YA Book Reviews for May 19, 2010
From CRBSLS
The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot
From the book cover: "Doctors took her cells without asking. Those cells never died. They launched a medical revolution and a multimillion-dollar industry. More than twenty years later, her children found out. Their lives will never be the same."
Henrietta Lacks was a poor African-American woman whose family worked a tobacco farm in the south, and eventually migrated to the north, where they settled in Baltimore. When Henriette developed pains in her abdomen, she sought treatment at Johns Hopkins, where she was diagnosed with cervical cancer and suffered a slow and painful death. Henriette never knew that some of her cells had been harvested; through the work of a determined and well meaning scientist, these cells were the first to be successfully grown in a lab. Experiments using "HELA" cells have produced countless scientific breakthroughs, and the cells are now used all over the world. However Henrietta's family was never informed, and never benefited in any way. This book weaves together science and social history in a powerful tale of medicine and discrimination. Important and readable. (For high school students and teachers).
Reviewed by Ann Sayers
Rules of Attraction by Simone Elkeles
The sequel to and second in the Perfect Chemistry trilogy finds itself focused on Carlos, Alex's younger brother, who still has gang connections and a drug habit. By sending him to live with Alex and Brittany in Colorado, Ms. Fuentes feels like maybe her second son will have a chance. What ensues is a watered-down and less believable budding relationship between Carlos and the daughter of his "mentor" who is a frumpy motorhead. Elkeles still enhances the story with descriptive and imaginative sexual situations which will entice her fans who keep coming back for more of the "bad boy, good girl" love stories. (Reviewed by Alicia Abdul, Albany High)
"Smiles To Go" by Jerry Spinelli
Things were much simpler for Will before proton decay. He knew that everything had a place and never disappeared. His 12 -point plan for his entire life worked. Now things are changed. His relationship with his best friends is off-track. His first kiss does not go as envisioned. Nothing is going as he decided it should. When his little sister is hospitalized after a skateboarding accident, Will gets a wake-up call and realizes that life's unpredictability is part of its joy. While this was a slow start for me, I think readers will like the short chapters and the humor that winds through the story, even though some of the situations are emotional. (Reviewed by Judi Stott, Shaker Junior High)
"Shakespeare Makes The Playoffs" by Ron Koertge
The sequel to "Shakespeare Bats Clean-Up" this, too, is written using various forms of poetry. An appeal may be that just a page or 2 can be read quickly, but it's also a great and often funny story. Kevin and his team are marching their way to the playoffs, but meanwhile, girl trouble is getting to him. He and his friends weave their way through the trials of young love. His father, too, is making his way into the dating pool after the death of his wife a year or so before. The story is told as Kevin writes in his journal. The poetry is not the focus. The focus is the diagloge he has with his current girlfriend, or the emails with his "poetry friend" Amy, or recaps of the current baseball game. I really enjoyed this and would like to reread the previous book. [Kevin's grief is fresh after his mother's death. When he contracts mono his father, a writer, gives him a journal to keep him busy.] (Reviewed by Judi Stott, Shaker Junior High)
