Mod 5 Copper Sun

Draper, Sharon M. Copper Sun. New York: Atheneum Books for Young Readers, 2008. ISBN 9780689821813

Summary:

Fifteen year-old Amari has her whole life to look forward to. She is engaged to the most handsome man in the tribe, Besa, loves the Ashanti village in which she lives, and has nothing better to do than laugh and joke with her friends. One day, however, strange white men come to visit the elders of the tribe. The welcoming feast turns deadly when the white men shoot fire from a stick and kill most of Amari’s tribe. The rest are taken prisoner and sold into slavery. Amari endures a long voyage across the ocean, and is sold to Percival Derby, a plantation owner. Mr. Derby intends for Amari to be a birthday present for his sixteen year-old son. Though she is overworked, beaten, and repeatedly raped, Amari befriends Polly, a white indentured servant. Together, Amari and Polly escape and head south to Florida. Can Amari and Polly survive the journey and the hardships without being caught?

Analysis:

Copper Sun is a historical fiction novel set in 1738. While the actual story is fiction, a lot of the references are true. Young, strong black adolescents were taken from their homes, sold into slavery, and treated as property. The punishments described in the book are accurate as well as the location of Fort Mose and Captain Menendez. Amari, however, is a fictional character who feels all the same emotions of any teenager who witnesses the murder of her parents, the loss of her home, and the humiliation of rape. She shows remarkable determination in her survival, especially in keeping her name throughout the story. School Library Journal says, “This action-packed, multifaceted, character-rich story describes the shocking realities of the slave trade and plantation life while portraying the perseverance, resourcefulness, and triumph of the human spirit." Draper keeps the reader invested in the story by alternating points of view between Polly and Amari. “Polly's cynicism and realistic outlook on life provides a welcome contrast to the lost innocence of Amari, whose voice often disappears beneath the misery of her circumstances,” says Kirkus.

Reviews:

Booklist 2006

" Draper builds the explosive tension to the last chapter, and the sheer power of the story, balanced between the overwhelmingly brutal facts of slavery and Amari's ferocious survivor's spirit, will leave readers breathless, even as they consider the story's larger questions about the infinite costs of slavery and how to reconcile history. A moving, personal author's note discusses the real places and events on which the story is based."

Kirkus 2006

"Sobering, yet essential."

Awards:

2007 Coretta Scott King Literature award

2007 Ohioana Award for Young Adult Literature

Top Ten Historical Fiction Books for Youth by Booklist

Nominated for the 2007 NAACP Image Award for Literature

IRA Notable Book for a Global Society

Best Book of the Year by School Library Journal

Listed on the New York Times Bestseller List

Chosen by the National Underground Railroad Freedom center as a major museum exhibit

Chosen by the International Reading Association, the United States State Department, and Reading Across Continents as the novel to be read by students from the US and Africa. A true international, intercontinental, multi-cultural literary experience!

Connections:

For information about the author visit http://sharondraper.com/

For information about slavery visit http://www.sciway.net/afam/slavery/indexs.html

For a map of the Middle Passage/slave trade route visit http://www.juneteenth.com/mp2.htm

For an interactive map of the Underground Railroad visit http://www.eduplace.com/kids/socsci/books/applications/imaps/maps/g5s_u6/index.html

If you liked this book, you might enjoy:

Chains by Laurie Halse Anderson

Hang a Thousand Trees with Ribbons: The Story of Phyllis Wheatley by Ann Rinaldi

The Red Rose Box by Brenda Woods

Hope’s Crossing by Joan Elizabeth Goodman

Names Will Never Hurt Me by Jamie Adoff

Pemba’s Song: A Ghost Story by Tonya Hegamin

Annie, Between the States by Laura Malone Elliott

The Night I Disappeared by Julie Reece Deaver

Picture:

http://search.barnesandnoble.com/booksearch/imageviewer.asp?ean=9780689821813&imId=12576258

Mod 4 Uglies

Westerfield, Scott. Uglies. New York: Simon Pulse, 2005. 978068986538

Summary:

For almost 16 years, Tally has woken up every morning and looked out her window at New Pretty Town. Everyone is born ugly, but at sixteen you have an operation that will make you pretty-like everyone else. All of Tally’s friends are already in New Pretty Town and Tally cannot wait to see them again. In the meantime, she meets Shay, another Ugly who happens to share her birthday. Tally and Shay become fast friends while playing tricks and sneaking out at night. As her sixteenth birthday gets closer, Shay reveals that she does not want to be pretty. She plans to run away and asks Tally to go with her to live with the Smokies. Tally does not go, but does not stop Shay from running away either. The authorities, also known as Specials, give Tally a choice-help them find her friend or never be pretty. Tally’s choice gives her a new definition of Pretty.

Analysis:

Tally, the main character in this science fiction dystopian novel, is just like every other teenager. She wants to be accepted and pretty. She allows her feelings to rule her decisions, feels trapped by authority, and ends up giving her loyalty to her friends rather than the authority. The futuristic setting describes how the “Rusties” became too dependent on oil and most died in a panic. However, the metal left behind gave way to hoverboard transportation that uses magnetic fields to move. While the reader must suspend some disbelief in the novel, the typical teen novel includes the absence of parents, evil adults in authority, and world altering decisions to be made by the teens. Kirkus review says, “Tally inflicts betrayal after betrayal, which dominates the theme for the midsection; by the end, the nature of this dystopia is front and center and Tally-trying to set things right-takes a stunning leap of faith.”

Excerpt:

“Maybe I think my face is already right”

“Yeah, it’s great.” Tally rolled her eyes. “For an ugly.”

Shay scowled. “What, can’t you stand me? Do you need to get some picture into your head so you can imagine it instead of my face?”

“Shay! Come on. It’s just for fun.”

“Making ourselves ugly is not fun.”

“We are ugly!”

“This whole game is just designed to make us hate ourselves.”

Reviews:

Booklist 2005

"...teens will sink their teeth into the provocative questions about invasive technology, image-obsessed society, and the ethical quandaries of a mole-turned-ally."

Publisher's Weekly

"Teens will appreciate the gadgetry-including bungee jackets and hoverboards that work by magnetic levitation."

School Library Journal 2005

"...highly readable with a convincing plot that incorporates futuristic technologies and a disturbing commentary on our current public policies"

Awards:

Chicago Public Library's Best of the Best for Teens, 2005
Kirkus Editor's Choice, 2005
New York Public Library's "Books for the Teen Age", 2005
School Library Journal Best Books of the Year, 2005
Texas Lone Star Reading List, 2006-2007
VOYA's Top Shelf Fiction for Middle School Readers, 2005
YALSA Best Books For Young Adults, 2006
YALSA Popular Paperbacks for Young Adults, 2006
YALSA Quick Picks Nominee, 2006

Connections:

For more information about the author visit http://scottwesterfeld.com/blog/

For more information on reconstructive surgery visit http://www.webmd.com/skin-beauty/guide/reconstructive-surgery

For more information on hoverboards visit http://www.howstuffworks.com/hoverboard.htm

If you are wondering about the plausibility of the oil-eating bacteria that devastated the world of the “rusties" you might want to see these pages at the U. S. Environmental Protection Agency - http://www.epa.gov/oilspill/bioagnts.htm.

If you liked this book, you might enjoy:

Pretties by Scott Westerfeld

Specials by Scott Westerfeld

A Little Friendly Advice by Siobhan Vivian

Elsewhere by Will Sheterly

A Great and Terrible Beauty by Libba Bray

Cover photo:

http://search.barnesandnoble.com/booksearch/imageviewer.asp?ean=9780689865381&imId=60059691

Mod 4 Ender's Game

Card, Orson S. Ender's Game. New York: TOR, 1991. ISBN 9780765342294

Summary:

Andrew “Ender” Wiggin is a not-so-ordinary six year-old boy. He is gifted, of course, as everyone in his family is. But, he is a third. A special circumstance. Not every family can have three children. Ender’s family is different, though. Ender’s older brother, Peter, and sister, Valentine are both gifted, but they did not pass the military standards needed for the perfect general. Ender is the last hope. He begins training immediately. Taken from his family at the age of six, Ender trains at Battle School, an off-planet site where training is a game and growing up is not.

Analysis:

Ender’s Game is a futuristic, dystopia science fiction novel. It begins on Earth, which is doomed to invasion by “buggers.” The military has been looking for a general to lead the army in battle in defense of the planet for more than one hundred years. In that time, technology has allowed space stations with on-demand gravity, instant communication between spacecraft, and life-like simulations. Ender, the smallest and smartest soldier, must learn combat, leadership, and self-preservation. There is no time for coddling, only learning. Ender learns self-defense tactics that keep him safe from the other soldiers who are jealous of his growing leadership abilities. Library Journal review says, “Aptest pupil ever Ender quickly rises to the top of Battle School, which has twice the nasty of any boarding school and all the charms of a snake pit.” The training takes place in a space station, where gravity is manufactured when needed. As Ender’s abilities grow, he is transferred to a small planet on the other side of the solar system to practice commanding a fleet of warships. Ender soon learns that the simulations here are more than a game.

Reviews:

School Library Journal 2008

"Despite Ender's age, this is not a children's novel. Its profound themes (and mild profanity) call for intelligent teens who appreciate a complex novel."

Awards:

Nebula

Hugo Award

Connections:

For more information about the author visit http://www.hatrack.com/

For discussion questions and study guides visit http://www.hatrack.com/research/index.shtml

For more information about the International Space Station visit http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/main/index.html

To listen to an audio excerpt visit http://us.macmillan.com/endersgame-card

If you liked this book, you might enjoy:

The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood

Gulliver’s Travels by Jonathan Swift

Owlflight by Mercedes Lackey

Spindle’s End by Robin McKinley

Ender’s Shadow by Orson Scott Card

Speaker for the Dead by Orson Scott Card

Cover photo:

http://search.barnesandnoble.com/booksearch/imageviewer.asp?ean=9780765342294&imId=42095598

Mod 4 Life as we knew it

Pfeffer, Susan B. Life As We Knew It. New York: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2006. ISBN 9780152058265

Summary:

Sixteen year-old Miranda is a typical teenager at the end of her sophomore year. She works hard in school, hangs out with her friends, follows her heartthrob on the Internet, and is looking forward to driving. Her dad’s new wife is pregnant, and her mom is dating a new man, Peter. The big topic on the news is that an asteroid is supposed to collide with the moon. In a party-like atmosphere, the whole town turns out to watch the impact. But it wasn’t what was expected. “But the moon wasn’t a half moon anymore. It was tilted and wrong and a three-quarter moon and it got larger, way larger, large like a moon rising on the horizon, only it wasn’t rising.” Miranda’s typical teenage life comes to a screeching halt. Worldwide earthquakes, tsunamis, volcano eruptions lead to food shortages, gas shortages, and climate changes. Miranda and her family shift into survival mode until things return to normal. And they will return to normal…won’t they?

Analysis:

Life as we knew it is written in a diary format that keeps the readers involved in the day to day struggles of Miranda, her family, and neighbors. It is a well-written futuristic fantasy novel that makes the reader ask, “What would I do if this happened to me?” Miranda’s plight becomes more and more personal as the setting closes in from the town to the neighborhood to the house to one room. Miranda also develops as a character from the carefree teenager interested only in driving, friends, and dates to the one who is increasingly responsible for the survival of the family as family members succumb to injury, illness, and malnutrition. Amazon.com says this is a “haunting book that documents one adolescent's journey from self-absorbed child to selfless young woman.”

Reviews:

School Library Journal 2006

…readers will be left stunned and thoughtful.

Voice of Youth Advocates 2006

this novel reminds readers of the wild power of nature that far outstrips human ability to either predict or control it.

Booklist 2006

…readers will respond to the authenticity and immediacy of their [Miranda and her family] plight. Each page is filled with events both wearying and terrifying and infused with honest emotions. Pfeffer brings cataclysmic tragedy very close.

Awards:

ALA Best Book for Young Adults

CCBC Choices

Junior Library Guild Premier Selection Junior Library Guild Premier Selection

Connections:

For information about the author visit susanbethpfeffer.blogspot.com/

For information on preparing for a disaster visit http://www.ready.gov/

To view a meteoroid hitting the moon visit http://science.nasa.gov/science-news/science-at-nasa/2006/13jun_lunarsporadic/

If you liked this book, you might enjoy:

Raven’s Gate by Anthony Horowitz

Nightrise by Anthony Horowitz

Maximum Ride by James Patterson

School’s Out Forever by James Patterson

Passager by Jane Yolen

Rowan and the Travelers by Emily Rodda

Cover photo:

http://search.barnesandnoble.com/booksearch/imageviewer.asp?ean=9780152061548&imId=53228696

Mod 3 Double Helix

Werlin, Nancy. Double Helix. New York: Sleuth, 2003. ISBN 0803726066.

Summary:

Eli Samuels only got drunk once in his life. However, that one time he did something really stupid. He sent an email to a legendary molecular biologist, Dr. Quincy Wyatt, asking for a job. Amazingly, he gets it. Working for a Nobel prize winning doctor, at a prestigious institution, with great pay and benefits while taking a year off before college is a dream come true for Eli. Until. Until his father asks him to quit without giving him a reason. Until his mother’s Huntington disease takes her life. Until he discovers a fifth-level basement that is not on the building plans. Until he meets a girl that looks exactly like his mother did at his age. What is the connection between him, his father, his mother, and Dr. Wyatt?

Analysis:

Werlin keeps up the pace in this young adult mystery with her short chapters and fast action. Eli tries to keep his life secrets to himself, but once he begins working, they fall off like layers on an onion. His mother’s disease, his girlfriend, the letter he finds about a blood test, the connection to Dr. Wyatt, and his biggest fear, that his father is not his real father all unravel in a short period of time. Dr. Wyatt’s cryptic remarks do not give any relief to Eli’s plight. “Free will? The soul? Something unique in humans that separates us from animals? It’s a fairy tale we’ve invented to shield us from reality.” Eli struggles to find out who’s reality Dr. Wyatt is referring to. The Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books wrote, “Taut pacing gives this thrilleresque appeal, the emotional intensity and contemporary plausibility will suck in even readers usually skittish about speculative fiction, and the challenging exploration of genetic ethics will definitely prompt some thoughtful discussion."

Reviews:

Kirkus 2004

A suspenseful exploration of love and bioethics.... Thought-provoking, powerful, and rich in character.

Publisher's Weekly 2004

Mesmerizing ... appeals to reason and love for humanity without resorting to easy answers. Brisk, intelligent and suspenseful all the way.

School Library Journal

A riveting story with sharply etched characters and complex relationships that will stick with readers long after the book is closed.

Awards:

A School Library Journal Best Book of 2004.

An ALA Booklist Editor's Choice Book of 2004.

An ALA Best Book for Young Adults, 2005.

An ALA Booklist Top Ten Mystery for Teens, 2004.

Connections:

For information about the author visit http://www.nancywerlin.com/

For information about Huntington’s Disease visit http://www.hdsa.org/

If you liked this book, you might enjoy:

Twilight Child by Sally Warner

The China Garden by Liz Berry

The Duplicate by William Sleator

Tankworld by S.R. Martin

The Last Universe by William Sleator

Cover photo:

http://search.barnesandnoble.com/booksearch/imageviewer.asp?ean=9780142403273&imId=14566003

Mod 3 Nation

Pratchett, Terry. Nation. New York: Harper Collins Publishers, 2008. ISBN 9780061433030.

Summary:

In Terry Pratchett’s Nation, Mau is a child returning from a month’s stay on the island of the boys. He is returning to his village in a canoe that he made on the island. Everyone in the village would be waiting at the shore to welcome him back, have a feast, and make him a man. However, his canoe is caught by a huge wave-a tsunami-that wipes out the whole village, and everyone waiting at the beach.

Daphne is an English girl on her way to meet her father, the mayor of The Rogation Sunday Islands. Only 138 people need to die for her father to become king. However, the tsunami takes her ship, Sweet Judy, into the middle of Mau’s island. Mau and Daphne must overcome language and cultural differences in order to survive the onslaught of survivors from other islands, cannibals, and the lack of leadership.

Excerpt:

"The young man stared at Mau. 'You are the chief? But you are just a boy!'

'Not just. Not even. Not only. Who knows?' said Mau. 'The wave came. These are new days. Who knows what we are? We survived, that's all.' He paused and thought: And we become what we have to be..."

Analysis:

Nation is a survival tale mixed with humor and religion. From Daphne’s (aka Ermintrude) grandmother that “prepared her granddaughter for royal life by seeing to it, wherever possible, that Ermintrude was not taught anything that could possibly be of any practical use whatsoever,” to the parrot who shows up at just the right time to shout “Show us yer drawers!” humor is used to develop the characters and provide relief from the sometimes overwhelming situations. Hornbook says “Satirical portraits of upper-class twits, slapstick buffoonery, bad puns, and that particular brand of English wit buoy this story at every turn. Add a romance of gentle sweetness, encounters with ghosts, and lots of gunfire, and it is hard to imagine a reader who won't feel welcomed into this nation.” Mau is a likeable character who develops and matures as he steps up into a leadership role that is thrust upon him, uses new knowledge to develop new skills, and questions his own beliefs of the gods and traditions he was raised on until he comes to his own conclusions.

Reviews:

Booklist 2008

Quirky wit and broad vision make this a fascinating survival story on many levels.

Kirkus 2008

A searching exploration of good and evil, fate and free will, both as broad and as deep as anything this brilliant and, happily, prolific author has produced so far.

School Library Journal 2008

The main characters are engaging and interesting, and are the perfect medium for the author's sly humor.

Awards:

Michael L. Printz Honor Book
Boston-Globe/Horn Book Award
Los Angeles Times Prize for Young Adult Literature

Connections:

For information about the author visit http://www.terrypratchettbooks.com/

For information about tsunamis visit http://www.tsunami.noaa.gov/

Have students evaluate the reliability of websites by researching the tree-climbing octopus mentioned in the book, Octopus arbori at http://zapatopi.net/treeoctopus/media.html

If you liked this book, you might enjoy:

Jumper by Steven Gould

The Ropemaker by Peter Dickinson

Elske: A Novel of the Kingdom

The Queen of Attolia by Megan Whalen Turner

Cover photo:

http://search.barnesandnoble.com/booksearch/imageviewer.asp?ean=9780061433030&imId=44084024

Mod 3 Bloody Jack

Meyer, L. A. Bloody Jack. Boston: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2002. ISBN 9780152167318.

Summary:

Mary Faber is an orphan in the eighteenth century after her parents die of a terrible disease. She joins Rooster Charlie’s gang and survives by begging and stealing what they can. When Rooster Charlie is killed, she takes his clothes, cuts her hair, changes her name to Jack, and heads toward the sea. What she learns on the way is that “it’s easier bein’ a boy ‘cause nobody bothers with you…no one remarks upon me bein’ alone…when someone needs somethin’ done they’ll always pick a boy…I don’t have to look out for no one but me.”

Jacky Faber becomes a ship’s boy by telling that he can read, and becomes valuable to the ship. Once aboard, however, life is not easy on board a Royal Navy ship in the pursuit of pirates. Jacky earns the nickname Bloody Jack by killing a man. She has duties to perform, takes classes and tutors others onboard, and most importantly, maintains her deception of being a boy. However, her quickly developing body and her growing love for a fellow shipmate may put an end to her deception. Will she be hung or put off the ship at the next port? Only time will tell.

Analysis:

Meyer keeps the pace up in this adventure novel by constantly providing obstacles to Jacky’s grand deception. She is in constant fear of being discovered, and must make great plans to avoid detection. She even sews a rolled up piece of cloth into her underpants to have the same bumps as the other boys. She battles pirates, practices drills, makes new uniforms, gets her period, and is attacked by one of the other crew members. An interesting twist of events at the end leaves readers wondering what will happen to Jacky Faber next?

The beginning of the story is a little difficult to read as the orphans live in Cheapside and their grammar is nonexistent. However, as Jacky learns and teaches, there is a definite improvement. Hornbook says, “The ship's teacher molds the boys, Jacky included, into officers and gentlemen, and has them change their speech from street urchin-ese to more refined English constructions. Jacky's diary reflects this language growth but always retains her strong, proud voice.” Jacky is a strong character and reveals her true self by doing whatever is necessary to survive.

Reviews:

Kirkus August 2002

Meyer, a debut novelist, has penned a rousing old-time girl's adventure story, with an outsized heroine who is equal parts gutsy and vulnerable, then sets her loose on a pirate-hunting vessel in the high seas.

Library Media Connection 2003

... pure fun and a riveting read.

Publisher's Weekly 2002

...salty tale a rattling good read

Awards:

Booklist Editors’ Choice

Bulletin Blue Ribbon Book

Junior Library Guild Selection

Book Sense 76 Pick

Connections:

For information about the author visit http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/170658.L_A_Meyer

For information about famous pirates visit http://www.piratesinfo.com/

If you liked this book, you might enjoy:

The True Confessions of Charlotte Doyle by Avi

The Dark is Rising by Susan Cooper

Children of the Lamp by Philip Kerr

Redwall by Brian Jacques

The Goose Girl by Shannon Hale

Cover photo:

http://search.barnesandnoble.com/booksearch/imageviewer.asp?ean=9780152050856&imId=58240618