Thief!

Despite the fact that I liked the book quite a bit, I meant to mention that the Tracey character in Gifted: Out of Sight, Out of Mind was lifted from an old episode of Buffy the Vampire Slayer (yes, I watched them all).  When I looked into it, I found that a little bit more than the character circumstances were stolen: the episode in question is titled "Out of Mind, Out of Sight." (!!!)  The IMDB synopsis even says "Giles realizes that Marcie became invisible because nobody ever noticed her. In a flashback sequence, we see Marcie being ignored in class, and becoming invisible."  This makes me ratchet down my opinion of the book by a considerable amount.
It's highly unlikely that fans of the book-- currently about 12-- will have watched or even heard of Buffy the Vampire Slayer, but still, I am quite disappointed in this author's lack of originality.

Dead is the New Black, by Marlene Perez. The first part, which I read before doing my booktalks, was good.  The second half, which I just finished, takes a dive.  I think the author was trying to heighten the mystery by setting up more than one suspect, but it didn't really work out.  There also seemed to be some big jumps in the main character's assumptions about the case.  I revise my opinion to: not so good.
Also, I think maybe the author was trying to do too much in too short of a book.  Cheerleader drama and boyfriend stuff and paranormal self-searching and mystery and daddy issues?  Sounds like a bit much, no?  Because there were too many aspects, many of them didn't get fully addressed, had a forced, rushed resolution, or just fell by the wayside.

Medicine Quest: In Search of Nature's Healing Secrets, by Mark J. Plotkin.  I weeded this book from my 600 section because no one was reading it, but I took it along to read on the plane.  I found it interesting, but its potential audience is indeed pretty small.
 The author seemed to jump around a little bit, but I enjoyed the book.  It's got a 2000 publication date, so don't buy it now for the collection or anything, but if you've got it already, you might consider leaving it on your shelves.
This book did cause the lady sitting next to me on the plane to ask if I was a pre-med student.  I thought that was a little weird.

The Shack, by William P. Young.    I know this has been really popular, but I couldn't tell you why.  I read the prologue and the first few pages, and I knew this author's writing style wasn't for me.  It seemed like everything was written in simile, the descriptions were all too thought-heavy, like writing doesn't come naturally to the author and he labored over every line with a thesaurus.  I can see a few things about the writing style that would really attract some readers, but it totally isn't for me.

The Medici Giraffe: And Other Tales of Exotic Animals and Power, by Marina Belozerskaya.  I'd had this on my list to read for a long time, and finally checked it out from the library I was visiting while on vacation.  I didn't get through very much of it before I had to come home.  Our library no longer has it!  It was weeded because it never circulated.  :`(  I feel so sad.  I was really enjoying the story, so if you see a copy at the booksale, please snag it for me!