The Tapestry: The Maelstrom by Henry Neff (2012)

Neff adds another page turning adventure to his Tapestry series. Max has just returned from Bliss to find many refugees seeking shelter outside Rowan Academy. Astaroth has been weakened by David Menlo but according to Elias Brom (David’s father), Astaroth is still the biggest threat to this world. Meanwhile, demon hordes are gathering, attempting to consolidate power in Astaroth’s absence. Prusias is the greatest of these threats.

The fate of Rowan is in the hands of David, Max and Mina – the young girl Max saved in the previous book. Can they turn away the thousands of demons intent on destroying Rowan Academy and enslaving its students? With the Workshop helping Prusias, how can they thwart the combined demon/technology threat? Or must they turn to Astaroth who is prepared to help, for a price. And Max’s great destiny is alluded to but not fulfilled. What power lies dormant in him?

Eagerly awaiting the next book, coming Fall 2013.

Netgalley ebook | October 23, 2012 | Random House Children’s Books | 480 pages | ISBN 9780375957079 | Ages 10 +

Pretty Soldier Sailor Moon by Naoko Takeuchi (2011)

Usagi is a normal 14-year-old girl, albeit a little scatter-brained but a fun-loving, video game junkie and all around great friend nonetheless. Until she meets Luna, a black cat with a band-aid on her head. When Usagi (aka Bunny) rescues Luna from some tormentors and removes the band-aid, Luna recognizes her as Sailor Moon, the guardian of the Moon sworn to protect the Moon Princess and help retrieve the Legendary Silver Crystal. Yes, Luna is a talking cat. Dark forces are gathering in Tokyo and Sailor Moon must find the Legendary Silver Crystal before the bad guys do. She has help in the form of Sailor Mercury, aka Amy, a brilliant student and water manipulator.

I adore Sailor Moon. From the moment I saw it on USA Network back in 1996, I was hooked on this strange cartoon. The more I watched (and then read), the more I loved it. It has a complex backstory, endearing characters that mature, and some great romance! I was thrilled to learn it would be retranslated and reprinted in the US of A. And with gorgeous covers! Now, can we please see a more faithful dub of the anime and all 300 episodes subtitled. Please? Anyone? I believe the license is up for grabs!

Personal copy | Kodansha Comics | September 13, 2011 | Ages 9 + | 240 pages | ISBN 978-1935429746 | $10.99 |

Rules by Cynthia Lord (2006)

I watch the back of David’s head and repeat in my mind: Do well today. Do well today (p 66).

In this coming of age story, twelve-year-old Catherine must reconcile her desire to be a normal with her role as older sibling and part-time caretaker of her younger, autistic brother David whose behaviors she finds embarrassing. Her attempts to control his behaviour by stressing a set of rules more often backfire than not.

Each chapter begins with one of these rules or guidelines.

If you don’t have the words you need, borrow someone else’s (p 50).

These rules seem simplistic and universal when listed at the beginning of the novel, but they gain dimension with each passing chapter, weaving together to reflect the complexity of Catherine’s feelings. The reader is drawn into Catherine’s routine by her authentic voice, feeling her frustration, anxiety and love with every interaction. Her situation becomes even more complex when she strikes up a friendship with Jason, a young paraplegic. Though seasoned readers will anticipate the ending, it doesn’t detract from the feeling the story clearly means to elicit.

Thankfully, I listened to this book while on a long drive. I didn’t have to pause because that would have been unbearable. The reader, Jessica Almasy, was wonderful.

Library Audio Book | Recorded Books | ISBN 978-1428152113 | Ages 9 and up | $17.49

Read other reviews:
Books for Sale
Deliciously Clean Reads
Hope is the Word

I also recommend:

Bigger than a Breadbox by Laurel Snyder (2011)

I buried my face deeper into the pillow and mumbled into it, so that nobody would hear me, “I wish I were home. I wish I were home. I wish I were home.” But of course wishing wouldn’t make it so (p 37).

Moments later, one of Rebecca’s wishes comes true and she finds a pair of squawking gulls inside the breadbox – the one she found in her gran’s attic. She soon discovers that she can wish for anything and it will appear, as long as it exists and as long as it can fit inside the breadbox. Bereft at her parent’s abrupt separation and miles away from her father and her home in Baltimore, she uses her wishes, at first, for material things that make her feel better or garner her lots of friends at school. But it isn’t long before she realizes the breadbox can’t give her what she really wants, her family and her home just like it used to be.

Bigger than a Breadbox is an excellent middle grade book that takes seemingly incongruous things - a contemporary story about the breaking of a household set to classical prose and propelled by fantasy embodied in an obsolete item (a breadbox) – and weaves them together easily, naturally. Let’s discuss what this novels does so well.

Atmosphere
There is a strong sense of place. Though Rebecca’s emigration from Baltimore, MD to Atlanta, GA happens early on in the novel, we revisit the home she misses so much through the treats she wishes and through her remembrances. Reader’s can also compare gritty Baltimore to the cleaner Atlanta as Rebecca walks to school and travels solo via cab at the conclusion.

Fantasy that Reads like Realistic Fiction
At one point in your life, you’ve probably fantasized about what you would wish for if a djinni rose out of a magic lamp. I’ve done this many times. When Rebecca has the opportunity to have her wishes granted (with the compulsory strings attached), she follows a path to enlightenment many preceding stories have followed. Only, it doesn’t feel like reading fantasy. And it’s not like any other story because it is Rebecca’s story and not a story about magic. (A good fantasy author never allows the magical elements to overrun the story.) Like When You Reach Me by Rebecca Stead, this story will have a strong crossover appeal because it seamlessly includes magic in a strong realistic setting.

Language
Crisp, clean prose. Coming in at 223 pages (with large lettering), this book is the appropriate length for its audience. It is neither too verbose nor too fancy. No tricks here. Just good wholesome prose where words are not wasted but, rather, put to work.

Character Development
Rebecca is well-developed. She comes to conclusions in her own time and her development accurately reflects the thought processes of a middle school child. Her classmates are painted in broad strokes but they are not marginalized. They have a real impact on Rebecca, as peers always do. The tension between her parents is palpable. And while it may seem easy to blame her mother, Snyder makes it clear the father is not blameless. Instead, it takes a lot of energy to raise a family and unemployment can hit families very hard, making this a timely story as well. Rebecca’s grandmother is another well-drawn character, who takes sides with Rebecca but works subtly to build bridges.

BUT… is it distinguished?
And that is the question. Is it a great book? Yes. It is written well? Yes, very well. Is it enjoyable? Yes. Is it distinguished? … But let’s not get too wrapped up in the Newbery. This is a book many children will love.

Library copy | September 27, 2011 | Random House | 240 pages | Ages 9-12 | ISBN 978-0375969164 | $16.99

Read other reviews:
New York Times Book Review
A Patchwork of Books
Points West
Publisher’s Weekly
Slatebreakers
Stacked Books
The Word Hoarder

The Heroes of Olympus: The Son of Neptune by Rick Riordan (2011)

Percy nodded. “Who is Gaea, anyway?”
Hazel’s mouth went dry. Just hearing that name… It was all she could do to keep her knees from buckling. She remembered a woman’s soft sleepy voice, a glowing cave, and feeling her lungs fill with black oil.
“She’s the earth goddess.” Nico glanced at the ground as if it might be listening. “The oldest goddess of all. She’s in a deep sleep most of the time, but she hates the gods and their children.”
“Mother Earth… is evil?” Percy asked.
“Very,” Nico said gravely (p 63).

Percy Jackson has spent months with Lupa, the she-wolf. Bereft of his memory, he has been retrained and sent forth to find Camp Jupiter – Camp Half-Blood’s Roman counterpart. Along the way, he is dogged by two gorgons, Euryale and Stheno. Their ability to reform so quickly after being killed puzzles and exhausts Percy.

Finally, he reaches the entrance to Camp Jupiter, and with the help of two campers, Frank and Hazel, and a goddess in disguise, he makes it safely across their border. Juno reveals Percy’s parentage and charges him with a quest: Free Death. Thanatos, Pluto’s right-hand man, has been bound by the jeweled giant Alcyoneus in Alaska, the land beyond the gods. The Doors of Death are controlled by Gaea; her servants reborn again and again.

The Son of Neptune introduces two new, highly-enjoyable characters, Hazel and Frank. Hazel is Pluto’s daughter, a compassionate girl suffering under a curse and a secret. Frank isn’t especially proud of his father, Mars, but his mother descends from a proud and gifted line that can be traced back to the Argonauts. Both will prove invaluable to Percy as the three make their way to the frozen north.

Predictably, the book ends with Jason Grace and the Greek force arriving to unite with Percy and his Roman force. Juno’s efforts to united all demigods has succeeded. Whether the gods, lead by a proud Jupiter, will unite with the demigods to defeat the powerful Gaea is yet to be seen.

Readers will enjoy Riordan’s humorous prose, solid character development, colorful friends and foes, and well-paced action. There are some shocking revelations and some cliff-hangers that have excited much anticipation in this reader.

Read other reviews:
Roof Beam Reader

Library copy | October 4, 2011 | Disney Hyperion Books | 544 pages | Ages 9-16 | ISBN 978-1423140597 | $19.99

Eight Keys by Suzanne LaFleur (2011)

One morning, after rushing to wash my face and brush my teeth with one hand, I left with only a few minute to catch the bus. I had to hurry, but instead, my steps got smaller and smaller, and slower and slower. By the time I got to the bus stop, nobody was there (p 41).

When I picked up LaFleur’s debut title, Love, Aubrey, the plot summary immediately put me in mind of another earlier book called Everything is Fine by Ann Dee Ellis. Regardless, LaFleur’s prose and delivery were satisfying. The plot summary of her follow-up book, Eight Keys, immediately brought to mind Jeremy Fink and the Meaning of Life by the charming Wendy Mass. But once again, LaFleur brings her own lovely prose and well-timed delivery to a tear-jerker of a story.

Elise’s mother died in childbirth. A year later, her father was diagnosed with cancer and given a year or two to live. Since she was three years old, Elise has been raised by her Aunt Bessie and Uncle Hugh. Every year, on her birthday, she is given a letter from her father.

But just before her twelfth birthday, everything changes. Her locker partner teases her, her best friend, Franklin, is considered babyish and her Aunt’s sister – with newborn baby in tow – comes to live with the family. Suddenly, Elise stops doing her homework, she frequently misses the bus and soon, Franklin and she are no longer friends.

Then Elise finds a key with her name on it. She soon discovers it opens one of the eight locked doors in her Uncle’s barn. What she finds will lead her into her past and allow her to solve her current crisis.

Though the keys (and the contents behind the locked doors) propel Elise toward discovery, the outstanding aspects of this novel are found in the portrayal of the bullying Elise suffers under, her change in disposition, the doubts begining to plague her and her struggles to be accepted. LaFleur evokes complex emotions without over-explaining. She writes about various topics in easily understandable and concise prose. While I was tearing up, the story itself is not overly maudlin. To some, this may seem a simple coming-of-age-story but I found it enjoyable and appropriate for those about to enter middle school.

Read my review of Love, Aubrey and Everything is Fine.

Read other reviews:
Kirkus
Publisher’s Weekly (starred)
Random Acts of Reading
So Many Books, So Little Time (includes an interview with LaFleur)

Library copy | August 9, 2011 | Wendy Lamb Books | 224 pages | ISBN 978-0385740302 | $16.99

Hidden by Helen Frost (2011)

Like a small rabbit
       that knows a cat is close by,
       I paid attention. I didn’t
                                                              twitch (p 5).

Eight year old Wren is listening to music and waiting for her mother, who is inside paying for the gas, when she hears a gunshot. Scared, she crawls under a blanket in the back seat of the minivan. That’s when Darra’s father climbs in and steals the car. Unaware of Wren, he hides the car in his garage. Locked and now hiding in a boat inside the garage, Wren learns a little about the angry and abusive man, West, who unknowingly abducted her and his family through over heard arguments. West’s daughter, Darra, leaves a sandwich for Wren but doesn’t give away her presence. On the second night, Wren is able to slip out via the cat’s door.

Six years later, the girls meet at a summer camp, recognizing each other instantly. What follows is an intense four weeks where the girls go from ignoring each other to facing their fears and misunderstandings to friendship.

The story is told in three parts. The first section is told in verse from Wren’s first person point of view and tells of the carjacking. Darra narrates the second part, in a different poetic voice,  telling of the fallout after Wren escapes the garage. The third and longest section splits narrators and covers the four weeks the girls spend together at Camp Oakwood. Not everything is as it seems, the girls soon learn.

This was a quick and engaging read, perfect for crime thriller fans and reluctant readers. I thought the details were a little sparse on the camp and the secondary characters weren’t very developed but that definitely wasn’t the focus of this story. The reader walks away knowing Wren and Darra and feeling much compassion for both.

Read other reviews at: Collecting Children’s Books, Fuse #8 and The Reading Zone.

Library copy | Farrar, Straus and Giroux | May 10, 2011 | 160 pages | ISBN 978-0374382216 | $16.99

The Boy at the End of the World by Greg van Eekhout (2011)

Fisher became born in a pod filled with bubbling gel. A plastic umbilical cord snaked from his belly. When he opened his eyes, the first thing he saw through the clear lid of the pod was destruction (p 1).

Fisher wakes from a pod Kyle XY-style in this futuristic dystopia for middle grade readers. Years after humans have destroyed Earth with their experiments, their climate-altering lifestyles, and their excess, Fisher finds a world overgrown with animals, plants and machines evolved. The Ark in which Fisher was grown has been destroyed. He is the only survivor. His only companion is a Robot named Click who activated Fisher’s pod and loaded the fisher’s personality into him.

Then he stumbles upon the reminants of Stragglers. Their writing leads him to a second Ark in the south. Though the journey is fraught with danger, Fisher knows the survival of the human race depends on his finding and possibly awakening other humans.

This is a fast-paced survival adventure with a nice splash of humor (which really works because of the delivery). It never breaks stride and I didn’t loose interest. As Fuse #8 points out, it helps that the book comes in at a concise 212 pages. A good recommend for those who have enjoyed Malice by Wooding or The Maze Runner by Dashner.

Read other reviews: Becky’s Book Review, Book Smugglers, Fuse #8, and Kirkus.

Library copy | June 21, 2011 | Bloomsbury USA Childrens | 224 pages | ISBN:978-1599905242 | $16.99

The Penderwicks at Point Mouette by Jeanne Birdsall (2011)

As he put together the clarinet, Skye stood and waved her arms in the general direction of the Birches, knowing that Jane would be watching and ready. By the time Jeffrey was beginning to play, he had a full audience — four girls to listen to him, cherish him, and wish they could keep him there forever, safe from the perilous world of grown ups (p 244).

Summer has come and for the first time, the Penderwicks will spend two weeks apart. The newly weds, Daddy and Iantha, are taking young Ben with them as they honeymoon in England. Rosalind will spend the time with a friend in New Jersey. That leaves Skye, Jane, and Batty (and their dog, Hound) to spend two weeks with their Aunt Claire in Maine. Jeffrey will join them, if his mother can spare him.

Skye couldn’t be more nervous about taking over OAP (Oldest Available Penderwick) responsibilities. Jane is determined to write a Sabrina Starr romance story, and Batty is desolate without Ben and Rosalind.

Fans of Birdsall’s preceeding two Penderwick books will snuggle lovingly back into her world. She transitions between Penderwick narrators effortlessly, taking us into the unique minds of these delightful girls (and occassionally their dog). I especially enjoyed seeing more of Jeffery (introduced in the first novel). Read more from Kirkus.

Library copy (print) | Knopf Books for Young Readers | May 10, 2011 | 304 pages | Ages 8-12 | ISBN: 978-0375858512 | $16.99

No Passengers Beyond this Point by Gennifer Choldenko (2011)

Ever since I found out they kicked Pluto out of the planets, I have not been feeling so sure about a lot of things (p 26).

Twelve-year-old Finn has noticed his mother struggling but it comes as a surprise when she informs Finn and his sisters, fourteen-year-old India and brainy little Mouse, they must leave California to live with their Uncle Red in Colorado. With their house repossessed by the bank, the siblings have no choice. Finn must abandon his basketball team. India must part with her best friend Maddy, and Mouse can’t take her explosion equipment. Their mother, staying behind to finish teaching out the school year, will join them later.

But the children don’t arrive in Colorado. Instead, they travel down the proverbial rabbit hole when their plane lands in Falling Bird, a seemingly nonsensical world where the children find their dream houses awaiting them, crowds cheering their arrival, and an idealized version of a mother or father attending them (reminiscent of Coraline).

This is an enjoyable adventure for early chapter book readers exploring the importance of family, individuality, and responsibility. It’s twilight-zonish conclusion provides a quick but somber explanation.