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SUNRISE OVER FALLUJAH by Walter Dean Myers
Robin joins the American troops in Iraq where he sees death and kills for the first time while wondering if what the Americans are doing there is right, worrying about the safety of his new friends, and writing letters home to a family torn about his decision to fight in the war. This was so well written, I could see every scene like it was a war movie. Heavy stuff, but a good look at what it was like to be in Iraq in 2003 and the confusion about what was going on.

SOMETHING TO BLOG ABOUT by Shana Norris
Libby starts a password protected personal blog to sort out her feelings on her nemesis, crush, bff, cousin, and mom's new boyfriend, but when her nemesis gets her password, Libby has to talk to others to undo the damage she has done. Great book, totally something I would've loved as a teen with its realistic scenario and loveable characters. And I'm not just saying this bc Shana was interviewed on Author2Author (http://author2author.blogspot.com/2008/02/sharing-love-book-giveaway-no-2.html). I really enjoyed this book!

ME, IN BETWEEN by Lauren Baratz-Logsted
Lacey is 12 years old with size 36C boobs, which she mostly hates and tries to hide (like when kids at school tease her), but sometimes likes (like when an older boy takes notice). Cute story with a premise girls can relate to.

YOU KNOW WHERE TO FIND ME by Rachel Cohn
Miles's cousin and bff Laura od'd on pills and killed herself; overweight, depressed, and prescription drug addicted, Miles tries to deal. A little too melancholy and introspective for me, but I wanted to see Miles get better so I kept reading.

April agreed to be the A2A Misses' first A2A Chat interviewee -- and as she does in her blog, she offered some fabulous words of writing wisdom. Come on over and check it out (and you must read her YA SHOCK POINT before her others come out and you are behind)!

http://author2author.blogspot.com/2008/05/interview-with-april-henry.html

Stay tuned for more A2A Chats in the coming weeks. Some awesome YA authors have agreed to answer our five questions.....

SOMEDAY THIS PAIN WILL BE USEFUL TO YOU by Peter Cameron
James doesn't want to start college in the fall, doesn't like to talk to people, doesn't connect with his family, and doesn't seem to want to change any of it though he knows something might be "wrong" with him. Dense paragraphs contained humor and interesting language, so I didn't skim through them; and the often-used Teen Sees Pyschiatrist scenes weren't so much unique as the characters were compelling enough to make me want to see what James revealed in each session. I wish the final chapter had been the penultimate one to leave the reader with more hope, but a good book of teen coming of age angst.

BIG SLICK by Eric Luper
Andrew is great with numbers, but manages to lose his illegal poker winnings and stolen money from his dad's business -- so he enlists the help of his best friend and hot co-worker to win it back. Fun, fast, exciting story with adventure, a casino, believable friends and characters, plus cool chapter names (slang poker terms). Definitely recommended.

BOOT CAMP by Todd Strasser
Garrett is taken from his home and delivered to Harmony Lake where he and other minors are abused until they "break" their bad habits and are deemed suitable to go home -- unless he can escape first. Excellent book that I read in just a couple hours despite the abuse scenes that disturbed me and showed what a great author TS is.

GIVE A BOY A GUN by Todd Strasser
Told in letters, emails, IMs, and statements from family and friends, the back story of two boys who shot up their school and then killed themselves. I read about half of this book before stopping. There wasn't enough story for me, though I do understand the purpose of this book.

FRAGMENTS by Jeffry W. Johnston
Chase was the only survivor of a car accident, and as pieces of that night come back to him, so do other repressed memories that he needs to recall to complete his psychological healing. Because I knew this was an Edgar nominee, I guessed one of the secrets before the end, but there were some other twists and turns in the last couple chapters that surprised me. Good psychological "mystery."

BURNED by Ellen Hopkins
Pattyn's super mormon family sends her away to Aunt J's when she's caught with a boyfriend, but there she finds more freedom and love than she's ever known -- still her happiness can't last with her dad around, even from afar. Amazing setting in few words, and powerful emotion as usual, with a sad ending that makes you think about what you would do if you were Pattyn.

RULES FOR HEARTS by Sara Ryan
Battle takes off for Forest House, a group house where her older brother ran off to, and finds out what he's been up to for the past 4 years and that she might be able to get over her ex-girlfriend. While the plot wasn't super fast, something about the gentle writing and melodic actor characters made me care about them and the outcome to the story. Plus the author is very cool.

KIMCHI & CALAMARI by Rose Kent
Joseph is Korean with Italian adopted parents, and he starts to wonder about his biological family, which confuses and excites his parents, friends, and himself. Great MC who makes mistakes, learns from them, and never loses his sense of humor.


ETA cover art.

ALLIE FINKLE'S RULES FOR GIRLS: MOVING DAY by Meg Cabot
Nine-year-old Allie learns her family's moving across town to a "fixer-upper" that probably has a demon hand in the attic, and though she likes the new school she'll be moving to, and that she can get a cat, she's not sure it's worth the risk of moving. Written in MC's typical light, humorous style with great insights into the 9yo mind and imagination, this was a fun read.

WAKE by Lisa McMann
Janie gets transported into others' dreams, and when she finds two other people who might understand for different reasons, she tries to control her dream presence and use her strange power for good. Cool premise, really well done dream segments that didn't bore me at all (as dream segments usually tend to do) and imitated the jarring feeling Janie dealt with on a daily basis, and a compelling plot that had me staying awake past my bedtime.

THE SWEET FAR THING by Libba Bray
Gemma must decide what to do with the magic that resides in her body, and save the realms -- and earth -- from the beings who wish to take them over. The third book in the Gemma Doyle series did not disappoint. While I was confused in some parts that dealt with the way in which souls interacted with the realms, the story was compelling, beautifully written, and tied together nicely in the end. If there are ever movies based on these books, I hope they do them justice. I can't wait for LB's upcoming humorous novel; she and her books are amazing.

FIREGIRL by Tony Abbott
When Jessica, a badly burned girl, moves into Tom's classroom, she affects him more than he thought possible. It took me a while to read this short book, probably bc it is so melancholy, but it is really, really well done.

HURRICANE by Terry Truman
While eating dinner with his little sisters and brothers, Jose worries about his father and other siblings driving across the country when a rain storm starts up and doesn't stop for hours, resulting in mudslides that cover his entire town. Based on Hurricane Mitch's wrath in 1998, this novel is an emotional, realistic look at the devastation that nature can cause, and how the human spirit needs to endure to overcome the hardships. Great book.

A LITTLE FRIENDLY ADVICE by Siobhan Vivian
When Ruby's estranged father turns up at her birthday party, her friends try to take control to help her deal and figure out what she should do about him. I stopped reading at page 60, not bc the story is bad, but the plot wasn't compelling or original enough for me to dive into fully and stick with.

WAITING FOR NORMAL by Leslie Connor
Twelve-year-old Addie lives with Mommers in a trailer where she must fend for herself, all the while longing to live with her half-sisters and ex-step-father. Wonderful, wonderful book! The characters were amazing, the story rich, and the voice perfect -- I was hooked on page one when the MC called her mom "Mommers." Perfect, and highly recommended to those who like contemporary tales of strong girls.

ESCAPE FROM ARYLON by Jo Whittemore
When Megan and Ainsley are accidentally transported to Arylon with their otherworldly neighbor, they are caught up in a race to save a staff from someone who could use it to destroy Arylon and earth -- but who has it, and can Megan and Ainsley get along long enough to figure it out? Great use of 3rd person pov that smoothly transitioned between characters and kept me entertained on my flight to Texas -- no small feat. Recommended to traditional fantasy lovers.

THE SECOND VIRGINITY OF SUZY GREEN by Sara Hantz
Suzy changes schools and tries to change her reputation by pretending she's a virgin so she can join the Virginity Club with her new friends, but when she meets up with the boy she slept with, is harder to keep up the charade. Except for its bits of telling where I would've liked more showing, it was a good, fast read with cool Australian teen slang.

OH MY GOTH by Gena Showalter
Goth girl Jade and her friends are mocked by the popular "Barbies" at school until Jade and her arch enemy are thrown into an alternate universe virtual reality game where they are supposed to be learning a lesson about getting along. Cool concept pulled off better than I anticipated. Definitely recommended to high school girls into Goth culture due to the fun descrptions of their outfits.

What was funny about these latter two novels was that I read them back to back on vacation and BOTH were in first person and used the phrases "Ohmygod"/"Ohmigod" a LOT. I've never seen it so much in one book, let alone two in a row. Funny!

THE TRUE MEANING OF SMEKDAY by Adam Rex
Gratuity's mom is abducted by the Boov when they invade earth, so Gratuity sets off across the country to find her and befriends a Boov on the way who helps her see that the really dangerous aliens are the invading Gorg. Gratuity is an awesome MC, her sidekick J.Lo the Boov is hilarious, and the other characters they run into make me laugh as well. Funny book, great voice, and hilarious cartoons dispensed throughout. I think I would've liked it even more when I was a kid.