The Year We Fell from Space, by Amy Sarig King

This was the first book that I have read by Amy and now I'm going to look for some of her others.
The Year We Fell from Space - is a very multi-layered story which I really liked. Without too much in the way of spoilers here is my overview. Liberty loves stars, she draws star maps from memory and then 'sees' constellations that are hers. The stars are something she did with her Dad. Now her parents are getting a divorce and Liberty feels as though she is falling, everything is going wrong - no more new constellations, she's being bullied at school, Dad doesn't see them when he says he will. This is the story of how Liberty and her family find their way back to earth.  It gave me 'feels'. 8/10 Ms Silver-Hessey

Red Sky in the Morning, Elizabeth Laird

A wonderful story of a girl growing up with the extra depth that comes from facing adversity. In Anna's case the adversity is through having a brother born profoundly disabled and loving him deeply then losing him unexpectedly. The insightful clarity that these issues gives Anna about how other people she knows do what they do and even why she does what she does makes great reading as we follow along as Anna grows from girl to young adult.

Are you seeing me?, Darren Groth

This novel is written from two viewpoints, a brother and sister. They are taking a trip of epic proportions as the brother is about to move out. This may seem like no big deal but he has Aspergers, Aspergers is a disorder where the brain works differently with the main differences being to do with social interactions - understanding other people's emotion,s reading body language etc., not coping with change and having obsessions. 

Their father has recently died and there is no mother - she left when he was a small child. This is an emotional ride as they take this trip together and as we learn the differing viewpoints of each about how they view each other, their parents and what they want out of their lives. I loved it.

Rating 9/10

Are you there God? It's me Margaret. - Judy Blume

This is a classic book. It is a book I would recommend to all girls to read so they can feel like they are not the only person who has stuff happening to them that no one else understands. In the story Margaret has to move away from the life she loves in New York City and her Grandmother to life in the suburbs in New Jersey. She is about to turn 12 and is concerned with what is happening to her body, making new friends in this new place, boys!, and religion as her parents are Jewish and Christian by upbringing but no longer practise any religion. Judy writes sensitively about all those subjects while injecting humour and being realistic.

Rating

8/10

Mrs Silver-Hessey

Other books by this author:

Otherwise known as Sheila the great, the Fudge series.