Website Review: GirlsHealth.Gov

GIRLSHEALTH.GOV is an informational website focusing on the health and well-being of girls.

Sponsored by the Office on Women’s Health at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, the website’s tagline is “be healthy, be happy, be you, beautiful.”

The information sources are divided into the following sections: body, fitness, nutrition, illness & disability, drugs, alcohol & smoking, your feelings, relationships, bullying, safety, your future, and environmental health. Each section provides an easy-to-understand overview and sub-pages exploring key ideas. Many of the pages include testimonials or experiences of teens that will be of interest to youth.

In addition to the major sections, users can also try quick quizzes, use interactive tools, and explore lists and tips. A search box provides an easy way to locate information by topic.

The website also links to social media. The Twitter feed contains links to youth health topics of interest across government websites. The Pinterest board contains short articles and images related to popular topics.

Librarians will find this website to contain useful information for teens taking health classes along with teens who have questions about specific topics related to personal issues such as relationships and bullying. Teachers will find the self-contained sections match well with health science topics such as fitness, nutrition, and environmental health. The website is also useful for addressing up-to-date topics such as Zika virus.

To visit the website, go to http://www.girlshealth.gov/.

Website Review: Kids Health

KIDS HEALTH is an outstanding, informational website for kids, teens, parents, and educators.

This award-winning website is sponsored by the non-profit health organization The Nemours Foundation and contains limited ads. It’s available in both English and Spanish versions.

The Parent section contains information and advice for parents on topics including general health, growth, infections, diseases, pregnancy, nutrition, behavior, school, first aid, and other topics.

The Kids section is aimed at children including topics related to How the Body Works, Puberty & Growing Up, Staying Healthy, Recipes & Cooking, Staying Safe, Health Problem, Illnesses & Injuries, Health Problems of Grown Ups, People, Places & Things That Help, and Feelings. There are also areas containing Q&A, movies, quizzes, games, and a medical dictionary for kids. Most of the pages include attractive visuals and interactive elements to engage users. The reading level and focus are appropriate for elementary and middle grades.

The Teens area stresses topics of interest to young adults including Body, Mind, Sexual Health, Food & Fitness, Disease & Conditions, Infections, School & Jobs, Drugs & Alcohol, Staying Safe, and Recipes. In addition, the Q&A page focuses on FAQs. The “hot topics” pages feature issues of particular interest such as Lyme Disease, Depression, and Volunteering.

The Educator section provides health-related lesson plans across grade and subject areas including discussion questions, activities, handouts, and quizzes.

Librarians will appreciate the many informational reading pages that can easily be tied to the Common Core standards. Some of the pages contain a LISTEN button that reads the page aloud. This is particularly useful for reluctant readers and those with reading challenges.

To keep up-to-date on website updates, be sure to subscribe to the free, weekly newsletter.

Both mobile and desktop versions of the website are available. The mobile version works well with handheld-devices and tablets.

To learn more, go to http://kidshealth.org/.

To access the teacher section, go to http://classroom.kidshealth.org/.

Book Review: Love is the Drug

LOVE IS THE DRUG by Alaya Dawn Johnson is a fast-paced mystery-suspense set in near-future Washington DC. 

Set against the backdrop of a global pandemic, prep-school teen Emily Bird becomes involved in a mysterious homeland security scandal made worse by her memory loss after an elite Washington DC party. This young adult novel involves a wide range of topics that will attract youth including romance, friendships, conspiracy, drugs, and disaster.

The plot moves quickly as the world dives deeper into chaos and our heroine tries to piece together the mystery of her memory loss. The author does a masterful job dealing with social problems, public policy, and contemporary issues facing teens such as drug use and college preparation.

The authentic, conversational writing style is likely to appeal to a young adult audience. Like many works of mystery/suspense, movement between the present and flashbacks can be temporarily disorienting. In addition, the story breaks down near the end as the author attempts to tie up all the loose ends. However, the overall plot is fast-paced and engaging.

The diverse cast of characters were skillfully developed and realistically portrayed. Teens will enjoy the strong female lead. Rarely do teen readers have the opportunity to see a realistically portrayed, independent, intelligent young black woman in a leading role.

Each chapter begins with a chemical compound. Careful readers will easily connect the chemicals to the chapter’s focus and students will be thrilled to apply their Chemistry class to the real-world.

With so many series books to choose from, librarians will be happy to see a stand-alone mystery-suspense.

Those readers who enjoy this type of mystery/suspense would also enjoy adult suspense novels by Michael Crichton and John Grisham.

With the Ebola scare making headlines and conspiracy theories everywhere, this book is likely to fly off the shelf.

Publisher ARC used for review