BOOK REVIEW: Outside In by Karen Romano Young

New from the author of The Beetle and Me comes this fascinating portrait of coming of age in the Sixties. Young introduces an unforgettably spirited heroine--almost-13-year-old Cherie Witkowski--and her equally memorable family.

I really liked 'Outside In' by Karen Romano Young. I wasn't so sure about that in the beginning as it took a bit to get into the main character's head.  But once I found 'that space' it was an amazing read from there.  Set in the 60's, 'Outside In' shows the world through the eyes of almost 13 year old Cherie Witkowski.  Cherie learns more about the world, good and bad, than she ever intended when she takes over a friend's paper route.  Vietnam, Martin Luther King Jr.'s assassination, Robert Kennedy's assassination, the disappearance of a 13 year old girl from a local community, Apollo 10.  As she tries to figure out how the news affects her world she is also facing changes at home and in her community.  Losing her best friend, Dave, to the other boys and gaining a new baby in her own home.  I think Young did an amazing job of taking 'preteen angst' to a different level than most young adult fiction I've read.  Set during a rich time of historical significance that changed so much about the way American's saw themselves and the world, Cherie also faces her own changes from child to teenager.  Everything she encountered in her home, her neighborhood, and the headlines she delivered changed her perspective of how she saw herself and those around her.  I truly enjoyed the depth of this story that I believe any adult reader can take something away from it.  It's refreshing to see a young adult novel that does not pander to the younger reader but instead brings the reader to a new appreciation of society (and themselves) in terms anyone can understand.

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About Karen Romano Young

Karen Romano Young is a science expert and speaks to schools all over the country. She has written numerous books for children, including the National Geographic Kids Science Fair Winners series and Try This!: 50 Fun Experiments for the Mad Scientist in You. Before beginning to write her own science books she worked at Scholastic News, the classroom magazine. Karen has also written about science for magazines and books like Cricket, National Geographic World, and the Guinness Book of World Records.

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BOOK REVIEW: No More Dead Dogs by Gordon Korman

Nobody understands Wallace Wallace. This reluctant school football hero has been suspended from the team for writing an unfavorable book report of Old Shep, My Pal. But Wallace won't tell a lie -- he hated every minute of the book! Why does the dog in every classic novel have to croak at the end?
After refusing to do a rewrite, his English teacher, who happens to be directing the school play Old Shep, My Pal, forces him go to the rehearsals as punishment. Although Wallace doesn't change his mind, he does end up changing the play into a rock-and-roll rendition, complete with Rollerblades and a moped!
 
Wallace Wallace does not lie. No seriously. He. Does. Not. Lie. Which, besides the point of who names their kid Wallace Wallace?!?, is a problem. When given an assignment to write a book review of Old Shep, My Pal for school, he writes it exactly how he feels. The problem is that it's the teacher's favorite book. Ever. The problem? The dog dies, like every dog on every book cover of any book about a dog. That bother's Wallace and he isn't afraid to say so. Honestly so.

'No More Dead Dogs' is an ingenious tale of a young man and his truthful to a fault mindset. I enjoyed the premise of the book and the twists and turns (albeit sometimes unbelievable ones) that bring it to the happy ending that Wallace wanted from the beginning. As an adult reader I wouldn't have minded more back story on his truthfulness. Well and some of the twists of the story that just really would not have happened in real life left me boggled. But as a young adult novel I think it's amazingly conceptualized and written.

Though really...Wallace Wallace? 

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 About Gordon Korman

Gordon Korman is a Canadian American author who has written over 80 children's and young adult fiction books. A number one The New York Times Best Selling author, he has sold more than 17 million books.


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BOOK REVIEW: 42 Miles by Tracie Vaughn Zimmer

JoEllen’s parents divorced when she was very young, so she was used to splitting her time between them, shuttling four blocks from one Cincinnati apartment to another. But when her dad moved to the old family farm last year, her life was suddenly divided. Now on weekdays she’s a city girl, called Ellen, who hangs out with her friends, plays the sax, and loves old movies. And on weekends she’s a country girl, nicknamed Joey, who rides horseback with her cousin, Hayden, goes fishing, and listens to bluegrass. So where do her loyalties lie? Who is the real JoEllen? Linked free-verse poems, illustrated with a quirky array of found objects and mementos, create the vivid, realistic portrait of a young girl at a defining moment in her life.

The premise of '42 Miles' by Tracie Vaughn Zimmer was good.  The writing was actually very good.  The difficulty is with the way it was laid out.  It was very difficult to follow the story at times.  I think the attempt to mirror a book of poetry while remaining prose created a conflicting story line.  The way the pages jumped to different ideas while at other points tried to tell a chronological story left me feeling a little out of the loop.  The story and writing has amazing potential but fell flat of what the intentions were.
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About Tracie Vaughn Zimmer

Tracie Vaughn Zimmer is an award-winning children’s author who graduated from The Ohio State University and attained her master’s degree at Miami. Currently, she teaches at her alma mater in the Lakota Local School District near Cincinnati, Ohio. Writing in a variety of genres from historical fiction and poetry to novels-in-verse, Tracie’s six books have received critical acclaim including starred reviews as well as the Schneider Family Book Award. In addition, Tracie has created hundreds of guides for children’s and young adult literature that are available for free on her blog. She has presented at NCTE, IRA and ALA as well as schools and conferences across the country inspiring teachers, librarians and students with her infectious passion for literacy.

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