The Unlikely Hero of Room 13B

TITLE: The Unlikely Hero of Room 13B
AUTHOR: Teresa Toten
RELEASE DATE: March 2015
PUBLISHER: Delacorte Press
PAGES: 289 pages
GENRE: Realistic Fiction
OVERALL RATING: 3/5
APPROPRIATE AGE: grades 8-12 (language)

SUMMARY: A therapy group of teens with OCD try to cope with their complicated lives by taking on the personalities of superheroes. Adam Spencer Harris immediately falls for the newest member of their group, Robyn, as soon as she walks in the door. When she chooses the superhero Robin, who else can Adam be, but Batman? But while Batman is busying saving everyone around him, from his group, to his mother, and little brother; who will help save him? 

FAVORITE QUOTE: "This was love? It was like being held hostage by a terrorist. The feelings from hope to horror were crazy intense and changed on a dime. If only he knew what she thought. Why couldn't girls tell you exactly what they were thinking the moment they were thinking it? The world would be a better place, yes, sir." (Toten, 131)
   

WHAT I LIKED: My favorite part of the whole book was when the group of superheroes decide to take a field trip to Adam's Catholic church. The group treat the place like a theme park, so impressed by the Holy water, the priest and the lighting of the candles. I, personally, have never been to a Catholic church, and have to admit, I would probably react the same way. I just remember laughing out loud throughout that entire chapter! 

READALIKES: Everything Everything by Nicola Yoon

All The Bright Places

TITLE: All The Bright Places
AUTHOR: Jennifer Niven
RELEASE DATE: January 2015
PUBLISHER: Alfred A. Knopf
PAGES: 388 pages
GENRE: Realistic Fiction
OVERALL RATING: 5/5
APPROPRIATE AGE: grade 9+ (curse words, sex, and mature situations)

SUMMARY: Theodore Finch and Violet Markey meet in the most unlikely of places... six stories up on the ledge of the school's bell tower. They couldn't be more opposite, Theodore is the weird kid who goes an entire month wearing a cape, or comes to school painted red even though it isn't school spirit day. Violet is a beautiful blonde who is dating the most popular guy in school. But when a school project brings them together, both of their worlds open up to new things, neither one ever thought possible.

FAVORITE QUOTE: "Before I die I want to..." (Niven, 135). I really loved this part of the book (Violet - 145 days till liberation), because it made me actually stop and think about what I would write. After doing a little research, I found out there are real places around the world with boards just like in the book. You can find a list at this website: http://beforeidie.cc. I'm even going to include this idea in my Book Talk about this novel and leave it up on the board to give my students the opportunity to write what they would do.

WHAT I LIKED: Reading this book, I became completely obsessed. I absolutely could not put it down. I felt like Violet and Finch were my best friends, I laughed with them, I cried with them. Literally... real tears. Throughout the progress of this book, I could feel my mood changing. At the beginning of the book I felt sad and depressed with all of the talk about death and depression. But then when Violet and Finch start on their wandering adventure, I felt happy and alive, like I could do anything. Then at the end, it was nothing but tears; complete streaming down my face, snot dripping out of my nose, crying for the last fifty pages. There is nothing I love more than when a book makes me connection with the fictional characters to the point that I become emotional over a situation in the book. That is the kind of writing that makes authors awesome.

WHAT I DIDN'T LIKE: nothing

READALIKES: The Fault In Our Stars by John Green

MOVIE RELEASE: Production begins Spring 2016

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