The Higher Power of Lucky by Susan Patron
The Higher Power of Lucky by Susan Patron reminds me (in all the best ways) of the Ramona books I loved as a kid.
When You Reach Me
Rebecca Stead's When You Reach Me is a beautifully written book that walks a tightrope strung between reality and fantasy--or maybe sci-fi.Miranda is a latchkey kid, and the neighbor boy she's been friends with forever seems to suddenly want nothing to do with her. An exploration of friendship follows. Miranda…
Moon over Manifest
Clare Vanderpool's Moon over Manifest immerses readers in a small town where a new girl is discovering herself and her roots all at once. Abilene Tucker wants to ride the rails with her father. Unfortunately, he has sent her to Manifest for the summer (or maybe longer). He seems to…
Dead End in Norvelt
Jack Gantos's Dead End in Norvelt is a funny middle-grade book about a young man growing up in a town founded by Eleanor Roosevelt. Jack gets in trouble with his parents and spends the rest of the book grounded. His only amusement is helping the eccentric neighbor woman, Miss Volker.…
The One and Only Ivan
The One and Only Ivan by Katherine Applegate is a sweet, well-written book. It features a gorilla who makes art (and throws his own scat) in a small cage in a run-down mall circus. The story is told from Ivan's point of view (Ivan is the gorilla). Instead of being…
Flora & Ulysses
If you need a fun, quick read that’s delightfully magical and laugh-out-loud funny, Flora & Ulysses is a great pick.Flora is a wonderful character. Smart and cynical, she nonetheless manages to be be sweet. Also, her ability to accept the incredible (but true) is refreshing.I wonder, in fact, if that…
The Crossover
The Crossover, by Kwame Alexander, is a gorgeous novel in verse. In lyrical language it sings…and seduces…and transports. In fact, The Crossover is a bit magical. I know that, because partway through reading it, I imagined I actually wanted to get out and play basketball.Anyone who knows me will understand the…
The Girl who Drank the Moon
I have loved The Girl Who Drank the Moon since I first read it when my daughter picked it up for a contest back when she was in fifth grade. So, several years, now.Like all the best fantasies, this one immerses me in a world that feels both familiar and…
Bridge to Terabithia
I read Bridge to Terabithia once long ago, and my memory of it was fuzzy–only that it was a very good book, and that it made me sad.When a student needed to read it for a class, I was glad to pick up a copy and read along. And, having…
Holes
This book has been on my shelf for quite some time, and somehow I never felt like picking it up. Maybe the cover was too bland. Maybe the Newbery sticker faded into the sand. I don’t know.This weekend, though, I picked it up off the shelf, and wow.I like Stanley…
Hoot
They call this type of fiction realistic–and I guess it is, if you use “realistic” to mean that any given event in the story could conceivably happen in the world as we know it. There’s no magic, and no not-yet-invented technology.On the other hand, I often found my plausibility stretched…
Because of Mr. Terupt
One of the advantages of tutoring in English is that I sometimes get the chance to read books for young people that I hadn’t heard of before.This one is fun. It features an unconventional teacher and his students–several of whom narrate the book.The multiple narrators annoyed me a bit at…
Flying in a Cage
Ivory hears music in everything–in birdsong, and wind chimes, yes, but also in the noise of traffic and the rhythm of a dishwasher. There is also music in her heart, making sense of the world and her feelings–much more sense of these things than she can make without it. I…
Micah McKinney And The Boys Of Summer
Micah McKinney and the Boys of Summer was a fun read that reminded me of all the intense emotion of going into middle school.Micah may have more serious issues in her life than most young teens, but most will relate to her difficulties adjusting to the way her body, her…
Look Both Ways in the Barrio Blanco
Look Both Ways in the Barrio Blanco is a good book. Jacinta and Miss learn a lot from each other in this sweet and sometimes sad foray into the life of a young woman and her “amiga.” At the beginning, neither one understands much about the others’ world, and that…
Nadya Skylung and the Cloudship Rescue
I always enjoy reading works by the RMFW Writer of the Year nominees, and this little gem by Jeff Seymour is one of the reasons why. It has sparkling wit, swashbuckling adventure, and a delightfully idealistic heroine, who starts out a foolhardy tomboy, but ends up a thoughtful and courageous…
Hello, Universe
It’s easy to see why Hello, Universe won the Newbery this year. The kids in this story are quirky, delightfully complex, and easy to believe in and sympathize with. Even Chet, the stereotypical bully, is not nearly so stereotypical as he first appears.Don’t get me wrong. He’s still a bully,…
Circle of Gold
Recommended to me by K, this is a beautiful tale about a young girl whose family is weighed down by grief, and the lengths that girl will go to to show her mother love and earn her mother’s approval. It’s more serious than K’s usual fare, and that’s all to…
The Mage and the Magpie
A nice little fantasy with interesting characters and some great description. I thoroughly enjoyed it up until close to the end.Then I got a bit weirded out by the bizarre religious rituals and the suggestion that thirteen is old enough to be a mother--of any kind.Still, a fun read, that…
Writing Stories: Fantastic Fiction from Start to Finish
Writing Stories: Fantastic Fiction from Start to Finish aims to help middle grade students get started writing fiction. This slim little volume packs a lot of good advice, and it contains a fair few writing exercises that would seem like good ways to get going on a story if I…
The Bad Beginning
This is the start of Lemony Snicket’s A Series of Unfortunate Events, and I get why the series has become so popular. This light hearted romp through some of life’s thornier problems has well-drawn characters; fast-moving and believable (if not quite realistic) adventure; and a personable (if patronizing) narrator of…