Breakfast Served Anytime by Sarah Combs

Gloria Bishop doesn't know what to expect when she heads off to the summer camp she has labeled Geek Camp. The University of Kentucky provides summer camp scholarships to the brightest Kentucky high school seniors to convince them to spend their college years at UK. Intrigued by the lack of description and the requirement to leave all technology home, Gloria signs up for the course titled Secrets of the Written Word. What follows is a magical summer of self-discovery and unexpected friendships. Gloria learns about herself, her state, and the world, but her most important lessons come from the people she meets. Initially skeptical about her roommates and fellow classmates, Gloria comes to appreciate their different opinions and unique personalities.

The writing in Breakfast Served Anytime is lovely and the characters are captivating. Gloria and her Geek Camp friends cover a wide spectrum of personalities and world views with plenty of humor and witty dialogue. I especially enjoyed their camp experience because it mirrored much of my wonderful freshman year of college-on my own, living with new and interesting people, and learning new ways to look at the world. Breakfast Served Anytime captures that joy of learning and building new relationships as students expand their world and learn to value differences.

Recommended ages-14 and up

Drink Slay Love by Sarah Beth Durst

Pearl is faced with a difficult responsibility for a young vampire. The New England Vampire King is coming for a Fealty Ceremony and Pearl's Family must provide the celebration as well as the feast. When Pearl is stabbed by a unicorn and develops the ability to withstand sunlight, her Family sends her to high school on a hunt. Pearl needs to find human victims for the vampires' feast. The problem? Along with a resistance to sunlight, Pearl develops a conscience and feels guilty about turning her new friends into dinner for her Family.

I enjoy a well-written parody and Drink, Slay, Love manages to subtly mock the Twilight series as well as Eat, Pray, Love . In a paranormal way, Pearl's life changing experience follows the same pattern as Elizabeth Gilbert from self-indulgent to conscience ridden to finally helping others. However, with the witty dialogue, the vampire-riddled conflict, and the wonderful humor, Drink, Slay, Love provides better reading than either of its parodied novels. The story starts slowly, but characterization and plot twists quickly draw readers into a light, contemporary fantasy. There is just the right amount of romance, adventure, and teen angst to entertain while remaining appropriate for all teen ages.

Recommended ages-13 and up

Who Was Series by Various Authors

The Who Was Series provides biographies of interesting people in history targeted for elementary grade readers. The larger print, short chapters, and frequent illustrations keep the interest of young readers transitioning from easy readers. The books also include educational highlights that teach about important historical events. At the back of the books, writers include a timeline of the famous person's life placed next to a timeline of major world events occurring at the same time. For students doing research, there is also a bibliography pointing readers to other books and information about the person's life.

The Who Was Series highlights figures from early history through modern times. They feature over fifty famous people, and the number of Who Was books grows all the time. I read Who Was Mozart, Who Was Ben Franklin, Who Was Anne Frank, Who Was Roald Dahl, Who Was Davie Crockett, and Who Is Neil Armstrong , but didn't even put a dent in the books at my library. The books cover people of all ages, times, and interest areas. The Who Was Series is a valuable resource for introducing young readers to famous people throughout time.

Recommended ages--7-10 years old