The lists are in!

The Teens' Top Ten 2011 winners have been announced:

1. Clockwork Angel by Cassandra Clare


2. Mockingjay by Suzanne Collins


3. Crescendo by Becca Fitzpatrick


4. I Am Number Four by Pittacus Lore


5. The Iron King by Julie Kagawa


6. Matched by Ally Condie


7. Angel: A Maximum Ride Novel by James Patterson


8. Paranormalcy by Kiersten White


9. Before I Fall by Lauren Oliver


10. Nightshade by Andrea Cremer

Which books do YOU think should have been in the Top Ten? (click here for the list of 25 nominees)

Also, the 2012 White Pine nominees have been announced. The fiction titles are:

• Ashes, Ashes - by Jo Treggiari


• Beat the Band by Don Calame (sequel to Swim the Fly)


• Blood Red Road by Moira Young


• Chance to Dance for You by Gail Sidonie Sobat


• Death Benefits by Sarah N. Harvey


• Fifth Rule by Don Aker


• The Gathering by Kelley Armstrong **WINNER!!**


• Motorcyles & Sweetgrass by Drew Hayden Taylor


• Something Wicked by Lesley Anne Cowan


• Way it Is by Donelda Reid

I've ordered all of these books and they should arrive in the library very soon!

Divergent ~ by Veronica Roth

If you liked The Hunger Games, and have worked your way through the series and are looking for something new, pick up Divergent by Veronica Roth. I blazed through all 45o pages in just 2 days...it's that good.

In this new dystopian thriller, at the age of 16, all citizens choose which faction they want to join. Each faction is distinguished by a particular characteristic or virtue that defines how they think people should live: Candor (honesty), Abnegation (selflessness), Dauntless (bravery), Amity (peacefulness), and Erudite (intelligence). Beatrice is torn between her family's faction, Abnegation, and her sense that she belongs somewhere else. And then, as she goes through the tests prior to making her choice, she discovers something shocking, and potentially dangerous that will alter her life forever.

Divergent is suspenseful, brutal, exciting...and has many of the characteristics that made The Hunger Games such a popular series. Don't miss this one!

The Sky is Everywhere ~ by Jandy Nelson

There's something powerful about the use of words...and when an author has a gift for describing things in exactly the right way, a book can be absolutely magical. The Sky is Everywhere is one of those magical books.

Lennie's sister has just died and she's feeling completely lost. She doesn't know how to be around her best friend, Sarah ("For the first time in our lives, I'm somewhere she can't find, and I don't have the map to give her that leads to me"). She's suddenly and overwhelming confused about two boys: the new guy in town, Joe, whose musical passion and zest for life overflows, and Toby - her sister's boyfriend, who is the only person who seems to understand her grief.

The Sky is Everywhere was one of the most beautiful books I've read in quite a while. The author - Jandy Nelson - knows exactly how to combine words to perfectly capture feelings and settings....probably because she is a poet - this is her first novel. Interspersed throughout the book are poems that Lennie writes and scatters around her town...every one breaks your heart a little:

Grief is a house
where the chairs
have forgotten how to hold us
the mirrors how to reflect us
the walls how to contain us
Grief is a house that disappears
each time someone knocks at the door
or rings the bell
a house that blows into the air
at the slightest gust
that buries itself deep in the ground
while everyone is sleeping
Grief is a house where no one can protect you
where the younger sister
will grow older than the older one
where the doors
no longer let you in
or out
(Found under a stone in Gram's garden)

This is one of the Teens' Top Ten nominees...and I will be stunned if it's not in the Top Ten - or even top 3!

Cottage reading!

I just got home from a friend's cottage, where I blazed through a few more titles - one from the Teens' Top Ten nominees list, one because I was looking forward to reading another book by the author, and one I'm reviewing (not yet published) for VOYA (Voice of Youth Advocates):

Orson Scott Card ~ The Lost Gate: this one is on the Teens' Top Ten nominees list, but, I just don't think it's going to make the top ten. I should say, Orson Scott Card is one of my favourite authors - and I think Ender's Game is brilliant - which made The Lost Gate that much more disappointing for me. It wasn't bad - it just felt too overdone...that so much effort was put into the mythology/back story, that the actual story was a bit lost. It just didn't live up to its potential.

Lauren Oliver ~ Delirium: I loved Lauren Oliver's Before I Fall (which should be one of this year's Top Ten!) so I couldn't wait to read Delirium...and it was every bit as good as I'd hoped. In Lena's world, "love" is considered a disease - and at the age of 18, everyone is "cured" from it. This dystopian novel was brilliant - intelligent, new ideas, fast-paced, engaging. I read all 441 pages in a single day...and as one friend commented as I finished the book, "wow, you raced through that last chunk!"

Jeyn Roberts ~ Dark Inside: I received an advanced reader's copy (i.e. the book isn't published yet) because I'm writing a review for it for VOYA. I don't want to spoil the review, but let's just say, I think this is going to be a popular book! Creepy, post-apocalyptic, horrifying - I'm sure it's going to be a teen favourite.

Drought ~ by Pam Bachorz

Dystopian novels seems to be really popular right now. And there's something "safe" about reading about another society that's so messed up when it's so beautiful and sunny out (almost makes you forget about all the troubles our world suffers from!).

So, I was looking forward to reading Drought. The Congregation is under the control of Darwin West and the Overseers and spend all their time harvesting water, one drop at a time - and suffering horribly when they are unsuccessful. There's something special about one of the Congregants, Ruby: her blood has healing powers. Expectations are high for Ruby - can she save the Congregation and herself?

Sadly, Drought just doesn't seem to live up to its potential. It's like all the pieces didn't add up - it's set in current times, but also has elements that just don't fit with our world. And the unusual characteristics of the Congregants are never really explained, nor do they seem entirely necessary.

It is suspenseful, and I have to admit, I wanted to keep reading right to the end, but it left me feeling just a little disappointed. I'm curious to see what others have to say about it. My guess is that although it's on the Teens Top Ten nominations list, it won't make it into the Top Ten. What do you think?

Rez Recommends 2010-2011

Here it is...your list of favourites from this school year.

Not surprisingly, The Hunger Games is on the list for the third year in a row...plus there are some brand new titles, including some literary fiction (chosen by grade 12s who really loved their ISU novels).

Click here to see the full list, with book descriptions and student comments.

Sisters Red ~ by Jackson Pearce

I love a good retelling of a story; a fairy tale reimagined, a familiar story with a new twist. The Enchanted Forest Chronicles by Patricia Wrede remain some of my all-time favourite books. Wicked by Gregory Maguire had me completely under its spell...and then it was made into an amazing musical - does it get any better than that? :)

Unfortunately, not all retellings are good ones. Instead they feel a bit gimicky. So, I started reading Sisters Red with a bit of hesitation.

Thankfully, my fear was unnecessary. Sisters Red puts a new spin on the Little Red Riding Hood story (which seems to be popular these days, with at least two recent movies doing the same!). Scarlett (Lett) and her sister Rosie managed to survive the wolf's attack (with Lett severely scarred as a result) and now dedicate their life to hunting down wolves, called Fenris (werewolves). The packs are getting bigger and stronger, and with the help of their woodsman friend Silas, they set out to try and prevent the Fenris from turning another Potential.

I'd say this retelling gets a 4 out of 5 on the Rez Reads chart. It wasn't "life-altering" but it was quite a good read...and the last few chapters had me holding my breath. The author, Jackson Pearce, has one other novel "As You Wish" that apparently is even better than this one...and a re-telling of Hansel and Gretel called Sweetly, that's due out this summer.

Matched ~ by Ally Condie

I think I've discovered a huge contender for the Teens' Top Ten here!

Matched is another great dystopian novel. Society has been "perfected": food is allocated appropriately; jobs are decided optimally; only the 100 "best" songs, poems, and works of art have been preserved; disease has been eradicated almost entirely; and citizens are "matched" with their perfect mate. Cassie has been matched with her best friend, Xander. But, a glitch in the system reveals another potential match, Ky. As Cassie starts to question the possible mistake, it forces her to look at their whole way of life...putting herself, her friends, and family all at risk.

So well written, the relationships jump off the page and the tension is palpable. I raced through Matched...and now can't wait until the sequel, Crossed, is released (not until November!!). If you liked The Hunger Games, you'll love Matched.

I'm back!

After a LONG hiatus from this blog - including a semester-long sabbatical - I'm back, and going to try my best to get some recent posts up here. I didn't read as much as I thought I would on my break, but a few of my recent favourites are:

• The Maze Runner (bk 1) and The Scorch Trials (bk 2) by James Dasher...I am SO looking forward to book 3, The Death Cure - due out October 11th...and I promise I'll have a copy for Rez right away. SO, if you haven't read book 1 or 2 yet, you've got all summer! The series is right up there with the Hunger Games trilogy...awesome!
  
  
• Anna and the French Kiss by Stephanie Perkins ~ okay, so the title sounds a bit corny, but I loved this book. For her last year of high school, Anna gets sent to a boarding school in Paris for American students. Yes, it's a romance story...but so much more. I almost didn't read it, but I'd seen so many great reviews by other bloggers, librarians, and teens that I decided to give it a chance...and I'm so glad I did...you should too!
  
  
• Pink by Lili Wilkinson ~ I've started reviewing books for VOYA (Voice of Youth Advocates) and this was one of the recent titles I reviewed...and I LOVED it. It reminds me a bit of John Green books (he's one of my all-time favourite authors) - honest, really smart, funny, real. Here's part of what I wrote: "Australian author Lili Wilkinson takes a witty, refreshing look at high school and adolescence that obliterates stereotypes along the way. The novel is in turn laugh-out-loud funny, endearing, and heartbreaking as Ava repeatedly steps into teenage social landmines - with unexpected results."
  
  
• The Ship Breaker by Paolo Bacigalupi ~ this year's Printz award winning book (the award for best YA novel of the year)...for good reason. It's going on my list of favourite dystopian novels (Maze Runner, Hunger Games, City of Ember, The Giver, Gone, Unwind...just to name a few!). I read this one in a day!
  
  
• Before I Fall by Lauren Oliver ~ I JUST finished this one...about half an hour ago. Needed some time to recover from reading it...but this is the book that inspired me to put up a post, it was THAT good. Before chapter one even starts, you know Samantha dies. She and her friends are in a car crash and she doesn't make it. Then Chapter 1 begins with a description of her day, leading up to the crash. I'm not going to lie - she's not a very likeable person. In fact, she's the kind of teenager that makes other teenagers' (and adults') lives miserable. But then the book gets interesting...because Samantha re-lives that same day over and over again...and piece by piece, she (and you) get a better sense of the big picture as she's forced to take another look at her life and the lives around her. Honestly, one of the best books I've read in a long while. It's on the Teens' Top Ten nominees list for this year, and I'll be shocked if it doesn't make it up in the top 5.
  

So, there you go...some reading ideas to get you started for the summer. I'm going to start working my way through the Teens Top Ten nominees...and I'll let you know what I think. Happy reading!