Oh, it was sad.

Today marks the one hundredth anniversary of the sinking of the Titanic. There have been many books published on this events in preparation for this. Here are several of the many title I have come across. And if you are my age and went to summer camp stop singing "Oh, they built the ship Titanic" to yourself. You know you are!

Lorbiecki, Marybeth. Escaping Titanic.

This picture book version of the events centers around the real person Ruth Becker who was sailing with her mother and two younger siblings. Ruth's mother is frightened the whole time they are on the boat, but when a porter knocks on their door in the middle of the night with the news that something is wrong but will be fixed, she doesn't immediately dress the children and get them on deck. They do go eventually, and all of them narrowly get on life boats. They are separated, but everyone survives and they are reunited in the end. This would be a good read aloud to younger students who have heard of the event but don't need to know all of the gruesome details.

Brezenoff, Steve. Return to Titanic.

Published by Stone Arch Books, E ARC from Netgalley.com

Tucker and Maya have to spend a boring day in his mother's museum helping to set up a Titanic exhibit. Neither of them are all that interested even though an ancestor of Tucker's was on the ship. When the two are looking at artifacts, they both pick up a ticket... and are sent back in time to the Titanic! They try to stop Tucker's ancestor from getting on but are unsuccessful, so board themselves. Will they be able to make any changes in the outcome of this epic disaster? Book one of a series.

Weaknesses: I can't sell time travel at all in my library, and since these books for younger readers tend to be pricey, I won't be buying them.Strengths: Great, easy to read story for stronger readers than Magic Tree House fans. I liked the time travel technique and the graphic set up of the book.

Lawson, Julie. Ghosts of the Titanic.

When Kevin finds out that he has to travel to Halifax from British Columbia because his father has inherited a house from Angus Seaton, he is not happy and starts to act up in school. When his class is preparing to visit a Titanic exhibition, he gets in trouble for singing... the Titanic song! Seaton turns out to be a crewman on the Mackay-Bennet and helped retrieve bodies after the ship went down, helping to identify the bodies before giving them a burial at sea. Chapters then alternate between Seaton and Kevin-- Seaton went slightly mad, and Kevin is also haunted by the ghost of Annie, who claims that something was stolen from her young son, Michael. Kevin travels back in time and tries to save Annie, but is only successful in saving Michael. What is the family connection, and why did Annie haunt both Kevin and Angus?
Strengths: The information about the retrieval of the bodies is something that I have not read, and credit has to be given to Lawson for acknowledging that awful song!

Weaknesses: Kevin is not a likeable character, and the haunting is slightly far-fetched.

Mason Dixon

This book was received from Young Adult Books Central and is reviewed there.

Mills, Claudia. Mason Dixon: Fourth Grade Disasters.

Mason is leery of starting fourth grade-- not only does it mean being away from Dog, whom he has come to love, it means that he will have to be in the Plainfield Platters singing group, since all fourth graders are. After a disastrous performance in kindergarten, he doesn't want to have anything to do with being on stage. His new teacher, Coach Joe, is pretty cool, and Mason starts working on a story about an inanimate object for class. He choses to write about a piano who doesn't want to play. His parents won't let him out of performing, and he thinks he can maybe get out of it, but things go awry. Dog eats the Puff the Plainfield dragon costume, and his very best friend Brody needs his help out of a tight spot-- can Mason overcome his fear and his dislike of everything in order to save him?
Strengths: This sequel to Mason Dixon: Pet Disasters is a good, quick read for reluctant elementary school students. My son would have loved these in first grade. I really liked the Guy Francis illustrations-- he would be great for even older middle grade covers.

Weaknesses: Again, I don't like Mason. He's neurotic, and it's probably his mother's fault. Maybe this is more intriguing to younger readers, but I like my characters to be likable!

Guy Friday-- Abraham Lincoln

Both of these titles are also reviewed at Young Adults Book Central. Did you realize that Lincoln died on April 15, the same date that the Titanic went down?

Osborne, Mary Pope. Abe Lincoln at Last!

Jake and Annie are on a mission-- Teddy has put a spell on Merlin's penguin penny and needs Jack and Annie to break it by finding objects through history. They head out one morning before school and end up at the White House, where they need to meet with Lincoln. They meet two rowdy boys who say that they will introduce them to the president, but he ends up having to many meetings. Jack and Annie are sucked back into another place and meet a boy on a horse. Sam agrees to introduce them to Lincoln, but is injured at the mill. They take him back to his cabin and try to help him with his chores. When Sam's father comes home with a new stepmother and stepsiblings for Sam, he gives Jack and Annie a quill he uses for his school work. When the two travel back to the White House, Lincoln recognizes them as the children he met long ago, and Jack uses the quill to write an encouraging message to the president.

Strengths: This is a nice introduction to how hard Lincoln's boyhood was, and well as how busy he was as president.

Weaknesses: My children were HUGE Magic Tree House fans about ten years ago, and we read up to about book #25, so I'm not a stranger to these. However, Jack and Annie seem to have become less knowledgeable despite their many adventures. They don't know Tad and Will Lincoln, they don't recognize the young Lincoln, and they don't connect that a quill is the feather they seek. Also-- Merlin's penguin?

Osborne, Mary Pope. Fact Tracker: Abraham Lincoln.

This nonfiction companion to Abe Lincoln at Last! not only covers the events of Lincoln's life, but includes explanations about what life was like at the time he lived. History of the United States during the Civil War is explained. There are plentiful illustrations, but also a fair amount of photographs of Lincoln and the places that he lived. The basic facts about his life (education, early careers, romances) are covered in a conversational tone that is easy to read. An index and bibliography, as well as tips on how to do research, are included.

Love of the Game

Coy, John. Love of the Game.
This is the third in the 4 for 4 series that also includes: Top of the Order, Eyes on the Goal, and Take Your Best Shot.
Starting middle school has Jackson worried because he is also having to move into his mother's boyfriend's home. He already has a father; he doesn't need Ted, too. There are older students who are giving him a hard time, classes are difficult, and he is forced to be in a reading club. He has to take a food class, which is okay because there is a girl he likes in it. The one thing he looks forward to is football, but he is worried that his friend Diego won't go out for the team because his mother is afraid of injuries. His friend Gig is still concerned about his father in Afghanistan. Will all of these things get Jackson down, or will he be able to work everything out?
Strengths: This is a nice easy read for boys who like sports, even though there aren't as many descriptions of games. Readers of Rich Wallace will like these. I liked the book club and the shout out to Ritter's baseball books!
Weaknesses: Again with the bullies threatening swirlies and taking kids' lunch money. Sigh. I suppose it happens in some places.

Skead, Robert and Mike Simmel. Mighty Mike Bounces Back.
Mike has had epilepsy since he was two, and is on medication but still has seizures. When he was younger, they were so bad that his parents made him wear a bike helmet all the time! When he discovers basketball, if becomes his obsession. It's not enough to practice before and after school-- he wants to be on the team. With the help of his doctor and the patience of his teammates, he gets on the team. Even though he still has seizures (and sometimes has them at very inopportune moments), he is able to be a successful member of the team. Based on the real life experiences of Mike Simmel, who plays for the Harlem Wizards exhibition team.
Strengths: A short basketball book that also has a lot of information about epilepsy.
Weaknesses: A bit didactic, and the book would have benefitted greatly from better design, although the cover is good. The print is very tiny; since the book is so thin, I would have chosen a larger font!

Brief Job Update: It looks like I may be at one school next year, and it will hopefully be the one that I have been at for the last ten years (fifteen if you count volunteering!). This is, of course, marvelous good news, but next year could still be sad. The length of the day will probably be cut, and SSR could be a victim. The most important part of SSR for me is that I see ALL of the children in the building once a week, and they have an adult in their lives who has a vested interest in making sure that they have a book at all times. I try to get out to study halls to check, but SSR teachers see the the same group of students every day and can make sure.

There are a lot of teachers who are retiring even though they have a lot of good years left, in order to save the jobs of younger teachers. People will be moved. Students will have limited electives. We'll have cross country, but the fee will be $150. I have some runners who could barely afford $50. I saw my first cockroach in the building because of the custodial cuts.

*SIGH*

We will be grateful for what we have. And speaking of which, go congratulate Mother Reader on her Star Volunteer Award. Why is it that as conscientious, hard working adults, we still feel we are not worthy? I just won a GEM Award, and feel sort of like Mother Reader does!

Play Ball! (Fenway Fever)

Ritter, John H. Fenway Fever.
Philomel, 12 April 2012

"Stats" Pagano has a life that is closely tied to the fortunes of the Boston REd Sox. His grandfather started a hot dog stand (Papa Pagano's Red Sox Red Hots) and had two season tickets which he gave to Stats' father, who now runs the stand. The Sox are not doing well, and people are afraid that the "Curse of the Bambino" has returned. Stats takes it upon himself to try to figure out if there is something about the stadium or stadium atmosphere that might lead to a bad season, and seeks out information from several people, one of whom thinks that the curse might be tied to the rats in the stadium and the hawks (or lack thereof) brought in to keep down the population. In addition to trying to break the curse, Stats has his own problems-- he has always had a weak heart, and needs a pacemaker, and his father is in a huge amount of debt since the death of his mother. His father's answer to the problem is to sell the hot dog stand and the season tickets, but Stats doesn't want that to happen. Can he figure out how to solve his family's problems AND the problems of the Red Sox?
Strengths: This book had a ton of local color. I don't follow baseball, but this book clearly portrays a neighborhood where baseball is everything. It almost makes me want to go to a baseball game. There is also enough baseball and baseball lore to keep sports fans interested.

Weaknesses: While the solution to Stats' family problems in very heart warming, it's also a tad deus ex machina.

Adamson, Thomas K. Baseball: The Math of the Game.
I must admit that I was able to follow neither the math of this book nor the baseball. A whole lot of math is covered, from the geometry of the field and angles of... stuff to numbers of earned runs and other statistics. Will give this to our algebra teacher to read to see what he thinks. Can't opine on content, and my only wish about format is that the print weren't so tiny. Lots of pictures of players and stadiums, so is otherwise visually appealing

Ted and Me-- Time Slip Tuesday

Gutman, Dan. Ted and Me.

Stosh is back, and this time the CIA on to his time traveling abilities and willing to pay him to go back, meet Ted Williams, travel to see the president, and try to avoid the bombing of Pearl Harbor in order to save thousands of lives. Even Stosh doesn't think this is a great idea, and when the CIA's baseball card sends him into Williams' plane when he is running a mission over Korea in 1953, he is even more unsure of the plan. Still, he is willing to go in order to try to save his friend Flip's boyhood friend, who was killed in the bombing. Stosh finally gets to September of 1941 and is there to see William's get his .400. When Stosh predicts every play of the game, Williams knows that something is up, and when he finds out about Stosh's abilities, takes him off to Washington. Will Stosh be able to complete his mission, or are there times when there is nothing that one can change about the past?
Strengths: Having the CIA step in was kind of fun, as was the misstep with the wrong card! I loved that Gutman was able to portray Williams as the brusque, salty mouthed guy he apparently was without resorting to swearing. THANK YOU!! Even after eleven books, I still rather like this series, and that's saying a lot. The twist in this one was a little sad, but good.

Weaknesses: I was hugely bothered by the smallest things in this-- a bum with a shopping cart in the park in 1941, when shopping carts were brand new in 1937 and probably not used in small stores in big cities at this time. Also, the ease with which famous ball players let unaccompanied boys move in with them is alarming to modern sensibilities. Students will not notice either of these, but I'm still thinking about that shopping cart!

Nonfiction Monday

Nonfiction Monday was started by Anastasia Suen and is hosted this week at Ana’s NonFiction Blog.






Eamer, Claire. The World in Your Lunchbox: The Wacky History and Weird Science of Everyday Foods.
How did the food that we eat end up in our country, and how did it end up being considered something that was supposed to be eaten? How is food preserved? This clever book sets out a week of menus, using foods that are particularly appealing to students, and discusses these and other facts about it. The one page spreads present the information in a graphically pleasing way, and move the reader quickly from one topic to the next. This really was one of the most visually appealing books that I have read in a long time, and it is perfect for reluctant readers looking for something quick and fun to look at while providing a ton of information.

The Unusual History series from Capstone Press definitely hits topics that students like to read about. Interestingly, Lexile.com lists these as Illustrated Guides, and describes them as follows: " The IG code is applied to books that consist of independent pieces or sections of text such as in an encyclopedia or glossary. These text pieces could be moved around without affecting the overall linear flow of the book. Usually nonfiction, IG books are often used as a reference resource rather than read in their entirety like a storybook." While this is an apt description of the page layouts, I would say that this makes them much less valuable as a reference book and much more fun for reading through. All are filled with snippets of information about the history and famous people connected to each topic, as well as lots of random, interesting facts. The attractive, graphic style will encourage students to pick these up. Unfortunately, this will be the sort of book that is returned half an hour after it is checked out! At least they will see enough use to justify their $24 price tag

The Lexile Levels on these are slightly lower than the ones the Common Core Standards indicate for middle school (about 840 instead of in the 955-1155 range), but these books will definitely gets readers to pick up nonfiction!

Middle Grade Monday-- Baseball

Northrup, Michael. Plunked.

Jack has things pretty much figured out, as much as anyone can in the 6th grade. He's on a Little League team with good friends and a girl whom he thinks is cute. He's doing well on the team, too-- until he gets hit by a pitch and sent to the hospital. It's just a mild concussion, but it makes him wary of getting up to the plate again. He finds himself faking an injury and lying to his parents in order to get out of a game, and then thinks that he may drop out of playing baseball altogether. Baseball is everything to Jack-- can he manage to find a way to get his head back into the game?

Strengths: Very realistically drawn portrait of a middle school student struggling with the world around him. The parents especially are involved and supportive but not invasive. I always enjoy it when a girl ends up on a boys' team and not only does a good job but is well liked by the boys. Now Mr. Northrop needs to write a football book! (Or talk a colleague on the Sports Illustrated Kids staff to write one!)

Weaknesses: Jack's nemesis is routinely referred to as "Malfoy", which may make the book dated at some point. Also, Jack's injury wasn't all that severe, so I had trouble believing that it really spooked him.

Marvelous Middle Grade Monday is the brain child of Shannon Whitney Messenger and is hosted on her blog, Ramblings of a Wannabe Scribe. Head on over there for a round up of great middle grade reviews!

Ask Amy Green: Bridesmaid Blitz

Webb, Sarah. Ask Amy Green: Bridesmaid Blitz.
Amy and her (very young!) aunt Clover are back, and there's a ton going on. Amy's boyfriend Seth's mother is having trouble with her cancer coming back, Amy's mother is stressed about her upcoming marriage and is trying to deal with too small children while her fiance is working in a hospital AND trying to write children's songs, and Amy's stepmother is expecting. When the baby is born prematurely, Amy's father doesn't have much time for Amy. When Amy is able to go to Paris with her aunt Clover before the wedding at the same time as the school French class trip, Amy decides to hunt down Seth and surprise him. Is this a good idea? Will all of Amy's relatives become less stressed by the end of the book?
Strengths: I adored Ask Amy Green: Boy Trouble and Ask Amy Green: Summer Secrets. They were a little taste of fluffy Irish lit, fun escapades, and general amusement. This had some of that. I do love the covers.
Weaknesses: This was a bit sad. So many problems. Hmmmm. The series is so popular, though, that I will have to buy this one! I am interested to see if any of Ms. Webb's other books will make it to the US.

Harrington, Kim. Perception: A Clarity Novel.
Things have gotten better for Clare since she helped solve the murder of a tourist over the summer. Other girls at school will speak to her instead of thinking that she is from a family of psychic freaks, and she has both Gabriel AND Justin interested in her romantically, although she's leaning toward Gabriel since Justin slept with one of her enemies. (And yes, there are a couple of mentions, but nothing graphic. And you'd be amazed at how many 7th grade girls want to read about romantic triangles!) She makes a new friend in Mallory, who was also friends with Sierra, a new student who has recently been missing. To complicate the investigation, however, someone is stalking Clare and her brother is afraid to leave the house (maybe because his name is Periwinkle. Ugh.). At first, Clare suspects Mallory, then the goon of her arch enemy, but the twist is that her stalked and Sierra's kidnapper are the same person.
Strengths: I'm glad that the paperback for the first book illustrates Clare's long, curly red hair better. This is an excellent mystery series for my students, even with the passing references to sex. There's a lot of clue hunting, romance, suspense, and a paranormal twist as well.
Weaknesses: The passing references, and the wide variety of emotional problems many of the characters are facing. There was enough going on with the murder and stalking.

Bird, William. America's Doll House:The Miniature World of Faith Bradford.

I have a ton of things to read, but what do I pick up first? This interesting book about a very popular exhibit, the history of the Smithsonian and its philosophy of display, and a woman with a somewhat strange passion for miniatures. Having just visited the Smithsonian last year and been very confused by some of their choices (there was a car from a Dumbo ride on a landing that took an enormous amount of space, but in order to see Mr. Rogers' sweater, you were crammed into an alcove with half the museum's visitors), this was interesting. Also interesting is that a second doll house created by Faith Bradford was never displayed, inventoried in its case in 1985, and now cannot be found. Wow. That's some bad archiving. This was one of those titles I didn't need to read, but came across while looking for something else and couldn't resist!

Spring Sports!

Wooo hoooo! I am halfway through the 2012 challenge of reading 600 books! I know, right? I've been really motivated by getting boxes of ARCs from Baker and Taylor, and being a reviewer for Young Adult Books Central. Do I really read five or six books on some days? Absolutely! An average middle grade book takes me about 45 minutes to read, so if I get home at 3:00 and can manage to stay up until 9:00, I can get a lot read. Much more fun than stuff like housework and feeding people. And I'm working.

Swan, Bill. Mud Happens.
In this second book in the series, Matt and the Lovey runners are back, but Ms. Wellesley can't continue as their coach after the school board decides that they can't train over the winter at the Civic Dome because of liability reasons. Matt and Ashely approach Joe Calder, the coach of the competitive Riders running club to work with their group, and he agrees only if they can get Ms. Wellesley to step up her training for the Olympic team tryouts. Matt has trouble pacing himself in his running, and finds help from an unlikely source-- the school custodian, Tony, who coaches the nearby Vikings club. When the group enters a race, will Matt's training pay off? Will he choose to join a different running club from his friends?
Strengths: Again, good details about running. I liked Matt a little more; he is happier having settled in from the family move, although his sister is struggling with college decisions, which is a nice touch.
Weaknesses: Canadian cross country is set up differently. I imagine the student who checked out the first book is about done; I'm curious to see what he thought. Recruiting student athlete from their home schools is frowned upon in the US, so it was odd to me that Matt had to make a choice!

Swan, Bill. Road Rage.
Matt and his friends are going to run the Alfie Shrubb race, so while their class is doing research at the library, Matt slips out to the museum that has a book on the man. He gets caught and has to do community service, but even worse, the valuable book that he borrows briefly goes missing, and the police get involved! His family is still struggling-- his sister with college decisions, and the family whether they should move back to London or not. Since Matt is in trouble, he doesn't get to run in the race but is put to work handing out water a good way from the end of the race, where he ends up helping a former world championship competitor who is struggling with MS over the finish line.
Strengths: I like the flirtation with Ashley-- very well done. I started to get to know the other characters in the book a bit better, and the portrayal of Matt being in trouble for being in the wrong place at the wrong time was well done. The inclusion of the runner with MS was also well done.
Weaknesses: I knew who had taken the book early on, but students might not catch that!

Lynch, Janet Nichols. Racing California.
Holiday House, 1 April 2012

Evan is thrilled when he meets biking legend Dash Shipley while working as a tour guide with a cycling company. At first, he is mistaken for someone else, but is still approached to be part of a racing team that Shipley is putting together. The training takes a huge amount of work, which makes it difficult for Evan to get through his senior year and have time to spend with his girlfriend, who wants to become a doctor as much as Evan does. Still, biking is what Evan loves best, so it is worth the hard work and sacrifice to be able to race with a team. Evan idolizes Dash, so when it becomes clear that Dash is not necessarily a nice guy, and doesn't feel that the rules apply to him, Evan has to decide if racing is really the path in life he wants to take.
Strengths: Lots of great descriptions of bike racing, which were fun to read. I ride a bike nearly every day, but I never get to ride up mountains! Evan is also an interesting character with a lot of drive, and it's hard to find books concerning students getting ready for college.
Weaknesses: One iffy scene with a bike groupie who brings Evan back to her room. Nothing happens, but they wake up together. One f-bomb, if I remember.

Guy Friday-- Jackalopes!

Ecton, Emily. Project Jackelope. (Chronicle Books)
Jeremy is used to running odd errands for Professor Twichett, but when the odd scientist leaves a cryptic note and an evil looking jackelope in Jeremy's care, he's not quite sure what to do. When men in suits start stalking him, pretending that the professor has inherited money, Jeremy suspects that something is up. He consults Agatha, his neighbor and one time assistant to the professor, and finds out that the jackalope was sort of her idea. She thinks it would be a great idea to use the jackelope for her science fair project, but there isn't any time-- when the men in suits close in, the two go on the run with the jackelope in a bright pink Dora the Explorer suitcase! For what evil purposes do the men want the jackelope-- and who else is out to get them?
Strengths: Any book that includes a whiskey swilling monster with razor sharp antlers and men in suits chasing down children who have access to their own credit card will certainly intrigue a large number of middle school readers.
Weaknesses: The jackelope wasn't evil enough. It spent most of it's time sitting quietly in different bags while being carted around. I would rather have had Jeremy tame the jackelope, after it terrorizes a bunch of people and eats a car or something.


Katz, Alan. Poems I Wrote When No One Was Looking.
Illustrated by Edward Koren.
Hooray! Methadone for Shel Silverstein addicts! This collection of poems was really great-- they are funny, they rhyme and have meter, and they are on topics that children will find appealing. I can see this working with elementary students, but also middle school. Not bitter or introspective enough for high school, however (see below!). I'm not a huge fan of Koren's illustrations, but they do go with the poems nicely. My only complaint is that not a lot of them are forty words long, which if what I often need when students are required to memorize a poem. Definite purchase!

Handler, Daniel. Why We Broke Up.
From the Publisher: "Sixteen-year-old Min Green writes a letter to Ed Slaterton in which she breaks up with him, documenting their relationship and how items in the accompanying box, from bottle caps to a cookbook, foretell the end."

Just in case you thought this title by the author otherwise known as Lemony Snicket might be good for a middle school library... meh. For high school, yes. It would be awesome. But middle schoolers, in general, have a much lighter and faster paced approach to romance. This is rather bitter and ponderous. The best part about it were the blurbs on the back cover from authors telling how their hearts were broken.

Girls' Soccer

Choat, Beth. Soccerland. (2010)

Flora wants to escape from potato farm life in Maine after her soccer-playing mother's death, so when she is asked to go to a two week program to pick girls to train for the US Women's National Team, she is very excited. She is impressed by the training facilities and the programs while realizing that the competition is very tough and some of the girls are horrible and mean. She rooms with a nice gymnast, Samantha, has a bit of a crush on Logan, and is a bit scared of the intense British coach. She struggles with feeling fat (even though she is lean but very muscular) and works through some body issues. When her grandfather has a stroke with just a few days left of camp, she has to decide whether to stay and pursue her dream, or return to her family.

Strengths: Lots of soccer action, and a fascinating portrayal of what truly elite soccer players go through. The whole book felt very well thought out and balanced. The close-knit, hardworking French-American family was also a nice touch.

Weaknesses: The mean girls were a little cliched.

Montalbano, Andrea. Breakaway (2010)

Lily lives for soccer, and her involved but busy family knows it. Because she cares so deeply about the sport, she has some problems with impulse control on the field. When she tries to impress a scout at the expense of the team and other players, they turn against her and she is benched for two games. At the same time, her grandfather moves into her room and she is blamed for damaging a sign when she didn't, although she was definitely in the wrong place at the wrong time. Since her other friends, especially Vee, aren't talking to her, she gets to know Tabitha, whom she had always thought was spoiled and snotty. She starts to realize that Tabitha's dad is overbearing, and that everyone has problems of one sort or another. Lily must come to terms with how to handle her own problems in a way that doesn't cause her to give up on her passion of playing soccer.

Strengths: This was a good sports book for slightly younger girls, and this issues with friends and family complemented the sports action.

Weaknesses: Tabitha's family has a driver and a housekeeper? I suppose there are families like that, but it's so outside my realm of experience that I couldn't believe it! Also, looking at the covers of these three, I like the action shots better.

FitzGerald, Dawn. Soccer Chick Rules (2006)

Tess prefers sports to school, so when her school district is in danger of cutting sports if the levy fails, she decides to try to sway her neighbors into voting for the schools. She realizes that it is hard for some of her neighbors financially to do this, but she doesn't understand when a family with children in a private school are so opposed to the levy. School and soccer go on while the levy is approaching, and Tess and her friends manage to have a lot of adventures and to get into a little bit of trouble along the way. When the fateful day arrives, Tess is crushed when the levy fails, but decides that she loves soccer so much that she will find some way to play.

Strengths: Tess is an engaging, if difficult, character, and her plight is all too real! This is a great realistic fiction book for girls who like soccer. I loved the (slightly dated) storyline concerning the computer teacher and the Case of the Missing Mouse Balls. Very true to life! I'll have to see if Ms. Fitzgerald has written anything else.

Weaknesses: The ending was somehow incomplete. HOW would Tess play soccer? What were the other implications for the school when the levy failed? There was a slightly less than flattering depiction of the library and librarian, but would the library still be open if the levy failed? Oh, wait. Now we're just getting too close to my life.

Common Core Classes, Anyone??

Here is a plea for information. Like all educators, I need to have six graduate credits every five years to renew my certificate. My favorite place to take course, Ashland University, no longer offers much at the Columbus campus, and there isn't much on line.

Anyone know of any online courses addressing Common Core Standards? It would be great to have one on research, and one on literature. Sounds like a couple of three credit hour classes right there, but I can't find them. Any good sources? I'm sure a lot of people need these.

I'll post anything forwarded to me!
http://ohioteacherscontinuingeducation.com/

Paranormal and Dystopian!

Price, Lissa. Starters.

Callie is trying to survive as an unclaimed minor with her young brother, Tyler, in a world where everyone but the very young and very old have died of a virus. Callie is squatting in an apartment building, so when she finds out she can make a lot of money at Prime Destinations, "renting" her body to "Enders" (older adults) who want to be able to live in a young body for a while, she leaves Tyler in the care of Michael and turns herself over to Prime. They give her a laser makeover so is is gorgeous, and rent her out for a day. Eventually, she is rented to Helena, but things start to go wrong-- she wakes up while posing as Helena and can hear her voice in her head. It turns out that Prime is not just taking unclaimed minors-- Helena's granddaughter joined Prime in order to get the makeover, and died. Helena is bound and determined to kill the owner of the business, so Callie tries to uncover what is going on. When Prime announces a new program for Enders to buy bodies instead of just simply renting them, Callie realizes that something must be done. Can she manage to take down prime but survive to take care of her brother?
Strengths: VERY nice twist in a dystopian novel. The science in the body switching seems plausible, and the construction of a post apocalyptic society is good. Callie grows as a character, the plot advances logically, and the conclusion is final enough for a single volume but leaves room for a sequel. Appropriate for middle school. My daughter loved the cover.
Weaknesses: I got a little confused in the middle, and also didn't understand completely why some of the people were 150 years old. Might have missed that explanation.


Hawkins, Rachel. Spell Bound.
This much anticipated third book in the Hex Hall series started off by making me laugh, as usual. "Sure, it's awesome when you're using (magic) to change your hair color, or fly, or turn day into night. But for the most part, magic tends to end in explosions, or tears, or with you flat on your back in the middle of nowhere, feeling like a tiny dwarf is mining for diamonds inside your head. Okay, so maybe that last bit was just me." (page 3). Sophie is back, having lost her magical powers, but she is accompanied by the ghost of her friend Elodie. When she is attacked by members of the Brannicks, she ends up in their compound, where she finds her mother who is... a Brannick. This is a problem, since they hunt evil and consider Sophie's demon heritage a negative even though without her powers she is just human. This, too, is a problem because the Brannicks had hoped that Sophie would fight with they against the Prodigium and help them win. Sophie has some other problems as well-- how can she choose between her fiance, Cal, and her boyfriend, Archer? Hate to say too much and spoil this, but suffice it to say that there are a lot of good spells, political machinations, a fair amount of fighting, and a very sad romantic twist. I'll be very interested to see what Ms. Hawkins writes next!
Strengths: The snarky humor makes this stand out in the vast sea of paranormalish books, and I liked that Sophie was key to the epic battle. I'm very glad that they didn't decide to change the cover-- the series looks awesome together.
Weaknesses: I find that I forget a lot of the details between books, so it would have been good to have a little more recap. Now that the entire series is out, readers can finish them all together, and this will be less of a problem.

Smith, Jennifer E. The Storm Makers.
Release 3 April 2012
Twins Ruby and Simon are living on a farm because their parents are trying to make it as an artist and an inventor, when a mysterious man, Otis, appears in their barn. Strange things start happening with Simon-- he seems to have an electrical effect on appliances, and the weather starts behaving strangely. Otis tells them this is because Simon has a rare talent-- he is a storm maker, and can control the weather. They find an ally in another storm maker, Daisy, who runs the local body shop. She is especially helpful when Simon is approached by Rupert London of MOSS (Makers of Storms Society) who wants to create dangerous weather events for his own evil purposes. Simon must decide-- does he want to join Rupert or fight against him?
Strengths: There's been more students wanting magical realism, and this has all the standards elements of a young boy saving the world from evil.
Weaknesses: The ARC is 372 pages long. If the book were about half this size, the plot would be tighter, the action would accelerate more quickly, and I could sell it to kids. Ms. Smith's background is in young adult literature, and this shows in the pacing.

Schreiber, Ellen. Magic of the Moonlight. (Full Moon #2)
Eventually, the Vampire Kisses series will end. (The ninth, and last, book, Immortal Hearts, comes out May 15 and my girls are so upset because I won't have it before school is out!) Luckily for my readers, they can start this series about werewolves. I liked it a little better than Vampire Kisses, which got to me with the whole whining Goth, "I can only wear Hot Topic fishnets" thing, but still don't have much tolerance for the doomed romance with paranormal being subject. That said, these are a must have for middle school.

From the Publisher: "As seventeen-year-old Celeste seeks a cure for her werewolf-boyfriend, Brandon, Legend's Run's highly-anticipated Moonlight Ball is approaching, and Celeste must decide if she is willing to risk attending with Brandon and possibly revealing his secret to the entire school when the moon appears."

Summer on the Moon

Fogelin, Adrian. Summer on the Moon.
ARC received from Peachtree Publications. Read about the blog tour!

Socko lives in a rundown apartment building in a rough area of town. His mother Delia works at Phat Burger and brings home leftovers for them to eat, and he and his friend Damien are looking forward to a summer of hanging out and skateboarding. Around the time that they feel they can no longer stay away from local bully Rapp and his gang, Socko's mother gets an offer she can't refuse-- her grandfather, the General, offers to move them to a brand new house in a new subdivision if they will take care of him. Socko isn't happy about leaving Damien, and not wild about taking care of an ornery, wheelchair bound, complaining old man, but he makes a friend in Livvy, the daughter of the ill-fated Moon Ridge Estates, and the two hang out in the nearly empty subdivision. While Socko and Livvy try to make the Estates in to a viable neighborhood, Socko's friends in the old neighborhood seem to be in danger from Rapp, and Socko has to decide how and if he can help them while still working to improve his own current conditions. This interesting story explores the importance of home-- both the physical place and the people who inhabit it.
Strengths: The skateboarding and inner city gang problems are topics that interest middle grade students tremendously.
Weaknesses: There's a little too much about the grandfather's eccentricities and not enough skateboarding. I haven't seen the final cover, but I'm not overly wild about this one. Stock photos would be a better choice.

Peachtree is having a Blog Tour for this title, at the following sites. Check it out!

Monday:

Boys to Books (review)

Barbara Watson (Q&A with Adrian )

Tuesday:

There’s a Book (review and Q&A with Adrian )

Ms. Yingling Reads (review)

Maestra Amanda’s Bookshelf (review)

Wednesday:

Boys to Books (Q&A with Vicky Holifield, editor)

Thursday:

Satisfaction for Insatiable Readers (Guest Post by Adrian )

Friday:

Maestra Amanda’s Bookshelf (Guest Post by Adrian )

Kloepfer, John. The Zombie Chasers: Sludgment Day. (#3)
Zach's parents (and most of the world) have been turned into zombies, but Zach and his friends have the antidote and are ready to save the world! First they have to drive across the country and locate the food scientist Duplessis, who helps them make more antidote as well as antizombification popcorn (it looks like brains, right?). During their trip to get there, they meet up with zombie Elvis impersonators, have a show down in the Mall of America, and fight a zombie BurgerDog meat man. Many illustrations accompany this.
Strengths: The kids LOVE zombie books, and this is gross without being overly gruesome. I can see a second grader reading it, and the 6th graders adore this series. The 8th graders, however, are FAR too cool to be seen with Zombie Chasers.
Weaknesses: Lots of death and destruction, but there is the feeling that it isn't permanent. The cartoonish illustrations, while a bit stomach turning, somehow make this seem less serious-- the level of gore in this could be pretty disturbing if the book were done in a slightly different way. Still, great for reluctant readers! And there is still probably one more book to come.

Quest for the Secret Keeper

Time Slip Tuesday is a recurring feature at Charlotte's Library.

This book was received from Young Adults Books Central and reviewed there. If there is a school or public library who could use this new hardcover book in their collection, please e mail me a short message about why you would like it, and I'll send it to one lucky respondent. If I am ever allowed out of the house to go to the post office! Goodness knows I have enough mailing envelopes now!

Laurie, Victoria. Quest for the Secret Keeper. (Oracles of Delphi Keep #3)

In 1232 BC, Laodamia of Phoenicia, the Oracle of Delphi, is dying in Morocco. She gives her bronze cuffs to the Carthaginian General Adrastus because they activate the portal for the United. Laodamia is about to die, so makes the general her Secret Keeper and swears him to delivering boxes of secrets and marrying Adria. Fast forward to 1940, where the orphan Ian is mourning the death of the man with whom his mother left him before he ended up in the Delphi Keep orphanage. Ian has other worries-- England has entered the war against Germany and English children are being evacuated into the countryside. Ian gets involved in a scuffle with a German officer and a mistress at the school is injured, so he tries to get Eva, another orphan who travels through the portal and who has healing powers, to come help. He meets Argos, an ancient Phoenician solider who is sent with the oracles prophecy. Ian and his friends must work to solve this, but if the United leave Delphi Keep, they won't be protected, and only they can solve the riddle of the propehct, find and save the secret keeper, and help the English against the Germans. The prophecy

indicates that seven children will come together, and this book ends with only five having been found, so there is probably another book on the way.

Strengths: Since this involves some mythology (as well as some French witches), fans of Rick Riordan might be interested. There is also a lot of World War II information; it reminds me a little of Ted Bell's The Nick of Time with it's journeying between two historical periods.

Weaknesses: This is the third book in the series, and does not stand alone well. I was very confused by many of the subplots, but don't think that I will backtrack and read The Oracle of Delphi Keep (2009) or The Curse of Deadman's Forest (2010).

Nonfiction Monday

Nonfiction Monday was started by Anastasia Suen and is hosted today at Rasco from RIF. Please read the sad news that RIF's government funding has been cut. I never benefitted personally from RIF's books for children, but it makes me sad that we can afford to fund the military but not education for impoverished children.

Nonfiction Monday will be hosted here on 14 May 2012!


Latham, Donna. Garbage: Investigate What Happens When You Throw It Out.
This is part of the Build It Yourself Series from Nomad Press. This book is an overview of how garbage is produced and dealt with through history and today. Each chapter discusses different aspects of garbage, gives explanations of vocabulary and unknown concepts, and concludes with an experiment, activity or craft project. Cartoon illustrations accompany this information, and there is a complete glossary, index and bibliography at the end.
Strengths: This would be great for a teacher to have as a resource in a classroom. I can see it being helpful for coordinating lessons with the curriculum. (And I REALLY want the one in this series where you can learn how to make your own trebuchet! My students think this would be dangerous.)
Weaknesses: I have deaccessioned several books that look very much like this from my library and am extremely leery of things illustrated solely by cartoons and anything that deals with science fair projects. It always seems like students would check them out, but they just don't.

(And on the weeding front, I finally deaccessioned my Mr. Wizard book from about 1962 after flipping it open and reading that "Mr. Wizard has been on television for the past eight years". Sadly, Don Herbert passed away in 2007. I gave the book to a science teacher who was very happy to have it!)

Szpirglas, Jeff. You Just Can't Help It!: Your Guide to the Wild and Wacky World of Human Behavior.
This book covers several topics of human behavior, including senses, emotions, communications and interactions. Each is described briefly, and short paragraphs with illustrations are arranged on the pages and don't need to be read linearly. Each chapter also includes the description of a scientific study that was done on the topic and discusses what the outcomes have to say about human behavior. There is an index, but no glossary of bibliography.
Strengths: This brightly colored collection of snippets of information is one that would be easy for students to skim, and there is a lot of good information in the book. High "gross" factor isalways good.
Weaknesses: The clip art/illustration mix looks rather 1990s to me, but students might not see that.

Middle Grade Monday-- Chomp

Middle Grade Monday is the brainchild of Shannon Whitney Messenger. A great round up of a variety reviews can be found at her blog, Ramblings of a Wanna Be Writer.

In other exciting news (in my world, which is pretty dull!), I have been asked to review books for Young Adult Books Central! They send me books, especially for middle grade boys, which makes me very happy!

Hiaasen, Carl. Chomp

Review copy received from publisher for YA Books Central.

Wahoo's dad, Mickey Cray, has a business renting exotic animals for film sets. While he is recovering from an iguana-induced concussion, Wahoo's mom has to go to China, and Wahoo accepts a contract to supply animals for Expedition Survival! during his summer vacation so the family has some money coming in. The star of the show, Derek Badger, stages most of the show, and there's never any real danger, and Mickey gets so annoyed with his showmanship that he sabotages the filming in small ways, to the amusement of Wahoo as well as the film crew. Wahoo needs some amusement-- he's still concerned about his father's headaches, as well as Tuna, a girl from his class. Tuna lives with her alcoholic, abusive father in a trailer in the parking lot of the local Wal-Mart, and after her most recent beating has sought refuge with the Crays. When one of Derek's stunts goes terribly wrong and he is bitten on the tongue by a bat, the Everglades become dangerous for real. Tuna's father is hunting her down, Derek is roaming about in an infection induced state of paranoia that he will turn into a vampire like Dax Mangold from the Night Wing books, and Wahoo needs to make sure that Tuna stays safe and Derek's injury doesn't ruin his father's business. Sound hectic, complicated, and a bit hilarious? Absolutely.

Strengths: Derek is a great character, sort of the evil, bumbling twin of Steve Irwin. His own hubris makes it funny that Mickey Cray turns animal after animal against him without injuring him. Hiaasen always does great running-around-avoiding-danger; this reminded me a little of the late, great Donald Westlake. I am also glad to see that the publisher has kept the same style of covers-- Hoot came out in 2002, and the cover doesn't seem dated at all.

Weaknesses: There is no mystery in this, which I expected, and some of it does seem a bit mean spirited. Tuna's father is also rather disturbing. That said, I was never a huge fan of Hiaasen's other books, although they certainly circulate well, but this might be my favorite of his middle grade titles.

Guest Post-- Grave Mercy

I've been getting boxes of ARCS through Baker and Taylor, and some of those I know are not going to be for my middle schoolers. I shared one of these with our Lovely Office Goddess, Amy, and she was kind enough to write this complete review!

Lafevers, Robin. Grave Mercy (His Fair Assassin Book 1)
This book is one of the reasons that I am most grateful to my favorite librarian, who not only knows what all the kids in the building like to read, but what I like, too. Even better, she shares with me. Doesn’t get much better than that!

Ismae Rienne is seventeen when her father arranges her unwilling marriage to a local farmer in order to be rid of her. She is scarred by the poison given to her mother to ensure a miscarriage. Isame, as the daughter of Death, is immune to poison, however and the scarring is the only result. Discovering this on her wedding day, her new husband literally throws her in the cellar until he can locate a priest to burn her. Spirited out by the local herbwife, Ismae is secretly sent to the convent of St. Mortain, the god of Death. There she is trained by the nuns to be an assassin in service to the country of Brittany and its twelve year old duchess, Anne. Three years later, at the request of one of the duchess’ Privy Council members, Ismae is sent to court. Her assignment – find and dispatch whoever in the Breton court is working to dispose Anne and facilitate the French takeover of Brittany. As is often true at court, no one is exactly as he or she seems. Or are they? As Ismae grows closer to the duchess, and the duchess’ older half brother, she finds herself embroiled in plots to save Anne and in foiling French plots to take over the country.
While you could put this in the hands of one of the more mature eighth graders, it really is aimed at a high school audience. The political intrigue begins building almost immediately and is the driving force behind the action. There is plenty of action; Ismae is an assassin after all. At first I wasn’t sure about an assassin as the main character, but Ismae is a likable and sympathetic character. She has believable and valid reasons for each killing and applies a rather admirable moral code to not only her assignments, but to her dealings with Anne, Duval and the rest of the court. I also found it interesting that the assassins in the book are all part of a religious order. The book is set in 1485 and religion is a large part of people’s lives at that that time and in fact, the religious beliefs of the characters are a natural part of who they are.

The truly intriguing facet of Grave Mercy for me was the political action. Yes, there was romance, as to be expected since a large portion of the plot concerns who and why the duchess should ultimately marry. But the machinations of the various characters to influence her marriage to their choice of candidates or to find a way to have her installed as duchess in her own right, without a husband, are what held my interest. Add some family drama, a rebellion by some of Brittany’s barons and the beginning of a French invasion and there’s a nice little web of intrigue with a few surprises hiding among the strands. LaFevers does a nice job of tying up the plot satisfactorily but there are enough questions left to justify the sequel. And to make me anxious to read it.

Grave Mercy (His Fair Assassin Book 1) is due out in stores 4-3-12. Dark Triumph (His Fair Assassin Book 2) is due out in spring 2013.

Fantaskey, Beth. Jessica Rules the Dark Side.

Jessica and Lucius are married (read the Wedding Chapters!) and living in Romania. Things aren't starting out well-- even though their marriage is supposed to end an ancient feud, Claudiu, and evil elder is found murdered, and Lucius is blamed for it. Jessica is trying her best to rule the way that her mother would have, but she is besieged by dreams, unable to stomach the violent punishments she and Lucius must hand out, and misses her home and friend Mindy Sue. Since Mindy Sue is flunking out of community college and more than happy to travel to Romania when her vampire-assassin/hunk crush Raniero asks her to, at least Jessica has an ally. Political intrigue swirls, Jessica tries to use more modern research techniques to clear Lucius' name, and the vampire kingdom once again rests on the reluctant vampire queen.

Strengths: My students LOVE Jessica's Guide to Dating on the Dark Side and were thinking a sequel would never come out, so they will be thrilled to have this. There's room for another sequel, and Jessica does make some progress towards being a vampire ruler.

Weaknesses: I, too, loved the first book, but just didn't love this one. I was confused that the two were married, annoyed tremendously by Mindy Sue, and didn't feel that Jessica was as strong and snarky as she was in the first book. Granted, love will do that to a person, but I was just a tiny bit disappointed in this.