Teen Review

. . . Then I Met My Sister by Christine Hurley Deriso is a beautifully written novel and (although it's fiction) the author has written it so well that it will make you laugh at the funny parts, cry at the sad ones, and "awww" at the romantic ones. This novel is about a girl named Summer. As happy of a name that she has, her life has not all been light blue skies and rays of sunshine. All her life, Summer has been shadowed by the memory of her dead sister. Always she thought that her sister was the perfect one, and her? The unperfect. Or so she thought until her aunt had given her a diary her sister Shannon had kept before she died. But instead of learning more, she has more questions, and the answers to those change her and her family's lives forever.

--Snigdha, Teen Reviewer

The Day of the Pelican by Katherine Paterson is a suspenseful and meaningful read. Narrated by Meli, a 12 year old Albanian Muslim, the story of her family's survival during a time of war and bloodshed in Kosovo is both heartbreaking and hopeful. Taking place in 1998-1999, she tells us of her family's flight during the Serbian attempts to clear Kosovo of all Albanian citizens. Meli talks of fear in the face of your enemy, of her struggle with hatred, and having to grow up before you're ready. When we think of people being herded in to trains and carted away like cattle or when the term "ethnic cleansing" is spoken many tend to remember only the Holocaust. The Day of the Pelican reminds us that history can and does repeat itself. And, Meli speaks to try and stop us from allowing it to ever happen again.

You may recognize the author's name from her recent book Bread and Roses, Too or her widely known Bridge to Terabithia. (Have you seen the movie yet?) She writes again of a young adult's struggle to cope with death and understand what it takes to live a meaningful life.

Perfect Chemistry

Two Chicago high school students, one a head cheerleader from the north side and one a gang member from the south side, are thrown together as lab partners in their Chemistry class. Starting off the school year with a prickly confrontation that magnifies their many differences, Brittany Ellis and Alex Fuentes soon have greater challenges to overcome -- love. While breaking through and overcoming their personal misconceptions about each other, they are also faced with the disapproval of their friends and family. A passionate and intense story told in alternating narratives, Perfect Romance is recommended for teens 14 and up.

Perfect Chemistry had me hooked from the first chapter. Having read How to Ruin a Summer Vacation, also by Simone Elkeles, I look forward to other titles by this author, including a sequel to Perfect Chemistry, which is due for release in May 2010. You may also want to check out Elkeles website -- a creative and interactive site with forums, a newsletter, and rap video "book trailers" to promote her titles. One bit of interesting trivia about the author -- she's a graduate of the University of Illinois.

Are You a Wimpy Kid?

Have you been reading any of the books in the Wimpy Kids series? I just finished reading Diary of a Wimpy Kid: The Last Straw, the third book in the best-selling "novel in cartoon" series by Jeff Kinney. As I did with the first two books, I laughed out loud while I was reading. When you think about it, how often does a book make you do that?

The Wimpy Kid series is about the misadventures of Greg Heffley and his quest of achieving middle-school popularity. Whether it's getting a date with the prettiest girl in class, outsmarting his parents, or playing sports, Greg's mini-dramas and his inclination towards being oblivious to those around him, always conclude with hilarious consequences.

For me, reading The Wimpy Kid series was a literary vacation from novels that often tell tales of kids in the midst of tragedies of a very serious nature - AIDS, teen pregnancy, abuse, death, and so on. The trials and tribulations of Greg Heffley seem pale in comparison to the issues faced by tweens and teens in other books (and in real life), but may be one of several reasons why the Wimpy Kid books are so popular. It makes me wonder - are the Greg Heffleys in life and their concerns about being seen in their Wunderwoman Underoos or getting caught by the "cheese touch" in the minority these days?

Do yourself a favor. Read at least one book in the Wimpy Kid series. If you don't and one of your classmates (or your local librarian) calls you "ploopy," you'll have no idea what they're talking about.

Diary of a Wimpy Kid: The Last Straw can be found at the library, as well as Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Greg Heffley's Journal, and Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Rodrick Rules. Book four in the series is due October 12, 2009, and 20th Century Fox is currently seeking a bright young male to play the role of Greg Heffley in the Wimpy Kid movie (check out some of the audition tapes).