Beige

Beige

By Cecil Castelucci

320 p

Candlewick

ISBN-10: 0763642320
ISBN-13: 978-0763642327

Annotation:

Katy, a quiet French Canadian teenager, reluctantly leaves Montréal to spend time with her estranged father, an aging Los Angeles punk rock legend. Dad's an aging L.A. punk rocker known as the Rat. Daughter's a buttoned-up neat freak who'd rather be anywhere else. Can this summer be saved? Now that she's exiled from Canada to sunny Los Angeles, Katy figures she'll bury her nose in a book and ignore the fact that she's spending two weeks with her father -- punk name: the Rat -- a recovered addict and drummer for the famously infamous band Suck.

Summary:

"Katy won't complain....Katy won't complain" Even though Katy doesn't want to be there, even though she feels abandoned by her mom, even though the Rat's place is a mess and he's not like anything she'd call a father,

Is she really the nice girl everyone thinks is she really "Beige" or is there a rough and rockin' punk persona underneath all that nice?

Teens will love this over the top novel about the punk scene in Los Angeles. Castelucci writes a funny and emotional novel about a girl who has to relocate and in the process may learn more about her almost always absent father and more importantly the woman she may become.

Monster

Monster

By: Walter Dean Myers

p. 281
Publisher Scholastic

ISBN-10: 0064407314
ISBN-13: 978-0064407311

Annotation: While on trial as an accomplice to a murder, sixteen-year-old Steve Harmon records his experiences in prison and in the courtroom in the form of a film script as he tries to come to terms with the course his life has taken

Summary:
Imagine you find yourself on trial for murder. What did you do to end up in such a dire situation? How could your life have gone so incredibly wrong? What if you were actually innocent and just in the wrong place at the wrong time? These are only a few of the questions that Steve Harmon asks himself. Steve an aspiring film maker, tells us his story in a style more like a film script than a novel. This literary work explores prisons and jail in ways many of us will never truly experience.

We are introduced to a world of harsh realities and cruelty. With such lines as "The best time to cry is at night, when the lights are out and someone is screaming for help" we are very much aware that this is no ordinary Young Adult novel. This novel will stay with you for years to come and constantly remind you that prison is a place you never want to have to stay in.

Through this work we must explore the ideas of peer pressure, and culpability to truly understand if Steve is indeed the "monster" that everyone views him as.

Audrey, Wait

Audrey, Wait

By: Robin Benway

320p.
Razorbill

ISBN-10: 1595141928
ISBN-13: 978-1595141927

Annotated:
While trying to score a date with her cute co-worker at the Scooper Dooper, sixteen-year-old Audrey gains unwanted fame and celebrity status when her ex-boyfriend, a rock musician, records a breakup song about her that soars to the top of the Billboard charts.

Summary:
What could be worse than being 16 and breaking up with your first real boyfriend? How about when that talented musician ex- boyfriend writes a song about you, and it becomes a smash hit!! That is exactly what our heroine; Audrey has just had happen to her. As the song gains popularity, she is becoming a huge celebrity. How would you deal if you needed a police escort just to go buy some CDs? Now she has to deal with all the normal drama of life, like school and family, all while trying to avoid the paparazzi and get back to dating (especially that cute co-worker, she’s been checking out for weeks). If you’ve ever wanted to see what life would be like if you were thrust into the limelight, this witty read will have you hooked in minutes. It will keep you wondering if Audrey will ever have a chance at a normal life, or will this song haunt her forever?