While Sunny is determined to hate everyone at Plumstead Middle School, Eddie hopes simply to survive, Salem tries her hand at writing, and Pickles acts like . . . well, like Pickles. Original. My Thoughts I needed a quick read to fill in the time while my husband was away on a trip for work.… Continue reading Book Review: Report to the Principal’s Office by Jerry Spinelli
Will Everett has always wished for an adventure. Little does he know that his adventure starts the moment he boards the Boundless. There is a murder, and now Will must protect a key that can unlock the train's hidden treasures. Villians are fast on his heels and strange creatures are lurking outside the windows… Continue reading Book Club Review: The Boundless by Kenneth Oppel
The Night Gardener, by Jonathan Auxier, follows two abandoned Irish siblings who travel to work as servants at a creepy, crumbling English manor house. But the house and its inhabitants are not quite what they seem. Soon, the children are confronted by a mysterious stranger—and an ancient curse that threatens their very lives. My Thoughts… Continue reading Book Review: The Night Gardener by Jonathan Auxier
Coop is an aging, cynical, down-and-out dachshund who faces the ultimate test when his new owner, Mike, and Mike's grandchildren, Zach and Emma, run into trouble. Mike rescued him, but does Coop have what it takes to do the same? My thoughts: This is a fantastic tale told from the point of view of Coop,… Continue reading Book Review: Coop the Great by Larry Verstraete
Did you know today is National Science Fiction Day? Happy Birthday, Isaac Asimov! Today, I'm making two recommendations for sci-fi [and fantasy] writers. The Worldshapers is a podcast by award-winning author, Edward Willett. Each episode is an interview with a sci-fi/fantasy author. Really great stuff, so give it a listen. 2. About eight years ago, I… Continue reading How to Write Science Fiction & Fantasy
Everybody loves Mother Paula’s pancakes. Everybody, that is, except the colony of cute but endangered owls that live on the building site of the new restaurant. Can the awkward new kid and his feral friend prank the pancake people out of town? Or is the owls’ fate cemented in pancake batter? My thoughts: People say… Continue reading Book Review: Hoot by Carl Hiaasen
Berlin, 1942: When Bruno returns home from school one day, he discovers that his belongings are being packed in crates. His father has received a promotion and the family must move to a new house far, far away, where there is no one to play with and nothing to do. A tall fence stretches as… Continue reading Book Review: The Boy in the Striped Pajamas by John Boyne
