Spare Change – Aubrey Mace

Riley hates New Year’s Resolutions. She makes them every year, and every year, she fails to complete them. She thinks she’ll just skip the whole thing for once, but her mother insists. Deciding to make the easiest resolution ever, Riley sets her goal—she’ll save her pennies all year long and at the end, she’ll buy something nice for herself. This plan only lasts a short time, though. She works in a care center for cancer patients, and as she sees them come in day after day for their chemotherapy, her heart is touched and she wants to do something to … Continue reading →

Seasons of Salvation – Dennis Mangrum

When Jake Wolfgramm is asked to teach early morning seminary to a group of at-risk LDS youth, he’s not sure if he can take the challenge. He has something in common with these kids – when he first came from Tonga to the United States, he got off on the wrong foot and was a wild child himself. Now settled down and doing well for himself in college, he wonders if he has what it takes to get through to the class. He decides to accept the challenge, and let the chips fall where they may. Cheyenne Carson was abandoned … Continue reading →

Sixteen in No Time – BJ Rowley

Celinda and her friend Mandy are looking forward to the junior prom. Celinda has been asked to go by Travis Foxx, the hottest guy in school, and Mandy has her eye on a guy of her own. The dance is just a week away and they’re full of high hopes. . . but there’s a problem. They each have rules in their homes that they can’t date until they’re sixteen, and the prom comes right before their birthdays. Consequently, their parents say they can’t go. Heartbroken, Celinda decides there has to be a way to get around her parents. She … Continue reading →

What Your Mother Never Told You: a Survival Guide for Teenage Girls – Richard M. Dudum

Our teenagers today are facing more pressure, more trials than ever before, and author Richard M. Dudum wants to give our daughters a clear, unmistakable message: you don’t have to conform to anyone else’s idea of what you should be. You can decide for yourself if you’re going to get involved in drugs, if you’re going to have sex, if you’re going to play into the social games. He does this in his new book, “What Your Mother Never Told You,” and he does it in down-to-earth language that can’t be misinterpreted. Several different topics are covered in this book, … Continue reading →

Jennie – Susan Evans McCloud

“Jennie” is the story of a young woman who goes to work as a nanny in the town of Concord. As an aspiring writer, Jennie is entranced by walking the same streets as Louisa May Alcott, Thoreau, and Emerson. She enjoys the children in her care, but doesn’t so much enjoy their parents, who are obsessed with work and their position in society. As she looks for friendship in her new town, she meets the delightful Cornelia, who regales her with stories of a bygone era and quickly becomes a good friend. When Cornelia’s grandson Nigel comes for a visit, … Continue reading →

Extras – Scott Westerfeld

At the end of “Specials,” the third book in the “Uglies” trilogy, Tally has decided to keep an eye on the world and make sure that as the people start enjoying their newfound freedom of thinking, they won’t make dumb decisions that will ultimately destroy their environment. She clearly remembers learning about the days when people burned trees, and doesn’t want civilization to return to such a backward state of thinking. In “Extras,” the spin-off to the series, we meet Aya. A young woman who lives in Japan, she’s part of a whole new culture, one that no longer inflicts … Continue reading →

Enna Burning – Shannon Hale

Shannon Hale won rave reviews for her book, “The Goose Girl.” In “Enna Burning,” she takes Isi’s best friend Enna from the first book and gives her a plot of her own. Enna’s brother Leifer comes home one day with a strange secret that he won’t share with anyone. His behavior is odd, his temper is out of control, and one night, he sets Enna on fire. Not with a match or a stick aflame, but with his will. Enna beats out the flames, and Leifer is terribly sorry for what happened, but his story comes out – he has … Continue reading →

The Journal of Curious Letters – James Dashner

Atticus Higginbottom is a fairly average boy, despite his unusual and unfortunate name. His nickname, “Tick,” is only slightly better. He doesn’t consider himself special in any way until the day the first letter arrives, a letter telling him that he’s about to receive a series of clues that will tell him of a secret mission he must perform, one that will affect the entire world. He’s warned that it won’t be easy, and that he’ll want to withdraw many times before he’s through. If he doesn’t want to learn more, he should just burn the letter, and no more … Continue reading →

Specials – Scott Westerfeld

Third in the “Uglies” series by Scott Westerfeld, “Specials” takes us on a new journey with Tally Youngblood. At the end of “Pretties,” she had been taken in hand by Special Circumstances for thwarting their plans of controlling the populace through surgeries that would make everyone beautiful, but made them dumb and gullible. Tally fought hard to maintain her own will and her free agency, but Special Circumstances forced her to undergo another surgery, one that would rewire her brain and make her into one of them: a Special. Specials have gone through the most outrageous transformation of all. Their … Continue reading →

Heaven Scent – Rebecca Cornish Talley

“Heaven Scent” is the first novel by LDS author Rebecca Cornish Talley. We meet Liza Compton, a girl in her senior year of high school at a new school. Her father recently landed a job in a prestigious law firm and uprooted the family to a new area, believing that a big house and great cars would be the answer to their dreams. Instead, he spends more and more time at work and away from his family, and Liza wishes things could go back to the way they were before. Sure, they didn’t have much money, but they had their … Continue reading →