Category Archives: Contemporary

Review: On the Jellicoe Road by Melina Marchetta

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on-the-jellicoe-roadOn the Jellicoe Road
Melina Marchetta
Penguin Australia

Taylor Markham has been at the school on the Jellicoe Road since she was six years old. It’s her turn to lead the students in the annual territory wars with the Townies and Cadets from a school in Sydney. But lost memories of her childhood, her mother and a man she hopes is her father distract her from the game. When her caregiver, Hannah, disappears, Taylor studies the stories Hannah left behind, looking for clues to her whereabouts. She forms unlikely alliances with territory rivals, and together they work to solve the mysteries behind many things that happened on the Jellicoe Road.

When I started reading this novel, I felt a bit lost. It seems like two stories are happening simultaneously, … Continue reading →

Review: Where the Stars Still Shine by Trish Doller

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Where the Stars Still Shine by Trish DollerWhere the Stars Still Shine
Trish Doller
Bloomsbury USA Children’s
Published September 24, 2013

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Callie spent most of her childhood believing her father is after her. She’s never been to school, never had any real friends. Anytime there’s a whiff of suspicion, her mother whisks them away to a new town, new trashy job, new sleazy boyfriend.

Then the truth comes in the form of an arrest warrant for her mom. In a blink, Callie finds herself living with her estranged dad, his new wife and their two small children, right smack in the middle of a large, loud, loving Greek family. For the first time, someone … Continue reading →

Review: Bricks by John Davidson

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Bricks by John DavidsonBricks
John Davidson
Anaiah Press
Published February 3, 2015

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When an EF5 tornado rips through sixteen year-old Cori’s neighborhood, more than her house is reduced to rubble. Shocking truths about her family emerge in the aftermath. Her nemesis suffers amnesia and Cori can’t seem to get rid of her. Her best friend Slim becomes angry and reclusive. Everything is out of order, and for not-precisely-OCD Cori, this is a huge problem.

As a character, Cori is absolutely the believable high school princess. Davidson does a great job crafting this selfish yet somehow endearing heroine. Cori’s friends are great foils for her, too, often much more noble than she herself can … Continue reading →

Review: Where Things Come Back by John Corey Whaley

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Where Things Come Back by John Corey WhaleyWhere Things Come Back
John Corey Whaley
Atheneum Books for Young Readers
Published May 3, 2011

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The summer before his senior year, Cullen Witter’s sleepy Arkansas hometown implodes with changes. His cousin dies of a drug overdose. An extinct woodpecker is spotted by a smarmy nature enthusiast. And Cullen’s sensitive, insightful younger brother goes missing.

Woven through this summer tale of loss and love is another seemingly unrelated story about a missionary just returned from Ethiopia, his jaded college roommate and a girl who returns to Cullen’s town following a failed … Continue reading →

Review: Since You’ve Been Gone by Mary Jennifer Payne

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Since You've Been Gone by Mary Jennifer PayneSince You’ve Been Gone
Mary Jennifer Payne
Dundurn
Published February 17, 2015

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Edie has to be ready to run at any time. Even though it’s been years, he still chases them. She and her mom move again and again, trying to stay ahead of him, but somehow he always finds them. The most recent move takes them to London, where her mom grew up. It’s a foreign place to Edie, who struggles to grasp the slang and hide within the shelter of a clique of girls.

When her mother disappears, Edie has two … Continue reading →

Review: Both of Me by Jonathan Friesen

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Both of Me by Jonathan FriesenBoth of Me
Jonathan Friesen
Zonderkidz Books
Published December 23, 2014

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On the run from a past she can’t bear to face, Clara retraces her the journey outlined in her father’s journal. Then a captivating, broken boy derails her. He sketches things he shouldn’t know. Images from memories she wants to forget. And she can’t let him out of her sight until she understands how he knows these things.

But following Elias means a trip into fantasy. The boy has two parts – the gentle Elias who soothes Clara’s fears and the rough, unpredictable one who lives in an imaginary world called Salem and a great evil to the east. … Continue reading →