Told in three parts—before, during, and after—this is the story of a young man who decides to enlist in the army reserves after high school, though he had opportunities elsewhere and is leaving behind a loving family, his autistic brother, his best friend, and his fiancee. When he suffers traumatic brain injury after an IED explosion, he is in a coma for several months and when he wakes up, doesn’t remember anything about his past. Though the story revolves around his accident and recovery, it’s more about how his deployment and condition change the lives of everyone who cares about him.

This is a very powerful, emotional story that will resonate with many readers. Because it is very short and told in a variety of formats, from traditional narration to text messages to Ben’s ‘memory journal’, it’s very modern and accessible.

I thought the parents, best friend, girlfriend, and brother, not to mention Ben, were compelling and fully formed characters. Though this topic could have been controversial and politically divisive, this novel examines the human cost of the war on an individual level rather than the global context for the conflict that throws a bomb in the middle of these characters’ lives. Because of it’s perspective, it’s a great book for discussions.

This novel was the recipient of the 2012 Schneider Family Book Award in the teen category, which honors a young adult book for its portrayal of people with disabilities. Not only do Mazer and Legranis do a fantastic job portraying the internal struggle of Ben as he copes with his memory loss, but it also features an autistic character who is very accurately depicted.

I’d recommend this for fans of Personal Effects by E. M. Kokie, which I reviewed here.

– Molly, YA

What is it about?  Flipped is a romance told in two voices. The first time Juli Baker saw Bryce Loski, she flipped. The first time Bryce saw Juli, he ran. That’s pretty much the pattern for these two neighbors until the eighth grade, when, just as Juli is realizing Bryce isn’t as wonderful as she thought, Bryce is starting to see that Juli is pretty amazing. How these two teens manage to see beyond the surface of things and come together makes for a comic and poignant romance. (Summary from Goodreads).

What did you think of it? There really is no other way to describe this book other than positively sweet. It contained everything that a book about young love should and nothing else.

I read a lot of romance/coming-of-age novels where the protagonist is about sixteen or seventeen and that’s fine but at the same time the romance aspect is different. It’s not necessarily going to be cute or innocent, and most times it isn’t. Because I have read those kinds of books my standards and views on love is very different from kids my age. In good and bad ways. I know that since I’m only in eighth grade I’m probably not going to fall in love so I shouldn’t pretend like I am. I also now believe that soul mates exist which isn’t always good because what if I never find that person? What if I end up ignoring someone incredible because my standards were too high? Now you see what I mean when I say that Flipped was a wonderful break from that.

The meaning was very relevant to kids my age, as well. Yes, it was obvious but occasionally subtlety really is overrated. Flipped was about accepting change, growing up and discovering who you are and also seeing people for what they are really made of. Surprisingly, I ended up enjoying Bryce’s chapters’ more than Julie’s. Bryce actually changed quite a bit and being able to catch a glimpse into a boy’s mind as he is making a serious internal change was intriguing. Julie, however, didn’t have to change immensely because she already had an advanced, deep-thinking mind.

The switching point-of-views (POV’s) was the one factor I was a tad iffy on. The chapters often overlap and that can be fascinating, but at times boring as well. Maybe it bugged me slightly because I had already seen the movie which is awesome and exactly like the book. The switching POV’s did help me to see the transformation (or lack of) that each character underwent.

In the end, reading this novel was sort of like reading the Cabinet of Wonders by Marie Rutkoski. It surprised me with the little details and caused me to realize that I don’t always have to read scandalous romance novels (They aren’t actually that scandalous. I promise.)

Star Rating: 

I would suggest this for: Anyone looking for a quick, sweet read full of nostalgic, old-fashioned middle-school romance.

Review by: Lauren, 8th grade

Thanks for the review, Lauren!

What is it about? One cold night, in a most unlikely corner of Chicago, two teens—both named Will Grayson—are about to cross paths. As their worlds collide and intertwine, the Will Graysons find their lives going in new and unexpected directions, building toward romantic turns-of-heart and the epic production of history’s most fabulous high school musical.

What did you think of it?

The hardest books to review are, without a doubt, your favorites. How can you possibly describe to others how they made you feel? Like there was a balloon in your stomach and it was slowly getting larger and you could feel it making its way into your throat and you’ve become all happy and giggly and you just might explode if you don’t tell the world how incredible this book is.

“Sometimes, you read a book and it fills you with this weird evangelical zeal, and you become convinced that the shattered world will never be put back together unless and until all living humans read the book.” ― John Green, The Fault in Our Stars

EXACTLY. This is me every single time I discover another book to be added to my favorite’s shelf on Goodreads. Actually, this is me whenever I read a John Green or David Levithan book in general. It was no surprise that I loved this novel, considering it’s written by two of my favorite authors ,but what did surprise me was that I even though I had sky-high expectations, I was never let down, not even once. I suppose this is what happens when two of the greatest, YA authors in history come together to write a book.

After I read books like this I become inspired and feel like writing a novel. Hopefully one of these days I actually will.

I did listen to this on audiobook and that was pretty sensational. I know I already did a post on audiobooks but for those of you who haven’t read it, I’ll repeat myself. I like audiobooks because they are so portable. I’m too cheap to buy a kindle and it’s not like I can pull out a huge book everywhere I go. With audiobooks you can simply put them on your iPod and the world will be at your fingertips. Okay, so the world might not actually be at your fingertips but a great book certainly will. Listening to a book can add depth and actually be quite relaxing if you’re feeling lazy.

The only things I don’t like are that it takes longer to finish and in Will Grayson, Will Grayson they never really introduced whose voice was narrating who’s Will Grayson. Was it John Green who wrote about the Will Grayson who was best friends with Tiny Cooper and made Jane fall for him with his quiet sarcasm? The one who I hoped was actually a real person and would ask me to marry him. Was it David Levithan who was audacious enough to write about the more cynical and hypocritical Will Grayson who wasn’t really sure about his sexuality and occasionally came across snarky and cruel? The one who I thought I disliked but ended up loving. It’s sort of a small thing to fuss over but I would have liked to know, to be able to compare the authors better.

Either way, both characters and each side-character was perfectly developed. The conversations had me laughing out loud on multiple occasions. Green and Levithan use what I call “smart people dialogue.” It’s very clever and sometimes the joke takes a minute to sink in but when you get it you can hardly breathe because you’re laughing so hard. I basically wanted to be these characters. Or at least know people like them. There are some authors that truly understand what it means to be a teenager and write about it so well that it never seems forced or fake. These are those authors.

My favorite part about this book was its relevance. The book dealt with issues that need to be discussed and written about in a way that teenagers and adults can understand. Things like friendship, sexuality, depression, love, and ultimately unity through these things. I’ve been really into this concept lately. The concept that one person has the power to break down walls with a sledgehammer and create unity throughout the world. People like Matt Harding and Eve Ensler. These are the individuals we should be inspired by, these are the ones that push boundaries and change things. Because if you can manage to get two people from opposite sides of the world to feel connected for even a second, you’ve managed to do an exceptional thing.

Star Rating:  It was awesome! Everyone should check this out!

I would suggest this for: REALLY AWESOME PEOPLE, or people looking to update their awesomeness by reading this book, John Green or David Levithan fans, LGBT book lovers, people who like questioning the status quo.

Review by: Lauren

Thanks for the review, Lauren!

What is it about?
Charly St. James is a famous television star that is living it up in the Big Apple…Or, at least, she will be. If she can escape from Bridgette, her lazy mother who steals all her money to spend gambling, and get to New York City in time to be cast in the auditions for a new reality T.V. show. Seems a little impossible, right? Not for Charly. She is game for anything if it means achieving her dreams. Even if it includes leaving behind all her friends and her sister Stormy, getting her money stolen countless times, crashing a car, sneaking into an audition, and overall turning her life into one, big fiasco!

What I thought of it & why I picked it up: 
Let me just say that when I first got a hold of this book I was extremely excited, mainly because it’s an advance copy which just makes me feel super cool. But…then….I realized that just because it hasn’t officially been released to the public yet, it is still just an average book.

Charly’s character was fierce, determined, and maybe a little naïve but I liked her because she was different. No one really writes those kinds of characters anymore; because there are so many ways they can go wrong. Being too selfish, being too stubborn, you get the point. Kelli London actually did manage to prevent Charly from being either of those things. She was genuine. Even if I didn’t ‘love’ Charly, I did like her and I still felt bad for her and I still wanted her to wind up on top. She has the worst luck in the world, who wouldn’t cheer for her? As for the rest of the characters, I thought they were very original but I didn’t fall in love with any of them, either. It was actually kind of hard to keep up with all of them!

The plot was confusing. You would think that a road-trip book with a determined girl like Charly would be really awesome and deep. Instead, the author had too many events for Charly to get past on that road trip for her character to develop depth. I was expecting something more like Maureen Johnson’s 13 Little Blue Envelopes, or maybe Amy and Roger’s Epic Detour by Morgan Matson. I mean, I get that she is supposed to have multiple fiascos but after awhile I think it starts to get a little complicated and almost dull. Another, more skilled author, might have been able to pull it off, but London just didn’t seem to do the story justice.

Overall, the book was a nice enough read, but not something that will be remembered and read again.

Star Rating:

It was okay

I would suggest this for:  Determined, young women

Review by: Lauren B.

Thanks for the review, Lauren!

The story opens with Matt at school trying to ignore the jabs of another student who is part of the pro-peace movement and walks around wearing shirts that say “Bush lied” and such. When he taunts him with a shirt that bears his brother’s name, Matt snaps, and the boys get into a fistfight which lands him in the principal’s office.

While home from school during his suspension, Matt’s brother’s personal effects are delivered. His father has all but erased the memory of TJ from their house, hiding the flag from his casket and the pictures of him that used to be scattered around the house. Matt risks a beating from his angry, violent, former military father to explore the contents of his personal effects, and what he finds sends him on a journey: dozens of very intimate letters signed simply “C” and one letter from TJ to the address on the postmark of all the others. Matt has to deliver it, and in doing so, finds out who is brother truly was and the kind of person he wants to be—an accepting one, who’s strong enough to stand up to his father.

I’m not gonna lie; this book is heart-wrenching, through and through. Matt’s best friend, Shauna, who he is in love with, is a bright spot. Her unfailing support even when Matt is being a total jerk is endearing, and their shy romance is well done and feels true to anyone who has suddenly realized they were in love with their best friend.

I loved this story, with it’s believable, compelling plot, and I loved these characters, who all felt full and lively. Yes, it’s a book about grief, about the military, about domestic abuse, and about mental illness. But it’s also about friendship and family and identity. The book transcends its themes to get at the truth.

If you are interested in other books about siblings of veterans or the aftermath of the war in Iraq and Afghanistan, you might like these novels: Badd by Tim Tharp; Something Like Normal by Trish Doller; In Honor by Jess Kirby or This is Not a Drill by Rebecca McDowell.

–Molly, YA

Lemon is the only daughter of Stella, a woman who never quite grew up. Lemon and her artistic mother have bounced around small towns for most of her childhood, leaving when Stella’s relationship with her current boyfriend falls apart. To commemorate Lemon’s 17th birthday, Stella decides to get a tattoo of a navy hummingbird to symbolize Lemon’s “flight from childhood,” but Lemon knows it’s really because she has the hots for the tattoo artist, Johnny Drinko, never mind the fact that he’s ten years younger.

But it isn’t Stella that hooks up with Johnny Drinko. Lemon does, mostly to spite her mother. This time around they pack up and leave town because of Lemon’s indiscretion. When they arrive in their new home, Lemon discovers that she’s pregnant.

Lemon knows she’s better off without Johnny Drinko to help her raise her baby, and is resigned to becoming a single parent just like her mom. But being pregnant does raise questions for Lemon about her own father. All she knows about him is that her mother left him in San Francisco when she was pregnant with Lemon, and that he never went looking for them.

In an effort to find out who she is as much as who her father is, Lemon embarks on a cross-country road trip on a Greyhound bus to California in search of her father. Against the backdrop of San Francisco landmarks like Haight Street and the ruins of The Palace of Fine Arts, Lemon learns important lessons about forgiveness and love.

This novel is understated and unfussy. A true coming-of-age story, Lemon is a different person at the end of the book than she was at the beginning. There are not many dramatic, intense moments, but a series of experiences that seem true and believable, full of characters that are compelling and relatable. Kristen-Paige Madonia captures the voice of a generation, and I look forward to more from her.

I would recommend this for fans of contemporary young adult fiction like Mary O’Connell’s The Sharp Time.

- Molly, YA Staff