Girl Stays in the Picture

Girl Stays in the Picture

by Melissa de la Cruz

Superstars! They're just like us!

Well... except for the movie star boyfriends, the parties, the designer clothes, the movie premieres, the yachts, the stage mothers, and the paparazzi... they really are just like us!

They scheme. They backstab. They try to steal boyfriends.

They are misunderstood. They are rumored about. They get cheated on. They get dumped.

They fall in love. They make BFFs. They learn to enjoy life.

Superstars!

Who wouldn't want to be one!??

Something to Blog About

Something to Blog About

by Shana Norris

Sometimes the only person you can talk to is yourself. And, since talking to yourself out loud makes you look a little crazy, a blog can be a great way to get out your feelings.

Now, Libby Fawcett knows that blogs (online diaries) can be dangerous, so she specifically signs up for one that is password protected. She's very careful to log out every time she's done. She hasn't even told her family and friends about it, so no one knows she even has it.

As she writes about her days, her friends, and her evil tormentor, she gets a place to let out her feelings, especially about her not-so-secret crush, Seth.

However, things are never as easy as that.

Libby's evil tormentor, Angel, also happens to be the daughter of the man that Libby's mom is dating. And neither one of them is happy about it.

If Angel ever finds out about her blog, and all the secrets it contains, Libby may never be able to survive the fallout.

Stitches

Stitches

by David Small

When he was born, he was sick and always crying.

When he was six, he had all sorts of sinus problems. So his dad, a radiologist, took tons of x-rays as therapy to help make him better.

When he was eleven, a growth appeared on his neck. Instead of taking him to surgery to have it removed, his dad bought his mom a new car and new furniture for the house.

When he was fourteen, he finally got the surgery he needed. And then had a second one the next day. And THEN he found out that he had cancer and that was why the doctor had been forced to remove glands and one of his two vocal chords.

So now he is mostly silent. Watching his extremely dysfunctional family fall apart before his eyes. And drawing it all.

It isn't until he is finally allowed to go to therapy that he finds out that life isn't supposed to be this hard. Then and only then can he draw his way past it to a better life.

This graphic novel is a very quick read with artwork that brings truth to the saying about a picture being worth a thousand words. Stitches is a finalist for the 2009 National Book Award.

m or f?

m or f?

by Lisa Papademetriou and Chris Tebbetts

Frannie and Marcus are brain twins. They've known each other for years, finish each other's sentences, and have the same taste in everything.

They are perfect for each other.

As friends.

Did I forget to mention? Marcus is gay.

When Frannie falls for Jeffrey, Marcus is there to push her on and support her. He helps her get dressed for her date, encourages her to chase off the blonde who sticks to Jeffrey like glue, and helps her chat with Jeffrey online.

But Marcus gets a little too supportive when he continues to chat with Jeffrey online even when Frannie is not around.

As he gets to know Jeffrey, he's discovering that maybe his brain twin's perfect match may be his, as well.

So... what to do!? Help his friend get the guy? Or steal the guy for himself (if he's also gay).

Sister Wife

Sister Wife

by Shelley Hrdlitschka

Nanette - Pure of thought. A true believer. God has a plan for her, her future husband, her future children, and his other wives.

Celeste - Tries to be pure of thought. Wants to be a true believer. But if God has a plan for her, he hasn't told her yet and she's making some plans of her own.

Taviana - Outsider. Had a hard life with the non-believers. Even became a prostitute to support herself until a man from Unity came and brought her to The Movement to try and save her. She enjoys the safety, but not all of the rules and strict guidelines. And she talks a little too much to Celeste to make the leaders of Unity comfortable.

This is a polygamist community where men have many wives and romance between teens is forbidden. Cell phones, TV, movies, and all fast food are forbidden. Girls stop attending school after eighth grade to help their mothers take care of the multiple children around the household.

When Celeste turns 15, the Prophet will speak to God and choose a husband for her, even though she's already in love. Nanette seeks only to be pure and follow the rules, but worries about her sister's soul because it looks like she's going to go against the Prophet. And Taviana just wants to stay off the streets, but the police keep looking for her.

Can these three girls find the strength to be themselves and find happiness?

Kiss & Blog

Kiss & Blog

by Alyson Noël

Being popular is all that Winter and Sloane ever wanted in high school. In fact, they spent their entire summer studying for it. They had index cards to plan proper responses to what the popular girls would say. They purchased clothes that the popular girls would wear. They planned their pajamas for when they were "kidnapped" after getting on the cheerleading squad with the perfect cheer. They even created and signed a contract between them promising that if one girl became popular, she'd take the other with her.

But that's so not how things turn out.

Sloane gets in and Winter gets ignored.

Not only does Sloane not help Winter become popular, she pushes Winter aside as she gets to be the leader of the popular girls and dates the senior hunk of the school.

But Winter is no wimp. She decides to get even.

She starts a blog that is solely focused on sharing every single one of Sloane's deepest, darkest, most embarrassing secrets.

And though no one knows who she is, and no one knows she's talking about Sloane, the blog soon becomes the talk of the school and Winter has a question to answer.

What is revenge?

1. Becoming exactly like the person who hurt you or...
   
2. Becoming popular in your own way, without changing who you are.

Can she do both?

She'd better figure it out before it's too late.

The Revealers

The Revealers
by Doug Wilhelm

Middle school is hard.

We all know it.

Sixth grade starts out ok because your friends from elementary school are still your friends when you start the new year.

But things change.

Seventh grade means cliques. Populars. Jocks. Geeks. Loners. Everyone gets an "identity"... whether they want it or not.

And the bullies come out. Boys get beat up. Girls get nasty little notes.

Middle school is very hard.

But does it have to be that way?

Can things change?

If there was a way to tell your story anonymously to everyone, would it make a difference?

Are the bullies doing it because they can? Or because people let them?

If you stand up and tell EVERYONE that you're being bullied, will the bullies go away?

It's an interesting idea. A thought. A scientific study to be made.

By posting stories on the school's LAN for everyone to read, Russell, Elliott, and Catalina open up a whole new world for the victims of bullies.

But some of the bullies are not happy with the change. And now The Revealers have to watch their backs before someone goes too far.