Review of Fat Vampire by Adam Rex

Fat Vampire by Adam Rex. Balzer+Bray, 2010

While on vacation in the Poconos, fifteen-year-old Doug Lee is bitten by a vampire. Life is already hard enough, but now he will live forever in his short, fat body. He has resorted to feeding on cows and hiding under a poncho to avoid the sun. His best friend, Jay, is trying, without much luck, to help Doug adjust to vampire life. Sejal, an Indian foreign exchange student with an Internet addiction, moves to town, and Doug is smitten with her. However, Sejal does not have the same feelings for him! Doug is invited to join a secret vampire society and begins to be tutored by a shady, elderly vampire. He learns that Victor, a handsome football player, is the vampire who attacked him in the Poconos! All the while, Doug is being hunted by the host of a vampire hunter reality show and is trying to figure out how to reverse his vampire curse.

Fat Vampire is a hilarious, satire of the current common, popular vampire romance. I found myself laughing out loud at some of the antics of Doug, the main character and hero. Especially funny was the scene where Doug steals blood from his school’s blood drive, and the theater group attendance at a performance of The Rocky Horror Picture Show. Sejal’s reactions to American life and customs were, at times, hysterical. Author Adam Rex touches on many sensitive subjects, including sexual orientation, racial stereotyping, and Internet addiction. However, I felt that the sexual references were overused and many of them could have been eliminated. Additionally, there is a cliffhanger ending, which was disappointing. Instead of ending the book, there are a number of plausible endings presented, which leaves the reader to choose the one he prefers.

Overall, I found the book extremely funny and engaging. I recommend it for upper high school and public libraries.

Review of The Private Thoughts of Amelia E. Rye

The Private Thoughts of Amelia E. Rye by Bonnie Shimko.  Farrar, Strauss, Giroux, 2010.

Grandpa Thomas told his granddaughter, Amelia Earhart Rye, that all she would ever need is one true friend, but Amelia doesn’t have even one person she could call a friend. Then Fancy Nelson moves to town, and Amelia finds the best friend she has never had. There is only one problem…Fancy is black! Actually, this isn’t a problem for Amelia and Fancy, just for everyone else. Fancy and her mother live in a big, beautiful mansion owned by Judge Watson, and Fancy has the prettiest clothes Amelia has ever seen! It turns out that Fancy's beautiful mother is really Judge Watson's daughter!  While Amelia thinks that her mother doesn't want or love her, after her death, Amelia finds out what love really is.

This has to be the most delightful book I have read in a long time! Amelia, Fancy, and Grandpa Thomas are extremely well-developed and charming characters. Despite its early 1960s racial setting, the two girls become fast friends. I liked the added twist of having Amelia discover that Margo La Rue, with whom her father ran off, is actually a wonderful, caring woman, and the two develop a loving relationship. Having Grandpa Thomas, Amelia, and Jack, her brother, stand up to Sylvia, their cunning sister, and her greedy husband, Sam, was both funny and gratifying! Although the book is written for a younger audience, I think that it could be thoroughly enjoyed by any age group! It reminds me Fannie Flagg’s books, but written for a younger audience!  There is humor, drama, and small town nostalgia all rolled into this fabulous novel!

This book was a real page-turner. I HIGHLY RECOMMEND it for upper elementary, middle school, high school, and public libraries!!!!

Review of The Complete History of Why I Hate Her by Jennifer Richard Jacobson

The Complete History of Why I Hate Her by Jennifer Richard Jacobson. Atheneum, 2010.

In the summer before her senior year, Nola decides to take a summer job as a waitress at a Rocky Cove, a resort in Maine. Her sister, Song, is dealing with cancer, and while it is affecting the entire family, Nola is taking the brunt of the ordeal. While traveling on the bus to Maine, Nola meets Carly, who eventually becomes Nola’s roommate at the camp. While the girls bond quickly, Nola comes to realize that Carly is quite adept at manipulating and controlling people. When this character flaw begins to involve Song, Nola has to figure out how to release Carly’s hold on her and her sister.

While this book began slowly, the pace picked up around the middle and quickly sped to the end. The way that Nola allowed herself to have her identity nearly stolen by Carly was, at times, frightening. At one point, the two girls are so close that the other staff members referred to them as “The Cannolis”, a combination of Carly and Nola’s names.

Nola and her sister, Song, often create haiku for each other and also include them in their letters to one another in the summer. Carly picks up on this, and begins doing it, as well. The veiled implication that Carly has a mental disorder is never really brought out, but it soon becomes obvious that she needs to always be the center of attention, stealing others’ friends and even others’ ideas.

Girls will enjoy the book for its summer romances and friendships. I recommend this book for upper middle school, high school, and public libraries.

Review of Getting Revenge on Lauren Wood by Eileen Cook

Getting Revenge on Lauren Wood by Eileen Cook.  Simon Pulse, 2010.

Helen Worthington has been best friends with Lauren Wood since they were born; they were even next to each other in the hospital nursery. In the spring before ninth grade, Helen is accused of tattling on the boys who played the senior prank. Even though she is not the one who did turned the boys in, she is shunned and picked on by her classmates for the rest of the school year. When she discovers that Lauren is actually the one who caused all the trouble, she cannot believe it! Her family moves away for three years, and during that time, Helen’s appearance changes dramatically; she grows from an ugly duckling into a swan! When she has a chance to move back to Terrace and live with her grandmother, Helen decides to change her name and carry out a plan to get her revenge on Lauren Wood.

This book is reminiscent of The Mean Girls movies; only one of the characters who are mean is actually nice! Lauren and her friends Bailey and Kyla are the “popular” girls who accept the new girl “Claire Dantes” into their inner circle because they believe she has moved from New York, is pretty, and wears the right clothes. Lauren is the stereotypical rich, mean girl who believes everyone wants to be just like her. Her minions, however, become disenchanted with Lauren after a series of events that Claire ramrods. Claire is a delightful character who is so obsessed with Lauren’s downfall that she does not realize who her friends really are until it is almost too late.

The whole theme of the story is seeing people for whom they really are, and this theme is carried out beautifully in the plot. This book is humorous, and some of the characters are really sneaky. The twist at the end will surprise readers! I recommend

Review of Delirium by Lauren Oliver

Delirium by Lauren Oliver; Harper, 2011. 

Sixty-four years ago, the United States President and his consortium proclaimed "amor deliria nervosa" to be the dealiest of all deadly things.  They declaired love a disease. Fifty years ago, the government closed the U.S. borders, and forbade physical contact of uncureds of the opposite sex.  The military began guarding the borders; every sanctioned and approved community must be inside a border.  Travel between communities would only given with written consent of the government at least six months in advance.  Phone conversations are monitored and people are constantly being watched.   Many things, including oil, are rationed.

Forty-three years ago, scientists perfected a love cure, to which every teenager must submit on or shortly after their eighteenth birthday. Sympathizers for Uncureds are either executed or locked in The Crypts, a combination of a prison and mental institution, to serve a life sentence.  People who live in the unregulated land between recognized cities and towns, called "The Wilds", are known as Invalids because they have not been cured.

 

On September 3, Lena will turn eighteen years old and cannot wait for her cure.  She hopes that the cure will help her to overcome the extreme sadness she feels for her mother, who committed suicide when Lena was six years old.  However, she is not looking forward to Evaluation Day, where a panel of four or five people will assess her and assign a score which determines her future job or college and future mate.  Lena's Aunt Carol tells Lena that she probably won't be friends with her best friend, Hana, after they undergo the cure because they will probably not remember each other and will not have any more emotional ties. 

Everything changes when Lena meets a boy named Alex, who serves as a facility guard.  At first, they are friends, but eventually, the relationship blossoms into something much more.  Ulitmately, Lena and Alex plot to escape to The Wilds, but are caught, and Lena is imprisoned in her aunt and uncle's house, awaiting her cure, which has been moved up and will happen almost immediately.

What a great dystopian read this book was!  It reminded me of a modern Shakespeare story, where love between two young people is forbidden and they must meet secretly.  The cure hanging over Lena's head is like a death sentence in the distance.  The characters are sketched out brilliantly; the Cureds are portrayed as emotionless zombies, unable to even feel love for their own children and family members.  Lena and Hana are fun-loving and full of life.  To know that these traits will soon be extinguished by The Cure adds an amount of doom and gloom to the story.  The scene which features a visit to The Crypts reminds me of the horrifying descriptions of the old mental wards from the early 1900s.  Lena waiting for Alex to come to her rescue near the end of the book seems eerily similar to the rescue of Queen Guinivere by Lancelot in "Camelot".  She is the damsel in distress!

Fictional quotes from The Safety, Health, and Happiness Handbook, 12th edition, (also called The Book of Shhh), and other "government publications" begin every chapter.  I feel like the book is a real work of art from beginning to end.  It is due to be published on February 1, 2011.  I HIGHLY RECOMMEND this book for high school and public libraries!

Review of The Wish Stealers by Tracy Trivas

The Wish Stealers by Tracy Trivas.  Aladdin, 2010.

Sixth-grader Griffin Penshine loves to make wishes!  That is until she is unwittingly tricked by an old woman into accepting a box of “lucky” pennies. The pennies actually belong to people who made wishes on them and threw them into a fountain. The old woman stole the pennies from the fountain, and, with them, the wishes, which makes her a “Wish Stealer”. In order to break the “Wish Stealer” curse that the woman put on her, Griffin must somehow either return the pennies to their owners or to others in need of the same wishes. This leads her on many adventures, including using alchemy for a science project, giving a puppy to an elderly lady, and becoming a bass guitarist in a rock band.

The Wish Stealers is a quick and cute read, perfect for upper elementary and middle school students. There is just enough of a scary element in the book to keep the reader on the edge of his seat without becoming gory or violent. Griffin’s last name, “Penshine” was a smart choice. It is a play on shiny pennies, which is the focus of the book; it also happens to be the color of Griffin’s hair! Each chapter in the book ends with a quote, which serves to tie the story together. One drawback of the plot is the stereotyping of the mean girls in the story; as usual, they are rich, spoiled, and beautiful. Griffin, on the other hand, is a likeable character and is determined to do what is right. She has a wonderful relationship with her grandmother; it is this relationship that adds a twist to the end of the story. Unfortunately, some of the scenes in the story are a little contrived, and the ending is too tidy. Despite its flaws, younger students will enjoy reading what Griffin has to go through in order to save her family and friends.

I recommend this book for upper elementary, middle school, and public libraries

Review of Slayed by Amanda Marrone

Slayed by Amanda Marrone; Simon Pulse, 2010.

Daphne Van Helsing has been hunting and killing vampires since she was twelve years old. Her family is descended from Abraham Van Helsing, the legendary vampire hunter. Daphne would love to be able to live in one place for a long time and make friends. Instead, she has been sketching imaginary friends in a notebook while her parents drag her all over the country for “vampire gigs”. She is surprised one night to find Kiki Crusher, formerly aka Maybelle Crusher, daughter of the lead singer of “The Disco Unicorns”, in a bar in Bristol, Maine. Kiki inadvertently saves Daphne’s life and becomes a vampire-hunter apprentice. Kiki begins on-the-job training, and she and Daphne discover that the vampires in Bristol have morphed into super-human vampires, which are much more difficult to kill. The Van Helsing’s rivals, Nathan Harker and his handsome son, Tyler, descendents of Jonathan Harker, another famous vampire hunter, arrive in town, intent on taking jobs away from the Van Helsings. Will the vampire hunters be able to get along and rid the town of the killer vampires, or will they perish in the process? However, there are more sinister forces at work, and evil is filtering into Bristol!


Amanda Marrone has done a terrific job of getting into a teenage girl’s head to describe how Daphne feels about vampire hunting. The descriptions of staking and decapitating vampires are quite bloody and gory. Daphne is torn between carrying out her duties and wanting to give it all up to be a “homebody”. There were lots of vampire facts in the book, which gives readers a crash course in their background. I had no idea that a vampire actually has to drink all of a human’s blood in order for them to actually become a vampire! A little nibble just won’t do it! This book was really funny, even though there was so much violence in it! Kiki is a real hoot, and she stepped right into the vampire hunter role like she was born to it! She pulls no punches and even becomes the bff that Amanda has never had!

Slayed is a funny twist on scary subject! I recommend this book to high school and public libraries!