Johnson County Library
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Reviews
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Teen Review
Monday, Jan 13, 2020
Once a generation in the aquatic village of Varenia, when the prince of Ilara-a nearby kindgom-comes of age, the most beautiful girl of age is chosen to marry the prince. Nor and Zadie, two twins, and the most beautiful girls in Varenia, have been hounded by their mother for their entire lives to maintain their beauty, as she does not want to pass up the chance to have a princess as a daughter. Due to an accident years prior to this "choosing," Nor saves Zadie's life in an accident and receives a small scar, and her hopes of setting foot on land are destroyed... Until Zadie is injured,...
Teen Review
Thursday, Jan 9, 2020
As a teen invested in equal rights, I really enjoyed this book. I didn't know much history about this topic and because of that the most compelling aspect of the book is how it provided a new perspective. Lots of other teens like me will find this book informative and inspiring, and that is what makes it awesome. I also love books that have multiple POVs and make each person’s story come together in the end, and this book did a really good job with that. I think publishing novels like this one is really important to the current generation. We need books like this to empower us to do better...
Teen Review
Monday, Jan 6, 2020
Maritza, a 17 year-old who just finished junior year of high school, has the summer all planned out until her mother leaves. She is forced to go into foster care where her past is revealed and she is faced with decisions she never thought she would have to make. Maritza is a very relatable character because she is always questioning what would be best for everyone in her life. She also feels like there is not one specific group she belongs to, and that creates some conflict with herself. I wasn’t disappointed with book at all; the ending wasn’t what I expected, but it was really good!
Teen Review
Monday, Dec 9, 2019
Not unlike Disney's "Mulan", Rain, daughter of a Neshu grandmaster and a Neshu fighter herself, is unwilling to let her twin brother and father leave to fight in the war. Especially because when she'd been little, she and her brother had fallen sick, and Rain was accidentally given the medicine reserved for the family's only son- leaving her brother with slight cognitive scars. Certain that her brother won't return from the battlefield, Rain disguises herself as a man and goes in his place, making every move to remain undiscovered including taking a powder to hide her monthly bleed. Many...
Teen Review
Thursday, Dec 5, 2019
Jay Reguero, a Filipino-American high-school senior, is living a comfortably mundane life in Michigan. When he learns of his cousin and childhood best friend Jun's murder as a part of Duterre's drug war, regret and a thirst for truth propels him to travel to Manila to discover the truth of Jun’s suspicious death. This poignantly written novel about identity, loss, and heritage will touch hearts everywhere - a must-read for any age!
As one of the "hyphenated" (Peruvian-American), this book touched my heart. The guilt the main protagonist feels for his comfortable life in America and...
Teen Review
Monday, Dec 2, 2019
After Beverly's dog runs away she knows that she needs to leave, to get away from her drunk mother, her kind friends, and her dead dog. She doesn't know where she's going, but when she gets to a crooked little house by a crooked little sea, Beverly knows it is where she is going to stay, even if she won't admit it to herself. Beverly wants to keep to herself, but who knows if she will be able to keep away from the people who want to befriend her. The kindness inside of the book that is shown by all of the characters is super compelling. Although there is enough conflict to make the plot,...
Teen Review
Monday, Nov 25, 2019
A shooting in Portland mall leads to several teenagers being trapped with only 3 means of potential survival: they may run, hide, or fight back. However, they all are guarding big secrets, and tensions in the group run very high. They all must be willing to put their differences aside and work together against the odds if they want to stay alive. The cover did a very good job of capturing my attention, and reflected the overall fear the characters felt very well. The multiple perspectives in the book are really fascinating, so you can see into the different characters mindsets, which makes...
Staff Review
Monday, Nov 18, 2019
This is top-notch science fiction--it takes today's scientific advancements and speculates how they might play out in the future, considering legal, ethical, and practical ramifications along the way. The book does this over the course of six lightly connected stories, each progressively further in the future. The topic is gene editing and body modification.
Teen Review
Thursday, Oct 17, 2019
The Grief Keeper tells the story of a young girl named Marisol who is trying to immigrate with her younger sister to America after the murder of their brother. She is caught crossing the border and told she must participate in an experimental study, or be sent back home to El Salvador. As part of the study, Marisol becomes a grief keeper, taking upon the grief of Rey, a young woman struggling with mental illness, to ensure she can stay in the country.
The most compelling aspect of the book, in my opinion, was Marisol coming to terms with her sexuality. Throughout the book, Marisol...
Teen Review
Tuesday, Oct 15, 2019
The book switches between perspectives of two different, yet alike, characters forcing you to look at the situation from multiple perspectives. It is a book dedicated to those who are often pushed to the side in today’s world, and shows that we are all more alike than one might think, and that you should not judge others based on only what you’ve heard.
The most compelling aspect of the book to me was the underlying mystery mixed with the two teens who were drawn to each other. As they were learning about one another, one was very truthful, while the other claimed to be deceitful- ...