The Name of the Starby Maureen Johnson
New York: Putnam Juvenile
ARC reviewed; publishing date 9/29/11
Rory Deveaux is spending her senior year at a posh London boarding school in this supernatural series from Maureen Johnson. If adapting to a new boarding school and country isn’t hard enough, someone is precisely reinacting all the Jack the Ripper murders, down to the date, time, and method, and modern-day London is hooked. Sneaking out with her roommate to another dorm, Rory becomes the only witness to have seen and talked to the prime suspect, despite not having been alone at the time. With a romantic prospect and new friendships on the horizon, the last thing Rory needs is to be seeing people that aren’t there. Is Rory going crazy? Who is the modern-day Ripper? And more importantly, is he coming for her next? Fans of Johnson will not be disappointed. While there is some drinking in this book (legal in the UK), it is filled with great historical details about the original crimes. More importantly, it serves as a thoughtful look at modern media sensationalism. This is an imaginative and fun thriller, best suited for high school aged teens.
Book Talk Hook: Read the original facts of the case “On the X of September, 18XX, so and so was brutally murdered etc. On the X of October, ditto, etc. etc. The most famous unsolved crime ever was committed and the legend of Jack the Ripper was born. On the X of September, 2011 , so and so was brutally murdered etc.” Then give a tiny summary of the book. The facts of the case really do the selling for you. Methinks you won’t have to do too much convincing, especially for Johnson fans.
