The Great Granny Cake Contest, Guys Read #7

Corderoy, Tracey and Berger, Joe. Hubble Bubble: The Great Granny Cake Contest
June 13th 2017 by Nosy Crow
E ARC from Edelweiss Above the Treeline

Pandora's grandmother is a witch, and Pandora has powers that her parents do not want her to use. Of course, when she is in her grandmother's company, she still gets to ride on a broom, and the magic powers can be useful. This is especially true when her grandmother enters a cake baking contest with two of her witch friends. Her grandmother isn't going to cheat and use magic, but when Pandora finds out that her friends' grandchildren are helping, she decides to help as well. Pandora and her grandmother also get in trouble during the tour of a local mansion, and at the school gardening fair.
Strengths: The illustrations, and the way the text is set around them, are really brilliantly done. The story presupposes complete suspension of disbelief, and we are instantly sucked into Pandora's world. This is very reminiscent of Mrs. Piggle-Wiggle.
Weaknesses: This is most suited for early readers, not for middle school. Drat.
What I really think: I am so tempted to buy this one for my 6th graders who love Ruth Chew. It's completely adorable, VERY British (fairy cakes), and reminded me of things I read when I was in elementary school. Maybe if there is an Accelerated Reader test for it!

Scieszka, Jon et al. Heroes and Villains
April 4th 2017 by Walden Pond Press
Copy provided by Young Adult Books Central

This seventh collection of short stories by different authors, edited by Guys Read founder and generally fabulous Guy, Jon Scieszka, offers a wide range of interpretations of both heroes and villains. While some are goofy and full of fantasy elements (Healy's The Villain's Guide to Being a Hero covers more information about villain Deeb Rauber; Anderson's General Poophead offers an odd look at Benedict Arnold conversing with a Valkyrie, and Law's The Warrior and the Knave involves the hero getting sucked into an alternative dimension where he must save the day through a black-hole vacuum-vortext thingy inside a locker), the stand out stories cover more real life incidents.

Munoz Ryan's First Crossing depicts a young boy and his father trying to make the journey from Mexico to the US using a coyote; Yelchin's Kalash shows the interaction between a young Russian boy and his brother who has just gotten out of the army, and Hopkinson's How I Became Stink Daley offers the fascinating account of an impoverished boy with a love of drawing who must take a job at a dairy and ends up exposing unhygienic practices there.

There is a graphic short story as well, Camper's The Wager with illustrations by Raul the Third, that shows two boys' struggles with the Bogeyman and el Cucuy during the night. The rest of the book is rounded out by continuations of similar stories authors must enjoy. Lemony Snicket discusses finding a royal baby and being accused of kidnapping him, Creech's Need That Dog covers another story of a boy who wants to have a dog, and Gantos' How My Mother Was Arrested for Murder revisits the Florida setting of The Trouble in Me.

These collections are a great way to introduce readers to a lot of authors they may not know, and encourage them to pick up other books if they like a particular author or story. Most of the stories do showcase the authors' particular styles and frequent themes, although sometimes authors use this opportunity to depart a bit from their norm.

The Jeff Stokely illustrations reminded me of Leonard Shortall's illustrations for Sobol's orignal Encyclopedia Brown (1963) books.

Alvin Schwartz's Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark and San Souci's Dare to Be Scared books are great for scary short stories, but it's hard to find collections of short stories on other topics, so the Guys Read franchise is an excellent place to find quality examples of the genre.

Soldier Boy: A Novel Based on a True Story of the Ugandan Civil War

Hutton, Keely. Soldier Boy: A Novel Based on a True Story of the Ugandan Civil War
June 13th 2017 by Farrar, Straus and Giroux (BYR)
E ARC from Edelweiss Above the Treeline

In 1998, Ricky is living with his family in Uganda. His father is a teacher, and his family believes strongly in education. His older brother, Patrick, is bigger and smarter, but Ricky looks up to him. When soldiers from the Lord's Resistance Army pass by their village, Ricky and his friends are out on the road to try to see what the commotion is. The LRA is brutal, and in one afternoon, Ricky's family is killed and he and Patrick are taken to become soldiers. All of the commanders are blood thirsty, and there is no place for weakness. Only the strong survive. Ricky and Patrick do what they need to do, although they both try not to kill anyone. In alternating chapters, we also see Samuel in 2006. He is recuperating from a bad leg wound at the Friends of Orphans compound, but is very wary of the people there. He, too, has been a child soldier, and is supposed to be sent home. He doesn't want to tell anyone his story, but a kind man plays checkers with him, and eventually gets him to open up. Ricky's story is bleaker, or we see more of it. After years of fighting, he manages to be abandoned by the LRA and goes back to his village, only to receive devastating news. Still, he realizes that in order to survive, he must get an education, and after making it out of Uganda, he manages to graduate from university and eventually returns to his home country to help other child soldiers by founding Friends of Orphans.
Strengths: Hutton takes on a difficult subject and brilliantly balances needed details with the delicacy needed for a middle grade audience. The descriptions of tortures, deaths and other atrocities are not glossed over, but neither are they sensationalized. I also liked how this started with every day life before things got bad, and the fact that the brothers tried hard to remember what that life was like when life in the LRA got bad. This is an important story, and one that children in the US should know about. Like Perkins' Bamboo People , Sullivan's The Bitter Side of Sweet or Park's A Long Walk to Water, this might make a good class novel so that students can be supported in their understanding of this difficult topic.
Weaknesses: This is a very brutal story, despite the author's best efforts. I would not recommend it to all of my students, and certainly this is more of an upper middle grade title.
What I really think: I will buy a copy and recommend it to students who can handle it.

Orphan Train Girl

Kline, Christina Baker. Orphan Train Girl
May 2nd 2017 by HarperCollins
ARC from publisher at ALA

Molly is in foster care and runs into trouble when she steals The Secret Garden from the library. She has to perform 20 hours of community service, and her friend Jack's mother makes it possible for her to work with an elderly woman, Vivian, cleaning out her attic. There, she realizes that Vivian has a background similar to her own. In alternating stories, we hear the story of Vivian's life, going from Ireland, to a city apartment where a fire kills her parents, to a series of poor placements where she is neglected but eventually finds the care she needs. We also hear about Molly's struggles, and how the two form a bond.
Strengths: This was a well constructed story that moved along quickly. Both stories were realistic and believable, and I appreciated that while Vivian (Niamh/Dorothy) struggled in bad situations, they weren't too horrible. Molly's situation was understandable as well. The bond between the two was sweet.
Weaknesses: Perhaps because this is a young readers' edition, some of the writing felt stilted. I'm half tempted to pick up the original version.
What I really think: I may purchase. There are a lot of orphan train stories, but this one has the added interest of having a modern character in foster care, and that may encourage readers to pick this book up. The story was intriguing, even if the writing style was a bit odd.

Inexplicably, one of our high schools has the adult version of this book assigned for Honors English summer reading. Sigh.

#WNDB Wednesday- Felix Yz

Bunker, Lisa. Felix Yz
June 6th 2017 by Viking Books for Young Readers
ARC provided by publisher

Felix has some challenges in his life. When he was a toddler, his father was babysitting him in his lab when an experiment went terribly wrong. His father was killed, and Felix ended up fused with a fourth dimensional being named Zyx. Felix can hear Zyx in his brain, and Zyx can also type in order to communicate. Having Zyx inhabiting his body causes Felix to have verbal processing problems, as well as some mobility issues. These cause people at school to make fun of him, but Hector is very kind. Felix has a crush on Hector, but doesn't know if the feelings are returned. The lab where his father worked is very concerned about Felix remaining in contact with the alien, so a date has been decided upon to try to separate the two. Counting down to the procedure, Felix discusses his feelings about the separation, his fear of death, and all of the issues facing him, including Grandy, his gender fluid grandparent.
Strengths: This was certainly an interesting novel on a new topic, and I did like how it included characters who weren't mainstream, especially the grandparent and the use of alternate pronouns. This was similar in tone and style to See You in the Cosmos, Carl Sagan, and was definitely a fresh and innovative science fiction novel.
Weaknesses: It's great that the author wanted to include a trans character in a book where that was not the major issue, but there are so many characters with differences (gender fluid, gay, biracial, physically disabled) that it seems a bit unrealistic. Being fused with a fourth dimensional alien-- that, of course is realistic. It's a fine line, I know, but when there are too many characters with differences in a book, it often feels forced.
What I really think: Not sure I have the readers for this one. Most of my science fiction fans want something more exciting and adventurous.

The Door in the Alley (The Explorers#1)

The Explorers Blog Tour!

Kress, Adrienne. The Door in the Alley (The Explorers#1)
April 25th 2017 by Delacorte Books for Young Readers
E ARC from Netgalley.com


Sebastian lives a well ordered existence with his staid, science loving family, and he is rather annoyed when his cousin Hubert takes him down an unexplored alleyway on their way home from school one day, making him five minutes late getting home. They see a sign in the alley for "The Explorers' Society", and this intrigues Sebastian, although he knows better than to act on just any stray impulse. When he intercepts a pig in a tiny hat and is ordered by a man in a rumpled suit to bring it into the Society, he is concerned, especially when the director tells him he is trespassing and must be punished! The punishment ends up being much to Sebastian's liking, and he cleans and set the Society to rights. It is the assignment to do something out of his comfort zone that perplexes him, until he uncovers a mysterious box and sneaks it home with him.

Evie is still mourning the death of her parents in a car accident, mainly because she is living in an orphanage and has to have boring dinners every week with the bland Andersons. She doesn't understand why until a mysterious man shows up one week and plunges everything into chaos. SHe manages to escape, and finds that her grandfather, Alistair Drake, is still alive.

Eventually, the two children meet up and try to locate the five members of the defunct and not-talked-about Filipendulous Society, since the most famous member of the group was Evie's gradnfather. This course of action is fraught with peril, and the children find themselves rappelling from clock towers, meeting up with boa constrictors, and being madly pursued by a man whose mouth is wired shut. Will Evie be able to locate her grandfather, and will Sebastian be able to come to grips with a wildly unorganized life? This ends in a cliffhanger, so perhaps we will find out in book two.

Perfect for more advanced, younger readers who enjoyed Beha's The Secrets of Eastcliff-by-the-Sea, Milford's The Greenglass House, or Primavera's  Ms. Rapscott's Girls, The Door in the Alley is a quirky, action packed mystery filled with puzzles, snarky footnotes, and pigs in hats.

This is very different from Kress' Young Adult titles such as The Friday Society or Hatter Mattigan. I'm not entirely sure that middle school students will go for it, but elementary students should love it.

Date	Blog	URL
24-Apr	Live To Read	http://livetoread-krystal.blogspot.com/
25-Apr	Imagination Soup	http://imaginationsoup.net
26-Apr	Mom and More	http://momandmore.com
27-Apr	Pandora's Books	www.pandorasbooks.org
28-Apr	Mommy Ramblings	http://www.mommyramblings.org
1-May	The Lovely Books	http://thelovelybooksbookblog.blogspot.com
2-May	Batch of Books	http://www.batchofbooks.com
3-May	Oh, for the Hook of a Book!	www.hookofabook.wordpress.com
4-May	To Read, or Not To Read	http://www.toreadornottoread.net
5-May	Grandma's Cookie Jar	http://www.grandmascookiejar.net/
8-May	Good Reads with Ronna	www.goodreadswithronna.com
9-May	Geo Librarian	http://geolibrarian.blogspot.ca/
10-May	Life By Candlelight	http://lifebycandlelight.blogspot.com/
11-May	Jumpin Beans	http://jumpin-beans.blogspot.com/
12-May	Always in the Middle	https://gpattridge.com/
15-May	Librarians Quest	www.librariansquest.blogspot.com
16-May	The Book Wars	http://thebookwars.ca/
17-May	Middle Grade Mafioso	http://middlegrademafioso.blogspot.com/
18-May	Hopelessly Devoted Bibliophile	http://www.hopelessbibliophile.com
19-May	Tween You & Me	http://tweenlibrarian.blogspot.com/
22-May	Mrs. Knott's Book Nook	http://mrsknottsbooknook.blogspot.com/
23-May	Mundie Moms	http://mundiemoms.blogspot.com
24-May	The Write Path	http://www.dorinewhite.blogspot.com/
25-May	foodiebibliophile.com	www.foodiebibliophile.com
26-May	Beach Bound Books	http://www.beachboundbooks.com/
29-May	Middle Grade Ninja	http://www.middlegradeninja.com/
30-May	Night Owl Reviews	https://www.nightowlreviews.com/v5
31-May	Cracking the Cover	http://www.crackingthecover.com
1-Jun	Jenni Enzor	http://jennienzor.blogspot.com/
2-Jun	Literary Hoots	http://www.literaryhoots.com/
5-Jun	From the Mixed-Up Files of Middle Grade Authors	http://www.fromthemixedupfiles.com/
6-Jun	The Winged Pen	http://thewingedpen.com/
7-Jun	Operation Awesome	https://operationawesome6.blogspot.com/
8-Jun	Leeanna.me	www.leeanna.me
9-Jun	Bloggin' 'bout Books	http://www.blogginboutbooks.com
12-Jun	YA Books Central	http://www.yabookscentral.com/
13-Jun	Ms. Yingling Reads	http://msyinglingreads.blogspot.com
14-Jun	MGMinded blog	http://middlegrademinded.blogspot.com/
15-Jun	Smack Dab in the Middle	http://smack-dab-in-the-middle.blogspot.com/
16-Jun	Swoony Boys Podcast	www.swoonyboyspodcast.com
19-Jun	Book Foolery	http://bookfoolery.blogspot.com/
20-Jun	Unleashing Readers	http://www.unleashingreaders.com/
21-Jun	Kit Lit Reviews	https://kid-lit-reviews.com/
22-Jun	The O.W.L.	http://owlforya.blogspot.com

Rue, Ginger. Aleca Zamm is a Wonder
June 6th 2017 by Aladdin
E ARC from Edelweiss Above the Treeline

Aleca is not having a great tenth birthday, because she has to take a timed math test in class, and she's horrible at these tests. Her mother tries to reassure her, as does her friend, Molly, but when Mrs. Floberg steps out of the class and puts the snotty Madison in charge, Aleca ends up getting into trouble not only with the teacher, but with Mr. Vine, the principal. When Aleca has to tell him her name, something odd happens-- time seems to stop! Once she realizes that this is, in fact, what has happened, Aleca uses the opportunity to put glue in Madison's hair, a hamster in Mrs. Floberg's scarf and a bug in a boy's mouth! She also manages to get the answers to the test correct. The ability to stop time also comes in handy the next morning, when she gets to sleep in AND do her forgotten homework before school starts. Of course, this can't go on indefinitely, so when her Great Aunt Zephyr shows up, Aleca finds out that being a "Wonder" runs in families and skips a generation. Luckily, she has Aunt Zephyr to show her how to use her powers for good and not for evil.
Strengths: This was a fun, fast book with magical realism that will appeal to readers who have some imagination. It's silly, of course, but also a great idea. I really liked the backstory of Aunt Zephyr and her brothers discovering their powers. The sequel is very necessary, because this book is just the start of the adventures.
Weaknesses: Aleca Zamm-- the name is rather twee. Would I have cared? Probably not. I never had a problem with Mrs. Piggle-Wiggle!
What I really think: I would have loved this when I was ten. It reminds me a little of Ruth Chew, whose work is still very popular with my 6th graders.


The second book in the series was also released on June 6th. Great choice for summer reading, especially if you know a girl who is turning 10!

(Thanks, Dad, for those great pictures from MY tenth birthday!)