The Things a Brother Knows by Dana Reinhardt


Warning: the culminating scene will make you cry. Friends and family are stunned when Levi's big brother Boaz announces that, rather than heading off to the Ivy league school of his choice with his classmates, he is joining the Marines and leaving to serve in a war that Levi doesn't understand. Two years later, Levi is looking forward to Boaz's return and what he thinks will be the resulting restoration of his family, who have essentially been on pause since his superstar brother's departure. Someone who looks like Boaz shows up, but Levi realizes his brother is profoundly changed: he doesn't leave his room, he screams in the night, he won't ride in cars, and he is planning a secret trip using Levi's old atlas. When he makes a rare appearance to announce his intentions of hiking the Appalachian Trail, Levi knows it is a hoax - he has been snooping through Boaz's browser history. Levi sets out to reveal his brother's real plan, along with best friends Pearl and Zim (who lighten the story with comic relief and romance), and ends up discovering the depths of Boaz's inner torment as well as a host of definitions for the word hero. Ms.Reinhardt paints an uncompromising and unflinching portrait of war without taking sides, but it is her talent for writing unforgettable characters that turns TTABK into a must read. Don't miss Reinhardt's How to Build a House, either. Grade 8+

Popular posts from this blog

the game of love and death by martha brockenbrough

Image
A brilliant, beguiling and beautiful book set in Depression-era Seattle in the 1930s, TGOLAD tells the at once heartbreaking and hopeful love story of African American chanteuse Flora Saudade and adopted wealthy white boy Henry Bishop. Forever foes Love and Death are playing a game: Flora and Henry are their unknowing pawns. A pitch-perfect Seattle setting, an indelible ensemble cast of characters, and a hefty dose of high-stakes legerdemain all come together in a mesmerizing cacophony that will keep you turning the pages well into the night. I had the distinct pleasure of listening to Ms. Brockenbrough read at the Washington State Book Awards; the notes of her voice floating through the air were every bit as gorgeous as her words on the page. Not to be missed! Click here for a trailer and here for a full review . Grade 8+
Read more

my friend dahmer by derf backderf

Image
A haunting look at what happens when a kid slips through the cracks (which happened to be gaping wide throughout the ubiquitous 'hands-off-I'm-too-busy-having-a-breakdown/affair/addiction/vision" parenting style of the 70s and 80s). Most of us remember Jeffrey Dahmer as the guy who ate people, but Derf Backderf knew him as the guy who entertained his classmates with an ongoing and entertaining schtick (imitating his mother's seizures), the guy who didn't quite fit in yet maintained a bizarre celebrity status (including his own club), and, eventually, the guy who could finish a six-pack in mere seconds and always had a bottle at the ready to drown out the darkness at home and in his head. Backderf masterfully crafts a thoroughly researched cautionary and poignant tale of a lost young man without glossing over details or over sympathizing. Don't miss it - and pair it with Jeff Jensen's Green River Killer for more graphic serial killer memoir. Click here fo
Read more