Endgame: The Calling, By James Frey

Fast Facts:

• Genre: Dystopian
• Recommended For: Fans of the Hunger Games
• Rating: 5 out of 5 Stars

This book takes place in a futuristic world where 12 “players” ages 13-19 compete to solve an ancient puzzle. James Frey crafted Endgame cleverly and beautifully! I absolutely couldn’t put it down until the end of the last page! Endgame is complex and not just a simple read, it has the perfect amount of action and romance. Anyone who loves the Hunger Games will be intrigued by this book. Endgame: The Calling is a fantastic book and I am very excited for what comes next!

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Summer of Yesterday, by Gabby Triana

Fast Facts:

• Genre: Romance/Science Fiction
• Recommended For: 6th Grade and Up/Fans of Twilight
• Rating: 2 out of 5 stars

Summer of Yesterday by Gaby Triana is a mediocre book. It is a classic girl-versus-nature situation when the main character, Haley, has a seizure and ends up in 1982. She sees her parents falling in love, and meets the first boy that she ever “really likes”. All of Triana’s characters are predictable and none of them seem to succeed in making the reader want to find out what happens next. It was a book that took all of my will power to keep reading. The entire book is one big cliché. It is only deserving of two of five stars. I would recommend it for readers in sixth grade and up because there are some adult situations. I would also recommend it for people who liked the Twilight series and other books with romance and drama.

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The Lonesome Young, By Lucy Connors

Fast Facts:

• Genre: Romance/Action
• Recommended For: Romance Fans
• Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars

The Lonesome Young is a thrilling novel that romance readers will enjoy. It seems to be built off the idea of Romeo and Juliet, only with more action and a happier ending. The Rhodales and Whitefields have held a huge grudge against each other for the last century. Now, Mickey Rhodale and Victoria Whitefield, heirs of the two families, try to ignore their magnetic pull towards each other. But how long can that last? I thought this book was…interesting. Maybe it could use a better name and a less intense cover. Don’t want to scare away the readers! In the end, The Lonesome Young is great for all those intense romance lover out there!

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Dissonance, by Erica O’Rourke

Dissonance by Erica O’Rourke is a science-fiction/romance book. Delancey Sullivan, also known as Del, is a Walker. Walkers can “Walk” between dimensions. Every time someone makes a decision in our world, the “Key World,” a new world is formed where another version of the person (called an “Echo”) chooses a different path. Then all of those create different branches, and so on. The Walkers’ job is to find any mistakes with the Echoes or in the alternate dimensions. If one is found they “cleave” the world, destroying it. Del loves Walking, but hates cleaving. Walking calms and relaxes her, but when a world is cleaved she can’t help but feel bad for all the lost echoes, even though everyone says that they are just shadows, not real. When Del accidentally cleaves a world, however, everything goes downhill. She’s expelled from Walker school and is not allowed to go on Walks by herself. When Del starts running into her crush, Simon, every time she Walks with her sister, she thinks it’s just a coincidence. But when he starts seeing things through his Echo and appearing even more, Del realizes something is up. Working with her grandfather, sister, best friend, and Simon, she figures out that the Walker government is not as perfect as seems.
I would recommend this book to anyone who likes science fiction, romance, or suspense. Dissonance is well written and impossible to put down. The characters are relatable and full of depth. All the little details weave together to make a great story. The ending leaves some questions and room for a sequel, but isn’t overly frustrating and answers most questions. Dissonance isn’t O’Rourke’s first book, and hopefully it won’t be her last.

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Teen Review: The Catastrophic History of You and Me

Written by Jess Rothenberg, The Catastrophic History of You and Me is the story of Brie, a girl who has just died when her heart literally breaks  in two.  She ends up a ghost, drifting through her life after she’s gone.  Brie is all alone, with one exception, Patrick – her guide and resident lost soul.

This book is much less about what it’s like being a ghost and more about how your decisions affect the people around you and the consequences of those actions.  It’s about how things aren’t always as they seem and that you shouldn’t judge events or people before you have the full story.  Lost love and betrayal figure into the plot and how to find love again after that loss.  For ages 13 and up.

-Rebecca, 8th grade

Teen Book Review – Kiss, Crush, Collide

Kiss, Crush, Collide by Christina Meredith, centers on the personal, particularly romantic, problems of teenager Leah Johnson. Expected to meet the high standards her older sisters have set for her, Leah struggles to become the perfect daughter in the eyes of everyone. Leah’s realization and pursuance of what she actually wants to do with her life starts when she meets a porter at the country club, whom she starts to fall for. The problem is she already has a boyfriend that her parents love, and throughout this novel Leah has to learn how to make her own independent choices.

This book is probably for those 13 and older, and I would imagine only girls would be able to stomach the book as it is almost entirely centered on Leah’s romantic life.

Spoiler alert: Kiss, Crush, Collide is a nice read if you are just looking for a pleasant no-nonsense story, but quite frankly I had a hard time finishing the whole thing. The characters were often two-dimensional. The plot was also disappointing; nothing happened except Leah’s eventual decision to dump her boyfriend and be with the porter. Her inner struggle could definitely have been portrayed better.

-Jasmine

Teen Review: Chopsticks by Anthony & Corral

Just in case it wasn’t obvious enough from the cover, Chopsticks is a love story between piano prodigy, Glory Flemming, and the boy next door, Frank.  The book grabs the reader by starting in the present with Gloria’s disappearance and then reverts back to the events leading up to her disappearance.  Growing up, Gloria has more than a child could ever want, including loving parents and a musical talent that many would kill for.  One tragic day, Glory’s mother dies, and Glory retreats into her music.  Depressed and lonely, Glory is immediately drawn to her new neighbor Frank.  With every one of Frank’s mix CDs and their late-night IM conversations, Glory becomes more invested in their relationship and less in the sold-out shows she plays in Carnegie Hall and around the world.  Eventually, the only song she is able to play is Chopsticks.

Personally, I loved this book and would recommend it to anybody… or any girl that is (maybe a few boys).  The use of pictures to tell the story is what sets this book apart and is probably the main reason why this book really stuck with me.  the pictures are used effectively and do an excellent job of developing the plot and the characters.  LThey also offer a unique perspective, a surprising does of emotion and mystery, with lots of room for interpretation.  A phrase from the trailer of the book that aptly summarizes it is: “Is Chopsticks a dream or a nightmare? I’d say a little of both, intriguingly so.”  So, do you agree?  Read the book and decide for yourself.  Ages 13 and up.

Anvita

Teen Book Review: The Future of Us

I thought that Jay Asher & Carolyn Mackler had a very good idea for their new book, A Future of Us.  The book is set in 1996.  Emma has just gotten her first computer and she puts a free America Online disk into her computer with her best friend Josh watching.  When they load it, they find themselves on Facebook from 2011.  The book is about how their relationship changes as they look at their futures. 

I think many people will like this book, but after reading it, there was something missing for me.  The beginning and middle had a slow pace and there wasn’t anything else in the plot to capture my attention.  I was expecting a sci-fi novel, but it was closer to realistic fiction.  The ending was expected and even though there was an element of science fiction, the book was basically a story about a boy and a girl who like each other and are too shy to admit it.  But like I said, I expect many people will like this.

-Rebecca, 8th grade

To hear a discussion of A Future of Us and several other recent teen books by our Teen Library Council, check out this audio.