Twilight By Stephanie Meyer

Twilight by Stephanie Meyer is a book you have to buy. The biggest reason is that you simply can't check it out at the library because so many teens are requesting it. It is more than the typical girl meets boy and falls for him kind of teen romance. Meyer puts a vampire twist on the Shakespeare star-crossed lovers tale.

Bella sees him first in the cafeteria in her new school in the ever rain-soaked town of Forks, Washington, where she has just moved to live with her father, the sheriff. Edward looks so different from the other boys that she is fascinated, even though his standoffish nature would make it seem that he doesn't like her at all. Like Romeo and Juliet, each teen has other people in their lives who would rather the pair not get involved. Their real problem is that just being in each other's company is driving them both to the edge of a cliff that could prove deadly for both. When danger suddenly comes after Bella, Edward and his whole family must work together to save her.

The story moves at a teen pace, often painfully slow, and at other times, fast as lightning. The better part of the book is concerned with introducing the teens, the others around them and their budding romance. The action doesn't really heat up until a baseball game in the mountains introduces a wild card element into the tale.
This is the first book in a four book series, now completed, with a movie opeing soon. Twilight masquerades are popping up in bookstores and libraries nationwide as teens and adults both clamor for Meyer's vampire love story.

The Last Universe by William Sleator

Quantum universes, universes existing simultaneously, each one spun into being by a choice, a happenstance in one or another. Quantum scientists contend that such universes exist, but can't find a way to get to them. A writer has the ability to spin a story into a million, well infinite, directions with the stroke of a pen and William Sleator is a master. In his novel, The Last Universe, Sleator plays with quantum mechanics, quantum universes and a very strangely behaving quantum garden.

Susan has to take of Gary, whether she wants to or not. How can she deny her dying brother's (not to mention her parents demands) to go into the garden created by their great-uncle. But strange things have begun to happen in the garden, plants that shouldn't grow in cold climate have sprung up overnight, lotus have filled the pond and the paths have begun to decide for themselves where they should lead. Guiding her brother's wheelchair into the maze, Susan is equally fascinated and frightened by the outcomes. Gary is excited by the possiblity that in one of the universes he will not be plagued by disease.

Toying with the universes and the theories of quantum mechanics, William Sleator has created a wonderfully suspenseful novel that you can't put down. "The twist at the end is entirely logical (if anything about quantum can be) and entirely shocking. Well-drawn characters and a believable story will catch and hold Sleator's fans and make new ones. Another solid entry from a deservedly popular author," says Elaine Fort Weischedel, Milton Public Library, MA in School Library Journal.

Just imagine how your universe might be affected by the decision to pick up and read this book or not. You never know where the path might lead.

Deadline by Chris Crutcher

This isn't a book about miracles, at least not the kind where the hero is saved from death so if you look only for "happy endings" skip Deadline by Chris Crutcher.

Being diagnosed with a rare and fatal blood disease, Ben Wolf decides that he doesn't want to live dependent on medicines and last ditch efforts to save him. He also decides that he doesn't want to put his family through the pain and decides to keep his illness a secret. He has decided to live life with gusto. He joins his high school football team, frustrates his government teacher and starts dating the girl most out of his league. Everything he does, he does with a Juggernaut-like determination. He is practically unstoppable on the football field, partly because he takes hits like no one else and partly because he goes as fast as he can.

But living with a secret of this magnitude definitely has an impact on his life and as he grows sicker, it takes it toll as well. His relationships suffer through his secretiveness and readers (as well as the characters themselves) are left to wonder how the story might have gone had Ben chosen to tell his family and closest friends the truth from the beginning.

"Emotionally spare but deeply touching, the relationship between Ben and his brother will resonate with many readers, while others may find the several strong father figures comforting. Secondary characters add humor and balance, though the government teacher's voice occasionally veers too far toward that of a right-wing pundit." said Chris Shoemaker of the New York Public Library in School Library Journal.

This is a book that I waited for with bated breath, not so much for the content as for the author. I love Christ Crutcher. He is the reason that I am willing to read books about sports and athletes. He writes with such ease that I understand exactly is going on athetically as well as how it affects the characters. I recommend him to anyone and every one. (By the way, I met him in person and he is as cool in person as he is on his myspace page.)

Long May She Reign by Ellen Emerson White

How would you feel if your mother was the most powerful person in the free world and she couldn't even save you from kidnappers? Meghan Powers was kidnapped and handcuffed in a mine shaft in the middle of nowhere and her mother, the President of the United States, refused to negotiate with the kidnappers. Meg, already with her knee smashed by the man she calls "the guy," was left to smash the bones in her hand to pull it free and escape. But this book isn't just about what happened in the thirteen days that she was missing, it's about her recovery, discovering herself and starting over again.

"...Meg embarks on her first year of college with the courage, wit, and strength of character seldom seen in so young a heroine. The novel is most effective in dealing with her chilling recollections of what happened and her fear that it will happen again....The dynamics of a family coping with crisis are also well defined....Meg shows readers that despite any problem they may encounter, life is still worth fighting for. All is all, this is an intense, suspenseful, and stirring read."--School Library Journal

Though the book is a massive 706 pages, you'll read every one feeling the intense urge for Meg to pull it all together and just generally for all of the first family and Meg's friends as they deal with life with a political celebrity. This isn't a truly political piece, but you do get a shot of life in the fishbowl at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue. I finished this in four days, but take your time, enjoy the snapshots of college life and root for the toughest, politically-savviest heroine you'll ever meet in a teen novel. Go, Meg!

Spy Goddess by Michael Spradlin

As teenager, life is never simple to start with and Rachel Buchanan is finding it out the hard way. Her absentee parents are seldom seen and her "friends" abandoned her to be arrested for joyriding in a stolen car. Facing the judge across the courtroom, sans parents, Rachel is outspoken and full of teen attitude, which nets her a choice: either go to a private school in Pennsyvania or go to juvenile hall.

The mysterious Blakthorn Academy is run by an enigmatic puzzle called Mr. Kim, who understands Rachel better than she does herself. It is populated by geniuses, harcases and those with no place else to go. The classes are different from any curriculum Rachel has ever seen and they make her "do gym" in the form of Tae Kwon Do.

When she overhears Mr. Kim talking to an FBI agent urgently about "the Book of Seraphim," Rachel knows something is up. When the headmaster disappears and the book is stolen, Rachel roars into action. Armed with only her wits and those of three classmates, Rachel sets out to rescue Mr. Kim.

"Although the characters are not terribly complex and the plot is fairly far-fetched, the book is an entertaining page-turner. Spradlin captures the perfect teenage voice in his protagonist; she is more than just a spoiled, fashion-conscious teen from Beverly Hills–she is the Spy Goddess–witty and smart with an edge. Overall, this is an intelligent, exciting mystery that will have broad appeal," said Leigh Ann Morlock, formerly of the Veronica School District in Oregon.1

Accessed from http://www.amazon.com/Spy-Goddess-Book-One-Live/dp/0060594098/ref=pd_bbs_sr_3/105-9290560-1134821?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1188508517&sr=8-3 on August 30,2008.

Traces (Series) By Malcolm Rose

"Rose, a chemistry professor, makes the forensic science a gripping part of this entry in the new Traces series, set in a near-future world where Authorities raise kids in boarding school and everything is controlled by computer technology."1 The science aspect is definitely the driving force behind this series, more so than in the television based "CSI" series written by Max Allen Collins. That is not to say that the characters are not vibrant or compelling. Luke Harding is a recently graduated forensic investigator with a free-floating robot assistant named Malc, whom Luke considers to be his best friend, though the robot has no sense of humor and records and transmits information about their cases to the Authorities. Sometimes assisting him also is his cladestine musician girlfriend, Jade, whose "senior project" on spotlight sound helped Luke nab a budding serial killer.

Though the series is written for young adults, Rose doesn't mince on the science. The clues are there, but until you, like Luke, put it together, the mystery is winding. Sometimes it seems as though Rose is making a subtle commentary about govenrment control and how people have been willing to give up personal freedoms for what seems like safety. In this society, the Authorities take children from their parents, who then usually disappear from their children's lives, raise them in schools, where their academic learning and talent determines not only their future professions butalso ultimately determines who they will be "paired" with at the age of eighteen. Luke and Jade are themselves a pair that would not put together because Luke is a scientist and Jade a musician. Age is also a dtermining factor for the "Pairing Committee" who determine who gets paired.

This is a good series and fun to read. It is quick paced and anyone is fair game, even Luke and Malc don't always escape the wrath of the villain unscathed. The puzzles are as interesting as they are challenging and that makes book worth the reading. (Also at the bottom of the page is a flip motion image that travels across the page. Every time it's a little something related to the story.) Titles in this series include: Framed!, Lost Bullet, Roll Call, Double Check, and Final Lap (in that order). The next book in the series will be titled Blood Brother and be released in January 2008.

1 Hazel Rochman. http://www.amazon.com/Framed-Traces-Malcolm-Rose/dp/075345971X/ref=pd_sim_b_1_img/105-7838602-1362028. Accessed 21 July 2007.

Vintage by Steve Berman

Holly Black, author of Tithe and the New York Times bestselling Spiderwick Chronicles
"A witty, shuddersome, and extraordinary book that haunts as it charms."

This is a creepy book. From its goth main character to the creepier ghost who haunts him, Berman has created a terrifically complicated book with characters who are almost living they are so complex and so simple.

A lonely gay teen, kicked out by his parents and afraid to tell his aunt why lest she reject him too, finds himself alone on a deserted stretch of road, well, not totally alone. He finds himself in the company of a teenager in vintage fifties garb and is attracted to this stranger. But he soon realizes that all is not well, because this good-looking stranger is actually the legendary ghost of a high school jock killed in the fifties. When the ghost follows him home, the teen and his friends find themselves under siege by spirits. When he falls for Second Mike, who was named after First Mike (his own brother), the teen realizes that he has to get the ghost to leave him alone.

This is a good book to read if you like realistic problems, because it is messy, but manages to instill a little hope in a situation that isn't always the easiest (i.e. coming out to a loved one). While the medium aspect is a little beyond the norm, the book is good.

Read the amazon.com blurb and book description. The author has arranged that 1/5 of the royalties from Vintage will be donated to charities helping gay teens:10% will be donated to the GSA Network, which assists Gay-Straight Student Alliances in high schools; another 10% donated to the Trevor Project, which works to prevent suicide among gay youth.

The Secret Life of Samantha McGregor: #1 Bad Connection by Melody Carlson

"With more and more interest in the supernatural (such as TV shows like Medium and Ghost Whisperer), The Secret Life of Samantha McGregor series looks at supernatural gifts from a strong Christian perspective."1

Carlson's "Bad Connection" is an example of a good connection, the connection between an interesting topical issue and well-written characters that both comes off the page and pulls the reader into the page. Sam is a character who has a lot of issues to overcome a drug using older brother, a hard-working mother struggling to make ends meet and a policeman father who was killed in the line of duty.

When a former friend goes missing and rumors abound, Sam McGregor begins having disturbing visions of girls in trouble. A strong Christian, Sam worries that her visions, which she has had since childhood might be getting her into more trouble than she can handle. Sam contacts her father's former partner, now a detective working the missing girl's case and is pleasantly surprised when she is taken seriously, though it is kept a secret. As Sam's visions grow more and more disturbing her relationship with her mother and her friends change and grow stronger.

This is a good book and the first in a series from an accomplished and experienced Christian author. I have already read the second in the series "Beyond Reach" and can't wait for the third, which is due out later this year.

1 http://www.christianbook.com/Christian/Books/product?item_no=526929&event=ECF