Barb's Picks

One Crazy Summer by Rita Williams-Garcia

2011-11-16T13:25:00.004-05:00

I finally got around to reading this Newbery Honor book, and I'm glad I did! Delphine is eleven, and is used to "mothering" her younger sisters. Their own mother left them when Fern, the youngest, was a newborn baby, and now the three sisters are flying on their own to California to visit a mother they haven't seen or heard from since that day. Cecile didn't want her kids then, and she doesn't want them now, and it's up to Delphine to make sure they get fed (though Cecile won't let them in her kitchen) and stay out of trouble (though Cecile sends them to the Black Panthers center every day to get them out of her way). It's the final straw, though, when Cecile is arrested with two members of the Black Panthers, and Delphine and her sisters are really on their own.

Darth Paper Strikes Back by Tom Angleberger

2011-09-23T13:11:00.001-04:00

Not only has Harvey created an origami Darth Vader to battle with Dwight's Origami Yoda, Dwight gets kicked out of school and might be sent to the school for juvenile delinquents! His friends prepare a new case file to explain to the school board why Origami Yoda (and Dwight) are needed at McQuarrie Middle School, but Harvey threatens to write a letter proving that Dwight really deserves to be punished. Tommy is doing the best he can, but can he win out over the Dark Side? A great sequel to Origami Yoda!

Hero of Hawaii by Graham Salisbury

2011-09-01T19:20:00.002-04:00

Calvin Coconut and his friend Willy think the hurricane is great--until Willy is swept away down the river and into the sea! With no time to wait for help, Calvin sets off in his small rowboat to the rescue.

The Boneshaker by Kate Milford

2011-04-28T12:50:00.002-04:00

This is an unusual book--you need to jump on, hang in there and trust the author, just as Natalie Minks has to do the same and trust herself to learn to ride the "boneshaker", an unusual, old-fashioned bicycle. When a strange, sinister travelling carnival comes to town, selling cure-alls to the townspeople, Natalie must thwart the Devil himself to save her town.

Where the Streets Had a Name by Randa Adbel-Fattah

2011-02-09T16:08:00.002-05:00

I really liked this book--I love reading about real, modern-day kids in other countries,and I like stories where people are presented realistically, not in a phony good-guy/bad-guy scenario. This book meets both criteria wonderfully! Hayaat and her best friend, Samy, live in Bethlehem and have hatched a plan to travel to Jerusalem to visit her grandmother's former home--but it is illegal for them to go into Jerusalem. Even a trip to a neighboring town takes hours because of the checkpoints residents must go through to travel short distances, and because of the wall that now separates families and former neighbors. But Hayaat knows her grandmother can never return to Jerusalem to visit her beloved home--confiscated by the Israeli government and turned over to Jewish settlers--so Hayaat is determined to bring back some Jerusalem soil in a jar. Things don't quite go as planned, and both Samy and Hayaat come to terms with some painful past experiences on the journey.

The Danger Box by Blue Balliett

2011-01-18T11:20:00.002-05:00

Zoomy has never met his father, so when he shows up suddenly with a stolen truck, a mysterious box and a nasty attitude, Zoomy is both intrigued and a little scared. The box contains an old notebook filled with crossed-out lists and names of strange places, but no identification. Zoomy also keeps notebooks and lists, and crossing things off keeps him balanced. He wants to know more about the mysterious author of this old journal, but he can only make out a few words--names of strange places--wehre in the world is Galapagos? But someone else is also interested in this old journal, and will do almost anything to find it. You may guess the author of the journal before Zoomy does, but the suspensful plot and the characters of Zoomy, his loving grandparents, his new friend Lorrel will keep you reading right up to the end!

The Strange Case of Origami Yoda by Tom Angleberger

2011-01-18T10:51:00.003-05:00

Dwight is a total loser, who acts weirder than any other 6th grader at Tommy's school. But when Dwight puts on his origami Yoda finger puppet, everyone starts getting wise advice--is it really coming from Yoda, or can it possibly be coming from Dwight--who could use a little wise advice himself! Tommy is determined to figure this out, and interviews all the kids who have gotten advice from origami Yoda. Some believe it's the Force, others scoff--but whether you think origami Yoda or Dwight is delivering the advice, enjoy this book you will!

A Long Walk to Water by Linda Sue Park

2010-12-16T14:57:00.005-05:00

Imagine having to walk almost all day to and from a muddy pond to fetch water for your family--every single day--like Nya does. Imagine having to run away from your home, your family, and your school to escape the soldiers that are attacking, like Salva does. Two stories from two different times in Sudan eventually bring Nya and Salva together, and Nya knows that her life will be changed forever!

I Am a Taxi by Deborah Ellis

2010-10-04T12:32:00.002-04:00

Diego works as a "taxi", running errends for the women at the prison where he lives with his mother and little sister. He's a good businessman--honest and trustworthy, and makes sure he knows up front what he will be paid for his work. His father is in the men's prison, and Diego thinks longingly of the life his family had on their Bolivian farm before his parents were arrested for a crime they didn't commit. Diego knows he should follow his own good business rules, but his friend Mando is trying to convince him to work for strangers for "big money"--without knowing what the job is, where it is, or what they will be paid. Ellis offers an eye-opening look at life for children living in Bolivian prisons and the reality behind international drug-trafficking.

The Trolls, by Polly Horvath

2010-09-17T11:41:00.004-04:00

Melissa, Amanda and Pee Wee Anderson can tell that their father is reluctant to let his sister, their Aunt Sally, babysit while Mr. and Mrs. Anderson vacation in Paris. But, they have no other options when the regular babysitter comes down with a case of the bubonic plague! They've never met Aunt Sally, and she is not at all what they expected. Suddenly, green beans seem like the most enjoyable treat ever, and Aunt Sally's stories about her childhood keep them entranced. Can her stories about trolls on the beach really be true? And why does their father seem to dislike Sally so much when the children find her enchanting? I loved the humor and realistic family relationships in this story by the author of Everything on a Waffle and My One Hundred Adventures.

A Nest for Celeste by Henry Cole

2010-09-02T16:39:00.002-04:00

Celeste is a mouse who lives under the floorboards of the Oakley plantation house in Louisiana in the 1820s. John James Audubon is a painter whose illustrations of birds and other wildlife will one day make him famous. Along with his young assistant, Joseph, Audubon is staying with the Oakleys while he paints the birds of the area, including Celeste's friend Lafayette the osprey, and Cornelius the wood thrush. Joseph misses his family, and when he finds Celeste, he finds the friend he has been looking for--but adventures are in store for Celeste, and she finds that some friendships won't last forever.

Millions by Frank Cottrell Boyse

2010-07-19T12:13:00.002-04:00

Damian only wants to do what's right, so when a big bag full of money seems to fall right out of the sky onto his cardboard box hideout, he starts looking for ways to use it to help others. His brother, Anthony, has other ideas and soon all the kids at school are selling their toys and renting their bikes to Anthony and Damian. But time is running out--British pounds, in this story, will be traded in for Euros soon, and the boys have to spend as much as they can. I loved the movie, but the book (as always) is even better--funny in that dry British way, with great characters and no easy answers. What would you do with millions?

Barb's Favorites

2010-05-13T19:07:00.004-04:00

Wondering what Barb's favorite fiction and non-fiction books are? Hoping to win the Children's Book Week Contest? Want a hint? How about we make it easy for you...here they are!

I love all the Casson family books by Hilary McKay, but Indigo's Star is my favorite of the series. The first one is Saffy's Angel. Not only is The Spatulatta Cookbook a great cookbook for kids, but you will love the humor of the Isabella and Olivia, the sisters who wrote the book and have their own cooking website.

Leaving Gee's Bend by Irene Latham

2010-05-08T12:00:00.002-04:00

Ludelphia Bennett has never been outside Gee's Bend, Alabama, though she's ten years old. But when her mother becomes deathly ill, Ludelphia risks taking the ferry raft across the Alabama River to find a doctor--even though her family has no money to pay him. The flood-swollen river pulls the ferry loose, and Ludelphia, who never learned to swim, is swept far downstream. All her determination is needed to get safely to town and overcome both the river and an enemy she didn't even know she had.

The Small Adventures of Popeye and Elvis

2010-02-25T19:40:00.002-05:00

Popeye is bored, and is looking at a long summer of being bored--until he sees, stuck in the mud by the side of the road, a huge, glittering Holiday Rambler motor home filled with rambunctious kids, a country-western song-writing mom, and a dad who can't seem to get that Holiday Rambler unstuck. Popeye's summer starts looking up, and becomes even more adventurous when he, his dog Boo, and his new friend Elvis find mysterious messages floating down the wooded stream behind his house--in boats made from Yoo-Hoo drink boxes!

Three Cups of Tea: Young Reader's Edition by Greg Mortenson

2010-02-05T11:39:00.005-05:00

The people of the remote village of Korphe, Pakistan have no school. Their children gather together to study as best they can, and the village can afford to pay a teacher to come three times a week. American mountain climber Greg Mortenson never thought much about the lives of the people in the villages around the mountains, until he stumbles into Korphe after becoming lost and nearly dying while climbing K-2, the second highest mountain in the world. He is cared for by the villagers, and recovers his health--and promises to return and build them a school. What happens next changes the lives of the people of Korphe, of people in many other remote villages in Pakistan and Afghanistan, and most of all the life of Greg Mortenson.

You can also read a picture-book version of the story of Greg Mortenson and the schools he helped to build in Listen to the Wind by Greg Mortenson and Susan Roth.

Two Old Favorites

2010-02-02T19:16:00.007-05:00

The Joey Pigza books by Jack Gantos. Joey's family is dysfunctional, and Joey has problems at school and at home because he has ADHD, but Joey himself is someone you can't help but like.

The Wolves of Willoughby Chase by Joan Aiken. Bonnie's parents are lost at sea, and wicked Miss Slighcarp is taking advantage of their absence to usurp their mansion and the family fortune. Bonnie's cousin Sylvia and her friend Simon must outwit Miss Slighcarp and the wolves that are marauding England.

Three new ones

2010-01-29T14:53:00.006-05:00

Love, Aubrey by Suzanne LaFleur. Aubrey's mother simply left. There's hardly any food in the cupboard or the fridge. Aubrey knows if she answers the phone or the door, someone will find out she's alone and call Children's Services. But it is her grandmother who comes to her rescue. Not only does Aubrey have to cope with a new home and new school, she has to come to terms with her mother abandoning her and the car accident that killed her father and sister.

The Crimson Cap by Ellen Howard. Pierre and his family are proud to sail from France with famed explorer LaSalle in search of the mouth of the Mississippi River--but they miss their destination, landing far off course in Spanish territory. Their supply ships sink, cutting off their return to France, and the small band of settlers is ravaged by disease and hunger. Though Pierre is only 11, he is one of the few fit enought to venture out to seek help. Based on actual events and people, this book reveals the reality of early European explorations in North America.

Aurora County All-Stars by Deborah Wiles. Aurora County doesn't have enough players for a Little League team, but they do play one game each year against the Raleigh Redbugs. Last year, team captain and pitcher House Jackson couldn't play--and it was all Frances Schotz's fault. It looks like she will ruin everything again this year, planning a pageant on July 4th, the same day and time as the big game. House's best friend Cleebo is mad at him, too--but House thinks he has a good reason for keeping secrets from his friend. Everything seems to be falling on House's shoulders this summer, and he's not sure how to fix things so that everyone will be happy.

Umbrella Summer by Lisa Graff

2010-01-12T16:03:00.002-05:00

When Annie Richards rides her bike these days she not only wears a helmet, she wears elbow pads, knee pads--and Ace bandages wrapped around her ankles. Ever since her brother Jared died, she is extra careful--in fact, maybe riding her bike, even very slowly, is too dangerous. Maybe, she decides, she should just walk. Annie's parents aren't dealing with Jared's death very well, either. But a new neighbor, some persistent friends, and a good book help Annie out, and Annie gives her parents some help, too.

The Wee Free Men by Terry Pratchett

2009-12-18T16:20:00.003-05:00

I listened to this one, and I can highly recommend the recording--the Free Men (small, blue, rude, cantankerous men with Scottish accents) are hilarious as read by Stephen Briggs. Young Tiffany enlists the help of the Wee Free Men to rescue her baby brother and stop wicked elves from taking over the world.

Where the Mountain Meets the Moon by Grace Lin

2009-11-19T19:43:00.002-05:00

How far would you travel to get your heart's desire? Minli is not even sure how long the journey will be, but she is determined to find the Old Man of the Moon, hoping that he will grant her family good fortune. Maybe then her discontented mother will no longer complain about how little rice there is to eat, and how thin the walls of their house are, and how shabby their clothing is. Along the way, Minli meets a dragon who can't fly, and together they set off, each with their own wish for the Old Man of the Moon.

A Season of Gifts by Richard Peck

2009-10-21T14:15:00.004-04:00

Bob's family has just moved in, and his little sister Ruth Ann thinks the house next door is haunted. His older sister Phyllis is worried about starting high school as the new kid, and his parents are worried about how they will start up a new church in the ramshackle shell of a building they have to work with. Bob, not the bravest kid in any circumstance, is plagued by the town bullies. That seems like a lot for Mrs. Dowdel to handle--but if you think that, you don't know Mrs. Dowdel! Set in 1958, This sequel to A Long Way from Chicago and A Year Down Yonder gives us another hilarious tale of Grandma Dowdel and her unusual methods of making sure everything turns out exactly as it should.

Finding Stinko by Michael de Guzman

2009-08-27T17:27:00.003-04:00

Newboy is on the run from his foster home, hasn't spoken in years, and all he has in the world is $27.40 and a beat-up copy of Robinson Crusoe--until he finds Stinko. Stinko is only a wooden ventriloquist's dummy, but once he's paired up with Stinko, Newboy finds that he can talk again. The dangerous world of young runaways in New York City becomes bearable with Stinko, and with Newboy's new friends, Penny, Hacker and Peeper. This is a quick read with lots of action and great characters.

Calvin Coconut: Trouble Magnet by Graham Salisbury

2009-08-20T13:48:00.005-04:00

Calvin's heart is in the right place, so why is it that he is always getting in trouble? He's already made a bad impression on Stella, the mainlander teen who has come to live with Calvin and his mom and little sister in Hawaii. School has just started, but already Calvin has attracted the attention of Tito, the school bully--and where did Calvin's pet centipede go? It was in its jar just a minute ago!Beginning chapter book readers will enjoy a look at ordinary life in Hawaii and will laugh along with Calvin at his misadventures.

Vacation Reads

2009-08-10T11:20:00.012-04:00

Just got back to work from a week-long vacation, so I had lots of time to read. A few of my favorites:

The Last Castaways by Harry Horse was delightful. Told in the form of letters from Grandpa to "Dear Child", it tells the adventures (and misadventures) of Grandpa and his little dog, Roo. And it is because of Roo that they end up on board the ship Unsinkable with Roo as captain, then tossed in a storm, befriended by a whale, chased by a shark and cast away on an island. Fun and funny.

Author Ruth White created a story out of her own past, with her sister Audrey as the narrator in Little Audrey. Life in coal country mountains in Virginia is tough, made tougher by bullies in Audrey's school and by her harsh father. But Audrey's beloved teacher and her new friend Virgil help Audrey make it through the toughest times.

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The Red Blazer Girls, Sophie, Margaret, Rebecca and Leigh Ann have a mystery to solve. A priceless ring is missing and there are clues to follow, and these students at St. Veronica's are determined to find it. Mixed in with the mystery are humor and just a touch of romance in this up-to-date version of a Nancy Drew-style mystery

It's great to be back from vacation, and load up with a new batch of books!

Make Way for Dyamonde Daniel by Nikki Grimes

2009-07-30T12:17:00.002-04:00

If you like Junie B., Amber Brown, Clementine, and Gooney Bird Greene, you'll like Dyamonde Daniel! She's smart, and doesn't worry about what people think. Everyone else is scared of Free, the new kid in school, but Dyamonde decides to find out what's making him so grumpy and mean.

Heart of a Shepherd by Rosanne Parry

2009-07-30T12:14:00.003-04:00

Perfect.
(Thanks, Kim--I never would have picked this up. I will write "You can't judge a book by its cover" 100 times.)

The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman

2009-07-18T16:42:00.000-04:00

Raised by ghosts from toddlerhood, Nobody Owens can't safely go beyond the graveyard gates because someone is out to kill him--the same someone that murdered his family! With his only human friend, Scarlett, 'Bod' must solve the mystery of those long-ago murders in order to rejoin the world of the living. Also available in Playaway audiobook.

Gooney Bird Is So Absurd by Lois Lowry

2009-07-18T16:39:00.000-04:00

If you haven’t read the Gooney Bird Greene books, you have to give them a try! This is the latest in the series, and Gooney Bird is still setting the trends in Mrs. Pigeon’s second grade class—this time, wearing ruffled underwear on her head to warm up her brain for poetry writing. Soon, everyone is wearing underwear on their heads--they need to warm up their brains to help Mrs. Pigeon through a very tough time.

My One Hundered Adventures by Polly Horvath

2009-07-18T16:21:00.000-04:00

Jane loves her house by the sea, her mother and brothers and sister, the ripe strawberries and oysters that her mother harvests from the wild, and always the sound of the sea. But she also longs for adventures—for something out of the ordinary. Is that why she finds herself aloft, alone in a hot air balloon, dropping Bibles to the people below, and having her fortune told by a mysterious stranger? Life does take some unusual twists for Jane the summer she prays to have one hundred adventures, and things will never be the same.

The 39 Clues: The Maze of Bones by Rick Riordan

2009-07-18T15:14:00.000-04:00

Which would you choose--a million dollars, or the chance to be the most powerful person in the world? Amy and Dan Cahill have to make the choice after their beloved grandmother dies and leaves her relatives invitations to solve the 39 clues to ultimate power or to take one million dollars. Amy is scared, and Dan really wants that million--but they decide to take the challenge just to prove to their obnoxious and evil relatives that they have the courage. Take the challeng yourself by logging onto www.the39clues.com and you may win part of the $100,000 prize yourself!

Where the Steps Were by Andrea Cheng

2009-07-18T15:10:00.000-04:00

Third graders in Miss D.'s class at Pleasant Hill school know their school will be torn down at the end of this year. Six of them tell their stories; about school, their lives, their friendships and squabbles, and their teacher, through the seasons of the school year.

July 2009: The Evolution of Calpurnia Tate by Jacquiline Kelly

2009-07-09T09:12:00.000-04:00

My pick so far for the Newbery! Calpurnia Virginia Tate, or Callie Vee, is the only girl in the middle of seven children, in a small Texas town at the end of the 19th century. She deftly negotiates relationships with her exacting mother, her demanding brothers, and her distracted but fond father--but she is terrified of her gruff grandfather. That is, until she discovers that they have something in common--their love of observing nature. Callie spends more and more time with her grandfather, learning the scientific method, but is becoming more and more aware that she is expected to devote her life to housekeeping and needlework skills. You'll love getting to know Callie and you'll hope for a sequel!

July 2009: Cosmic by Frank Cottrell Boyce

2009-07-06T10:15:00.000-04:00

Liam is tall for his age--he's only 12, but people are always assuming he's an adult. He's even mistaken for the new teacher on the first day of school. One great thing about being so tall is that he can go on the really scary rides at the fun parks. When he and his classmate Florida pretend to be father and daughter to win a trip to the greatest new fun park in the world--somewhere in China--they get a scary ride that's out of this world, literally. They are on a real rocket, with only kids aboard, and everything has gone terribly wrong. Can Liam be the "dad" he's pretending to be and get this rocketship full of kids back to Earth safe and sound?