High school junior Marlee McAllister lives and breathes softball. She’s the pitcher for the Clarkson Cougars in the North Country of upstate New York. With the season opener approaching, Marlee and her best friend, Jeri D’Amico, go scout their rivals, the East Valley Panthers. The Panthers star pitcher, Christy Loveland, took the All County pitching title the preceding year. It’s a title that Marlee covets. Marlee and Jeri settle in for the game but as the Panthers take the field, Marlee finds herself staring at Susie Torres, the Panther left fielder.

And so starts the beginning of the biggest change in Marlee’s life. When Marlee realises that the feelings she’s experiencing for Susie are nothing like what it feels like to be with Bobby – her boyfriend – she begins to question why they’re even together. All he wants to do is make out and go parking, and that’s the last thing Marlee wants to do with Bobby. When Bobby leaves her for someone else, Marlee is shocked but also a little relieved.

Enter Susie. At a party one night, Susie tells Marlee that she thinks she beautiful. As soon as the words fall on Marlee’s ears, she feels completely unable to hold her feelings in any longer. The girls end up making out and so starts the beginning of a beautiful relationship.

Unsure of how their friends will react, the two girls decide to keep their newfound love a secret. And it’s a good thing they do, because Susie’s best friend (and Marlee’s rival pitcher), Christy Loveland, wants Susie all to herself. Not in the same way that Marlee and Susie want each other, but her jealously becomes a major problem for the new couple all the same. Will the new couple survive the pressure so early on in their relationship?

What I loved about this book the most was Marlee’s immediate, unquestioned acceptance of her newfound sexuality. She didn’t go into denial, and she didn’t embark on a downward spiral of self-hate and loathing. When their friends found out that Susie and Marlee were dating, there were no homophobic reactions and certainly no friendships lost over the issue. This is the first book I’ve found for gay teens that doesn’t include the protagonist’s ‘coming out’ being met with a barrage of objections and hate. Although the two girls did express concern about how their loves ones would react, it wasn’t a huge issue and it was clear that they certainly weren’t going to let that stop them being together.  It was so refreshing (and joyous!) to read a novel for gay teens that shows the protagonist in positive circumstances, rather than the tragic ones that so often get published.

Out of Left Field is a short, punchy feel-good read that gets straight to the point (no pun intended).

If you want information about Barbara’s other books, click here

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The Rainbow Boys are back for another compelling read. The second installment in The Rainbow Boys trilogy finds Kyle, Jason and Nelson all struggling to make peace with their own personal issues.

High school is nearly over and Jason can’t wait to start college. Playing basketball at a college level has always been a dream of his; he’s even got a scholarship and all. But then Jason decides that he can’t bear to hide his sexuality anymore and comes out to his team and his classmates. Eventually word gets out that he’s dating Kyle and in a moment of victorious joy after a smashing win on the court, Jason is captured by local television cameras giving his boyfriend a celebratory kiss. Soon after, Jason’s life takes an awful turn and he receives a letter revoking his scholarship. Jason’s folks recently split up and he knows that without that scholarship, there is no way that Jason’s Ma can afford to send him away to college. There go his plans for an awesome college basketball career. And what about Kyle? They were going to college together. How is he supposed to tell Kyle that they’ll be apart next year?

Little does he know that Kyle is harboring a secret of his own. Kyle wants nothing more than to move away and start life afresh with Jason next year. In fact, it’s all he’s wanted since he and Jason started dating. But then Kyle receives an offer of a lifetime: he’s accepted to Princeton University. Kyle applied to Princeton before he started dating Jason, but now things have changed. He loves Jason. He wants to be with Jason forever. More to the point, he doesn’t want to be apart from Jason next year. How is that supposed to happen when they’re both going to different colleges in different states? There are plenty of colleges in the country, but there’s only one Jason. What will Kyle do?

Meanwhile, Nelson is having problems of his own. He’s mad at Kyle, for one. If Kyle accepts his offer from Princeton, all of Nelson’s college plans will be ruined. Kyle and Nelson were supposed to go to Tech together. It’s the only reason Nelson even applied to Tech. What is the point of going to Tech if his best friend isn’t with him?

Like Jason and Kyle, Nelson has finally found love. Jeremy is cute, sweet, and just a little bit older than Nelson. However, Jeremy is HIV positive. At first, Nelson doesn’t seem to care. Much to Kyle’s horror, Nelson isn’t being as careful with Jeremy as he should be. Nelson just wants to be with Jeremy and doesn’t think he should be treated differently because of his illness. But then Jeremy gets sick one day while they’re making out and Nelson gets a first hand account of what dealing with HIV can be like. Is he ready to be with someone so sick? And what kind of person does that make him if he’s not?

Being a teenager is hard enough; being a gay teenager can be hell. But as Jason, Kyle, and Nelson prove, friendship and love can conquer all kinds of hate, all kinds of challenges. Alex Sanchez’s characters are so alive in my mind they could literally walk off the page. Their individual struggles are presented in simple terms, allowing the reader to form their own opinion about the way the events are presented. Sanchez has a real knack for telling it like it is without telling you how you should feel about it. He’s a supremely talented writer and I think all teens should make the effort to read one – or all – of his books.

If you loved The Rainbow Boys then Rainbow High is a must for you.

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I finish my pizza and go upstairs to change clothes before starting work on the attic. My room finally looks like a room. I’ve got a giant poster of Yates on one wall, looking very professorial, and on the other wall are Frost and Emerson and Virginia Woolfe. My books are stacked up on boards resting on milk crates and take up an entire wall; I’ve got the collected works of Dickens, Shakespeare, Wild, Faulkner, Melville and Austen.

Jesus. I guess I really am gay.

I strip off my shirt and open my chest of drawers to get another. Lying on top of the pile is J.D.’s Sierra Club tee shirt. He left it here last week and Mom must have finally got around to doing the laundry. I pull it out and hold it to my face. I can still smell him in the fabric. Damn him. I toss it back in the drawer and get one of my own.

God damn him.

When Noah’s mother packed up their lives and moved them from Chicago to a rural town in New England, Noah never expected to find love, especially not with the boy from across the street. But J.D. isn’t gay. No sir. He’s got a girlfriend, and they’ve even done it and everything. But since when did that mean anything at all? Noah isn’t stupid, and he’s not so completely blinded by his feelings for J.D. that he can’t see how J.D. feels. Even if J.D. can’t, or wont.

It’s not so easy for J.D., though. At least Noah has a supportive mother who loves him regardless of his sexual orientation. J.D. isn’t so lucky. He has a hard time getting any kind of affection out of his mother at the best of times; imagine how it would be for him if he came out…

How long can you deny your feelings for someone, though? J.D. soon discovers that just being Noah’s friend isn’t enough. One thing leads to another and suddenly the whole town seems to know all their deepest and darkest secrets. And in this particular small American town, homosexuality isn’t looked upon favourably. Noah and J.D. find themselves in all kinds of trouble.

Noah’s voice is raw, fresh, and so very real. He tells it like it is: straight up, no BS. He has a real simplistic way of breaking things down, of looking at the world. If there were more Noah Yorks walking the Earth, society would be a better place for all. While Leave Myself Behind deals with some serious, heartbreaking issues, it manages to do so lightly (for lack of a better word). Noah’s sarcasm and his sense of humour shine a little bit of light on an otherwise devastatingly depressing story. I know Noah and J.D.’s story may ring true for some, but I hope that not too many queer readers can relate to the boys’ experiences in this book. No one should ever have to go through what J.D. and Noah did. Not ever.

But this is more than just a coming out story. This is a story about family, truth, and love – all kinds of love. As J.D. so sadly learns, sometimes love just isn’t enough. Sometimes the world throws so much at you, that not even love can heal the deepest wounds.
Leave Myself Behind comes with a tissue box warning, folks. You’ll cry from laughter, but I’m certain you’ll cry from sadness too. A must read for everyone, everywhere.

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Holland has it made: she’s pretty, popular, and she’s got Seth – the most popular boy in school – all to herself. Sounds perfect, huh? Well, we all know what happens to perfect stories: they don’t stay perfect for long.

Perfection, though, depends on your perspective.

Enter Cece Goddard. She’s new at school and Holland can’t help but notice her. Actually, Cece makes it her business to ensure that she’s definitely on Holland’s radar. Cece is beautiful, confident, and much to Cece’s delight, Holland can’t stop thinking about her. Cece makes no attempt to hide the fact that she’s gay and when Cece and Holland start spending time together, people start talking.

When Holland breaks up with Seth, people really start talking and suddenly, no one wants to be Holland’s friend anymore. The talk gets back to Holland’s folks and suddenly Holland finds herself without a home. Life doesn’t seem so perfect anymore. Then Holland realises something very important: her life didn’t feel perfect before, either, because things never felt quite right. Although life is tough now, Holland is strong. And she has the support of an awesome girlfriend to help her though her troubled times.

It’s a sad, but true fact, that more than a handful of gay and lesbian teens experience similar circumstances when they finally decide to come out to their friends and family. Books like Keeping You A Secret offer these people hope: there is a light at the end of the very dark tunnel. Holland’s lesson resonates clearly and I’m sure is one that queer teens everywhere (and adults, for that matter) could relate to: if you’re true to yourself, real happiness will always ensue one way or another.

I long for the day when books containing gross acts of homophobia, like that displayed by Holland’s parents, are a shocking and unacceptable occurrence. While Western society has come a long way in these kinds of matters, we still have a hell of a long way to go.

Julie Anne Peters is a National Book Award Finalist and a gifted writer that has touched the hearts of many.

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For the month of June, yaReads will be featuring books and resources specifically for gay and lesbian teens and readers of gay and lesbian teen books. This is the first of many reviews that are scheduled to appear this month. Rainbow Boys is the first book in a three part series.

Jason Carrillo is one very confused kid. On the one hand, he’s got it made. He’s the star of the basketball team and is most likely heading to college on a basketball scholarship. He pulls good grades and he’s also got one killer hot girlfriend. He’s been dating Debra for almost two years now and everyone thinks they’re the ultimate golden couple. That would all be totally perfect if it weren’t for one thing: Jason thinks he’s gay. To some kids, that might not be a problem, but for Jason it’s the mother of all problems. You see, Jason’s dad is seriously homophobic and Jason knows that his father would never accept a gay son. Life at home is already hard enough, what with the way his parents fight all the time, and Jason doesn’t want to cause his mother any additional stresses on top of the ones she’s already dealing with. And what about the kids at school, his friends, and his team mates? How would they react to his being gay? Life for Jason is painfully confusing.

But then he starts hanging out with Kyle. Kyle is gay – and everyone knows it. Kyle is soft and kind but also fiercely protective of his and his own. Kyle believes that he shouldn’t have to hide who he is … so he doesn’t. He’s also had a huge crush on Jason Carrillo for ages, so when Jason starts hanging out with him, Kyle can’t believe his luck. He didn’t even know Jason was gay, but he showed up at the gay youth group meeting so he has to be, right? Well, he sure hopes so. Suddenly, Kyle decides to make it his business and he provides a safe, comfortable space for Jason to be honest with himself about who he is. The events which unfold leave Kyle feeling a little spellbound.

Nelson, however, is less than happy about Jason’s appearance in Kyle’s life. Nelson and Kyle have been besties forever, not to mention Nelson has been in love with Kyle for almost as long as they’ve been friends. But Nelson isn’t like Kyle and he’s not like Jason, either. He’s an individual of great colour and personality who is totally unapologetic about everything and anything. Nelson is emotionally rock solid. He refuses to let people pierce his rainbow heart, but how will he deal with this new third wheel that seems to be entering his precious twosome?

As their worlds collide, Rainbow Boys documents the events with profound emotional maturity. Alex Sanchez is a gifted writer whose vibrant, dynamic characters and keep-it-simple prose will have readers turning the pages at an impressive rate. I read Rainbow Boys in just a couple of hours, and then went straight back to the beginning and started again. Because each character is at a different stage of their emotional development, there is something for almost any adolescent reader. While these boys are quite clearly gay, I believe the messages that are delivered are universal ones applicable to all society regardless of sexuality. Gay kids need more resources like this available to them, and straight kids need access to more books like this so they too can understand, love and respect gay people and their relationships in the same way that straight people expect society to treat their relationships.

The message is simple folks – peace, love, unity and respect.

Seven months ago on a rainy March night, Willow Randall’s parents drank too much wine at dinner and asked her to drive them home. But they never made it – Willow lost control of the car, and both of her parents were killed.

Now seventeen, Willow has left behind her old home, friends, and school – numbing the grim reality of her new life by secretly cutting herself. But everything changes when one of Willow’s new classmates, a boy as sensitive and thoughtful as she is, discovers Willow’s secret and refuses to let her destroy herself.

Before I say anything else, let me say that this is a very intense novel. I’ve never been a cutter but one of my friends at school dabbled in it for a while. I didn’t understand her and I don’t really understand Willow. I can’t get my head around the concept of causing oneself physical pain to ease inner pain. That, however, doesn’t mean that I didn’t sympathise with Willow in this novel. If anything, my inability to understand her position only stimulated my desire to keep reading, hoping that the novel might help me understand her by the end. As a non-cutter, I can’t say that Willow actually provided me with any greater understanding of why cutters do this to themselves. I can, however, say that after reading this novel I stand behind Guy’s (her male friend that intervenes) decision to do everything in his power to help her, to show her that there are other ways she can release her pain.

Guy is an interesting character. He hardly knows Willow yet it is very clear that he feels some kind of draw to her immediately. I often wondered if he hadn’t fallen for her immediately, would he have been so interested in saving her? I would like to think that he would have, but how will we ever know?

On that note, I’d just like to say that this isn’t a teen romance. Guy does not come in and sweep Willow off her feet and then suddenly she is cured of her cutting. Guy suffers greatly through his initial friendship with Willow and struggles with his conscious a lot through the novel. He’s a strong character that simply tries really hard to show Willow that she doesn’t actually want to hurt herself that way. Willow saves herself. Guy just shows her that she actually wants to.

Julia Hoban will strike a chord with many teens and adult readers everywhere with this one. Whether or not cutting is something you understand, you’ll be unable to stop reading. If for nothing else, you’ll want to know whether Willow actually destroys herself. I’m not going to tell you what happens because I think that would ruin the read for you, but I am going to tell you that this is one hell of an uncomfortable read. I hope that someone somewhere reads this and realises that whatever they’re going through, it doesn’t have to be a lonely one. There is help out there, even if you think you don’t need it or you don’t want it.

Willow speaks for itself. I don’t feel like I need to, or even that I should comment on its contents or outcomes. Read the novel and decide for yourself.

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One night, while drunk and high and making out with the town loser down by the train bridge Meg and her friends manage to get themselves arrested. As punishment, they’re sentenced to spend a week with the police, ambulance and fire services observing crime and safety and come up with some kind of proposal that the town officials can not only use, but also shows that they’ve learned their lesson. Meg gets stuck riding in Officer After’s police car and Meg couldn’t think of anything worse. Officer After is a staunch, stuck up, law-abiding citizen and as far as Meg is concerned, the exact opposite of her.

But Meg isn’t the only tortured soul in town and little does she know that Officer After is harbouring some of his own dark secrets, too. Having Meg in his car seems to break down Officer After’s hard exterior, little by little.

There’s something about After that gets under Meg’s skin. Maybe it’s his blindingly good looks. Maybe it’s just because she doesn’t understand him. But her lack of understanding makes her want to understand. More than anything.

In a move so out of character that it takes her completely by surprise, Meg finds herself falling for Officer After and that can only lead to bad, bad things. Meg is in her final year of high school. She has big plans for herself. Plans that involve leaving the dead end town where she lives. How can she leave if she’s got something like a boyfriend holding her back? But Meg isn’t the relationship type, so what does she even care?

See her predicament?

When I first started reading this novel, I was worried that it was just going to be another story about a good, wholesome boy taming a wild, out-of-control girl. Boy-oh-boy, was I wrong. Both After and Meg are deeply rich characters with many layers that need to be peeled back before the reader is exposed to the real Meg, the real John After. While I do think that Meg is somewhat “tamed” by the end of the novel, I would argue that After is more the trigger than the reason. Meg doesn’t want to be so empty, so void, and John just shows her that she feels this way.

Going Too Far is unapologetic and refuses to pass judgment, instead transferring that responsibility onto the reader. And there are lots of opportunities to judge but I found myself completely unwilling to do so. Echols doesn’t sugar coat her prose or her dialogue and captures the do or die essence of adolescence perfectly. My only criticism is that we didn’t get enough of After and Meg together. Why do writers do this to us? They always leave the union – the bit we’re all waiting for – right till the last couple of pages. Here’s hoping she’s planning a sequel!

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James is eighteen. He’s been accepted to Brown University and he’s got the whole world in front of him. Except that he doesn’t want the whole world, and he certainly doesn’t want to go to Brown. James isn’t like other boys his age. He doesn’t fit in, or at least, he doesn’t want to fit in. He finds kids his own age annoying, shallow. The thought of sitting through four years of college with other kids his age is like a nightmare to him.

So what does a kid who is smart enough to have been accepted to Brown want to do with his life if not go to college? James wants to move to the Midwest. Buy a house and just get a regular old job. He wants a porch where he can read, sleep and be alone.

James’s parents don’t understand him, and his mother tells him this one more than one occasion. His father is a high flying business executive that has very little time for his parental responsibilities and James’s mother is a bit of an artsy fartsy hair brain that can’t hold down any kind permanent, stable relationships. James looks at his parents and wants the opposite of what they have.

This is one of those novels where not a lot happens, kind of like Seinfeld episode. It’s a novel about nothing but it’s completely unputdownable. James is a quirky character and from the beginning of the novel it’s clear that he’s an unhappy person. I was eager to discover the source of his unhappiness. Maybe this is why I kept reading so incessantly. I can’t say with certainty that the root of his problems is divulged, but I don’t think the reader is supposed to walk away with a sense of finality after reading this book.

Peter Cameron writes beautifully and his characters – even those that are deeply flawed – are intelligent and engaging. This is one of those rare highbrow real literary young adult novels and I recommend it to all. It’s not chick lit; there is no Edward Cullen found within its pages but it’s definitely worth your money and your time. Someday This Pain Will Be Useful To You is one of those universal novels that will appeal to both male and female readers everywhere. Cameron is a supremely talented author and he will have you thinking about the deeper roots of humanity without even realising it.

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Celeste has body image issues, but its no surprise considering she cops it everywhere she goes. At school the kids constantly taunt her about her body and at home she’s in the shadow of her two cousins who are so beautiful that they’re model material – literally. Her cousin Kathleen has been entering herself in beauty pageants for ages now, and Kirsten is a supreme athlete. Celeste is … well, Celeste is just Celeste.

Then one day, Celeste’s Aunt secretly enters her into a plus-sized modelling competition. Celeste’s mother is overjoyed and thinks this is just what Celeste needs, but Celeste doesn’t agree. Don’t they understand how the kids at school will treat her if they see her modelling for a plus-sized clothing company? It would be the most humiliating thing ever, and Celeste isn’t sure she’ll survive it. So she devises a plan to spoil her chances of being selected. You can’t be a plus sized model if you’re not plus sized, right?

Right.

So Celeste decides that in order to preserve her dignity, it might be time to step away from the cookies, just for now. She embarks on a weight loss plan and is determined to lose enough weight so that the judges will think she’s not big enough for their competition.

Losing weight is hard. Actually, it bites the big one – badly. Apples are not nearly as interesting as cookies, not even close.

Celeste has other problems, too. Her long time best friend seems to have ditched her for the most popular girl in school – who also happens to be Celeste’s enemy number one. How will Celeste deal with this rejection on top of everything else?

Models Don’t Eat Chocolate Cookies raises some interesting discussion points about body image. As Celeste begins to lose weight, everything in her life seems to fall into place. I have some pretty firm opinions about body image and when I was reading this I actually found myself feeling a little irritated that Celeste’s happiness increased as a direct result of her weight loss. I found myself asking ‘what kind of message does this send to the kids of the world?’ But I realised that because of my own views on the subject, I approached the novel with a very closed mind. Models has a whole stack of really important messages that I think are worth a detailed discussion. For example, yes, Celeste’s life does get better the smaller she becomes but she never lets herself become obsessed with dieting and it is important to note that she ends up at a much healthier body weight at the end of the novel. I think its important to realise that there are important messages about inner health woven into the text as well as messages about body image. If you approach the text with a body-image mindset only, you’re likely to be unsatisfied with the end result. You need to read it as a multi-faceted text, because that’s exactly what it is. While it may seem that Celeste’s family approach her weight-loss from a superficial perspective, if you read a little closer you’ll see that they’re all about Celeste’s health and mental well-being.

Models is like a really pretty dress made from two tone colour fabric: pretty and fresh whichever way you look at it.

Like with any novel that approaches a sensitive subject like this one, I’m sure anyone that reads it is going to want to discuss it somewhere. I am chomping at the bit to talk to someone about this so we’ve decided that we’re going straight to the source. We’re in the process of interviewing Erin Dionne about her novel and her views on the issue of health and body image. Stay tuned for more.

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Love a good scandal? Then you’re going to love this. The Luxe is like Jane Austen meets Gossip Girl, and there is not one part of that combination that I don’t adore. Set in the 1900’s, this tale is overflowing with love, betrayal, deceit, and all those other juicy things that made the books we love so perfect. With New York as its backdrop, The Luxe follows the lives of five individuals whose lives are more intertwined than one could possibly imagine.

Elizabeth is the eldest of the Holland daughters and is now of marriageable age. Since her father died, the Holland family has been suffering financial difficulty and Lizzie’s mother thinks its time she married her daughter off to a nice rich family who can provide a life of security and wealth for the Holland’s once more. When her mother arranges for her to be married off to Henry Schoonmaker – the most eligible (and wealthiest) bachelor in all of New York – despair clutches at Elizabeth more than one could possibly imagine. You see, Elizabeth has been having a secret affair with someone else – someone that, if her mother ever found out, she would be forbidden from seeing ever again…

Lina knows Elizabeth’s secret, however. She’s a servant in the Holland household, and Elizabeth’s own personal maid. Lina sees Lizzie sneaking out of Will’s room one night and her heart shatters into a thousand tiny pieces. Lina always wanted Will to herself and is horrified to learn that Lizzie – the perfect girl who has everything – has the one thing in the world she wants more than anything. Lina is a vindictive girl who will stop at nothing to attain her glory, or her man.

Lina is a bit like Penelope in that sense, which is why is it entirely unsurprising that their paths eventually meet. In a moment of fury, Elizabeth fires Lina and within the hour, Lina finds herself homeless. As she’s walking on the sidewalk, Penelope’s carriage trots alongside her and the two get chatting. Lina knows exactly who Penelope is and strikes a deal with the malicious woman in red that can only lead to Elizabeth’s demise. You see, Penelope has it bad for Henry and is horrified to learn of his engagement to her friend, Elizabeth. But with Lina’s help, Penelope orchestrates a plan to put a stop to their engagement and steal the bachelor for herself.

Henry, however, isn’t interested in Penelope in that way. Sure, they’ve had many a night together and they’ve done things that unmarried people simply should not do, but Penelope isn’t the kind of girl he could ever see himself marrying. But neither is Elizabeth. Henry – like Elizabeth – is forced into the arrangement by his parents. Then one day whilst calling on his fiancé, Henry is introduced properly to her sister, Diana, and is immediately taken by her brash persona. She’s beautiful, in an artistic way, and is everything he wants in a woman. Henry embarks on the pursuit of his life – to make Diana fall in love with him.

And she does. Diana is not a flip person and is taken by surprise that her feelings for Henry are so strong. He’s rude, unapologetic and ridiculously over-confident. But she wants him – badly. But he is destined to marry her sister, who is in love with someone else altogether. The whole thing is a bit of a mess and Diana finds herself in the stickiest of situations.

As the lives of New York’s elite become more and more tangled, you’ll be unable to put the book down. Anna Godbersen writes with a beauty so rich it is as if she actually lived in New York during the nineteen century.

Godbersen’s characters are dynamic and successfully incited emotions in me so powerful that I actually had to get up off the couch and pace while I read. I fell in love, learned the true power of what it feels like to hate, and became a complete slave to the pages the further I got into the novel.

Each page oozes with elegance, and like most guilty pleasures in life, is positively addictive. Watch out for the cliffhanger ending, though, as it will leave you breathless beyond your wildest dreams. Thankfully the second novel, Rumours, is in stores as we speak, with the third installment on the way…

Girls everywhere will love this novel. Jane Austen, eat your heart out!

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P.S – We’re actually reading The Luxe for our bookclub choice this month. Click here to join the discussion.

Brittany is a picture of the perfect American girl. She’s blonde, beautiful and head of the cheerleading squad. She’s smart, too, and comes from a well-to-do middle class family. And just like the icing on an already piece of sublime cake, Brittany is dating the quarterback of the football team. Perfect, right?

Maybe, but maybe not, too.

Things certainly look perfect in Brittany’s life, but she’s harboring some deep secrets that she protects with her life. Her older sister is severely disabled and neither of her parents seems to care about her enough to do anything about it. The only reason they haven’t shipped her off to a nursing home yet is because Brittany flat-out refuses to let them do it. Through all her difficulties, Brittany loves her sister and can’t comprehend how her parents can be so cavalier about their first-born child. But her parents are all about appearances, you see, and having a severely disabled daughter contradicts the image they’ve built for themselves.

As if Brittany didn’t already have enough on her plate, on the first day of senior year her Chemistry teachers pairs her up with Alex Fuentes in class – and they’re bound to each other for the entire school year.

Alex Fuentes is not the picture of the perfect American boy. He’s Mexican, for one, and the biggest bad ass that attends Fairfield High School. Hot, right?

Totally.

But he’s part of a gang which is much more serious than just a schoolyard group of bullies throwing their weight around. His father was part of this gang, and so are most of the boy and men in his Mexican community. They’re involved in some serious stuff – like drug dealing, for example – and now that Alex is getting older, his superiors expect him to step up to the plate.

When Alex is paired with Brittany, his friends make a bet with him and set him a challenge he can’t refuse: Alex must get Brittany to sleep with him before the end of the school year. Not one to walk away from a challenge, Alex accepts and sets about wooing his new chemistry partner. The thing is, Alex actually starts falling for this wholesome, clean-cut chick and things suddenly become more complicated than he ever imagined. But Brittany is a smart girl, she’d know better than to fall for Alex’s charade, right? And what about Colin – her quarterback boyfriend? As she spends more time with Alex, Brittany realises that no one has ever made her feel more alive, made her feel more intensely than he does.

Simone Elkeles carves an intense, emotional roller-coaster ride for anyone who dares to step aboard. Her characters are real, alive and dynamic in every which way. I felt like I knew Alex intimately, even though I’ve never met a soul like him in all my years. Brittany is uniquely different from most typical American high school girls found in young adult fiction today. She might look like an American trophy chick, but she’s deeply sensitive and completely misunderstood by the rest of her classmates. The world could learn a thing or two from Brittany’s example.

They’re different in every way and they have many obstacles to overcome, but are they strong enough – individually and together – to run the gauntlet that becomes their lives?

Perfect Chemistry is a touching story that demonstrates that love knows no boundaries, but that humanity knows far too many. I adored every freaking minute of this book and would give my left little toe to go back and read it for the first time over again. A completely unputdownable read.

Rock on Simone, Rock on.

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Leesie is a Mormon. She’s wholesome, pure and innocent and devoted to the teachings of her church. Dating boys outside her church is frowned upon and the guidelines about dating in general are very strict in the Mormon world:

- Thou shalt not be alone with a boy who is not your brother or your father.
- No parking
- No necking
- No tongue kissing
- No groping
- And obviously, no sex unless you’re married.

And these are just some of the acts that are off limits. But Leesie doesn’t mind, not really, because she’s never really met anyone that made her want to do any of those things anyway. And then Michael moves to town…

Meet Michael – he’s not wholesome, not pure, and certainly not a Mormon. When Michael arrives in town, he’s a bit of a mess. You see, the poor kid just watched his parents die in a diving accident and is being haunted by their faces in his dreams.

At first, Leesie just tells herself that she’s hanging out with Michael because he needs help. He’s broken and she wants to fix him. Michael likes Leesie, though – a lot – and he wants more than friendship with her. It isn’t too long before Leesie realizes that she feels exactly the same way. But what about her church? And what about her dreams to head off to Brigham Young University at the end of the school year? Is it even possible for a Mormon like herself to have a proper relationship with someone who doesn’t believe in the things that she does?

The Mormon guidelines pose some serious challenges for Leesie and Michael. Michael isn’t a virgin when he comes to town and he wants nothing more than to make sweet, sweet love to Leesie. But he can’t even use his tongue when he kisses her, how on earth is he going to get her out of her clothes? He says he loves her, but does he love her enough to respect her religion and their teachings? Leesie doesn’t understand why Michael can’t separate love and sex. For her, they’re two separate entities, but for Michael, they’re one and the same.

Taken By Storm implements the technique of dual narration and readers are able to navigate the story through both Leesie and Michael’s perspective. This technique validates both characters’ arguments and places the reader in a position which allows them to weigh up both sides equally before passing judgment over one character or the other. Michael’s grief over his parents’ death is gut wrenching, but does that justify the way he pushes Leesie? And Leesie’s religious beliefs explain why she resists so much but is it fair of her to preach at Michael, and is it fair for her to deny him the way she is? When two people who come from such opposing ways of life find each other, is it better to just walk away? These are all very good questions and Taken By Storm does a stellar job of addressing the issue fairly and objectively.

This is one of those heart-wrenching tales which demonstrates that, sadly, sometimes love just isn’t enough.

Available in stores March 5, 2009.

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She saw me and I could see the smile overcome her lips.
My pulse quickened.
It burned in my throat, as slowly, I reached into my pocket, pulled out the tiger shell and placed it gently onto the jacket where all the money was strewn.
I place it there, and the sun hit it, and just as I was about to turn around and make my way back through the crowd, the music stopped.
In the middle of the song, it was cut short.
The world was silent and I turned again to look up at a girl who stood completely still above me.

According to his family, Cameron Wolfe is a bit of a lonely bastard. He’s never had a girlfriend, never even been touched by a girl, in fact. But he thinks about it all the time. He watches on as his older brother, Rube, brings home girl after girl only to use them up and throw them away. Cameron reckons Rube needs to learn a thing or two about how to treat women, but what would he know? He’s never had a single date in his life.

The thing about Cam is, he really is a bit of a lonely bastard. Apart from the no-girl thing, Cam doesn’t have too many friends either. In fact, his friend count is down around the zero mark (unless you count his family members and the fluffy Pomeranian pooch next door). I never really did understand why he’s such a loner, though. Sure, he’s pensive and severely introverted, but not in a bad way, and certainly not so much that I can’t imagine no one liking him. He may not be the sharpest tool in the shed but he seems to have the human compassion thing down pat. He’s a gentle, poetic kid that is just underestimated by everyone around him.

Then he finds Octavia – or rather Rube finds Octavia, has his way with her and discards her like all the rest. Octavia is beautiful, smart, and seems to be a really deep kind of gal. And when Cam finds out that Octavia actually has the hots for him, he nearly doesn’t believe it. Why would someone that went out with Rube be interested in him? Cam and Rube are nothing alike, so it doesn’t make a whole lot of sense to Cam. But then he realises – Rube and Octavia aren’t really anything alike, either, and that’s when he sees a little but of Octavia Ash in himself. Their romance is touching in an unconventional kind of way.

Cameron Wolfe is a simple kid whose unique way of looking at the world will warm your heart from the inside out. He’s fiercely loyal, and smart where it really counts. He understands that family is one of the most important things a boy could have, even with all their faults.
When Dogs Cry isn’t one of those teen romance novels that focus on beating hearts and sweaty palms. It goes deeper than that and focuses on why people are attracted to each other in the first place. It’s raw in an enigmatic kind of way and I found it simply impossible to put down.

Markus Zusak proves yet again, that he is a literary mastermind; When Dogs Cry is a force to be reckoned with.

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If I had a cheerleading uniform and a pair of pom poms, I’d break them out right now so I could show David Levithan and Rachel Cohn just how much I love their work. I’d cheer, I’d jump, hell I might even attempt some of those crazy backward flip things. I’d definitely concoct a cheesy rhyme that I could shout at the top of my lungs that outlines my enthusiasm and appreciation. Yes, I’d go to THAT much effort.

Nick and Norah’s Infinite Playlist (their first collaborative novel) was so supremely perfect that I didn’t think David and Rachel could do much better than that. I mean, how can you top perfection? You can’t, right? Wrong. Apparently perfection now holds a new name, and it sounds a little something like Naomi and Ely’s No Kiss List.

Ely and Naomi have been friends forever. They live in the same apartment block and couldn’t be closer if they tried. They’ve got so much in common that they even like all the same boys. Yes folks, Ely is gay. So in order to protect their friendship against possible crush conflicts, Naomi and Ely devise a No Kiss List – a list of people that are off limits to both of them, under all circumstances. This works very well for them both, and life couldn’t be better.

Until Ely kisses Bruce The Second, Naomi’s supposedly straight boyfriend.

Because it’s the right thing to do, Ely tells Naomi and, not surprisingly, all hell breaks loose. For the first time in the history of The Ely and Naomi Show, the pair finds themselves experiencing some serious trouble in paradise. Things get nasty, they stop speaking and suddenly the No Kiss List no longer applies. All bets are off, every gay boy and straight girl for themselves.

Although the title suggests otherwise, this book is not entirely and exclusively about Naomi and Ely. Each chapter is told through a different character’s perspective, which adds a whole host of different tones and complexities to navigate. But it’s a good thing, and gives the novel depth. For example, through Naomi’s eyes, Bruce the Second is kind of boring and actually presents as a little two-dimensional. However, when Bruce the Second is actually given his own voice, readers step inside his head only to discover that he is adorable, smart, and kinda crazy about Ely. Cue violin music now, please. I found it very easy to forgive him for the terrible way things end between him and Naomi.

And then there’s Gabriel, who through Naomi’s eyes, is pretty much just a piece of eye candy, and through Ely’s eyes, is just the big-eared doorman. But when Gabriel finally gets his chance to narrate, readers learn that he’s deep, poetic and sensitive in a new aged kind of way. And man, does the boy have eclectic taste in music (which he is disappointed to learn, Naomi does not share). There’s also Bruce the First, Kelly, and the Robins.

Switching between characters so frequently means that you’ll never get bored reading this book because each character has a new agenda, a different purpose in the story. The one thing they do share in common, however, is Naomi and Ely, and everybody’s individual journeys are somehow linked to the Great Break Up of Ely and Naomi. Interestingly enough, I also think the constant switching between characters highlights just how limiting first person narration really can be. Naomi and Ely’s perceptions of the other characters are often unfair, or just plain incorrect.

There are some seriously touching AWWWWWW kind of moments in this story, but there are also a whole stack of humorous ones too. In fact, in several places I laughed so hard I had to put my book down, wipe the corner of my eye, and take a deep breath. Naomi and Ely’s No Kiss List is pure quality entertainment, in the strongest, most emphatic sense of the word.

Cohn and Levithan write together brilliantly, and their enthusiasm for their work shines on every single page, through every single tiny, insignificant word. Their characters are so real, so alive, that I think I saw Ely at my local Starbucks last night. For the record, Bruce the Second wasn’t with him, but a very loud-mouthed, jaw dropingly gorgeous girl was. Defintely Naomi, for sure.

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John Green is no stranger to praise. His previous novels, Looking for Alaska and An Abundance of Katherines scored much recognition, and won many awards. The hype surrounding his new novel, Paper Towns, is huge. Everyone knows someone that has read it, or knows someone who wants to read it. So when I picked up the three hundred odd page novel I had super high expectations. That’s the problem with expectations: as soon as you expect something, you’re almost always going to be disappointed. And I was, but not for any reason that I can justify. I think I thought it was going to be breathtakingly mesmerising from the very first word. In all the hysteria, I forgot that a novel needs to lay its foundations and introduce its characters to the reader before any kind of connection or relationship is achieved. Once I remembered all these things, I let my preconceived ideas dissipate and found myself really enjoying everything Paper Towns had to offer.

Paper Towns is narrated through Quentin’s point of view. His neighbour – and long time crush – Margo Roth Speigelman has a thing for running away from home. When she disappears again, everyone is upset, but no one is surprised. Only this time it is different, and Quentin thinks Margo wants him to find her. He uncovers some clues, which he believes she deliberately planted for him, and begins piecing all of them together. While Quentin spends the final months of his senior year looking for Margo, the rest of his friends spend their final months preparing for prom and revelling in the fact that their high school days are finally numbered. Quentin becomes totally consumed with finding Margo and misses out on all kinds of experiences (like graduation) as he follows dead end lead, after dead end lead. He starts to wonder all kinds of crazy things, like whether or not he’ll find her alive, or whether he’ll ever find her at all.

Quentin is an incredibly likeable character. He’s compassionate, dedicated to his cause, and everybody’s best friend. Margo, on the other hand, I found harder to care about. Although she is gone for a lot of the novel, readers learn a lot about her through the clues that Quentin uncovers on his journey. From my vantage point, Margo is conceited, superficial, melodramatic and not worthy of Quentin’s affections at all. I found myself wishing that he’d stop looking for her and just let himself enjoy the last few months of high school with his friends. But if I’m honest with myself, Quentin’s supreme dedication to find her, dead or alive, is one of the characteristics that I admired about him most.

In the end, although none of them really think they’re going to find her, all of Quentin’s friends forfeit their graduation ceremony so they can accompany him on a last ditched effort to follow a lead. They end up in a car headed for New York. It’s during this trip that readers are really exposed to the true strengths of friendships, relationships, love and loss. The road trip to New York is my favorite part of the novel and I found myself re-reading several pages because I was so touched by some of the words and actions of the individual characters. I’m not going to tell you whether they actually find Margo or not, because that would ruin the ending for you all. But I am going to tell you that I think Margo is someone that will always run, will always look for the quickest escape route when anything gets tough. She’s one of those girls that lack the strength of character to look life in the face and deal with its raw and brutal consequences.

This was my first experience reading a John Green novel and I can happily say that it will not be my last. There is a little something for everyone in this novel, with action, drama, romance and real life experiences and emotions spread across its pages for all to absorb. yaReads give you two very big thumbs up, John Green. Two very big thumbs indeed!

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I am speechless. Numb.

I just finished reading Jay Asher’s debut novel, Thirteen Reasons Why, and although my brain is buzzing, I can’t seem to find my words. So I’m going to ramble of a bunch of statistics, which hopefully, will highlight the gravity of the issue Asher deals with in his novel.

Did you know:

Approximately 8 in every 100 000 people aged between 15 and 24 in the United States commit suicide every year.

Among 15-19 year old Australians, suicide accounted for a total of 85 registered deaths in 2004, at a rate of 6.2 per 100,000 people (7.5 for males, 4.8 for females). Suicide accounted for 15.2% of total male deaths and 17.1% of total female deaths registered in this age group (source: Suicides, Australia, 1994 to 2004. ABS, 2006).

Teen suicide is often attributed to drug and alcohol abuse, poor family situations, extreme trouble at school, mental illness. Sometimes, pinpointing a reason why someone kills themselves is impossible and friends and family of the deceased live out the rest of their days wondering why, what – if anything – they could have done to help.

In Thirteen Reasons Why, readers are given a detailed blow-by-blow account of Hanna Baker’s journey towards death. Before she dies, she records her story on a set of audio tapes. She devises a plan to make sure that everyone featured on the tapes receives them, and listens to every single word she says.

When Clay receives the tapes, he doesn’t know what they are at first. But after listening for only a couple of moments, the realisation that he is in possession of Hanna Bakers last words, and that he is somehow part of her downward spiral is a sobering thought indeed. Clay listens, not just because he wants to learn about his role, but because it was Hanna’s last dying wish that everyone that receives the tapes, listens to them in full.

Clay always had a thing for Hanna Baker, but they’d only made out once, so what could he possibly have done to contribute to her decision to kill herself? As Clay is listening, often with tears streaming down his face, he realises that his failure was unavoidable. Sure, he could have tried harder to get through to Hanna in her time of need, but she pushed him away – and how can you help someone that doesn’t want to be helped?

Some of the events that unfold in Hanna’s tale are really quite horrific, and I found myself questioning the very essence of human nature over and over. How could these kids do these kinds of things to each other? Can’t they see that their actions, their words, all come with consequences? Or maybe they do know, but just don’t care? Reading Thirteen Reasons Why made me realise that I’m either a very naïve person, or I’ve lead a very sheltered life (quite possibly a combination of both). Teenagers can be the cruellest creatures on Earth.

Foresight is not a characteristic commonly employed by the characters in this novel. From the those that contributed to her demise, right through to Hanna actually committing suicide, no one looked past the now. Would Bryce have done the things he did if he knew it would lead to Hanna ultimately deciding that she couldn’t live with herself anymore? Maybe Clay would have stayed in the room longer, maybe Justin wouldn’t have started that rumor. Maybe. But maybe not, too.

Hanna herself was guilty of lacking foresight. She couldn’t see past her immediate problems, couldn’t see that her life wasn’t necessarily always going to be at the whim of the idiots she went to school with. But I argue that she couldn’t see these things because she didn’t try. She didn’t want to see a life beyond what she knew. The question then stands, then, if the combination of events Hanna blames as the source of her desire to die, hadn’t happened, would she have found other reasons to justify her death? Was it set in her brain, programmed from birth? It’s a difficult question to answer and one that often gets asked in the wake of a successful suicide attempt.

Teen Suicide is not an issue to be taken lightly, so I was happy to see Jay Asher dealing with Hanna’s death in a responsible, accurate manner. Thirteen Reasons Why is written in simple, straight-forward language. As this is Asher’s debut novel, it’s hard to tell whether such a technique was intentional or is just the product of his natural writing style. But it works, very well. Hanna’s story is profound enough that it does not need the help of colourful language to get the message across. Asher captures the essence of the teenage mind brilliantly, providing a captivating, raw tale with lessons about humankind for all.

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Parker Prescott is in love. The only problem is, she just broke up with the boy in question and now she’s realised that she made a huge mistake. She’s pretty sure he’d still take her back, but what about the reason they broke up in the first place? He was getting way too pushy about the whole sex thing and Parker wanted to wait till he told her that he loved her before doing the deed. But now she wants him back so badly that she thinks she’s willing to go all the way, and not just for him either; Parker craves his body, his lips and his hands.

One day he shows up at her house when her family is out, and the hanky panky starts. Parker allows him to handcuff her to a chair in her father’s office, and as he’s unbuttoning her shirt and loosening her bra, Parker’s mother and father get home early, busting them in the act. Parker is grounded indefinitely, and so starts the beginning of all her problems.

Marion Hennessy – Parker’s arch nemesis – is out to get Parker, and writes a whole bunch of nasty, untrue stuff about Parker and her man on her blog. Everyone reads it and suddenly Parker’s relationship is the centre of speculation and gossip. To make things worse, Parker realises that she has some very hot competition. Kandace – Marion’s friend – has it bad for Parker’s man and is doing everything in her power to steal his affections. This launches Parker into a world of self-doubt and unrest. Will Parker sleep with her boyfriend to keep him, or will wait until she gets what she wants from him first?

Being inside Parker’s head was a real pleasure, for very odd reasons. Parker is an ordinary girl. She’s smart, but she’s average looking. She’s a bit of a wallflower and certainly not part of the popular crowd, but her boyfriend is. I really love that the girl-next-door, the girl that no one thought would snag the most desirable and sought after boy in school, does. However, what I like about Parker Prescott the most, is that she could be me, or you, or the girl sitting next to you. This gives hope to all ordinary girls everywhere that they can do, and have, what they want too. Parker makes ordinary look extraordinary.

Parker’s character surreptitiously highlights some important issues for teen girls everywhere. Because everyone else wants to date her boyfriend, Parker is constantly questioning his motives. The gossip often gets the better of her and every now and then she finds herself believing the gossip articles about her that appear on Marion’s blog. Is there really a bet out on her virginity; is that the real reason why he wants to sleep with her. Maybe that’s why he hasn’t said he loves her yet. Is he sleeping with Kandace behind her back, as Marion wants her to believe? Parker lacks self-confidence, which is a big problem that a lot of teens face today. If Parker were more sure of herself she’d be able to have more faith in her allure, more faith in her man. Like so many girls, Parker can’t see her own assets because she is blinded by everyone else’s best characteristics. Handcuffs highlights the complexities of navigating your way through the day-to-day problems associated with attending high school; I don’t know a single person on the entire planet that can’t relate to that in some way or another.

Readers never learn what Parker’s boyfriend’s name actually is. Parker never says it, nor do any of the other characters in the novel. I really like this technique, as it allowed me to shape my own version of him. Because he is nameless, because there are very few physical descriptions given, readers can construct him in their own desirable terms. I found myself questioning his movtives, as Parker did, but just like Parker, I was unable to hate him. Ultimately, I wanted him as much as she does. As the novel comes to a close, readers are exposed to the truth; I was biting my nails all the way till the end.

Handcuffs is Bethany Griffin’s first novel and she captures the essence of adolescence superbly. Her characters are believable, raw, honest and absolutely engaging. Teenage girls everywhere will be able to relate to Parker’s pain and angst, her self-doubt and her hormonal desires. yaReads offers a huge round of applause to Bethany Griffin for an awesome debut novel. We look forward to more work from her in the future.

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Being a novel about sex, drugs, and rock ‘n’ roll, I Wanna Be Your Joey Ramone comes with an explicit content warning, as all good rock ‘n’ roll stories should. It is the tale of Emily Black, a messed up teenager from Carlisle that channels herself through her guitar.

Emily is one of those tortured artist types. When she was just a baby, her mother left her with her father to ‘follow the dream’ and chase the punk scene around the country. Now Emily is a teenager and her mother still has not returned. Although she won’t admit it, Emily is hurting and she’s angry – very angry. She is feisty, cold, incapable of loving, and charged with way too much self-confidence. She’s got a vile mouth and she’s one of those teenagers that get involved in adult things way too early. She lost her virginity at fourteen, she first got drunk at twelve, she smokes, takes drugs and sleeps around.

Emily’s life goal is to make music. She doesn’t have a backup plan because she doesn’t need one; she’s going to make it as a rock star and that’s all there is to it. Luckily her best friend is the best drummer Emily has ever met, and together they’re practically unstoppable. They recruit Tom – a kid from the school band – to play bass and before they know it they’ve got interstate gigs, and people are calling out their names on the street.

Sounds very glamorous and feel-good, right? Wrong. There is nothing feel-good about this novel. Its edgy, hard and I squirmed uncomfortably as I flipped through the pages. As painstaking as that was, I was unable to stop reading. Emily is such an emotionally closed character and her pain weighed heavily on my heart all the way through.

The novel also follows Louisa – Emily’s mother – on her journeys around the country. The victim of a horrible crime, Louisa runs far and wide so she doesn’t have to emotionally process what happened to her. I’m sure many readers will feel sorry for Louisa as they engage in her story, yet I found myself unable to do so. She’s weak, whiny, and cowardly. Her reasons for leaving her family behind are a little pathetic and completely unforgivable.

Kuehnert’s love for music bleeds from the pages of this book. Her knowledge is extensive and her passion is blindingly obvious. As far as debut novels go, this one is pretty spectacular. Kuehnert’s prose is strong and she manipulates the English language like Emily manipulates her guitar: perfectly and poetically. Her characters are vibrant, three dimensional, and complex; and they prove that even bad girls make for excellent literary reads. Relating to Emily was difficult, but empathising with her was not.

If you love music, if you like your books a little on the rusty, edgy side, if you enjoy reading about strong, angsty female characters, then I Wanna Be Your Joey Ramone is the novel for you. We give it two very big thumbs up here at yaReads and we can’t wait for whatever comes next from Stephanie Kuehnert.

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The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian is absolutely, positively, undeniably one of the best books I’ve read for a good long while. If it were possible for a book to stop traffic, this would be the one to do it.

Arnold Spirit doesn’t want to end up like the rest of his community. He has big dreams for himself; he wants to leave the reservation and give life a good go. So he asks his parents if he can go to the rich, white school on the other side of the reservation border. When they say yes, Arnie’s life changes enormously.

Suddenly he doesn’t fit in anywhere. The kids on the reservation think he’s a traitor, and the kids at his new school think he’s an outsider. Arnie’s life is one complex day after another. But then things start to change. Penelope – the most popular girl in school – takes an interest in him, and suddenly he’s asked to try out for the basketball team. As it turns out, Arnie is a pretty good ball player, which does wonders for his popularity status. Then Arnie’s new team comes up against his old team for the show down of a lifetime. How will Arnie deal with the confrontation?

Although it does so in a highly entertaining and comedic way, this novel deals with some serious issues. On the reservation, Arnie is surrounded by family members and friends who all abuse alcohol and drugs. The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian addresses the serious, life-changing consequences of such social problems. Although Arnie tends to trivialise these things through humor, the gravity and dangers associated with drug and alcohol abuse is certainly not lost within this story. I therefore insert my tear-jerker warning here. Tears from some readers are highly possible.

Ellen Forney’s illustrations add immeasurable worth to this story. They’re funny, descriptive, and provide an extra layer that words alone could never achieve. They’re definitely the icing on this already utterly hilarious cake.

Arnie’s voice is likeable and easily relatable. Even if you’re not a Native American Indian, even if you know nothing about Indian culture, I’m almost certain you will be able to find something of yourself in Arnie. If there were more kids like Arnie around, the world would be a better place.

You’ll laugh your hearts out; you’ll cry enough to fill a fish tank. Reading The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian is an emotional journey that everyone everywhere should experience. It’s a serious story told through a pair of not-so-serious eyes, making it easily digestible and readily accessible to all. This is definitely a book I can see myself coming back to over and over.

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This book comes with an extreme tear-jerker warning attached to it. If you spend your entire reading experience blubbering, don’t say we didn’t warn you!

Suffering from leukaemia, sixteen-year-old Tessa only has a few more months left to live. She has compiled a list of ten things she wants to do before she dies. More than anything else she wants to lose her virginity, so her friend Zoey takes her out clubbing one night to see if she can help make Tessa’s wish come true.

As Tessa works her way through her list she meets Adam, her next-door neighbour. On the brink of death, Adam makes Tessa feel more alive than ever before. What could a nineteen-year-old boy possibly see in a dying, cancer-ridden girl? Believe me when I say, more than you think.

Adam’s character is so real, so mature. Readers will fall in love with him from the very first moment he is introduced into the story. He becomes Tessa’s life force as he injects a new enthusiasm, a new desire to live just that little bit longer. Adam’s devotion and attentiveness, his adoration for a dying girl completely restored my faith in teenage boys everywhere.

But don’t be fooled, this is not one of those stories where everything works out in the end. The title itself indicates that Tessa will in fact pass on. I don’t feel like I’m giving away any crucial plot elements by divulging this, if anything, I’m preparing you for the inevitable. And I think that if you approach this book knowing that your beloved protagonist is not going to make it through, her experiences, her emotions and revelations become all the more important.

I cried, I laughed and then I cried some more. Before I Die is a beautifully written tale that readers everywhere will enjoy.

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