Ten years ago, I’d say this novel would not be on the shelves of my high school library.  Boyfriends with Girlfriends is the story of two sets of boy and girl friends: Sergio and Kimiko are best friends that will be juxtaposed with Allie and Lance.  Each has character flaws that make them real teenagers dealing with their sexual identity.  Even today, I’m a little hesitant to add it to the collection, but here is why I will.  Alex Sanchez created characters with such unique identities.  And I’m not talking just sexual identities.  Lance is proud of being gay but doesn’t believe someone could be bisexual.  Despite his confidence, he’s never been in a relationship…yet.  His best friend Allie is in a lengthy relationship with  her boyfriend Chip, but she is starting to feel like it doesn’t right.  Kimiko is sure she’s a lesbian, but hasn’t come out to her parents and also hasn’t been in a relationship…yet.  Finally Sergio knows he is bisexual, was tragically dumped by his previous girlfriend, and is afraid to get into a relationship again.  Yes, the sexual identity issues are a huge piece of the story, but the reality is they are for every teenager.  Should I get into a relationship?  How far am I willing to share myself both physically and emotionally?  These are questions on every teenagers mind, despite their sexuality.  Add in the pressures from parents and school and this is very much a mainstream young adult novel.  Still, librarians need to know there is tension as the teens do explore each other physically.  In particular a scene between Sergio and Lance with very heavy petting.  But Sanchez gives voice to a group of students in our schools who are not represented in literature.  American society is becoming more aware of LGBT issues of late.  If you have a LGBT group that meets in your school, then this book should be on your shelves.

Strange things are happening at Suburban High School. Celia Balustrade is a shy, “not-it” sophomore, friendless in a new school.  With inclusion in the mysterious group, The Rosary, Celia finds security and acceptance by dressing in black, acting aloof and hanging with the select group.  Dangerous accidents begin happening to girls on the day before their sixteenth birthday.  Celia questions the coincidences and uncovers a conflict between the supernatural forces of the Kind and the rising power of the Unkind. Is Celia the cause of the curse or the does she have the special power to stop the accidents?  Romance, intrigue, danger and a death occur as Celia discovers her special gifts. Imaginative powers such as being able to travel through the pages of a book are an unusual twist  in this enjoyable read from Nathan Kotecki.  Recommended for high school and public libraries.

This biography in the American Icons series from Enslow Publishers is a pretty standard issue, 90 page read.  One formulaic piece that is debatable about its effect is the introductory chapter that outlines the whole story.  This may have been directed by the publisher, but author Marty Gitlin basically tells the story of the book in the 1st chapter.  The rest of the book continues in a chronological order with quite a few more details, but if a student only reads the 1st chapter, they will get to know the bulk of Tyler Perry’s story.  This reader became bored because I already knew what was going to happen next. Unlike other publisher’s biographies, there are no glossy pictures woven throughout.  This is 90 pages of text.

The choice of the publisher to do Tyler Perry was a good one.  Perry had a very hard life as a child and chose to forgive and work hard to accomplish all that he has attained.  This message is a constant backdrop in the story.   As Perry found more success with his writing and performing, he branches out into different venues – from stage to movies to television shows.  He is presented as a very passionate man.  The controversy around his character of Madea, whom Perry himself plays while cross-dressing as a woman, is interesting because not all of his African-American audience liked this strong, religious, blunt woman figure that shows up in so many of his plays and movies.  Some feel it is low-brow humor but most feel it adequately represents the mothers and grandmothers they themselves grew up with.

Ultimately, schools with larger African-American populations should see this biography circulate.  But even those that don’t have that population can purchase this for an example of a contemporary star who continues to push himself despite such a horrible past.  Messages of forgiveness and perseverence will be remembered.

An intelligent psychological thriller awaits a reader who opens the pages into The Ruining by Anna Collomore.  A Gatsby-esq yellow mansion adorns the cover of the book, eluding to the classic tale of love and loss — the title alludes to the same.  The question is, who will be ruined?   Readers first meet Annie.  Annie wants to leave all of her past behind.  At 18, she’s escaping from her home to become a nanny for a wealthy family in the San Francisco Bay area.  The Cohens look like they have it all.  Two young children, lucrative careers, and now a live-in nanny.  Annie’s primary job is to care for Zoe, the 3 year old daughter.  She is also getting to go to college on the Cohen’s dime.  Libby Cohen begins their relationship as wanting to be a confidant and friend to Annie.  But Annie’s little mistakes here and there allow Collomore to slowly peel away Libby’s fantastic life and show her to be the manipulator she is proud to be.  Poor Annie is the brunt of pent up emotion and she doesn’t know why.  Further literary connections to a classic feminist short story “The Yellow Wallpaper” foreshadow Annie’s eventual mental breakdown at the hands of Libby.  But Collomore has other twists and turns along the way that make this story one that students will want to read in one sitting.  There’s a love interest for Annie, as well as two back-stories that pressure both of the main characters and create tension throughout.  There are times when a chapter will be confusing and fast paced, as an attempt to mimick the chaos going on in Annie’s mind at the hands of Libby.  The only frustration lies in how fast and clean the ending comes.  It doesn’t follow the theme of distrust developed throughout the book and is a bit of a let down, even though it has a happy ending.  A better ending would have reflected Annie’s growth while still acknowledging that she’ll never fully be able to trust herself or others for a very long time.  Still, I believe this book will be passed from girlfriend to girlfriend as a great read.  Recommended for high school and public libraries.

Quicksilver is described by author R. J. Anderson as a companion novel to her 2011 novel Ultraviolet.  Having not read Ultraviolet, the test of this companion label would be if one could enjoy this new addition without the confusion of not already knowing characters personalities and back stories.  This is the story of Tori Beauregard and her quest to be free — free from a relay that is imbedded in her arm and could send her to a different world at any time, free from a guilt that is haunting her for what happened to a friend named Alison in the previous book, and free from a genetics company that is tracking her every move.  Tori has a special DNA that makes her more than unique.  As readers go through these months in her life, Anderson’s creativity in developing Tori for the audience is a wonderful amusement ride.  There’s action, re-action, drama, sensitive topics, surprise skills, and tension throughout.  Tori takes on a false identity and is constantly having to cover her tracks to keep her secrets.  Mischievous characters emerge that Tori has to work with but can not completely trust.  And of course there’s a love interest, but even this is extremely complicated.  Tori is unlike any other heroine I’ve read before.  She’s got a girl power and go-get-’em attitude coupled with computer/engineering skills that should make anyone stand in awe.  And all she wants to to have nothing of it.  To live a quiet life as a normal teenager.  There in lies the rub.

So can it be read as a stand alone?  There might be slight confusion in the references to her friend Alison who begins the novel in a psych ward and then again toward the end when Alison and Farraday reunite in a scene that has a lost sense of passion because of the missing backstory.  This sense of lost passion might also be due to the fact that by this point in the story a reader knows Tori feels no passion because she’s asexual.  Wow is right.

Quicksilver is recommended for those teenage girls who can handle stories with an edge, who want some twists and turns along the way.  It will be a great addition for those libraries who already have Ultraviolet and a possibility for those that don’t.

For the library that has How To Rap, adding How To Rap 2 is a natural and worthwhile purchase.  How To Rap 2 is a technical manual for the aspiring rapper.  Author Paul Edwards details out rhythm and vocal techniques as well as rhyming techniques.  Precise examples from real rappers clarify what can’t be explained in words or reinforce what is said.  Interwoven into every page are items of advice, information, and inspiration from rappers around the world.  The rapper just looking for ideas and “how-tos” will gloss over these parts and the reader who can’t get enough of the world of rap will soak in each idea. For the lay person who knows nothing of rap, the words of wisdom from specific artists will get ignored but they could make their way through Edwards technical explanations, much like one does with most college textbooks — it’s that technical.  As said, if How To Rap is checked out by patrons already, this will be a further lesson in the art of rap to enjoy.  High school audiences and above.

This installment in Abdo Publishing’s Contemporary Lives Series, Pink, is an easy to read, fun pick for students in grades 6 and up.  Rowell’s writing is formulaic, but with Pink as the center of attention, the content is still very interesting.  Even the chapter titles amuse a reader:  “Glitter in the Air”, “A Yummy Life”, and “Channeling Heartbreak”.  From this biography, a reader will learn that Alecia Beth Moore was born into a home that was “World War III” every day.  She spent time with kids who were considered druggies and punks.  At 13, her focus on music and natural instinct landed her jobs in clubs singing and being further exposed to drugs.  All of this, as well as dropping out of school, shaped the hard core, intense artist she became.  The 3rd chapter and beyond catalog the climb Pink would make between 2000 and 2013.  Chalked full of glossy pictures, text boxes of quotations from Pink, asides from the author of interesting tidbits, decorative background imagery of reflective lights on every page and less than 200 words per page because of the larger font used, this is a visual feast for pop-culture fans.  Still, the depiction feels honestly representative of a woman who had made a huge impact on the music industry.  As Pink compares herself to Cher, the reader knows Alecia will be in the business for a very long time to come.  Student researchers will appreciate the timeline, data page, and selective bibliography in the back of the text, as well as the author’s note for writing about credibility in their annotations.  This reader will be looking at more books in this set, including Lil’ Wayne, Bruno Mars, and Rihanna.

Wonderfully illustrated with watercolor, appropriate to the topic, this is a story about a little girl who is attracted to but afraid of the water.  Maybe for humor, the parents make Heather wear arm floaties any time she is near water, including visiting a farm with water wells and going to an art museum with a water exhibit.  The arm floaties help create a fear of the water that the parent then have to fix.  To the author’s credit, the parents do get into the pool with her for swim lessons.  Heather soon realizes she wasn’t attracted to water out of fear but out of love.  Making a pact with it, she says she’ll learn to swim.  Progressing quickly, the older Heather even joins a competitive swim team.  When she wins, all of their cheering makes them fall into the water together.  This small amount of humor helps send the message that kids need to become accustomed to the water and that water is fun!  An additional purchase unless your library doesn’t already have something on the subject.

Trouper is a touching story of a black lab who is rescued from the pound.  Told from the dog’s point of view, readers learn that he ran with a pack of mutts until caught by an animal control worker.  The beautiful watercolor cover of this picture book gives hints of the emotional pull this story will have with readers, but the reason to make this a read aloud is to work with kids on the reading of the artwork.  The causal reader will be enjoying and predicting the storyline and then forced to re-read when they encounter the cover art’s page within the book 3/4 of the way through as the dog says “Before you found me, I thought all the kids were mean, though I dreamed each night I might find just one who didn’t mind so much my hairy stump, who liked the way I lean on those I love.”  The careful reader will have seen in the artwork that Trouper is missing a back leg, but this reader did not!  And first I went back to read only the text.  I then realized that the picture is worth all those words too!  What a great reminder for kids.  Or maybe they do this naturally and I am the one who needed the lesson.  Regardless, E.B. Lewis’s brushwork is extraordinary and deserves just as much attention as the text by Meg Kearney.  Trouper is a worthy addition to any library.

Romeo Blue is the continuation of the story of Felicity Budwig and her intuitive mind, as first introduced in The Romeo and Juliet Code.  Fliss, as she is nicknamed, is a very smart young girl, probably much like her parents who are spies for America in World War II.  Now a year later, Fliss is set to learn even more about her quirky relatives, including how she has two dads.  Throw in there Nazi spies and the budding pre-teen romance between her and her best friend Derek, and this becomes a light-hearted read full of historical references that could serve to reinforce lessons on WWII and twists that are unexpected.  Definitely upper elementary/middle school material because of historical references and she’s got a teddy bear she still considers to be a companion.  At times it feels a bit old fashioned and may not sit well with students in this digital age.  Given the right framing or book talking, students could pick this up as a stand alone or will be happy to continue the story if they liked The Romeo and Juliet Code.  Recommended for elementary and middle school libraries.