msjamgochian'sinfinitebooklist

Click here for the full list. My vote (so far) is for Beautiful Creatures ... This is my favorite book award. It truly reflects what my patrons enjoy reading and I love that they can vote for their favorites. MJ

Booklist starred review: For 16-year-old Macy, the whole world has gone crazy, quite literally. Barbarians from antiquity have invaded America, while bizarre plagues and impossibly shifting landscapes ravage her Minnesota homeland. Together with her parents, sister, brother, and a possibly evil dog, Macy sets out down the Mississippi on an adventure that takes her into the smoldering ruins of St. Louis, aboard a wooden submarine that’s bigger on the inside than outside, and finally into the stone-skyscraper capital of Nueva Roma. All the while she dodges oil-men turned slavers, plague-instigating wasps, an albino bounty hunter, and, perhaps most dangerous of all, her scheming younger brother. DeNiro (who flaunted a knack for offhand sf oddness in Skinny Dipping in the Lake of the Dead, 2006) makes sure never to do anything as dull as explaining what the heck is going on—we simply accept that the world has become a surreal, historical landscape come to life and move on. He drops in so m

Micah might have killed her boyfriend. Her parents might be keeping her in a cage and making her take pills. She might be sent to a mental institution every once in a while to recover. OR She might be a werewolf! Australian writer Justine Larbalestier has written a book loaded with unexpected revelations and twists and not all of them are easy to swallow. If you're somebody who likes your books to end on a neat and tidy note, Liar is not your book. If you enjoy being strung along, page after page, wondering what's real and what's not, this is your book! Micah is, in her own words, a liar. The book is set in NYC and her boyfriend, Zach, has just been murdered. But he wasn't really her boyfriend. Or was he? Although the twisty story flared up my OCD tendencies, I found myself unable to stop reading, and even though Micah was clearly a master fabricator, I wanted her to WIN: to go to school, to get out of her horrible little bedroom and its cage, to have friends and a nor

Jesse and his family are visiting their family in the Philippines and attending Grandma Lola's funeral. Like his grandmother, Jesse sees things: demons, monsters, and his dead cousin JonJon. Jesse comes to terms with his visions but doesn't necessarily accept them. The gorgeous sepia-toned illustrations are a perfect match for Torres' story. Check out J. Torres' blog ! Grade 6+

Another fantastic autobiographical graphic novel! This is a hilarious, heartfelt, and disarmingly honest portrait of a young man who wants to be an artist. This is the perfect book to give to students who are interested in going to art school. My favorite of Brown's books (and I've read them all). Don't miss top shelf's Jeffrey Brown page. Grade 9+

I love Seth. I love his work. I was bound to love George Sprott . For a less prejudiced critique, see the Time Out Chicago review. You can also read the entire book online (how cool is that); it was originally serialized in The New York Times magazine. But you should buy it. It's a treasure. Grade 9+

A Mess of Everything reminded me of Phoebe Glockner's Diary of a Teenage Girl and Lynda Barry's Cruddy , two of my favorite books. I didn't like it as much though - maybe because it was the second in a series and I needed the first book to set me up for the second. I didn't enjoy the narrative as much as in Diary and Cruddy . Each of these books captures the experience of being on the outskirts: being a 'weirdo' of sorts, being a smart girl, and the disappointment with people that comes from residing in that space. Diary and Cruddy do it exceptionally well. Give A Mess of Everything to fans of the coming-of-age autobiographical graphic novel. Grade 10+

Nominated for the 2010 Michael L. Printz Award, Punkzilla is the story of 14 year-old run away Jamie, who is traveling from Portland to Memphis to see his older brother who is dying of cancer. Jamie's voice is the highlight of this book; the story is told through letters - some he writes in his journal to his brother 'P' and some he receives from other people in his life. At first, the hardcore realism of the book turned me off, but after a few letters I was completely drawn in by Jamie's starkly honest missives and the way he revealed himself. His encounters with other humans as he makes his way south offer a grim depiction of the life of a run away. His parents, while stereotypically drawn, were believable. This book is not for someone who wants a happy ending but it does end on a fairly positive note as Jamie comes to terms with who he is and what he wants out of life. Click here for the teenreads.com review. Grade 10+

In the beginning an entertaining read but ultimately one of McEwan's lesser works. Read Atonement, Enduring Love, or Amsterdam instead.Click here for the NY Times review.

I read this with my 68s Bookclub and they absolutely loved it! Theo is 16, lives with his mom, and has never met his father. He's dark, tall, handsome, and a cool cucumber. Rachel is 14, lives with her parents and the ghost of her dead (and perfect) older sister Rebecca, and is convinced she's completely worthless. When Theo and Rachel meet each other and discover they are both part of a mad scientist's cloning experiment (played convincingly by Theo's dad)they team up to find out the real story. This is an action-packed page-turner told in the alternating voices of Theo and Rachel. The end leaves readers craving the as yet unwritten sequel. Give it to fans of Robert Muchamore's Cherub series; it won't disappoint. Grade 6 +

I have to admit, I was skeptical about this book. A student gave it to me to read and I finally took it on yesterday. I finished it in two quick sittings! Kingdom Keepers is a fun fantasy-adventure set in the Magic Kingdom. Fans of Disney and/or fantasy-adventure won't be disappointed with this title and will look forward to reading the second and third book (April 2010) in the series. Grade 6+

A devastatingly sad book by the author of And Then We Came to the End .

Although it was a slow starter, Boneshaker was worth getting through the first 50 pages or so. After that this steampunk, historical fiction, sci-fi adventure really took off. It's the early days of the Civil War in the United States, and rumors of gold in the Klondike (Alaska) have brought hordes of eager prospectors to the PNW seeking their fortune. Of course, the Russians have their eye on the prize across the pond as well, and they contract inventor Leviticus Blue to make a machine that can drill through the frozen ices. Things go bad when Blue's machine, Boneshaker, goes out of control on an unplanned drilling spree through Seattle's underground, releasing the Blight, a noxious gas that turns people into the undead. A wall is built to enclose the area and Leviticus Blue disappears. Sixteen years later, his widow Briar and son Ezekiel are eking out a living in the Outskirts, and Ezekiel decides it's time to find out more about his legendary father. He puts on a mask

Fallen is a gothic romance set in the South. Seventeen-year-old Lucinda has been sent to Sword and Cross, a boarding school for troubled teens. There she encounters a host of juvenile delinquents and, most importantly, Daniel, who is tall, dark, and handsome. She's sure she has seen him somewhere before... sound familiar? Fans of Evermore, Beautiful Creatures , and other Twilight alikes won't be disappointed by this first book in a planned four-book series. Check out the Fallen book trailer at Lauren Kate's website.

A man wakes up in an insane asylum in modern day Cordoba - and believes he is Christopher Columbus. He captivates those around him with his stories, nearly convincing his nurse, Consuela, that he is indeed the explorer. Of course, all is not as it seems, and as Columbus' story nears its end, the tragic truth comes to light. A lyrical, beautiful, original tale of love and unexpected loss, not to be missed. Click here for Trofimuk's vodcast on the book.