Pfeffer, Susan Beth. The Shade of the Moon.

Pfeffer, Susan Beth.  The Shade of the Moon.    Houghton Mifflin/Harcourt Brace  2013     288p  $17.99  ISBN 978-0-547-81337-0  ms/hs    Science fiction  VG-BN 

Jon and his extended family have struggled to survive ever since they left Pennsylvania.  The family settled in Sexton, which is where the Clavers (the “Haves”) live.  The Grubs are the “Have-Nots.”  Jon, his stepmother, and his half-brother Gabe were lucky enough to have slips to enter and live in Sexton, while everyone else in the family lives in White Birch as a Grub.

Jon must constantly balance what he thinks is right against the wrongs he sees inflicted on the Grubs in White Birch.  When he meets Sarah Goldman (who disagrees with the practices of the current enclave), Jon begins to understand and disagree with the unfair practices of the town’s leaders.  However, everything comes apart for him after his sister Miranda (a Grub) is told by the hospital that her baby was born deformed and died, only to discover later that the child was sold to a “favored” couple in Sexton.

Readers will find this a fast-paced, nerve-tingling, and constantly twisting read.  Just as soon as the reader figures out one plot-line, another one twists into the equation.  Readers will not wait patiently for the next book in the series. 

Summary: Life is a struggle in a world of limited resources.  Jon Evans relies on his soccer prowess to help him keep his family safe.  His life is endangered when Jon has to make some serious moral choices.  survival-fiction    

Survival-Fiction, Dystopian fiction                         --Linda McNeil

Pfeffer, Susan Beth. Blood Wounds.

Pfeffer, Susan Beth. Blood Wounds.  Harcourt Brace/Houghton Mifflin(Macmillan), 2011.  248p.

$16.99.            ISBN 978-0-547-49638-2       hs        Conflict           VG-BN 

This realistic novel packs an emotional wallop.  The main character, Willa, is a junior in high school who lives with her mother, step-dad, and step-sisters in what everyone agrees is a very happy, well-adjusted blended family.  However, for some reason, Willa does feel stressed out, and she secretly cuts herself as a way of coping with her feelings.  When her birth father, who is in Texas, flips out and commits a series of brutal murders that effect her entire family, Willa begins to see that things are not as rosy as she has been led to believe, and that she needs to start taking her own needs more seriously.
This is a page turner, and is for mature readers only.  There are scenes of blood and gore, along with mild profanity.          But the characterizations and the complex relationships that Pfeffer creates are very true-to-life, and lovers of realistic fiction will not be able to put this one down.         Carol Kennedy

Pfeffer, Susan Beth This World We Live In

Pfeffer, Susan Beth This World We Live In
Harcourt Brace/Houghton Mifflin 2010 239p 17.00
978-0-547-24804-2 hs Realistic Fiction VG-BN
This is a realistic novel about the survival of a family in a world where nothing is alive after the collision of a meteor with the moon. It is a world of haunting images and scary emotions.
Miranda Evans and her two brothers (Matt and Jon) comb the surrounding areas for the possibilities of food and utensils after the catastrophe. The climate has changed, the sunlight is nonexistent, the landscape is barren, and the potential for food is relatively small. The family existed on what the siblings can scrounge from the vacant houses while their mother stayed home and tried to life normal.
After a few months, her divorced father, his wife (Lisa), their baby (Rachel) arrive on their doorstep creating additional problems in regards to living space and food supply.
When things are sort of working out, a tornado levels the town of Howell. Once again Miranda is faced with a difficult life and death choice.

This is a story of survival. The picture is not acceptable nor encouraging. It is a world in which choices made have definite consequences of life or death. It is a riveting read that will haunt memories with images of what the family had to do to survive. This is a very well written book that will relate well to many young readers. It is recommended as a basic book for any upper high school library. It would make an excellent selection for a basic books list for school libraries. McNeil, Linda