Reading Rants! Out of the Ordinary Teen Booklists!

There’s nothing I like better than a good survival story, and debut author Watt Key has penned a fantastic one! It’s 1980, and Moon Blake has never been to school, had a sleepover, or eaten at McDonald’s. That’s because his Pap, a disgruntled Vietnam vet who distrusts the government, has raised him entirely in the deep woods, far from any cities or people. Moon knows how to shoot and skin a deer, and how to make an impromptu shelter out of bay boughs and pine needles, but has no clue how to make small talk or interact with anyone other than his Pap. So when Pap has an accident and subsequently dies, unsuspecting Moon is left to his own devices, and is quickly taken into custody by the state. However, he surprises everyone when he not only busts out of the toughest boys’ home in Alabama, but takes a busload of boys with him, determined to live free or die trying! Alabama Moon is both a deep-hearted adventure story and an amazing character study of a unusual boy you will soon come to root for. This book was brought to my attention by the teens at the 2007 BBYA Teen session at the ALA Annual Conference in Washington, D.C., who all had good things to say about it. So thanks, guys! I loved it!

When is it okay to tell a lie? When a friend asks if she looks fat in that miniskirt and you shake your head no? When a stranger asks how old you are online and you write 18 when you’re only in eighth grade? How about telling your parents you’re at a sleepover at a friend’s house, when you’re really out partying with senior boys from another school? Anna, Emma and Mariah say they’re having a sleepover in order to hang out with unsupervised older boys they know their parents wouldn’t approve of. Emma even sees it as doing her folks a favor, because “parents don’t really want to know the truth. They just want to know that everything is perfect…so they can concentrate on their own problems.” But when the three friends are unexpectedly busted, they quickly come up with a story of being attacked by a vagrant to cover up their first lie. At first, their parents believe them and everything is cool—until someone is actually arrested for assaulting them. Now, each girl has to decide for herself if she can continue to lie when an innocent man’s life is at stake. What makes matters worse is that something really bad actually DID happen to Emma that night. But she can’t even begin to deal with her feelings about it until they all own up to the truth. Dana Reinhardt’s introspective and richly characterized novel, told in a trio of realistic teen voices, reminds you that even actions that seem harmless at the time can end up having devastating consequences. For more reads about how hard it is to come clean, try What Mr. Mattero Did by Pricilla Cummings or Friction by E.R. Frank.

Oh, Harry, I’m gonna miss ya.

Like the rest of the country, I’ve been holed up with HP7 for the last few days, dying to know what happened to the Hogwarts crew, while simultaneously hoping this last helping of Harry would never end. I’ve not reviewed any of Harry’s adventures on RR before, as the books are so popular and well known, that there would have been little I could add to the enormous body of critical writing that already surrounds the best-selling series. But with the end of a series that has captivated teen imagination for as long as RR has been on the ‘net, I feel moved to add my two cents at last. In Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Harry continues the quest that he and Dumbledore began in Half-Blood Prince: find the remaining horcruxes that contained the tattered remnants of Voldemort’s black soul and destroy them. Joined by Ron and Hermione, Harry and his two BFFs try and puzzle out the obscure clues left them by Dumbledore about where to find the remaining cursed curios. In addition, Harry learns about a trio of objects known as The Deathly Hallows that, possessed together, are rumored to be able to defeat the Grim Reaper himself. Are these objects related to Harry’s quest? Can he use them to destroy the horcruxes? Or are they just a false trail laid by Dumbledore to confound Voldemort, who is hot on Harry’s tail? I can say little more without spoiling the ending for all four of the folks who haven’t read it yet, even though some eager beavers have already posted the entire plot summary on Wikipedia.

Though the outcome of the final tome is often in doubt, one thing remains constant—its length. Like it’s predecessors, Deathly Hallows is a doorstop of 759 pages. And I have to say, about 500 of those pages felt like filler. But when the action comes, it comes hard and fast and violent, and several key players in the Harry Potter epic (not unsurprisingly) lose their lives. I’ll admit, I shed a tear or two. But, the ending, o the ending! Finally, finally ALL is revealed, including the most hotly debated topic since the end of Book 6: whose side is Snape really on? Suffice it say it was an immensely satisfying conclusion, with an epilogue that some may find a bit sentimental, but one I thoroughly bought into. Mostly because it was just really, really hard to tell such a good friend good-bye. I suppose I’ll just have to order up all the audio books (which I’ve heard are stupendous) and start all over again! I hope you’ll do me the honor of posting some of YOUR Harry Potter remembrances and reviews here on RR. At some point, comments may contain spoilers, so be aware of that fact before clicking on through!

Now, what on earth is J.K. Rowling going to do with all her free time??

Sixteen-year-old New Yorker Max Whooten is angry and bored. (He’s mostly angry because he’s so bored, and people are so stupid. I can sympathize.) His whole summer is one big nothing, until his ancient cat, Mozart (aka “Crappy” due to his inability to utilize the litter box) finally kicks the bucket. Max’s mother, in a fit of conservationism, decides to forgo the usual options and instead sends Max, along with Mozart’s body, to upstate New York, where Mozart can be naturally laid to rest in his hippie Aunt Ginny’s backyard, and Max can learn how to get a life and get his anger under control. In Woodstock, Max discovers Kurt Vonnegut, first love, and the power of poetry. He even has an epiphany, which, despite popular belief, “doesn’t hurt at all.” This slim summer comedy reminded me of Blake Nelson’s equally spare The New Rules of High School. Contrary to the ummm, unrestrained title, (which refers to Max’s anger management problem, get your mind out of the gutter!) this is just a low key, humorous look at what it’s like to be a horny, smarter-than-average teenage boy who just wants the world to cut him a little slack. Clocking in at under 200 pages, this is also one read you could probably finish in an afternoon on the couch instead of watching yet another Pimp My Ride marathon (and it would probably be more interesting, too!).