I have read or heard a couple of really good books lately. I read The Perks of Being a Wallflower by Chbosky. It is an honest and fair portrayal of teenage life and the author does not apologize for the presence of abortion, drugs and drinking which really are a part of most of our youth’s life. This is the book students should be reading instead of Catcher in the Rye, which is considered a classic, no longer represents a situation most of our students can relate to. The Baby Boomers need to give it up. I would recommend this book to any students mature enough for the subject matter, probably at least a junior or senior high school student.

I also finished listening to Oryx and Crake by Margaret Atwood. Once again she has written an engaging book that makes the reader or listener really think. Atwood has the uncanny ability to use current events and trends and take them one step further to what could easily be the future. This is another hit for her. This book is for adults, though some mature students might enjoy it as well.

I listened to Artemis Fowl by Eoin Colfer. It was an ok story, but I will not read the next two books in the series. It is a best seller, though I am not sure why. The writing is mediocre and filled with references to a specific type of computer. I wonder how much the author got paid for those subliminal ads. I would not recommend this books to adults and while the reading level may be at an older level, the story itself can best be enjoyed by children at grade levels 4-7 who will find some of the humor right up their alley.

Last year I joined Audible.com. I pay a monthly subscription of $19.95 and can choose two audibooks each month. The price is right and they have a very wide selection books, including recently released books.
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