When I picked up From the Notebooks of Melanin Sun (Puffin Books 1995) at the Authors as Artists series with Jacqueline Woodson, I didn’t know much about it.  I chose it because I connected with the description of Melanin on the back cover.  Melanin Sun sometimes has trouble getting his words out when he speaks, so instead he writes them in his notebooks.  I sometimes stumble when I have to speak deep truths aloud, but if I put pen to paper or fingers to keyboard, the words flow much easier.

I loved how the first person narration and the excerpts from Melanin’s notebooks give glimpses into his mind and heart.  Melanin is happy with his life with his mother in their Brooklyn, New York apartment.  He hangs with his friends Raphael and Sean when he’s not poring over his stamp collection of endangered amphibians.  He carries Angie’s phone number in his pocket, dreaming of having the nerve to actually call her.  Then his mother brings home Kristen for dinner and reveals a secret that will change Melanin’s life forever.

Through Melanin’s eyes and words, Woodson explores sensitive topics of racism and sexuality with compassion.  In learning to accept who is mother is–opposed to who he thought she was–Melanin must find his own voice and strength.  He learns which friends he can count on and that he can open his mind and heart to more that he thought possible.  Woven through it all is an exploration of the power of words–power to shut out and to open up, the power to hurt and to heal.

Now that I’ve read all the books I bought, I’m ready to hit the shelves in the library to discover more.

My daughter picked this book up from our latest trip to the library.  As soon as she finished it on one of our many snow days, she handed it to me and said, “You have to read this, and you have to put in your classroom library.  It will be powerful birth control.”

Caela Carter gives an intimate look at the heartbreak caused by an unplanned, teen pregnancy in Me, Him, Them, and It (Bloomsbury 2013).  Evelyn is a good girl turned bad.  She’s still in the running to be valedictorian, but she has shortened her skirts and started drinking at parties in order to get back at her silent parents, who are no longer speaking to each other or to her.  As part of her bad-girl makeover, Evelyn hooked up with Todd, a friend with benefits.  She didn’t plan on falling for him–or to become pregnant–or to lose her best friend.  Now that her world is crashing down around her, Evelyn withdraws further and further into herself.

Evelyn is funny and heartbreaking all at the same time as she tells her story and tries to sort out what has happened to her and to her family.  She has no idea about what to do with this new life growing inside of her, and she is afraid to let anyone–even her beloved Aunt Linda–close enough to help her.  As the baby grows bigger and bigger, she is running out of time to make decisions.

I’m not sure any book is enough to be used as book control, but this novel certainly offers an eye-opening look at the changes an unplanned pregnancy can bring, and it does so without being preachy.  Thank you to my daughter for introducing me to another great book and author!

When I got the mail on Saturday, I had a dilema on my hands as I opened my package:

It really wasn’t much of a question.  I knew I would be reading–and finishing–The Impossible Knife of Memory (Viking 2014).  As my Twitter friends suggested, I couldn’t go wrong with Laurie Halse Anderson.  Indeed, this might be my favorite book of hers yet, though I hate to choose between them.

I liked Haley from her first appearance in detention, where she writes “Correcting a teacher’s mistake is not a sign of disrespect.”   No, that wasn’t quite the assigned lines to write,  but rather her interpretation of events.

Hayley is trying to survive–high school (where the zombies outnumber the freaks) and home (where her miltary father is haunted by his battles in Iraq and Afghanistan).   She and her dad had been on the road for the past five years, trying to outrun the ghosts, but now that they have settled in Andy’s hometown, the past is catching up with them.  Will a childhood friend and a quirky new guy offer enough hope for Hayley to cling to through a life that is spiraling out of control?

Laurie Halse Anderson has opened my eyes and my heart to the struggles of our country’s veterans, especially those struggling with PTSD, and their families with a powerful story that crackles with humor and heartbreak.

Here is a word from Anderson herself on the book:

Reading See You at Harry’s both broke my heart and nourished my soul.  Jo Knowles has crafted a story of family and friendship and grief that will stay with me and haunt me in all the most beautiful ways.  If you haven’t read this gem yet, go get a copy and read it now!

Fern feels invisible in her slightly crazy family.  Her father is constantly coming up with over-the-top schemes to boost business at the family restaurant, usually embarrassing ones like the television commercial with the whole family.  Her mother escapes the chaos of family and family restaurant by seeking inner peace through meditation.  Her older sister Sara is too busy flirting with the bus boy at work and too grumpy at home to pay much attention.  Her older brother Holden constantly runs out on family to avoid conflict over the bullying he receives and school and the happiness he finds with a new “friend.”     Then there’s three-year-old Charlie, a surprise baby who now is the center of everything.  Thank goodness Fern can count on her best friend, Random. His calmness and positive energy sustains her in the bumpy transition to middle school.

Then an unspeakable tragedy turns Fern’s world upside down.  While she is blaming herself for what happened, grief threatens to tear her family apart as they each struggle through it in their own way.  Not even Ran’s mantra of “All will be well” can help Fern now.

Even though Fern thinks she is invisible, she is anything but a wallflower.  Like the character (from Charlotte’s Web) she was named for, she has a big heart.  That big heart surprises her sometimes, like when she stands up to bullies on the bus.  I’m not normally a fan of  violence, but in this case, I was cheering her on.  Time after time, Fern comes through to take care of her friends and family.  Will she be able to let them help her when she needs them most?