The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks by E. Lockhart
Witty, smart, mischievous, highly addictive and well written. Lockhart employs all the right narrative techniques, hooking the reader immediately and then taking her time in introducing Frankie. Things really pick up as Frankie is driven to further scheming and mayhem to prove… what? That she can be one of the good Old Boys. That she is better. And yet, when she finds it impossible, she must accept it.
There is an element of fight club in here and I believe this will also appeal to fans of John Green’s Looking for Alaska. Definitely a read of the high school and up audience. This has been one of the most enjoyable reads of the year. I’m only sorry it took me so long to get to it! A National Book Award Finalist and a 2009 Printz Honor Book.
Publisher: Hyperion Book CH (March 25, 2008)
Jellicoe Road by Melina Marchette
After a great prologue, the story slumped into a Falkner-like muddle that I had little patience for. It would be about 100 or so pages before it sparked my interest again. And it was half-way through that I began to understand what was going on. This is, in part, due to a purposefully ambiguous story and overlapping plots. But also, in some small part, due to intermittently clunky sentence structure that I had little patience for.
“I don’t know his name, and I don’t know why he comes calling, but he is there every time, playing the same music on one of those Discmans for tapes from the eighties, a song about flame trees and long-time feelings of friends left behind” (p 4).
“My insides are in a million pieces and I feel like someone out of one of those tragic war movies” (p 407-8).
Or there was a cultural language gap (the author is Australian). “So while the mouths of the year twelves move and their hands threaten, I think back to my dream of the boy…” (p 3-4). I was thinking, “What the heck is a ‘year twleve’?” It took me three tries before I understood that sentence.
Otherwise, it was an emotionally gripping story of childhood frienship and tragedy. I thought the main character was more of a vehicle to tell the more involved story of her parents than a fully developed and realised character herself. But all the plots came together like an expertly written Dicken’s novel and I found myself more than satisfied (and crying) at the end. The 2009 Printz Award winner.
Repossessed by A.M. Jenkins
I picked up Repossessed with a bunch of other books but read it first because I liked the cover. Hey, it looks naughty and I wasn’t disappointed. When a demon tires of torturing souls, he decides to take a vacation. He hops into the body of American teenager, Shaun, a few seconds before the boy is supposed to die. Instead, the demon alters his future and takes over. Kiriel, the demon, proceeds to drink up his human experiences. Having monitored Shaun from Hell, Kiriel fits pretty seamlessly into the stride of Shaun’s everyday. As the story progresses, we learn how Kiriel fell from Grace and his true goal; attract the attention of the Creator.
Raised a Catholic, I was lead to believe the worst part about hell was not the torment, fire and general misery but instead, the nothingness of the absence of God, that to be apart from God was the harshest punishment. It certainly is for Kiriel.
I love the concept. I even grow attached to Kiriel. He certainly makes improvements in Shaun’s life. But the story is not properly fleshed out. It feels more like a fifth draft. I believe there is more to explore. And while there are some great moments (“I’m going to plunge myself into the expanses of her many charms. The line’s moving, Bailey; scoot up.” 65) I really wanted more.
A 2008 Printz Honor book.
The First Part Last: Discussion Guide
The second book read and discussed through a grant funded by YALSA and the ALA: The First Part Last by two-time Coretta Scott King Award winner Angela Johnson. (Page numbers refer to the hardcover version, copyright 2003, published by Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers.)
- How did Bobby’s parents respond to the news of Nia’s pregnancy (pg. 12)? How did Nia’s parents respond to this (pg. 20)? How would your parents respond to this same announcement?
- Look at how Bobby’s friends react (pg. 37-40). How would your friends react?
- What does Bobby mean by saying, “I walk to my room…look around my room and miss me” (pg. 35)?
- How does Bobby feel about Feather? Would this be different if Nia were awake? (pg 81)
- What do you think about everyone’s reaction to Bobby and Nia’s decision to put their baby up for adoption?
- Do you agree with the way Bobby’s parents support (or don’t support) him and Feather?
- Imagine your room at home. What things would you have to change if you became a full-time parent? What everyday things would you have to do differently?
- Where do you see these characters five, ten years from now?
The reactions to this book surprised me somewhat. The students were very critical of Bobby, saying he was stupid for letting the pregnancy happen. They also saw Bobby’s parents in an odd role reversal where his father acted more like a mother, supportive and understanding, while Bobby’s mother was distant and unhelpful. Two of the boys in the discusison group were young fathers and mentioned the strong support of their parents made things very different for them. All noted the strong feelings Bobby held for Feather but there seemed to be no definitive opinion on Bobby’s success as a father. Also, the cover image was not well liked. Many thought the image was of a woman holding a baby!
The 2004 Printz Award winner.
Stuck in Neutral by Terry Trueman
I recently held an open forum book discussion on Terry Trueman’s Stuck in Neutral. Here is a discussion guide, my notes, and some tips:
1
Who has the strongest relationship with Shawn? Discuss the difference relationships between Shawn and his: mother, father, brother and sister.
2
Discuss the ending… How did it leave you feeling? What do you think happened next? Whether Shawn lives or is murdered by his father, does Shawn care? How do you think the rest of the family will react to whatever happens when they return from Paul’s basketball tournament?
3
Do you think Shawn is better off alive or dead? Shawn is the narrator of this novel. What is his tone? Does he seem happy, bitter, resentful, cruel, loving?
4
Discuss the differences between the way Paul handles his frustrations and Cindy’s actions. Why is Paul so violent? see pages 88-93. Why do you think Cindy went on the Alice Ponds Show? How is his loss of control similar/different from Shawn’s loss of control? Imagine having a brother as dependent as Shawn. How would that daily burden make you feel?
5
Discuss the ethics of mercy killing. Do you think Earl Detraux deserved his punishment?
6
Discuss the use of Labels in this book. What are some labels given to Shawn? see page 25. Why do people use labels and how do they effect the people who are labeled? Can you give examples of labels in your school?
7
Why do people pick on people like Shawn?
Tip
Play the audiobook while reading this novel to help those for whom this reading level is advanced.
8
Shawn’s father abandoned him and his siblings. What convinces you that he actually loves Shawn? That his mercy killing would be for love of his son?
