Give a Boy a Gun

by Todd Strasser

Summary: Gary and Brendan are high school sophomores who have been bullied and picked on for years. They steal guns and stage an attack on students and teachers at a high school dance. This book is written from many different points of view: the boys themselves, teachers, students, neighbors, and parents. Footnotes throughout provide relevant and interesting tidbits and facts on gun control issues, making the story even more disturbing.

My thoughts: This book is terrifying because we all know that the story is modeled after real events like the one at Columbine. Give a Boy a Gun is sensitively written, though, and serves to make us really think about issues like gun control, bullying, and our individual roles in helping put an end to school violence.

Uglies

by Scott Westerfeld

Summary: In Tally's world, ordinary is ugly. When a person turns 16, they are taken away to have surgery that makes them "perfect." Most people can't wait to have the surgery, but Tally's friend Shay decides she doesn't want to do it, and plans to live on the fringes of society with a group called "the Smoke." A top-secret government agency blackmails Tally, telling her they'll never turn her pretty if she doesn't lead them to the Smoke. She agrees, but when she infiltrates the group, she begins to see their point of view, and has to decide what's more important: her conscience, or being pretty.

My thoughts: I liked this book, but not enough to read the sequels. It's an interesting concept, and does really make you think.

Defect

by Will Weaver

Summary: Not only does David look and smell strange, he has a secret... he can fly. After intense bullying, he tricks some of his tormenters by jumping off a cliff. They think he has jumped to his death, but he has actually flown to safety. He changes to a private school for students with disabilities, and finds a fast friend (maybe more?) in a girl named Cheetah, who attends the school because she has seizures. When an accident causes David's secret to be revealed, he is forced to make a very difficult decision.

My thoughts: An original, edgy, and very weird story.

Gossamer

by Lois Lowry

Summary: Have you ever wondered what causes your dreams? In Gossamer, Lowry lets us glimpse the world of dream-givers, tiny creatures who, with the lightest touches, collect memories from household objects and gently place them in head when you sleep. Their job is to bring comfort, and Littlest One, the newest dream-giver, is trying to learn her craft and help a young boy being abused by his father. But the Sinisteens, a group of dream-givers who have gone over to the dark side, bring the boy nightmares. Will Littlest One have the strength to fight back?

My thoughts: This is a very short book, more of a novella. It is almost poetic in its beauty, and the thought of these little creatures protecting us with our own happy memories is a lovely thought.

The Breakup Bible

by Melissa Kantor

Summary: After Jen's first love dumps her for a girl who works with them both on their high school newspaper staff, she doesn't think she'll be able to move on. Her grandmother, in a misguided attempt to help, gives her a self-help book called The Breakup Bible, which offers up cheesy and cliche advice for heartbroken girls. At first she throws it out, but soon decides she needs all the help she can get. The advice is so bad it's hilarious, but sometimes it makes Jen think. An interesting side plot about racial segregation at their high school is well done and thought-provoking.

My thoughts: Not your typical girly book. This one has class and brains!

Charles and Emma: The Darwins' Leap of Faith

by Deborah Heiligman

Summary: This is the true story--the love story--of Charles and Emma Darwin. Most people don't know that Charles Darwin's wife was a very spiritual and faithful woman. She was concerned about marrying him because she was afraid she would not see him in the afterlife, and she continued to be afraid of this throughout her life and after his death. Charles and Emma had a beautiful and complex relationship, balancing each other out and helping each other through the raising of seven children and the deaths of three. Charles did have doubts about God, and the deaths of his children didn't help this. He was not, however, an atheist, as most people believe. He was simply a man who had questions, and he dedicated his life to finding the answers. This book provides an unusual glimpse into the private life of a very public, and much misunderstood, historical figure.

My thoughts: Darwin's scientific research on the process of natural selection in species changed the way the world thought about creation. He was terribly nervous about publishing his theory because he knew it would offend many people. He was right, but he also had many supporters, and his ideas are now widely accepted as fact. Even during Darwin's day, people misinterpreted his theories. One in particular is the notion that he believed humans are descended from monkeys. He was very frustrated by this even while he was alive, because he simply believed that humans and apes have a common ancestor, not that we evolved from them. (Other scientists during his lifetime did make this claim, but not Darwin.) I really enjoyed reading about this family. I have always pictured Darwin as a gruff, stern, inflexible person. Instead, I learned that he was a sweet and shy family man with a great passion for science, and for humanity.

I,Q Independence Hall

by Roland Smith

Summary: Thirteen year old Quest (he goes by Q) has just gained a new stepfather and stepsister. His mother, a once-famous singer, has married another musician, and their new duo, Match, has a hit single. Q and his stepsister Angela are set to travel on the tour bus with their famous parents. They're pretty bummed about the year on the bus, but when Angela suspects they're being followed, the tension rises, especially when Q finds out that Angela's dead birth mother was a Secret Service agent.

My thoughts: This book would make a great movie. If you like James Bond, you'll love I,Q. There is lots of action and exciting plot twists. You'll never guess what's around the next corner! The first in a planned series.

Check the book trailer tag for a trailer for this book!

Note: If you're a 6th or 7th grader this year, you will get to meet this author! Mr. Smith is scheduled to visit our library in May, 2010!