Gossip Girl

Title: Gossip Girl

Author: Cecily von Ziegesar

ISBN: 1-58621-570-1

Recommended Grade Level of User: 9th to 12th

Media Type: Audiobook, Compact Disc (CD)

Copyright:  2003

Audiobook Publisher: Time Warner

Narrator: Christina Ricci

Duration: 2 Hours (2 CDs)

Genre: Fiction

Reader's Annotation: Just when Blair stopped living in her shadow, Serena gets kicked out of boarding school and must return to Blair's private school in Manhattan. Things are about to get interesting.

Plot Summary: This audiobook revolves around the lives of a group of teenagers living in New York City. The two female protagonists, Blair and Serena, are ex-best friends. Serena has just come back to her old private school in Manhattan after traveling and getting kicked out of boarding school. While Serena was away, Blair was able to thrive in the spotlight, so she is not pleased with beautiful, popular Serena’s return. Gossip Girl details the story behind Blair and Serena’s falling out, the gossip surrounding Serena’s return, and drama about the boys in their lives (especially Blair’s boyfriend and Serena’s one-time fling, Nate).

Evaluation: (A)  While many will never have the means to live luxurious, comfortable lives like these teenagers, the plot line is reminiscent of high school drama experienced by many real life teenagers.  The realistic sequence of events is sure to draw in listeners as it would at any high school or in any circle of friends.  Hence, the plot and the drama are believable. Additionally, the narration by Christina Ricci is not distracting or over-dramatic and provides for a pleasant listening experience.    

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I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings

Title: I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings
Author: Maya Angelou
ISBN: 0-553-380001-X
Recommended Grade Level of Reader: 10th and Up
Publisher: Bantam Books
Media Type: Book
Copyright: 1970
Genre: Memoir

Reader's Annotation: An autobiographical account of a New York Times Best Selling author and world renowned poet. Maya Angelou's humor and sincerity reveals what is truly in the heart of a woman.

Plot Summary: I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings is an autobiographical tale of Maya Angelou’s childhood beginning in Stamps, Arkansas through her late adolescence in San Francisco, California. Living in the south as an African American girl, Angelou experiences prejudice, racism, and intolerance. Angelou’s grandmother, with whom Angelou is living and being raised by, serves as a strong role-model for the young girl. She later goes on to live with her mother on the west coast.

Evaluation: (A+) In true Maya Angelou fashion, Caged Bird is written with eloquence and emotion. The author writes with a unique ability for description that allows the reader to see and hear the characters in Angelou's memoir. One can't help to feel as if he or she knows Momma, Vivian Baxter, and Maya Angelou herself. While not always serious and straight faced, Angelou interjects humor in her narrative. It is Angelou's humor that helps to ease the pain and horror of the seemingly humorless events she faced.  This is a good book to show teens that despite social class, race, ethnicity, or sex, people can live up to their full potential and accomplish goals they set out to achieve.    

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• My Life: Memoirs for Teens

The Bell Jar

Title: The Bell Jar

Author: Sylvia Plath

ISBN: 978-0-061-14851-4

Recommended Grade Level of Reader: 9th and Up

Publisher: Harper Perennial

Media Type: Book

Copyright: 1963

Genre: Fiction

Reader's Annotation: Internships, careers, motherhood? Sometimes life can be a little overwhelming.

Plot Summary: The Bell Jar, a classic fictional novel supposedly based on the author’s life, is set on the East Coast during the 1950s. Esther, the female protagonist, is a college student on break for the summer. She beings a writing internship at a magazine in New York. Unconfident about her skills and conflicted about having a career or pursuing something more in line with traditional female gender roles like motherhood, Esther shows signs of depression. A month later, Esther returns to Boston to stay the rest of the summer with her mother and becomes even more depressed. She attempts committing suicide and ends up in the psychiatric ward of a hospital. Events unfold during her lengthy stay in the hospital which is the focus of the remainder of the novel.

Evaluation: (A) This is a great story because it is incredibly realistic. While The Bell Jar may appear to be outdated, it includes themes that teenagers today will be able to relate to. Esther has feelings of insecurity and this insecurity consumes her thoughts at many points throughout the novel. Many young adults will be able to identify with her anxiety as high school aged students are at the prime years to be questioning one’s identity and talents. Similarly, Esther struggles with pursuing a writing career and being a mom or entering a feminized profession. While this issue was prevalent during the feminine revolution, teenagers today still debate the path that they should be taking. The Bell Jar would make a great addition to a young adult book list concerning mental illness, social issues, or classic novels.

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