LOOKING FOR ALASKA

By John Greene
ISBN: 9780142402511

Bibliography:
Green, John. 2007. Looking for Alaska. New York: Speak.

Plot:
Miles Halter (Pudge) leaves home to attend Culver Creek Preparatory School in search of the “Great Perhaps”. He becomes part of a circle of friends that revolve around Alaska Young, an energetic yet troubled girl with whom he becomes infatuated. When Alaska is killed in a car crash, the group tries to make sense of the circumstances behind her death.

Analysis:
Where do I fit in? What am I supposed to do in life? How do I deal with suffering? What happens to us after we die? This thought-provoking story revolves around teenage Miles and his ongoing struggle to find answers to these questions. Readers will relate to this story and its characters on many levels as we all have sought answers to the above questions. Everyone can relate to Miles’ feelings of awkwardness and his need to find his place amongst a group.

Miles’ quirks in the story are very endearing and create a connection that enables the reader to root for him throughout the story and put one’s self in his place. Readers will connect with Miles as he deals with the longing for his first love to love him in return, the loss of Alaska around whom his whole world revolved, and feelings of regret for letting her go. Green keeps the reader intrigued with the suspenseful story by titling each chapter “with the number of days before “it” happens. Readers will race through the story just to discover what “it” is.

Culver Creek, the setting for these events, is a place where teens have created their own set of norms and values. When these norms and values are broken, banishment, isolation, and possibly retaliation by the group is the consequence. One such norm, not "ratting out" others, is a recurring value throughout the story. The story ends with Miles quoting Thomas Edison's last words as he tries to make sense of losing Alaska: "Thomas Edison's last words were: 'It's very beautiful over there.' I don't know where there is, but I believe it's somewhere, and I hope it's beautiful."

Review Excerpts:
Horn Book: "At boarding school in Alabama, narrator Miles Halter faces challenging classes, school-wide pranks, and Alaska Young, a sexy, enigmatic girl. After Alaska is killed in a car crash, Miles and his friends question whether it could have been suicide and acknowledge their own survivor guilt. These intelligent characters talk smart, yet don't always behave that way, and are thus complex and realistically portrayed teenagers."

Kirkus Review: " What sings and soars in this gorgeously told tale is Green's mastery of language and the sweet, rough edges of Pudge's voice. Girls will cry and boys will find love, lust, loss and longing in Alaska's vanilla-and-cigarettes scent."


Connections:

*Visit John Green's webpage and blog at http://www.sparksflyup.com/

* Other books by John Green

Abundance of Katherines ISBN: 9780525476887

THE TALE OF DESPEREAUX

By Kate DiCamillo
Illustrated by Timothy Basil Ering
ISBN: 9780763625290

Bibliography:
DiCamillo, Kate, and Timothy B. Ering. 2006. The Tale of Despereaux: Being the Story of a Mouse, a Princess, Some Soup, and a Spool of Thread. Cambridge, Mass: Candlewick Press.

Plot:
The Tale of Despereaux, set within a castle, describes what happens when three worlds collide: the mouse world, the world of humans, and the rat world. This story describes a mouse who doesn’t seem to fit into the mouse world. As Despereaux follows the sweet sound of music, he stumbles upon Princess Pea, with whom he falls in love. Then he breaks the unforgiveable rule of not speaking to humans, which has him banished into the rat-filled dungeon where he is fated to meet his doom until he tells a story that saves his life. Despereaux learns of a plot to “bring the princess to darkness” and bravely plans to save her.

Analysis:
Despereaux fills the role as the unlikely hero in this story and immediately draws sympathy from the reader when he is described as being a disappointment to his family upon birth. Readers will identify with Despereaux’s need to be different and his quest to find his place in a mouse world in which he doesn’t feel he belongs. This tale touches on themes of loss, forgiveness, and friendship as DiCamillo draws the reader into the story by directly addressing them: “Reader, do you believe in such a thing as happily ever after? Or like Despereaux, have you, too, begun to question happy endings?” The story is arranged in short, manageable chapters at the end of which DiCamillo often encourages the reader to continue reading: "Poor Mig. What will become of her? You must, frightened though you may be, read on and see for yourself. Reader, it is your duty."

Review Excerpts:
Kirkus Review: "And so unwinds a tale with twists and turns, full of forbidden soup and ladles, rats lusting for mouse blood, a servant who wishes to be a princess, a knight in shining-or, at least, furry-armor, and all the ingredients of an old-fashioned drama."

Booklist: "Forgiveness, light, love, and soup. These essential ingredients combine into a tale that is as soul stirring as it is delicious."

Connections:
*Check out The Tale of Despereaux Movie Website: http://www.thetaleofdespereauxmovie.com/

*Kate DiCamillo's website: http://www.katedicamillo.com/

ARTEMIS FOWL: THE ETERNITY CODE

By Eoin Colfer
Read by Nathaniel Parker
ISBN: 9781855490581

Bibliography:
Colfer, Eoin, and Nathaniel Parker. 2003. Artemis Fowl: The Eternity Code. Bath, England: Chivers Press.

Plot:
Artemis plans one last scheme before his father returns home and the family goes straight for good. In an attempt to con the shady businessman, John Spiro, everything goes wrong and Artemis’ loyal and trusted bodyguard, Butler, is killed. Artemis calls on the fairy world to help him save his companion and retrieve the C-Cube, which is a fairy technology unlike anything the human world has ever seen, from Spiro. During this adventure, Artemis learns that his schemes must come to an end so that those he loves will be not be harmed.

Analysis:
This audiobook version of The Eternity Code, which is read by Nathaniel Parker, is absolutely riveting and will keep listeners on the edge of their seats. Parker's assortment of voices along with their own special accents and dialects combined with his masterful use of inflection adds much dimension to this story. Listeners will relate to Artemis, the boy-genius and master schemer who is different from others his age. Colfer uses diary entries to reveal a deeper, more sensitive side of Artemis. In these entries Artemis describes meetings with his father and the promise to stay on a straight and narrow path upon his father's return.

Colfer's tale takes us on a journey that spans the globe and includes the underground world of the fairies. The theme of helping others is apparent as Artemis saves Butler and fights to recover the C-Cube from Spiro, which will protect the fairy world from being discovered by the humans. Colfer cleverly ends this story with Artemis undergoing a mindwipe which has deleted his memories of the whole adventure and every dealing with that of the fairy people, which perfectly sets the stage for the next sequel.

Review Excerpts:
Horn Book: "Artemis and Captain Holly Short are at it again, this time attempting to thwart the evil Spiro's theft of an ingenious device Artemis has designed that (inadvertently) puts the fairy world in danger. There's plenty of snappy dialogue and blow-by-blow fight scenes, but by the end the characters and story are right back where they started, which means that the next book in the series is completely free to do the same thing all over again."

Publisher's Weekly: "In the second and third books in the series about the 13-year-old criminal mastermind, he proves he has a heart after all (in the former), and, in the latter, craves one more adventure before he turns to the straight and narrow. "Rapid-fire dialogue and wise-acre humor ensure that readers will burn the midnight oil."

Connections:
*Other books in the series include:
#1 Artemis Fowl ISBN: 9781423105152
#2 The Arctic Incident ISBN: 9780786808557
#4 The Opal Deception ISBN: 9780786852895
#5 The Lost Colony ISBN: 9780786849598
#6 The Time Paradox ISBN: 9781423108368

*Check out the Artemis Fowl website: http://www.artemisfowl.com/

ELIJAH OF BUXTON

by Christopher Paul Curtis
ISBN: 9780439023450

Bibliography:
Curtis, Christopher Paul. 2007. Elijah of Buxton. New York: Scholastic Press.

Plot:
This story is told from the perspective of eleven-year-old Elijah, who was the first child born into freedom in a settlement for runaway slaves in Buxton, Canada. Throughout the story, Elijah experiences many adventures, some of which are silly and playful and others that are completely heart-wrenching. Elijah travels to the dangerous land of America in order to help a former slave, Leroy, find the man that stole the money that was meant to free his enslaved family. When everything goes wrong, Elijah is forced to make grown-up decisions that indeed change him forever.

Analysis:
Curtis masterfully develops vivid, rich characters that are multifaceted. Each character is portrayed with a layer of pain and sadness that is just below the surface. Curtis helps the reader to understand and relate to this pain even though the reader has never experienced slavery firsthand. Readers will also relate to the importance of family and the pain of being separated from loved ones.

Curtis uses the dialect of the characters to pull the reader into the time and place of the story. The following quote describes a heart-wrenching moment when Elijah meets Chloe, a recaptured slave who is chained up with her husband, her baby, and three other slaves. When Elijah explains that he was born free in Buxton, Chloe says, "You cain't know it, but you's the shiniest thing what we's seen in a long, long, long time. Seeing you's the next best thing to seeing Canada. Seeing you shows me that the whole thang ain't no dream."

Review Excerpts:
Booklist: “Readers learn about conditions in slavery at a distance, though the horrors become increasingly apparent. Among the more memorable scenes are those in which Elijah meets escaped slaves—first, those who have made it to Canada and, later, those who have been retaken by slave catchers. Central to the story, these scenes show an emotional range and a subtlety unusual in children’s fiction. Many readers drawn to the book by humor will find themselves at times on the edges of their seats in suspense and, at other moments, moved to tears.”

Kirkus Review: Eleven-year-old Elijah Freeman is known for two things: being the first child born free in Buxton, Canada, and throwing up on the great Frederick Douglass. It's 1859, in Buxton, a settlement for slaves making it to freedom in Canada, a setting so thoroughly evoked, with characters so real, that readers will live the story, not just read it. This is not a zip-ahead-and-see-what-happens-next novel. It's for settling into and savoring the rich, masterful storytelling, for getting to know Elijah, Cooter and the Preacher, for laughing at stories of hoop snakes, toady-frogs and fish-head chunking and crying when Leroy finally gets money to buy back his wife and children, but has the money stolen. Then Elijah journeys to America and risks his life to do what's right. This is Curtis's best novel yet, and no doubt many readers, young and old, will finish and say, "This is one of the best books I have ever read."

Connections:
* The following websites offers many resources for teaching elementary, middle school, and high school students about slavery:
http://www.pbs.org/wnet/slavery/teachers/lesson4.html
http://www.history.org/History/teaching/attitude.cfm
http://www.middleweb.com/Amistad.html

NUMBER THE STARS

By Lois Lowry
ISBN: 9780395510605

Bibliography:
Lowry, Lois. 1989. Number the Stars. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Co.

Plot:
Number the Stars takes place during World War II in Nazi-occupied Denmark. Annemarie and her family help their Jewish friends to hide from the Nazis. They take in Ellen, Annemarie’s best friend, when Ellen’s parents are forced to flee from their home to avoid being captured. The situation becomes more dangerous as Annemarie, her mother, and sister take Ellen to Uncle Henrik’s house to reunite her with her parents and prepare to help them escape safely to Sweden.

Analysis:
Lowery tells this story from ten-year-old Annemarie’s perspective. It is set in a very uncomfortable, anxious time with Nazi soldiers on every corner watching every move of the citizens of Denmark. Young Annemarie struggles to make sense of the situation as she is told by her parents that the Nazis plan to arrest all of the Danish Jews, and that her family plans to help them. Readers will relate to themes of fear, courage, and respect. Lowery conveys this story in a very suspenseful way that will keep readers on the edge of their seats.

In the Afterword Lowery explains which elements of the story are fact and fiction and ends with a note from a from a twenty-one-year old man to his mother the night before he was executed by the Nazis: "I want you all to remember -that you must not dream yourselves back to the times before the war, but the dream for you all must be to create an ideal of human decency, not a narrow-minded and prejudiced one. That is the gift our country hungers for, something every little peasant boy can look forward to, and with pleasure feel he is part of- something he can work and fight for."

Review Excerpts:
School Library Journal: “The gripping story of a ten-year-old Danish girl and her family's courageous efforts to smuggle Jews out of their Nazi-occupied homeland to safety in Sweden. Readers are taken to the very heart of Annemarie's experience, and, through her eyes, come to understand the true meaning of bravery.”

Publishers Weekly: “Set in Nazi-occupied Denmark in 1943, this 1990 Newbery winner tells of a 10-year-old girl who undertakes a dangerous mission to save her best friend.”

Connections:
*This book would be a great introduction for a study of the Holocaust.

*Students could read this book prior to visiting a Holocaust museum.

WHEN MY NAME WAS KEOKO

By Linda Sue Park
ISBN: 9780618133352

Bibliography:
Park, Linda Sue. 2002. When My Name Was Keoko. New York: Clarion Books.

Plot:
When My Name Was Keoko takes place in Korea during World War II, and is told from the perspective of two young Korean siblings. Sun-hee and her brother, Tae-yul, describe what life is like living in Korea as they are forced by the inhabiting Japanese soldiers to abandon all ties to their Korean culture, which includes changing their Korean names to Japanese names.

Sun-hee’s parents quietly rebel against the occupation in their own ways while her uncle is much more vocal about resisting. Sun-hee’s uncle, who works for the resistance, is forced into hiding when Sun-hee misunderstands a tip given to her by a Japanese friend. The guilt of this mistake haunts her throughout the story and changes the family dynamic. The story intensifies as Tae-yul makes a brave and self-sacrificing decision to join the Japanese army in order to protect his family. When the war is finally over, the family strives to regain normalcy.

Analysis:
Park carefully tells this story from two perspectives addressing both male and female roles in the Korean culture during this time. These complex characters must make difficult, self-sacrificing decisions in order to keep their family safe. Sun-hee struggles to make sense of it all as family secrets are hidden from her, and she lives with the guilt of mistakenly sending her uncle away: "After Uncle left, I couldn't trust myself to speak. It seemed that my mouth and heart were all connected. When I opened my mouth, my eyes would fill with tears. To keep from crying, I had to close my mouth, so I didn't talk much."

Tae-yul struggles to find his place in a world that has been turned upside-down and deals with anger toward his father for not openly resisting the Japanese. Readers will relate to issues regarding feelings of guilt, duty, honor, respect, and loss. The setting is extremely tense as Japanese soldiers force families to abandon their Korean culture, punishing those that resist. As the characters deal with the new imposed rules, tensions mount as characters choose to conform or resist. Readers will relate to themes of patriotism versus conforming to imposed rules in order to keep the family intact.

Review Excerpts:
Horn Book: “In alternating chapters covering the years 1940 to 1945, two Korean siblings describe their lives during the Japanese military occupation. Tae-yul admires their uncle, who works for the resistance; younger sister Sun-hee is more like their father, subdued and introspective, rebelling in quiet but significant ways. The novel provides an accessible introduction to this painful history.”

"A brother and sister alternate as narrators in this well-constructed novel, which takes place from 1940-1945 in Japanese-occupied Korea," wrote PW in a starred review. "Through the use of the shifting narrators, Park subtly points up the differences between male and female roles in Korean society and telling details provide a clear picture of the siblings and their world."

Connections:
*Other books by Linda Sue Park:
The Kite Fighters ISBN: 9780395940419
A Single Shard ISBN: 9780395978276
Project Mulberry ISBN: 9780618477869

AN AMERICAN PLAGUE: THE TRUE AND TERRIFYING STORY OF THE YELLOW FEVER EPIDEMIC OF 1793

Written by Jim Murphy

ISBN: 9780395776087

Bibliography:
Murphy, Jim. 2003. An American Plague: The True and Terrifying Story of the Yellow Fever Epidemic of 1793. New York: Clarion Books.

Plot:
This award winning book accurately details the historical events surrounding the yellow fever outbreak of 1793 in Philadelphia.

Analysis:
Much research was compiled into the creation of this terrifying story as Murphy cites over ninety different sources that include firsthand accounts, historical documents, and books on a variety of supporting topics. Murphy delivers a clear sequence of information that covers many aspects of the plague such as the first case of Yellow Fever in Philadelphia, the many ways doctors attempted to treat the ravaging disease, the volunteers that stayed behind to provide care for the sick, the link between mosquitoes and Yellow Fever, and advances in medicine.

Features such as a table of contents, a detailed reference list, and an index are included as well as historical pictures, maps, paintings, newspaper clippings, letters, and other public records which bring this historical tragedy to life. Murphy carefully considers a multitude of viewpoints from that of basic citizens, doctors, government officials, nurses, community leaders, and volunteers from the Free African Society. The descriptive account of the yellow fever epidemic ends with the following warning: “This disease will eventually emerge to challenge us again. And when it does, we will have to overcome our fears and be prepared to confront it.”


Review Excerpts:
Booklist: “History, science, politics, and public health come together in this dramatic account of the disastrous yellow fever epidemic that hit the nation's capital more than 200 years ago. Drawing on firsthand accounts, medical and non-medical, Murphy re-creates the fear and panic in the infected city, the social conditions that caused the disease to spread, and the arguments about causes and cures. With archival prints, photos, contemporary newspaper facsimiles that include lists of the dead, and full, chatty source notes, he tells of those who fled and those who stayed--among them, the heroic group of free blacks who nursed the ill and were later vilified for their work.”

Horn Book: “Murphy culls from a number of historical records the story of the yellow fever epidemic that swept Philadelphia, skillfully drawing out the fear and drama of the time and making them immediate to modern readers. Attentive to telling detail, Murphy offers representative images, from black-and-white portraits to plague scenes. Thoroughly documented, with an annotated source list, the work is both rigorous and inviting.”

Connections:
*Other books about yellow fever:
Cefrey, Holly. Yellow Fever. ISBN: 9780823934898
Pierce, John R. Yellow Jack : How Yellow Fever Ravaged America and Walter Reed Discovered Its Deadly Secrets. ISBN 9780471472612

*Compare the yellow fever epidemic with other epidemics.