The Nix by Nathan Hill

Antonio Sanchez Ortiz

Plot Summary:

This book takes place during different time periods, the 1960s,1980s, and 2011. We also have different perspectives of different people throughout the book who all have different problems. We see Samuel dealing with problems such finding out why who his mom really was, trying to earn the love of his childhood crush, and dealing with problems at his job as a teacher. While seeing his mom, Faye, deal with problems such as a dad that was never happy for her, finding real love, and fitting in with social norms.

Critical Evaluation:

This book deserves 9.8/10 since the many perspectives of people it gives us during the book. Also since we see how there is many subplots are connected onto the one big subplot of Samuel finding out more about his mom. We also get to see life during different time periods and many based things that happened in the book happened in real life like the 1968 protest of the democratic convention. Overall, this book this goes deep about issues about love, politics, and family, while keeping you wanting to read more.

Character Driven by David Lubar

Gordon Jack

Plot Summary
Seventeen-year-old Cliff Sparks has only been on two dates, both of which ended in disaster. He doesn't want to graduate high school a virgin, but he's got no prospects and no game. Then Jiliian transfers to his school and he immediately falls for her. Problem is, she's way out of his league and he doesn't have a clue how to get her to notice him. As the school year winds down, he becomes increasingly desperate to make a love connection. When his dad starts becoming increasingly abusive, he realizes he needs to act fast before he graduates and his opportunity is lost forever.

Critical Analysis
I give this book a 10 out of 10 mostly because the voice of the main character is extremely funny. Here he is describing his first encounter with Jillian. "She'd never notice me unless I had the misfortune to suffer a memorable death in her presence. Something involving spontaneous flames would do the trick. For the moment, I wasn't tempted to pursue that approach - or departure. I really didn't want my encounter with her to be a short story, or a long obituary." The humor is balanced really well with some sad, realistic events that touch on the struggles teens experience with parents, friends, and relationships.

We Were Here by Matt de la Pena

  

Tania Sanjuan

Plot Summary 

Miguel is a 16 year old boy, who lives in Stockton, California. When he commits a crime, he gets sent to juvenile hall then transferred to a group home for 9 months. In the beginning of the book Miguel tells us a white lie on what crime he has committed, and continues to be stubborn throughout the story. He soon gets invited to escape the group home with another teen from the group named Mung. Their journey to Mexico opens the closet on Miguel and Mung's lives.

Critical evaluation
I rate this book a 10 out of 10. The main character Miguel is a big reason why I liked the book. Miguel is very stubborn and closed minded which makes you want to read the book more and more to see how he turns out in the end. Miguel doesn't like to tell a lot about his life to other people and pretends to not care for others but himself. Escaping the group home was a big challenge for Miguel because he wants to redeem himself for what he has done. 

Boomerang Effect by Gordon Jack

Haotian Jiang

Plot Summary
Lawrence Barry is a 16-years-old teenager boy who goes to Meridian high school in Silicon-Valley, California. He uses drugs to get high and get drunk in parties. His dad thinks his friends are "idiots" and is often disappointed in Lawrence because he always gets in trouble at school. When Lawrence is assigned as a mentor for a freshman after a conference with the teachers, he realizes that he needs to change his old lifestyles.


Excerpt

“I had been involved in enough ‘incidents’ in my two years at Meridian that we could go on like this all day” (Page 6) The quote reflects Lawrence's lifestyles during high school, he always causes troubles, and the school Principal hates him.

Critical Evaluation 
I give this book a 10 out of 10 because the main character Lawrence Barry is a really interesting character. Lawrence was miserable and had a messy life when he was around his old crew, but when the Principal threatens to sent him to Quiet Haven, he knows that he needs to start to put his life together. This book is good for readers who likes to read books that has humor and it is about teenagers. I really like this book because some of the things that happened in the book actually related to me, and instead of feeling embarrassed, I actually found it to be fun and encouraging.

Cure For The Common Universe by Christian McKay Heidicker

Gordon Jack

Plot Summary

For the first time in his young adult life, Jaxon has made a girl laugh. Unfortunately for him, he secures a date with the girl on the same day his dad commits him to video game rehab. Now he must find a way to earn enough points to exit the program so he can hook up with this stranger who may actually like him. Problem is, there are people at the rehab camp who Jaxon has pissed off, either online or in person, and want to see him fail. Now he must see if he can level up in the real world as well as he can in the game world.

Critical Evaluation

I gave this book to my 14-year-old, game-obsessed son and he actually put down the Xbox controller to read the book. Twice. For this reason, I was very intrigued and read the book with interest. Heidicker understands the gaming world well, but more importantly, he understands teens. His characters are all wonderfully flawed and trying their best to improve their lives and relationships with others. The story has a lot of great twists and unexpected surprises that kept me thoroughly entertained. A funny and moving story that I recommend wholeheartedly.

Goth Girl Rising by Barry Lyga

Antonio Sanchez Ortiz 

Plot Summary:
This book is set 6 months after The Astonishing Adventures of Fanboy and Gothgirl, but instead of it being The Fanboy”s perspective, it is Kyra's perspective (Goth Girl). Kyra throughout the story is plotting her revenge against Fanboy since she believes that he never wrote her or tried to communicate with her while she was away in Maryland Mental Health Unit. Throughout the story we also see her changing to find who she really is.

Quote:
“As angry as I was at Fanboy, as much as I hated him, I still cared about Schemata . So I called him that night and I told him what was wrong with it, and I thought that was going to be it, but...God! Eff him! Eff him!”(51)
This quote shows how Kyra hates Fanboy deeply but still cares about the comic book that he made, so her feelings seem to be a mess at this scene of the story.

Critical Evaluation:
This book would be 10/10. It keeps you on your toes wanting to know more about what is happening and the character development of Kyra is one of the best I’ve seen. It also has plenty of things we can relate to as teenagers. Also had many humorous moments and twists to keep the story enticing.

We Should Hang Out Sometime By: Josh Sunddquist

Maria Ortega

Plot Summary

In We Should Hang Out Sometime, by Josh Sundquist, the main character Josh is now 25 and realizes that he has never had a girlfriend. So he decides to get in contact with all his old crushes to figure out what went wrong. In seeking answers he hopes that they will say that his disability was the main reason why it didn't work out. But he soon realizes that he is the one who isn't OK with him being an amputee. After finally accepting the fact that he was the only one who couldn't handle this painful truth, he goes to a club with friends and then he sees her...The girl that may be the one who will own his heart forever.

Critical Evaluation
I rate this book a 10 out of 10. It was not only hilarious but also relatable. Since it is a true story, its even more fascinating how many true experiences he was open up to tell and share with us. There are times where all you want to do is just keep reading to find out what happened on his dates. Not to mention, all of us at one point in the book look back on our past experiences with our very own failed love interests and get to say "YES, I'm not the only one".  So I highly recommend this book to everyone.

Wise Young Fool by Sean Beaudoin

Carlos Diaz

Plot Summary

Wise Young Fool is a book about a teenage rock group that is in preparation for what could be their big break. Unfortunately, the main character gets arrested instead of becoming famous. Jump forward to 2013 and Ritchie and Elliot decide that they could form a rock band and compete in "Rock Scene 2013." Will they win Rock Scene 2013, or all hope be lost for their rock band?

Critical Evaluation

On a scale from one to ten, this book would rate a 7/10. This book does very well in narrating important and specific events that help advance the story. This book however does not really include a tension based factor that would lead to wanting to read faster. The plot is predictable, and but there are some interesting parts that demonstrate difficult situations to get out of, that help us learn about more about the main character.

Nimona by Noelle Stevenson

Gordon Jack

Plot Summary
Nimona shows up one night at the secret lair of the evil Lord Ballister Blackheart begging to be his new sidekick. She has shape shifting powers, which makes her a valuable ally in his campaign against Sir Ambrosius Goldenloin and his buddies at the Institution of Law Enforcement and Heroics.

As their campaign against the government proceeds, Blackheart begins to realize his minion is harder to control than he realized.  Her destructive powers puts him in the difficult position of having to protect the society he was so determined to bring down.

Critical Evaluation
I give Nimona an unqualified 10 out of 10.  It's one of the most entertaining graphic novels I have read in a long time.  Nimona is a great character, really funny in her desire to cause chaos and destruction.  Her relationship with Blackheart is the best part of the story.  At first she is a great asset to him, then she's a real pain, then she becomes a loyal friend who Blackheart will do anything he can to protect.  The artwork is imaginative and beautiful and captures the characters shifting alliances really well.

Denton Little's Death Date by Lance Rubin

Gordon Jack

Plot Summary

Denton Little has always known he was going to die young.  Everyone in the future does, thanks to the group of "doctors, scientists, statisticians, and astrologers...who pioneered the field of Astro-ThanatoGenetics." What Denton didn't expect to happen on his death date is a surprising hook up with his best friend's sister, an attempted murder by his girlfriend's ex-boyfriend, or a strange purple rash to spread across his body.  As he comes to accept his imminent death, he learns some startling truths about his family and the government that may help him survive his last day on earth.

Critical Evaluation

I give this book an 8 out of 10.  Lance Rubin is a really funny writer and makes Denton's observations on his death date both hilarious and moving.  Like a John Green protagonist, Denton knows he's going to die, so he has a unique perspective on teen life and relationships.  The strange things happening to Denton make for an intriguing mystery and build a lot of suspense. When the novel became more about a government conspiracy, rather than Denton's personal story of coming to terms with death, it lost me a little. I was also a little disappointed that the book didn't end (there's a sequel coming in the spring of 2016).