Library Loot ~ February 15-21

A Long, Long Sleep ~ by Anna Sheehan, 2011, YA fiction

It should have been a short suspended-animation sleep.  But this time Rose wakes up to find her past is long gone — and her future full of peril.  Rosalinda Fitzroy has been asleep for sixty-two years when she is woken by a kiss.  Locked away in the chemically induced slumber of a stasis tube in a forgotten subbasement, sixteen-year-old Rose slept straight through the Dark Times that killed millions and utterly changed the world she knew.  Now, her parents and her first love are long gone, and Rose — hailed upon her awakening as the long-lost heir to an interplanetary empire — is thrust alone into a future in which she is viewed as either a freak or a threat.  Desperate to put the past behind her and adapt to her new world, Rose finds herself drawn to the boy who kissed her awake, hoping that he can help her to start fresh.  But when a deadly danger jeopardizes her fragile new existence, Rose must face the ghosts of her past with open eyes — or be left without any future at all.

Alyce @ At Home with Books is giving away a copy of this book, which sounded to interesting that I went ahead and reserved it at the library.   Even if I win it, I can go ahead and start reading now.

Defending Jacob ~ by William Landay, 2012, fiction (Massachusetts)

Andy Barber has been an assistant district attorney in his suburban Massachusetts county for more than twenty years.  He is respected in his community, tenacious in the courtroom, and happy at home with his wife, Laurie, and son, Jacob.   But when a shocking crime shatters their New England town, Andy is blindsided by what happens next:  His fourteen-year-old son is charged with the murder of a fellow student.  Every parental instinct Andy has rallies to protect his boy.  Jacob insists that he is innocent, and Andy believes him.  Andy must.  He’s his father.  But as damning facts and shocking revelations surface, as a marriage threatens to crumble and the trial intensifies, as the crisis reveals how little a father knows about his son, Andy will face a trial of his own — between loyalty and justice, between truth and allegation, between a past he’s tried to bury and a future he cannot conceive.  Award-winning author William Landay has written the consummate novel of an embattled family in crisis — a suspenseful, character-driven mystery that is also a spellbinding tale of guilt, betrayal, and the terrifying speed at which our lives can spin out of control.

Sheila @ Book Journey listed ten books she had heard were "the best of February."  Defending Jacob was fifth on the list, but one she herself was considering.  After clicking her link and reading about it, I agreed and reserved it at the library.  She said,

"I have read none of these.  Have you?  Out of the list two interest me… maybe three.  Defending Jacob sounds pretty good..."

Ninth Ward ~ by Jewell Parker Rhodes, 2010, YA fiction (Louisiana), 9/10

I rarely re-read books, and this is one I read less than a year ago -- in May.  So why this book, and why now?  Because I'm reading it during February as the book chosen for the online African American Read-In.  To read a summary of the book and learn more about the read-in, click here.

Library Loot is a weekly meme co-hosted by Claire from The Captive Reader and Marg from The Adventures of an Intrepid Reader that encourages bloggers to share the books they’ve checked out from the library.  Claire has the Mister Linky this week, if you'd like to share the loot you brought home.  You may submit your link any time during the week.