Supernatural: "hush, hush"

Fitzpatrick, Becca. hush,hush. New York: Simon & Schuster BFYR, 2009.

In the Old Testament a group of angels are thrown down from heaven because they lusted after mortal women. Is one of these fallen angels attending Nora Grey's high school in Coldwater, Maine?

Nora Grey lives on the outskirts of town with a mother who is rarely home. Their centuries old farmhouse is lit from the inside with memories of a father who was killed by a random act of violence. Outside fog swirls and the number of terrifying encounters is on the rise.

As an internal struggle over who trust becomes an external struggle to stay alive, Nora finds herself in the midst of an ancient battle between those who have fallen and one who is immortal. She will need strength. She will need endurance. Most of all she will need to shield her thoughts from those who would take them and use them against her.

As the stakes are raised and the players begin to reveal themselves, will Nora be able to stay one step ahead? Or will she be silenced forever by the one who beckons her with a hush, hush?

Verse Novel: "Who Killed Mr. Chippendale?"

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Glenn, Mel. Who Killed Mr. Chippendale?: A Mystery in Poems. New York: Lodestar Books, 1996.

A murder mystery told in free verse poems answering the question: who killed Mr. Chippendale?

The end of Robert Chippendale, English teacher at Tower High, is the beginning of this tale. A tale told by the reactions of the students and faculty who knew him, the detective pursuing the murderer, and Angela Falcone, the guidance counselor who loved him.

According to the students:

He was the best teacher I ever had.
He was the worst teacher I ever had.
No, I'm not goin' to the funeral.
Why did he have to die?
Hey, this school is scary.
I remember that creep Chippendale saying
That the whole world is waiting for us.
I remember that wonderful Mr. Chippendale saying
That the whole world is waiting for us.

As shock turns to grief, the students at Tower High School are drawn to the door of Angela Falcone. Can she help them deal with their feelings while at the same time bowing to her own grief? Is it Angela Falcone, after all, who has the knowledge to draw the killer out and discover Who Killed Mr. Chippendale?

YALSA Best Books for Young Adults. YALSA Quick Picks for Reluctant Young Adult Readers.

Verse Novel: "Crashboomlove"

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Herrera, Juan Felipe. CrashBoomLove: A Novel in Verse. Albuquerque: University of New Mexico Press, 1999.

A Mexican American navigates high school amidst racial tension, drug offerings, and blackboards swirling with words he can't read. Only when everything crashes around him, can he begin to redesign his life as a life with a future.

César Garcia is hungry. Hungry for something besides the chaos that is Rambling West High School. Hungry for more than the Welfare can provide. Hungry for an end to smashing fists and smashing words. Hungry for love, even crashboomlove.

César's world is closing in on him. He is being drawn into using drugs, the Hmongs are fighting the Chicanos, and his friends are upping their illegal activities. Is this what a migrant workers' son can expect out of life? Or is there a better place for him?

El agua es blanda, la piedra dura,
pero, gota a gota, hace cavadura.

Water is soft, rocks are hard,
but, drop by drop, water finds a way.

Will César find his way?

YALSA Quick Picks for Reluctant Young Adult Readers.

Verse Novel: "A Bad Boy Can Be Good For a Girl"

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Stone, Tanya Lee. A Bad Boy Can Be Good for a Girl. New York: Simon & Shuster, 2004.

Three high school girls are manipulated by a bad boy with some good lines. Tables are turned when they get a revenge that's "by the book".

Who are Josie, Nicolette, and Aviva? And why are they acting so stupid? This novel is a confidential look at high school life through three girl's experiences as they cross paths with an irresistible "big jock" on campus.

Josie is a jock herself and is confident in all things until she starts her freshmen year. Doubts set in, and big jock knows just how to manipulate her. Nicolette? Well she's the girl who knows what she wants and knows how to get it. She'll take her pleasure where she finds it without ever looking back. Until big jock that is. And finally there's Aviva, the least likely to be taken in by big jock. A hippie by-product of enlightened parents. Did I say the least likely to be taken in?

Just who are Josie, Nicolette, and Aviva? You'll find out when they discover a peculiar pulpit from which to deliver their new insights on love. Insights gained from a bad boy who in the end probably did do them some good.

YALSA Quick Picks for Reluctant Young Adult Readers. Texas Tayshas Reading List.