The Lie Tree

by Frances Hardinge

This was my first Frances Hardinge book, but I'm about to go gobble up everything else she's ever written. I'm not quite sure how I missed her, this being my ninth year as a middle grade librarian, but shame on me. It's not often that I come across a completely original premise, but I can truly say this isn't like anything I've read before.

Faith (who is cleverly and ironically named) has moved to a tiny island community with her mother, father, and brother. Her father has recently been shunned from the tight-knit natural science community for allegedly faking a fossil find. When he is found dead, most on the island are convinced it's a suicide, but after finding his journals, Faith suspects foul play. Her father has been hiding a dark secret, and had in his possession a very special tree. Faith thinks she can use the tree to help her discover the truth about her father's death, but it's a dangerous game.

The mystery is utterly and completely compelling, and the writing strikes just the right balance of atmospheric mood-setting. In a book like this it's easy to go overboard with flowery historical details, but it's perfectly done here. Faith's relationship with her father is richly detailed. She wants desperately to be a scientist and follow in his footsteps, but is constantly reminded that as a girl, there is no place for her in that male-dominated world. Her mother, who is desperately trying to find a way to protect her family, is also multi-faceted in the most wonderful ways.

Suspense, action, historical drama, a peek into 19th century thoughts on science and evolution, and a feminist manifesto. Amazing.

Killing Mr. Griffin

by Lois Duncan

I read this book several times when I was in middle school. Lois Duncan was a constant for me. In fact, I blame her and Christopher Pike for my current obsession with scary movies and Dateline. Those books were total escapism for pre-teen me. This is the first of the Duncan books I've re-read as an adult. What I remembered is that a group of kids accidentally kills their English teacher. What I didn't remember were the little touches of horror that Duncan weaves in, such as Mr. Griffin's wife being pregnant. It's a fascinating glimpse into the actions of a messed up kid, a study on peer pressure, and even makes a statement on public education. Sure, it's a little dated. (Did we really talk like that in the 80's?) But overall, this is a great novel of suspense that deserves to be read by today's teens, and for many generations to come.

Noggin

by John Corey Whaley

Travis Coates, 16 and dying of cancer, is approached by a scientist who wants to use him for an experiment. The pitch? Let us remove your head, cryogenically freeze it, and try to bring you back to life at some point in the future. Ready to die, and seeing it as a way to end his suffering, he goes for it. And wakes up five years later attached to a donor body. I don't think Whaley really expects us to believe the science here. He's simply using it as a vehicle to tell his story about humanity--people's ability or inability to move on, transform, recover from trauma, and experience love. Where Things Come Back is one of my favorite books ever, and after reading Noggin, I wait impatiently for a third from this amazing author.

*Note that we don't have this book at our library. It is only at the high schools.

Enclave

by Ann Aguirre

Deuce lives in College Enclave, an underground society that has formed in what's left of New York City's subway system in a dismal future. Life expectancy caps out at around 25 due to poor nutrition and the great likelihood of disease. People have specific functions: breeders produce and care for children, and the hunters provide the meat (most likely rats). They also protect the others from the Freaks--humanoid creatures with sharp claws and teeth that eat human flesh. For years those in the Enclave have survived this way, but the Freaks, once mindless eaters, seem to be getting smarter. The Enclavers can no longer feel safe in the tunnels. When an unfortunate event forces Deuce topside, she begins to see there's a world outside of what she's always known, but it's not much safer than the one she hails from.

This is the first in a trilogy, and I haven't decided yet if I'll go on, which I guess means I probably won't. The first half of this story was awesome. I loved the underground world-building. But once she took us topside, the plot lost steam, and the world was not nearly as well thought out. A fun read that I think a lot of you guys will like, but there are far better out there in this overcrowded genre.