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Teen Book Reviews July 2008
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The Golden Compass
by Philip Pullman
Published 1997 by Del Rey Books
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The Golden Compass is the perfect read for fans of adventure and fantasy. Lyra Belacqua, a young girl living in an alternate world strangely similar to Earth, lives in Oxford University along with her “daemon” Pantalaimon. There Lyra learns of a new substance called “Dust” that her uncle, Lord Asriel, is researching at the University. To continue his research, he must travel to the northernmost part of globe. Just a little later, “Gobblers”, mysterious kidnappers, kidnap Lyra’s close friend, Roger Parslow. Lyra wants to look for him, but instead she is spirited away to London by Mrs. Coulter, right after being given a golden compass called an alethiometer.
In London, Lyra quickly grows suspicious of Mrs. Coulter, which leads her to flee Mrs. Coulter’s house. Lyra then runs into the Costas – a family part of a clan of people known as “Gyptians” who live in boats. Lyra meets John Faa, the leader of the Gyptians, who is planning a trip up north to look for the Gobblers. Lyra is immediately eager to join the expedition and find her friend, but cannot anticipate the challenges that await her during her quest.
Reviewed by Pooja
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Uncle Tom's Cabin
by Harriet Beecher Stowe
Published 1996 by Modern Library
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"So, you're the little lady that started the big [civil] war."
This famous statement that Abraham Lincoln said to Harriet Beecher Stowe pretty much sums up Uncle Tom's Cabin's place in American history. In the midst of the slavery/anti-slavery debate, this Northern woman comes up and writes an account of slavery through the slave's eye. This was unheard of at the time. For many people in the North, it let them see a whole new world. It rejected the southern idea that slaves were "well treated" and instead, sculpted a more accurate account of slavery in the South. Southerners objected to the book, saying that it was too biased and did not portray slavery correctly.
Even in the North, many believed that Uncle Tom's Cabin put down African Americans, with its negative portrayal of some characters, and also the main character's passiveness. However, this book really outlines the differences between Northern and Southern beliefs, even maybe fueling dissent on both sides, and as Abraham Lincoln put it, "started the big war."
Is this true? You decide.
Reviewed by Justin
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Elsewhere
by Gabrielle Zevin
Published 2005 by Farrar Straus Giroux
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Liz is killed riding her bike when a taxi cab hits her and throws her into the road. When Liz wakes from her coma, she is wearing white pajamas and is aboard the Nile, a cruise ship full of other people, mostly old, who also have on white pajamas. Thandi, her roommate, and Liz meet Curtis Jest, a musician, onboard the ship. The Nile docks at Elsewhere, the mirror of earth for the deceased, and Liz meets her grandmother Betty, who is unusually young. Betty explains to Liz that people age backwards in Elsewhere, going from death date to when they are infants and are shipped back to earth.
Liz is at first depressed, and then gets a job taking care of dogs, and she meets Owen, a good friend at first. She and Owen fight, and Liz decides to take the Sneaker Clause, an escape path for people to leave Elsewhere and go back to earth early. Midway, Liz decides to come back to Elsewhere and is rescued by Owen. Elsewhere is interesting, and poses thought. The plot flows easily, and everybody can relate to Liz in some way, except, of course, we’re not dead.
Reviewed by Kate
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13 Little Blue Envelopes
by Maureen Johnson
Published 2005 by Harperteen
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Ginny is, what she calls, a 'boring person.' But, everything about Ginny will change this summer, and it will be all because of thirteen little blue envelopes sent by her "runaway" Aunt Peg. Inside the first envelope are $1000 and instructions to buy a plane ticket. In envelope #2 are instructions to a specific London flat. In the third envelope, Peg tells Ginny to find a starving artist. And so on and so forth. So, what will happen to Ginny? Does she actually follow her aunt's directions and run off? It's very easy to get absorbed in this book. You'll find yourself wondering along with Ginny what could possibly be in the next envelope, and find it very easy to connect with her. Warning: it has a very optomistic ending. But even if you don't like that type of ending, consider this book. It's likely that you'll throw it down in the middle because you get bored, or you find it too confusing. But pick it back up, if you do put it down. This book isn't one you want to miss out on. This is a great choice for fans of The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants series. READ IT!!
Reviewed by Christina
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Black Boy: (American Hunger) a Record of Childhood and Youth
by Richard Wright
Published 2005 by HarperCollins Publishers
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Black Boy may be a novel from the earlier part of the twentieth century, but it is everlasting nonetheless. In “Part One: Southern Night,” it explores both the bright and the dark sides of life in the South after the Civil War, when African Americans led a difficult life, straddling the fence between slavery and citizenship, discrimination and acceptance, and in Wright’s case, suppression and release. Wright does not believe in being repressed by the white Americans and is constantly torn between societal norms and what he believes is right. As Wright grows into a young adult and moves to the North in “Part Two: The Horror and the Glory,” he explores his passion for reading and talent for writing, which turns out to be a form of liberation for his frustration. He begins by writing for a Communist magazine but discovers that it is not all that it promises. Learning more and more about the real world, although exposed to it at a very young age, Wright’s struggles are perennial. The story is written in simple language, although it becomes more philosophical in the second half, and is still an entertaining read for teens today.
Reviewed by Urja
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I Am the Messenger
by Markus Zusak
Published 2005 by Alfred A. Knopf
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Ed Kennedy has been told by his mother all his life that he’s a failure. As a nineteen-year-old cabdriver, Ed starts to believe her. However, his life suddenly changes when he stops a bank robbery. A couple days later, he receives a playing card in the mail; an ace of diamonds. On it are four addresses. When Ed goes to the houses that are written on the addresses, he finds four problems that he feels he has been chosen to solve, and therefore must. Later, he receives an ace of clubs in the mail; then, an ace of spades; and finally, an ace of hearts, and on these cards are more people in Ed’s town who he must help. On the card of the ace of hearts are the names of Ed’s friends. Through the last card Ed uncovers some of his friend’s secrets, and learns some things about himself at the same time. While Ed is solving the problems of others, along the way he is also solving his own.
I Am the Messenger is one of the best books I have ever read. Part fiction and part mystery, it keeps the reader guessing throughout the whole book. Markus Zusak writes with a witty voice that will interest teens and young adults, and any reader will leave with a sense of satisfaction—but at the same time wishing for more.
Reviewed by Sarah
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