Pasadena Public Library
review by Jacob Chon, age 16 Dive Smack by Demetra Brodsky Like every high school student looking for a good college, Theo Mackey has his gimmick that will hopefully make him stand out. As the captain of his school’s well-respected dive team, he hopes that his athletic status will help him get recruited […]
review by Ashley Zhang, age 13 Love Me, Love Me Not by S.M. Koz Hailey Brown, a teenage girl, is put in foster care after being removed from her home because of her abusive mother. She goes through many homes, her boyfriend Chase messing it up for her every time. After being […]
review by Nina Dinan, age 15 Voices in the Air: Poems for Listeners by Naomi Shihab Nye In this lovely collection of free verse poems written in a serene, contemplative tone, Naomi Shihab Nye explores a variety of subjects. Her poems include wistful exaltations of nature, laments written for Palestine, and soaring […]
Pasadena Public Library – Teen Advisory Board, 2/11/19 Present: Aminda, Carolyn, Chris, Emilie, Genevieve, Haile, Liam, John, Jonathan G, Mckenna, Sophie Focus of February meeting: advocacy Assignment: I’m in the process of updating our online library guides and it would help me out tremendously if you can let me know […]
review by Kira Toal, age 17 Ramona Blue by Julie Murphy Ramona Blue is a girl-vs-the-world contemporary romance novel. Its protagonist, a 6’3, blue-haired teenager named Ramona, lives in a trailer park in Eulogy, Mississippi with her father and pregnant older sister. The book follows her struggles to navigate various obstacles in her […]
review by John Chon, age 16 The Glass Spare by Lauren DeStefano The Glass Spare, by Lauren DeStefano, has the interesting premise of the observation of a character set in the Middle Ages. Wil Heidle, daughter of a king with empire-building dreams, is hidden away from the kingdom, unlike her siblings. She […]
The Brilliant Death AMY ROSE CAPETTA · Viking Books for Young Readers Pages: 352 Format: Hardcover For Teodora DiSangro, a mafia don’s daughter, family is fate. All her life, Teodora has hidden the fact that she secretly turns her family’s enemies into music boxes, mirrors, and other decorative objects. After […]
A review and opinion by William Krestow, age 16 On February 6, 2019 in the John Muir High School Library, youth activists gathered for a meeting on annual accomplishments. With a single exception, it was a typical yearly progress meeting. There were few adults directly participating in the discussion; the purpose […]
review by Jacob Chon, age 16 Orphan Monster Spy by Matt Killeen All Sarah has ever wanted was a simple life. However, destiny did not decide it to be that way. Thrust into one of the worst governments in human history, and cursed with a Jewish bloodline that marks her for death, Sarah […]
Skyward by Brandon Sanderson A Young Adult Book Cub Recap by William Krestow, Age 16 Spensa’s world has been under alien attack for decades. Pilots are the heroes of what’s left of humanity, and becoming a pilot is Spensa’s dream. Ever since she was a little girl, Spensa has […]