Tuesday, December 23, 2014

Merry Christmas 2014

Every year there are an abundance of new Christmas books published.  Here are a few of my favorites from this year . . . 

Star Bright: A Christmas Story by Alison McGhee
What can a small angel give a most important baby? A Christmas story about the greatest gift of all.

The Animals' Santa by Jan Brett
A rabbit named Little Snow is celebrating his first Christmas, and after all the forest animals tell him about the animals' Santa, he is excited to wake up on Christmas morning to find his own surprise.

Shooting at the Stars: The Christmas Truce of 1914 by John  Hendrix
In 1914 France, a British soldier writes to his mother about the strange events of Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, when German and Allied soldiers met on neutral ground to share songs, food, and fun. 


Saturday, December 20, 2014

The Angel Tree by Daphne Benedis-Grab

The Angel Tree by Daphne Benedis-Grab


Every Christmas in the small town of Pine River, a tree appears in the town square -- the Angel Tree. Some people tie wishes to the tree, while others make those wishes come true. Nobody's ever known where the tree comes from, but the mystery has always been part of the tradition's charm.

This year, however, four kids who have had their wishes answered -- Lucy, Joe, Max, and Cami -- are determined to solve the mystery and find out the true identity of the town's guardian angel, so that Pine River can finally thank the person who brought the Angel Tree to their town.

This is a heartwarming Christmas mystery, full of friendship, discovery, and loads of holiday cheer!

Thursday, December 18, 2014

A Merry Manga Christmas

It's a topic not often covered in manga -- Christmas.  So today, I'm sharing two holiday themed mangas for teens . . .

Sweet Rein series by Sakura Tsukuba
Sad at the thought of spending Christmas alone, Kurumi Sagara goes out for a walk. While she's crossing the street, a boy bumps into her, and a rein suddenly appears that binds them together. The overjoyed boy tells her she's his master and that she's a Santa Claus. Kurumi dismisses him as a crazy person, but then he transforms into a reindeer?!







Manga Claus: The Blade of Kringle by Nathaniel Marunas
When a disgruntled elf employee creates a horde of evil ninja teddy bears, Santa must break out his ancient samurai sword to save Christmas.

Tuesday, December 16, 2014

Stories in Black & White

Last week I shared picture books with colorful titles.  This week I'm focusing on titles in Black and White . . . .

I Like BLACK and WHITE by Barbara Jean Hicks
Simple rhyming text and illustrations show animals, patterns, and shapes that are black and white.

WHITE Snow, Bright Snow by Alvin Tresselt
When it begins to look, feel, and smell like snow, everyone prepares for a winter blizzard.

Old BLACK Fly by Jim Aylesworth
Rhyming text and illustrations follow a mischievous old black fly through the alphabet as he has a very busy bad day landing where he should not be.

Little WHITE Rabbit by Kevin Henkes
As he hops along a little rabbit wonders what it would be like to be green as grass, tall as fir trees, hard as rocks, and flutter like butterflies.

BLACK Cowboy, Wild Horses: A True Story by Julius Lester
A black cowboy is so in tune with wild mustangs that they accept him into the herd, thus enabling him singlehandedly to take them to the corral.


More Stories in BLACK & WHITE --
BLACK and WHITE by David Macauley
The BLACK Rabbit by Philippa Leathers
BLACK? WHITE! Day? Night? by Laura Vaccaro Seeger
A Book for BLACK-Eyed Susan by Judy Young
Dr. WHITE by Jane Goodall
Little BLACK Crow by Christopher Raschka
Shoeless Joe and BLACK Betsy by Phil Bildner
Urso Brunov and the WHITE Emperor by Brian Jacques

Saturday, December 13, 2014

If You Liked . . . The Giver

I am currently in the process of re-reading The Giver series by Lois Lowry.  It is a great series that I suggest everybody read at least once in their life.  However, if you've already read the series, here are some great read-alikes . . . .

The Unwanteds by Lisa McMann
In a society that purges thirteen-year-olds who are creative, identical twins Aaron and Alex are separated, one to attend University while the other, supposedly Eliminated, finds himself in a wondrous place where youths hone their abilities and learn magic.

Airborn by Kenneth Oppel
Matt, a young cabin boy aboard an airship, and Kate, a wealthy young girl traveling with her chaperone, team up to search for the existence of mysterious winged creatures reportedly living hundreds of feet above the Earth's surface.

The City of Ember by Jeanne DuPrau
In the year 241, twelve-year-old Lina trades jobs on Assignment Day to be a Messenger to run to new places in her decaying but beloved city, perhaps even to glimpse Unknown Regions.

The True Meaning of Smekday by Adam Rex
When her mother is abducted by aliens on Christmas Eve (or "Smekday" Eve since the Boov invasion), 11 year-old Tip hops in the family car and heads south to find her and meets an alien Boov mechanic who agrees to help her and save the planet from disaster.

The Ear, the Eye and the Arm by Nancy Farmer
In 2194 in Zimbabwe, General Matsika's three children are kidnapped and put to work in a plastic mine while three mutant detectives use their special powers to search for them.


More Readalikes for The Giver --
Atherton: The House of Power by Patrick Carman
Dark Life by Kat Falls
Found by Margaret Peterson Haddix
Gregor the Overlander by Suzanne Collins
Raiders' Ransom by Emily Diamond
The Roar by Emma Clayton
The Sky Inside by Clare B. Dunkle
Tunnels by Roderick Gordon
The White Mountains by John Christopher

Thursday, December 11, 2014

Seek the Unknown

Some of the most exciting books to read are those where the characters set off for adventures into the unknown.  Anything can happen!  Here are some great teen books featuring adventures into the unknown . . .

Nation by Terry Pratchett
After a devastating tsunami destroys all that they have ever known, Mau, an island boy, and Daphne, an aristocratic English girl, together with a small band of refugees, set about rebuilding their community and all the things that are important in their lives.

A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L'Engle
Meg Murry and her friends become involved with unearthly strangers and a search for Meg's father, who has disappeared while engaged in secret work for the government.

Above by Leah Bobet
When insane exile Corner and his army of mindless, whispering shadows invade Safe, a secret, underground community of freaks and disabled outcasts, Matthew, traumatized shapeshifter Ariel, and other misfits go to the dangerous place known as Above, where Matthew makes a shocking discovery about the histories entrusted to him.

Every Day by David Levithan
Every morning A wakes in a different person's body, in a different person's life, learning over the years to never get too attached, until he wakes up in the body of Justin and falls in love with Justin's girlfriend, Rhiannon.

The Golden Compass by Philip Pullman
Accompanied by her daemon, Lyra Belacqua sets out to prevent her best friend and other kidnapped children from becoming the subject of gruesome experiments in the Far North.


More Adventures into the Unknown --
The Blue Sword by Robin McKinley
Boston Jane: An Adventure by Jennifer L. Holm
City of Beasts by Isabel Allende
The Dark Ground by Gillian Cross
The Dead & the Gone by Susan Beth Pfeffer
Enclave by Ann Aguirre
A Girl Named Disaster by Nancy Farmer
Heaven Eyes by David Almond
The Obsidian Blade by Pete Hautman
Restoring Harmony by Joelle Anthony
The Singer of All Songs by Kate Constable

Tuesday, December 9, 2014

A Rainbow of Books

This week I'm sharing picture books with colorful titles.  Each book has a color in the title.

RED, RED, RED by Valeri Gorbachev
As Turtle rushes through town, in a hurry to see something "red, red, red," his neighbors wonder what it could be and hurry after him to find out.

Dog BLUE by Polly Dunbar
Bertie, who loves the color blue and really wants a dog, finally gets his wish even though the dog he meets is white with black spots.

GREEN Beans by Elizabeth Thomas
Strict and proper Gramma, unhappy that her green beans won't grow, leaves for a vacation and has a surprise when she comes back.

The ORANGE Shoes by Trinka Hakes Noble
Delly Porter enjoys the feel of soft dirt beneath her feet as she walks to and from school, but after a classmate makes her feel ashamed of having no shoes she learns that her parents and others, too, see value in things that do not cost money.

The PURPLE Kangaroo by Michael Ian Black
After asking the reader to think of something spectacular, the narrator sets out to prove his ability to read minds by describing a preposterous situation and characters.


More Colorful Titles --
The Artist Who Painted a BLUE Horse by Eric Carle
The Big BLUE Spot by Peter Holwitz
BLUE Chameleon by Emily Gravett
Big Wolf & Little Wolf: Such a Beautiful ORANGE by Nadine Brun-Cosme
The Great BLUE House by Kate Banks
Grandpa GREEN by Lane Smith
The GREEN Frogs: A Korean Folktale by Yumi Heo
The GREEN Line by Polly Farqyharson
The Hinky PINK: An Old Tale by Megan McDonald
How Martha Saved Her Parents from GREEN Beans by David LaRochelle
Lilly's PURPLE Plastic Purse by Kevin Henkes
Ninja RED Riding Hood by Corey Rosen Schwartz
ORANGE Pear Apple Bear by Emily Gravett
The Pig Who Ran a RED Light by Paul Brett Johnson
The PURPLE Balloon by Chris Raschka
RED Sings from the Treetops: A Year in Colors by Joyce Sidman
Sally and the PURPLE Socks by Lisze Bechtold
The Valiant RED Rooster: A Story from Hungary by Eric Kimmel

Saturday, December 6, 2014

Over at the Castle

This week we learned about castles during our Eyewitness program.  So I thought I would share some books that feature castles as a setting . . . 

Horton Halfpott by Tom Angleberger
Horton, an upstanding kitchen boy in a castle in nineteenth-century England, becomes embroiled in a mystery surrounding a series of thefts, which is also connected to the pursuit of a very eligible and wealthy young lady's affections.

Tuesdays at the Castle by Jessica Day George
Princess Celie must defend Castle Glower, which add rooms, stairways and secret passageways every Tuesday, when her parents are ambushed while travelling.

The Castle Behind Thorns by Merrie Haskell
When Sand, a blacksmith's apprentice, wakes up in a broken castle, he must find a way to put it back together.

Crandall's Castle by Betty Ren Wright
Charli's impulsive uncle, Will Crandall, decides to buy the town's abandoned, possibly haunted castle and fix it up as a bed-and-breakfast, but Charli and Sophia, a clairvoyant orphan who has come to stay with the Crandall family, know his plan is somehow dangerous.

Midnight Magic by Avi 
In Italy in 1491, Mangus the magician and his apprentice are summoned to the castle of Duke Claudio to determine if his daughter is indeed being haunted by a ghost.

The Castle Corona by Sharon Creech
Two orphaned peasant children discover a mysterious pouch, the contents of which lead them to the majestic Castle Corona, where their lives may be transformed forever.


More Stories Featuring Castles --
The Beasts of Clawstone Castle by Eva Ibbotson
Brand-New Page by Tony Davis
Castle of Shadows by Ellen Renner
The Children of the King by Sonya Hartnett
East of the Sun, West of the Moon by Jackie Morris
The House of Arden by E. Nesbit
The Ordinary Princess by M.M. Kaye
Pure Dead Magic by Debi Gliori
Stealaway by K.M. Peyton
A Tale of Two Castles by Gail Carson Levine

Thursday, December 4, 2014

Historical Fiction for Teens

While historical fiction is not my favorite genre of books, it is a request that I get fairly often.  So here are some historical fiction books for teens . . .

Five 4ths of July by Pat Raccio Hughes
On July 4th, 1777, fourteen-year-old Jake Mallory and his friends are celebrating their new nation's independence, but over the next four years Jake finds himself in increasingly adventurous circumstances.

Heart of a Samurai by Margi Preus
In 1841, rescued by an American whaler after a terrible shipwreck leaves him and his four companions castaways on a remote island, fourteen-year-old Manjiro, who dreams of becoming a samurai, learns new laws and customs as he becomes the first Japanese person to set foot in the United States.


Beware, Princess Elizabeth by Carolyn Meyer
After the death of her father, King Henry VIII, in 1547, thirteen-year-old Elizabeth must endure the political intrigues and dangers of the reigns of her half-brother Edward and her half-sister Mary before finally becoming Queen of England eleven years later.

Chains by Laurie Halse Anderson
After being sold to a cruel couple in New York City, a slave named Isabel spies for the rebels during the Revolutionary War.

Private Peaceful by Michael Morpurgo
When Thomas Peaceful's older brother is forced to join the British Army, Thomas decides to sign up as well, although he is only fourteen years old, to prove himself to his country, his family, his childhood love, Molly, and himself.


More Historical Fiction for Teens --
And in the Morning by John Wilson
Between Shades of Gray by Ruta Sepetys
Blue Fingers: A Ninja's Tale by Cheryl Aylward Whitesel
Boston Jane: An Adventure by Jennifer L. Holm
The Convicts by Iain Lawrence
Crossing Stones by Helen Frost
Daniel Half Human and the Good Nazi by David Chotjewitz
The Extra by Kathryn Lasky
The Kite Rider by Geraldine McCaughrean
The Mourning Wars by Karen Steinmetz
Much Ado About Grubstake by Jean Ferris
Tales of the Madman Underground by John Barnes
Three Rivers Rising: A Novel of the Johnstown Flood by Jame Richards
The Watch that Ends the Night: Voices from the Titanic by Allan Wolf
Witch Child by Celia Rees

Tuesday, December 2, 2014

2014 Missouri Building Block Picture Book Award

The Missouri Building Block Picture Book Award is a readers' choice award geared towards children birth through kindergarten.  The children are asked to listen to at least five of the books read before voting for their choice for the award.  Voting for the Building Block Award can be done at the Arnold Branch or online at http://www.kclibrary.org/kids/missouri-building-block-2014 through the end of December.





Count the Monkeys by Mac Barnett
The reader is invited to count the animals that have frightened the monkeys off the pages.

I Dare You Not to Yawn by Helene Boudreau
A boy tries to not yawn although facing baby orangutans, cuddly blankets, and sleepytime songs.

Open Very Carefully: A Book with Bite by Nicole O'Byrne
A crocodile falls into a quiet storybook and wreaks havoc on the characters.

Ribbit! by Rodrigo Folgueira
A pig visits a frog pond, sits on a rock, and says only "Ribbit!".

Little Nelly's Big Book by Pippa Goodhart
Little Nelly's book tells her she is a mouse.

This Little Piggy by Tim Harrington
The toes decide they would like to do more exciting stuff than the traditional rhyme lets them do.

Mustache Baby by Bridget Heos
Is baby Billy's mustache a Good-Guy mustache, or a Bad-Guy mustache?

Moo! by David LaRochelle
When Cow gets her hooves on the farmer's car, she takes it for a wild ride through the country.

The Watermelon Seed by Greg Pizzoli
After swallowing a watermelon seed, a crocodile imagines a scary outcome.

That Is NOT A Good Idea! by Mo Willems
A hungry fox invites a plump goose to dinner.

Saturday, November 29, 2014

Stories of Native Americans: Past and Present

Ghost Hawk by Susan Cooper
At the end of a winter-long journey into manhood, Little Hawk returns to find his village decimated by a white man's plague and soon, despite a fresh start, Little Hawk dies violently but his spirit remains trapped, seeing how his world changes.

Code Talker by Joseph Bruchac
After being taught in a boarding school run by whites that Navajo is a useless language, Ned Begay and other Navajo men are recruited by the Marines to become Code Talkers, sending messages during World War II in their native tongue.

Woods Runner by Gary Paulsen
From his 1776 Pennsylvania homestead, thirteen-year-old Samuel, who is a highly-skilled woodsman, sets out toward New York City to rescue his parents from the band of British soldiers and Native Americans who kidnapped them after slaughtering most of their community. Includes historical notes.

Bearstone by Will Hobbs
A troubled Indian boy goes to live with an elderly rancher whose caring ways help the boy become a man.

Cherokee Sister by Debbie Dadey
Because she is mistaken for an Indian, twelve-year-old Allie, a white girl, is forced to travel the Trail of Tears along with her best friend, a young Cherokee.

More Stories About Native Americans:
Adaline Falling Star by Mary Pope Osborne
Bear Dancer: The Story of a Ute Girl by Thelma Hatch Wyss
Bearwalker by Joseph Bruchac
The Birchbark House by Louise Erdrich
Blood on the River, James Town 1607 by Elisa Carbone
Crooked River by Shelley Pearsall
The Sign of the Beaver by Elizabeth George Speare
Sweetgrass Basket by Marlene Carvell
Trouble's Daughter: The Story of Susanne Hutchinson, Indian Captive by Katherine Kirkpatrick
The Winter People by Joseph Bruchac

Tuesday, November 25, 2014

A Time to be Thankful

With Thanksgiving only two days away, the most popular request I am getting is for Thanksgiving books.  Unfortunately, the Thanksgiving books have been checked out for weeks.  With that in mind, here are some books that encapsulate the idea of Thanksgiving and giving thanks . . .

Giving Thanks by Jonathan London
A boy's father celebrates the interconnectedness of the natural world through his daily words of thanks and assures his son, who finds it a little embarrassing to thank trees and such, that it becomes a habit and makes one feel good.

The Thankful Book by Todd Parr
Easy-to-read text encourages the reader to find something every day for which to be thankful, from underwear that is just the right size to birthday cakes and the wishes they bring.

Bear Says Thanks by Karma Wilson
Bear thanks his friends for bringing food dishes to his dinner party and finds a way of sharing something of his own.

Give Thanks Each Day by Steve Metzger
Animals give thanks for the things that they enjoy, such as flowers, new crayons, and a hug.

Saturday, November 22, 2014

National Adoption Day - Saturday, November 22

There are more than 100,000 kids in the United States waiting to find a home and family.  Every year on the Saturday before Thanksgiving, we focus on these children and their plight.  So today, I am sharing some children's books on kids in the foster care system . . .

Kinda Like Brothers by Booth Coe
When his mother takes in a twelve-year-old foster boy, Jarrett is forced to share his room and his friends with the new boy.

Where I Belong by Mary Downing Hahn
Brendan doesn't get along with his foster mother, he's failing fifth grade, and he's bullied mercilessly by a band of boys in his class. Then Brendan meets two potential friends--an eccentric old man and a girl from summer school--and he sees that there may be hope for him after all.

One for the Murphys by Lynda Mullaly Hunt
After heartbreaking betrayal, Carley is sent to live with a foster family and struggles with opening herself up to their love.

Runaway Twin by Peg Kehret
Thirteen-year-old Sunny, accompanied by a stray dog, takes advantage of a monetary windfall to travel from her Nebraska foster home to Enumclaw, Washington in order to find the twin sister from whom she was separated at age three.

Locomotion by Jacqueline Woodson
Inspired by his teacher, eleven-year-old Lonnie begins to write about his life in a series of poems in which he discusses his feelings about his friends, his foster mom, his little sister Lili, and the death of his parents.


Thursday, November 20, 2014

K-I-S-S-I-N-G! Tales of Love

I love a good romance story.  Whether the traditional boy meets girl and falls in love to those tales of star-crossed lovers, I can always read a good romance.  Here are some great teen romances . . .

Son of the Mob by Gordon Korman
Seventeen-year-old Vince's life is constantly complicated by the fact that he is the son of a powerful Mafia boss, a relationship that threatens to destroy his romance with the daughter of an FBI agent.

Keturah and Lord Death by Martine Leavitt
When Lord Death comes to claim sixteen-year-old Keturah while she is lost in the King's Forest, she charms him with her story and is granted a twenty-four hour reprieve in which to seek her one true love.

Wait for Me by An Na
As her senior year in high school approaches, Mina yearns to find her own path in life but working at the family business, taking care of her little sister, and dealing with her mother's impossible expectations are as stifling as the southern California heat, until she falls in love with a man who offers a way out.

Lips Touch, Three Times by Laini Taylor
Contains three short stores of supernatural love, each focusing on a kiss that has consequences for the kissers' souls.

There Is No Dog by Meg Rosoff
When the beautiful Lucy prays to fall in love, God, an irresponsible youth named Bob, chooses to answer her prayer personally, to the dismay of this assistant, Mr. B who must try to clean up the resulting catastrophes.

Accidental Love by Gary Soto
After unexpectedly falling in love with a "nerdy" boy, fourteen-year-old Marisa works to change her life by transferring to another school, altering some of her behavior, and losing weight.


More Romances for Teens --
A Winter Night's Dream by Andrew Matthews
Time Between  Us by Tamara Ireland Stone
This Is What Happy Looks Like by Jennifer E. Smith
Things I Know About Love by Kate Le Vann
Taken by Storm by Angela Morrison
Street Love by Walter Dean Myers
Something Like Normal by Trish Doller
Of Poseidon by Anna Banks
Muchacho: A Novel by Louanne Johnson
Love and Other Perishable Items by Laura Buzo
Heartsinger by Karlijn Stoffels
Gone, Gone, Gone by Hannah Moskowitz
Flavor of the Week by Tucker Shaw
Fancy White Trash by Marjetta Geerling
Drink, Slay, Love by Sarah Beth Durst

Tuesday, November 18, 2014

Are You Hungry for a Good Book?

With Thanksgiving and the holidays fast approaching, our thoughts often turn to all the great food that we'll be eating.  That brings to mind some of my favorite books about food and eating for young children . . . .

Badger's Fancy Meal by Keiko Kasza
Badger is bored with the same old meals, but his search for more exciting food only leads to trouble.

Cupcake! by Charise Mericle Harper
Cupcake, feeling drab because he is only vanilla, and his friend, Candle, come up with a plan to make themselves stand out in the crowd.

Gator Gumbo by Candace Fleming
A hungry alligator, slow with age, hopes to catch some good meat to add to his spicy gumbo.

Little Pea by Amy Krouse Rosenthal
Little Pea hates eating candy for dinner, but his parents will not let him have his spinach dessert until he cleans his plate.

Whopper Cake by Karma Wilson
Grandad bakes Grandma a whopper of a birthday cake. Includes recipe and directions for chocolate cake.


More Books About Food --
Armadillo's Orange by Jim Arnosky
Chicken Soup with Rice by Maurice Sendak
Duck Soup by  Jackie Urbanovic
Grandpa's Garden Lunch by  Judith Caseley
I Will Never NOT Ever Eat a Tomato by Lauren Child
June 29, 1999 by David Wiesner
The Little Red Hen (Makes a Pizza) by Philemon Sturges
Old MacDonald in the City by Suzanne Williams
The Pigeon Finds a Hot Dog by Mo Willems
The Runaway Dinner by Allan Ahlberg
Take Me to Your BBQ by Kathy Duval
Who Ate All the Cookie Dough? by Karen Beaumont

Saturday, November 15, 2014

Mythic Books

Did you love the Percy Jackson series?  Are you looking for a new book to read that you've finished the final Heroes of Olympus book?  Here are some great books with mythological elements . . . .

Zeus and the Thunderbolt of Doom by Joan Holub
When ten-year-old Zeus is kidnapped, he discovers he can defend himself with a magical thunderbolt.

The Game by Diana Wynne Jones
Orphan Hayley feels out of place in her family until her cousins include her in a game involving travel through the mythosphere, the place where all the world's stories can be found, and where some secrets of her past are revealed.

Odd and the Frost Giants by Neil Gaiman
An unlucky Norwegian boy named Odd leads the Norse gods Loki, Thor, and Odin in an attempt to outwit evil Frost Giants who have taken over Asgard.

The Red Pyramid by Rick Riordan
Brilliant Egyptologist Dr. Julius Kane accidentally unleashes the Egyptian god Set, who banishes the doctor to oblivion and forces his two children to embark on a dangerous journey, bringing them closer to the truth about their family and its links to a secret order that has existed since the time of the pharaohs.

Anatopsis by Chris Abouzeid
In the realm from which the Greek gods ruled the universe thousands of years ago, the immortal witch Anatopsis uncovers the true objectives of her demi-god tutor Mr. Pound and attempts to prevent him from carrying out his evil plans.

More Mythic Books --
Atalanta and the Arcadian Beast by Jane Yolen
The Battle Begins by Tony Abbott
Have a Hot Time, Hades by Kate McMullan
Hippolyta and the Curse of the Amazons by Jane Yolen
Juliet Dove, Queen of Love by Bruce Coville
Medusa Jones by Ross Collins
Perseus by Geraldine McCaughrean
The Tail of Emily Windsnap by Liz Kessler
Walking with the Dead by L.M. Falcone

Thursday, November 13, 2014

It's the End of the World . . . .

A popular theme in teen books is the world ending.  Whether this is a natural disaster that causes the world go back to the Stone Age or a plague that wipes out all the adults on earth, it's a great story.  Here are some books featuring teens facing the end of the world . . . .

Life As We Knew It by Susan Beth Pfeffer
Through journal entries sixteen-year-old Miranda describes her family's struggle to survive after a meteor hits the moon, causing worldwide tsunamis, earthquakes, and volcanic eruptions.

The Compound by S.A. Bodeen
After his parents, two sisters, and he have spent six years in a vast underground compound built by his wealthy father to protect them from a nuclear holocaust, fifteen-year-old Eli, whose twin brother and grandmother were left behind, discovers that hisfather has perpetrated a monstrous hoax on them all.

Icons by Margaret Stohl
After an alien force known as the Icon colonizes Earth, decimating humanity, four surviving teenagers must piece together the mysteries of their pasts--in order to save the future.

Gone by Michael Grant
In a small town on the coast of California, everyone over the age of fourteen suddenly disappears, setting up a battle between the remaining town residents and the students from a local private school, as well as those who have "The Power" and are able to perform supernatural feats and those who do not.

Storm by Donna Jo Napoli
Having lost her family in a massive flood, sixteen-year-old Sebah finds her way onto a gigantic ark, where she must conceal herself from Noah and his family until it is safe for her and another stowaway to slip away.

How I Live Now by Meg Rosoff
To get away from her pregnant stepmother in New York City, fifteen-year-old Daisy goes to England to stay with her aunt and cousins, with whom she instantly bonds, but soon war breaks out and rips apart the family while devastating the land.

More Books --
After the End by Amy Plum
After the Snow by S.D. Crockett
Alien Invasions & Other Inconveniences by Brian Yansky
The Eleventh Plague by Jeff Hirsch
Exodus by Julie Bertagna
The Fury by Alexander Gordon Smith
Hole in the Sky by Pete Hautman
Love in the Time of Global Warming by Francesca Lia Block
Quarantine: The Loners by Lex Thomas
Restoring Harmony by Joelle Anthony
The Rule of Three by Eric Walters
Shipbreaker: A Novel by Paolo Bacigalupi
A Small Free Kiss in the Dark by Glenda Millard

Tuesday, November 11, 2014

Happy Veterans Day!

Tomorrow is Veterans Day - a time to honor and remember those who fought for our country and freedom.  Here are some picture books to share with your children on Veterans Day . . . .

The Wall by Eve Bunting
A boy and his father come from far away to visit the Vietnam War Memorial in Washington and find the name of the boy's grandfather, who was killed in the conflict.

Stars Above Us by Geoffrey Norman
Amanda's father is a soldier, but before he leaves for war, he teaches her not to be afraid of the things that live in the dark--which includes fireflies and crickets--and about the stars.

Drummer Boy: Marching to the Civil War by Ann Turner
A thirteen-year-old soldier, coming of age during the American Civil War, beats his drum to raise tunes and spirits and muffle the sounds of the dying.

My Big Brother by Miriam Cohen
When his big brother leaves to become a soldier, a boy does what he can to take his place in the family.

Shooting at the Stars: The Christmas Truce of 1914 by John Hendrix
In 1914 France, a British soldier writes to his mother about the strange events of Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, when German and Allied soldiers met on neutral ground to share songs, food, and fun.


Saturday, November 8, 2014

Classics for Children

This month, I have set myself the goal of reading classic children's books.  Here are some of the ones I hope to read this month . . .

Alice's Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll
The adventures of Alice, a young girl who falls down a rabbit hole and enters a nonsensical world filled with amusing one-of-a-kind characters, like talking rabbits and playing cards, and must struggle with riddles, games and challenges in order to find her way home.

A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L'Engle
Meg Murry and her friends become involved with unearthly strangers and a search for Meg's father, who has disappeared while engaged in secret work for the government.

The Giver by Lois Lowry
Given his lifetime assignment at the Ceremony of Twelve, Jonas becomes the receiver of memories shared by only one other in his community and discovers the terrible truth about the society in which he lives.

The Children of Green Knowe by L.M. Boston
Tolly comes to live with his great-grandmother at the ancient house of Green Knowe and becomes friends with three children who lived there in the seventeenth century.

Hans Brinker, or, The Silver Skates by Mary Mapes Dodge
A Dutch boy and girl work toward two goals--finding the doctor who can restore their father's memory and winning the competition for the silver skates.


Come and talk with me after you read the books and we can compare to see if we both liked the books.

Thursday, November 6, 2014

Wanna Hear a Secret . . .

Secrets -- we love them!  Sometimes they are our own secrets that we keep close to heart.  Sometimes we find out something secret about someone else.  Here are some great teen books featuring secrets . . .

The Truth-Teller's Tale by Sharon Shinn
Twins Eleda, who can tell only the truth, and Adele, who cannot reveal others' secrets, are sorely tested by a newly arrived pair of handsome dance instructors who seem to harbor a secret.

By These Ten Bones by Clare B. Dunkle
After a mysterious young wood carver with a horrifying secret arrives in her small Scottish town, Maddie gains his trust--and his heart--and seeks a way to save both him and her townspeople from an ancient evil.

The Girl with the Mermaid Hair by Delia Ephron
A vain teenaged girl is obsessed with beauty and perfection until she uncovers a devastating family secret.

Torn to Pieces by Margot McDonnell
When her mother disappears during a business trip, seventeen-year-old Anne discovers that her family harbors many dark secrets.

Please Ignore Vera Dietz by A.S. King
When her best friend, whom she secretly loves, betrays her and then dies under mysterious circumstances, high school senior Vera Dietz struggles with secrets that could help clear his name.

Tuesday, November 4, 2014

My Wonderful Body

This month in story time we are focusing on our bodies.  Each week we will read about different body parts.  With this in mind, I'm going to share some of my favorite books focusing on our bodies and their parts . . .

Parts by Tedd Arnold
A five-year-old boy thinks his body is falling apart untill he learns new teeth grow and hair and skin replace themselves.

Ten Tiny Toes by Caroline Church
Combines art with rhymes in an adaptation of the classic song, "Head, Shoulders, Knees, and Toes," that reveals how ears wiggle and bellies giggle.

We've All Got Bellybuttons! by David Martin
Various animals invite the reader to experience what their different body parts can do, including their tickly belly buttons.

Hop, Hop, Jump! by Lauren Thompson
Rhyming text, accompanied by labeled illustrations that identify parts of the body, encourages readers to wiggle and twist, stomp and zig-zag, and hug and shrug.

Horns to Toes and In Between by Sandra Boynton
Three creatures point out their body parts.


More Body Books --
Alphabet Fun: Making Letters with Your Body by Jill Starishevsky
Eyes, Nose, Fingers and Toes: A First Book All About You by Judy Hindley
Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes by Jeannie Winston
Here Are My Hands by Bill Martin
I Ain't Gonna Paint No More! by Karen Beaumont
Look at You: A Baby Body Book by Kathy Henderson
More Parts by Tedd Arnold

Saturday, November 1, 2014

Stories of Fantastic Worlds & Journeys

The Wizard of Oz is one of my favorite movies of all time.  The idea of traveling to such a fantastic world has always captured my imagination.  Here are some great books for children that feature fantastic worlds  . . . .

The Emerald Atlas by John Stephens
Kate, Michael, and Emma have passed from one orphanage to another in the ten years since their parents disappeared to protect them, but now they learn that they have special powers, a prophesied quest to find a magical book, and a fearsome enemy.

The Book of Three by Lloyd Alexander
In the first book of the chronicles of Prydain, Taran, Assistant Pig-Keeper at Caer Dallben, searches for the oracular pig Hen Wen while the forces of evil gather.

Sylvie and the Songman by Tim Binding
Determined to find her father, Sylvie and her best friend, kite-flying, tone deaf George, are drawn into the nightmare world of the Songman, a world haunted by the terrifying Woodpecker Man in his swan-powered balloon, a world where nothing can sing and no one can speak.

Falling In by Frances O'Roark Dowell
Middle-schooler Isabelle Bean follows a mouse's squeak into a closet and falls into a parallel universe where the children believe she is the witch they have feared for years, finally come to devour them.

Alcatraz and the Evil Librarians by Brandon Sanderson
On his thirteenth birthday, foster child Alcatraz Smedry receives a bag of sand which is immediately stolen by the evil Librarians who are trying to take over the world, and Alcatraz is introduced to his grandfather and his own special talent, and told that he must use it to save civilization.


More Books Featuring Fantastic Worlds --
Fairy Dust and the Quest for the Egg by Gail Carson Levine
A Finder's Magic by Philippa Pearce
The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe by C.S. Lewis
One Square Inch by Claudia Mills
The Phantom Tollbooth by Norton Juster
The Wonderful Wizard of Oz by L. Frank Baum

Thursday, October 30, 2014

Dare to Be Scared (Part 5)

On the night before Halloween, I'm going to share my all-time favorite horror books for teens . . .

Anna Dressed in Blood by Kendare Blake
For three years, seventeen-year-old Cas Lowood has carried on his father's work of dispatching the murderous dead, traveling with his kitchen-witch mother and their spirit-sniffing cat, but everything changes when he meets Anna, a girl unlike any ghost he has faced before.

Hold Me Closer, Necromancer by Lish McBride
Sam LaCroix, a Seattle fast-food worker and college dropout, discovers that he is a necromancer, part of a world of harbingers, werewolves, satyrs, and one particular necromancer who sees Sam as a threat to his lucrative business of raising the dead.

Lord Loss by Darren Shan
Presumably the only witness to the horrific and bloody murder of his entire family, a teenage boy must outwit not only the mental health professionals determined to cure his delusion, but also the demonic forces only he can see.

Unspoken by Sarah Brennan
Loving a boy she has never met but with whom she has communicated telepathically all of her life, Kami Glass investigates screams heard in the nearby woods and sees lights in a long-empty manor house only to discover that her hometown has been hiding a murderer.

The House of Dead Maids by Clare B. Dunkle
Eleven-year-old Tabby Aykroyd, who would later serve as housekeeper for thirty years to the Brönte sisters, is taken from an orphanage to a ghost-filled house, where she and a wild young boy are needed for a pagan ritual.

Tuesday, October 28, 2014

Happy Halloween!

With Halloween coming up at the end of the week, I thought I would share my favorite Halloween picture books . . . .

The Hallo-Wiener by Dav Pilkey
All the other dogs make fun of Oscar the dachshund until one Halloween when, dressed as a hot dog, Oscar bravely rescues the others.

Jungle Halloween by Maryann Cocca-Leffler
Rhyming verses tell the story of jungle animals which decorate for Halloween, dress up for the occasion, and participate in the night's festivities.

Six Creepy Sheep by Judith Ross Enderle
Out trick-or-treating on Halloween, the six sheep meet a passel of pirates, a gaggle of goblins, and other trick-or-treaters who scare the wool off them.

We're Off to Find the Witch's House by Richard Krieb
Simple, rhyming text follows a group of children as they creep down the street, passing ever more frightening creatures, on their way to pay a holiday call on a witch.

Ten Orange Pumpkins by Stephen Savage
In this Halloween countdown book, ten orange pumpkins are each carried off by a witch, a ghost, a spider, and other Halloween creatures until there's just one.

Saturday, October 25, 2014

Happy Hauntings!

With Halloween less than a week away -- here are my favorite horror books for kids . . .

Seer of Shadows by Avi
In New York City in 1872, fourteen-year-old Horace, a photographer's apprentice, becomes entangled in a plot to create fraudulent spirit photographs, but when Horace accidentally frees the real ghost of a dead girl bent on revenge, his life takes a frightening turn.

Zombie Chasers by John Kloepfer
When zombies take over Phoenix, Arizona, Zack Clarke, his best friend Rice, and his older sister's mean friend Madison Miller team up to try to defeat the undead, or at least survive one another.

Curse of the Winter Moon by Mary Casanova
In sixteenth-century France, ruled by a Church that overtaxes peasants and burns heretics, Marius must postpone his apprenticeship to care for his six-year-old brother, whose birth took their mother's life, and who the villagers, backed by the Church, believe will become a "loup garou" -- a werewolf.

A Taste for Red by Lewis Harris
When some of her classmates disappear, sixth-grader Svetlana, along with her new friends go in search of the missing students using her newfound ability as an Olfactive, one who has heightened smell, hearing, and the ability to detect vampires.

Scare Scape by Sam Fisher
Morton, James, Melissa, and their father have just moved into an old house in a new town, and when Morton finds a creepy gargoyle buried in the yard, he and his siblings each make a wish--and find out that they have unleashed chaos.

More Horror Chapter Books --
Curse of the Night Wolf by Paul Stewart
A Field Guide to Monsters by Johan Olander
Half-Minute Horrors by Susan Rich
The Improbable Cat by Allan Ahlberg
The Monstrous Memoirs of Mighty McFearless by Ahmet Zappa
The Paradise Trap by Catherine Jinks
The Screaming Staircase by Jonathan Stroud
The Stone Child by Dan Poblocki
Wait Till Helen Comes by Mary Downing Hahn

Thursday, October 23, 2014

Dare to Be Scared (Part 4)

This week, I am focusing on horror books for teens that feature witches . . .

Stolen by Vivian Vande Velde
A girl finds herself running through the forest at the edge of a village with no memory of anything, even her own name, and later learns that she might be twelve-year-old Isabelle, believed to be stolen by a witch six years before.

Half Bad by Sally Green
In modern-day England, where witches live alongside humans, Nathan, son of a White witch and the most powerful Black witch, must escape captivity before his seventeenth birthday and receive the gifts that will determine his future.

Jinx by Meg Cabot
Sixteen-year-old Jean "Jinx" Honeychurch, the descendant of a witch, must leave Iowa to live with relatives in Manhattan after the first spell she casts goes awry, but she will have to improve her skills to stop her cousin from practicing black magic that endangers them and the boy they both like.

Witch Child by Celia Rees
In 1659, fourteen-year-old Mary Newbury keeps a journal of her voyage from England to the New World and her experiences living as a witch in a community of Puritans near Salem, Massachusetts.


Tuesday, October 21, 2014

Monster-rific Books

Halloween is fast approaching which means that I am bombarded with requests for books for the holiday.  Here are my favorite monster picture books for young children . . . .

Skeleton Hiccups by Margery Cuyler
Ghost tries to help Skeleton get rid of the hiccups.

Bedtime for Monsters by Ed Vere
A hungry monster seeks a different type of bedtime snack.

The Skeleton in the Closet by Alice Schertle
A scary skeleton terrorizes a boy in his bedroom while it searches his closet for clothes to wear.

Zombie in Love by Kelly DiPucchio
Mortimer, a zombie, is looking for love, but when all of his attempts to locate a sweetheart fail, Mortimer decides to place an ad in the newspaper.

The Monsters' Monster by Patrick McDonnell
Grouch, Grump, and little Gloom 'n' Doom spend much of their time arguing over who is the "biggest and baddest" until they build a monster together that turns out to be very different that what they expect.

More Monster Books --
Big Bad Bubble by Adam Rubin
Boogie Knights by Lisa Wheeler
Dick and Jane and the Vampire by Laura Marchesani
Frankenstein: A Monstrous Parody by Rick Walton
Hush Little Monster by Denis Markell
Jumpy Jack and Googily by Meg Rosoff
The Monster at the End of This Book by Jon Stone
Monster Mama by Liz Rosenberg
Sally and the Some-Thing by George O'Connor
Where's My Mummy? by Carolyn Crimi

Saturday, October 18, 2014

A Trip Around the World

I have found myself this past week really dreaming about going on a trip . . . somewhere . . . anywhere.  So I decided to share some great books that will take us around the world.

Caddy's World by Hilary McKay (England)
Twelve-year-old Caddy's world turns upside down when her father, Bill, temporarily becomes a stay at home "mom" and her best friends since kindergarten, Ali, Beth, and Ruby, begin to move in different directions.

Breaking Stalin's Nose by Eugene Yelchin (Soviet Union)
In the Stalinist era of the Soviet Union, ten-year-old Sasha idolizes his father, a devoted Communist, but when police take his father away and leave Sasha homeless, he is forced to examine his own perceptions, values, and beliefs.

When My Name Was Keoko by Linda Sue Park (Korea)
With national pride and occasional fear, a brother and sister face the increasingly oppressive occupation of Korea by Japan during World War II, which threatens to suppress Korean culture entirely.

Truth and Salsa by Linda Lowery (Mexico)
Having moved temporarily from Michigan to live with her grandmother in Mexico, twelve-year-old Hayley tries to sort out her feelings about her parents' separation while also helping some townsmen who have run into trouble while working in the United States.

Nicholas by Goscinny (France)
Presents a collection of nineteen short stories about the adventures of a young school boy, Nicholas, and his friends who always seem to end up in trouble.

Thursday, October 16, 2014

Dare to be Scared (Part 3)

There is just something about vampires that intrigues us . . . the eternal youth, the hypnotic powers, and the evil that lurks below the beautiful exterior.  Here are some of my favorite vampire books for teens . . .

The Darkangel by Meredith Ann Pierce
The servant girl Aeriel must choose between destroying her vampire master for his evil deeds or saving him for the sake of his beauty and the spark of goodness she has seen in him.

Jessica's Guide to Dating on the Dark Side by Beth Fantaskey
Seventeen-year-old Jessica, adopted and raised in Pennsylvania, learns that she is descended from a royal line of Romanian vampires and that she is betrothed to a vampire prince, who poses as a foreign exchange student while courting her.

Vampire High by Douglas Rees
When his family moves from California to New Sodom, Massachusetts and Cody enters Vlad Dracul Magnet School, many things seem strange, from the dark-haired, pale-skinned, supernaturally strong students to Charon, the wolf who guides him around campus on the first day.

Companions of the Night by Vivian Vande Velde
When sixteen-year-old Kerry Nowicki helps a young man escape from a group of men who claim he is a vampire, she finds herself faced with some bizarre and dangerous choices.

Bloodline: A Novel by Kate Cary
Nineteen-year-old John Shaw returns from World War One and is haunted by nightmares of not only the battles but the horrifying discovery that his regimental commander is descended from Count Dracula.


More Vampire Books --
Blue Bloods by  Melissa de la Cruz
Eighth Grade Bites by Heather Brewer
Evernight by Claudia Gray
Gemini Bites by Patrick Ryan
Hearts at Stake by Alyxandra Harvey
In the Forests of Night by Amelia Atwater-Rhodes
My Swordhand Is Singing by Marcus Sedgwick
Suck It Up by Brian Meehl
Sunshine by Robin McKinley
Sweet-Blood by Pete Hautman
Tantalize by Cynthia Leitich Smith
Thicker Than Water: A Novel by Carla Jablonski
Vampire Kisses by Ellen Schreiber

Tuesday, October 14, 2014

Boys Will Be Boys

This week, I'm sharing some great picture books featuring boys . . .

Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day by  Judith Viorst
On a day when everything goes wrong for him, Alexander is consoled by the thought that other people have bad days too.

Hiccup, The Seasick Viking by Cressida Cowell
Unlike his large and brave fellow Vikings, Hiccup is small and afraid of everything until he helps steer his ship to safety during a storm.

David Gets in Trouble by David Shannon
When David gets in trouble, he has excuses right up until bedtime, when he realizes he really is sorry.

I Am SO Handsome by Mario Ramos
A vain wolf takes a stroll through the woods and intimidates everyone he meets into admitting he is the handsomest of all, but the wolf encounters a dragon who has a surprise in store for him.

Pete's a Pizza by William Steig
When Pete is in a bad mood, his father turns him into a pizza by first rolling him like dough and then pretending to top him with ingredients until the final personal touch.


More Books About Boys --
Another Brother by Matthew Cordell
Battle Bunny by Jon Scieszka
Hugless Douglas by David Melling
Let's Do Nothing! by Tony Fucile
The Little Scarecrow Boy by Margaret Wise Brown
Me Want Pet! by Tammi Sauer
Mitchell's License by Hallie Durand
Parts by Tedd Arnold
The Retired Kid by Jon Agee
Straight to the Pole by Kevin O'Malley

Saturday, October 11, 2014

The Witch's Boy by Kelly Barnhill

The Witch's Boy by Kelly Barnhill

Two brothers fell into the river.  The wrong one survived.

When Ned and his twin tumble from their raft into a raging river, only Ned survives.  The villagers are convinced that the wrong boy lived and spend their time either mocking or ignoring him.  Ned spends his time alone and not speaking.  But when the Bandit King comes to steal the magic that Ned's mother, Sister Witch, protects, it is Ned that finds a way to keep the magic safe.

The wrong boy will save your life, and you will save his.

Meanwhile, in the enchanted forest that borders Ned's village lives Aine, the practical and resourceful daughter of the Bandit King.  She is haunted by her mother's last words to her about "the wrong boy".

When Ned and Aine's paths cross, can they trust each other long enough to stop the war that's beginning between their two kingdoms?

This was a great fantasy story for kids.  The elements of magic, adventure, family drama, grief, and friendship are weaved together seamlessly for a story that you can't put down.

Thursday, October 9, 2014

Dare to Be Scared (Part 2)

While horror books of all kinds are extremely popular at this time of year, zombies are the creatures that seem to be the most fascinating.  Here are some great zombie books for teens . . .

Rot & Ruin by Jonathan Maberry
In a post-apocalyptic world where fences and border patrols guard the few people left from the zombies that have overtaken civilization, fifteen-year-old Benny Imura is finally convinced that he must follow in his older brother's footsteps and become a bounty hunter.

The Forest of Hands and Teeth by Carrie Ryan
Through twists and turns of fate, orphaned Mary seeks knowledge of life, love, and especially what lies beyond her walled village and the surrounding forest, where dwell the unconsecrated, aggressive flesh-eating people who were once dead.

The End Games by T. Michael Martin
In the rural mountains of West Virginia, seventeen-year-old Michael Faris tries to protect his fragile younger brother from the horrors of the zombie apocalypse.

The Infects by Sean Beaudoin
Nero is stranded in the wilderness with fellow juvenile delinquents when their counselors transform into flesh-eating maniacs.

Eat, Brains, Love by Jeff Hart
New Jersey teens Jake Stephenson and Amanda Blake are turning into zombies and, having devoured half of their senior class, they are on the run, pursued by teen psychic Cass, a member of a government unit charged with killing zombies and keeping their existence secret.


Tuesday, October 7, 2014

1, 2, 3, Count With Me

One skill that preschoolers take a lot of pride in is being able to count.  They love to tell others how high they count -- ten, twenty, fifty, hundred, etc.  This week, I'm going to share some counting books . . .

1 2 3 by Simon Basher
Presents the numbers one through twenty alongside colorful images of animals corresponding to each number.

I Spy Under the Sea by Edward Gibbs
Prompts children to look through spy holes and use clues to guess the underwater creatures, and encourages readers to count the animals.

Mother Goose on the Loose by Leo Dillon
Presents an illustrated collection of twenty-four counting rhymes, from "Baa, baa black sheep" to "Wash the dishes, wipe the dishes."

One Rainy Day by Valeri Gorbachev
A pig and various other animals crowd under a tree to escape the rain.

Turtle Splash! Countdown at the Pond by Cathryn Falwell
As they are startled by the activities of other nearby creatures, the number of turtles on a log in a pond decreases from ten to one.

More Counting Books --
Arctic Fives Arrive by Elinor Pinczes
Cha Cha Chimps by Julia Durango
Double the Ducks by Stuart Murphy
Five Little Monkeys Sitting in a Tree by Eileen Christelow
The House in the Meadow by Shutta Crum
One Little Chicken: A Counting Book by David Elliott
The Rabbit Problem by Emily Gravett
Ten Go Tango by Arthur Dorros
Ten Little Hot Dogs by John Himmelman
Wombat Walkabout by Carol Diggory Shields

Saturday, October 4, 2014

Solve the Mystery!

See if you can crack the mystery before the detectives in these books for kids . . .

Mr. and Mrs. Bunny -- Detectives Extraordinaire! by Polly Horvath
Middle-schooler Madeline's hippie parents have been kidnapped from Hornby Island, Canada, by foxes, and Madeline, upon discovering that she can understand animal languages, hires two rabbit detectives to find them.

Missing on Superstition Mountain by Elise Broach
Simon, Henry, and Jack Barker decide to ignore their parents' warning to stay away from Superstition Mountain in order to search for their missing cat Josie, but they begin to see the wisdom of their mom and dad's advice when they find three human skulls.

Smells Like Dog by Suzanne Selfors
When farm boy Homer Pudding's explorer-uncle dies and leaves him a droopy dog with a mysterious coin hidden on its collar, it leads him to The City, where they meet Madame la Directeur, the conniving head of the Museum of Natural History, who is trying to steal the coin and take Homer's place in a secret society of adventurers.

Walls Within Walls by Maureen Sherry
When the Smithfork family moves into a lavish Manhattan apartment building, they discover clues to a decades-old mystery hidden behind the walls of their new home.

The Pickle King by Rebecca Promitzer
During an endlessly rainy summer in the town of Elbow, twelve-year-old Bea and her misfit friends solve an unlikely mystery involving an unidentified dead man who is missing an eye, an evil surgeon, a ring shaped like an old castle, a bag of smelly intestines, and a helpful ghost.

Thursday, October 2, 2014

Dare to Be Scared! (Part 1)

In celebration of Halloween coming, I thought I would focus on horror books this month for teens.  This week, I'll be sharing collections of horror short stories . . .


On the Day I Died: Stories from the Grave by Candace Fleming
In a lonely Illinois cemetery one cold October night, teen ghosts recount the stories of their deaths in different time periods, from 1870 to the present, to sixteen-year-old Mike, who unknowingly picked up a phantom hitchhiker.

Fear: 13 Stories of Suspense and Horror edited by R.L. Stine
A collection of original horror stories from authors including R.L. Stine, Meg Cabot, and Jennifer Allison.

Pretty Monsters: Stories by Kelly Link
A collection of short stories includes "The Wrong Grave," in which a boy digs up his girlfriend's corpse in order to retrieve the poems that he buried with her, and "Monster," in which a monster uses a cell phone to lure its prey.

Dracula's Guest: A Connoisseur's Collection of Victorian Vampire Stories edited by Michael Sims
A treasury of Victorian-era vampire stories includes Edgar Allan Poe's "The Oval Portrait" and Guy de Maupassant's "The Horla," in an anthology complemented by Transylvanian superstitions.

Gothic! Ten Original Dark Tales edited by Deborah Noyes
Drawing on dark fantasy and the fairy tale as well as horror and wild humor, ten acclaimed authors pay homage to the gothic tale in wide-ranging stories of the supernatural and surreal.

Tuesday, September 30, 2014

Happy Birthday David!

One of my favorite picture book authors is David Shannon.  His books are fun, colorful, and child friendly.  In celebration of David Shannon's birthday on October 5th, here are my favorite David Shannon books . . . .

No, David! by David Shannon
A young boy is depicted doing a variety of naughty things for which he is repeatedly admonished, but finally he gets a hug.

Duck on a Bike by David Shannon
A duck decides to ride a bike and soon influences all the other animals on the farm to ride bikes too.

Alice the Fairy by David Shannon
Alice, who claims to be a Temporary Fairy, still has a lot to learn, such as how to make her clothes put themselves away in the closet.

Good Boy, Fergus! by David Shannon
Except for his bath, Fergus experiences the perfect doggy day, from chasing cats and motorcycles to being scratched on his favorite tickle spot.


Saturday, September 27, 2014

Fairy Tales Retold

"Once upon a time . . . "
These is one of my favorite ways for a book to start.  I love fairy tales -- whether the original Brothers Grimm or Hans Christian Andersen or new tales.  Today I thought I would share some great retellings of fairy tales for kids . . .

The Thirteenth Princess by Diane Zahler
Zita, cast aside by her father and raised as a kitchen maid, learns when she is nearly twelve that she is a princess and that her twelve sisters love her, and so when she discovers they are victims of an evil enchantment, she desperately tries to save them. A retelling of "The Twelve Dancing Princesses".

I Was a Rat! by Philip Pullman
A little boy turns life in London upside down when he appears at the house of a lonely old couple and insists he was a rat.  A retelling of "Cinderella".

The Brixen Witch by Stacy DeKeyser
Twelve-year-old Rudi stumbles upon a witch's lair while out hunting, takes a gold coin he finds there but loses it again, then must deal with the witch's servant who promises to end the town's rat infestation only if he receives that gold coin.  A retelling of "The Pied Piper".

Ugly by Donna Jo Napoli
When the rest of the ducks turn on her little duckling, Ugly, because he isn't like them, Mother Duck sadly leaves him behind in order to protect her other children. With the help of some new friends, Ugly makes his way alone, but he doesn't know where he's going or what he's looking for.  A retelling of "The Ugly Duckling".

More Fairy Tale Retellings --
Beauty and the Beast: The One Who Didn't Run Away by Wendy Mass
Fairest by Gail Carson Levin (Snow White)
The Frog Princess by E.D. Baker (The Frog Prince)
Spinners by Donna Jo Napoli (Rumpelstiltskin)
Straw Into Gold by Gary D. Schmidt (Rumpelstiltskin)
A True Princess by Diane Zahler (The Princess and the Pea)

Thursday, September 25, 2014

It's a Mystery!

Mystery books are one of the most common genre of books written.  Here are some great mysteries for teens . . . .

The Dead and Buried by Kim Harrington
New student Jade uncovers a murder mystery when she moves into a house haunted by the ghost of a beautiful, mean girl who ruled Jade's high school.

From Charlie's Point of View by Richard Scrimger
Best friends Bernadette and Charlie begin seventh grade and help unravel the mysterious case of the Stocking Bandit.

The Season by Sarah MacLean
Showing no interest in the sumptuous balls, lavish dinner parties, and country weekends enjoyed by the rest of early nineteenth-century London society, seventeen-year-old Lady Alexandra Stafford seeks adventure as she investigates the puzzling murder of the Earl of Blackmoor, father of devilishly handsome Gavin.

The Dark Days of Hamburger Halpin by Josh Berk
When Will Halpin transfers from his all-deaf school into a mainstream Pennsylvania high school, he faces discrimination and bullying, but still manages to solve a mystery surrounding the death of a popular football player in his class.

Suspect by Kristin Nitz
As the family gathers at her grandmother's bed-and-breakfast for a murder mystery weekend, seventeen-year-old Jen confronts her ambivalent feelings about her mother, who disappeared fourteen years earlier, and about the possibility that she might be dead.

More Mysteries for Teens --
Blood Trail by Nancy Springer
Burning Blue by Paul Griffin
Creature of the Night by Kate Thompson
The Death Collector by Justin Richards
The Girl Who Was Supposed to Die by April Henry
Legacies: A Shadow Grail Novel by Mercedes Lackey & Rosemary Hill
Phoning a Dead Man by Gillian Cross
Something Rotten by Alan Gratz
Tallgrass by Sandra Dallas
Trash by Andy Mulligan

Tuesday, September 23, 2014

Happy Fall!

Today is the first full day of fall for the year!  It's exciting to see the cooler temperatures, the changing leaves, and the upcoming holidays.  So today, I am sharing some of my favorite books about fall . . .

Fall Leaves Fall! by Zoe Hall
When fall comes, two brothers enjoy catching the falling leaves, stomping on them, kicking them, jumping in piles of them, and using them to make pictures.  Includes a description of how leaves change through the year.

Fall Mixed Up by Bob Raczka
The delights of autumn are described in mixed-up verse and illustrations, and the reader is challenged to uncover the errors.

Red Are the Apples by Marc Harshman
Leads the reader through a bountiful garden in autumn while drawing particular attention to the variety of colors found within it.

Fall Is Not Easy by Marty Kelley
A tree tells why, out of all four seasons, autumn is the hardest.

Every Autumn Comes the Bear by Jim Arnosky
Every autumn a bear shows up behind the farm, and goes through a series of routines before finding a den among the hilltop boulders where he sleeps all winter long.


Saturday, September 20, 2014

Go On an Adventure with a Book

Books are the ultimate adventure.  You can go anywhere and do anything in the pages of a book.  Here are some great adventure books for kids . . .

The Death-Defying Pepper Roux by Geraldine McCaughrean
Having been raised believing he will die before he reaches the age of fourteen, Pepper Roux runs away on his fourteenth birthday in an attempt to elude his fate, assumes another identity, and continues to try to outrun death, no matter the consequences.

Navigating Early by Clare Vanderpool
Odyssey-like adventure of two boys' incredible quest on the Appalachian Trail where they deal with pirates, buried secrets, and extraordinary encounters.

The Abernathy Boys by Laura Hunt
A fictionalized account of the adventurous 1909 journey of nine-year-old Bud Abernathy and his five-year-old brother, Temp, who traveled alone, mostly on horseback, from their home in Oklahoma to Santa Fe, New Mexico, and back again, crossing t he vast, desertlike no-man's-land in the Texas Panhandle known as the caprock.

Magic Marks the Spot by Caroline Carlson
hen Hilary Westfield escapes Miss Pim's finishing school to join a misfit pirate crew, she embarks on an unexpectedly magical swashbuckling, plank-walking, searfaring journey.

The Tunnel of Hugsy Goode by Eleanor Estes
Following a prophecy of a former resident of their Brooklyn alley, two boys discover an underground passage behind their houses.

More Adventure Stories --
Alice's Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll
The Big Book of Adventure by Alyssa Heyman
Island of Thieves by Josh Lacey
The Misadventures of Maude March by Audrey Couloumbis
Nurk: The Strange, Surprising Adventures of a (Somewhat) Brave Shrew by Ursula Vernon
The Privateer's Apprentice by Susan Verrico