Belle Prater's Boy

White, Ruth. (1996). Belle Prater’s Boy. New York: Bantam Doubleday Dell Books for Young Readers.

Annotation: Gypsy and Woodrow are cousins who become best friends after they are brought together by the mysterious disappearance of Woodrow’s mother, Belle Prater.

Justification for Rejection: This book did not hold my attention for long. It was in the genre of mystery or thriller, but it did not seem to have enough of a mystery to keep you wanting to come back for more. I kept reading thinking it must get better, there must be a huge plot twist at the end or something… but no. The end was very melodramatic, nothing exciting.

This book may appeal to teenagers as Gypsy and Woodrow are adolescents going through a crazy situation with Woodrow’s mother disappearing, but I think they will be disappointed and give up before the end. Or maybe just skip to the last few pages and see how it ends.

Gypsy and Woodrow display a good example of friendship. They stick up for each other in hard times, and are always there for each other. They are careful not to push each other too far… and are always there to laugh at the others’ jokes. This I think is a positive point of the book.

Genre: Mystery/Thriller

Soldier's Heart

Paulsen, Gary. (1998). Soldier’s Heart. New York: Dell Laurel-Leaf.

Annotation: Fifteen year old Charley Goddard leaves his farm in Winona, Minnesota to enlist in the First Minnesota Volunteers. Not knowing what this was about, just knowing he didn’t want to miss out, he packed up and left home. He had no idea how much this would change him.

Justification for Nomination: This book is a short, easy read. Any teen interested in the Civil War, Minnesota history, the military of the past, or who has read and loved an of Paulsen’s other great books, would likely pick up, read, and enjoy this book.

The reader can feel and sense the mental and emotional anguish Charley is going through as they get deeper in the book. It can be eye opening for someone thinking about going into the military or be comforting to someone coming out of the military. They ma be able to relate to some of the same feelings.

I think the book was pretty historically accurate. This could be a history lesson as well as just a good read. Even Charley himself is based on a real person. In the back of the book it talks about the accuracy and how it was based on a real man and his real life.

Genre: Historical Fiction

Small Steps: The Year I Got Polio

Kehret, Peg. (1996). Small Steps: The Year I Got Polio. Illinois: Albert Whitman & Company.

Annotation: Peg thinks she has gotten a bad case of the flu when she spikes a high fever and starts having muscle spasms. Little did she know, at twelve years old, her life would be changed forever. Peg walks us through her journey with polio to the triumph in the end.

Justification for Rejection: For an autobiography of someone not famous per se, this book was wonderful. It was an easy read, and keeps the readers interest peaked throughout. However, I am not nominating this book, because I do not feel it would be a very popular choice.

Polio is not something teenagers today can feel or see the effects of. Because teenagers are not faced with the hardships of polio now, I don’t feel this would be a book of choice for them. I don’t think I even really knew what polio was until a few semesters ago when I had to do a report on the polio vaccine. I did not understand the intensity of it until then.

This book was eye opening for me. It walks through the course of the disease from a first person perspective and really captivates your emotions. You really get connected to Peg and want to “see” her walk again someday too!

Genre: Autobiography/Biography/Memoir