Reviews (3)

GreatBook!
This is truely an easy to read, step-by-step book.Explaining first the teenager's brain and thinking and what stresses a teenager has in their life, then going on to reasons for drug use, and practical, tangible ways to deal with it.This is a great book for any parent of a teenager to read, whether or not they have found their child trying drugs.It is a great "heads up" informative sourcebook.I esp liked the section on what special emotional needs that teens are looking to have fulfilled during adolescence.It is really helpful to read that as a parent of any teenager.

Author Survival Meditations for Parents of Teens
It's so important for parents to DO SOMETHING when they discover their teen using alcohol or other drugs. This no-nonsense approach is one of the best I've seen, and I've been counseling for over 20 years.

Know a drug using teen? Read this book--You can help!
Of all the books I've read on the subject of teenagers and drug/alcohol abuse, this is by far the best.The authors clearly spell out exactly why you're right to be worried and how to help.They explain how to conduct an"intervention" to cut through the teen's denial thatdrugs/alcohol is a problem for her or him.By presenting treatment optionsand contracts as her or his "choices," parents and others canalso give up the sense of fear that leads to ineffectual efforts to controlsomeone else's drinking or drug use.Once you let go and realizethat--just as the teen you care about has a choice (including using)--youhave a choice to impose consequences that range from mild to severe.Thebook is oddly reassuring and direct.A must-read for any parent or friendof a substance using teen. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Alcohol use    2. Alcoholism    3. Drug use    4. Family & Relationships    5. Family / Parenting / Childbirth    6. Family/Marriage    7. Life Stages - Adolescence - Drugs/Drinking    8. Parenting - General    9. Prevention    10. Teenagers    11. United States    12. Adolescent children    13. Adolescents    14. Children    15. Coping with drug & alcohol abuse    16. Drug addiction & substance abuse    17. Self-Help / Substance Abuse   

Subjects:  1. Adolescence    2. Child Care/Parenting    3. Cross-cultural studies    4. Ethnic Sociology    5. Family & Relationships    6. General    7. Parenting - General    8. Psychology    9. Sociology - General    10. Sociology Of Youth    11. Teenagers    12. Young adults    13. Adolescents    14. Child & developmental psychology    15. Psychology & Psychiatry / General   

Reviews (2)

National Book Award Finalist- Highly Recommended
This account of a young girl in India sold into the sex trade by best-selling author Patricia McCormick is extraordinary. I am an adult and after reading this book I was stunned by what is occurring to thousands of unsuspecting 13-year old girls in this part of the world.
Sold
Patricia McCormick
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Subjects:  1. Children's Books - Young Adult Fiction    2. Children's Books/Ages 4-8 Fiction    3. Children: Young Adult (Gr. 7-9)    4. General    5. Juvenile Fiction    6. People & Places - Asia    7. Social Issues - General    8. Social Issues - Homelessness & Poverty    9. Social Issues - Sexual Abuse    10. Juvenile Fiction / General   

Subjects:  1. Children: Grades 3-4    2. Family - Parents    3. General    4. Juvenile Nonfiction    5. Psychology    6. Social Issues - Drugs, Alcohol, & Substance Abuse    7. Substance Abuse & Addictions - Alcoholism   

Reviews (64)

Gossip Girl in General
I find the gossip girl books to be very entertaining. They fit around the same area as The Clique (which are entertaining, but let's face it, the girls have stupid 'non-problems') only for an older set. All of the books live up to expectations of the rest. I think that all of the characters are interesting and the story line keeps you guessing and entertained.

bad
This book is so bad! This is the fifth book out of gossip girl and alot of things in this book are so bad that I have to skip alot of pages. I don't care about Dan and Vanessa anymore. Too boring and even worse when Vanessa's parents show up. Nate's girl friend is too retarded and too unbelievable to believe, and the gay snowboarding team? Are you kidding me? Why does Chuck of all guys become gay all of a sudden? It doesn't make any sense! I hate the character Rusty and I really hate Jenny. Snooping on her boyfriend like that all the time and that's all that happens with her in this book. Jennys friend Elise and Dan kiss. That was really stupid. This whole book is stupid and makes no sense. I loved gossip girls until this fifth one came out.

Not the Best
I have been hooked on the Gossip Girl series since the first book and I have currently read up to the fifth, I Like it Like That, but honestly, I wouldn't have mind skipping it. I thought this book was a little bit predictable and boring. Jenny is my least favorite character because, is it just me or does she seems like she goes after guys that are rich and handsome? After she finds out Leo is "normal" she dumps him. It seemed to me that he had a nice personailty and that should have been enough. The last book I was so hooked on the Vanessa & Dan relastionship, but this one I was actually skipping the chapters about them. Blair & Serena have always been my favorites, and that is what saved this book. Their adventures in Sun Valley was the best part and never really was boring in my opinon. Also GG [Gossip Girl] saved this book as well. Her entries are always funny and interesting to look at. Some people say that Cecily von Ziegsar writes using profound words such as the "f" word. Well I have to say that im a teenager to and to be honest, that is how most teens talk. Cecily really captured the life of a teenager well with the stress on schools [im 13 and picking a HIGH school is tough for me, think about college], also sex and drugs. I know people that are much younger than Blair and Serena and have more experience with these things than all of the characters put together. And also family troubles, because every family has them right? Her choice of words are accurate and theres nothing wrong with that, and besides in the fifth book she hardly swears if ever, I wasn't paying much attention to that. Overall though, this book wasn't the best, but the series is! ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Children's 12-Up - Fiction - General    2. Children: Young Adult (Gr. 10-12)    3. Fiction    4. Girls & Women    5. High schools    6. Interpersonal relations    7. Juvenile Fiction    8. Schools    9. Social Issues - Adolescence    10. Social Issues - Dating & Sex    11. Social Issues - Friendship    12. Wealth    13. Juvenile Fiction / Social Situations / Adolescence   

Editorial Review

Open Mike Friday is everyone's favorite day in Mr. Ward's English class.On Fridays, his 18 high-school students dare to relax long enough to let slipthe poets, painters, readers, and dreamers that exist within each of them. RaulRamirez, the self-described "next Diego Rivera," longs "to show the beauty ofour people, that we are not all Read more

Reviews (65)

Bronx Masquerade
Bronx Masquerade
Bronx Masquerade
Bronx Masquerade
Bronx Masquerade
Bronx Masquerade
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Subjects:  1. Children's 12-Up - Fiction - General    2. Children: Grades 2-3    3. Ethnicity    4. Fiction    5. Identity    6. Juvenile Fiction    7. Lifestyles - City & Town Life    8. Poetry    9. Social Issues - Adolescence    10. Social Issues - General    11. Juvenile Fiction / Ethnic / African American   

Editorial Review

Thirteen-year-old Salamanca Tree Hiddle's mother has disappeared.While tracing her steps on a car trip from Ohio to Idaho with her grandparents, Salamanca tells a story to pass the time about a friend named Phoebe Winterbottom whose mother vanished and who received secret messages after her disappearance. One of them read, "Don't judge a man until you have walked two moons in his moccasins."Despite her father's warning that she is "fishing in the air," Salamanca hopes to bring her home. By drawing strength from her Native American ancestry, she is able to face the truth about her mother. Walk Two MoonsRead more

Reviews (677)

A 1-day read!
I was at my usual trip to the library, shuffling through the books, and this book caught my eye. I picked it up, and read the inside, which honestly, I think was lamely put. Well, I took the book home and started to read it. By the third chapter, I was hooked. It was interesting, and what really was neat to me, was how it sounded like an actual 13 year old was telling the story!
A waste of time
I read this book for school a while ago, and from the moment I started I knew that it was going to be a long, long, long read. The characters in the book were a bunch of annoying brats that seemed far too full of themselves to actually exist. The plot was also terriable for the fact that it was almost as if there wasn't one. A girl goes looking for her mother (which the outcome is clearly easy to spot since the book puts too much of it's time on the buildup of"Whats going to happen?")
Simply put: Beautiful.
This book is truly one the best that I have ever had the privilege to read. It flows from one chapter tot he next, never skipping a beat, with vibrant characters that I can certainly identify with: the irritating friend, the homey grandparents, etc.
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Subjects:  1. Children's 9-12 - Fiction - General    2. Children's Books/Ages 9-12 Fiction    3. Children: Grades 4-6    4. Children: Young Adult (Gr. 7-9)    5. Classics    6. Death    7. Family - Multigenerational    8. Family life    9. Fiction    10. Grandparents    11. Juvenile Fiction    12. Social Issues - Adolescence    13. Social Issues - Death & Dying    14. Social Situations - Adolescence    15. Juvenile Fiction / Classics   

Reviews (139)

My review for Slam
The book slam was ok but all he talked about was how hard his math was, how good he is at basketball, how he's going to make it into the nba, how he lives in the ghetto, and how much he likes his wannabe girlfriend. I like basketball and all but when he gives you every detail about what is going on in the games I get bored and want to read something else. I think he talked himself up to much and he seems in the book like he's selfish, and isn't as good as he thinks he is. The author did a good job describing literary techniques and the setting though, I had a picture in my head the whole time just like a movie. I would recommend this book to a 10 to 12 year old boy who likes basketball.

slam
Slam is a pretty good book. You are probably wondering why the title is Slam; Slam is the title because of the main character, Greg "Slam" Harris. Love basketball? Its almost what you could categorize as a must read. While reading this book I could almost imagine myself out on the court. Yes, this book is long, but if you have to read a book as an assignment, you should definitely read this one.
How do I feel about this book
I think that this book was really boring. I mean the book did not catch my attention and it was not really interesting to me. It was okay but i think that this book should be for younger middle aged kids to read like 12-14. Teenages theses days want to read about more intersting things that excite them. So in my own oppinion i think that the book is for young kids and not teenagers and it was not the best book that i have read ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Afro-Americans    2. Basketball    3. Children's 12-Up - Fiction - General    4. Children's Books - Young Adult Fiction    5. Children: Young Adult (Gr. 7-9)    6. Fiction    7. High schools    8. Juvenile Fiction    9. School & Education    10. Social Issues - Adolescence    11. Social Issues - General    12. Social Situations - General    13. Sports & Recreation - Basketball    14. Juvenile Fiction / General   

Editorial Review

S and B and J and N are back, along with A, D, V, and assorted other rich, catty Manhattan teenagers in this third installment of the Gossip Girl series. An omniscient and anonymous narrator keeps track of the scene in www.gossipgirl.net (now an actual site), where the rumors fly, backs are stabbed, and celebrity sightings are dutifully reported. Serena (S) and Blair (B) are best friends again, shoring each other up as Blair faces life without her ex, Nate, who has hooked up with a sweet, busty 14-year-old, and Serena fends off advances from drop-dead-gorgeous rock star, Flow. Life’s rough. Meanwhile, Vanessa and Dan play the will-he/won’t-he game of sex, and Aaron tries to thwart his own crush on new stepsister Blair. Read more

Reviews (72)

blue
I loved the first book. Thought the second was good but not as great as the first and the third is absolutely horrible! We start out with Flow. A famous handsome musician. He loves Serena and Serena doesn't love him back. Yawn. All this happened with her and Dan already. I don't want to see it recycled. Then his sister Jenny is in love with Nate and becomes obsessed with him, just like Dan did with Serena. Another boring plot because it was already written in the last book. Nate continues to do pot. How boring and how many times can you write that over and over again. We get it Cecily! And in a story that could have been good but wasnt was that Aaron liked his step sister. So he mopes around the whole book until the end when he notices how pretty serena is. boring. I get that Serena is so beautiful but its unbelievable that brad pitt and jenifer aniston are in the carribean with them and its also unbelievable how Flow follows her around the world and pines after her. Dan and Vanessa are together and have a stupid love affair and stupider fights or whatever it was that happened between them. Their story was stupid and pointless! I was so looking foward to seeing what would happen now that Serena and Blair were best friends again but this story was a total let down.

PARENTS BEWARE!!!!
Parents BEWARE!!!This author writes complete filth.Her frequent use of the "f" word is proof of that.She uses it throughout ALL of her books, she writes about teens smoking joints, casual sex, children (8-10 years of age) drinking alcohol like it is common throughout the USA.This author has written her books to appeal to the 13-16 year olds.Do we really want our young adults and young teens reading filth like this?Where have our morals and values gone?I have personally had her books removed from our schools library and the local public library.Check them out in any bookstore, your jaw will drop.

Review of All I Want Is Everything
My review over this story is that Blair tries to act like it doesn't bother her that Nate dumped her for Jenny.In fact it really does bother her.Blair tries to do things to get him off her mind but all she does is involve other people.She makes this one guy Miles think that she likes him when really she just used him to get over Nate and tries to make him jealous.Nate realizes that Jenny isn't made for him and wants to get back with Blair.Then Blair ends up turning him down and moves on doing her own thing.The setting of this book takes place in New York City's Upper East Side were they live in penthouses and townhouses.They attend the most elite schools and enjoy what New York City has to offer. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Children's 12-Up - Fiction - General    2. Children: Young Adult (Gr. 10-12)    3. Fiction    4. Girls & Women    5. High schools    6. Interpersonal relations    7. Juvenile Fiction    8. Schools    9. Social Issues - Adolescence    10. Social Issues - Dating & Sex    11. Wealth    12. Juvenile Fiction / Social Situations / Adolescence    13. Rock & pop   

Reviews (8)

This book has changed our lives.
We recently took our 4 year old to a psychologist to be evaluated for social/emotional/behavior problems. He recommended that we implement a token economy system. While searching for information on token economy systems for kids, I stumbled upon this book. I liked that in addition to philosophical discussion about children with behavior problems it also gave you a ton of practical advice. I use this book as a manual. It has completely turned our 4 year around. I believe that if I had read it two years ago, we never would have seen these behavior problems. His advice is clear, simple, and works.Thank you Dr. Barkley!

Handle your child with love
I read the book in 2001. It has impressed me ever since. I have several books on this subject. I consider this book is the best.
Warning:
This is a well written book that will probably help if you have a child that is mildly challenging. If you know or suspect your child has oppositional defiant disorder, get professional help. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Behavior modification    2. Child rearing    3. Family / Parenting / Childbirth    4. General    5. Oppositional defiant disorder    6. Oppositional defiant disorder in children    7. Parenting    8. Parenting - Discipline    9. Problem children    10. Psychology    11. Adolescents    12. Child & developmental psychology    13. Children    14. Family & Relationships / Parenting   

Reviews (12)

A new perspective
This book helped the situation with my 17 yr old son. A lot of what is in this book goes directly against everything I've ever thought about parenting and it was scary for me at first, but I was desprate and we've had some positive changes because of these techniques.It took a few months, but he's back in school (he was ditching frequently), passing his classes (he was failing them all) and coming home on time every night (he was usually late or wouldn't come home at all).Basically, I've been trying to parent my teenager as if he were still a child.This book helped me to understand that it is natural for teenagers to become independent and, in fact, becoming independent is what they are supposed to be doing.The problem has been that I have been trying to direct my son to go in what I see as the right direction, and so the only way he can feel independent is to choose something different than what I want, even when that means making bad choices.Instead, this book advised me to let him find his own choices, within the boundaries of not taking advantage of me.It was scary, and I had my doubts (I felt like I was copping-out, giving up, taking the easy way out, etc) but this book has definitely helped our situation.Plus, now I feel like a person again instead of a warden.
restore your sanity -- great parenting book!
This is probably the most helpful book on parenting I have ever read.I gave up on parenting books about 5 years ago when I realized the cookie-cutter approaches were not easily applied to my (and my son's) non-cookie-cutter lives!I purchased this book based on a review of a different book, where this book was recommended instead.I am really glad I did because from the very first exercise, it improved my whole outlook on my life with my teen.
Only self-help book that ever helped
My ex-wife and I read this book almost 20 years ago, when our two kids were teenagers. Our daughter, the eldest, was acting up (and out)--breaking curfew, staying out, experimenting with different substances, generally going through a volatile adolescence--normal "individuating," it turned out (thank God), but it was driving her mother and me crazy because we lived apart and both worked full-time. Two employed adults are no match for one teenager intent on getting her way. We were at the end of our tethers trying to keep tabs on her. Somehow we found out about HOW TO DEAL WITH YOUR ACTING UP TEENAGER. We both read it, decided it made sense and was worth a try, and had a family meeting with both our kids. We told them we wanted to try a new way of parent-kid relations that basically boiled down to, mutual respect. When we told them we were going to stop trying to control them--ground them, harass them about schoolwork and grades, etc.--they looked at us suspiciously. Was this some kind of trick? Some sort of parental sting operation? No, no, we assured them, we were on the level. And it worked. Our daughter stopped driving us crazy, we stopped driving her crazy, and relations improved. I can say unequivocally that this is the only self-help book that has ever actually helped me (and I've read a few). I recommend it without qualification. The authors, as I recall, were parents themselves as well as psychologists, and brought both their practical and academic experience to bear. Bless them both. I still tell people about this book when I hear about problems with adolescence, and am glad it's still available. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Attitudes    2. Child Care/Parenting    3. Conflict of generations    4. Family / Parenting / Childbirth    5. Life Stages - Adolescence    6. Parenting    7. Parenting - General    8. United States    9. Youth    10. Adolescent children    11. Adolescents    12. Non-Classifiable   

Reviews (4)

An important teen read with beautiful black and white illustrations
Teenager Jesse is writing the autobiography of his childhood friend and "blood brother" Rise, in a series of sketches, portraits, and comic strips from their times together.Rise is a little older than Jesse and is starting to be pulled in by the allure of the protection of gangs and the easy money of drugs.His biographer, Jesse, is confused by the change in his friend, and by Rise's attempts to turn the local boys' club into a street gang at war with neighborhood rivals.Given the title of the novel, one can only guess what the outcome of Rise's foray into drugs, guns, crime, and the power struggle is going to be.
The comic of Spodi Roti and Wise was brilliant.
This was an enthralling read. I liked the depth of this book and it painted a realistic portrait of poverty and gang life. The best part of this book was the incorporation of the comics and illustrations into the plot. The comic of Spodi Roti and Wise was brilliant. I also liked how most of the main characters in this book were not gang members or looking to be involved in gangs but simply wanted to survive long enough to explore their talents in music and artistry. It's nice to have a book about poverty and class that doesn't stereotype but gives a more realistic and in-depth picture.

An in-your-face tale of growing up and getting by in the inner-city
To pick up a book written by Walter Dean Myers is to expect nothing less than literary greatness. Among his many accolades, MONSTER was the first winner of the Michael L. Printz Award, a National Book Award Finalist, a Coretta Scott King Honor Book, and Boston Globe-Horn Book Honor Book. He has received the Margaret A. Edwards Award for lifetime achievement in writing for young adults and has penned over 70 award-winning books intended for a wide age range of readers, from picture books to teen novels. His son, Christopher Myers, is a Caldecott Honor and Coretta Scott King Honor recipient, and has illustrated a number of breathtaking books for young readers, including his solo effort entitled BLACK CAT.
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Subjects:  1. African Americans    2. Children's 12-Up - Fiction - General    3. Children: Young Adult (Gr. 7-9)    4. Drive-by shootings    5. Fiction    6. Friendship    7. Gangs    8. Juvenile Fiction    9. People & Places - United States - African-American    10. Social Issues - Death & Dying    11. Social Issues - Drugs, Alcohol, & Substance Abuse    12. Social Issues - Violence    13. Juvenile Fiction / Social Situations / Drugs, Alcohol, Substance Abuse   

Reviews (64)

Realli Good
This book was great! I gave it 4 starz cuz i wished it was longer.

Wonderful book
I simply loved this book because of its wonderful writing and tender handling of a delicate subject. The story tells a tale of a young man raising a child and tells the story in a loving way. I really enjoyed reading the story and the way it was told. Johnson really seems to empathize with "children having children" and gives the reader a positive role model as a young boy learns what it is to be a father. She writes beautifully as she tells the tale and the tale is a very good one. I highly recommend this book to middle school children.

SOUTHWOOD BOOKCLUB
I really like this book and we will be discussing it in our Bookclub in Sept. Thank You Ms. Johnson ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Children's 12-Up - Fiction - General    2. Children's Books - Young Adult Fiction    3. Children: Young Adult (Gr. 7-9)    4. Family - New Baby    5. Father and child    6. Fiction    7. Juvenile Fiction    8. Social Issues - Adolescence    9. Social Issues - Pregnancy    10. Social Situations - Adolescence    11. Social Situations - Pregnancy    12. Teenage fathers    13. Teenage parents    14. Juvenile Fiction / Social Situations / Pregnancy   

Reviews (15)

Better than the frist 1
I know that the first book was good and all but u know that the second book was TOTALLY! better because the infamous Tinsley Carmicheal is the best one in the book and if u disagree that just too bad

My First It
This was my first experience with an It Girl novel, but after reading Notorious (in record time), I can understand how these series have become so popular.The plot is as turbulant as a day at Waverly for Jenny, Callie, Brett, and Tinsley, and kept me totally enthralled.But more important than the impressively twisty plot were the characters themselves.Even usually selfish and cruel Tinsley has moments when her (okay, maybe only a few) redeeming qualities are revealed.Each character (and there are a lot) is fully developed, not just the stars of the Waverly soap, Jenny and Tinsley.Brandon, Heath, and Easy, all the boys, are written with enough detail and compassion that you can picture them and, more imporantly, like them (well except for Heath, but that's a personal preference).
Trash with a captial T
My daughter brought these books home with her from her vacation!Very racy stuff for a 13 year old.Lots of the F work and the F deed is never actually done, but always speculated about and a distinct possibility, what with all that cuddling in bed.
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Subjects:  1. Boarding schools    2. Children's Books - Young Adult Fiction    3. Children: Young Adult (Gr. 10-12)    4. Fiction    5. Girls & Women    6. Juvenile Fiction    7. School & Education    8. Schools    9. Social Issues - Adolescence    10. Social Issues - Dating & Sex    11. Wealth    12. Juvenile Fiction / Girls & Women   

Reviews (2)

Abbott has done it again
After Summer was a great book, and again kept me reading finished it pretty quick well it is the shortest i think. but it was very good glad to see jeremy back with ella, and i was hoping to hear more about jamie but me favorite to hear about is ella and beth. kelsi's story was good in this i hope to see her with taryn's brother bennett. i am looking forward to reading the next summer boys novel Last Summer, i really hope it's not the last one. it'd b awesome if these books were a movie!

After Summer
I thought the novel After Summer was a great book. I rate this book 5 stars because it kept me reading each night and i thought the book was a great girl book. The book had a lot of excitement in it and kept me reading each night. The characters in this novel were very good and i could relate to them. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Children's Books - Young Adult Fiction    2. Children: Young Adult (Gr. 10-12)    3. Dating (Social customs)    4. Fiction    5. Friendship    6. Juvenile Fiction    7. Love & Romance    8. School & Education    9. Schools    10. Social Issues - Dating & Sex    11. Juvenile Fiction / Social Situations / Dating & Sex   

Reviews (74)

Good for a laugh
After reading this book, I decided to look at the reviews to see what people had to say about it. I expected to find some funny insults and maybe some inconsistencies that I hadn't caught while reading it. I was wrong. I found mostly reviews written by 10 year olds and reviews that were obviously written by english teachers. I'm only going to say it this bluntly once, listen up:
I tried hard to like this book...
I really tried to like this book because I enjoyed "Tears of a Tiger."The author once again used dialogue to convey her story, but this time moreso in a journal/chatroom session instead of conversation.Some people hate that type of thing, but I'm such a big fan of dialogue that I like it.But this story was utterly corny and it may have been somewhat my fault.I knew that the story was somewhat like Romeo and Juliet and I hated that story too.But I was hoping that Draper was going to put some edge on it, by adding gangs, interracial relationships, an urban setting, and a guy with multicolor hair.
Disappointed
While reading "Romiette and Julio" you will meet Julio Montague and Romiette Cappelle.Two young teens who are desperately seeking companionship and love. Throughout the story you will follow the path of these two teens and the issues they are having with gangs at school. This is a heartwarming story in which friends work together to get through hard times.
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Subjects:  1. Children's 12-Up - Fiction - General    2. Children: Young Adult (Gr. 10-12)    3. Juvenile Fiction    4. Love & Romance    5. School & Education    6. Social Issues - Dating & Sex    7. Social Issues - Emotions & Feelings    8. Social Issues - Prejudice & Racism    9. Social Situations - Prejudice & Racism    10. Juvenile Nonfiction / Social Situations / Dating & Sex   

Editorial Review

Verdi is a proud python, flourishing in the flower of his youth. He loves to swiftly slither around the forest, brandishing his bright yellow skin, and can't fathom why anyone would want to be sleepy and green like the adult snakes he knows. Verdi insists, as so many youngsters do, "I will never be lazy, boring or green!" Despite his resolve to stay young, one day he notices a patch of green spreading down the length of his body. Verdi does everything he can think of to erase this first sign of the inevitable tide of age. But in his frenzy of youthful, Icarus-like bravado, he nearly kills himself. Finally, Verdi learns that even though he can't stop the aging process, green skin won't keep him from being a fun-loving, young-at-heart, figure-eight-forming snake. Read more

Reviews (39)

verdi good!, but not stellaluna
My 7 1/2 yr old 2nd grade daughter & I read Stellaluna off her summer reading list.I had heard of/seen this book around, but it had never grabbed me.I was quite surprized at the fabulous illustrations, the story that draws you in, & the author's ability to make a bat lovable.I was eager to read Verdi, expecting the same experience.I thought the story was OK & the illustrations beautiful, but the story itself lacked depth to me.The young whippersnapper & wise old sage qualities hit me as being more relevant to an adult reader.Children can not adequately appreciate the age contrast, & how quickly time passes, & how we all become more boring & old than oiur young minds thought we would.Curiously, my daughter liked Verdi as well, if not better than Stellaluna.To each his own - read & see what you think.

excellent book!
This book not only has beautiful illustrations but also tells the tale of growing up from a child's perspective (well, a snake's...).Our three year old LOVES it!It also gives a glimpse into life in the tropics which for our Minnesota boy is exotic!Thumbs up!

verdi
I like this book because the color of the snake eyes.This is a fun book for all ages to read and enjoy. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Children's Books/Ages 4-8 Fiction    2. Children: Grades 2-3    3. Fiction    4. Juvenile Fiction    5. Old age    6. Pythons    7. Snakes    8. Social Issues - Adolescence    9. Juvenile Fiction / Social Situations / Adolescence   

Editorial Review

Sharon Draper has indeed forged a fiery name for herself in the field of young adult literature--that of a courageous writer, willing to tackle tough, real-life problems while developing honorable, streetwise role models for troubled teens. Her previous novel, Read more

Reviews (116)

Why this book inspired me
Forged by Fire influenced me in may different ways.The more I read the book themore it became violent.It made me think what if I wa sin this situation.Would I have the courage to stand up to my step-father and get help.I learned to perserver and not give up.That is what I learned from this book.

Review by Aaron
I think that Forged by Fired is a good book for teenagers to read. I think it is a good book to read because it tells what to do if you are getting abused by your parents. This is a book that could happen in real life. I think both girls and boys would enjoy this book. I listened to this book on audio tape and I like how the guy could talk in many types of voices. The suspense of the story made me wanting to keep on listening to it. This book is the second book in a set of three. I would recommend reading the other two.

Stop fast forwarding, please press "slow"
I want to stress that the actual plot of the story and the characters were interesting and I enjoyed their purpose, action, dialogue. But I read a review about this book somewhere that said that too much happened at once in the beginning. I don't take peoples' reviews too seriously until I read the book, but this time around, I wish I would have listened.The author tried to cram FAR too much into one small book of 156 pages.The boy was 3 years old at the beginning and by the time it ended, he was 17.People were on drugs, in jail, out of jail, court cases complete, basketball tryouts, friends made, learned to cook, car accidents, dying, all within a few pages.The whole time I read this story, I felt like the author had written an outline of what should happen in each chapter and instead of fleshing it out and letting it grow progressively, she just rammed it altogether and then threw in stuff that happened in a previous book.I read one book by her and bought them all...and now I'm starting to regret it.I hope the fourth one is better, because I loved the first one about Andy, couldn't get into the "Romiette and Julio" book at all, and now this one is crammed.I'm confused over whether I like this author or not--in the book about Andy, the dialogue was on point and the plot was organized and easy-to-understand.In the "Romiette and Julio" book, the dialogue was out of wack and the story was slow. This book had great dialogue and an interesting plot like the Andy book, but it went entirely too fast.I feel like I'm reading books from several different people instead of one. ... Read more

Subjects:  1. Brothers and sisters    2. Child abuse    3. Children's 9-12 - Fiction - General    4. Children's Books/Ages 9-12 Fiction    5. Children: Young Adult (Gr. 10-12)    6. Family - Siblings    7. Family - Stepfamilies    8. Fiction    9. Juvenile Fiction    10. People & Places - United States - African-American    11. Social Issues - Drugs, Alcohol, & Substance Abuse    12. Social Issues - Physical & Emotional Abuse    13. Social Issues - Sexual Abuse    14. Social Situations - Physical & Emotional Abuse    15. Stepfamilies    16. Juvenile Fiction / Ethnic / African American