ROOM, by Emma Donoghue

AR: Not Yet

Interest Level: Upper Grades

I have not purchased the hard copy of this book yet, because Emily wanted it..um....NOW, so I ordered it for the Kindle. I decided to download the audiobook to listen on a road trip, and am SO glad I did! This was one of those books that I became so engrossed in the audio, that I ended up reading it on the Kindle whenever I wasn't in the car. Captivating....to say the least!

This is the story of "Ma" and her son Jack. Ma was abducted off the street when she was nineteen. The entire first half of the book takes place from within the confines of a twelve by twelve foot soundproofed room, where the young woman has spent seven years being raped repeatedly...Jack is the result of that abuse. The book is told in the voice of Jack, a precocious, adorable, brilliant, resilient five year old boy that I immediately fell in love with....and that love only grew with each turn of the page.

As always, I do not want to divulge too much in this blog post--even though there is SO MUCH I could say about this beautiful book.

If there is enough interest, I will order it....Oh, who am I kidding? I'll order it and shout from the rooftops when it comes in....the same way I do with EVERY book.

BLOOD ON MY HANDS, by Todd Strasser

BLOOD ON MY HANDS

by Todd Strasser

AR: Not Yet

Interest Level: High School and Up

Well, Todd Strasser has done it again! His books are so incredibly popular in our library because they are....juicy! They keep the reader on the edge of their seat for the entire experience of reading them...and this one is no different.

I must be honest and tell you that I haven't finished this book yet. Now that Hailee is driving and taking her sister to school, I am finally able to listen to audiobooks on the way to work again. I started this one yesterday. Even though I haven't finished it yet, I have heard enough to write a blog entry that will make people want to read it! (Don't worry, Emily...I will finish it...especially since you won't tell me what happens!)

From the jacket flap: Callie is at an October keg party in the woods, when she notices that her friend Katherine has gone missing. The kids spread out to look for her and Callie finds her, lying on a path, with a big, bloody fake knife in her. She reaches for the knife and raises it, only to discover, to her horror, that it is real. At that moment, another of the search party stumbles on them, and takes a photo of Callie holding the bloody knife. Now she is the suspect in a grisly murder. How can she prove her innocence - and find the true murderer?

SUCH A PRETTY GIRL, by Laura Wiess

SUCH A PRETTY GIRL

by Laura Wiess

AR: Yes

Interest Level: High School

I read this book in one sitting on a recent fishing trip with my family. I simply could not put it down. It reminded me a little of LIVING DEAD GIRL, but the emotions it evoked in me weren't quite as harsh. Still, it was a tough read.

This is Meredith's story. She is fifteen years old, and at the start of the book, she learns that her father is going to be released from prison after serving only three years of a nine year sentence. For a lot of kids, hearing that their dad is coming home would likely be welcome news. Meredith however, feels her father's homecoming is like the slamming of a prison door on her own life, trapping her in with the worst possible enemy...the man who raped her when she was only twelve.

As I stated at the beginning of this post, I was riveted from the very first sentence in this book. Because her character was so well developed, I wanted to strangle Meredith's mother, who is in total denial over the fact that her husband is a monster. I wanted to grab some of the other characters up in a great big hug of gratitude for the amount of love and support they showed to Meredith.

As usual, I don't want to give too much away in my blog post...but if you like a book that evokes strong emotions, this is a great one!

Trailer for FALLOUT, by Ellen Hopkins

FALLOUT, by Ellen Hopkins

AR: Not Yet

Book Release Date: September 16, 2010

Interest Level: Upper Grades

Trailer by Mrs. Schauer

High Point of TLA (for me anyway!)

Last week was the annual Texas Library Association Conference--and I FINALLY got to meet three of my favorite authors: Ellen Hopkins, Sonja Sones and Lisa Schroeder. The were on a panel together, discussing their personal writing styles and the processes they go through to write their books. It was awesome to listen in an three such incredible writers sharing like that. I wish I would have been video taping the audience when Ellen held up the ARC for FALLOUT--we couldn't believe we were going to get our hands on it! Anyway, I took a few photos that I thought I'd post:

Lisa Schroeder and I

A signed copy of FALLOUT for Emily

The ARC for FALLOUT (which isn't hitting bookstores for 5 months!!!)

Ellen Hopkins and I

Ellen, Sonja, and Lisa