Yup. Still going strong with the Meg Cabot. This title picks right up where the other left off. The next day, I think. And keeps going strong. The writing is fun and witty, but I’m getting frustrated with Mia. How dense can she be that she doesn’t see that Michael likes her? I’ll have to get the third one now and see where that takes me.
Despite the fact that I couldn’t care less about football, or any sport, I loved this book. DJ lives on her family’s farm in football-crazy Wisconsin. After her dad injures himself, it’s up to her to do the majority of the work on the farm. It’s a great workout, and she is in top shape. Because her family is so into football, she is asked to coach Brian, the QB (that’s Quarterback to the rest of us,) for her high school’s rival team. She takes on the challenge and discovers that they have a lot in common. She even begins to like him, and it seems that he likes her too.
After a really rough summer, DJ decides that she wants to do something that she really enjoys. Football. And not just coaching it either. She wants to play on her high school’s team. But if she does, she’ll be playing opposite cute Brian. There is a lot to this book. More than just football, and more than just a neat boy story. There is a lot about relationships and communicating with people. It was enticing, and sweet, but also provided a lot of substance to think about.
I am continuing on with my Meg Cabot streak. This was fun. She certainly has a thing for famous people! First a President’s son and now a princess.
Mia just found out that she is a princess and the sole heir to the throne of Genovia–a really really small country. At first she thinks she can fly under the radar and not let anyone know. But eventually the press is alerted and now everyone knows. Her best friend stops speaking to her, the cutest guy in the whole school suddenly takes an interest in her, she’s failing algebra, and she has to have princess lessons with her strict grandmother.
A great book for when you want a nice, fun read.
This was my first Meg Cabot. I know, I know I’m behind. But I actually really liked it. I didn’t think that I would.
Sam (Samantha) Madison is a high-schooler living in Washington D.C. She has her one best friend, and loves to draw. Life is pretty good. She starts taking a new art class where a vaguely familiar guy sits next to her. He’s pretty cute and he likes her boots. Later, when she saves the President’s life (yup, that’s right) that she realizes why cute art class guy looks so familiar. It’s not because he’s from her school. He’s the President’s son. And he likes her. A lot.
This was a fun, quick read. I enjoyed Meg Cabot’s characters, and their true-to-life interactions with each other.
Anastasia has got to be one of my favorite characters. I love her sense of humor, her family, and how she is a list-maker (I am too!)
This is the first Anastasia story and there are lots more. She is 10 years old, in love with Washburn Cummings, not sure if she likes her teacher and is about to become a big sister for the first time. Something that she definitely does not want to be. Her parents tell her that she can name the new baby-a boy. She thinks of the worst name possible, and writes it down in her journal. But a lot of things have yet to happen to Anastasia before the baby is born. As her list of Things I Love and Things I Hate change, so does Anastasia. A sweet, fun book.
This book was chosen as a Printz honor award winner just recently at the ALA midwinter conference. It’s also one I had sitting on my shelf for a couple of weeks. It’s a sweet story about an Australian family. Each chapter shifts your perspective to a different family member. There’s Lily who worries about how dysfunctional her family is, but who begins to realize that everyone’s family is dysfunctional. Her brother Lonnie, who can’t seem to figure out his place on this planet. All the characters are well formed, and you get to know them really well.
It was a bit hard sticking with a book that was so introspective for 250 pages. No real action or even a lot of dialogue to propel it along. Still, if you can get past that, it’s worth hanging in there for the ending.
What a fabulous book! This should have won at least a Newbery honor this year. I was rooting for it to win the Newbery, but alas, it went to Good Masters, Sweet Ladies.
Georgina, her mother and her brother are living in their car. After her father left, they were forced to leave their apartment. The car is temporary, until their mother can earn enough money for them to move into a new home. “Temporary” is taking too long for Georgina, and after seeing a Lost Dog, Reward Offered sign, she decides to take matters into her own hands. She steals a dog to hold on to until a reward is offered. The problem is that she feels like she is doing the wrong thing. And she meets to owner, who loves her dog more than anything. And the dog is a super cutie who misses his house and yard.
This was such a lovely book filled with nice characters and built around a great story. Wonderful for sharing.
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 just re-read Frindle for our book club, and I couldn’t believe that it is already 11 years old! This book has been a favorite with so many people. I love Nick, and I really love Mrs. Granger. This is a quick, fun read about a Nicholas Allen who decides to create a new word for pen, and his teacher, who is determined to see the dictionary prevail. A fun, fun story for everyone.
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.
Sahara has to repeat the 5th grade. With her father gone, and her being too shy to answer questions at school, the teachers think she needs special attention. Lucky for Sahara this year the 5th grade has a new teacher. Miss Pointy, as she likes to be called. Miss Pointy is a pretty cool teacher who likes everyone for who they are, and thinks each child has the ability to be something great. By the end of the year, Sahara might just show people how special she really is, and maybe make a new friend or two.
This wasn’t my favorite book ever. But maybe it will be one of yours?
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….
