The House of the Scorpion

Title: The House of the Scorpion
Author: Nancy Farmer
Published: Sep 2002
ISBN: 9780689852237
Page number: 380
Price: 19.99
Reading Level: 4th grade
Interest Level: 7th-10th grade
Genre: fiction, sci-fi, dystopia
Awards: ALA Notable Children's Books, National Book Award, Booklist Editor's Choice, YALSA Best Book for Young Adults, Printz Honor Book
Plot Summary: Matt is the clone of 142 year old drug lord  El Patron. El Patron runs the country of Opium, the land that now runs between Mexico and the United States. El Patron has sustained his life by harvesting the organs of his clones. Clones are treated like animals and hated by society. Matt is kept in a hut and treated like an animal until he smashes the window and breaks out. It is then that El Patron demands that Matt is treated with respect and care. After all El Patron views Matt as himself since he is his clone. But Matt struggles with his role as El Patron's clone because he knows his role is to provide El Patron with a new heart. Matt's days are numbered as El Patron falls sick and Matt knows that his only hope is to escape. Matt fears that he will never be accepted by society because his not seen as human, but rather a worthless animal with no soul.
Reader's Annotation: El Patron plans to live forever with the help of the organs he gets from his clones. Matt, El Patrons clone has dreams of escaping and having a chance at his own life.
Bibliotherapeutic usefulness: The story poses many ethical question on the what makes us human, identity and the idea of a soul. Teens can explore these ethical questions through a thought provoking sci-fi noel
Issues: Matt is treated like less than human and is told that he does not have a soul. El Patron has humans on his property that are called "eejits" they are basically humans who are controlled by brain implants. They do whatever they are told and don't do anything without being told to do so. This means that some die because someone forgets to tell them to stop working or to get a drink. The "eejits" are seen as disposable.
Book Talk Ideas: Clones are very real issues ever since the cloning of a sheep. The book talk could start by asking what people's opinions about clones are. This book may questions people's assumptions and ideas about what makes us human. 
Main Themes: human cloning, ethics, survival, souls, humanity
Read-alikes: The Adoration of Jenna Fox by Mary Pearson, Ship Breaker by Paolo Bacigalupi
Author Website: http://www.nancyfarmerwebsite.com/
Professional Reviews: Kirkus Reviews
Publisher's Weekly
Why this book was chosen: Nancy Farmer is a well known author whose books are very popular. This story deals with many ethical issues that not many books address or deal with.

The Adoration of Jenna Fox

Title: The Adoration of Jenna Fox 
Author: Mary E. Pearson
Published: April 2008
ISBN: 0805076689
Page Number: 266
Price: $16.95
Reading Level: 6th grade
Interest Level: 10th grade and up
Other books in the series: The Fox Inheritance
Awards: Golden Kite Award for Fiction (2009)
Genre: Sci-fi
Plot Summary: Seventeen year old Jenna Fox awakes from a coma not knowing who she is or what happened to her. Her parents tell her that she was in a terrible accident that killed her two best friends and that she is lucky to be alive. As Jenna's memories start to come back to her Jenna realizes that something is wrong. Her memories feel all wrong and her parents are not acting right. They seem to be hiding something from Jenna but what? When Jenna starts to search for answers she may not like what she finds. She will soon start to question who she is and just how far her parents went to save her. But have her parents gone too far?
Critical Review: The book asks a lot of big questions, like what makes us human? How far should a parent go to save their child? Should their be restrictions on what science can do to save a human? It really does bring up many talking points. It also shows Jenna's struggle with what her parents did to her. She is disgusted when she thinks about how all her memories were placed on disc till her parents could repair her body. The desperation of her parents is shown through their illegal act to keep Jenna alive yet the author shows that while the acts were illegal her parents did it out of love.
Reader's Annotation: Jenna awakes not knowing who she is or what happened to her. Apparently, Jenna was in a horrible accident that she is still recovering from but Jenna feels like something else happened. When her memories start to come back they don't seem right, so Jenna starts to search for the truth but she may not like what she finds.
Book Talk Ideas: The book deals a lot with ethics and what it is that makes us human. Jenna struggles with being alive and what her parents did to keep her alive. I think the book talk should focus on that idea. What would you do to stay alive or to keep a love one alive? What makes us human, is it our memories or is it something more?
Main Themes: ethics, death, science
Issues: There is a lot of talk of ethically choices and how far science should go to prolong a life or save a person.
Bibliotherapeutic usefulness: Jenna struggles a lot with her parents quest for a perfect daughter. I think that teens who have this same pressure at home could gain a lot from Jenna's personal struggle. It also has readers thinking about what makes a person human and how far they would go to keep someone alive. There book serves as a great discussion starter on some difficult topics of death, science and ethics.
Read alikes: The House of the Scorpion by Nancy Farmer, Across the Universe by Beth Revis, Matched by Allyson Condie
Author Website: http://www.marypearson.com/
Profession Reviews: Publisher's Weekly
Kirkus Reviews
Why include this book? The book is both sci-fi and mystery and has the reader turngin pages to find out what really happend to Jenna. It is also very relevant with discussion going on right now about the place of science in keeping people alive.

The Hunger Games

Title: The Hunger Games
Author: Suzanne Collins
Published: Sept. 2008
ISBN: 0439023483
Page number: 374
Price:$10.99
Other Books in the Series: Catching Fire, Mockingjay
Reading Level: 7th grade 
Interest Level: 6th grade and up
Awards: ALA Notable Children's Book for Older Readers (2008), School Library Journal Best Book of the Year (2008), Cybils Award for Young Adult Fantasy and Science Ficton (2008), ALA's Top Ten Best Books for Young Adults (2009), New York Times Notable Children's Book (2009), Publisher's Weekly Best Books of the Year (2008), Horn Book Fanfare (2008)
Plot Summary: North America is now known as Panem and consists of 12 districts that are all controlled by The Capitol. Years before there was a war and the 13th district was completed destroyed and after that The Capitol started the Hunger Games to remind the people of Panem of how violence destroyed them. The Hunger Games are a yearly game that has teens from the ages 12-18 fighting for their life until only one emerges as the sole survivor and winner. The tributes as they are called are chosen at random every year and each district choses a boy and girl to compete. Katniss is from one of the poorest districts and when her sister is chosen she volunteers to go in her place. Now Katniss is part of the televised spectacle that is The Hunger Games. She may not have the training or powerful backing that some of the other tributes has but Katniss is determined to win and come back to her family. But can Katniss survive or will she just be another in a long line of those who fall victim to The Hunger Games.
Review: The story is exciting and suspenseful with lots of action at every turn. But Suzanne Collins does a great job of showing just how manipulative The Capitol can be. While there is plenty of violence in the book there is also lots of remorse and emotion associated with the deaths. I believe this shows the appalling nature of such violence rather than glorifying the violence. I also think that Collins has created a great character in Katniss. Even though Katniss at times can come across as too practical and emotionless she exposes a softer side at times, especially in the case of Rue that readers will find appealing. 
Reader's Annotation: Every year The Capitol holds The Hunger Games, a fight to the death with only one winner. Every year each of the 12 districts of Panem will chose 2 tributes that are 12-18 years old. But when Katniss's little sister is chosen to be apart of the games she volunteers to take her place. Now Katniss must outwit and kill her opponents and survive the games but will the odds be ever in her favor?
Bibliotherapeutic usefulness: The book can allow teens to see someone they relate to overcome great odds and survive. They can be inspired to overcome their own challenges. It may also show how corrupt people with control can become and that you have to fight for what is right even when it is difficult.
Issues: The book is a very bleak depiction of the future that includes a corrupt and overly powerful government. There is quite a lot of violence and death of young children and teens that many may find to be over the top or offensive.
Book Talk Ideas: 
Genre: dystopia
Main Themes: survival, government control
Read-alikes: Divergent by Veronica Roth, Blood Red Road by Moira Young
Author Website:http://www.suzannecollinsbooks.com/
Professional Reviews: Kirkus Reviews
Publisher's Weekly
Why this book was chosen: This series is widely popular with teens and adults especially since the series has been turned into movies. It has hooked a lot of reluctant readers into reading again and with it's popularity has brought about controversy with it's violence and bleak depiction of the future.