This book totally satisfied my library, history, museum, time travel, mystery, geeky side of me.
Hannah's dad works at a historical mansion and they get to love there. Hannah loves it and knows all about it especially the mysterious, unsolved art heist from the early 1900s. So when she accidentally switches places with the subject of that painting she is thrilled. Now maybe she can solve the mystery and find out more about the time period.
Maggie is a little more hesitant about the switch. Life is so different for girls in the present than it was for her in the early 1900s.
As the days go on Hannah and Maggie work together along with friends to solve the hundred year old mystery.
Like I said - mystery, history, and time travel. My only quibble was that it was a bit long. The format of the story - alternating chapters with Hannah and Maggie - meant equal time spent with each. Hannah's story was more central to the mystery and the solving of it. Maggie's side did not really have much influence until later in the book so some of her earlier chapters involving friends and soccer seemed more of a filler. They did end up influencing how she was motivated to better the lives of girls and women but it didn't move the plot along. Minor quibble though - overall really enjoyed.
Oh, I loved this so much!!!
Nicki has been in foster care for awhile. She will be placed with a family but things never seem to work out. She has a bit of a habit - sticky fingers. She keeps hoping her dad will come back for her when he gets out of prison.
Then the unexpected happens. Nicki is offered the chance to join a family. But this isn't any ordinary family. It is a family going into witness protection and they need her to make the family less "findable" because instead of a family of 3 they will be a family of 4.
Nicki jumps at the chance, especially when she finds out her dad has been out of prison for 2 years and has never come to get her.
Life in her new family isn't easy - navigating a younger brother, new parents, her stealing habit, and middle school drama. What makes it harder is that no one really knows her.
I won't give away the ending but there is some good action and tension and a few surprises along the way. Loved this.
Everyone knows what Noah and his mom did. She drank too much, drove, and got in an accident. Because she was drinking at a party celebrating a football victory at the coach's house the coach also got in trouble. Then Noah took out his anger in an aggressive play which cause someone to get hurt. Now his mom is in jail and everyone is against him. Noah is trying to lay low and just survive but his mom keeps trying to talk to him and at school people can't seem to let it go.
Then there is the bear. A young bear gets its head caught in a bucket - a bucket that was used in a challenge to fundraise for getting the football team back. In a way Noah feels responsible for that too and is determined to help the bear.
This was a good story of forgiveness, redemption, second chances, friendship. There were characters I didn't like at all but the overall effect of the story was good.
The world as we knew it has ended. Why? Because the third movie in a series did not follow the book at all and the world has gone into chaos as a result. Yep - far fetched. And that is just the beginning. This dystopian book is unlike others you've read. Students will enjoy the Captain Underpants, Diary of a Wimpy Kid style humor and will find the LAME superheroes funny. Wasn't my cup of tea but I am also not a 4th or 5th grader.
I have not been blogging as consistently lately. I am still reading - a lot. I think part of the reason is that I am reading shortlist books for MSBA. In some cases these are books I might not have normally picked up so meh. They are also old news at this point. I mean honestly - I haven't even read Hello, Universe yet - I will, it's on the shortlist, big surprise.
I am starting to read 2018 and I get jazzed about them because in my circles I am one of the first to read some of these. I do enjoy that...
So, Christopher Paul Curtis - you know what you are going to get but this takes a different perspective and I love it all the more because of that. This book will be perfect for his fans, students who enjoy reading about the time period, and those looking to see different sides of the story.
Charlie Bobo is the son of a sharecropping family in South Carolina. They are poor and yes, racist. In some ways they are jealous of the slaves who at least have homes and are fed. But when Charlie's dad witnesses a cat-hauling on the nearby plantation he is devastated.
Unfortunately Charlie's dad dies and because of a debt he owes Charlie is forced to travel north with the Tanner's overseer to catch some criminals who stole $3000. In actuality the overseer is looking to recover 3 escaped slaves worth that amount of money. Charlie doesn't really know this at first and he doesn't realize how evil the overseer really is until further along in the trip. But what can Charlie do? He is just a kid.
The book follows Charlie's journey - not just north, venturing into Canada and familiar Christopher Paul Curtis territory, but also his emotional journey as he wrestles with his conscious.
Well done!!
Calliope wishes she didn't have Tourette's, wishes her mom wasn't always looking for a new boyfriend, and when that doesn't work out moving. Why can't they just be the two of them - staying in one place.
While their latest move isn't all that great - teasing, a new boyfriend for mom almost immediately - there is a boy. Jinsong lives next door and is different - he seems to accept her, maybe even like her.
This is told mostly in poetic narrative (Calliope) with some prose (Jinsong). It is a good look at Tourette's and some middle school struggles by an author who has Tourette's herself. Well done.
Charlie is such an interesting character - anxiety, OCD, Aspergers?? The book doesn't really spell it out but Charlie is endearing as he tries to navigate the world he lives in.
Charlie's dad was a journalist who was injured by a mine in Afghanistan. Now he is slowly recovering from the brain injury. When there is a promising new treatment and doctor on the other side of the country his dad and grandmother go while Charlie, his brothers, and sister are left in the care of a neighbor. Except that doesn't work out so well and eventually the whole family, in the care of a mysterious woman with ties to his dad and Afghanistan, set of cross country in a RV to join his dad and grandmother. Charlie decides that along the way he will try and see all the birds on the list his dad and he made of "someday birds". In Charlie's mind he believes that by seeing the birds he will somehow help his dad recover. He also decides he wants to meet a famous birder.
This was a slow moving story at first but was filled with a lot of heart.
This book... So well done - tackles a tough subject with grace, understanding, and even a bit of humor.
Noah and Dash are best friends. They go to Hebrew school together and love comedy. The best thing is that Dash's dad shares their love of comedy. Their sleepovers are filled with comedy sketches and humor. Things are going so well. Noah's bar mitzvah is coming up and even though he has to share it with a girl Noa (cue the ark jokes) he is excited. Then there is the comedy project that the school is doing. Noah, Dash, and Noa are going to be the Three Stooges. Epic!
Then the unthinkable happens. It turns out Dash's dad suffered from depression and commits suicide. The repercussions, emotions, and misunderstandings threaten Noah and Dash's friendship and even Noah's bar mitzvah.
I was skeptical when I read what this book was about but I was impressed by the balance and the understanding that was evident. There was a point where I felt the book was getting really heavy but it was soon balanced out with some light humor. I really appreciated the references to famous comedians including those who have dealt with depression and even suicide. For a heavy topic this was approached well and would be a good book to build understanding.
When I heard that this book is based on Springvale, Maine I just had to get it. My school is in Springvale / Sanford and I couldn't wait to read a book set locally. Let's be honest - there have been events recently that haven't always cast a good light on the towns so a book set there was a joy.
Gusta is on her way to Springdale with her father at the beginning of the book. She is going to stay with her grandmother while her mother is in NY working and her father - a union organizer and German - is trying to stay one step ahead of the law. They get separated early on and Gusta has to find her way to Springdale alone. Once there she adjusts quickly into her grandmother's home where orphans are taken care of by her grandmother and her aunt.
Gusta, her cousin, and Josie, one of the orphans, decide to start a band using Gusta's french horn and Josie's voice. They want to play, and maybe win, at the fair the next summer. But with war looming there is a lot of suspicion in town about those who might be foreign. There are also old secrets and injustice that Gusta tries to confront.
There was a lot going on in this book - it was funny, tragic, honest. I will admit I may be a bit biased because of the connection - Jefferson School, the old high school, the mills, some of the familiar names. I can't wait for my students to get ahold of this book and maybe be entranced by the history of our town.
Gabby loves softball and while she isn't happy that her father has been deployed and they are spending the whole summer with her grandmother, she is happy that she will get to play and maybe even make the championships like her father did when he was young. The problem is, there aren't enough girls to make a softball team because they are all competing in the local pageant. Gabby herself agrees to be in the pageant to make her mom happy but she also decides to pretend she is a boy and play on the boy's team. But can she keep up the deception?
I so wish the cover were less "girly" because the story itself is good - really good.
This book was about the Chicago Race Riot of 1919. It did a very thorough job of laying out the issues leading up to the riots - meatpacking plants, WWI, the Great Migration, immigration, and more. It was quite informative and eye opening.
