Category Archives: Contemporary

Review: Scar Girl by Len Vlahos

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Scar Girl by Len VlahosScar Girl by Len Vlahos
Egmont USA

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In the aftermath of Johnny’s accident, the Scar Boys regroup and begin performing as a band again. But too many members carry secrets that become barriers between them.

Cheyenne hides her pregnancy from Johnny. Harry buries his love for Cheyenne in the lyrics of a song. Johnny withdraws into his own vision for the band. Richie walks the fine line between keeping peace and staying out of the conflict.

Through answers to interview questions, the band members relate their experiences as the Scar Boys face bigger problems and more pressure than ever before. What began as Harry’s story now becomes the story of four teens … Continue reading →

Review: Challenger Deep by Neal Shusterman

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Challenger Deep by Neal ShustermanChallenger Deep by Neal Shusterman
HarperCollins

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Caden Bosch is caught between two worlds. In one, he is an ordinary teen who works on illustrations for a video game he and his friends develop. In the other, he is a passenger on a pirate ship en route to Challenger Deep, the lowest point of the Marianas Trench.

As his hold on reality slips, his friends and family begin to notice that something is wrong, but they are powerless to help him. Sometimes even Caden knows the impossibility of things he believes. But in the next moment, he may be powerless to doubt them.

Shusterman doesn’t disappoint in this complex, heartbreaking story of a boy … Continue reading →

Review: Escape from Sudan by Amanda DiCianni

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Escape from Sudan by Amanda DiCianniEscape from Sudan
Amanda DiCianni
CreateSpace Independent Platform
Published April 24, 2014

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When soldiers attack his village, fifteen year-old Elijah Bwoko and his best friend become separated from family members. They receive word that Elijah’s sisters have been taken as slaves to a village several days’ journey away. In order to reach the girls, the boys must sneak past the soldiers who enslaved them and find a way to set them free. Then the group will have to escape across the border of Uganda. If they can get to the refugee camp there, they can apply for passage to America for freedom and safety.

In straightforward prose, DiCianni relates the … Continue reading →

Review: Last Year’s Mistake by Gina Ciocca

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Last Year's Mistake by Gina CioccaLast Year’s Mistake by Gina Ciocca
Simon Pulse

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Kelsey and David were best friends the summer before freshman year. Then a misunderstanding turned the whole school against her, including David. A family move gave her a chance to start over in a new town at a new school, but just when Kelsey thinks she has rebuilt the perfect life, David sets her whole world spinning by transferring to her school. Committed to maintaining a casual peace, Kelsey keeps him at arms’ length… until she can’t. The fierce chemistry between them reemerges, and she finds herself faced with a terrible dilemma: the boy she’s dating isn’t the boy she loves. But is it … Continue reading →

Review: The Scar Boys by Len Vlahos

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The Scar Boys by Len VlahosThe Scar Boys by Len Vlahos
Egmont USA

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A bullying incident leaves Harry scarred and terrified of lightning storms. When a popular boy suggests that he and Harry form a band, Harry jumps at the idea. But as Harry gets to know Johnny better, he realizes that their friendship isn’t the salvation he once thought. As long as Harry is willing to play the role Johnny carves out for him, everything will be fine. When the band’s success takes them all by surprise, Harry’s world opens wider than ever before, and for the first time, he finds he might not need Johnny to bridge the gap between him and everyone else. Stepping … Continue reading →

Review: Summer by Summer by Heather Burch

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Summer by Summer by Heather BurchSummer by Summer by Heather Burch
Blink YA/Zondervan

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After tragedy turns Summer’s life upside down, a summer in Belize caring for a charming young boy seems like the perfect escape. Then she meets her charge’s older brother, Bray. His smooth talk and good looks only remind her of everything she wanted to leave behind.

Bray doesn’t get Summer. He doesn’t understand why she hides herself beneath miles of ugly flower print dresses and avoids fun like it will bite. He resents her assumptions about him, even if some of them may be true.

When a boat tour and a terrible storm leave the two stranded on an uninhabited island, they have only … Continue reading →