"Us Against You" by Fredrick Backman--We Both Liked This!

Us Against You by Fredrick Backman is the sequel to Bear town. It is about the aftermath of the rape of Maya and how Bear town and Hed become not just rivals, but enemies! This book really centers on the community and the way society changes. There are many well-developed characters in this, not just the hockey players. When the hockey coach takes most of his good players and plays for Hed instead, Bear town has to rebuild its team, starting with finding a new coach who is a woman! This second book shows how politicians use their power and comparisons are drawn between them and “the pack.” The characters feel like real people—both good and bad at the same time with real life problems.

This book started out pretty slow for me because I’m not into politics and wanted more hockey. The beginning of the book is spent on political deals and trying to build up a hockey team, but then the violence started and I began to get attached to the characters. I really liked Benji, the pack, Ramona, Vidar, Amat, Jeanette (martial arts teacher) and Elisabeth Zackell (hockey coach). This is mostly a sad story with a few bright spots. It is about loyalty and dynamics of friendships which I found interesting. If you enjoyed Bear town, I think you will also enjoy the sequel.
(Karen's review, 4 stars)

Gerard's review:
Us Against You by Fredrick Backman is the follow-up to Bear Town and is as good!  It picks up where Bear town left off.  I loved both these books!  I really enjoyed all the different people in this one.  The writing is so good I read every word!  What I enjoyed most was that from page to page I never knew what character was going to tell the story next or what the outcome would be.  The twists and turns were very good!  I WANT MORE BEAR TOWN!
(5++ stars) 

Teaser from pg. 9: The worst thing we know about other people is that we’re dependent upon them. That their actions affect our lives.


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"Crossing lines" by Paul Volponi is Thought Provoking

"Crossing Lines" by Paul Volponi is about accepting people for who they are and taking a stand against your friends if they are hurting someone. Alan, president of the fashion club, wore lipstick and dresses to school. No wonder the other boys teased him! The girls, however, helped dress him up and gave him perfume. Adonis found himself embarrassed that his sister hung around with Alan and even had him come over to his house. Adonis was on the football team and his teammates were his friends. Adonis struggled with who he really was. Should he go along with his friends who teased Alan even though it was wrong or accept Alan for who is is and impress the girl he liked who was in the fashion club with his sister and Alan?

Live and let live is pretty much the message in this book. This is a thought-provoking teen book. I did not like Alan. I liked Adonis and thought he handled things fairly well. I recommend this for teens.  "How do you decide when to stand by and when to take a stand?"

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