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Wednesday, July 04, 2012

Life, LIBERTY and the pursuit of barbecue

Hope everyone has fun plans for the holiday! I'll be marching in the local parade with some of the cross country team, and then cleaning the garage if I haven't fainted because of the heat.

I'm back from a week in Iowa with three teenagers in a Hyundai Elantra for hours at a time. This was somewhat traumatic! There was not a lot of reading that occurred during that trip, so I hope I'm not letting the Team Librarian for the Summer Throwdown down! 

DeVillers, Julia. Cleared for Takeoff. (Liberty Porter: First Daughter #3)
12 July 2011, Simon and Schuster

Liberty is still trying to get used to her Dad being the president-- it's not like she can have tourist kids up for play dates, more's the pity. She's bored when she is on vacation and everyone else has to work, even when Max Mellon shows up with his mom on their way through D.C. When her dad has to go on a trip to the country of Georgia, she's thrilled, but a little worried that she will mess up. She's glad when she finds out that James, who is her age, and his mother, who taught the Young Diplomats course on manners to her class, are going as well. Riding on Air Force One is fun, and she manages not to make too many mistakes when meeting other American families or attending big parties with the Georgian people. She even uses her mom's phone to Skype her class so they can all see what the party is like as well. She has one embarrassing moment when she mispeaks in the language of the country, but the people are so glad that she tried that all is forgiven.
Strengths: This is a popular series among my 6th grade girls and imagine that it is even more popular for younger students. The look into what life is like in the White House is tantalizing. It is interesting that the author is now living in Georgia with her husband, who is posted there!
Weaknesses: Liberty's enthusiasm is nice, but her knack for getting into scrapes is a bit wearing. The students like to read those columns in magazines about "My Most Embarrassing Moment" a lot more than I do, which is some of the appeal, I guess.


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