young adult

Friday Favorite: Secrets of My Hollywood Life

Jen Calonita has an impressive way of writing intriguing stories that you’d like to go into and visit for vacation without making them so scandalously inappropriate that I have to worry about putting them on my summer reading lists for middle school. I appreciate that about her. I also love that while it’s good for upper middle schoolers, it’s also great for all high school grades. Heck, I loved it as an adult.

This series, The Secrets of My Hollywood Life, features a protagonist named Kaitlin Burke. She’s a famous teenage TV star in Hollywood, and throughout her adventures and dramas and everything else we get an insider’s look at the life of a Hollywood starlet. It’s very fun. And, as Calonita is a former entertainment editor for Teen people, you definitely get a legit inside look!

In this first book, Kaitlin wants to know what it’s like to be a regular, not-famous teenager in high school and goes behind the backs of almost everyone around her to enroll in a local school under a false ID. Of course, she falls for the school’s hottest lacrosse player (and who wouldn’t, really?)… lots of crazy things happen. And, while this book does have a fully satisfying ending,  you totally want to start reading the next book as soon as you finish this one to figure out what happens with Kaitlin and her crew. It’s awesome.

Check this book out, buy it, invest in the rest of the series… you’ll love it. Enjoy!

~Melissa

#ThrowbackThursday – The Outsiders by S.E. Hinton

There are so many reasons to love this book. It’s so real and so amazing in the way that it was written – it was instantly popular when published by Hinton (AS A TEENAGER – OMG) and is still popular and relevant to teenage life today. I read somewhere once that this is considered the first of our modern YA novels… sort of a blueprint by which all others are written. I believe it. In an interview she gave, Hinton basically said she was bored by the books she had to read as a teenager and decided to write something she’d actually want to read. You gotta love that fierce teenage determination.

In The Outsiders, you follow the stories of teens in rival gangs – the Greasers and the Socials. While we don’t have gangs and cliques with the same names in today’s teenage society, we do have plenty of rivalry and hatred between groups of people that make this classic story one for today’s teens as well. If you’ve read the book, you know how powerful the story is. If you haven’t, you should.

For some reason, I never had to read this as a student. I really wish I had. As an adult I can appreciate it as I look back on my teen years and identify areas of my life that related to this, but it would have been a great one to make some connections to while I was dealing with high school.

Epic Fail by Claire LaZebnik

Epic Fail was really cute! Elise is a great protagonist – I love her fire and wit, even though I was slightly frustrated by her initial inability to trust Derek, the hot son of a famous actress. She soon learns, though, that she can’t judge people at her new school based on appearances or who their parents are, and we’re rewarded with a great teenage love story.

As a frequent reader of teenage love stories, I’m also particularly appreciative of the fact that Claire LaZebnik gives us that satisfying ending where the girl gets together with the right guy, there’s kissing involved, and then the story continues for a while longer. None of this ending on the verge of a kiss and abruptly the story is over business… you get a fully satisfying ending that feels good and solid.

I was also impressed with LaZebnik’s ability to tell a great story, drawing from an Austen classic, with out making the teenaged characters drunken sex-crazed idiots. Because, you know, not ALL teenagers are drunken sex-crazed idiots. The content of this was relevant to teenagers without being at all inappropriate. I’d be comfortable putting this on my middle school classroom shelves, but it easily has an appeal to readers through high school and into college.

Check this book out! I’m looking forward to reading more from this author. Enjoy. :)

#ThrowbackThursday – Sweet Valley Twins

First of all, I’m LOL’ing at these covers. Teenagers, welcome to the late 80’s and early 90’s…

I can’t believe I read books with covers this cheesy.

Anyway, I think Francine Pascal actually started with the Sweet Valley High books, which feature beautiful, blond, popular, identical twins Elizabeth and Jessica. Their adventures are cheesy, dramatic, wonderfully campy, romantic, and super edgy… I mean, check out the covers from Don’t Go Home With John and Teacher Crush. Hahahahahahahaha

Seriously though, these books were GREAT fun, and Francine Pascal is my hero – she created these worlds and then other people wrote lots of the books (there are some ridiculous number like 400+ of them). And now she lives in New York AND the South of France. REALLY? Tough life.

She is still writing some current books, including a ten years later book featuring Jessica and Elizabeth. I haven’t read any of her recent stuff yet. I have a few requested from the library. There are also several reprints of the Sweet Valley High books… if you ever find one, you should check it out just for fun. Or, next time you’re at the Goodwill, you’re bound to find some super cheap used copies.

Enjoy some cheesy throwback fun! :)

When It Happens

I swear I’m not just recommending this book because it has an allusion to Say Anything, which is one of the greatest YA stories of all time… but it did make me an instant fan of Susane Colasanti.In fact, it’ll be the focus of a new Throwback Thursday blog feature.

When It Happens is a great story told from two points of view (LOVE IT). Sara and Tobey are, quite simply, meant to be together. Tobey knows Sara is The One. Sara is a little too interested in the thrill of a shot at popularity to notice it right away, but when it does happen, it’s wonderful in a super happy heart kind of way. Along the way, it’s impossible not to fall for Tobey’s adorable self and identify with everything Sara deals with. And I love, love, love getting two character’s POVs on the same incident. It’s such an effective way of developing characters and letting the audience really get to know their personalities. Colasanti is able to write two distinct personalities in Sara and Tobey that make this book irresistible.

You should read this. Enjoy. ;)

#ThrowbackThursday: Say Anything

Say Anything is like everything you’d hope to see in a great YA book but come to life in a classic late 80’s movie. There’s one thing that puts it over the top and makes it completely irresistible, though… Lloyd Dobler. And, as the front of the DVD box so correctly states, to know Lloyd Dobler is to love him.

This is your classic slacker guy has a huge crush on overachiever girl kind of story, but something about it is absolutely magical. I’ve seen this movie so many times and I never get tired of it. I think my favorite thing about it really is Lloyd Dobler. Not because the young John Cusack is hot (though, really, he was) – but because of the way he pursues Diane Court. He knew he wanted to be with her. He knew they were meant to be together. So, he set out to make it happen. I think every girl wants to feel that wanted and worthy of pursuit. To feel cherished.

If you’ve never seen this, you should really watch it. Enjoy!

The Truth About Forever

I have to admit, I’ve only recently become a fan of Sarah Dessen. My students have read her books non-stop for years, but I never really gave them a fair chance. I just assumed they’d be simple and stereotypical plots. But, that assuming? It totally made an ass of me. I’ve read several of Dessen’s books now, but the one that absolutely solidified my status as a legit fan (to the point where I follow her on both twitter and instagram) was The Truth About Forever.

The protagonist of this novel, Macy, maintains insane control of her life as she strives (and achieves, sickeningly) perfection in everything she does. This stems from the traumatic death of her father and the way that her family has dealt with that loss. And though, on the outside, it looks like Macy is a pristine model of the perfect life, in reality she’s just sad. Her relationship with her boyfriend is sad. Her relationship with her mom is sad. Her life in general is just sad.

Luckily, Macy meets an entirely new group of people who are everything she needs. She learns to act like she’s alive again. She laughs and argues and smiles and talks. It’s a good thing… especially as a relationship begins with Wes, leaving her to decide what to do about her “perfect” boyfriend.

Dessen’s style is unique. Her writing is charming and enjoyable, but also very real and authentic. Life’s not always sunshine and roses, but you have to find some sunshine to warm your face and some roses to delight your senses in every rough spot you go through. You just have to. Dessen has an understated, graceful way of putting that life lesson into her books, and the result is addicting and inspirational. I’m sure we’ll see her on the blog again later as a Friday Favorite. :)

For now, though, go read The Truth About Forever. It’s wonderful in ways you’d never expect. I’ll leave you with this quote:

“Life can be long or short, it all depends on how you choose to live it. It’s like forever, always changing. For any of us our forever could end in an hour, or a hundred years from now. You can never know for sure, so you’d better make every second count. What you have to decide is how you want your life to be. If your forever was ending tomorrow, is this how you’d want to have spent it?” 

― Sarah Dessen, The Truth About Forever

Enjoy this story!

Stealing Parker

WOW this book caught my attention immediately. I seriously went to bed at 8:30 last night just so I could lay there and start reading… but then I couldn’t put it down and actually go to sleep until I’d finished it!

In Stealing Parker, Miranda Kenneally deals with a whole crapload of issues that are VERY relevant to teenagers right now, but she did it in this neat, compact, fast-moving way that was so well written I didn’t even realize how much stuff I was having to think about. It was a really fun read, and I instantly connected with the protagonist, Parker, through her struggles and snippets of journal entries (which she mostly burned, so the pyro in me enjoyed that immensely).

One of the main issues Parker has to deal with is her Christian faith and how it has been affected by the recent divorce of her parents. The way Kenneally writes about this is uncomfortable, but so very authentic and real. It’s true that sometimes Christians get it all wrong – none of us are perfect – and the way that’s portrayed in this book is eye opening and heart breaking, but it’s not blasphemous or disrespectful. It’s just honest. Now, I will say that I didn’t agree theologically with some of what Parker’s mom ends up telling her, and I have some other theological disagreements with lifestyle choices in this book, but the bottom line is that it made me think without challenging my own faith.I think that’s a good thing. I wouldn’t, though, recommend this for anyone under high school age (like, UPPER high school) or anyone who’s not solid in their own beliefs. It’s a challenging read in that area.

I absolutely loved the infusion of softball and baseball into this fun romance, too. I never realized how much I seriously enjoyed playing softball until I stopped after 10 years, so it was really fun for me personally to read a book with that as an element in it. It doesn’t seem like there are many YA novels out there with sports-playing female protagonists, but maybe I just haven’t found them.

And of course there’s plenty of romance, which I just can’t get enough of. Parker finds herself attracted to and flirting with the new assistant baseball coach (he’s 23, and she’s turning 18 in less than 2 months). While the age difference really wouldn’t be that big of a deal once she’s out of high school, the flirtation is scandalous just because he’s a teacher and she’s still a student. In the beginning you’re almost rooting for them, kind of like Aria and Ezra from Pretty Little Liars. But then there’s also this guy that she’s been competing with academically for years, but now that her position as valedictorian is secure, she can look at him as more than just the competition. I won’t give away too much. Just know that in the end, it’s all good and delightfully romantic.

Enjoy!

You had my heart from page one…

I just picked up Stealing Parker by Miranda Kenneally from the library. I’ve only read the first page so far, but it was a really, really engaging first page. It made me look forward to bedtime later so I can curl up under the covers and stay up way too late reading. I’ll review/recommend it in coming days, of course.

I’m curious, though. What kinds of “first pages” engage you? What hooks you into a novel and makes you want to keep reading immediately?