Bald Headed Princess

Title: Bald Headed Princess
Author: Maribeth Ditmars
Pages: 96 pages
Language: G
Content: G
Level: Middle School/High School
Recommendation: Good Read

Summary: What is a girl with cancer to do? Will her friends still want to hang out with her now that she has cancer? Can she play soccer? How will she deal with being out of school? How will she manage homework from home and the hospital? Can she please get back to a normal life? A life with hair and without chemo? Discover with Isabel that having cancer doesn t have to change who she is a budding teenager and an awesome soccer princess. Her strength and courage, and fabulous sense of humor, helps carry her though it all. 

Review: A great story for anyone who is or knows someone who has been affected by cancer.  Fast and easy to read, I enjoyed the story.

Boundless

Title: Boundless

Author: Cynthia Hand
Language: PG
Content: PG
Level: Middle/High School
Recommendation: Good Read


Summary: The past few years held more surprises than part-angel Clara Gardner ever could have anticipated. Yet through the dizzying high of first love to the agonizing low of losing someone close to her, the one thing she could no longer deny was that she was never meant to have a normal life.

Since discovering the special role she plays among the other angel-bloods, Clara has been determined to protect Tucker Avery from the evil that follows her . . . even if it means breaking both their hearts. Leaving town seemed like the best option, so she's headed back to California—and so is Christian Prescott, the irresistible boy from the vision that started her on this journey in the first place.

As Clara makes her way in a world that is frighteningly new, she discovers that the fallen angel who attacked her is watching her every move. And he's not the only one. . . . With the battle against the Black Wings looming, Clara knows she must finally fulfill her destiny.

Review: This is another great angel series and I would not hesitate to read another book written by Cynthia Hand. This series is just a really good story, it doesn't have the more mature content in it that makes you think twice about recommending it.  The main character Clara is strong with a lot of fight in her.  She doesn't play by anyone's rules, but her own, not even angel rules. This is a good read for your Twilight or Hush Hush fans.

I Am A Seal Team Six Warrior

Title: I Am A Seal Team Six Warrior
Author: Howards Wasdin
Pages: 192
Language: PG13
Content: PG13
Level: Upper Middle/High School
Recommendation: Good Read

Summary:  FOR YOUNG READERS—A SPECIAL EDITION OF THE BESTSELLER, SEAL TEAM SIX.  When the Navy sends their elite, they send the SEALs. When the SEALs send their elite, they send SEAL Team Six—a secret unit made up of the finest soldiers in the country, if not the world. I Am a SEAL Team Six Warrior is the dramatic tale of how Howard Wasdin overcame a tough childhood to live his dream and enter the exciting and dangerous world of U.S. Navy SEALS and Special Forces snipers.  His training began with his selection for Basic Underwater Demolition/SEAL (BUD/S)—the toughest and longest military training in the world. After graduating, Wasdin saw combat in Operation Desert Storm as a member of SEAL Team Two. But he was driven to be the best of the best—he wanted to join the legendary SEAL Team Six, and at long last he reached his goal and became one of the best snipers on the planet. Soon he was fighting for his life in The Battle of Mogadishu. This is Howard Wasdin's story of overcoming abuse and beating the odds to become an elite American warrior.

Review: I was suprised at the limited swearing and graphic content that was in this book, considering the topic.  The book follows an elite Seal from youth to adulthood, following his training and career as a SEAL.  I knew that Seal Team Six was the best of the best, but it was unbelieveable to read all the rigorous training that Wasdin endured. This book offers a unique view into a very specialized world.

The Statistical Probability of Love at First Sight

Title: The Statistical Probability of Love at First Sight
Author: Jennifer E. Smith
Pages: 272
Content: G
Language: PG
Level: Middle/High School
Recommendation: VERY Good Read

Summary: Who would have guessed that four minutes could change everything? Today should be one of the worst days of seventeen-year-old Hadley Sullivan's life. Having missed her flight, she's stuck at JFK airport and late to her father's second wedding, which is taking place in London and involves a soon-to-be stepmother Hadley's never even met. Then she meets the perfect boy in the airport's cramped waiting area. His name is Oliver, he's British, and he's sitting in her row. A long night on the plane passes in the blink of an eye, and Hadley and Oliver lose track of each other in the airport chaos upon arrival. Can fate intervene to bring them together once more?

Review: I truly enjoyed everything about this book.  Good language, good content, good story!  It is crazy to see how much of one's life can be shared while on a 7 hour flight to London.  There are many underlying themes to this book that come through conversation!  It was a delight to find a book that's content was suitable for all students.  Thank you Jennifer Smith!

52 Reasons To Hate My Father

Title: 52 Reasons To Hate My Father
Author: Jessica Brody
Pages: 352
Content: PG13 (underage drinking)
Language: PG13 (10 swears)
Level: High School
Recommendation: Good Read

Summary:  Being America’s favorite heiress is a dirty job…but someone’s gotta do it.  Lexington Larrabee has never had to work a day in her life. After all, she’s the heiress to the multi-billion-dollar Larrabee Media empire. And heiresses are not supposed to work. But then again, they’re not supposed to crash brand-new Mercedes convertibles into convenience stores on Sunset Boulevard either.  Which is why, on Lexi’s eighteenth birthday, her ever-absent, tycoon father decides to take a more proactive approach to her wayward life. Every week for the next year, she will have to take on a different low-wage job if she ever wants to receive her beloved trust fund. But if there’s anything worse than working as a maid, a dishwasher, and a fast-food restaurant employee, it’s dealing with Luke, the arrogant, albeit moderately attractive, college intern her father has assigned to keep tabs on her.

Review: I fully expected this dislike this book.  Although I didn't love the main character, I did find myself enjoying the story and wanted to know if Lexi's life changes when she has to work 52 menial jobs assigned to her by her father.  There were a couple unexpected twists at the end, but I did enjoy the book.  Be aware...there is underage drinkin involved (although it is used to show the negative effects of drinking).

Stronger

Title: Stronger
Author: Michael Carroll
Pages: 370
Level: Middle School/High School
Language: G
Content: PG (violence)
Recommendation: Good Read For Guys

Summary:  The critically acclaimed Super Human series reaches its shocking conclusion.  All Gethin Rao wants is to be like every other boy his age. But normal twelve-year-olds aren't blue. And they certainly aren't thirteen feet tall. That's what happens when his superpowers kick in. And from that moment on, his life is never the same. Treated as a villain—a monster—Gethin spends the rest of his life on the run or as a prisoner in a secret military facility.

When he finally escapes, he falls in with a group of superpowered teens and becomes the one thing he never thought he'd be: a hero. But as the years pass by and he takes the name Brawn, Gethin learns that being a good guy is a lot more difficult than he thought.

Review: Think comic book in novel form.  Readers who enjoy comics and superheros will be drawn into this book.  Although at times the book seemed disjointed, due to flashbacks of how Brawn became super human, I wanted to know what happened to him!  I read this book, even though I hadn't read any of the other Super Human books,  but am now intrigued to read more.