MMGM-Hunt for the Hydra

 

http://hmhbooks.com/middlegrademania/

I don't know what I did, but late in the day on the most abysmal, sleet/rain/snow-ridden Saturday afternoon, I got a beautiful blue box filled with yellow tissue paper and six hardcover books from Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Kids!

I am very impressed by tissue paper. And cool boxes. 

It included Schrieber's Game Over, Pete Watson and Vernick's Screaming at the Ump, both of which I've read, and Wells' Eddie Redd, Undercover: Mystery on Museum Mile, Alexander's The Crossover, Davies The Magic Trap and Samworth's Aviary Wonders, Inc., which I have not!

So very excited, especially since my TBR pile at the time included no library books, one paper ARC, and three digital titles. I was getting awfully close to having nothing to read! (I even have 64 more books coming from Baker and Taylor, but I've read all but about 5 of those!)

Anyway, what a great thing to find on my doorstep!

Fry, Jason. Hunt for the Hydra (The Jupiter Pirates #1)
December 23rd 2013 by HarperCollins 

Tycho Hashoone lives on the Shadow Comet, a privateering spaceship run by his mother, Diocletia. His brother Carlo and sister Vesuvia know that only one of them will be able to take over the ship when their mother steps down, so they all take their work very seriously. After the secession of the moons of the outer solar system from Earth, these moons have formed the Jovian Union, which is at war with Earth. The Jovian Union has provided the Comet with permission to intercept freighters and claim their cargo, and that's how the Hashoones earn their living. However, when they pull over the Cephalx II, there is a "diplomat" aboard who claims the ship therefore has immunity. Unconvinced, the Comet hauls the Cephlax off to the seat of government on Ceres, a dwarf planet, and sit before the magistrate Threese Suud, who claims that while he will investigate, the diplomatic immunity will most likely stand. In the meantime, the Comet accepts a mission from the Jovian Defense Force to find out why so many Jovian merchant ships are missing. They track communications and ion emissions, which lead them to discover that the pirate Mox, long thought dead, is back. He is also in league with an unlikely ally. Can Tycho and his family prove their claim and route the evil from the intergalactic police force?
Strengths: There have been a lot more space adventure science fiction coming out, which is great. This reads a bit like Star Trek, with the feuding forces and adventure, and the technical details of space travel are fascinating. I'll be interested to see what the next book brings. Not surprisingly, Mr. Fry has done a large number of Star Wars related books.
Weaknesses: Since the three siblings are supposed to be at odds, I was hoping for a little bit more character development; perhaps that is coming in the following books. I also had an Artemis Fowl type problem with the book-- I'm not convinced that the Hashoones are the good guys, and that always makes it hard for me to root for the characters. I want to know why the Earth forces are evil, and what compelled the Jovian Union to be formed. Still buying a copy, though!

Waxman, Laura Hamilton. Fabulous Fashion Inventions
September 1st 2013 by Lerner Publications

This 32 page book offers very brief information about a few notable fashion inventions, such as Levis, bras, velcro and zippers. It also has a page on shoes, which doesn't seem like enough time to spend! While this is the kind of nonfiction that I normally like, what I really want is a 32 page book ALL about Levis, or fasteners, or underwear, or some other narrower topic that could be discussed in a more in depth fashion. There is a whole series of these, and  they are somewhat tempting, but they also cost $20 each. That said, I really want to see Brilliant Beauty Inventions, which includes the following topics:  Bathroom business -- Mirror -- Botox -- Deodorant -- Q-tips -- Bobby pins -- Lipstick -- Kleenex -- Nail polish -- Hair dryer -- Hair dye -- Razor -- Mascara. Recounts the stories behind the invention of some commonly used beauty products, such as Q-tips, kissproof lipstick, nail polish, hair dye, and more.

I think that one would ALWAYS be checked out!

It's Marvelous Middle Grade Monday at Ramblings of a Wannabe Scribe and What Are You Reading? day at Teach Mentor Texts and Unleashing Readers. It's also Nonfiction Monday at Anastasia Suen's blog.