Ages 18+
Colleen Frakes was an island brat growing up: she and her family lived on the last prison that was only accessible via boat or plane, and of course her parents worked there as well. Now she’s older and the prison is closing down for good. What was once her life will now become distant memories.
Grades 9-12
Jazz Jennings is a male to female transgender teen who has her own reality show and is a speaker for transgender rights. This book gives more insight into her life, and was very interesting to see things directly from Jazz’s perspective.
Ages 14+
Lucy Knisley tells the smart, funny story of her year-long engagement and wedding. She writes about how her fiance came back into her life, and all the fun (and stressful) things about being a bride.
Ages 18+
Nora has lost her father, her husband, and had a miscarriage all in the span of a few weeks. Yet, she still finds something to laugh about in life. The book is a little bit sad, a little bit funny and has a lot of good(ish) advice about life in general. But, like the author says, you might just want to Google it instead.
Ages 18+
Following the publication of Not Without My Daughter by Betty Mahmoody, and the movie adaptation of the book, Sayed Mahmoody, also known as Moody, gives his side of the story.
Betty’s book told the horrific story of when she and their daughter Mahtob were forced by Moody against their will to stay in Iran, once they agreed to go there for a two-week vacation to see his family.
In Lost Without My Daughter, Moody counters that story by claiming that Betty lied and told tales about what really happened. He also claims that he loved his wife and daughter very much and would never hurt them.
Ages 12+
In 1997, when Caitlin Alfirenka, then Caitlin Stoicksitz, was in middle school, her class picked countries in which to have pen pals. She chose Zimbabwe, and thus met Martin Ganda, a boy her age. They began exchanging letters, and Caitlin quickly realized how different their lives were.
She began sending Martin money with the letters, which he then used to buy a chicken for his family’s dinner, and eventually to pay his way through school. In Zimbabwe, school is not required, and you can only go if you can afford it.
Then Caitlin’s parents got involved and were able to send Martin and his family more money after his father lost his job.
Caitlin and Martin grew close through their letters, and thought of each other like brother and sister. In the end, both the Stoicksitz and Ganda families’ lives were changed forever with that first letter.
Ages 14+
Clare’s daughter Valerie had just conquered depression, and she wondered how much more she could take when her daughter Elena gets diagnosed with anorexia. Following her the diagnosis and struggle with the disease, Clare Dunkle tells the heartbreaking story of how her daughter dealt with and got help for her anorexia.
Ages 18+
Tyra Manning tells her heartbreaking story of love and loss in Where the Water Meets the Sand. Tyra’s husband Larry is deployed in the Vietnam War, when their daughter Laura is just two years old. Then Tyra voluntarily admits herself into the hospital to get help with her addictions and depression. It is hard for her to be away from her daughter, especially when her husband is away as well, but it is something she feels she needs to do. Tyra holds onto the hope that she and Larry will meet during his R&R period, “where the water meets the sand.” Then, Tyra’s doctor tells her that Larry has died in action. Now she has to finish her hospital stay and be released to take care of Laura as a single parent. How will she handle all this without Larry?
Thanks to NetGalley.com for a review copy of this book.
Ages 18+
Mother, Can You Not? by Kate Siegel is a hilarious account of a daughter’s relationship with her mother. Laden with different text conversations and motherly advice, this book is definitely one for those women who love (and possibly love-hate) their mothers. Kate is a single girl whose mother wants her to always make sure her daughter gets married soon, hasn’t been raped and got home safe. This is definitely one I will recommend to my friends!
Thanks to BloggingForBooks.com for a review copy of this book.
Grades 9-12
Gaby Rodriguez comes from a large Latino family. Her mother and her sisters all got pregnant as teens, and she has 31 nieces and nephews in total. People in Gaby’s life expected her to follow “the family tradition,” and become pregnant too.
Each graduating student has to do a senior project, and, during her sophomore year, Gaby already knows what hers will be: faking a pregnancy. She wants to do an experiment to see how people will treat her when they find out she’s pregnant—her family, her teachers, her peers. First she has to get it approved by the principal and members of the school board. Will she be able to pull it off? Read this intriguing memoir and find out!
Michelle’s Bookish Life 