Weyn, Suzanne. Bionic.

Weyn, Suzanne.  Bionic.  Scholastic Press  2016  228p  $17.99     ISBN 978-0-545-90677-7  Hardback    ms/hs Realistic fiction  VG

Author Suzanne Weyn has written a book that will be enjoyed by all teen readers.  Mira has everything: a boyfriend, talent on the lacrosse field as well as in singing and guitar playing, and a chance to get a scholarship to college. The pressures on her are all normal ones. This all changes after a car accident in which she loses an arm and a leg. When she is offered the chance of a lifetime, to receive an experimental treatment being tested for soldiers who have lost limbs, Mira agrees to participate. Her superficial boyfriend isn’t one to wait for a girl who is facing months of physical therapy, but Mira isn’t worried, for she has begun to question their relationship anyway as she develops feelings for a fellow band member, Niles. Now, good things come her way, one after another, as people around her see her glow, her strength and her newfound ability to swim. The pressures that accompany the changes to Mira’s brain put her on overload, and she needs subsequent surgeries to correct the abnormalities. One single climax might be tough to find, but in the falling action, the reader will be anxious to see a satisfactory resolution for Mira. With the help of supporting characters like her mother, her physician, a soldier she meets at a support group, Niles, and yet one more surgery, she finds herself. Quick-paced, but without a lot of deeper development that serious readers might prefer, this novel offers a look at the new possibilities in medicine but also, at the side effects that one doesn’t consider when offered a chance to jump on that “normal train.”           

This novel is a good choice for both middle-school and high-school readers.  It offers a look at future medical science and its blessings and pitfalls. It’s a good, quick read for entertainment purposes also.     

Summary: After a sudden car accident, Mira receives bionic limbs.  The new chip in her brain enhances her appearance and her physical abilities, but it causes problems as well.

Medical miracles-Fiction                                          —Martha Squaresky

Weyn, Suzzanne. The Bar Code Prophecy.

Weyn, Suzzanne.  The Bar Code Prophecy.   Scholastic Press  202p  $17.99 978-0-545-42529-2     2012 jr/sr   VG-BN      Science Fiction  

Grace has just turned seventeen and has found a great job with the corporation.  Her father also works there as the building engineer.  On her birthday she is to get her bar code tattoo to become part of the older society.  Grace has always liked Eric. Together they enjoy rock climbing. The day before Grace gets her tattoo Eric asks not to get the bar code, but Grace does not see why she shouldn’t.

A moment after Grace gets her tattoo, she is overwhelmed by the feeling that she made a mistake.  Then, as if to prove her theory, she finds herself on the run from the police, and yet she does not even know why! Eric shows up and helps her escape, but her family is also missing.

As upset as she is about the new development, Grace is willing to listen and tries to make sense of what has just happened. Then important revelations are uncovered, and although she still does not understand everything, she is beginning to believe that something is definitely wrong with the corporation.

This, the third book in the series of the Bar Code Tattoo, stands alone, but I felt that something was missing that would help wrap all the loose ends. I recommend reading the first two books.       

Individual Identity–Fiction                                  --Magna Diaz