Stoner & Spaz by Ron Koertge

I recently reread this book after discovering that Ron Koertge had just released a sequel called Now Playing: Stoner & Spaz II. Since Stoner & Spaz first came out in 2002, I knew I’d have to reread it before tackling the sequel.

Stoner & Spaz tells the story of sixteen-year-old Ben Bancroft, a loner with cerebral palsy who lives with his grandmother and finds solace losing himself in movies. During one of his frequent trips to a quirky movie theater that specializes in classics like Bride of Frankenstein, he runs into Colleen Minou, a beautiful and charismatic stoner. Her initial interest in Ben seems to stem from her altered state at the time, but the two soon form a friendship that, much to the surprise of everyone at their school, sometimes even seems like something more.

Yes, I know the opposites attract theme has been played to death, but Stoner & Spaz truly is worth checking out. Spurred on by Colleen and an arty neighbor named Marcie, Ben slowly comes out of his shell and progresses from watching movies incessantly to making a documentary about the students at his high school. Colleen’s progress stops and starts as she seems to know that she should ditch Ed, her drug dealer boyfriend, but seems less sure about what to do next. I enjoyed Stoner & Spaz immensely both of the times I read it and hope the sequel will be as good if not better.

John

Wither by Lauren DeStefano

The first in the Chemical Garden Trilogy, Wither is the story of Rhine Ellery, a 16-year-old girl caught in a nightmare. The world is no longer as we know it due to a series of genetic mutations that took place many years ago. Now, girls only live until they are twenty and boys until they are twenty-five. Kidnappers called Gatherers force young girls into marrying rich men in order to reproduce. Ellery unwillingly marries Linden, the son of a wealthy doctor. Linden himself is caught up in his own turmoil, but his father is determined to come up with a cure for the world's problems and will stop at nothing to do so. The only bright spot in Ellery's life is Gabriel, a house servant that she befriends. Both Rhine & Gabriel suspect that bad things are happening in the mansion and that they are in great danger. But is it possible for them to escape?

Karen

Great Books for Middle Schoolers

Notes from a Totally Lame Vampire by Tim Collins

Nigel seems to be a typical fifteen year old boy, worrying about fitting in, getting a girlfriend, and dealing with acne.  However, life is more complicated for him than it seems.  Nigel is a vampire, and not a good-looking popular vampire like Edward or Emmett Cullen.  Read his collection of notes.   

Pies and Prejudice by Heather Vogle Frederick

Four girls, and their mothers, continue their mother-daughter book club via videoconference between Massachusetts and England, reading Jane Austen's "Pride and Prejudice," and try to put friendship before romance. From the Mother-Daughter Book Club series.

Anne Frank: the Anne Frank House Authorized Graphic Biography by Sidney Jacobson

This full-color graphic biography of Anne Frank goes beyond her diary. Starting with her father Otto’s birth, it also recounts Anne’s birth and the Frank family’s life hiding, their betrayal and arrest. This graphic biography will give the reader a new appreciation for Anne’s short life. 

Hero by Mike Lupica

Join fourteen year old Zach Harriman in this high-adventure thriller.  When his father’s plane mysteriously crashes, Zach finds out that his father was living a very different life—that of a superhero.  Now Zach is finding out he has the same superhero powers, and the people who wanted his father killed are now after Zach!

After Ever After by Jordan Sonnenblick.

After Ever After is the sequel to Drums, Girls and Dangerous Pie, but you don't have to read that one first to understand this one. The book is about an eighth grade boy named Jeffery Alper whose cancer is in remission. But, life doesn’t just go on perfectly, he still has to deal with the after effect. There is real humor and perspective in this book. 

The Running Dream by Wendelin Van Draanen

Did you enjoy the movie and/or book Soul Surfer? The Running Dream captures every great aspect of that story, but also takes you on an outstanding journey of a girl named Jessica that you would not expect! Jessica is a record-breaking track runner who finds herself in the hospital after losing her leg in an accident. Jessica finds the courage to defeat her obstacles while encouraging others along the way. Her story will make you cry, laugh, and cheer her on! 

Kimberly

Alice in Time by Penelope Bush

Life is not working out well for fourteen-year-old Alice. Her mum is ruining her life, her dad just got remarried, her little brother is driving her crazy, and Sasha, the most popular girl in school, hates her guts. Alice despises the house they all rent, and she has no cell phone or even a computer. Talk about a loser…
Her best friend Imogene is even starting to get on her nerves. Actually, Imogene is her only friend, but even that can stop the feelings of anger that Alice has. Especially when it comes to Seth, the first boy that has paid attention to Alice in a long time. When Alice decides to see Seth no matter what, the repercussions are severe, and Alice feels she has nowhere to turn.
Then a bizarre accident happens, and Alice finds herself re-living her life as a seven-year-old through teenage eyes –and discovering some awkward truths.

Part fantasy/part realistic fiction, Alice in Time is one of those novels that really makes you think!

Karen

World Series!

The World Series starts tonight (Let's go Cardinals!!). When you're not watching the game, enjoy some of these great baseball books:

Baseball Great by Tim Green

Josh's dad signs him up with Coach Rocky Valentine's youth baseball championship team, the Titans. He says Josh has what it takes to be a baseball great and the Titans will help him get there. Now Josh is gulping down Rocky's "Super Stax" milkshakes to build muscle and trying to fit in with his new teammates - older, tougher kids who can suddenly become violent. All Josh really wants to do is play ball, but as he gets in deeper with the Titans, there are questions he's just got to ask. As Josh and his new friend Jaden investigate their suspicions, they find themselves in a dangerous struggle with a desperate man who doesn't want them to expose the nasty secrets they uncover.

Far From Xanadu by Julie Anne Peters 

Mary Elizabeth (or Mike) Szabo is the star of her school's softball team but because of problems stemming from her father's suicide, her depressed mother and her slacker brother, she has convinced herself that she can't go far. But when an exotic new girl, Xanadu, arrives in the small Kansas town, Mike's world is turned upside down. Xanadu is everything Mike is not: cool, complicated, sexy, and . . . straight. This heartbreaking yet ultimately hopeful novel will speak to anyone who has ever fallen in love with someone just out of reach.

Center Field by Robert Lipsyte
Mike has his junior year well under control. Coach Cody has all but given him the starting spot as the Ridgedale Rangers' varsity center fielder. But then Oscar Ramirez shows up. Oscar is an amazing ballplayer, as talented at the plate as he is in center field, and it's not long before Mike loses control. He's on the bench, he's getting into fights, and he finds himself in weekend detention with Katherine Herold, the most mysterious, abrasive, alluring girl in school. Mike is lost, confused, and looking to Coach Cody to help him get back on track. But the coach has his own set of rules for Mike to play by, and the decisions Mike makes are going to impact more than just the starting lineup.

Heat by Mike Lupica
Michael Arroyo grows up in the shadows of hallowed Yankee Stadium, a boy forever on the outside looking in. His only chance to see his field of dreams? Pitch his Bronx all-star team to the district finals and a shot at the Little League World Series. But there is a problem. Michael is good - "too"good. Rival coaches and players can't believe a boy could be this good and be only twelve years old. And Michael has no way to prove it - no mother, no father, and a birth certificate that is stuck back home in his native Cuba. If the people from social services find out his secret, he will have an even worse problem: being separated from the only family he knows, his older brother Carlos.

The Comeback Season by Jennifer E. Smith
The last place Ryan Walsh should be this afternoon is on a train heading to Wrigley Field. She should be in class, enduring yet another miserable day of her first year of high school. But for once, Ryan isn't thinking about what she should be doing because she's finally returning to the place that her father loved, where the two of them spent so many afternoons cheering on their team. And, on the fifth anniversary of his death, it feels like there's nowhere else in the world she should be. Good luck is often hard to come by at a place like Wrigley Field, but it's on this day that she meets Nick who seems to love the Cubs nearly as much as she does. But Nick carries with him a secret that makes Ryan wonder if anyone can ever really escape their past, or believe in the promise of those reassuring words: "Wait till next year."



Kimberly

Teens' Top Ten 2011

Over 9,000 teens voted for this year's top ten YA books. Here are the winners:

1. 
   Clockwork Angel by Cassandra Clare
2. Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins
3. Crescendo by Becca Fitzpatrick
4. I Am Number Four by Pittacus Lore
5. The Iron King by Julie Kagawa
6. Matched by Ally Condie
7. Angel: A Maximum Ride Novel by James Patterson
8. Paranormalcy by Kiersten White
9. Before I Fall by Lauren Oliver
10. Nightshade by Andrea Cremer

And it's Teen Read Week! Celebrate by participating in our photo scavenger hunt. You can pick up the clues and rules at the Information Desk.

Kimberly

Great Graphic Novels

Here are some of YALSA's Great Graphic Novels for Teens 2011

Arisa Vol. 1 by Natsumi Ando
Tsubasa poses as her troubled twin sister and discovers dark secrets that may be more than she bargained for.

The Unwritten: Tommy Taylor and the Bogus Identity by Mike Carey & Peter Gross
What if your father wrote a best-selling fantasy series named after you… and all of it was true?

Beasts of Burden: Animal Rites by Evan Dorkin & Jill Thompson
A group of dogs and one open-minded cat join forces to protect the community of Burden Hill against a variety of supernatural forces.

Salem Brownstone by John Harris Dunning & Nikhil Singh
Salem receives an inheritance that goes beyond a gothic mansion: he must fight his father’s battle against dark forces.

Saturn Apartments V. 1 by Hisae Iwaoka
Mitsu takes on his late father's dangerous job as a window washer on the space ship Saturn Apartments.

Mercury by Hope Larson
Two girls: separated by 150 years but connected by one locket.

Kill Shakespeare V. 1: A Sea of Troubles by Conor McCreery
Shakespeare's greatest heroes clash with his most menacing villains.

The Amazing Screw-On Head and Other Curious Objects by Mike Mignola
The absurd adventures of a robotic Victorian super-hero and other assorted weirdness.

Not Simple by Natsume Ono
Ian is on a journey across the USA to find his sister.

Batwoman: Elegy by Greg Rucka and JH Williams
Don’t ask, don’t tell Batwoman what to do.


Superman: Earth One by J. Michael Straczynski & Shane Davis
Strange visitor, mild-mannered reporter.  You know the story . . . but not quite like this.

Ghostopolis by Doug TenNapel
Garth Hale has gone to the other side, but he’s not dead yet.

Black Butler by Yana Toboso
Earl Phantomhive's butler is devilishly good.

Twin Spica by Kou Yaginmua
Asumi must pass the entrance exam for space school.

Kimberly