North by Night: A Story of the Underground Railroad
Katherine Ayres
Historical Fiction/Romance (Tie in with 8th grade Social Studies)
14-year-old Lucy and her family help slaves escape along the Underground Railroad. They take on their biggest challenge yet - hiding 2 women (1 pregnant) and 3 children. Lucy goes to stay with the woman hiding them to help out with their care. While there, she questions her feeling for her long time "boyfriend" in light of her new feelings for a Quaker boy who shares her abolitionist feelings. In the end she must make a difficult choice between continuing her life as she knows it and saving the baby of the slave woman.
Great story -slavery, love, coming of age, suspense
Among the Imposters
Margaret Peterson Haddix
Science Fiction/Futuristic (sequel to Among the Hidden - 7th grade novel)
Mystery/Suspense
Luke from Among the Hidden has taken on the identity of Lee Grant - a rich kid who died in a skiing accident. He enrolls (with Jen's Dad's help) in a baron school but realizes quickly that there is something strange about the boys and the school. He is tormented by "jackel boy" and questions his decision to come out of hiding. He eventually uncovers a plot to search-out and turn-in 3rd children like himself hiding at the school.
Good sequel - lots of suspense
Witness
Karen Hesse
Historical Fiction - 1920's (same format as Out of the Dust - 8th grade novel)
Relates the fall-out when the KKK descends upon a small Vermont town in the early
1920's. Poems from the points-of-view of 12 different members of the town give a unique perspective on the effects of prejudice on a small town and it's inhabitants. It is compelling to "witness" which characters are swept up in the rhetoric of the Klan and which stand up for justice and humanity.
Excellently written - the 8-yr-old girl is a little tough to follow at first, but you get used to her speech patterns - reads quickly - but leaves A LOT to think about!
No More Dead Dogs
Gordon Korman
Humorous Fiction
Wallace Wallace has decided to always tell the truth because he is disgusted and disappointed by all his father's lies. This quality does not always sit well with Wallace's friends and teachers! When he tells his English teacher his true opinion of the classic novel Old Shep, Our Pal (his teacher's favorite book) he is rewarded with on-going detention until he agrees to revise his opinion. This removes him from football practice and places him on the scene as the drama club practices the play based on the book in question. Humorous situations arise as Wallace begins to make "helpful suggestions" to the drama club about their staging of the play and as the members of the football team attempt to get Wally back on the team.
Very funny (by the time they actually perform the play - it is hilarious!) but with a good message - my favorite Korman book yet
Flipped
Wendelin van Draanen
Humorous Fiction/Romance
See "Book Review" section for summary!
February, 2002
A Walk to Remember
Nicholas Sparks
Romance - 1950s - (There is a new movie based on this book.)
It is 1958 and 17-yr-old Landon Carter falls unexpectedly in love with the very conservative and very religious Jamie Sullivan. Their love is tested however, when, in typical Nicholas Sparks fashion, Landon discovers that Jamie is terminally ill. This book is already in great demand in our media center because of the new hit movie based on this story. I haven't seen the movie, but I've heard from several people that the movie changes the events of the books quite a bit. (Surprise, surprise!) (For one thing, the movie takes place in the present, while the events of the book occur in the 1950s.) I can't say that I loved this book. Nicholas Sparks books tend to move very slowly in my opinion. I found the character of Jamie in particular to be a little too good to be believable. (Maybe I'm just a cynic!) I think the most interesting thing about this book is the ending. I don't want to give it away, but an issue is raised on the last page which I probably wouldn't have even noticed if it weren't for several students who pointed it out to me. If you read the book - come talk to me and give me your opinion about the ending!
Midnight Bayou (We do not have this book in the media center.)
Nora Robets
Adult Romance
Definately not for middle school students! But I liked it!
Even More Letters From A Nut
Ted L. Nancy
Humor
This is the third installment in Mr. Nancy's series of hilarious collections of letters. Mr. Nancy sends ridiculous letters to innocent, unsuspecting people and then prints both his letter and the response. I laughed so hard that I had tears in my eyes. One of my personal favorites is the one in which he writes to a supermarket where he purchased a sponge. He tells the store manager that he believes the sponge is haunted because it keeps following him around his house. He asks, "Can someone from Ralphs come and get this sponge from me? This sponge is out to get me. I am afraid." OK - you have to like the type of humor that comes from strange situations to enjoy this book. Many of the letters remind me of story lines from the Seinfeld show. In fact, the book has a "backword" from Jerry Seinfeld, and at least one fan of the series told me he believes Mr. Nancy is Jerry Seinfeld. Who knows? But it is definately hilarious!
The Adventures of Super Diaper Baby
Dav Pilkey
Humor/Cartoon
No Man's Land
Susan Bartoletti
Historical - Civil War
Susanne's Diary for Nicholas (We do not have this book in the media center.)
James Patterson
Realistic Fiction/Romance
Wow! It is hard to believe that this is James Patterson! He is much better known for his murder mystery thrillers! The narrator, Katie, has just been unexpectedly "dumped" by the man she loves. She didn't see it coming and she is devastated. Then she gets the package. It contains diary title "Susanne's Diary for Nicholas" and a note from Matt - the man who has left her. She begins to read, and we get to read right along with her. The diary was written by Matt's wife, Susanne for their infant son to read when he gets older. It is such a touching account of a new mother's love! It sounds corny at times, but is very believable - she doesn't know that anyone else will be reading it and she pours out her love for her baby. Interspersed with the diary entries, the reader also gets further glimpses into the love affair between Katie and Matt. The mystery of whether Matt was cheating on Susanne with Katie is finally solved in a very satisfying if terribly sad ending. I loved it! Very touching - much better than the Nicholas Spartks book!
The Rumplestilskin Problem
Vivian Vande Velde
Modern Fairy Tale/Humor
This is a very clever new addition to the retold fairy tale genre. Vande Velde explains in the opening that she has long been bothered by several strange aspects of the Rumplestilskin story that just don't seem to make sense. After years of thinking it over, she has come up with a couple of possible explanations to the parts that bother her. This book contains several new versions of the story - all written by Vande Velde - that attempt to clear up the confusion. They are all very cute and funny! This is a quick read but one that will be popular with those who like the modern fairy tale style.
