Code Name Verity by Elizabeth Wein

Look, I know it's going to take you a bit to get into this book, but the pay-off is worth it.  This story of the friendship of Queenie and Maddie have in the midst of the terrible tragedies of World War II is a mighty one.  Please know that once you get to the second half of the book, the part told by Maddie, you will be reading intensely trying to figure out what is going to happen.  The story of these best friends, pilot and this spy, working undauntedly on behalf of the French Resistance is terrifying, beautiful, and stunning.  You won't believe your eyes as you read.

The episodes of war are both frightening (like when the German Luftwaffe is hovering above the girls as they try to escape the shooting or the accounts of Nazi torture) and intriguing (like all the plotting, planning, and promising the Resistance efforts require).  And the narratives are written like a puzzle.  You are certain you can trust the narrators, but you realize you aren't the only audience reading the pages.  But, BUT!, the very best part of this novel is the friendship the girls share.  It crosses class divisions and personal inclinations; it is as strong as any family tie.  They offer each other places to escape and chances to show great strength.  The share fears (literally, they each list 10) and moments of true joy (bike rides and plane rides).  Their friendship is uncommon.

As I try to describe this book that I just completed, I can't believe I'm really trying to describe it.  It's indescribable.  It's a puzzle and a simple story of friendship.  It is a slog and twisty suspenseful roller-coaster.  The narrators are trust-worthy and complete liars.  The girls are a spy and a pilot, a female spy and a female pilot, no less. The book and it's contradictions punched me in the gut- in a way only the best, best, best stories can.  I cannot stop thinking about the experience I had reading this book.  Book love, people.  Book love.  Get your hands on this challenge book when you can.  Stick with it's outcome, and enjoy.

Brown Girl Dreaming by Jacqueline Woodson

Novels in verse, like this one, are like many, many little and beautiful stories that add up to one giant wonderful story.  This one, Jacqueline Woodson's newest release, is so powerful I had to read many parts of it out-loud to the Kujawski boys. And very often when I did, the tallest one, Barney, recognized the sweetness of the story too.

Non-fiction, historical non-fiction, memoir, novel in verse...so many aspects of this book.  The writers in every kid would benefit from reading this book.  Teachers in every LA/R classroom will benefit from sharing pieces of this book with their students.  This book is so simple and so powerful. Jacqueline Woodson is brilliant.

Born in 1963 and raised by all the important people in her life (mom, dad, grandmother, grandfather) in Ohio, in the South, and in Brooklyn, Ms. Woodson tells us the tales of her adventures.  She shares secrets about her questions and her insecurities, and she shares her confidence in friendship, family, and faith. There are lines from old music, poems quoted and copied, favorite games and pop culture divulged- it's a book that is as playful as it is powerful.

I want kids of color to get their hands on this book.  But I need kids not of color to get their hands on this book too. It's just that #weneeddiversebooks for so many reasons.  For empathy, for knowledge, for sharing of the struggles.

Yet, still, we could simply read beyond the brown in this story of a little girl dreaming, and we'd have a marvelous story of a writer-in-bloom.  Kids who grow-up dreaming of becoming writers and story-tellers need to get their hands on this book.



This is one of those books I'm so thankful exists.  It makes this world one in which I'm capable of raising kids.  Because they are all ours, all of them.

SAMS kids and families, you are welcome to my copy!  Any time.  You'll find it either in my office or Ms. Mohr's classroom.

-absk

Isla and the Happily Ever After by Stephanie Perkins

I will be the first to tell you that I love love.  It is warm, feel-good joy, and there are few people who do love more intensely than teenagers.  Uffda, first love, high school love, breaking-up because of college love...it's all dramatic, huge-pay-off, bigger heartbreak kinds of love.  I remember it, and I see it in the halls of SAMS and SAVHS.  But I've rarely seen it written about so genuinely and painfully and enchantedly as in this book, Isla and the Happily Ever After by Stapehanie Perkins.

Readers will fall in love with Josh, the handsome and independent comic book artist that Isla has been crushing on since freshman year.  Readers will fall in love with New York City and Paris and Barcelona- the three back-drops of this romance story.  Readers will cringe when Isla and Josh steer more toward insecurity and away from love.  Readers will swallow this fun ride in a sitting or two.  It's a love story, no doubt. So be warned- it's ooey and gooey, but lovely.  Fans of Sarah Dessen and e. lockhart will swoon over this read.  This isn't a series book, however, Ms. Perkins wrote two other books and the main characters of those books stumble into Isla and Josh's story.  So, for the rules-following types of you out there, you might want to start with Anna and the French Kiss and Lola and the Boy. Be warned, though!  It's not for the cynical or the unbelieving. 

Feel the love and find the love here in my latest book blog title: Isla and the Happily Ever After.  Read all about it's author here.

Keep reading, all.

Beauty Queens by Libba Bray

Have you ever gotten really excited to read a book because all of the hype, and then when you read it, it's just not as good as you hoped.  I hate it when this happens, but it happens so easily! Darn.

Beauty Queens by Libba Bray is full of great moments and great lessons for young adolescent girls.  But it's over the top and just on the other side of too forced and too silly.  The premise is a lot like Lord of the Flies, but with teenage beauty contestants.  It's supposed to be satirical and it's supposed to be fantastical, I know that...I just didn't like it.

My favorite line in the book represents what I did love, love, love about the book.  The slow realizations the girls have that they can be themselves with a bit more practice and a bit more dedication to the idea.  “Maybe girls need an island to find themselves,” Mary Lou says. “Maybe they need a place where no one’s watching them so they can be who they really are.”  I'm all about doing whatever it takes to help girls find the confidence it takes to be who they really are, including recommending this book for girls interested.  It's not that it's not good or funny, it just didn't live up to the hype.  Try it for yourself and see!

Virals by Kathy Reichs

Many thanks to Wyatt A. for recommending this book that is a pop-culture, sci-fi mystery wrapped all in one.  Follow the adventurous, mysterious ride 14 year old Tory takes her Sci-Phile friends on when they are infected by a virus that changes their DNA so that they become a wolf-like pack with wolf-like senses and abilities.  Jammed pack with risk, adventure, twists and turns, this book will have you gasping out loud right through the end.  you are in for an adventure.  Enjoy!

The Book Thief by Markus Zusak

In all my reading life, I have never cried so hard over a book.  I cried because it's a book about war.  I cried because I'm so sad my time with the characters came to a close.  I cried because everything beautiful about this book is ultimately everything human.

Now I realize what I've said so far isn't going to inspire kids to read this book (especially boys) but oh, how I want EVERY kid to pick up this book.  Because there's something in this book for everyone...

• War
• Bullies
• Soccer
• Nazi Germany
• Stealing
• Foster care
• Friendship
• Death (after all, Death is the narrator)
• Creativity

Pick up this book today.  Take your time reading it's pages.  This book will stay with you.  It will haunt you and change you.  Pick it up and tell me what you think.

The Mystery of the Third Lucretia by Susan Runholt

Two 14-year old best friends from St. Paul stumble into the ride of their lives when they find themselves in the middle of a stolen art mystery.  The books takes readers to Paris, London, and Amsterdam as they follow the protagonists trying to uncover the mystery of the "Gallery Guy".  Many aspects of this book are enjoyable:

• the friendship the girls have...it's not perfect, but it's reflective of how friendships go in 9th grade.
• the history of art lessons...I didn't know I was so interested in classic, museum-esque type art!
• the places the book takes you...I can't wait to go to Europe to see those places for myself
• the mystery...I love a caper!  
• the MN connection...since these girls live in St. Paul, there are references I recognized from being a St. Paul-ite myself.  Fun!

Hope you enjoy it.  It looks like it's going to be the first in the Lucas and Kari series. Just another reason to fall in love with this book.  Let me know if you pick it up!  Keep reading, everyone!

thanks to letsbuyit.co.uk for the image!

Stargirl by Jerry Spinelli

Top Five Reasons to Read this Book:
5. The narrator is a kid who doesn't take himself to seriously, so he'll make you laugh.
4. There has never been a better time to talk about acceptance and tolerance in our schools.
3. Because the narrator is a boy, boys will like it.
2. Because the star (no pun intended) of the book is a girl (and because the narrator falls in love with her), girls will like it.

1.  and the best thing about this book is the way Stargirl remains true to herself. She is a character I'll always remember. And I'll look for bits of her in my own students.

Go on. Read this book. Try it today. Or tomorrow. Just enjoy it.

Keep reading,
stenson

If I Stay by Gail Forman

Of all the things I had heard about this book BEFORE I read it, the two that stand truest to me are:

it is "achingly tender" and though the story was told by a narrator on the verge between life and death, "it is a beautiful story about life".

I loved this book and I found it a mesmerizing tale.  I am not certain it's for all 7th graders because it is a sophisticated book about a mature high school girl. However, nothing is unrealistic or overly inappropriate.  In fact, I suspect, many girls will relate to Mia's insecurities, feelings about love, and complex relationships within her family.  She is a girl to look up to for many reasons--mostly her strive to be an excellent musician and her level-headed-ness about teenage relationships--and it is for that reason I feel compelled to recommend this book for those ready to read it.




Keep reading, everyone.
Stenson

p.s.  This book will probably not be in our media center, as it is a mature book.  Ask your parents to take you to the public library to get a copy.

I'd Tell You I Love You, But Then I'd Have to Kill You. by Ally Carter

What a fun series! Four books all about Cammie Morgan and her best friends at Gallagher High who are all spies. We're talking honest to goodness spies...security clearance, counter-surveillance, martial arts defense moves, and everything else a good spy know about.

The Gallagher Girls might be spies, but they are also regular girls in many ways. They take friendship very seriously, though they don't always take school seriously, they both love and deplore their parents, and they know all about heartthrobs and heartache.

Here are the books in order. Hope you have a chance to read on! Spy on! Enjoy! -stenson

Images are courtesy of Ally Carter's website which can be found here,

The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie

Flavia, the protagonist from the mystery The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie, made me laugh, made me want to study Chemistry, and made me keep reading until the caper was solved. I really fell in love with little Flavia. Feisty, smart, fun- this little girl has two sisters she's constantly trying to poke, pinch, and prod and a father she is constantly trying to delight and charm. The family lives in her deceased mother's family's estate in 1940's Britain.

Day by day, Flavia is entertained mostly by the chemistry lab in the family mansion, but all of that changes one day when she stumbles upon a dead man in the garden of the estate.

Flavia is part Scout, part Sherlock Holmes, and part Marie Lavoisier (don't worry, I didn't know who that was until I read this book either), and she pulls you right into her mind, her home, and her life- a land where emotions though rare sneak out, observations are detailed, complete, and funny, and the story, like the mystery at the center of it, only gets better and better.

The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie is definitely a challenge book (those of you who have had me as a teacher will know what I mean) because I think it's intended audience is grown-ups. However, this delightful tale will be enjoyed by all ages, and the writing is simply too brilliant and too fun to not be shared by everyone of all ages.

Enjoy! The book is a part of a series so get excited for all sorts of amusement.

Please visit the sit for more information about this charming, fun series. The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie by Alan Bradley. The picture above was taken from the site linked to the left: www.flaviadeluce.com.

Keep reading!

-stenson

BFF.

Books about friendship have a special place in my heart. When I grew up, I loved realistic tales of boys and girls and the people they considered friends.

So recently, when I finished a book for grown-ups about friends, I decided to put a list together of books for teenagers about friends and friendship. Because like the old John Lennon song goes, don't we all just "get by with a little help" from our friends?


Where the Heart Is by Billie Letts: A very unlucky 17 year-old finds herself seven months pregnant, abandoned by her boyfriend, and stranded in Oklahoma. Her luck changes when people with hearts full of kindness and compassion of the small Oklahoma town take her in.



Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants by Ann Brashares: "A pair of jeans purchased at a thrift store is the unlikely bond that keeps four best friends emotionally connected during the first summer that they spend physically apart." -Publisher's Weekly


Lizzie Bright and the Buckminster Boy by Gary Schmidt: A new kid in town--with a strict minister for a father-- befriends a former slave-girl to help him make sense of and enjoy his new town and new life. This coming-of-age story has a lot of lessons to teach about tolerance, acceptance, friendship, and love.



Godless by Pete Hautmann: Jason's story begins like this: "Getting punched hard in the face is a singular experience. I highly recommend it to anyone who is a little too cocky, obnoxious, or insensitive. I also recommend it to people who think they're smart enough to avoid getting punched in the face by the likes of Henry Stagg." The book is a interesting tale about Jason's journey to find some answers about life, friendship and family, and religion.

Make Lemonade by Virginia Euwer Wolff: Told in poems, this is a brilliant story of a young girl trying to save money for college by babysitting. But her babysitting job ends up being more than just a way to make money, it becomes the start of a beautiful friendship between the babysitter and the mother of the baby-a 17 year-old single mother trying to find her own way.

Here's to friendship. Old and new. Hope you enjoy the books. Let me know if you do!
Keep Reading,
-stenson

Life As We Knew It by Susan Pfeffer

Miranda is excited at first because everyone is buzzing about the asteroid. What will happen? Will it look like fireworks? The whole neighborhood is out on the streets waiting for the asteroid to hit the moon. And when it does, look out. It's not a terrible sight, but it's clear right away that it's not a good thing either.

So begins the story of a normal 16 year old girl slow journey into an apocalyptic world. The coasts are flooded with tsunamis, volcanoes around the world start erupting, and the climate begins to change for the worse. Schools start to close, gas is rationed, and food is being stockpiled. While they don't have guarantees they are going to make it, Miranda and her family fight to survive. Readers have to keep reading to find out if this family is going to make it.
picture from amazon.com

What I like most about the book is Miranda. Even though her circumstances get worse and worse and worse, she handles them like a champ. Taking each day as it comes, dealing with the challenges presented, and still living a life like every other teenager. Will she get to keep skating? Will she ever go to the prom? Why did her dad chose his new wife over their family? Will her mom always be annoying, nosy, and bossy?

This is my second time reading this book. I knew the book was essentially about hope, but I couldn't remember exactly how it ended. It didn't disappoint the second time. I loved it. Hope you do too!

By the way, I have this book on the iPods if anyone is interested.

Keep reading, everyone.
-stenson

The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins

Want action and suspense? Check.
Want gore and guts? Check.
Want likeable characters? Check.
Want a few who make you laugh? Check.
A few to fall in love? Maybe.

With elements of science-fiction and reality television, with futuristic and realistic elements , Suzanne Collins' The Hunger Games grabs the readers from the first page and grips them with such suspense few are likely to successfully put it down until the end.

The book beings on the day of the Reaping, where each District of the post-apocalyptic North American country of Panem must send two youth to the 74th Annual Hunger Games. The government exerts total control over its people, and the Games are just one of its cruel ploys to remind the people their lives are only as good or as bad as the government decides they will be.

The book is a lot like The Lottery (a classic short story by Shirley Jackson) meets Survivor (the popular reality-television series) meets Romeo and Juliet (Shakespeare tragedy about two star-crossed lovers). The main characters--Katniss and Peeta--are chosen from a lottery, forced to leave their families, and go to the Capitol where they will be contestants in a grisly Gladiator game.

It must be said that Katniss, who is the Girl on Fire, is a terrific heroine. Two thumbs up for a girl with the wits, strength, and kindness to be a true competitor, a protective big sister, an effective hunter, the pride of her District, and the love-interest of at least a couple of boys. She is a girl who could teach us all many lessons. Speaking of lessons, the book has several to tell....about violence in our culture, about the increasingly desensitizing nature of reality television, about the harm of a government not of the people, and about empathy.

It took me a long to pick up the book but minutes to fall in love with it. I urge all ages to read this book. Knowing two more in the series follow, I predict, as did awesome author John Green) the trilogy will be received with Twilight-esque mania. Join in on the fun. Get your hands on a copy today!

For more information like videos, message boards, and online games, check out this site.

Keep reading!
-stenson

Smart. Girls. Can. Save. Our. World.

I loved this piece I heard on NPR a few weeks ago. A readaholic and writer (pictured above thanks to npr.org) shares the titles and gives previews of three books she recommends. Her topic: young female heroines. Read on!


-Stenson

Libba Bray

Hello. Just another reminder about all of the great authors out there. One of my favorites is Libba Bray. She's given us the Great and Terrible Beauty series (a story about a strong and courageous young woman, Gemma, in a marvelous, mysterious and somewhat misunderstood land, India).

Anyway, I found a post on her blog from May 2009 particularly interesting. With full disclosure, it is about same-sex marriage. If this topic fires you up, proceed with caution. I include it in my blog not to be political or decisive, but because I've had the pleasure of teaching kids who live a GLBT world, and I want them to know, I will not stay silent either.

Submitted with kindness,
stenson (aka abs kujawski)

The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks. By e. lokhart

Frankie Landeau-Banks, narrator and hero of the award-winning “The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks” by E. Lockhart, is the literary friend for whom my middle school girls have been looking.

Our heroine pointedly asks the handsome, popular, rich guy: “Why is it psychotic if I did it, and brilliant if Alpha did it?” Calling to task the double-standard girls and women face frequently, widely, all too often. That's not the only aspect of gender stereotypes and roles Frankie calls into question. You've got to read this book to find out more.

She is equal parts insecurity and confidence, creativity and conformity. That's why she is great...because she's a lot like many of the young girls I teach, a complicated mess of strengths and weaknesses. Her sophomore year is an unforgettable one. She wins the heart of the most popular senior boy on campus, she fights hard successfully to become more than just the "bunny-rabbit" nickname her family has given her, and she makes a mark at her prestigious prep school by taking on a long-standing, all-male, secret society, and she does so with with flair and imagination.

The book is entertaining, witty, clever, and smart. It's a fun read, and a satisfying one. The lessons of the book are tough to articulate, but even me--a happily married, pretty boring and ordinary 34 year old woman--learned about the tricky relationship between men and women.

Secretly (or not so secretly now), I also loved the peek into the rich, boarding school life of Frankie and her classmates. Good grab a copy and read it.

BUT! I also recommend the audio version. Ms. Sirois (the narrator), Ms. Lockhart, and Ms. Landeau-Banks create a captivating, memorable story. Read it this summer. If you can't trust me, trust the NY Times.

Keep reading-
Stenson (a.k.a. abs kujawski)

Wintergirls

For every young woman out there who has battled with body-image or weight issues-
For every adult and child who has loved someone who has had these battles-

there's little I can say to show you I understand or know what it's like, but there is a book you all must read. Wintergirls by Laurie Halse Anderson. As one reviewer wrote, it's hard to read, but harder to put down. You've got to give Lia (and all the young girls like her) the gift of reading her story and sharing it with others.

For a list of reviews or other information about the book or the author, go to www.writerlady.com.

You. Must. Read. Wintergirls.
-abs(tenson) kujawski

My Fave Author

Laurie Halse Anderson did it again. Her book Chains grabs you and pulls you along on a serious, heart-gripping ride.

If you like history, you'll especially love it.

The main character is fiesty, smart, and ready to be free (she is a slave). Her heart is strong and big. A role model for us all.



Read it now. Here are a few other links to see what others are saying about it.

The author's website (there's even a "playlist" on this website!)

Reading Rants Blog

Fantastic Fiction

Mitalia Perkins