Saturdays At Sea

Saturdays At Sea by Jessica Day George, 262 pages

“After traveling to the seaside kingdom of Lilah's betrothed prince, Lulath, Celie and her companions are busy training griffins, enjoying wedding festivities, and finishing construction of a grand ship built from parts of the Castle. But on their maiden voyage, the Ship steers them far off course into uncharted waters.”  I love this addition to the series.  This is perfect for elementary kids who like fantasy.

School of The Dead

School of The Dead by Avi, 276 pages

Tony’s great uncle Charlie is a little odd, but when he comes to live with Tony’s family, Tony realizes he’s fun too. Uncle Charlie wants to communicate with the spirit world and Tony is willing to humor him.  When Uncle Charlie dies, Tony is devastated, but a little excited to move to San Francisco from Connecticut to go to Charlie’s old school, the Penda School.  Penda looks more like house since it was donated by Mrs. Penda years ago, after the death of her son, but why did Tony see faces in the windows on a Sunday?  Why is there a boy in his class that looks exactly like Mrs. Penda’s dead son?  And why does Tony keep seeing his Uncle Charlie everywhere?  A girl in Tony’s class, Jessica, thinks that he has been touched by death, and that he may be in danger.  She thinks they need to destroy the Penda Boy’s ghost, before something terrible happens.  This was a really good story for elementary students who like horror and ghost stories.  I would highly recommend it.

Merci Suarez Changes Gears

Merci Suarez Changes Gears by Meg Medina, 355 pages

“Thoughtful, strong-willed sixth-grader Merci Suarez navigates difficult changes with friends, family, and everyone in between.”  I loved Merci, the book and the character.  She is fantastic, very real and immensely likable.  This is a great read for kids who like realistic fiction.

Blended

Blended by Sharon Draper, 308 pages

“Piano-prodigy Isabella, eleven, whose black father and white mother struggle to share custody, never feels whole, especially as racial tensions affect her school, her parents both become engaged, and she and her stepbrother are stopped by police.” I wasn’t completely expecting how this story was going to go but I loved it.  I’m sure that plenty of kids can relate to Izzy’s story and even kids who haven’t had her experiences can sympathize with her troubles.  She’s an extremely likable and relatable character.  I would highly recommend this for older elementary kids.

Pathfinders

Pathfinders: The Journeys of 16 Extraordinary Black Souls by Tonya Bolden, 124 pages

“Profiles sixteen high-achieving African Americans, including magician Richard Potter, concert singer Sissieretta Jones, and architect Paul R. Williams.” I had heard of many of these people but I was surprised at how many I had never heard of before.  There isn’t a lot of information about any one person, but there is an interesting overview of all of the people included, besides side notes about other people who were in the same field or are otherwise related, and notes about what else was happening in the time during which the person lived.  This was an interesting book and would appeal to kids who like biographies.

Undefeated

Undefeated: Jim Thorpe And The Carlisle Indian School Football Team by Steve Sheinkin, 280 pages

“Native American Jim Thorpe became a super athlete and Olympic gold medalist. Indomitable coach Pop Warner was a football mastermind. In 1907 at the Carlisle Indian Industrial School in Pennsylvania, they forged one of the winningest teams in American football history. Called "the team that invented football," they took on the best opponents of their day, defeating much more privileged schools in a series of breathtakingly close calls, genius plays, and bone-crushing hard work. Sheinkin provides a true underdog sports story -- and an unflinching look at the U.S. government's violent persecution of Native Americans and the school that was designed to erase Indian cultures.” This was fascinating.  I knew nothing about Tbhorpe and very little about Pop Warner beyond his name.  The book read more like a story than a work of non-fiction, which made it fun to read, but it also imparted a lot of information, about the people, the history of football, and about the schools in general and Carlisle in particular.  This is a great book for history and sports buffs.

Riding Lessons

Riding Lessons by Jane Smiley, 183 pages

Ellen has a mind of her own and doesn’t always behave the way she should but she tries to behave most of the time so that she can keep taking riding lessons.  She loves horses and riding and especially jumping.  She is excited when she meet a new horse, Ned.  Ned seems to talk to her and Ellen is always happy when she gets to see him.  She wants nothing more than to own a horse of her own someday.  This is a great book for kids who love horses.  It’s historical, but not much in the story is dated.  It’s definitely realistic, but has a more slice-of-life feel to it.

Shelby’s Story

Shelby’sStory by W. Bruce Cameron, 207 pages

Shelby is a dog who is destined to become a movie star.  She’s smart and she loves learning new things.  Sometimes, her people are worried that she won’t understand what she needs to do in time to finish making the movie, but Shelby knows she’s got what it takes.  Also, after the hard life she lived as a puppy, she knows that the most important thing is to be surrounded by love.  This is a sweet, fictional, story about the dog that played in the movie “A Dog’s Purpose”.  Kids who like animal stories will enjoy this book.

The Boggart Fights Back

TheBoggart Fights Back by Susan Cooper, 210 pages

This book is a sequel to The Boggart and The The Boggart and The Monster, but it can stand alone.  The Boggart is a mischievous creature that likes to play tricks but is fiercely loyal to its clan.  When a developer comes in wanting to buy the castle where the Boggart lives to start a new hotel resort, it’s up to the youngest members of the clan, Allie and Jay, with the help of their grandfather, to try and stop him.  With some help from the Boggart and other Old Things, they hope they can succeed.  I loved this story.  It may have been even better than the original story.  Kids who like fantasy need to read it.

Max’s Story

Max’sStory by W. Bruce Cameron, 191 pages

Max is a little dog who is determined not to get pushed around.  He makes sure that other dogs know he is in charge and he won’t let people get away with doing things he doesn’t like either.  When he finds CJ he knows that he is meant to be her dog.  CJ is the only one who can get him to be gentle, but can CJ train him to behave quickly enough that she will be allowed to keep him?  This was a sweet story that would be great for kids who like animal books.

The Girl In The Locked Room

TheGirl In The Locked Room by Mary Downing Hahn, 193 pages

The girl can’t remember her name or how long she has been in the room.  She just knows that she is locked in and that she is lonely.  Jules is lonely too.  Her family moves all of the time so she is always the new girl and never has enough time to really make friends.  She hopes that this move will let them stay a while, although the house that her father is renovating is spooky.  She really believes that it might be haunted, especially since she starts seeing people that couldn’t possibly be there.  When a new friend, Maisie, tells her that everyone thinks the house is haunted by a family that was murdered there, Jules knows she was right.  The question is, what do the ghosts want? And can Jules do anything about it?  This is not as scary as some ghost stories.  The ghost isn’t very scary at all, but the story itself has a pretty good creepy factor.  I enjoyed it and most kids who like ghost or scary stories will enjoy it.

Checked

Checked by Cynthia Kadohata, 408 pages

When Conor finds out that his dog, Sinbad, has cancer, he realizes that he may have to choose between his dog and hockey.  Sinbad is his soulmate, so it really isn’t a choice, but Hockey is his life.  Luckily, although he has to cut back on some lessons for a while, he doesn’t have to quit completely.  Conor has a lot going on his mind, worry about his dog and his dad, hockey, figuring out the rest of his family, and his place in the world.  This book was really about relationships and growing up, but the hockey is a big part of that for Conor and I really enjoyed every part of the book.  Kids who like realistic fiction, sports stories, family stories, or dog stories will probably all love this book, unless they are bothered by the length.  I would highly recommend it.

My Father’s Words

My Father’s Words by Patricia MacLachlan, 135 pages

Fiona’s world is turned upside down when her father is killed in a car accident.  She, her little brother Finn, and her mother have to learn how to cope without their father.  While Fiona struggles, she thinks that Finn has a harder time than she does.  She wants to help Finn but isn’t sure how.  Their neighbor, Luke, finds an opportunity volunteering at a dog shelter.  Fiona hopes that Finn will respond to the dogs’ need and be able to find a way to deal with his feelings.  This was a sweet book for younger chapter book readers.

Ghost Boys

Ghost Boys by Jewell Parker Rhodes, 214 pages

"After seventh-grader Jerome is shot by a white police officer, he observes the aftermath of his death and meets the ghosts of other fallen black boys including historical figure Emmett Till."  This was a difficult books to read.  Although the story is sad, there is hope.  It’s well written and I think that a lot of kids would enjoy reading it, even if it is upsetting to them. 

The Friendship War

The Friendship War by Andrew Clements, 173 pages

When Grace finds 27 boxes of buttons in an old textile mill that her grandfather just bought she has to own them.  She’s not sure why, but she knows that she does.  Then, when school starts and she sees her best friend, Ellie, for the first time that year, she tries to Ellie about her trip and about the buttons, but Ellie, as usual, interrupts to tell Grace all about her summer.  A series of events at school leads to kids bringing buttons, comparing, crafting, and trading.  And Grace has more buttons than anyone, many that are rare, unusual, and highly coveted.  This leads to big problems for Grace and Ellie’s friendship, because Ellie isn’t used to anyone upstaging her and Grace is tired of being second fiddle.  This is an awesome story about how fads get started and about friendship in middle school.  Kids who like realistic fiction will love it.

Hello Universe

Hello Universe by Erin Entrada Kelly, 313 pages

“Virgil feels out of place in his crazy-about-sports family. Valencia is deaf, smart, and loves everything about nature. Kaori is a self-proclaimed psychic, whose little sister, Gen, is always following her around. And Chet wishes the weird kids would just stop being so different so that he can concentrate on basketball. They aren't friends. But when Chet pulls a prank that traps Virgil and his pet guinea pig at the bottom of a well, Kaori, Gen, and Valencia begin a quest to find the missing Virgil.” I loved this story about friendship.  I will definitely be recommending it to grade school kids in the future.

Mr. Lemoncello’s Great Library Race

Mr. Lemoncello’s Great Library Race by Chris Grabenstein, 279 pages

In this newest adventure about Mr. Lemoncello, he has devised a new fact finding game for his trustees.  While the kids run around the country looking for the fun facts, trying to win the game, someone is planting evidence to try and discredit Mr. Lemoncello and steal his newest game idea.  Unless Kyle and his friends can prove Mr. Lemoncello’s innocence he may lose his library, and worse, his reputation.  I don’t know how Grabenstein can make each Lemoncello book better than the last, but he does.  I loved the latest book and hope that more are on the way.  Kids who like humor and adventure, not to mention mysteries and puzzles, will love this book and the others in the series.

All Summer Long

All Summer Long by Hope Larsen, 170 pages

“Thirteen-year-old Bina faces her first summer without her best friend, Austin, who has left for soccer camp.” So, I clearly like realistic graphic novels.  This is a great story about friendship and growing up.  Kids who like graphic novels and realistic fiction will enjoy this a lot.

The Parker Inheritance

The Parker Inheritance by Varian Johnson, 331 pages

“Twelve-year-old Candice Miller is spending the summer in Lambert, South Carolina, in the old house that belonged to her grandmother, who died after being dismissed as city manager for having the city tennis courts dug up looking for buried treasure--but when she finds the letter that sent her grandmother on the treasure hunt, she finds herself caught up in the mystery and, with the help of her new friend and fellow book-worm, Brandon, she sets out to find the inheritance, exonerate her grandmother, and expose an injustice once committed against an African American family in Lambert.”  This was a great story.  Kids who like realistic fiction, mysteries, or puzzles, will love it.

Zombie Baseball Beatdown

Zombie Baseball Beatdown by Paolo Bacigalupi, 292 pages

“While practicing for their next baseball game, thirteen-year-old friends Rabi, Miguel, and Joe discover that the nefarious activities of the Delbe, Iowa, meatpacking plant have caused cows to turn into zombies.” I didn’t really like this story much.  However, I can see why this is popular, especially with boys.  It’s a gory horror story for grade school that is also humorous.  It’s perfect for the right reader.  I’m just not that reader.