Ten to Fourteen 2011
A MILLION SHADES OF GRAY
Atheneum
Trade: 9781416918837; $16.99
Nomination:
At the end of the Vietnam War, Y'Tin has become quite expert in the delicate art of elephant training and has grown close to his young elephant. When the Vietcong guerillas attack his village, he and a friend escape with his elephant to the jungle where he uses his training in jungle navigation and survival skills to save them until they risk going back to the village. Kadohata has written a fine book that should help young readers understand some of the pain of the war and its aftermath, but she also convincingly portrays the beauty of the land and people of Vietnam.
Positive Comments:
- This view of Vietnam after the Americans left shows that survival was still difficult.
Raising an elephant is not something about which an American child would know.
When the North Vietnamese arrive, Kohadata's use of language creates strong suspense.
The title "shades of gray" refers not only to the elephants but also to all the decisions in life that the characters must make.
- Keeping track of the names is difficult.
McCaughrean, Geraldine
THE DEATH-DEFYING PEPPER ROUX
Harper
Trade: 9780061836657; $16.99
Library: 9780061836664; $17.89
Nomination:
Pepper expected to die at age 14 because of his aunt's forecast at his birth. But one day after his fourteenth birthday, Pepper is still alive with an ominous cloud hanging over his psyche. As an author, McCaughrean is as versatile as M. T. Anderson. No two books are alike. Her short descriptive passages and good humor keep the reader captured in the moment. From the first paragraph, the reader is on an adventurous ride. And just as they are marveling at how all these awful things can happen to one character, McCaughrean wraps up the story into a neat package. Fans (ages 12--14) of Polly Horvath books can enjoy this quirky tale.
- Needs more readers.
Sonnenblick, Jordan
AFTER EVER AFTER
Scholastic
Trade: 9780439837064; $16.99
Nomination:
Jeffery, an 8th grade cancer survivor with chemo related learning issues and his classmate Tad, wise-cracking and irreverant work together to overcome their disabilities with the hope of graduating from 8th grade. Humorous and heartbreaking with a hint of the author's educational agenda the story captures all the anxiety and confusion of middle school: the tests, the friendships, romances and in this case the tragedy. A sequel to Drums, Girls, and Dangerous Pie the story stands alone.
- Needs more readers.
Teller, Janne
NOTHING
Atheneum
Trade: 9781416985792; $16.99
Nomination:
When 7th-grade Pierre Anthon sits in a tree day after day declaring that nothing matters his class comes up with a plan to disprove him. They'll create a pile of meaning. The students start stacking up the things that are meaningful to them in an abandoned sawmill. The trouble begins when they start deciding what's most meaningful for each other, and forcing each other to give up those things. Think Lord of the Flies meets No Exit, and you'll get a sense of this powerful and disturbing nihilistic story. Originally published in Danish, this edition is translated by Martin Aitken. Nothing could be moved to 14 and up because of the content and themes, but the characters are in 7th grade.
- Needs more readers.
Williams-Garcia, Rita
ONE CRAZY SUMMER
Amistad
Trade: 9780060760885; $15.99
Library: 9780060760892; $16.89
Nomination:
Summer vacation in California should mean Disney World, surfing and collecting autographs in Hollywood. It should n ot mean babysitting your two younger sisters, eating shrimp lomein every night and being ignored by the very woman who gave birth to you. Welcome to Delphine's Summer of 1968. Her father has made his 3 daughters leave the familiar streets of their Brooklyn neighborhood to spend summer vacation with the mother who abandoned them 7 years ago. Their visit will also include an introduction to the Black Panthers. Williams-Garcia delivers a page-turner with this one!
Positive Comments:
- Delphine, the oldest sister with many responsibilities, has a true voice, but the other two sisters also
show individuality.
Although the adults in this book have "warts," they also have good qualities.
The book offers insights about the Black Panthers.
The mother Cecile stays true to her character by not wanting to return to her daughters and not being what Delphine needed in a mother.
- A reader wonders what the father was thinking when he sent his three daughters across the country to see a
mother that had abandoned them several years before.
Fern's insights seem older than those of a seven-year-old.