Along For the Ride

Ten teen novels are currently at the top of my reading list, as I prepare for "Books for the Beast" a discussion on young adult literature held at Margaret Edwards Day Roland Park School in Baltimore, Maryland. This discussion is attended by librarians, teens, and the authors of the books. It's on Saturday, October 22. I'm really looking forward to it!

The first book that I have read is Along for the Ride by Sarah Dessen. Auden, our heroine, truly seems to be "along for the ride" in her own life instead of in control of it. If you're familiar with the Volkswagen commercial .... "There are passengers in life and then there are drivers." Well, Auden is a passenger. She has spent her life studying and her brother, Hollis, has spent his life traveling. Auden suffers from insomnia.

One summer, she decides to visit her father, her stepmother Heidi, and her stepsister, Thisbe. That's when everything in her life changes. She meets Eli, a handsome mysterious boy with his own secret. Auden and Eli decide to go on a "quest" in search of Auden's lost childhood. Auden learns how to ride a bike and sees her self-absorbed father as he really is - both good and bad. This is a beautiful coming of age story that was a delight to read.

Girls in White Dresses

I absolutely loved this book! While I read this book, I was also reliving my twenties at the same time. Jennifer Close does a great job of capturing the experience. If you've ever lived on your own and/or kissed a lot of frogs, then this is the book for you.

The book follows the lives of three main characters, Isabella, Mary, and Lauren. The books starts when all of the main characters are in their twenties and trying to make sense of their lives, as well as trying to figure out what they will do when they "grow up." While they are living in New York City, they experience first jobs, dead end jobs, and deadbeat boyfriends. Throughout the course of the book, all of the characters make progress in both their careers and love lives. But this book doesn't have a happily ever after ending for all of the characters. The end of the book is not wrapped up in a neat little bow. This book is more like nonfiction and true to real life. There really isn't a plot per se, you are reading about the characters' lives and experiences. If you can relate to the characters (and oh boy could I!) this will be enough for you. But if you can't relate to them, it probably won't be enough.

Sometimes I felt like there were too many characters and too many stories and it was hard to keep track of all of the details. That is my only complaint about the book.

This is a book that you will either love or hate. I hope you love it as much as I did!

Turtle in Paradise

Turtle in Paradise by Jennifer L. Holm is about eleven-year-old Turtle, Turtle's mama, Turtle's aunt, and Turtle's cousin. Turtle and her mother live alone and they are trying to make ends meet during the economically difficult time of the
1930s. The Depression is widespread and good jobs are hard to come by. So when Turtle's mother, Sadiebelle, gets a job cleaning for a rich lady who doesn't like kids, she sends Turtle to stay with her aunt and cousins in Key West, Florida.

At first, Turtle doesn't like Key West. She doesn't like the heat and humidity. Her cousins are rough and tumble boys who refuse to let her take part in the Diaper Gang, a babysitting service that her cousins do for money. Her Aunt Minnie takes away her paper dolls after telling her that her Mama stole them from her so they were never her Mama's dolls to begin with. Her grandmother won't talk to her and her Aunt Minnie wants to get rid of her cat because her cat made a mess in her aunt's laundry.

But everything changes when Turtle and her cousins find buried treasure - a pile of gold coins. She and her cousins are rich. At last her Mama's boyfriend, Archie, is going to marry her Mama and the three of them will have a happy Hollywood ending. Or will they? A surprising twist ends this tale.

Emily and Einstein

What if you were a selfish manipulative jerk who died suddenly in a car accident? And when you met the angel of death realized that you weren't going to your heavenly reward? This is what happens to Sandy Portman. He begs for another chance and then ...

"Hello?" I called out, hoping the old man was nearby and could hop to and answer some questions. "Anyone there?"
A strangled series of barks echoed against the walls beyond the cage.
Panic ripped through me and I tried to sit up. But I couldn't move. I had no strength.
I groaned, which brought back the low howling sound. Was there a dog close by?
"Hello!"
The howl yelped into the space and I went very still, realizing that the sound was vibrating in my chest.
Panic surged, blood pumping through me, bringing adrenaline with it, and I was able to raise my head. That's when I saw the paws. White fur-covered paws attached to furry legs, traveling right up to the general vicinity of where I looked out.
(page 26, Emily and Einstein, Linda Francis Lee).

Yes, Sandy has turned into a dog. And not just any dog. He's a mangy stray. And he gets adopted by the wife he was unfaithful to.

This is a great story, fun, sweet, a little bit sad, sentimental, but not overly so. I highly recommend it!

The Peach Keeper

If you love magical realism like I do, you will love Sarah Addison Allen's books. Her books are reminiscent of Practical Magic by Alice Hoffman. If you haven't read Garden Spells or the Girl Who Chased the Moon by Sarah Addison, please be sure to do so. You won't be disappointed, I promise!

The Peach Keeper is Sarah Addison Allen's most recent book. What happens when the body of a man is discovered while the Blue Ridge Mansion is being renovated? Who is this man? Why was Paxton Osgood's grandmother so dead set against the renovation in the first place? Why does Georgie, Willa's grandmother, say only one word .... peach?

Paxton Osgood is smart, beautiful, and ambitious. What she isn't is married and she desperately wants to be. But how can she fulfill her dream when she is in love with Sebastian who's gay? Or is he?

Willa Jackson has returned to the small town of her roots. Yes, she had a scandalous past, but that's all behind her now, isn't it? Her life is well planned and controlled now.

To find out the answers to these questions and to have a delightful reading experience, read The Peach Keeper by Sarah Addison Allen.

Revolution by Jennifer Donnelly

"........ at times I almost dream
I too have spent a life the sages' way,
And tread once more familiar paths. Perchance
I perished in an arrogant self-reliance
Ages ago; and in that act, a prayer
For one more chance went up so earnest, so
Instinct with better light let in by death,
That life was blotted out - not so completely
But scattered wrecks enough of it remain,
Dim memories, as now, when once more seems
The goal in sight again"

What does this quote mean?

To find out, you need to know Andi’s story and Alexandrine’s story.

Andi is grieving the death of her younger brother, Truman.

Her mother is in a psychiatric ward and Andi is in Paris with her father.

They are in Paris because her father will have to find out if a heart that has been found in a glass jar is indeed the heart of Louis-Charles, son of Louis XVI & Marie-Antoinette.

Alexandrine, an actress during the French Revolution, just wants to protect and comfort Louis-Charles.

How do Andi and Alexandrine’s stories intersect?

To find out, read Revolution by Jennifer Donnelly.