Wheels of Change

Macy, S. (2011). Wheels of change. Washington, D.C.: National Geographic.

Media Type: Audiobooks
Narrated by Meredith Orlow
Length: 2hrs 9 min
Release Date: June 20, 2012

Award: YALSA Award for Excellence in Nonfiction for Young Adults-Nominee 2012

Summary:
This nonfiction informational book is about the history of bicycles and women's slow and steady fight for more freedom. Wheels of Change follows the effect bicycling had on women in the 1880 and 1890’s. It starts with a brief history of the invention of the bicycle before presenting a nineteenth century history of the use of bicycles by women. Women had to demand a voice when it came to clothing choices and the effect of bicycling on their health.  Bicycling was both seen as a health restorative and a sign of promiscuous behavior. This book is filled with uplifting stories of some of the women who rode bicycles and played a role in the evolution of its form.

Response:
This nonfiction books gives us an interesting perspective on how the bicycle, something we think of as giving freedom of movement to children, gave freedom and independence to women in an age where there were strict ideas of gender roles in society. A great read for anyone interested in little known aspects of history, history of transportation, women's history, and bicycles.

Other books by author

 Teaching Tools

Author's Website

http://www.suemacy.com/

Author's Blog

http://www.suemacy.com/sues-views

Lesson Plan by Six Trait Gurus
https://sixtraitgurus.wordpress.com/2012/04/30/cycling-to-freedom-blending-the-fascinating-history-of-bikes-with-womens-rights/

Awards & Reviews

Booklist

Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books

Horn Book Magazine

New York Times

School Library Journal starred

Voice of Youth Advocates (VOYA)

Wilson's Children

Wilson's Junior High School

YALSA Award for Excellence in Nonfiction for Young Adults-Nominees

The Girl Who Was Supposed to Die

Henry, A. (2013). The girl who was supposed to die. New York: Henry Holt and Co.

Media Type: Audiobooks

Narrated by Cristina Panfilio

Length: 5h 25m

Release Date: June 11, 2013

Quick Picks 2014

Summary:

This novel begins with a young girl waking up battered and bruised. Two of her fingernails are missing, she has a loose tooth and has no memory of who she is or what happened. The next thing she remembers is being dragged out into the woods by a man who is going to finish her off. However, somehow she manages to escape. She knows that she needs to find help because she has no idea who she is and why someone would want to kill her. In her first attempt to get help she finds a security officer in Newberry Ranch. She soon discovers that she's being followed and the officer ends up dead. Next she meet Ty, who works at McDonald's and who decides to help her. With Ty's help she begins to piece together information that eventually lead her to the truth. The reason she had been targeted was because her parents created a vaccine that was going to be used for evil purposes by the company. Her parents had managed to run away with her little brother but she was kidnapped to try and gather information. In the end, she is reunited with her family and all the "bad" people are jailed awaiting trial. Ty and Cady remain friends at the end of the novel.

Response:

There is a lot going on in this novel. First, we don't know our main character's name because she suffers from amnesia. Secondly, we don't know if she is going to be the type a heroine or possible a killer. Once I got passed the first few chapters, I realized that she was not only brave, but incredibly quick on her feet. The author captures the point of view of a kidnapping victim extremely well because not only do we see the flight decision making, we see how determined she is to find out who she is and her desire to live.

Other books by author

Teaching Tools

Author's Website

http://www.aprilhenrymysteries.com/

Author's Blog

http://aprilhenry.livejournal.com/

The Siren

Cass, K. (2016). The siren. New York, NY: Harper Teen.

Media Type: Audiobooks

Narrated by Arielle DeLisle

Length: 7 hours

Release Date: January 26, 2016

New York Best Seller List : #1 week of February 14, 2016

Summary:

As a young girl Kahlen is spared by the ocean when her ship goes down killing everyone on board. In return she must serve the ocean for 100 years as a siren. Being a siren consist of seducing humans with her song to feed the ocean. For 80 years Kahlen is obedient and loved deeply by the ocean. Until one day she meets a boy named Akinli and she falls madly in love. Realizing that she will never be allowed to love him she leaves him only to reunite with him months later. This time she makes the mistake of speaking to him and the ocean is outraged and almost kills him. In an effort to spare his life she pleads with the ocean to let him live. She allows him to live but punishes her to 50 more years of servitude added to her sentence. A few months later she begins to fall ill and finds out that he is dying of an unknown cause. After doing much research her sisters find out the problem and beg the ocean for compassion. At first the ocean refuses to let her go and save Akinli but in the end she transforms her back into a human. When she is reunited with him she has no memory of her past or who he is. All she remembers is his voice, and that is all she needs to know that everything will be alright.

Response:

This novel had a unique twist on a mythological story of sirens. The setting throughout the book perfectly blended the real world and fantasy together. While I wanted the end to include more details to see how everything was resolved, I enjoyed the development of the plot and it ended the way I expected it to.

Other books by the author

Teaching Tools

Author's Website

http://www.kieracass.com/

Author's Blog

http://partylikeawordstar.tumblr.com/

Interview with author

http://ronreads.com/author-interview/author-interview-kiera-cass/