Here are some brief reviews on new books (most advanced copies) of books that I picked up at IRA conference this year.

Briefly reviewed

Inexecusable by Chris Lynch (Simon and Shuster,2007)

Interesting book told from the viewpoint of a boy accused of rape by his former girl friend. It isn't just about this but about his whole self-perception. Recommended for a bit older teenagers I think-maybe grade nine up...

The Melting of Maggie Bean by Tricia Rayburn ( Simon and Shuster,2007)

I enjoyed this book in that this is not the perfect family demonstrating with humour how the father's job loss impacts on the members of the family. It also deals with the issues of over eating. Probably suitable grade six up...

Seeing Emily by Joyce Lee Wong (Amulet Books, 2007) This is kind of a neat book about a teenaged Chinese American girl and her family who run a restaurant. It strikes me we still don't have many books about teenagers of Asian heritage. I think it has an authentic feel to it and looks at stereotypes in different ways.

Under the Banyon Tree by Toni De Palma (Holiday House, 2007) is another book good in that it looks at how a teenage girl from a difficult background is able to make a fresh start and find a different sort of family. I liked the beginning lines, "I took what belonged to me, which wasn't much. A clean pair of underwear, twenty-two dollars in tips I'd made working at Crazy Will's, and the bruise on my right arm. There was nothing else I could take or really wanted."

The Other Half of Me by Emily Franklin (Random House, 2007) is about a girl who has never felt as if she fit in her athletic family. This may be due to the fact that she is the child that was the result of her mother deciding to use a sperm bank just before she met the father of her other children and who has been Jenny's father for all real purposes. Jenny is encouraged to see if she has any half siblings and the results are interesting and Jenny learns a few hard but valuable lessons. Interesting book looking at this contemporary phenomenon. I would say probably grade seven and up.

Runnerland by John Burns (Raincoast Books, 2007) is another book on the theme of teenagers running. Peter's father dies suddenly and he also finds out he's adopted so he runs away across the country (Canada in this case) looking for answers and escaping his new reality without his father. It's an interesting description of teenagers who end of living on the street and their survival. Again this is a positive book in the end. I wouldn't say my favorite but definitely interesting. Definitely young adult.