Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe

Saenz, Benjamin Alire.  Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe.  2012.  Simon Schuster, New York, New York.

Hardcover, $16.99.  ISBN: 978-1-4424-0892-0.

Book Talk:
Aristotle, or Ari for short, is out of school for the summer.  Fifteen years old, and he can't swim.  He has trouble with words, expressing himself, and figuring out who he is.  He constantly questions why his brother is in prison, he was so young when his brother was arrested, and he remembers nothing.  All traces of his brother have been erased forever from the house, and no one is allowed to speak his name. 

And then, Ari meets Dante.  Dante is everything Ari is not.  He is sure of himself.  He loves art and poetry.  He can easily put into words everything he is feeling.  Dante has a unique perspective on life.

Ari and Dante meet at the swimming pool the first day of their summer vacation after their Sophomore year of high school.  They become fast friends and spend every day all summer together, each one bringing out the unique qualities and strengths of the other person.

Between the two of them, can Ari and Dante figure out the meaning of life?  Can they discover the hidden truths within themselves that will make them into men?  Will they ever manage to find their way in this large and confusing universe?

Author's Web Site:
http://faculty.utep.edu/Default.aspx?alias=faculty.utep.edu/bsaenz

Reviewer's Note:
I loved this book no end.  My book talk doesn't even begin to do justice to this amazing piece of literature.  I was spell bound by the story.  The story is so big, so bold, and yet so lovingly told.  I fell in love with the characters.  I identified with all of them, and I love how the parents are portrayed.  (Perhaps because I am a parent myself!) I appreciated the fact that the parents weren't portrayed as autocratic idiots, clueless jerks, or unloving creeps.  Instead, they were portrayed as humans.  People who struggle with their own emotions, and with their own fears, while dealing with the issues of raising a teenager.  In many ways, this was a coming of age story for the parents as much as it was a coming of age story for the boys. 

The quality of the writing deserves a paragraph unto itself.  I was absolutely enchanted with the story.  Written in a simple, poetic, haunting style, I was drawn into the world of Ari and Dante and held there, spell bound, enjoying my peek into the depth of this story.  I believe I was enchanted! 
 
-Bettina

Book Awards:
Starred Reviews from Publisher's Weekly, School Library Journal, and Kirkus.
ALA Notable Children's Books
Bank Street Best Books of the Year
Kirkus Best Young Adult Book
Lambda Literary Award Finalist
Pura Belpre Award
School Library Journal Best Books of the Year
Texas Tayshas High School Reading List

The Grimm Legacy

Shulman, Polly.  The Grimm Legacy.  2010.  G.P. Putnam's Sons, New York, New York.

Hardcover, $16.99.  ISBN: 978-0-399-25096-5.

Book Talk:
What if....
Fairy Tale magic was true?
There existed a library that held all of the known fairy tale treasures in the world?
You were to be offered a job working in this same library?
You were entrusted with the key to the Grimm collection, which houses the most powerful of all the fairy tale treasures?

Fifteen year old Elizabeth Rew has had a rough year.  Her father pulled her out of her old school and enrolled her in the local public school because he has to pay tuition for her stepsisters.  With money as tight as it is, Elizabeth has had to give up dance lessons, her school, and her friends.

When she writes a paper about the Brothers Grimm, her Social Studies teacher finds her to be the perfect candidate for a job as a page at the New York Circulating Material Collection.  People borrow materials from this collection for several days to study the artifacts of the past.

Within days of her employment at the library, Elizabeth discovers the Grimm Room - a collection of very real magical fairy tale items.  Any employee is allowed to check materials out of the collection once they are found to be trustworthy.

Happy to work in a mystical place with wonderful new friends, Elizabeth is content in her new job until she discovers that items have been mysteriously disappearing from the Grimm Collection.  A mysterious flying bird has been chasing pages around New York.  Even more disturbing, two pages have recently disappeared with no explanation.

Is the thief a member of the staff?  Why is the bird chasing the Pages?  Can Elizabeth and her friends find the answers before they become the next victims?

Author's Web Site:
http://www.pollyshulman.com/

Reviewer's Note:
Awesome, enchanting book!  I loved every minute of the read.  The sub-plots surrounding the growing friendships between the characters, was an unexpected highlight! 

Wonderstruck

Selznick, Brian.  Wonderstruck. 2011.  Scholastic, Inc.  New York.

ISBN: 978-0-545-02789-2.  Hardcover, $29.99.

Book Talk:
Ben is a young boy who lives in Minnesota.  After his mother died last year, he found himself orphaned and living with his Aunt and Uncle.  When he sneaks back into his old house late at night, he is struck by lightning while attempting to make a phone call.  The result of the lightning strike is that Ben is now deaf.  Confused and desperate to find some link to his mysterious father, Ben runs away to New York City to seek out any information he can find.

Rose is a young woman who lives in the big city.  Confined to her house because she is deaf, she yearns to be free.  Taking a chance, Rose flees her house and runs away to New York City, searching for something... but she doesn't know what.

Telling two simultaneous stories, separated by 60 years, the story will leave you wonderstruck as you realize how Rose and Tom's personal stories begin to weave together and become one wonderful story.... all tied together by a museum in New York City.

Author's Web Site:
http://www.theinventionofhugocabret.com/about_brian_bio.htm

Zombigami

Nguyen, Duy.  Zombigami: Paper Folding for the Living Dead.  2012.  Sterling Children's Books.

ISBN:978-1402786464.  Spiral Bound, $8.95.

Book Talk:
The Zombies walk amongst them... your very own creations bring the zombie horror land to life.
This book includes directions on how to fold Zombie creations ranging from a withered hand to a Thriller (aka: Michael Jackson's Thriller).  Create a ghastly crew of 13 original zombies.  The book includes 50 origami pages and a poster of all 13 finished zombies.

Author's Web Site:
This particular author keeps no web site for his works, although he has published many origami books.

Reviewer's Note:
This is a charming book, with the potential for some excellent Halloween programming for teens, whether it be in a library program or an after school club.  The folding directions in the front are clear, concise and easy to follow.

However, and this is the important part: some of these folds require older, more patient fingers.  Some of the characters required 3 separate sheets of paper that were folded individually and then joined together.  Many of the folds were more difficult than I expected for a book aimed at children ages 8+.

I believe this book, and these characters require tweens, or even young teens to best accomplish them.  Younger children would get too easily frustrated and quit.  I would also like to add, that having run an origami program last year for 13 year olds, the boys were frustrated beyond words with the intricacies of some of these folds.  Not all boys were, just a majority of them.  The girls easily managed the folds and were spinning out origami creations at a very quick rate.  If you do decide to do this with a group, I'd recommend older tweens, and I'd recommend several extra pairs of hands.

-Bettina