The Tryout

by Christina Soontornvat

Love this completely accurate portrayal of middle school in the south. Soontornvat is on fire right now--all her books are winners. Anyone who has ever lived through middle school will find something to relate to in this book!

 

Three Times Lucky

by Sheila Turnage

Moses, better known as Mo, never knew her mother. Her adoptive father, whom she calls The Colonel, claims to have found her floating down the river in a hurricane. Her mother figure, Miss Lana, runs a cafe in their small, quaint, North Carolina town. Mo and her best friend Dale already consider themselves detectives of a sort--they pride themselves on knowing everyone's business and finding lost pets. But when a man in their neighborhood, a frequent customer of the cafe, gets murdered on the same night Dale "borrows" his boat, they find themselves in a heap of trouble. Really great writing and fun, colorful characters, although the mystery gets a bit convoluted towards the end.

Aru Shah and the End of Time

by Roshani Chokshi

Aru Shah is a little sassy. When her mother tells her never to light the lamp in the Hall of Ancient Indian Art and Culture where they both work, Aru, of course, doesn't listen. She's determined to impress some jerks from her middle school, but accidentally awakens the Sleeper, which could be the end of the world as we know it. Oops! Apparently she is the reincarnation of one of the legendary Pandava brothers, and it's up to her and her (previously unbeknownst to her) sister Mini to, well, save the world. Chokshi has taken Hindu mythology and added her own brand of humor and charm to create this winning middle grade mystery.

His Royal Whiskers

by Sam Gayton

In this creative fairy-tale adventure, an evil, selfish, bloodthirsty czar rules the land of Petrossia with an iron fist. His six-year-old son and only heir, Alexander, has been turned into a kitten. The czar's henchman inform him that it's all the fault of Alexander's two friends, Pieter and Teresa. Pieter is an Abadabacus, a master mathemagician employed by the czar. Teresa, described as a "Spice Monkey," is a servant who swings from ropes collecting ingredients for the kitchen staff. But Teresa isn't all that she seems. She's been dabbling in alchemy, and it will take her, Pieter, and a whole lot of magic to convince the czar to keep their heads attached to their bodies. Puns, wordplay, and footnotes keep readers on their toes. What is lacking in character development is made up with numerous plot twists and unpredictable outcomes.

The Empty Grave

by Jonathan Stroud

With a deep sigh, I say good bye to this amazing series. Stroud kept the quality of all five books consistently engaging, which is no easy task. Every book in this series has one major mystery the crew needs to solve. This one, in addition to that, manages to also wrap up the biggest mystery of all. That's right. We get to find out what started the Problem. And it's no lame cop-out of an ending, either. A fantastic conclusion to one of my favorite book series of all time.


Lucy, Lockwood, George, Holly, and last but not least, Skull...a sad farewell!

The Creeping Shadow

by Jonathan Stroud

After leaving Lockwood & Co. at the end of The Hollow Boy, Lucy finds herself freelancing for different agencies around the city. Her life is sort of sad. The skull is basically her only friend. She works, eats, sleeps. Until one day, Lockwood appears at her door with a proposition for her. Penelope Fittes needs Lucy's listening skills, and would like to hire them all to work an especially gruesome case. The Ealing Cannibal brings the group back together, at least temporarily, but when someone starts stealing relics, Lockwood & Co. needs to keep working as a team to find out who, and more importantly, why.

I just can't get enough of these books. The fact that I'm frantically turning pages in fear for these characters I've come to love so much, and laughing at the same time, is just a great reading experience.

And the cliffhanger on this one! AHHHH!

Dumplin'

by Julie Murphy

Aw, Willowdean! You can't help but smile and nod your head as you read this book. Will's dad isn't around, and she has spent her whole life with her mom and her very overweight Aunt Lucy. When we meet her, Lucy has just died of a heart attack, and Willowdean is reeling. She shared a special bond with Lucy, and she misses her terribly. Willowdean has weight issues of her own, and it's never really bothered her before, but then she meets Bo. He's gorgeous, and even though she thinks he's way out of her league, he likes her. All of a sudden, her insecurities rear their ugly heads. She can't bring herself to tell her best friend, Ellen, that Bo has been kissing her behind the dumpster at work, and the secret makes her feel farther and farther away from her tiny, beautiful friend. One day, while going through her Aunt Lucy's things, Will finds an application for the local beauty pageant, and gets a crazy idea--one that will turn just about all of her relationships on their heads.

The best part of this book has to be the characters, and while it's probably billed more as a romance, it's the friendship story of Ellen and Willowdean that steals the show. The group of misfits that Will hangs out with are hilarious and believable. Her flawed but loving mother is perfectly drawn. In fact, the only character who feels a bit flat to me is Bo. Even Mitch, the other third of Will's love triangle, is just so spot on. This book definitely deserves all the praise it's been getting recently!

(This one won't be in our middle school library, but you can find it at the public library or at a bookstore.)

The Hollow Boy

by Jonathan Stroud

There's an outbreak of the Problem in Chelsea, and it's worse than any of the agents have ever seen. All the major agencies are working it to no avail, and as usual, Lockwood & Co. hasn't even been consulted. Lockwood has hired a new assistant for the group, Holly Munro, who is as cute and perfect as she can be. Lucy hates her, and so does the Ghost Jar, which leads to some pretty hilarious sarcastic comments from him. Thanks to George's fabulous research skills, the team does eventually get to work on the Chelsea outbreak, with help from some unlikely people. Is it scary, you ask? Oh, you bet it is. The Whispering Skull somehow lost the edge that I found so appealing in The Screaming Staircase. It was more hard-boiled detective than terrifying ghost story. But the fear factor is all back in The Hollow Boy, and then some. Stroud doesn't talk down to his readers, or pull any punches, and he leaves us with a killer of a cliffhanger. Absolutely on my favorites list, and I can't wait for the next one.

Sorta Like a Rock Star

by Matthew Quick

Amber Appleton is a strange girl, but to be fair, she has a strange life. She lives on a school bus with her alcoholic mom, and believe it or not, that living situation is an improvement over bouncing from house to house every time her mom changes boyfriends. Somehow, Amber manages to keep her positive attitude, until something happens that might shatter even the princess of hope. This book isn't really about plot, though. In fact, it kind of felt like nothing much happened until halfway through. Still, the characters are so wildly off the wall that you can't help but love them. Just a few include: a mild-mannered marketing teacher, a PTSD-ravaged Vietnam vet, a group of teen boys who would go to the ends of the earth to protect Amber, an autistic boy raised by a hard-driving lady lawyer, and Bobby Big Boy, a scruffy little mutt aka B Thrice. While Amber's sticky sweetness does grate from time to time, her self-centered but well-meaning persona was pretty right on as far as real teenage girl goes.

El Deafo

by Cece Bell

When Cece was four, she had a serious bout with meningitis, and unfortunately lost much of her hearing. She chronicles the process by which her four year old self realizes she can't hear. It's equally fascinating and heartbreaking. But the majority of her story focuses on her upper elementary years, where she goes through a revolving door of friends, casting off those who talk to her too loudly, try to teach her sign language, and more. (Who can blame, her, though!?) One day, she realizes that the Phonic Ear, her fancy hearing aid, allows her to hear her teacher peeing in the bathroom, and she dubs herself El Deafo, creating for herself an alter ego with super hearing super powers!

This is the first graphic novel I've ever read where I forgot I was reading a graphic novel. The story and the images flowed beautifully. I alternately shook my head at Cece and cheered for her, but mostly, I laughed. A sweetly funny story with a real and flawed protagonist.The picture of Cece in elementary school at the end of the book would melt anyone's heart!

Popular: Vintage Wisdom for a Modern Geek

by Maya Van Wagenen

Okay... here's what I like about this book. 1) Her overall message about the pursuit of popularity, and how it's basically something that is unattainable. It's great for teens to see others struggle, and make it to the other side. 2) I was born in South Texas, and thought the Brownsville setting was right on and pretty hilarious. She's right when she says that the story wouldn't have been the same if it had taken place somewhere else. That's about it. I just didn't find her experiment, or the excerpts from Betty's book, charming or funny. I was sad for her friends as she started table hopping in the cafeteria to make new friends, only to alienate the old ones. The fact that this young lady is so focused on becoming popular that she would do something this drastic is slightly disturbing. You might argue that this is simply a voyage of self discovery, but it's clearly not. She really, really, wants to be popular. In fact, she practically shivers with delight when her arch-nemesis tells her that everyone knows her name, and actually calls her popular. If the purpose of this book is to put a great message out there for teens, I'm not sure this is it.

by Sibeal Pounder

Tiga Whicabim doesn't know she's a witch until Fran the fairy shows up in her tiny shed of a home, shows her that her name is an anagram for I AM A BIG WITCH, and takes her down the sink pipes to Ritzy City. There she discovers that witches' hats are only pointy due to the journey up the pipes to our world, that witches love jam, and that she is one of nine girls slated to battle it out in the Witch Wars. The winner of Witch Wars gets to rule Ritzy City as Top Witch, but the stakes are higher for Tiga. If she loses, she'll have to go back to her shed with her horrible caretaker, who feeds her only cheese water. Not to mention the fact that she doesn't know a single spell. She'll have to work hard to outsmart mean girl witches Felicity Bat and Aggie Hoof, but luckily her new friend Peggy vows to help. The young witches, along with the sassy little fairies, make for a colorful and unpredictable cast of characters. Whimsical black-and-white illustrations throughout help readers envision this fantastical locale.

Turtle in Paradise

by Jennifer L. Holm

Turtle's life with her single mom in 1930's New Jersey is shattered when her mother's employer decides she can't have a housekeeper with a kid. Jobs are, of course, hard to come by during this time, so Sadie Bell has no choice other than to send Turtle to live with her estranged sister in Key West. When Turtle arrives on her aunt's doorstep, she finds a frazzled, surprised, woman and a whole bunch of boy cousins she never knew she had. There's a lot packed into this tiny little book, from treasure hunting to diaper rash remedies. It's hilarious and heart-wrenching all at once, with an ending that took my breath away. This book could so easily have been over the top cheesy, but Ms. Holm skillfully took her time pulling the story together, and made something really beautiful. I just loved it.

And if you're the kind of person who skips author's notes, don't skip this one. The author's personal connection to the island, and her description of the historical context of the book were fascinating. I've been to Key West once for only a day, and now I really want to go again armed with my new knowledge!

The Amulet of Samarkand

by Jonathan Stroud

Nathaniel is an apprentice to a magician in a sort of magical modern day London. As an apprentice, he's not supposed to perform magic on his own, but he sneaks around and summons a djinni, a very difficult and dangerous task. Half of the story is narrated by Bartimaeus. He's sassy, and funny, and arrogant, but he's been around for thousands of years so he thinks he's entitled. When Nathaniel forces Bartimaeus to steal the Amulet of Samarkand from a very evil magician, they are both launched into an epic adventure.

This is a must for fantasy and Harry Potter fans!

Flora & Ulysses

by Kate DiCamillo

Flora is a cynic, and with good reason. Her parents are divorced, and her mom seems to love her lamp more than her own daughter. Flora lives for her comic books, so when her neighbor Tootie runs over a squirrel with her new Ulysses 2000X vacuum, and Flora revives him, she thinks he MUST have super powers. Turns out, being sucked up in that vacuum DID change the squirrel, whom Flora now lovingly calls Ulysses. He can type, fly, and write poetry. Unfortunately, every super hero must have a nemesis, and for Ulysses, that is Flora's mother, who only sees the squirrel as a rodent who must be dispatched, and fast. Flora and her neighbor's nephew, temporarily blind William Spiver, must protect Ulysses at all costs.

I love little cynical Flora, and her awesome, hilarious sidekick William Spiver. I listened to this on audio, and the narrator is amazing. This story works great as a read aloud, and her ability to give each character a different voice was a big part of the fun for me.

Yes, the young characters use big words that maybe a ten year old wouldn't use. But this story also stars a squirrel who types poetry, so I'm okay with it. The Newbery Committee made a great choice this year.

The Last Dragonslayer

by Jasper Fforde

Jennifer Strange is, at age 15,  in charge of running Kazam, an employment agency for magicians. This used to be a great job, but in the Ununited Kingdoms, where magic's power is quickly dwindling, it's quite a challenge. Her employer, Mr. Zambini, has mysteriously disappeared, and Jennifer feels like she's in a little over her head. When one of the precogs (they can see the future) has a vision that the last dragon in the land will be slain the following Sunday, Jennifer's world turns upside down. She finds herself in the middle of a huge fight for the Dragonlands, and learns that the fate of the Ununited Kingdoms is in her hands.

This book took me quite awhile to get into. In fact, I almost abandoned it. I'm so glad I didn't though, because about halfway through, it took a turn for me. For one, I fell in love with Jennifer's sidekick, the Quarkbeast, and I now wish I could have one for my very own! Also, either I got used to Fforde's style of humor, or the second half of the book actually got funnier. Either way, I ended up liking it quite a bit.

Counting by 7's

by Holly Goldberg Sloan

Willow is a genius, but not just any genius. One of the off-the-charts, totally weird, super crazy smart about the strangest things type of genius. She's socially awkward, but doesn't care. She's an adoptee, and an only child. She loves her garden and her parents more than anything. But then something terrible happens, and her carefully constructed world falls apart. This is a story about grief, and it's a story about healing, told in the voice of a girl like no one you've ever known.

I loved I'll Be There, Ms. Sloan's other book, so much that I was almost scared to read this one for fear of disappointment, but I shouldn't have been. You'll cry your eyes out and laugh out loud with Willow. One of my favorite books so far this year.

My Milk Toof

by Inhae Lee

This book is not normally something I would pick up, but the cover was so cute I just couldn't resist. Ickle and Lardee are milk teeth (or teef, as they are called in the book.) Milk teeth are the same thing as baby teeth. The author says these are two of her little milk teef, come back to live with her. The book is basically a series of photos with a simple story, that revolves around these two little guys completing household tasks, like taking a phone message, and caring for houseplants. A fast little read, that's just pure fun!

Ghoulfriends Forever

by Gitty Daneshvari

This series of books features three teen monsters new to Monster High. Rochelle (a gargoyle), Robecca (a robot), and Venus (a Venus Flytrap), become friends as they learn their way around their new campus. They constantly encounter obstacles, from troll hall monitors who may or may not eat them, to teachers with severe emotional problems, to cute boys who aren’t their boyfriends. Every class, every location in the school, and every character’s name is a pun. The girls check out books in the Libury, shop at the Maul, and go to Physical Deaducation. The girls are adjusting well until a new teacher begins casting a spell over the whole school, and they set out to find a way to stop her.

This book was pretty silly, and all the monster puns got really old, really fast. If you like goofy, cheesy, humore, though, maybe this is the book for you!

Slob

by Ellen Potter

Owen is bigger than your average middle schooler, and it's all his classmates see. He's constantly mocked and bullied for being overweight, and even worse, it's not just by other students. His gym teacher has it out for him. He's the biggest bully of all, and makes Owen's life miserable.

Owen's trying to diet, but it's hard. He gets three Oreos in his lunch, and he looks forward to them every day. Until one day, they're gone. He thinks it's the new guy, Mason. Rumor is, he's a bona fide psycho and carries a switchblade in his sock.

Owen wasn't always overweight. You see, something terrible happened to Owen. He's got to figure out how to deal with it, but it won't be an easy ride. Also, he's kind of an inventor. He has a machine he's working on, and he's hoping it will let him see a moment, just a glimpse, from the past. Maybe, just maybe, he'll get the answers to help him move on.

This book is told in Owen's voice, and he's funny, and cool, and real. You've got several little mysteries here. Who stole the cookies? Will the gym teacher really get away with this? What terrible thing happened to Owen? And what does the green piece of paper with the word SLOB printed on it mean?