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Add this book to your collection: The Maze Runner by James Dashner ©2010 The Childrens Book Review. All Rights Reserved.. Share and Enjoy:

Description:
"When Thomas wakes up in the lift, the only thing he can remember is his first name. His memory is blank. But he’s not alone. When the lift’s doors open, Thomas finds himself surrounded by kids who welcome him to the Glade—a large, open expanse surrounded by stone walls.

Just like Thomas, the Gladers don’t know why or how they got to the Glade. All they know is that every morning the stone doors to the maze that surrounds them have opened. Every night they’ve closed tight. And every 30 days a new boy has been delivered in the lift.

Thomas was expected. But the next day, a girl is sent up—the first girl to ever arrive in the Glade. And more surprising yet is the message she delivers.

Thomas might be more important than he could ever guess. If only he could unlock the dark secrets buried within his mind. "

What a wild ride this book takes you on! From the first page I was hooked and can definitely see the appeal bloggers have been raving about since the ARCs starting arriving in mailboxes. Boy and girl teens alike will enjoy the fast-paced plot and the variety of different character types.

A unique concept doesn't begin to describe the idea of a giant maze and boys being sent to solve it. A little bit Lord of the Flies, yes, but it's taken to an entirely different level, modernized, and is this awesome thriller that you can't help but fall completely into.

I wasn't entirely loving the cover once I saw the published hardback, but I love the book enough to not complain too much :)

Hand this to a reluctant reader or fans of The Hunger Games. No gender bias, anyone will enjoy the thrills and twists that author James Dashner provides. Apparently it's a trilogy, so look for two more books in the future. Yay!

The Maze Runner
James Dashner
384 pages
Young Adult
Delacorte
9780385737944
October 2009
Review copy provided by publisher

BEA YA Editors Book Buzz Panel...

I'm back in the office today after spending last week in New York attending BookExpo America. This week I'll be offering some reports on the conventions here on my blog. This is my first.

I was excited when I saw the list of BEA special events a few months ago and learned that this year there would be the first-ever BEA Young Adult Editor's Buzz panel. Past shows have featured Books Buzz panels, but never for YA. Which is crazy. Because there are some amazing YA titles out there that deserve to be buzzed just as much as any novel for grown-ups.

The YA Buzz panel allowed six editors to spend about 10 minutes talking about one title on their upcoming fall lists that they're really jazzed about. Scholastic Press/Push Editorial Director (and an author himself) David Levithan served as the master of ceremonies and introduced the editors on the panel.

Left to right: Host David Levithan;
Mark Siegel, Editorial Director, First Second Books;
Ari Lewin, Senior Editor, Disney/Hyperion;
Tara Weikum, Executive Editor, HarperCollins Children's Books;
Krista Marino, Senior Editor, Delacorte Press;
Liz Szabla, Editor-in-Cheif, Feiwel & Friends;
Arthur Levine, VP & Editorial Director, Arthur A. Levine Books.

Here's a quick rundown of the books they talked about so I can help spread the buzz! (I couldn't Twitter this session because because it took place in one of the many vortexes of no-reception that exist in the Javitz Center.)

• Arthur: Lips Touch, by Laini Taylor, illustrate by Jim Di Bartolo. He said it's a book with emotional impact, suspense, heat, and "a breathtakingly talented author." (Release date: October 1)

• Ari: Devil's Kiss, by by Sarwat Chada. It's an adventure story focusing on Billi, the youngest and only female member of the Knights of the Templar in the present day. (Release date: September 1)
  

• Krista: The Maze Runner, by James Dashner. This a book that the editor says changed the way she sees her world. The opening of this distoptian novel is disorienting, and the book crosses genres, delving into adventure, mystery and sci fi. It was acquired as a stand-alone, but envisioned as a trilogy. (Relase date: October 6)

• Mark: Refresh Refresh, by Danica Novgorodoff. This is graphic novel about high school seniors in a small town coping with the fact that their fathers are off serving in the Iraq war. The editor says it's a story that not calculated but born of need, the type of book that defines the First Second line. Graphic novelists, he says, are "the new literary rock stars." (Release date: September 29)
  

• Liz: The Sweetheart of Prosper County, by Jill Alexander. The editor describes this smalltown Southern comic novel as "a big delicious cassarole, a give-me-goosebumps novel." It was acquired on the first five pages. (Yes, you read that correctly.) (Release date: September 1)
  

• Tara: Viola in Reel Life, by Adriana Trigiani. This book is the story of a girl misplaced--the main character moves from Brooklyn to a boarding school in Indiana while her film maker parents are off working. Two more Viola books are in the pipeline. (Release date: September 1)

James Dashner, author of The Jimmy Fincher Saga, has a new book coming out called The 13th Reality. I haven't read any of Mr. Dashner's books YET (don't shoot if you're a fan), but I like the way he is promoting his next book and supporting a charity all at once.

In brief, he is donating 100% of the royalties he earns on The 13th Reality the week of its release.

Click Here to get all the Details.

Full Disclosure: Although I haven't read his books, I met him at LTUE last week and think he is first-rate.

This is my entry in a Holiday T-shirt contest.