Silverfin, by Charlie Higson

Silverfin (The Young James Bond series), by Charlie Higson
YA, 2005

from the publisher:
FILE NOTE STRICTLY CONFIDENTIAL - AUTHORISED PERSONNEL ONLY Subject: James Bond Age: 13 Description: dark hair that falls in a comma above his brow, despite efforts to control it; blue eyes; tall for age; surprisingly strong; fluent French, good German. Essential components: A villain so vile no white fluffy cat would go near him A girl - blond, green-eyed, named Wilder Lawless One fast car. Additional detail: Sinister experiments at a remote castle in the Scottish Highlands The disappearance of a young boy Britain building to war in the 1930s.

Trackgeek:
Having read a couple of the original Ian Fleming James Bond books (Fleming also wrote Chitty-Chitty Bang Bang oddly enough) I was curious to see what they would do with Bond as a kid.  The story was interesting, nothing off the charts, but a good read, especially for the mid teens. Fans of Anthony Horowitz's Alex Rider series will enjoy this similar (although not quite as good) set.

Graded a B-.

Unbroken: A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience, and Redemption, by Laura Hillenbrand

Unbroken: A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience, and Redemption, by Laura Hillenbrand
Adult, 2010

from Amazon.com:
On a May afternoon in 1943, an Army Air Forces bomber crashed into the Pacific Ocean and disappeared, leaving only a spray of debris and a slick of oil, gasoline, and blood.  Then, on the ocean surface, a face appeared.  It was that of a young lieutenant, the plane’s bombardier, who was struggling to a life raft and pulling himself aboard.  So began one of the most extraordinary odysseys of the Second World War.
The lieutenant’s name was Louis Zamperini.  In boyhood, he’d been a cunning and incorrigible delinquent, breaking into houses, brawling, and fleeing his home to ride the rails.  As a teenager, he had channeled his defiance into running, discovering a prodigious talent that had carried him to the Berlin Olympics and within sight of the four-minute mile.  But when war had come, the athlete had become an airman, embarking on a journey that led to his doomed flight, a tiny raft, and a drift into the unknown.
Ahead of Zamperini lay thousands of miles of open ocean, leaping sharks, a foundering raft, thirst and starvation, enemy aircraft, and, beyond, a trial even greater.  Driven to the limits of endurance, Zamperini would answer desperation with ingenuity; suffering with hope, resolve, and humor; brutality with rebellion.  His fate, whether triumph or tragedy, would be suspended on the fraying wire of his will.

Trackgeek: An intense book, I found the story of Louis Zamperini fascinating.  I love reading sports (eg running) history (other works like Bowermen and the Men of Oregon) but haven’t really read a lot of war history.  Zamperini’s story was incredible and the insight into WWII was superb.

Graded an A.

No Such Thing As Dragons, by Phillip Reeve

No Such Thing As Dragons, by Phillip Reeve
Juvenile, 2009


Ansel's new master slays dragons for a living. He says he's hunted the monstrous worms all over Christendom and has the scars to prove it. But is Brock just a clever trickster in shining armour? Ansel is sure there are no such things as dragons. So what is the man-eating creature that makes its lair in the crags of Dragon Mountain? Ansel and Brock must climb the ice face to discover the terrifying truth.

Trackgeek:
A nice simple, fun fantasy story suitable for the 10-14 age group.

Graded a B.

God Is In the Pancakes, by Robin Epstein

God Is In the Pancakes, by Robin Epstein
YA, 2010

from Goodreads:
Fifteen-year-old Grace Manning is a candy striper in a nursing home, and Mr. Sands is the one patient who makes the job bearable. He keeps up with her sarcasm, teaches her to play poker . . . and one day cheerfully asks her to help him die. At first Grace says no way, but as Mr. Sands’s disease progresses, she’s not so sure. Grace tries to avoid the wrenching decision by praying for a miracle, stuffing herself with pancakes, and running away from all feelings, including the new ones she has for her best friend Eric. But Mr. Sands is getting worse, and she can’t avoid him forever.

Raspberry:
On one hand, this book has all the makings of a cliche - girl and her family abandoned by their father, tenuous relationships with that family but on the mend, best friend becoming something more...really it could have been quite predictable. And in many ways, it was. But what I love about Grace is that she is 15. Things don't just fall into place and overnight she doesn't just know what to do. She suffers through high school like many of us did - in the shadows - and secretly enjoys that her mother makes her work. She wants something more with her best friend but doesn't realize it right away. She wrestles with whether to tell her sister and her mother how she feels about things, worried she'll make things worse. And like most girls, it's funny what the perfect dress will do for your confidence. 
In the end, this isn't a breakthrough phenomenon, but it is a story that is true to itself without allowing the cliches to overcome and make it into what a lot of teen fiction (drama?!) is today. A thought-provoking book that asks (and sometimes answers) questions without whacking you in the face.
Graded a B.

Note: There is a significant amount of swearing, including one instance of the f-word.

Matched, by Ally Condie

Matched, by Ally Condie

from fantasticfiction.co.uk:
Cassia has always trusted the Society to make the right choices for her: what to read, what to watch, what to believe. So when Xander's face appears on-screen at her Matching ceremony, Cassia knows with complete certainty that he is her ideal mate . . . until she sees Ky Markham's face flash for an instant before the screen fades to black.
The Society tells her it's a glitch, a rare malfunction, and that she should focus on the happy life she's destined to lead with Xander. But Cassia can't stop thinking about Ky, and as they slowly fall in love, Cassia begins to doubt the Society's infallibility and is faced with an impossible choice: between Xander and Ky, between the only life she's known and a path that no one else has dared to follow.

Raspberry:
Drawn in by that gorgeous cover and the dystopian plotline, I checked Matched out as soon as I could. However, multiple reviews said it didn't live up to expectations, and although I'm not sure who said it (I believe multiple people?), someone compared it to The Giver with a love triangle. I told my husband that sounded grand to me, and wasted no time giving it a shot.
Matched is an interesting plot which reminded me nothing of The Giver and more of The Sky Inside, by Clare Dunkle. It has an enormous amount of potential except...it's as if the publisher decided to milk it for all it was worth into a trilogy (or whatever plans they have for it). The truth is, it was a lot slower than a dystopian novel should be, or at the very least a lot more was written down for this first part of the plot than needed to be. However, the twists are enjoyable, the ideas unique and I intend on giving Crossed, the next in the trilogy, a try.

Graded a B-.

Fallen Grace, by Mary Hooper

Fallen Grace, by Mary Hooper
Young Adult, 2010


from Fantasticfiction.co.uk:
Grace Parkes has just had to do a terrible thing. Having given birth to an illegitimate child, she has travelled to the famed Brookwood Cemetery to place her small infant's body in a rich lady's coffin. Following the advice of a kindly midwife, this is the only way that Grace can think of to give something at least to the little baby that died at birth, and to avoid the ignominy of a pauper's grave. Distraught and weeping, Grace meets two people at the cemetery: Mrs Unwin and James Solent. These two characters will have a profound affect upon Grace's life. But Grace doesn't know that yet. For now, she has to suppress her grief and get on with the business of living: scraping together enough pennies selling watercress for rent and food; looking after her older sister, who is incapable of caring for herself; thwarting the manipulative and conscience-free Unwin family who are as capable of running a lucrative funeral business as they are of defrauding a young woman of her fortune.

Raspberry:
Mary Hooper is a master at historical fiction, and Fallen Grace is no exception. She is historically accurate, and frequently uses bits of real life stories to pattern hers. But my favorite thing about Mary Hooper is her ability to take a rather edgy/scary topic (i.e. rape, murder, etc.) and handle it tastefully and respectfully, understanding both her audience and just how much information they need to proceed with the story.
Grace is a girl you can admire - her head is on her shoulders and she's a heroine to love, and the intricate plot is Dickens-like in its portrayal of good versus evil.

Graded an A-.

Guest Reviewer: The Lemon Jelly Cake, by Madeline Smith

The Lemon Jelly Cake, by Madeline Smith
Young Adult/Juvenile, 1952

Helene and her best friend, Gracie, enjoy the delights of growing up in a small town in Illinois in the early 1900s. Helene's Mother is known throughout the community for her Lemon Jelly Cake, which she regularly makes for church socials and whenever special company comes. When a certain lawyer from another town begins to come to dinner fairly often and the Lemon Jelly Cake becomes his favorite, Helene observes events through the innocent eyes of a carefree child.
GG:
Widely acclaimed, and sweetly written (60 years ago) account based loosely on the childhood of the author. Supposedly a book of humor, I found it to be sprinkled with some charmingly funny bits, but ultimately was saddened by the dalliance of the child-narrator between her mother and a wealthy and persistent attorney. Although, in the end, the resolution is meant to be satisfying, to me the pain of the possible infidelity left a bad taste in my mouth. Perhaps this is because I've been married 30+ years and am crazy in love with my husband.  There are many marriages built on trust, fidelity, faith and friendship but it is rare we find books devoted to such unions.

Graded a B-.