Your Food is Fooling You by David Kessler

This food was grossly fascinating to me. It is considered a Young Adult adaptation of The End of Overeating. It basically reveals how food companies and restaurants design food to make it so irresistible that we cannot stop eating it. The addictive combination of sugar, salt, and fat retrain our brains so that we are driven to crave these foods, yet never feel satisfied after eating them. The most disgusting part was when the author talked about additives called “binders” that are put into processed food to make it “dissolve” in our mouths and easy to swallow. These additives make us eat more, crave more, want more, and buy more. I could not tear myself away—it was like reading a real-life horror movie. I recommend this book to readers who like informational books about nutrition, our food supply, and perhaps even conspiracy theories. I give this book 5 out of 5 stars—all food is definitely not created equal.

We Were Here by Matt de la Pena

Thanks to a fabulous recommendation by a colleague (shout-out, PTB), I learned about Matt de la Pena’s work. This is the kind of book that you keep thinking about after you have finished it. The characters seem so real and are incredibly well-crafted and developed. Once I got into this book, it completely pulled me under and I didn’t come up for air until the very end. The main character, Miguel, is traveling down the California coast to Mexico after breaking out of a juvie group home with unlikely companions Mong and Rondell Law (I find it funny that his last name is Law, but he is in juvie for getting in trouble with the law and really follows his own law). The story follows Miguel’s journey and adventures while he comes to terms with his past. Give this book to hesitant male readers, especially (but not limited to), boys with Latino heritage, and start them off with some read alouds. I recommend this book to readers who like stories about adventure, friendship, and family/brothers. I give this book 5 out of 5 stars—for the right reader, this book could be life-changing.

Bluefish by Pat Schmatz

This is the start of my Teen Lit Con book binge. In preparation for TLC Twin Cities, I’ve tried to read as many featured authors as possible. Not only is this book a fantastic, well-written young adult book—it should be required reading for every teacher. Travis thinks of himself as a “bluefish,” the dumb-looking blue fish from Suess’s One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Blue Fish book. Both of Travis’s parents are dead and he lives with his alcoholic grandpa. As if things weren’t bad enough, Travis’s dog runs away and he has to move to a new town—and away from the woods he’s known most of his life. At his new school, he meets Velveeta, who is facing loss of her own. Travis and Velveeta become friends and begin to help each other survive daily life in high school, but each is keeping their own secrets. Through their friendship and with a little kindness from observant adults, Travis and Velveeta find their way. I recommend this book to readers who like to read about lost parents, death/grieving, alcoholism, school struggles, and friendship. I give this book 5 out of 5 stars—Travis and Velveeta are characters you want to cheer for and find out all of their secrets.