TOO GOOD TO OVERLOOK

Now that I have finished reading all 20 Rebecca Caudill nominees for 2012, I can get back to some of the other books on my reading list. Having heard Sharon M. Draper speak at the Anderson's YA Literature Conference in September, I realized I had never read one of her books. Everyone at the Conference raved about Out of My Mind so I started with that one. Wow! The story is told by Melody who has a photographic memory but no one knows about it because she has cerebral palsy, can't speak or move on her own and is confined to a wheelchair. She, and the other handicapped students in her class, are treated like imbeciles until the day she gets a computer that speaks for her. Although her world suddenly opens up, her problems are not over yet. Out of My Mind can be found in the Fiction section with the call number DRA.

BIKES MORE IMPORTANT THAN CARS?

That's what happens when gas runs out across the country in Leslie Connor's book Crunch. This "crunch" time finds Dewey, his older sister Lil, his younger brother Vince, and the twins home alone without their parents who are stranded in Canada. Dewey and Vince, who are running the family's bike repair business while their dad is gone, are overwhelmed as everyone is now using bikes for transportation. To make matters worse bike parts start disappearing from the shop. Dewey takes it upon himself to find the culprit and keep the shop running. This is a great family story and a mystery with a scifi twist due to a future that could be ours. You can find Crunch in the New Book Display at the front of the IMC.

WHO WILL SURVIVE?

Three Rivers Rising, by Jame Richards, tells the story of the 1889 Johnstown Flood in a unique way. This is a novel in verse. Beginning in the summer of 1888, the poem chapters introduce us to various people whose lives will be changed by the flood -- if they survive. We meet Celestia, from a wealthy family who vacation at an elite resort on Lake Conemaugh. Also at the resort is Peter who works at the hotel. Celestia and Peter become friends, but their relationship lacks parental approval on both sides because hotel guests and hotel workers were not to socialize in the late 1800's. We also meet Joseph and Maura and their children. Joseph is a railroad engineer who is often gone from his family, but has a special whistle signal to let Maura know his train is coming in. Finally there is Kate who wants a career in the medical profession but is told she can only be a nurse. When the flood occurs, each of these people will be severely challenged to stay alive and keep their loved ones alive, too.