YA -Printz Winner-2010-fiction and non-fiction

Bacigalupi, Paolo. (2010) Ship breaker. 5Q 3P  M J S


Ship Breaker brings to the forefront the devastation of  centuries of global warming and its affect on the Gulf Coast.  Nailer, a teenage boy,  lives in this harsh world and survives by climbing into the broken ships of years past looking for copper wiring.  His mother died years ago and he is left with a drug addicted father who cares so little for him that he is willing to kill him for money and information.  Nailer has a "family" of sorts drawn together by circumstances and true affection all the while looking out for each other and trying to survive on the beaches of the Gulf Coast.

Nailer's future changes when he comes upon a clipper ship that can be broken down for far more than just the copper wiring.  In the process he meets a young teenage girl from a wealthy family who owns the ship.  Now he must decide whether to help this girl return to her family in the hope of receiving a reward for his effort or break the ship apart knowing that it will allow him and his makeshift family to have a better life.

40 Development Assets:  External:  other adult relationships. Internal: caring, equality and social justice, integrity, honesty, responsibility, restraint, planning and decision making.



Heiligman, Deborah. (2010) Charles and Emma:  The Darwins' Leap of Faith. 
 5Q 4P J S

At one point in his early twenties Charles Darwin believed that he would become a preacher but life's circumstances took him in another direction.  This book sheds light on his scientific discoveries equally mixing the details of his happy marriage to his first cousin, Emma Wedgwood, and  their harmonious family life.

Amazingly his wife's strong religious beliefs helped Charles with his scientific study.  Often he would turn to her as his editor to give him advice on how to best word his scientific information to cause the least amount of public backlash.  Contrary to popular lore, he did not believe that humans evolved from apes, but that all species have evolved over time; adapting to their environments for survival. Emma struggled with Charles' Theory of Evolution but her love for him and her belief in the value of his work to him-allowed Emma to support Charles in his scientific study and writing while holding on to her religious beliefs.

40 Development Assets:  This book and the lives of Charles and Emma Darwin are examples of every developmental asset.