Donna B

• Rated 4 stars

“Lia, 18, struggles with anorexia, guilt and depression following the death of her ex-best-friend, Cassie. Cassie called her 33 times on the night of her death, and Lia never answered the phone. Fast-paced and well-written. Lia's behavior is both frustrating and understandable. I like that none of the characters in the story is either perfect or totally hate-worthy.”

Donna B wrote this review 9 days ago. ( reply | permalink )

• Rated 4 stars

“I think everyone fears that their parents don't really love them. In this spare & creepy graphic memoir, Small explores the indifferent relationship between himself and his parents. His psychiatrist (appearing as a white rabbit) validates his fears about his mother.

Small tells his story so effectively through his art work, that it took me less than an hour to read.”

Donna B wrote this review 9 days ago. ( reply | permalink )

• Rated 5 stars

“Three troubled young artists, Tamika, Fatmia, and Jimmi, cross paths and make lasting impressions on each other over the course of a month in the Bronx. Surprisingly powerful, and as beautifully written as it is bleak. At the very beginning of the book, you learn that one of the three main characters will be hung by a vigilante mob, and the chapters count down the days leading up to that tragic event. It's shocking then, that it ends with hope.”

Donna B wrote this review 9 days ago. ( reply | permalink )

• Rated 4 stars

“Dade has just graduated high school and is killing time in his humdrum Iowa suburb before leaving for college in the fall. He spends his days swimming in the backyard pool, restocking shelves at the local supermarket, and hooking up with his closeted & conflicted sort-of boyfriend. Dade's mundane world is shaken up by a number of events: 1) his father admits to an affair 2) a local girl vanishes 3) Dade meets a potential new love interest and 4) he also befriends a girl from LA who's spending the summer at her aunt's house down the street.”

Donna B wrote this review 2 weeks ago. ( reply | permalink )

• Rated 4 stars

“Cello-playing Mia is a bit of an oddball within her quirky family of hipsters. She loves her parents and brother fiercely, though, just as she loves her punk rock boyfriend, sardonic best friend, and classical music. When her happy family is destroyed in a freak car accident, Mia finds herself floating out of her body, watching the commotion around her as hospital staff, her grandparents, and extended circle of friends fight to keep her alive. She's not sure that she wants to stay, though.”

Donna B wrote this review 3 weeks ago. ( reply | permalink )

1 of 1 members found this review helpful.

• Rated 3 stars

“Fire is a beautiful woman who can manipulate people's minds. She is at once loved and feared, and (desiring to do only good) is torn when asked to use her abilities against enemies of her kingdom. I liked the prologue about the monstrous boy who can control minds, but then it took me a long time to get into the rest of the novel because I kept waiting for that boy to reappear. Eventually, I did get into the story enough to care about Fire and the other main characters. The ending was good, but it took too many pages to get there.”

Donna B wrote this review Wednesday, November 11 2009. ( reply | permalink )

• Rated 4 stars

“Good introduction to the Apollo space program and it's mission to land on and explore the moon. It's full of cool paintings created by former astronaut Alan Bean, who took part in Apollo 12. I was intrigued by the interesting textures of the paintings and then learned in a note at the end that Bean infused the paintings with space dust and bits of debris that had been recovered from Apollo 12! Along with Bean's paintings, the many sidebars on subjects like space food, peeing in space, and things that astronauts left behind on the moon are the best parts of the book.”

Donna B wrote this review Tuesday, November 3 2009. ( reply | permalink )

• Rated 5 stars

“Marcelo is 17 and has a mild form of Asperger's Syndrome. Even though he could attend a regular school, he's been at a special school since first grade. He's looking forward to a summer job training the school's therapy ponies, and then completing his senior year. His father wants him to attend a regular school, though, to learn about the "real world." To compromise, he makes a deal with Marcelo. If Marcelo will work at his law firm over the summer, then he can choose where he goes to school in the fall.”

Donna B wrote this review Monday, November 2 2009. ( reply | permalink )

• Rated 3 stars

“Marni tells the story of her somewhat dysfunctional family and how stress led her to begin plucking her own hair as a teenager. She's thrilled to eventually learn that her nervous disorder has a name, trichotillomania. Far from being a "disease of the week" story, this is really the story of a teenage girl dealing with middle and high school horrors the best she can. Marni takes a humorous approach to her life, making it a fast and entertaining read.”

Donna B wrote this review Monday, October 19 2009. ( reply | permalink )

• Rated 5 stars

“This is a gripping tale of survival set in the days before and months after a meteor hits the moon and changes it's orbit. The moon's new orbit has devastating impacts on the earth and its inhabitants. Miranda, a high school junior, tells the story from her viewpoint as she struggles to adjust to the cold weather, gray skies, and frightening storms that follow.

Highly recommended for all teens, fans of apocalyptic books like "The Stand"; and fans of disaster movies like "Deep Impact" and "The Day After Tomorrow." ”

Donna B wrote this review Sunday, October 18 2009. ( reply | permalink )