FICTION

Cellular

by Ellen SCHWARTZ
978-1-55469-297-2.
COPY ISBN
Gr 9 Up—People are diagnosed with leukemia every day, but Brendan Halleran, 17, never thought it would happen to him. At first, he felt as if he had the flu, but then things started to get worse: bruises, weight loss, etc. Now, he has to have intense chemotherapy and just feels like giving up. He meets Lark, 16, in the hospital—she's there for a "last chance" bone-marrow transplant. Lark teaches Brendan how to live in spite of his diagnosis. Schwartz packs a lot of intensity into this slim novel, touching on the reality of what having cancer is like for teens, physically and emotionally.—Sherry Rampey, Independent Youth Services Library Consultant, Gaston, SC
Brendan is popular and respected--he's generally fortunate in life until he is devastatingly diagnosed with leukemia. In treatment he meets Lark, a fellow patient who not only understands him but also teaches him to love life in the direst of times. One goes into remission while things turn tragic for the other--an ending that readers will unfortunately see coming from a mile away.
Reviewed by Sherry Rampey , Apr 01, 2011

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