BONECHILLER, by Graham McNamee posted by Rebecca , Freshman

BONECHILLER
by Graham McNamee
Posted by Rebecca, Freshman
AR: Yes

This book is about these four kids in Canada that are friends. One of them encounters this beast that lurks in the night...when it's cold. No one believes them, but then another friend encounters the same beast. The worst thing is that they both get bitten. Now the four of them have to stop this beast that's been lurking for thousands of years. This book was great!

I DARE YOU TO READ IT!!!

HERSHEY HERSELF, by Cecilia Galante posted by Jackie, 6th Grader

HERSHEY HERSELF
by Cecilia Galante
Posted by Jackie, 6th Grader

Hershey Herself is a wonderful book about a girl named Hershey (just like the candy bar!) In the beginning Hershey's mom and her boyfriend Slade, get in a fight, while Hershey is at her friend Phoebe's house. Together the girls make a plan to get Slade to move out. When Hershey goes back to the house, her mom has been beaten up by Slade. She and Hershey move into a Women's Shelter, where they meet new people and have many adventures. I really liked this book!

LOST IT, by Kristen Tracy posted by Ashley , Freshman

LOST IT, by Kristen Tracy
AR: Yes
Interest Level: Upper Grades

High school junior Tess Whistle's school year so far has been crazy. Her parents have decided to leave her for a wilderness camp in Utah. Her best friend builds a bomb is obsessed about the idea of blowing up a poodle. She has a top locker, and a new guy, that she crushes on, has the locker under hers. She ends up dating the guy--Ben--and telling him she's diabetic, (which she's NOT) as a way to explain why she's always drinking those little apple juice boxes. This is a great book...you should read it!

ARTICHOKE'S HEART, by Suzanne Supplee posted by Mrs. Schauer

ARTICHOKE'S HEART
by Suzanne Supplee
AR: Yes
Interest Level: Middle and Upper Grades

I picked this book up at TLA (Texas Library Association's Conference) almost a year ago. I was so excited about getting it, and then for some reason it took me until now to read it--but I'm so glad I finally did. Since I got an "advanced reader copy" I don't have it on the shelves yet, but it's already been ordered, so it should be here soon--and I'm sure when it gets here it won't spend a lot of time on the shelf.
Rosemary Goode (Rosie to the people who love her) has always been overweight--well, not just overweight--she's always been fat. She got the nickname "Artichoke" in the sixth grade, when she got a new winter coat in an awful shade of green--and the cruel girls at school said she looked like a giant artichoke. Raised by a single mom who got pregnant in high school, she's always soothed herself with food--until one day, she decides enough is enough. This book follows her journey, from being harassed by the popular girls at school, to getting her first boyfriend, and dealing with her mom's battle with cancer--her story is chronicled in the pages. As the pounds melt away, the reader gets to see Rosie come into her own and develop into a better, stronger version of the person who's always been there on the inside. I don't want to give too much of the story away, but I do want to encourage everyone to read it--it's a fantastic story.

SLAM, by Nick Hornby Posted by Mrs. Schauer

SLAM, by Nick Hornby
AR: Yes
Interest Level: Upper Grades

When I first picked this book up, I was browsing the YA aisle at Barnes and Noble, looking for hot new reads for my increasingly insatiable readers at PHS. I read on the jacket that it was about a boy who deals with the perplexities of his life by conversing with Tony Hawk, via a poster of the skating virtuoso that hangs on his wall. Now, for the part that is going to make the fact that I'm OLD glaringly obvious....for some reason, I deduced that Tony Hawk was a hockey player...and promptly put it back on the shelf. Living in South Texas, I couldn't imagine that many of my young adult patrons would clamor to read about a teenage skating aficionado who waxes philosophical with an image on a poster. At some point, a few months later, I heard someone say "Tony Hawk" and was like, "I didn't know you like Hockey." My daughter, who was in the library at the time, rolled her eyes, and said, "OMG Mom...seriously? Tony Hawk isn't a HOCKEY PLAYER...he's a skater" (or something like that) Well, that comment, aside from making me feel ancient and out of touch (when did I turn into my mother?) also made me realize that I needed to purchase this book for my library. The book is on order, so I couldn't "read" it, so I did the next best thing--I downloaded the audio book and listened to it on a road trip. While it wasn't exactly my cup of tea, I think it is sure to be a hit with some of the guys in our library.

SLAM is a slang term used by skaters to describe a wipe-out while attempting a trick. (terms I also learned while listening) It's about a fifteen year old skater (who worships Tony Hawk...he would even swear on his autobiography, which he describes as his Bible) who finds himself free-falling in slow motion toward the most harrowing slam of his life--finding out that his girlfriend is pregnant. While trying to deal with the emotional upheaval of becoming a father at fifteen, he begins talking to a poster of his hero--and the hero talks back, offering advice, and even swooshing him into the future a couple of times--kind of like fast-forward glimpses into what fatherhood will hold for him. It's a quick read (7 hour listen) and is full of funny as well as poignant moments. I don't think this one is going to spend a lot of time on my shelves.