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Book Reviews
4 Stars
Jill wakes up from a coma with broken bones, no memory of her senior year trip to Italy, and finds out her best friend, Simone, was killed in a car accident. The police – and the hysterical public – are not convinced it was an accident and label Jill, the driver, a murderer. As Jill struggles to recover and prove her innocence, she begins to wonder: can you truly trust your memories?
This slow-burn thriller wisely paces its reveals to keep the pages turning while playing with reader sympathies through snippets of emails, interviews, and blog posts between each chapter. Jill’s physical recovery from the accident, as well as her struggles to deal with the public’s perception of her, add an extra layer to the overall mystery to make a satisfying read.
-Amity
Posted 12/13/2021
5 Stars
If you’ve ever felt like you’ve wanted to know more about the seemingly far away Guantanamo Bay, look no further than this exceptionally informative, uniquely imaginative, and stunningly cohesive non-fiction graphic novel. This anthology has a different artist assigned to each chapter and everything from their picturesque landscape depictions, to stylistic speech bubbles will absolutely wow you. The cohesive miss-mash of interview transcriptions, retold stories, and the prison’s horrifying statistics composed by Sarah Mirk will doubtlessly shock you. It’s the truest scary story we never wanted, but never needed more.
-Josie
Posted 11/23/21
4 Stars
Zan and her best friend Priya have been inseparable for years–but after Priya moves to California with her stepfather, things change. Suddenly, Priya isn’t answering Zan’s messages, and her social media posts sound nothing like the girl Zan thought she knew. Though everyone else thinks this is normal and advises her to move on, Zan believes there is something larger at work. With the help of her enigmatic and handsome new friend Logan, Zan is determined to uncover the mystery of what’s happening with Priya. Filled with compelling, likable characters and an engaging mystery at its center, If You’re Out There is a charming look at the connections we make in the digital age.
-Amity
Posted 11/22/21
3 Stars
Sydney has always felt invisible, mainly compared to her older brother Peyton, especially after Peyton is sent to prison and becomes the family’s primary concern. After needing a fresh start, she starts a new school and meets the Chatham family, who makes her feel seen for the first time. There’s Layla, the bubbly and quirky one who welcomes Sydney into their group with open arms; there’s also her older brother Mac, who’s more quiet and thoughtful. With making new friends, possibly developing feelings for Mac, dealing with her family, and dealing with her brother’s creepy friend Ames, it will be a big year of discovery and change for Sydney. A cute story about love and friendship.
-Cristi
Posted 11/17/21
5 stars
Rowan Roth and Neil McNair, bitter high school rivals, are both determined to get the valedictorian title at graduation. The announcement leaves one elated and another more determined than ever to win Howl, the clue-based scavenger hunt game all through Seattle with a cash prize. Now that they’re not mortal enemies, will Rowan and Neil be able to put aside their differences and find something deeper than a sparring partner? Could there be a spark, a connection deeper than college acceptance letters and honor rolls? Find out by reading this sweet coming-of-age story about competition and high school.
-Hannah
Posted 11/17/21
4 Stars
This graphic novel written and illustrated by Manjit Thapp gives a peek inside her constantly changing mind. Thapp’s color work changes as she does: with the seasons. She radiates the sun and her euphoria using warmer, brighter colors in the hotter months and makes gradient shifts to much more gruesome and melancholier cool, dark colors reflecting frigidities and her sorrow in the colder months. Her writing is crisp, precise, and incredibly meaningful. Each smooth, minuscule line transitions tranquilly to the next panel. Small brush strokes combined with a minimalist approach to her inner most thoughts allow the reader to be put at ease and begin to ponder their own feelings.
-Josie
Posted 11/10/21
5 Stars
Tyler Feder’s deepest fears vanish when her pen, and paint brush, hit the paper in her debut graphic novel. She transforms her grief into a true piece of literary art that you absolutely cannot pull your eyes away from. Her soft strokes and bold outlines with her simple and sweet color palette make you forget that you’re reading a tragic memoir of a young girl losing her young mother to an inevitable ending. Feder comically and effortlessly draws out the painfully beautiful details of life with a dying mother while keeping your attention, and heart, in the palm of your hand.
-Josie
Posted 10/28/21
4 stars
Issue-oriented and authentic, The Hate U Give is a must read for teens through adults. Emotionally intense yet hopeful, this debut novel looks into the life of Starr as she tries to navigate and balance the two worlds in which she lives. While this is a fiction title, it is true and current with our world today. Please pick up this important novel.
-Michelle
Posted on 10/21/21
3 Stars
Creel is fifteen when her aunt decides it’s time for her to get captured by a dragon in hopes a wealthy noble will rescue and marry her. The only problem is that the dragon wants nothing to do with her or any human. So, Creel is gifted a pair of strange blue slippers in exchange for leaving the dragon alone. It isn’t until these slippers are stolen that she learns those shoes have the power to control all the dragons in the land. Creel now must stop a war from breaking out with the help of a prince and her new friends before the dragons destroy the city. This book is the first of a fun, adventure-filled trilogy that is fairly simple to read, which older kids and young teens will enjoy.
-Cristi
Posted 8/30/2021
3 Stars
Creel, now working in her dress shop with her friends after becoming the dragon heroine who ended the war, finds life pretty uneventful. That is until Prince Luka sends her a letter saying a neighboring country is preparing an invasion with dragons and requests her help once again. Creel and her friends now must set off to stop another war from happening and free the dragons from the king’s control. But perhaps things are a bit more complicated than they originally thought when Creel and her friend Marta sneak into the castle to meet the king and his pet dragon. This sequel keeps the action and fun going as Creel returns to help her dragon friends again.
-Cristi
Posted 8/30/2021
3 stars
A solid start to a new fantasy series that deals with the real-world issues of racism, abuse, feminism and trauma. It’s a world-building story that is gritty and compelling. It’s a story of finding your home in the midst of loss, of finding family when you’ve been left behind, and finally, it’s a story of finding your true self when you thought you were lost forever.
-Michelle
Posted 7/26/2021
3 Stars
Emma Saylor is a girl with two first names who finds herself unexpectedly spending part of the summer at a lake with her deceased mother’s side of the family. As soon as she arrives, she learns about the two different sides to the lake where her parents met: the working-class side of her mom and a wealthier side where her dad used to work. As the weeks go by and Emma meets more relatives and friends, she begins to realize how little she knew about her mother’s troubled past. She also learns how different life is at North Lake, where she’s known as just Saylor and not Emma. This new realization starts to worry her father, who wants her to remain simply as Emma, but perhaps the Saylor side of her at North Lake is worth keeping. This novel is a fun read with enough romance and humor to keep you entertained as Emma Saylor attempts to survive an unforgettable summer at North Lake.
-Cristi
Posted 4/13/2021
3 Stars
Remy is a tough cookie kind of girl who believes romantic relationships are never meant to last. Somehow, she ends up falling into a relationship with Dexter, a musician who doesn’t seem to take anything seriously. This relationship falls into the category of “opposites attract,” no matter how much Remy tries to push Dexter away. It’s the summer before Remy leaves for college and can finally begin living the more successful life she was always determined to have. She’s fine with having a bit of fun by entertaining the idea of dating Dexter, though, as long as they stay on track to break up by the time she has to leave for school. Dexter, however, doesn’t see it that way and wants them to take their time and enjoy what they have. He hits almost none of her checkmarks for an ideal guy, so why is it so hard to say goodbye as the deadline approaches? A cute but not always lighthearted story about an unexpected relationship between an unlikely duo that shows even if relationships require work and growth, it can be worth it.
-Cristi
Posted 3/16/2021
3 Stars
This book has a creative and fun take on what it’s like to be a fairy godmother in modern society, specifically high school. Charity feels she’s living her life to the fullest doing what she does best: making other people’s happily ever after’s come true. All is going well until someone finds out about her secret abilities and starts blackmailing her into no longer granting wishes. Perhaps the “happily ever afters” Charity has been creating aren’t all they’re cracked up to be?
This book involves the normal quirks you can expect from most teen books but was a rather enjoyable read. If you enjoy teen romance or a lighthearted story and are looking for a new book to try, this might be the book for you.
-Cristi
Posted on 2/23/2021
Posted on 2/23/2021
4 Stars
In this richly detailed graphic novel, Box Brown humanizes Andre Roussimoff, better known as Andre the Giant. Behind the larger than life persona was a gentle giant, a man who was dealing with acromegaly, a disorder which led to his gigantism. Drawing from historical records and anecdotes Brown details the adversity this gentle giant faced in this engaging life story of professional wrestling’s first superstar.
-Sean
Posted 1/13/2021
4 Stars
The Dark Descent of Elizabeth Frankenstein tells the story of the original novel from the perspective of Dr. Victor Frankenstein’s future wife, the morally ambiguous Elizabeth Lavenza. Born into a life of poverty and misery, the Frankenstein family – especially lonely, odd Victor – is Elizabeth’s only hope at a secure future. Taken in by them as a young child, Elizabeth spends over a decade ensuring she is indispensable to Victor and shaping a future where she lives comfortably as his wife. But as she follows him on his studies, Elizabeth realizes she may not know Victor at all – and it may be too late to escape the life she’s created.
This gothic horror novel is unapologetically feminist; the terror stems not from Victor’s objectives but from the helplessness of being a woman in the late 18th century. With a slow burn to an explosive final act, both fans of the original and those unfamiliar with Shelley’s story will find something to appreciate in White’s retelling.
-Amity
Posted 10/16/2020
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Web Resources
Book recommendations, homework help, and more!
- Path2Purpose Campaign: Evidence-based mental health tips and techniques to help cope with the COVID outbreak, the stay-at-home blues, depression, anxiety, and more so that we can all grow stronger together from this crisis.
- Teen COVID-19 Resources: A collection of resources for teens living during the COVID-19 pandemic.
- YALSA Teens’ Top Ten: The Teens’ Top Ten is a “teen choice” list, where teens nominate and choose their favorite books of the previous year!
- YALSA Book Finder: Search 4,000+ books, audiobooks, and films from YALSA’s book awards and book lists.
- Lincoln Award: Illinois Teen Readers’ Choice Award.
- Explora Secondary: Explora supports both student research and classroom instruction with rich, reliable content and easy-to-use functionality.
- Points of View Reference Center: Resources for students to understand issues, develop criticial thinking skills, and develop persuasive arguments. Includes essays, overviews, articles, and transcripts on, citizens’ rights, earth and environmental issues, global issues, health and medicine, and media and communications.