With the rage over the TWILIGHT series by Stephenie Meyer, many people started liking Vampire stories. Of course this year has a vampire book on the Texas Lone Star Reading List called ALEX VAN HELSING: VAMPIRE RISING by Jason Henderson.

With the last name, VAN HELSING, how can Alex NOT KNOW that he has something to do with vampires? He definitely has a gift. This story may remind the reader of the THE LIGHTNING THIEF, as it does have a teen hero and a teacher mentor that tends to “know” something.  The fight scenes are intense, and may tend to be too long and drawn out for those of us that are not fond of fight scenes. The story is still a good one, as it refers to some explanations of Mary Shelly’s FRANKENSTEIN.

Ok, I really liked THE GIVER by Lowis Lowry. A utopian society where life is perfect, because there is no crime, or hunger, no war, nothing “bad.” Of course this comes at a price. Government control!

So in MATCHED by Ally Condie we see a similar premise. The government is in control of the people’s lives. It really makes the reader think about how our future will be. Will “Big Brother” be involved in every aspect?  Will the people of the future NOT know how to write their name with a pen or pencil?  What will the use of technology do to our future? As it helps us, is it also hurting us?  So many questions to contemplate. . . I cannot wait to hear your responses (after you read MATCHED!).

Jordan Sonnenblick’s AFTER EVER AFTER can certainly be read as a stand alone read, however, to enjoy this story fully it is recommended that you read DRUMS, GIRLS and DANGEROUS PIE first.

Little Jeffery is now an eighth grader. His older brother Steven has abandoned him to go to Africa. Jeff  has a girlfriend, and his best friend is suffering from cancer; AND  his own battle with cancer is back. OH, and if that is not enough, he has a state test that he MUST pass to pass eighth grade.  This is a funny story, but as all well written stories, your emotions will soar to the opposite end of the spectrum…. yes, that means you WILL shed a tear. 

By the way. . . we have a new state test this year called STAAR!  Good Luck!

If you liked UNWIND, FULL TILT or many other books by Neal Shusterman, you will probably like BRUISER. 

When Tennyson finds out his sister is dating, Brewster, AKA Bruiser, he shows his brotherly concern. He stalks him, and sees a side of Bruiser that others don’t know about.  He has bruises, scars and welts all over his back. Now Tenny’s concern is” who could do this to Bruiser?”

The author tells this story in four different points of view, in poetic verse. It is a quick, easy reading page turner all the way to the end. The ending was a bit corny, but the story was good enough to make the reader both laugh and cry.

Another Lone Star book down!  Keep reading!

That is an annoying phrase repeated, in Rick Yancey’s THE MONSTRUMOLOGIST, which conveys the impatience of Dr. Warthrop. After young Will Henry hears that all the time, one would think he would not want to serve the doctor any longer. Yet he has a devotion to the heartless man, who only loves one thing. . . monsters.  Yes, monsters do exist in the late 1800′s. Specifically this story focuses on Anthropophagi. These are huge, headless, powerful beings that feed on humans. The descriptions are grotesque, and the quite blunt, especially from Jack Kearns. . . or is it Jack the Ripper?

The author encompasses many SAT vocabulary words and is known for weaving a touch of actual history in his stories to make the reader think. . . hmmm, could it be?  This book has won the Michael Printz Award, so it must be good, right?   My biggest complaint with series books, such as this (YES, there is a sequel already) is that the endings leave one hanging, but this story wraps up nicely.  Anyone that craves monster reading will surely not be disappointed in this book, nor the sequel, THE CURSE OF THE WENDINGO.

Well, I personally don’t think so, but this is how David Greenberg sums up his experience with middle school in the book, HOW TO SURVIVE MIDDLE SCHOOL by Donna Gephart.

David lives with his dad, older sister and Hammy (his hamster).  He has a best friend, Elliott, that back stabs him, a new friend (girl), and he has a talent for making YouTube videos. Middle School probably would have been fine if it wasn’t for the ex-friend part AND Tommy, the bully known for birthday swirlies.  “It isn’t even my birthday,” exclaims David, but no one hears him. Middle School does suck for him. . . poor David.

This story weaves humor, sadness, and even familiararity for all (because we have all dealt with some part of middle school) . . . seriously you will laugh and cry!

Ok , so Cat does make a few exceptions.  In Robin Brande’s book, FAT CAT, the main character, Cat,  does her best to live like a hominid (prehistoric person) all in the name of a science fair experiment.  While doing so, she must eat right, and walk everywhere, and find her natural beauty. In doing so, she gets a little distracted by all the attention she gets. It is good attention. The only problem is that throughout the entire book, the reader is wondering, “What did Matt McKinney do to her four years ago, while they were in 7th grade?”

This was my first 2011-2012 Lone Star read of the year! More to come!

Well, in the case of THE ROAR by Emma Clayton, it is not Kool Aid, it is Fit Mix.  Mika has a bad feeling about drinking it, but he is living underground, and is unhealthy, due to no sunlight or food. But what is the REAL reason the government wants the teenagers to be healthy? Read to find out in this futuristic tale, with a theme much like THE HUNGER GAMES by Suzanne Collins. I have to say that this was a good read, however, like almost all the other Texas Lone Star books, there is a sequel to wait for. . .  THE WHISPER comes out July 2011.

All the broken pieces is about a little boy who was born in Vietnam but must flee to America because of the war. He is adopted by an American family, and is treated very well. But he still has nightmares about Vietnam at night, and still wants to be with his real mother. At his school in America people tease him for the way he looks, and one bully tells him that it’s his fault for his brothers death in the war. But this book shows how he deals with his life, and how life is different for him in America than it was in Vietnam.

 I really liked this book. Surprisingly it wasn’t about baseball, even though that is why I read it. It turned out to be one of my favorites. If you like a quick read, in quick poetic snipets, give this book a try!

I love a good historical fiction book and this one did not disappoint.  Randi Barrow captures the reader’s attention in the first pages of SAVING ZASHA, a story set in rural Russia at the end of WWII.  Thirteen-year-old Mikhail finds a dying soldier and his German shepherd, Zasha.  He promises the man that he will take care of Zasha which turns out to be very hard to do.  All “German” dogs are being killed, because the Germans are so hated by the Russians at the end of the war. Mikhail and his family fall in love with the smart, loving Zasha who unwittingly helps heal them after such a devastating war.  They face many obstacles including a nosy neighbor and a roving band of dog thieves.  They have to decide if saving Zasha is worth the risk.

Posted by Kathy Ross