Bibliophile Support Group

Sarah Dessen gifts us with yet another beautiful novel, Just Listen . Annabel’s life has always been in the shadow of her more buoyant and beautiful sisters, being not quite as outgoing and not quite as lovely. But she’s lived a life that many other teenage girls desire. She’s a local model, like her sisters before her. She’s best friends with the most popular girl in school. She goes to all the parties. And even if she pales in comparison to her older sister, she is pretty in her own right. But that’s before the party. After that, she’s friendless and invisible, except when she’s being harassed by her ex-best friend. Her home life falls apart as well, his stunning sister in danger of succumbing to an eating disorder and her mother having a difficult time facing the truth. Sitting alone at lunch, she can’t help but become more intrigued by the other loner in school: Owen. Especially since he doesn’t seem to care that he’s a loner. In fact, he doesn’t seem to care about anything but mus...

The author of the awesome ghostgirl and coming soon sequel ghostgirl: homecoming was kind enough to answer some of my questions. If you still haven't read ghostgirl (get with it, you're missing out!), there may be mild spoilers. Here's how it went: Okay, the biggest, most important question for all of us readers who LOVE ghostgirl : Do you plan on writing more books in the ghostgirl series? How many (assuming you aren't going to deny us this wish)? · I'll write as many as my publisher allows! I have just finished the third book and I think I'm on a roll! I do love writing them and I’m so glad that there are people out there who love reading them. If you are writing more books (please, please, please), will Maddy make another appearance (purposefully vague, since I don't want to give anything away in ghostgirl: homecoming )? · You never know. Were you ecstatic when you got your first copy of ghostgirl ? The covers are truly amazing! · ...

*SPOILER ALERT: If you have not yet read the fantastical ghostgirl , and don't want to know how the first one ends (and really, why would you want to ruin the awesome experience of reading the book?), please don't read the review for the sequel. If anything, trust me and just go and buy them both.* Tonya Hurley's ghostgirl: homecoming has Charlotte Usher in the next level of the afterlife. Yet again, however, she finds it sorely lacking in pearly gates. But her newly matured understanding, which she gained by the end of ghostgirl , helps her deal with the fact that she and her classmates are now interns. That's right. Interns. Interns at a call center . A call center that helps teens who need guidance. Yeah, not exactly what she was expecting. But, apparently, there are more levels to immortality than you'd guess. Plus, with her new roommate Maddy the only fellow deceased sticking around to talk to her, she can't help but wonder if maybe "graduating...

Tonya Hurley offers up a very unique YA novel in ghostgirl . Charlotte has always been invisible and ignored throughout her life - so the first day of school is her opportunity to insert herself, however forcibly, into the popular crowd and into the heart of her dream guy, Damen. Or so she hopes. But just as things are looking her way (Damen is partnered up with Charlotte as lab partners and asks for her to tutor him), she dies. By way of choking on a gummy bear. And seeing her hopes and dreams disappear isn't even the worst of it. There aren't any pearly gates waiting for her. No, she still has to go to "school" and "graduate". There is an afterlife, and it includes "Dead Ed". But as much as her fellow deceased school mates urge her to let go of her old life, Charlotte just isn't made that way. She made plans to get what she wanted this year, and death isn't a big enough barrier to keep her from making it happen. Ghostgirl is one of those...

Caroline Rennie Pattison’s The Whole, Entire, Complete Truth is her first Sarah Martin mystery. Sarah’s parents have moved her and her older brother, Ray, to Muskoka, which is much more “back-country” than crowded city. All of a sudden she has to ride her bike a long distance to see another house. And this move comes just in time for her first year of high school. Parents. Don'tcha love ‘em? So, she’s already not too happy with her police detective father - then she begins to become friendly with horse-loving neighbor, Mindi. But when she asks to accept Mindi’s invitation to meet up after school and introduce to her to her beloved horses at her mother’s boyfriend’s house, Mr. Braemarie, he insists that she can’t visit her there but that Mindi is just fine to spend time at their house. Even Sarah’s mom is confused. To Sarah’s already dangerously curious nature, this refusal is extremely suspicious and she can’t help but be tempted to find out what exactly it is about Mr. Braemarie’...