears about how Dove stood up to the teacher, she slowly begins to heal.

white girl

by Sylvia Olsen

     Josie Jessop's life takes a 90-degree turn when her mother marries Martin, an Indian (his term for himself), and they move to the reservation.  Rose befriends Josie, but the pair have their own difficulties learning to accept one another as members of different cultures.  Josie eventually comes to love her new father and brother, Luke, who helps her when she faces serious bullying from Christy and Mary Ann.  She even finds a boyfriend, Zeb.  

    One day, Martin cleans out the room in the basement that has been closed ever since his seventeen-year-old sister committed suicide there.  Zeb tells Josie that Indians have a higher rate of suicide than anyone in the country.

     For me, one of the best parts of the book was the section where Josie reflected on her experiences and realized that even though she thought she was unprejudiced, she still had prejudiced ways of thinking.  Only by experience could she really become unprejudiced.

     I believe this is an outstanding book because it is realistic.  Olsen bluntly yet sensitively addresses important issues in the context of both society and interpersonal relationships.  I'd hesitate to use the book with grade schoolers due to certain scenes with Zeb.  There is nothing excessively graphic, but it would not be age-appropriate.  I think older or more mature high schoolers would benefit from it.

three black swans

by Caroline B. Cooney

I loved Code Orange.  This book, in my opinion, didn't meet that standard.  I will admit that I generally prefer action to exploration of feelings.  The introduction was everything I hoped for, but the following events didn't keep the reader in suspense.  Also, I thought the fact that one twin is usually smaller than the other is common knowledge, even for sixteen-year-olds.  The exploration of feelings about adoption had its place, but became redundant at times.  

A concise version of the book:

• Missy suspects her cousin Claire is actually her identical twin.
• Missy convinces Claire to appear on her school TV as part of a "hoax" introducing her twin.
• The video goes viral, and Genevieve discovers that she also looks like the girls.
• The triplets' birth mother is Genevieve's mother, Allegra.  She and Genevieve's father, Ned, gave Genevieve little attention since they didn't really want to have children.  Instead, Genevieve received love from her beloved grandmother "GeeGee," whom she was named after.
• The triplets meet one another and will doubtless see each other in the future.  Genevieve decides to stay with her parents, despite their many imperfections.

     An interesting aspect of the book is Allegra's observation that no one would have judged her for having an abortion, yet everyone will judge her for giving up two children for adoption.  The book describes how she didn't even look at the third baby who was born and never visited Missy in the NICU, even though she was near death.  Combined with the description of Allegra and Ned's materialistic lifestyle and unloving parenting, the couple is painted as generally unlikable.  How would most media portray a woman with "unwanted" children?

The High King

by Lloyd Alexander

     Arawn steals Dyrnwyn from Gwydion by appearing as Taran, calling our for help in the midst of a battle, Gwydion sets off with the companions to regain the powerful sword, despite an ominous prophecy from Hen Wen.  Gwydion, Taran, Coll, and Gurgi enter the hall of King Smoit, only to discover that it has been captured by Magg.  He throws them in a store room with Smoit as captives.  Fflewddur, Eilonwy, Rhun, and their unwilling assistants, Glew (the former giant) and Gwystyl (one of the Fair Folk on his way to report to King Eiddileg) launch a rescue operation, which goes awry but is saved by Prince Rhun.  Unfortunately, he dies in the process of saving everyone.  

     Nevertheless, Gwydion and Taran rush to rally Prydain for the final face-off against Arawn Death-Lord.  Taran is assigned to recruit the Commot folk.  He engages in battle with a band of raiders and defeats them, but then discovers that they burned Merin and killed the villagers, including Annlaw Clay-Shaper.  

     At Caer Dathyl, the companions meet the Chief Bard, Taliesin, who shows them the Hall of Lore.  King Pryderi arrives with his army, but rather than joining the coalition, he turns traitor and prepares for battle.  The coalition is winning until Pryderi's army is reinforced by the arrival of the deathless Cauldron-Born.  King Math dies as Caer Dathyl falls; even so, hope is not lost.  The coalition must race to attack Annuvin before the Cauldron-Born return.  Gwydion, now the High King, takes the main force to the ships that the Sons of Don used to sail from the Summer Country.  Taran leads a smaller force to attempt to hinder the Cauldron-Born as they travel by land.

     As Taran's force delays the Cauldron-Born, Coll dies in battle.  Along the way, they are aided by the bears and wolves, as well as a group of Fair Folk led by Doli.  When they come upon a group of Huntsmen one night, Doli proposes that they cut down trees, pile them on a frozen lake that feeds a waterfall, and burn them to release the water on the ravine of Huntsmen.

     During the final battle for Annuvin, Taran discovers Dyrnwyn atop Mount Dragon as he takes on the Cauldron-Born.  When he thrusts Dyrnwyn into one of them, they are all killed.

     After the companions return to Caer Dallben, Gwydion informs them that all the Sons of Don must now depart from Prydain, along with all magic.  Taran decides to stay and help rebuild Prydain.  He will have the help of the secret knowledge once stolen by Arawn, which was recovered by Gurgi. During the night, Orddu, Orwen, and Orgoch appear to him as three beautiful women to give him their weaving, which is the unfinished tapestry of his life. Eilonwy mourns the fact she must leave only because she is an enchantress, Dallben informs her she can stay if she uses her ring to wish away her powers, which she cheerfully does.

The Grave Robber's Apprentice

Allan Stratton

     To begin on a positive note, this photograph contains, in my humble opinion, the best part of the book.  Overall, I was not impressed with this book.  My main problem is that the narrator has an adult voice, telling a children's story.  Rather than being a part of a wild world of fantasy, the narrator is an adult telling an unrealistic story.  The world is not real to him; therefore, it isn't real for me as a reader.  Maybe it would come across differently for children; on the other hand, the intended audience is definitely older students.  On the inside cover, it says "ages 10 up."  There are many morbidly graphic events, like the Weevils taking the Necromancer to be dissected while alive.  

     There were a plethora of Shakespeare allusions and rather direct references, as well as some almost word-for-word biblical quotations.  These quotations were mainly used to parallel Peter the Hermit with God.  When Gabriela and Hans wake up, expecting to be frozen to death, Hans asks Peter if he is God.  On p. 247, Peter says to Hans, "I made you a promise: 'Wherever you are, fear not, for I am with you.'"  On p.248, Peter says of Hans, "Behold, this is my beloved son, in whom I am well pleased."  When Angela and her parents are to be burned at the stake, with Angela in the middle, it would not surprise me if this is an analogy to the crucifixion.  One could probably make a fair case for Hans being paralleled with Christ:  He sets out to fulfill the three prophecies, including "rising" out of a stone coffin.  While Biblical allusions are certainly not excluded to writing that approves of Christianity, I can understand it in the context of quality literature.  In the context of this story, the religious references just seem needless and disrespectful.  On the other hand, this could be an easy tool for teaching students to identify Biblical allusions.

    

Taran Wanderer

By Lloyd Alexander

     In my opinion, this is the best book of the series so far because, as the author promises, fantasy tells us much about our lives.  This may be the most obvious bildungsroman that I have read, in which Taran becomes Taran Wanderer instead of Taran, Assistant Pig-Keeper.
     Taran sets off with the loyal Gurgi to find his identity and parentage.  His first stop is the Marshes of Morva, where Orddu, Orwen, and Orgoch send him off to find the Mirror of Llunet and discover his parentage.  His horse is stolen by a traveling band of Lord Goryon's men, but he wins her back by letting the proud lord claim he is too good to keep a pig-keeper's nag.  He travels on to Lord Gast's Hall, where he meets up with his old friend Fflewddur.  Gast claims to be extremely generous, but feeds him only a poor meal.  Taran helps King Smoit settle a feud over a cow between Gast and Goryon, saving Smoit's life in the process.  He suggests that a farmer, whose fields were destroyed by the feud, keep the prize cow.  She always has twins, so when they are born, the farmer will give one twin to each Lord.
     Llyan, Fflewddur's giant cat, finds a dying frog that happens to be their (formerly) dwarf friend Doli.  The group defeats Morda, the wizard who has turned Doli into a frog with his newly discovered power to kill the previously invulnerable Fair Folk.  Along the way, Taran discovers that this wizard also killed his beloved Princess Eilonwy's mother.
     Taran duels with Dorath, the leader of a band of thieves and mercenaries, and loses his sword.  The group meets a herdsman named Craddoc and stays with him at his rundown cottage high in the mountains.  He claims to be Taran's long lost father, so Taran stays to help him ready the land and cottage for winter.  Craddoc later falls down a rocky slope and dies, first revealing that he lied about Taran being his son.
     Taran decides against seeking the mirror, instead determining to make his own way rather than find his identity in his lineage.  He apprentices himself briefly to a blacksmith, weaver, and potter.  None of these trades, however, is his calling.  He defends a village against Dorath's band, with Gurgi riding a bull to help with the defense.  Annlaw, the wise potter, advises Taran to seek the Mirror of Llunet to be able to see himself for who he truly is.   He looks into the Mirror before it is destroyed by Dorath, whom he duels once again.  In the end, his former sword breaks on the sword that he forged himself with the blacksmith.

Flame

By Hilari Bell

This is the first book in the Farsala/Sorahb trilogy.  The best feature of the book is that it combines the perspectives of two different sides during the war...even if they come together at the end.  Each chapter follows one of three characters:

• Soraya:  A spoiled deghass (female member of the upper class), she is sent into hiding because the temple priests have demanded that her father sacrifice her.  Her father, High Commander Merahb, negotiates to have her "sacrificed" by exposure, then has his men take her to a remote cabin to live with a peasant family.  While there, she befriends a Suud tribe and begins to learn to talk with the spirits of objects in nature, such as fire.
• Jiaan:  Soraya's half brother.  Against custom, he is allowed to serve as a page rather than a servant.  He is trusted with the task of taking Soraya to the cabin.  In the battle against the invading Hrum, he is surprisingly chosen as the standard bearer after almost stopping 21 Hrum who were meeting with a traitor.  He eventually realizes that the traitor was Kavi.
• Kavi:  A peasant who began as an apprentice to a metalworker.  He was forced to become a peddler when he tried to prevent a deghan from taking the best sword from the shop, ending in a cut that crippled his hand.  He begins the story selling fake gold.  Commander Merahb catches him and offers to allow him to supply Soraya instead of turning him over to the magistrates.  He is later captured by a Hrum band and bargains for his life by becoming a spy.  At the end of the book, he vows to prevent the Hrum from keeping his people as slaves.

Throughout the book, the chronicle of a legendary soldier, Rostam, is traced.  He falls in love and spends one night with a lady, Tahmina.  Her father picks a quarrel with him and he is forced to leave, though he leaves behind a gold amulet.  Her family moves to Kadesh and, to appease Tahmina's father, the child (Sorahb) is raised with the belief that his father was killed by warriors of Farsala.  Sorahb eventually duels his own father in battle for three days, but is eventually killed.  When Rostam tries unsuccessfully to save the life of his worthy opponent, he sees the amulet and grieves so deeply that the god Azura promises that when Farsala needs him, he will give back Sorahb's life.

Redeemed: An MPH Climax

The Conclusion to the Missing Series 

by Margaret Peterson Haddix

This book made me wish I could better remember the details of previous books...it is helpful to the reader that it is narrated by someone else clueless about Jonah and Katherine's adventures, but maddening nevertheless when you know that the information is somewhere in your brain.
     Jordan has a chip on his shoulder when he suddenly needs to adjust to a new brother, and a twin at that...a twin whom everyone seems to respect.  When he tries to get in on the action, he ends up taking everyone to a futuristic lab, where they are met by Second, a projectionist who betrayed JB and is considered by Jonah and Katherine as their worst enemy.  They escape to a time hollow, but are followed by Second, who makes their teen-aged parents disappear.  Jordan, Katherine, and Jonah return to the lab, where they end up being interrogated by three Interchronological Rescue employees.  In an effort to be unpredictable, they go to the CEO of Interchronological Rescue, Curtis Rathbone.
     He gives them an Elucidator that sends them back to the night of the initial plane landing.  They see "Kevin" climbing the airport fence, then fall.  When they go to check on him, he steals the Elucidator and they see that it is a young Second. They are brought back to the lab by "Deep Voice," who is actually working with Doreen and "Tattoo Face" against Mr. Rathbone.  Second appears with Mr. Rathbone, un-aged to a baby, and he sends him and Jordan's siblings to separate time hollows.  When Second leads Jordan to ask to go someplace he can make a difference, he ends up in a time hollow with teenage Second.
     Since Second is injured, they go to a hospital, where Jordan is arrested for unauthorized time travel and finds himself face-to-face with JB, who "accidentally" drops an Elucidator on Jordan, allowing him to escape. After realizing the "Get me out of here!" command just led to spinning in place in the darkness of time, he decides to stick with what's working and asks the Elucidator to take him where he can make a difference for his family.  Once again, he ends up in a time hollow with Second.  More accurately, he is with a hologram of Second, which is then replaced by the teenage Kevin, fresh out of the hospital. After a short conversation, Jordan agrees to let Kevin give the Elucidator commands. Kevin un-ages during time travel, and they end up in Rathbone's office, which Jordan leaves after knocking Rathbone's Elucidator to the ground and grabbing back baby Kevin. Jordan returns with his family, who are immediately frozen. Rathbone puts together the broken Elucidator, only to rapidly age into dust. Jordan destroys the Elucidator with Kevin's secret before the time agents can be tempted by this "Pandora's Box."
     Angela and JB decide to get married and adopt baby Gary and Hodge.  Jordan's family takes in Kevin, and the kids even have a secret Elucidator given to them by JB "for emergencies" or times that they think it is necessary.

Legacy

James A. Michener

     Norman Starr is about to be tried because of his role in the Iran-Contra affair.  To prepare for trial, his lawyer friend, Zack McMaster, asks him to research his patriotic family history.  Each chapter focuses on a member of his family.  

     Jared Starr signed the Declaration of Independence and died fighting against the rebels in the Whiskey Rebellion.  His son, Simon Starr, went to the Constitutional Convention in Philadelphia, where he got to know Hamilton and James Madison.  He calls James Wilson the Father of the Constitution, and Gouverneur Morris the most influential writer in condensing the Convention's work.  

     Justice Edmund Starr. weighing over 300 pounds and depicted by newspapers as a sleepy walrus, presided over cases with John Marshall.  Since he didn't understand the complex details of the cases, Marshall would explain them, and he would support him.  One case, McCulloch v. Maryland, established the right of the federal government to do things not expressly written in the constitution, and forbid states to tax the federal government.  In his argument, Daniel Webster said, "The power to tax is the power to destroy."

     General Hugh Starr was at West Point while Civil War tensions were rising.  Northerners admired him when he freed his slaves, but in the end, he was loyal to Virginia and became General Lee's right hand man.  His daughter, Emily Starr, sacrificed marriage for the sake of fighting for women's suffrage through the 19th Amendment.  

     Richard Starr, hardened by the Great Depression, campaigned against Roosevelt's N.R.A., which he believed was unconstitutional.  

     Norman's father is a World War II veteran who lost a leg in combat.  His mother, Rachel Starr, fought to have the Supreme Court order state legislatures to reapportion seats since the current system discriminated against urban voters.

     Zack convinces Norman to take the Fifth, but then Rachel's father, an immigrant from Poland and Czechoslovakia, reminded him that as a member of the military, his actions would reflect upon the country and Constitution.

     Excerpts of this book may be useful in teaching a history class, but overall, it may be too heavy reading for most grade school students, and there are a few bad words.

La Casa en Mango Street

Sandra Cisneros 

    La Casa en Mango Street es la historia de una chicana, Esperanza, en un barrio latino.  Ella habla de las personas en su calle, como Mamacita, una mujer que no sale de la casa por miedo de no estar apta hablar en inglés. 

     Esperanza tiene memorias felices de su niñez, especialmente con su hermanita, Nenny.  Exploraban en una tienda con cosas rotas y viejas, sin luz para personas sin dinero.  Nenny descubrió una caja de música y ofreció comprarla, pero el hombre dijo que no era en venta.

     Esperanza ve y experimenta muchas cosas feas en su barrio.  Alicia es una muchacha que tiene que limpiar y cocinar para su padre, pero también quiere ir a la escuela.  Por eso, tiene que estudiar durante la noche y ve ratones. 

     Una amiga, Sally, tiene un padre que la maltrata.  Ella se casa muy joven y su esposo no la permite salir de la casa.  Una vez, fue a un carnaval con Sally, y Sally mintió a ella.  Sally no regresó para reunirse con ella, y un grupo de muchachos la violaron. 

     El fin es mi parte favorita.  Es muy triste, pero hay esperanza y determinación.  A un funeral, tres hermanas viejas saben que Esperanza quiere salir de Mango Street para siempre, pero le aconseja que ella deba regresar para los que no pueden salir.  Esperanza no quiere pertenecer a su calle, pero le da cuenta de que su barrio y historia es una parte de ella.

The Skeleton in the Closet

M.C. Beaton

As far as I can tell, the only difference between YA and (not "literary value/highly symbolic") Adult Literature is the presence of alcohol and romance.  The romance in this one isn't too graphic, but not child appropriate.  

     I enjoyed the fact the book is British, using words like "trainers" and British spellings.  I was very disappointed that the skeleton was not literal.  They kept doing home renovations, and I kept hoping....  Overall, I found the book a bit of a slow read, excessive time spent describing colours, clothes, and the weather, as well as timid protagonists.  My first thought was that the weather was symbolic, but as a book labeled as a mystery, I feel the book's entertainment qualities are as important as meaning.

     Fellworth Dolphin is a sheltered, duty-bound son.  By the time his parents die, he is middle-aged and feels that life has passed him by.  He can't drive, never went to college, and never visited nearby London.  When his family comes for the funeral, he tells his Aunt Agnes that he is engaged to Maggie Partlett, a fellow server with him at the Palace.  She poses as his fiancee at the funeral, and he tells her about the large inheritance his father left him in the bank, as well as a mysterious box of cash he found in the house.  Maggie moves into his house, and soon they are working together to investigate a train robbery in which his father was a suspect.  In the end, an expensive dress worn by Gloria Lewis, (former) Inspector Rudfern's daughter, leads them to get a full confession from her father.

     

Six Feet Over It

Jennifer Longo:  Author

Wade:  Father.  Buys a graveyard and moves his family from Mendocino, by the ocean, to Hangtown.  Uses bad language, not a very good father.

Meredith:  Mother.  Retreats from the world by painting seascapes and visiting Mendocino alone.

Leigh:  Narrator.  Teenager forced by her father to sell graves in the graveyard he purchased, even though she's not legally old enough.  She has a bad attitude, and the book sounds kind of whiny at times.  It's annoying to read, but accurate.

Kai:  Leigh's sister, leukemia survivor.  Older, but often mistaken for the younger sister.  Leigh loves her a lot, but describes her as the kind of person you could go to for sympathy, but you would end up comforting her.  A really talented cross country runner.

Emily:  Leigh's secret best friend in Mendocino, where they lived before moving to Hangtown.  Died at girlscout camp and is buried in Hangtown.

Elanor:  Homeschooled girl who works at Rivendell, which delivers flowers to the Sierrawood graveyard.  Tries very hard to be Leigh's friend, but she pushes her away since she feels it would be unloyal to Emily to make a new friend.

Balin:  Elanor's brother, Kai's boyfriend.

Dario:  Indocumentado who forces Leigh to speak Spanish when digging graves.  Everyone loves him, and he comforts all the people at funerals and visiting graves.  Lives in a trailer in Sierrawood, which he decorates with Christmas lights.  Becomes Leigh's friend, pressures her to enroll in Driver's Ed, and teaches her to drive.

Ana:  Dario's girlfriend, whom he marries and brings across the border.  Beautiful; artist; made their wedding rings.

Samuel:  Latino who holds Ana and Dario hostage until Leigh negotiates and pays a ransom.

Mark of the Thief

Jennifer A. Nielsen

     This book is a cross between historical fiction and fantasy.  Set in ancient Rome, Nic is a slave working in the mines.  He refuses to go into a hole where Julius Caesar's treasure is hidden because one man sent before him died, and the other went crazy.  He runs away from his master, Sal, and almost escapes.  While hiding in the shadows, he hears General Radulf plotting treachery against Rome.  He is seen in the shadows by a slave about to take his place, so he soon finds himself entering Caesar's cave in search of a bulla.  He encounters a griffin, which he names Caela.  She fights him until he puts on the bulla, then rides on her back out of the cave to a strawberry field, where the guards find them sleeping.  Senator Valerius sees the wound Caela gave him on his shoulder and tells him it is a special mark, which he later learns is called the Divine Star.  They are captured, and brought before Sal.  Due to the begging of his sister, Livia, and a promise to marry Sal, he sells them to the venatio rather than killing them.  He is guarded by a girl, Aurelia.

     At the venatio, he is eventually tied to a horse, against the wishes of his owner Felix, and sent into the arena.  His magic accidentally causes an earthquake as he fights for his life, and Caela is wounded.  She flies away with him, finally dropping and leaving him when he accidentally lets her have the gold nugget the Romans had used to get her in her cage.

     After running from the Romans in the sewer, he is found and nursed back to health by Aurelia, only to be put in chains by her and the exposed children she cares for.  She intends to take him to Senator Horatio, one of the many people offering a reward for Nic.  Radulf attacks, and through Nic's powers they escape to Senator Valerius and his son Crispus.  Nic is accidentally chased by the dogs into a fountain in the moonlight, which leads the bulla to make the room as bright as daylight.  He then knows that Diana is fueling the bulla.  He goes to rescue Caela from the baths on the Appian Way, where he has a showdown with Radulf.  Radulf simply wants to see what he is capable of, and lets him escape with his life.

     Eventually, Nic faces Radulf in the arena.  Valerius ceases power by allowing Radulf to kill Horatio and blaming both Nic and Radulf.  Nic proves his innocence by having Aurelia shoot an arrow toward him, then redirecting it to right in front of Valerius's nose.  When the Praetors appear, Radulf disappears.

     

I Have A Bad Feeling About This

Jeff Strand

     This book is pure humor, which means readers will need to be old enough to appreciate it rather than taking the story seriously.  The first page, other peoples' reviews of the book, is actually worth reading.  There is one use of the f word that would need to be blacked out, after which it could be used in a 7th and 8th grade library. 

     Henry and his friend Randy go to a 2-week survival camp, which promises to make men out of wimpy boys. Their instructor, Max, is well-muscled and intimidating, but well-meaning.  My favorite scenes are when Max tries to teach the boys and comments on their complete incompetence.  Erik, a secret nerd, is more well-built than the rest.  Jackie is a 13-year-old with low self-esteem and green hair.  Stu is "tall and gawky."  

     When the Survival Games finally begin (the kids fight with paintball guns and knives), Henry is the first one out, only to return to camp and discover that Max has been murdered by three evil men: Mr. Grand, Chad, and Ethan.  After escaping from them by pretending to vomit and pulling a fake grenade on them, he runs back to the woods.  The boys are soon engaged in a battle against the men, aided by a girl from a nearby music camp, Monica.  In typical YA fashion, Monica ends up dating and kissing Henry.  

full ride

Margaret Peterson Haddix

     Haddix's books have an impressive amount of variety, a sharp contrast to the authors that use the same plots and simply replace the characters.  As a grade schooler, I thought she was the absolute master of plot twists and cliff hangers at the ends of chapters.  Even as a college student, these books continue to capture my attention, and I genuinely enjoy reading them.  This book would be a good addition to a 5th-8th grade library, though its length (343 pages) may make it more appealing for avid readers.

Summary:  Becca is a popular 8th grader with a rich family when her dad, Roger Jones, is suddenly arrested and sent to prison for white collar crimes after a nationally televised trial.  With the help of her father's lawyer, Mr. Trumbull, she and her mother go into hiding by moving to Deskins, Ohio.  She begins high school while her mother works as a nurse.  Instead of hanging out with the popular kids, she decides to lay low and ends up becoming a part of the "nerd" group.  

       Fast forward to Becca's senior year.  Her first friend, Jala, has graduated early due to pressure from her family and started attending Ohio State, but she still has Stuart (rich, sometimes obnoxious, determined to go to an Ivy League school), Rosa (closer to Becca than the boys, also poor, watches the popular girls with her since it reminds her of telenovelas), and Oscar (a bit less studious, humorous, and kind). 

       Her mother tells her that it is too dangerous for her to apply for financial aid, so Becca begins looking for scholarships.  The Whitney Court Scholarship seems to be the answer to all her problems, and all she has to do is write an essay about a member of Whitney's graduating class.  After looking through the yearbooks, in which Whitney appears everywhere, she decides that Whitney is the only person worth writing about.  As she talks to former teachers and neighbors, she finds that they refuse to talk about Whitney's life after high school.  She finds two newspaper articles on the deep web about a DUI and suspected drug use,  which lead her to conclude that Whitney threw away her life.            She becomes suspicious that the scholarship is another scam of her father and writes a scathing letter to her father, but simply saves it on her computer.  She is contacted as a finalist and goes in to the interview, only to find out that Whitney has schizophrenia, and she was invited to the interview because the Courts think she is mentally ill.  She sent in her rant about her father instead of her real essay about Whitney.  She tries to prove her identity by finding her birth certificate online, only to discover it is gone.  She runs home.

        Her mother reveals that the real reason they are in hiding is that her father has information against Excellerand, a corrupt computer company like Google or Microsoft.  To silence him, they may attack Becca and her mother.  Since Becca revealed her identity to Mr. Court, who reported it to Ms. Stela, her guidance counselor, who made a post online, Becca and her mother need to contact Mr. Trumbull to ask him for new identities.  Their only safe way to communicate is by mail, which is too slow, so Becca goes on a college trip with her friends, with the secret intention of visiting Mr. Trumbull.  When she visits him, she is accidentally handed a letter by the new receptionist.  She discovers her father is imprisoned there in Atlanta, not California, as the letters they receive through Mr. Trumbull's office indicated.  She visits her father and discovers that Mr. Trumbull has been faking the correspondence between her father and mother, as well as the entire Excellerand threat, so that he can blackmail Excellerand.  He made them believe that Roger had evidence against them that he did not, using the disappearance of Becca and her mother as proof.

        Roger tells Becca what she must do now (after she decides against his first idea, blackmailing Mr. Trumbull).  Becca and her mother gather vocal evidence against Mr. Trumbull in an FBI sting operation, which ends with his arrest.  Becca is now free to keep her identity and go to college.

Crossing Over

Ruth Irene Garrett with Rick Farrant

    Garrett describes her choice to leave her Old Order Amish community to marry Ottie, a man with a lively personality who was twice her age.  She knew him through his work as a driver for the Amish and a patient of her mother, a reflexologist.
    Garrett describes her fond memories, such as playing "horse and buggy" as a child, serving as a teacher, and love for her mother, as well as some of the problems within the Amish community.  The Amish, who consider themselves Christian, trace their roots to the Anabaptist movement and the teachings of Jacob Ammann.  Some of the doctrinal issues include absence of the assurance of salvation, omission of the Great Commission, a focus on tradition and man-made rules such as the Ordnung, and a reliance on works to be saved, rather than the grace of God through the work of Christ Jesus.  Garrett mentions that if many Amish are asked whether they will go to heaven, they will reply, "That's God's choice."  She also describes how Amish are discouraged from reading the Bible and conduct church services and pray in German, even comparing this to the practices of the pre-Reformation Catholic Church.  On a more personal level, she relates her experiences with a father who ridiculed and raged at his wife and children, at times physically punishing them out of unmerited anger.
     Overall, it appears to me that Garrett found sounder doctrine after leaving the Amish.  She refutes each of the points of false doctrine listed above.  As well as the aid of a Lutheran church, a key reason for this knowledge is her dedicated study of the Bible.  I do think, however, that Jeremiah 48:10, "A curse upon him who is lax in doing the Lord's work!  A curse on him who keeps his sword from bloodshed!" deserves more context when Garrett uses it as a proof passage against pacification.  The prophet speaks about God's judgment upon unbelieving Moab through the swords of the unbelieving Babylonians.  While this passage may be related to the topic, I believe there are clearer passages in the Bible, such as commands to the Israelites to fight wars, which directly address the topic of Christians serving as soldiers.  Her use of 1 John 3:16 on the same topic is beautiful, an encouragement for all our current military members and veterans.
     She does, however, describe how she rationalized sleeping with Ottie before marrying him, as well as arguing that divorce is better than living together and hating one another.  I believe this helped me understand how confusing it must be to know that a church has false doctrine, but then not know what to throw out and what to keep.  In addition, Ottie had been married 3 times before, and she describes her new Lutheran pastor's reaction to this only as one of acceptance, mentioning that the sin of divorce is not unforgivable.  While this is certainly true, in the spirit of Jesus' conversation with the Samaritan woman at the well, I hope that the pastor also discussed the importance of marriage, the fact that divorce is a sin, and possibly repentance.
     One part that struck me was on page 123:  "With the Amish, it was the Amish first.  With the Lutherans, it was God first.  Faith to the Lutherans was a relationship with God, not with an institution."  For those of us in the WELS, I think this is a good reminder.  While this could appear to border on the side of not caring about doctrine and saying all Christians should just be one big happy family, she shows in the book that she cares about doctrine.  It is true that we are loyal to God and the Bible first, not our denomination.  Would she have this impression in the WELS?

Teasing Secrets From the Dead

by Emily Craig, Ph.D.

     This book chronicles Dr. Craig's career as a medical illustrator-turned-forensic anthropologist.  She details her work on numerous homicide cases, as well as on the sites of tragedies such as the World Trade Center, Oklahoma City bombing of the Murrah Federal Building, and the mass murder/suicide of the Branch Davidians in Waco, Texas.  She has traveled to crime scenes located in the rural backwoods, on a steep cliff above a quickly flowing river, and even deep in an abandoned mine. Portions of the book are appropriately graphic, enough to convince me that I never want her job!  Even so, it is an interesting read, providing insight into the burdens and victories of the men and women who work in law enforcement, morgues, and at the sites of mass tragedies.
     One thing that struck me during the book was the amount of times she described the benefit of being able to work from touch, not from sight.  I suspect that she is at least partially a tactile learner, but her use of touch goes beyond just learning.  She also describes the role of intuition in creating sculptures and examining bones, which at times includes the need to backtrack by finding the scientific details that her brain unconsciously processed to lead her to a conclusion.  She references extraordinary coincidences or strokes of luck, in which a Christian can see the hand of God at work.

Annoying

by Joe Palca and Flora Lichtman

     This book is like an extended NPR feature, a fashionable science book for the masses.  In this way, it reminded me of Quiet.  In some cases, however, I was able to put to use my high school vocabulary and studies from courses such as anatomy and chemistry.  There is no official branch of science dealing with annoyance, but this book compiles applicable research from a varied scientific disciplines, ranging from psychology to biology.  These topical changes, as well as the conversational tone, help keep the reader's attention.
   
     General Thesis:  Sounds, smells, habits, and even tastes can annoy humans.  It is difficult to find an agreed-upon scientific definition of emotion, much less annoyance, but the basic recipe appears to include:
    1.  Uncontrollable
    2.  Distracting or unpleasant
    3.  Unpredictable, often including an unknown duration

     Skunk Spray:  An example of an annoying smell is skunk spray.  Part of the annoyance seems to be cognitive and learned.  As anecdotal evidence, one woman's mother said, "Oh, what a pleasant smell!" and to this day, her daughter does not mind the smell of skunk spray.  In a blind smell test, subjects reacted differently to identical samples labeled with cognitively unpleasant sources.  "Parmesan cheese" received a positive rating, while the same scent labeled as "vomit" received a negative reaction.
     From a more biological perspective, the smell of skunk spray comes from "sulfur-laden molecule called thiols" (p.62).  Thiols are associated with decay of living materials, such as food.  In low concentrations they can be pleasing, as in coffee or wine.
     The olfactory epithelium has receptors which receive molecules from air. If molecules remain in the receptor long enough, olfactory fatigue causes neurons to stop firing, leading the brain to believe the odor is gone.  This is why the old-fashioned tomato juice method seemed effective.  After spending so much time washing their pets, owners didn't smell the odor as strongly.  There is, however, an effective remedy, using hydrogen peroxide to create a chemical reaction.  Oxidation produces a disulfide when hydrogen peroxide reacts with the thiols.  Baking soda is also a helpful ingredient.

Fun Vocab:

• Hedonic Reversal--Enjoying something that may be considered inherently painful or characterized by negative emotions.  For example, riding a roller coaster can be a positive experience, despite the negative emotion of fear.  People willingly eat chili peppers, even though it produces a burning sensation in the mouth.
• Electrophiles--Compounds that try to share electrons, found in many chemical irritants.
• TRPA1--"trip-a-one"--transient receptor potential A1--a receptor in all invertebrates and vertebrates for chemical irritants

Annoying Features:  Typos.

• p.19--"We've gotten a lot of letters from people who put them in coworkers' offices and gotten a lot of entertainment value out of them."
• p.66--"Kingsley is trying track down..."
• p.137-138--Switches repeatedly between Ungar and Unger

Also, p.68 says, "Certainly, red i a color that elicit a kind of annoyance that matadors in Spanish bull rings are professionally familiar with."  This has been busted by MythBusters.  Bulls are color blind for red and green; the movement draws their attention.

• http://www.livescience.com/33700-bulls-charge-red.html
• http://www.discovery.com/tv-shows/mythbusters/mythbusters-database/color-red-makes-bulls-go-ballistic/

Summer Reading

The Spell Book of Listen Taylor
    The style of this book is similar to Neil Gaiman's The Graveyard Book because it is very straightforward.  The lack of emotion in the tone produces a feeling of detachment and contributes to the unrealistic and bizarre nature of the narration.  Devices such as personification add beauty, but are also part of the unusual style.  For example, the first sentence, "After midnight, the apartment waited, still in the moonlight and the heat," is rather typical.  Yet Jaclyn Moriarty takes it a step further with the words, "A moth touched its wing to the front porch light, and the apartment cleared its throat sharply."  Furthermore, the next two sentences describe a "sleepy confusion of boxes" and a ladder laying on its stomach, a virtual explosion of personification.
      This is one of my least favorite books.  I kept reading it because I like to finish what I start...and, partially, I did want to see how everything fit together.  The main reason for this is the unusual tone, but in addition, it seems that everyone in the book is having an affair with someone.  I assume that this is part of the themes related to secrecy and privacy, but it also seems to reflect our society's casual acceptance of adultery.  Due to the style of writing, the reader does not feel a connection to the characters.  I did, however, appreciate the author's skill in weaving together the abundance of seemingly unrelated facts and story lines, only fully explaining it toward the end.
     After writing this post, I looked up reviews.  I think that the NY Times review explains a lot about my opinions.  Essentially, it describes this book as an adult book that may not really interest teenagers...I haven't been a teen for several years, and it doesn't especially interest me.  It also mentions the "sometimes foolhardy" women...another reason I didn't like the characters.  I don't think the "sometimes" was a necessary part of that phrase.

Adrift
     Adrift is the fictional story of 5 teenagers adrift on the Atlantic Ocean, yet it also includes layers of storytelling such as an initially unknown past traumatic experience shared by Matt and John.  The two working class boys meet three rich friends on the beach, a contrast that exists throughout the story.  JoJo and his girlfriend, Estefania, are visitors from Brazil.  Driana, who catches Matt's eye, invites Matt and John to a party in her family's mansion. After the party, the teens discover that Estefania has gone out windsurfing at night and set out in a neighbor's boat to rescue her.  Unfortunately, they do not have enough gas to return to shore...Major themes of the novel include the cost of survival, the consequences of guilt, and the effect of trauma on relationships.
   
Running Out of Time
     One of Margaret Peterson Haddix's first books, Running Out of Time still includes her signature plot twists, but seems a bit less complicated than her other books.  Also characteristic of Haddix, the historical details and perspectives come to life naturally through careful attention to detail.  I was also surprised by the overall frightening experience of Jessie in our world, including encounters with drunken and apparently lustful males (though not a graphic or objectionable scene for young readers), the skepticism of the media, and the at times illogical functioning of the justice and social services systems.