Secret of Rover - Review

Review:

Katie & David Bowden's parents are off to Katkajan to pick up the baby girl they are adopting. The kids don't quite trust the nanny who will be taking care of them while their parents are gone (especially Katie). But they keep quiet about it so their parents don't worry. Turns out, Katie was right, their parents have been kidnapped and Trixie is a Katkajan rebel in on the plan.

This is an thrilling story about two kids who are determined to help their parents, no matter what. There is plenty of edge of your seat excitement. And there are some especially harrowing moments for Katie & David. I enjoyed experiencing this adventure with them.

Recommended to:
This book will appeal to fans of adventure stories, especially in grades 6-8.

Original post: readingismyescape.booklikes.com/post/1236416/secret-of-rover-review

A Snicker of Magic - Review

Review:

"Some books are magic that way. Your body stays right here, hiding in a tree, tucked away in a closet, sitting up against a crumbling old building." Florentine grinned. "But good stories take your heart someplace else. My body'd never been out of south Georgia. But my heart lived everywhere. I'd live a hundred lives without ever leaving my tree.
--Chapter 14

Okay, so this story wasn't about the magic of reading, but I really liked that quote.

Felicity's mom doesn't like to stay in one place too long. They are forever moving to new towns and changing schools. Felicity and her little sister Frannie have gotten used to moving, but this time, they move to the town of Midnight Gulch, Tennessee. Mama grew up here and this town was full of magic. But now, most of the magic is gone - there is only a "snicker' of magic left. Felicity has a bit of her own magic, she sees words and collects them.

At exactly that moment, I saw my first word of the day:
Believe
The letters were made of melted sunshine. They dripped down the window glass, warm and tingly against our faces.

Felicity is a great character and her new friend Jonah is magical himself. He knows what people need and he helps them anonymously. Felicity meets a lot of magical people in Midnight Gulch.

This is a very cute story. I fell in love with Midnight Gulch, a quiet town that happens to make amazing ice cream (oh and it won't melt for 24 hours). Dr. Zook's ice cream, in 45 marvelous and mysterious flavors, including, Chocolate Chip Pork Rind, Orangie's Caramel Apple Pie and Andy's Snickerdoodle Sucker Punch. The ice cream has a bit of magic as well, one of the flavors even brings back memories. If this was a real place, I would want to live there.

In Midnight Gulch, Felicity finds family, a best friend and a sense of belonging. She doesn't want to move again. But how can she get Mama to stay? She can see the wandering look in Mama's eyes already.

Home isn't just a house or a city or a place; home is what happens when you're brave enough to love people.

Recommended to:
Readers in grades 3-5 who like their realistic stories with a touch of magic.

Original post: readingismyescape.booklikes.com/post/1235717/a-snicker-of-magic-review

Wednesday Wars - review

Review:

Holling Hoodhood is really in for it. He's just started seventh grade with Mrs. Baker, a teacher he knows it out to get him. Why else would she make him read Shakespeare . . . outside of class?
The year is 1967, and everyone has bigger things to worry about. There's Vietnam for one thing, and then there's the family business. As far as Holling's father is concerned, nothing is more important than the family business. In fact, all the Hoodhoods must be on their best behavior at all times. The success of Hoodhood and Associates depends on it. But how can Holling stay out of trouble when he has Mrs. Baker to contend with?
-from the back cover

This was one of my son's summer reading books (he is going into 7th grade). His school just read The Tempest last year and Holling was reading it for the first part of this book. So, my son "got" a lot of the Shakespeare references and he even knew how to pronounce the rats' names (Sycorax & Caliban). I had no idea how to pronounce them.

I felt sorry for Holling. His parents didn't seem to care much about anything he did. They didn't show up for any event he was involved in. His father was more concerned with his business and having the "perfect house" than anything else. Mrs. Baker (Holling's teacher) ended up being more of a parent to him than his parents.

This was a good historical fiction story about a boy growing up in the era of Vietnam and dealing with growing up issues in 7th grade.

Recommended to:
Middle grade students who like historical fiction or stories about growing up (especially boys - MC is a boy).

Original post: readingismyescape.booklikes.com/post/1232319/wednesday-wars-review

The infamous loom...

Original post: readingismyescape.booklikes.com/post/1230753/the-infamous-loom

Reading...

Reblogged from: H

Original post: readingismyescape.booklikes.com/post/1229626/reading

Which Winnie the Pooh quote describes you?

Thanks to RedThaws Reads Randomly for finding this. :)

“If you live to be a hundred, I want to live to be a hundred minus one day so I never have to live without you.”

You have someone or some people in your life that you love and care about more than anything. There's nothing you wouldn't do for them. Saying goodbye to them for a day is hard enough so you could not imagine how you would feel saying goodbye to them forever. You have been through every aspect of life together and are practically inseparable. Whether a parent, a brother, a sister, a best friend, you make the most of your day and theirs by spending time with them and simply having a great time. It's a great feeling to know you have people who would do just the same for you.

This was so cute. I think this is pretty spot on for me. 

Click the link if you want to try...

Which Winnie the Pooh quote should you live by?

Original post: readingismyescape.booklikes.com/post/1229625/which-winnie-the-pooh-quote-describes-you

Eight doors to secrets of the past...

Review:

A good friend is one of the hardest things to keep in this life. Don't forget that sometimes you have to work at it. --Chapter 19

Sometimes you are friends with someone just because you're used to it, and maybe you forget why it happened in the first place.--Chapter 9 

Trying to figure out why things change is probably even harder than trying to figure out how they started.--Chapter 9

Elise is starting 6th grade. She is trying to figure out who she is and who she wants to be. Both her parents are dead and she was raised by her Aunt & Uncle. When she turns 12, she finds a key to one of the 8 locked rooms above the barn. When she opens the first one, she realizes that her father left the key and the room for her. And, there are 7 more locked rooms, but where are the keys? This is a good time for Elise to find out more about her father. She is having difficulty with school, with bullying and with figuring out how to be a good friend.

This is a cute story and Elise is a nice girl, but she makes some not so nice decisions. Still, she is a likable character. There isn't much new or exciting in this story but it is a enjoyable read. Elise grows and learns a lot during the course of the story about who she is and who she wants to be.

Recommended to:
Young girls in grades 3-6 will enjoy this story. I think it will help them learn more about empathy and how to be a friend.

Original post: readingismyescape.booklikes.com/post/1228195/eight-doors-to-secrets-of-the-past

Reblogged from: Spare Ammo

Original post: readingismyescape.booklikes.com/post/1227223/post

Unexpectedly Magical...

Review:

The eighth day was filled with horrible people who blew up entire families during engagement parties, used blood for magic, and imprisoned a teenage girl just because her ten-times-great-grandfather had been a legendary wizard.
-- Chapter 17

This book. Wow. I really enjoyed it and I'm excited to read book 2. In fact, I'll be checking the library for it as soon as I'm done here. I knew the story was going to involve some magic, but I had no idea. This book takes the legend of King Arthur, Merlin, and the Lady of the Lake and uses it to create a brand new story.

Jax is a great character. He is dealing with the loss of his parents and living with a new guardian that he doesn't like and isn't even family. One day, everyone has disappeared and Jax has no idea what is happening. For all he knows, he is the last person left alive. Turns out he is a transitioner - a person who can live in both the normal seven days and in the eighth day. He gradually learns the secrets of the 8th day and more about who his father was. He makes some naive mistakes that I knew were going to be a problem, but they fit in well with his character.

The last third of this book had me on the edge of my seat and I could not put it down.

This book is a fun, quick read; like a fairy tale retelling (which I love), but with the legend of King Arthur as inspiration. It is an original idea and the author did a great job with it.

Recommended to:
Grades 5 - 8. A fabulous fun story that kids will enjoy. Takes the excitement of the King Arthur legend and brings the magic into the current day.

Original post: readingismyescape.booklikes.com/post/1224471/unexpectedly-magical

Hmmmm...

Review:

Sometimes when you brace yourself for a storm, you get a gentle breeze. The storm only comes when you're braced for nothing whatsoever.
-- page 16

Knowing that, in a thousand years, nothing you're doing or not doing will matter frees you up to do what your heart tells you to do.
-- page 189

Julian Twerski (aka Twerp), was involved in some sort of bullying incident and his English teacher has him writing about what happened to help him understand it better. Because, from what we know, Julian is a good kid who made the wrong choice. It takes most of the book for Julian to finally write about the incident. In the mean time, we get insight into his decision making process and what goes through his mind.

I must say that I almost stopped reading in Chapter 1 when Julian starts to recount an incident with his friend Lonnie and a pigeon.

Let's just say I was cringing through the entire chapter. Though it wasn't as bad as I thought it was going to be. Anyway, Julian just seems like a dumb kid who is easily influenced by others. But as he writes down the things that happen in his everyday life, he seems to grow and learn.

I don't really have much to say about this book. It was ok. If you want to read a book about bullying or about kids learning to listen to that little voice in their heads instead of what their friends are telling them to do, there are better books out there. I didn't really connect with the characters or even like them very much. I get that Julian is a "good boy" but in the end, I don't get why he did the things he did in the first place. If that makes any sense.

Recommended to:
I would rather recommend Bystander by James Preller.

Original post: readingismyescape.booklikes.com/post/1219733/hmmmm

Original post: readingismyescape.booklikes.com/post/1217396/post

Seeing red indeed...

Review:

Discover the past, 

understand the present, 

change the future.

The thing is, when you get over the flu, everything goes back to normal. When your daddy dies, nothing is ever going to be normal again.

-Chapter 14

The above is not a spoiler. The fist sentence in this book talks about Red's dad dying. Red was really close with his dad. They fixed cars together in their shop. Now that Red's dad is dead, Red's mom is trying to figure out how to survive without him. They are living in rural Virginia in the era of the Vietnam War. African Americans and women still don't have many rights and are still widely discriminated against.

Red's mom is planning to sell the house, shop & store and move them all to Ohio where her family lives. Red is very angry about her trying to sell and move. He wants to stay where he is. Being in the shop where he worked with his dad really keeps him connected. He still talks to his dad when he is in the shop.

So, this is a historical fiction book. Not my favorite genre, but this is one of the Sunshine State 2015-16 grade 6-8 nominees. And I am trying to read all of them. This is a well-written story about a 6th grade boy trying to deal with the loss of his father. He is also trying to find his way in a confusing world filled with hatred and bigotry. He learns a great deal and grows up a lot in this book. It's a good book, just not one of my favorites.

Recommended to:
Grade 6 and up. There is some violence and race issues that may be difficult and confusing for younger readers.

Original post: readingismyescape.booklikes.com/post/1216453/seeing-red-indeed

Reblogged from: E.

I'm hoping this is common sense by now, but just in case there are people out there that think it's cool to leave an animal in a car on even a semi-warm day, watch this.

Original post: readingismyescape.booklikes.com/post/1212190/post

Creepy....

Review:

At the far end of the lawn stood the Windsor mansion. The house had obviously been left vacant for some years, and in that time it seemed to have become one with the landscape. Ivy choked the walls and windows. The roof was sagging and covered in black moss.

But strangest of all was the tree.

The tree was enormous and looked very, very old. Most trees invite you to climb up into their canopy. This one did not. Most trees make you want to carve your initials into the trunk. This one did not. To stand in the shadow of this tree was to feel a chill run through your whole body.

Talk about setting the mood. Shivers anyone?

This story creeped me out. I mean, it's written for middle graders, so it wasn't that scary but, still. The Night Gardener is ghoulish and he has powers. He is in the house at night while everyone is sleeping and most of the family doesn't even notice. I mean how can that not be creepy? I was enthralled by the story and kept trying to figure out exactly what was going on.

Molly (14 years old) and Kip (11 years old) have just arrived at the Windsor mansion. Molly is there to start her job as housekeeper, but mostly because they need a place to stay. They didn't expect such a creepy house and such a strange family. But, at this point, they don't have much choice. Molly takes care of Kip and tells stories to make him feel better. She is an excellent storyteller.

Molly & Kip are from Ireland and they have a different way of talking. This book is set around the time of the potato famine in Ireland (around the 1840's). I didn't find their language distracting, but I have seen reviews that said it was an issue for some. They drop the g's (somethin' instead of something), their grammar is bad and they say dinna & canna which mean something like don't and can't.


Recommended to:
Anyone who likes creepy stories. Probably for grades 6 and up. But, if your 5th grader is a big fan of scary stories, this would be fine for them.

Original post: readingismyescape.booklikes.com/post/1211587/creepy