Orca Soundings: Flower Power ** Blob ** Watch Me

Flower Power by Ann Walsh

Callie's Mother Has chained herself to the neighbor's tree and is living inside the treehouse. She refuses to come down until the neighbor, Mr. Wilson, agrees to leave the tree standing. Soon reporters arrive to interview Callie about her mother's protest. Callie doesn't want to talk to anyone. More chaos ensues when Callie's grandmother invites the "singing grannies" to help save the tree, the neighbor's biker friends come to her aid, and Callie's friends show up to try to get themselves on TV. Callie needs to figure out how to get her mother to come down from the tree so that her life can return to normal.

This story about standing up for what you believe in, and about supporting starts out with good intentions. Perhaps the aim was to appeal to the readers feeling of not being heard, but the complete lack of respect for the opinions and feelings of 12-year old Callie shown by her loving family throughout the book negated any validity in the character of the other players in this story. In the end, Callie has a simple solution for situation that had become out of contraol and bordered on mass hysteria. This works as a kid-saves-the-world story but not as the take a stand story the synopsis suggested. The willingness of the family to allow strangers into their homes and daughter's life was also alarming. I like the concept of the plot, just not the manner in which author Ann Walsh had it play out.

---

Blob by Freida Wishinsky

It's hard enough for Eve to adjust to a new high school without the extra weight she's gained over the summer. Her best friend is ashamed to hang out with her, and she's become the focus of a schoolmate's cruelty. Determined not to be "that pathetic fat girl" at school, Eve struggles with a diet and forces herself to join a mentoring program. The diet only makes her food obsessed, and she feels she is failing as a mentor. How can a lonely fat girl gain the confidence she needs to succeed?

I liked that author Frieda Wishinsky chose not to focus solely on the physical struggles Eve faces - clothes not fitting and dieting - but includes the emotional and social impacts of looking different and how important the influences of others opinions can seem to be. By adding Eve'a involvement in a mentoring program, Wishinsky has cleverly woven in the high value of the person that lies beyond first impressions and appearances.

---

Watch Me by Norah McClintock

At first Kaz intends to help the old lady who's fallen in the park. But then he starts thinking about how he never gets what he wants. The next thing he knows, he's running away with her purse. The purse contains only five dollars and a battered watch. When Kaz learns who the old woman is and where the watch came from, he begins to understand consequences in a new way.
McClintock presents a tale where impulse and consequences meet squarely in the intersection of conscience and self preservation. The internal dilemma of what to do after a mistake is made is explored with all the nuances of real life. Guilt, uncertainty, shame, bravado, denial and courage all take their turn until a decision is finally made. What is the right thing to do? What are the consequences for following that knowledge, or for ignoring it? How does one decide which choice to make?

      

Books for Reluctant Readers: Scarlet Thunder; Disconnect

Trenton Hiser is trying to walk in the footsteps of his uncle, Mike Hiser, a successful Hollywood director. During Trenton's summer vacation, he goes with his uncle to film the inside story of Scarlet Thunder, a top-level stock-car racing team. As they film the action, too many things go wrong, deadly mistakes are made and Trenton finds out that much more than the race is at stake.

Quick facts and tidbits of trivia about both racing life and the work of filmmakers bring this mystery to life. It is easy to slip into the story beside Trent and gather clues while explore these two worlds. This entry in the Orca series focuses more on the action than on the inner turmoil of the main character - a nice change from that focus in the last few series titles I read. Brouwer delivers a lively action tale.

 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Since moving hundreds of miles to a new school, Daria has become increasingly dependent on her cell phone. Texts, Facebook and phone calls are her only connection to her friends in Calgary, and Daria needs to know everything that is going on at home to feel connected to her old life. Her cell phone habit looks a lot like addiction to her mother and to her new friend Cleo. Daria dismisses the idea of technology addiction as foolish until her habit puts a life in danger.

Peterson addresses the growing reliance on staying connected that I see everyday at my schools.  This story is told from the viewpoint of Daria, who doesn't realize the affect her obsession with being online all the time has on those around her.  It dares to show how not looking up from our electronic devices impacts everything from common courtesy, missing out on the face to face connections we need as humans to the dangers we face ourselves and bring to those around us.  The common response of feeling that we need to stay connected and the panic when that connection is taken from up is recognized as is the cost we face because of it.  While Daria is a young student, the lesson is one that everyone can benefit from.

Books for Reluctant Readers: Living Rough; Caching In

In most ways, Poe is like the other kids in his school. He thinks about girls and tries to avoid too much contact with teachers. He has a loving father who helps him with his homework. But Poe has a secret, and almost every day some small act threatens to expose him. He doesn't have a phone number to give to friends. He doesn't have an address. Poe and his father are living in a tent on city land. When the city clears the land to build housing, Poe worries that they might not be able to find another site near his school. Will Poe have to expose his secret to get help for himself and his father?

The fear, shame and prejudice face of being a homeless family are explored in Living Rough. This is a great read for leisure, but also to introduce social justice issues and challenge our assumptions about what it means to be homeless and how people can end up in this situation. The ending was a bit abrupt and could have use some more followup, but felt realistic. It definitely provokes conversations as to how Poe's circumstances were and could have otherwise been dealt with.

 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Eric and Chris are avid geocachers who stumble into a very strange search for a series of geocaches. At first they are merely curious, but as the stakes rise and the challenges become more trying, the boys get truly hooked. Convinced they are indeed on the trail of treasure, they become consumed with the search, and though their quest tests their strength, intelligence, courage and even their friendship, they don't give up.

The popularity of urban geocaching makes this novel a great addition to the series.  The lingo and rules of the hunt are easily woven into Eric and Chris' adventures as is the excitement of deciphering clues.  Despite the somewhat cheesy twist and a convoluted ending, the action of the hunt for caches carries the novel most of the way.  The captivating subject matter will attract young readers and may even inspire a new hobby.

Books for Reluctant Readers: Chat Room; Reckless

Linda is shy and avoids getting involved at school. But when her high school sets up online chat rooms she can't resist the urge to visit them. Fuelled by interest in a student with the nickname Cyrano, Linda participates in online conversations using the nickname Roxane and gains a reputation as the queen of one-liners. Soon Linda starts receiving gifts from a secret admirer who signs his gifts, "C." She is certain that her life has taken a turn for the better until "C" reveals his true identity.

Delving into the online world of chat rooms, this novel touches on the benefits and dangers of internet anonymity and the consequences of taking a 'safe' online relationship into the real life. There is still a lot of room  in the Orca series to take this theme further. Linda displays the lure of being able to speak to others, free of your public identity. The resulting confidence to express oneself is contrasted against the threat of no really knowing whom you are speaking to.  That threat was not portrayed as well as it could have been. The aggressiveness and unrealistic tunnel vision demonstrated by Linda's friend when giving her warnings had a minimizing effect. The ending also glossed over the dangers of meeting people from a chat room in person.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Josh knows he's riding recklessly when he knocks down the old man he suspects is the hermit of Loggerman Creek. But he is shocked when the hermit walks into the forest with his bike after the accident. Being without his beloved bike for a week motivates Josh to hike into the woods and confront the crazy old man. The hermit, Jonathan, has fixed Josh's bike, and Josh learns that he has more in common with the old man than he ever imagined. When Jonathan needs help, Josh has to respect the old man's choices in order to save his life.

The characters of Josh and Jonathan were well written, evoking understanding and empathy that connected  their different story lines.  The inclusion of PSTD and acknowledgement of the effects of war on an individual was poignant and thoughtfully handled.  This is not a topic often see in young adult fiction. Full of action and angst, Reckless is an adventurous ride into growing up.

Books for Reluctant Readers: FaceSpace; Spoiled Rotten

Danny McBride is not the coolest kid in school, not in his wildest dreams. And if the other kids knew he spent his Saturday nights playing Parcheesi with his mom and working on a city made of Lego, he'd be even less cool. Danny wants more than anything to be popular. He creates a fictional British rocker named James and befriends him publicly online, hoping his make-believe friend's cool will rub off. It works. Danny starts making friends and feeling like part of the crowd—until people start wanting to meet the imaginary friend, and Danny's plan starts to unravel. 

Great topic. Less than great execution.   The fake profile that was made and the supporting characters reaction to it was not realistic. Also, the lesson was learned to easily and with very light consequences. The ending was too abrupt.  As a teaching tool for the reader, watching an episode to MTV's show Catfish would provide a much better understanding of the affects and consequences of fake profiles for the creator and viewers. 

 ~~~~~~~~~~~~

Jessica loves her yearly backpacking trip with her father, but this year everything has changed. This year Jessica has to share her vacation with her new stepmother and her spoiled new stepsister, Amy. Jessica tries to salvage her holiday by sneaking off for a day hike alone, but Amy follows. Jessica is certain that Amy will ruin the day. Amy rises to the challenge of the rigorous hike and Jessica learns that Amy is not as spoiled as she thought. When Amy is injured and night falls, Jessica must face the challenge of hiking through bear country in the dark. 

Good story for expressing the hurt, betrayal and  frustration she felt at her dad's remarriage and having a new family to deal with.  Jessica wasn't written as perfect or as the wronged party, which easily could have happened. Instead she too behaves according to her emotions and we get to see both sides of what she is going through and what she puts the other characters through. At times I wanted to tell her to get a grip and see that she was not the victim, which means the character was convincing got me. 
As for the writing style, I appreciated how the author balanced condensed storytelling with adding enough details about the environment to make you feel like you were there.  The descriptions were tangible without overbearing the plot and characters.