Elizabeth Scott: Living Dead Girl

This is marketed as a "YA" book, but I am not sure in any capacity what teen I could recommend this to. I am SUPER liberal, but this text's entire plot is sickening. "Alice" is basically a sex slave who realizes she is just a shell after the abuse she endures from Ray, her captor. While the text is a new topic as a focus, thinking about the five years Alice suffered with no one to help her, no means of escape, and the horrific damage it did to her soul and body (now that Ray is starving her to keep her 15 year old body child-like) makes me ill. While the reader is left with a miniscule amount of hope, and "Alice" is a survivor, overall I am still questioning who I could envision enjoying this text. And I work with some super-rough students. I applaud Scott for not being too graphic with the details to warrant immunity from the horrors, but enough is left to the imagination to sicken most readers.

Ann Dee Ellis: This is What I Did

Logan experiences and endures constant torment. The reader's heart aches as the torment increases and the trauma Logan witnessed is slowly revealed. It is written in an interesting format with little wingdings that divide the very short sections. This is a very quick read, but also a very sad read.

Julius Lester: Guardian

Lynching from the perspective of a white boy who sees the truth but is powerless to stand up for it. VERY sad, but really well-written. Informational material and the author's note are really awesome too.