Showing posts with label Love. Show all posts

The Mud Girl by Alison Acheson

Title: The Mud Girl

Author: Alison Acheson

Publish Date: October 2006

Publisher: Coteau Books

Pages: 328pp

IBSN: 1550503545

Classification: Fiction

Genre: Realistic Fiction

Annotation: Aba Zytka Jones—Abi—doesn’t expect anything from anyone. Her mother has abandoned her and her father, whom remains in his chair. She doesn’t have much, but she wants to figure out her life on her own.

Plot Summary: Aba Zytka Jones (Abi), sixteen, has a long summer ahead of her. Her mother has left and her father remains sitting in his chair, leaving her with several responsibilities to shoulder. With a burning need to figure out her life, Abi has numerous questions. A woman from the Big Sister organization, Ernestine, attempts to befriend her. The cute guy from the paint shop, Jude, becomes her boyfriend. And a girl named Amanda offers offers her a summer job cleaning houses. When Abi discovers that Jude has a son, Dyl, who’s mother has taken off (mirroring her own sistuation), she has is faced with her past pain and forced to deal with her issues by taking care of Dyl.

Personal Response: A poignant story about a girl who was abandoned by her mother and whose father is somewhat useless. The novel is slow-moving with beautiful descriptions of the land, in which play a potent counterpart to the symbolism of Abi’s, the protagonist, pain.

~Reader’s Advisory~

Themes: Identity, finding out who you are and what you want in life. Uncovering the past pains of your life by helping another in need.

Age Range: 12 and up

Subjects: Identity, Abandonment, Adult Responsibilities, Relationships, Love, Dysfunctional Family, Outreach, Coming of Age, Realistic Fiction

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Rockbound by Frank Parker Day

No Great Mischief by Alistair MacLead

The Birth House by Ami McKay

Little Black Lies by Tish Cohen

Title: Little Black Lies

Author: Tish Cohen

Publish Date: October 2009

Publisher: EgmontUSA

Pages: 320pp

IBSN: 1606840339

Classification: Fiction

Genre: Realistic Fiction

Annotation: Sara Black, the new kid in town, fell into her first lie of being from London, England, when really she is from Lunden, Massachusetts. From then on, the lies escalated, turning from little white lies into big black lies, all in the name of fitting in.

Plot Summary: As the new eleventh grader at Anton High School, Sara Black just wants to fit in, especially because Anton High School is perhaps the most elite public school in the country. She figures by being the new student, she has the ability to fudge her previous life and dually hide her tarnished family past by telling a few white lies. Though, she runs the risk of breaking her fathers heart in doing so as her father is the janitor of the school and suffers from obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD). When another social climber gets jealous of Sara, she decides to take on Sara’s stories, putting Sara’s reputation on the line.

Personal Response: I think this is a good read as it goes into detail about the pressures of fitting in, and the length teens go to make sure they are part of the in crowd. An interesting aspect of this novel was the description of the “in-crowd” in which were based on intellect, rather then the usual sports, good looking, cheerleader types. The students actions are formatted based on the pressures they face in order to succeed in life. The author keeps the readers engaged with all the predicaments Sara enters and provides meaningful lessons threaded throughout the story.

~Reader’s Advisory~

Themes: Awkward new student wants to fit in.

Age Range: 12 and up

Subjects: High School, Dysfunctional Family, Obsessive Compulsion Disorder, Friendship, Lying, Moving, Popularity, Outcast, Privilege, Mean Girls, Cliques, Love, Social Life

Kissing Doorknobs by Terry Spencer Hesser

Addiction by Toni Jordon

Shinchi's Canoe by Nicola I. Campbell

Title: Shinchi's Canoe

Author: Nicola I. Campbell

Illustrator: Kim LaFlave

Publish Date: December 2008

Publisher: Groundwood Books

Pages: 40pp

IBSN: 0888998570

Classification: Fiction

Genre: Picture Book

Annotation: Shi-shi-etko is returning to boarding school with her younger brother, Shin-chin, whom is six and has never been away from home before. Being forced to learn a new language and way of life, Shi-shi-etko and Shin-chin find ways to remember their native traditions.

Plot Summary: Shi-shi-etko and her brother Shin-chin are part of the Native people living in Canada. They have to attend boarding school that is far from home. Shi-shi-etko and Shin-chin do not want to go, nor does their family want to send them, but that is the law so they are forced. At school, Shi-shi-etko and Shin-chin are not allowed to speak their native language, or to one another, so they sneak around in order to hold on to their native traditions.

Personal Response: A very touching story that recounts the experiences of Native siblings sent away from their families to attend school. I thought the overall tone of the story was very moving in that it showed the closeness of the siblings and the love of their Native traditions. The illustrations are soft, yet bold with feeling and capture the essence of the story and the bonds of the Native people. I think this is a great read for the history of Native people living in Canada while evoking a heartfelt story about the love of family.

~Reader’s Advisory~

Themes: Honoring and remembering your heritage.

Age Range: 4-7

Subjects: First Nations, Native American, Indian, Residential Schools, Picture Book, Brothers and Sisters, Family Relationships, Love, Traditions

Series:

Shi-Shi Etko (2005)

Shinchi's Canoe (2008)

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A Sled Dog for Moshi by Jeanne Bushey

The Donkey of Gallipoli: A True Story of Courage in World War I by Mark Greenwood

The Republic of Nothing by Lesley Choyce

Title: The Republic of Nothing

Author: Lesley Choyce

Publish Date: February 2007

Publisher: Goose Lane Editions

Pages: 382pp

IBSN: 0864924933

Classification: Fiction

Genre: Realistic Fiction

Annotation: On the birth of his son, Ian, Everett McQuade, an Anarchist, proclaims Whalebone Island in Nova Scotia an independent republic.

Plot Summary: It’s the early 1950s on Whalebone Island in Nova Scotia and Everett MacQuade has marked the birth of his son, Ian, by declaring the island's independence. Whalebone is place of independent fishers, children whom have never had a formal education, pioneers of equal rights, and refugees from the city. Ian is at a point in his life where he is questioning his parents—his mother Dorothy, whom had suffered some sort of amnesia from her early life and has an uncanny sense of perception and his father Everett, whom is politically inclined. This leaves Ian wondering if anarchy is good for Whalebone.

Personal Response: What a ride this story was. From circus elephants and exotic furniture washing up on shore to refugees from the outside world settling in to live in a place of peace during time when peace was somewhat scarce (1960s, Vietnam war, atom bomb, etc.), The Republic of Nothing offers readers an in-depth look into the political rights and wrongs as well as the internal rights and wrongs.

~Reader’s Advisory~

Themes: Political and philosophical. Coming of Age.

Age Range: 12 and up

Subjects: Family, Friendship, Love, Relationships, Politics, Anarchy, Resilience, Independence

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Rockbound by Frank Parker Day

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Whaleshinger by Welwyn Wilton Katz

Title: Whaleshinger

Author: Welwyn Wilton Katz

Publish Date: October 2002

Publisher: Groundwood Books

Pages: 212pp

ISBN: 0888991916

Classification: Fiction

Genre: Realistic Fiction

Annotation: Seventeen year old Nick is not yet over the death of his older brother and sixteen year old Marty has learning difficulties. On a scientific field trip on the California coast, these two teenagers come together and share an empathic bond with two grey whales.

Plot Summary: Seventeen-year-old Nick is feeling hurt and angry about his brothers death. To get away from everyone at home in Vancouver, he accepts a research job for a conservation group on Point Reyes and Drake's Bay. He meets Marty, an intensely shy sixteen-year old who seems to have her own set of disabilities. It is these qualities that help Marty communicate with a whale mother and her baby. Together, Nick and Marty discover that the conservation project is a front for a plan to rob the treasure of Sir Francis Drake’s sunken frigate. Nick and Marty make an uncomfortable conformation and experience an earthquake.

Personal Response: A deeply felt novel with a multi-layered storyline of science, love, loss, treasure, and a whale mother with an ailing baby. Katz writes beautifully and depicts deeply touching relationships—the love between Marty and Nick and the love they share with the mother whale and her baby.

~Reader’s Advisory~

Themes: Teen angst.

Age Range: 12 and up

Subjects: Death, Depression, Teen Angst, Anger, Relationships, Family Relationships, Love, Whales, Ecology, Environment, Ocean, Sex, Thievery, Confrontation, Empathy, Earthquake,

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The Sky Is Falling by Kit Pearson

The Third Magic by Welwyn Wilton Katz

The Hidden World by Alison Baird

Angel Square by Brian Doyle

Title: Angel Square

Author: Brian Doyle

Publish Date: September 2004

Publisher: Groundwood Books

Pages: 144pp

ISBN: 0888996098

Classification: Fiction

Genre: Historical Fiction/Realistic Fiction

Annotation: It’s 1945 in Ottawa. Tommy, AKA the Shadow, and a couple of his friends, Killer Bodnoff and CoCo Laframboise, are trying to figure out who attacked their friend, Sammy’s father who is Jewish.

Plot Summary: The year is 1945 and in Ottawa’s Lowertown, religion matters. Tommy, “the Shadow,” is best friends with Sammy, a Jewish boy. When Sammy’s father is assaulted, he is sent to Toronto to be hospitalized, taking Sammy with him till he recovers. This sets Tommy into detective mode to find out who assaulted Sammy’s father. To help the investigation, Tommy relies on two friends Killer Bodnoff and CoCo Laframboise. Tommy feels that if he finds the assailant, Sammy’s father will heal, thus bringing Sammy back to Ottawa. This also give’s Tommy a chance to impress Margot Lane, the girl of his dreams.

Personal Response: A heartbreaking story told with humor and intrigue. I felt the violence of the religious warfare (set back in the 1940s) to be somewhat realistic and the message of tolerance to be apparent. Tommy is the books hero and is very likable, and to some extent relatable. Overall, I felt the story to be a sweet tale.

~Reader’s Advisory~

Themes: Tolerance

Age Range: 9 through 13

Subjects: Mystery, Jewish, Bigotry, Friendship, Christmas, Prejudice, Detective, Mentally Handicap, Humorous, Relationships, Family Relationships, Hate Crime, Love, Victims, Religion, Catholic, Protestant, Tolerance, Historical

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Smith by Leon Garfield

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