It has been a long time since I have read a vampire story, probably since the original Vampire Chronicles by Anne Rice in the 1990s, but I am so glad I took a chance on Julie Kagawa’s The Immortal Rules, the first book in her new Blood Eden series. This YA novel from Harlequin Teen…
Category Archives: High School
Escape from Camp 14: One Man’s Remarkable Odyssey from North Korea to Freedom in the West
Shin Dong-hyuk was born and bred to be a slave. His father, imprisoned for the crimes (i.e. defection) of his brother, was given a “reward marriage” and allowed to spend 5 nights a year with his wife by the camp guards. Other than that, sexual contact was forbidden and punished by execution. Shin was born…
Rock On
I will begin this review by admitting that I did not read Rock On: A story of guitars, gigs, girls, and a brother (not necessarily in that order) myself. I handed it to my oldest, Elliot, who’s in Grade 11. He devoured it, and before I knew it, the twins (Abel and Ilsa, Grade 9)…
The Spirit Keeper
Meet Sarah Redbird, a seventeen-year-old who has lived with her aunt and uncle since losing her mother and grandparents in a fire several years earlier. She loves her best friend Priscilla almost as much as she despises Katie, the “mean girl” at school who leads the bullying of Sarah without ever getting caught. Sarah’s life…
On Reading: The Hunger Games — When a Book Becomes a Phenomenon
At 13 ½, my daughter Amanda is a bit too young to have been caught up in the Harry Potter books and movies as they were being released (though they are among her favorite books). As for Twilight, neither she nor I had read the books when the movies started coming out (though she finally…
The Fault in Our Stars by John Green
John Green is one of those darlings of the kitlit blogging community. When I read — actually, listened to — his novel An Abundance of Katherines, I quickly saw why he’s a favorite of adults who read young adult literature, and the young adult target audience as well. The characters were not perfect, but they…
Double
Identity is a common theme in young adult literature. Jenny Valentine’s novel Double takes this theme to an entirely new level. Cassiel has been missing for years when 16-year-old Chap, who has been living on the streets, is mistaken for him and returned to Cassiel’s family. We don’t really know who Chap is or why…
From Blah to Awe: Shaking up a Boring Faith
Jenna Lucado Bishop has written a wonderful book for teen girls. From Blah to Awe: Shaking Up a Boring Faith speaks right on their level, using examples of real teens who are living a vibrant faith, her own experiences, and things in our current culture that can cause them to lose their passion for God….
The Girl Who Was on Fire, Hunger Games movie edition (with Giveaway)
Four out of the ten books on the Amazon Best Sellers list are Hunger Games books. The original book has been in the top 100 for 500 days. I assume it dropped off at some point, but the 2nd and 3rd in the series have been on for around 800 and 700 respectively, which is…
Four Letter Words
In this introduction to apologetics for today’s Christian teen or young adult, Bill Giovannetti posits that the “core beliefs of the Christian faith have become today’s four letter words.” We live in a culture where confidently stating what you believe is often labeled as narrow-minded intolerance rather than as an expression of personal faith. Giovannetti…
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Jennifer Donovan
Managing Editor
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