"Better Nate Than Ever" Book Review

Better Nate Than Ever by Tim Federle
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This book was adorable and definitely fits into the "follow your dreams" theme while still standing out for its own merit. Nate is a thirteen year old who is a self proclaimed theater kid, obsessed with musicals, stage dancing, and even costume planning, all of which are sufficient reasons for his constant bullying at school and negligence at home. So, what does a tween oppressed by his surroundings do to pursue his goal of starring in a Broadway musical?? Run away to New York of course!

Read by the author, this audiobook was witty, entertaining and touching all at the same time, "Better Nate Than Ever" comes at a good time in which LGBT themes are slowly becoming popular and needed to be read more. I can't wait to share this with students who can relate to Nate, especially the ones who sing, dance, and just enjoy being themselves.

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"Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe" Book Review

Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe by Benjamin Alire Sáenz
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This was a refreshing read into the psyche of young adults who are coming of age and struggling to figure out how the world works and what is expected of them. Aristotle (Ari for short) and Dante are two young Mexican American teenagers who, through course of events find themselves forming a relationship.... as a reader, once I found out that Dante really (really!) liked Ari, I was rooting for them the entire time.

Related to an earlier book club discussion, I was impressed with the presence of the parental figures that are within the book. Often you find parents in YA literature to be more in the background while the teen "does their thing", but that isn't realistic. Parents influence their children in many ways and their presence needs to be accounted for in YA lit more often.

The writing style was also very interesting and I found that the shortened, two page chapters were also more realistic. As a teen, I only had a couple of pages written in my diary before a friend called to bug me or worse (!), my sister needed something. I felt like I could really connect with this style.

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