Teen and Staff Reviews

Teen Review

Instructions for a Secondhand Heart

By Tamsyn Murray

Rated by
Olivia from Leawood Pioneer Library YAAC
Aug 13, 2018

Jonny has been waiting for years to receive a heart. But when finally a donor is a found, but for Jonny's life to start, someone's has to end. That someone is Neve's brother Leo. While he was alive, Neve wanted nothing more than to be rid of him, but after his tragic crash, she has no idea how to move on. But then Jonny walks into her life looking for answers, with her brother's heart in his chest, everything starts to change.

Teen Review

Americanized: Rebel Without a Greencard

By Sara Saedi

Rated by
Olivia from Leawood Pioneer Library YAAC
Aug 10, 2018

Life is hard enough being a teenager. But when you and your family are secretly illegal immigrants from Iran, things can get even more complicated. Sara's parents fled Iran when she was only two years old, and she didn't learn her undocumented status until her sister tried to apply for an after-school job, but couldn't because she didn't have a social security number. This memoir follows her teenage experiences with her family and at school as well as her progress toward getting her green card.

Teen Review

Very, Very, Very Dreadful: The Influenza Pandemic of 1918

By Robert Marrin

Rated by
Olivia from Leawood Pioneer Library YAAC
Aug 8, 2018

Everyone knows about the Black Plague in Europe during the Middle Ages. But not everyone knows about the 1918 influenza pandemic. It was the worst virus that ever struck mankind. Not even the Black Death comes close to the number of lives it took. No war, natural disaster, or famine has ever claimed so many people. From 1918 to 1919, one third of the global population (500 million) became infected, with an estimated 100 million deaths. This book chronicles the cause and impact of this deadly virus throughout history.

Teen Review

Speak: The Graphic Novel

By Laurie Anderson

Rated by
Olivia from Leawood Pioneer Library YAAC
Aug 2, 2018

Everyone knows Melinda is the freshman who called the cops on that summer party. She got some people arrested that night for underage drinking. But no one knows the real reason she called 911. That night, she was raped by an upperclassman, but hasn’t been able to tell anyone for fear that they won’t believe her. And now that she is a freshman in high school, she has been relentlessly bullied and suffered in her classes. The only class she enjoys is art class, where she can learn to express herself with a semester project.

Teen Review

Haunting the Deep

By Adriana Mather

Rated by
Olivia from Leawood Pioneer Library YAAC
Jul 31, 2018

After surviving one curse, Samantha Mather never imagined having to combat another. She keeps having vivid dreams of being a first-class passenger aboard the Titanic. Meanwhile, strange artifacts have been appearing around town, as well as visions of spirits who went down with the ship. Even stranger, her close friends have begun acting strangely, and the spring ball has been suspiciously themed after the Titanic.

Teen Review

A Tragic Kind of Wonderful

By Eric Lindstrom

Rated by
Olivia from Leawood Pioneer Library YAAC
Jul 27, 2018

Having Bipolar disorder can make life unpredictable for Mel. Especially because none of her friends know the truth. She tries to keep everyone at arm’s length so she won’t be able to hurt them. But that has become increasingly difficult as she battles her growing feelings in a new relationship. And when someone from the past shows up with no warning, her deeply buried secrets now threaten to come loose.

Teen Review

Prince and the Dressmaker

By Jen Wang

Rated by
Olivia from Leawood Pioneer Library YAAC
Jul 25, 2018

Prince Sebastian has a secret, one no one can ever find out. At night, he wears beautiful dresses and takes Paris by storm as a fashion icon named Lady Crystallia. Only two people know his dangerous secret, and one of them is his best friend, Frances, his dressmaker. But she dreams of greatness as a fashion designer, but as long as she remains a secret, she will never be able to gain recognition for her work. But how long can she put her dreams on hold to protect her friend?

Staff Review

The 57 Bus

By Dashka Slater
Star Rating
★★★★★

Rated by Chris K.
Jul 23, 2018

What labels define you? Which boxes contain you? No middle ground. No grey. Keep it simple. Describe yourself with categories. Binaries. Either-ors. Extremes.

Once you tell me, do I know you?

Or do you want to say, "Wait, that's not really me. I'm much more complicated and nuanced than that. Those are mere ideas. I'm a person."?

Teen Review

The Belles

By Dhonielle Clayton

Rated by
Olivia from Leawood Pioneer Library YAAC
Jul 18, 2018

In the world of Orleans, beauty is prized above all else, and the Belles control beauty. Camellia is one of the revered Belles. But it is not enough for her to just be a Belle, she has to be the favorite, the Belle chosen by the queen to live in the palace and tend to the royal family, the one recognized as the most talented Belle in the land. But once she arrives at court, she realizes being the favorite is not all she dreamed it would be. There are dark secrets in every corner, and soon she learns that she is far more powerful and dangerous than she ever imagined.

Teen Review

Genuine Fraud

By E. Lockhart

Rated by
Olivia from Leawood Pioneer Library YAAC
Jul 16, 2018

This is the story of a young woman whose wit and charm are her ticket to a privileged life. She constantly reinvents herself and changes identity as she crisscrosses the world. There might have been a murder, or maybe 2. There could be a bad romance, or maybe 3. She refuses to give people what they want from her, and refuses to be the person she once was.

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