notes on books, teaching, and tech from your friendly neighborhood librarian
Alanna: The First Adventure, by Tamora PierceAlanna and Thom are twins, but they don’t have very much in common. Alanna loves sword fighting and horseback riding, while Thom is quiet, studious, and dreams of becoming a sorcerer. Unfortunately their father has other plans: he thinks Alanna needs to learn needlework and manners so she can be a proper lady, and he wants to send Thom to become a knight. Continue reading “Book of the Week: Alanna: The First Adventure, by Tamora Pierce”
Codename Zero, by Chris RylanderSeventh grader Carson Fender has lived in North Dakota his entire life. It’s pretty much empty, so he has to liven things up a little – for example, by executing epic pranks. Like, um, releasing hundreds of goats on school property. And then, while everyone’s trying to round up the goats, super-gluing everything in the building. Every stapler to every desk. Gluing all the doors shut. Et cetera. Continue reading “Book of the Week: Codename Zero, by Chris Rylander”
The Bitter Side of Sweet, by Tara Sullivan
Realistic fiction
Fifteen-year-old Amadou and his eight-year-old brother are trapped. Two years ago they left their village in search of work. What they found instead was a life of forced labor, near starvation, and beatings on a cacao plantation in a neighboring country. Despite their hardships, Amadou is determined to earn his way back home – the plantation owners told him that he and his brother could leave once they worked enough. So he spends his days trying to protect his little brother while working a dangerous job in the middle of nowhere. Continue reading “Book of the Week: The Bitter Side of Sweet, by Tara Sullivan”
Undefeated: Jim Thorpe and the Carlisle Indian School Football Team, by Steve Sheinkin
Nonfiction
Back in the early 1900s, football was just getting started. And if you think football is violent and dangerous now, imagine how much crazier it was back when helmets were optional, nobody wore pads, and passing wasn’t allowed, so every play ended up in a giant pile of players on the ground. Continue reading “Book of the Week: Undefeated, by Steve Sheinkin”
The Doll’s Eye, by Marina Cohen
Horror
Hadley’s life has been totally upended. It’s always been just her and her mom, living in their Pittsburgh apartment. Then her mom met Ed, and in the blink of an eye she and Ed got married, and they became a family of four, with Ed’s six-year-old son Isaac. Now they’re moving to a weird old house in the country, far away from Hadley’s school and her friends and the only life she’s ever known. Continue reading “Book of the Week: The Doll’s Eye, by Marina Cohen”
The Wild Robot, by Peter Brown
Fantasy/Science fiction
In the middle of the ocean, a cargo ship is carrying five hundred brand-new robots when a hurricane strikes. It’s chaos: most of the robots sink to the ocean floor, but five are thrown to the winds. Wooden boxes are dashed against the rocky shore of a small island, and the robots inside are destroyed. Continue reading “Book of the Week: The Wild Robot, by Peter Brown”
See You in the Cosmos, Jack Cheng
Realistic fiction
Alex Petroski has big plans. He’s going to take an Amtrak to New Mexico to go to a rocket launching convention. He’s going to launch his homemade rocket all the way into space. And he’s going to attach the Golden iPod: a recording he’s been working on. When aliens find his rocket – and Alex is sure they will – they’ll be able to find out what life was like on Earth from listening to Alex’s recorded conversations. Continue reading “Book of the Week: See You in the Cosmos by Jack Cheng”
The Land of Forgotten Girls, Erin Entrada Kelly
Realistic fiction
Sol and Ming are sisters, and five years ago, after their other sister drowned and their mother died, they moved from the Philippines to Louisiana with their father and wicked stepmother. And then their father abandoned them too, leaving the girls all alone with evil Vea, who never wanted them at all. Continue reading “Book of the Week: The Land of Forgotten Girls by Erin Entrada Kelly”
Some Kind of Courage, Dan Gemeinhart
Historical fiction
After his mom and sister die of typhoid and his father is killed by a runaway covered wagon, Joseph is all alone in the world – except for his horse, Sarah. Sarah has been with his family since he was only five years old, and now she is the only family he has left. So when Joseph’s guardian, Mr. Grissom, sells Sarah to a passing horse trader, Joseph has no choice but to go after her – even if it means risking his own life. Continue reading “Book of the Week: Some Kind of Courage by Dan Gemeinhart”
Awkward, Svetlana Chmakova
Realistic fiction/Graphic novel
On Penelope’s very first day at her new school, she just wants to blend in and maybe make a friend. Instead, she trips in the hallway and spills all her stuff, and when a boy stops to help her, the school bullies — you can always spot ’em — start calling her his nerd girlfriend. She gets flustered and pushes the boy away, and even though she feels bad, she can’t find a way to say she’s sorry. Continue reading “Book of the Week: Awkward by Svetlana Chmakova”