A World Away

A World Away by Nancy Grossman follows sixteen year old Eliza who takes a job working as a Nanny to take a break from her Amish upbringing and explore the modern world.  Eliza grows up during her time away, falls in love, learns some family secrets and must decide if she is ready to become baptized and return to the Amish community or stay in the English world.

This was a delightful coming of age novel.  There is a lot of "Bonnet fiction" written for the adult audience and this book explores that environment but is solidly written for a teenage reader.   I really enjoyed this book.  It was sweet and watching Eliza explore the world and make decisions of what she was doing with her life.  I appreciated that while she was naive she was not excessively so.  I loved this book reading it quickly.

Appropriateness:  There is a bit of alcohol and drinking, an incident of Drunk driving and a few discussions of sex.  There is one incident of a boy pushing himself on Eliza but it does not progress further than she is willing.  I would recommend this book to readers 14+

Skipping Stones at the Center of the Earth

Skipping Stones at the Center of the Earth by Andy Huller is the story of Cal, a boy with fire red hair that has grown up in an orphanage that is located on the sunny side of an island located in the center of the earth.  The book tells a few interrelated and interesting stories.  The story of  the discovery of a giant screw that is found at both poles, how the screw is found and how it is unscrewed creating the hole in the earth that Cal's orphanage is located inside.  The story of Cal's father and most importantly the story of Cal.  The orphanage that Cal lives in is a strange place.  They have fire poles instead of stairs and the food is horrible.  Cal sneaks out every morning to watch a man skip stones in the great artic lake.

This is a very interesting middle grade book.  It has an outlandish setting and background that kids will love.  The orphanage has a creepy but interesting vibe to it and the idea of there being a screw at the north and south pole is really interesting.  The characters are all distinct and interesting with the secondary characters having distinct and interesting personalities.  This is a book full of quirky and original characters.  There isn't much action in the book but the unfolding landscape keeps the reader interested.

Appropriateness:  There isn't anything in this book that would upset parents.  There is absolutely no romance and although the orphanage is creepy and horrible there isn't any violence.  The almost exclusively male cast makes this a book that young boys will enjoy.  I would recommend this book to kids 10-14.

Crewel

Crewel by Gennifer Albin takes place in a dystopian world that is controlled manufactured and regulated.  The world is manipulated by spinsters, women who have the ability to weave the fabric of the world.  Adelice knows she has this ability to weave but has been told to hide it her entire life.  When her ability is spotted during a test the government comes for her.

This was an interesting mix of magic and dystopia in a book that left me guessing.  Adelice is a very talented girl who is able to scheme and hold her own without needing a man to tell her what to do.  There's a nice love triangle which doesn't bug me as most love triangles do.  The book ended on a cliffhanger but also had quite a bit of finality.  I looked forward to reading this book and finished it quickly.

Appropriateness:  There is no adult content in this book.  There is some talk of purity and the government maintaining and enforcing standards regarding sex and procreation and some great room for thought on what life means and control vs free will.  Adelice is in her late teens and the book is written for the older YA reader (however there is no inappropriate content for younger readers).  I would recommend this book for readers 14+ and the adult crossover audience.

Review copy provided by Amazon Vine

Malcolm at Midnight

Malcolm at Midnight by W.H. Beck with illustrations by Brian Lies tells the story of Malcom a classroom rat.  After arriving at McKenna school he soon finds himself part of a caper involving a secret society of school pets, and evil cat and a kidnapped iguana.  Malcolm must use his smarts and wits and his human friends to clear his name and to help save the school.

I loved this book.  Malcom was delightful and his relationships with the other pets and his classmates were fun to read.  The book is narrated by a mystery writer to the teacher and there are lots of footnotes defining the vocabulary words that the narrator adds to the story.  The book has a bit of everything friendship, adventure, mystery and even a touch of romance and the pictures are fantastic. I tore through the book enchanted at every turn, this is a book I will be buying for gifts.

Appropriateness:  This is a fantastic book that will be enjoyed by the middle grade audience.  It will appeal equally to girls and boys (Malcolm is a boy but his best student friend is a girl) and has some great vocabulary for growing readers.  I would recommend this book to readers 10-14 and it is fully appropriate for younger advanced readers. 

Review copy provided by Amazon Vine