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jpainte
So very often you ask me for a short book to read for your book report. Well, here is a cute story that is 193 pages, but a quick and easy read. You’ll fly through it like it’s 100 pages, and you will enjoy the sweet story along the way. In the story, Isabel would give anything to travel outside of her small town in Oregon. So, she enters a baking contest, and if her recipe is selected, she will travel to New York for the national competition. However, two people may stand in the way of her plan. Her best friend, who seems to succeed at everything she tries also plans to enter a recipe, and her mother wants her to enter a cupcake recipe to promote the Cupcake shop their family is opening in town, but Isabel is not sure her best recipe is a cupcake recipe. If you want to find out what Isabel decides, read It’s Raining Cupcakes by Lisa Schroeder. We don’t have this book in our library yet, but if you let me know, I can help you obtain a copy to read. -
jpainte
Despite the fact that she is currently homeless and living on a school bus, Amber Appleton is the most hopeful, optimistic, and loving teenager ever. She teaches English to the Korean Divas for Christ, created a program that spices up the lives of the elderly at the Methodist home, befriends a lonely Vietnam Veteran, and fights to save her favorite teacher’s job. But when tragedy strikes, Amber must decide if she will remain hopeful or give in to despair. Grab a box of tissues. You’ll laugh, you’ll cry, but you will absolutely love the way this one ends! Here’s the trailer for Sorta Like a Rock Star created by Matthew Quick, the author of the book: -
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Have you ever been embarrassed by your parents? Do you find yourself competing with one of your brothers or sisters? Does your best friend think you like him like him, when all you want is to be friends? If you answered “yes” to any of these questions, then you can relate to Hamlet, the main character in The Total Tragedy of a Girl Named Hamlet by Erin Dionne. Hamlet’s life is anything but ordinary. Her parents are obsessed with Shakespeare to the extent that they appear in public wearing Shakespearean garb. Now Hamlet’s brilliant eight-year-old sister will be an 8th grader at school with Hamlet. To complicate matters even more, Hamlet is receiving cute origami pigs from a secret admirer! With all of this happening to her and more, Hamlet is finding it very hard to do what she desperately wants to do in 8th grade-fit in. Here’s a trailer for the book: -
jpainte
I just finished reading The Juvie Three by Gordon Korman and truly enjoyed it. Here’s a trailer for the book. -
jpainte
To be Good Enough according to her parents, Patti Yoon must…1. Score at least a 2300 on her SATs
2. Get into HARVARDYALEPRINCETON
3. Stay away from boys who will surely distract her from her studies
BUT everything seems to change when Patti meets cute trumpet player, Ben. She starts to question if what she wants and what her parents want are the same thing and if success and happiness really are the same. Good Enough is a laugh out loud, cute, enjoyable novel about a girl who “longs to fit in and strives to stand out.”
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jpainte
In the Patron Saint of Butterflies, Ceclia Galante introduces us to two best friends, Agnes and Honey. The girls live at Mount Blessing, a religious commune led by their brutal leader, Emmanuel. When Agnes’ grandmother discovers Emmanuel is physically abusing the girls, she takes them away from the commune. While Honey embraces the new freedom of life outside the commune, Agnes struggles with disobeying the “rules” she been taught to follow all her life. Cecilia Galante has grafted a beautiful story about faith, family and friendship that I am sure you won’t want to miss. -
jpainte
What a powerful book! The bullying incidents described so vividly in this book made me feel the character’s emotions. And I was reminded of my years in school. I thought about my classmates and how mean they could be. Then I thought about myself. Did I join in? Did I stand by and just let it happen? These are important questions to confront. Watch the trailer below and consider reading this one. You won’t regret it. P.S. If you liked Thirteen Reason Why by Jay Asher, I am pretty sure you’ll like this book too.
[podcast format=”video”]http://docushare.lps.org/docushare/dsweb/Get/Document-642191/TheHateListTrailer.mp4[/podcast]
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jpainte
The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks is about a girl who no longer wants to be thought of as the “bunny rabbit” most people consider her to be. Sophomore year at her prestigious boarding school, Frankie hooks up with the very popular and gorgeous, Matthew. She soon discovers Matthew is in a secret all male society that she cannot be a part of and Matthew tells her nothing about. So she finds a way to infiltrate the society and get them to carry out some outlandish pranks without anyone knowing she is the mastermind behind it all. But what will happen if she is caught? What will she learn about herself in the process? What will she gain? What will she lose?I found this book to be intelligent, clever, entertaining, and quite thought provoking. Booklist described the book by writing: “Lockhart creates a unique, indelible character in Frankie…Teens will be galvanized by her brazen action and her passionate, immediate questions about gender and power, individuals and institutions, and how to fall in love without losing herself.”
Here’s a little clip of E. Lockhart talking about the book and reading an excerpt describing one of the first pranks Frankie organized.
E. Lockhart reading at the 2008 National Book Award Finalists Reading from National Book Foundation on Vimeo.
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jpainte
If you enjoyed reading, The Skeleton Man by Joseph Bruchac, you will enjoy this tale. In this story, Paul finds his grandpa and himself kidnapped by a TV crew wanting Paul’s grandpa to lead them to the winged creature, Pmola, and his treasure described in the Abenaki tales. Paul relies on his Abenaki heritage, his dreams, and the wisdom of his grandfather in this desperate situation, but how will they escape? Read Night Wings by Joseph Bruchac to find out!
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While the snow was falling and Lincoln Public Schools were closed for a couple of days, I read the book, Crossing the Tracks, which I borrowed from the public library. I selected the book because the setting is in towns and cities not too far from where I grew up. The novel relates the story of a young girl, Iris, who faces many trials in her life including the death of her mother at an early age and a distant father who sends her away for the summer. Although not thrilled to work for the Nesbitt family, Iris is genuinely surprised by their warmth, friendship and hospitality. However, Iris must face her memories, anger, and sadness especially when tragedy dramatically changes her course in life. I fell in love with the characters in this novel especially Mrs. Nesbitt, Dr. Avery Nesbitt, and Leroy (Iris’ boyfriend). They make the novel worth reading. I was disappointed about the celebratory treatment of a particular death near the end of the novel. I’d tell you who dies, but I’d ruin the story for you.