Okay, this one’s for the girls. I came across the coolest website today while I was catching up on by Bloglines. ReaderGirlz http://www.readergirlz.com/issue.html is a visually interactive site with tons of suggestions for books and music. This month’s highlight includes a list of 31 Authors for Teens–one for every day of October. Very cool.

Okay, when I read The Penderwicks by Jeanne Birdsall, as much as I enjoyed the story, I couldn’t help but feel like it was my parent’s idea of what my childhood should have been. Very sweet and nice. Not that there’s anything wrong with that, but it certainly doesn’t reflect what I see when I glance back in the rear view mirror of my life. Much of my childhood was full of laughter and silliness. And I’m very thankful for that. But some of it (like middle school) was only nice–in hindsight. While I was in the moment it felt like one long, painful ride. And then I read Shug by Jenny Han. I was captured right from the moment Shug (short for Sugar) realizes she’s in love with her best friend—the boy next door. We spend the rest of the novel traveling with Shug as she tries to navigate the familiar land mines of middle school and struggles to identify friend and foe. Now that I remember. There was very little romantic about the realistic situations Shug finds herself in–except that we’ve probably all experienced something similar and can look back (somewhat) fondly. If you’re looking for a little sugar that’s not too sweet–than this timeless tale is for you. Happy reading!