THE CASE OF THE TEENAGE TERMINATOR by Angela Elwell Hunt

Nicki Holland’s older brother Tommy is not himself. Normally happy-go-lucky and kind, he has become secretive and angry. When the anger turns to violence, Nicki and her friends Laura, Kim, Christine, and Meredith decide it is time to put their sleuthing skills to work and find out what is wrong.

The Case of the Teenage Terminator is the third in author Angela Elwell Hunt’s Nicki Holland Mysteries series. Although written with a Christian slant the author avoids proselytizing; and the five girls who make up the mystery solving team possess enough differences, problems, and virtues to give readers ages eight through twelve characters they will both identify with and enjoy.

Interestingly, I could not find any reviews for this or any of the other eight Nicki Holland mysteries. I am inspired to pay attention to how many religion oriented books are reviewed by School Library Journal, Booklist, Horn Book, etc.

Hunt, Angela Elwell. The Case of the Teenage Terminator. San Bernardino: Here’s Life, 1991.

GOTHIC! edited by Deborah Noyes

The ten dark tales that make up the short story collection Gothic! are sure to send chills down your spine. Fantasy, humor, and pure horror are some of the genres included in this collection. In Have No Fear Crumpot Is Here! by Barry Yourgrau a whiny toddler vampire terrorizes a small rural town. A teenage girl reluctantly impersonate a corpse on a hunted hayride with disastrous results in Morgan Roehmar’s Boys by Vivian Van Velde, and Melanie spends the weekend with her Aunt Beryl who is keeping a terrible secret in The Prank by Gregory Maguire

Joan Aiken, Garth Nix, Neil Gaiman and other popular authors contribute to this ghastly, gory, giggly collection of short stories. They provide the perfect opportunity for teens grade nine and up to scare themselves silly.

Book review excerpt from School Library Journal: “These varied tales take place in the distant past and in the high-tech present. Some are humorous while others have surprising twists or are reminiscent of classic fairy tales full of malevolent characters, but all share a love of the surreal or supernatural. Noyes's insightful introduction defines what a gothic tale is and includes information about the authors and the origins of their stories. A sophisticated, thought-provoking, and gripping read.”
Sharon Rawlins, Piscataway Public Library, NJ Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved

Aiken, Joan, Vivian Van Velde, M.T. Anderson, Neil Gaiman, Caitlin R. Kiernan, Barry Yourgrau, Janni Lee Simner, Gregory Maguire, Celia Rees, and Garth Nix. Gothic!. edited by Deborah Noyes. Cambridge: Candlewick Press, 2004.

POEMS FROM HOMEROOM by Kathi Appelt

Poems From Homeroom is a collection of 26 poems about the trials and triumphs of being a teenager. Included are Lost in the Blues; an observation on the classroom air guitarist who cannot bring his real guitar to school, The Fat Girl; who is in danger of forgetting her own name because everyone addresses her as “fat girl,” and my favorite, The Twirling Queen of Dogwood, Texas; who begins twirling her knife and fork when she is a tiny little girl and ends as the star of both her hometown and a Hollywood movie. The poems are sometimes funny, sometimes sad, and sometimes frightening, but each one contains all of the fear, hope, and yearning that goes with being a teen.

Teens in grade six through twelve will identify in some way with each of Kathi Appelt’s heart-felt poems. Written in many different forms including free verse, haiku, and acrostics the book contains a second section where the author explains how the idea for each poem was formed and continues with suggestions on how to write poetry of your own.

Book review excerpt from Booklist: “The poems frequently shine with humor and tender, memorable images: "the cream colored cat, wild in her loneliness," that's left behind when a boy leaves his childhood home. But it will be Appelt's prose encouragements to young writers that will draw readers most. A warm, instructive resource for teens and teachers alike.”
Gillian Engberg Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Appelt, Kathi. Poems From Homeroom: A Writer’s Place to Start. New York: Henry Holt, 2002,

ZEN SHORTS by Jon J. Muth

Stillwater the giant panda meets Addy, Michael, and Karl when his big, red umbrella blows from his backyard into their backyard. He retrieves it and begins a friendship with each of them. The children take turns visiting Stillwater and he shares a story, based on Zen Buddhist literature, with each child. The three stories, Uncle Ry and the Moon, A Heavy Load, and The Farmer's Luck have been retold in many ways over hundreds and; in the case of The Farmer's Luck; thousands of years.

Jon J. Muth's books for children have won awards for both illustration and writing. With Caldecott Honor Book Zen Shorts Mr. Muth retells three stories; two folk tales from Zen Buddhist literature, and one from Taoist oral tradition. The large watercolor illustrations that accompany each story compliment and enhance the peaceful, loving attitude of gentle Stillwater the panda. Children in kindergarten through grade four will enjoy this unique and entertaining introduction to Asian folk tales.

Review excerpt from Booklist: "Muth's latest is both an accessible, strikingly illustrated story and a thought-provoking meditation. Here he incorporates short Buddhist tales, "Zen Shorts," into a story about three contemporary children. One rainy afternoon, a giant panda appears in the backyard of three siblings. Stillwater, the Panda, introduces himself, and during the next few days, the children separately visit him. Stillwater shares an afternoon of relaxing fun with each child; he also shares Zen stories, which give the children new views about the world and about each other. Very young listeners may not grasp the philosophical underpinnings of Stillwater's tales, but even kids who miss the deeper message will enjoy the spare, gentle story of siblings connecting with one another. Lush, spacious watercolors of charming Stillwater and the open neighborhood will entrance children, as will the dramatic black-and-white pictures of the comical animal characters that illustrated Stillwater's Zen stories."
Gillian EngbergCopyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Muth, John J. Zen Shorts. New York: Scholastic, 2005.

OUT OF THE DUST by Karen Hesse

Out of the Dust chronicles two years in the life of Billie Jo. Born in 1920 in the panhandle of Oklahoma, her Daddy wants a boy but gets red-haired, freckle-faced Billie Jo instead. Her Ma has one indulgence, playing the piano, a passion she passes on to Billie Jo.

By the time Billie Jo is fourteen the depression and the dust have done its best to beat the family down, but despite life's hardships they still have hope. The dust from the drought has made the milk chewy, but at least they have milk. Billie Jo is getting paid to play the piano; something she would do for free, but the money is welcome. And, after years of trying and almost giving up, Ma is expecting another baby. Maybe this time Daddy will get the boy he has always wanted.

Tragedy strikes when a fire takes the baby and Ma from Daddy, and burns Billie Jo’s hands so badly she cannot play the piano. Now both Billie Jo and her Daddy have to decide whether it is best to run from trouble or stay and see things through.

Children 5th grade and up will identify with headstrong Billie Jo who wants her parents’ approval and love, but also wants the freedom to be herself. Older children will appreciate the symbolism within Hesse's free-verse poetry. The sod symbolizes the people who steadfastly care for their children and the land while never losing hope. The dust symbolizes the people who have lost hope; swirling with no anchor and increasing the hardship of those they have left behind.

The setting is 1930s Oklahoma, but the struggle to maintain hope in the face of seemingly insurmountable odds is timeless. Billie Jo’s dilemma is the universal struggle of whether to stay and help the people who depend on you or to think only of yourself and run away.

Billie Jo sums up the spirit of Out of the Dust with these words:

The way I see it, hard times aren’t only
about money,
or drought,
or dust,
Hard times are about losing spirit,
and hope,
and what happens when dreams dry up.

Review excerpt from Publishers Weekly: "This intimate novel, written in stanza form, poetically conveys the heat, dust and wind of Oklahoma. With each meticulously arranged entry Hesse paints a vivid picture of her heroine's emotions."
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Hesse, Karen. Out of the Dust. New York: Scholastic, 1997.

AN AMERICAN PLAGUE by Jim Murphy

In the summer of 1793 a heat wave hit the city of Philadelphia. Bounded on two sides by the Delaware and Schuykill rivers the city, with its exposed sewers, usually smelled quite unpleasant during the summer months. However, the excessive heat and the unusual number of dead animals left to rot in the streets and alleyways, combined to make the stench almost unbearable. Before long the human inhabitants also began to die at an alarming rate. Before cooler weather brought relief from the awful smell and sickness, approximately 5,000 of Philadelphia's 51,000 inhabitants were dead.

Included in this Newbery Honor Book are the thoughts of some of Philadelphia's leading citizens such as George Washington, then President of the United States, who credited the timing of the plague with saving America from becoming involved in the French Revolution. Washington felt America could not afford to become embroiled in the problems of the French, but public sentiment ran highly in favor of aiding them because they had helped America gain freedom from the British. When the spread of yellow fever shut down government operations due to death and the flight of most of congress to other cities, Washington had the excuse he needed to remain neutral with the French.

Even though the plague killed almost 10 percent of the population, physicians and politicians of the day never could agree on what actually caused the illness in the first place; never making the connection between the red bumps that "resembled moscheto bites" according to Dr. Benjamin Rush, prominent physician and signer of the Declaration of Independence, and the mosquitoes that swarmed the city that summer. Fortunately, improved sanitation was one of the results of the devastation of the 1793 plague mostly because "doctors agreed that foul smells were not healthy and might promote disease."

Review excerpt from Booklist: "Drawing on firsthand accounts, medical and non-medical, Murphy re-creates the fear and panic in the infected city, the social conditions that caused the disease to spread, and the arguments about causes and cures. With archival prints, photos, contemporary newspaper facsimiles that include lists of the dead, and full, chatty source notes, he tells of those who fled and those who stayed--among them, the heroic group of free blacks who nursed the ill and were later vilified for their work. Some readers may skip the daily details of life in eighteenth-century Philadelphia; in fact, the most interesting chapters discuss what is now known of the tiny fever-carrying mosquito and the problems created by over-zealous use of pesticides. The current struggle to contain the SARS epidemic brings the "unshakeable unease" chillingly close."
Hazel RochmanCopyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

Murphy, Jim. An American Plague: The True and Terrifying Story of the Yellow Fever Epidemic of 1793. New York: Clarion, 2003.