Todd Mitchell

PUBLISHERS' REVIEW: James was the guy no one noticed — just another fifteen-year-old in a small town. So when he gets into an academy for gifted students, he decides to leave his boring past behind. In a boarding school full of nerds and geeks, being cool is easy. All it takes is a few harmless pranks to invent a new James: fighter, rebel, punk. Everyone’s impressed, except for the beautiful "Ice Queen" Ellie Frost and the mysterious ghost44, an IM presence who sees through his new identity. But James is riding high, playing pranks and hooking up with luscious Jessica Keen. There’s just one thing awry: he’s starting to have vivid dreams of being a demon-hunting warrior, a thrill that is spilling over into dangerous and self-destructive acts while he’s awake. As he’s drawn deeper into his real-life lies and his dream-world conquests, James begins to wonder: What’s the price for being the coolest guy around?
MY REVIEW: Quite liked the concept of this book - the chance to reinvent yourself and pretend you're something your're not with the added mystery of someone anonymously knowing who you are.… (altro)

Literary Merit: Okay
Characterization: Okay
Recommended: Recommended for collections where conservation is popular; not a must-buy by any means.
Level: Middle Grade

Kiribati is the daughter of a "Waller," a native of the walled cities the wealthy, white-coded classes retreated to after storms and floods wiped out much of human civilization and climate change left many animal species extinct. They live near a colony of "fugees," refugees who scrounge for food and live precariously day to day, battling disease, hunger, and raiders. After Kiri is attacked by a panther in the forest, a conflict brews as Kiribati's father races to protect the rare animal from the fugees, who hope selling the animal will bring their village much-needed food and medicine. Kiribati, whose mother was a fugee, tries to protect the panther and preserve the fragile ecosystem while keeping the peace between her warring friends.

The book has an optimistic, if a little too didactic, message on the importance of conservation, but it also has a number of problematic and uncomfortable scenes. Kiribati's solution to her problems involves hoodwinking the fugees into protecting the panthers by taking advantage of their religious beliefs and making them entirely dependent on the wealthy wallers. While the book does acknowledge the fugees' (and therefore many real-life vulnerable communities') hardships, it does seem to ultimately argue that the endangered animals are more important than their human counterparts. Helping endangered animals is great, but the human elements of the story could have used a defter and more respectful touch. A lack of world-building and two-dimensional side characters make the read even more frustrating.

The focus on animals is likely to attract many tweens and middle grade students, but there are far better conservation-themed books out there to inspire future scientists and activists.… (altro)

He wakes up to see blood dripping and blooming in a bathtub full of water. He tries to focus, to figure out what is happening, but there is only panic and people rushing to try to save him. And then black. When he wakes up the next day, it is as if nothing has happened. He gets up and goes through his routine, trying to understand this life he now has to live. This is the existence of a Rider; a soul who comes into the body of a person who is in need of help. This Rider is with Dan, and is traveling back in Dan's life day by day to learn how to help Dan in order to keep him from committing suicide. The Rider learns about Dan's family, the girl he wants to love but can't seem to, and his role in a party that has changed the direction of his life. The Rider does his best to help Dan see what he can do and how he can change; now he just has to wait to see if anything he has done will change the course of Dan's life. Even though this book started with a very intense scene, I liked the course of the plot. I liked that it moved backward in time to tell the story of Dan and his life leading to his suicide. To me, suicide is a very selfish way to die, and this story was no different to that end, but I did like how Dan seemed to learn something from his Rider and it seemed that he would change his views and his life.… (altro)