HEAR HERE or TO TWO TOO

When two words sound the same but are spelled differently, we call those words homonyms. Rose will tell you all about her list of homonyms, including one for her dog Rain (reign). Life is challenging for Rose because of her Asperger's. This just means she sees the world a little differently than other kids, and certain things can really upset her. She lives with her Dad because her mom left, but her Dad doesn't really understand Rose sometimes and gets mad. Thank goodness Rose has Uncle Weldon. 

RAIN REIGN by Ann Martin might be a little quirky, but once you start reading, it will be hard to put down. There's always something exciting every few pages. For 5th - 8th grades.

SEPT 2015

TRY SAYING DARWEN ARKWRIGHT 5 TIMES FAST!

Much like many stories today, Darwen is from England and both his parents are dead. Not to worry, they just died in a car accident - nothing to do with Voldemort.

So Darwen's moved to the U.S. to live with his Aunt Honoria. He's not very happy about it, but at least he has a distraction one day when he's at the mall - a strange bird! He follows the bird into an even stranger shop filled with mirrors. Well, it isn't long for this chance meeting to result in a crazy adventure, one that takes Darwen to another world just by stepping through a mirror! Along the way, Darwen picks up some unlikely friends AND enemies. Words like scrobblers, dellfeys and flittercrakes will all make sense once you read this book. You'll really enjoy DARWEN ARKWRIGHT AND THE PEREGRINE PACT by A.J. Hartley!

For grades 5 and up.

JANUARY 2013

WHAT A RACE!

It feels like I've been in a race after reading this book. Lily LOVES horses. Just like her mom. But since her mom was killed riding a horse, her father hardly lets her near them, especially the horse that threw her mom! How will she convince her father to loosen the reins and let her do what she loves so much? ASTRA  by Chris Platt is a great, easy-to-read book about Arabian horses, endurance racing, love and loss, and it is action packed! 

For grades 3-6.

OCTOBER 2012

AS BAD AS PICKLE JUICE ON A COOKIE

When Eleanor finds out her babysitter Bibi has to leave to care for her father, she is devastated.  Bibi has been there her whole life and she cannot image her life without Bibi.  Once Bibi is gone, Eleanor does not want to do anything because everything reminds her of Bibi and that makes her feel very sad.  Eleanor has to overcome the challenges of change.  Not only does she have to prepare herself for a new school year but also her new babysitter, Natalie.  

Like Pickle Juice On a Cookie by Julie Sternberg , narrated by Eleanor and written short chapters of free verse, with simple illustrations.  Eleanor demonstrates all the steps a child goes through in processing change.  From accepting, that Bibi has gone to trying to move forward with her new babysitter Natalie, Eleanor still manages to stay connected with Bibi through writing letters.

This is a great story for children experiencing change.  For grades 2^nd through 4^th

CANCER IS NEVER EASY

Losing a parent to cancer is never easy, especially for Corinna Burdette. When 8th grade begins she must decide if the treasured memories of her mother and lessons from her are really worth keeping.  Carol Geithner offers a unique voice of a middle school student who struggles through each stage of grief. The story offers an honest look at loss as experienced by an 8th grader.

If Only by Carole Geithner is best for 6th and up.

THE LOVE OF A DOG

Dessa Dean lives with her father in a cabin. It's winter - the first winter since her mother died, and she's still not able to walk off the porch without fear clutching her inside and out. She becomes completely paralyzed. Then one day, a dog limps out of the snowy forest and into Dessa Dean's life. The dog comes to help Dessa Dean, bringing her out of her life of fear and closer to her father. THE LEANIN' DOG by K. A. Nuzum is a touching story about how time and a furry friend can help someone cope with a terrible loss. For 4th through 8th grades.

KIRA KIRA

Kira Kira is a Newbery Medal winning book that is told by the point of view of a Japanese-American girl who has emigrated to the United States with her family. She is having hard time adapting to her new environment and compare to her sister, Kira-Kira, is struggling in her school work. Things turn to worse when her sister gets sick and it becomes obvious that her living days are numbered. This affects her in ways that become very hard not only on her but also on the whole family. In addition, her father is also having hard time making a living. She tells her self that no matter what has happened in her life, she still needs to view the world as a glittering, shiny place, which the name Kira-Kira means. This gives her strength and courage. Kira-Kira is by Cynthia Kadohata and will be one of the most memorable books that you will read.

Grades 5th and up.

JANE IN BLOOM

JANE IN BLOOM by DEBORAH LYTTON starts off like a happy, Sunday afternoon brunch. However, things are never what they seem. She is a girl of great curiosity and wonder, who is in love with her family, especially her very popular sister, who is the light of everyone’s eye…
On Jane's birthday, she can't wait to get her ears pierced since she is literally the last girl in her classroom that does not have them. However, her parents change their minds and Jane ends up not getting what she wanted. Things do turn into much worse, when she unexpectedly loses her sister. The entire family is devastated and there seems to be to light at the end of the tunnel. However, with her love of photography, Jane slowly begins to see beauty and colors through the lenses, which later become a respite from her dull days.
This is really a heartwarming story, even though the subject matter is not light, the author has been able to make is so beautiful and lovely.

For grades 5th and older

LOVE, AUBREY

Imagine your days consisting of eating crackers and cheese for breakfast, watching TV; crackers and cheese for lunch; watching TV, crackers and cheese for dinner and watching more TV. This is how Aubrey thought she was going to spend her time alone in the house without any interruptions. However, when she runs out of food and goes to the supermarket to buy more food, things do unfold and we learn much more about this intelligent and precocious girl who is hiding her own personal tragedies in order to cope with them. As the story unfolds we learn why she was home alone all by herself and why she is trying to hide from everyone including her own Grandma. This is a great new novel with exceptionally good writing with multi layered plots and characters.
LOVE, AUBREY by SUZANNE LAFLEUR.

For grades 5th and older.

DON'T DRINK THE FIT MIX

Can you imagine a world with no living animals? Can you imagine a world where they stop having children for thirty years? Much like Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card, there exists a world controlled by a video game. In THE ROAR by Emma Clayton, Mika is lost in the dreary world that exists below the rich of society. His twin sister is supposedly dead, but Mika still feels her. In a surreal combination of space, the future, ghosts and machines, this story unfolds into a visual portrayal of an alternate society that is ultimately changed by the children who live there. This is a fantastic book for 5th grade and up.

DOWN ON THE BAYOU - SOUTHERN GOTHIC FOR KIDS

There are many emotional animal stories dealing with adventure and tragedy, but none as poetically beautiful as THE UNDERNEATH by Kathi Appelt. Many creatures lurk in dark places, waiting to come out into the light. Some are evil, but some, like two frisky kittens and their mom, are innocent and curious. Unfortunately, from their home underneath the porch of a mean old man called Gar Face, the cat family and their trusty watch dog and companion Ranger rarely get to experience the light. When they dare to risk it, their lives are changed forever. Written with captivating imagery and the dark enchanting tone of a much more mature novel, this story will draw readers in to its tangled web of raw feelings and vivd personification of the many animal characters. Appropriate for grades 6 and up.

SHORT STORIES OF LOSS, DANGER ... HUMANITY

Highway robbers, weird diseased trees, aftermath of bombings. All are told in this haunting (not scary or creepy) collection of short stories. Hauntings And Other Tales of Danger, Love, and Sometimes Loss by Betsy Hearne is a well written set of stories about humanity and how we as humans deal with loss and tragedy.

For readers in 6th and older.

THIS IS WHAT I READ

Logan has a reputation that preceeds him at his new school because of something terrible that happened with his old best friend Zyler. He tries to act like everything is normal, but the bullying he experiences and the way his parents act around him just makes his life miserable. As his school year progresses, Logan learns ways to escape his tormentors and process his feelings. I find that I really like books that don't tell you too much information at the beginning of the story. Books that have a personality you have to get to know before you finish the story are always more entertaining for me than those that tell you everything you need to know about a main character before the end of the first chapter. THIS IS WHAT I DID by Ann Dee Ellis is one of those books. The theme is similar to the book SPEAK by Laurie Halse Anderson as far as it's controversial subject matter, but is reflected through the eyes of an eigth grade boy. Definitely worth reading, but this book is really only appropriate for 7th and 8th grades.

A TURNING POINT IN HISTORY

There was a time when kids went outside to play, made up imaginary games evoking historical characters and aliens from the future, families went on road trips in search of gold, radiation was still a new treatment for cancer, and cancer was still mysterious. In THE LUCKY PLACE by Zu Vincent, families are becoming visibly dysfunctional through the eyes of Cassie, spanning ten years from age three to thirteen. There's Old Daddy, the drunk, and New Daddy, the one Cassie likes better. Jaime, her older brother, is not happy about New Daddy, but escapes his anger and frustration by taking as many dance classes as possible. There are complex relationships rich with emotion, told from a soft, gentle, very human perspective. This book will capture the attention of 5th grades and up.

GET READY FOR OPERA!

Seeing the opera version of this story, a couple of years ago, was not as fun as reading the story of Madame Butterfly. It is an intriguing story about love, loss, hatred and racism. The themes in the book are not about light subjects but yet the young readers will find themselves drawn to the characters do to the fact that it is written in a fairy tale like manner. The illustrations are beautiful and intricate and are based on Japanese style wood block printing, the color palate that is used will make you want to look at the pictures for a long time. MADAME BUTTERFLY THE STORY OF THE OPERA BY GIACOMO PUCCINI and the drawings by RENATA FUCIKOVA.

For grades five and older.