Sam and CY students & staff are reading…

Who would like this book? People, 13 and up, looking for a first person narration dealing with a teen’s suicide and the reasons for it would appreciate this book.

The goods on this book: Clay Jensen is a quiet, shy high school student and has been disturbed by the suicide of his friend, Hannah. He becomes distraught and obsessed when he unwraps a package of cassette tapes of Hannah recording the story that led to her decision to take her own life. As Clay listens to the tapes, he navigates through their town so that he can listen to each part of Hannah’s story in close physical proximity to where it took place. The book alternates between the text of Hannah’s voice from the tapes and Clay’s reaction as he  listens to these tapes. Clay had a crush on Hannah and shared an evening with her shortly before she died, so the experience of the tapes is very hard for this sensitive guy. My heart really went out to him even more than Hannah. The strong message of this book, to see other people for who they truly are and to care for one another, comes through to the reader as it comes through to Clay. Though this book might not be the best for understanding suicide, it is important in showing how a steady stream of difficulties and hurts can push a person such as Hannah over the edge. It is tragic that she has nobody to turn to.

The details: 288 pages; 2007    Review by Samrarian

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Review by Mengjie C.

Who would like this book? I think older people like teenagers who are interested in adventurous, thrilling, and sci-fi series would really enjoy this book and the rest of the series. Anyone who loves to read big books would also enjoy this book because it has 525 pages.

The goods on this book: In this book the world has been taken over. People everywhere have been shot with mind controlling serums. The beginning of Insurgent takes off where Divergent ended. Tris, Tobias, Marcus, and Peter are trying to run for their lives while saving the world from coming to an end. Jeanine Matthews is the leader of the Erudite and is also the one controlling the minds of everyone. Their mission is to get an important file that will reveal the truth that everyone should know. Tris and the rest of the group have to stay over at safe houses to protect themselves as they’re also trying to escape from the Erudite that are looking for them. None of them are allowed to go back to the Dauntless headquarters because there are secret cameras that can report back to the Erudites and tell them exactly what they’re trying to do. So they find a fun way to cover up the cameras, and soon they go back to the Dauntless headquarters. But they forgot to cover up one camera. Things after that start going pretty crazy. I think this book is one of my favorites and you’ll be on the edge of your seat the whole time!

The details: 525 pages; 2012   Review by Mengjie C.

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Review by Felix H.

Who would like this book? Girls and boys both, I believe would thoroughly enjoy reading this story. This book can be for young adults and perhaps children 10+. This is a fiction/dystopian novella.

The goods on this book: Maze Runner is a dystopian science fiction story taking place in the near future (about 20 years later), as the book title might reveal. There is a small colony of children living inside a giant moving maze. Thomas, the main character who awakens with no recollection of his former life, slowly discovers that he might be the final piece to a puzzle years in the making. The characters are: Thomas, Teresa, Newt, Chuck, Alby and Gally. The moral lesson of this story is that bravery and courage alone can make a hero out of anyone. I love the detail and emotion of this book, and it makes me feel like I am trying to find a way out of the maze with Thomas and his friends.

The details: 374 pages; 2009   Review by Felix H.

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Review by Makena B.

Who would like tho book? I think males and females would enjoy this book, but I think kids that are older than 12 should read this book.

The goods on this book:  Divergent by Veronica Roth takes place in future day Chicago. They started these different compounds to eliminate war, but you really can never eliminate something, can you? When someone turns sixteen, they have to take a test that will decide your friends, define your beliefs, and that determines your loyalties-forever. It’s made up of five different compounds; each of them are different and stand for different things. The test will place you in one of them if you’re lucky, but you have the over-all choice of what compound you want to be in. Sometimes you get more than one choice, which usually means that you are divergent. The people who run the whole thing hate these type of people because they can control the tests that they give them. If they ever catch someone that is divergent, they will kill them, and this is what is happening to Tris in the book. She is divergent, and she is trying to hide it but it’s very difficult. Her friends don’t know about her, but if they did they might turn her in or worse. She finds out a lot about who her family really is and who her true friends are.

The details: 487 pages; 2011     Review by Makena B.

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Review by Lauren T.

Who would like this book? Anyone who likes suspenseful books will absolutely love this book. I think both guys and girls would like this book, but mostly girls.

The goods on this book: John Green wrote 305 pages of the most intense, and suspenseful book. I just could not put the book down. The genre of this fantastic book is mystery and realistic fiction. The story takes place in Orlando, Florida where Quentin Jacobsen lives and goes to school. His two best friends are Ben and Radar, which is a nickname. He has lived there most of his life. When he was only 9 he was with his friend Margo (which is a girl) and they walked to Jefferson Park and found a man dead sitting up against a tree. Being Margo, she was interested and then when the police came to see who the man was, where he lived, and what caused him to die, Margo went along. Quentin and Margo don’t talk much till they get into their senior year of high school when Margo came to his bedroom window at night dressed as a ninja. She asks him if he could help her with 11 tasks. He thinks about it and says yes, so they go on their little adventure. The next day Margo was not at school. Quentin thought she might have just skipped from being out late. She doesn’t go to school for the next couple days, so he’s a little worried. Margo’s parents show up at his house and have a policeman with them. They explain Margo has run away again, and it is the last straw. They are changing the locks. But where did she go? The moral of the story is not to give up on trying to find what you really need.

The details: 305 pages; 2008   Review by Lauren T.

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Review by Brailey

Who would like this book? People 7th grade and up who enjoy suspenseful and dark, slightly graphic, and humorous novels would like this book.

The goods on this book: City of Bones is set in New York, in the present. Clary Fray, Jace Wayland, Isabelle Lightwood, and Alec Lightwood are a species of demon slayers known as Shadowhunters, and face a lot of trouble, such as Valentine Morgenstern. When the Mortal Cup is hidden, Clary must find it- it may be her only chance to save her mother, who is in a coma. But it’s not easy for her to obtain the Cup when there is trouble around every corner, and she has to adjust to a Shadowhunter lifestyle, and deal with the irritatingly handsome Jace, as well as her human friend Simon. She quickly learns to trust nobody, which is the theme of this book.

The details: 485 pages; 2007   Review by Brailey

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Who would like this book? People 8th grade and up who like futuristic novels similar to The Hunger Games series.

The goods on this book: In a distant future, the United States has devolved into two warring factions and a world in which a few people are privileged and rich and the rest of the population struggle for food and medicine. These conflicting worlds come alive with the two narrators. June, from the wealthy upper class, has amazing talent for fighting and climbing and is about to take her place in the Republic’s army. Day, a well-known outlaw from the underclass, is just as talented and struggles to help his mother and brothers, though his mother thinks that he has died. As Day robs a hospital to get medicine for his little brother who has a virulent strain of the plague, he crosses paths with June’s brother, a commander with the Republic. This ill-fated encounter catapults the plot forward and brings the lives of June and Day together. I really cared about each of them as their lives unfold under the pressure of an oppressive government. The complex and surprising plot, along with the details of the dystopian world, kept me turning pages. I appreciated that the book’s ending is satisfying even as it leads to Prodigy, the next book in the trilogy.

The details: 305 pages, 2011    Review by Samrarian

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Review by Lacey T.

Who would like this book? This would be a good book for middle school and high school girls who are looking for a beautiful and tragic love story.

The goods on this book: If I Stay is a book about a girl named Mia who had an amazing life. She had a great family, which was her mom, her dad, and her little brother Teddy. One morning, all the schools were cancelled and her parents’ jobs were cancelled because of a snow day. So the whole family went on a road trip to go see some friends. On the way there, they got in a car crash. Mia and her brother survived, but her parents both died. But Mia… she is sort of a ghost. She is between life and death and she has to choose between the two. As she is in the hospital, she doesn’t know what to choose. Mia just wants someone else to make the decision for her. But the person that really makes this story such a great one is Mia’s boyfriend, Adam. He is always there by her side, and he is the one to help her make the decision of a life time.

The details: 259 pages; 2009    Review by Lacey T.

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Review by Carson We.

Who would like this book? Both young adults and adults who like exciting books.

The goods on this book: This is a great book that is very exciting, and keeps you on your toes. The main characters are Peeta and Katniss.  At the beginning of the story both Peeta and Katniss live in Panem, the future America. Every year, 24 kids are chosen for the Hunger Games (a boy and a girl from each district must fight to the death). Both Peeta and Katniss live in District 12, one of the poorest districts. At the beginning of the book, Katniss’ little sister is chosen for the Hunger Games. Automatically, Katniss took her spot, knowing she may be killed. Peeta was also chosen to participate for the Hunger Games. At first Peeta and Katniss don’t really know each other, but soon they become good friends.This book definitely shows that friendship comes from anywhere, from a battle field, to a schoolyard. I think that this book also shows you that you should be thankful for what you have, and not take things for granted.

The details: 374 pages; 2008  Review by Carson We

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Review by Carson W.

Who would like this book? This book’s main audience is more focused toward girls about middle school age, even though it is written at about freshman level, and is about a teen that is graduating high school.

The goods on this book: Auden is a girl who has always been challenged when it comes to making friends. When she stays the summer at a house in Colbie with her stepmom, Heidi, dad, and their newborn baby, Thisbe, things start to get a little hectic. With Heidi stressing about the baby, college applications, making friends, dealing with a mean (and overly controlling mom), working, and studying textbooks for next year’s courses, Auden finds herself stuck in a town obsessed over biking. She is soon pulled into a group of friends and realizes that there is more to life than striving in classes. This mainly becomes apparent to her when she meets a boy who is struggling to find the brighter side of things after his best friend, Abe, is killed by a drunk driver. This strange boy is named Eli. He lights up Auden’s life in a way that school work can’t. Eli helps her to experience things she never had a chance to, because of her mom, and also her parent’s divorce. He calls this her quest. And with his help, Auden slowly learns to “get back on the bike” when things aren’t working out. I liked this book because of the way all of the characters change over time, and not always for the better. As Auden progresses in this journey she discovers some stuff from her parent’s divorce that had been buried for a long time. I also like how this book gives more than one perspective throughout the story, even though it is written at first to be Auden’s.

The details: 399 pages; 2009   Review by Carson W.

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