A Hip Collection of Young Adult Materials: historical fiction

The Luxe by Anna Godbersen [book]

Plot Summary:
Elizabeth and Diana Holland are the toast of society in 19th century Manhattan. They are rich, beautiful and part of one of the most highly respected families. In the beginning of the book introduces Elizabeth;s funeral and then proceeds to recount the time before she died. The sisters' father dies in the beginning revealing that they were not as wealthy as once believed- they are near penniless. In order to make sure that their family is protected Elizabeth is engaged to a playboy, Henry, who later falls for her sister. Elizabeth is the picture of perfection in her beauty and her demeanor, but the only problem is that she is in love with Will, who is a servant in their family that she grew up with. Diana is bold and loves adventure and romance, and her main storyline involves her romance with Henry. Then there is Penelope, who is a socialite friend that is having a small affair with Henry but wants to wed him for herself. Another influential character to the story is another servant named Lina who becomes privy to Elizabeth's love with Will, but she then uses it for her own benefits. Lina was also in love with Will and ends up trading her information to Penelope in order to hopefully climb the social ladder more and gain more attention. In the end of the novel you find out the Elizabeth is not dead, but instead has faked it in order to find her love, Will, in California where he left to. It is interesting to see Henry in the end of the book feeling remorseful because he was the last to see Elizabeth for she dies, when she finally finds out about Henry and Diana's romance.

Critical Evaluation:
This book is written in the third person, so it makes it a little challenging to really become engaged with the characters and fully understand all of their intricacies from an outside perspective. The characters are good, but they all have faults and it is also difficult to chose any one of the characters to truly like. The story is very interesting and keeps the reader guessing and intrigued, but the story line contains a lot of frivolities in that the majority of it is romance, gossip and society.
Reader's Annotation:
In 19th century Manhattan two sisters are the pinnacle of popularity in the social scene, until their father's death reveals that they are not as well off as they thought and now they all must do things that they do not want to in order to survive in this cutthroat society.

Websites to look Into:
http://www.annagodbersen.com/

Awards:

New York Times Bestseller

Abraham Lincoln Illinois High School Book Award Nominee

ALA Popular Paperbacks for Young Adults

Similar Books:
"Rumors" by Anna Godbersen
"Envy" by Anna Godbersen
"Splendor" by Anna Godbersen

Booktalking Ideas:
Societal Pressures
Comparisons to other historical romance novels

Genre:
Historical Fiction, Chic Lit

Interest Age:
14+

Challenge Issues:
I really could not think of any significant challenge issues with this book. There is romance, betrayal, and lies but it is all set in a mystery plot in history and nothing is so adverse that I would call it a challenge. It was a light chic lit read that concerned society debutantes and people on the wrong side of the tracks.

Why this Book?
This is a very popular book that can appeal to the crowds that like Gossip Girl and also enjoy books that take place in history of different social classes and how they related.

The Book Thief by Markus Zusak [book]

Publisher: Alfred A. Knopf; 2006
Language: English
Paperback: 576 pages
ISBN: 0375842209

Plot Summary:
Liesel is a nine year old girl in the middle of WWII starting off in the novel, being taken to a foster family in Germany in order to escape her parents' communist ties. She steals her first book at her brother's funeral during the trip and is then left with a couple who take her in. The man is named Hans and he teaches Liesel to read and stays by her side at night; he is her protection and her teacher. The woman is named Rosa and she does laundry for a living, using Liesel to help her with collecting and distributing the clothes. During this time she learns and makes few friends, Rudy being one of them- a young boy that is constantly teasing her and asking for kisses. In the beginning of the novel Death is telling the story, but as Liesel continues to learn and grow she takes over narration of the story. As the story unfolds, they harbor a Jewish man
in the basement that is eventually taken away, there are two separate incidents in which there are Jewish parades in the streets and Hans and Liesel are whipped for their compassion for them, and they endure bombings and the ever increasing Nazi presence.
During these incidents Liesel steals books from a book burning fire, and from the library of a woman that she builds a tenuous relationship with through books. In the end nearly everyone that she is close to dies in a bombing while she is the basement writing. Hans, Rosie, and Rudy are all gone and in a final act Liesel kisses Rudy. She is then taken away and the woman that has the library takes her in, and Death starts his narration again. She spends time with Rudy's father and eventually she meets again with the man that they harbored in the basement. The story ends when Liesel is old and Death comes to collect her from her large family. They walk and talk before he takes her while it asks her about her life and humans, to which his final thought is that they haunt him.

Critical Evaluation:
"I am haunted by humans" said by death to Liesel is a profound line in this book that describes the narration changes between death and Liesel. The idea that death narrates part of the novel in a WWII story line was very well crafted. Then later in the novel when Liesel takes over, due to her education, you are able to get a better sense of her character. The tiny parallel story her friend always trying to steal kisses from her is so heartbreaking because when she finally does it is too late; describing this time period in which nothing was set and stable but rather fleeting. The best theme in the novel of learning to read and understanding the devistation of the people in the area as well as seeing books being taken as you are learning to love them is in great relation to the destruction of the area and the Jewish people. The writing was done well and the characters were very in depth and powerful.

Reader's Annotation:
During World War II Liesel is 9 and steals her first book, after she is placed with a foster family she learns to read and conitnues to make friends, she secretly steals books and learns about people and injustices that surround her in this time period.

Websites to look Into:
http://www.randomhouse.com/features/markuszusak/

The Author:
Markus Zusak is an Australian author that grew up hearing stories about Nazi Germany, and decided that he needed to write about it.

Awards:
Commonwealth Writers Prize for Best Book, 2006
Horn Book Fanfare, 2006
Kirkus Reviews Editor Choice Award, 2006
School Library Journal Best Book of the Year, 2006
Daniel Elliott Peace Award, 2006
Publishers Weekly Best Children Book of the Year, 2006
Booklist Children Editors' Choice, 2006
ALA Best Books for Young Adults, 2007
Book Sense Book of the Year, 2007
Pacific Northwest Young Readers Choice Master List, 2009
Michael L. Printz Honor Book, 2007

Similar Books:
"I am the Messenger" by MarKus Zusak
Booktalking Ideas:
A World War II discussion, with other WWII books
Talk about the importance of books in society

Genre:
Historical Fiction

Interest Age:
16+

Challenge Issues:
War and Death
This book deals with the death of family members and the Nazi regime in Germany. It is hard to read about but I would combat this with the fact that it happened in history and that people should be aware of it and its tragedies.

Why this Book?
This book has won many awards and is an exceptional book to read for young adults about how books can mean so much to people. I think that it should definitely be included in a collection because it tells an important story of joys in hard times.