Dystopia + romance = wow!

I've read dystopian novels (a lot) and romance (a little), and I was very impressed with that combination in Matched by Ally Condie.  Cassia lives in the Society, which determines everything about her life - what she'll eat, where she'll work, and when she'll die.  Now that she's turned 17, she'll learn who her Match is...the person she'll marry.  She's thrilled to find out she's been matched with Xander, a close friend from childhood.  But when she puts his microcard into her computer, she's stunned when an additional face is flashed before her - her friend Ky.  An Official later confirms that is was only a mistake, but Cassia starts seeing Ky in a different light.  She discovers romance and creativity, and soon she's questioning the idea of blindly following all the rules imposed by Society.  An excellent, thought-provoking story that's continued in the next book, Crossed.

A Boov named J.Lo

The last book I read was subtle science  fiction, but The True Meaning of Smekday by Adam Rex is in-your-face sci fi...and funny, too!  It's a relatively long book and almost too complicated too describe. Gratuity "Tip" Tucci is writing an essay about Smekday, which  honors the day that the alien Boovs took over the Earth and renamed it Smekland in honor of their glorious Captain Smek.  So what should she start with: when she makes friends with a Boov named J.Lo?  The trip she takes with J.Lo and Pig the cat to Happy Mouse Kingdom?  The car they ride in - Slushious - which now floats, thanks to J.Lo?  Or maybe the battle against the obnoxious Gorgs, which clone themselves and travel around by means of...wait for it...teleclone booths?  If you like crazy, silly, laugh-out-loud books, you've got to try this one.

It's science fiction...isn't it?

Yes, it's sci fi, but it's not hard to believe that Dark Life by Kat Falls could really happen.  After the Rising (of the ocean, that is), a good chunk of our continent is under water.  Life on the Topside is getting pretty crowded, so some brave pioneers have formed an undersea territory, which is now their home.  Ty lives there with his family, and you soon learn he's a bit different from your average teenager - he's developed both a "shine" from eating so many bioluminescent fish and a special ability (I won't give it away) that some refer to as a Dark Gift.  He meets Gemma, a Topsider girl who's searching undersea for her brother, and soon they're on the run from the dangerous Seablite Gang, a group of outlaws led by the very scary Shade.  Action! Adventure!  And some very cool descriptions of the bizarre plants and animals that live in the deep.  I'm happy to see there's a sequel...Rip Tide.

Definitely not a Holiday Inn

Your imagination will go on hyperdrive when reading Floors by Patrick Carman.  Merganzer Whippet, a billionaire with a passion for ducks, built the Whippet Hotel, unlike any other place you (or I) have ever been.  Each room is outlandish, from the Pinball Machine (watch out for the flippers) to the Cake Room (reminded me of Willy Wonka) to the Flying Farm (duck!).  But Merganzer disappeared 100 days ago, and the hotel is falling apart.  Leo, who lives at the hotel with his father (the maintenance man), has found a mysterious purple box with a message; whether he's zooming to the roof on the Double Helix or coming down in the crowded duck elevator, it's now up to Leo to save the place he calls home.  Hold onto your hat and get ready for action - this fast-paced adventure is just plain fun.  I bet there's a sequel...

See your future in Facebook?

I was immediately hooked on the main idea in The Future of Us by Jay Asher and Carolyn Mackler.  The time is 1996, when many families were buying their first home computer and receiving American Online (AOL) CD-ROMs in the mail for free time on the Internet.  After Emma logs on to AOL, something strange pops up - "Facebook."  Of course, Facebook hadn't been invented yet, and when Emma sees a picture of herself, obviously much older and with a different last name, she figures out she's looking at her future in 15 years and it's not a happy life.  Her friend Josh finds his future Facebook page, too, and he's ecstatic to learn that he's wealthy and married to the hottest girl at their high school.  Every time they check Facebook, something is a little different; Emma and Josh learn that changes they make now, even small ones, impact their future.  The reader will easily figure out the direction of the book (are Emma and Josh just friends...or more?), but watching the ripple effect of their actions is pretty cool.  A great book for high school kids and older, more mature middle schoolers.

Deza Malone is back!

If you enjoyed Bud, not Buddy, be sure to read the companion book: The Mighty Miss Malone by Christopher Paul Curtis.  Deza Malone and her family are living through the Great Depression in Gary, Indiana.  Deza's father (like many others) is out of work, and he goes to Flint, Michigan, to try to find a job.  After Deza's mother loses her job, shes takes Deza and her brother Jimmie on the road, hopping trains and staying in questionable places to reach Flint. While looking for Mr. Malone, they have no choice but to stay in "Hooverville," a shantytown for the homeless.  It's easy to like Deza and admire her strong family ties, so when Mr. Malone is finally found, you'll be both happy and sad.  A humorous, yet realistic look at the hardships of the time.

Adventure in medieval England

You may have bad days, but they probably aren't as bad as those for the main character in Crispin: The Cross of Lead by Avi.  Life in 14th-century England is tough enough, but now "Asta's son" is an orphan with no other family and no money.  After learning from the local priest that his name is actually Crispin, the situation gets worse: the priest is murdered, Crispin is falsely accused of the crime, and the evil village steward (John Aycliffe) states that Crispin can be killed on sight. After fleeing, Crispin meets "Bear," a giant of a man who travels around juggling, and the two become traveling companions.  While in the town of Great Wexley, Aycliffe and his men capture Bear in an attempt to trap Crispin.  Will Crispin risk his life to save Bear?  Why is Aycliffe so determined to kill Crispin?  This is a page-turning adventure combined with a fascinating look at life in the Middle Ages.

Yoda rules!

Right after I went to my public library and checked out The Strange Case of Origami Yoda by Tom Angleberger, I learned that it had been nominated for the 2013 Rebecca Caudill Award.  Excellent idea! Dwight is your basic middle school oddball - pretty much a loser, except that he has an origami Yoda finger puppet that somehow manages to give excellent advice to Dwight's classmates.  Each chapter is written by a different person about their Yoda experiences, followed by comments from Harvey, who doesn't quite believe in "Paperwad Yoda," and Tommy, who wants to know if he should follow Yoda's advice concerning a particular girl.  Chapters are short and very funny, the goofy little drawings in the margins are great, and yes, there are actual directions for making your own Yoda in the back.  A perfect books for middle schoolers!

For Twilight fans

No, there aren't any vampires, but I still think fans of Twilight would also like Through Her Eyes by Jennifer Archer.  Tansy, her mom, and her grandfather (Papa Dan) have just moved to a Papa Dan's hometown in Texas, and they're living in an old, creepy house that is supposedly haunted.  Tansy discovers a beautiful box containing a pocket watch, a crystal, and a poetry journal; she's sure they belonged to Henry, a troubled teen who committed suicide while living in Tansy's house long ago.  Tansy is a photographer, and she soon starts to see strange images through her camera lens - black and white, rather than color, and people that she knows are Henry and Papa Dan, as a youth.  They were friends?  She then finds that with the help of the watch and crystal, she can actually enter the world and time of the two.  Why is she so attracted to Henry?  Why is Papa Dad so upset to be back in his hometown?  And most of all...is Tansy losing her mind? Hmmm......

Delightfully creepy

It's difficult to describe The Wikkeling by Steven Arntson, but it's awesome!  Henrietta lives in a dystopian city called the Addition.  It's way over-protective of its children (the school bus has mandatory lap belts, shoulder belts, and head belts), car horns blare out Honk Ads ("EDIBLE CLEANTASTE CORN SOAP!!"), and almost all the houses are identical, with a patch of green plastic grass out front.  But Henrietta lives in an old house, with a steep roof and an attic.  She discovers a wounded cat up there, and while caring for it, notices windows which  have never been visible from the street.  And when she looks out the windows, she sees the past!  Henrietta takes her two friends up there, and together they try to figure out many things: why does time seem to stand still when they're in the attic?  What is the cause of the headaches only those three get?  How are they linked to the scary yellow figure that only they can see?  I wouldn't call this book scary, but it's definitely creepy in a really, really good way.