Weekend Reading

Still recuperating from Kidlitcon, as well as Cross Country season, so gave myself permission to read a lot of books I had on my TBR and not review them. A lot of these were books in a series that came in our latest shipment of new books, but I also worked my way through some books about eating disorders, since my sixth grade girls started out the year interested in problem novels instead of working their way up to them in seventh grade!


Bunting, Eve. One Green Apple
Hoping it was a picture book with more content about a Muslim girl in a dupatta fitting in, but it was pretty elementary. Good for younger students.

Chew, Ruth. The Witch at the Window 
Chew, Ruth. The Would-Be Witch 
I still love these, and they do well with my 6th graders who are struggling.

Drew, Nancy. Mystery of the Midnight Rider (Nancy Drew Diaries #3) 
Drew, Nancy. Once Upon a Thriller (#4) 
Drew, Nancy. Sabotage at Willow Woods (#5) 
Drew, Nancy. Secret at Mystic Lake (#6) 
The first two in this series need to be read in order, but the rest don't, which is nice. I like that Nancy is old enough to drive herself around (albeit not in a blue roadster), but the books are for younger readers.

Magaziner, Lauren. The Only Thing Worse Than Witches 
Should have stopped at Mrs. Frabbleknacker. Too young for my readers, and twee in a faux British way.

Margolis, Leslie. Monkey Business (#5)
Annabelle's life has improved financially while her friend Rachel's hasn't. I liked this series, but Annabelle did seem ridiculously privileged in this one.

Metzger, Lois. A Trick of the Light 
Too YA for me, but about a boy with an eating disorder. Odd voice.

Payton, Belle. Double or Nothing (It Takes Two #3) 
Like this series, and in this one, Ava tries out for the boys' football team in Texas and meets opposition.

Segel, Jason and Miller, Kirsten. Nightmares! 
Nothing that knocked my socks off. May pass on this trilogy unless students ask for it.

Sheinmel. Alyssa. The Stone Girl 
Too much marijuana smoking and sex for middle school audiences.

Wolitzer, Meg. Belzhar
Too YA for my group, and time to let Sylvia Plath fade into obscurity.

brown girl dreaming

Woodson, Jacqueline. brown girl dreaming
August 28th 2014 by Nancy Paulsen Books

Born in 1963, Woodson traveled from Columbus, Ohio to South Carolina to New York City, living with different family members while problems were worked out. She was part of a pivotal time in Civil Rights history-- everything was supposed to be equal, but it wasn't, especially in the South. Her family had different perspectives on how she should act, and Woodson herself was torn between the different cultures, not feeling that she fit completely into any of them. Her family was very supportive, but faced many difficulties, such as her parents' divorce, the death of several members, and varying levels of prejudice and discrimination.
Strengths: As far as book length memoirs (or novels) in verse go, this was very good, and that's hard to do. The poems are lyrical to read and actually sound like poetry, but also give a good description of time and place and advance the story in a fashion that is not too slow. The feelings of longing and loss are palpable, and the view of history is quite interesting. I am only two years younger than Woodson, but there were very few black people in my school in Ohio, so I knew little of the equality issues during my childhood. I found the story of Woodson's youngest brother getting lead poisoning from eating paint chips particularly interesting-- I remember it being a huge item of concern in the late 1970s, but could never understand why a child would eat paint! (Interestingly enough, one of the projects that my daughter is working on as an intern with the City of Columbus is a lead paint abatement grant program!)
Weaknesses: As beautifully written and interesting as this is, I don't know that students will pick it up. I'll buy a copy, and recommend it, but there are just some books that I cannot gets students to read, and I fear that this will be one. Woodson's fiction is rather hit or miss in my library, with some titles being hugely popular, and others being ignored.

Loughead, Deb. Sidetracked.
November 1st 2012 by Orca Book Publishers

Maddy and Kat have been keen competitors in middle school, but the high school track team is even more fierce, and not everyone who ran in middle school gets on the team. To complicate matters, Maddy's brother Matt is acting rather suspiciously. Someone on the team is stealing things, and everyone is a suspect. Maddy had seen someone bullying Shauna (who is interested in Matt), and thinks that the people behind that might also be stealing. Is Matt involved, too? And will Maddy be able to keep her competitive edge?
Strengths: This had just enough drama to keep readers on edge, and is written in a straight forward style. The bits of romance, as well as descriptions of running are good as well.
Weaknesses: Maddy seems a bit too worried about everything!

A New Darkness

Delaney, Joseph. A New Darkness.
September 2nd 2014 by Greenwillow Books

After The Fury of the Seventh Son, Tom Ward returns to Chipenden to be the new spook. He is young, and people don't have the faith in him that they had in Master Gregory. They trust him to remove a few small problems, but when young girls show up dead in their beds, untouched except for being covered in blood, the people don't quite trust him. Luckily, the seventh daughter of a seventh daughter, Jenny, who has decent powers (including empathy for ghosts), approaches Tom and wants to be his apprentice. He is leery of a girl serving, but puts her through the same tests that he was put through. The girl does well enough, and it's a good thing; when the creature at large turns out to be a Kobalos, Tom will need all the help he can get, including the help of Grimalkin, whom Jenny doesn't trust.
Strengths: I'm not a fan of horror, but I read each of these new installments eagerly! There is something about the interplay of good and evil that is very well done and keeps me turning the pages. The addition of Jenny is excellent, and there's a lot of back story about her that could be told. Grimalkin is a fantastic character-- evil, but on Tom's side. She makes some huge errors in dealing with the Kobaloi(?) so Jenny doesn't trust her, which will make the next book interesting.
Weaknesses: The ending. ARGH! Not okay. Not okay! I don't want to spoil this, and I'm sure things will change, but... ARGH.

The movie, Seventh Son looks far too spooky for me! Now, if the student who checked out the nice, new copy of Revenge of the Witch on the first day of school could just FIND it...

Social Media, The Bane of My Existence

I hate Pinterest. It just annoys me. It takes so much time to add things to a board, and then there's no arranging anything the way I want it to be. Still, if this is a platform that will help teachers, parents, and librarians find books to get to readers, I guess it's worth it. Here's the board I have for Wimpy Kid readalikes.

http://www.pinterest.com/msyinglingreads/notebook-novels/



Pinterest seemed like a good way to make lists of books on specific cultures for the #WeNeedDiverseBooks campaign. My challenge is to make one board a day, then put the titles into a Waiver Day presentation Power Point presentation.

But I really should do a Prezi instead, because that's the cool new thing.

It's a teacher work day in my district. How much of this is pertinent to my job and therefore fair to do during contract hours? Oops. On the clock in a minute. Going to work on book orders, databases and other actual work things RIGHT NOW.

Guy Friday--Slump

Waltman, Kevin. Slump
14 October 2014, Cinco Puntos Press
E ARC from Edelweiss Above the Treeline

In this sequel to Next, Derrick Bowen is back at his old school , still dating Jasmine, and waiting for the new basketball season to begin. Coach Bolden is practicing everyone really hard, and the team hopes to be good, but one of the players injures his ankle, and the team isn't gelling the way everyone hopes. Derrick is having trouble in his own life, too: his best friend is so caught up in his relationship with his girlfriend that he never has time for Derrick, Derrick's own relationship is strained because of conflicts over sex, and Derrick's father is in an auto accident which leads to lots of rehabilitation, as well as financial concerns for the family. His mercurial Uncle Kid tries to help out, but Derrick finds himself thinking that many of his problems could have been solved if he had taken the offer at the private school, especially since his father could have worked there. Hard work and a positive attitude help Derrick deal with the difficulties and ultimately triumph.
Strengths: This series, D-Bow High School Hoops, is very well written and intriguing, but is unfortunately solidly for high school students. I love the descriptions of the basketball practice sessions, and Coach Bolden is a great coach. Derrick's relationship with Jasmine is realistic, and his relationship of convenience with Daniella is a tremendously great object lesson for high school boys. The questions and struggles that Derrick has because of his socioeconomic status are ones which many students face. I really, really liked this book.
Weaknesses: HOWEVER, I would not be comfortable handing this to one of my students. It was fine as long as Jasmine and Derrick were considering certain actions, but when Derrick actually follows through with them with Daniella, this becomes too much for middle school. There are another two f-bombs, one used in practice that was kind of an interesting choice, since the coach let it slide, but one hurled by Daniella that was too much. Definitely purchase this for public and high school collections, but read first before purchasing for middle school. Most librarians are more comfortable with these subjects than I am.

Trust Me, I'm Lying

Still super bummed about Ally Carter's Gallagher Girls series being over? Pick up this title and dry your tears while trying to find copies of A Gallagher Wedding(6.5) and Classified Material (4.5).

(It involved logging in to the secret web site. I love that this sort of thing is WORK for me!)

Summer, Mary Elizabeth. Trust Me, I'm Lying
October 14th 2014 by Delacorte Press 
ARC from Baker and Taylor

Julep and her father are grifters of the first order. She's good, but not thrilled with this way of life as a future, especially since her mother left the family years ago when she tired of the traipsing around. For now, Julep is enrolled in the prestigious St. Agatha's in Chicago so that she can break free of her father's life and go to Yale. She runs the occasional scam for pocket money and the occasion complimentary latte, using her best friend Sam's hacking skills and vehicle when necessary, but when she arrives home to her apartment to find it trashed, and later finds a dead rat in her locker, she is very worried. Her father has been gone before when deals go wrong, but this latest development is even more concerning. She's being trailed by a Chevelle, and a nasty Russian girl runs her and Sam off the road and warns her to stay away. Sam (whose family is wealthy), hires a body guard for Julep, but the guard begs Julep not to let on to Sam that she knows about this. School hottie Tyler is there when Julep finds the rat, and turns out to be extremely supportive through all of Julep's travails. Her father has left her hard-to-get-to clues as to his whereabouts, and she needs the help of both boys, as well as several people from school who owe her favors thanks to her scams. Things become dire when Julep discovers that the mob is involved, and they are not willing to let her go free once she knows they are involved. There's double crossing galore, and Julep needs all of her skills, as well as all of her friends, to survive.
Strengths: Ah, a good spy-type tale with some romance thrown in. No parents, just kids saving the day and bringing criminals to justice. There were so many fun details of this-- I loved the subplot of Murphy wanting to ask Brynn to the formal and hiring Julep to help him, and also the fact that he becomes her friend because of it. Lots of twists and turns, and hopefully, a sequel!
Weaknesses: A significant death that I completely didn't see coming. Have to admit, though, that it was handled extremely well for a death of a major, sympathetic character in that the character has just done some rather horrible things, and it's not dwelt on overly much. Nicely handled. This is a necessity for high school libraries, but fine for middle school as well.

#WeNeedDiverseBooks--Hunt for the Bamboo Rat

Salisbury, Graham. Hunt for the Bamboo Rat.
September 9th 2014 by Wendy Lamb Books

Kenji is supporting his widowed mother and siblings by working in a warehouse in Hawaii, but when Japan starts to assert power before WWII, Kenji is approached by the US Army to serve as an interpreter, since he is perfectly fluent in both Japanese and English. He is sent to the Philippines to live in a hotel frequented by Japanese nationals, and spies under the code name "Bamboo Rat" and tries to get information. When Japan invades the Philippines, Kenji is evacuated to Corregidor with others, and when the Japanese demand surrender or they will bomb the tunnels where people are holed up, Kenji goes with the commander to translate. He is later imprisoned and used as a servant and translator for a Japanese commander. He is brutally tortured but holds fast to his "civilian" status, manages to keep spying, and is eventually released and finds his way to the US armed forces-- where is is suspected of being Japanese and receives more abuse!

A perfect nonfiction title to go with this is Marie Cronk Farrell's Pure Grit:How WWII Nurses in the Pacific Survived Combat and Prison Camp.

Strengths: Salisbury does the very best novels about the Japanese experience during WWII. Under the Blood-Red Sun and Eyes of the Emperor are two favorites at my school. This book was full of excellent details about the war experience in the Philippines (a little covered topic), but also had suspense, intrigue, and enough fighting to keep war mongering boys interested. I thought that Kenji's fight for his own identity as a Japanese AMERICAN was very interesting, and the way that he was able to understand both the Japanese and American views of honor and duty was fascinating.
Weaknesses: On the gruesome side, certainly, with Kenji being hit in the face, burned with cigarettes, etc. The Japanese certainly don't come off very well in this book, but certainly were the perpetrators of lots of violence during this time period. 

Robots Rule

Richards, C.J. The Junkyard Bot (Robots Rule #1)
HMH Books for Young Readers (October 7, 2014)
E ARC from Netgalley.com

George Gearing lives with his uncle, who owns a junkyard and repairs machines, because his parents have died in an accident. George is a wiz at making and repairing robots, but doesn't have a lot of money for equipment. His favorite robot is Jackbot, who might be a bit rickety, but is his best friend. When he has a run in with Ann Droid, whose father runs TinkerTech Laboratories, the biggest robotic manufacturer around, she lets him use her father's workshop to repair Jackbot. Having access to decent parts leads George to rennovating Jackbot to the point where he develops artificial intelligence, and results in him repairing the other household robots so they no longer malfunction. Soon, however, Jackbot is kidnapped, and George teams up with Ann to find out what has happened. They come across an evil plot by Dr. Micron, a scientist at TinkerTech, who wants to roll out a line of robots that will take over the whole world. Not to spoil things, but considering there is to be a sequel I feel safe in saying that George is victorious, lands an internship at TinkerTech, and will go on to solve the mystery of some family secrets.
Strengths: Robots seem to be an up and coming thing, and this book hits a lot of things that readers will like. There is adventure and action, but also a robotic dump truck gone amok, which of course results in garbage being dumped on people. I liked both George and Ann, and the fact that they get to single handedly resolve a problem where a mad scientist is trying to take over the world will make this popular with young readers.
Weaknesses: I am not a fan of goofy names, and this stretched the point with Principal Qwerty, Officer Dongle, etc. Given the fact that there are lots of illustrations, I would have liked it if this looked a tiny more futuristic than it was.

Need a nominee for Cybils MGF? Try one of these!

The nominations for the Cybils Awards close on Wednesday, so if you don't know what to nominate, definitely take a look at some of these.

These were all books that I liked initially and have checked out well, OR that have surprised me with the number of students that really liked them. There are a lot of sports books, because that's what many students like to read, and we don't see many of them nominated, even though they often tell fascinating stories in addition to the sports. I've also included diverse books that my students have liked. When we come up with a short list, we like to have a large pool of books from which to choose, and these are all ones that I'm pretty sure will NOT cause the other panelists to want to hurt me!

See what you think? Do you have a favorite of your own? Nominate!

Behrens, Rebecca. When Audrey Met Alice
Bowen, Fred. Double Reverse
Clements, Andrew. The Map Trap
Elliot, L. M. Across a War-Tossed Sea
Feinstein, John. The Walk On
Freitas, Donna. Gold Medal Winter
Greenwald, Lisa. Welcome to Dog Beach
Hilmo, Tess. Skies Like These
Jeter, Derek. The Contract
Johnson, Peter. The Life and Times of Benny Alvarez
Kadohata, Cynthia. Half a World Away
London, C. Alexander. Blood in the Water
Lupica, Mike. Fantasy League
Mackall, Dandi Daley. The Secrets of Tree Taylor
Northrop, Michael. Surrounded by Sharks
Wertheim,  L. Jon  and Tobias Moskowitz. The Rookie Bookie
Woodrow, Allen. The Pet War

Blathery kind of note-- just go back from Kidlitcon, but it took over 30 hours of waiting for planes that were delayed. I really thought that I would end up just living at Chicago O'Hare! I was a little late to comment on MMGM and IMWAYR posts, but I tried to get to most of the blogs who participate and comment to spread the word about Cybils-- sorry if cut and paste was sometimes involved! I do try to make thoughtful comments that prove I read the post, but I don't know how much longer I can remain upright and conscious!

MMGM--The (Almost) Perfect Guide to Imperfect Boys

Dee, Barbara. The (Almost) Perfect Guide to Imperfect Boys
September 30th 2014 by Aladdin
Copy received from Kate Shapiro and Company

Finley and her friend have categorized boys into tadpoles, croakers and frogs, based on their evolution from elementary, fart-obsessed kids to fully evolved humans capable of being boyfriends. Since middle school is a maturing process, some of the boys change in interesting ways. Such is the case with Zachary (aka Freakazoid) who was annoying in elementary school, moved away, and came back... sorta cute. Combine this ever changing scenery with problems in school that include an evil Spanish teacher, problems with Maya, annoying younger siblings and a mother who cares more about them than Finley, and it's easy to understand Finley's general discomfort. When her notebook is discovered and Maya turns against her, Finley must figure out how to salvage her reputation as well as her growing relationship with Zachary.
Strengths: Ah, personal identity. This is truly THE middle grade drama, not bullying or class elections or dances. Even with all of the digital technology out there, plenty of paper notes and notebooks are kept by students, and trying to figure out how everyone else fits into the world is a rather strong preoccupation. Dee captures this well, with all the squirmily embarrassing details in which middle grade readers revel as well as a nice, light romance.
Weaknesses: Boys are divided into categories of weasels and beagles, not frogs. Oh, wait. That was me and my friends. In college. No, this was perfectly spot on, except that even though I talk to middle grade boys at length every day, I've never really noticed the voice change problem.

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.

The Angel Tree

Benedis-Grab, Daphne. The Angel Tree  
September 30th 2014 by Scholastic Press
E ARC from Netgalley.com

Pine River is a town with lots of troubles, but the one saving grace is that every year around Christmas time, an anonymous benefactor puts up a lovely tree in the town square. People put pieces of paper with their wishes on it, and the people in the town who are able to fulfill them do. Four children in town are especially interested in this. Lucy, who was adopted from China and who has an assistance dog named Valentine because of her blindness, wants medical help for Valentine, who has cancer. Max's family's house burned down, and they are in a cramped apartment. Max is a troublemaker at school. Joe's mother is in the armed forces, and he is sleeping on the floor at his uncle's apartment, and is also having trouble making friends. Cami, who loves to play the violin,  lives with her grandmother, who favors Cami's cousin, who is interested in more academic matters. The four all are intrigued by the tree (and are all recipients of help) and are bound and determined to figure our who is behind the tradition. They investigate several people in town, and eventually decide they know who is behind organizing the townspeople to help each other out.
Strengths: Lucy makes this a good candidate for #WeNeedDiverseBooks, and the theme of children in need is indicative of the continued poor economy. I can see this being popular with teachers who still feel a need to read Christmas books to students, since there would be a lot of community service tie-ins. Well-written, with nicely developed characters and an overall pleasant message. 
Weaknesses: I did not care for this personally. It was depressing and required a lot of suspension of disbelief, and for me, finding the benefactor took away all the magic, even though it motivated the students to be more giving. I also am not a big fan of Christmas, and think that it is not a topic that needs to come up in books as much as it does.

Kidlitcon Update

Greetings from Sacramento! After sleeping in because my roommate Charlotte is a super stealth ninja (I woke up to the gentle click of the door and the smell of coffee; truly impressed!), I have deposited myself in the lobby of the Citizen Hotel, where they have a lovely red velvet couch upon which I can sit with my BOTH my back touching the couch AND my feet touching the floor, and there is 1940s music playing. I firmly expect the Andrews Sisters to round the corner at any moment, although so far it has only been bleary eyed people who are glad to know The Secret of the Keurig in the Armoire. (I brought my own tea bags and am sitting here with tea; no addiction at all!)

Kidlitcon is very interesting. Meeting the bloggers and authors with whom I have worked for years was fascinating. I loved that Tanita Davis (http://writingya.blogspot.com) actually remembered that I had won a copy of her marvelous book Ala Carte, and it was fun to talk to her about topics on which I would love to see books written, and to hear about her time living in Scotland.

Charlotte ( http://charlotteslibrary.blogspot.com) did a great presentation on "Finding Your Blogging Voice". It was good to hear that I'm not the only one who feels bad saying things that are less than positive about a book, and seeing examples of engaging bloggers was helpful.

My arch nemesis, Kelly, (http://www.stackedbooks.org) not only wiped the floor with me in number of books and pages read when she was a Cybils panelist (It's not a contest. So why is there a list of readers with most books read, hmmm?), but demonstrated how she has mastered social media in ways that I never may. If I can't even post a picture from an iPad, what are my chances with Twitter Analytics? And Pinterest. Honestly, the only time I've ever spent considerable time on Pinterest was when my older daughter would be out late on dates and I would wait up for her with Pinterest and a glass of wine. Since I rarely drink, and it was the only thing that made Pinterest palatable to me, I don't see anything good coming of this. Maybe if Picky Reader starts dating...

So many people looked vaguely familiar- our profile pictures are all so tiny! It was fun to see that the lovely Jen (http://jkrbooks.typepad.com) was just my height; working at a middle school, I forget that 5'2" is short in the real world. Cybils database guru Sheila (http://wandsandworlds.com) once again came to my rescue by loaning me $3 when the restaurant didn't take Discover. Freya Hooper (http://onegreatbook.blogspot.com) boosted my self esteem by saying that if she posts a book on Goodreads that I haven't read, she feels really successful!

It was fun to have a little introvert downtime with Leila (http://www.bookshelvesofdoom.org), Maureen (http://bloodyyank.blogspot.com), Anne (anneboleslevy.com), Melissa (TheBooknut.com) and several others.

Have gotten a few things read, and look forward to today's sessions (http://www.kidlitosphere.org/news/2014/8/25/kidlitcon-2014-program.html). Kidlitcon 2015 will be in Baltimore, so if you have time and resources next October  to attend, definitely plan ahead!

Not in the Script

Finnegan, Amy. Not in the Script (If Only #3)
October 7th 2014 by Bloomsbury USA Childrens
E ARC from Netgalley.com

Emma is a very successful young actress who has just gotten a role on the new show, Coyote Hills.  This means moving to Tuscon (her family is in Fayetteville), and also working with two young men that she would like to avoid. One is Brett, another long time actor on whom she has had a huge crush, but who turns out to be rather a jerk. The other is Jake, who is switching from a successful modeling career. Emma's best friend Rachel has a huge crush on Jake, and Emma has promised to introduce them. Emma has had a string of bad relationships that ended in spectacularly public fashions, so she has sworn off boys. The problem? Jake is not only extremely good looking, but also sweet, fun to be with, and an upstanding citizen to boot. He takes care of his mother, who's had a stroke, and genuinely likes Emma. If they both liked each other and there were no problems, there would be no story, so complications abound. Emma's ex shows up, Brett plays unattractive games with Emma's affections and reputation, and Emma is worried what Rachel will think of her relationship with Jake. Emma and Jake do manage to put together a charitable foundation together, but will they ever be able to date in public?
Strengths: This whole series is GREAT for middle school students who want romance books! The characters are older (in this case, late teens, but living away from home), but they don't DO anything inappropriate. There's just the requisite melting when there is a hug or kiss, and a lot of pining. Perfect. After all, what 12 year old doesn't think Hollywood is a possibility? Emma had her moments, but I may have had a slight crush on Jake myself!
Weaknesses: This should have been published in August so I could have gotten it in my first book order. Now I'll have to wait until January to order it. *Sigh* Amy Finnegan sent TWO COPIES to my school. How very sweet of her. I got them processed and on the shelf, and they went out RIGHT AWAY. The girls adore this series, and this book is good for the guys as well, because of the alternating chapters.

Guy Friday- The Rookie Bookie

Wertheim, L. Jon and Tobias J. Moskowitz. The Rookie Bookie
October 7th 2014 by Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
ARC from Baker and Taylor

Mitch's family has moved from California to Illinois, where his artist parents feel that they will be more successful with their shop. Mitch hopes so-- he is quite fond of money, and backs up his affection with some realistic math skills. He applies these math skills to sports teams as well, and has on more than one occasion taken bets on games, hence the title of the book. Mitch's older brother, Kevin, is a decent football player on the high school team, but Mitch's small size and lack of athletic ability means that his skills are quite different from his brother's. Trying to fit in to his new school, Mitch investigates the sports options but realizes that the best way to connect with people is to offer them the opportunity to bet. Against the school rules? Maybe, but if you don't think about it too hard, you don't actually know this. Mitch enlists the help of football playing Jamie, who happens to be a girl but is good at sports and willing to help him collect money for his scheme. She's a little leery about the legalities, but when Mitch tells her that his family needs money, she keeps going. Mitch does make a few other friends and becomes involved in the life of his new school, but sooner or later his side business is sure to be uncovered. Luckily, he also makes himself valuable to the football coach, and the basketball coach approaches him at the end of the book, leading me to believe that there will be a book two!
Strengths: This has a lot of things going for it-- sports, a girl (even though Mitch IS. NOT. INTERESTED. IN. HER.), a unique problem at school, and some problems at home as well. I thought the voice was convincingly middle grade, even when Mitch talks about statistics and money and math. It's really, really hard to work math into a middle grade novel, and many have tried, but this was probably the most successful treatment of the topic that I've read. Hats off to Wertheim and Moskowitz for transitioning to MG fiction!
Weaknesses: Some of the math talk isn't quite as good as others, and it took a little bit of a stretch for me to believe that Mitch didn't know that taking bets was against school rules. On the other hand, we've had students at my school try to sell oregano in baggies and say that it's marijuana, so it's possible.

Proimos, James. The Complete Adventures of Johnny Mutton
October 7th 2014 by HMH Books for Young Readers
E ARC from Netgalley.com

Johnny is a lamb who was left on Ms. Mutton's door step, and because her eyesight is bad, she has raised him as a child. When he is old enough to go to school, so children notice, but he basically treated like an eccentric child. This book includes three Johnny Mutton titles; all are very anecdotal.
Strengths: The illustrations are great, and if I actually bought it, students would check it out due to the cover alone. However...
Weaknesses: This falls squarely on the elementary side of the Pilkey Line with the kindergarten setting. The formatting is more like a picture book than a notebook novel. This will be popular in elementary schools. It is not like Captain Underpants because there is too much "mushy stuff" between Johnny and his mother. Basically, he likes her. This is not usually a theme of middle grade books! Characters can like their parents, but also have to be slightly irritated by them, or somehow distance themselves.

That said, I have so many students this year that ONLY want to read books "with pictures" that I should probably buy it, but I have had to bite my tongue and NOT say "Middle school books don't usually HAVE pictures" (in a snotty librarian tone) so many times that I just can't.

Unstoppable Octobia May

Flake, Sharon G. Unstoppable Octobia May
September 30th 2014 by Scholastic Press 
E ARC from Netgalley.com

Octobia lives with her Aunt Shuma because her delicate health frightens her parents. Her aunt runs a boarding house, and Octobia is obsessed with one of the residents, Mr. Davenport, a writer whom she believes to be a vampire. Octobia spends a lot of time in the local graveyard and is a fanciful child, but Shuma lets her run wild through the neighborhood, sometimes wearing boys' clothes. Her best friend is Jonah, with whom she gets into all kinds of trouble, and she tries to befriend new neighbor, Bessie, who has been mute ever since her older brother was killed in Korea. Octobia and Jonah think that Mr. Davenport has killed a woman, so they start an investigation and steal money and other things from his room. This gets them into a deeper mystery involving banker Mr. Harrison, who seems to have known Mr. Davenport in the past. What seems like childish fantasies about vampires turn in to real intrigue when secrets about both men come to the surface, and Octobia and Jonah find themselves in real danger.
Strengths: This book covers a lot of historical topics that are very interesting and not much covered in middle grade literature. Bessi is racially mixed, Aunt Shuma tries to get a bank loan to build a hotel but no one will loan money to a black woman, and some of the boarders are Holocaust survivors. Even Officer O'Malley talks about the prejudice that the Irish faced. A fair amount of action and mystery, and the secret involving Mr. Harrison is quite interesting.
Weaknesses: Octobia is an unreliable narrator, so I was very confused at the beginning of the story. The topics covered in the book are so important that having Octobia's vampire fascination made the book seem... odd. Perhaps Ms. Flake wanted us to think that Octobia was making up things about Mr. Davenport so she could surprise us with the seriousness of reality, but this didn't quite work for me in a way that I find I cannot effectively articulate. I will be interested to see what others think of this book.

Preus, Margi. West of the Moon.
April 1st 2014 by Amulet Books

Astri's mother is dead and her father has gone off to America, so she and her younger sister Greta are staying with an aunt who can't afford to keep them. Astri is sold as a servant to Svaalberd, the goat herder, an unpleasant man who is not at all concerned about Astri's well-being. Finally, Astri has had enough and runs back home to get Greta. She steals a book that she thinks is magic from Svaalberd, and cuts off two of his fingers when he comes after her. Also running away is a mute girl whom Svaalberd has locked up in the house. The three girls manage to make their way onto a boat bound for America, even though they needed a lot of money to put together all of the provisions needed for the trip. Notes at the end of the book explain a bit about immigration from Norway in the 1800s.
Strengths: Can't think of many books set at this point of history, and I did learn that people had to take their own provisions on boats to America. Readers who like problem novels might find Astri's plight to be an interesting one.
Weaknesses: Very violent, in a Grimm fairy tale kind of way, and rather odd.

#WNDB Wednesday: Half a World Away

Kadohata, Cynthia. Half a World Away
Published September 2nd 2014 by Atheneum Books for Young Readers 

Jaden has been adopted by a US family, but he was in an orphanage in Romania for so long that he has an attachment disorder and is not really happy with Penni and Steve, his adoptive parents. He hoards food and is fascinated with electricity, and even went through a phase where he liked to set things on fire. His parents have him in therapy, but he still just isn't comfortable. When Penni and Steve decide to adopt a baby from Kazakhstan, Jaden feels even more threatened. The family travels there only to find that the baby they thought they were getting has already been adopted, and the child they are shown instead does not seem to be bonding with them in the very same way that Jaden isn't bonding. Jaden, however, finds a toddler with whom he feels a connection, and he would like the family to adopt Dimash instead of Ramazan. Even though Jaden has stressed out the parents emotionally and financially, they decide to take both special needs children, and Jaden then feels like he might be able to connect with them a little.
Strengths: Can't think of another book about adopting a baby from a foreign country from the point of view of a middle grade child, or another book about a middle grade child adopted from another country who is not settling in well. Kadohata is an effective writer, and I did get sucked into this. The descriptions of the process and of traveling to another country were especially interesting.
Weaknesses: Not entirely sure how well this will go over with students, and at the end I had a horrible feeling that things would not go well for any of the people in Jaden's family when they got back to the US! This did not make foreign adoptions seem like a good idea to me.

Question of the Day

So, I'm flying United to Kidlitcon in Sacramento, and I'm making sure I can get my stuff there and back. I packed this weekend, and all of my clothes fit into a large plastic freezer bag, and my toiletries take up a sandwich bag. I always travel with an extra pair of shoes. You never know.

IN CASE I need to bring home books, I am bringing my large back pack (the two-weeks-in-Europe-but-fits-in-overhead-compartment size) with another smaller empty back pack inside that.

I think that's enough, since I will be judicious in any books that I bring back. But here's the question that readers everywhere want to know:

How much "reading material" can be carried on and not count toward my one bag? 

http://www.united.com/CMS/en-US/travel/Pages/BaggageCarry-On.aspx

Carry-on items that are acceptable to transport in the cabin but are fragile or bulky will be considered cabin-seat baggage. Customers can purchase a ticket for a cabin-seat baggage item so that it may be carried on board and transported in a seat.

The following items are allowed and do not count toward your one bag and one personal item limit:

• Jacket or umbrella
• Reading material
• Pet carrier (service charges apply)
• FAA-approved child restraint seat
• Diaper bag
• Food or merchandise purchased in the airport

The Eye of Zoltar/ The Iron Trial

Fforde, Jasper. The Eye of Zoltar.
7 October 2014, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
Copy from Barbara Fisch of Blue Slip Media

The third book in The Last Dragonslayer series finds Jennifer Strange in charge of Kazam Mystical Arts Management, and still very concerned with the health of the last two dragons in existence. When Shandar requests an audience with her, she is a bit alarmed. It turns out that Shandar had a contract to kill all of the dragons, and he will lose a great deal of money if he doesn't kill them. He strikes a deal with Jennifer-- in exchange for letting the dragons live, she must provide Shandar with the Eye of Zoltar, a mystical ruby that may or may not exist. Seeing no other option, Jennifer heads off to the hazardous Cambrian Empire, where rumor has it the gem might be, with her trusty crew.  This group includes the spoiled princess Shazza, who has been transported into the body of a lowly serving girl by her mother, who wants Shazza (now Laura) to learn some humility. They hire a young guide who predicts that half the group will die, but the guide also has other people join the group so that they can be the ones who perish! There are all sorts of odd adventures to be had, including retrieving a rubberized dragon and carting him around, looking for air leviathans, and uncovering a plot that may be more interesting to Shandar than the Eye. While a few of the group do perish in odd ways, most survive, but there are yet more adventures in the offing.
Strengths: Jennifer is a fun character, and her relationship with Laura, as well as with the ill-fated magician Perkins, are interesting. The quest format works, and even the Cambrian Empire has its appeal. I liked this far more than the first book, and am half inclined to buy the series now.
Weaknesses: While this is a good series for those who like quirky, Monty Python-esque fantasies (think Douglas Adams or Gerald Morris), I just don't have those readers right now. Makes me a little sad, missing a group of readers I had about eight years ago!

Black, Holly and Clare, Cassandra. The Iron Trial (Magisterium #1)
September 9th 2014 by Scholastic Press
ARC from Baker and Taylor

Callum Hunt is a rathe obnoxious kid who limps because his leg was shattered as an infant. He lives with his father, who has turned against all magic because it lead to the death of Call's mother, probably (although Call doesn't know it) during a battle against the Enemy, a battle after which Call is found with a note from his mother that says "Kill the child". When the Magisterium (the local school for children with magical capabilities that need to be harnessed) screens children, Call hopes that he will not get accepted to the school, but despite his best efforts, he not only gets in, but gets accepted into a training group by the top teacher, Master Rufus. Along with Tamara and Alex, he is assigned a variety of tasks in the school set deep in the forest, (especially dealing with elementals), eats a lot of bizarre food, and deals with other students who don't think that Call deserves his chance. Even though his father has sent a note that Master Rufus should bind Call's magic, Call makes good progress, even taking in (against school rules), a chaos ridden wolf pup. After another student, Drew, tries to run away, secrets come out about the dangers for which the Magisterium is preparing students, Alex is determined to be very important in this battle, and Call finds out that all of the foreshadowing about his true background has serious ramifications.
Strengths: It must be said that my two go-to reviewers of fantasy, Amy at my school and Charlotte of Charlotte's Library really liked this. It looks to be a five book series, solidly middle grade, and I will definitely purchase, since it is more modern, realistic fantasy as opposed to historical, high fantasy, which has really gone out of favor at my school. Decent enough world building, an understandable amount of characters, a school that most middle grade students would want to attend, and a reasonably defined battle against evil. The cute wolf pup does help a lot.
Weaknesses: Personally felt "meh" about this, possibly because I am still loving The Last Apprentice Series. My main problem was that Call is a brat, and his father hasn't been a good or responsible parent. The characters, while interesting, don't seem quite as developed as I would like, although they might be in future books. I did not think the twist at the end was unexpected at all, and was a bit concerned about how it was dealt with in light of future books. I like characters with an interesting mix of good and bad in them, so maybe I will like watching how the next books play out.

Have to say that Holly Black's Tithe is the reason I try to read all of the fiction books before buying them-- years ago, a student I had known since she was tiny recommended the book to me, and I bought it, only to find out that the language was too salty for middle school. So my hackles are raised every time I approach a book by her! Cool that she and Clare live so close to each other and collaborated on the book! I imagine they had great fun writing it.

The Alias Men Blog Tour

Running a bit behind, but check out this fun opportunity:

Follow along with the Double Vision: The Alias Men blog tour:

Oct. 6-10: The Secret Files of Fairday Morrow features Double Vision: The Alias Men with a review, author interview, plus aGIVEAWAY..!

Oct. 13: Linc hangs out at the great Erik’s blog, This Kid Reviews Books. Linc talks about spy techniques he picked up on his Pandora missions. And there’s another GIVEAWAY…

Oct. 14: Double Vision: The Alias Men is released! Have a virtual party at the YA Sleuth blog…! And follow F.T. on Twitter @FTBradleyAuthor for more kid spy fun.

Oct. 16: F.T. Bradley gives you Five Ways to Bring MG into The Classroom at the Unleashing Readers blog, plus a GIVEAWAY.

Oct. 17: Linc is interviewed by Lizzy, Fairday and Marcus over at The Secret Files of Fairday Morrow blog. A fun post!

Oct. 20: Buried in Books lets F.T. Bradley talk about the Double Vision trilogy…

Oct. 20: Also this day, the fabulous Ms. Yingling reviews Double Vision: The Alias Men on her blog for Marvelous MG Monday…

Oct. 21: Another favorite blog, YA Book Nerd, hosts F.T. Bradley and the Double Vision trilogy, plus a GIVEAWAY

Oct. 21: F.T. Bradley hangs out at Sleuths, Spies and Alibis…

Oct. 24: F.T. Bradley gives tips for parents of reluctant readers, Seven Ways to Get Your Kid to Read, at Pragmatic Mom’s blog, plus a GIVEAWAY!

Oct. 25: At the Nerdy Book Club, find F.T. Bradley’s top 10 books for reluctant readers...

MMGM- Friendship OVER (The Top-Secret Journal of Celie Valentine)

Sternberg, Julie. Friendship OVER (The Top-Secret Journal of Celie Valentine)
1 October 2014, Boyds Mill Press
E ARC from Netgalley.com

Celie is struggling with her friendship with Lula. As is the case with many 10-year-olds, the slightest misunderstanding can be blown into epic proportions. Lula was uncomfortable with something Celie saw at Lula's house, and so the two begin bickering to the extent that their classroom teacher recommends them for a friendship workshop with a guidance counselor. Celie also has to content with her older sister Jo, projects at school, and embarrassing cousin Carla, who comes to watch Celie and Jo when their mother has to go visit their granny. Granny is having lapses with her memory, resulting in her putting her garbage in the freezer, and Celie's mother just want to see what's going on. Luckily, most of Celie's other issues are figured out before the biggest change of all occurs-- her grandmother is going to move in with the family.
Strengths: This hits many issues that concern younger middle grade readers: friend issues, sibling issues, getting in trouble in school, and grandparents in an honest and funny way. It also touches on some growing up issues like wearing deodorant, which is for some reason completely fascinating to girls until they actually need to wear it! Since series books, especially notebook novel types, are always in demand, I can see this being a very good purchase for elementary school libraries.
Weaknesses: By 6th grade, my readers have moved beyond most of these issues, and the problems with friends are much less accidental and much meaner and purposeful, so I think this may be a bit young for my crowd.

For those of you who need books for that wonderful grade 3-5 group, hop on over to some of these sites for the full blog tour. Bonus: you might come across a great middle grade blog you've never seen before!

Mon, Sept 29	Mother Daughter Book Club	http://motherdaughterbookclub.com/
Tues, Sept 30	5 Minutes for Mom	http://www.5minutesformom.com/category/feature-columns/5-minutes-for-books/
Wed, Oct 1	Sharpread	http://mrcolbysharp.com/
Thurs, Oct 2	KidLit Frenzy	http://www.kidlitfrenzy.com/
Fri, Oct 3	The Hiding Spot	http://thehidingspot.blogspot.com
Sat, Oct 4	Booking Mama	http://www.bookingmama.net/
Mon, Oct 6	Ms. Yingling Reads	http://msyinglingreads.blogspot.com/
Tues, Oct 7	GreenBeanTeenQueen	http://www.greenbeanteenqueen.com/
Wed, Oct 8	Great Kid Books	http://greatkidbooks.blogspot.com/
Thurs, Oct 9	Teach Mentor Texts	http://www.teachmentortexts.com/#axzz3DP0vkvgi
Fri, Oct 10	Unleashing Readers	http://www.unleashingreaders.com/
Sat, Oct 11	Bermuda Onion	http://bermudaonion.net/

Julie Sternberg is the author of the best-selling Like Pickle Juice on a Cookie and its sequels, Like Bug Juice on a Burger and Like Carrot Juice on a Cupcake. Like Pickle Juice on a Cookie is a Gryphon Award winner and a Texas Bluebonnet Award finalist; Like Bug Juice on a Burger is a Gryphon Honor Book, a Pennsylvania Young Reader’s Choice Awards Nominee, and an Illinois Monarch Award Finalist. Formerly a public interest lawyer, Julie is a graduate of the New School's MFA program in Creative Writing, with a concentration in writing for children. She lives with her family in Brooklyn, New York. For more information about her life and work and to download free activity materials based on her books, visit her website: juliesternberg.com.


Schutten, Jan Paul. Hello From 2030 The Science of the Future and You
October 7th 2014 by Aladdin/Beyond Words
E ARC from Netgalley.com

Once I get my time travel machine working, what I really want to do is to travel back to 1983 and snag a copy of the Seventeen magazine that gave us a glimpse of what clothing would look like in 2000. Silver lame and  stretch fabrics figured largely.

This is definitely a great book to purchase on many counts. It has topics of interest to students, like houses, food, and technology, combined with an aesthetically pleasing layout, complete with requisite cartoon robots. Why don't I have the Jetson's Rosie doing my laundry? Actually, the chapter on robots was interesting in the way the past vision of robots was addresses-- the machines that do things like laundry and cooking have become so efficient that robots would be superfluous! Who knew that microwaves were not a fabulous technology. My grandmother, who was born in 1893, would have begged to differ. She never locked the doors to her house until we bought her a microwave in 1980! Lots of good notes and statistics, as well as beautiful pictures, make this a good jumping off point for discussions about lots of different issues.

I am looking forward to seeing the physical book, though-- even though E Books are the thing of the future, sometimes the pages (at least on e ARCS) take longer to load than I would like, and make it hard to flip back and forth between sections for cross referencing.

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.

Pink and Green is the New Black

Greenwald, Lisa. Pink and Green is the New Black
October 7th 2014 by Amulet Books 
E ARC from Netgalley.com

Sequel to My Life in Pink and Green and My Summer of Pink and Green. Lucy and Sunny are determined to start an initiative for a green cafeteria at their middle school, and Lucy in particular is looking forward to enjoying the rest of her middle school career. However, things are not going well with boyfriend (and Sunny's brother) Yamir, who is busy with things in high school and not communicating as much as in the past. On top of that, Erica has decided that she is in charge of the 8th grade masquerade and is bossing everyone around. She wants all of the 8th graders to get their makeup done at Lucy's spa, and of course get a discount. Lucy manages to swing this, but when Erica puts pressure on Lucy to fix her up with a high school boyfriend so she can bring one to the dance, Lucy remembers just how mean Erica can be. Adding to the confusion is new boy Travis, who is very interested in Lucy. He's also cute and lots of fun, and has a twin brother, Gavin, whom Erica wants Lucy to fix up with another friend. Lucy likes Travis, but doesn't have a lot to talk to him about. Other issues include Claudia coming home from college unexpectedly, getting used to having her father around, implementing the green cafeteria initiative, and continuing to work with the spa.
Strengths: Very true to life when it comes to friends and boys-- not over the top, but certainly dramatic enough. The interest in green issues is fun, and some girls will like Lucy's obsession with makeup, although it isn't quite as prominent as in other books. A fun series.
Weaknesses: The masquerade irritated me a bit because it seemed unrealistic. 8th graders paying $20 to have makeup done for a dance? Bit of a stretch in my mind.

Pack of Dorks

Vrabel, Beth. Pack of Dorks
October 7th 2014 by Sky Pony Press 
E ARC from Edelweiss Above the Treeline

Lucy and Becky are the most popular girls in their 4th grade class, but they work really hard at it, always coming up with a new idea to keep kids interested in them. After they plan to kiss Tom and Henry at recess-- and get fake diamond rings from the boys-- their popularity seems to be cemented. However, Lucy has to be out of school for several days after her mother has a baby. Lucy loves Molly, but her parents are worried because Molly has Down Syndrome, and they know the challenges she will face. When Lucy returns to school,  Henry tells everyone that Tom is breaking up with Lucy because she stinks at kissing, and suddenly none of her friends will talk to her. She can either sit alone at lunch or make friends with social outcasts like April (who picks her nose) and Sam (who is just very quiet but has decent hygiene habits). She and Sam work together on a school project on wolves, and Lucy's family learns to deal with Molly and her needs.
Strengths: I can't think of any recent titles that cover a middle grade sibling dealing with the intellectual disability of a sibling, although I have had a number of students facing this reality. Lucy and her family are well developed characters, and her grandmother is great fun. Middle grade students frequently lose close friends to odd, socially motivated reasons, so this is realistic.
Weaknesses: Lucy's fall from grace seems abrupt, and the book is clearly message heavy. Also, for students older than 4th grade, the whole first chapter with kissing (focusing on the social acceptance and fear angles) will not be what they want-- those readers tend to prefer the Angela Darling type of romantic, if light, heart melting kiss. Preferably on a beach. At sunset.

Kidlitcon, Here I Come!

Finally found the bus schedule for the bus from the Sacramento airport to my hotel, so things are looking up for me actually making it to Kidlitcon a week from today!

I'm a nervous traveler. I like to travel, but I also like to have a folder full of maps, schedules, and every possible contingency plan. Yes, this is clearly indicative of my lack of smart phone. No Googling stuff for me!

REALLY looking forward to meeting a variety of kid lit people that I have known for years online, but am vaguely plagued by social anxiety that I will say something completely stupid. I don't get to talk to adults frequently, so I worry.

May have packing under control. Plan on taking giant back pack with shoe compartment at bottom, but putting all my stuff in shoe compartment and packing another back pack in preparation for bringing back books. (If there are any. Heard rumors, but don't want to make assumptions.)

So! Have my sub and sub plans, have told children about my impending adventure, and am ready to get on that airplane and head out next Thursday! California, here I come!

Guy Friday- The Madman of Piney Woods

Curtis, Christopher Paul. The Madman of Piney Woods
September 30th 2014 by Scholastic Press 
ARC from Baker and Taylor

In this companion to Elijah of Buxton, we meet Benji and Red, two boys who live near the town of Buxton, Ontario, in 1901. Benji has twin siblings who are very good with wood and build a beautiful treehouse that makes him so jealous he destroys it, and he also wants to be a newspaper reporter. Red lives with his father and cantakerous Irish grandmother who hates just about everyone and competes in a speech event in the Upper Canada Forensics Competition. The two meet and become friends, and start to hang out in the woods together. There, they run into the mythical Madman of Piney Woods, and realize that there are some secrets about the injured man that tie both of them to him. The boys learn many lessons about compassion, friendship, and family ties.
Strengths: This covers an underserved point and place in history, and adds some more to the story in Elijah of Buxton, although the cover is a vast improvement on that book! I know that Curtis' books are frequently used in the classroom, and my niece was excited to get the ARC when I finished.
Weaknesses: There wasn't any real "hook" in the story, and it went on for much too long about the treehouse. Felt a bit slow, and I kept waiting for something to happen.

The Doll People Set Sail

Martin, Ann. M., Godwin, Laura and Helquist, Brett. The Doll People Set Sail
October 14th 2014 by Disney-Hyperion 
E ARC from Netgalley.com

When the Palmer girls are having their rooms redecorated and are spending time at a camp, the dolls and doll house are packed up to spend time in the attic. Unfortunately, in rush to get out of the house, the box is accidentally sent with donations to the Allied Transatlantic Charities. The dolls are all carefully packed, but Tiffany Funcraft is able to see out of a split in the seam of the box, and reports that they are being loaded onto a ship. When Tiffany opens the box further to get a better look, Nanny, Mr. Funcraft and Annabelle's brother fall out. The box is stacked on a pallet with other boxes, and the dolls hear dolls in other boxes speaking. When it is safe, they make their way out of the box to investigate and find a set of mermaid dolls who want to set up a colony in the ocean, a batch of foreign dolls from a neighborhood garage sale, and two larger dolls who are trapped in a tin chalet. Pooling all the hints they can find, they determine a strategy to locate and rescue the missing dolls. Nanny shows up caught up in some ropes, the father is in the possession of the captain's son, and the brother eventually shows up in the trough of ponies being transported back to England. With the help of all the dolls, despite the dangerous situation, they are able to find everyone-- but how will they get back to the Palmers?
Strengths: Picky Reader was such a huge fan of these (years ago, when she was in elementary school) that she consented to read this book in an electronic format, which she NEVER does. I have to admit to liking doll books as well, and this was just great fun. While some of the rescues seemed highly unlikely and coincidental, I could suspend disbelief. The setting in a ship was fun, and there were some charming moments of doll concern for humans that I enjoyed. The Helquist illustrations are close enough to the Selznick ones that I didn't mind.
Weakness: The ending was a bit deus ex machina, but does set the scene for perhaps a fifth and final book.

Nominations are open!

Head over to Cybils.com and nominate your favorite books published between October 16, 2013 and October 15, 2014!

Take deep breaths if necessary and read the instructions. I always worry that I'm doing something not quite right, but it's not hard, and I want to make sure there are lots of good contenders for Middle Grade Fiction! Go!

Rory's Promise- #WeNeedDiverseBooks

MacColl, Michaela. Rory's Promise. 
September 1st 2014 by Calkins Creek Books 
E ARC from Netgalley.com

Rory has tried to make herself useful at the Catholic foundling home where she lives so that she can continue to be near her younger sister, Violet. The two ended up there after the death of both parents. When the nuns decide that Violet, at age five, is at the right age to be adopted, they plan on putting her on an orphan train to Arizona, but Rory (at 12) is too old to follow and is given options for remaining at the home and working. Not happy with this, Rory runs away and ends up in jail, where she meets Brigid. A street child and thief, Brigid is also going to be sent on an orphan train, but under much more stressful circumstances-- she can be adopted by anyone who wants a child, whereas Violet is going to a prescreened Catholic family. Brigid helps get Rory on to the train that Violet is on, and Rory hides for a bit until she reveals herself to the nuns. Sister Anna in particular is furious-- she cares for Rory, but has to part for so many of the children in her care that she must be callous and follow the rules. The trip to Arizona is stressful, and Rory makes herself useful, hoping that the family taking Violet will also take her. When the group arrives, however, they find that circumstances are not what were anticipated. The mining town has a high rate of infertility, so the women are desperate for children. The priest in charge speaks only French, and has placed all of the (primarily of Irish descent) children with Mexican families because they are Catholic. The Anglo American residents are furious and try to kidnap the children, but Rory likes Elena and Ramon, who are to adopt Violet, and tries to help the Catholic families keep the children. She is only partially successful because the whole situation is a complete mess and even the nuns and their agent are unable to do much against the residents, who control the entire town. While things end happily for Rory and her sister, it's unclear how things will go for the other children.
Strengths: I was leery of this book at first, but it got so many good reviews from people I trust that I had to take a look. I ended up liking it very much. There is enough action and adventure to keep readers happy, and Rory is an extremely appealing character. Based on an actual event, the historical details are fantastic, and even though Rory is Irish American, there is a lot of interesting information about the treatment of Mexican Americans in the US in the early 1900s. Good notes and resources at the end.
Weaknesses: The ending of this slowed down a bit for me when the Anglo American residents and the nuns were fighting about the children. I know that the author tried to follow the actual events, but the book would have ended with more of a bang if the fictional account would have been streamlined a bit.