THE STATISTICAL PROBABILITY OF LOVE AT FIRST SIGHT by Jennifer E. Smith

copyright date: January 2012

primarily marketed for: young adults (12 and up)

After reading a few heavy books, I picked up The Statistical Probability of Love at First Sight by Jennifer E. Smith from my shelf of to-be-read books expecting a light, fluffy romance. 

I should know better by now.  I wouldn’t have purchased it if it were just a light, fluffy romance. 

Of course I was completely sucked in by the premise that everything happens for a reason, even if the reason is not apparent at first.  Hadley is on her way to London for her father’s wedding—the beginning of a marriage to a woman Hadley has never met because why would she want to meet the source of the affair that broke her family apart?  Anyway, she misses her flight because of a series of choices and mishaps. 

Now, having changed her path to London, Hadley encounters a guy.  An attractive guy.  A charming guy.  A guy who insists on keeping her company and happens to have a seat near hers on the next flight to London. 

The well-written, genuine, sometimes humorous voices of Hadley and Oliver definitely helped the story ring true, as well as the honest relationships amongst family members (and soon-to-be family members) Smith has crafted add to the authenticity. Although there are still many aspects of this story that are completely implausible, I just didn’t care.  In fact, while I was reading I didn’t even notice.  I was so wrapped up in Hadley’s journey that I wanted to believe it all. 

Hadley’s story is much more a coming-of-age story than a romance.  Through twists of fate and spontaneous decisions, she mends her broken relationships with each of her parents and learns how to be herself.

WHAT DADDY DID by Neal Shusterman

copyright date: 1991

primarily marketed for: young adults (8^th grade up)

If you like A Child Called It by Dave Pelzer and think What Daddy Did by Neal Shusterman is going to be another true story to indulge your desire to read about the human spirit’s will to endure, think again.   What Daddy Did is so much more.  So much bigger. I started reading it one night before falling asleep.  Two hours later I still hadn’t closed the book and I don’t remember having taken a breath.  I awoke the next morning still within the powerful grip of this story.

What Daddy Did is the fictionalized true story of young boy who Shusterman calls Preston Scott.  When Preston was only eleven years old, his Mom was shot in the back of the head and murdered by his father after marital struggles tore their family apart.  Although the book tells about the events leading up to the murder as well as the moments during which the news unfolded for Preston, the claims that Shusterman makes in the book’s introduction regarding the story’s focus are true: this is not a story about a murder.   In fact, Shusterman’s words set the story up better than any words I could offer here.  And he delivers just the story he promises:

Preston’s is a story of life and death, of anger and forgiveness, of an unspeakable crime that no human being should have to endure, and the unbelievable family that not only endured it, but took the very bullet that shattered their wold and used it to carefully rebuild their lives.

His tale is all of these things, but more than anything else, Preston Scott’s story is a story of overwhelming love—the kind of love that can change the world—and if you never before believed in the power of love, Preston’s story will make you a believer.

SPEEDING BULLET by Neal Shusterman

copyright date: 1991

primarily marketed for: young adults (7^th grade up)

In preparation for our author re-visit, I tried to read every Neal Shusterman book that has been sitting in my pile of books to read.  Every time I read his work I am blown away.

Speeding Bullet is typical of Shusterman’s work in the sense that there is a supernatural element in the story, but it is so realistically told that as a reader, I completely suspend my disbelief.   

Nick Herrera is an average teenager with below average intelligence.  He is constantly told by teachers he sees as completely unreliable that if he simply believed in himself more, he would achieve greater success in school.  It is not until a chance encounter with fate at a New York subway stop that Nick’s self-image begins to change. 

After saving a young girl’s life and defying death himself in the face of a speeding train, Nick notices that luck is consistently on his side all of a sudden.  He feels drawn to continue to find situations in which to rescue others, and despite pleas from his parents and his new girlfriend (daughter of the richest builder in New York City), Nick continues to tempt fate by risking his life to save them. 

As he racks up an increasingly large number of rescues, the media can’t help but notice.  His newfound fame finally becomes too great a burden when he is asked to help prevent a suicide.  Rumors about the extent of his powers circulate and threaten to undo him altogether.

This is a riveting story, filled with the thoughtful and thought-provoking writing I have come to expect from Shusterman.  The ending is just open-ended enough to leave the story lingering in my mind for weeks to come. 

NATASHA FRIEND

BOUNCE by Natasha Friend

copyright date: August 2007

primarily marketed for: young adult (7th grade up)

Bounce by Natasha Friend has sat on my shelf for years.  Because it is nominated for the Rebecca Caudill Young Readers’ Book Award this February, I finally picked it up and cracked open the cover.  And, boy, am I glad I did.  In its pages I not only discovered reasons to laugh and reasons to get choked up, I also discovered a new favorite author.  Since reading Bounce, I have been on a mission to read all of Natasha Friend’s books.

Bounce is the story of a girl named Evyn , who, although her mother died years ago, is not ready to see her father move on.  While she and her brother were away at camp for the summer, her father has met a new woman and plans to marry her.  To make matters worse, Evyn’s future stepmom has 6 children for Evyn and her brother to embrace as siblings. 

With hilarious scenes that made me laugh out loud (even when I was reading in public) and an honest voice that made me tear up by tugging at some universal emotions, Bounce is a book that has wide appeal.  It is a book about loss, about growing up, about sibling relationships, about romance, about seeing parents as real people, about family, about moving, about dealing with change.  It is a book about being human. 

PERFECT by Natasha Friend

copyright date: August 2004

primarily marketed for: young adult (6th grade up)

Perfect by Natasha Friend is the story of Isabelle Lee.  Like the protagonist in Bounce, Isabelle is dealing with the loss of a parent—in this case, her father.  The loss is more recent and although Isabelle is struggling to come to terms with what it means for her life, her mother’s reluctance to deal with the loss is an even bigger burden. 

When Isabelle’s little sister catches her throwing up and tattles, Isabelle is forced to participate in group therapy with other teens who suffer from bulimia.  Much to Isabelle’s surprise, she arrives at the group to find Ashley, the most popular girl from school.  Isabelle has always thought of Ashley as perfect. By uncovering the secrets behind that perfection, Isabelle begins to transform herself.

Although a much softer story about a teen with an eating disorder than Laurie Halse Anderson’s Wintergirls, Friend pulls no punches here.  The details of the disease are graphically described and the therapy is portrayed realistically.  There are no easy fixes and yet Isabelle’s story is a story of struggle and hope.

MY LIFE IN BLACK AND WHITE by Natasha Friend

copyright date: May 2012

primarily marketed for: young adult (high school)

My Life in Black and White by Natasha Friend is the first of her books I’ve read that is truly meant for high school.  However it is laced with insight and ethical dilemmas that should be thought through in the safety of the vicarious experiences literature can provide long before you are ever faced with choices like these. 

At the start of My Life in Black and White readers find out Lexi has been in a terrible car accident resulting in major reconstruction of her face.  During her recovery, Lexi finds that it is only in looking back at her past that she is able to see how to navigate the unknowns of the future and ultimately move on. 

The situations described here are edgy, but the raw honesty of teenage life is necessary to provide the truth needed to convey powerful messages about beauty, self-worth, romantic relationships, and friendship. 

I recently read in a review of Perfect from Booklist that Natasha Friend, “elevates what could have been just another problem novel to a truly worthwhile read.”  I couldn’t have said it better myself.  My Life in Black and White is another example of Friend’s ability to elevate real life issues to new level of meaning. 

DR. BIRD’S ADVICE FOR SAD POETS by Evan Roskos

copyright date: March 2013

primarily marketed for: young adults (high school)

Dr. Bird’s Advice for Sad Poets by Evan Roskos begins “I yawp…” and ends, “Yawp!”  And if that isn’t enough to love, the middle is filled with quotes from Walt Whitman scattered amongst wise words from a pigeon therapist, and a story that is both genuinely funny and heartachingly real.  It is one of those stories that seems as if it was written simply for my own delight, but perhaps you, too, will fall in love with it.

James is a teenager who suffers from anxiety attacks and a depression that is possibly part of bipolar disorder, though no official diagnosis is named in the book.  His older sister was recently kicked out of the house by his emotionally detached parents after she is expelled from school for an outburst that resulted in a fight. 

As a means of coping with his mental state and the instability in his home life, James invents a pigeon therapist who listens to his deepest thoughts and fears.  He also finds comfort in quoting Walt Whitman, hugging trees, pursuing Beth (the adorable editor of the school literary magazine), and spending time with his only friend (who is both well-adjusted and burdened with problems of his own).

His story caused me to laugh out loud, though some of the language and humor is so mature that I will not admit which parts I found amusing.  The true strength of the story, though, is not its humor, but that it caused me bemoan the fact that this book was not around for me to have read when I was in high school and needed a story like this—a story that echoed the lives of so many of my friends. 

James is a flawed human living in a world that has no easy answers for him.  He is suicidal, his parents are oblivious at best, and although he does have supportive people in his life, the level of support he really needs is not easily accessible.  Luckily, James is the kind of person who can yawp when he needs to, and he is eventually able to save himself amidst his circumstances. 

CONFESSIONS OF A MURDER SUSPECT by James Patterson and Maxine Paetro

copyright date: September 2012

primarily marketed for: young adults

I love a good murder mystery.  Confessions of a Murder Suspect by James Patterson and Maxine Paetro is just that.

Although the writing will not amaze you with literary quality, the story is well structured and manages to wrap itself up satisfactorily while still leaving loose ends enough to leave readers yearning for the next in what is sure to become a series.

Tandy, short for Tandoori, Angel is one of four children left behind after her parents, the wealthy and well-known Malcolm and Maud Angel, are murdered.  There are no signs of forced entry and nobody heard any noise.  The factual evidence leaves only Tandy, her three brothers, and her mother’s live-in assistant as suspects. 

The story is told in Tandy’s voice, including chapters titled ‘Confession’ that seem to let readers deeper into her story by revealing background.  Throughout the book it is clear that although Tandy is clearly searching for clues as to who might have murdered her parents, her information is not to be trusted and readers are unable to rule her out as a suspect since she is not even sure whether or not she was involved. 

Although the story is probably a little far-fetched I enjoyed the outlandish details like the family living at the Dakota apartments outside which John Lennon was shot.  I particularly liked the over the top artwork Malcolm and Maud collected and the storyline surrounding their scientific experiments intrigued me. 

Even though I had guessed pieces of the outcome of the story, there were still many surprises along the way and the story was satisfying.  If you enjoy a good murder mystery, this is a series you are going to want to start following.

THE SCORPIO RACES by Maggie Stiefvater

copyright date: October 2011

primarily marketed for: young adults (high school)

The books I love the most are the ones I find myself most compelled to write about.  I am woefully behind on posting about the books I’ve read this school year, yet here I am making time to share another incredible story. I find it is most difficult to share the books I love.  Something about my connection with a story like this makes it seem almost as if nobody else could possibly enjoy it as deeply as I have—surely it was tailor-made to fit my heart and stick to my ribs—how could anyone else find it as perfect a fit?  I don’t know the answer to that, but I sure hope you try this one on because part of me suspects it might fit you just right, too.

Since I closed the covers of Maggie Stiefvater’s The Scorpio Races early this morning, I have been haunted by the rhythm of the story.  The magic of sea still beats in my chest.  Puck’s connections—to Sean Kendrick (fellow racer), to Dove (her beloved horse), to the island of Thisby (her home), to the sea (both a danger and a comfort), to the capall uisce (the water horses that took her parents’ lives)—became my connections.  Connections to a world I didn’t want to leave. 

I had heard great things about this book since it came out over a year ago.  I had heard from reviewers, from booksellers, and most importantly from reader friends who I trust.  But nothing about the storyline interested me.  Mythical water horses?  A foreign, fictitious, Ireland-like setting?  An annual deadly competition? 

It wasn’t until I took a chance and was immediately enchanted with Stiefvater’s Shiver that I started to consider adding Scorpio Races to my list of ‘Someday’ books.  Soon after, the thrill of meeting Maggie Stiefvater in person was more than enough to secure its place on my list. 

True to her style, Stiefvater has created a strong female character who is not without her flaws.  Puck is fiercely independent, yet deeply emotionally attached to the men in her life.  She lives on the island of Thisby with her two older brothers since her parents were killed by bloodthirsty water horses while boating.  Upon receiving unbelievably bad news from her oldest brother, Puck feels cornered into signing up as a participant in the annual water horse race.  It is her only hope to turn her family’s situation around.

Puck’s story alternates with Sean Kendrick’s story at the beginning.  Sean works for the richest horse owner on the island and has won the races four out of the past six years.  He is the favorite, but is not without enemies.  As Puck and Sean’s stories unfold, they become increasingly, satisfyingly intertwined. 

In addition to crafting characters I couldn’t help but fall in love with, Stiefvater has created in The Scorpio Races lyrical descriptions of a world worth lingering in as a reader.  Where I would normally want to skip or skim through paragraphs of description, Stiefvater’s use of language is so arresting, so daring and unexpected that I wanted to slow down and savor the images she created.   I am not sure how she does it, but I am sure I want more.  I believe you will too.