Tougas, Shelley. Laura Ingalls Is Ruining My Life.

Tougas, Shelley. Laura Ingalls Is Ruining My Life.  Macmillan/Roaring Brook Press  2018  296p     $16.99  ISBN 978-1-62672-418-1  elem/ms     Realistic Fiction  VG-BN     

Samantha has moved about six times in five years. When things get tough, her mother moves the family, looking for positive vibes. This time they end up in Walnut Grove, where her mother hopes to use the vibes from Laura Ingalls to help her write a best-selling book. On top of all the usual problems associated with a new town and school, Samantha has lost the twin connection with her brother. In an attempt to avoid the cafeteria, Samantha cheats on a reading test so she can stay in at lunchtime for extra help. Her astute teacher discovers this and begins to challenge Samantha. Her punishment for cheating is to work at the museum cataloguing artifacts. Samantha begins to enjoy the school, the town, the museum, and Laura Ingalls. But it all falls apart when Samantha misinterprets a conversation she overhears.
 

The novel features good descriptions of the challenges of entering a new school and trying to navigate the cliques and groups. There will be some catch for Laura Ingalls Wilder fans, but the real story is Samantha’s creative way of handling being the new kid. She learns much about herself during the six months the story covers. The novel is a very good choice for elementary and middle-school libraries. The story reads well even for those unfamiliar with Laura Ingalls Wilder's books. 

Summary: Samantha’s mother moves the family, again, this time to Walnut Grove, to channel the spirit of Laura Ingalls as she writes a book. Everything is new for Samantha -- new school, new friends, and new rules.  Grade 4-8 Grade 4-8   

Moving-Fiction                                           --Joan Theal

Kendall, Christine. Riding Chance.

Kendall, Christine.  Riding Chance.  Scholastic Press  2016  212p  $16.99     ISBN 978-0-545-92404-7    Hardback  ms/hs Realistic fiction  VG

Troy’s mother has died and he has lost his father, Pops, to a deep depression. He ends up hanging out with the wrong crowd and getting into trouble, along with his best friend Foster. His social worker suggests an alternative punishment for the crime: to enroll the boys in a prevention program in Fairmount Park in Philadelphia, taking care of horses and mucking out their stalls. The boys are not happy about this alternative but agree to participate. That’s when Troy finds his passion. He loves getting to know the horses and riding them, and then he discovers his ultimate opportunity, the sport of polo.

This heartwarming story will engage, delight, and appeal to adolescent and young adult readers. Troy reluctantly enters the program and finds he is not sure whom he can trust. He also meets a young lady that he is attracted to there, Alisha. The plot is unique and will keep readers on the edge of their seats as they root for Troy and his success, with his new love of horses, polo, family relationships, friendships, events and circumstances, and his resolution of all the confusion he has felt since his mother’s death.
           

This book is highly recommended for all middle- or high-school libraries and will engage and delight readers as coming of age is accurately captured in this novel.

Summary: Troy’s mother has died and he has lost his father Pops to depression.  Troy starts acting out with the wrong crowd and is placed in a program in present–day Philadelphia taking care of horses.        

Horses-Fiction, Polo-Fiction                                —Virginia McGarvey

Demetrios, Heather. I’ll Meet You There.

Demetrios, Heather.  I’ll Meet You There.  Macmillan/Henry Holt  2015  388p  $17.99  ISBN 978-0-8050-9795-5  hs  Realistic fiction  E-BN

Skylar Evans works at a motel and wants to escape her small town to attend art school in San Francisco.  But her mother loses her job, and school and escape both seem impossible.  Josh escaped the town by joining the Marines.  Now he is back from the war, sporting a prosthetic leg.  He tries to be the loud, party leading, self-assured boy who left, but he isn’t any more.

Skylar and Josh both work at the Paradise motel.  Their relationship starts as bantering and teasing, and then grows into friendship and maybe more.  By their actions, each deeply hurts the other.  Throughout the story, they learn to be honest with themselves and each other.  The story ends with possible hope for the future.

The themes of loss of limb and post traumatic stress disorder, the sexual innuendo and the eventual act (though very tastefully written) make this novel suitable for high school.  Beautifully written, it takes on timely and sensitive issues.  It holds the reader to the end and leaves him or her begging for more. 

Summary: A story about hopes and dreams shattered and rebuilt.  A wounded vet comes home, and the story is about his friends, their troubles,, and the ways they help each other.  Some sex and quite mature themes make this appropriate only for high-school collections.       

Post traumatic stress disorder-Fiction                      --Joan Theal

Littman, Sarah Darer. Backlash.

Littman, Sarah Darer.  Backlash.  Scholastic Press    2015  321p  $17.99  ISBN 978-0-545-65126-4  ms/hs  Realistic fiction  E-BN      

Bullied continuously for being overweight in middle school, Lara suffers from  low self-esteem.  But things start looking up socially for Lara as she enters high school when she makes the varsity cheerleading team and begins making new friends.  Then she meets a gorgeous boy on social media and adds him to her list of friends.  She is smitten by Christian’s good looks and kind words, and he is hinting at asking her to his school dance.  As Lara begins to search online for dresses, Christian turns on her and posts mean, humiliating comments about her on social media, even telling her that the world would be a better place without her.  Lara tries to commit suicide; however, she is discovered in time for her life to be saved.

What follows are the realistically depicted effects on her family as well as the ripple that extends to the entire community, like a stone thrown in a pond. Sarah Darer Littman has written a fabulous novel reflecting current events that are happening all too frequently for teens today.  The fast-paced plot is well written and describes events realistically and precisely.  The credible reaction of everyone affected by cyber-bullying and attempted suicide is not just socially relevant, but it is also well-written.  Readers won’t want to put this book down and will be astounded by the climax and resolution of the story.

This fabulous depiction of real-life events presented through fiction sends a powerful message to readers.  It is a must-read for any middle- or high-school student, and even for parents, that will hopefully send a “think first” message regarding social media.  It is recommended as an Excellent, Book of Note novel.
     

Summary: When Lara “friends” a boy she doesn’t know on social media, it looks like a romance beginning; however, Christian begins posting nasty things about Lara and she tries to commit suicide, causing consequences that affect not only her family, but the entire community.        

Social media-Fiction, Cyber-bullying-Fiction                --Virginia McGarvey

Klise, Kate. Grounded.

Klise, Kate. Grounded.
Feiwel&Friends/Macmillan Child Pub Gr 2010 196p 16.99
978-0-312-57039-2 elm/ms grieving-fiction VG-BN


Mother and daughter must learn to cope with loss, and that is the theme of the book! However, during their spiritual journey toward acceptance of death, they deal with unique jobs, family members and small-town turmoil.
Tragedy in the form of a plane crash robs Daralynn and her mother of family members, but it robs them of so much more as both try to come to terms with the death. There are a flim-flam man, a wacky sister-in-law, a Vietnam veteran brother and a senile grandmother as supporting cast. After the funeral, Mother takes on a job of doing hair of dead people at the local funeral parlor, but it does little to assuage her grief. Daralynn shows her creativity early on when she, herself, decides to cut hair and cuts all of the hair off a girl, thinking she╒s a boy! She covers up her error by calling this the new French look! When Daralynn comes up with the idea of having living funerals, both mother and daughter see it as a way to recover, but Aunt Josie╒s new beau steals their business by setting up a crematorium nearby! Clem, as he calls himself, wins the affection of Aunt Josie, but not of Mother. In the end, it turns out that Daralynn solves the mystery of the toupee she found while fishing. However, the toupee is just one small body part of what she discovers hidden in the lake. Clem has been claiming to cremate dead people; instead he hid them in the lake in an attempt to swindle the townspeople. Although the reader learns to distrust Clem early on, the falling action is so comedic, fast-paced and fun that he/she forgets that the book centers on death and coping. Kate Klise is known for originality, and interesting, quirky characters, especially in her book, Dying to Meet You, and although the idea of a living funeral is not new, she has put a certain country charm and a bit of a twist to the plot to keep the reader engaged. All books about life & death should be this well-written! Error on p. 11. Cut ╥r╙ from the word ╥her╙ to read, ╥like he╒d said after he gave me, etc."
Realistic Fiction. Squaresky, Martha

O'Connor, Barbara The Fantastic Secret of Owen Jester

O'Connor, Barbara The Fantastic Secret of Owen Jester
Farrar Strauss see macmillan children's pub group 2010 168p 15.99 978-0-374-36850-0 elem E-BN


After Owen captures a huge bullfrog, tries to tame it, then has to release it, he and his friends try to use a small submarine that fell from a passing train to observe the frog in the pond it came from, while avoiding nosy tag-along Viola. Owen Jester is thrilled when he finally captures the biggest, greenest, slimiest, most beautiful bullfrog in Carter, Georgia. He names the frog "Tooley Graham," and determines to keep the wild creature as a pet. With his best friends, Travis and Stumpy, Owen finds summer vacation a busy time. There are frog cages to build, females to avoid (notably Earlene, his family's disapproving housekeeper and nosy know-it-all next-door-neighbor, Viola), and...a submarine to launch!

Yes, Owen discovers a two-passenger submarine that has fallen from a train, when he follows up on a crashing noise that he heard in the middle of the night. Owen tries to keep this secret from everyone but his friends (i.e., excluding Viola and all adults). But Viola is persistent. To keep her from tattling to the grown-ups, the boys agree to let Viola help them with the sub, which they plan to move into a nearby pond. They reason that if Tooley is released in the pond they will be able to observe him in his natural habitat from the vehicle.

The spare plot is smooth and focused, complemented with well-drawn, believable characters. The boys╒ nemesis, Viola, is particularly memorable. Viola, an unwanted tag along, is allergic to pine and grass and dust and dogs and just about every good thing in life. Worse (from Owen╒s point of view) she is bossy and always right.

In the end, Viola becomes an ally rather than an archenemy in Owen's secret summertime adventure. Owen learns some important lessons about friendship and responsibility. And readers -- male and female -- enjoy a well-written adventure.

Well-crafted and appealing, this novel has already been included on School Library Journal Best Books 2010. Realistic Fiction, Friendship-Fiction; Frogs-Fiction; Submersibles-Fiction; Submarines-Fiction; Bullfrogs-Fiction; Georgia-Fiction; Family life-Fiction; Adventure and Adventurers - Fiction Welliver, Hilary

Bell, Joanne. Juggling Fire.

Bell, Joanne. Juggling Fire.
Orca 2009 171p 12.95 978-1-55469-094-7 ms/hs
An Alaskan girl seeks answers to life’s questions. Where did her father go? Why didn’t he return? Can she survive the challenges of the Yukon to try to find her answers? Her quest is unforgettable. Orca Book Publishers has printed the perfect book. As if Orca Soundings had not already provided books for our readers that they cannot put down! In Juggling Fire, Joanne Bell combines poetry, a wonderful story about a relentless search for answers and a family with whom the reader is sure to connect. How she turns a dog named Brooks and a girl named Rachel into protagonists who are both resilient yet vulnerable is a tribute to the author’s writing ability. When Rachel’s father leaves the family due to some undiagnosed emotional disorder, or need to find himself, the family is devastated. However, both the mother and Rachel’s sister move on, mother with her carving and Rachel with her dog sledding and love of animals. Rachel is stuck. She simply cannot accept that her father disappeared, despite the challenges of surviving in the Alaskan wilderness. When she turns of age, she leaves home in search of her father, long accepted dead by authorities. Her adventures, which she endures and survives with her knowledge of life in the Yukon, make the story unforgettable. Using fairy tales, her hobby of juggling, the beauty of the Yukon and her concern for the injured Brooks who has been attacked by a grizzly, Rachel pulls herself together, finds her former home and ends up realizing that her father didn’t just leave them. He was going to come back to his family. Various theories as to his demise are cleverly woven in, yet that is not the focus of this book. Bell’s story is about a quest, and the quest includes a desire for answers, a desire for a new life and a desire for a young girl to find her niche. The descriptions of Alaska are poetic. The writing style is sublime. It is only when Rachel finds her real home and the answer to her quest that all is well again for her. Squaresky, Martha