Your Own Worst Enemy by Gordon Jack

During a student body election that goes completely off the rails, all three candidates end up in the principal's office on election day.

Who are the candidates? Stacey has wanted to be the president for her whole high school career. She has been involved in student government and many clubs. A few weeks before the election, she is running unopposed.

Julia is new to school having just moved from Canada to live with her aunt. Her features make some think she is a Latina, but even she's not sure. Her mom is white, but she never knew her dad. Mom thinks Julia should be an individual and not worry about racial identity.

Tony only wants to hang out his parent's mansion (they travel a lot) and get high. School is of no interest. He is talked into running for president by a mo-hawk wearing freshman. Tony's platform is all about getting his favorite chocolate milk back in the cafeteria.

And then there's Brian, Stacey's best friend and election confidante, who falls for Julia the first time he sees her. His life is not complicated at all: friend to one candidate and hopeful boyfriend to another. Another force in the whole election is Kyle, Brian's little brother, who will do whatever he can to make Brian's life miserable. Oh ya, Kyle has a mo-hawk.

Even school politics can be messy. And when the stakes are high, even the most respectable student can dirty. For the reader, it's all fun and worth the time.

For more info, check out the Indianapolis Public Library catalog and the author's site.

All the Crooked Saints by Maggie Stiefvater

It's been a while since I read this. I am finding it difficult to describe. I really enjoyed it, but is so different from what I normally read. About 40 pages in, I almost stopped reading it. It was just a little too odd. I liked the author's language and unusual descriptions enough to keep going. And I am glad that I did.

Miracles happen. In this small Colorado town, they really do. So much so that people come from all over to have miracles performed for them. What they don't know is that they must finish the miracle themselves or forever be stuck in some in between state. For example, one lady is in a perpetual state of being rained upon. Wherever she goes, whatever she does she has a rain cloud over her head.

The miracles are performed by one chosen member of the community. Once the miracle is performed, the members of the community must never talk to (or show concern for) the ones in limbo or they might find themselves stuck as well.

So that's just the basic explanation. There is a lot going on in this book. But the narrative is driven by two strangers who come to the small village. One looking for a miracle and one just looking for a truck he was told he could get. Someone showing up who is not looking for a miracle never happens, and it creates changes in ways no one could have foreseen.

This is an incredible book with a setting, characters and story I could come up with on my own. Really amazing.

For more info, check out the Indianapolis Public Library catalog and the author's site.

Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe by Benjamin Alire Saenz

This has been on my radar for quite some time. I heard about it at a couple of conferences I attended, but didn't think much about it. Fortunately, a young person at my library recommended it to me, and I cannot wait to tell her how much I liked it.

Once again I found myself in the pages of a book. Ari, our narrator, says things that I have thought in my own head (and even said out loud to a few people). I always pause when I hit one of those lines. It is a moment of clarity and wonder. I am always surprised that others have felt the same way that I have. But enough about me...

Ari doesn't have any friends until he meets Dante. And he questions their friendship often (for a long time). Dante is so different. He seems so sure of things and thinks about life a unique way. Dante's father is a professor; his mother a therapist. They are outgoing and friendly. Ari's dad doesn't say much; he was in Vietnam and never talks about it. His mom is a teacher and more open with Ari, but she, too, keeps things locked inside. Neither talk about Ari's older brother who is in prison.

Ari wants nothing more than to know about his brother. He was just a child when his brother was incarcerated, so he has only possible memories of him. Ari wants someone to at least acknowledge that his brother exists.

With Dante, Ari's life is more interesting and frustrating at times. They are both growing and learning about themselves as tragedies happen and events separate them.

If it seems like I am being purposely vague, that would be because I am. I don't want to give anything away in this amazing story about these boys and their complex relationship with each other and their parents.

Books fascinate me. If you read enough and you are lucky, you might find one that speaks to you on levels you never could have imagined. This is one of those books for me.

For more info, check out the Indianapolis Public Library catalog.