Young adult audio books Archives - Page 4 of 4

After 30 Years….”The Force Awaken” (Star Wars), by Alan Dean Foster

Approximately 30 years after Return of the Jedi, comes The Force Awakens. It traces Rey, Finn, and Poe Dameron and their battle with the Resistance. Led by veterans of the Rebel Alliance, they fight members who are decedents of the Galactic Empire.

“Thirty years after the destruction of the second Death Star, Luke Skywalker, the last Jedi, disappeared. The First Order has risen from the remains of the Fallen Galactic Empire, and seeks to eliminate Luke and the Republic.”
The Force Awakens was filmed in Abu Dhabi and Iceland, and other photography took place in Ireland and England. It premiered on December 18, 2015, which was more than 10 years after the release of Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sixth. The film stars Harrison Ford, Mark Hamill, Carrie Fisher, Adam Driver, and others.

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Broken Flocks Are Roaming In…”Maximum Ride Forever”, by James Patterson

Maximum Ride Forever is the ninth and ultimate novel in the Maximum Ride series by author, James Patterson. Those who are Patterson “Max” fans will not experience any disappointment with this encore “Max” episode……..all remaining questions will be answered.
It is a post-apocalyptic world where Maximum Ride and her broken Flock are roaming. The world has evolved by this time that only mutants can survive. The Flock with their avian characteristics and their gills are able to cope with everything that has taken place, but they are constantly pursued by those who belong to The School, who have no good intentions of handling The Flock, if they are re-captured. Readers have given mixed reviews of this installment, perhaps final installment, of the “Max series. It is said to contain conflicting answers to questions that remained after the previous novel. It appears to be at the discretion of the readers as to how their queries into the happenings of “Max” and the Flock are finally answered. To be sure, the twists and turns will keep the reader on their toes.

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Perfect Teenage Story with Refined Rage Against What Is Perceived To Be the Cruel And Powerful Adult World…”Mockingjay”, by Suzanne Collins

As the last installment of The Hunger Games, author Suzanne Collins published Mockingjay in August of 2010. The book carries forth the story of Katniss Everdeen. She and her sister and friends are working at unifying the district of Panem, as there is rebellion against the tyrannical Capitol. They live in the highly structured District 13, where the attempt at unification is being spearheaded. Katniss grudgingly agrees to act as the poster child for the rebellion….. the Mockingjay.

The ins and outs of battles, missions, and attempted assassinations, fill the fictional novel with excitement, mystery, deception, loyalty, and betrayal. The series tackles issues like severe poverty, starvation, oppression, and the effects of war. The main theme can be boiled down to being a seemingly perfect teenage story with refined rage against what is perceived to be the cruel and powerful adult world.

The film adaptation of Mockingjay, Part 1 is set to be released on November 21, 2014, and Part 2 on November 20, 2015. Francis Lawrence, director of The Hunger Games: Catching Fire, returns to direct the two final movies. Cast members are! Jennifer Lawrence, Katniss Everdeen; Josh Hutcherson, Liam Hemsworth, Woody Harrelson, Donald Sutherland, Phillip Seymour Hoffman, Julianne Moore, and others.

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A Little Klutzy…Yet Magical, Mysterious, and Full of Fun….”Autumn Falls”, by Bella Thorne

Bella Thorne, teen icon, introduced her first novel, Autumn Falls, this month. The novel is filled with many personal elements that are directly from Bella’s own life. She depicts a real girl who is trying her best to draw from her own inner strength to be the best person she can be. The novel is magical, mysterious, and full of fun.

The new girl, Autumn Fall, is a little klutzy and can’t miss being seen with her bright red hair. She is attending Aventura High, where she hopes to quickly find some friends to calm her uneasiness of being the new girl. Some genuinely nice friends take her under their wing, but that puts her on the wrong side of the popular girls. If that is not trouble enough, the guy she has started to like, who is funny and sweet, and whose name is Sean, hangs with the mean crowd. Two situations that may, or may not, have an adverse affect on her reputation in the new high school.

Bella finds solace in expressing her feelings by writing in a journal. But to her surprise, things seem to be changed in her favor as she keeps the diary. She wonders if it is a coincidence or magic?
Bella Thorne, now author, is best known for her role as Cece Jones on the Disney Channel’s hit show, Shake it Up. She is a global ambassador for Stomp Out Bullying, and lead ambassador for iDECIDE, a campaign encouraging teens to make smart and healthy decisions.

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Victims Turning Everything on it’s Head….”The Maze Runner”, by James Dashner

Author James Dashner’s novel The Maze Runner is the first in a trilogy of post-apocalyptic, young adult, science fiction novels. Before this first of the trilogy stories, Dashner also wrote a prequel entitled “The Kill Order“.

The novel follows a group of boys who have been deposited after the apocalypse, at a place known as the Glade. It is the epitome of science fiction with mechanical creatures called Grievers, who roam the Maze at night. The Gladers, as the boys are known, have made a community in which each Glader has an assigned job to perform. The Maze is outside of the Glade which is protected by huge doors surrounding it that close every night to give protection from the creatures.

The main character, Thomas, learns more and more about the Glade, and gets the feeling that he has been there before. He befriends fellow Gladers named Chuck ad Newt, and feels strangely connected to the only girl ever deposited at the Glade, named Teresa. The whole plot revolves around the three Gladers performing as runners who explore the Maze and bring back information, all the time avoiding getting stung by the Grievers. Dashner’s original motivation for the novel came from an idea he had where, as quoted directly from the author……..”a bunch of teenagers living inside an unsolvable maze full of hideous creatures, in the future, in a dark dystopian world. It would be an experiment to study their minds……Until the victims turn everything on its head.” And so goes Maze Runner.

The novel has been adapted for film and is due to be released today! The director is Wes Bell with a cast of Dylan O’Brien as Thomas, Blake Cooper as Chuck, Thomas Brodie-Sangster as Newt, and Kaya Scodelario as Teresa.

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Ideal World Turned Contrived Society…”The Giver”, by Lois Lowry

“The Giver” written in 1993 by Lois Lowry, covers the “ideal” world where well-matched couples marry, give birth, and raise exactly two offspring, one boy and one girl. As the offspring reach adolescence, drugs are given to stifle any sexual feelings, and by age 12 their elders have given each child an appropriate career path. The elderly live in group homes, and are “released” at the proper time with great celebration.
All “citizens” of this “perfect” world are very complacent until they are weighed down by the responsibilities of their assignments. They begin to be aware of and realize the hypocrisy that rules their world. What we as readers, think would be a perfect world in the beginning, quickly shows itself to be a contrived society.
“The Giver” is the first in the series of “The Giver Quartet” by the author. Other books in the series are…….The Giver 2 – Gathering Blue; The Giver 3 – Messenger; The Giver 4 – Son.

A motion picture is to be released August 15th, 2014. It will have a very impressive cast, including: Meryl Streep, Jeff Bridges, Katie Holmes, Alexander Skarsgård and Taylor Swift.

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Fighting for the Factionless…”Allegiant”, by Veronica Roth.

This is the final novel in the Divergent trilogy by author Veronica Roth. Since Tris tested with equal aptitude for three of the five factions she is deemed “Divergent”. She is warned never to share information with anyone, and is considered simply not strong enough, and factionless….a category that could cost her her life.
Tris continues her journey in fighting for the factionless. She is put through much torture and many trials. In the end, she dies to be once again embraced by her mother. Eventually, Chicago is finally at peace with normalcy back in the city. The central characters still living accept all that they have been through, and realize people can still be healed.

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Insurgent (2nd novel in the Divergent trilogy), by Veronica Roth

Every choice has consequences. Tris Pryor continues to try to save those she loves while unrest surges all around her. Tris initiation day should have been celebrated, but instead ends in unspeakable horrors. She must totally embrace her Divergence even though it could cause her to lose everything.

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