Book Reviews from Summer Readers!

It’s Summer…and that means Summer Reading!  More specifically, it means the Library’s Summer Reading Program…with lots of kids reading and writing reviews.

Here are a few of our favorites from the last week:

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This book is called The Frog Princess, by ED. Baker.

In this book, Princess Emma, an aspiring witch from the kingdom of Greater Greensward, is persuaded into kissing a frog who claims to be Prince Eadric of Upper Montevista.

He claims that, if he is kissed by a princess, he will return to his true form as a prince. But when Emma kisses him, the spell backfires, and she is turned into a frog, too!

Emma is determined to find the solution to this curse that she receives, especially since that she doesn’t want to be stuck as a frog forever with her only companion the ever-annoying Eadric.

Emma goes to her aunt Grassina — Green Witch and protector of Greater Greensward — for advice. After being locked up in a witch named Vannabe’s house, meeting a bat named Li’l Stinker, meeting three spiders, one, who apparently was very knowledgeable about knots, AND meeting a snake named Fang, and his girlfriend, Clarisse.

Grassina tells Emma that her bracelet — the one that Grassina gave Emma for her birthday to protect her — backfires any curse that is put upon Emma, and, therefore, backfired on her when she kissed Eadric, turning her into a frog. Grassina tells her that she must find the bracelet and wear it while kissing Eadric again.

Emma knows that an otter took her bracelet when she turned into a frog. She, Grassina, and Eadric go looking for the otter. But when they find him, Emma sees a problem: Otters eat frogs.

Emma comes up with a plan to trick the otter. She will disguise as the Swamp Fairy and demand the otter to give up the bracelet. Every living thing with common sense knows not to anger a fairy. (A fairy can be nasty when angry.) But the otter isn’t very wise, and Emma finds herself turning the otter blue.

But her plan backfires after she gets the bracelet and meets the REAL Swamp Fairy, who demands a price for being impersonated. Emma and Eadric give her the vile of Dragon’s Breath that they had collected back in Vannabe’s cottage. But the fairy demands the BRACELET.

Emma and Eadric say NO. They tell the fairy about their mission to get back into their human forms. When the fairy hears that, she quickly takes back her request.

Emma and Eadric try the kiss again. This time, with Emma wearing the bracelet. IT WORKS!

Meanwhile, Grassina has been acting funny. When Emma and Eadric find her, she is stroking the otter’s ears and rubbing his fur. When Emma questions her, she says that the otter is her betrothed, Haywood, and it turns out that Grassina’s mother hadn’t turned Haywood into a frog when she got mad at him. She turned him into an otter!

I like this book because it has a lot of humor and suspense, and best of all, there’s a sequel!

By BS, entering grade 4

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Ghosts By: Rina Telgelmeir

Ghosts is about a girl who moves to Southern California because her sister needs to be more healthy. The girl’s name is Cat and her sister’s name is Maya. Maya has a hard time breathing. When the two sisters meet ghosts, they swarm around Maya and she had to go to the hospital. She stays in the hospital for a while but then gets better. She has always loved ghosts and Cat introduces a nice and friendly ghost and they play together!! Although Maya has a hard time breathing they have a lot of fun together! I like this book because the author keeps me interested!

By HP, entering grade 5

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UnSouled By Neal Shusterman

It is the 3rd book in the UnWind dystology and it’s REALLY GOOD! Connor gets captured by his fan. Then Lev saves him and Connor’s fan’s sister, Grace. Connor,Lev and Grace go to Arápache reservation after Connor hits Lev with a car and needs to save him. Starkey creates an army of storks and hangs 5 people from a ceiling fan. Cam comes to the Arápache reservation and he has Wil’s hands and part of his brain!!!!!!!! Then Una and him kiss!!!!! (Una was Wil’s fiancé) Then Connor, Grace, and Cam all leave together and at the end get reunited with Risa and Sonia! And Sonia tells them about a body parts printer, the solution to stopping unwinding!!! And then the book ends :(, and I must start UnDivided :)!!!!

By CL – entering 5th grade

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Milk To Ice Cream By Lisa M Herrington
This taught me about ice cream and that milk is the step they need the most. .I Ilke this book because I love to eat ice cream. The end.

By RR, entering grade 2

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Title: Charlie Joe Jacksons Guide To Not Growing Up
Author:Tommy Greenwald
Well the thing that I loved about this book is that I think the same I think that you can do whatever you want when you grow up but thats not all true when I read this book I am loving it now that I’m a child but I don’t want to grow up until I read this book so basically this book inspired me to enjoy being a child but don’t be afraid of growing up. So this is one of my favorite books.

By AS, entering grade 6

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So…just a handful of some early reviews.  We’re hoping for quite a few more by the end of August.   We are all eager to read some new recommendations, and to share them with others..  These five reviews are great examples; they’re all a little different, but they all have some information about what the book is about, followed by the reviewer’s opinion of the book–why they liked it.  (Or didn’t like it, if you didn’t.)  That’s what a true review is all about.

You too can join the Weston Library Summer Reading Program, for fun and for prizes!  Just sign up online at http://WestonLibrary.org/Just-for-Kids and join the Libraries Rock Elementary Program.  We’ll be happy to read your reviews too!  If you’d like your review featured here  on our blog, just add a note to the bottom to that effect.

Happy Summer, and Happy Reading!
::Kelly::

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Book and Audio Review: The Whizz Pop Chocolate Shop

What could be better than a lot of chocolate, a little magic, and some secret agents?

Not much…

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The Whizz Pop Chocolate Shop
By Kate Saunders, Read by Jayne Entwistle
6 CDs, 6 hours, 52 minutes

Oz and Lily Spoffard grew up in a tiny house in Washford Common in London.  Even though the family was cramped, they loved it.  But with a new baby on the way, the twins know that they will have even less space.  But that’s when an unexpected letter from a solicitor in London comes… Their father has apparently inherited a mysterious large house on Skittle Street from his great-uncle on the other side of London.  The solution to all their problems?  Maybe…

They go to visit the house and discover that not only is it a house, but it’s a house with a chocolate shop and chocolate-making laboratory on the first floor!  Although it’s been deserted for more than fifty years, everything is just a little dusty, and the water and electricity are in perfect order.   It even still smells like chocolate!

Oz is reluctant to leave his violin tutor, but Lily can’t wait to get away from her tutor; neither of them will really miss their school.  So arrangements are made for new lessons, and the Spoffards move in.

The first person they meet in their new house is a very grumpy cat named Demerara who tells them that their uncles didn’t only make chocolate, they made magic chocolate.  And now, there’s someone after the recipes.  Luckily, Demerara is an agent for SMU–The Secret Ministry for the Unexplained.  She has the contacts to get Oz, Lily and their new friend Caydon some training to deal with the spies who are now lurking around their house and trying to find some magical chocolate molds.

But even with training, will three kids, a talking cat, a ghostly elephant and a cheeky rat be able to topple the forces of evil trying to take over the world?

The audio for The Whizz Pop Chocolate Shop is great fun.  I love the British narrator, who manages to make everyone sound different.  (She also does a great American accent!)  The pacing is excellent.  The characters really come to life while you’re listening.

This is a great book to listen to as a family, maybe on a long car trip this summer?  The book is written for third through sixth grades, but the story can be enjoyed by all ages.  There are a couple scary spots in the story–but not too scary–so you can reassure younger listeners that everything will turn out okay.

Some read-alikes include The Dragon with the Chocolate Heart, Bliss, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory and The Candy Shop War.

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So if you like magical chocolate, talking cats, and a mystery that spans four generations, try this book.  You’ll like it!

As always, if you need help finding this or any other book, ask one of our librarians.  We love to help!

Happy Reading!
::Kelly::

 

Five Books Featuring…Robin Hood!

What’s better on a grey rainy day than something green?  Put yourself in the mindset of merry old England, with these books featuring  the legendary outlaw Robin Hood!  Okay, so one of our books is a dystopia, one is set in space, and there are just as many female as male Robin Hoods in this list…it’s not exactly the same Sherwood Forest you might have heard about.  But if you try one of these adventurous tales, you’ll be sure to be thinking about the myths and the legends (and the re-imaginings) of Robin Hood, Maid Marian, Little John, Will Scarlet and the rest of the Merry Men!

Our Five Books Featuring are five books related by topic–One Old, One New, One Popular with Kids, One Well-Reviewed, and One Favorite of library staff–but you’ll have to guess which is which! Each book has a short synopsis and link to the book in the catalog, so you can easily find and request it.

Read on!

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Five Books based on the Legend of Robin Hood…

Will in Scarlet by Matthew Cody
Will Shackley is the son of a lord, and though just thirteen, he’s led a charmed, protected life as heir to Shackley House.   While his father is away on the Third Crusade with King Richard the Lionheart, the winds of treason sweep across England.  Shackley House becomes caught up in a dangerous power struggle when King Richard’s brother John tries to take the throne and sends his representative to take Will into custody. After wounding Sir Guy’s manservant with a sword, Will becomes an outlaw and flees to Sherwood Forest, taking the name Will Scarlet. He joins a ragtag band of thieves and, bent on revenge, throws himself into adventures that force him to face hard truths and figure out where his path lies.

League of Archers by Eva Howard
Sent to live in a nunnery after her mother’s death, Ellie spends her days as a novice nun and her evenings hunting in the woods with her friends. She and her friends call themselves The League of Archers, and try to be like their hero Robin Hood by sneaking out to hunt on the lands belonging to the village Baron and stealing from him to feed their poor neighbors. One night, Ellie encounters a mysterious man in the woods, wounded by a poisonous arrow. She brings him back to the nunnery only to discover that he is Robin Hood and the kind abbess of the nunnery is Maid Marion.
With the abbess’s secret revealed, the Baron immediately arrests Marian. But he needs a scapegoat for the murder of Robin Hood, and who better than a young novice nun? Ellie is proclaimed a hero–the person who killed the famous outlaw Robin Hood–but the villagers don’t agree.  Now Ellie is on the run, and Marian set to hang unless the League of Archers can find a way to contact the disbanded Merry Men and mount a rescue.
Will Ellie and her League of Archers be able to find the real killer, free Maid Marian, and keep Robin Hood’s legacy alive?

The Outlaws of Sherwood by Robin McKinley
Robin is an apprentice forester in the woods of Nottingham. The arrows he makes and sells earn barely enough extra coin to retain the title to his father’s small lands. The sheriff of Nottingham’s jealousy toward Robin’s father is just as fierce towards his son, and the sheriff’s men take every opportunity to harass the young woodsman. When Robin defends himself and accidentally kills one of the sheriff’s men, he flees to Sherwood Forest, knowing that he has not only lost his father’s land and good name forever, but that he will live the rest of his days as a hunted man.
Joined by his friends Much and Lady Marian, who both believe the disaster that has befallen Robin is also an opportunity for others cast out or outlawed in ways equally unjust, to gather together. As more and more people join them, Robin builds a community of Saxon outlaws deep in Sherwood who risk the gallows and the sword for the sake of justice and freedom.

Shadows of Sherwood by Scott Magoon
One night when after returning from a midnight adventure scavenging for the poor of Nott City, Robyn Loxley finds her parents missing and her home in disarray. Grabbing the secret items her father has trained her to take in case of emergency, Robyn flees. Following the advice of her parents to head for the woods, she ventures into rough-and-tumble neighboring Sherwood City.  Robyn has no choice but to join a band of strangers-misfit kids, each with their own special talent for mischief. Setting out to right the wrongs of Crown’s merciless government, they take their outlaw status in stride. But Robyn can’t rest until she finds her parents. As she pieces together clues from the night they disappeared, Robyn learns that her destiny is tied to the future of Nott City in ways she never expected.
If you liked Shadows of Sherwood, you should read Rebellion of Thieves and Reign of Outlaws, the next two books in the Robyn Hoodlum Adventures .

Robin Hood: The One Who Looked Good in Green by Wendy Mass
Robin has a bad habit of getting into trouble–and a better habit of getting out of it (barely). He lives on an isolated outpost in the middle of nowhere and has no idea why his parents disappeared years ago. Then a strange delivery arrives at his doorstep.
Marian was raised to be a powerless girl in a very powerful family. But that hasn’t stopped her from making her own adventures – and trespassing in some places her parents definitely don’t want her to see. She has no idea what life should be like outside of her home–until a mysterious invitation forces her to leave everything behind.
Robin and Marian have lived very different lives in very different places. Their paths should never, ever cross–but before they know it, they are thrown together on a quest that requires legendary bravery, quick-witted escapes, and the ability to get along. With each other!  The sky’s no longer the limit on what Robin and Marian can do, as long as they manage do it together!

 

 

 

Five Books Featuring…Summer Vacation!

Are you ready for summer? I am!  Heat, sand, waves and relaxation…what’s not to love?  And while you’re enjoying that sunny, stretched out time, you should bring along a book featuring an adventure during summer vacation!  Just promise not to drop it in the sand or the sea while you’re relaxing!  😀

Our Five Books Featuring are five related Books–One Old, One New, One Popular with Kids, One Well-Reviewed, and One Favorite of library staff–but you’ll have to guess which is which! Each book has a short synopsis and link to the book in the catalog, so you can easily find and request it.

Read on!

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The Hotel Under the Sand by Kage Baker
Emma is lost at sea in a terrible storm. She awakens on a desolate island, frightened and lonely. Yet brave, quick-witted Emma will not be alone for long, as the ghost of a bellboy appears with the tragic tale.
More than a century ago, a brilliant inventor built a splendid Victorian resort, the Grand Wenlocke. The hotel was powered by a Difference Engine, a miraculous device that could slow down time (making your vacation just as long as you’d like). But just before it was scheduled to open, the Grand Wenlocke mysteriously sank under the sand. Now the storm that brought Emma to the island has awakened the hotel, perfectly preserved and as incredible as ever.
While exploring the magical hotel, Emma encounters a kind-hearted cook and her faithful little dog, a seemingly fearsome pirate captain, and the imperious young heir to the Wenlocke fortune (should it ever be recovered). Adventure, friendship, peril, and perhaps even treasure–all these and more await Emma at the hotel under the sand.

Fudge-a-Mania by Judy Blume
Fudge is back–and driving his brother Peter crazy, as usual. This five-year-old human hurricane is more trouble than ever. His latest plan is to marry Peter’s sworn enemy, Sheila Tubman (how disgusting!).
But Peter’s problems are about to get worse. His parents have decided to try a new vacation spot–Maine.  And Sheila’s parents have told them there’s a perfect spot to go, right next door to them–and they can be there the same time.  Only, once Peter and his family get there, it turns out that “next door” actually means “share”–as in the Tubmans and the Hatchers will be sharing the house. And Peter will be stuck with Fudge and Sheila the Cootie Queen for three whole weeks!
It’s going to be an unforgettable (and hilarious) trip for both families, filled with old friends and new ones, plenty of surprises and lots of laughs. It may not be the vacation of Peter’s dreams. But with Fudge around, anything can happen…and does!

The Worry Week by Anne Lindberg
Spending the summer at their summer cottage on an island in Maine is always the best part of the year–at least for Allegra and her two sisters, Alice and Minnow.  So when their parents announce that they have to return to Boston for a funeral, and are planning to leave the girls with stuffy Aunt Edna on the mainland, the girls are understandably upset.
But when Aunt Edna calls their mother to tell them she’s broken her ankle and can’t take them, Allegra doesn’t pass on the message.  A week alone on the island sounds like heaven to Allegra…and she manages to convince her sisters that she’ll take care of everything.  She even entices them with a search for treasure rumored to be hidden in their cottage.
But upon their return to the cottage, they discover that their mother had packed up all the food and most of their clothing.  Suddenly Allegra is in charge of finding food and managing their survival…and she learns that parenting is not easy!

Quicksand Pond by Janet Lisle
The pond is called Quicksand Pond.
It’s a shadowy, hidden place, full of chirping, shrieking, croaking life. It’s where, legend has it, people disappear. It’s where scrappy Terri Carr lives with her no-good family. And it’s where twelve-year-old Jessie Kettel is reluctantly spending her summer vacation.
Jessie meets Terri on a raft out in the water, and the two become fast friends. On Quicksand Pond, Jessie and Terri can be lost to the outside world–lost until they want to be found. But a tragedy that occurred many decades ago has had lingering effects on this sleepy town, and especially on Terri Carr. And the more Jessie learns, the more she begins to question her new friendship–and herself.

Notations of Cooper Cameron by Jane O’Reilly
Cooper Cameron likes things to be in order. When he eats, he chews every bite three times on each side. Sometimes he washes his hands in the air with invisible water. He invented these rituals after the death of his beloved grandfather to protect others he loves from terrible harm.
But when Cooper’s strange behavior drives a wedge between his parents, and his relationship with his older sister, Caddie, begins to fray, his mother’s only solution is to take Cooper and Caddie to the family cabin for the summer.
Armed with a collection of rocks, his pet frog, and his notebook, Cooper vows to cure himself and bring his damaged family back together.

There’s our Five!  But if  you would like to read even more vacation stories, try these as well:  (The difference in these titles is that they take place at home during summer vacation…not away from home on a vacation trip.  I suppose we could have saved them for another Five Books Featuring….but just click on the links and you can get a summary.)

Summer of Lost and Found by Rebecca Behrens
The Misfits Club by Kieran Crowley
Charlie Joe Jackson’s Guide to Summer Vacation by Tommy Greenberg
Welcome to Dog Beach by Lisa Greenwald
Summer of the Gypsy Moths by Sarah Pennypacker
Cody and the Fountain of Happiness by Tricia Springstub

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Are you going away for vacation this summer?  Are you planning to read?  (At the beach or otherwhere?)  Do you know that we have a great Summer Reading Program for kids in First through Sixth Grades?

We also have a Teen Reading Program for Middle and High School students and a Young Readers Program for kids ages three to six!  Come by the library for more information, or keep an eye on BellaOnBooks.  We will post all of our Summer Reading Info over the next few weeks.  The important date to remember is June 16th, which is the Friends Summer BookSale and the first day you can sign up for the Summer Reading Programs!

Pick up a book about summer vacation and start reading FOR summer vacation!  If you would like any recommendations for books to keep you busy this summer, stop by the library.  We’d LOVE to give you some suggestions!

Happy Reading!
::Kelly::

Five Books Featuring…Boston!

Our last Five Books Featuring featured two sets of siblings from the Boston area–the March sisters and the Penderwick sisters.  So going from there, here are five more books featuring Boston…just in time for tourist season.  If you’re going to be poking around on the Freedom Trail, or dashing into Zoo New England or even visiting Faneuil Hall, you might want to read one of these books first to get your bearings!

Our Five Books Featuring are five related Books–One Old, One New, One Popular with Kids, One Well-Reviewed, and One Favorite of library staff–but you’ll have to guess which is which! Each book has a short synopsis and link to the book in the catalog, so you can easily find and request it.

Read on!

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13 Hangmen by Art Corriveau
Being 13 is strange enough, but Tony DiMarco is extra baffled when his great-uncle Angelo, whom he hardly knows, mails him legendary Red Sox player Ted Williams’s original baseball cap on his 13th birthday, then promptly dies and bequeaths him an entire town house in Boston’s North End. And that’s just the beginning!
Some people won’t believe any of this story. You might be one of them.
Tony makes new friends as soon as he moves into the house; five 13-year-old boys, all of whom are living in the same house in the same attic bedroom– but at different times in history.  None are ghosts, all are flesh and blood, and somehow all have come together in the attic room, visible only to one another. And all are somehow linked to a murder, a mystery, and a treasure… 

How I, Nicky Flynn, Finally Get a Life (And a Dog!) by Art Corriveau
Nicky Flynn’s life just got a whole lot harder. His parents are going through a messy divorce, and as a result he’s starting a new life.  Suddenly he and his mom are in a tiny apartment in the North End of Boston, and he’s starting a new school. Now his mom has brought home Reggie, an eighty-pound German shepherd fresh from the animal shelter, who used to be a seeing-eye dog. At first Nick isn’t sure about this canine intrusion–it’s just another in a series of difficult changes. Soon, however, Nick is on the path to solving a mystery–why would a seeing-eye dog be left at an animal shelter?  He follows Reggie along the Freedom Trail to his old master’s haunts, and along the way discovers that Reggie is a true friend he can rely on. But when he tries to reconnect with his dad, Nick puts everything on the line, including the life of his new best friend.

The Last Gargoyle by Paul Dunham
Penhallow is the last of his kind. The stone gargoyle–he’d prefer you call him a grotesque–fearlessly protects his Boston building from the spirits who haunt the night. But even he is outmatched when Hetty, his newest ward, nearly falls victim to the Boneless King, the ruler of the underworld.
Then there’s Viola, the mysterious girl who keeps turning up at the most unlikely times. In a world where nightmares come to life, Viola could be just the ally Penhallow needs. But can he trust her when every shadow hides another secret? Can he afford not to?

The Time Garden by Edward Eager
Cousins Roger, Ann, Jack and Eliza are excited to spend their summer vacation together…until they learn they’re not going to England with their parents, but instead being sent to a country estate near Boston.  But once they’re at the estate, their disappointment wears off when they discover a magical thyme garden and a talking Natterjack, which grants them all their time-traveling wishes…almost.   From midnight rides with Paul Revere to meeting the March sisters to visiting the court of Queen Elizabeth I, there are no limits to their fun this summer!
Of course, if you enjoy visiting The Time Garden, you might have to read the other books Edward Eager wrote about these cousins who travel in time, as well as their parents, who started the trend!

Johnny Tremain by Esther Forbes
Fourteen-year-old Johnny Tremain, an apprentice silversmith with a bright future ahead of him, injures his hand in a tragic accident, forcing him to look for other work. In his new job as a horse-boy, riding for the patriotic newspaper,The Boston Observer, and as a messenger for the Sons of Liberty, he encounters John Hancock, Samuel Adams, and Dr. Joseph Warren. Soon Johnny is involved in the pivotal events shaping the American Revolution from the Boston Tea Party to the first shots fired at Lexington.  To read this riveting novel is to live through the defining events leading up to the American Revolutionary War.

    Uh-oh…5 already?  It’s our state!   How about we double that number..?

Alvin Ho: Allergic to Girls, School and Other Scary Things by Lenore Look
Alvin, who loves superheroes and comes from a long line of brave Chinese farmer-warriors, wants to make friends, but first he must overcome his fears.  But Alvin is afraid of everything–elevators, tunnels, girls, and, most of all?  School. He’s so afraid of school that, while he’ s there, he never, ever, says a word. But at home he’s a very loud superhero named Firecracker Man, a brother to Calvin and Anibelly, and a gentleman-in-training, so he can be just like his dad.  Whether they are fearful or brave, kids will smile at Alvin’s scrapes and empathize with his concerns.

Anastasia Krupnik by Lois Lowry
To Anastasia Krupnik, being ten is very confusing. For one thing, she has this awful teacher who can’t understand why Anastasia doesn’t capitalize or punctuate her poems. Then, there’s Washburn Cummings, a very interesting sixth-grade boy who doesn’t even know she is alive. Even her parents have become difficult. They insist she visit her 92-year-old grandmother who can never remember Anastasia’s name. On top of that, they’re going to have a baby — at their age! It’s enough to make a kid want to do something terrible. Anastasia knows that if she didn’t have her secret green notebook to write in, she would never make it to her eleventh birthday.
Once you’ve read all of Anastasia’s adventures, you can try All About Sam, the first book of her brother Sam’s adventures.  (Psst…make sure you check out the dedication!)

Taking Care of Terrific by Lois Lowry
Fourteen year old Enid takes a job for the summer babysitting.  Her charge is  four-year-old Joshua Warwick Cameron IV.  Babysitting seems like an ordinary thing to do, but Enid definitely sets her sights on having a more-than-ordinary summer. She decides to spend the summer meeting new people and maybe becoming a new person herself.  The perfect place to do that?  The Boston Public Garden.
Enid and Joshua change their names (to Cynthia and Tom Terrific) and start making new friends with unexpected people.  But soon things don’t go as planned, and Cynthia–Enid–is in the middle of a mess.  Will her new friends come to her aid?

Black Moon Rising by D. J. MacHale
Marcus is an agent of the Library–a place filled with tales that don’t have an ending. Mysteries that won’t be solved until Marcus and his friends Theo and Lu step in to finish them. Before it’s too late…
Because mysterious accidents are disturbing a middle school in Massachusetts. Windows shatter for no reason. Bleachers collapse at a pep rally. Most of the students think they’re just having a string of bad luck, but Marcus suspects something a lot more dangerous. Something like witchcraft. When the black moon rises, this story must come to an end . . . one way or another.
This is the second book in MacHale’s The Library series, so you may have to read The Curse of the Boggin, book one, first.

Colonial Madness by Jo Whittemore
Tori Porter is best friends with her mom, and most of the time it’s awesome. Not many girls have a mom who’d take them to a graveyard for hide-and-seek or fill the bathtub with ice cream for the world’s biggest sundae. But as much as Tori loves having fun, she sometimes wishes her mom would act a little more her age.
Thanks to her mom’s poor financial planning, they are in danger of losing their business and their home. But an unusual opportunity arises in the form of a bizarre type of contest put on by an eccentric relative: Whoever can survive two weeks in the Archibald Family’s colonial manor will inherit the property. The catch? Contestants have to live as in colonial times: no modern conveniences, no outside help, and daily tests of their abilities to survive challenges of the time period.
Tori thinks it’s the perfect answer to their debt problems, but she and her mom aren’t the only ones interested. The other family members seem to be much more prepared for the two weeks on the manor–and it doesn’t help that Mom doesn’t seem to be taking the contest seriously. Do they stand a chance?

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There you have it!  Five…er, ten…books set in and around Boston.  That’s not even going into some other favorite series, like Judy Moody, Magnus Chase, Clementine and Stink!  Give one or two a read, and see if you recognize where you are.  Then let us know what you think!

As always, if you need help finding these or any other books in the Library, please ask one of our Librarians for help.  We always love to match kids and books!

Happy Reading!
::Kelly::

Book & Audio Review: The Great Treehouse War

Have you ever wanted to have your own treehouse?  In this book, Winnie had never really thought about it.  But once she had the absolutely most perfect treehouse, in the biggest tree in the state, it was hers, and hers alone.  Or was it..?

Be careful what you wish for…

* * *

The Great Treehouse War
By Lisa Graff, Read by Ariana Delawari with a Full Cast
4 CDs; 4 hours, 11 minutes

Winnie life was pretty normal right up until the last day of fourth grade.  Sure, her parents were fighting a lot, and didn’t really listen to each other, but other kids had problems too, right?  Then, on the last day of school, her parents sat her down on the x marked in the exact center of the sofa and sat on either side of her to tell her they were getting a divorce.  But both her parents assured her that they still loved her, and that splitting Winnie’s time equally between them was important.

So they sold the house Winnie had grown up in (through fourth grade), and each bought the only two houses on Circle Road, where the two backyards met, not far from Uncle Huck…her mother’s brother and her father’s best friend.  Between the backyards was a giant linden tree, not on either parents’ property.  It was perfect for them–Winnie (and her cat Buttons) could spend Sundays, Tuesdays and Fridays with her mom;  Mondays, Thursdays and Saturdays with her dad, and every Wednesday, she and Buttons would live by themselves in the treehouse designed and built by Uncle Huck.  Her parents thought it was perfect.  Winnie wasn’t so sure.

But at first it didn’t seem too bad.  Winnie loved her round treehouse, with its own kitchen and living room, bathroom and loft.  And she really enjoyed having a day to herself, with just Buttons for company.  Her parents were even being pretty cool with the equal time thing.

But then Winnie’s mom realized that Winnie would be celebrating Thanksgiving with her father.  So she decided to create another celebration to make up for no Thanksgiving; Flag Day.  Winnie was more confused than happy about the over-the-top celebration, but told her mother it was fun.  And then her dad saw them out in their yard from his back window; so he got into the act with World UFO Day.  Suddenly, both her parents started trying to outdo each other with daily parties, events and field trips when they had Winnie, to make up for each celebration she got to spend with the other.   From International Tongue Twister Day to Ice Cream Sandwich Day to Flossing Day to Cow Appreciation Day to Peach Day, the celebrations started growing and growing and growing…and getting totally out of hand.

Winnie’s frustration also started growing.  As both parents spend the whole afternoon and evening celebrating weird holidays with her on “their” days, Winnie finds less and less time to do her homework, until she was spending Wednesday doing all her homework as well as catching up with her sleep.   It didn’t work as well as she thought, since by February she was falling asleep at her desk during school.  But the last straw was when Mr. B, her teacher, told her she was in danger of flunking fifth grade.

Or no, the real last straw was when her father decided that she was going to spend the summer with him collecting animal feces for examination in the desert, and her mother said that she would then take over all the Wednesdays until summer, to equal out Winnie’s time.  No. Way.  Winnie was not going to lose her only peaceful day.  It was time to declare war!

Winnie got all the supplies she needed and went up to the treehouse, with no intention of coming down until her parents talked to each other.  Her friends were supportive and helpful, keeping up her morale and providing her with supplies.  And as Winnie’s parents decided to wait her out,  one by one each of her friends decided that they also had issues with their parents.  Winnie needed the support, and they needed to raise issues as well.  Before she knew it, Winnie was joined by Squizzy and Lyle and Tabitha and Greta and Joey and Brogan and Aayush  and Logan.  Things get complicated pretty quickly and teachers and television reporters and kids around the world get involved.  It’s kids vs. parents in The Great Treehouse War!  Who will win?  Read and find out.

The audio for The Great Treehouse War is produced as a full cast recording.  As the story begins, Winnie narrates the action,  each of the characters–kids and adults– have a different actor narrating their part of the story.  This works very well for this book because much of the print story is told through letters, books, Declarations, comic strips, clippings, calendars, homework, school reports and notes.  I actually love full cast audio recordings–narrations from a single, great reader are absolutely wonderful,  but occasionally having voice acting from a cast of several people is just amazing.  Since there were different voices, the story felt like it went faster, and listeners know exactly who speaking at any time.  The voices are wonderful, as is the acting.

With that said, if you haven’t read the book and are only listening to the audio version of The Great Treehouse War, make sure that you pick up a copy of the book to look through.  All the documents and notes and school assignments are funny, and the quirky hand-drawn artwork adds so much to the personalities to each of the characters.

The Great Treehouse War is written for ages 8 – 12, but it could be listened to by kids (and adults) of all ages. Lisa Graff is a very popular author; some of her other books are A Clatter of Jars, A Tangle of Knots and Absolutely, Almost.  The Great Treehouse War is one of her funnier ones.  So what are you waiting for?  Try it!  You’ll like it!

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So there you are!  If you enjoy humorous fiction and stories about friends, you’ll enjoy this book.  Kids who liked books by Kate Klise like Regarding the Fountain and Letters from Camp will also enjoy this book.  Fans of ongoing conflicts between friends or families, like Phyllis Reynolds Naylor’s The Boy/Girl Battle or Jacqueline Davies’ Lemonade War series will enjoy this book. Fans of Peggy Giffords’ Moxy Maxwell series will like this book.

Some other humorous full-cast recordings at the library:
The Moffats by Eleanor Estes
The Great Christmas Kidnapping Caper by Jean Van Leeuwen
House of Robots by Chris Grabbenstein and James Patterson

If you would like help finding these or any other books in the library, just ask us!  All our librarians are happy to match you with the perfect book or audio–any time, any day!  And until then…

Happy Reading!
::Kelly::

 

Book & Audio Review: Beyond the Bright Sea

Are you a summer visitor to the Cape?  Does the idea of living on an island fill you with delight?  How about adding a bit of treasure hunting, and an unsolved mystery?  If all of those things sound enticing, you’ll love this book!

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Beyond the Bright Sea
By Lauren Wolk, Read by Jorjeana Marie
6 CDs, 7 hours, 16 minutes

Crow lives on a nameless, tiny island; part of the Elizabeth Islands, off the cost of Massachusetts.  As long as she remembers, she’s been there with Osh.  But she wasn’t born there.  No, Osh found her as a tiny wailing baby, only hours old, in a small boat, washed up on the shore.  He took her in, cleaned her up, and fed her.  Now they live together in the tiny island home Osh created for them, surrounded by the sea and Osh’s art.

If she’d been a normal baby, someone would probably have taken her away from Osh, thinking he wasn’t fit to raise a small girl.  But Crow wasn’t what most of the islanders would call normal–too sickly, her eyes and skin too dark, her arrival on the small skiff too mysterious.  But most of all, people were afraid that she came from Penekese,   Penikese, the island next closest to their tiny island after Cuttyhunk.  Penikese, home of the leper colony.  Not knowing where Crow came from makes everyone on Cuttyhunk and the other small islands worried that Crow is dangerous.

But it doesn’t bother Crow, not really.  She has her island, she has Osh, and she has Miss Maggie, who she visits almost every day on her farm across the sandbar and who worries over her just as much as Osh does.  Crow also has her imagination and her curiosity.

But Crow’s life changes when she spots a fire over on Penikese, and she starts questioning everything she knows.  Once her curiosity is roused, she starts to look for answers to some of her questions:  Where did she come from?  Who are her “real” parents and why did they send her away?  What is her “real” name?  Why are there lights on Penikese and who is over there?

As Crow searches for answers, she finds herself on a dangerous path, involving menacing strangers and missing treasures.  Will she get her answers, or will she endanger the life she already has?

The audio recording for Beyond the Bright Sea is absolutely marvelous.  Jorjeana Marie is suburb; her narration of Lauren Wolk’s gorgeous prose perfectly suits the story and the characters.  You’ll feel like you’re right there beside Crow as she explores the world around her.  I can’t say enough about how beautiful both the story and the narration of that story are.  It’s a perfect package.

Beyond the Bright Sea is perfect for anyone who likes stories of growing up, of discovering who you are, and of carefully plotted mysteries.  The writing is gorgeous.  It’s written for fourth through sixth grades, but the audio recording would be good for kids ages 8 through adults.  If you have ever visited Cape Cod, or are planning to visit, you should read this book: the portrait of the Elizabeth Islands and life on the Cape in the early part of the century is amazing.  You’ll be left wanting to know more about Crow and her world.

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If you can’t tell, I loved this book!  You can practically smell the salt air and hear the seagulls as you listen to Crow’s story unfold.  The pacing of the mystery leaves you on the edge of your seat; and Crows relationship with Osh and Miss Maggie is so, so good.  Really, everyone who lives in Massachusetts needs to read or listen to this book!

Some books and audios that have similar themes or feelings:
Turtle in Paradise by Jennifer Holt
The War That Saved My Life by Jennifer Brubaker Bradley
Wolf Hollow by Lauren Wolk
Three Times Lucky by Sheila Turnage

As always, if you need help finding this or any other book or audio in the library, or you’re looking for suggestions on what to read next, ask me or any of our other librarians.  We’re happy to help!

Happy Reading!
::Kelly::