(Image from Indiebound)

Wishing you nothing but smiles this holiday season.

(Image from Cynthia Lord's official website)

Knock before entering someone's bedroom.

Don't talk with your mouth full.

Take off your shoes when you come inside the house.

All families have rules. Catherine's does, too. Only they don't necessarily apply to her younger brother, David. He has his own rules to follow:

It's fine to hug Mom, but not the clerk at the video store.

Take your shoes off at the doctor, but at the dentist leave them on.

If someone is holding something you want, ask if you can have a turn.

Keep your pants on! Unless Mom, Dad, or the doctor tells you to take them off!

Most kids David's age just know what to do in these situations. Not David. His autism makes him act differently than other people, something Catherine knows better than anyone. She's seen him freak out over the tiniest issues, things a "normal" kid wouldn't even notice, let alone care about. She's watched his odd behavior attract stares, giggles and cruel teasing from other children. She's comforted him, defended him, tried to teach him about appropriate reactions. She's let him hog their parents' attention, sat patiently through hours of his therapy appointments and missed out on the kinds of trips and vacations kids with regular families go on all the time. Catherine wishes fervently that there were no such thing as autism. Sometimes, she even wishes there was no such thing as David.

When 12-year-old Kristi Peterson moves in next door, Catherine's thrilled. She's always wanted someone in the neighborhood her age to hang out with. It's clear, though, that Kristi's the type of girl who's destined to be popular; if Catherine wants to win her over as a BFF, she'll have to act fast. There's only one problem: David. How can she impress Kristi when he's always hanging around acting so ... different? Real friends understand, that's what Catherine's mother always says. But how can anyone get David? She doesn't even get David most of the time.

Catherine's surprised when she makes another new friend, this one even more unexpected than the last. Jason Morehouse is funny, friendly and seems to enjoy her company, but when Kristi suggests inviting him to the community dance, Catherine hesitates. What Kristi doesn't know is that Jason's confined to a wheelchair and he's only able to speak by pointing to words in his communication book. Catherine gets enough stares when she's with David - what will happen if she's seen with Jason?

Sorting through all the feelings that war in her heart - resentment toward her parents who always put David's needs before hers; guilt over her sometimes hateful feelings about her brother; embarrassment over her "irregular" family; and, most of all, shame for all her horrible thoughts - Catherine's forced to face grim truths about herself. Does she crave Kristi's friendship enough to betray her family? Her wheelchair-bound friend? How far will she go to get a normal life? And what's normal anyway?

As much as I love Cynthia Lord's sophomore novel (Touch Blue), it's her debut that really owns my heart. Rules is a rare kind of story, one that offers truth without bitterness, humor without mockery, and sweetness without sentimentality. Catherine's voice rings with such authenticity that her brother's disability becomes instantly personal and intensely relatable. It's impossible not to feel her heartbreak, not to root for her success. So comfortable is Lord in the world she's created for Catherine and David that their story flows along with a natural ease that just feels right. Middle grade books rarely touch me the way this one did, but Rules grabbed me from the first sentence and hasn't let go yet. If you only have time to squeeze in one more book this year, make it this one.

(Readalikes: Reminded me of Al Capone Does My Shirts and Al Capone Shines My Shoes by Gennifer Choldenko; also reminded me a little of Handle With Care by Jodi Picoult)

Grade: A

If this were a movie, it would be rated: PG for content more suited for kids over the age of 8

To the FTC, with love: Another library fine find

(Image from Indiebound)

Q. What speeds across the Earth at inhuman speeds, hears the thoughts of others and craves the taste of blood?

A. Not what you're thinking of.

Sixteen-year-old Ellie Faneuil has always been different from her classmates. Spending her summers working in impoverished countries with her Save-the-Earth obsessed parents has given her a wider world view, one that makes all the petty dramas of high school seem ridiculous. If she could just skip the whole scene and step right into college, she would. Unfortunately, she's stuck in Tillinghast, Maine, with uber-popular Piper Faires and the rest of her snotty crowd. To make matters worse, Ellie has the uncanny ability to see what people are thinking, just by touching them. She doesn't want to read her best friend's mind, let alone wander inside the heads of girls like Piper. The best she can do is stay clear of the Queen Bees and never, ever touch anyone.

When Ellie catches the eye of Michael Chase, the hot new guy at school, she feels an instant connection. Not only does he seek her out, ignoring gorgeous Piper and her friends, but he actually seems to care what she thinks. No doubt about it: Michael's different than the other boys. When Ellie finds out just how different he is, though, she's terrified. No human can do the things Michael can, so what is he, exactly? For that matter, what is she? Michael seems to have at least some of the answers, but his careless disregard for his "gifts" makes her wonder if she can trust him with her darkest secret.

As Ellie questions everything she's ever known to be true, she learns startling facts about herself, her family, and the boy that's suddenly consuming her every thought. Although the details are foggy, Ellie knows both she and Michael have important roles to play in the ultimate battle of good v. evil. The question is, what side are they on? Who's right in this ancient war of wills? Can Ellie figure out her place in the whole mess before it's too late? Or will the Angel of Destruction obliterate everything she knows and loves?

Fallen Angel by Heather Terrell (available December 28, 2010) is another one of those YA paranormals that offers an interesting premise, but fails to deliver. Big time. The problem here isn't the idea - which, although similar to Evermore by Alyson Noel with echoes of Cassandra Clare's The Mortal Instruments series, is unique enough to be compelling - it's the writing. All of the characters are flat as pancakes, starved of personality, individuality and charm. Since neither Ellie nor Michael are rounded enough to feel real, it's no surprise that the passion they supposedly feel for each other falls totally flat. Their dialogue is stilted, the love scenes cheesy, and the romance never gets the chance to build, it just suddenly is. Plotwise, the story meanders all over the place. It's so contrived in spots that Ellie's ability to fly becomes one of the only plot elements that feels real.
On the upside, the book is pretty clean. Well, it's clean in the way Twilight is clean, which is to say there are a number of make out scenes, but they're not graphic. There's also no profanity, no real sexual innuendo (besides the making out, of course), and only vague references to things like underrage drinking. This, coupled with some serious editing, probably would have equaled a decent book. If only.
(Readalikes: Reminded me a lot of Alyson Noel's Evermore, a little of The Hourglass Door by Lisa Mangum and a teensy bit of Cassandra Clare's The Mortal Instruments series.)
Grade: D
If this were a movie, it would be rated: PG-13 because of makeout scenes, although they aren't graphic
To the FTC, with love: I received an ARC of Fallen Angel from the generous folks at HarperTeen. Thank you!