car accidents

Looking for Alaska

By John Green
Star Rating
★★★★

Rated by Becky C.
Jan 24, 2014

John Green writes novels for young adults, but you don't have to be young to enjoy them.  I'm forty-three, and he's one of my favorite contemporary authors.  I became a fan of Green not by reading his books but by watching videos on his amazing YouTube channels CrashCourseMental Floss, and Vlogbrothers.  I thought I was too sophisticated and mature to read a young-adult novel, but I love Green so much I gave him a shot.  Most fans of John Green that I know love his book The Fault in Our Stars the best, but my favorite John Green novel is Looking for Alaska.  It’s the story of a 16-year-old

The Rest of Her Life

By Laura Moriarty
Star Rating
★★★★

Rated by Becky C.
Jun 16, 2010

Before heading straight to the self-help books when you come to the library looking for psychological insight, be aware that reading fiction can also have strong therapeutic benefits. One example to check out is Laura Moriarty’s The Rest of Her Life. Moriarty received a degree in social work from KU, which is excellent training for the themes she explores in her novel: social status and crime, parent/child relationships, and cyclical family dynamics. Moriarty’s prose is not clinical or didactic but flows as well as any good storyteller’s. Protagonist Leigh Churchill is a junior high English