Uglies by Scott Westerfeld

Tally can't wait to turn 16. Not because she can get a driver's license, but because she can become a Pretty. Tally is tired of being an Ugly. In Tally's world, an operation transforms all 16 year olds into beautiful, perfect people who get to live in Pretty Town and whose only job is to have fun.

Tally's friend Shay is not sure she wants to be Pretty. And when Shay runs away to "the outside", Tally learns a lot about what's really going on in the pretty world - and it isn't pretty.

Uglies is the first book in a trilogy. Pretties is the second book and Specials is the third. This is a very exciting and action-packed series that kept me up past my bedtime as I read it. It should appeal equally to boys and girls in grades 7-12. And even though it is set in a futuristic society, it is not a heavy science fiction book.

Find Uglies at the Adrian Public Library

Find Pretties at the Adrian Public Library

Find Specials at the Adrian Public Library

American Born Chinese

American Born Chinese by Gene Luen Yang is an interesting, award-winning, and unusual book.First, it's a stand-alone graphic novel. In other words, it's not part of a series and it's a novel written in "comic book" form.

Secondly, the author tells three seemingly unrelated stories: the first, about a Monkey King who can't accept being a monkey. The second is about a junior high Chinese-American who likes a non-Asian girl and is trying to fit in. In the third story, a popular "American" boy has to keep moving when his cousin Chin-Chu, the ultimate negative Chinese stereotype, comes to visit from China. The author does a masterful job of tying all three stories together at the end.

American Born Chinese is also unusual in that it portrays a culture not commonly found in books for teens. Many readers are accustomed to the Japanese culture through Manga and Anime, but may shy away from this book because of the unfamiliar Chinese culture.

Despite its "unusuallness", this book is a winner - literally. For those who care about awards and such, American Born Chinese is the first graphic novel to win the Michael L. Printz Award for best teen book.

This book is also a winning read and should appeal to boys and girls in grades 7 - 12. It may require some readers to step out of their comfort zone of what they usually read, but this book is worth the risk.

Check library holdings for this book.

The Book Thief

The Book Thief by Marcus Zusak has an unusual narrator: Death. Death tells the story of a young German girl, Leisel, who lives with a foster family during World War II. Leisel is the book thief in this story and the first book she steals is The Gravediggers Handbook. Her books and stories help sustain her family as they cope with hiding a Jewish man in their home. The Book Thief is an extraordinary book that will remain with you long after you finish it. Recommended for high school age and adult, The Book Thief is a 2007 Printz Honor Book. Look here for the library's copy.