Owly by Andy Runton

Andy Runton presents two heartwarming stories in Owly: The Way Home and The Bittersweet Summer. Big hearted and well meaning Owly helps all little critters in need. Even though some run off fearing him to be a large predator, this sweet owl continues to help everyone in need. He eventually makes some good friends and saves a little worm during a rainstorm. The two become close friends as Owly nurses him back to heath and sets out to help the little worm get home. (“The Way Home”)

In his other adventure, “The Bittersweet Summer,” Owly meets a pair of hummingbirds and learns that although he loves his new friends, they cannot stay in such a cold place through the winter. They leave Owly for a few months, but perhaps they will return when the weather is warmer!

I loved this first book on Runton’s Owly series! A definite recommendation for young readers and even older readers! This caring owl and all his adorable friends will appeal all readers! These sweet little illustrations tell adorable and wonderful stories and convey a good lesson on friendship even though Runton does not use words!

Don’t forget to check out Owly’s Tiny Tales as well!

An enjoyable collection of short stories in comic-form, featuring Owly, Wormy, and their friends!

I Was a Teenage Popsicle by Bev Katz Rosenbaum

Imagine being vitrified for ten years, then coming back. What would the world be like? Would everyone you knew be there too?

Floe was one of the many teens affected by the incurable lympaticotosis. Or at least, incurable until now, ten years later. But no one knew how long it would take to find the cure, so Floe’s parents decided to have her vitrified, or frozen, until a cure could be found and she could be brought back. Unlike most of the teenage population affected by lympaticotosis, Floe was one of the only ones who was vitrified. So ten years later, a cure has been found and administered to Floe, so she can be thawed out and sent out on her merry way—easier said than done.

Ten years later, things have changed. Inline skates? What, those old things? It’s all about hoverblades now! Jeans and a snug fit t-shirt? Vintage! Welcome to Star-Trek-like unitards era now! Things have changed, and what’s weirdest is that her formerly younger sister, Sunny, is not the younger sibling any more. Floe’s parents were also vitified for other reasons, but Sunny never was, so she has grown up like normal, but is older than Floe now! So Floe has to move into Sunny’s house, along with her unemployed husband and child, Jake, where she will attend Cactus Hill Secondary School with Sunny as her legal guardian. Can it get any more awkward? Floe doesn’t even get to attend the school she grew up at—Venice Beach Alternative! Speaking of Venice Beach, are her friends all grown up now?!

Life is proving much more difficult that Floe had imagined—there’s so much to get used to, and her classmates are starting to think she’s a freak because she’s not up to date on the new technology and still likes things of the past. There is one perk, however, Taz, the boy Floe had a huge crush on back when they were still in Venice Beach was vitrified also! The two take their first steps back into the living world together, but the doctor warns Floe not to lean on him, since it won’t last—Taz’ll be going back to Venice Beach, and Floe to Cactus Hill. But how can she not lean on Taz? He’s the guy she was crushing on before she was vitrified, and he’s still as hot as ever!

Hot guys aside, Floe’s life is made even more difficult when she learns that a couple is suing her vitrification doctor’s clinic, because they do not believe that vitrification works, and believes that it was a scam that cost their mother/mother-in-law a lot of money and her life. Little do they know, their mother/mother-in-law is actually sitting in a vat of chemicals, still vitrified and awaiting a cure to her own disease. But the doctor had asked Taz and Floe not to tell anyone about their vitrification, since the doctor does not wish to go public yet—but if they aren’t going public, how on earth will Floe get her parents back? They’re still waiting to be thawed out, and if the lawsuit is successful for the couple, then Floe may never get her parents back? What’s a girl who’s still trying to get used to of a new age supposed to do? She’s not close to her sister (awkward!) nor does she many new friends because of her out-of-date weirdness!

I Was A Teenage Popsicle was a sweet, (sorry, bad pun!) quick read! A fresh twist spin on the whole "chronically preserved" topic! Floe and her companions were fresh, quick-thinking, and a great bunch. Being frozen and thawed out ten years later and trying to get used to it is no easy task—especially for teenagers, who can have so many trends and fads! Floe’s coming-of-age adventure of trying to fit into the new society, come to terms with what happens, find a way to save the clinic, and possibly find first love was a great read! I Was A Teenage Popsicle may have tied up its loose ends a little too neatly, but it would definitely make for a cool summer read!

9.700 (out of 10)

Sucks to Be Me by Kimberly Pauley

Guess what??
The lovely YA Book Goddess, Kimberly Pauley, published her first book!
(This’ll be my attempt to try and give an unbiased account, but this book was so amazing, I think I’d rave about it whether or not I was the ex-official review there or not!!)
Okay, here it goes:

Mina Hamilton is your average kid…sort of. Normal except for the slight fact that her parents are vampires. Despite this minor technicality, Mina’s lived a pretty good life so far (sure, she has to remind her parents to get food now and then, and feed herself since vampires don’t have to eat), that is, until the day the tax collector came (ah, those pesky people!). Now the Vampire Council know that Mina exists and she’s forced to go to vampire informational classes and decide if she wants to chance or not. The worst part is, she’s got to make that choice soon, and Mina’s not even eighteen yet!

What should Mina do? What would her best friend Serena think? But it would be pretty cool to live forever and see the world, right? But she has to drink blood to survive! Ahh!! The pros and cons are tearing Mina in two and the big decision is just weeks away!

At least there’s a bit of eye candy during the classes which are taught by creepy “Grandma Wolfington”—a completely hottie, Aubrey. But George is kinda nice too, and Mina’s been crushing on Nathan since before she even met either of the vampire candidates! Ack! Now Mina’s having vampire problems and guy problems! As if she doesn’t have enough to worry about!

Sucks to Be Me follows Mina’s bumpy road on the way to her big decision that includes much more than vampire-related stuff! But no matter what happens, Mina still has to make the choice and it’s much harder than she thought. And what happens if you pick ‘no’ in the end anyway? Will the scary Vampire Council get rid of you, since you know too much?

Sucks to Be Me is a great YA novel filled with drama, romance, and tough decisions. Nathan seemed almost a little too nice for a high-and-up-there It kid, but I liked how things turned out for the main characters! I especially loved the little “myths and truths” at the beginning of each chapter! I wasn’t entirely satisfied with the ending, and it felt a wee bit rushed, but that’s personal preference. The writing there was as good as the rest of the book, it’s just that I don’t entirely agree with the ending.

I’m sure it’s been said many times now, but the number of books in the YA vampire genre is shooting up, yet some seem to miss the mark, since many of us have high expectations after reading Stephanie Meyer’s Twilight. However, there is one book that (for me) shot above many others and all I can say is, I could not put this book down! With that said, I’d definitely recommend Sucks to Be Me to all vampire genre fans, or all those out there looking for a good read! Grab your copy August 26, 2008!!