I Kissed a Zombie and I Liked It, by Adam Selzer

I Kissed a Zombie and I Liked It, by Adam Selzer. New York: Delacorte Press, 2010. 177 pp. ISBN 9780385904971


READER'S ANNOTATION
To Alley, Doug is the cutest guy, with impeccable taste in music: hers.  So what if he's a little -- well, a lot -- pale?

GENRE
Horror, Humor

SUMMARY
Alley Rhodes is a high school senior who lives in a small Iowa town in what has been termed the "post-human era".  It is so called because humans, zombies, and vampires live together, without harming each other for the most part.  The era began when the vampires came out of the shadows to successfully spearhead a legal action on behalf of the zombies, whom the Megamart chain had brought back from the dead to use as slave labor.  Against this satirical backdrop is an engaging story about Alley's meeting of and dating Doug, a guy from a neighboring town who sings with a local band and shares Alley's taste in music.  But she shortly realizes that he is not quite human.  However, he is her first real love, and their relationship really transforms for the better the way that she treats others.  She also grapples with the question of whether a teen like herself should make permanent life-altering decisions in order to be with the person she loves. 

EVALUATION
This is an easy and fun read which will get teens thinking about social issues and interpersonal ones as well.  The plot is fairly simple but the story is well-paced; Alley's experiences day-to-day at school and dating milestones such as having Doug meet her parents, going to prom, etc. are balanced with her sorting through her feelings about the relationship. The story is quite funny at times, and Alley is a likeable character with whom I think teens will identify.  The other characters are not as developed.
What may make this novel controversial to some are a couple mentions of teenage drinking and teens dying in order to become vampires or zombies.

HOW THIS BOOK HELPS
I think this novel could help teens involved in romantic relationships to keep their perspective and not let the relationship radically change their post-high school plans.  It could also help teens to develop more compassion for physically challenged or ill classmates.

WHY I CHOSE TO READ IT
The phrasing of the title and the idea of dating a zombie made me laugh.

Tantalize, by Cynthia Leitich Smith

Tantalize, by Cynthia Leitich Smith.  Cambridge, MA: Candlewick Press, 2007.  310 pp. ISBN 9780763627911


READER'S ANNOTATION
One month before the grand re-opening of Quincie's family's restaurant, their beloved chef has been murdered, possibly by a werewolf.  Or is the new vampire theme of the restaurant attracting real bloodsuckers?

GENRE
Horror, Humor

SUMMARY
After her parents' death, first-person narrator Quincie Morris was left in her Uncle Davidson's care.  Now at age 17, she will help her uncle manage the family Italian restaurant, which they've decided will now have a vampire theme.  When their beloved Chef Vaggio is murdered one month before the grand reopening, they are left scrambling to find a replacement, and Quincie to cling to the hope that her half-human/half-werewolf best friend and love interest, Kieren, was not involved in the killing.  A new chef named Henry Johnson is hired, who is quite talented but also a bit off-putting.  Also problematic for Quincie is the fact that the time has come for Kieren to join a wolf pack and leave Austin.  Then murders begin piling up and Uncle Davidson starts acting very strangely...  Smith continues the stories of these characters in two later novels.

EVALUATION
Of all the monster books I've read this semester, Tantalize has probably been the most fun, and I like Quincie's sense of humor and sarcasm. I think the fact that she, as a teen, is helping to run a restaurant should give teens an enjoyable taste of independence.  And at the same time give an idea of the huge sacrifices that one makes in other areas of life, such as friendship and school, when one takes on such a responsibility. In addition, there is relevant social commentary in this novel, one example being the fact that werepeople have fewer rights than humans and suffer discrimination. One of my favorite aspects of Tantalize is that we don't find out until the end whether Kieren truly reciprocates Quincie's romantic feelings.  And I also love the ambiguity of the ending as far as what Quincie's future holds. What some may find controversial is Quincie's drinking, but her drinking is included to illustrate how alcohol impairs one's judgement.

HOW THIS BOOK HELPS
This book could help teens who find themselves with more responsibility than they can handle, or whose parents/guardians are absent.  It could also help teens who feel they may have a drinking problem.

WHY I CHOSE TO READ IT
I liked the idea of vampires, werepeople, and humans together in one city, and the restaurant aspect sounded fun.

Zombies vs. Unicorns, edited by Justine Larbalestier and Holly Black

Zombies vs. Unicorns, edited by Justine Larbalestier and Holly Black. New York: Margaret K. McElderry Books, 2010. 415 pp. ISBN 9781416989530 


READER'S ANNOTATION
Which makes for better fiction: zombies or unicorns?  Read through these twelve inventive tales and decide for yourself!

GENRE
Fantasy, Horror

SUMMARY

This is an anthology of twelve short stories by YA authors, half about zombies and half about unicorns.  The premise by which the editors unite the tales is that they wish readers to read them all and then decide whether zombies or unicorns make for better subject matter for fiction. Each story is preceded by a page of banter between editors Larbalestier and Black about the merits of zombies and unicorns.  Stories vary widely in theme and setting, all the way from Margo Lanagans’ seemingly Middle Ages tale, A Thousand Flowers, which concerns a royal lady who will make the ultimate sacrifice to be with her true love, to Carrie Ryan’s futuristic Bouganvillea, in which a young girl’s mettle is tested .

 
EVALUATION
I really loved the great majority of these stories.  Although it is hard to narrow it down, my favorite is Naomi Novik's Purity Test just because it's so zany, centering around a teenage girl conscripted to help rescue a group of baby unicorns in New York City.  I especially love the unicorn Belcazar's sarcasm, and his lines about Fairyland and chocolate milk really tickle my funnybone for some reason.  I also loved Bouganvillea by Carrie Ryan.  She manages to convey such a heavy expectant mood, and I like the growth and ultimate strength shown by Iza, the main character.  The black humor and thought-provoking nature of  Alayna Dawn Johnson's Love Will Tear Us Apart are also just great.

HOW THIS BOOK HELPS
I think that one uniting factor of several of the stories is that protagonists are called upon to act decisively in the interest of self-preservation or in order to be true to themselves.  This could inspire teens in any situation in which courage is called for.

WHY I CHOSE TO READ IT
Some of the stories sounded really funny and/or thought-provoking.

Blue Bloods, by Melissa De La Cruz

Blue Bloods, by Melissa de la Cruz. New York: Hyperion, 2006. 302 pp. ISBN 0786838922

READER'S ANNOTATION

Schuyler Van Alen has just found out that she's a vampire, along with many of the annoying popular kids at her school.  Along with the special abilities that this bestows come new dangers.

GENRE

Horror

SUMMARY

Nonconformist Schuyler Van Alen, the last of the line in a distinguished family, is being raised by her distant grandmother, Cordelia, due to the fact that her mother has been in a coma for years. Schuyler and her best friend Oliver are definitely not part of the in crowd at their small private Manhattan school. Yet this year, at the age of fifteen, she learns that she is inextricably linked to arrogant Mimi Force and the rest of the popular set. Schuyler finds out that she is, like them, a Blue Blood, a vampire. In the world that De La Cruz has created, being a vampire includes several innovative aspects, including possessing great strength and having flashbacks to past lives. The early years of being a vampire, called the twilight years, are when Blue Bloods are at their most vulnerable to attack. And now things are especially dangerous, as a vicious sub-group of vampires called the Silver Bloods begins hunting the young Blue Bloods one by one…  This is the first title in the Blue Bloods series.

EVALUATION

This first installment of the Blue Bloods series is much more enjoyable than I'd expected, mainly for its suspense, the reflective moments of characters like Schuyler and Bliss, and in particular the mystery surrounding Schuyler’s mother.  Schuyler is a strong female protagonist, who is believable though, and is not immune to normal teenage issues such as her crush on Jack Force and her sometimes selfish behavior in her friendship with Oliver.  I enjoyed De La Cruz's unique vision of vampires, as she notes that they are fallen angels who are trying to prove that they are worthy enough to be admitted back into Heaven.  This idea of vampiric integrity contrasts with the negative public perception of vampires.  This sends a strong message to readers about not blindly believing rumors/commonly-held beliefs about the behaviors or motivations of people or groups in society. My only critique of the novel is that a couple of Schuyler’s responses to new information seem automatic and not really thought out on her part, which is not in keeping with her overall character. However, I would definitely recommend this novel to teens as an entertaining and interesting read.  What some may find controversial about this novel is its references to violence and sexual intercourse, but these are by no means the focus of the story.

HOW THIS BOOK HELPS

This book could help teens who, like Schuyler, do not have close/loving family members around to provide support or who have low self-esteem.  It will hopefully make such teens realize that they have much more strength and ability inside them than they know.

WHY I CHOSE TO READ IT

I love New York and the cast of characters sounded really intriguing. 

Eighth Grade Bites, by Heather Brewer

Eighth Grade Bites, by Heather Brewer. New York: Speak, 2008. 182 pp. ISBN 9780142411872


READER'S ANNOTATION
Middle school is challenging enough when you've got to make sure to eat blood each day at lunch without the other kids knowing.  Throw in a teacher's disappearance and the arrival of a frankly creepy substitute, and you're in for one interesting year...

GENRE
Horror


SUMMARY
Vlad's an eighth grader who deals with the usual bullies, friend issues, and romantic crushes of middle school, but also is quite unique: he is half vampire. Vlad's late father had earlier broken the vampire code when he revealed his vampire status to his love and married and had a child with her. The couple subsequently fled to the town of Bathory, but soon died in a mysterious fire. Now, odd things are beginning to happen in Vlad's life, including a teacher disappearing and an odd substitute teacher with an interest in supernatural beings taking his place. When it begins to appear that the substitute may know something about Vlad's secret, Vlad decides he must try to learn something about his past and take action. (This book is the first of the Chronicles of Vladimir Tod series.)

EVALUATION
This is an engaging story which works for several different reasons.  On one hand, it's just a great school story about a young teen, Vlad, who feels like somewhat of a nobody on campus and is picked on, and longs for a girl whom he believes likes his best friend. Vlad's got a wry sense of humor about things and is often reflective about life and himself.  But the novel is also paced very well, and a wonderful suspense builds about what may have happened to Vlad's former English teacher and the mystery concerning the motivations of the substitute teacher with his odd/intriguing demeanor and assignments. Some nice twists at the conclusion and Brewer's overall handling of how a teen vampire would live amongst non-vampire peers, deal with the need to consume blood, etc., is creative.  The goriness in some of the scenes may be a controversial aspect to some, but it is much lighter than that in horror fiction in general.

HOW THIS BOOK HELPS
I think this is a great book to recommend to any teen, but especially those who appear to be on the outside of the social scene, are being bullied, or just have unique qualities which may make them feel different from others.  The novel has a main character to draw strength from and is a great page-turner at the same time.

WHY I CHOSE TO READ IT
One of my fellow library assistants who has good taste in books had read it and really enjoyed it.