Middle Grade Fiction – Peaceful Reader

Summer Books

Summer, for an educator, is the time we decompress between last year’s classes, mistakes we’ve made that give us inspiration for the next year, and to breathe deep and relax. I love the extra time to read and this year has been no exception. I’ve read a ton. Over the summer I read a lot of middle grade fiction and some where great and some I didn’t finish. This are my top eight titles from the summer not in any particular order because they were all five stars.

And Then, Boom! by Lisa Fipps: This novel-in-verse story is heart-wrenching as an adult because it shows the reality of poverty and absent parenting. Joe’s grandmother takes care of him after his mom disappears and even thought times are tough money-wise there is a lots of love but when she dies and his mom comes back temporarily life drastically changes for him. This is a quick read and it mirrors the honesty in her previous verse novel, Starfish. Should be an excellent conversation starter for you and your kids.

El Niño““` by Pamela Muñoz Ryan: This is a thrilling magical realism beach adventure that swept me away. Kai’s sister Cali disappeared in the ocean two years previous and his family of swimmers is trying to carry on. Kai lets himself get pulled in to a mythical story Cali left behind that has him believing she is still alive. Through this vision though he finally finds the strength to compete at the top.

Across So Many Seas by Ruth Behar: This epic novel spans four generations of Jewish young women from the Spanish Inquisition to Cuba and on to America. This book shows the struggle of Jewish families through the years. Each young woman was unique in her story but shared a love of music and family from each generation.

Not Quite a Ghost by Anne Ursu: Ursu leads us through a very subtle creepy story featuring Violet as she navigates a new, somewhat spooky attic room in an old home her mom and stepdad buy for the family. Violet falls ill in this new and realizes she may not be alone in the room. I listened to this on Libby and the narrator, Eva Kaminsky, did an amazing job of pulling me.

The Sherlock Society by James Ponti: Four kids and one hilarious grandfather undertake a decades old cold case involving Al Capone and his mysterious hideway near Miami. One mystery leads to another real-life problem and the kids, Alex, Zoe, Lina, and Yadi find out what it means to be a true detective. More to come and I’m looking forward to the series.

Gracie Under the Waves by Linda Sue Park: I love Park’s A Long Walk to Water and this new story lends itself to teachable moments as well. Gracie loves to snorkel and plans a vacation with her parents approval to Roatán, Honduras where she meets reef experts and finds that her passion leads her to friends and a desire to know more. Really well done and perfect for 3rd-5th grade.

The Bletchley Riddle by Ruta Sepetys: Bletchley Park, the home of WWII codebreakers is featured in this 1940 mystery with Jakob and Lizzie trying to figure out more about their missing mother. This one holds many surprises and I learned a lot about how the codebreakers struggled to break through before the Nazis invade.

Tree. Table. Book. by Lois Lowry: Eleven year old Sophie is best friends with her neighbor, 88 year old Sophie. They drink tea together and have deep conversations. When the younger Sophie learns that her friend is having memory issues she starts to give her tests. As she asks her to remember a pattern of words she unleashes three very different memories of the elder Sophie’s stories taking her back to Polish childhood.

I’m excited to share these stories with students in the first few weeks of school as they rush through the library doors, eager to find new books to read.

Right now I’m reading A Place for Us by Fatima Farheen Mirza, listening to K vs J by Kwame Alexander and Jerry Craft (narrated by these two authors as well) and still wading through The Anxious Generation by Jonathan Haidt.

Best Books 2023 #2

I read quite a few great middle-grade fiction this year and before the month is over I wanted to share the best of those plus a handful of banned books from a variety of different lists that are worth reading. If you have young people to buy or recommend books these titles will be wonderful.

A Place to Hang the Moon by Kate Albus (2021) : This is my favorite historical fiction in 2023 because the story centers around close-knit siblings Anna, William, and Edmund after they are evacuated from London. They remember their deceased mother and wish for a permanent family in this small countryside village. The three of them make the best of it even during their hardest times, remaining true to their hopes for the future. I recently ordered another Kate Albus historical fiction, Nothing Else But Miracles, which centers on the Lower East Side of Manhattan during WWII.

The Last Mapmaker by Christina Soontornvat (2022) : This is a Thai-inspired fantasy with amazing world-building as 12-year-old Sai apprentices to the last mapmaker and ends up on a high-seas adventure to chart unknown lands. This story captured my attention throughout Sai’s journey. This author writes picture books, graphic novels, early chapter books as well as middle-grade novels.

Starfish by Lisa Fipps (2021) : In this realistic novel-in-verse Ellie is tired of all the fat jokes about her weight. She loves to swim and free float in her backyard pool. She has lists of rules she is not supposed to do like no eating in public. With the support of her father, and a new neighbor Ellie starts to feel comfortable with herself. This is a fantastic debut!

The Turtle of Michigan by Naomi Shihab Nye (2022) : This companion to The Turtle of Oman tells the story of Aref as he travels from Muscat, Oman to Ann Arbor, Michigan to be with his parents. He misses his grandfather back home yet he is excited about his new life. I loved both these stories and offer them up to students who want to learn more about other cultures.

The Midnight Children by Dan Gemeinhart (2022) : This book defies labeling; it’s part mystery, and realistic fiction, with a touch of magical realism. Ravani longs for neighbors and friends when one night as he looks out his bedroom window he sees a family move into the abandoned house across the street. Eventually, he is welcomed in by this mix of children and things begin to change for Ravani. I love Gemeinhart’s entire catalog of books!

Thirst by Varsha Bajaj (2022) : Minni and her family live in the poorest part of Mumbai where water from the pumps is often hard to get with long lines and shortages. When she takes over for her mother’s cleaning job in a high-rise apartment she is astonished to see water running freely from the taps for this other family. This is a very humbling book to show real economic disparity.

Rez Dogs by Joseph Bruchac (2021) : Set during the Pandemic this novel-in-verse tells the story of Malian, a young Wabanaki girl as she quarantines at her grandparents’ house on the reservation. She helps around the house, learns the old ways, and begins to communicate with an old stray dog. Bruchac does a wonderful job of weaving in the history of other pandemics the Native population has survived as well as government schools and reservation life. His WWII story, Code Talker, is one of my favorites.

School Trip by Jerry Craft (2023) : This beautifully done graphic novel is filled with micro-aggressions and life lessons like its predecessors New Kid and Class Act. The entire series should be required reading for humans. Riverdale Academy students Jordan, Liam, and Drew take a trip to Paris with their classmates. This would pair nicely with Dan Santat’s new graphic novel A First Time for Everything.

Along Came a Spider by James Patterson (2003) : Maggie Rose and a friend go missing from their private Washington DC school and Alex Cross comes in to work the case. This is the first in the Alex Cross series and I cannot find the banned book list I originally saw it on. It’s a gripping often gory tale.

Dry by Neal Shusterman (2018) : California draught causes teenager Alyssa to make life-and-death decisions for her family. This was intriguing and all too real.

Gender Queer by Maia Kobabe (2019) : Autobiographical graphic novel about the author’s journey to understand more about their own gender identity. This was such a personally told story I was gripped with how difficult it is when young people don’t feel comfortable in the prescribed norms we’ve conditioned ourselves to be. Writing/drawing this was a true act of bravery for Maia made even more difficult by hateful backlash. Listen to the NPR interview.

Heartstopper series by Alice Oseman (#1-4) (2020) : Charlie and Nick fall in love in this sweet graphic novel. I can understand why this was made into a Netflix series because it is a heartwarming tale of friendship and love between two very different teenage boys. Highly recommend for all humans as well.

As a librarian and compassionate human, I will continue to read more from any current banned books lists, and even though I’ve put myself on a book-buying ban I’ve used Libby and our wonderful public library. Before the new year, I did buy copies of a few young-adult banned books to stick in my little free library.

Recent Reads-Amazing!

I’m a pre-reader for our state award committee and our list is always long. I only read enough to get me by and I generally pick ones that I think are worth it because I just don’t have time to read each and every one of them This year the first three that I picked up made me so happy as a reader and a librarian.

Doll Bones (2013) by Holly Black: Creepy middle grade book done so well by the amazing Holly Black. I loved that this one will appeal to boys and girls alike even though the word “doll” appears on the cover. Poppy, Zachary, and Alice are close friends that have been playing “the game” for a long time and even though Zach feels a bit embarrassed he loves to play. The three of them have a collection of odd ball dolls, action figures, and animal figurines and they build a story around their adventures. It sounds amazing and creative to me. Zach’s dad unfortunately sees the toys a little differently and chucks the bag carrying his son’s “toys” away. Zach is crushed but instead of wanting to admit that to Alice and Poppy he pretends he isn’t interested in playing anymore. One of Poppy’s dolls has a bit of history and the three of them are compelled to go on a journey to save her. I will have a very easy time selling this book to students this year.

The Mark of the Dragonfly (2014) by Jaleigh Johnson: What an incredible world Jaleigh created in “The World of Solace.” Piper is an incredible character trying to make do as a scrapper in a scrap town on her own. She ventures out of her routine when she finds Anna in a wagon after a meteor shower rains down on their village. Her instinct is to protect her and she does even though she ends up far from home on a train bound for the capital. I really enjoyed Anna’s and Piper’s journey and thought the addition of Gee, Trimble, and Jeyne added to the incredible story of escape and what it means to be a misfit in an already strange land. Is there another one coming out? I hope to hear more about The World of Solace.

Winterling (2012) by Sarah Prineas: Fer has always had trouble fitting in and doesn’t really understand what happened to her parents or why her grandmother keeps her under such a close watch. When she meets a boy by the pond trying to protect himself from a couple of wolves she saves him and takes him back to her Gran-Jane to be healed. As the young Rook meets Grand-Jane mysteries spill out that Fer doesn’t understand and eventually her grandmother is forced to share her heritage with her granddaughter. Fer’s mother was The Lady of the Land on the other side of the Way and Grand-Jane’s son fell in love with her and left. Now both are dead and the land on the other side needs Fer’s help to be rid of the Mor who has a grip on the land and the people. I love strong female characters and Fer is that. She stands up for what she believes in and is more interested in having fun than grabbing power. I liked this one so much I’m reading the 2nd in the series, Summerkin.

One not on the list but recommended by Tina Says: The Secret Hum of a Daisy (2014) by Tracy Holczer. This one is realistic fiction which was a nice change of pace after all those magical lands swept me away. Grace and her mother have spent all of their year together moving from one small town to the next in search of something they never truly find. When Grace’s mother dies unexpectedly Grace must go live with the grandmother that pushed her mother out of the house years ago. Grace has to work hard to reconcile her feelings for her mother and what happened between mother and daughter before she was alive. This novel explores so many excellent themes of parenting, grief, family, and home that it should be a read-aloud in many 5th-7th grade classrooms. I will promote it as such and will recommend it for next year’s list of could-be award winners.

If you are looking for a great read any one of these will do!

One White Dolphin by Gill Lewis (2012)

Groovy Girl and I just finished reading this one together. We had a massive read-a-thon to finish it this morning as it is surprise, surprise…overdue! It left us both thrilled, exhausted, and a little teary.

Synopsis:

That Wood clan needs to be stopped. Save the reef? What a joke. What kind of family loves fish and dolphins more than community? dredging the reef will mean fishermen can reel in more money. That’s what the town needs.
What the town gets, though, is an albino dolphin calf that washes ashore after being caught in some old nets. It will take help from an unexpected new kid, a daring, helicopter rescue, and a pod of dolphins, but Kara Wood won’t back down. The calf must be saved and so must the reef. (inside blurb)

There is a lot to take in in this 338 page novel which is what really makes it a slice of life. Bullying by adults and kids alike, economic strife, death, survival, and at the heart of it; how we are taking care of the earth for future generations play a part in One White Dolphins message. All these varied topics were solidly weaved in to make a believable and interesting tale. The chapters are relatively short which makes for an easier read-aloud which always leaves Groovy Girl begging for more each time I stop to tuck her in. This year she begins 6th grade and my plan is to keep reading together before I tuck her in. She’s my last one until I have grandchildren which, truthfully, is quite a ways away!

A sample from One White Dolphin:

Moana slices through the water on a course set for Gull Rock. We’re running fast and smooth. Mr. Anderson and I have to lean right out to balance her. I run my hands in the bow waves that furl along Moana’s sides. Her sails above us are curved and taut like birds’ wings. We’re racing through the water. It feels as if we’re flying almost.

I look back again to see Dad and Felix , big grins stuck on both their faces. That pang of jealousy hasn’t gone away. It’s not because of Dad, this time. It’s because of Felix. For someone who’s never sailed before, he’s good at sailing. (119)

Find Gill Lewis at her website. She’s a former veterinarian living in the United Kingdom who transforms her love of animals and the earth into really lovely stories.

Code Talker by Joseph Bruchac

Code Talker

Joseph Bruchac

2005

224 pages

Kii Yazhi is six years old when he is taken from his mother, from his land to go to boarding school governed by the United States. His uncle drives him there in a wagon and gives him this advice:

Little Boy, he said, Sister’s first son, listen to me. You are not going to school for yourself. You are doing this for your family. To learn the ways of the bilagaanaa, the white people, is a good thing. Our Navajo language is sacred and beautiful. Yet all the laws of the United States, those laws that we now have to live by, they are in English. (8)

Boarding school takes away their beautiful Navajo clothes, their symbolic long hair, their language, and even their names. Kii Yazhi becomes Ned Begay. His school journey begins and ends with disrespectful and mean teachers yet he survives and does well. He chooses to follow the rules and gets sent on to secondary school. He is 16 when war breaks out and he wants to enlist but waits until the next year with his parent’s permission. The U.S. Marines have a special use for Navajo enlistees and he is able to be specially trained to send codes using the exact language he had been beaten for using at boarding school; a wonderful twist!

The story is told from Begay’s memory as he shares with his grandchildren. Ned’s journey shares such an overlooked part of history; one that I knew about but only on the barest surface. Bruchac inserts such wisdom among the awful horrors of boarding school and the war.

You know, grandchildren, for a long time even after the war, it was hard for me to have any good thoughts about the Japanese. What troubled me the most was the way they treated the native people of the islands they conquered. They believed only Japanese were real humans. Anyone else could be treated like a dog. Never forget, grandchildren, that we must always see all other people as human beings, worthy of respect. We must never forget, as the Japanese forgot, that all life is holy. (148)

This is great historical non-fiction and I plan to use it this year with a boy’s book club. They will love the war element and I will love that they are looking at it from a different angle.

Louise Erdrich; books with historical significance

I don’t know why it took me so long to discover this wonderful series. Next year I plan to put it on our 5th grade book club reading list. Thank you to V. for pushing me toward this title.

The Birchbark House (1999)

Omakayas and her family are Ojibwe Indians living on Madeline Island. The year is 1849 and Omakayas (Little Frog) is seven years old. She has one older sister, Angeline, and two younger brothers; one a baby and the other, Pinch, is pure trouble. The book is set up on the cycle of the seasons as this small tribe of Ojibwes enjoy the warm days of summer preparing for fall and winter. The snowy months prove difficult for the tribe as many are short on food and sickness robs Omakayas of her baby brother. Erdrich set it up nicely in this seasonal manner to help us feel in the moment with this peaceful tribe. I have a romantic notion for Native tribes and this book shares all the positive as they begin to feel the encroachment of the white man on their land and Omakayas understands more about her gift for dreams.

The Game of Silence (2005)

The sequel to The Birchbark House continues the thread through seasons with several adventures. Another small tribe arrives by canoe, bedraggled and starved, as they escape from the white man and sickness. Old Tallow gets lost during a heavy snow as she searches for game to hunt and Deydey leads the priest on a mission just as the ice over the lake begins to crack and break. Any of these problems demonstrate the difficulties native people had even without the added fear of losing their way of life. Omakayas learns to accept her dreams as she uses a particularly powerful dream to rescue her father. She is a strong and unique young female character who takes pride in her family and the way of life she’s too often taken for granted.

A quote:

“The air cooled quickly. It was a little cold to sleep outside, but Deydey spread out the fire and built it up to a huge blaze. When the fire had all burned down to a bed of coals, he spread out the coals and then all of the family heaped sand on top of the big spread-out remains of the fire. They were making their bed. The soft comfortable sand was their mattress. Underneath, the coals would continue to give off a gently heat. They all lay down under the stars. There were no mosquitos or flies when the air was so chilly. Yet the warmth from underneath kept them comfortable. Deydey made this sort of sand bed often on his trips, and the children loved for him to make it for them.” (72-73, The Game of Silence)

Louise Erdrich’s native heritage helped to shape this series as she recounts events in her own family’s past. I have a few other books ahead of it but I plan to read the third and final book, The Porcupine Year. A post by Carol Hurst talks about The Birchbark House. The Game of Silence is discussed in this article at KidsReads and The Porcupine Year has this article also at KidsReads.

Breadcrumbs by Anne Ursu

Anne Ursu

2011

312 pages

I consumed this book.
I finished it last night and even though the story ends wonderfully I just wanted it to go on. Hazel is an astonishing girl heroine!

Things to know and love:

It took place in Minnesota.
It made me miss snow.
It is a retelling of the fairy tale The Snow Queen.
The two main characters, Jack and Hazel, are lovable.
The two symbolize the difficult journey of growing up.
The parents are odd and generally not helpful (typical).
Anne Ursu makes some wonderful references to other great literature.

I read this beautiful retelling of The Snow Queen by Amy Ehrlich and Susan Jeffers to Groovy Girl tonight just to compare with what took place in the book and it is pretty accurate. Ursu has lengthened it by adding many adventures to the forest but it only makes the story more enticing. I am extremely pleased I purchased a copy of this book as I love the front cover and it is worth rereading. I will also want Groovy Girl to read it in her own time. I rated it five stars on Good Reads. Thank you, Anne, for this beautiful tale.

Book bag synopsis

I brought home a book bag filled with a few titles from my school library that I wanted to read over break. Most of them are from a Scholastic order from the beginning of the year and haven’t received much student attention. I thought I could book talk them in the new year and it would give me my last few titles to reach the 100 mark for books read in 2011. Here’s what I’ve read over break so far:

Drums, Girls & Dangerous Pie (2004) by Jordan Sonnenblick;
Steven Alper is a middle school student who loves playing the drums and is annoyed by his little brother, Jeffrey. When the family discovers Jeffrey has cancer things get a little crazy. Jeffrey suffers through the physical aspects of cancer and Jeffrey wades through how it must feel to be the child left at home, the healthy but ignored child. Sonnenblick portrays both sides really well and has the middle school lingo down pat-he sounds like he never left middle school really…a bonus for him. I can’t wait to read his other two titles on my pile; Notes from the Midnight Driver and Zen and the Art of Faking It.

Ways to Live Forever (2008) by Sally Nicholls;
This is the story of Sam McQueen, an eleven-year-old in the last stages of leukemia and the story is presented to us through his eyes through an assignment his at-home-teacher gives him and his friend, Felix. My favorite aspect of this tale is that Sam is a list maker. He has a few things he’d like to get accomplished before he leaves this earth and once he figures out he can do more than just dream about doing them he does! He learns an important lesson about how one looks at a problem to solve. The author is English and the story is filled with references like torches, sledging and Mum’s and duffle coats-it makes the story interesting but will make it more difficult for one of my students to comprehend.

Radiance (2010) by Alyson Noel;
Wow; three in a row! Riley dies in a car accident before the book basically opens-wham. She’s trying to figure out where to get in the happy field of flowers; to follow her sister, Ever, back to the Earth plane or across the bridge where her parents and dog have happily gone. She’s an interesting character with very defined thoughts about the world around her as she learns to live where she is and take on an assignment back on Earth. She meets Bodhi; a nerdy but cute angel in desperate need of a victory and she’s able to save a few lost souls along her journey, which is just what she needs to do to rise to the next level. The next level of what though is a question she can’t help asking! I’m anxious to read the next one, Shimmer, as well as Noel’s other series, The Immortals. This is a fast read-one day-starting early, early this morning when I couldn’t sleep.

The Daughters (2010) by Joanna Philbin;
This is a hot series in my library right now so I had to remove it from circulation and hide it for my holiday break-wielding my power as the librarian with supreme force over the hold shelf! This one gave me a break from all the death and dying of my previous choices and was a perfect light read. I wouldn’t label it fluff though as Philbin tackles the personalities of three famous daughters trying to be themselves! I thoroughly enjoyed their struggles and thought she had a lot to say about real beauty and celebrity worship. I plan to read the next few in this series as soon as I can snatch them back from student readers.

Up Next:

Breadcrumbs by Anne Ursu
Wonderstruck by Brian Selznick

What are you reading into the new year?

The Girl Who Circumnavigated Fairyland In A Ship of Her Own Making

Official Website: Fairylandbook.com

Groovy Girl, Handsome Husband and I stopped for a ~~quick~~ library visit on Sunday. We found a few books and had fun wandering together. Groovy Girl and I had finished up the sixth Sisters Grimm the night before and she was anxiously scanning the Buckley section for the seventh. It was gone (gasp!) and the nice librarian at the desk put a hold on it for her.

In the meantime I scanned the new elementary fiction section for something inspiring and The Girl Who Circumnavigated... popped out at me on the shelf. Literally I think it moved a few inches out to attract me. My friend V and I had recently skyped with our three kids to talk books and this was one we discussed. She hasn’t been able to get it from the Little Rock Library and here it was popping off the shelf for me. I tucked it under my arm and hummed just a little.

Mind you, I haven’t finished it so this is not a review per se but Groovy Girl and I have read 4 chapters the last three nights and I’m in love with the writing. It reminds me of one of my favorite books, Norton Juster’s The Phantom Tollbooth. The main character’s name is September. She has conversations with the Green Wind, Latitude and Longitude, two witches named Goodbye and Hello and rides on the back of a flying leopard. And if that isn’t cool enough the language is thrillingly descriptive and beautiful.

It was difficult to choose just one but here is a sample:

The Leopard of Little Breezes yawned up and farther off from the rooftops of Omaha, Nebraska, to which September did not even wave good-bye. One ought not to judge her: All children are heartless. They have not grown a heart yet, which is why they can climb tall trees and say shocking things and leap so very high that grown-up hearts flutter in terror. Hearts weigh quite a lot. That is why it takes so long to grow one. but, as in their reading and arithmetic and drawing, different children proceed at different speeds. (It is well known that reading quickens the growth of a heart like nothing else.) Some small ones are terrible and fey, Utterly Heartless. Some are dear and sweet and Hardly Heartless at all. September stood very generally in the middle on the day the Green Wind took her, Somewhat Heartless, and Somewhat Grown. And so September did not wave good-bye to her house or her mother’s factory, puffing white smoke far below her. (4)

and this from what we just finished with tonight…

The full moon shone jubilantly as September strode up over the dunes and into the interior of Fairyland with her belly full of witch-cake. She smelled the sweet, wheat-sugar of sea grass and listened to distant owls call after mice. And then she suddenly remembered, like a crack of lightning in her mind, check your pockets. She laid her sceptre in the grass and dug into the pocket of her green smoking jacket. [given to her by the Green Wind] September pulled out a small crystal ball, glittering in the moonlight. A single perfectly green leaf hung suspended in it, swaying back and forth gently, as if blown by a faraway wind. (38)

It is hard for me not to read ahead after I tuck her in…
Sweet Dreams.

A letter to Alan Silberberg- (creator of Milo; Sticky Notes and Brain Freeze)

Dear Mr. Silberberg;

I just wanted to write you a quick thank you note for writing such an outstanding middle grade book! Milo is a one-of-a-kind-kinda guy! There isn’t a part of this book that I didn’t love…parts of it I loved so much they made me weep. I learned quickly that Milo has some obstacles-he’s not graceful or popular but he does have big ideas and a kind heart. I also learned Milo misses his mom everyday and that her memory has been cleaned right out of their house by his grieving father. Since his mother’s death Milo’s been walking around in a fog, moving from house to house, never getting a grip on the simple fact that his mother is no longer there for him.

I loved how you gave him someone to pine for in Summer Goodman and a suave alter-ego in Dabney St. Claire. You gave him a wonderful friend, Marshall, who is there to be silly with but through Marshall’s family you gave Milo a way to experience a happy family. You developed another friendship for Milo by introducing him to Hillary, his annoying next-door-neighbor, who turns out to be not so annoying after all. Hillary shares with readers that we all have our secrets and our strong points. Yeah Hillary! You gave Milo an adult neighbor and friend, Sylvia Poole, who shares her experiences with grief and helps Milo clear away some of his fog. You gave him a kind teacher, Mr. Shivnesky, who cares enough to give Milo a 5-minute break when things get tough.

Mr. Silberberg, you gave us other tensions like the Halloween party and the box of Barbie parts to keep our minds shifted away from just MILO’S GRIEF. This was brilliant because Milo is an easy read-I want to hear about his grief but not be hit over the head with it. For a kid his age life keeps moving on. You are a funny guy-a really naturally funny guy. I give you a standing ovation for writing and illustrating Milo; Sticky Notes and Brain Freeze. {picture me standing, clapping loudly}

Sincerely in awe,

Peaceful Reader

p.s. Thank you for giving Summer, the crush, some last minute redemming qualities-because after all we all have something that makes us unique!
p.p.s could you please write your next book for elementary kids because I noticed your first book, Pond Scum, is also for middle school kids and I think they’ve had enough of your attention. PLEASE; I will be your friend for life.

Check out Alan Silberberg’s kooky website-Silberbooks.com.
Silberberg’s blog-with a book trailer.

Every page has a gem but I leave you with just two quotes:

Dabney St. Claire says that “timing is everything,” which is why i make sure to wear a watch every day so I’m always ready just in case. I figure it’s like when you go to a baseball game and bring your glove because it’s possible a foul ball will come right at you. And even though you’re sitting under the grandstand roof where no balls ever go, you wear that baseball glove through the whole game, which makes the popcorn you buy taste like dirt and oil and other stuff you can’t even put a finger on-but probably already did-and all that matters is you feel ready for the slimmest-ever chance that the first stray ball in the history of baseball is going to be hit right at your impossible seats. (39-41) (what an optimist!)

and this:

I mention this at dinner my first night at Marshall’s house, and you know what? They all laugh, and it’s so weird to hear people laughing at the dinner table that I feel really bad and stare into my plate, but Mrs. Hickler says, “No, Milo-that’s really funny. My mother does act a little like she’s still in high school. You should see her yoga clothes.” And it’s so shocking that laughing even coexists with eating, and it’s while I’m having broiled chicken (which I love) and green beans (which I hate but eat anyway) that I want to go home and pack up all my stuff and move right into Marshall’s house forever. (134-135) (see-you want to give him a hug too!)

Other magnificent reviews:

The Boy Reader
Chocolate Air

and Stacy @ Welcome to my Tweendom

To purchase your own beloved copy of this book at an IndieBound bookstore near you click on the title…Milo; Sticky Notes and Brain Freeze