Book groups for the April 18th meeting:

 
American Born Chinese by Gene Luen Yang

 

As alienated kids go, Jin Wang is fairly run-of-the-mill: he eats lunch by himself in a corner of the schoolyard, gets picked on by bullies and jocks and develops a sweat-inducing crush on a pretty classmate. And, oh, yes, his parents are from Taiwan. This much-anticipated, affecting story about growing up different is more than just the story of a Chinese-American childhood; it's a fable for every kid born into a body and a life they wished they could escape. The fable is filtered through some very specific cultural icons: the much-beloved Monkey King, a figure familiar to Chinese kids the world over, and a buck-toothed amalgamation of racist stereotypes named Chin-Kee. Jin's hopes and humiliations might be mirrored in Chin-Kee's destructive glee or the Monkey King's struggle to come to terms with himself, but each character's expressions and actions are always perfectly familiar. True to its origin as a Web comic, this story's clear, concise lines and expert coloring are deceptively simple yet expressive. Even when Yang slips in an occasional Chinese ideogram or myth, the sentiments he's depicting need no translation. Yang accomplishes the remarkable feat of practicing what he preaches with this book: accept who you are and you'll already have reached out to others. (Sept.)

 ~Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

 

Crystal Owens

 

For online discussion click American Born Chinese 

 

Maximum Ride: Angel Experiment By James Patterson 

 

A group of genetically enhanced kids who can fly and have other unique talents are on the run from part-human, part-wolf predators called Erasers in this exciting SF thriller that's not wholly original but is still a compelling read. Max, 14, and her adopted family–Fang and Iggy, both 13, Nudge, 11, Gazzy, 8, and Angel, 6–were all created as experiments in a lab called the School. Jeb, a sympathetic scientist, helped them escape and, since then, they've been living on their own. The Erasers have orders to kill them so the world will never find out they exist. Max's old childhood friend, Ari, now an Eraser leader, tracks them down, kidnaps Angel, and transports her back to the School to live like a lab rat again. The youngsters are forced to use their special talents to rescue her as they attempt to learn about their pasts and their destinies. The novel ends with the promise that this journey will continue in the sequel. As with Patterson's adult mystery thrillers, in-depth characterization is secondary to the fast-moving plot. The narrative alternates between Max's first-person point-of-view and that of the others in the third person, but readers don't get to know Max very well. The only major flaw is that the children sound like adults most of the time. This novel is reminiscent of David Lubar's Hidden Talents (Tor, 1999) and Ann Halam's Dr. Franklin's Island (Random, 2002).

~Sharon Rawlins, Piscataway Public Library, NJ

 

Ivy Chen

Adela Chicas-Cruz

Ana Cabanillas Enciso

 

For online discussion click Maximum Ride: Angle Experiment

 

Daughters of the Moon By Lynne Ewing

 

This sexy but lackluster fantasy novel kicks off the Daughters of the Moon series by the author of Drive-By and Party Girl. High school sophomore Vanessa and her best friend, Catty, have magical powers. But while Catty sees her ability to time travel as a gift, Vanessa hates her own ability to turn invisible: she "tried to control her molecules, but in times of intense emotion, her molecules had more power than her ability to restrain them and the light from a full moon seemed to fuel their charge." Vanessa wants to date the handsome, long-haired Michael and be like everyone else, but whenever he kisses her, her feet and hands start disappearing. Then Catty turns up missing, and Vanessa's new friend Serena (a mind reader) reveals that they are goddesses, Daughters of the Moon, who must battle the evil Atrox and its dissolute band of "Followers" (from whose souls Atrox has sucked all hope) who haunt the Los Angeles club scene. Multicultural and cutting-edge, the California-hip backdrop may appeal to some readers and the book contains enough affirmations of "girl power" to please any budding feminist. But in the end, this series reads like an episode of Buffy the Vampire Slayer without the camp. ~Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.

 

Crystal Owens

Shana Myers

 

For online discussion click Daughters of the Moon

 

Road of the Dead By Kevin Brooks

 

When his sister is murdered on the English moors, he knows she's dead even though he's home in London. He and his brother, Cole, 17, are freakishly linked by Ruben's power to feel what Cole feels. The teens travel to Dartmoor to find Rachel's killer and bring her body home. They're received by a Dickensian assortment of sadistic thugs, greasy criminals, and corrupt cops, all hiding something. Brooks's feel for mood and setting is as masterful here as in his taut, noir Martyn Pig (Scholastic, 2002). A haunting, tense drama builds from the first line and only lets up for scenes of brutal, vivid violence that bring readers back down to earth. The murder is all but solved by the second half of the book, and the pace falters a bit as the resolution becomes obvious. However, Brooks sustains a mythical aura throughout, and rapid-fire action should keep teens engrossed. Ruben is vintage Brooks: sensitive, strange, and wholly three-dimensional. The dialogue between the brothers is crisp and natural, and often funny and touching at once. Cole is perfectly drawn as Ruben's tough, detached counterbalance. Brooks shows that the real magic between the brothers is their ferocious love for one another, and he does so brilliantly. ~Johanna Lewis, New York Public Library

 

Caitlin Crocker

 

For online discussion click Road of the Dead

 

Choke By Choke Palahniuk

 

Victor Mancini is a ruthless con artist. Victor Mancini is a med-school dropout who's taken a job playing an Irish indentured servant in a colonial-era theme park in order to help care for his Alzheimer's-afflicted mother. Victor Mancini is a sex addict. Victor Mancini is a direct descendant of Jesus Christ. All of these statements about the protagonist of Choke are more or less true. ~Amazon

 

Anya Bury

Kara Pond

Amanda Dunken

 

For online discussion click Choke

 

Mira, Mirror By Mette Ivie Harrison

 

 Mira, apprenticed to a witch, bonds with another beautiful young apprentice whom she thinks of as a sister. But the girl uses Mira to make herself beautiful, eventually turning Mira into a mirror made of wood and glass. One day, Mira's sister doesn't return, leaving Mira hanging alone on a wall for a hundred years. Harrison's story, which tucks in pieces of Snow White and Beauty and the Beast, is fresh in premise but convoluted in execution. Mira is found by a young peasant, Ivana, whom Mira intends to use to reform herself. She magically switches Ivana's face with that of the daughter of a merchant and, in the process, changes their lives and her own in ways more profound than cosmetic. This switch of identities may cause confusion for some readers as characters are addressed by their original names but act as one another. Perhaps overly ambitious, this is nonetheless richly written, and Harrison's points about what really matters and the real meaning of sisterhood ring true. ~Ilene Cooper

~Copyright © American Library Association.

 

Mariah Thurston

Ana Tahay

Samantha Moore 

 

For online discussion click Mira, Mirror

 

Lamb By

 

Kate Pritchard

Atherylis Sather Hodgetts

Taylor Smith

Delta Starchild

Shannon Dennehy

 

For online discussion click Lamb

 

Dragon Flight By Jessica Day George

 

With the Dragon Wars over, Creel finds herself bored with life as a seamstress. Then word comes that a bordering country has been breeding dragons in preparation for an invasion. Never one to sit around, Creel throws herself headlong into an adventure that will reunite her with her dragon friend Shardas, pit her against a vicious new enemy and perhaps rekindle a friendship with Prince Luka that seems to have gone cold. Funny, heart-felt, and action packed, this is a sequel that will satisfy on every level.

~Amazon

 

Tashi Weinstein

Kiara Wood

 

For online discussion click Dragon Flight

 

 

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