Final Crossing.

Rodman, Sean.  Final Crossing.  Orca      2014  107p  $9.95 ISBN 978-1-4598-0552-1  ms/hs      Realistic fiction, Hi-lo   VG   

Will and Big O are brothers and best friends.  Having learned robbery techniques from their currently-imprisoned father, the boys have survived by stealing from others.  The pair decides to clean up their act and go to live with their respectable uncle, but they need a hundred dollars to get there.  In the duo’s final heist to raise this money, they plan to steal loose change out of cars being transported on a ferry while the unaware owners are on the upper decks.  As they pick locks on various cars and count their money, they come upon a van from which strange noises are coming.  When Will picks the lock, he discovers a kidnapping victim, a girl. Action and suspense build and build as the boys try to help the girl escape while evading the authorities because of their own activities.

This Hi/Lo novel will resonate well with young, struggling and reluctant readers.  The action begins on the first page and does not end until the last.  Written at a lower reading level, the text will not intimidate readers.  The plot is exciting and well written.

Summary: Determined to change their criminal behaviors and go to live with their uncle, brothers and best friends Will and Big O plan one last heist, robbing cars on a ferry, when they stumble upon a kidnapping victim.
           

Brothers-Fiction, Crime-Fiction                       --Virginia McGarvey

Rubens, Michael. Sons of the 613.

Rubens, Michael.  Sons of the 613.  Houghton Mifflin/Clarion  305p  $16.99 978-0-547-61216-4    2012  hs    E-BN        Realistic Fiction

This is a very funny, and finally tragic, story of the relationship between two brothers.  The older, street-smart brother, Josh, takes advantage of a trip to Italy with his parents to teach his younger brother Isaac, about to be bar-mitzvahed, how to be a man.     

Sons of the 613 is an absolutely wonderful coming-of-age story that will be embraced by all YA readers, although it revolves around the Jewish rite of passage of bar mitzvah.  The book seems very light-hearted at first, pulling the reader into the story with lots of humor.  The humor continues, but the story turns gritty as well.  While there are dicey situations between the brothers, as well as places less traveled by most, and the language is blue at times, this only adds to the reality of the story.  The relationship between the brothers is explored and stretched, as well as the way they interact with both Isaac and Josh’s friends.  The tragedy at the end only emphasizes the reality that people are who and what they are, no matter how much love you throw at them.

Brothers-Fiction                                           --Lynn Fisher

Schraff, Anne. Unbroken. (Urban Underground)

Schraff, Anne.     Unbroken.  (Urban Underground)             Saddleback          201p      $15.00  978-1-61651-960-5   2012             hs             VG-BN      Realistic fiction                                 

David Morales has managed to survive two years of prison, and now he is ready to leave and become a responsible citizen.  He has the support of his brother, who helps him find a job and, as it turns out, he falls in love with the boss’ daughter.  She doesn’t know about his criminal past, and a lot of the story revolves around her potential reaction if and when he decides to tell her.

Morality tales are not the stuff that usually would be of interest to YA readers, but this book is perhaps an exception to that rule.  The story of David Morales leaving prison after serving two years, and his strong desire to be a responsible citizen, makes for an interesting story.  But the book is not solely about David.  His brother and his new girlfriend, and their families, all illustrate the ways in which immigrant families close to the bottom of the socio-economic strata, are solid, loving, and supportive of each other.  The author portrays the bario as a place with good and bad, just like any community, and the importance of neighbor helping neighbor.  The emphasis, in this story about David and his girlfriend Carmen, is trust, and the importance of being truthful with the ones you love.            

Prison-Fiction, Brothers-Fiction                                                                                                                                                       --Lynn Fisher