Book Review: Beneath a Meth Moon, by Jacqueline Woodson @JackieWoodson

With sparse, lyrical prose, Beneath a Meth Moon describes a teen's fall to the depths of addiction, and we see her begin to pull herself up again.

After Laurel's mother and grandmother are killed during a hurricane, Laurel, her father, and her baby brother Jesse move to the Midwest for her father's new job. Laurel makes friends, joins the cheerleading team and seems to be handling her grief, until she meets T-Boom and he offers her something that will make all her problems go away.

For a while, the meth, or "moon" as Laurel calls it, does make her happy. She always has energy and feels great. She's in love with T-Boom and things couldn't be better. But, it doesn't stay that way.

We see the entire story from Laurel's point of view. She tells some of the details in flashbacks, which makes the story more interesting. She loves to write, and her narration is colorful and beautiful. Even her descriptions of being high are beautiful.

Laurel's relationship with Moses, who she meets as she is living on the streets, develops slowly and realistically. This isn't a romance, but Moses turns out to be one of the people who care the most about Laurel.

Nothing is sugar coated. The fact that this is a difficult habit to kick is realistically depicted. I hurt for Laurel, but I hurt more for her family -- especially her cute little brother, who couldn't really understand what was happening.

Beneath a Meth Moon is powerful. There isn't an extra word -- it's a quick read, but all the emotions are there. Woodson is unique in her use of the first person narrative, and it makes her books so easy to read and relate to. I will recommend Beneath a Meth Moon to my readers who enjoy reading about "teen issues" -- as I have done with all Woodson's books.

Published by Nancy Paulsen Books, February 2, 2012
Copy obtained from the library
192 pages (qualifies for my Books You Can Read in a Day Challenge!)

Rating: 4/5

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Book Review: Choke, by Diana Lopez

Choke, while examining an important issue, is slow-paced enough that I'm not sure it will hold the attention of the middle schoolers at which it is aimed.

Windy, our narrator, and Elena are best friends. They aren't in the popular crowd, but they are "GP," which stands for "General Public." A new girl, Nina, starts attending their middle school and befriends Windy and Elena and helps to fend off the bulling they endure from the popular girls.

At first it seems Nina is the perfect friend, but slowly, she begins to separate Windy from Elena. She also wants Windy to become her "breath sister." Windy has no idea what this means, but she soon finds out.

What unfolds is completely predictable, and unfortunately, Choke comes off a little preachy. There is never any doubt why Choke was written. Also, there is much back story and very little action, so it's hard to be invested. The tense and dangerous choking game doesn't even occur for the first time until page 93 (ARC has 230 pages) and really only happens one other time in the book.

Not that I think there needs to be a lot of disturbing violence in a book, but there needs to be something interesting going on besides Windy secretly adopting a cat and her visits to her friend, Mrs. Vargas, at the old folks home. There is a somewhat interesting middle school dynamic -- liking boys, shopping, striving to be popular -- but it comes off very cliché. The writing is simple and easy, which bothered me, but is appropriate for the target group.

I understand Lopez' motivation for writing Choke. Hopefully those who read Choke will find the ending disturbing enough that they will never consider participating in this activity. There definitely needs to be more books that expose our young kids to the hazards of this "game." I just don't know if Choke will have wide appeal to middle school students.

Published by Scholastic Press, July 1, 2012
ARC obtained from the publisher
230 pages (qualifies for my Books You Can Read in a Day Challenge!)

Rating: 2.5/5

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