Book #79 - House Rules by Jodi Picoult

This was a stunning book on so many levels that I do not even know where to begin. First, I must say that I have never read a book by Jodi Picoult, but I recognized her because there was a movie made about "My Sister's Keeper." As far as the author goes, she is a stunning author that told an incredible story. I know I'm using the word "stunning" a lot, but I cannot think of a better descriptor. This one heck of a mystery that she put together, and it was told in a style where every few pages it was narrate by a different character. Yet with all of the jumping narrators, it was still very easy to follow. It was ingenious to tell this story in this way because the boy accused of murder, Jacob, has Asperger's syndrome. Not only did we get a look into the brain and the thought process that autistic persons of his kind go through, but we also got to experience this syndrome from the eyes of those around him. We got to see into the head of a mother desperate to help him in any way and to bring him as close to socially acceptable as possible. You get to experience the depth and breadth of the sacrifice parents of disabled children make in order to help their children. You also get to see this family dynamic through the eyes of Jacob's younger brother Theo. You get to see the struggles he goes through in trying to separate himself from his brother and yet act as his brother's keeper. The ending shows the incredible lengths that an autistic child will go to tell the truth, stand up for what is right, and follow the rules. I highly recommend this book to anyone...but I think all people who work with and around children should read it because it will greatly impact their response to families who live with autism.

Book #78 The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins

One of my freshmen has been begging me to read this book for months. Last week, she finally just brought it to me and said keep it until you get it read. Turns out I had just finished up book #77 the night before, so I decided to honor her request and read it. I see why this book impacted her so greatly and why she has read it 3 times. While the book was sitting on my desk last week, I had a lot of students comment on how they had read it. After finishing it, I see why it is right up there with the Harry Potter series on these kids' favorites list. This book was a futuristic look into a civilization broken into 12 districts and ruled by the all-powerful Capitol. In order to "keep the peace" (more like stomp on the little guy), the Capitol requires each district to send one boy and one girl between ages 12-19 to the Capitol each year for the Hunger Games. The 24 children enter an arena where not only do they face the dangers of surviving in the wild, but they also must kill each other to be the last man standing. The winner takes all. The other 23 are sent home in body bags. And what is despicable about the entire thing is that it is all televised (mandatory to watch) and betted on. This is a fascinating book that haunted my dreams and left me desperate for the heroine and yet deeply saddened as these children had to murder each other. This book gives a different perspective to the implications of war, poverty, and human nature. I always want to send a special shout out to an author that gets kids READING!!!! Way to go Suzanne Collins.

Book #77 - Excavation by James Rollins

Wow! Wow! That expression of "wow" doesn't do this book justice. It started at a full sprint and never slowed down. This one felt like a Crichton, and I found I was holding my breath for huge parts of it. I quickly felt attached to the characters and was so concerned for their safety that at times I couldn't bear to read...but was compelled to at the same time. Rollins is a fantastic writer, and I always look forward to one of his new releases. I initially got stuck on his Sigma Force series, so I haven't read all of his early ones. Well, I was missing out by not reading this one sooner. Rollins has a fantastic mixture of science, history, and adventure. He weaves a story that is fascinating, cutting edge, and yet very believable.

Book #76 - God Machine by J.G. Sandom

This book ties the great minds of the Masons like Franklin and daVinci into a thrilling race to create a portal to Heaven. Although I had trouble getting started and hooked on this book, by the time I got about 50 pages in, I was into it. I like the way the author used short chapters to hop between past and present story lines. It was an easy plot to follow even though the stories were told in a fragmented way. There were two big ideas that struck me and stuck with me. First, a lot of the hub-bub surrounding this portal to Heaven was because it gave a way to reunite with our loved ones who had passed on. Ben Franklin (as told by the story) spent his entire life trying to build this machine to be with his deceased son Franky. But after a lifetime of failing, Franklin realized he had lived his entire life focused on the past and never truly living. He had poured all of his energy into his experiments and thus created no relationships with anyone. He realized, like so many do who suffer great loss, there is not value in living in the past. The second point was regarding this idea of a portal to Heaven and thus a direct path to God. In the end, the hero of the story realizes that what God has been trying to tell us since the beginning of time is that we don't need a portal to Him because he is always with us. All we have to do is pray/talk to Him, and we are with Him. I think sometimes it is easy to forget that just because He doesn't always answer our prayers the way we want that He isn't listening. Overall, this was a pretty good book. It wasn't Dan Brown, but overall not bad. Good enough that I'll probably pick up the sequel when it comes out.