The Hunger Games

Collins, Suzanne. The Hunger Games. ISBN-10: 0439023483, ISBN-13: 9780439023481. Scholastic Press. 2008.

Summary
In another time, the United States as we now know it has become Panem. It's divided into twelve districts with one Capitol, and Katniss lives with her mother and sister in the poorest part of the poorest district. Since her father died, she has been providing for and protecting her family. And she continues to shelter her sister when Primrose's name is called to be a gladiator-type "tribute" in the Capitol's annual Hunger Games. The games are a brutal, bloodthirsty battle to the death that are televised across Panem. As Katniss steps into the games for her sister and her district, she knows that she is facing death armed with little more than her strong street smarts.

Critical Evaluation
Suzanne Collins has created a terrifying look into the future of the United States. Twelve districts ruled by one harsh and cruel Capitol. It's the same Capitol that institutes the Hunger Games—a gladiator-esque battle, where there can only be one winner. Each of the twelve districts sends a boy and a girl (known as Tributes) to the Games, and the point is that the one winner outlives their 23 competitors. Katniss has volunteered to be a tribute in efforts to spare her little sister from a certain death. Katniss has been providing for her family with her illegal hunting and bartering on the black market for years, and she takes those skills with her to the Games. The one thing that she didn't think about was her companion Tribute—Peeta. They have history, and the authorities in the Games have made that distant friendship into a romance. Do her past feelings of indebtedness to Peeta blur her goal, or does the sensationalism help her to admit true feelings? Collins gives us a complex character set in a complicated situation. Readers who enjoy science fiction will love this series, and the readability will draw in reluctant sci-fi readers. Katniss is a wonderfully strong character, but so is Peeta. They each bring something different to the Games and to their relationship—and that question of romance will attract readers too.

Reader's Annotation
The Hunger Games is more than a story of kids killing each other. Suzanne Collins brings us to a chilling future society that pits teens against each other in a battle to the death, as well as telling us an adventurous tale of friendship, romance and survival.

About the Author
Suzanne Collins has been writing for children for the past two decades, although mostly for children's television programs. She worked with Nickelodeon on projects such as Clarissa Explains it All, Oswald and Little Bear, and Scholastic Entertainment for Clifford's Puppy Days. She was approached by another children's author who persuaded her to try her hand at writing children's books. Gregor the Overlander was published in 2003 and kicked off The Underland Chronicles series, which includes three other following books. Then in 2008, Collins released The Hunger Games and began that trilogy which contains Catching Fire and Mockingjay.

Genre
Science Fiction
Girls/Women

Curriculum Ties
Government/History: the effects of war, violence, and poverty on societies

Booktalking Ideas
Would you put yourself in the danger of possible death to protect your sibling from certain death…
Do you think you could kill another person to save your own life…

Awards
Publisher's Weekly's Best Book of the Year (2008)
Golden Duck Award in Young Adult Fiction(2009)
Cybil Wonner for fantasy and science fiction (2008)

Reading Level/Interest Age
Ages 15+

Why I included this title...
Thankfully this was required reading. I said repeatedly: why would I want to read a book about kids killing each other!? Now I know why…

Pretties

Westerfeld, Scott. Pretties. ISBN-10: 0689865398, ISBN-13: 9780689865392. Simon Pulse. 2005.

Summary
Tally is now a Pretty… finally. Her face, her body, her life are all perfect, but in the back recesses of her mind she feels like she is forgetting something. When a message from her past arrives, she is reminded about the ugliness that hides beneath the perfect life of a Pretty. Again, she is at the mercy of the Specials and has to be make some dangerous decisions about her future

Critical Evaluation
In the second book of The Uglies series, readers will be happy to meet up with Tally as she has finally become a Pretty and is living her perfect life to the hilt—hot boyfriend, lots of friends and the best parties. But when her Ugly past catches up with her and reminds her of why she questioned becoming a Pretty, the plot thickens because any change in her behavior would cause the Specials to pay attention and watch her closely. The Specials don't want her to know what she already knows, and they will do whatever it takes to "help" her forget. Readers of the Uglies and Pretties will be ready to delve into the third book in the series—The Specials—to see where the action-packed story goes from here.

Reader's Annotation
Now Tally is a Pretty, and enjoying the Pretty lifestyle. But she is going to come to remember that being a Pretty is ugly business, especially when the Specials get involved. The thrilling second book in the series will only get readers even more excited for the next book.

About the Author
Texas native, Scott Westerfeld, is the author of short stories, five adult novels, and four different series for young adults: The Midnighters, The Peeps, The Leviathan and The Uglies. The Midnighters is about a town where for one hour a day—at midnight, of course—very dark things occur. The science fiction author says that The Peeps series isn't actually a series, but three stand-alone titles (So Yesterday, Peeps and The Last Days) all set in present day New York and deal with vampires, parasites and consumerism. The Leviathan series (Leviathan, Behemoth and Goliath) is Westerfeld's newest series and falls in the steampunk genre with an alternate version of the events from World War I. The Uglies series began as a trilogy but now has ended with four books (The Uglies, The Pretties, The Specials and The Extras) and an insider's guide (Bogus to Bubbly).

The author, who chooses to live in perpetual summer, splits his time in New York City and Australia with his wife, author Justine Larbalestier. Westerfeld was educated at the Arts Magnet High School in Dallas, TX, Vassar College for a degree in Philosophy and did some graduate work in Performance Studies at New York University. Prior to writing his own novels, he spent time as a factory worker, substitute teacher, textbook editor, software designer and ghost writer for other novelists.

Genre
Science Fiction
Friendship

Challenges
n/a

Curriculum Ties
Sociology: futuristic societies

Booktalking Ideas
You have everything, the perfect boy/girlfriend, popularity, a closet of awesome clothes to wear to all of the parties you go to, would you risk all of it to know the truth about what being a perfect person actually means…

Awards
n/a

Reading Level/Interest Age
Ages 15+

Why I included this title...
Like I said, I'm not a big fan of science fiction; but after reading The Uglies, I had to know what happened!!

Uglies

Westerfeld, Scott. Uglies. ISBN-10: 0689865384, ISBN-13: 9780689865381. Simon Pulse. 2005.

Summary
There are "Uglies" and then there are "Pretties." Luckily, everybody gets to be a Pretty when they turn 16. Tally and Shay are about to turn 16, about to have their Pretty operation. But Shay has been telling Tally about people purposely who have run away to escape the Pretty operation. Shay tells her that she is going to runaway and wants Talley to come away too. Tally can't believe that anyone would not want to be a Pretty, says goodbye to Shay and looks forward to her birthday. But Shay's disappearance didn't go by unnoticed by the Specials, because it is the Specials who force Tally to find Shay outside the city and bring her back before they will make Tally a Pretty. The decision Tally makes doesn't just affect her, or her and Shay but all of the others who chose to not become a Pretty.

Critical Evaluation
Tally, an Ugly, has been waiting to be turned into a Pretty just like any Ugly. However in the last weeks prior to her birthday, she learns about people who have ran away to escape the operation to make them a Pretty. This concept is so foreign to Tally, she doesn't really give it any consideration. When her friend disappears the authorities manipulate Tally to make a decision: help them find the band of rebels or never become a Pretty. Tally must come to terms with betraying her friend, as well as the rest of the rebels who have resisted the Pretty operation. The decision becomes especially difficult for Tally when she is told that besides being altered on the outside, the operation alters people's brains. The betrayal becomes unthinkable when her feelings get in the way. Readers will be drawn into the partying Pretty lifestyle, but will quickly see that being a Pretty isn't as pretty as it looks.

Reader's Annotation
If everyone was pretty there would be no jealousy or hatred or war because there'd be nothing left to fight over. However, Tally learns that being a Pretty has some very real and very ugly repercussions.

About the Author
Texas native, Scott Westerfeld, is the author of short stories, five adult novels, and four different series for young adults: The Midnighters, The Peeps, the Leviathan and The Uglies series. The Midnighters is about a town where for one hour a day—at midnight, of course—very dark things occur. The science fiction author says that The Peeps series is actually not a series, but three stand-alone titles (So Yesterday, Peeps and The Last Days) that are all set in present day New York and deal with vampires, parasites and consumerism. The Leviathan series (Leviathan, Behemoth and Goliath) is his newest series and falls in the steampunk genre with an alternate version of the events from World War I. The Uglies series began as a trilogy but now has ended with four books (The Uglies, The Pretties, The Specials and The Extras) and an insider's guide (Bogus to Bubbly).

The author, who chooses to live in perpetual summer, splits his time in New York City and Australia with his wife, author Justine Larbalestier. Westerfeld was educated at the Arts Magnet High School in Dallas, TX, Vassar College for a degree in Philosophy and has done some graduate work in Performance Studies at New York University. Prior to writing his own novels, he spent time as a factory worker, substitute teacher, textbook editor, software designer and ghost writer for other novelists.

Genre
Science Fiction
Friendship

Challenges
n/a

Curriculum Ties
n/a

Booktalking Ideas
If given the option to look like gorgeous and perfect like everyone else, or live in secret with your flaws—which would you chose…

Awards
n/a

Reading Level/Interest Age
Ages 15+

Why I included this title...
I'm not a big fan of science fiction, but this series intrigued me and made me think of a quote from one of my favorite movies, The Incredibles: if everyone is a super… then no one is. Same thing here...

Transformers (DVD)

Transformers. Actors: Shia Labeouf, Megan Fox, Jon Voight, and Josh Duhamel. ASIN: B000VR0570. Dreamworks Video. 2007.

Plot Summary
Director Michael Bay and producer Steven Spielberg bring to life the epic battle between the Autobots and the Decepticons. The battle of good versus evil comes crashing to Earth in a fast-paced and exciting movie full of special effects. Sam Witwicky (Shia LaBeouf) is a geeky kid who holds the only clue that holds the key to ultimate domination. He joins forces with Bumblee, gets to hang out with the hot chick and save the world.

Critical Evaluation
Transformers is an oft-told tale of good versus evil. The new version draws on the long running franchise, multiple television versions as well as the toys from the 80's, to bring this action-packed DVD to a wide range of viewers. The movie offers amazing special effects and a story that carries the concept far past the merchandise. It's the special effects—not the plot or dialog that will suck young adults in, and leave them wanting more.

Reader's Annotation
The epic battle between the Autobots and the Decepticons comes to Earth, and an Earthling, Sam Witwicky (Shia LaBeouf) holds the only clue that holds the key to ultimate power.

Genre
Science Fiction
Young Men
Friendship

Curriculum Ties
n/a

Booktalking Ideas
How would you handle your car coming to life and dragging you into a battle for world domination?

Awards
Saturn Award for Best Special Effects from the Academy of Science Fiction, Fantasy and Horror Films (2008)
BMI Film Music Award (2008)
Blimp Award for Favorite Movie from Kid's Choice Awards (2008)
Best Movie of the Year from MTV Movie Awards (2008)
and several awards for visual effects from the Visual Effects Society (2008)

Reading Level/Interest Age
Ages 10+

Why I included this title...
Even with bad reviews for plot, acting and dialog, this franchise is wildly popular.

Graphic from worstpreviews.com. Retrieved from http://www.worstpreviews.com/forums/showthread.php?789-Transformers-DVD-Cover-and-Specs December 14, 2010.

Little Brother

Doctorow, Cory. Little Brother. ISBN-10 076531983, ISBN-13 9780765319852. Tor Teen. 2008.

Summary
San Francisco is attacked by terrorists, and Marcus and his friends are caught in the wrong place at the wrong time. All of the sudden, an afternoon of skipping school has turned sour for this group of high schooler hackers. They are arrested, detained and caught in a brutal struggle with the Department of Homeland Security, as the DHS has made San Fransico a police state where everyone is a suspect—especially anyone who is smart enough to see through the DHS online privacy invations. Marcus sees a way to expose the travesties of the DHS, but can he and a group of other teen hackers fight back against the government?

Critical Evaluation
Little Brother is George Orwell's 1984 for a new generation. A group of very savvy hackers are skipping school when their lives are changed forever. They are detained and viciously mistreated by the Department of Homeland Security in the name of keeping San Francisco safe from further terrorist attacks. But Marcus and his friends see that it's perhaps the zealots of DHS who are causing much of the panic. Young adult readers who understand the hacker technology will enjoy that aspect of the novel, but there is a strong story to keep other readers gripped until the end of the book.

Reader's Annotation
Marcus is smart, but is he smart enough to fight back against the government who think he's guilty of treason?

About the Author
Cory Doctorow is far more than a Canadian science fiction author. He's a co-founder of a company for software sharing, an activist, blogger, editor of a weblog BoingBoing as well as contributor to The Guardian, Wired and many other websites, magazines and newspapers. He's been nominated for several awards like the Hugo and Nebula, and has won the Locus and Sunburst Awards which celebrates excellence in Canadian Literature.

Maybe many of his post-scarcity ideas come from being raised by extremely motivated activist parents. That idea of practically free good for all and the common threads of digital rights management and file sharing flow through Doctorow's fiction and non-fiction work. He has served on several boards that support his passion, as well as serving in several visiting and virtual teaching positions.

Genre
Science Fiction
Young Men
Friendship

Curriculum Ties
History: Government

Booktalking Ideas
Would you fight back against the government if you felt they were wrong...

How would you rebel against your government if you felt you were wrongly accused…

Awards
American Library Association Best Book for Young Adults

Challenges

Anti-Governement issues

Reading Level/Interest Age
Ages 15+

Why I included this title...
Again this is a book I might not have chosen on my own; but, as it was required, I read it and found myself enjoying the story.

More Information
Powells.com.http://www.powells.com/biblio/2-9780765319852-13