Catching Fire

Catching Fire
By Suzanne Collins

Second Book of The Hunger Games

If you haven't started this triology now is the time, because the final book, Mockingjay, comes out Aug. 24.

The adventure continues for Katniss as she makes her Victory Tour and gets back into the arena for the 75 Annual Games.

Personal Thoughts: On the way to being my favorite trilogy. Again, the whole romance thing is not my favorite, but I can handle it.

Star Rating:


Keep Reading,
Dr. Quinn

YA List

I had actually thought about stopping my blog since I have neglected it for so long. However, just this past weekend two past students told me how they use it, and that I better not stop. So I guess I'll do some posting again and see how it goes.

Today's post will have a list of books that are a part of my YA class. This class is an elective for any student on campus. However, it usually fills up immediately with elementary education majors. Just a little about the format of the class. The class is a part of Taylor University's January term. We meet twice a week in the evening at my house. We discuss YA books, drink coffee, and eat dessert. Plus there are no papers! Just read and discuss.

Here is this year's list: Stuck in Neutral, Cruise Control, Speak, Inexcusable, Monster, American Born Chinese, Give a Boy Gun, Wintergirls, Mexican Whiteboy, Hunger Games, 13 Reasons Why, Before I Die. Several of the books have already been mentioned on the blog so I will just briefly discuss some of the others.

Hunger Games
By Suzanne Collins

This has been the best book I have read in quite awhile. I loved the action, description, plot, and characters. I found Hunger Games to be a very engaging read, and I highly recommend it for middle school.

Quick Summary: This is a futuristic tale and the US is called Panem, and it is divided into 12 districts. Each year one male and one female (age 12-18) from each district must participate in the Hunger Games, a televised event where contestants fight to the death. The last on living wins.

There was a bit too much romance for me in the book, but I understand the role it plays, and how it will impact the second book in the trilogy.

Rating:

Give a Boy a Gun
By Todd Strasser

This is a difficult read that I like to pair with Nancy Garden's Endgame. The premise of this story is about two boys that have been teased and harassed throughout school. Finally they take situations in their hands during a school dance.

The story is told in first-person by various characters of the book including the suicide notes from each of the two boys. Various factoids and news snippets are found throughout the book in regards to real school violence events. The format of this book would be identified as radical change.

Wintergirls
By Laure Halse Anderson

This 2009 book tells the story of two friends that struggle with an eating disorder. After a falling out Cassie makes a desperate but unsuccessful attempt to connect with her former friend Lia. The result is death for Cassie and potential death for Lia. Throughout the story Lia tries to put the puzzle pieces of Cassie's death together while also putting herself in a downward spiral towards death.

13 Reasons Why
By Jay Asher

In this story a high school girl commits suicide, but before doing so she sends 13 cassette tapes to 13 people who had an impact of her decision.

Asher write the book in a radical change format. He tells the story of Hannah via cassette tapes by writing it all in italicized font. Then he adds to the story by inserting the voice of another character by printing it in a regular font. This formatting allows the reader to "hear" the tapes while getting immediate insights from a living character in the book.

I found this book very creative, insightful, and engaging. Asher did a great job illustrating how rumors can snowball and have a negative impact on people.

Keep reading and I'll try to keep posting,

Dr. Quinn

Drums, Girls, & Dangerous Pie

My niece (an 8th grade teacher) recently recommended that I read the YA book titled Drums, Girls, and Dangerous Pie. Although the novel was first printed in 2004, this was the first time I had heard of the book. Sadly, I wish I would have read this years ago, because I could have shared it with many of my students.

Super quick summary: The plot is about Steven (age 14) and how his world gets rocked when he discovers that his brother, Jeffrey (age 5) is diagnosed with Leukemia.

As I read the book I had a mix of emotions...from sadness to outward laughter. Sonnenblick did a great job making this book real for the readers. He took us through the day to day struggles that a middle school boy might go through while dealing with this difficult situation and other typical middle school trials.

Rating:

Keep Reading,
Dr. Quinn

Cruise Control

Less than a year ago I read Terry Trueman's Stuck in Neutral (see December 17)...The story is
about Shawn McDaniel a 14 year-old boy with Cerebral Palsy which limits him from any voluntary movement and the whole thing is told from Shawn's point of view.

Yesterday I just completed Cruise Control, a companion book to Stuck in Neutral. In this book, Paul McDaniel, Shawn's older brother, tell his side of the story. Paul is a hard and bitter young man who is especially angry at his father for abandoning the McDaniel family. Throughout the book, Paul deals with his anger via sports, fighting, and alcohol...primarily through sports. Paul has a change of heart near the end of the book, but readers will have to see what happens.

Overall, I enjoyed this book a lot. I thought that Trueman did a fantastic job of showing Paul's anger throughout the book. However, I had one big problem with the ending. As a high school coach for many years and someone who has been around sports his whole life, I found the state title basketball game much too unbelievable. Persoanlly the ending turned me off.

Rating: (due to the ending)

Happy reading,
Dr. Quinn

Endgame

Last year I was introduced to Endgame by Nancy Garden. Several students and I decided to use it as a part of our small book club. I was impressed immediately!

This year I decided to assign it to my seniors as a part of their capstone class, the culminating education class at Taylor. After reading the book we did had two hours of discussion (only one hour was planned). It was absolutely amazing to see the emotions that this book evoked in myself and my students. By the time class was over there were tears, heartache, prayer, and a genuine determination to seek out those students that are bullied, different, loners, etc.

If you do not know the book. It is a YA book about a 14 year old boy that is bullied at school and treated unfairly by his father at home. Ultimately he takes the situation in his own hands by taking a loaded gun to school. I'll just leave it at that for now.

I know there are plenty of fantastic books that touch this subject, but I must admit I found this one to be very powerful. I am embarrassed to admit that eyes were opened!

Rating:

Happy Reading,
Dr. Quinn

Stuck in Neutral

I just finished Terry Trueman's Stuck in Neutral, and I am a big fan. I love the third person voice of the 14 year old protagonist, Shawn McDaniel. Shawn was born with Cerebral Palsy which limits him from any voluntary movement. No one in Shawn's life believes he has the ability to learn or even understand; however, this is far from the truth. According to Shawn, he remembers everything that he hears. He just can't communicate that with anyone, so they all think he is profoundly developmentally disabled.

Another big problem is that Shawn believes his father wants to kill him. He thinks that his father is so sad and his heart hurts so much for Shawn that the best thing for Shawn would be euthanasia.

Where did Trueman come up with such a book? After reading the Author's Note at the end of the book I found out. Trueman has a son, Sheehan, who is diagnosed just like Shawn.

Rating:

Happy Reading,
Dr. Quinn

An Abundance of Katherines

About two weeks ago, I read John Green's An Abundance of Katherines. Sadly, I forgot to post my thoughts. So better late than never. Here is a quick summary and my thoughts of the book...

Colin Singleton gets dumped by his girlfriend, Katherine. It just so happens that this is his 19th time to be dumped, and each time his girlfriend was named Katherine. Colin's best friend ,Hassan, recommends that the two take a summer road trip so Colin can get his mind off the recent break-up. The two make it to Gutshot, TN, where they stop and stay for the summer. While in Gutshot, Colin's diligently works on a theorem which predicts the future of his female relationships. The story culminates as the the two boys run into some trouble with some of the local teenagers.

Personally, I enjoyed my first novel by John Green. I appreciated the added footnotes that Green used to enrich the story. I found these interesting, humorous, and informational. I found the universal topic, male/female relationships, entertaining and engaging. I would definitely recommend this YA book.

Rating:

Happy Reading,

Dr. Quinn

Cut

It has been awhile since I last posted a book of my own. My most recent read was Cut by Patricia McCormick. The book is about a topic for which I have very little knowledge. However, I have wanted to read it for quite awhile since it is a popular YA book, and because I wondered if it might give me some insights to teen cutting.

After reading this book I was not disappointed. I do feel that I have a little better understanding (however I know that this is only one story/example). I can understand why YA readers might connect with the book. Although the protagonist, Callie...aka S.T. for Silent Treatment, self inflicts her wounds there are many other characters in the book with other problems that teenagers also deal with. Ultimately readers might connect with the same underpinning problem that Callie had...putting blame on herself for her family's problems.

I really liked the writing style used by McCormick, a first-person voice directed to the protagonist's therapist. I liked the ending and the initial healing between Callie and her father. I liked Callie's self-realization that she does need help, and that she actually wants to get better.

I'm already giving too much away so I better stop.

Rating:

Happy Reading,

Dr. Quinn

YA List from a Friend

I have recently been emailing back and forth with a colleague and new friend from Minnesota, Charlotte Sullivan. In our last few emails Charlotte has given me some YA recommendations. With her permission, I have taken the words right from our email to share with all of you. Because these are Charlotte's annotations and because I have not read any of these book, I will not be rating them. Also please note that Charlotte's original intention was for my eyes.

From Charlotte...

I highly recommend Neal Schusterman's Dark Side of Nowhere. Sci Fi for kids who don't like sci fi. Strong first person voice, examples of leadership, excellent suspense and plot arc. For middle school...but also high school. There's also a great audio recording.

Also love Anne Ursu's Shadow Thieves, the first in a wacky Chronus Chronicles trilogy about contemporary kids and three main Greek gods. (You may not know that one of the doors to the underworld is in our very own Mall of America, here in MN. ;-) . Strong voices, imitates Greek epic story structure, good humor. Protagonists are two cousins, one white/ one black--one from US/ one from England. The second book is out. Haven't read it yet. I'd say, intermediate and up.

Also, you've probably heard of Lightning Thief. Another blend of today and Greek mythology. Main character has ADD.

Although City of Ember, I feel is a so-so book craft-wise, I loved challenging students to think about possibilities in the classroom. We looked at parallels to Plato's cave, and at Crown (a Christian college), the concept of having limited knowledge of the spiritual realm, or of life beyond what we know.

You might check out Pete Hautman. He won the National Book Award for Godless, about a teen who creates his own religion...but I actually like his other books. Especially Sweetblood (teen w/ diabetes, interest in vampires...but the story is real-world), Invisible, etc. These are all teen reads. Stunning, concise, first person, short chapters. He's a true artist. But he's lately done a new Bloodwater mystery series with is partner and author Mary Logue. Fun... more intermediate level.

Susan Fletcher's Shadow Spinner, is a retelling of Scheherazade story from the POV of a young, handicapped girl who happens to be a spunky storyteller herself. Intermediate. Great action, great story.

One last title. I really enjoyed Jonathan Stroud's Bartimaeus Trilogy. Humor, fantasy, adventure, intriguing explorations of social power structures, resistance to oppression, etc. I see some post-9/11 overtones, though, I believe Stroud is from UK. Some conservative readers may object to the djinn and spirit world represented. I loved it. Also a great audio version of this.

Thank you Charlotte for sharing these titles and for permission to post them to my blog.

Happy Reading,
Dr. Quinn

Stargirl & Love, Stargirl

I finally finished Love, Stargirl by Jerry Spinelli. It took me almost six months because I kept putting it down and picking other books up. For those of you that have read previous posts, you know that I set a goal to finish it before reading anything else. So I spent part of a beach day completing the book. By the way, I promise not to post anymore pictures of me reading at the beach. The picture posted here is at East Beach in Santa Barbara, CA. FYI, Santa Barbara is fantastic...great weather, great food, very clean, and more. I would give it a 5-star rating!

Back to the books. I am not going to review the two Spinelli books, but I'll make a few comments and rate them both.

Stargirl
I loved it. I loved the writing style, the message, the characters, the storyline, and the potential for for classroom discussion. I am a huge fan. One of my all-time favorite books

Rating:

Love, Stargirl
I enjoyed this book, but I was not nearly as engaged in this sequel as I was the first book...maybe that is why it took me six months to complete it. I know that many of my students like this book just as much as Stargirl, but I just struggled with it a bit. Although I struggled, it was still creative. In the first book, the text is written from Leo's point of view (Leo is Stargirl's boyfriend). In Love, Stargirl, the book is one long letter written to Leo from Stargirl. I'll leave it at that so I don't spoil too much.

Rating:


Happy Reading,
Dr. Quinn

Story of a Girl

Today’s read was Story of a Girl by Sara Zarr. My first comment is…perfect title. After discussing this book with my wife we agreed that this book was plain and simply a story of a sixteen year old girl.

The YA novel takes place on the coast of northern California, Zarr immediately starts the book with a flashback as the protagonist, Deanna, has an unwanted encounter with her “boyfriend” and her father. Then the novel moves to the present. From this point on Deanna tells us what is happening in her life: how she handles her dysfunctional family; how she discovers true friends; and how she deals with her past and the way it impacts her present. Like Twisted (yesterday's post), the protagonist has a difficult relationship with his/her father.

I enjoyed the book because it was not too deep. There was no hidden agenda. Zarr did a good job of sharing Deanna’s life with the readers. I really liked the ending or lack of ending. Deanna’s life goes on so Zarr simply ties up some loose ends, but was creative enough to let the reader think about Deanna’s future.


Rating

Happy Reading,
Dr. Quinn

Twisted

One of the few YA books on my summer reading list with a male protagonist is Twisted by Laurie Halse Anderson. Like many of her books this is a quick read and a good one. I feel that many YA readers will be able to connect with the protagonist, Tyler, in some way. He comes from a dysfunctional family…the father is self-centered, the mother somewhat lacks a backbone, and together they argue all the time. Sadly many YA readers probably live too close to this.

I enjoyed how Tyler developed throughout the book. Learning how to handle his new physique, his new female interest, his new and old trials and tribulations Tyler rides an emotional roller coaster. Support from his sister, his best friend, and his own maturity all help him get through his twisted life.

I was surprised how Anderson ended the book…it worked, but I was surprised.

Rating

Happy Reading,
Dr. Quinn

Radical Change

In this blog, I do not plan to write up each book I read, but every once in awhile I'm sure I will feel the need to do so. It just so happens that I want to share my most recent read.

I just completed April Wayland's Girl Coming in for a Landing: A Novel in Poems. This is a very quick YA read. This book is all poems written in first person, and it follows a young teen-aged girl through her school year. I enjoyed the poems, the storyline, the illustrations, and the topics (the topics were very relivant...actually several of the poems were from Wayland's journal of her teenage years). What I enjoyed most about this novel was the format. I love books written in unusual formats, and this one definitely fits what Eliza Dresang would call a Radical Change book.

Rating

If you are not familiar with Radical Change: Books for Youth in a Digital Age by Eliza T. Dresang, I would recommend that you pick it up. Dresang looks at three kinds of change: changing forms and formats (graphics in new forms and formats, nonlinear organization, etc.), changing perspectives (multiple perspectives, etc.), and changing boundaries (previously forbidden subjects and overlooked settings, etc). Wayland's novel is definitely a radical change type of book.

Happy Reading,

Dr. Quinn

Summer Reading

I have set a goal for my summer reads. This summer I hope to focus more on some YA. I have chosen the following books: Twisted by Laurie Halse Anderson, Story of a Girl by Sara Zarr, The Girls: A Novel by Lori Lansens, Girl Coming in for a Landing: A Novel in Poems by April Halprin Wayland and Elaine Clayton, The Book Thief by Markus Zusak (this is a long book so I may struggle with this one), and I have also just picked up Redwall: The Graphic Novel by Brian Jacques. Someday I hope to do a post on graphic novels. I am an extremely slow reader so it will be interesting to see when this list is accomplished.

Happy Reading,
Dr. Quinn