Middle school students have reading interests that run the gamut from Diary of a Wimpy Kid to Twilight. Sometimes as a parent it is hard to know what is age appropriate for your child. Through this blog, I will try to help parents make informed decisions about what is available in our library. I am hoping that this blog will be a resource for our parents, and that we can all work together to make our students life-long readers!



Thursday, September 1, 2016

I'd Tell You I Love You, But Then I'd Have to Kill You

I'd Tell You I Love You, But
Then I'd Have To Kill You
by Ally Carter
From the publisher:
"Cammie Morgan is a student at the Gallagher Academy for Exceptional Young Women, a fairly typical all-girls school-that is, if every school taught advanced martial arts in PE and the latest in chemical warfare in science, and students received extra credit for breaking CIA codes in computer class. The Gallagher Academy might claim to be a school for geniuses but it's really a school for spies. Even though Cammie is fluent in fourteen languages and capable of killing a man in seven different ways, she has no idea what to do when she meets an ordinary boy who thinks she's an ordinary girl. Sure, she can tap his phone, hack into his computer, or track him through town with the skill of a real "pavement artist"-but can she maneuver a relationship with someone who can never know the truth about her? 

Cammie Morgan may be an elite spy-in-training, but in her sophomore year, she's on her most dangerous mission-falling in love."

This book was adorable and hilarious. I was sucked in from page 1. It is one of those books where I will let the quotes do the reviewing, so here are some of my favorites (and they start right at the very beginning).

I loved that there was no bad language in it. In fact, the main character had this to say,
"MTV will lead us to believe that the B word has become a term of endearment or slang among equals, but I still mainly think of it as the insult of choice for the inarticulate." 

The main character, Cammie, always has insightful thoughts:
"I’m not sure why I hate Jessica Boden, but I’m pretty sure it has something to do with the fact that her posture is way too up-and-down, and I don’t trust someone who doesn’t know how to properly slouch." 

She also knows when to compromise:
"If the Communists and the Capitalists could fight together to take down the Nazis… I told myself. If Spike could fight alongside Buffy to rid the world of demons… If lemon could join forces with lime to create something as delicious and refreshing as Sprite, then surely I can work alongside Macey McHenry for the cause of true love!" 

And, when she was trying to figure out what to eat on her first movie date with a boy, she became my soul sister:
"Junior Mints— of course! Minty chocolate fun with none of the dangerous side effects." 
(The dangerous side effects being, of course, Milk Duds stuck in your teeth and popcorn kernels stuck in your teeth.)

This book is filled with thoughts like this. I'm so glad I read it. It has been a staple in my library for years and my students love it. I'm happy to be able to recommend it highly to them all now that I have read it. 

Areas of concern:
*Girls learning to be spies and coming from families of spies. One girl's father disappeared while on assignment. 
*A teenage girl sneaking out of her school to go meet a boy in town.
(I'm really stretching here, there isn't really anything I would be concerned about.)

Suggested Ages:
Publisher's Weekly - Ages 12+
School Library Journal - Grades 7-10

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