Dear Family

Without Merit by Colleen Hoover tackles depression due to years of dysfunctional family dynamics combined with a love story.

Merit and Honor are identical twin sisters with absolutely nothing in common, except for liking the same boy. Merit is the main character. She is overwhelmed by everything in her life and decides to drop out of school. Nobody seems to notice or care.

Her sister’s boyfriend and a long lost step-uncle move into the house. This creates new household dynamics that ultimately bring out all the secrets that Merit has been harboring. She is faced with confronting her own weaknesses while also making amends with each family member.

A Hero’s Journey

Fairy Tale by Stephen King combines elements of some series and story favorites: Stranger Things, Game of Thrones, and of course, classic fairy tales.

Charlie narrates his unbelievable tale. He starts with some of his childhood before progressing to saving a grumpy old man named Bowditch at the age of seventeen. This interaction changes the course of his life. He gives up sports to help with Bowditch’s recovery and his aging dog, Radar.

In doing so, he learns that Bowditch has an incredible secret. His locked shed holds a well that leads to another world. This world contains huge amounts of gold and a way to turn back time. Charlie decides to travel there in hope of saving Radar’s life. Once there, he realizes that there is an entire kingdom that needs to be saved too. There is a terrible curse over the remaining people causing them to be horribly disfigured. Any goodness that remains is in danger.

Charlie is captured and seems destined to die in this world. But his prison mates believe he is a prince destined to save them all.

This book has all the elements of an amazing tale, including fantastical creatures, monsters, danger, adventures and several heroic characters. I was reminded within only a chapter or two that Stephen King is truly a masterful story teller.

Ghostly Memory

Hidden Pictures by Jason Rekulak combines elements of a ghost story and mystery.

Mallory is a recovering addict, who is fortunate to land a job as a summertime nanny to sweet, imaginative, five-year-old Teddy. All is going great until Teddy starts drawing pictures of his imaginary friend Anya. The pictures (which are shown throughout the book) depict a murder and cover up.

Mallory begins investigating the real Anya, who lived in the cottage where Mallory is currently staying. Her observations cause Teddy’s parents to question her sobriety.

Cracks begin forming between Teddy’s parents and their relationship with Mallory, leading to a major surprise ending.

Deadly Secrets

Five Survive by Holly Jackson is a suspenseful teen read.

Six friends head out for spring break in an RV. They manage to get stuck in the middle of nowhere while trying to find a campsite. An active shooter takes out all their tires and gas tank. He communicates his request by walkie talkie: the person holding a secret must reveal it. This is the only way to prevent them from all dying.

This begins their desperate attempts at survival while also sifting through each character’s possible secrets. There are intense moments with plenty of double crossing, mafia involvement and suspense.

Red is one of the main characters. She lost her mom tragically and hasn’t been able to recover from her own guilt. Her mom is in her mind constantly through their ordeal which all connects to the final secret once it’s revealed.

This is a fast paced read with an unexpected ending.

A Brutal Time

Kindred by Octavia Butler is a captivating mix of science and historical fiction. I decided to read it in preparation for an upcoming lesson with eleventh graders.

Dana is a black woman from California who is suddenly transported from her current time in the 70s to a plantation in antebellum south. She quickly realizes that she is there to save the plantation owner’s son (Rufus). Rufus is a distant relative, and Dana seems destined to travel back in time whenever his life is in danger – which is quite often. This creates a clash of worlds as she must transition from more modern times to a setting of brutal slavery.

Time is meaningless as she can be gone for days or months that only equate to minutes or hours in her time. It is only when her own life is threatened that she is able to return to her real life.

Dana manages to accustom herself to moving between times, even bringing along her white husband the second time. It becomes unclear whether Dana and her husband will ever be able to live normally in their correct time. Readers get to know the southern characters which makes every hardship even more horrific and Dana’s presence even more necessary, as perhaps she is not there to only help Rufus.

This book is unlike anything I’ve read before and one I won’t forget.

Best End Day

The First to Die at the End by Adam Silvera is the prequel to They Both Die at the End. I did not read the latter.

The book explores the idea of being able to learn your exact death day by buying into a company called Death Cast. The book jumps to various characters (Death Cast owner, an employee and others), but is primarily focused on Valentino and Orion.

Valentino just moved to NYC to start a career in modeling a day before his twin sister. He is at the debut of Death Cast in Times Square when he meets Orion and Orion’s best friend who is like a sister for the first time. Orion has a heart condition and has bought into Death Cast. Valentino decides to join in by buying a one day membership. The very first phone call is made, and shockingly it’s Valentino who receives the call.

This moment speeds up everything, especially Valentino and Orion’s relationship. Orion does his best to give Valentino the best end day possible, all the while not knowing when/how death will come.

It’s a love story first that also raises some thoughtful questions about life and death, fate and the people who come into our lives at different moments.

Strength of Story

The Last Cuentista by Donna Barba Higuera is a beautiful novel conveying the power of story and humanity.

Petra and her family are selected to begin life on a new planet because Earth is about to be destroyed by Haley’s comet. They will “sleep” for several hundred years during the voyage. During this time, they are at the mercy of their caretakers.

When Petra awakes, she realized that plans changed. She is one of only a few other originals. They are named Zita and are expected to work only for the good of the Collective. The Collective seeks complete uniformity and will go to any measure to prevent original thought or discord. This will be difficult for Petra considering that she remembers her previous life, which is unlike the others.

Petra makes it her mission to save the remaining Zita. She will need intelligence, bravery and confidence similar to the characters in stories she’s carried with her all these years. The stories from her grandmother are the strength that get her and the others through.

Finding Family

Somewhere Sisters by Erika Hayasaki is the true story of identical twin sisters separated shortly after birth. One is raised by her aunt in Vietnam while the other is adopted by an American family along with another girl from the same orphanage.

The author provides historical and scientific background about adoption and twin studies throughout the book. The twins, Isabella and Ha, don’t learn about each other until they are quite a bit older. The book switches back and forth between each sister’s different upbringing and reaction to finding out about the other. While their experiences are very different, both are raised with lots of love and an appreciation of learning.

Eventually the girls meet. It takes time for them to build a relationship, but their bond becomes very strong. This is an interesting read about family, history and values.

Gossip Trap

The Truth About Alice by Jennifer Mathieu shows the impact rumors and gossip can have on all involved.

Chapters alternate among various teen characters’ points of view. There is the popular one, the popular friend who used to be an outcast at her former school, the nerd and the jock. And then there’s Alice. Alice had friends and was doing fine until a terrible rumor began that she slept with two guys. It gets even worse when she is blamed for one of their deaths.

The aftermath brings us into the mind of each character. We come to understand their thoughts and actions. Alice endures terrible treatment, but has the support of one new friend.

There is a strong lesson about the toxicity of gossip and the value of kindness.

Small Town Feeling

Beartown by Fredrik Backman is the first of a trilogy that I hope to continue reading. I finished this first book a couple weeks ago, so names are fuzzy.

Beartown is very good at one thing: hockey. Events build toward a huge championship game. We meet several important characters, including various townspeople, team coaches, the club manager and his family along with many of the players. Each has their own important part to play.

When the club manager’s daughter accuses the star player of rape, the entire town seems to turn against her and her family. Events unfold leading to the court’s decision. The town may not ever be completely the same.

I couldn’t help but connect certain parts of Beartown to my own small town, and I am compelled to find out what awaits each character.