Water Water Everywhere and not a drop to drink...

One of my favorite Seinfeld lines is "these pretzels are making me thirsty". Well, this book was making me thirsty. Imagine a world where water is scarce and controlled by the government. Where even the food is synthetic and you have to take dry showers. Where the United States is no longer united. That is the setting for Cameron Stracher's Water Wars. Brother and sister Will and Vera live in this desolate landscape with their parents. Their mom is sick, as are most people because of the lack of fresh water. Canada has dammed up any water that used to flow into the U.S. and Niagra Falls is now just an empty cavern where orphans are forced to work to look for water. One day on the way to school, Vera sees a mysterious boy drinking a cup of water, and he lets a few drops hit the ground. This is a violation of the law and when Vera calls him on it, he just kind of smiles. This is Kai, and he is a diviner. He can divine where water is under the ground. This makes him an invaluable commodity to the governments of all the territories. Will and Vera become his friends and when he mysteriously disappears, they set off to save him. On the way, they are kidnapped (or rescued) by pirates, led by the larger than life Ulysses. Then they are taken by PELA, an environmental group with not so benevolent intentions. As they go on their search for Kai, they encounter a load of obstacles and meet some interesting characters. This was a good read, I enjoyed the characters, but won't be one of my top ten of anything. So, reports are all graded (yay), shopping is done and a NoDids lunch is in the immediate future. I wonder what we will read next... hopefully someone has an idea. As for me, I am reading Beautiful Chaos, book three in Ethan and Lena's tale. Love this series and I'm glad it's only day 2 of vacation. Lots of time to read, mixed in with a trip to see Breaking Dawn. Hope all your Thanksgiving plans are pleasant. Happy Reading my friends.

Perfect

     Okay, so I finished Chris Creed last night and thought I would just start Ellen Hopkins new book, Perfect. It is written in poetry, so I just wanted to get a feel for her new characters. 600 or so pages later, I couldn't put it down. She is a master of the written word with an amazing insight into the teenage mind. She brings devastating issues to light in an accessible way. While her books are not always appropriate for my 8th graders, they are certainly necessary. This one is no different. The book is told in 4 voices, Cara- a twin whose brother has just tried to commit suicide, Sean- a baseball player trying to get an edge with steroids, Kendra- a wanna be model just trying to be thin enough and Andre- a dancer who can't tell his overachieving parents he wants to dance. Of course in typical Hopkins style, all their lives intersect in heartbreaking and tragic ways, mixed in with a little hope for a better future.  These are all topics kids need to know about and this is a safe way to explore them, through YA literature. So while I don't put these books on my shelves, I have them in my classroom for the students who need them, and whose parents approve. I admire those parents. These topics are not easy, but can have devastating after effects if not dealt with. Enough of that. The poetry is beautiful, visually interesting and heartbreakingly real. It shows the consequences of our actions and delivers the message that each of us is perfect just the way we are, especially if we let our inner beauty out. Not just a message for teens. Don't know what I'll read next, the pile is 10 high, only two reports to go and a trip to Costco today. Happy Reading my friends, and remember you are all perfect the way you are.

Following Christopher Creed

A long time ago, I read one of my all time favorite books- The Body of Christopher Creed. It is a fantastic mystery and every book by Carol Plum-Ucci that I have read since have been great. But there was always the mystery of what had really happened to Chris Creed. So imagine my surprise when I saw that she had written a sequel. As I started my long overdue week off of Thanksgiving break, I allowed myself to read in half hour shifts between grading Bill of Rights projects. I definitely enjoyed going back to the characters that had made me love the first book, but it was told by a new narrator, a blind, college reporter who had followed the story of Chris Creed and returned to Creed's hometown when a body is uncovered in the woods. As Mike tries to help Creed's younger brother Justin come to terms with his missing brother and his drug abuse, he is embroiled in the "bad frequency" the town seems to give off. Mike, himself, is running from a shady and difficult past, and finds himself relating all to well to Justin's problems. When Torey Adams and Bo Richardson come back to town for a funeral, Mike angles for a way to get an interview with his online heroes (Torey wrote a blog about Chris Creed). What did Justin have to do with the dead body, where is Chris Creed, and who is Mike really? I must say, I didn't see the end coming- which I usually do. Shocking twist that really made me love this book. A worthy sequel to Chris Creed and yet another fine read by Carol Plum-Ucci. But don't take my word for it- go back to the original first and you won't regret it. 7 days left of vacation, 7 more reports to grade and many more books to enjoy. Happy reading my friends! And Happy Thanksgiving!

The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer

Wow. What. A. Ride. Love. This. Book. Enough said? From the first page of this book by Michelle Hodkin, I was HOOKED. Mara Dyer is a teenage girl who just survived a building collapse that killed her best friend and two others. Her family moves with her to Florida to get away from it all. On her first day of school she meets the It boy of the school, Noah Shaw. DREAMY. Definite top ten fictional boy material, that Noah is. Anyway, as Noah and Mara become unlikely friends, Mara slowly believes she is going crazy, seeing dead people from her past. She is convinced that she needs to be committed. Things get weirder and weirder, until one night when Noah knocks on her window to tell her her brother Joseph has been kidnapped and they need to rescue him. The next day, she isn't sure it was real or a dream or a hallucination. When Mara realizes people around her tend to end up dead, she and Noah figure out why they have been brought together. Can Noah convince her to control her powers or will she be lost to the dark forever? And are her friends really dead? What an ending! Can't wait for the next installment!! Will Mare and Noah finally kiss? Will her kiss kill him? Is Jude really still alive? Can Mara control her power? What will her family say when they find out about her? What would you do if you had their power? And where did the power come from? If you want a page turnin' great thrill ride, pick up The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer as soon as you can and let me know what you think. Great pick for NoDids Burt! Happy reading my friends!

The Name of the Star

     Is Jack the Ripper back in modern day London? When a new "Ripper" murder is caught on tape there is only one problem, no one is there. Rory Deveaux, from Louisiana, finds herself in the middle of Rippermania, as she attends boarding school in London. When she chokes on some food and almost dies, she starts seeing things- ghosts. And they know she can see them. Who can she tell? Her friends Jazza and Jerome will think she is crazy. She catches the attention of the murdering ghost, and he decides that she will be his next victim. Luckily for Rory, she meets a squad of ghost hunters who have a way of making the ghosts disappear, but at what cost? Can they save her from her ultimate fate with the Ripper? Should she sacrifice herself to save her friends? This book was a great read. I have a strong desire to go to London and take a "Ripper" tour. The characters are well developed and interesting and the author, Maureen Johnson, does a great job with foreshadowing to draw you into the dual worlds of Rory. This is book one and it left you with quite a jolt at the end, leaving you curious about Rory's new powers and how her future may not end up where she would have thought. There is a little romance and girl drama, as well as great descriptions of London and it's culture. Rory has a fascinating, cooky family back home that I hope play more of a role in the second book. I picked this book because of it's cover, which I hear it's not good to do, but this time it played out. Though I think this is the same picture of the guy that is on the cover of The Silver Blade, it is an intriguing image. What is everyone else reading these days? My next book club book is The Unbecoming of Mara Dyer, so I may avoid grading for a little while to get started. It's freezing in my house, so I'm going to curl up under a blanket and escape into a book for a while. Happy Reading my friends.

"Once upon a time, an angel and a devil fell in love. It did not end well."

They say you should never judge a book by it's cover and this gem by Laini Taylor, Daughter of Smoke and Bone, proves that rule. It was recommended on the BN website and I heard from some friends who saw Scott Westerfeld (Pretties, Uglies, etc.) that he raved about this book. Add me to the list of fans! This is the story of Karou, a 17 year old girl who has her foot in two worlds. One is the human world, where she lives in Prague. The other is the world of the Chimaera, part animal, part human, where she is being raised by Brimstone. Brimstone is a  chimaera with a secret, a HUGE secret, about who Karou really is. The drama begins when Akiva, a seraphim soldier, spots Karou while she is on a mission for Brimstone in Marakkesh. He instantly feels a connection to her, and it stops him from killing her on site. You see, the Seraphim (Angels) and the Chimaera have been at war since the beginning of time and that make Karou his enemy. They are drawn to each other and when Akiva realizes why, both his wildest dream and worst nightmare comes true. His vengeance when he lost his greatest love, will have lasting impact on Karou and her Chimaera family. I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE these characters and this book. I haven't read anything like it and look forward to the sequel... which I am actually glad about. Some books you just want to end, but I could live in this strange world for a while longer. Laini Taylor has some absolutely fantastic lines in this book- beautifully written figurative language. "The air in the grove was rich enough to sip, full enough to dance with"  I hope you all take my advice and don't judge this book by it's cover. You'll fall in love with Akiva, Karou and Brimstone and maybe you'll find a wishbone to hope on.

Birthmarked

     FINALLY finished. Birthmarked  is the story of Gaia, who helps her mother deliver babies outside the wall. Set in the future, the first three babies born in each area must be given to a family inside the wall, where they will live a life of luxury and privilege. Gaia was burned as a child, so she was not taken like her two older brothers were, deformities and illness are not allowed inside the wall. One night, her parents are taken, arrested and held for execution because they have been keeping secret records of these taken children. Gaia is determined to set them free and finds a way to sneak inside the wall. While she is there, she is witness to a hanging of a pregnant woman. After the woman is hanged, Gaia races to save the unborn baby and draws a great deal of attention to herself, making her a marked girl.Along the way, she meets a member of the guard named Leon, who can't decide if he wants to help her or arrest her. Leon has secrets of his own, making him a dangerous ally for Gaia. Gaia finds help in all sorts of different places as she struggles to find her parents. This book is not a happily ever after kind of book. Much death occurs, sad things happen and you are left hanging as Gaia tries to make her way to the Dead Forest with precious cargo in her arms. This book had an interesting premise, and a strong female lead who makes you realize looks don't determine character. I'm off on a new adventure with a New Year's resolution- 3 months early- to read at least a half an hour when I get home. No more bad tv- just some good books. My new book is Daughter of Smoke and Bone which is of course a supernatural thriller. Just started it last night, but I'm already hooked. Happy Reading my darlings.