Between Shades of Grey - Ruta Sepetys

I have read many books (fiction and non-fiction) about the Holocaust.  These stories recount the horror and terror that the Nazis inflicted upon innocent people of many different ages, religions, and ethnicity.  In Between Shades of Grey, Sepetys presents a story not often told - that of the genocide and enslavement by the Soviets in Siberia.

The story follows Lina, a young Lithuanian girl, whose family is taken in the night and sent to a Soviet work camp in Siberia.  Lina, her mother, and her younger brother fight for survival with others they have met along the way.  While they are in captivity, Lina continues to draw, hoping that her drawings will be seen by her father who is at a prison camp and will one day lead him back to his family.  Amid the horrific conditions and the treatment by the Soviets, glimmers of hope and unexpected kindness shine through.

Human.4 - Mike Lancaster

It is a typical day in Kyle's life.  The same friends, the same people, the same talent show.  But when he volunteers to get hypnotized by his friend Danny, everything changes.  Kyle is one of the 0.4.  Except Kyle and the 3 others who were hypnotized, everyone else has changed.  His family is no longer his family, friends no longer his friends.  Everyone has been affected by whatever has happened- aliens, invasion, disease - and Kyle and the other 0.4's no longer exist.

While at times I felt that the characters lacked depth and I would've liked to see more from them, I enjoyed reading this.  It was a quick read and (even though I know it is a story) I felt that it spoke to the way our society is headed - with such a reliance on technology.

The Throne of Fire - Rick Riordan

In his second book of the Kane Chronicles, Rick Riordan follows the same pattern that is seen in all of his books.  His main characters (Sadie and Carter in this series) find themselves in a battle between good and evil, learn something about themselves and each other along the way, and fight for what they know is right - even when the world is stacked against them.  Even though this book is very similar to his other novels (Percy Jackson Series, etc...), Riordan still does an excellent job of storytelling and incorporating a modern storyline with traditional Egyptian culture and gods.

In this second novel, Sadie and Carter are again battling the forces of evil.  They have to figure out a way to raise the sun god Ra in order to battle Chaos - Apophis.  In order to raise Ra, they will have to battle against not only Chaos, but also against other magicians who do not believe that they are doing the right thing.  Similar to the first book, the story is told in alternating voices - Sadie and Carter.  I liked this aspect and felt that it was necessary, especially since in some critical parts of the book our characters are separated.  Unlike the first book, the storyline flowed easily between the two voices - with more time complementing each other stories than trying to figure out their new brother/sister relationship.  There were many characters that were familiar, as well as the addition of some new characters - trainees for the Brooklyn House.

I love most of what Rick Riordan does, and this did disappoint - I love the combination of history, culture, and the modern twist on old stories.

The Help - Kathryn Stockett

I don't normally read "grown-up" books, but this is one that had been suggested to me by numerous people.  I love novels about civil rights and the South and teach a whole unit surrounding these issues.  It is one of my favorite units to teach.  The Help did not disappoint.

Skeeter is a young white woman living in Jackson, Mississippi in the 1960's.  But despite her privileged life growing up on a plantation and her numerous friends that rely on their colored maids, Skeeter is not like all of the other white women.  She wants more for herself than to be a housewife to some rich man.  She wants to be a writer, and when she is given the advice to write about what people are not talking about, she turns to the thing that disturbs her - the treatment of blacks in Jackson.  With the help of local maids, she compiles a book that tells the real story - the ups and downs - of what it is like to be the black help in this Southern town.

Told in alternating voices of Skeeter and two black maids - Aibileen and Minny, this is not just a story of the civil rights movement, but one of the complex relationships between the whites and the blacks in the South at this time.  Stockett understands her characters - their joy and their fear - and lays it all on the table for her readers.

When It Happens - Susane Colasanti

Everybody wants that perfect boyfriend.  Girls dream about their perfect guy - smart, caring, funny - a perfect match.  Sarah thinks that she has found that perfect guy in Dave - he is popular, cute, and he asked her out.  She is not from the "in crowd", not popular, not into sports like Dave.  She is the nerdy girl who gets good grades.  So of course she loves the new attention and popularity that she gains by dating her perfect guy.  But if Dave is perfect, why can't Sarah stop thinking about Tobey?  He is nothing that she wants - a slacker, a musician, wears ripped jeans and ratty t-shirts.  But it is Tobey that is in her dreams and Tobey that makes her heart race.  In When It Happens, we follow Sarah down a path of discovery, joining her in making a decision that will change the course of her senior year and her love life.  Is Dave really her perfect guy?  Or is Tobey the one that is real?

This was a typical young adult novel, but the characters are realistic and the storyline is one that many girls can identify with.  Who hasn't wanted to find that perfect guy, just to find out that they were not perfect?  

What Happened to Goodbye - Sarah Dessen

I love Sarah Dessen.  When girls come to me and ask me for book suggestions, the first question I ask them is if they have ever read any Sarah Dessen.  In a time when books about faeries, vampires, and werewolves are overwhelming the market, Dessen brings back simple story lines with characters and plots that are realistic (though slightly idealistic).  Her stories are typically very similar.  Teenage girl, going through a rough time (usually with family), meets a new boy, has to figure out her life and how to deal with her problems in order to be truly happy by the story's end.  While her novels do all follow a similar outline, I am still drawn into each one - enraptured by the story and the character.

In Whatever Happened to Goodbye, Dessen creates her typical character, McClean is dealing with the aftermath of a messy affair and divorce of her parents.  She has chosen to live with her father, feeling as though she has been replaced by her mother's new family and new life.  McClean and her father move around constantly, allowing her to reinvent herself everytime she starts somewhere new.  It is in this new town where she finally has to face herself (the real McClean) and figure out who she is, her relationship with her parents, and what she wants out of her life.  It is time to stop running and face her life head on.

Dessen, doing what she does best, creates a character in McClean that we can all identify with.  She has ups and downs, is insecure, has a failed relationship with at least one of her parents, and has no clue who she is or what she is doing with her life.  There is a little bit of all teenage girls (and sometimes adult) in McClean's character.   You really get to know McClean and the other characters and grow up with her instead of just reading it about it.