The Selection

The Selection

by Kiera Cass

The Selection is an amazing book.  Not to be cliche, but I felt like I was right there with America Singer, main character, the entire book. Kiera Cass is surrounded with talented writers writing the same sort of star-crossed lover themed books, but what set her apart for me is how relatable it was. She creates this triangle where America is at the top and has to choose between a prince or her young love. Everyone remembers their first love/crush, but they just don't know how close they are to meeting their prince.

Kaileigh Robertson

Genre:  Romance, Dystopian

All These Things I've Done

All These Things I've Done

by Gabrielle Zevin

Thanks to the snow gods and Roanoke County Schools for assigning a snow day yesterday so that I could finish this very fine read by Gabrielle Zevin.  This is perhaps my favorite teen read of 2013, so far at least.   All These Things I’ve Done is set in Manhattan in the year 2082.  The world as we know it has changed quite a bit.  Many things we take for granted are now illegal:  phones with cameras, paper without a permit, even chocolate and caffeine.  No new clothing is manufactured.  Food is rationed and water is very expensive.    The main character and narrator of this novel is sixteen-year-old Anya Balanchine, the orphaned daughter of organized crime boss Leonyd Balanchine, leader of the famed Balanchine Chocolate.    Anya lost her mother to a mob hit that was meant for her father when she was six years old.  That same hit also left her brother Leo brain damaged.  Three years later the mob finally succeeded in killing her father as well.  Now Anya lives with her grandmother, Galina, her younger sister, Natty, and her brother Leo.  Anya’s grandmother is supposedly their guardian, but in reality she is dying, so Anya is really the caregiver of the family.  It is Anya who makes decisions for the family.  It is Anya who contacts the family lawyer when her mob relatives are stirring up trouble.  It is Anya who takes care of her older brother.  Still, Anya manages to attend a prestigious private Catholic school.   She has a new boyfriend, Winn Delacroix, who is the son of New York City’s top cop, which is ironic since she is the daughter of the city’s most famous criminal.  In some ways she lives a privileged life, until her creepy ex-boyfriend is poisoned by a chocolate bar that Anya gave him and the police believe she is responsible.   This novel is full of action and twists as Anya must negotiate to protect her herself, her immediate family, and her boyfriend, whose father would prefer that he not date the daughter of a famous crime boss, from the law and from her own mafia connections.  Will she ultimately have to accept her birthright and become the next Balanchine Chocolate crime boss?  Only time and the sequel, Because it is In My Blood, will tell. 

Lauren Sprouse, Librarian

Beta by Rachel Cohn

Beta by Rachel Cohn

Genre:  Science Fiction, Dystopian

Rachel Cohn is one of my favorite teen authors.  Usually she writes realistic fiction, and her
characters are quirky and witty.  This novel, Beta, is a departure from Cohn’s usual style, but it will not disappoint readers.   The novel is set in the future.  The ice caps have melted, and Earth is now a watery planet.  Flooding is prevalent on the mainland.  The novel, however, takes place on the island of Demesne, a new island that was created after the eruption of volcanoes under the sea.  The island is the playground of the elite, wealthy families that are left on the planet after the Water Wars.  The ocean surrounding the island was reengineered by scientists to create the Io Sea, which “ripples in patented violet crests and offers a totally transforming experience” (17).    Even the air has been reengineered to “pump premium oxygen into Demesne’s atmosphere” (17).    And, of course, to serve these elite families, the scientists have created clones.  The clones serve as butlers, maids, construction workers, etc.  They are cloned from humans who have died, but they have no souls, so they are supposed to be happy in their work.   The main character in this novel is a “beta” meaning she is a new form of clone.  She is a teenage clone, and in the past the teenage clones have all turned “Awful,” which Dr. Larissa Lusardi, the world’s expert on cloning, has attributed to teen hormones.  The beta clone is named Elysia.  She is bought by Mrs. Bratton, the wife of the chief executive officer of Demesne and taken to live in their home.  Her role, unlike the role of the family’s other clones, is to be a “replacement” daughter for their daughter who has recently left for college.  Mother loves Elysia because she doesn’t have any of the sullen attitudes that her real daughter Astrid has.  It isn’t long before Elysia discovers that she is different from most clones.  She can taste food, which she isn’t supposed to be able to do.  She loves chocolate and macaroni and cheese.  She also has memories of her “First,” the girl from which she was cloned.  As Elysia tries to hide these “defects” from her family, she also discovers that she is not as unique to clones as she was led to believe.  There are other clones who are unhappy with their situations and who yearn for more.  Will Elysia find what she wants?   Spoiler Alert:  There will be a sequel, and there is no release date yet.

Lauren Sprouse, Librarian