Monday, September 28, 2015

It's Monday! What Are You Reading 9/28/15


Thank you to SheilaJen and Kellee for inspiring and hosting the #IMWAYR meme.


This past week I read Gary Schmidt's Orbiting Jupiter (publication date 10/6/15) and truthfully, I am still trying to recover.  I had read on GoodReads and in reviews that this is a book about teenage pregnancy and yet SLJ has a suggested reading age of grades 6+.  Sixth grade seemed a little young for a book about teen pregnancy, so I was interested to see how Schmidt dealt with this difficult topic.

Well, as it turns out, I wouldn't describe this as "a book about teenage pregnancy."  Yes, Joseph is a thirteen year old father, but the story is so much bigger.  So. much. bigger. Schmidt addresses the pregnancy with a surprising light hand (in terms of the actual “how she got pregnant” moment) and aside from the fact that the kids obviously had sex, there is nothing at all racy or excessively YA about it. 

Instead, it is a book about love and sorrow and about the ways that family can both wound and save us.  It is hard for me to write a review without spoilers, so I am going to keep it brief.  Suffice to say,  Orbiting Jupiter completely blindsided me - I literally couldn’t sleep after I read it.  It is haunting and stunning and I highly recommend that you read it.  

Other books I read and enjoyed this week:








10 comments:

  1. Forgotten Bones would draw in readers because of the great cover. Came see my week here. Happy reading!

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    1. Forgotten Bones has such a wonderful cover! And the content inside is just as good.

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  2. Orbiting Jupiter sounds good, I put it on my goodreads tbr.

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    1. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did!

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  3. Wow - the new Gary Schmidt book sounds wonderful! I can't wait to read it. Schmidt is such a talented writer - I loved Wednesday Wars and Okay for Now!

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    1. I haven't read Okay for Now yet, but it has jumped to the top of my TBR pile!

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  4. I've had the ARC for Orbiting Jupiter for ages but just haven't gotten to it for some reason. I REALLY want to read it now after what you've written, though! It sounds so powerful.

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    1. Powerful is definitely the right word! I am STILL thinking about it!

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  5. Orbiting Jupiter does sound like a powerful read - I will have to look for it. I absolutely loved Enchanted Air. :)

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