Fight for Pow3r

Walters, Eric. Fight for Pow3r (Rule of 3 #2)
January 20th 2015 by Farrar, Straus and Giroux (BYR)
E ARC from Edelweiss Above the Treeline

In this sequel to The Rule of Thre3, Adam is back, and the people in his subdivision, headed by the enigmatic Herb, have bombed out a bridge and killed a huge number of people who were trying to attack their settlement and kill them all. Adam is sick thinking about it, even though he knows that the survival of his subdivision is most important. There are people on the outside-- in tents, in a high rise condo building, in other settlements-- but Herb is very strong in his opinion that there are only so many people that the community can support. When these outside groups are attacked, the community sends medical help and does what they can, but food is an issue, and there's not enough to feed more people, especially after the community took in the women in children who had been abused by the group killed in the bridge incident. Adam still flies his Cessna, and spends as much time as he can with Lori, but has the growing realization that things are never going to get back to "normal", the way that everyone else seems to think they will. The attacks increase, and Adam is worried that his community will soon be a target-- until Herb finds the possible perpetrator in the community. Once the small group of disturbed young men is identified and locked up, Adam hopes things will get better, but they don't. There is definitely another book on the way which should answer a lot of the cliff hangers!
Strengths: This is definitely the way a dystopia would go down. No electricity, limited food, people turning against each other. Makes me want to hoard peanut butter! Boys who like military books have enjoyed the first one, but so have girls who like dystopias. Walters is a fantastic writer, and there is enough philosophy about good and evil in between things blowing up that it made me happy, too.
Weaknesses: Adam's world is awfully black and white, and it would be more interesting if, say, Lori were evil. I also saw the twist at the end coming a mile away, but it was a good development. Really looking forward to book three!

Conkling, Winifred. Passenger on the Pearl: The True Story of Emily Edmondson's Flight from Slavery.
January 13th 2015 by Algonquin Young Readers
ARC from Baker and Taylor

Amelia Culverson and Paul Edmondson were slaves in the early 19th century who had 14 children together, even though they knew that their children could be taken away from them by their masters at any time. Eventually, several of the children (including Emily and her sister Mary) decided to run away, and made their way down the Potomac River only to be recaptured. The slave trader who ended up with them, Bruin, offered to sell the Edmondsons to their father instead of sending them to New Orleans to be sold, but the money took a long time to raise, and Emily, her brother and sister had to live in a slave pen in Louisiana for some time, and became ill with malaria. Eventually, the money was raised and they returned to Baltimore, and Emily went on to attend college and become a teacher.
Strengths: This is a fascinating story, and has additional information about historical events along with the narrative of Emily's life. It's not a terribly long book, which is good, and has a decent amount of pictures.
Weaknesses: The story is a bit dry and academic. I would have liked to see this book done as a fictional story with more adventure and emotional detail, and then had the nonfiction elements appear amidst the story, as they do in Wiles' Revolution. It would be easier to get students to read AND be great for fiction/nonfiction tie ins. That said, I did have a student who normally only reads horror books read this and enjoy it!

MMGM- The Terrible Two

Barnett, Mac and John, Jory. The Terrible Two
Illustrated by Kevin Cornell
13 January 2014, Amulet Books
Copy received from Young Adult Books Central and reviewed there.

Miles is not thrilled about moving to Yawnee Valley; it's so boring there that the most interesting thing to talk about appears to be COWS. Miles was a great prankster at his old school and has a notebook of his pranks, so he doesn't quite know what to think when the first day of school is marked by Principal Barkin's hatchback being placed at the top of the school's stairs, blocking the entry way! Barkin immediately accuses Miles, who is annoyed that he has to be in the company of Niles, the "school helper" who dogs his every step. Miles plans a huge prank-- he invites everyone to a birthday party of a cool kid who goes to another school... and doesn't exist. Sure enough, everyone talks about it, brings food and presents, and claims to have talked to Cody Burr-Tyler. Just when Miles is about to announce the prank and run off with the presents, Cody appears on stage and drives off with the presents in a limousine! The other prankster turns out to be none other than Niles, who claims that Miles is not a good prankster and offers to work with him. Miles refuses, and instead tries to outprank Niles, which fails miserably. Eventually, the two decide to work together against a common foe: Principal Barkin and his bullying son, who is running unopposed for class president.
Strengths: Anything with pictures, and blurbed by Dav Pilkey and Jeff Kinney, is bound to be successful with middle grade readers, and this had enough humor to recommend it. Niles is an appealingly devious character who understands the necessity of stealth when pranking, and Miles is haplessly clueless but well meaning. The names are a bit goofy but not over the top, as are the situations. A must purchase title for middle school libraries.
Weaknesses: I don't understand why school principals are so often portrayed as complete and utter buffoons, ALWAYS overweight and ineffectual, and often mean spirited. Why is it okay to make fun of an entire profession like this? Seems wrong. Also, destroying a hatchback-- never right.

Keyser, Amber J. Sneaker Century: A History of Athletic Shoes
January 1st 2015 by Twenty-First Century Books (CT)
E ARC from Netgalley.com

I am always looking for interesting nonfiction for my students, and my own favorite topic to read about is anything having to do with popular culture. What better than a 64 page overview of athletic shoes? This is really the best treatment I have seen, starting with ancient shoes found by archaeologists and going from there! There is just enough detail about topics such as Chuck Taylor being a basketball players and shoe salesman, the genesis of most of the modern shoe companies, and the evolution of running shoes from Adi Dassler's shoes used by Olympic hopefuls to the proliferation of shoes today. Even "sneakerheads", people who collect limited edition shoes, are covered. It makes me feel tremendously old to know that the modern running shoe evolved during my lifetime-- I remember being told in elementary school that any athletic shoes used for gym class needed to be able to be bent in half so the heel touched the toe. That's when Keds were the shoe of choice, and fancy kicks were only worn by elite athletes. I do wish a little more information about the Keds and Saucony companies had been given, since they have been around for so long. Still, a must purchase for middle school libraries.

It's Marvelous Middle Grade Monday at Ramblings of a Wannabe Scribe and What Are You Reading? day at Teach Mentor Texts and Unleashing Readers. Nonfiction Monday also takes place today.

How to make a casserole.

There was a request at work for people to turn in recipes so that there could be a staff cookbook put together. This is a lovely idea, and I spent some quality time with my massive binder of magazine clippings, typing up recipes I have actually made.

Not that people in my family actually eat them.

My mother, who no longer is able to cook since she is in an assisted living facility, loves to cook. I don't. To me, an excellent supper is a can of tuna dumped over a bowl of spinach, or a chicken breast cooked in a saucepan with half a bag or froze broccoli. Cooking just means turned up noses, suspicious glances, and silently hurled recriminations. Still! The art of making a casserole seems to be a lost one, so I thought I would share the process with all you youngsters out there. Remember, if you can't make a dish with cream of mushroom soup and garnish it with tater tots, it's not really DINNER.

How to make a casserole.

Roll up sleeves and tuck dish towel into the top of your shirt. Yell at children, who are trying to put the dog down the laundry chute. Look in the cupboard for item from column 1.  If anything from column 2 also presents itself, grab that. Drop on toe. Curse quietly. Open the freezer. Stare in it in desperation for a meat substance, as well as a veg if you haven’t gotten one already. Break up argument about which is better, Star Wars or High School Musical. Microwave frozen hunk of meat substance on low while preparing starch. Look in cupboard again for a sauce that won’t be entirely disgusting with your previous choices. Dump half thawed meat, veg, cooked starch and sauce in a greased casserole. Cook it for 30 minutes at 350 degrees. Change clothes, start laundry, pick up toys, clean up dog mess, and cajole children into setting table. Take out casserole, top with something in a contrasting color-- Parmesan on tomato sauce, paprika on mozzarella cheese, dog kibble on Alfredo sauce. Glop onto plates. Watch children pick out all onion bits and set to side. Watch a little more of your soul die as you watch your family look as though you have served them their own foot on a plate. Contemplate your life choices. Consider taking up drinking. Realize that snorting Kool Aid mix directly from the package will not alter your consciousness. Consider joining a convent. Or the Peace Corps. Realize that you would still probably end up cooking.

If you make poor combinations, it’s not my fault. Somethings work better than others. For example, frozen potatoes, green beans, diced ham and cheese sauce work well together, as does rice, peas and carrots, chicken, and cream of chicken soup. Less successful is stuffing mix, stir fry vegetables, tuna, cheese sauce and dog kibble. Although, really, wouldn’t it serve them right?

Starch	2. Vegetable	3. Meat	4. Sauce	5. Extra
Potatoes, frozen diced	peas	Chicken	Tomato sauce	minced garlic
Pasta	carrots	Ham	Tomato soup	spices
Rice	corn	Pork	Cream of Mushroom	Crumbs
Noodles	broccoli	Beef	Cheese sauce	Slivered almonds
Couscous	green beans	Ground beef	Gravy	Cheese
Stuffing mix	frozen spinach	Tuna	salsa
Mashed potatoes (top)	stir fry vegetables	Turkey	sour cream	dog kibble
Corn bread (top)	peas &carrots	Tofu	jarred or canned goop
Baked potato	California blend	Black beans	sweet and sour sauce
	yams	Garbanzo beans
	green peppers	Kielbasa
	zucchini	frozen meatballs
	cabbage
	squash
	onion
	kale

Bursting at the Seams

Taylor, Chloe. Bursting at the Seams (Sew Zoey #10) 
December 16th 2014 by Simon Spotlight

Zoey's Aunt Lulu is getting married, but instead of having a big deal wedding, she and her fiance are inviting everyone to an engagement party, and then getting married. This is a fantastic plan, but the date they have chosen is just three weeks away. Zoey has the material for her junior bridesmaid dress, but when her aunt asks her to sew her bridal gown as well, Zoey has to call in the help of several of her friends, including cute new boy Sean who shows up in her home ec class and can sew really well! Things continue to go wrong with the plans, which is especially frustrating because Zoey can't tell anyone. In the end, though, everyone pulls through and the wedding is a joyous occasion, even with Priti making the cupcakes and Zoey's friend Gabe taking pictures, and brother Marcus providing guitar music.
Strengths: I have several readers who are thrilled with this series, and even had an 8th grader who said "I really like to read these... is that wrong?" I assured her it wasn't. Weddings are more appealing to the average middle school student than they are to me, and the other fantasty elements (Zoey's famous blog, Zoey being able to sew satin-like material and make a bridal gown in three weeks) will not seem all that unlikely to the average 10-year-old.
Weaknesses: Time to wrap this series up, but there are at least two more books coming out. Twelve is more than enough for ANY series.

Go! Fight! Twin!

Payton, Belle. Go! Fight! Twin! (It Takes Two #4)
Published October 28th 2014 by Simon Spotlight

Alex is in a pickle because she needs to be in a sport AND there are girls in her class who think she can't make the first cut of cheerleading tryouts. Her plan is to try out for cheerleader, NOT make it, and be asked to be manager. Problem solved. The only thing is that she is so uncoordinated that she fears she won't make the first cut, so she asks Ava to stand in for her. She dresses Ava up with sparkly eye shadow and even a fake ponytail, so nobody could possibly tell it wasn't Alex-- and of course, Ava does such a good job that she makes the team! Older brother Tom is still having a hard time being the coach's son in a football obsessed town, and there is some romance for the girls... some from an unexpected visitor.  Can Ava and Alex work out the problems that Alex has created?
Strengths: This series has done very well in my library. Ava is a great character, and her inclusion on the football team is fantastic. These are nice, light reads, and what middle school girl doesn't secretly want a twin she can change places with?
Weaknesses: Alex just annoyed me in this one.

Guy Friday- The Sinkhole

Cowan, Brad V. The Sinkhole (The Seven Stairs Crew #3)
September 26th 2014 by James Lorimer & Company
E ARC from Netgalley.com

In this third book in The Seven Stair Crew series (Street Kings is first)
Cale gets a letter from his long estranged father, and it leads him to investigate different skating venues around his small Canadian community. With his group of friends, Cale solves the puzzles in the letters and is able to go to places where his father had skated years before. The somewhat annoying Toby, who is enthusiastic about skating but doesn't do it very well, is trying to get into the group as well, but the requirements for doing so involve very tough skateboarding tricks. Cale manages to reconnect with his father's past and gets to know him through this activity.
Strengths: Lots of good skateboarding desciptions, and this book seemed less confusingly Canadian than most of the Lorimer SPorts books. I don't know why I don't have the first book in my library, but I'm certainly looking forward to having the whole series. Cowan writes skateboarding without all of the stereotypical themes and scenes, and so many of my students are interested in this topic!
Weaknesses: That he doesn't know anything about his father and that his father sends him this mystery strained MY credulity a bit, but I don't think students will be bothered.
What I really think: I think that Lorimer has done some extensive research into what students want to read  (sports) and what teachers want to give them (issues). They must have a crack research and development team, and I for one am grateful. I wish there were something equivalent in the US.

Blather:
Now if I could just get all of the middle grade writers to stop writing crappy fantasy books and write skate boarding and wrestling books! Seriously, people! Are publishers still looking for fantasy? Does it really sell? I actually feel rather betrayed when I get a request from an author I have liked, and they want me to look at their new book-- a medievalish fantasy about a youngster who has to save the kingdom from certain peril. No! We have all the medievalish fantasy we need. Go the route that Jennifer Nielsen went and write a book set in ancient Rome. I could use a ton more of those. Oh, wait. You need to do research instead of just making things up? ***Bangs head on keyboard.***

Unleashed (Swindle #7)

Korman, Gordon. Unleashed (Swindle #7)
January 6th 2015 by Scholastic Press
E ARC from Netgalley.com

Griffin Bing is back, and this time he has been challenged to compete in the Invent-a-Palooza by the evil Darren Vader. Darren has the help of one of his mother's clients for his invention, and Griffin only has his father's limited talents as an inventor. Along with Ben and Logan, Griffin works on a quiet small appliance motor, which they make by wrapping a vacuum cleaner motor in flame retardant pajamas. This quiets the motor, but makes all of the power go out in the house-- except to the vacuum cleaner! Meanwhile, Melissa comes up with a drone that keeps Savannah's massive dog, Luther, from chasing an extermination van, and Pitch, who is angry that girls aren't allowed on the wrestling team, champions her cause. When Melissa's invention is stolen, the group suspects a mean new neighbor who won't let them cut through his yard, and try to figure out how to get the invention back before the competition. Of course, some daring and dangerous break ins are planned, Ferret Face is put to good use as a spy animal, and Logan gets to do some acting.
Strengths: Korman totally rocks middle grade, no matter what it is. I looked at this and thought "Oh, no. Book seven?" but than enjoyed it and was able to keep the characters straight and understand the plot. No small feat, and a good reason why Korman is so popular with middle school students.
Weaknesses: Eight books is more than long enough for a series, especially when Scholastic invariably publishes them in paper-over-board format. I'd rather see this one wrapped up, and see Korman delight us with something new!

#WeNeedDiverseBooks Wednesday-- The Gossip File

Staniszewski, Anna. The Gossip File (The Dirt Diary #3)
January 6th 2015 by Sourcebooks Jabberwocky
E ARC from Netgalley.com

Rachel is excited about visiting her father in Florida, and envisions the two of them going to Disney and having a great time. When she gets there, however, she finds that her father's girlfriend, Ellie, is big into "family time" and has a son, Caleb, about her age. Not only that, but her father's apartment is so small that Rachel ends up living with Ellie. Ellie does staffing for a resort, and the cafe is short a person, so Rachel is pressed into service. The other workers, older teens, mistake her for someone else (Ava), but she plays along, and even tries her hand at baking better food for the cafe so that its business improves. She is frustrated by Ellie, and is encouraged by her coworkers to write gossip about things that happen in the resort in a notebook called the "gossip file". In the end, she makes a tenuous peace with her father.
Strengths: Rachel has several interesting conversations about being part Korean that are very good-- she asks her father why they don't have any cultural celebrations or food, and her coworkers ask her where she is "from", as if being part Korean, she couldn't be "from" the U.S. I think that dealing with parents who are divorced is a much more common experience than dealing with parents who are deceased.
Weaknesses: A few odd turns of phrase ("Oh my goldfish") are awkward, and this does get slightly whiny. I missed book two somewhere along the line; must find.

DePrince, Michaela. Taking Flight
October 14th 2014 by Knopf Books for Young Readers

The author was born in Sierra Leone and lost both of her parents (to violence and disease) at an early age. After some time in orphanages, she and a friend were adoptive by a family in the US. Readjusting to life in the US was difficult, but her family was very understanding, and allowed her to investigate lots of different activities, including the ballet that had appealed to her ever since she saw a picture of a ballerina on a magazine. The book then chronicles her rise through the world of ballet, also against the odds, since dancers of color are rather rare. Apparently, she is now with the Dutch National Ballet.

This is the youth version of Hope in a Ballet Shoe, and is very accessible. There are some understandably violent scenes, due to the nature of her experiences in Sierra Leone, but they are delicately done. I'm a big fan of my students realizing that not everyone in the world has an easy life, and this is a good example of someone who persevered against horrible odds.

http://www.bbc.com/news/entertainment-arts-30742701
Nice interview with Ms. DePrince about her life and the book.

McFarland USA-- Cross Country Movie!

"A cross country coach in a small California town transforms a team of athletes into championship contenders."

February 20, 2015!

Oooh! Sounds like a great thing to take the Cross Country team to see!

A Plague of Bogles

Jinks, Catherine. A Plague of Bogles
January 6th 2015 by HMH Books for Young Readers
E ARC from Netgalley.com

In this sequel to How to Catch a Bogle, we find Jem Barbary at loose ends after he is fired by the grocer for eating cheese off the floor. When he is passing a sideshow, he hears Mr. Lubbock say that Birdie McAdam is working there, and when Jem finds out she isn't, he goes to find Alfred Bunce and tell him about the deception. At the same time, a bar maid finds Alfred and wants his help in getting rid of a bogle in the basement of the tavern where she works. Alfred agrees reluctantly, taking Jem with his as bait, because Ned is selling fruit (and Alfred is manufacturing fly paper in his flat). Soon, Alfred is besieged from all sides by people wanting help in dispatching bogles. Soon, even Birdie is brought into the efforts, even though she is living a cushy life with cakes and singing lessons at the home of Miss Eames. There are an unhealthy number of bogles around the new Holborn Viaduct building projects, more than would have been displaced by the building. Mr. Lubbock wants in on the action, and tries to convince Alfred to take paying "tourists" with him to the kills, but the bogles are becoming more and more horrific. Jem is glad to be working with Mr. Bunce again, and is using his spare time to try to hunt down Sal Pickles... who ends up being the key to the bogle infestation in a particularly abhorrent way. In the end, Mr. Bunce is hired (in an unofficial capacity) by the London Sewers Office to control the bogle problem. There is a third book out in Australia, A Very Singular Guild, but no idea when this will be available in the US.
Strengths: This was delightful, mainly because all of the characters were so plucky and undeterred. Sure, Jem may have no shoes and very little food, and his brand new jacket may get ruined by bogle goop, but he just keeps plugging away. Things aren't perfect for Birdie, and she whines a tiny bit, but only because she wants to be more useful. Whew. After all of the sad and depressing books in middle grade, reading about children being eaten by horrific monsters was cheerier than many books I've read in a while. Like Jonathan Stroud's Lockhart and Co., this series is an action packed sojourn in a rather seedy, but somehow still delightful London.
Weaknesses: Modern readers might not quite know what "baby farming" means, so a little more description of that would have been good, since a key plot point hinges on it. Still, readers who want monster tales will enjoy this.

MMGM- Breaking the Ice

Nall, Gail. Breaking the Ice
January 13th 2015 by Simon & Schuster/ Aladdin
E ARC from Edelweiss

Kaitlyn is dedicated to figure skating and to going to Nationals... until she does poorly at a competition and yells at the judges! Not the sort of behavior expected of skaters, so her club and her coach drop her. Since her mother has quite her job in order to home school Kaitlyn so she can devote time to skating, they find another club and coach, but since it is Fallton (aka "fall down"), they are less than thrilled. Once Kaitlyn gets used to the people, she finds that most of them are nice, with the exception of Addison, who is snotty and supercompetitive. Since her old friends don't want anything to do with her, she is glad to be able to hang out with Muri, who loves to skate but also goes to public school, and Braedon, who is cute but a little undisciplined. Kaitlyn would love to go to public school so she could make more friends, but her mother doesn't want her to. After some bad decisions on Kaitlyn's part, she is in trouble with her parents, but she is able to put more emotion into her skating program. What is the best way to balance skating with the general issues of being 12?
Strengths: Both of Kaitlyn's parents are pleasant (if a little driven) and supportive. And alive! Her problems are real and very important to middle grade readers-- having friends, figuring out why people are mean, pushing boundaries, getting in trouble, being around cute boys and not knowing what to do. PEOPLE! We don't need horrifically depressing problems. When you're 12, the problems like the ones in this book are more than mortifying!
Weaknesses: Little concerned about Braedon being a cute "bad boy", but Kaitlyn was leery enough of him that I wasn't as concerned as I would have been had one of my daughters been interested in him. I also was hugely relieved when Kaitlyn is allowed to go to public school: I know that homeschooling works for some people, but as a student and a parent it has NO appeal. It sounds horrific to me on so many levels!

Kurlansky, Mark. Frozen in Time: Clarence Birdseye's Outrageous Idea About Frozen Food 
Published November 11th 2014 by Delacorte Books for Young Readers

I know that not everyone likes to curl up with nonfiction books on obscure topics the way I do, but middle school librarians need to take a look at this one. For one thing, I love Kurlansky's writing. I don't know why. It just always sucks me right in, and gets me interested in stuff that I really don't care about, like the history of salt. For another thing, National History Day should be flooded with projects on Clarence Birdseye and Philo T. Farnsworth, and it's not. What is more influential on modern life than frozen food? And who made it commercially viable? (I loved Kurlansky's assertion that it doesn't matter who invents something, it's the person who makes money at it who becomes famous!) Birdseye. I do have one student doing a project on it this year, but this is a must purchase for nonfiction collections. It will get used for research, and read by the three students every year who are willing to read literary nonfiction to make me happy.

I would have spaced out the pictures rather than putting them in an 8 page photo insert-- with today's graphic heavy series nonfiction from Lerner, etc., students are not as used to the text heavy versions of nonfiction.

It's Marvelous Middle Grade Monday at Ramblings of a Wannabe Scribe and What Are You Reading? day at Teach Mentor Texts and Unleashing Readers. Nonfiction Monday also takes place today.

Rescue on the Oregon Trail

Messner, Kate. Ranger in Time #1: Rescue on the Oregon Trail
January 6th 2015 by Scholastic Press
E ARC from Edelweiss Above the Treeline

Ranger is a dog who has trained to be a rescue dog but failed because he always decides to chase squirrels if they are around. He still likes playing with his boy, Luke, and is surprised when he digs up a metal box that transports him back to the year 1850. There, he meets Sam, whose family is embarking on the Oregon Trail, and rescues Sam's little sister. Things are harsh on the trail, although there is plenty of bacon, and Ranger misses Luke. He feels that there must be someone in danger that he will need to rescue, and the trail is full of opportunities. The family takes in a girl whose parents die, Ranger is essential in helping with a dangerous river crossing, and Ranger is also there when Sam gets a horrible fever. When all seems okay, Ranger is finally able to get back to Luke and prepare for his next adventure... in ancient Rome. (June 30th 2015 by Scholastic Press)
Strengths: There aren't many books about the Oregon Trail, and it is a fascinating chapter in American history, so it's good to have a new title, and dogs are always a plus. Messner's writing is always smooth, and even though this is from Ranger's perspective, it's not annoyingly precious. Good historical details and notes.
Weaknesses: I remember reading (during the height of my Little House phase in the 1974) a rather long book about children on the Oregon Trail... Children of the Covered Wagon, perhaps? This book didn't draw me in with the details as much as that book did... somehow the dog as a time travel device, or perhaps time travel to this point in history, didn't work for me as much. A little leery of the book set in Rome, although at least it is about gladiators and NOT Pompeii!

Waiting for Gonzo

Cousins, Dave. Waiting for Gonzo.
8 January 2015,January 8th 2015 by Flux
E ARC from Netgalley.com

Teenager Oz (the cover makes him look a good five years younger than the age of the character) and his family have moved from London out into the boonies so that his sister Meg is away from her boyfriend and his mother can teach at a college and work on her art career. Unfortunately, early on in the book, Oz is involved in an car accident that causes his mother to break her arm. She hires the local "psycho girl", Isobel, to help her with her sculpture, and Isobel bedevils and scares Oz... but he also grows to like her. He has trouble fitting in at school, and his problems increase when he finds out that Meg is pregnant and her boyfriend comes to the house to try to win her back.
Strengths: I really liked 15 Days Without a Head, but it hasn't been available in prebind or hardcover, which is disappointing. This had some funny scenes, and Cousins has a good sense for writing about teenage boys. Impulsive behavior, bad decisions, epic catastrophes-- it's all here.
Weaknesses: This is very British, and is hard to follow at the beginning. It gets better, but I find it a little alarming that in just about every single YA book where a girl gets pregnant under difficult life circumstances, she has the baby. In this case, Oz is the force behind Meg feeling connected to her fetus, which Oz has named Gonzo. This seems unrealistic, extremely manipulative, and unnerving.

Yep. Apparently no good covers of this one. Will pass.