"The Vespertine" by Saundra Mitchell

Amelia van den Broek is sent to Baltimore in the summer of 1889 to find a marriage prospect. She lives with her older brother August and his wife and August literally wants Amelia off his responsbility list.
As Amelia and her cousin, Zora Stewart, enjoy the parties of the season, Amelia finds that she has an amazing gift-she has visions of the future that seemingly only occur at sunset.
Combine those visions, with Amelia's forbidden romance with Nathaniel-an artist- and the book moves quickly and satisfactorily along.
The insight into Victorian middle class is incredibly interesting and moving. Amelia's gift (or curse) as she learns to think of it allows the two cousins to be invited into homes that they would normally not even be welcome in to.
The writing is crisp and clear. The story is both gothic and romantic. A welcome change from the typical gothic, Victorian romance.

"Okay For Now" by Gary D. Schmidt

Doug Switeck is one heckuva storyteller! But those who have read "Wednesday Wars" will already know that.

In this story, the Switeck family is moving due to his father's new job. They move to a small town and things don't always go well for them there. The father is gone all the time either working or hanging out with Ernie-a very questionable character.

The older brother is still in Vietnam and Doug's other brother is always being questioned by the police for one thing or another.

This book was wonderful! It made me laugh, it made me cry, it made me think, it made appreciate all the people in our world that make us who we are.

It made me think about our Vietnam vets and how they are treated. It made me think about friendship, love, and death and dying. It left me with hope.

If you don't read any other book this year, please don't miss this one. Gary Schmidt has created a cast of characters and a story that will stick with you long after you close the last page of the book.

"The Adventures of Nanny Piggins" by R.A. Spratt

Cheap Mr. Green places a nanny wanted sign on the front yard of his house for his three children. Nanny Piggins answers that sign. Too bad she's a pig. No, not really. She'll work for cheap and Mr. Green doesn't care as long as he can go to work and not be bothered.
Such begins the romp that this English novelist brings to us.
The humor is quirky and smart-the characters are well-drawn and their words ring true to life.
This is a perfect book for 4th and 5th graders who enjoy humor and can understand word play.
This was also Book List magazines choice for best book of 2010.

"Hold Me Closer, Necromancer" by Lish McBride

Sam is just your typical teenager. He is a college dropout. Lives in his own apartment. Hangs out with his friends. Works at a fast food restaurant.
Until...he meets Douglas.
Douglas is a necromancer. He raises the dead for money. And, he wants to know why Sam is living in his jurisdiction without registering.
You see, it turns out that Sam is a necromancer too. Just a little fact his mother left out of the baby book.
Now, Sam has one week to decide whether or not he is going to join forces with Douglas.
Good thing he has friends. Too bad one of those friends is just a head.
This humorous, fast-paced book is great fun to read. Put it in the hands of a teenager. They will do the rest.

"Crossing the Tracks" by Barbara Stuber

15 year-old Iris is sent to spend the summer with a doctor and his mother. Her father is a shoe salesman who is going to be too busy opening his new store in Kansas City to be bothered with Iris. So, off she goes to live with Avery and his mother Mrs. Nesbitt.
At first, Iris is indignant. After all, she feels as if her father doesn't care and she's not so sure about leaving with a strange family. But, things change for the better. Iris and Mrs. Nesbitt grow close as they discover their love for each other and for the understanding of the similar pain they have both felt over loss of loved ones.
Iris also is growing in her love for a young man back home-Leroy-who she exchanges letters with over the course of the summer.
When Iris is told her father is getting married and that he and his new bride will be running the shoe store she is saddened. It grows worse after the death of her father. He is killed by a train.
Add to the mix an abused and pregnant young neighbor and you have a wonderfully told story.
Somewhere there is a sensitive young teenage girl who can wrap her heart and her mind around this sensitively told story.





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"Storm Runners" by Roland Smith

Chase and his dad are storm runners. And not the kind who take pictures and videotape. Chase's father is in construction and they make their living by finding storms and victims of storms who need work done.
This book brings them to Florida as they wait for the hurricane to hit. Chase's dad heads to the area where the television weather reporters are saying the hurricane will hit.
Chase heads off to his new school with the neighbor girl on whose land they have parked their trailer.
At school, Chase and Nicole are some of the last students left. Most of the students have been picked up by their parents as the weather worsens. They are put on the bus to head home. The hurricane hits them- faster, harder, sooner, and not anywhere near the predictions. It now becomes a race against the weather to make it back to Nicole's house safely.
The story moves at a quick, exciting pace. Hand this to a reluctant reader and they will come back for the second book. Yes, there will be another book. The ending leaves no doubt to that.
A good choice for boys. Due out in March 2011.

"The Marbury Lens" by Andrew Smith

16 year-old Jack gets drunk one night at a party. He is kidnapped in the park by a stranger, tortured and nearly raped. Fortunately, he escapes. This begins Smith's dark, brooding fantasy about Jack, his friend Conner, their summer in London, the alternate world of Marbury and how we cope with trauma.

The book moves quickly and scarily. Jack's forays into the alternative world leave the reader shaking from the fast, crazy rides. Just like Jack, we have a difficult time in distinguishing between reality and fantasy.

This well-written, powerful book is not for the weak at heart. The language is rough as are the characters at times. Would definitely share with a mature high school student only.