Mooseclumps and other poems

Mooseclumps and Other Poems by Ryan T Bliss is a delightful book of poetry and pictures that kids will love.  The poems are funny and whimsical and varied in length from ones that are a few sentences long to those that are several paragraphs long.  While I usually am not a fan of books produced by small publishers I was enchanted by this one and plan on keeping it as part of my collection.

I reccomend this book to readers 5-10

Review copy provided by author

The Spring Un-Fair

Here's another great kids review

The Spring Un-Fair by Louise Bennett-Rampersaup is the second book in the Secret Knock Club series. This book follows Agnes and her Secret Knock club.  They heard that the spring fair won't have a dunk tank so they try to raise money to get one by having a concert.  Agnes wants to be the lead singer and the other club members will play the insturments.  Will Agnes be able to sing and will her friends be able to play their insturments to raise the money?

This is a very funny book that is filled with words that make it easy for kids to picture what is happening and the funny illustrations really add to the book.  While it's the second book in the series readers won't be confused by missing the first book. 

Appropriateness:  There is no adult content in this book and it's perfect for 2-3 grade students and will work great as a read-aloud.

Review copy provided by Amazon Vine

Escape Theory

Escape Theory by Margaux Froley follows Devon who is working as a peer tutor at her elite boarding school in order to beef up her resume to Stanford.  This job becomes more difficult than she ever expected after Hutch, one of her classmates commits suicide.  Devon is then placed with providing help to his friends and finds herself in the middle of a mystery as to what really happened to Hutch.

This is an interesting mystery that keeps you interested even though it isn't full of action.  The characters are varied and Devon is a good kid who wants to help her classmates without being a tattle tale and the peer councilor job was a good way for the author to explore the mystery..  I didn't rush though this book but I didn't find myself wanting to give it up.

Appropriateness:  There is a LOT of adult content in this book.  You name it, it's in the book.  Drug use and abuse, sex and law breaking although none of it is glamorized it is seen as a normal part of Devon's world.  I would recommend this book for readers 14+

Review copy provided by Amazon Vine

The Care and Keeping of You 2

The Care and Keeping of You: The Body book for Older Girls is a great companion to the first in the series.  The book presents a lot of information for girls already in the middle of puberty.  The book covers topics such as how to take care of body hair and dealing with moodyness, tampons, the sorts of things that girls read seventeen magazine for in a way that is less appearance focused.

There is nothing in this book that is inappropriate for younger girls (unless you're the type who thinks it's appropriate to have them unaware of what their body looks like and does) but the content is more applicable for ten and eleven year olds as opposed to those that are eight or nine.

Review copy provided by Amazon Prime 

Indigo Spell

The Indigo Spell by Richelle Mead is the third book in the Bloodlines series that follows Sydney who is an Alchemist, a member of a group that has sworn to keep the existence of vampires from the rest of the world.  In this book Sydney is slowly coming to accept her ability to wield magic and has started seriously questioning the alchemist organization she grew up with.

Richelle Mead did not disappoint with this book.  Watching Sydney open up and grow has made for a terrific read and the mysteries that are woven through the book and throughout the series are paced well.  While I didn't initially love Sydney the growth she has had as a character has grown on me and I have come to care for her.   I finished the book quickly and was intersted throughout.

Appropriateness:  This series is great for older teens and the crossover audience.  It is heavily romance focused (nothing more than some steamy kissing scenes in this book but I expect more at some point) and Sydney is eighteen years old and living more in a young adult world than a teen one. I recommend books to readers 14+

The Slither Sisters

The Slither Sisters is the second book in the Tales from Lovecraft Middle School by Charles Gilman.  This book continues following Robert and his friends former bully Glen and ghost girl Karina as they try to save the school from the evil monsters that are trying to inhabit it.  In this book the trio follows twin sisters who are actually evil snake monsters in disguise.

This book continues the creepiness of the first book finding the great mix of scary that kids this age need.  I tore through the book exited to know what would happen and enjoying the illustrations and creepy descriptions as the plot moved along.  The author managed to make the world of Lovecraft Middle School even more interesting and the ending was complete with just a hit of what was coming next.

Appropriateness:  This is a fantastic book that older elementary and middle schoolers will love.  It's creepy without being too scary and the covers are cool enough to entice even the most reluctant of readers.  I recommend this series for readers 8-13.

Review copy provided by Amazon Vine

Going Vintage

Going Vintage by Lindsey Leavitt follows Mallory who decides that she's going to live like she's in the early sixties after breaking up with her long time boyfriend.  Mallory found a to do list in an old notebook while cleaning out her grandmother's attic and is determined to finish all the items on her list. She runs into a lot of bumps while completing her project that lead her to find out secrets about her family.

This is a great book and Mallory's experiment is fun to read about.  I loved Mallory and her sister (and the hunky Oliver) and found myself cheering for her to accomplish her goals throughout the book.  It's so nice to read a book about a girl who decides to move on with her life after a breakup in a positive way instead of looking for revenge or trying to get the offending guy back.  I sped through the book and finished it quickly.

Appropriateness:  There is no adult content in this book.  The romance consists of just a few kisses and is not the most important part of the story.  I would recommend this book to readers 13+

The Girl in the Wall

The Girl in the Wall by Daphne Bendis-Grab follows Ariel and Sera two ex-friends that find themselves in a fight for their lives after Sera's party is taken over by armed men.  Sera spends most of her time inside the wall as the armed men try to find her.  The two must work together to find out why the men are there and to save the lives of themselves and the others at the party.

I really enjoyed this book but it wasn't without it's problems.  The two main characters were cliched rich girls and the romances seemed forced.  The ending got to the point where it was comically absurd with it's twists and tragic ending and the "mystery" was super easy to figure out.  However, in spite of all that I did enjoy the book and I think that teen readers would be able to look past the predictable nature of the book and enjoy it for the action and suspense.

Appropriateness:  There is no sex or substance abuse in the book and the romances are fairly tame.  The book is very violent and there are discussions of rape(although no threats of it, it is talked about as a past risk.  I would recommend this book for readers 13+ 

Review Copy provided by Amazon Prime

The Secret Zoo

Another guest post by one of my student reviewers.

The Secret Zoo by Bryan Chick follows Noah when he finds his sister Megan has disappeared.  He goes out to find her and thinks that the Clarksville City Zoo has something to do with her disappearance.  Along with her two best friends they set out on their adventure.  The zoo animals leave clues for Noah and his friends to figure out which leads them to a secret zoo where they face dangerous outcomes.

This was a great book with characters who have distinct personalities.  The secret world is fantastic, filled with every animal imaginable, even some that are thought to be extinct.  The only negative was a twist at the end that doesn't make much sense and came out of nowhere.  However, this is a fantastic book that readers will finish quickly.

Appropriateness:  There is no inappropriate content or romance in this book.  I would recommend it to readers 9-13.

Review copy provided by publisher.

The Adventures of South Pole Pig

A great guest post by a fantastic Fifth Grader

The Adventures of a South Pole Pig by Chris Kurtz follows Flora an adventurous piglet who is always looking for something new and exciting.  Since she lives in a pigpen her dreams of adventures can't be pursued.  After one small expedition she finds that her hearts desire is to become a sled-pig like the sled-dogs in her farm.  Will her goal be achieved?  Will she truly be Flora-the-explorer?

This is a fantastic book.  Flora's adventurous, brave and courageous qualities as well as her hard-working spirit and Luna the lazy cat make for great characters.  The farm setting along with the worry that the Flora might end up as food make for a great story.  Kurtz really kept the book alive especially with Flora's energetic personality.

Appropriateness:  This is a book that works well for younger advanced readers as well as a read aloud.  Flora's personality will make this book a hit with the younger set (and this fifth grade reader loved it even though it was for younger students).  There is no inappropriate content or romance.

Review copy provided by Amazon Vine

Frogged

Frogged by Vivian Vande Velde follows a princess named Imogene.  When she meets a talking frog in the garden she agrees to kiss him so that he will turn back into a prince.  Unfortunately in addition to turning him back into a boy she finds herself transformed into a frog.  This begins her adventure learning to be a frog and becoming part of a theater troupe.  Will she get back to the castle and overcome the spell?

This is a delightful book that kids will love.  It's a great princess story for parents who have princess loving daughters who want them to read stories about princesses that aren't rescued by men (and where there is basically no romantic plot whatsoever).  Isabelle has to figure out how to rescue herself and do so without harming anyone else.  I finished the book quickly and was interested throughout.

Appropriateness:  There is no adult content or violence in this story.  I would recommend it to readers 8-12 (it's probably around an fourth grade reading level) and it is interesting enough to work as a read aloud.
Review copy provided by Amazon Vine

Pushing the Limits

Pushing the Limits by Katie McGarry follows Echo, a girl who has horrible physical and emotional scars from an incident with her mentally unstable mother and the death of her father, and Noah, a boy living in foster care who desperately wants to gain custody of his little brothers.  This unlikely pair are put together for tutoring by their councilor and find themselves falling in love.

This is one of those tough and heavy contemporary teen novels that involves a lot of heart ache and is very emotional.  While I didn't love it I expect that readers who like more of an emotional impact and enjoy the trauma will enjoy the book. 

Appropriateness:  There is drug use, sex, cursing and violence all in the first few chapters.  That's fairly evident from the cover though and the plot is one that would appeal mostly to older readers.  I recommend this book to readers 14+

Just Ella

Just Ella by Margaret Peterson Haddix starts off where the Cinderella story ends.  Ella is living in the palace learning everything that she needs in order to be a princess.  She has nightly chaperoned visits with her prince and spends most of her day learning etiquette and manners.  She's also bored to tears.  She soon decides that she no longer wants to be the princess but finds that leaving the castle and breaking her engagement is not as simple as it seems like it would be.

This is a terrific book that tells the tale of what happens after the happily ever after and that perhaps things aren't as they seem.  We slowly learn the real story of how Ella got to the ball and find out the real reason as to how she came to be the princess.  I loved this book and finished it quickly.  I'd recommend it to fans of fairy tales.

Appropriateness:  There are some unsettling moments in this story that could prove unsettling or disturbing to young readers who think they're in for a light and fluffy story.  There is an attempted rape and a section of the story where the main character has to fear being raped and she is imprisoned in a dungeon with only a hole for a toilet.  It has a great message and Ella is a great character however, the pieces of the plot that clearly point towards the threat of rape (and it's not anything a reader could miss) make this book questionable for younger readers.   I recommend this book to readers 12-15

When You Wish Upon a Star

When You Wish Upon a Star by Ned Washington, Leigh Harline and Eric Puybaret is a beautiful illustrated book of the classic song.  

The book is filled with beautiful illustrations featuring multicultural children from all over the world and my class enjoyed seeing kids who looked like them in the illustrations.  The song is included on a CD sung by Judy Collins and although the song is beautifully performed it was a bit classical for my students who said that they would rather that I sang them the song instead of playing the CD (and normally they're excited to hear CD's because they hear me sing every day). 

This is a book that can be enjoyed by kids of all ages in a classroom format and kids 4-8 who are reading independently.