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From Publisher's Weekly
2016 Edgar YA nominee
Nicknamed “Panda” at school because of her mixed-race heritage, Lauren Daniels has yet another identity. On her anonymous photo-blog, Gray Scales, Panda exacts a mixture of revenge and justice on teachers and students who earn her wrath, taking incriminating photos and uploading them for all to see. After someone catches her in the act, Panda is left on the wrong side of a terrible game of blackmail and photographic one-upmanship, one with real consequences for herself, those she has exposed, and those she cares about. Giles (Fake ID) crafts an unpredictable psychological thriller filled with murky choices and colorful characters. It’s not hard to connect this story to social justice movements online or the crusading aspect of Anonymous, making it a timely and unsettling story. While the levels of misery get quite high, Giles also keeps redemption and help within reach for most of the characters. The novel’s strength rests in its underlying moral complexity and in its resourceful heroine, who bounces back from some well-meaning mistakes. Ages 14–up.
Another YA book involving blackmail! I really enjoyed this, although I don't know if it's really appropriate for middle school as there is the F word and suggestions of sex.
From Publisher's Weekly...
2015 Agatha Nominee
Calder, Petra, and Tommy from Chasing Vermeer and its sequels join forces with Zoomy from The Danger Box and Early from Hold Fast to investigate the “biggest art robbery ever to happen in the United States”: the heist of 13 paintings and sculptures from a small Chicago museum. Though the story’s museum is fictional, Balliett borrows the outline of a real crime—the 1990 theft of artwork worth $500 million from Boston’s Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum—for her plot. As in her previous mysteries, chance and coincidence drive the action, and the narrative is salted with repeated motifs and literary allusions. The eighth-grade sleuths, summoned to help because a museum trustee believes they will do detective work that the adult investigators are incapable of doing, use prime numbers, Mother Goose rhymes, and messages in dreams and from a ghost to crack the case. (The FBI may want to invest in its own Ouija board.) Fans of Balliett’s previous work will find and enjoy the same meld of puzzling mystery and art history in this adventure. Ages 8–12.
There are things that I love about this book, mainly that it's based on a true crime, the art theft at the Gardner Museum many years ago, and also that it takes place in Chicago and involves art there. But, I found it difficult to follow and a little fantastical (e.g. paintings speaking to children via dreams??) and I could not finish it, although I read about 2/3 of it.
From Publisher's Weekly…
Nominated, Edgar Juvenile Mystery
Set in 1951 Brooklyn, Newbery Medalist Avi’s (Crispin: The Cross of Lead) suspenseful novel shows how seventh-grader Pete Collison deals with persecution and paranoia as he searches for answers about his family’s history. It all starts when rumors, initiated by Pete’s teacher, fly about Pete’s father’s affiliation with the Communist Party. Pete stands up for his father, but his classmates turn against him, his best friend’s parents won’t let her speak to Pete, and an FBI agent seems to be watching his every move. Deciding to find out the truth about his father and the informant who turned him in, Pete follows the methods of his favorite gumshoe, Sam Spade, but the clues Pete uncovers are more confusing than enlightening, and the discoveries he makes about certain relatives could hurt his father’s cause. Authentic period details—such as popular radio programs and the ongoing rivalry between the Dodgers and the Giants—add a colorful backdrop to Pete’s quest as he navigates the murky gray area between truth and fiction. An excellent introduction to the frenzy of the McCarthy era. Ages 8–12.
Excellent
From Publisher's Weekly…
Coretta Scott King John Steptoe Award for new talent
Smith debuts with a supernatural coming-of-age story set in a 1930s Alabama town. Twelve-year-old Hoodoo Hatcher was born into a magical family, but he has no knack for folk magic himself. His father was "a powerful mojo man" who allegedly met with a "bad end" after placing a curse on a man. One day a stranger comes to collect a debt left by Hoodoo's father, and the boy must learn to access the supernatural to help his father in the afterlife. Hoodoo's distinctive first-person narrative is speckled with lively dialect and atmospheric details of Southern life, from fried catfish dinners and moonshine to "mojo bags" full of cat's-eye stone and rat bone. The action of the novel moves swiftly, and readers should be easily drawn into its dark, supernatural ambience. There's little doubt that Hoodoo will prevail, yet chilling moments throughout will keep readers on edge: "The Stranger smiled, but he didn't have any teeth, just a mouth full of black, oozing swamp water." Ages 10–12.
Overall I liked this book, but the timeline was a little confusing…
School Library Journal Review…
2015 Schneider Middle School Award
Gr 7 Up— Josie, a girl with cerebral palsy, lives on the shrinking farmland owned by her family for generations and now being sold to developers. Her mother works and attends college and her grandmother tends her diminished patch of land. The story is told in the seventh-grader's voice in a series of free-verse poems. She is a bright and wry narrator, acutely aware of her limitations and her strengths. When Jordan, wealthy but neglected by his widowed father, moves into a mansion behind her farmhouse, they discover a common love of nature and science, and Josie finally has a real friend. She and her grandmother are both passionate about plants and gardening, and Zimmer does a nice job integrating botanical images throughout the novel. Josie feels like a "dandelion in a purple petunia patch" and thinks, "I must be a real disappointment—/stunted foliage,/no yield." Through growing maturity and Granny's wisdom, she gains confidence in herself. Reaching for Sun will have wide appeal for readers of diverse ability. Reluctant readers will be attracted to the seeming simplicity of the text, with short chapters and lots of white space on the page. They may not even realize that they are reading poetry. More sophisticated readers will find added enjoyment as they begin to appreciate the poetic structure and imagery. Readers of all levels will enjoy spending time with Josie and may gain an increased awareness of what it's like to live with a disability.—Nancy Brown, Fox Lane High School, Bedford, NY
Very good…
From Publisher's Weekly…
2016 National Book Award YA Longlist
2006 Morris YA Debut Award
After a “goobery nerd” named Martin discovers Georgia teen Simon Spier’s secret email relationship with a boy who calls himself “Blue,” Martin blackmails Simon into helping him romance Abby, a new girl who has been welcomed into Simon’s lunchroom clique. The threat of being outed by Martin forces Simon to come to terms with his sexuality, and his wise insights—Why do only gay people have to come out? Why is that the default?—add heft to a plot that is both hilarious and heartbreaking. Debut novelist Albertalli writes believably in the voice of a confused, openhearted 16-year-old. The large cast of companionable and well-developed characters contains a heroic drama teacher and Simon’s embarrassing but well-meaning parents. Page-turning tension comes from the anonymous quality of Simon’s emails with Blue, which are interspersed with chapters written in Simon’s first-person voice that chronicle Simon’s increasing frustration with Blue’s reluctance to divulge his identity, as well as the deepening nature of the boys’ relationship. Blue may hesitate, but readers will fall madly in love with Simon. Ages 14–up.
Lots of teen angst which means I skimmed through some parts, but overall a very likable book.
From Publisher's Weekly…
2016 Newbery Honor
Bradley (Jefferson’s Sons) examines WWII through the eyes of a disabled child eager to escape her life of neglect and abuse. With the threat of German bombs being dropped on London, most parents are anxious to get their children out of the city. But Ada’s mother, shamed by her daughter’s deformed foot, doesn’t seem to care. Ada takes it upon herself to board an evacuee train with her younger brother and, without their Mam’s knowledge, they arrive in a country village with a crowd of students. Malnourished and filthy, the siblings are placed with Miss Smith, a woman lacking any experience with children, who claims she isn’t “nice.” Nonetheless, she offers Ada and Jamie food, clothing, and security, and she owns a pony that Ada is determined to learn to ride. In this poignant story, Bradley celebrates Ada’s discovery of the world outside her dismal flat, movingly tracing her growing trust of strangers and her growing affection for Miss Smith. Proving that her courage and compassion carry far more power than her disability, Ada earns self-respect, emerges a hero, and learns the meaning of home. Ages 9–12.
I loved this story and read the whole book in one day. Beautiful story.
