Nobody Owens, known to his friends as Bod, is a normal boy.

He would be completely normal if he didn't live in a sprawling graveyard, being raised and educated by ghosts, with a solitary guardian who belongs to neither the world of the living nor of the dead.

There are dangers and adventures in the graveyard for a boy-an ancient Indigo Man beneath the hill, a gateway to a desert leading to an abandoned city of ghouls, the strange and terrible menace of the Sleer.

But if Bod leaves the graveyard, then he will come under attack from the man Jack—who has already killed Bod's family. . . .

Wednesday, September 5, 1973: The first day of Karl Shoemaker’s senior year in stifling Lightsburg, Ohio. For years, Karl’s been part of what he calls “the Madman Underground”—a group of kids forced (for no apparent reason) to attend group therapy during school hours. Karl has decided that senior year is going to be different. He is going to get out of the Madman Underground for good. He is going to act—and be—Normal. But Normal, of course, is relative. Karl has five after-school jobs, one dead father, one seriously unhinged drunk mother . . . and a huge attitude. Welcome to a gritty, uncensored rollercoaster ride, narrated by the singular Karl Shoemaker.

Book of Stuart, Chapter 1:10.  

10 And, yea verily, Stuart did commit the Sin of Onan in the shower. And this was witnessed by his own brother who did cry out unto their mother. And there was much wailing and gnashing of teeth.
11 And the townspeople rose up against him and all Onaners, calling upon one another to tear the youthful sinners limb from unclean limb. And there was much pants wetting.
12 And lo, Stuart did join forces with the demon, Fon Pyre, and together they did set forth to discover the cause of the town's trouble.
13 And, hark! A pair of fallen angels would plant seeds of hatred unto the townspeople. And on the seventh day, Stuart did vow to rip the fallen angels a new one and layeth upon them an epic smacketh-down.

Very funny.

Think your day sucks?  Cameron is 16 and just diagnosed with Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (Mad Cow disease), he's going to die.  But that's no reason not to embark on a road trip, guided by an angel, with a dwarf and a garden gnome.  A wild adventure through the South in search of a cure (and to save the planet from the fire giants), meeting parallel universe hopping physicists, a crazed MTV-like network reality show and a avoiding a smoothie chugging happiness cult.  What's not to love?

An adventure to be sure, and a reminder of what's really important.

~Mary

Welcome to Elsewhere. It is warm, with a breeze, and the beaches are marvelous. It’s quiet and peaceful. You can’t get sick or any older. Curious to see new paintings by Picasso? Swing by one of Elsewhere’s museums. Need to talk to someone about your problems? Stop by Marilyn Monroe’s psychiatric practice.      Elsewhere is where fifteen-year-old Liz Hall ends up, after she has died. It is a place so like Earth, yet completely different. Here Liz will age backward from the day of her death until she becomes a baby again and returns to Earth. But Liz wants to turn sixteen, not fourteen again. She wants to get her driver’s license. She wants to graduate from high school and go to college. And now that she’s dead, Liz is being forced to live a life she doesn’t want with a grandmother she has only just met. And it is not going well. How can Liz let go of the only life she has ever known and embrace a new one? Is it possible that a life lived in reverse is no different from a life lived forward?      This moving, often funny book about grief, death, and loss will stay with the reader long after the last page is turned.

Darren Shan and his two schoolmates are excited when their friend Steve comes across a flyer advertising the Cirque Du Freak. The boys pool their money but can only purchase two tickets, so they play a game of chance to see who will go with Steve. Darren closes his eyes, and almost as if by magic, the ticket floats into his hand. Darren and Steve are mesmerized by the fantastic and disturbing show, but when they get caught up in a deadly trap Darren must make a deal with the only person who can save him. And that person is not human and only deals in blood. . . .

~Mary

Beverly Donofrio portrays a world of babies having babies and children raising children. She acknowledges right away that she's not a conventional mother, that she and her son Jason don't have a traditional home life. She was seventeen when Jason was born and they spent eight of the next ten years on welfare. A spunky, spirited woman with a defiant streak, she wages a constant struggle with herself: is Jason an anchor pulling her down or does he provide ballast? At times he seems to grow in spite of her. Her love for him isn't in question, but will she ever be able to comprehend his needs? Motherhood is never easy, but hers was made more difficult by a society ready to cast judgment on young, single mothers, by a family who finds it easier to criticize than support her, and her own struggle to reach a long held dream of a college education. As Beverly's sense of self increases and she realizes her goals, Jason challenges and contributes to her understanding of life and their growth together.