Book Notes

This was yet another re-read. I really should start reading new stuff! But this was so good, and each time you read a book you find new things in it, or a new passage catches your eye.

In this story, Nat Field, a Shakespearean actor, is transported back in time to 1599 London. No one knows that he from the future, and he is to perform in A Midsummer’s Night’s Dream at the new Globe theatre with Shakespeare as director and performer. It’s a magical book, and if you like plays, or acting, literature or history you will love this.

This was our pick for this month’s 6th-8th grade book club. I’d never read it before, but became interested after I heard Jeanne DuPrau speaking about her writing. So when the group chose this title, I was very excited.

Lina and Doon are twelve and have just received their work assignments. Lina will be a Messenger, and Doon will be a pipeworker. Everyone works together to keep Ember running. However, things aren’t going smoothly. The lights have been flickering a lot lately. And without lights and a working generator, the entire city will be permanently plunged into darkness. Night and day. Things are looking pretty grim until Lina finds a box with partial instructions on it. It looks like a way out of Ember. If only she and Doon can figure it out before it’s too late.

This was another re-read. And a wonderful piece of historic fiction. Set in Scotland in 1306, during the reign of Longshanks of England and Robert de Brus  of Scotland, this book focuses on Robert’s daughter Marjorie and her captivity by Longshanks. She is taken and put in a cage in a town square in England on the Scottish border. This book picks up where the movie, Braveheart, left off, if that helps with setting.

I love the sense of place and time that this book provides. The people are dirty, and they are constantly hungry and cold. Yolen and Harris do a really good job of putting you in the character’s place. And what a great story. A fantastic afterword of what is true and what they had to fill in to make the story is provided.

This was another re-read. And what a fantastic book to re-read. I have so enjoyed this each time that I’ve read it. Hope and her Aunt are on their way to a new town, and a new life in Mulhoney, Wisconsin. Her Aunt Addie is a restaurant manager and is going to be taking over the care of the popular Welcome Diner.

For a small town there sure is a lot happening. There’s a man who is fighting lukemia and corrupt politicians; Braverman who is working as a short order cook and trying to save enough for college; a young mom struggling to make ends meet and care for baby daughter who might have a development problem. And there’s Hope. Who lost a lot of her faith in human beings, but may just be able to find it here at the Welcome Diner in Mulhoney, Wisconsin.

This is the sequel to Spinelli’s wildly popular Stargirl. This book is from Stargirl’s point of view, from her new home in Pennsylvania. She is writing “the world’s longest letter” to Leo, the boyfriend who broke her heart in Arizona.

This book is filled with quirky characters who make Stargirl seem quite average. And I didn’t like that about this one. I want Stargirl to be the sweetest and the most unusual. I also wanted her to not be so broken up about Leo. Sure he broke her heart, but isn’t the essence of Stargirl to be satisfied with who you are? Still, a good read if you miss Stargirl and want to check in on what she is doing now.

I’m starting to really like Jennifer Holm. This book has become one of my favorites. It’s a novel that is told not by the typical paragraphs and chapters, but through stuff. Her report cards, notes left on the refrigerator by her mother, receipts from her purchases at the drugstore, and the occasional clipped out horoscope. Put it all together and you get a great story.

You’ll just have to trust me and dive in. It’s hilarious and sweet. A perfect book to just curl up with for an afternoon.

This is a sweet and very quick read. It is a novel in poems about Josie, a girl with Celebral Palsey. It takes place during one summer in which Josie makes a friend, her grandmother has a stroke, and Josie’s relationship with her mother reaches a nice, new level.

Watch the bottom right hand corner of the  pages. What starts off as a little bud grows into a beautiful flower at the end. A nice read, especially if you enjoy poems.

This was our 6th-8th grade book club pick for November. One of my perennial favorites, I enjoy ever opportunity to re-read this. It’s the story of 11 going on 12-year-old Hattie Owen who discovers one summer that she has an uncle she has never heard of. Adam has been in an institution for mentally disabled adults, and with the advent of that school’s closing, he is returning to live with his parents. The characters and the situation are so beautifully drawn. Adam’s parents have always prided themselves on living a perfect, socially approved existence. Hattie is often at odds with how to treat Adam, he is an adult, and her uncle, but he often seems and acts more like a child.

The book is so beautifully written, and the personalities of the characters are so perfectly drawn. I recommend this to anyone who wants a quiet, sweet, and thoughtful story. Have tissues near by at the end.

Attention fans of Bras and Broomsticks! This new book by Lily Archer is similar to Bras, and tons of fun.

Three girls from three separate backgrounds are all attending a boarding school in Massachusetts for the first time. And all because they have something new and unwanted at home: a new stepmother. After a few false starts, the girls discover their commonality and form a tight friendship, calling themselves “the Poison Apples”. A group dedicated to the eradication of their stepmothers. What better time to make that happen than Thanksgiving break. Think Penguin stealing, itching powder and sibling affection redistribution and you begin to get the idea.

It’s an easy read, each chapter being told from one girls viewpoint. And the ending left it open to a sequel….

This is book one of the Percy Jackson and the Olympian series. I wish I had read it months ago. I was reluctant, but once I started I found a great fantasy.

Percy has been shuffled from school to school. He can’t seem to stay out of trouble. He’s dyslexic, so his grades aren’t so hot, and he has ADHD, so none of his teachers ever give him much of a chance. It turns out that there is a reason for this. He’s a demigod.

In this fantasy the myths of the Greek Gods are not just myths. They are real and very much alive today. And one of them is Percy’s dad. His Greek god roots are what make him dyslexic–he’s hard wired to read ancient Greek–and the ADHD is because his body is hard wired for battle.

After finding out that he is a demigod, Percy has to undertake a quest. Zeus’s master bolt has been stolen and if it is not returned by the summer solstice world war three will begin. It’s up to Percy and his friends to travel to the underworld, get it, and get back to Mount Olympus (located on the 600th floor of the Empire State Building). This is non-stop adventure chock full of ancient monsters and ancient curses. A fun, fun book.

I really enjoyed this fantasy once I got past the initial eerie feelings. Corrina has disguised herself as a boy in order to hold the postion of Folk Keeper in large houses and estates. This job keeps the folk appeased so that they will not be tempted to turn the milk or spoil the hay.

Things change for Corrina when she goes to Cliffsend to be a folk keeper. Here she is near the sea and she begins to notice changes in herself. It turns out Corrina’s mother was a seal maiden, so Corrina is too. Now she has to decide whether she wants a life at sea, or one on land with her new love Finian.

This is a lovely, gentle read that requires some effort on the part of the reader. But I have read it twice now and have not been disappointed.

This young adult historical fiction is set during the Plague in London in 1665. Hannah has just arrived in London to help her sister in her sweets shop. Very soon after she arrives the gates are closed and no one is permitted to leave. Come what may, Hannah and Sarah are in it for the long haul.

The historical details are what make this book so rich. The plague was gruesome and London was no picnic either. The grime and swill that littered the streets and the rats that carried the disease make for an accurate depiction. A great read for true history lovers.

I’ve been re-reading this book, and loving every minute of it. I’ve lost track of how many times I have read this over the years, but I never cease to be amazed at how fabulous it is. It’s a very timely reading too. Ms. L’Engle passed away while I was in the middle of reading her wonderful book.

Meg and Charles Wallace and Calvin. With the coming of Mrs. Who, Mrs. Which, and Mrs. What, the three children are whisked off on an adventure through time and space to rescue Meg and Charles’ father. If you are a fantasy or Science fiction lover, give this one a try. It’s well worth it.

I will say nothing. I’ll write what I think in the comments section. You too!

Set on the Eastern Shore of Maryland, this was an intruiging book, with a fast plot.

Tragedy strikes one of Brady’s neighbors when their kayak sinks one chilly April morning. Brady had participated in the rescue efforts, and feels connected to the family. He discovers that the sunken kayak had a hole drilled in the bottom of it. Was this no accident but murder? And more horrifying, is Brady friends with the sabateur?

It’s a short read. Fun and light for summer.