MASON DIXON

Mason Dixon has completed third grade and is gearing up to start fourth grade.  However, his mother is already pressuring him to start thinking of all the extra curricula activities that he should get involved in, specifically singing.  The problem is that Mason has been traumatized so badly that singing for him would be like diving into a pool of dead frogs.  Unfortunately, the fact that he needs to remind his mother of the dreadful incident that took place couple of years ago is making him to feel even more traumatized.

Funny, cute and a charming easy chapter book, especially for boys. Mason Dixon: Fourth Grade Disasters by Claudia Mills.

Grades 3rd and up.  

DO YOU HAVE A GARDEN?

“I have a garden” a playful dog announces on the first page of the book. And as the reader goes on to discover all the variety of the different animals that the garden has, the pages of the book become filled with more animals and flowers. Showing even more illustrations of lushes flowers and animated animals and insects.  

However, all the flowers and the animals belong to him because the garden is HIS.  But can this be possible?  Beautiful things are to be shared, so how can the dog be convinced that the garden belongs to everyone?  

This particular picture book is so colorful and vibrant that after reading it, I wanted to literally jump inside the pages and smell all the flowers and play with all the animals.   It is a fun and easy book that will even be great for a read aloud.  I Have a Garden by Bob Barner

Pre-k to 1^st grade 

ODESSA AGAIN!

Odessa is a smart, funny and a very generous person who is worried about her family, her parents’ divorce and how she is going to make it through fourth grade.  Above all else, what she really wishes is a way she will be able to turn back the time to fix all that is bothering her.  If only she could have this super power! 

Well, there is a saying which goes something like this…”be careful of what you wish for” because, your wish might come true and you might not be able to handle the outcome of those particular wishes…

One day she finds herself having that same particular power of turning back time and ‘fixing’ things…She succeeds in fixing the easer things in her life of course, and every time she fixes a smaller problem, she feels more in control of her faith… But of course, she is way too young to see that sometimes, in life you have to let nature and your own fate to guide and lead you to the right direction.   Hence, her realizing that perhaps there is a reason why her parents are divorced or why her own brother needs to be selective when it comes to finding friends. 

Literally, this enchanted story will make fall in love with Odessa and her adventures.  

Odessa Again by Dana Reinhardt is truly a fun read that will make your heart a little fuzzier and your smile a little brighter. 

For grades 5th and up.

ROMAN MYTHS

Imagine if you had the power to change into any shape or power.  Or if you could be in charge of the weather at all times. What would you do?  Would you become the sun or the moon?  Or would you make it rain all year long so that people would not want to leave their homes?  Legends and myths are just that, stories about gods and goddesses who possess supernatural powers. 

The most famous Gods and Goddesses originated from the Greeks; however the Romans decided to have their own so they adopted many of the Greek myths. 

In this Classic Starts series, all the stories are abridged so you don’t need to read many pages to learn about the amazing powers of these very powerful creatures.   

Roman Myths by Diane Namn is a simple and very easy read that will truly be enjoyed by girls and boys.

For grades 3 and up.      

GROWING UP!

When you wake up every morning to go to school or any other social event, the chances are that you look into the mirror and notice a variety of different changes about you.  The changes are mostly physical, like longer finger nails, or stronger arms and so forth. 

However, you are also going through a lot of changes that are not physical and it might be difficult to put in words or even to try to explain to your parents what those changes are.  Well, my friend that is called growing up.  

I think that this is one of the most important books that I’ve read in a very long time because it covers a wide range of topics that is crucial to young people who are going the emotional roller coaster of growing up. Like how to stop a bully or how to tell when friends are a bad influence instead of good?   

The book has tons of charts, illustrations and a glossary of important words that will be vital to know and understand once in high school.  Additionally, the book offers few pages of online resources that you can have access if you would like to acquire more information.  

Growing Up: Inside and Out by Kira Vermond and iIllustrated by Carl Chin.

Grades 7th and up.  

ELLRAY JAKES: THE DRAGON SLAYER!

When it comes to height or size, he is the smallest in his class.  However, when it comes to taking on more than what one can handle, Ellray Jakes is the one for you. Even though he is small in size, he also happens to be a bigger brother to his sister who seems to be in danger of bullies in her school. 

Like an older brother, he really tries hard to teach his sister to stand up for herself and protect her from others who choose to be mean to her.  His sister’s gentle personality doesn't make things easy, he decides to take things in his hands.  However, in life there are consequences for every action and even though Ellray’s intention is a good one.  

Can he take things in his own hands and make those bullies go away?  Will his actions be understood and forgiven by his parents, and more specifically his sister?  Or can he just magically make things better without having to explain to anyone…? 

Ellray Jakes: The Dragon Slayer by Sally Warner is part of a series and it will be great if you’re a beginner when it comes to chapter books.  

For grades 3rd and up. 

MOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!

Apparently, moo is the word. In this hilarious book, the cow goes on to his amazing journey and gets in trouble and expresses his troubles and his sorrows in the most beautiful way possible.  He uses the word Moo, or Moo-Moo or Mooooooooo or Mooooooooooooooo.  

This very rhythmic and repetitive story allows the reader to see what with just one word, so many different emotions can be expressed, be it excitement, sadness or pure joy.  The cow, who we have established that loves the word Moo, is always in the center of the page, always doing or saying something to make us all laugh out loud.   Even though the book literally has the word Moo, the reader will feel as though a full story was developed and written for the little once.  Really fun read and highly recommended.  

Moo!  by David LaRochelle and illustrated by Mike Wohnoutka

For Pre-k -1st

FLY HOME

Jewel spends a lot of time over at the cliff.  It's the only place where she ever feels truly understood and not alone.  At home, her grandfather doesn't speak and her parents keep secrets.  Secrets about the day Jewel was born.  The day her brother went missing.  The day he thought he was a bird and tried to fly off of Jewel's cliff.  Her dad tells Jewel to stay away from the cliff and the duppies that are spirits and tricked Jewel's brother into trying to fly.  Her mother tells her father to stop filling Jewel's head with nonsense.  Jewel ignores them both and doesn't question their life.  Until the day Jewel meets John.  The boy who shares a name with her brother.  The boy her grandfather is convinced is a duppy.  The boy who may be able to help Jewel and her family share their secrets and learn to be a family once more.

Follow Jewel and her family on their journey of healing in Crystal Chan's book, Bird, for tweens in grades 6 and up.

BRING IN THOSE LOGS

There is still time to turn in your reading log if you haven't yet.  The Children's Room at the Central Library is taking them for an extended week before school starts for Glendale Unified Schools.  Last day to bring them to the Children's Room is August 10.  

RICKY RICOTTA AND MIGHTY ROBOT ARE BACK!

These new republished versions pairing Dav Pilkey and illustrator Dan Santat are amazing!  I really like them both separately, but together, they are a mighty force of fun.  I am in love with Ricky Ricotta and his Mighty Robot again.

In the first installment,  Ricky and Mighty Robot find each other after some bullying action by Ricky's schoolmates and a fight against the evil Dr. Stinky, who built Mighty Robot!  

In the fight against the Voodoo Vultures from Venus, Ricky and his Mighty Robot beat them off with some spicy chocolate chip cookies and send them back to Venus!   

More hilarious and updated adventures are coming our way soon.

For readers in 2nd-4th grades. 

VENETIAN MYSTERIES

Jared, Shireen and Miranda are three kids forced to live in Venice, Italy for their Dad's job. At first, Miranda is the only one enjoying herself. But an accidental visit to a strange bookstore shines a whole new light on the city on the water. Talking animal statues and creatures jumping out of paintings are just some of the mysterious things that happen to them, and it all seems to parallel a story their Dad is reading to them in a book that is centuries old. How is it possible? 

THROUGH THE SKYLIGHT by Ian Baucom, is a very detailed mystery that has lots of danger and impossibility at every turn. You never know what is going to happen next! 

For grades 5 and up.

July 2014

INTERGALACTIC CLONES?

THE TWINNING PROJECT by Robert Lipsyte has a little bit of something for every Tween. There's bullies getting beat up, football and band practice, families that don't get along, meddling teachers. Tom and Eddie are twins, living on different Earths, 50 years apart. Sound confusing? On Earth 1, Tom spends his time moving from school to school after he avenges the many underdogs being picked on by school bullies. Tom just hasn't been very happy since his Dad allegedly died, and he is surprised to hear his intergalactic twin is having the same kinds of feelings. Eddie isn't quite the rebellious type, though. He is more of a goodie two-shoes, even if it means it goes against his own beliefs to follow authority. 

If you can get past the chapters switching back and forth between characters, you are really going to enjoy this mysterious science fiction story! 

For grades 6 and up.

July 2014 

ALL ABOUT SAND

A book review by Lilian a 4th grade library patron:

Sand by Ellen Prager

Today, I am going to write about sand and how it is made.  Different sands are different colors.  The different colors are made from different color crystals and the crystals are made out of minerals.  Sand is also made of shells, lava, and coral.  Sand is bigger than mud but smaller then gravel.  The wind can pick-up sand to make ripples.  The ice can pick-up sand and when it melts it can put the sand on land or water.  Water can take sand from one place to another.  Rocks bump next to each other and create sand.  Rivers carry rocks into seas. 

I think you should read this book because it’s interesting. For readers in 3rd to 4th grades.

LAST WEEK OF SUMMER READING PROGRAMS

DRIVE-IN CARDBOARD CAR FUN

Friday, 8/1 at 3p.m. come and decorate your own cardboard car and pretend you are at a drive-in movie just like the old days. Stay to watch a cartoon and munch on some popcorn. Afterwards  take your car creation home and have a drive-in in your living room.   For 3 years and up. 



DINOSAUR ROCKS

Saturday 8/2 at 2p.m. the dinosaur people will bring fossils and talk about all things dinosaur.  There's a space limitation, so first come first in. For 4 and up.   

HOLY UNANTICIPATED OCCURRENCES!

It all starts with a vacuum cleaner.  One summer afternoon Flora Belle Buckman is drawn to witness what could only be described as a jet plane in the neighbors’ backyard, but turns out to be  a new powerful Ulysses 2000X vacuum cleaner gone berserk. When the vacuum cleaner sucks up one very hungry squirrel, Flora puts all the knowledge she’s gained from reading comic books to use and resuscitates the poor creature. But the last thing she expects to see is the newly revived squirrel lifting the vacuum cleaner over his head. Believing that the squirrel has gained superhero powers after the vacuum cleaner attack, Flora names him Ulysses, and the adventure begins.

Flora and Ulysses by Kate diCamillo is a wacky adventure that is heartwarming and laugh-out-loud funny, and every bit deserving of its 2014 Newbery Medal. One lovable heroine, an even more lovable squirrel, and a slightly annoying (yet somewhat lovable) boy make a winning team against malfeasance of all kinds in a fond tribute to superhero stories and comic books. 

For grades  4 and up.

SOME RAINBOW FAIRIES

Two book reviews by Lilian our 4th grade library patron: 

Sky the Blue Fairy by Daisy Meadows

This story is about one fairy, two girls, some goblins, and their leader.  The names of the characters are Sky, Rachel and Kirsty, and Jack Frost.  The two girls are having a vacation on Rainspell Island.  The fairy got lost because Jack Frost cast a spell.  The two are trying to find a fairy named Sky, but they find a crab.  The crab leads the two girls to a tide pool, and dips its claw into the tide pool then takes it out, then goes away.  The two girls then try to find the fairy when they find the fairy it was in a bubble, in the tide pool.  Then there came some ice and froze the tide pool.  Since the fairy king and queen gave them packetful of magic they used it to un-freeze the ice.  Then they took out the fairy and popped the bubble.  At the end the fairy is found by the two girls.

Danielle the Daisy Fairy by Daisy Meadows

This story is about three girls, a fairy, a lot of goblins, and a magic petal. The names of the girls are Rachel, Kirsty, and Rebecca (they are best friends), the name of the fairy is Danielle, and the name of the goblins' leader is Jack Frost.  The goblins stole the petal from Fairyland.  The two girls and the fairy need to get it back from the goblin when they meet another girl and she helps them get the petal back.  When they get the petal back the fairy uses her wand to make a rope with daisies on it to tie a knot with all the goblins in it.  The petal was stuck on the goblin’s foot.  When the other goblins saw that one of the goblins was sitting down they got mad.  He was making something .The goblin that was sitting down was singing very noisily. I like this story because I like how the girls were making good choices.

LOOK FOR THESE AND MORE IN OUR PAPERBACK SECTIONS.  For readers in 2nd-4th grades.  

NEVER GIVE UP NED

Ned Mouse Breaks Away by Tim Wynn-Jones: A review by Lilian a 4th grade library patron: 

This is a story about Ned the mouse, the warden, the keeper and Morty.  Ned is in jail and he is very desperate to get out.  He went to the cafeteria and got a spoon to dig himself out and ended up in the warden’s dessert.  The warden called for his guards and they took him back to his cell.  Ned became more anxious to get out of jail.  

One day Ned’s friend Morty sent a note.  After that, Ned sent his different body parts to Morty’s place.  Then when Ned was sending his last body part he made a replica and a recording of himself to trick the warden.  

 I like this story, especially the part where Ned sent his body parts to Morty.

For readers in 2nd-4th grades.

TURNING TWELVE IS NOT EASY

It all starts the summer Suzy is going to turn twelve. First, her mother leaves to take care of her sick grandmother. Then, her little brother Parker saves the life of their neighbor by calling 911 after she collapses at home. Now Parker is a neighborhood hero and he is letting it go to his head. To add to her woes, Suzy is starting to think of her friend Gilbert as a little more than a friend, and her best friend is chosen for a play while she is rejected. When her brother’s hero antics ruin her twelfth birthday, it is the last straw for Suzy.  

After deciding that she has had enough of being Suzy Quinn, she tries to be like her favorite poet, the reclusive Emily Dickinson. But there is a chance that she might be taking it too far when she decides to only communicate with her friends via letters and refuses to do anything that Emily could not do.

This breezy verse novel by Eileen Spinelli is a perfect book for those leisurely summer afternoons, at home or on the beach.

For grades 4-6.

IS THIS OUR WORLD’S FUTURE?

The year is not certain but the story is set in the future where the world has become a very different one than ours. It is hot, very hot and has been that way as long as Devin can remember. He is one of the lucky ones as he and his grandfather live on a farm in a hidden idyllic oasis. While they had to work hard to keep up with the chores, life was good for them. When the grandfather suddenly dies, Devin must leave the safety of the hidden valley to find help to keep the farm going. What he finds instead is a nightmare of a society where children are left to their own devices and everyone has to lie, steal and cheat to survive. After a chance encounter with an older boy named Kit, the opportunity to escape the dark reality of the city to what sounds like paradise is offer him and he readily accepts. 

Devin soon finds out that Paradise is not all that it was promised to be in Tania Unsworth’s, The One Safe Place a thrilling adventure story for readers in grades 5-8.

THE POSSIBILITY OF CHANGING THE PAST

Thirteen-year-old Margaret O’Malley’s world is turned upside down when the corrupt Judge Biggs sentences her father to death for burning down a Victory Fuels building and killing a person trapped inside. Margaret knows that her father did not do it, and that his sentencing was in retaliation for uncovering a secret that Victory Fuels wanted to keep hidden at any cost. Desperate to save his life, Margaret decides to do the thing that she knows she shouldn’t – use the O’Malley gift to go back in time to change the events that made Lucas Biggs into the man who sentenced an innocent man to die. But Margaret will discover that changing the past means more than changing history, and that no one is beyond saving - from themselves or others.

Saving Lucas Biggs is a page-turner with lots of mystery, action, history, and a touch of science fiction, and will appeal to boys and girls in grades 5 and up.