Zel
RL/IL: Young Adult: Grades 5-8
PAGES: 227
Rapunzel comes to life in this magical and detailed story of Zel, the fairy tale character, Rapunzel. Napoli weaves a fairy tale into a novel by extending the traditional Rapunzel story and making Zel a realistic heroine. High in the Swiss Mountains, Zel and her mother live a secluded and peaceful life, but Zel yearns for more socialization. When she and her mother take their semi-annual trip to town, Zel meets Konrad, the local prince who is in search of a bride.
Adhering closely to the original plot, Zel’s mother does the unthinkable. Feeling …read more

Censoring Books 
Do you check out the books your youngsters are reading, especially those that are labeled as young adult (YA)?  Perhaps it’s a book they got from the local library, the young people’s section of the bookstore, from their school library or even read in the classroom.  So it must be okay.
However, books nowadays deal with topics that were considered taboo years ago.  Authors write about real life situations that young people face, often in very graphic terms.  These aren’t simply religious ideas that parents feel go against their faith.  They deal with sex, rape, homosexuality, drug addiction, alcoholism, abortion and other controversial topics.
 So, …read more