The Monstrumologist, by Rick Yancey

The Monstrumologist
by Rick Yancey
Simon & Schuster, NY 2009

monstrumology (n)
1. the study of life forms general malevolent to humans and not recognized by science as actual organisms, specifically those considered products of myth and folklore
2. the act of hunting such creatures (p. v)

Apprentice to the renowned Monstrumologist Dr. Pellinore Warthrop, orphan Will Henry is accustomed to the macabre studies of his master. But when a grave digger delivers the body of a young woman to the doctor, the boy must push aside his horror and disgust in order to assist the monster hunter as he dissects the Anthropophagus (headless monster) who chocked to death eating the dead girl. And, as all monstrumologists know, where there's one Anthropophagi, there's 35. Unfortunately for Will Henry, the malodorous creatures are quite hungry. 

I've been watching horror movies since I was eight (Nightmare on Elm Street) and reading horror novels (Chain Letter) since I was about the same age. Basically, it takes a lot to freak me out. Not only did this book give me nightmares and a general sense of unease, it grossed me out completely. Well done Rick Yancey. Well done.

Bottom Line:

Fantastically gory and scary; Step to, readers!

The Glass Castle, by Jeannette Walls

The Glass Castle

by Jeannette Walls

Scribner, NY 2005 

I was sitting in a taxi, wondering if I had overdressed for the evening, when I looked out the window and saw Mom rooting through a Dumpster. (p. 3)

In this memoir, Walls tells of her turbulent childhood (which included sustaining 3^rd degree burns as she prepared a dinner of hot dogs for herself at the age of 3) with a matter-of-fact style that carries the reader safely through her dangerous childhood. Scenes from this book replay in my mind, like Walls' ejection from the family car, and her haunting description of the family home on Battle Mountain. Though there was no question of who was to blame for her crazy upbringing, I enjoyed the author's ability to share her family's troubled past without pointing fingers. Walls' simply tells it like it was, allowing readers to absorb the craziness that was her childhood.

Bottom Line:

An inspiring story of willpower.  If Jeannette Walls can achieve success and leave a past this troubled behind, I can surely get through my daily to do list without complaining.

The Hunger Games, by Suzanne Collins

The Hunger Games

by Suzanne Collins

Scholastic Press, NY 2008

The seas have risen and North America is divided into 12 Districts ruled by the all-powerful Capitol. The poor Districts provide goods to the wealthy Capitol and once a year, as a reminder of the failed uprising of now-extinct District 13, the Capitol holds the Hunger Games. Two teens, a boy and a girl, from each district are chosen for the nationally televised reality show in which the contestants, or Tributes, fight to the death. The last Tribute left standing receives a lifetime supply of food and shelter for themselves and their families. District 12's Tribute, Katniss Everdeen is a born survivor. The sole provider for her family, she cannot lose the Games. Peeta Mellark, her fellow Tribute from District 13, throws a kink into her plans. 

The first in a trilogy, this book is simply fantastic. Suzanne Collins' imagined future is, in a word, bleak. I was rooting for Katniss from the start, but the real question is: Team Peeta or Team Gale? (Team Peeta!!)

Bottom Line:

Read it - not because the movie is coming out in March 2012- but because the story is a truly exciting, nerve-racking, inspiring, sad, imaginative ride.

The Cell, by Stephen King

The Cell  

by Stephen King

Scribner, NY 2006

Throughout his career, Mr. King has explored the idea of dangerous technology. Christine was a clunker with an evil mission. The Mangler was a demon-possessed laundry press, and Ur told the tale of Amazon Kindle that held unpublished works by dead authors and could predict the future. The Cell is about that indispensable little computer we all carry around in our pocket. It would never turn on us, would it?  

I actually saw Stephen King in Boston walking along the Public Garden across the street from the Four Seasons hotel. Ironically, he was steps from the setting of the opening scene of this book, near the ice cream truck where Pixie Light and Pixie Dark battle it out. Needless to say, I didn't sleep well for a week.

Bottom Line:

King's ability to plant terrifyingly possible what if's in our minds is what ultimately makes his stories so haunting, and The Cell gives off its own nightmare-producing pulse.

Leviathan, by Scott Westerfeld

Leviathan

by Scott Westerfeld

Simon Pulse, NY 2009

This Steampunk tale opens at the start of World War II. With the help of only a few trusted advisers and a Cyclop Stormwalker, Alek attempts to evade his parent's assassins.  Meanwhile, Deryn, a young lady disguised as a young man, determined to view the world harnessed to a Huxley (a sort of floating jellyfish) enrolls in the British Air Service. A spectacular accident brings these two opposites together (Alek's a Clanker who believes in the old fashioned competency of steam powered war machines. While Deryn sides with the Darwinists, those quirky scientists who've managed to create fabricated beasts like huge hydrogen breathing air beasts) and thus we have the start of the Leviathan series.

I am a crazed Scott Westerfeld fan. Uglies, Pretties, and Specials? Brilliant, fantastic, and bizarre. So Yesterday? So perfect. And don't even get me started on Peeps. Leviathan did not disappoint, and the illustrations are fantastic.

Bottom Line:

We cannot keep this book (or its sequel, Behemoth) on the FHS Library shelves. The second a student returns it, it is checked back out by another student. And that, my fellow bookworms, is every library book's dream.

Zeitoun, by Dave Eggers

Zeitoun

by Dave Eggers

Vintage Books, NY 2009

Zeitoun sent his family out of New Orleans in preparation for the hurricane named Katrina. All he really expected were some downed trees and a bit of aggravation, so he stayed behind to watch after the house and check on his family's rental properties.  In the days following the infamous storm, he ends up paddling through the city in a canoe helping his neighbors and feeding the neighborhood dogs. Then things take a turn for the worse that you both do and don’t expect and we’re given a first hand account of the madness and chaos that followed hurricane Katrina.

At the end of Zeitoun's stranger than fiction account, I was left with one question: How could this happen here?

Bottom Line:
The author weaves Zeitoun's family history into the tale, personalizing the Katrina tragedy and making it more than the hard to fathom images on the television screen.

The Body of Christopher Creed, by Carol Plum Ucci

The Body of Christopher Creed
by Carol Plum-Ucci

Harcourt, NY 2000

… a town has to feel genuinely sorry for how they mistreated the weird guy who’s gone. To feel genuinely sorry, you have to be honest. And Steepleton needs its lies like a toad needs bugs. (p.10)

No one knows what happened to Christopher Creed, the bullied boy known as the class freak. He simply vanished, leaving only a cryptic farewell note to the school principal. Torey Adams, one of Creed’s tormentors is determined to discover the truth, but in doing so, he implicates himself in the the boy's disappearance. I dug the mystery's supernatural elements and the author's realistic portrayal of both the bully and the bullied, and the ending left me relieved, sad, and satisfied.

Bottom Line:

Thought-provoking in a, Would I have befriended Chris Creed? and Do I gossip too much? way; a keeps-you-guessing mystery.

The Maze Runner, by James Dashner

The Maze Runner

by James Dashner

Delacorte Books for Young Readers, NY 2009

This is the story of a group of amnesiac teenage boys living in a self-sustaining compound surrounded by very high walls with gates that close every night to protect them from the surrounding monster-filled maze. Basically, the boys have no memory of their lives prior to their arrival in the compound, and they can't figure out how to get themselves out of this pickle even though every day several of the detainees attempt to solve the maze. Enter Thomas. This Glader suspects he holds the key to everyone's escape, but is he just leading them from bad to worse? That's what Gally thinks, and he isn't shy about expressing his feelings.

This is the first book in The Maze Runner Trilogy, and I was all "Wait, what? Oh, now I get it!" throughout the story until I got to the end and realized I actually had no idea what was going on - so I went out and got book 2, The Scorch Trials, immediately and I still don't quite know how the story will end. Now I am impatiently waiting for the third and final book to come out.

Bottom Line:

I loves me a good dystopian novel and this one has all the right stuff.

Project 17, by Laurie Faria Stolarz

Project 17

by Lauri Faria Stolarz

Hyperion Books, NY 2007

Project 17 is totally like The Breakfast Club, if it had been set in a decrepit, haunted, abandoned mental institution. Derik (a hot jocky ladies man) hatches an escape-my-future-behind-the-counter-of-my-parent's-diner scheme. The plan is to film a stellar reality show in the old Danvers State Mental Hospital, hoping it will lead to an internship with a local news crew.  He casts several classmates to star in the reality fare; Liza, the gorgeous, miss goody-two-shoes, valedictorian; Chet, the class clown with issues at home; Mimi, the goth chick with a hidden agenda; Greta, the needy attention-seeking theater girl; and Tony, her leading man, whose nicknames for her (babycakes and sweetcheeks) are gag-worthy.

Each chapter is written from a different character's point of view, which is pretty cool, though aside from having different agendas and such, they sort of all "sounded" the same to me. However, supernatural twists and turns kept the pace moving but never went to far into "yeah, right," territory, which I appreciated. Overall, this was an entertaining story, made even more so by its local setting.

Bottom Line:

The scene with the creepy talking doll got to me; I just can't even imagine how hellish this place had to have been when it was a (dis)functioning hospital.

The White Darkness, by Geraldine McCoughren

The White Darkness

by Geraldine McCaughren

Have you heard of the Hollow Earth Theory? Though contradicted by pesky evidence, some conspiracy theorists today believe that, not only is the earth hollow, but a race of subterranean people populate this underworld. Unfortunately for Sym, her Uncle Victor is an enthusiastic believer of this rather terrifying concept. He is certain there is an entrance to this underground world in Antarctica, so guess where they’re going on vacation? Catastrophic events leave Sym fighting for survival, but luckily she has her friend and first love, Titus Oates, to boost her morale. Who's Titus, you ask? He's an explorer who's been dead for about 90 years. 

I can't stop telling people that they have to read this book. So now I am telling you. Read this book - it is so bizarre and fantastic and bleak - you'll love it!

Bottom Line:

Sym's tale proves that denial is quite a convincing frenemy; I now have NO desire to visit Antarctica.

Early Autumn, by Robert B. Parker

Early Autumn

by Robert Parker

Random House, NY 1981

Classic. Detective. Novel.
No one is a cool as Boston Private Investigator Spencer. He runs at least 5 miles a day, quotes Shakespeare and Frost, boxes, has a whit sharp as an heiress's stiletto, and he could charm a raccoon out of the garbage. When a pretty blond asks Spenser to help her get her son back from her ex-husband, Spenser collects the 15-year-old kid with no problem. But when he realizes that Paul's parents are only using him as a pawn, Spenser does his own kidnapping.

I admit that I am totally biased - I LOVE detective stories. Reading a good mystery feels like sipping hot coffee on the back porch under chilly gray autumn skies. So, needless to say, I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book. Spenser's so clever that I actually stopped to reread a few sentences just so I could take a moment to enjoy his crackerjack whit.

Bottom Line:

Love detective stories? Don't miss this one. Never tried the genre? This is an excellent start.

Going Bovine, by Libba Bray

Going Bovine
by Libba Bray
Delacorte Press, New York 2009


Cameron is drifting breezily through his sixteenth year with the help of pot and sarcasm. Then he loses control of his arm and throws a milkshake at a pretty and popular girl and accidentally punches her sister's large athletic boyfriend in the stomach. Meanwhile, he's seeing things that aren't really there - a feather with the word "hello" written on it, a punk girl with angel wings, fire engulfing his classroom... and then he finds out he's dying and things really get weird. 


Cameron's descent into the late stages of Mad Cow disease leads him on an adventure that may or may not be his reality. But what is reality, really? This strange and fast-paced book gave me weird dreams for days. 


Bottom Line:
Tenacious garden gnomes, fire monsters, a trip to the Big Easy and a cult of happy nit-whits. Loved it. 

Dr. Franklin's Island, by Ann Halam

Dr. Franklin’s Island

by Ann Halam

Dell Laurel-Leaf, New York 2002

Genetic engineering makes some people nervous. What really happens when you alter the DNA of plants and animals? Is that tomato, altered to be extra red and juicy, safe to eat? How about a cow injected with growth hormones so she can produce more milk – is her milk safe to drink? That’s just the beginning. What about cloning body parts or people, or combining the DNA of two different animals to create a new animal?

Of course there are rules about how far scientists can ethically go in their genetic manipulations. Unfortunately for Semi, Miranda, and Arnie, Dr. Franklin doesn’t follow those rules. The three Planet Savers contest winners are the only survivors of a horrific plane crash off the coast of Dr. Franklin’s island. No one knows where they are, no one even thinks they could still be alive. Dr. Franklin can do whatever he wants to them. And he does.

Bottom Line:

The way-out-there scientific possibilities gave me the heebie-jeebies;  be prepared to think about this one for a while after you read it.

Feed, by M.T. Anderson

Feed, by M.T. Anderson

Candlewick Press, Cambridge, MA 2002

Imagine if, just by thinking of a topic or question, you had immediate access (in your mind) to all of the information on Google, Facebook, every database, encyclopedia, and book, all movies and songs, EVERYTHING. In M.T. Anderson’s imagined future, human beings are outfitted at a young age with the Feed, which provides a constant stream of data and adapts itself to individual likes and dislikes, emotions, and demographic information. If Titus likes a shirt his friend is wearing, the Feed immediately sends him information about where to buy it and how much it costs. If he feels nervous, an advertisement for deodorant flashes through the Feed. He can chat with friends in his mind rather than having to talk out loud, and watch his favorite shows in his mind anytime, anywhere. The only thing he learns at SchoolÔ is how to use the Feed. Then Titus meets Violet, a girl who questions the things he’s always accepted.

A terrifying future, for sure, but one that is totally out of the realm of possibilities, right? Maybe not. Check out this article from Time Magazine, 2045: The Year Man Becomes Immortal. M.T. Anderson’s story may be more predication than fiction.

Bottom Line:

Information overload to the extreme; disturbing; future slang takes time to get used to.

What I Saw and How I Lied, by Judy Blundell

What I Saw and How I Lied
by Judy Blundell
Scholastic Press, New York 2008

It’s just a matter of what you're willing to do. (p. 252)

World War II is over, Evie’s stepfather is back home, and her mother is still the prettiest woman in the room. Everything is back to normal. But a family vacation to Palm Beach unearths secrets that force Evie to question the people she’s trusted the most.

War, money, lies, love, hate, heat, growing up, losing faith - Reading this book felt like riding a roller coaster. Tick… tick… tick… to the tippity-top, the anticipation was killing me, and I knew that everything had to come crashing down sometime... and it certainly did.

Botton Line:
First love, first betrayal, set some time aside b/c you won't be able to put this one down.

I am Number 4, by Pittacus Lore

I am Number 4
by Pittacus Lore
Harper, New York 2010

I could go ahead and tell you what this book is about (John, an alien teenager hiding on earth waiting for his super powers to develop so he can fight against the alien race that destroyed his home planet). Instead I am just going to tell you that this book has everything (aliens, action, high school parties, haunted hayrides, thrills, first love, fire, beasts, home economics, a beagle, bullies...). Read this book. And read it soon, the movie is coming out in February, and book 2 (The Power of Six) will arrive  in June.

Bottom Line:
I am so excited to see where this series will go; read it.

Write Before Your Eyes, by Lisa Williams Kline

Write Before Your Eyes
by Lisa Williams Kline
Delacorte Press, New York 2008


Have you ever thought about what it would be like to have magic powers? To be able to change the future and make things happen just the way you want them to? Twelve-year-old Gracie learns the ups and downs of having magical powers in this cool story about a wish granting journal. When Gracie sees the quote inside a blue, suede covered journal at a garage sale she knows the book is meant for her. When Gracie's journal writing comes true, she thinks she can solve her problems, but she ends up with more than she bargained for.


I just love the idea of wish granting magical objects. But, after reading this book, I don't think I ever want one. I felt so hopeful for Gracie when she was writing in her journal, and I cringed alongside her with the results of her attempts to control the future.


Bottom Line:
Magic might not always be the answer; you'll root for Gracie; loved it!
If You Like This Book, Check Out:
Half Magic, by Edward Eager

Witch and Wizard by James Patterson

Witch and Wizard (Book #1)
by James Patterson
Little, Brown Books for Young Readers, New York 2009


Total. Government. Control. That's the goal of the New Order and they've identified 15-year-old Wisty and her older brother Whit as public enemies number one and two. Why? They think the siblings possess powers that threaten the new government's goals. W & W think this is absolutely ridiculous until Wisty spontaneously catches on fire and burns two of the guards trying to arrest her. Torn from their family and thrown into a prison with sadistic guards, the teens slowly realize their powers and discover that they aren't the only ones in the under-20 crowd targeted by the New Order.


I was pulled into this book from the beginning. Patterson crafts an excellent villain, I especially enjoyed the nasty Matron. I am eager to read Witch and Wizard book 2, The Gift.


Bottom Line:
The New Order is the new Big Brother; such a fast read, borrow book 2 when you check out book 1; excellent bad guys

The Unspoken

The Unspoken
by Thomas Fahy
Simon Pulse, NY 2008


Allison spent several years of her life in a cult with her father. There she formed a bond with six kids her age as they resisted the sadistic cult leader, Jacob Crawley. After Jacob tortured the pre-teens for months with their own worst fears and poisoned their families, the kids burned him to death. Or did they? Five years later, when Allison, now living with a foster family, receives an anonymous email message containing a newspaper article about the suspicious death of one of her old friends she must return to her hometown and confront the ghosts of her past – both literally and figuratively.
     I thoroughly enjoyed this book. The premise – people getting called back to the scene of a horrific event from their past so they can no longer try to block out their past – is one of my favorite plot lines. Flashbacks to the teen’s childhood in the cult slowly reveal Jacob Crawley’s mania and the chain of events that lead up to the teen’s present situation. Allison’s crush on David and cliffhanger chapter endings push the reader through the story, making him thirst for what will happen next. A horrific event in Allison’s past involving her sister and mother is hinted at throughout the book and the reader only learns how horrific it really was at the very end of the novel. Additionally, I loved the teen stock characters; Allison (the protagonist with a crush, a terrible past, and a survivor’s spirit), Jade (the sexy one), David (the All-American boy love interest), Ike (the funny one), and, my personal favorite, Emma (the quiet nerdy one, a library volunteer with mousy brown hair and shapeless clothes). This is a fantastic ghost story with plenty of supernatural twists and realistic horror. I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend it.


Bottom Line:
Classic scary movie style story; spooky quick read; loved it.

The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing, Traitor to the Nation: Volume One: The Pox Party

The Astonishing Life of Octavian Nothing, Traitor to the Nation: Volume One: The Pox Party
by M.T. Anderson
Candlewick Press, MA 2006


Octavian is a privileged Bostonite. The Novanglian College of Lucidity, a society of philosophers who serve as father figures as well as educators, provide him with shelter and a superb classical education. Octavian’s beautiful and charming mother, Cassiopeia, a princess in exile, is treated as such by the philosophers. She and Octavian entertain the houseful of scholars, who go by numbers rather than names, and lavish in luxury. Octavian Nothing can play the violin, read Greek, has expensive clothing and head full of knowledge. He also has his poop measured everyday by the scholars so that its weight can be measured against the food he has ingested. Those scholars? They are also his owners. The reader slowly realizes along with Octavian that he and his mother are slaves. A human science experiment, Octavian is a rat in a maze. The scholars are attempting to prove whether black people have the same mental capacity that whites do. Set in pre-Revolutionary War America, Octavian begins to question his role in the world and his plight parallels that of the rebellious English colonies just as America rebels against England’s hold over it. 
     Written primarily from Octavian’s point of view in memoir format, this National Book Award finalist unfolds its secrets slowly. Written in 18^th century language, you may spot some SAT vocabulary in Octavian’s writings. In the last several chapters we see Octavian through the eyes of a Revolutionary War solider in his letters home. The letters do not make for easy reading. In a similar 18^th century English of a literate, though at times hard to understand solider, they may make for challenging reading. However, the story is so interesting that it is absolutely worth decoding.

Bottom Line: 
Interesting historical fiction; haunting Pox Party scene; reserve Volume II now - you'll want to start it as soon as you're done with Volume I.