OPPOSITES ATTRACT?

Antonia is excited to be a peer counselor. But when she's paired up with Jazz, she's not so sure it's going to be a very good match. How can Antonia, a "nerdy" over-achiever, have anything that she can relate to with this drugged-out punk-rock girl? As it turns out, Antonia and Jazz have more in common than one would expect, and it turns out they both end up helping each other through some pretty tough situations. The content in DEFINE NORMAL by Julie Anne Peters is more appropriate for middle school, grades 6-8. 

SEPTEMBER 2012

WHO IS A JEOPARDY FAN?

Beans for 100 please. This girl is one of the biggest fan of Jeopardy, the game show, and tried unsuccessfully in the past to get on during Jeopardy Kids Week.   BUZZZZ.  Who is Olivia Bean?  

Olivia Bean, Trivia Queen by Donna Gephart is the biggest queen of trivia  and she must watch Jeopardy every night.  When there's finally a chance for kids to audition for the game show and possibly go to Hollywood, she's determined to find a way to get on.  But, Olivia has a weakness.  Geography.  Can she make it?  Only if she can enlist the help of her nemesis and next door neighbor who is the king of trivia and is great at geography.   She can't let the opportunity pass her by because this might also be her only way to see her dad in LA since the divorce. 

For readers and Jeopardy lovers in 4th-6th. 

LIFE IS JUST DIFFICULT SOMETIMES

Rafe Khachadorian decides on the first day of school to break all the rules in the school rule book. His friend, Leo, is encouraging him to do his worst, who eggs him to do some self destructive things, single mom who works a lot, and is being bullied by his mom's fiance. He's trying to cope but he can't seem to make the right choices. the cartoon drawings Rafe makes are your typical goofy and outlandish of kids his age, until you realize that they are his manifestions of his exagerations of reality, like his teacher as a dragon.

Middle School : The Worst Years of My Life by James Patterson is a dark tale of a boy who is just trying to figure out how to live life.

NOT JUST FOR CRAZY PEOPLE

If you hear the word "asylum" it's most often preceded with the word "insane." But in the early 20th century, asylums were not just for the insane, but were also there for depressed or out-of-sorts people. Verna and Carlie, and their widowed father come to live upon the grounds of an asylum, where he serves as a resident psychiatrist. Also in tow is their dead mother's sister, Aunt Maude, who is strict and unpleasant. When one of the depressed patients, Eleanor, comes to work as their maid, the girls are whisked into the world of mental health and experience all sorts of factors contributing to what might make a person end up in an asylum. THE LOCKED GARDEN by Gloria Whelan tells a beautifully sad story about different kinds of loss and how people recover from such sadness. For 5th-8th grades.

SILLHOUETTED BY THE BLUE

Since the death of her mother in a car accident, Serena finds herself trying to hold the family together. Her father falls into a severe depression and Serena just want to spend time with her friends and lives a normal life, but instead she has to take care of her little brother and maintain the household, cooking, cleaning, laundry, finding time for homework, does grocery shopping and all of it. Serena tries to respond to her challenges with strength and determination until they begin to overwhelm her.

Chosen for the lead in the middle school production “The Wiz” and Serena's happy because she loves to act and sing. However, things at home are getting worse. Her father spends weeks not showering or eating. He cries and sleeps all the time and she has to force him to drive her to the bank so they can buy groceries. Serena recognizes her father illness so she must find a way to get help before it’s too late. She calls the family, but her grandma has Alzheimer’s and her uncle is away on business in another country. Powerful, moving and realistic story recommended for middle school students ages 10-14. Written by Traci L. Jones.

A ROSE BY ANY OTHER NAME...

FOREVER ROSE by Hilary McKay is not your typical family, not your typical little girl and NOT your typical book. Is your Dad an artist living far away from home? Does your mom hide away in a shed pretending to paint pictures? Do your brother's friends come to live with you? Even if none of these things happen in your life, Rose might be someone you can relate to because Rose feels very alone. The youngest of five or so siblings, it's almost as if everyone forgets she even exists. Nothing a little hiding out with a tiger at the zoo wouldn't help... For grades 5 and up.

EVERYTHING IS NOT FINE

Much like Ann Dee Ellis's last book, EVERYTHING IS FINE leaves a lot to the imagination at first. Mazzy's mother has been in bed for over a month. Her father is nowhere to be found. To top it off, Mazzy, who tells the story, seems to have some serious mental issues herself. The story unravels through little windows into Mazzy's life, with a cast of characters helping the plot along. Mazzy has discovered art to help her deal with the madness of her life. She ties her different emotions to different art mediums, such as when a boy she likes is being a jerk, she calls it "chalk on paper" or if it's something she feels good about, it's "oil on canvas." Not everyone will like this book, but there is a shocking secret that explains everything. For grades 6 and up.