Amy is an avid reader - it is her escape from her crazy family. In fact, she would love to run away just like the characters in her favorite book, From the Mixed Up Files of Mrs. Basil E Frankweiler. Imagine her surprise then when she finds that her favorite book and others have been removed from the library shelves. While the school board debates, the eager parent keeps removing books, and the librarian gets fired Amy decides to start a secret library in her locker of all the books that have been banned. But can Amy truly stand up for what she believes and can she make a difference?
The hardest part about this book was believing that the characters were 4th graders. I think if they had been 6th graders I could have "bought" it more. Other than that I enjoyed the book and its message.
Sam London is pretty average. He has tried to find something he is good at but... nothing. He does love to read about cryptids but that's not really a skill. Then he starts having weird dreams for weeks of being out in the desert near a gas station and a rock formation. Each time he dreams he gets farther until one night he meets a gryphon in the dream. The next day he sees the location from his dream on tv and decides to go there. Then, he meets a real gryphon and life as he knew it is changed forever because cryptids are real, they have just been cursed to be invisible to humans.
Filled with action, adventure, mythical creatures, twists, and turns this was a fun fantasy. There was a strong hint of a sequel at the end but it didn't really leave one hanging. I enjoyed this quite a bit.
This is a really interesting concept. The earth has changed as a result of a Time Collision. Now people from different eras have been forced to live together in a much altered world. Diego's father, Santiago is a genius builder and has created steam substitutes since electricity no longer works. But there are those who do not like the way the world is now and would seek to turn things back if they could.
Diego's father is kidnapped early in the book and Diego and his friends Petey, Lucy, and Paige join a band of pirates who are going to rescue Santiago and others.
First, the illustrations. My eBook version is not doing them any justice - I am sure they are beautiful in the physical copy and in color.
I loved the concept but ... for my library the characters are too old and there is a bit too much romance (that to me bordered on cheesy - but maybe that's my age). I think this could find a place in a junior high library and I did like the Steam Punk feel of it.
Oh, I struggled with this book. It took me a long time to read. I just never felt invested. The book jumped from Emmeline to Thing (yes, that is a character's name) every few pages and it was jarring to me. I never really understood the whole point or got to know the villain(s) much at all or at least not til the very end. Soory, didn't work for me.
Ever since the death of his grandfather 2 years earlier Cooper has felt compulsions - read every word three times, count his chews, wash his hands, and protect the rest of his family any way he can. No one really seems to understand what is going on. His mom is supportive in a way but isn't really helping, his sister is in turns understanding and extremely frustrated, and his dad is downright awful. His mom, sister, and Cooper decide to spend the summer at the grandfather's cottage. There Cooper suffers mostly in silence - with some instances of happiness or friendship. Unfortunately, every time his father comes to visit things get worse. In time Cooper starts to work his own way through and by the ending there is hope that he is really getting better.
I get what the author was doing, especially after reading the author's note. I had a hard time reading the book though because I was so frustrated for Cooper and the lack of help and understanding he was receiving and his father's treatment was awful. I could see the hope by the end but overall the book was very sad for me.
Aventurine is a dragon who longs for adventure but her dragon family will make her stay in the cave until she is 30. Instead, she escapes, eager to prove that she can survive and maybe even find her passion in life. What she finds instead is chocolate. The smell of it draws her in and she meets a many making hot chocolate. She demands that he give her some before she eats him. Unfortunately for her he is a food mage and he is able to magically inject the hot chocolate with something that turns her into a human.
How can Aventurine survive as a human and even more importantly can she still pursue her new passion of chocolate?
This was a lot of fun - a lighter fantasy combining two of my favorite things - dragons and chocolate.
Leon (Americanized name) and his older brother have been sent from China to study in America. The goal is to learn English and to learn more about technical advances and then take that knowledge back to China with them. At first, Carson (Americanized name) the older brother seems to have all the advantages - age, he was a better student in China, and as eldest he deserves more respect. But whether it is from his injury on the train when robbers strike, disappointment over a failed love interest, or just an inability to learn English, Carson soon becomes bitter and angry which leaves Leon wondering if he should continue to obey his older brother or strive for his American education.
This was a strong historical fiction book and a good luck at the difficulties any immigrant might experience but particularly the Chinese experience in the 1800s.
