Genre Pick "Michael Vey: The Prisoner of Cell 25" by Richard Evans

Evans, Richard P. Michael Vey: The Prisoner of Cell 25. New York: Mercury Ink/Simon Pulse, 2011. Print; ISBN: 978-1-4516-5650-3; Hardcopy Price: $17.99.

Annotation

Michael Vey is a young man with the extraordinary power to generate electricity. With this power comes the price of being hunted down by Elgen who is after children just like him.

Awards

• Was rewarded the Outstanding Science Trade Books for Students in 2012 by the NSTA for the “physical science” category.

Book Talk

Ever wanted the power to control electricity? Michael Vey has that power. A young man with Tourettes, he has always been an outcast among his peers. The power that he must keep hidden from everyone further complicates things. After meeting with a girl named Taylor who has a similar power, they form a clubs with his genius friend Ostin to form “The Electro Clan.”

Little does Michael know, things will get more complicated. Dr. Hatch from Elgen seeks to collect children like Michael called “Glows” and use them for his own purposes. After kidnapping Taylor and Michael’s mother, Michael is forced to track down Elgen and rescue them. Little does Michael know, Hatch is waiting for him and hopes to gain his allegiance through any methods necessary, including the use of Cell 25. How will Michael fair against an enemy that is prepared for him? What will happen when Michael Vey becomes The Prisoner of Cell 25? 

Book Trailer

 

Genre Pick "The Eye of Minds" by James Dashner

Dashner, James. The Eye of Minds. New York: Delacorte Press, 2013. Print; ISBN: 978-0-385-74139-2; Hardcopy Price: $18.99.

Annotation

Michael was an ordinary gamer/hacker in a virtual reality world living his life on the web. Everything changed when he soon finds himself playing a fatal game with the cyber terrorist, Kaine.

Awards

•  No Awards won as of yet.

Book Talk

What is real, and what is imaginary? The Eye of Minds is a constant twist and turn as the reader tries to understand this virtual world. The characters themselves appear just as confused.

Michael seemed like he knew what the virtual world is. He played there, hacked, and lived his life on the web. When a cyber terrorist named Kaine makes his move, he has been tasked by the government to track him down and retrieve something called the Morality Doctrine. Michael soon find out that what he thought was real turned out to be something else entirely. What will become of Michael has he tries to come to grips within The Eye of Minds? 

Book Trailer

Genre Pick "Virals" by Kathy Reichs

Reichs, Kathy. Virals. New York: Razorbill, 2010. Print; ISBN: 978-1-595-14426-3; Paperback Price: $8.99.

Annotation

While looking for the owner of old dog tags, Tory and her three friends come across a secret decades
old that could endanger all their lives. What they are unaware of is that in their quest, they will gain new and strange abilities on the way as they rescue a wolf-dog pup affected by a scientifically mutated strand of the parvovirus.

Awards

• Was nominated for the Agatha Award for the Children/Young Adults category.

Book Talk

Being a 14-year-old girl in a group of outcasts if tough. Tory’s life begins to get tougher the day she finds some old dog tags in the woods. She and her three friends track the dog tags back to an old murder that someone is willing to kill to keep hidden.

Things get easier however when they get their powers. After rescuing a wolf-dog pup from a research facility, Tory and her friends found themselves changed. They will soon discover that the pup was infected with a mutated parvovirus that changed them genetically, giving them dog like characteristics including super senses, speed, strength, and stamina. The group then decides to use their new powers to find out the truth behind the murder. Thus, their pack is formed… the Virals are formed. 

Book Trailer

Genre Pick "Planet Theives" by Dan Krokos

Krokos, Dan. The Planet Thieves. New York: Starscape, 2013. Print; ISBN: 978-0-7653-3428-2; Hardcopy Price: $15.99.

Annotation

The space battle ship, the SS Egypt, is under attack by the feared Termist alien race. Now it is up to young cadet Mason and his friends to do their part in combating this threat for the sake of their ship, and their home planet.

Awards

• No Awards won as of yet.

Book Talk

A hostile alien race called the Termists has invaded Earth. Humans have been at war with them for years and are now preparing for another assault as the SS Egypt carries a valuable weapon to combat the threat. The Termists have invaded the SS Egypt and taken its crew hostage, all save for a few children still hidden within the ship. Mason, one of the children is now in a race to save everyone on the ship, including the newly appointed captain, his sister. How will Mason survive this ordeal? What will he learn from these Planet Thieves about them and his role in this war?

Book Trailer

 

Genre Pick "Dark Life" by Kat Falls

Falls, Kat. Dark Life. New York: Scholastic Press, 2010. Print; ISBN: 978-0-545-17814-3; Hardcopy Price: $16.99.

Annotation

When the World has become to crowded, people began to become new pioneers, choosing to make their home in the ocean and grow resources for the people on the land. Ty is one of these young pioneers, living in the sea and dealing with all the problems that associate with it, including outlaws who begin to attack homesteads.

Awards

• Awarded the Juvenile Literary Award by The Friends of American Writers in 2011.

Book Talk

Dark Life… this is the name given to the people who live under the sea. Ty is one of these people. He is a young man with a special gift that allows him to stand out from the adults. When a gang of outlaws called the Seablight gang begins targeting homesteads, the town has been tasked by the government to catch them or risk their colony’s future. With this vendetta, Ty has teamed up with a Topsider Gemma who is looking for her brother. Together, they will track down the Seablight Gang, and discover what about them that makes them so special. In this part sci-fi, part western fiction that takes place in the ocean, readers will learn what it means to be, Dark Life.

Book Trailer
 

My Genre Pick: "Science Fiction"

This blog will be completed real soon. To everyone who have followed along for these past few weeks, thank you. I will complete this blog by doing book talks on eight books that are apart of my favorite genre, Science Fiction. Follow along with my blog as I go over different aspects of the science fiction genre from multiple settings and tropes including time travel, space opera, romance, and other areas of interest. Follow along with my book talks, and click on the "Quotes from Teens" link to see what young adults these days think of science fiction and reading in general.

Sicence Fiction Genre "Steampunk!: An Anthology of Fantastically Rich and Strange Stories" by Kelly Link and Gavin

Link, Kelly, and Gavin J. Grant. Steampunk!: An Anthology of Fantastically Rich and Strange Stories. Somerville, Mass: Candlewick Press, 2011. Print; ISBN 978-0-7636-4843-5; Hardcopy Price $22.99.

Annotation

Collected and edited by fantasy and science fiction writer Kelly Link and editor Galvin J Grant, these tales are the representatives of the steampunk genre which showcases its fantastic, strange, and surreal properties.  

Awards

• The novelette “Summer People” by Kelly Link has won the 2011 Shirley Jackson Award.

Book Talk #1

Time traveling watches, automatons, ghosts, thieves, murder, mystery, romance, and a talking chimpanzee. There is no limit to the imagination with the steampunk genre. Read more about these subjects an plenty more in this collection of short stories dedicated to Steampunk. 

 Book Talk #2

What is steampunk? Is it a Victorian fashion sense? Is it robots and steam machines? Steampunk is a genre all its own. This Anthology of Fantastically Rich and Strange Stories will entertain and entice you to get a better look at the genre. Read the many ideas that may be associated with steampunk, from time traveling watches, to super genius Chimpanzees. From all points of science and fantasy, steampunk is not just a genre, fashion sense, or anything associated with it. So then, what is Steampunk? Can you come up with your own definition?

Kelly Link interview

Multicultural Genre "All the Right Stuff" by Walter D. Myers

Myers, Walter D. All the Right Stuff. New York: Amistad, 2012. Print; IBSN: 978-0-06-196087-1; Hardcopy Price $17.99.

Annotation 

With his father recently passed away and his road to adulthood fast approaching, Paul took to working in a soup kitchen over summer. There, he meets Elijah, a cook with his own views on life, and what is known as "The Social Contract."

 

Awards

• As the cover of the book shows, it has won the National Ambassador for Young People's Literature.

Book Talk

Paul is a young man trying to figure out what he wants in life. Volunteering in a soup kitchen, he meets Elijah who introduces the young to the social contract and what it is all about. Throughout the book, Paul becomes introduced to new aspects of the social contract and encounters how it applies to the people around him, from a street tough named Sly, to a basket ball playing, teenage mother named Keisha. Elijah outlined the social contract for Paul in ways of taking another person’s ham sandwich, and creating soup. How Paul interprets the unorthodox explanations of this old soup kitchen employee remains to be seen. One thing is certain; Paul just might learn something about his society and himself in the end.

Interview with the author 

Graphic Novel Genre "Attack on Titan, Volume 1" by Hajime Isayama, translated by Sheldon Drzka

Isayama, Hajime, and Sheldon Drzka. Attack on Titan: Vol.1. New York, N.Y: Kodansha Comics, 2012. Print; ISBN: 978-1612620244; Paperback Price $10.99.

Annotation

Humanity is reduced to hiding behind walls to protect themselves from giant, man-eating, humanoid creatures known as the Titans. When one of the walls protecting them was penetrated by the creatures, humanity must now fight back against the Titans, assembling an army to take back their world.

Awards

•  Kodansha Manga Award in 2011 for the Shōnen category.

Book Talk

The Titans have almost wiped out humanity. To escape the giant creatures who appeared without warning, humans have been reduced to living behind three giant walls circling the areas where Titans have not yet passed. For one century, they have known safety and peace. Everything changed that one-day. The day the Colossal Titan came. “On that day,” humanity was “reminded” why they were behind that wall. 

Eren was there that day, when the Colossal Titan punctured the Wall Maria. At such a young age, he witnessed so much death and destruction, one death in particular haunts him for years. When old enough, he joined the military, becoming a member of the 104^th Trainee Corp as the humans begin to make a move. His vengeance against the Titans begins.

Despite being a Shōnen manga, the violence is more graphic and very detailed then most. The story itself is as dark as the illustrations show. Isayama allows readers to see the fear in the faces of the humans as well has get shivers from the realistically human-like details of the Titans. The manga's illustrations are meant to creep the reader out and dares anyone with claims of courage to read.

Trailer for the Anime

Chick-Lit Genre "Dork Diaries: Tales from a Not-so-Happy Heartbreaker" by Rachael R. Russel with Nikki Russel and Erin Russel

Russell, Rachel R, Nikki Russell, and Erin Russell. Dork Diaries: Tales from a Not-so-Happy Heartbreaker. New York: Aladdin, 2013. Print; ISBN: 978-1442449633; Hardcopy Price $13.99.

Annotation

 With the biggest dance of the year just around the corner, Nikki decided she wants to go with her friend Brandon. Drama and emotions unfold as the dance grows closer, and Nikki worries about whether or not Brandon will agree to go with her.

Awards

• This Book has yet to win any awards.

Book Talk

Nikki is an average, unpopular, unlucky teenage girl who is interested in a boy named Brandon. With a school dance coming up, she is hoping to go with Brandon, though there have been plenty of complications that made her feel as though it is a pipe dream. She outlines in her own words the confusion and pain of being a teenage girl with a crush and expresses herself in diary form. Page 40 gives us an example of her desire to reach out to someone and her (momentary) views on love.

“They’re doing a Miss Know-it-All Crisis Love Advise column, which means I have the entire month off.

Anyways, here’s my letter…

Dear Miss Know-It-All,

Why is love such a CRUDDY thing?

Help!

A Brokenhearted Dork!”

In this sixth installment of the Dork Diaries series, Nikki will deal with the stress of love in her usual dramatic over-the-top fashion. She will experience love, hate, jealousy, rivalry, and a wide spectrum of emotions, all explored as she tries to make sense of the concept of love. The reader’s will explore with humor and emotion her love journey leading to the school dance. 

Series Book Trailer (Meet Nikki Maxwell)

Urban Fiction Genre "Upgrade U" by Ni Ni Simone

Simone, Ni-Ni. Upgrade U. New York: Kensington Books, 2011. Print. ISBN: 978-0-7582-4191-7. Paperback; $9.95.

Annotation

Seven has been in a relationship with her boyfriend Joshua for some time now. As Joshua begins to become more obsessed with his dream of being an NBA star, will she begins to have feelings for another man named Zaire who she feels treats her better then Joshua.

Awards

•  2012 Street Lit Book Award Medal Winners

Book Talk

Seven is a young woman with her boyfriend, Joshua, who has dreams of playing in the NBA. She recently began to have mixed feelings about Joshua’s ambitions as his rising fame begins to create a rift between them. Soon, things take a turn for the worst for their relationship as Joshua begins to become a greater flirt towards the women around him. Chapter 14, page 130 outlines how much stress has accumulated in their relationship:

“Don’t try to twist this around on me. Girls come at me all day every day, but I’m here trying to upgrade you.”

“Upgrade me? I know you don’t think I’m on it like that!? I knew you when you had braces and a head full of naps. Don’t play with me.”

With Joshua’s pride getting the better of him and Seven having enough, she becomes curious about another young man named Zaire who has been interested in her for a while.  Seven is now on the edge of her emotional tolerance and is now in the process of deciding if maybe her relationship with Joshua is not ideal.

Book Trailer

Horror Genre "Zom-B City" by Darren Shan

Shan, Darren. Zom-B City: Bk. 3. New York: Little, Brown and Company, 2013. Print; ISBN: 978-0-316-21436-0; Hardcopy Price $15.00.

Annotation

B Smith, a teenage zombie who still holds onto her human mind, has just escaped a government facility in the third book of the Zom-B series. She must now walk the streets of London looking for a way to help the world's survivors in the aftermath of a zombie apocalypse.

Awards

• No Awards as of yet.

Book Talk

What if you were a teenager in the middle of a zombie apocalypse? What if you were one of the zombies? High school student B’s life was changed forever when her heart was ripped out of her body by a zombie. Now one of the few sentient zombies, she had recently escaped a government facility that studied her kind and now roams the streets of London. While out, she find answers to what happened to the world since the months of captivity, and comes to a decision of what to do next. Watch as she struggles to find her place in the world where living humans are pushed into a corner, and zombies roam free and hungry for human brains. How will B “survive” (so to speak) these events in this third installment to Darren Shan’s series? And in the end, will B have an important role to play in this new world as Zom-B? 

My Video Book Talk

Fantasy Genre: "The Giver" by Lois Lowry

Lowry, Lois. The Giver. New York: Houghton Mifflin. 1993. Print. ISBN: 978-0-440-23768-6. Paperback; $6.99.

Annotation

Jonas has recently become the "Receiver of Memories," and is now in training to keep the community's memories and experiences. Along the way, he will learn from his mentor, "The Giver" about bonds, community, and what it means to live and be free.

Awards

• A Newbery Medal Book
• An ALA Notable Children's Book
• ALA Best Book For Young Adults 
• Boston Globe-Horn Book Award Honor Book
• A Booklist Children's Editors' Choice
• A School Library Journal Best Book of the Year
• A Horn Book Fanfare
• The Regina Medal
• An IRA-CBC Children's Choice
• An NCTE Notable Trade Book for the Language Arts
• An NCSS-CBC Notable Children's Book in the Field of Social Studies

Book Talk

Who is The Giver? Who is the Receiver? What is the community and why are these people so important? All questions are asked in Lois Lowry’s award winning fantasy novel. Jonas has just recently become “a Twelve” and his community has just given him the occupation, the Receiver of Memories. He soon finds himself working with an old man who addresses himself as the Giver who bestows upon Jonas the memories and experiences of the community, both good and back. As Jonas’ world opens up to new experiences, he begins to realize the “perfect community” he felt he was apart of all his life is not as flawless as it seems. How will Jonas fair as the newly required memories allow him to begin to see his community in a new light?

My Video Book Talk