13 Gifts

Wendy Mass’s most recent novel, 13 Gifts, brings back the mysterious Angelina D’Angelo from 11 Birthdays and Finally. Characters from those two awesome books – Amanda, Leo, Rory, David, Jake, and Emily are also in this story. Tara Brennan has always been pushed to make friends by her mother, who spends most of her time working on research. She makes a huge mistake when trying to fit in and gets caught stealing her principal’s goat. As punishment, her parents send her to the place they grew up – Willow Falls – while they continue her mom’s research in Madagascar. Tara has to stay with her mom’s sister, Uncle, and her young cousin, Emily. On the train ride there, she loses her mom’s ipod , her phone, and all of her money. Once there, she immediately makes friends with the kids her age. She makes another huge mistake when she tries to sell her uncle’s rare comic to a strange woman (Angelina) with a duck-shaped birthmark on her face. Angelina calls her out and forces her to strike a deal – Angelina won’t tell if Tara can collect 13 unusual items – she will even pay her the $200 she lost on her train ride. Will Tara be able to fulfill her end of the bargain? Will Amanda, Leo, or Rory shed light on the mystifying Angelina? What secrets does Willow Falls hold about Tara’s parents’ past? Read 13 Gifts to find out. You won’t be disappointed! Watch Scholastic's book trailer below.

Escape under the Forever Sky

Escape under the Forever Sky by Eve Yohalem keeps you reading to find out what will happen next. Thirteen-year-old Lucy is tired of being sheltered by her overprotective mom who is the American ambassador in Ethiopia. She has been in Ethiopia for six months and hasn’t had the opportunity to “see” the country. Lucy, leaving the highly protected American compound where she lives, rebels and she and her Ethiopian friend, Tana, head to a local restaurant. Once unprotected, the girls are deceived and Lucy finds herself held hostage. Her only means of escape is into the wild plains of Africa where lions and hyenas await. I love reading books that teach me about other places and cultures. When I finished this book, I felt like I had been on a journey myself. I was surprised to find out that this story was inspired by real events. Read this exciting novel to find out if Lucy can survive her captors and the harsh African landscape.

My Name is Not Easy

My Name is Not Easy by Debby Dahl Edwardson is a National Book Award Finalist. Edwardson draws on her strong knowledge of Alaska's history and environment. This story told through multiple narrators –Luke, Chickie, Sonny, Donna, and Amiq –children of various races (White, Indian, and Eskimo) sent a long way from their villages to Sacred Heart Catholic boarding school. All of the preteens’ families have been assured their children will receive a good education. No one can imagine at what cost. Luke begins the story by saying that he had to use the name, Luke, because his “name is not easy”. The students must give up their home language and speak only English. The integration of the Indians and the Eskimos is difficult at first as the students separate into packs. The story follows them from 1960 – 1964. Facing hardships brings the teens together and they soon find that School has become home for some of them. I appreciate that Edwardson used real-life situations that many Indian and Eskimo children had to face during that time in order to get an education. Some readers may have a difficult time at first keeping up with the characters as their stories are shared, but it is worth the effort. Another good book by Edwardson is Blessing’s Bead.

The View from Saturday

As a middle school librarian, I take pride in the number of books I have read. Having just finished The View from Sunday, I will no longer have to hear the incredulous exclamation from others, “You haven’t read E.L. Konigsburg’s The View from Saturday?”. Now I see why others are so surprised that this clever novel was missing from my collection of have-read books. What appeals to me the most about Konigsburg’s books is the way she develops her characters…they stay with you long after the book has ended. The View from Saturday begins with Mrs. Olinski, the quiz bowl sponsor and sixth-grade teacher, reflecting on how she chose her quiz bowl team members. Injured in an accident, Mrs. Olinski is a paraplegic who teaches her class from her wheelchair. Her quiz bowl team has made it to the championship round, surprisingly beating out older middle school teams. The complex story then contains four reflective short stories that share each team member’s background; separated by quiz bowl activity and Mrs. Olinski’s own story. I love how Konigsburg slowly reveals her characters in this story. Quiz bowl members – Noah, Nadia, Ethan, and Julian – are linked in more ways than one despite having different personalities. Another treat is how each member is able to answer a quiz bowl question and the reader understands how he or she knows the answer. The story gives us affirmation that goodness triumphs and that friends give us what we need. Other books by this Newbery Medal winning author include From the Mixed-up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler, Silent to the Bone, The Outcasts of 19 Schuyler Place, and The Mysterious Edge of the Heroic World.

The Summer Before Boys

Nora Raleigh Baskin’s The Summer Before Boys is a reflective novel about growing up and the difficulties military kids have in the absence of their parent during wartime. Julia, the narrator of the story, is Eliza’s aunt although they are both twelve-years-old. It is summer and Julia’s mother, a member of the National Guard, has been deployed to Iraq for the past ten months. Julia spends weekdays with Eliza, anxiously anticipating her mother’s return from war. The storyline bounces back and forth between Julia and Eliza’s summer expeditions, the statistics of military women and the loss of lives during the different United States conflicts, and the time Julia spent in counseling with Peter (a boy whose father also served in Iraq). Although Julia wants a normal summer and hopes to get to know a boy named Michael better, her mother’s welfare is always on her mind. When Julia chooses meeting Michael over spending time with Eliza, Eliza’s safety is in jeopardy and their friendship may never be the same. My niece has had to live with the fear of her father’s well-being while he served two tours in Iraq and one in Afghanistan. She is currently in 7th grade and she probably cannot talk about that time without getting emotional. Thank you to Nora Raleigh Baskin for sharing the stories of our military children – they fight a different battle on the home front, but it is no less of a fight. Thanks for also dedicating this book to the brave men and women in our armed forces and their children. This is going on my sixth grade reading list next year. Other great books by Baskin include Anything But Typical, Basketball (or Something like It), and The Truth About my Bat Mitzvah.

The Unforgotten Coat

The Unforgotten Coat is Frank Cottrell Boyce’s most recent novel. Readers will be drawn to this book, because of the appealing format – the story is told in a notebook with lined pages and photographs. The narrator, Julie, now a grown up, starts off by telling the readers about the picture that was taken when she was in sixth grade. It was the day she was asked to play an important role in the lives of two new boys (Chingis & Nergui), brothers from Mongolia. Being new to England, Chingis asks Julie to be the boys’ Good Guide. The story flashes forward to Julie visiting her school once more before they tear it down. She spots Chingis’s coat in the Lost Property box and in it are the pictures that help tell the story. From the very first day, Julie takes her new responsibility as their Good Guide seriously. She learns as much as she can about Mongolia and tries to infuse the others at her school with stories about Mongolian culture. Chingis claims that they are nomads and that an evil demon is following his brother around. Chingis, wise beyond his years, adds so much to the school and soaks in all that he can learn about British culture. When Julie tries to learn more about the boys like where they live and what their home life is like, the boys remain elusive. They are carrying a heavy burden, a family secret. This book made me reflect on other children who are in the same situation as Chingis and Nergui and how tough it must be when things in their lives are beyond their control. Popular books by Frank Cottrell Boyce include Cosmic and Framed.

Hidden

Hidden by Helen Frost is told in poetry format (novel in verse – a popular genre in my library) by the alternating voices of Wren and Darra. Wren and Darra first saw each other when they were eight-years-old in the most unusual of circumstances. Wren’s mother left her in the backseat of her car while she quickly paid for gas. Darra’s father stole the car and parked it in his garage, not knowing that Wren was hiding in the backseat. Darra knows that Wren is hiding in the garage. That fateful night changed both girls forever. The story continues when the girls are fourteen-years-old and meet once again at an elite summer camp. Before long, the girls must face each other and the burdens of their last meeting. Will Wren blame Darra for who her father is? Can Darra forgive Wren for taking her father away? I love that Helen Frost also gives her readers more of Darra’s feelings by including her thoughts – readers only need to read the last word of each long line down the page (in Darra’s narrative) to understand how she feels about her father and what she went through that horrible night. Other outstanding novels in verse by Helen Frost include Crossing Stones and Diamond Willow.