Every Day by David Levithan

This is probably one of the most unique books I have read in a long time.  This book is one that I would love to talk about in a book club or even in class.  It's that intriguing and that good.  A is without a body. He/she is without gender.  A wakes up in a new 16 year old every day.  Normally A doesn't get involved in the host's life but one day A fall's in love with the host's girlfriend and does everything possible to stay with her.  It's a story about impossible love and the quest to keep it.

I would give this book an omelet rating.  It is that fantastic.  You will want to talk about it.  The one thing I didn't like about it was the ending but that could be because I already had in mind how I wanted it to end but it didn't.  It was a little flat but again, it may be because I had already imagined how I wanted A and Rhiannon to end.  This is definitely for 8th grade or maybe even 9th grade and up because it's pretty intense with love.  There is some language and mention of sex and drugs.  But that's not what this novel is about.  It's about identity and love.

Once by Anna Carey

I couldn't put down the second book in the Eve trilogy.  I fell in love with Eve and I fell even more in love with Once.  It isn't as action packed as the first book.  But that doesn't slow down the storyline.  Eve finds out that life in this "safe" world isn't what she thought.  She ends up in the capital city unexpectedly and finds her relationship to the king is not what she expected.  I loved how this book had many twists and turns.  It leaves you wanting more.

I give this book an omelet rating.  I loved that it is dystopian but it is different from the others that I love (i.e. Divergent, Legend, Hunger Games).  It is for a more mature audience because there are sexual references (not graphic or go into detail but enough for a mature reader to know where things probably lead).  The heart of this series is love and I loved this story.  Check it out when it come out in July 2012.

The Cardturner: A Novel About Imperfect Partners and Infinite Possibilities

I have always enjoyed Louis Sachar's books.  This one is no exception.  The main character, Alton, has a rich great uncle who is on the verge of dying.  His mother pushes him to be super nice and be his card turner in bridge in hopes he will remember their family in his will.  Alton has no interest in inheriting.  He has just been dumped by his girlfriend and he's just going through the motions.  He reluctantly agrees to do the job.  He is surprised about what he learns about life through the game of bridge and his uncle. 

I loved the humor and the sweetness of this story.  It's not an omelet but it is definitely a scrambled eggs kind of book.  What I didn't like was the parts about the game of bridge.  Thankfully, Sachar says that you can skip to the summarized last paragraph of that section and you will get the gist.  It was clean and fun.  Give it to a person who is a fan of Jordan Sonnenblick or Jerry Spinelli, even Gordon Korman.  I would recommend for 7th grade and up.

Ruby Red by Kerstin Gier

The rich ruby cover of the novel, Ruby Red by Kerstin Gier, is enticing enough for any reader to want to pick it up.  The story is what will keep the reader involved.  I read the premise of the book, Gweneth inherited the gene to time travel instead of her stuck up cousin.  Her cousin had been prepared to be the female half of the time traveling duo, not Gweneth.  But things change when she starts having dizzy spells and time traveling.  She has to get the cliff notes version that her cousin has had 16 years to learn and her traveling companion is a stuck up hottie named Gideon.  There mission is to close the circle, but someone or something is trying to stop them.  Find out what happens in this first book in the trilogy.

I LOVED it!  Seriously, I read it in a day.  I would give it an omelet rating and it is totally appropriate for a middle schooler.  There was paranormal, intrigue, romance, adventure all rolled into one.  Gweneth is a fun, three-dimensional main character.  I highly recommend Ruby Red and am jonesing for the sequel out in October 2012

Pandemonium by Lauren Oliver

Let me start off that I loved Delirium and I was eagerly awaiting this second book in the series.  But, like many trilogies, the second book wasn't as satisfying, in my opinion.  I really was disappointed and confused.  It alternates between "Then" and "Now"...so it didn't really start at the ending of Delirium.  It took me several chapters to understand the sequence.  I honestly kept putting it down as a result.  So, the main character has escaped from the society.  She's helped by a group on the outside who is infiltrating the society to help bring it down (like freedom fighters)...she, being the girl she is keeps the boy she loves alive in her heart, and has joined the cause to help bring down the society.  She has a fake id and is investigating a youth group that rallies in support of the operation that gets rid of the delirium.  Of course she meets a new boy and finds love with him. 

The action scenes did keep the novel well paced.  However, the alternating between the then and now totally threw me off.  I give this novel fried eggs.  It was okay; it wasn't as great as Delirium.  I'm hoping the trilogy will end better.  It is also a high school book...there are much mature themes including mild sexual content.

Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs

I am a huge chicken...I REALLY was nervous about reading this book, especially if you catch the book trailer.  But it was one of the most unique books I have ever read.  I was so thankful, first of all, that it wasn't a dystopian novel.  It's a fantastic mystery with a supernatural twist (with no vampires!)...It really was action pack and unpredictable.  I never saw any of it coming.  Jacob's grandfather told him stories about his childhood.  These weren't any stories but very incredible and almost creepy stories about his grandfather's friends having special abilities and living in a special place during World War II.  Then Jacob witnesses his grandfather's murder, he realizes that he needs to go to this place in order to find out why it happened. 

This is a total omelet book.  I think it is appropriate for 6th grade and up.  It has a lot of action and it is a little creepy but not nightmarish.

Divergent by Veronica Roth

Being a Texas middle school librarian, I wanted to check out one of the books on the Lone Star list.  I had heard great things about it and I again totally agreed with the committee on this one, even though it is a little more 8th grade and up in my opinion.  Divergent is another one of the dystopian novels that have hit the scene.  It, like Legend by Marie Lu, are in the same class as Hunger Games but incredibly different.  In this dystopian society, there are four factions that you can belong to...you take a test and based on those you choose your faction, whether it is the one you grew up in or a completely different one.  When you choose, then it's an initiation period.  Triss (formerly known as Beatrice) finds herself in a unique and dangerous position...she is divergent which means she doesn't fit neatly into one of those factions but she chooses the faction that is opposite from her upbringing.  What she finds is that the factions really aren't coexisting peacefully as intended and that there is rebellion on the horizon.  Being divergent is extremely dangerous.

I LOVED the action.  This was another book that I couldn't put down.  The characters, especially Triss and Four are believable.  It is truly not predictable.  It is the first in a trilogy.  I would give this book an omelet rating!  However, I feel it is more appropriate for 8th grade & up due to the violence and the more mature content (an attempted rape, not graphic, it is inferred but still)...I can't wait until the next book!