The Luxe by Anna Godbersen


My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Soap-in-a-book. All the "he said", "'she said", glamor, deceit, twists and turns of a soap opera handed to you in a book.
Elizabeth and Diana Holland have always ruled Manhattan's social scene, until their mother tells them something the don't wan to hear: their deceased father has left them poor. In order to remain a high status family, Elizabeth must marry for money. Unfortunately, Elizabeth is already in love with Will, a man with no money. Not only that, but Elizabeth's younger and more rebellious sister, Diana develops feelings for the man Elizabeth is supposed to marry. In a world of luxury and deception, the sisters must avoid backstabbing friends and spiteful maids to decide between family duty and true love.

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The Boy in the Striped Pajamas by John Boyne



This story is told from the viewpoint of an innocent child, Bruno, during WWII Germany. Apart from his innocence, Bruno has trouble pronouncing some words, but readers with even a rudimentary knowledge of 20th-century history will figure out, before Bruno does, where he lives and the significance of what he sees.

Bruno is nine when his family moves from their luxurious Berlin home to the country, where “The Fury” has appointed Bruno's father commandant of a house called “Out-With”. Lost and lonely, Bruno can see a camp in the distance, and sees potential playmates, oddly clad in striped pajamas. He has no idea what is going on, even when he eventually meets and makes friends with Shmuel, who lives on the other side of the camp fence. The boys meet every day. They even discover that they have the same birthday. It's all part of a poignant tale: Shmuel is Bruno's parallel self, and the innocent's experience brings home the unimaginable horror. The story raises the question: How could the world outside the fence not have known, or have known and failed to act on, what was happening inside it?

Bruno does finally act, and it is sure to take readers' breath away.

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Fire by Kristin Cashore


My rating: 5 of 5 stars
This is a fantasy with plenty of romance and suspense, set in the same world as Graceling, but on the far side of the mountain barrier in the kingdom of the Dells. Fire is a human monster, so beautiful that she has to hide her hair for fear of attack by both raptor monsters and human men. She is able to enter other people's minds and exert power over them. There is unrest in the land, as various lords are preparing to overthrow the king and Fire gets involved.
The book is full of action, characters and plot. Fire's struggles with her role in the war effort as well as her complex relationships with her oldest friend and lover, Archer; with Prince Brigan, whose mind is closed to her and who becomes central to her life; and with her monster father's dreadful legacy. A super read, hope there will be more.

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Airhead by Meg Cabot


My rating: 3 of 5 stars
Once you suspend belief in the plot line you can enjoy a good read. Em Watts is your average teenager until she goes to the Stark store opening and gets hit on the head in a freak accident. She wakes up in hospital to find her brain has been transplanted into super-model Nikki's body. Now she has to figure out how to live with a famous person's body while trying to reconnect with her old friends and crush.

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Graceling by Kristin Cashore


My rating: 5 of 5 stars
Their mismatched eyes identify Gracelings whose accentuated abilities range from mind reading, to predicting storms, to exceptional cooking, and everything in-between. The king takes them into his service so he can use whatever unusual talent to better his position. Katsa’s grace is killing; the king sends her when some ‘muscle’ is needed. Katsa hates what she has to do and forms an underground movement to look out for the populace.
On one particular case, Katsa encounters another Graceling. Po has one gold eye and one silver eye. They undertake a particularly dangerous mission in Monsea, the kingdom of Lech. The story takes many twists and turn while continuing to keep the reader attached to the likeable characters. Cashore creates a tangible environment complete with fantastic powers, romance and excitement.
The dénouement is a bit drawn out but will not put you off anticipating the sequel.

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American Born Chinese by Gene Luen Yang



In American Born Chinese, Yang interweaves three seemingly unconnected stories: the main plot about a young Chinese-American boy, Jin Wang; a subplot about an all-American Anglo teenager, Danny, and his exaggeratedly-Chinese cousin, Chin-Kee; and the legend of the Monkey King. All three stories explore the very human need to fit-in and be accepted in society. This is not only true for minority groups but for us all especially teenagers. People who refuse to accept others and differences always make it harder for individuals.
The illustrations in this graphic novel are vibrant in color and jump off the page. There is plenty of humor and pathos to keep you interested and entertained. The message is clear and understandable, but sometimes we have to read and reread that it is OK to be ourselves.

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Purple Heart by Patricia McCormick


My rating: 3 of 5 stars

This novel explores the impact the Iraqi War has on a young American soldier.

When Private Matt Duffy wakes up in an army hospital in Iraq, he's honored with a Purple Heart - the army's medal for those wounded in battle. But he doesn't feel like a hero. He can't quite remember what happened in the Baghdad alley where he was hurt. Matt has suffered a traumatic brain injury and must slowly work to recover his memory and full brain function. The first half of the book deals with Matt’s struggle with his injury, his feelings of isolation and later guilt. The second half follows Matt as he returns to his squad to patrol the streets of Baghdad and how he deals with those realities.


Matt tries to remember just exactly what happened. As events of the attack begin to come back to him, he realizes he may have been responsible for something terrible. Tension builds and he becomes confused about interpretations of the truth and what to tell superiors. Friendship, bravado and juvenile antics counteract the soldiers' guilt, paranoia and unease around Iraqis, whom they are told to befriend but who often prove to be their enemy. McCormick raises questions and will have readers examining not only this conflict but the nature of heroism and war.

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