MAID TO MATCH by Deeanne Gist

Set during the early 1900's, Tillie is employed as a servant at Biltmore, the estate owned by one of America's wealthiest families, the Vanderbilts.  Tillie is excited because she is one of the candidates to become Mrs. Vanderbilt's "lady's maid", one of the best jobs a servant can have.  Tillie would be paid quite well, would travel with Mrs. Vanderbilt all over the world, and dress in nice clothes--not servant clothes.  However, it would also require her to remain single.  Tillie didn't consider this to be a problem until she meets and falls in love with Mack--a new servant on the estate.

This is an enjoyable romance.  In addition to becoming involved in Tillie's and Mack's lives, we also see how the wealthiest people and their servants lived during this time.  The book conveys a Christian message--especially toward the end.

SKULL DUGGERY by Aaron Elkins

Gideon Oliver is an anthopologist/ archeologist whose "hobby" is forensic science;  he's known as the "Skeleton Detective".  He and his wife Julie are asked by Julie's family to travel to Mexico so Julie can help run their dude ranch while her cousin is gone for a week.  Gideon and Julie soon find themselves involved with family histories and secrets and 3 skeletal remains that are connected to each other and connected to Julie's family.

A good quick mystery read.  Details about Mexico and some ancient sites in Mexico add  to the enjoyment.

WISH YOU WERE DEAD by Todd Strasser

Str-S-d publishes a blog, talking about people at her high school who ridicule her, wishing they would die.  We soon realize that the people mentioned in the blog begin to disappear.  First Lucy, then Adam.  Madison, close friends with both of them, is the last person to talk to each of them before they disappeared.  When Courtney, another close friend, also disappears, panic sets in.  Madison turns to Tyler, a new boy at school, for comfort, but soon wonders if she should.

A good, suspenseful mystery story.

THE BOOK THIEF by Marcus Zusak

We first meet Liesel as her mother is taking both Liesel and her younger brother to Berlin in 1939 to live with foster parents.  When Liesel's brother dies on the train ride, we meet the narrator of the novel--Death.  At her brother's burial, Liesel finds the book THE GRAVE DIGGER'S HANDBOOK and takes it.  This is the first book she steals.  Liesel and her mother continue their journey to Berlin, and soon Liesel is living with her kind, accordian-playing foster father and gruff foster mother.  Death continues to tell us about Liesel's life:  her foster father teaching her to read, her friendship with Rudy Steiner, and her assistance in hiding a Jew in the basement.

This is a beautiful book--both depressing and uplifting.  Death is an intriguing narrator; he is funny, perceptive, even caring-- and VERY busy.

NEVER LET ME GO by Kazuo Ishiguro

Kathy, now 31-years-old, looks back at her time at Hailsham, a boarding school in England with her close friends Ruth and Tommy.  While she seems to have fond memories of this time, the reader soon senses that something is not quite normal about this school or about these students.  Students never leave the school and never see anyone other than their "guardians".  When they are too old for Hailsham, they go to the "cottages".  There is talk about "donations", "carers", and "completing".

A compelling book that slowly reveals itself.  Kathy's innocent child-like perspective on things makes the horror of their situation that much more powerful.

BREATHLESS by Jessica Warman

Katie's family is troubled.  Her dad, a successful psychiatrist, is always gone.  Her mother drinks too much.  Her brother Will is schizophrenic.  Katie and Will were very close as children, but after Will attempts suicide in a very public way, Katie's parents decide to send her to a boarding school.  Katie finds that boarding school is not so bad and is accepted by the group of friends.  However, part of their acceptance is based on the misunderstanding that Katie's brother died, and Katie does nothing to correct this misconception.  Since she is an excellent swimmer, Katie is soon chosen as team captain, and when the captain of the boys swim team takes an interest in her, Katie should feel content.  But things soon begin to spiral out of control.

This is a realistic depiction of a family in trouble, and the scenes at the boarding school ring true.  It is fiction, but the novel is based on the author's experiences.  A compelling read.

MOCKINGJAY by Suzanne Collins

The third and final book in the HUNGER GAMES series does not disappoint.  As the book opens, we find Katniss living in District 13 with her family.  Few people survived the destruction of her home District 12, but among them are Gale and Haymitch.  Peeta is being held captive in the Capitol.  Katniss, dubbed the "Mockingjay", finds herself forced into the roll of symbol of the rebellion.  But Katniss soon struggles to see the difference between the "rebel" and the "oppressor".

This final book is once again filled with good characters, lots of action, and enough ambiguity to make it interesting.  A very satisfying ending to a quality trilogy.

The Forest of Hands and Teeth by Carrie Ryan

Mary has heard about the ocean from her mother and wonders it is still out there. She remember the one picture of the ocean but really doubts its existence. She and her brother Jed try to protect their mother from seeing their father as one of the unconsecrated but one day while her mother is watching the fence, she gets too close and is bitten. Her mother joins the world of the unconsecrated forcing Mary to live with the Sisterhood (those who always know what is best). While there she starts to learn the secrets of the sisterhood and also helps Travis her true love return to health. She is actually supposed to marry Travis's brother Harry and Travis will marry her best friend Cassandra. But then one day the fence is breached the unconsecrated enter the village trying to kill the living. Mary, her brother Jed and his wife, Travis, Harry and Cassandra manage to survive and start to follow the fence to find what is beyond the forest of hands and teeth in hopes of surviving.

The best book of my 2010 summer reading. The suspense grabbed me right away and lasted until the end. I can't wait to read the next book.

LEGACY by Tom Sniegoski

What if you discovered that the father you never knew is actually a superhero?  Eighteen-year-old Lucas leads a pretty normal life with his mother in a small town. But his life changes when his mother is killed during an attack on the trailer park where they live.  Lucas's life then becomes anything but "normal".  He learns that the father he never knew is actually billionaire Clayton Hartwell...and Clayton Hartwell is actually "The Raptor", a superhero vigilante who protects innocents from evil. But The Raptor is ill and worries about what will happen when he is no longer around.  So he decides to train his son Lucas to become the next Raptor.  Lucas soon discovers that lines between "good" and "evil" are sometimes blurred and realizes that his father crosses those lines.

I was surprised that I enjoyed this book as much as I did.  It definitely resembles the Batman story, but good characters and surprising plot twists make it work. 

PROMISE ME by Harlan Coben

Myron Bolitar overhears two high school senior girls talk about drinking and driving.  He cares for both of these girls:  one is the daughter of his best friends, the other is the daughter of the woman he is now dating.  He's not quite sure how to handle this information so makes a promise to them.  They can call him at anytime day or night, and he will give them a ride and not tell their parents.  Soon, he receives one of these calls from Aimee, the daughter of his best friends.  Myron picks her up in downtown NYC.  But instead of going home, Aimee insists that she be dropped off at a friend's house instead.  Myron reluctantly agrees.  But no friend lives where he left Aimee, and when Aimee turns up missing, Myron finds himself a suspect in her disappearance.  Myron promises Aimee's parents that he will find her.  Myron soon learns that another girl from Aimee's high school disappeared a couple of months earlier, and people assume she ran away.  But Myron wonders if the two events are related.

A good action-packed, mystery and suspense story.

WINTERGIRLS by Laurie Halse Anderson

Lia and Cassie had been best friends and both struggled with anorexia.  But their friendship ended quite a while before Cassie's death.  So why did Cassie try to call Lia over 20 times the night she died?   And why did Lia refuse to pick up the phone even after she listened to the messages Cassie left?  Lia has been able to convince her mother, father, and step-mother that she is OK.  But she's not.

Written by the author of SPEAK, this lyrical, heart-wrenching book gives us a glimpse into the pain that produces self-destruction.

Angry Management by Chris Crutcher

Chris Crutcher uses characters from previous books for these three short stories. He intertwines all three stories and yes they do focus on anger. The first story focuses on Sarah Byrnes (one of my favorite characters) and Angus Bethune. These two connect and together they search for Sarah's mom. (Sarah's mom did NOT stop Sarah's dad from pushing her face into the potbelly stove.) The second story focuses on Montana West who takes on the school board so she can print her article(s) in the school newspaper. Montana is not one to avoid controversial topics. In addition, her father is the president of the school board. The final story deals with prejudice and it is very tragic for Marcus James.

LEVIATHAN by Scott Westerfeld

It's 1914 and Europe is on the brink of war.  But the alternative world created by the author depicts the nations, the weapons, and the politics in a different way than we normally think about WWI.  Alek, teenage prince of the Austro-Hungarian empire, is thrust into the middle of things when his parents are assassinated, an event that brings about the war (both in our world and the world of this novel).  World powers are divided into the Darwinists and the Clankers.  Darwinists, lead by England, use fabricated animals as their weapons and transportation.  The Clankers, lead by Germany and Austria, use mechanical steam-driven contraptions.  The reader follows Alek (a Clanker) and Deryn, a girl who pretends to be a boy to join England's Darwinist air troops.  They both end up on the Leviathan, a living entity of an airship that includes a whale, birds, bats, and countless other creatures that make it function.

The story and setting of the novel are intriguing, but what really sets this book apart are its illustrations.  The end pages alone are worth a look as the familiar map of Europe is divided into Clankers, Darwinists, and Neutrals.  The black and white drawings throughout the book help us understand the strange machines and events as they are described. 

SOLACE OF THE ROAD by Siobhan Dowd

Holly Hogan has recently been placed in a foster home after spending years in a group home in London.  When Holly was seven, her mother left her, but Holly is sure she didn't mean to and that her mother intends for Holly to join her in Ireland.  When Holly discovers a blond wig in her foster mother's closet, Holly decides to travel to Ireland to find her mother.  When she wears the wig, she looks several years older and calls herself "Solace"--a name that seems to give her strength.  Her journey toward Ireland, involving trains, buses, and hitchhiking, also takes her to a clearer understanding of her situation and the people she knows.

A powerful book, Holly/ Solace is an intriguing character trying to figure out her place in life.

ONE OF THOSE HIDEOUS BOOKS WHERE THE MOTHER DIES by Sonya Sones

Ruby's mother died, so Ruby must leave Boston, her best friend Lizzie and her boyfriend Ray, and move to Hollywood to live with her father whom she has never really met.  Even more complicated is the fact that her father is Whip Logan, a huge movie star.  Ruby tells us her story through verse, through emails to Lizzie and Ray, and even emails to her dead mother.

A quick read, this novel in verse presents Ruby as she struggles with her grief.  She liked her old life and doesn't want to start a new one, but realizes that she has no choice in the matter.   I liked the fact that her father is presented as someone who truly loves her and wants to be a part of her life, but doesn't always know what he should do to help her.  Ruby and her father stumble a bit as they try to figure out their relationship.

WHAT MY MOTHER DOESN'T KNOW by Sonya Sones

Sophie, like most teenage girls, spends time considering her relationships with her boyfriend, her two best friends, and her parents.  This novel in verse gives us Sophie's thoughts and feelings as she questions her feelings for cute, popular Dylan and finds "love" in an unexpected place.  Also complicating her life is her parents' strained marriage, her mother's depression, and the awkwardness that sometimes comes from being Jewish in a predominantly non-Jewish community.

A quick read, Sones realistically captures the feelings of a teenage girl who struggles, but is strong enough and honest enough to act on her feelings.

LIVING DEAD GIRL by Elizabeth Scott

When Alice was 10 years old and on a field trip with her class, Ray took her.  He threatened to kill her parents if she told anyone.  So Alice and Ray live together, pretending to be father and daughter.  It is now 5 years later, and despite near starvation, Alice no longer looks like a little girl.  So Ray decides that Alice will help him get another little girl to take her place. 

Told through the character of Alice, this is a rather disturbing novel about child abduction and sexual abuse.  

WINTER AND NIGHT by S. J. Rozan

In the middle of the night, private investigator Bill Smith receives a call from the NY police department that his 15-year-old nephew Gary was picked up by the police.   Smith gets Gary out of jail, and they both return to Smith's apartment.  As Smith tries to understand why Gary ran away from home, Gary breaks a window and runs away from Smith.  Smith then travels to Gary's hometown to talk to Gary's mother and father.  As he continues to search for Gary, he uncovers some secrets about Gary's hometown that many of the people in the town would rather not have uncovered.  When a girl that Gary knew turns up murdered, Smith is afraid that his nephew may be in more trouble than he originally suspected.

A good mystery and suspense story.

IN DEFIANCE OF HITLER: THE SECRET MISSION OF VARIAN FRY by Carla Killough McClafferty

This nonfiction book tells the story of Varian Fry, an ordinary New Yorker, who travelled to southern France at the beginning of World War II.  Intending to stay only 2 weeks, the original purpose of his trip was to assist artists, writers, scientists, and other "important" people escape to the U.S. He ended up staying in France for two years and helped over 2000 people escape from the Nazis.  He and his staff forged documents, hid information in toothpaste tubes, and sneaked people through the mountains across the border into Spain.

This book tells a true story that often reads like a novel filled with history, close calls, spies, and villains.  Written for young people, it is a quick read with historical information clearly explained and put into context.  It would be especially appropriate for Western Civilization and U.S. History class.

TALES OF THE MADMAN UNDERGROUND by John Barnes

Karl is about to begin his senior year of high school in 1973.  His father died when he was in 8th grade, and his mother has become a partying hippie.  Karl works numerous jobs, hiding his money around the house so his mother won't take it.  He tries to keep the house clean, but with over 20 cats, that is hard. He has been part of a school therapy group since junior high when he brutally killed a classmate's pet rabbit.  This group, dubbing itself the "madmen underground", is very close as members help each other with such issues as abuse, alcoholism, neglect and give each other places to stay when they are locked out or just don't want to go home.  Karl just wants a "normal" life, so decides not to be a part of the madmen underground group this year, hoping that people at school will see him as part of the "normal" kids.  He discovers that is not so easy.

A long book (530 pages), it is a compelling read.  We come to really care about Karl, and we want his mother to get her act together so Karl can have a little easier time.  I also liked that the kids in the "madmen underground"--while they lived in some really bad situations--did not act like victims.  They took some control of their lives.

AFTER by Amy Efaw

Devon is a star.  She's a straight A student, starter on her high school's soccer team, sought-after babysitter.  But the book opens as Devon has just given birth and the baby is found in a dumpster.  She sits in the juvenile detention center sure that everyone will soon understand their mistake.  She does not belong there; she is not like the other girls there.  But her lawyer soon convinces her that she will not be leaving soon and that Devon must talk to her about what happened--even if Devon doesn't want to.  For months, denial has been Devon's defense, but she must now face and talk about what happened.

This is a rather depressing book.  I found myself feeling really bad for Devon, but also really frustrated with her.  She was such a high achiever and had such high expectations for herself, she simply could not (or would not) accept what was happening to her.