Dear Life, You Suck by Scott Blagden (306 Pages)

This is one of the funniest, entertaining and most sarcastic books I've ever read. A smart-mouthed, know-it-all teenage boy named Cricket is living in a Catholic boy's home due to his terrible behavior. He lives his life selling drugs, sneaking out, fighting, and constantly getting in trouble because he hates his life. He thinks his life sucks more than anything.

A girl named Wynona unexpectedly walks into his life and he starts to feel like life is a little more worth the ride. Wynona helps to show him that problems don't have to be solved with violence. When he decides to be more open-minded and open his heart, she is able to help him slowly change his life and walk a new path. 

This is definitely a problem novel for young teens trying to get through the struggles of being a teenager. I give this book a 4 star rating overall. It was a very funny read with a lot of emotional points that give hope for teens to see the positives in life. Cricket learns that with help, encouragement and hope, life isn't as bad as it seems.

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45 Pounds(More or Less) By K.A Barson - 264 Pages

In this heart-warming story, a girl named Ann struggles with her weight issues more than anything. Her mom is  slim and beautiful and the pressure is constantly overwhelming for Ann. Because her weight has such an effect on her family, Ann uses her Mom's credit card to buy an expensive weight-loss meal plan and exercise video.

Anne rides an emotional roller coaster throughout the book. Even though she is not beautiful on the outside to people, her heart and soul are beautiful. This book opens your eyes and reminds you not to judge a book by its cover without knowing the whole story and to realize that you don't know what overweight people have been through or what they are going through right now, or how hard it really is to lose weight. Throughout Ann's journey to lose weight, she finds out who her real friends are, that no one can be perfect no matter how hard they try, and that family support is everything. This book is a must read for anyone who struggles with weight or knows anyone who does.

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The Language Inside by Holly Thompson (528 pages)

This book is written in poetic verse, and takes place in Massachusetts, where a high-school sophomore, Emma, copes with the emotional stress of her mother being diagnosed with breast cancer. 
Emma grew up in Japan which she considers to be her true home, but she has to sacrifice everything for the healing process of her mother so she and her father move to Massachusetts while her mother undergoes cancer treatment.  Even though she has trouble adapting to the United States culture and is forced to start a whole new life in a different country, she finds ways to cope with her new atmosphere. She volunteers at a care center and reads and writes poems with a girl named Zena, who is unable to talk and communicates with a digital keyboard. Zena also meets a guy named Samnang, at school, that she begins to like more than a friend. She starts going daily, making friendships with them. She plans to return to Japan in a few months, but as she grows closer to Samnang and Zena, she begins to like living in the United States. Her decision to go back home to Japan or stay in the United States with her YiaYia, gets extremely difficult. If you have had trouble with coping, and finding how to stay positive through emotional stress, or are someone who has lived in another country and moved to the United States, this is the book for you. The poems in this book are beautifully written!

Reviewed by S.C

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The Infinite Moment of Us by Lauren Myracle (316 pages)

In this beautifully written high school love story, an oppressed girl, Wren, who has grown up with the highest expectations throughout high school with the most controlling parents, shockingly falls for Charlie, a gentle, compassionate guy with a troubled past that no one openly knows about. In the last month of high school, Charlie surprisingly confesses his love for Wren. Although Wren plans to go to Guatemala for college to study abroad and Charlie plans to go to Georgia Tech, it doesn't stop them from getting so close.

If you’re a sucker for love with ups and downs, this is the book for you. Find out how they keep their love sane and strong when obstacles are continuously in their way. This is a page turner from beginning to end with never ending twists and turns that leave you on edge with the most breathless ending.


Reviewed by S.C

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