Moon Bear

 

Tam finds himself working in a bear farm where bear's bile is harvested and sold as a cure all.  Tam befriends the bears, but one in particular and vows to rescue him.

Overall, this was a quiet book.  It was okay but not my favorite.

The Only Game

 

Jack loves baseball but just when a new season is starting he decides to quit.  No one understands his decision - parents, teammates, best friend - but it is something Jack feels he needs to do - to atone for his brother's death in some way.

This particular conflict is resolved in the first half of the book.  After that it is a story of Jack, Cassie, Teddy and the sport they love, friendship, and second chances.

In a way I wish the first conflict had carried on a bit longer but this story had a lot of heart.  I am not much for baseball so some of the play action got too involved for me but for a sports enthusiast this will be a good book.

The Nest

 

This is another book I am finally getting to...  deliciously creepy and a quick read.  I enjoyed it ;0

Stephen's brother is sicklyand when Stephen gets a offer from some "angels" he sees in a dream to help his brother he is curious.  Then things get decidedly creepy when these "angels" turnout to be wasps who are growing anew brother in their nest...

Yep weird...

Echo

 

Oh my heart!!!!  I just finished this.  Many on the MSBA committee had already read it so I waited...  

Wow is all I can say - the flow, the way the stories came together without overly emphasizing it, the beauty - love, love, love!!!!!!

I am usually hesitant about longer books and have struggled through some recently that I ultimately loved but took a long time.  Even though this was long it read quickly...I read the last 150+ pages in about an hour.  I will be purchasing this for my library!!

The Door by the Staircase

 

A little over a year ago I had barely heard of Baba Yaga but in the last year I have read several stories featuring the old Russian witch ;0  In this tale Baba Yaga is living near Buffalo and "adopts" a yong girl.  Of course, Mary doesn't know that Baba Yaga, or Madame Z as she first knows her, has plans to eat Mary.  Slowly though Baba Yaga comes to love Mary and starts teaching her things. Mary isn't sure whether she can trust Baba Yaga but in the end finds a family and friends.

A solid choice...not something I will gush over but good. I am starting to recognize certian aspects of a Baba Yaga tale so some things seemed familiar to me.

Terror at Bottle Creek

Cort helps his dad run a hunting, gaming business on the edge of a swamp.  When a hurricane threatens them, they do everything they can to get ready and plan on staying with a neighbor.  But when his dad and the neighbor get stuck somewhere else, Cort is left with the two neighbor girls.  When Cort's dog runs off, dragging one of the girls with him, it is out to Cort and the other girl to save her.  Surviving a hurricane isn't easy, especially when their best chance of survivl is reaching high ground.  Of course, that's where the copperheads, bear, and wild pigs go as well.

Lots of action, not very long...liked this ;0

My Brother is a Superhero

 

Luke is obsessed with comics and superheroes which is why it is so cosmically unfair that his brother is the one who receives superpowers.  While Luke does his best to be supportive and secretive he is still really jealous.  Fortunately for Luke, Zack is kidnapped and Luke has an opportunity to be super with the help of his friends Lara and Serge.

Luke was a fun character and there were some funny moments.  I felt the book dragged a bit in the middle but I did like the ending.