The pre-adventures of Peter Pan continue, and they’re just as fun and fantastic in Peter and the Shadow Thieves as they are in book one. Peter chose to stay in Never Land with the lost boys rather than live with Molly and her family in London. But when he learns the Others (evil ones who seek to […]
The High King (Chronicles of Prydain, 5) by Lloyd Alexander, 1968
I’ve so enjoyed this series. If you’ve never read it, check out my other reviews (scroll to bottom) then get thee to a library and check out book one. These are among the cream of the crop in children’s literature, and all five books are chock full of fantastic adventure and fabulous writing. They relate […]
When You Reach Me, by Rebecca Stead, 2009, Book Review
Miranda and Sal are best friends, until the day they are not. Until the day Sal takes a punch to the stomach. Until the first day of the story she must write in a letter…to someone. Suddenly, Sal no longer wants to walk to school with Miranda, and the first of four strange notes appear. […]
Nick of Time, by Ted Bell, 2008, Book Review
Do you like fast-paced adventure? I’ve read few middle grade novels more exciting than Nick of Time. It’s 1939 and Nick McIver is twelve years old. The Nazis threaten England and the rest of Europe like a black cloud, and U-boats traverse the English Channel on which Nick has spent his whole life as the […]
Peter and the Starcatchers (Starcatchers Series, book 1), Dave Barry and Ridley Pearson, 2004, Book Review
If you like Peter Pan, or if you love funny, fantastic middle grade fiction, I highly recommend you read this series. This is a reread for me, and the books are as delightful the second time through as they were the first. My daughter claims them as her all-time favorites. This series is where you […]
Dead End in Norvelt, Jack Gantos, 2011, Book Review
Dead End is a worthy title for this book. It deals with death on several levels, but it’s done in a comic, light-hearted way. Jack Gantos, age 12, lives in a town started for the poor by Eleanor Roosevelt during the Great Depression. It’s a socialist type of community (communist, as Jack’s dad, who desperately wants […]
Taran Wanderer (Chronicles of Prydain, 4) by Lloyd Alexander, 1967
“Who am I?” That is the question Taran seeks to answer in book four of the Chronicles of Prydain. Taran has already had many adventures, fought many foes, won several battles, and fallen in love with Princess Eilonwy. He is held in high esteem by all who know him, yet he is still an Assistant […]
Number the Stars, by Lois Lowry, 1989
Annemarie lives in Copenhagen, Denmark. It is 1943. Her best friend, Ellen Rosen, is Jewish. This is a beautifully told story appropriate for fourth graders. It is sweet in it’s own way, and pulse-poundingly adventurous, though not in a way I’d ever want to experience for myself. It is a deadly serious look at how […]
Out From Boneville (Bone, book one), by Jeff Smith, 2005
I’ve heard good things about this series of easy graphic novels from several sources. And I admit book one was engaging. Fone Bone is a cute little white critter that reminds me a bit of Casper the ghost. He’s even-tempered, reasonable and likeable. But he, along with his cousins Phoney Bone and Smiley Bone, are […]
The Island Stallion, by Walter Farley, 1948, Book Review
After rereading The Black Stallion a few weeks ago (read my review), I had to revisit my second favorite book by Mr. Farley. This is the first of a companion series, one I put off reading as a child because after cruising through a dozen books featuring the Black, my loyalties were firmly entrenched. I […]