Description: Jane McKeene was born two days before the dead began to walk the battlefields of Gettysburg and Chancellorsville—derailing the War Between the States and changing America forever. In this new nation, safety for all depends on the work of a few, and laws like the Native and Negro Reeducation Act require certain children attend combat schools to learn to put down the dead. But there are also opportunities—and Jane is studying to become an Attendant, trained in both weaponry and etiquette to protect the well-to-do. It’s a chance for a better life for Negro girls like Jane. After all, not even being the daughter of a wealthy white Southern woman could save her from society’s expectations.
   But that’s not a life Jane wants. Almost finished with her education at Miss Preston’s School of Combat in Baltimore, Jane is set on returning to her Kentucky home and doesn’t pay much mind to the politics of the eastern cities, with their talk of returning America to the glory of its days before the dead rose. But when families around Baltimore County begin to go missing, Jane is caught in the middle of a conspiracy, one that finds her in a desperate fight for her life against some powerful enemies. And the restless dead, it would seem, are the least of her problems.

Review: Dread Nation is a very clever and subversive horror novel set in an alternative American Civil War. The North and South have set aside their differences and slavery has ended when the dead rise up, prowl the battlefields, and eat their compatriots. The horror has birthed a new nation and a different type of slavery disguised by the Native and Negro Reeducation Act which forces Native and African American boys and girls into combat schools. Graduates from these schools are a buffer between the living and the undead.
  Jane McKeen is a biracial girl sent to Ms. Preston's school of combat to obtain an attendant certificate. She is trained in combat, weaponry, and etiquette so she can protect her future white employers. Though not an ideal life, the life of an attendant provides an opportunity for education and a chance at a better life. Jane yearns for the chance to be reunited with her mother and return to her home in Kentucky. Jane is an admirable heroine who is above all a survivor. She is quick on her feet, incredibly intelligent, and outspoken which leads her into trouble multiple of times. We get glimpses of her past as she writes letters to her mother and reminisces about home.
 When she is about to graduate her friend, Red Jack, asks for help locating his sister Lily. Jane's attempts to discover Lily's whereabouts land her in a survivalist colony called Summerland, whose motto is restoring America's former glory. Survivalists advocate a disordered view of natural selection that places Jane on patrol from zombies because her skin color makes her expendable and she is firmly under the watchful eye of a vicious sheriff and his psychopathic family. Jane now has an insurmountable task of finding a way out of Summerland not only for herself, but also for those she loves. She must make some unlikely alliances of her own if she is to survive long enough to find her own path to freedom.
  I am not a fan of horror novels and particularly not of zombies, but Dread Nation drew me in as a reader. It is a smart, thought provoking novel that explores horror of the fictional and unfortunately real kind. Ireland skillfully works in the different forms of enslavement, mental and physical, into a complex and engaging story. It is absolutely horrifying to see characters justify oppression, racism, and slavery. Despite these heavy topics, the novel also has lighter moments too where it explores friendship, love, defying expectations, defiance, and resisting paths that are thrust upon you. I am happy to see that this is a beginning of a series, but there is so much more that I want to know about Jane and her friends. This is a solid horror novel for fans of the movie Get Out and the television show The Walking Dead.

Rating: 4 stars

Words of Caution: There is some strong violence including a scene of torture. There is minor language and antiquated racial slurs. Drug use is also mentioned. Recommended for Grades 9 and up.

If you like this book try: The Forest of Hands and Teeth by Carrie Ryan, Rot and Ruin by Jonathan Mayberry, Devils Unto Dust by Emily Berquist

Description: It's been five years since Livy and her family have visited Livy's grandmother in Australia. Now that she's back, Livy has the feeling she's forgotten something really, really important about Gran's house. It turns out she's right. Bob, a short, greenish creature dressed in a chicken suit, didn't forget Livy, or her promise. He's been waiting five years for her to come back, hiding in a closet like she told him to. He can't remember who--or what--he is, where he came from, or if he even has a family. But five years ago Livy promised she would help him find his way back home. Now it's time to keep that promise. Clue by clue, Livy and Bob will unravel the mystery of where Bob comes from, and discover the kind of magic that lasts forever.

Review: Bob is an uplifting story of friendship and magic co-written by two mega stars of the children literature world. Livy, now ten, doesn’t remember much about the last time she visited her grandmother in Australia five years before. When Livy rediscovers a weird, green, diminutive creature dressed in a chicken costume called Bob hiding in a closet, she  promises to help Bob figure out who he is and where he came from, and to solve the mystery of how she’d forgotten about him in the first place. The story alternate between Livy’s and Bob’s first-person perspectives. I enjoyed reading Bob's chapter the most as it was filled with warmth and humor. There are illustrations by Nicolas Gannon are sprinkled with illustrations, monochromatic and golden-brown, provide a nostalgic feel.
  Although I enjoyed the positive message in the book, I felt underwhelmed by the story. The book moves at a leisure pace even though the chapters are short. I had hoped we would find Livy and Bob actively searching for answers, but the climactic plot twist is rushed and the environmental message feels tacked on and unexplored. Unfortunately, Bob did not meet my high expectations, but I would still recommend it to younger readers who are looking for a feel good story.

Rating: 3 stars

Words of Caution: None. Recommended for Grades 3 and up.

If you like this book try: Crenshaw by Katherine Applegate

Description: The Iron Druid Chronicles is a hilarious and action-packed urban fantasy set in a modern world in which all the gods of every pantheon are alive and well, as in American Gods; its hero is a smart-mouthed, buttkicking magician, like Jim Butcher’s Harry Dresden. But it’s told in a smart, witty, unforgettable voice that’s all Kevin Hearne—a star in the fantasy world. This addictive and wildly imaginative series stars hero Atticus O’Sullivan: a handsome, tattooed Irishman who looks like a young rock star, but is in actuality a 2,000-year-old Druid with extraordinary magic powers. In Besieged, Atticus’ adventures throughout history are told in a collection of nine new and original short stories.

Review: Before you read Scourged, the final book in the Iron Druid Chronicles, I highly suggest picking up Besieged, the short story collection set in Hearne's creative and entertaining urban fantasy world. In this collection of nine original short stories we get backstory information of the past and hints of the future. In "The Eye of Horus," he hunts for scrolls underneath the Great Library of Alexandria, where he encounters two members of the Egyptian pantheon. I love how this series though heavily influenced in Celtic and Norse mythologies also features mythologies from around the world. "The Bogeyman of Boora Bog" is narrated by Archdruid Owen Kennedy in which he meets a young boy who will one day become Atticus O'Sullivan. This is my favorite story in this short stories collection. I loved getting more information about Atticus' childhood and his family. In "The Cuddle Dungeon" we follow an Irish goddess of the hunt and Slavic god of thunder walk into a sex dungeon and then strange things happen. This story was the weakest and too weird for me and I did not see how it added anything to the overall Iron Druid World. The last short story and a prequel to Scourged called "The End of Idylls," has Atticus reminiscing to his best friend wolfhound Oberon about companionship and traveling solo. This story sets up the uneasiness of the final book. I hate when characters have to ready themselves to say goodbye while going off to dangerous adventures.

Rating: 4 stars

Words of Caution: There is strong language and violence in the short story collection. There are sexual situations at times graphic in this short story collection. Recommended for mature teens and adults only.

If you like this book try: Scourged by Kevin Hearne (Iron Druid Chronicles #9), The Age of Misrule by Mark Chadbourn, Dresden Files by Jim Butcher

Description: Robert Hoge was born with a tumor the size of a tennis ball in the middle of his face and short, twisted legs, but he refused to let what made him different stand in the way of leading a happy, successful life. This is the true story of how he embraced his circumstances and never let his 'ugly' stop him from focusing on what truly mattered.

Review: Ugly is a memoir, set in Australia, that grabbed my attention right away with its humor, honesty, compassion, and grace. It is an eye opening read about being born and living with severe physical deformities. As a child, Hoge was in general healthy, but his mother initially did not want to keep him because of his appearance. He was born with mangled legs and a large tumor in the middle of his face. Doctors predicted that surgery might kill him. Nevertheless, they proceeded with several operations to "fix" Hoge in the hopes they would help improve his life and make him "appear normal". As the years passed, Hoge experienced many ups and downs such as getting the right fit with his prosthetic and learning how to walk in them, wanting to play traditional and popular sports but is not able to because of his disability, and making loyal friends while also dealing with bullying.
  Despite his disability, the memoir also highlights a more traditional childhood from being mischievous at school, attends summer camp, unsuccessfully auditions for a junior choir, and performs in a talent show. While winning battles, Hodge always wished to belong and underwent multiple surgeries to "improve" his face. And despite wanting to look more "normal," Hoge later made a conscious decision not to have any more operations, which is really remarkable and emphasizes all of us to embrace our differences.
  Hodge's writing is very accessible and easy to read. He uses analogies to clarify complex themes and it had the right balance of humor and candidness that makes the story conversational and compelling rather than preachy and dry.

Rating: 4 stars


Words of Caution: None. Recommended for Grades 4 and up.


If you like this book try: Wonder by R.J. Palacio, Gabe and Izzy by Gabrielle Ford

Description: The drought—or the Tap-Out, as everyone calls it—has been going on for a while now. Everyone’s lives have become an endless list of don’ts: don’t water the lawn, don’t fill up your pool, don’t take long showers. Until the taps run dry.
  Suddenly, Alyssa’s quiet suburban street spirals into a war zone of desperation; neighbors and families turned against each other on the hunt for water. And when her parents don’t return and her life—and the life of her brother—is threatened, Alyssa has to make impossible choices if she’s going to survive.

Review: Shusterman's latest YA thriller is scarily realistic and plausible. In the near-future or alternate-present America, a prolonged drought called the Tap-Out results in the sudden depletion of Southern California's water supply. When their parents vanish while seeking desalinated water, Alyssa and her 10-year-old brother Garrett embark on a harrowing journey, searching for their parents and fending for themselves as society around them deteriorates. Along the way, the siblings pick up three teens: their survivalist neighbor Kelton, unpredictable lone wolf Jacqui, and calculating opportunist Henry.
  Dry alternates between the teens' distinct viewpoints and intersecting snapshots that supplement the backdrop of how others are dealing with the dire circumstances.The snap shots doesn't distract the reader and only enhances the hysteria, suspense, and time constraints on our characters until they die of dehydration. I liked Alyssa but she came across as your generic teen. I would have much rather preferred if the story was told by the spirited and impulsive Jacqui. I was intrigued by Kelton's family dynamic who were super prepared for any crisis and I wanted to learn more about them. Henry was well fleshed out despite the limited page time he appeared in the story.
  The story does have its share of bleak moments. I did have to suspend my disbelief in the lack of warning before the Tap-Out comes into full swing. I also had questions towards the ending that were not addressed and glossed over. While not my favorite Shusterman novel, Dry is a solid dystopian/survival thriller.

Rating: 4 stars


Words of Caution: There is some language and strong violence in the book. Recommended for Grades 9 and up.


If you like this book try: Not a Drop to Drink by Mindy McGinnis