Category: Books for Young Adults

Classy: Be a Lady not a Tramp by Derek Blasberg

While it may seem odd to find a man doling out advice to young women on how to be classy, Blasberg’s experiences working in the fashion and entertainment industries give him credibility as a resource.  Unfortunately, we live in a time when many famous young women are TERRIBLE role models.  It’s not uncommon to see young actresses with barely any clothing behaving in a less than classy manner (to put it politely).  Blasberg provides excellent “lady vs. tramp” visual guides for topics like dressing appropriately, sitting in a skirt, and dating,  as well as etiquette tips for a multitude of situations.  There are sections on clothing, parties, travel, friendship, dating, facing temptation, and the importance of lifelong learning.  I absolutely LOVED this book because it shows young women that looking trashy is not the best way to get attention, that there are many things more important than worrying about your physical appearance, and that dressing/behaving appropriately can still be lots of fun!

Ship Breaker by Paolo Bacigalupi

The world has run out of oil, and global warming has melted the polar ice caps; this is certainly not the world as we know it.  Most people live in poverty and take whatever work they can find, no matter how dangerous, just so they can survive.  Nailer has found work with a “light crew,” which means wriggling through the ductwork of beached tanker ships along the Gulf Coast to scavenge for scrap metals.  As long as he makes quota, and doesn’t get too big to fit through the ducts, he can stay on the light crew. Nailer does his best to avoid his alcoholic/druggie father, but still begs Sadna (his best friend Pima’s mother) to save his dad as a violent hurricane blows through town. After the storm, Nailer and Pima cannot find their parents, but manage to stumble upon a shipwrecked clipper ship. The ship has enough scavenge to make them both filthy rich, but there’s one problem — the “swank” girl trapped inside. Do they kill her to keep their claim on the ship, or do they rescue her and add to their burden?

Zombies vs. Unicorns edited by Holly Black and Justine Larbalestier

This was one crazy anthology!  It wasn’t really what I was expecting —  one unicorn story made mention of farting rainbows, while a few of the zombie stories seemed more like love stories and inspirational stories than horror and gore.  The story introductions, written by editors Holly Black and Justine Larbalestier, were rather humorous arguments as to which of the “teams” was winning [based on the stories so far] and always added something extra to the stories themselves.  The scary thing is, I think I may have been converted from “Team Unicorn” to “Team Zombie” in the end!  If you’re looking for some awesome stories that get away from the typical unicorn and zombie stereotypes, you’ll want to check out this book.

Green Witch by Alice Hoffman

A year after her world was nearly destroyed, sixteen-year-old Green has become the one villagers turn to for aid, expecially to record their stories, but Green will need the help of other women who, like herself, are believed to be witches, if she is to find her best friend and her one true love.  A wonderful, quick read along with Green Angel.  Each can be read in one or two sittings.  Both are haunting and memorable.

The Line by Teri Hall

Rachel and her mother, Vivian, have lived on The Property as long as she can recall.  Vivian works for Ms. Moore, who owns The Property and runs a greenhouse in which she grows orchids.  The Property is very quiet and secluded, but it is located adjacent to the infamous Line — a border protection system which separates the U.S. from Away.  To stop an approaching foreign enemy, the U.S. had activated the Line without warning, trapping many U.S. citizens in Away.  Then, Away was blasted with atomic bombs.  The Line is always on to keep Others from crossing the border.  Anyone who speaks out against the government and/or the Line is considered a traitor, and almost everyone lives in fear of the oppressive government.

The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins

In a future North America, where the rulers of Panem maintain control through an annual televised survival competition pitting young people from each of the twelve districts against one another, sixteen-year-old Katniss’s skills are put to the test when she voluntarily takes her younger sister’s place.

Bright Young Things by Anna Godbersen

Letty Larkspur and Cordelia Grey have run away from their small Ohio town and are determined to make it big in New York City.  Letty is sure that she will be a star, if only she can get the chance to audition for a role, and Cordelia plans on tracking down the man she believes to be her father — infamous bootlegger Darius Grey.  Full of larger-than-life characters and jam-packed with action, this story begs to be read in one sitting.  Now, if only I knew when the next book was supposed to come out… (I’ll be keeping an eye out on http://www.bytseries.com)

Ash by Malinda Lo

Aisling’s father did his best to care for her after her mother died, but his protection ended when he died, and her jealous stepmother did her best to make up for lost time.  Horrible living conditions?  Check.  Too much hard labor for one person to complete?  Check.  A dream that she will some day escape this hellish existence?  Check.  Sure, this is a Cinderella story . . .  but it’s not your mama’s Cinderella story!  More than just a coming of age story and a fairy tale with a twist, this is a beautifully written tale about what it truly means to live and love.

Impossible by Nancy Werlin

The women of Lucy’s family have been cursed for generations to bear a child by the age of eighteen and then go mad.  Can Lucy escape this fate?  Only if she can complete the three impossible tasks named in the song “Scarborough Fair.”  Using some clues left by her mother, and aided by family and friends, Lucy races the clock to do the impossible and save herself.  A captivating fairy tale for young and not so young adults.

Feed by M.T. Anderson (audiobook)

In the future, corporations rule the world.  Each child has a chip implanted in the brain at birth, which allows instant access to the “feed.”  Tasks that used to require computers, such as internet browsing, email and chat, can now be performed using thoughts and the feed.  Of course, since corporations sponsor the feed, the user is constantly bombarded with commercials and purchasing suggestions based on thoughts he or she is having at the moment. This ease of access to information comes at an extremely high price, though few seem to realize it.