Secrets of My Hollywood Life by Jen Calonita

(4 out of 5)

Reading Level: Young Adult

Kaitlin Burke is a sixteen year old celebrity actress starring in the ever so popular show "Family Affair". She has a wonderful family, personal hairdressers, mingles with Hollywood A listers and fashionable clothes. But what she does not have is a normal teen life. Something Kaitlin wants badly.

So while the show is on hiatus Kaitlin decides to disguise herself and attend her best friend's high school. All goes well until she meets a cute boy named Austin. A boy who secretly has a crush on Kaitlin Burke. Kaitlin and Austin have fun and even plan to attend the year's big dance. That is until Kaitlin's costar and archenemy Sky Mackenzie decides to ruin the fun.

Kaitlin's adventures continue in Calonita's second book "Secrets of My Hollywood Life: On Location".

Kaitlin has just received the lead role in a new movie and is set to begin filming soon. But more disasters strike as Sky Mackenzie returns as well.

And as if that wasn't enough to drive an already stressful teen movie star crazy, Kaitlin and Austin begin to have their own troubles with an interferring publicist. Forced to attend premieres and other publicity events with her ex-boyfriend Kaitlin begins wondering if she'll ever have the free will to do the things she wants most. With help from her personal assistant, Nadine and best friend Liz, Kaitlin manages to survive one tough director, long days on set and a crazy costar.

Teen books are fun, quick reads and Calonita's books are full of laughter and excitement with a little bit of teen heartbreak, too. Teen girls wishing they were glamorous stars with lots of fashionable clothes or anyone just wishing for a good read with lots of laughs should enjoy Calonita's books. And stay tuned: Kaitlin Burke returns this spring in "Secrets of My Hollywood Life: Family Affair".

Safe by Susan Shaw

(3 out of 5)

Reading Level: Young Adult

Safe for Tracy is the memory of her Mama.

Safe is her Pa and school and her best friend Caroline.

Safe is normal until the day the orange car pulls up and everything, even Mama, is ripped away.

Tracy is thirteen and in a blink of an eye her whole world is turned upside down. She is ripped from the sidewalk, thrown into the back of an orange car, and is attacked. Susan Shaw has written a very serious story about rape. Shaw is not explicit or graphic and the word rape is only mentioned once by Tracy towards the end of the book. Shaw does not dwell on the actual rape itself but what the aftermath is for this young girl. Tracy is afraid to leave her home and she throws herself into her piano lessons. Music and her Pa seem to be the only things that make her feel better. Tracy does not want to talk about what happened to her she just wants to forget. What Tracy finds out is that you can’t bottle up your feelings and try to get back to normal.

I felt the book was well written and I liked that Ms. Shaw didn’t get graphic about the rape itself. She gives you bits and pieces and I thought that was more effective then actually giving you a play by play. At times I did feel a little frustrated. I wanted Tracy to see the importance of talking to someone about what happened to her. Talking can help a person heal. I think she was somewhat in denial. If she never had to think or talk about it again then it didn’t happen.

If you would like to see what other books Ms. Shaw has written you can visit her website, http://www.susanshaw.org/index.html.

I Heart You, You Haunt Me by Lisa Schroeder

(4 out of 5)

Reading Level: Young Adult

So I read the back cover and thought this sounds like a good book. When I opened the front cover I think I actually groaned because the book is written in verse. I was like I can’t read this. I don’t like books in verse. Verse means that it is written in a poetry style. When I took my lunch break I brought this book along. I thought maybe I’ll give it a try the story sounds really good. It sounds like something I would like. The book is 226 pages and I read it in a hour and a half. No I did not extend my lunch, I would have liked to but I didn't. The book was awesome. It was like reading her journal but better. The story is about Ava and Jackson. Ava and Jackson are in love but an unexpected tragedy happens and Jackson dies. Ava is devastated. Ava soon realizes that Jackson is still hanging around as a ghost. She can feel his presence and Jackson lets her know he is there by turning on the CD player, lighting candles, flipping the TV channels, and leaving her little notes. Ava is very happy to spend her time in the house with Jackson and at night he comes to her in her dreams. As much as she loves Jackson she wonders if she can really have a ghost as a boyfriend. This book is about love, loss, forgiveness, and acceptance.

What I found out about myself is that I liked this book in verse. Normally a 226 page book takes me a couple days to read because each page is filled with information. Sometimes you don’t need all that extra information. I don’t always need to know that the house was blue, had four windows, was on a large plot of land, and the trees were big and beautiful. This book was simple and to the point. It was a quick read that I really enjoyed. To find out more about the author you can visit her website, http://www.lisaschroederbooks.com/

Th1rteen R3asons Why by Jay Asher

(4 out of 5)

Reading Level: Young Adult

I read a lot. I guess that shouldn’t surprise anyone, I am a librarian after all. Not all the books I read touch me like some do. From the first page of this book I was hooked. It took me two days to read it, because I couldn’t read straight through. Life does cut into my reading time. Jay Asher touches on a serious subject, suicide. The story is about Hannah Baker. Hannah decides to take her own life but before she does she records seven tapes and sends them to thirteen people. The tapes tell her journey leading to her decision to commit suicide and how these thirteen people on the tapes affected her life. The book is haunting because you know Hannah is dead but she seems very alive on the tapes. As you read the book you hear Hannah’s story through Clay’s ears. He is one of the thirteen and he spends one incredible night crisscrossing the town listening to what Hannah has to say. This book is all about choices and how your actions and decisions can affect yourself and other people.

This book is geared towards young adults. It would be a great book discussion book in classrooms especially when discussing the topic of suicide.

If you want more information there is a website you can go to. The website has information on the book and about the author. http://www.thirteenreasonswhy.com/.