Spinelli puts a Smile on My Face!

OK, so we have all read Stargirl, right? We all know and love Jerry Spinelli for his delightful characters, his unwavering optimism and his examination of adolescence. Despite each story's conflict, there is always a feel to Spinelli's books that you want these characters in your life, and you always know things have to turn out OK. Smiles to Go is no exception!

Will is a skateboard riding, chess playing ninth grader whose best friends, Mi-Su and BT, are the center to his world. When BT kisses Mi-Su at a stargazing event, Will realizes he wants to kiss Mi-Su! With plans and schemes, he has worked out a way to get Mi-Su to kiss him and plays the plans over and over in his head until he convinces himself it will work. But BT is so nonchalant about Mi-Su, the way BT is about everything (which drives Will crazy!).

The best part of this book, however, is not Will, Mi-Su, BT, or the typical teen love triangle. The best part of this book is by far Tabby, Will's five-year old sister. Tabby is a handful, to say the least, who seems to live for making Will's life miserable. She is so precocious and mischievous, you just know you would love to know this girl (although perhaps in small doses). At one point in the book, Will and his dad are working on Will's chess game for the big match coming up. Tabby has been unceremoniously locked outside and is not happy about it. She tries screaming, pleading, pretending something horrible is happening in the hall, and any other stunt to get Will and her dad to come out of the room. When she gets mysteriously quiet, Will glanced over at the door to see a straw poking under the door- Tabby had resorted to trying to "suck all the air out of the room".

This book will literally make you laugh out loud and applaud Sir Spinelli once again. There is of course a life lesson to be learned for Will, but not before Tabby worms her way into your heart. This is a great "middle reader" book for low-skilled high school students or average-skilled middle school students. The story is sophisticated enough to not be a stretch for a high school student, either. Great book, quick read for you, and one you won't be sorry you took the time to read! But I warn you, this book will make you look for the Tabby in your life!

Slam

by Nick Hornby

Contributed by Peter Machera.

Often it seems young adult novels sacrifice quality for accessibility, or vice versa. With Slam, Hornsby has accomplished both, and in effect this novel will appeal to readers of all ages. Most normal adults will not be especially interested in Tony Hawk, as is the protagonist Sam. However, they will appreciate Sam's ironic and sometimes absurd approach to his situation. The teenage skater (no, not ice skating) acts as narrator, revealing that his mother had given birth to him as a teen. Sam reluctantly loses his virginity to a beautiful girl he has met. He shows a precocious, and perhaps finicky sense of morality by supposing that his new friend, Alicia, is using him to exact revenge upon her ex-boyfriend. He rationalizes that being in love is simply the temporary state of not being sick of each other yet, and so their making love is not immoral, in his complex code of right and wrong. 

This novel is a cautionary tale against random teenage sex, without being preachy. The tone is reminiscent of Catcher in the Rye, in that the reader feels as though the writer is speaking directly to him. Since, apparently, teenagers don't identify with Holden anymore, they might as well check out Sam. Slam has laugh-out-loud moments consistently, and will keep you interested throughout. There isn't an ounce of fat in the three hundred page book. The author A Long Way Down, and High Fidelity demonstrates in his latest work not only that he is still relevant, but can speak in the voice of the ADD generation with, well, high fidelity.