Fallout by Todd Strasser

From Goodreads,

"What if the bomb had actually been dropped? What if your family was the only one with a shelter?

In the summer of 1962, the possibility of nuclear war is all anyone talks about. But Scott’s dad is the only one in the neighborhood who actually prepares for the worst. As the neighbors scoff, he builds a bomb shelter to hold his family and stocks it with just enough supplies to keep the four of them alive for two critical weeks. In the middle of the night in late October, when the unthinkable happens, those same neighbors force their way into the shelter before Scott’s dad can shut the door. With not enough room, not enough food, and not enough air, life inside the shelter is filthy, physically draining, and emotionally fraught. But even worse is the question of what will -- and won’t -- remain when the door is opened again. Internationally best-selling author Todd Strasser has written his most impressive and personal novel to date, ruthlessly yet sensitively exploring the terrifying what-ifs of one of the most explosive moments in human history."

Goodreads - Fallout

This book is told by Scott whose father decides to build a bomb shelter just in case something happens.  The neighbors all think he is crazy and overreacting.  They all think this until the sirens go off and they too are in need of a shelter.  As Scott and his family try to get in the shelter and seal the door, people start forcing their way in.  By the time the door is sealed someone is seriously injured, parts of families are left outside the shelter, and too many people are locked inside the shelter.

This book was both phenomenal and horrible at the same time.  Starting with the great things in this book is an easy task.  There are a lot of historical references in this book, which I enjoyed from a teacher's perspective, especially since I've never been a history buff.  I loved the whole suspense of a fictional bomb being dropped in the United States and families having to seek shelter.  This was something that was a real fear back in the early 60s, and I think it is great that Strasser took his childhood fears and twisted them into a book.  I think even today, this is becoming more of a fear that someone will get angry at the United States and will bomb us.  That made it a more plausible and realistic book.

The entire time I was reading this, (which I read in just a few short hours), I was hanging on the edge waiting to see what would happen with everyone locked in the shelter.  I was secretly hoping that everyone had just been overacting and that a bomb hadn't been dropped at all, but indeed I was wrong.  I'm a big over thinker and a huge fan of "what ifs" and this book kept me saying, "Well, what if this happened now?" and "What if this happened back in the 60s, how would life be different now?"  I love to play out the possibilities of what could have been and what could still be, and this book definitely allowed me to do that.

On the flip side of this book being great in the historical fiction sense, it had some content that I was very unhappy with.  When I purchase books from Scholastic I always hope that I'll be able to put them into my classroom library so that students can read it and we can discuss it.  Unfortunately, this book had some VERY inappropriate content.  The children in this book are just 11 or 12 years old, but they were very aware of adult content and happenings.  For example, one of the father's allowed Scott to have some wine (more than once) at their house, where on one occasion he got drunk.  Scott and his friend also talked about Playboys and looking at women, both of which I do NOT condone.  I was so disappointed in this content, because I know that some of my students would have absolutely loved this book.

Also, I felt like all the characters were poorly developed in this book.  I didn't feel like I really learned anything about any of the characters on a deep, emotional level.  They were all trapped in the shelter and I feel that in that situation they would have had a deeper connection and emotional state than what they all did.  Nobody really spoke to each other, unless they were yelling about what they should do.  I honestly feel that people would have talked to each other just to have something to do.  Just like the characters, the ending was poorly written.  The book ended quickly and didn't give any comment as to what happened months or years after the incident.  I would have liked some kind of closure to conclude the book and let me know that everyone was okay who was in the shelter.

This would be a good book for high school kids or anyone looking for a historical fiction novel.  I would have given this book 5 stars if it hadn't had the adult content, but because of that I'm dropping my rating to a 3.5.

Inside Out & Back Again by Thanhha Lai

From Goodreads,

"For all the ten years of her life, Hà has only known Saigon: the thrills of its markets, the joy of its traditions, and the warmth of her friends close by. But now the Vietnam War has reached her home. Hà and her family are forced to flee as Saigon falls, and they board a ship headed toward hope. In America, Hà discovers the foreign world of Alabama: the coldness of its strangers, the dullness of its food . . . and the strength of her very own family."

Goodreads - Inside Out & Back Again


Awards:

• National Book Award for Young People's Literature (2011)
• Newberry Honor (2012)

This book is about Hà and her life in Saigon during the Vietnam War.  Her father has been gone for years and every year they pray that he will return or is somewhere safe.  As the war progresses Hà and her family decide to flee Saigon and board a boat in hopes of finding a new and better life for them all.  After moving, Hà has to learn how to fit in while staying true to who she is. 

I read this book in hopes that it would be a good fit for my 4th graders and the book club they wanted to start.  This was a very quick read being that it is written in verse.  I really liked how real Hà was.  Her feelings about moving and about living in a new and foreign place was so genuine and raw.  I felt like a lot of kids could connect with her if they had moved around the world or even across the country.  A lot of kids know what it is like to be that "new kid" and Hà embodied the "new kid" character well.  Her character also gave me some insight into what it is like to be the "new kid", especially since that was something I never experienced while in elementary, middle, or high school.  

Something that left me a little unsettled was when the teacher called on Hà to read the alphabet and she did so successfully.  The teacher had the class clap and commend her for being able to say the alphabet.  I have very mixed feelings about this.  Some will think that the teacher underestimated the child and some will say that she was mocking the child by having the class clap.  No teacher sets out to humiliate or mock a child.  I don't think the clapping was called for, but I also have to remember that this was a totally different time period than now.  This part in the book is the prime reason teachers should evaluate and assess a child before having them do any work on a board or reading orally.  You don't want to humiliate the child if they can't read, but you don't want to underestimate their abilities either.  

I enjoyed this book and how short it was.  While it was an excellent book, my 4th graders will not be reading it for book club.  I feel like many of the students would lose interest in the book and they would find it boring and the wording difficult.  I give this 5 stars and recommend it to anyone looking for a quick read with some historical ties in it.

The Edge by Roland Smith

From Goodreads,

"Fifteen-year-old Peak Marcello hasn’t climbed since intentionally failing to reach the summit of Mount Everest. He’s been enjoying life at sea level, spending his time with the Two Peas—his younger twin sisters—and being a regular, law-abiding teenager. But then his old climbing buddies, JR, Will, and Jack, show up with an offer Peak may not be able to refuse: the International Peace Ascent. The billionaire Sebastian Plank is recruiting a global team of young climbers to make an inspiring, world-uniting documentary. Peak’s been chosen as the U.S. representative. A part of him wants to stay home and out of the spotlight. But another part is itching to get back out there. In the end, the itch has got to be scratched, and Peak, along with his mom, is helicoptered in to a remote base camp in the Hindu Kush Mountains.

But the trip quickly goes from good time to nightmare. Attacked by an unknown and unseen enemy, some of the climbers are kidnapped—including Peak’s mom.

Peak has no choice but to go after them."

Goodreads - The Edge

This book is a sequel to the book Peak.  In this book Peak has returned home and is trying to return to a normal life by spending lots of time with his sisters the Peas.  Peak returns to his mother's shop and finds the film crew who followed him on Everest.  He talks with them and quickly realizes he has been recruited to be a part of a Peace Summit.  He is very reluctant to join, but eventually decides to.  His mom tags along and they embark on a journey to Afghanistan.  Peak finds that Zopa is the climb master and that Zopa has an off feeling about the entire trip.  Things go awry and Peak and his friends must fight to survive the Peace Summit.

After I read Peak, I got excited after finding there was a second book.  I promptly found the book on Amazon and had it shipped as soon as possible.  I really expected this book to be about Peak making a second attempt at Everest.  It ended up that a Peace Summit is taking place and Peak has been recruited, along with his mother.  I really liked that this book forged more of a relationship between Peak and his mother, especially since Peak was with his father primarily in the first book.  We didn't see or hear a lot about Peak's mother, and it was good to have her truly incorporated into this book.  I really enjoyed that Peak and his mother went on this climb and encountered an enemy who was out to hurt them.  I felt like the enemy really created more of a bond between Peak and his mom.  I also loved the irony of the Peace Summit, but there was no peace on this climb.

A few parts of this book were very thrilling and exciting, but at others it was very dull.  I felt like this book lacked the pizazz that Peak did.  The book was very dull and boring at the beginning.  There was absolutely nothing exciting happening except for everyone meeting for the climb.  I found it hard to adjust from reading about snow capped mountains to reading about Peak climbing in the desert.  I felt like the most exciting part was when Peak and Ethan realized that people had been murdered.  The rest of this book was very dull and lacked any sort of enthusiasm.  I didn't feel like this sequel did the first book justice, and I wish that Peak had been a stand alone book.

I give this book 3 stars out of 5.  I would recommend this to anyone that has read the first book.  My brother in law is currently reading this book, so I'm excited to talk to him about his thoughts on the book.

Zero Day by Jan Gangsei

From Goodreads,

"Eight years ago, Addie Webster was the victim of the most notorious kidnapping of the decade. Addie vanished—and her high-profile parents were forced to move on.

Mark Webster is now president of the United States, fighting to keep the Oval Office after a tumultuous first term. Then, the unthinkable happens: the president’s daughter resurfaces. Addie is brought back into her family’s fold…but who is this sixteen-year-old girl with a quiet, burning intelligence now living in the White House? There are those in the administration who find her timely return suspicious.

When a national security advisor approaches Darrow Fergusson, Addie’s childhood best friend and the son of the president’s chief of staff, he doesn’t know what to think. How could the girl he’s missed for all these years be a threat to the United States? Still, at the risk of having his own secrets exposed, Darrow agrees to spy on Addie.

He soon realizes that his old friend is much more than the traumatized victim of a political fringe group. Addie has come with a mission…but will she choose to complete it?"

Goodreads - Zero Day

Addie was kidnapped as a young child, but returns eight years later.  Her return comes as a shock to her family and the media, especially since her father is the president preparing to run for a second term.  Everyone tries to adjust to Addie being home and Addie tries to adjust to life back in the spotlight.  While everyone is focused on helping Addie get better, Addie is focused on something and someone else entirely, which proves to be a risk to herself and those around her.

This book was so realistic and in sync with what is happening in today's world.  I feel like there is constantly an attack happening on someone, somewhere.  On top of the attacks, there seems to always be a group who is taking credit for what happened.  This book stayed aligned with the idea of a group plotting and carrying out attacks.  There were multiple terrorist groups that were in the book, which really stays true to what is happening in today's world.  I felt like this suspense of who would make the next move kept me turning the pages and reading.  I was constantly trying to piece everything together to figure out what Addie had in connection with Cerberus.  This realistic aspect and the suspense kept me moving forward to solve the mystery before the book ended.

I didn't care for the ending of the book or the way the chapters were written.  I really wish that the chapters had been labeled with who was "writing" the chapter and telling that particular part of the story.  It would have been a much easier way to keep up with characters in the book than having to remember and recall everybody's story and place in the bigger picture.  As for the ending of the book it ended so abruptly that I didn't know what happened to the "bad guys".  I was so frustrated that I didn't get a good closing with them.  The book was definitely written as a stand alone, but was also left with an open ending that could allow for a second book to be written.

This book was tough to read at the beginning.  I really had to push myself to power through the first third of the book.  Once I got past a certain point it really started to take off and get interesting.  The cliffhanger ending really dropped my rating.  I give this book 3.5 stars out of 5.  I would recommend this to anyone wanting a political suspense book.

Lost in the Sun by Lisa Graff

From Goodreads,

"Everyone says that middle school is awful, but Trent knows nothing could be worse than the year he had in fifth grade, when a freak accident on Cedar Lake left one kid dead, and Trent with a brain full of terrible thoughts he can't get rid of. Trent’s pretty positive the entire disaster was his fault, so for him middle school feels like a fresh start, a chance to prove to everyone that he's not the horrible screw-up they seem to think he is. 
If only Trent could make that fresh start happen.
It isn’t until Trent gets caught up in the whirlwind that is Fallon Little—the girl with the mysterious scar across her face—that things begin to change. Because fresh starts aren’t always easy. Even in baseball, when a fly ball gets lost in the sun, you have to remember to shift your position to find it."

Goodreads - Lost in the Sun

Trent was the one who caused a freak accident that left a kid dead.  Trent carries this burden around with him constantly and he feels that it was his fault.  Trent's personality changes with everyone and he starts to realize that he's pushing his friends away because of this freak accident.  One day, Fallon Little comes to his rescue and befriends Trent.  While Trent doesn't want to be friends with the girl with the scar on her face, he realizes she isn't giving him much choice.  They find common interests of movies and baseball, and they eventually learn to find who they are in the big world.

One of my favorite things in this book was the relationship that was built between Trent and his homeroom teacher.  He had a bad attitude about everything and his teacher was well aware of this.  She eventually gave him an out by asking him to water the plants for her.  They slowly built a silent relationship where Trent was able to do something for someone and be at peace.  I think he needed the calm that the teacher offered.   I just like seeing teachers portrayed in this light in books, because there are honestly some amazing teachers out there who can make a difference in a student's life.

This book definitely wasn't one of my favorites.  I felt that it was written in a chaotic manner.  Trent's personality was so unpleasant throughout the entire book.  He was constantly complaining, sulking, and yelling at people.  He clearly needed to be in counseling and I was furious that he wasn't in legitimate counseling throughout the book.  As a teacher, I would have referred him for counseling as soon as possible, just based on the fact that he was involved in a freak accident where a kid died.  I don't feel that a journal was really doing any damage on the counseling front.  I felt like that was all a very inaccurate portrayal because any kid who was involved in an accident on that level, who was also having anger problems, would need to be in counseling as soon as possible.

I would recommend this book to middle school students.  It definitely wasn't one of my favorite books, and I only give it 2 stars.  It just didn't have the magic I was expecting.

Peter Pan by J.M. Barrie

From Goodreads,

"Join Peter, Wendy, Tinker Bell, and a cast of other familiar characters on a fantastical journey in the Word Cloud Classics’ Peter Pan. Included in this volume are the famous novel — Peter and Wendy (1911) — about the “boy who never grew up” and his adventures in Neverland, as well as a lesser-known prequel entitled Peter Pan in Kensington Gardens (1906), which tells the story of Pan’s early years in London. This lively volume weaves a tale that is universally relatable and wildly popular for adults and children alike."

Goodreads - Peter Pan

This is the book/story that the Disney movie Peter Pan is based on.  It begins with the typical story of the Darling children going to bed while the parents prepare for a party.  Soon Peter arrives to retrieve his shadow.  The typical story takes off from there and the children soon find themselves flying through the night air to Neverland.

I was so excited to read this classic tale that inspired the Disney movie Peter Pan.  I love comparing the books to the movies so I can see how similar they are.  I loved how similar this was to the movie.  A lot of the same characters were present in both the book and the movies.  There were a few settings that were different than in the movie.  A lot of the book took place in Peter Pan and the Lost Boys' home.  Also, I don't feel that the Indians and Tiger Lily played such a prominent role in the book as they did in the movie.  I remember watching the live action version of Peter Pan in 2003, and I feel that if Disney Peter Pan and 2003 Peter Pan were mashed together it would be almost an exact match to the book.

I didn't like that this was written in an old English style.  The book was written in 1904, so naturally it has the same language from that time.  I found it very difficult to read because there have been so many changes in our language and the meanings of words.  I had a few students who were interested in read this book, but I knew there were multiple words that today hold a different meaning than it did in 1904.  I think I would have enjoyed this book more if it had been written in an updated text.  Also, in the second part of this book, Peter Pan in Kensington Gardens I was very lost and confused while reading it.  The story just seemed to be rambling and talking about Peter as a child.  I was so lost while reading it and really wanted to just stop because I was so confused.  I definitely wouldn't recommend reading the second section.

At times this book was completely and utterly confusing.  The language made it difficult to follow and the second part was a complete nightmare to read.  I give this 1 star simply because it was so difficult to read and follow.  If you enjoy reading older books then I highly recommend this to you.

The Book of David by Anonymous

From Goodreads,

"His secret is his downfall. A riveting, first-person tale in the tradition of Go Ask Alice and Lucy in the Sky.
The author of this fictional diary began writing for a class assignment, but soon it became much more to him. As the star player of his high school football team, he faces a lot of pressure and expectation. Not to mention the secret that he’s harboring inside. The secret that could change everything.

And as David quickly learns, nothing stays secret forever.

His innermost thoughts and feelings are chronicled in the diary he left behind."

From Goodreads - The Book of David

This book is written in diary format by a nameless male, which I will refer to as David based on the title.  David is required to start a journal for his English class.  This book takes place in Arkansas and centers around small town football.  As the story progresses we notice that David is having more and more tendencies and instances of attraction to a fellow male classmate.  David ends up becoming a football star after a football injury puts his best friend out of the game.  David struggles to accept who he is in the small town where being gay isn't an option.

This book is written in the same format as Go Ask Alice and Lucy in the Sky, both of which I had a lot of mixed feelings about.  I read this book and definitely enjoyed it more than the other two.  There was no drug use like in the other books similar to this.  This book seemed more "real" in my opinion and I think it is because it takes place in a small town in Arkansas, which is where I grew up and currently live.  There are so many people I know who were in the same position of David.  They were in high school and liked the opposite sex, but had to keep it a secret because of where we lived.  I read a lot of reviews of this book on Goodreads and they were very shocking to me.  People acted like teenagers aren't living in a situation where they can't come out because it isn't socially acceptable in the town they live in.  I think this book was a pretty fair representation of how people are and how they think regarding LGBT in the bible belt.

The only thing I disliked about this book is that it was very predictable.  I knew the format in which the book was going to end, and I knew that eventually all secrets would be exposed.  After a couple of these books the format just gets really monotonous and boring.  The language that was used in this was also kind of out of date as far as texting.  Most teenagers and young people text using full words and all letters.  No one uses "C U L8TR".  Instead we just type, "See you later".  I think that the author could have used full words instead of text slang.

This book would be a good read for high school kids, but I think some librarians might think twice before putting this in their library.  The only downfall was content and the fact that alcohol was openly used by minors.  I give this book 4 out of 5 stars.