The+Naturals

The Naturals by Jennifer Lynn Barnes Realistic Fiction 2013 SLJ gr 9+, Booklist gr 8-11 Recommended by North Hampton

Link to NHU-PAC entry

Comments:

This rating by SLJ and Booklist is already out of our intended audience of 7th and 8th grade students and could be a problem for school libraries to purchase, but we'll need to have several people read it and comment to find out why the book has this rating. Yvette/Merrimack

Total thriller - I really liked it; however, I'm not sure about the content. Barnes follows the "Harry Potter formula" - gifted kid gets sent to special school. Main character is likable & sympathetic - but the view from the killer's POV is graphic & gross. Also, the case files the teens read are quite graphic! The depictions of kidnaps & murders are no better/worse than those shown on CSI, but I'm not sure how the middle school libraries that include grade 5 would feel? I'm ok w/it, but others?! Dee/CMS

I'm having difficulty suspending my disbelief that this premise is possible; the "powers" the kids have aren't big enough for me to warrant the existence of a special school or government program. I think part of the problem is that Barnes has set the book in reality vs. a fantasy setting where powers could be truly amplified and developed, and a greater evil overcome. Secondly, I'm not impressed with the writing; it's pretty high concept stuff in terms of violence and potential of powers (albeit she didn't take it far enough) but the plot moves at a snail's pace, and it's difficult for the story to gain traction without any tension. I think there are probably better examples of this formula (kids with powers + 2 possible love interests) out there that we can look at. Thirdly, yes, I agree with Dee, much of the violence is higher than this age group and there are other stories out there that we can look at and not have to wrangle with the rating. Yvette/Merrimack

This is already a nomination on the Flume list for this year. I read the book and believe it is more in tune with a high school audience. Pat Adams Allenstown Public Library

I agree that this is more suited to flume, the violence was cringe-worthy at times. - Liz