Lauren Myracle. SHINE

I'm amazed at the diversity of books that Lauren Myracle writes. You have the TTYL friendship series, the BLISS & RHYMES WITH WITCHES horror type books and the adorable ELEVEN series. SHINE is absolutely like none of those. It's special all on it's own.

If you're wanting a light summer read. This is NOT it. If, however, you're wanting something real, disturbing, thoughtful and gritty. This is your book.

The talented Lauren Myracle brings you into the small town of Black Creek, North Carolina. Cat's best friend, Patrick, has just been beaten into a coma. It's assumed to be a hate crime, since he's gay. In the small town of Black Creek, it's insinuated that he had it coming. The local police follow what little clues they have but don't seem that determined to do any real investigation. So Cat sets out to find out who did this to her best friend.

After being violated herself a few years before, Cat pulled away from Patrick and her friends. This slows her investigation down a little because she has to re-establish some relationships. Her eyes open wider as she delves deeper and deeper into her friends' lives over the past few years. As she slowly learns what happened to Patrick, she begins the process of healing herself.

I can't say that I enjoyed being in this world particularly, as I have with other books. But I did root for Cat and enjoyed reading it. The mystery sucks you in completely from page one. It's beautifully written. Lauren Myracle did a spectacular job in bringing this world to life. I walked the woods and climbed the rocks right alongside Cat. The book will resonate with many for a wide variety of reasons. But get ready to be shocked and saddened. Although, just as the title suggests - it's not a completely sad story!

Go visit Ms. Myracle's adorable website! I don't know when she redesigned it, but it's super adorable!! <3

Charles Benoit. YOU

You begins with a cryptic scene where one of the characters appears to be dying. Then the novel backs up to tell the story of "the last year of your life." Of course, I'm intrigued.

Kyle Chase is a high school sophomore hoodie. In middle school, he was on the fast track to go to the "smart" high school with all of the opportunities therein. He had friends who studied and made smart choices preparing for their futures. But Kyle made a few bad choices and derailed himself from the "smart" course. He ended up at the "other"high school. The one with less opportunities and a new group of friends who lead him into drinking, crime and general delinquency. He could have stood up for himself in several instances, but he just goes along with everyone. He sees his life as pretty much "same crap, different day." He's nursed a crush on Ashley for months and can't get up the nerve to ask her out. He's good in math, but puts in no effort. He's just going along, trying not to get caught or noticed.

Then Zack McDade transfers to the school. He definitely livens things up. He's unusual, to say the least. He dresses kind of geeky, yet is suave and clever in so many ways. He reminds me of Ducky from Pretty in Pink for two reasons: The way he talks ("My good man, Chase.") and the way he confidently dresses how he wants, rather than according to what's in style. (Just an observation.) Zack befriends Kyle. They work together to take revenge on a jock that was harassing Kyle. When Kyle begins to hear negative things about Zack, he ignores the warnings. Should he be more careful?

The second-person narrative threw me for a loop, at first. I almost didn't continue. I've never seen it done successfully before. But, I'm glad I carried on. This is a suspenseful, clever, thrilling book. I enjoyed the little bits of foreshadowing along the way. It keeps you guessing, for sure. The adult characters feel a little too depressing and sad. Perhaps that's because we're viewing the story through Kyle's distorted viewpoint. Anyway, the teen characters feel authentic. Kyle is a typical teen who made decision after decision and didn't realize how they would all pile up in the end. Zack was extremely smart, conniving and deranged- not a typical teen, but all the more delicious to read about!

The author is extremely talented to pull off such an unusual book! There are no chapters. There are snippets of verse thrown in. The foreshadowing is pretty blatant, but still makes you keep reading. And finally, as mentioned earlier, it's in second-person! Pretty freaking-cool!
Go here for his snazzy looking website.

You'll enjoy YOU!

Debbie Reed Fischer. SWIMMING WITH THE SHARKS

Peyton Grady is a junior in high school who has just made it to the varsity cheerleading squad. She’s thrilled that might be able to finally hang out with the Alphas at school. The Alphas are the in-crowd at Beachwood Preparatory Academy, the private school Peyton attends on a scholarship. She’s never really felt like she belonged, but now Peyton is beginning to think that this will be her best year yet. Then one day, a new girl names Ellika arrives and without a try-out or anything, the principal sticks her on the varsity cheer squad. Ellika is not what you’d think of as the average looking cheerleader. She is uncoordinated, overweight, and dorky. The girls are all fuming, but most of all, the captain Lexie Court is livid. Lexie is the most popular, beautiful, perfect girl in school. And she basically gets whatever she wants, but when she can’t get Ellika (or Smellika as they begin to call her) off the squad, she cooks up her own way to get her off. It’s called Operation Smellika. They begin their operation with small practical jokes and continue with bigger and bigger cruel hazing rituals. Peyton begins to hesitate as the stakes get higher, but then Lexie pressures her and she relents. When the final act looks like someone may get seriously hurt, Peyton must decide whether she is comfortable swimming with the sharks or not.
Wow, what a shocking portrayal of how mean teens can get. Perhaps I’ve blocked most of the bad parts out, but I don’t remember people being that mean in middle or high school. But I can relate to that feeling of being afraid to stand up to someone who is pressuring you to do something you know you shouldn’t do. I admire those teens today who seem to have the strength to do what’s right, no matter what others think. That was a hard one for me as a teen.
Anyway, this is a funny, sad, moving, and gripping novel about a girl who grapples with her identity and how to do what’s right, especially when it’s difficult. Debbie Reed Fischer is an awesome new author. I really enjoyed her writing. Her descriptions are witty and lively, and so is the dialogue! I laughed out loud, when I wasn’t cringing over the meanness.
If you’d like to find out more about her or other books, check out her website here.

Beth Evangelista. GIFTED

Being a gifted student doesn’t help George R. Clark in school one bit. In fact, the school football players, aka the Bruise Brothers, use him for their amusement quite often. Even though George’s dad is the principal they get away with a lot. They pull pranks on him like shoving him in the garbage can and running his underpants up the flagpole. Now it’s time for the annual 8^th grade science camp trip where all the kids go stay for a week at Camp Rose. The trouble is that George’s dad isn’t going on the trip, so he’s afraid that without that minimal protection, the Bruise Brothers are gonna have a field day with him. Especially when he learns that he’s sharing a room with them at the camp. Overnight with the Bruise Brothers? Will he survive the camp?
This was a funny, warm-hearted story of a boy who learns a lot about himself when disaster strikes. I highly recommend it!

Sherman Alexie. THE ABSOLUTELY TRUE DIARY OF A PART-TIME INDIAN.

I went into this one not knowing what to expect. I had read the rave reviews. But, I had no idea what the book was about. The title didn’t reveal much either. Turns out, I was pleasantly surprised. This is a refreshing book about a boy learning to make his way in two different worlds. Arnold Spirit, aka Junior, is a Spokane Indian living on a reservation in Wellpinit, Washington. After receiving a textbook in geometry class that belonged to his mother more than 30 years ago, he becomes disgusted with education on the reservation. He makes a bold decision. He is going to attend the high school in the next town in Reardon. It’s an all-white school. So, not only does he have to face the guilt of deserting his reservation, but he must face the scrutiny and racism at the all-white school. But, he knows if he is ever going to make something of himself, he must go to a better school. All this sounds pretty serious, and the book does have some heavy topics. But, it has its fair share of humor as well. When describing the rules of fighting on the reservation, Junior explains his fighting skills:

"Yes, I was a terrible fighter.
I was a human punching bag.
I lost fights to boys, girls, and kids half my age.
One bully, Micah, made me beat up myself. Yes, he made me punch myself in the face three times. I am the only Indian in the history of the world who ever lost a fight with himself."

Yeah, it definitely makes you laugh, but it also makes you sad, happy, and hopeful. As an added bonus, the illustrations scattered throughout the book are downright hilarious!

For more on Alexie, click here: http://www.fallsapart.com/

Francine Prose. BULLYVILLE

I think this is the first book I’ve read where the characters are dealing with a loss from 9/11. Bart’s father worked in the Twin Towers building and went down with them on that tragic day. The odd part is that his mom also worked there. However, that morning Bart had the flu and his mother couldn’t find anyone to watch him, so she stayed home with him. So basically, he saved her life. From then on, he’s called the miracle boy. When the local community hears about Bart, one thing leads to another & he gets a scholarship to the local private school. The adults think this is the greatest thing. But the kids know the truth about Baileywell Prep. They call it Bullyville. The stories say kids have been bullied to the point of insanity or suicide. Bart doesn’t want to go to the school. He’s perfectly fine at his public middle school with his friends. But after everything that has happened, he agrees because he thinks it will make his mom happy. Then the trouble begins. This was a moving book about what it’s like to suffer an amazing public tragedy and then have to endure a private one shortly thereafter. You wonder where the justice is. You also wonder how many other kids are dealing with this type of bullying. My guess is too many.
Her previous book was just as intriguing. It's also about a timely topic, school shootings:

AFTER by Francine Prose