The Trouble With Half A Moon by Danette Vigilante

Thirteen year old Dellie lives with the guilt that her little brother's death was her fault. Her mother cries all the time and because she wants Dellie to stay safe, she keeps her inside as much as she can. It doesn't matter that Dellie longs to go outside to be like other girls or that there's a boy she likes and he likes her too. All that matters to her mother is that she's safe at home. So, Dellie has no choice but to watch the world of her housing project through her second story window. 

Things start to change soon after new neighbors move in on the first floor. Trouble like this has never happened in Dellie's building before. Now there are men fighting on the stoop, gunshots echoing through the night and Corey, a hungry and abused five year old boy knocking on her door looking for something to eat. Corey reminds Dellie of her brother and even though their friendship is dangerous, she wonders if this time, she'll be able to do what needs to be done. Will she be able to save Corey?

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Despite its heavy topics of grief, loss, and urban life in the streets of Brooklyn’s Projects, Vigilante leaves plenty of room for development and discovery as she weaves a light, but impelling coming-of-age story.

Although Dellie’s situations are mainly impacted from her sometimes gritty surroundings, middle graders will connect with Dellie as she comes to peace with the death of her little brother and, as she experiences the many new things that also come with growing older. Through a simple yet thought-provoking dialogue, this debut author expresses what it feels like to loose the ones you love and to remember to have faith, even if we only see half of what is really there.

This is why I love (and enjoy) reading middle grade books so much. You get a wonderful in-depth and complex story in less than 200 pages yet still manage take away just as much from it as a YA or adult novel. I also liked the fact that Delli’s environment, race, and age didn’t overpower one or the other and were all presented equally throughout the book. Many times authors let only one of these details play the dominate role in showcasing their story. The Trouble With Half a Moon however, lets you flow with a variety of characters as Vigilante shows bits and pieces of Dellie’s neighborhood without loosing sight of the true message of the story. Overall, excellent writing and a great, enjoyable book for preteens.

Recommendation: Highly recommend. Even though it might be marketed towards young adults, I think middle graders would enjoy it much more. This would also be a very nice addition to a classroom library. Lots of good discussion topics! Ages 11+

Content: PG for some violence. More details!

The Last Straw: A quote from pg. 70

She [Miss Shirley] walks over to the moon and uses her fingers to trace where the other half should be. "Just because we cannot see this half of the moon doesn't mean it's not there," she says, studying me. "You have to believe it's there. Faith young one," she says...

|Pages: 178|Published: Jan. 2011|Publisher: G.P. Putnam's Sons|

|Genre: Contemporary fiction, coming-of-age, family drama, friendship, loss, grief|

|Content: PG|Age Group: Middle grade/YA ages 11+|Price: $16.99|

|Enjoyed It: 4/5|Content Rating: 5/5|Cover: 4/5|

|Overall: 5/5|

Dream Journal by Karen Halvorsen Schreck

Livy has survived the pain of losing her mother by shutting herself off from the rest of the world. She has alienated herself from her best friend, and her and her father live as strangers in the same house, barely speaking, and never allowing themselves to share the grief that is tearing each of them apart. But when Livy gets swept up in a strong but ill-fated crush, and her mother's condition worsens, she must learn to trust not only those around her, but herself.

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Dream Journal is a emotional story of how people deal with grief. The story opens as Livy, our main character, recounts her dream in the journal her mother gave her. Although Livy’s mother is in critical condition and is very close to dying, Livy’s dad swears her to secrecy so that no one will know the the pain Moore’s are going through. People deal with loss and grief in a variety of different ways, it just so happens, Livy’s father’s way of dealing with her mother’s cancer is by acting like everything is fine. As for Livy, she hides. She hides from her mother, her father, and her best friend. Eventually, Ruth, Livy’s best friend, looses interest in Livy leaving her alone with a group of trouble-making seniors she barely even knows. 
Even though Dream Journal is a well written sad story of loss and goodbyes, it was not a very enjoyable book. First off, I began to immediately dislike Ruth for abandoning Livy in her time of need–Ruth was suddenly too busy chasing boys and getting into trouble. Livy also started associating with a group of party-hardy teenagers who jeopardize their chances of escaping small-town life with a thought-to-be harmless prank. To me, Livy’s personality was numb like the pain she was feeling, so naturally the book is pretty depressing. I cried–which I rarely ever do–and I had bad dreams while reading it. The ending of Dream Journal was predictable, as was Ruth’s misfortune. 

Recommendation: While it was a very dramatic and a painfully honest story, I don’t feel like Dream Journal is a “enjoyable” book to read; of course it probably wasn’t mean to be. Because I feel only so-so about this book–mainly because I don’t like depressing plots or themes–I can only recommend to older teens who can relate to the loss, grief, and confusion Livy goes through. If you don’t like this kind of theme, don’t read. I wouldn’t purchase this book either because you probably won’t want to read it again.For ages 16+.


This Book is For: Teens who can relate to Livy's loss, grief, and confusion.
This Book is Not For: Teens who don't like depressing stories/themes of loss


Content: Sexual references, some language, dramatic elements, and teen drinking (PG-13)


|Pages: 256|Published: 2006|Publisher: Hyperion|Price: Soft. $8.99|
|Genre: Loss, grief, drama, contemporary fiction|
|Content: PG-13|Age Group: YA, ages 16+|
|Enjoyed It: 2/5|Content Rating: 2/5|Cover: 4/5|
|Overall: 2/5|

The Way He Lived by Emily Wing Smith

Joel Espen could never be who he really was in the small town of Haven. Still, there was always something different about him. Sixteen  years old. Green eyes that could see right into your heart. A selfless need to save people. Even the way he died reflected the way he lived: helping others. But how are you supposed to just go on living like normal after suddenly losing your brother.... your best friend.... your first love? As the six teens who were closest to Joel try to find the meaning behind his death, they begin to realize that tragedy can sometimes set you free--by revealing who you truly are.

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I'm not really sure what to think of this book exactly. I can't really say I enjoyed it very much frankly because I am still trying to figure out what the point of the story was. Sure Joel's death did change some of people in the book, but there wasn't enough of plot to make the story very meaningful.
There are six different parts to the book in which six different characters talk about their lives before and after Joel's death. I think my favorite characters were Tabbatha and maybe Claire. Of course, those were the two characters who changed the most because they were Joel's sisters. The other characters were friends who knew Joel and their stories really didn't get anywhere. I guess--what it comes down to is that the book was just a collection of fictional memoirs about grief and a boy named Joel.
Like I said before, I am not 100% sure what I think about The Way He Lived other than it was pointless in way; what I do feel good about is the cover. Simple, sweet, and sad (Flux always does a great job). Another thing that kinda of bothered me was that I kept getting the impression that Joel was gay but he wasn't. Anyway, if you think you want to read this, be my guest you might like it, but to me it is not an absolute must-read.

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|Pages: 222|Year Published: 2008|Publisher: Flux|

|Genre: Contemporary fiction, grief|
|Age Group: YA, ages 13+||Buy or Borrow? Borrow|
|Content: Some language, sexuality, references to Mormonism|
|Enjoyed It: 3/5|Content Rating: 4/5|Cover: 4/5|
|Overall|