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Anyone who's ever been to middle school has, at least once, felt the dread of waking up in the morning, knowing it won't be long before you walk through the front doors of a prison-esque humiliatorium designed to stupefy and bore. Kaitlyn - now calling herself "Katya" - has had enough. This will be the year she escapes the dull classes of MVB Middle School (which have lead her to some, er, creative trouble-making). Inspired by her wilderness camp experience with homeschooled friend Rosie and mentor Dmitri (who coined her new Katya moniker), she is going to design her own coursework, à la her summer at wilderness camp. Her parents need convincing, though - school is not camp, and their idea of homeschooling is just as rigid as MVB! When Katya meets a homeschooled boy (a very cute, very talented homeschooled boy named Milo) who would give anything to live a normal life at a regular high school, she starts to reconsider her angle. With the help of her new friend Francesca and new crush Milo, Katya stumbles into the Homeschool Liberation League. This sweet, funny novel makes for great summer reading, and will surely inspire many teens to discover a Homeschool Liberation League of their own.

--The BookKids Blog! http://kidsblog.bookpeople.com/

Lucy Frank's "The Homeschool Liberation League" is a book I probably never would have picked up on my own, but I was intrigued by a homeschool-themed middle grade novel and figured, what the heck, it's free. I'm so glad I gave it a try, because this book is so much different -- and so much better! -- than what the generic "chick lit" cover might indicate.

Kaity has just completed a summer at wilderness camp, and it's changed her whole outlook on returning to Martin Van Buren Middle School for eighth grade. She loved learning about nature, wildlife, and foraging for food. She also loved the person she became at camp (she's even renamed herself "Katya"). Katya is a smart, independent, interesting girl, in contrast to the catty, troublemaking prankster Kaity often was during the school year. Katya feels like middle school, besides stifling her inquisitive mind, also forces her to play a certain role, and, quite frankly, she can't bear to do that to herself again.

Katya bails on the first day of school and prepares two massive research binders on homeschooling for her parents. Mom and Dad are working class folks, and, while they understand much of what Katya's complaining about, they're, for lack of a better term, "school people." Besides, they don't even believe they're capable of teaching their daughter. Katya eventually gets a trial homeschooling run, which mainly involves downloaded worksheets, a part-time job in her mom's salon, and a little bit of what she loves -- engaging with and studying nature. As you might expect, there are many missteps along the way.

Much of the novel involves Katya, with an assist from her parents, trying to find her place in the world. Her folks aren't stupid, but they're not intellectual or academic people, and they worry -- legitimately so -- about Katya's education at home. Katya, meanwhile, is a bit frantic in trying to convince everyone that she can do all this schooling alone. "Unschooling" is, in fact, her dream. Unfortunately, to hide what's really going on, Katya tells some whopper lies to Francesca, the most popular girl at school, including one about the non-existent Homeschool Liberation League. As it turns out, though, even the seemingly perfect Francesca knows all about having to play a role to survive at school, and the Homeschool Liberation League, with an assist from cute violin master Milo, soon becomes a reality.

So there are a few things I loved about this book, which I'll just list for you:

(1) It's so rare to find a girl-oriented, light novel that takes place in a rural setting and focuses on the utter coolness of learning and education. The naturalist theme is wonderful and just so different, and the message here is a timely one.
(2) The romance with the homeschooled Milo, himself a smart, quirky, conflicted guy, is charming and innocent enough for the age group but realistic enough to capture our interest; and
(3) There's an important idea here about the ways in which school -- teachers, peers, routines, and politics -- forces some people to behave in artificial ways that absolutely kill their spirits. Even better, this book reassures those kids who feel as frustrated by school as Katya.

"The Homeschool Liberation League" is an appealing, good-natured novel that will be adored by middle school girls. It's also pretty clean -- I think I remember one fleeting bit of profanity -- so it's perfect for fifth graders and up. Katya's self-introspection, grudging slide into bad behavior, and recognition of her flaws reminded me of Ant in Gennifer Choldenko's delightful "Notes From a Liar and Her Dog," so fans of that book might want to check this one out, too.

This smart, likable novel comes out in early July. I hope you'll look for it then!

Kinnelon Library Teen Blog http://kpl-teen-reads.livejournal.com/74511.html

After an awesome summer at Wilderness Discovery Camp, eighth-grader Katya dreads going to public school, which she finds "stupefying." She convinces her parents to homeschool her so she can enjoy her newfound interests in science and nature. Their idea of homeschooling is very different from hers. She spends most of her days working in her mother's beauty shop and doing lessons from the incredibly boring DIM (Daily Instructional Matrix) instead of wandering the area examining plants and animals. She begins dating Milo, a violin prodigy who is homeschooled as well and hates it, and they form the Homeschool Liberation League in order to change their parents' approach to education. With the help of Katya's friend Francesca, a reporter for the school paper, Katya and Milo work to achieve the outcome that they desire. Various local residents assist with Katya's schooling, particularly Eddie Horton, a regular customer at the beauty shop. The main characters are engaging, and the teens' actions and emotions realistically show the struggles that come with adolescence. Frank includes text messages and emails, which lend authenticity to the way these teens interact. The story is well crafted and moves at a good pace.
-- School Library Journal

"Too wrong to bear" is how thirteen-year-old Katya describes her standard education at Martin Van Buren Middle School. After an eye-opening summer at camp, Katya has discovered a passion for science and the natural world and hopes that homeschooling will help her pursue her interests. She wants the freedom to learn on her own (which includes rescuing beavers trapped under trees, researching plants' medicinal qualities, and taking violin lessons from musically gifted-and cute-homeschooled Milo). Her parents agree to try it, but they make Katya complete worksheets, assist in her mom's salon, and follow a Daily Instructional Matrix. And so the Homeschool Liberation League, dedicated to "doing whatever it takes...so that your curiosity and imagination stay alive," is born. Katya's determination and enthusiasm are refreshing-she works hard to accomplish her goal, and fights for Milo to accomplish his. Her parents are sympathetic characters, too, in their struggle to figure out what's right for their daughter. While Frank presents "unschooling" as best for independent Katya, she doesn't denigrate traditional school: Milo's sister is happy at MVB Middle, for example. Frank depicts education in its purest form-an unencumbered, joyful quest for knowledge.
-- Horn Book

Mere words cannot express my delight, my adoration, my exuberant happiness with this novel. Finally. Finally!! A story involving homeschoolers who are not members of a cult. Ex-members of a cult. Raised by ex-hippies. Raised by nouveau hippies. Complete social outcasts with no social skills whatsoever. And....it's a GOOD story on top of that!
Kaity (or Katya, as she now prefers to be called) has had a wonderful summer. Summer camp was wonderful. Summer camp was all about science. Summer camp was everything she dreamed it would be and more. But now she has a problem. It's time to go back to school - and she doesn't want to. School has suddenly become unbearably petty, boring, and generally miserable; and she's not proud of her behavior towards her teachers. Why can't school be like summer camp? Why can't learning be exciting and, well, interesting?
But Katya has a plan. She's met this really cool boy who turns out to be homeschooled. Homeschooling? That would be perfect! It would be just like summer camp. But when Katya finally convinces her parents she's truly miserable at school and homeschooling is a good idea, their version of homeschooling doesn't match up with what she had in mind. Sometimes, she's not even sure what she wants, but she knows it's not school.
Ah, where to begin. First, the characters. No flat stereotypes here! Katya's friends, both schooled and non-schooled, are layered, realistic middle-schoolers. Katya herself is no plaster saint; she acts out and regrets it, but can't seem to stop doing stupid things. She's not always as studious as she plans to be, and she's not a genius, just an average girl with a passionate interest in the world around her.
And, as mentioned before, no homeschooling stereotypes. {Seriously, if you can name me one other book that has managed this, I will....well, I'll stop telling people how much I hate Stargirl. And mouthing off about why Cammie Morgan (of the Gallagher Girls) would pass for no homeschooler I've ever met, including myself}. There's no perfect ending here; Katya's parents will always be "school people" and what she gets isn't exactly what she wants. But she (and her friends) all get workable compromises at the end and come to a point where they're happy with what they're getting.
Then there's reality; does homeschooling work for everyone? No. Would some kids prefer to be in school? Of course. Do kids ask to be homeschooled because they want a better education? I knew at least two - and that's not counting those who visited a "real" school classroom and decided what they had at home was infinitely better. Are there lots of options? As Katya discovers, yes! Lucy Frank obviously did her homework.
On top of all this, it's definitely a page-turner. Katya's increasingly convoluted lies, issues with her friends, and struggle to get the education she needs and wants never descend into didacticism or predictability. It's definitely popular at my library - we've only had it a month and it's circulating briskly.
Add this - and Grace Llewellyn's Teenage Liberation Handbook - to your library collections for those teens who'd like to think a bit more deeply about their education and what they want to do with their life. Or just want a good story to enjoy.
Title: The Homeschool Liberation League
Author: Lucy Frank