Author: Sarah Honenberger
Published: December 28, 2010
Pages: 256
Rating: 4/5 Stars
Description from Goodreads:
A few months after doctors tell him he has only a year to live, a precocious 15-year-old from a small town in Virginia has an intense reaction to The Catcher in the Rye. Deriving inspiration from Salinger's narrative, Daniel Landon begins to question the intentions and authority of those around him in his own search for identity as he faces death. Tired of his cramped surroundings and hippie parents' alternative approaches to his treatment, he follows the footsteps of Holden Caulfield to New York City in search of the same eternal truths, only to discover the importance of home when death looms. A coming of age story, a love story, and a new classic, CATCHER, CAUGHT will engage the imagination of more than one generation, searching for lasting values.
Review:
Daniel Landon has been diagnosed with Leukemia. After reviewing treatment options and getting no guarantee that chemotherapy will cure him, his parents opt to use alternative, herbal treatment. Unfortunately, their misguided plan is costing Daniel his life. The story follows Daniel over the next year as he experiences normal teenage angst while also contemplating his own death. Along the way he reads The Cather in the Rye and identifies with the protagonist, Holden Caulfield, and begins to use the book as a guide to help him decide how to take control of his life.
Honenberger has created a genuine character in Daniel. We are treated to his thoughts about living and dying, and his agony at being cheated from his share of life. But all is not dark and dismal; we follow him as he tries to fit in all the life he can and are treated to his interaction with friends well as his search for love.
Catcher pays respect to Holden as we see Daniel's trip of self discovery. The book does not neatly tie up all the loose ends and by the novel's end a happy ending is not assured, but there are no promises in real life so the novel does an excellent job in reflecting reality. This is a novel that teaches lessons while allowing the reader a glimpse into the head of a teen. It is well worth your time.
Rating: It is worth taking the trip onthis journey of self discovery.
Each year the CYBILS (Children and Young Adult Blogger's Literary Awards) are awarded to books that combine literary merit with kid appeal, resulting in great books that kids can't wait to read. Winners for 2010 were announced on February 14 and they are:
Young Adult Non-Fiction:
The Secret of th
e Yellow Death: A True Story of Medical Sleuthing
Author: Suzanne Jurmain
Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Books for Children
Synopsis from Goodreads:
Red oozes from the patient's gums. He has a rushing headache and the whites of his eyes look like lemons. He will likely die within days.
Here is the true story of how four Americans and one Cuban tracked down a killer, one of the word's most vicious plagues: yellow fever. Set in fever-stricken Cuba, the reader feels the heavy air, smell the stench of disease, hear the whine of mosquitoes biting human volunteers during the surreal experiments. Exploring themes of courage, cooperation, and the ethics of human experimentation, this gripping account is ultimately a story of the triumph of science.
Young Adult Graphic Novels:
Yummy: The Last Days of a Southside Shorty
Author: G. Neri
Illustrator: Randy DuBurke
Publisher: Lee & Low Books
Synopsis from Goodreads:
In August of 1994, 11-year-old Robert “Yummy” Sandifer — nicknamed for his love of sweets — fired a gun at a group of rival gangmembers, accidentally killing a neighborhood girl, Shavon Dean. Police searched Chicago’s southside for three days before finding Yummy dead in a railway tunnel, killed by members of the drug gang he’d sought to impress. The story made such an impact that Yummy appeared on the cover of TIME magazine, drawing national attention to the problems of inner city youth in America.
Yummy: The Last Days of a Southside Shorty relives the confusion of these traumatic days from the point of view of Roger, a neighborhood boy who struggles to understand the senseless violence swirling through the streets around him. Awakened by the tragedy, Roger seeks out answers to difficult questions — was Yummy a killer or a victim? Was he responsible for his actions or are others to blame?
Young Adult Fantasy and Science Fiction:
Rot & Ruin
Author: Jonathan Mayberry
Publisher: Simon & Schuster Children's Publishing
Synopsis from Goodreads:
In the zombie-infested, post-apocalyptic America where Benny Imura lives, every teenager must find a job by the time they turn fifteen or get their rations cut in half. Benny doesn't want to apprentice as a zombie hunter with his boring older brother Tom, but he has no choice. He expects a tedious job whacking zoms for cash, but what he gets is a vocation that will teach him what it means to be human.
Young Adult Fiction:
Split
Author: Swati Avashti
Publisher: Knopf Books for Young Readers
Synopsis from Goodreads:
Sixteen-Year-Old Jace Witherspoon arrives at the doorstep of his estranged brother Christian with a re-landscaped face (courtesy of his father’s fist), $3.84, and a secret.
He tries to move on, going for new friends, a new school, and a new job, but all his changes can’t make him forget what he left behind—his mother, who is still trapped with his dad, and his ex-girlfriend, who is keeping his secret.
At least so far.
Worst of all, Jace realizes that if he really wants to move forward, he may first have to do what scares him most: He may have to go back. First-time novelist Swati Avasthi has created a riveting and remarkably nuanced portrait of what happens after. After you’ve said enough, after you’ve run, after you’ve made the split—how do you begin to live again? Readers won’t be able to put this intense page-turner down.
If you are looking for a good read, check these out. I will be posting reviews in the coming weeks.
