Jen's Picks: Dead To You

Greetings! I'm Jennifer Hawes, and I work with young adult books at the Charleston County Public Library. Welcome to my random thoughts about books for teens. If a book grabs you, click on any title to reserve a copy, or search CCPL's ebooks. Happy reading!

Dead To You

By Lisa McMann

Ethan was abducted from his front yard when he was just seven years old. When we meet him in Dead To You, he's 16 and awkwardly awaiting a reunion with his family at a train station. 

During that long gap of years, Ethan grew up with a woman he figures must have been responsible for his abduction. Maybe she'd just wanted a child—although she was hardly the model mom. She sold her body, abandoned him for periods of time, and eventually dumped him for good at a group home. Miserable, he ran away and became homeless.

That’s when he started looking at missing children reports and found news of the abduction. At last, he's about to meet his real family, one who will love him unconditionally. Sounds awesome, right?

Teens Review Books for Teens

You Review:

Welcome to the place where teens review books just for teens. Email teenunderground@ccpl.org if you want to review, too! Click on any title to put the book on hold at your favorite CCPL branch, and be sure to comment at the end.

Windblowne

Windblowne
By Stephen Messer

You Reviewed by Javari

This book has a really original story line. The main world is all based around kites. Oliver, the central character, is a boy who lives in a land where people are obsessed with flying kites. But when Oliver tries to fly them, they crash in horrible ways.

Every year, the town of Windblowne has a festival of kites. Oliver really wants to fly a kite with success, but his parents are not helpful. So, when he finds out that his great-uncle Gilbert was once a champion kite flier, Oliver gets his hopes up that he will now be able to fly a kite without being laughed at. But Oliver’s hopes are dashed when Gilbert refuses to help.

Sarah's Picks: It's Time for Haiku Reviews!

Hey readers! My name is Sarah, and I work in the Young Adult department at the Charleston County Public Library. Some of my favorite things are: the first day in spring when it's warmer outside than inside, my dogs, Wallace and Izzy, and (naturally) a good book.

This month, I thought I’d do a quick-and-dirty series of reviews. Inspired in part by the book There is No Long Distance Now: Very Short Stories by poet Naomi Shihab Nye (on my reading list), National Poetry Month, and the popularity of novels in verse, I am going to limit myself to the 17 syllables of haiku…Oh, and don't forget to click on any of the titles to reserve a copy of the book through our online catalog!

A Monster Calls by Patrick Ness

This book with pictures

Tells a deeply sad story--

Keep tissues handy.