Day 24: The Great Hamster Massacre by Katie Davies

Anna and her brother Tom really, really want a hamster. After pestering their mother she gives in and buys not one but two hamsters from the local pet shop. The siblings are very excited to have their new pets but excitement turns to horror when the animals are found dead in their cage. Anna, Tom and next door neighbor Suzanne set out to find out what cause the hamster massacre. This is a weird book. I picked it up because of the cover and I thought it might be funny, but it’s not really funny. I think the problem is it is not sure what kind of book it is. It starts out funny and has silly illustrations but then it takes a weird turn. Anna and Tom’s grandmother dies and that is kind of glossed over, you find out why their mother really doesn’t want hamsters and the story is a bit gruesome. Then the hamster massacre! All I can say is wow! It turns out that one of the hamsters is a girl and pregnant. She gives birth to eight baby hamsters. The next day, the mother hamster is found half dead with one leg missing, the boy hamster is missing and all eight babies are dead. The vet says that the mother killed her babies because the male hamster was jealous. Then the male hamster attacked the female hamster and chewed her leg off. Anna does not believe that this is what happened and she, Tom and Suzanne set out to find out the true story. Well, there isn’t a mystery at all, what the vet said happened, really happened. It is just a weird book! I can see students being so upset about the hamster massacre. I think hamsters are just rats with cuter outfits and I was disturbed by the gruesome death of the animals. The fact that there is not really much of a story added to my dislike of this book. I would not recommend this book. 

Day 23: Middleworld: The Jaguar Stones Book One by J&P Voelkel

Max Murphy lives a very boring life in Boston with his archeologist parents. Max spends a lot of time alone playing video games because his parents are more interested in the Ancient Mayan world they are in him. One day his parents announce that they are headed to Central America for a dig at recently discovered Mayan site. Max is resigned to spending the summer being babysat by the strange nanny Zia, when he is mysteriously summoned to San Xavier by his parents. When he arrives he finds his parents are missing. Soon, Max is mixed up with a Mayan girl, Lola on a crazy adventure through the rain forest. Lola and Max are pulled into an adventure involving Mayan gods, ancient curses, the mysterious and powerful Jaguar stones and the possible end of the world. I picked up this book because my students are always looking for books life Percy Jackson. This was an new concept involving Mayan history. I liked parts of the book but I did not love it. Not all of the characters are developed very well. The authors introduce so many characters that pop in and out of the book. I found myself flip back to remember who they were and how Max knew them. The story ends with a lot of loose ends and storylines hanging out there. I’m not sure I would remember them all for book two. I think this might be tough to find an audience for. Not many kids will stick with it to the end. It might find a home with a determined reader who is interested in archeology and ancient societies. I would recommend this for fifth grade and up. 

Day 22: The Road to Oz: Twists, Turns, Bumps, and Triumphs in the Life of L. Frank Baum by Kathleen Krull

This is a picture book biography about the author of The Wonderful Wizard of Oz L. Frank Baum. Baum grew up in a wealthy family and was spoiled by his parents. As an adult, he followed many whims and brilliant ideas in an effort to make a living. Most of these pursuits ended in failure. Baum’s greatest love was spending time with his four sons. Every night he would make up stories to tell his children before bedtime. News of Baum’s talent as a storyteller spread to other children in the neighborhood and soon he was sharing his stories with them as well. He took notes and suggestions from his audience about what they liked and did not like about his stories. Baum created the world of Oz from these suggestions and ideas as well as from life experiences, such as a visit to The White City at the 1893 World’s Fair. This is a wonderful story to share with students when discussing the writing process. It took Baum years to write this story, he wrote and rewrote it. The inspiration for many of the memorable characters came from everyday life and he took the suggestions and criticisms of others. This is all great information to share with students as they start writing their own stories. 

Day 21: How To Be an Egyptian Princess by Jacqueline Morley

How To Be an Egyptian Princess is part of a series published by National Geographic. The book opens with an advertisement for a princess, information about where to apply for the job and a brief introduction about traveling back in time to Ancient Egypt to learn more about the job. Readers learn all about the life of an Egyptian princess. The book is full of information about family life, palace life, clothes and the life of Egyptian royalty. The book ends with a brief quiz to see if the reader is qualified for the job. I think the concept of the book is fun but the text is a bit dry and the illustrations are very bland. The You Wouldn’t Want to Be… series is much better. That series is more fun and presents history in a more interesting way. I would recommend You Wouldn’t Want to be Cleopatra as a much more appealing book about Ancient Egyptian royal life. 

Day 20: The Popularity Papers: The Long Dispatch Between Lydia Goldblatt and Julie Graham- Chang by Amy Ignatow

This is the second book about Lydia and Julie. In the first Popularity Papers book, Lydia and Julie are determined to find out what makes the popular crowd popular so when they start middle school they will know what to do. The friends keep a journal full of drawings and instructions of what they learned by watching the in crowd. They end up having some mishaps and fights along the way. In the end the best friends find that they can be themselves and follow what they are interested in and they will find friends and that the love and support they have for each other is special. In this book, Lydia’s mom announces that the family will be moving to London for the year. Lydia is devastated that all of their hard work from the previous year will be a wasted because she will not be starting middle school with Julie. The friends decide to keep their journal going online and Lydia will try and put the lessons to work in London, Julie’s job is to get the lay of the land in middle school so when Lydia comes home they will be popular. Again lots of mishaps, misunderstanding and laughs happen along the way. The Popularity Papers books don’t break new ground with the story or the message. In the end Lydia and Julie learn that being themselves is always the best and good friends are more important than being popular. This is a common theme in middle grade novels for girls. What I do like about these books is the journal format. The illustrations are funny and creative and add a lot to the story. Students who are not big readers love this book and I know they will be excited to read this installment. 

Day 19: Trouble at the Arcade: Hardy Boys Secret Files #1 by Franklin W. Dixon

This book is a new series in the Hardy Boys collection. The book is geared toward younger readers, transition chapter book readers. It follows the adventures of Joe and Frank, the Hardy brothers. In the series the brothers are in elementary school and solve mysteries that are very appropriate for that age group. In Trouble at the Arcade the brothers are participating in a video game tournament at the local arcade when the prize money goes missing. I was happy to see this series because there are not many transition chapter books for boys. The Hardy Boys series is great but the original series is for older readers and could be considered historical fiction now. A couple of years ago, Hardy Boys graphic novels came out and a lot of my boys were really excited to read those. The issue with those books is the brothers are in high school and some of the situations are a bit old for a younger reader. Also, the images of the girls in the graphic novels are a bit much, cleavage and too short skirts. I plan on purchasing more of the Hardy Boys Secret Files series and promoting it to my second and third grade mystery readers. 

Day 18: The Throne of Fire by Rick Riordan

This is the second book in the Kane Chronicles series. The books follow brother and sister, Carter and Sadie. The siblings are descendants of the Egyptian gods and are the only ones who can save the world as the ancient force of Chaos is trying to escape from the Duat, the god world and destroy the human world. Riordan is the author of the Percy Jackson series which I loved. That series follows Greek and Roman gods. I was excited when I heard he was writing a book about Egyptian myths. When I read the first book in the Kane Chronicles I did not love it. I found it a bit confusing and it seems packed with way too many Egyptian gods, monsters and history. I am not at all familiar with the Egyptian myths and history and Riordan did not explain the myths or the historical connections very well. Many of my students who loved the Percy Jackson series were also confused and disappointed by the Kane series. I decided to give the series another try and read the second book. I did like this book better. Riordan explains the Egyptian myths in a better manner then in the previous book. Also the story seems to flow better and there is a clear quest that Carter and Sadie go on. The Throne of Fire is action packed and brings to life Egyptian myths and history. I hope more students will give the series another try. I would recommend this book for fourth grade and up. 

Day 17: Genius, A Photobiography of Albert Einstein by Marfe Ferguson Delano

This book is part of the National Geographic Society’s Photobiography series. The premise of the series is a biography filled with photos and images from the subject’s life. Throughout the book are pictures from Einstein’s life and images of letters and articles he wrote. Einstein was a fascinating man. I read somewhere that Einstein had a genius level IQ but it was his ability to see the world differently that made him a revolutionary scientist. As a child Einstein wonder what it would be like to run after a ray of light and ride the beam. This childhood wonder lead him to the theory of relativity. He was able to take what previous scientists had learned about our world and go further with it to change the whole field of science and how many saw the universe. The book wonderfully blends details about Einstein’s life with simplistic explanations of his scientific theories. I learned some interesting facts about Einstein that I will not forget. Einstein was a very good student and was never kicked out of school or failed math. He excelled at math and science but did not pay attention in classes that he did not find interesting, something I can relate to. Einstein was deeply committed to peace and was a pacifist. He never participated in the Manhattan Project. Final fun fact, in 1952 the Nation of Israel, after the death of its first president, asked Einstein to be president. He was deeply humbled and honored by the request but he declined. I would recommend this book for fifth grade and middle school students and I am excited to read more books in this series. 

Day 16: Super Diaper Baby 2: The Invasion of the Potty Snatchers. The Third Epic Novel by George Beard and Harold Hutchins, the Creators of Captain Underpants, by Dav Pilkey

Oh, Dav Pilkey! How excited the kids will be that he is back with all new books! There are a lot of feelings about Captain Underpants, Super Diaper Baby and Ook and Gluk. Some feel that there is no place in children’s literature for underpants, poop and in this exciting installment a giant pee monster. I find these books creative and funny and if they will get a kid to read a book I am all for them. In this installment, Super Diaper Baby and his sidekick Super Diaper Dog are back to save the world again, this time from the evil Dr. Dilbert Dinkle and his evil cat sidekick Petey. Dr. Dinkle ends up turning himself into a puddle of water with his Liquidator 2000. Dr. Dinkle thinks this is great because now he can flow under doors to rob banks and he saves money because he doesn’t have to pay the water bill anymore. Petey needs some water to drink and he drinks up Dr. Dinkle which leads to the use of the litter box and…well you get the idea of how Dr. Dinkle become a big, evil puddle of pee. Super Diaper Baby and Diaper Dog are called in to save the world from the evil pee monster. It is a funny book full of bathroom humor and there is a short and hilarious parody of The Grinch Who Stole Christmas in the middle of the book. The fact is kids are going to love this book. If they loved Captain Underpants and graphic novels they will love this one too. 

Day 15: Nurse, Soldier, Spy: The Story of Sarah Edmonds, A Civil War Hero by Marissa Moss, illustrated by John Hendrix.

This is a fascinating story that I have never heard. Sara Edmonds was a Canadian who fled her home to escape an arranged marriage. To hide she dressed as a man and took the name Frank Thomas. When she arrived in the United States she enlisted in the Union Army and fought in battles, including the Battle of Bull Run and Fredericksburg, worked as a nurse and ran 11 spy missions for the Union Army during the Civil War. In 1863 she was so weak from a bout of malaria and not wanting to be examined by the Army doctors, she sneaked into a nearby town dressed as woman to visit a doctor. On her way back to the Army camp she saw posters listing Frank Thomas as a deserter who would be shot on site. From that day on Sarah never dressed as a man again. Several years later she wrote a book about her life in the Army. It became a best seller. She donated the proceeds from the book to help Civil War Veterans and dedicated her life to helping African American children who lost their parents in the war. Needing money for her cause she applied for a pension for her military service. With help from soldiers she served with, Sarah Edmonds Seelye, her married name became the first and only woman to be recognized as a veteran of the Civil War. This picture book biography is wonderfully done. It describes Sarah’s adventures on one of her spying missions. There is also a detailed author’s note with more information on this fascinating woman’s life. I would recommend this for second through fifth grade. This would make a good book talk book. I don’t think students will pick this up on their own, but once they start reading they will be pulled into this amazing story. 

Day 14: The Beast of Blackslope (The Sherlock Files Book 2) by Tracy Barrett

This is the second book in the series. The series follows brother and sister, Xander and Xena. Their family is transferred to London for one year. While there the siblings learn that Sherlock Holmes is their great-great-great- great grandfather. As his descendents, Xena and Xander are given Sherlock’s unsolved case files folder. In the first book, The 100 Year Old Secret, the two heroes solve the case of a missing painting. In this book, Xena and Xander are spending fall break in the small village of Blackslope. While there strange things start to happen, there are weird howling noises heard at night and strange footprints are found around the village. The residents believe that the Beast of Blackslope is back. This horrible creature terrorized the village more than a hundred years ago. Xena and Xander realize that the Beast of Blackslope was one of Sherlock Holmes’s unsolved cases. The siblings are determined to find the beast and solve the case. The book offers a suspenseful mystery with twist and turns. This mystery series is great from children who have read all the A-Z Mysteries and are looking for the next step. The books have enough suspense for that age group but are still innocent. I would recommend this series for second and third grade mystery lovers.

Day 13: Dork Diaries, Tales from a Not-So-Popular Party Girl by Rachel Renee Russell

This is the second book in the Dork Diaries series. I had read the first one a couple of years ago and was not all that impressed by it but my fifth grade girls love this series and have been asking me to purchase it for the library. I thought I would give it another try. It is a pretty funny book, a little over the top but funny. Nikki is a middle school girl who writes her in journal and fills it with lots of drawings. Nikki feels she is a huge dork. There is the crush on a nice, cute boy; two fun, eccentric best friends and a blonde, mean bully named Mackenzie. Nikki really wants to go to the school Halloween dance and is hoping her crush asks her. What follows are lots of mix ups, misunderstandings and a few completely unrealistic events. All in all this is a fun book. Nikki stays true to herself. She does not want to join the popular group by being someone she is not. Nikki chooses friends that are good people and stands up for them. She has a family that drives her crazy but she loves. I think the messages in the book are good ones for fifth grade girls to read and they are presented in a funny, creative way. I think I didn’t love this series when I first read it because it was being marketed as the “girl” Diary of a Wimpy Kid book. I think this series is completely different then the Wimpy Kid books and stands on its own. I would recommend this book for fifth and sixth grade girls. 

Day 12: Moxy Maxwell Does Not Love Practicing the Piano (but she does love being in recitals) by Peggy Gifford

This book is the third in the Moxy Maxwell series. Moxy is a fun loving, sweet girl. She is determined to accomplish all of the items on her many lists, including the 93 things she wants to do before she is 13 and the long list of possible careers she might have. Moxy likes to be the center of attention but does not always like to put in the work to do it right. In the first book, Moxy is excited about her swim dance performance, she is a daisy but she does not want to read Stuart Little. She was supposes to read the book before the end of the summer and it is the last day and she still has not read it. So there will be consequences, not being able to perform. Moxy is a champion procrastinator. In this installment, it is the day of Moxy’s piano recital she is very excited about her crown, sparkle shoes, and the cape that she convinced her grandmother to make but playing the piano is not going as well. Moxy is set to play “Heart and Soul” but she does not think it is long enough for her debut so she just keeps playing. This comes to her mother’s attention and now Moxy has to do it right or there will be consequences. Not only is Moxy loveable and hilarious, her family is a wonderful cast of characters, her twin brother Mark, who’s photographs fill the book, like sister Pansy, her best friend Sam, Granny George, and Aunt Susan Standish. If you love the Clementine books or the Ramona books then you will love Moxy as well. This book is good for second and third graders and one that will be loved by boys and girls.

Day 11: Sisterhood everlasting by Ann Brashares

This is my first adult book for the summer. Well kind of an adult book. Ann Brashares is the author of the Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants books. There are four books in the YA series. The books follow four best friends as they navigate the end of high school and the first few years of college. The girls are very different, from different families and with distinct personalities but find love and acceptance with each other as best friends. The final YA book ended with the girls’ storylines seemingly wrapped up and moving into adulthood. This book, sisterhood everlasting picks up with the four characters in the year of their thirtieth birthday. I had read one of the YA books years ago, so I was intrigued by the concept of revisiting the characters in adulthood. There are many times when I reread a favorite series book and wonder what they would be like as adults and where they would be, would all the friends from the Babysitters Club still be friends, and what would their lives be like? For the most part sisterhood everlasting fulfills that for these characters. My only complaint and this is a bit of a spoiler, is why do authors seem to think that friendship between adult women can only be fully appreciated when one of them dies? I can think of half a dozen books I have read that follow this formula. I get this adds some drama and plot to the story but just once can all of them live. I don’t want to read another book where best friends from childhood drift apart and are brought back together only to have one friend die, leaving behind the grieving husband and beautiful children that the friend is committed to helping and raising. If you are familiar with the Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants I would check this book out but if any of my complaint sounds like a book you have already read, I would skip this one. A note- this book is not for kids. If you have middle school students or even early high school students who read the series I would not recommend this book. 

Day 10: The Silver Bowl by Diane Stanley

This book is another magic tale. Molly is unwanted at home. Her father decides that he has had enough of her and sends her to the castle at Westria to work. He tells her when he drops her off, she better do a good job because she is not welcome at home. Molly has a secret, she hears voice and sees visions. Before she is sent from home, her mother tells her that this is not a curse but a gift. She has to protect this gift and not let others know of it. For many years Molly hides her gift and seems to have a happy life in the castle kitchen. When Molly is promoted to silver polisher, things start to change. While polishing the silver bowl, a beautiful bowl with intricate details, the bowl starts to talk to Molly. The visions in the bowl are a warning about the curse the plagues the royal family. Molly needs to find a way to stop the curse and the person behind them from destroying the royal family. This is an interesting and suspenseful story and another one with a strong female lead. I would recommend this story for strong fourth grade readers and fifth graders who like fantasy and adventure tales. 

Day 9: Horton Halfpott or The Fiendish Mystery of Smugwick Manor or The Loosening of M’Lady Luggertuck’s Corset by Tom Angleberger

I was excited to read this book. The author wrote The Strange Case of Origami Yoda, a hilarious story. Horton is a funny story but it takes a bit longer to get into. Horton is the pot scrubber in the worst manor in the land. The noblemen who live there are awful people. Horton is resigned to his awful life because it is the only job he can find and he supports his parents and siblings. Things start to change at Smugwick Manor when M’Lady does not want her corset strings tied so tight. This sets off a chain of events that no one expected. All of sudden everyone in the manor is in a better mood, the cook doesn’t hit as hard with the wooden spoon, everyone gets to eat cake, and the Lady of the house agrees to host a ball. But a horrible thing happens, the Luggertuck Lump, the most valuable possession of the manor, has been stolen. Could Horton be responsible? Horton sets out to prove that he is innocent and it is a very funny trip. The story is unique tale. It will not be one that students pick off the shelves on their own. This would be a good story to read a chapter from the book to highlight the hilarious story. Then I think you will have a lot of interest in this book. I would recommend this for third and fourth graders. 

Day 8: The Thirteenth Princess by Diane Zahler

This story continues the trend of taking shorter folk and fairy tales and turning them into longer, more involved stories. The Thirteenth Princess is based on the Grimm Brothers’ tale “The Twelve Dancing Princess.” Zita grows up in the kitchen of the palace as a servant. The palace is a sad place. The King has banished all magic believing it is the reason he has twelve daughters and no sons. Zita learns that there are in fact 13 princesses and she is the youngest daughter of the King. After her birth, the Queen died, the King was so heartbroken that he banished his last child to the kitchen to be raised there. Zita finds out that her sisters know about her and she begins sneaking up to their room to spend time with them. That is when she notices something is wrong. Her sisters are becoming sick and no one knows why. Every night their shoes are almost completely worn but they seem to never leave their bedroom. Zita realizes that she is the only one that can help them. With the assistance of an old witch, who stayed hidden in the kingdom, and Breckin, a stable boy, Zita sets out to find who is controlling her sisters and to save their lives. The story is a wonderful twist on the original tale, with suspense and adventure. I would recommend this to fourth and fifth grade readers who enjoy fairy tales and fantasy tales. 

Day 7:A Mango-Shaped Space by Wendy Mass

I am a fan Wendy Mass’s books. She has a way of creating a completely unique story with familiar threads. The stories involve friendship, family and finding out who you are and being comfortable with that. A Mango-Shaped Space is another wonderful story by the author. Mia Winchell seems to be a typical junior high school student. She has friends, family and school issues that all seem ordinary for a girl her age. Mia’s life is not as typical as it seems. Sounds, numbers and letters have color for her. When she hears a noise, shapes and colors appear, letters have unique colors for each one. Like Mia’s best friend Jenna, her name is a bright, shimmering shade of green with some yellow highlights. Math is Mia’s problem. The colors of the numbers and the math formulas never match up, same with Spanish, the color of the English words and the color of the Spanish words do not match. Up until the third grade, Mia thought everyone saw the world like she did but when she tried to explain it to her teacher and students she was called a freak. Mia has kept her secret until now. When it all comes out, Mia’s life takes a turn that she did not expect. This is a really sweet story about realizing that just because you see the world in a different way that does not mean you don’t belong. I would recommend this story for fourth and fifth grade girls. 

Day 6: The Royal Treatment: A Princess for Hire Book by Lindsey Leavitt

After my great love for the previous story, this book was a bit of a letdown. I picked The Royal Treatment up not realizing that it is the second in the series. That didn’t matter much, there is a summary of the first story in the beginning chapter and you get up to date pretty quick. The basic story is that Desi has MP, magic potential, and she is recruited by the super-secret Façade Agency for the ultimate job, wait for it….to be a substitute princess! (Ugh) Desi is pulled from her boring life in Idaho, because Idaho is as boring as it gets, to substitute for a princess who just needs a break from her stressful, paparazzi-filled, ball going life. The agency used magic to create Royal Rouge, the magic makeup that Desi puts on to look like and talk like the princess. In the first adventure, Desi becomes a shy princess that loves a cute prince and she takes it upon herself to make a move, i.e. kiss him. This almost gets her booted from the agency because you are not supposed to do anything in the princess’s life that she would not do. Desi keeps her job and moves up to the next level. In her downtime she needs to study yachting skills, ballroom dancing and fashion magazines. The next assignment leads to high jinks and craziness and a revelation about the cute boy in Idaho. Also, Desi begins to suspect that Façade may not be up to only good, if you considered helping princesses go on vacation a humanitarian cause. I can see fifth and sixth grade girls liking this series but there are so many other series out there that have some adventure, a little romance, and strong female main characters. The Gallagher Girls series by Ally Carter comes to mind as a much better choice. 

Day 5: A Whole Nother Story by Dr. Cuthbert Soup

I loved this book! It is funny and quirky and just the right amount of weird. The story follows Mr. Cheeseman and his three, attractive polite and relatively odor-free children, a sock puppet named Steve, and their psychic hairless dog. Mr. Cheeseman and his late wife created the most amazing and powerful invention the world has ever seen. Mrs. Cheeseman died because the family refused to give it to the top secret government agents, international superspies, one of whom happens to be a chimp, or corporate villains. Now the family is on the run from town to town, changing their names trying to stay one step ahead of those evil characters. Along the way they meet a crazy circus troupe, a cowboy singing poet, a ghost and a bunch of unusual helpful people. Mr. Cheeseman hopes that he will be able to get his powerful device working so he can find a way to save his wife. This is a funny book, one of my favorites so far this summer. I plan to check out the next book in the series, Another Whole Nother Story. A Whole Nother Story would make a great read aloud for third and fourth grade. I would recommend this to kids who love The Secret Series by Pseudonymous Bosch.

Blog catch up!

I haven’t been keeping up with my blogging but I have been doing all of my reading! So here is Day 5-Day 11!