Thirteen Reasons Why

Asher, Jay. Thirteen Reasons Why. 2007. 304p. ISBN 1595141715. Available on the library shelves at FIC ASH and as an eBook on Overdrive.

Hannah Baker spent her whole life being ignored, reviled, hated, or picked on. Desperate, she committed suicide. Clay Jensen didn’t know her very well, but he feels like he could have done something about her misery.

So when Clay Jensen comes back from school and discovers a strange box with his name on it, he’s not sure what it is, or even why he’s receiving it. Opening the box, he discovers thirteen old cassette tapes. As he begins listening to them, he realizes that Hannah discusses, on each tape, the actions of one person who lead her towards her fateful decision. Every one of the people mentioned on the tape could have prevented her tragedy, and were an instrumental part of why she committed suicide. Each person, from the first to the last, must in turn listen to the thirteen tapes then send it to the next person in line. To find out how Clay contributed to Hannah’s suicide, he must listen to all the tapes, and hear Hannah’s story through her own words.

Told from two distinct voices, Hannah and Clay’s perspectives and stories show how small actions from many people can add up to a tragedy of deadly proportions.

If you liked this book, consider reading Please Ignore Vera Dietz, We Were Liars, If I Stay, Zoe Letting Go, Black Box, The Vanishing Season, or Kiss of Broken Glass. All of these books feature a tragedy and a voyage of self-discovery as the central element of the plot. Or read Falling into Place, where Liz Emerson's suicide attempts leads others to discover secrets about themselves they would rather forget.

Lord of the Flies

Golding, William. Lord of the Flies. 1954. 182p. Available at FIC GOL and as an eBook on Overdrive.

When their plane goes down, a group of boys find themselves stranded on a deserted island in the middle of the Pacific. With no adult survivors, the boys must organize themselves to survive while waiting for a rescue. Over the first few days, the boys are having fun and run all over the island. But as the days go by and no one comes, the boys, all alone, begin to break along friendship lines. The apparition of a “monster” throws the boys into a panic, and fear takes over. The boys’ behavior becomes more violent as they rapidly descend to their very own hell. Can they survive long enough for rescue?

A terrible tale and a parable for the ages, Lord of the Flies explores the collapse of moral order and the nature of boys left alone. As a commentary on society, it’s not very pretty.

To find out how would girls react in a similar situation, read Beauty Queens by Linda Bray.

Pocket Timeline of Islamic Civilizations

Badcott, Nicholas. Pocket Timeline of Islamic Civilizations. 2009. 48p. ISBN 978-1-56656-758-9. Available at 909 BAD on the library shelves.

Islam has made the news headlines for the past decade, but for most Americans it remains a religion steeped in fear and mystery. This short book by Nicholas Badcott presents the history of Islam and the various dynasties that controlled its growth and spread throughout the world. Each two pages spread shows important events, as well as art, architecture, weapons, science, and coins influenced by Islam. Included in the book is a twelve page pullout with a more specific timeline that can be consulted.

This is an excellent book for a short overview of one of the world’s most followed religions.

The Alchemyst

Scott, Michael. The Alchemyst. Book 1 of the The Secrets of the Immortal Nicholas Flamel series. 2010. 400p. ISBN 0552562521. Available as an eBook on Overdrive.

Twins Josh and Sophie Newman have always been close. With their parents out of town for the summer, the twins each have jobs that keep them busy. Sophie works in a coffee shop, while Josh toils in a bookstore owned by Nicholas.

But when the bookstore is attacked by strange grey men led with Dr. John Dee, Josh and Sophie are thrown into a conflict centuries old. Nicholas is none other than Nicholas Flamel, famed alchemist who supposedly died in 1418. Dr. Dee is Elizabeth I’s spymaster, and he’s after the book of Abraham the Mage. Nicholas Flamel used that book to derive eternal life, but now Dee want to take it away from him. With it, Dee could literally destroy the world. And that’s exactly what he plans to do for his evil overlord, except that during the attack Josh managed to save the last two pages of the book. Without them, the book is useless. But now Nicholas is aging before their eyes.

Fortunately, both Nicholas and his wife Perenelle know of a prophecy where twins will awaken and save the world. Are Josh and Sophie these two twins, or will they join the countless other twins Nicholas and Perenelle used in the past in their vain hope of fulfilling the prophecy? With Dee hunting them all down, they may not live long enough to find out.

For a lighter tale of the paranormal, consider Paranormalcy, where Evie fight off faeries and other paranormal creatures while falling madly in love with Lend.

Tsunami: True Stories of Survival

Sommers, Michael. Tsunami: True Stories of Survival. 2007. 48p. ISBN 978-1-4042-1002-8. 363.34 SOM on the library shelves.

One of the most powerful and savage force of nature, the giant wave, or tsunami, has always affected coastal areas of the world. But the natural disasters of December 26, 2004 around the Indian Ocean and particularly in Indonesia, and the March 16, 2011 in Fukushima, Japan, brought tsunamis into world consciousness.

In this short book, Sommers describes the phenomenon of tsunami and presents incredible stories of survival. A historical view of tsunamis is also explored, and ways to predict the appearance of this giant wave are discussed.

Anyone interested in natural disasters and survivor stories will enjoy this book.

Possessions and Exorcisms

Kallen, Stuart A. Possessions and Exorcisms. The Mysterious & Unknown Series. 2012. 96p. ISBN 1601524749. 133.42 WOO on the library shelves.

Can people be possessed by spirits and demons? The concept of possession exists throughout the globe, in every culture, and is ever present in the popular imagination thanks to movies and horror stories. How can such a universal concept dating thousands of years back not exist?

Scientifically, possession has been explained away by mental illnesses or by physical contamination of one kind or another. Yet, it remains that there have been documented instances where science could not explain what was happening.

This book walks the reader through what possessions look like, and presents several case studies of victims of possessions that science examined but discovered nothing that afflicted them. The author also explores exorcism, the process of removing a spirit or demon out of one’s body, and discusses how these rituals are very similar from one corner of the planet to the next.

Anyone interested in the paranormal will be fascinated with the information Kallen compiled in this book and will be left asking themselves whether there really are spirits out there, and if so, can they really possess humans?

Divergent

Roth, Veronica. Divergent. 2011. 487p. ISBN 9780062024022. Available on the library shelves at  FIC ROT and as an eBook on Overdrive.

Five factions control Chicago: Abnegation, Amity, Candor, Dauntless, and Erudite. Each faction represents an ideal that their members are supposed to represented. At age sixteen, every teenager gets to pick which faction he or she will belong. Most teens remain with the faction that raised them, but once in a while a teen switches from one faction to another.

Beatrice has been raised in Abnegation, the faction concerned with being selfless and providing for others. Her mother and fathers are important members of the faction, with her mother in charge of providing food and shelter to the factionless, while her father sits on the Council that rules the city. But she feels she’s never fit in.

When given the chance at the choosing ceremony, Beatrice makes a bold decision. She chooses to join Dauntless, the faction that represents braveness and that protects the city. Her brother, Caleb, ten months older, also leaves Abnegation and joins Erudite, the faction driven by knowledge. Her actions cause gasps within the assembled crowd. Two Abnegation children leaving their faction is unheard of.

Beatrice rides the train with the Dauntless and changes her name to Tris. Life with the Dauntless is hard and violent, and Triss must quickly adapt to a lifestyle opposite the one she left behind.

In the initiation trials, Tris realizes that she is not alone, and others are cheering for her. However, she holds a terrible secret: She is not really Dauntless, but Divergent. A Divergent is someone who doesn’t conform to the ideals of one faction but rather embodies the values of two or more factions. This secret, she’s been warned, could cost Tris her life. Enigmatic Four, her trainer, also appears to have an affinity for Divergent, but holds secrets of his own.

And when Tris stumbles upon a conspiracy by Erudite and Dauntless to eliminate Abnegation, she must decide which side she will stand on, but this choice could very well be deadly!

Fans of the Hunger Games will like this book, and might also enjoy the following dystopian novels: Arena 1, Starters, Maze Runner, Ship Breaker, Reboot, Not a Drop to Drink, and Birthmarked. The story continues in Insurgent.