Book Reviews from a Teacher's Perspective

High Achiever Good Reads Link Author:  Tiffany Jenkins Themes:  Addiction Redemption Genres:  Memoir Recommended Age for Reading:  High School for sure.  The language very strong and there's a scene when the author describes a sexual favor in exchange for pills.  However, every high schooler needs to read this.  Addiction is killing so many people and this vicious cycle usually begins in high school.  The drug prevention programs schools often use just aren't working.  The opioid crisis continues to rise as well as the death toll for people who lose their lives to their addiction.  I think this would be a good one for parents to read with their kids and for high school teachers to have in their libraries.  Reading about how addiction almost ruined someone's life might be a wake-up call for a teenager who is already battling this unfortunate crisis.   Synopsis:  Tiffany Jenkins is a content creator of hilarious videos that she posts on t

Author:  Angie Thomas Themes:  Courage  Prejudice Power and Corruption Genres:  Realistic Fiction Recommended Age for Reading:  This is a bit tricky...the language is very strong.  The F word is used multiple times, but one of my middle school students recommended this book to me.  Coming from a mostly white school out in the middle of nowhere, I was so proud of her for reading and being inspired by this story.  Due to the language and sexually implied content, I would suggest parents and teachers read this story before having middle school age kids read it.  It could be a story that parents and teachers read with their kids.  There are several opportunities for teachable moments and much-needed discussions.   Plot: Starr Carter is a teenage girl who is caught between two worlds.  She attends a mostly white private school, but she also lives in what would be known to others as a rough part of town.  Her father used to be a leader in a powerful gang.  W

Author:  Robert Beatty Themes:  Good vs. Evil Love conquers all The Power of Friendship Coming of Age Genres:  Fantasy Historical Fiction Recommended Age for Reading:  Depending on the reading level of the students, I'd recommend this book for upper elementary and middle grades.  There's nothing inappropriate for younger readers in the story, but the series gets a bit dark at times.  Overall the series is enjoyable for kids all the way through adulthood.  It would be a fun series to read as a family.  Plot: In "Serafina and the Black Cloak," the reader is introduced to a little girl who lives in the basement with her father.  Her father works as a maintenance man for the Biltomore Estate in Asheville, North Carolina.  At the beginning of the story, all we know about Serafina is that she's a "creature of the night."  No one knows that she and her father are living in the basement, and no one except her father

Author:  Charles Dickens Themes:  Coming of Age; Individual vs Society Genres:  Classic Literature Recommended Age for Reading:  The Lexile level for this book is 1230, which according to this chart  Lexile Level Chart  is in the high school range.  However, there's nothing in the content that would be inappropriate for a student in a grade below high school, although the student would need to have a strong reading ability.  I think this would be a great read for children who are gifted readers and looking for a challenge.  For struggling readers, the audio version is a great alternative:  Great Expectations Audio Version on Audible . Plot:  This story is told in first person from the main character, Pip.  Pip is an orphaned boy who is raised by his adult sister and her husband.  He dreams of rising from his social status to become a gentleman.  He doesn't have much hope in this happening until an anonymous benefactor provides the monetary mea

Author:  Neal Shusterman Themes: Coming of Age; Change vs Tradition; Death Genre: Science Fiction Recommended age for Reading:  The reading level is 6.5 which is about where the content level should be.  There's mild language throughout the story and there are parts with strong language, but not many.  Both books get a bit dark since death is a central theme to the story.  There's also a few violent scenes.  Scythe Plot: In this particular futuristic society, humans have conquered natural as well as accidental death.  People no longer die from illness or disease and if a tragic accident occurs, they can be taken to the nearest hospital for a resurrection.  This seems ideal, but colonizing other planets hasn't happened yet, so planet Earth can only sustain so much life.  As a result of this, an occupation some can aspire to is that of a scythe.  A scythe's main role is to end life at random in order to keep the world population at a reasona

The Giver  Author: Lois Lowrey Themes: Coming of Age; Individual vs. Society Genre: Science Fiction/ Fantasy   Recommended Age for Reading:  The reading level is 5.9, which is about right for the content.   There are a few parts of the book that are intended for mature audiences.   In one scene, the protagonist has a dream about a girl he knows.   In the dream, he is asking her to take her clothes off.   In the climax of the story, a baby is euthanized, but at this point of the story, the protagonist decides things in his society have to change.     Plot: Set in a futuristic society, the main character, Jonas lives a peaceful life with his mother, father, and sister. In this particular society, everything is provided for all the individuals…food, housing, transportation, and everything that is needed.   All the decisions are made by the elders including what jobs people will have, who will be paired up as spouses, and which family