Suggestions Welcome!

Is there a book that you would like me to review? Do you have a favorite you'd like to share? Please feel free to leave a comment on this post and tell me! I welcome all suggestions!

New Youth Book Club: Wild!

Are you wild about books? Do you read books that are wild, crazy, or just plain fun? Come on in once a month and swap tales of your favorite books with others who enjoy reading.

You can read whatever you’d like: fiction, nonfiction, graphic novels, manga, audiobooks, or magazines.

Just come on in, bring your favorite book you've read in the past few weeks, and tell us all about it!

The Wild! Book Club meets once a month and welcomes book lovers in grades 2-6. Our next meeting dates are Saturdays February 27 and March 27, both at 1 pm.

For more details or if you're interested but not able to make it to the meetings, leave a comment with your contact info and I'll get back to you!

The Fledgling by Jane Langton

Have you ever wanted to fly?

Have you ever known that, if you could just find the right time or the right place or the right mindset, you could soar up over the trees, over your house, be and explore like a real true bird?

Georgie has. She's not only dreamed of being able to fly, she's done so. First on the back of the largest goose in the nearby flock - the Goose Prince - and then on her own, round and round in lazy circles above Walden Pond. Night after night, in the fresh crisp fall air, seeing the world like toys below her while the Goose Prince drifts right beside her, fingertip to wingtip.

It seems like a dream; cool calm nights of the most wondrous experiences with a noble and intelligent companion. But it's not a dream, Georgie knows. It's real, truly real and wonderful.

But not everyone can believe it. Her family worries about her, the neighbor lady - who is the only one who's ever seen Georgie fly - thinks she's either a saint or a moonchild. And creepy Mr. Preek is determined to protect Georgie from the 'giant wild attack bird' whether Georgie wants him to or not.

Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson

Melinda Sordino is a high school freshman with a terrible secret, no friends, and a newly acquired habit of remaining mute whenever possible. She is ostracized by her classmates for calling the police to break up a summer party. Gradually, readers will realize the events of that party are the catalyst that sent her spiraling out of control. Will she find her voice in time to save herself?

Anderson does an excellent job of writing realistic teen dialog and creating believable settings and scenarios for her characters to interact. Date rape, which is the trauma Melinda experiences, is thinly veiled and easily predicted; however, there is still interesting build-up to the final scene.

The conclusion of the book may be considered a bit too perfect for more mature readers but, overall, Speak navigates the inner mind of a traumatized teenager with impressive insight. Melinda's use of art to express herself, her parents' detached attitudes, and her utter sense of despair will have readers rooting for her.

The Robber and Me by Josef Holub; translated by Elizabeth D. Crawford

When Boniface woke up in a warm soft featherbed, he thought at first that he was in heaven. The last thing he knew, he'd been lost in the middle of the woods on a freezing-cold night. But if he was safe and warm now, with no memory of getting from the forest to this bed, did that mean that it had all been a dream? His father's death, the year with his aunt, the horrid cart-ride with the man who stank to high heaven? And what about the man Boniface thought he remembered - the one with the big black hat who picked him up and carried him out of the forest?

It hadn't been a dream - except maybe the man with the big black hat; no one is sure about that. But Boniface is indeed in the tiny village of Graab (in Germany, you understand), in the house of his uncle, the mayor, and life is about to be very interesting.

His uncle is strict, and the schoolmaster even more so. There's Christian Knapp, who is the son of the local robber and so is always in trouble, but he stands up for Boniface against a bully. And then there's Frederika, his uncle's maid, who is tall and stout and has a loud voice, but Boniface suspects she's actually a very kind person.

But when Boniface learns about several holdups in the area committed by a man in a big black hat, he has a difficult decision to make. Does he help the man who probably rescued him from the forest, and tell his uncle what he knows? Or does he keep quiet and not risk this new family he's found?

A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens

You know Scrooge and Marley, Bob Cratchit and Tiny Tim, and the ghosts of Past, Present, and Future - but do you know them in their original tale?

A Christmas Carol was written over a century ago, in 1843, and it still lives on in plays and movies, with real live actors or with cartoon characters. But I think that its true spirit is in reading the original words as Charles Dickens wrote them. As beautiful as the movie banquets and balls are, it's hard to take in all the details of the wonder shown there, the way you can with the rich descriptions Dickens provides of tables piled high with treats or of the people who move in and out of Scrooge's life.

As author Karen Hesse writes in the foreword of the 1999 paperback edition, A Christmas Carol is "as funny and optimistic as it is frightening. It brims with the sounds, smells, and sights of nineteenth-century England; it crackles with characters as fresh and alive today as they were when Dickens first created them."

This Christmas season, curl up with a copy of A Christmas Carol and transport yourself into another time, another place... shiver with Scrooge in the presence of the ghosts, laugh with Mr. Fezziwig, and echo with Tiny Tim, "God bless us, every one."

Thirteen Reasons Why by Jay Asher

This novel tackles the controversial topic of teen suicide in a unique and insightful way. Clay Jenkins receives a package in the mail containing 13 cassette tapes. He soon discovers that each tape is made up of one reason why his classmate and crush, Hannah Baker, committed suicide only a few weeks earlier.

Asher deftly alternates between the present, which includes Clay's heart-wrenching reaction to the tapes, and the past, which follows Hannah's journey from popular freshman all the way to her decision to narrate the reasons behind her own suicide. Young adult readers will identify with many of the characters including Hannah; however, they will also notice the many times she failed to help herself.

Thirteen Reasons Why does not gloss over the often harsh realities of being a teenager. Every one of Hannah's reasons is believable. Clay's reactions are as authentic as they are sad. The author does an excellent job of detailing how someone's actions can have unforeseen effects on other people. Readers will find themselves thinking about this novel long after they finish reading.

Mostly Monty by Johanna Hurwitz

Monty has asthma. That means that sometimes it's hard for him to breathe, especially if there is a lot of dust or if there is a dog or a cat in the room. It also means that he can't go camping, or join Little League, or run around as much as the other kids in his neighborhood.

But there are a lot of things Monty can do. He's a terrific reader - he's only in first grade, but his teacher says he reads as well as a fourth grader. He's also very observant; he finds a lot of lost things at school and makes sure that they get to the Lost and Found lady. Now, that doesn't mean that Monty doesn't make mistakes sometimes, but at least he always tries his best - and has fun along the way!

For young readers who are looking for something adventuresome and challenging to read, Monty is here to lend a hand!

Shift by Jennifer Bradbury

Best friends Chris and Winston take a cross-country bicycle ride from West Virginia to Washington State the summer after high school graduation. What is supposed to be one last adventure before they leave for different colleges turns into a mystery when only Chris returns home.

Chapters alternate between recounting the events of the trip and the investigation into Winston’s disappearance. Chris soon realizes he is the prime suspect and must do everything he can to find his friend.

Shift is an enjoyable but predictable book. Readers will identify with the main characters and the realistic events of their journey. The chapters that describe the trip are filled with interesting scenery, remarkable locals, and believable anecdotes. The chapters devoted to the investigation often seem contrived and less likely. Still, young adult readers will like the quick pace and excellent character development.

Agent Boo by Alex de Campi and Edo Fuijkschot

Move over, Kim Possible! There's a new agent in town!

Fourth-grader Boo is more surprised than anyone when Agent's companion Pumpkin chooses her instead of any of the graduating seniors to replace a fallen Agent. Every kid in Space City has grown up on the stories of the Agents - how they built Space City, how they protect the Multiverse from the evils of Queen Misery, all of their heroes. The Agents are smart, strong, and brave - all the things Boo isn't!

But when one of Queen Misery's tricks leaves the Agents' Aerie empty, Boo has to figure out a way to save the day without help from anyone but herself!

This chapter book is chock-full of illustrations and comic-style pages which bring the story to full and exciting life!