The Secret Library (Kekla Magoon)

There was a lot going on in this book. The family history aspect was interesting....go back in time to learn about your family. She'd run into the same people again and again and it was confusing to keep straight who the person was and how old they were or what year it was. Time travel is not my favorite genre. It felt like maybe there should be a second book because many of the issues between Dally and her mother are not resolved - but Dailly has time traveled to the future and skipped a bunch of years (broke all the time travel rules!) so a resolution won't be possible. I thought the ending was rushed and rather incomplete.

The idea of a secret library is interesting. This is the key in the time travel - pick a book from your shelves and a cloud starts to form. Off you go! Sometimes the writing seemed quite didactic and sometimes it just wasn't conceivable at all that this is how a child would converse with people.

The main character says she's biracial but as the story ends, you discover that her mother, who is presented as a white woman, actually had a black father - something he kept hidden.  Even Dally's mother didn't know. No one knew. Oh the complexities of family history!

There was a lot of commentary on historic events. In chapter 29, she arrives at a Juneteenth celebration where her parents are, but they aren't married yet. I read this on Juneteenth....so that was a weird twist of fate. There is talk of LGBTQ issues and it's interesting to compare how the issues are viewed in the past to today, however, it was weird addition to the story and seemed like it was thrown in to make sure the author hit on all sorts of current issues: family secrets, LGBTQ lessons, weird explanations about scientific realities today, sex education (a baby is born, mother's water breaks...the whole lots of details kids don't need), segregation and racism issues as well. For an audience of 8-12 year olds, this would open a lot of questions unless they were REALLY well versed in history, which is quite unlikely. I would recommend it for readers over 12, for sure. The book banners would have a heyday with this one. Luckily, most kids didn't finish it and for those who said they did (that's questionable), clearly it was over their head.

This book was a lesson in why it's important to read the book before I suggest it for book club. This one was not a great choice. During our book club meeting we learned about resources online to research your genealogy. I logged into my Family Search account and showed them famous people I was related to. They really enjoyed that.

Goodreads says:
Since Grandpa died, Dally’s days are dull and restricted. She’s eleven and a half years old, and her exacting single mother is already grooming her to take over the family business. Starved for adventure and release, Dally rescues a mysterious envelope from her mother’s clutches, an envelope Grandpa had earmarked for her. The map she finds inside leads straight to an ancient vault, a library of secrets where each book is a portal to a precise moment in time.

As Dally “checks out” adventure after adventure—including an exhilarating outing with pirates—she begins to dive deep into her family’s hidden history. Soon she’s visiting every day to escape the demands of the present. But the library has secrets of its own, intentions that would shape her life as surely as her mother’s meticulous plans. What will Dally choose?

Equal parts mystery and adventure—with a biracial child puzzling out her identity alongside the legacy of the past—this masterful middle-grade fantasy rivets with crackling prose, playful plot twists, and timeless themes. A satisfying choice for fans of Kindred and When You Reach Me.

The Swifts - A Dictionary of Scoundrels (Beth Lincoln)

 

I'm always happy when I'm compelled to read a mystery. This was a choice for my Children's Lit book club. It wasn't a hit with anyone and our discussion about it was quite short. I hadn't finished it when we had our meeting but decided to continue, despite the poor reviews. I had seen so many good reviews for it on BookTok and Instagram. I kind of mid-way about this one. Some of it was so silly...like she's aspiring to Roald Dahl or David Walliams....and truthfully, I tire of that humor. There were a few things I did enjoy though! 

At the family reunion they play games. One of my favorite was the insults game they called Mock Up. 

p. 208 A Mock-Up is, in it simplest terms, an insult contest. The players put their names into a hat, bucket or other receptacle, and stand in a circle. The referee (in this case, Fauna) pulls out two names, and the players begin a battle of words, a one-on-one match of wits. The first person to run out of ideas or start laughing is the loser. Anyone can play - it is, after all, a remarkably simple game - but there are a few rules.

"No swearing, no foul language, nothing person," said Fauna. "Remember, you don't try to actually stab someone in a fencing match, and you don't try to really hurt anyone here My word is final. If I say you're out, you're out."

The insults made me giggle:

p. 209 "You're a puttock," said Tintinnabula, sraight out of the gate. "A seizing, grasping, witch-fingered harridan!"
"And you're a screaming kettle. A braying trumpet of gibberish! The world's most boring banshee!"

...."You're a waste," said aunt Jilt. "A wizened, stunted, windblown shrub."

"That's fine, because you're a pestilent, meat-breathed plague taxi."

"You're a desperate circumstance. an idling fopdoodle with nothing to recommend her."
"And you're a bitter, dried-up lemon rind, A purse-mouthed gnashgab."

There's a LGBTQ addition to the story. One of the characters, Erf, rejects their name (something that is a fundamental premise to the family) and becomes Erf. We are never told what their previous name was but some of his family has a hard time remembering to use their new name. They try to shake the mold and just be themself. Erf is told:

p. 217 "Your gran doesn'nt get a say in who you are. No one in the world makes that decision but you."

The intro goes into a long diatribe about etymology and the evolution of the English language - exactly my thing! LOL 

"I would say that if a person is ride about the way you speak, write or spell, they are showing a distinct lack of understanding, and it's perfectly reasonable to make up a creative word to describe them."

The vocabulary in this story was great. There were too many characters to keep track of though and that made it hard to follow the story. There was a good twist in the end. I'm not so sure I'll continue on to read book 2 or 3 though. 

Goodreads says:

On the day they are born, each Swift is brought before the Family Dictionary. They are given a name and a definition, and it is assumed they will grow up to match. Unfortunately, Shenanigan Swift has other ideas.

So what if her relatives all think she's destined to turn out as a troublemaker, just because of her name? Shenanigan knows she can be whatever she wants - pirate, explorer or even detective.

Which is lucky, really, because when one of the Family tries to murder Arch-Aunt Schadenfreude, someone has to work out whodunit.

With the help of her sisters and cousin, Shenanigan grudgingly takes on the case, but more murders, a hidden treasure and an awful lot of suspects make things seriously complicated.

Can Shenanigan catch the killer before the whole household is picked off? And in a Family where definitions are so important, can she learn to define herself?

Winner of the Barnes & Noble Children's Book Award, shortlisted for the Nero Book Awards and nominated for the Carnegie Medal.

Conviction (Denise Mina)

 

Well, after reading The Love Song of Miss Queenie Hennessy, this book was a nice change. I read it in a weekend....and I don't regret all the time at all. I quite enjoyed it. It was nice to have some candyesque to read. The premise of the story was entertaining. I don't think I've ever read a book where a podcast tells part of the story.

Both main characters, Anna and Fin, who are the ones whose spouses are cheating, have things they do to avoid life. I can see the negativity with anorexia, but reading? Hmmm...

• p. 132 I told him that I read to self-medicate. That I find the world a bit much sometimes. Podcasts are like reading when you need to use your eyes and hands, and he said, yeah, yeah, that's kind of what his eating was lie. Self-medicating. But then it took over and he couldn't stop. "It's a chemical spiral. It gets so that it feels like the only thing that matters. Controlling it. Eating isn't like a book though, you can't just put it down'. I didn't say so, but I've read books I couldn't put down, not always because they were good either, I just couldn't stop reading. Once I was reading a book and finished it by mistake (I hadn't noticed the last 140 pages were an index) and then had nothing to read. In a blind panic, I went back to the start and read it again.

Not sure the page number of this one...but it's interesting to think about/discuss:

• It's primal, the need to tell. It's not about the listener but the storyteller. In some cultures, not telling your story is regarded as a sign of mental illness.

Goodreads says:
It’s just a normal morning when Anna's husband announces that he's leaving her for her best friend and taking their two daughters with him.

With her safe, comfortable world shattered, Anna distracts herself with someone else's story: a true-crime podcast. That is until she recognises the name of one of the victims and becomes convinced that only she knows what really happened.

With nothing left to lose, she throws herself into investigating the case. But little does she know, Anna's past and present lives are about to collide, sending everything she has worked so hard to achieve into freefall.

Conviction is the compelling and unique new thriller from multiple award-winner, Denise Mina.

The Madness of Crowds (Louise Penny)

  

I had to make a map of all the characters when I was reading this book.  There was a lot!! I learned, however, that if I had read some of the previous books it might have been less painful because some characters come up again and again. I'm almost tempted to go back and read some of her previous books - except that I need a little time to recover from this one. There was so much in this book - so many themes, so many characters....so many pages! LOL 

Apparently, the awful studies on people and animals that the story refers to really were something that happens in Canadian history.

While I was reading it, I would look up videos of Louise Penny now and then. I really like her. She is very down to earth and a really good speaker. It seems like her crowd is older folks. Maybe that's me now. I loved the fact that it's set in Canada and that she's a loved Canadian author.

I loved that this was set just after the pandemic. It made for some good discussions at book club - contagion, belief in false theories, the lemming effect. It takes 100 pages in before the murder that the book is centered around actually happens....and then at the end, there is 100 or so pages or circling around the suspect. 

Goodreads says: 

You’re a coward.

Time and again, as the New Year approaches, that charge is leveled against Armand Gamache.

It starts innocently enough.

While the residents of the Québec village of Three Pines take advantage of the deep snow to ski and toboggan, to drink hot chocolate in the bistro and share meals together, the Chief Inspector finds his holiday with his family interrupted by a simple request.

He’s asked to provide security for what promises to be a non-event. A visiting Professor of Statistics will be giving a lecture at the nearby university.

While he is perplexed as to why the head of homicide for the Sûreté du Québec would be assigned this task, it sounds easy enough. That is until Gamache starts looking into Professor Abigail Robinson and discovers an agenda so repulsive he begs the university to cancel the lecture.

They refuse, citing academic freedom, and accuse Gamache of censorship and intellectual cowardice. Before long, Professor Robinson’s views start seeping into conversations. Spreading and infecting. So that truth and fact, reality and delusion are so confused it’s near impossible to tell them apart.

Discussions become debates, debates become arguments, which turn into fights. As sides are declared, a madness takes hold.

Abigail Robinson promises that, if they follow her, ça va bien aller. All will be well. But not, Gamache and his team know, for everyone.

When a murder is committed it falls to Armand Gamache, his second-in-command Jean-Guy Beauvoir, and their team to investigate the crime as well as this extraordinary popular delusion.

And the madness of crowds.

The Elephant's Girl (Celesta Rimington)

 

I loved this book. It was a grade 3 book club pick. I chose it for October because it has ghosts and paranormal activity in it. It wasn't scary though. It was a beautiful story.

The voice in this book trailer is not the voice I imagine Lexington to have at all. It's way too young.

The theme of figuring out who you are and finding ways to accept yourself are great for young readers. Throughout the book, Lexington communicates with the wind and with an elephant and through it, learns to accept herself and find the strength in her own uniqueness. She also learns to allow her friends to be themselves and be unique as well. I loved how she stood up for herself and worked hard to discover what was lost (literally and figuratively). 

Goodreads says:
An elephant never forgets...but Lexington Willow can't remember her past. When she was a toddler, a tornado swept her away from everyone and everything she knew and landed her near an enclosure in a Nebraska zoo, where an elephant named Nyah protected her from the storm. With no trace of her family, Lex grew up at the zoo with her foster father, Roger; her best friend, Fisher; and the wind whispering in her ear.

style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; color: #1e1915; font-family: "Proxima Nova", Montserrat, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 16px; margin: 0px;" />Now that she's twelve, Lex is finally old enough to help with the elephants. But during their first training session, Nyah sends her a telepathic image of the woods outside the zoo. Despite the wind's protests, Lex decides to investigate Nyah's message and gets wrapped up in an adventure involving ghosts, lost treasure, and a puzzle that might be the key to finding her family. Can Lex summon the courage to hunt for who she really is--and why the tornado brought her here all those years ago?

The Maid (Nita Prose)

 

This was kind of like Amelia Bedelia grows up and becomes a maid and becomes part of a murder. 

Her obsession with things being super clean totally spoke to my heart. I get it! 

I'll totally read more in this series. It was just what I needed: a light weekend read after a tiring week of being back to school.

Nita Prose has to be a pseudonym, right??

Goodreads says:

Molly Gray is not like everyone else. She struggles with social skills and misreads the intentions of others. Her gran used to interpret the world for her, codifying it into simple rules that Molly could live by.

Since Gran died a few months ago, twenty-five-year-old Molly has been navigating life's complexities all by herself. No matter—she throws herself with gusto into her work as a hotel maid. Her unique character, along with her obsessive love of cleaning and proper etiquette, make her an ideal fit for the job. She delights in donning her crisp uniform each morning, stocking her cart with miniature soaps and bottles, and returning guest rooms at the Regency Grand Hotel to a state of perfection.

But Molly's orderly life is upended the day she enters the suite of the infamous and wealthy Charles Black, only to find it in a state of disarray and Mr. Black himself dead in his bed. Before she knows what's happening, Molly's unusual demeanor has the police targeting her as their lead suspect. She quickly finds herself caught in a web of deception, one she has no idea how to untangle. Fortunately for Molly, friends she never knew she had unite with her in a search for clues to what really happened to Mr. Black—but will they be able to find the real killer before it's too late?

A Clue-like, locked-room mystery and a heartwarming journey of the spirit, The Maid explores what it means to be the same as everyone else and yet entirely different—and reveals that all mysteries can be solved through connection to the human heart.

One Dark Night (Hazel Hutchins)

 

I have been looking for mystery picture books to read to kids and this one fell into my lap. It was perfect. One page it seems like there's a cat that ran out but also a cat in the house. My class was quick to think the author made a mistake in the order of the pages. I told them we had to keep reading to try to figure it out. Turns out the stray cat is running off into the storm again because she is a mother cat! She left one kitten in the house and goes out to get the others one by one.

We also learned about counting from when you see lightening to when you hear thunder to know how far away the storm is.

Bonus: The author is from Alberta!

Goodreads says: As a strong summer storm approaches, Jonathan watches a stray cat looking for something in the bushes, but as the clouds darken, Jonathan wonders if the animal will be okay all by itself when the rain starts pouring from the sky.

The Last Thing He Told Me

 

I don't read mysteries very often. When I do, I really enjoy them! This one was an easy read and really kept me up late. 

Goodreads says: 

A woman searching for the truth about her husband’s disappearance…at any cost.

Before Owen Michaels disappears, he manages to smuggle a note to his beloved wife of one year: Protect her. Despite her confusion and fear, Hannah Hall knows exactly to whom the note refers: Owen’s sixteen-year-old daughter, Bailey. Bailey, who lost her mother tragically as a child. Bailey, who wants absolutely nothing to do with her new stepmother.

As Hannah’s increasingly desperate calls to Owen go unanswered; as the FBI arrests Owen’s boss; as a US Marshal and FBI agents arrive at her Sausalito home unannounced, Hannah quickly realizes her husband isn’t who he said he was. And that Bailey just may hold the key to figuring out Owen’s true identity—and why he really disappeared.

Hannah and Bailey set out to discover the truth, together. But as they start putting together the pieces of Owen’s past, they soon realize they are also building a new future. One neither Hannah nor Bailey could have anticipated.

The Lying Game (Ruth Ware)

 

I really enjoyed this book. I'm going to keep this author in mind for when I need a book to sink into and basically get lost in. 

Characters:
Isa (rhymes with nicer) Wilde
Freys (Isa's child)
Owen (Isa's husband)
Fatima Quereshy) - doctor
Ali and Nadia (Farima's children)
Samir (Fatima's husband)
Kate Atagon - sent the text "I need you" and everyone immediately came. Has a white German Shepherd named Shadow
Thea - works at a casino
Luc - Katie's step-brother, from France
Mark Wren - sargeant
Mary Wren (Mark's mother)
Teachers: Miss Rourke, Miss Farqueharson, Miss Weatherby, Ambrose Atagon (Kate's father and the art teacher)
Other students: Connie, Letitia, Helen

p. 17...the tally sheet Kate kept above her bed, covered with cryptic marks for her elaborate scoring system. This much for a new victim. That much for a complete belief. the extras awarded for elaborate detail or managing to rehook someone who had almost called your bluff. I haven't thought of it for so many years, but in a way, I've been playing it all this time 

P. 46 Lie to everyone else - yes. But to each other - never. 

Rule #1 Tell a lie

Rule #2 Stick to your story

Rule #3 Don't get caught

Rule #4 Never lie to each other

Rule #5 Know when to stop lying

Goodreads says:

From the instant New York Times bestselling author of blockbuster thrillers In a Dark, Dark Wood and The Woman in Cabin 10 comes Ruth Ware’s chilling new novel.

On a cool June morning, a woman is walking her dog in the idyllic coastal village of Salten along a tidal estuary known as the Reach. Before she can stop him, the dog charges into the water to retrieve what first appears to be a wayward stick, but to her horror, turns out to be something much more sinister...

The next morning, three women in and around London—Fatima, Thea, and Isabel—receive the text they had always hoped would NEVER come, from the fourth in their formerly inseparable clique, Kate, that says only, “I need you.”

The four girls were best friends at Salten, a second rate boarding school set near the cliffs of the English Channel. Each different in their own way, the four became inseparable and were notorious for playing the Lying Game, telling lies at every turn to both fellow boarders and faculty, with varying states of serious and flippant nature that were disturbing enough to ensure that everyone steered clear of them. The myriad and complicated rules of the game are strict: no lying to each other—ever. Bail on the lie when it becomes clear it is about to be found out. But their little game had consequences, and the girls were all expelled in their final year of school under mysterious circumstances surrounding the death of the school’s eccentric art teacher, Ambrose (who also happens to be Kate’s father).

June 29, 1999 (David Weisner)

 

This story is so great. It takes you down one road and the end is a big surprise when aliens are dropping their vegetables. So many unanswered questions!

Goodreads says:

The lively imagination of Caldecott medalist David Wiesner forecasts astounding goings-on for a Tuesday in the not too distant future -- an occurrence of gigantic vegetal proportions.

Ordinary Grace (William Kent Krueger)

 

It took me a while to get into this book. Too long, in fact. I was busy with work and ended up skipping book club because I felt like I hadn't read enough of it, let alone finish it. However, once I got past about 100 pages, it got quite interesting! I wish I had read it quicker so I could discuss it. This would be a great one to discuss. 

The story is told from the perspective of a young boy watching, spying on and listening to adult conversations. 

Goodreads says:

“That was it. That was all of it. A grace so ordinary there was no reason at all to remember it. Yet I have never across the forty years since it was spoken forgotten a single word.”

New Bremen, Minnesota, 1961. The Twins were playing their debut season, ice-cold root beers were selling out at the soda counter of Halderson’s Drugstore, and Hot Stuff comic books were a mainstay on every barbershop magazine rack. It was a time of innocence and hope for a country with a new, young president. But for thirteen-year-old Frank Drum it was a grim summer in which death visited frequently and assumed many forms. Accident. Nature. Suicide. Murder.

Frank begins the season preoccupied with the concerns of any teenage boy, but when tragedy unexpectedly strikes his family— which includes his Methodist minister father; his passionate, artistic mother; Juilliard-bound older sister; and wise-beyond-his-years kid brother— he finds himself thrust into an adult world full of secrets, lies, adultery, and betrayal, suddenly called upon to demonstrate a maturity and gumption beyond his years.

Told from Frank’s perspective forty years after that fateful summer, Ordinary Grace is a brilliantly moving account of a boy standing at the door of his young manhood, trying to understand a world that seems to be falling apart around him. It is an unforgettable novel about discovering the terrible price of wisdom and the enduring grace of God.

Bob (Wendy Mass and Rebecca Stead)

I think the cover of this book is enchanting. I listened to some of it on an audio book and it was great because of the Australian accents.

The story is lovely. I think it will be fun to discuss it with grade fours and talk about things they remember from when they were younger, now that they're more grown up.

For a while I was confused about whether Bob was imaginary or not. Turns out he isn't imaginary. He is a well-dweller! Lots of memory moments in this book to notice and note.

Goodreads says:

A classic middle-grade tale of magic and friendship, about a girl who helps an old friend find home, by two New York Times–bestselling authors Wendy Mass and Rebecca Stead.

It’s been five years since Livy and her family have visited Livy’s grandmother in Australia. Now that she’s back, Livy has the feeling she’s forgotten something really, really important about Gran’s house.

It turns out she’s right.

Bob, a short, greenish creature dressed in a chicken suit, didn’t forget Livy, or her promise. He’s been waiting five years for her to come back, hiding in a closet like she told him to. He can’t remember who—or what—he is, where he came from, or if he even has a family. But five years ago Livy promised she would help him find his way back home. Now it’s time to keep that promise.

Clue by clue, Livy and Bob will unravel the mystery of where Bob comes from, and discover the kind of magic that lasts forever.

Wendy Mass and Rebecca Stead, two masterminds of classic, middle-grade fiction come together to craft this magical story about the enduring power of friendship.

The Chalk Man (C.J. Tudor)

I don't actually read mysteries that often. This one really drew me in after about 100 pages. I thought the way it is told, by going back to 1986 and then continuing with today (2016 in this book) it was quite effective and definitely kept me wanting to read just one more chapter.

So many secrets…

“Everyone has secrets, things they know they shouldn’t do but do anyway. Mine was……

There were some nasty scenes: rape of a young boy and murder. If you're sensitive, those will be pages to skip. The details of them aren't that important anyway.

I was surprised to learn this was the author's first book. It's a good start to a writing career, for sure!

Quotes:

p. 9 There's nothing better than doing something you shouldn't and getting one over on an adult while doing it.

p. 88 Teachers should be nice and friendly, but they should also be a bit apart. Mr. Haloran and I shared a secret now and, although that was cool in one way, it also made me feel awkward around him, like we had seen each other naked or something.

p. 151 That's the point, Eddie. The thing you have to understand is that being a good person isn't about singing hymns, or praying to some mythical god. It isn't about wearing across or going to church every Sunday. Being a good person is about how you treat others. A good person doesn't need a religion, because they are content with themselves that they are doing the right thing. (Eddie's mom, to Eddie)


I think this is a book I should read again and see what hints I missed as I read it the first time. There must have been some. I'm too unsuspecting a reader though. I need to hone my mystery reading skills!

Characters:
Eddie
Eddie's parents
Fat Gav
Metal Mickey
Nicky
Nicky's father (vicar)
Hoppo
The Pale Man (Mr Halloran)
Waltzer girl
Blond friend
Sean Cooper
Chloe

Goodreads says:

In 1986, Eddie and his friends are just kids on the verge of adolescence. They spend their days biking around their sleepy English village and looking for any taste of excitement they can get. The chalk men are their secret code: little chalk stick figures they leave for one another as messages only they can understand. But then a mysterious chalk man leads them right to a dismembered body, and nothing is ever the same.

In 2016, Eddie is fully grown, and thinks he's put his past behind him. But then he gets a letter in the mail, containing a single chalk stick figure. When it turns out that his friends got the same message, they think it could be a prank . . . until one of them turns up dead.

That's when Eddie realizes that saving himself means finally figuring out what really happened all those years ago. 

The Stranger (Chris Van Allsburg)

We are in love with Chris Van Allsburg books in my class. This one is a great mystery. Who is this stranger? When I first read it, I had no idea that he was Jack Frost. There are a number of clues all through it though.  I found a great guide from Houghton Mifflin to help with a lesson on inferencing as well. We will do the work in our Reading Notebooks.We read it again and students wrote down the clues they noticed. At lunch time I showed them a video of Jack Frost. We'll see if anyone makes the connection. So far they say he is a "winter fairy". Close!


Goodreads says:

The enigmatic origins of the stranger that Farmer Bailey hits with his truck and brings home to recuperate seem to have a mysterious relation to the weather. Could he be Jack Frost?

Gone Without a Trace (Mary Torjussen)

Every week I have my students write down the name of the book they're reading this week (an attempt at getting them in the habit of IMWAYR). I often tell them about the book I'm reading. I had just started this one on the weekend so on Monday I told them a little about it: A husband (he was actually a boyfriend...but I told them he was a husband...) disappears. I told them how everything about him was gone: her number in his phone, his email address in her contacts. Everything that was his was gone and all that was hers was put back where it was before he moved in. She tried calling him at work - but he no longer worked there. She called his mother - but she had moved. I was definitely hooked by the story line. My class was definitely hooked. They asked me if they could read it too.

SPOILER ALERT:

As the story wears on, you wonder if it was the MIL. You wonder about the people she works with. There are a few people I had my eyes on as the guilty ones. Boy was I wrong. In the end, as the story unfolds, it turns out SHE is abusive and he left to protect himself. I can't tell my students about how it ends. It was so surprising - and so dysfunctional! I'm going to have to make something up to tell my students.

This book was picked for the community book club that I joined a few months ago. It definitely made for a good discussion!

Goodreads says:

GONE WITHOUT A TRACE by Mary Torjussen is a chilling, twisty, compulsive thriller about a woman whose boyfriend has vanished. Fans of I LET YOU GO and THE GIRL ON THE TRAIN will be gripped.

No one ever disappears completely...

You leave for work one morning.

Another day in your normal life.

Until you come home to discover that your boyfriend has gone.
His belongings have disappeared.
He hasn't been at work for weeks.
It's as if he never existed.

But that's not possible, is it?

And there is worse still to come.

Because just as you are searching for him
someone is also watching you. 

Sleepover Sleuths (Carolyn Keene)

I wish I could go back and see myself when I was a Nancy Drew reader. Seems to me Nancy Drew books were quite sophisticated. This one was recommended by one of my students. I've been reading them some picture books that are mysteries and have told them I love mysteries so one student said I just had to read Nancy Drew. I love it when they give me books and say, "You have to read this!" She said some of them were too scary for her, but she did like this one.

When I started, a flood of memories came back as I realized the character names were the same. This one is modernized. The Nancy Drew I read was 16. This one is 8 years old. Now Nancy has a computer, uses instant messenger and has a cool doll from the City Dolls collection. Carolyn Keene's books were first published in 1930 though. Is this really by her?? Is she alive still? I did some googling (although, in my mind I was solving a mystery) and found out that Carolyn Keene isn't even a real person. There are a group of people who have written these books and the pseudonym they all use is Carolyn Keene.

Mystery solved. (I'm a little disappointed though)

Goodreads summary:

Eight-year-old Nancy Drew has her first case to crack! Can you help? Nancy and her two best friends, George and Bess, are so excited! They have been invited to Deirdre's sleepover party! There will be pizza, cake, and even a pajama fashion show. But the most exciting thing is that the party has a City Girls doll theme. All of the guests are bringing their dolls with them!

But then Deirdre's City Girls doll -- Hollywood Heather -- goes missing. Is her sleepover ruined? Or is there a detective in the room who can make sense of this mystery?

The Great Paper Caper (Oliver Jeffers)

This seems to be one of those books you could look at again and again and discover something new every time. There are so many little interesting details to look at and discuss in the illustrations. I wish we had a little more time for it in class because it seemed to cause a bit of a pause when I read it to my class.

Goodreads says:

The picture book features funny looking characters with dots for eyes and stick for legs who live in the forest conveys a sense that everyone is responsibility for the environment in which we live.

Saving Shiloh (Phyllis Reynolds Naylor)

The saga of Judd Travers and Marty continues.

In this book we get more understanding of Judd and why he is the way he is. Marty's family tries to look at the best sides of Judd and they start to see good in him. This book is also full of mystery. It was a good page turner!

Just like Shiloh Season, the previous book in the series, I listened to this one on downloadable audio book. I liked the reader of this one much better.

Goodreads summary:

Marty Preston wonders why it is that despite Judd Traver's attempts to redeem himself everyone is still so willing to think the worst of him. Marty's friend David is sure that Judd will be named as the murderer of a man who has been missing. Others are sure that Judd is behind a series of burglaries in the area. But Marty's parents and, with some trepidation, Marty himself persist in their attempts to be good neighbors and to give Judd a second chance. Now that Marty has Shiloh, maybe he can help Judd to take better care of his other dogs. Then again, maybe folks are right -- there's no way a Judd Travers can ever change for the good. Then a terrifying life-or-death situation brings this dilemma into sharp focus. "Saving Shiloh" is a powerful novel that brings this trilogy to a close.

Shiloh Season (Phyllis Reynolds Naylor)

I'm not much of a series person, but I was quite taken by the first book. I'm not really one to get caught in a series, but I had to know what happens to that mean old nasty Judd Travers. He remains mean and nasty in this book. I guess I have to go on to book three now! Will he ever get his just dues?

If you don't like guns, this is a good book to read. There's so much risk and danger thanks to Judd and his hunting. One of the big problems is his drinking. I loved how we see Marty get what he wants through some hard work. This book is also a good lesson in how not everything is black and white. Sometimes you have to do what you think is important despite disapproval by some.

There were some inconsistencies with the first book. They now have a phone (maybe I missed where they said they got a phone...not sure). I listened to this one on a downloadable audio book and wasn't that taken by the reader. He was an older man and that didn't match in my mind since it is Marty telling the story.

I think you'd be okay to read this book without reading the first. The author reviews the details of the first book well enough to catch people up.

Goodreads summary:

After Marty Preston worked so hard to earn the dog Shiloh, he had hoped that his troubles with Judd Travers were over. He could not rescue all the dogs that Judd mistreated, but since shiloh was the one who ran away and came to him, Shiloh was the one he loved. Judd, however, has other problems. Anyone who cheats and swears and lies and kicks his dogs has troubles inside himself, and when the man starts drinking, Marty realizes that Shiloh is in danger once again. As hunting season approaches and Judd begins hunting on their land, the Prestos know that something is bound to happen.

They're right. Marty does the only thing he can think of to do, and discovers just how deep a hurt can go and how long it takes to heal.

The Invention of Hugo Cabret (Brian Selznick)

I'm not one to re-read books very often. I have read this book a number of times though and love it every time. I have done this as a read-aloud before (good thing for smart boards where you can easily show all the pictures!) and this year I decided to do it as a novel study. I have done other Brian Selznick books before. It has always been a fantastic experience. The tricky part is getting enough copies of the book. It is an expensive book to buy so I haven't even dared ask the school to buy a class set. Instead, the Calgary Public Library kindly got enough copies that we could share a book amongst two students. It was wonderful!

I love it how kids take more care with illustrations. In this book you cannot ignore the illustrations. They tell the story as much as the words do, and sometimes tell you parts of the story the words have not told you.

Most of my students have not read a book as big as this one (although many claim they have...they are really moreso in the Geronimo Stilton mode as a whole, it seems). This one is a great stretcher and hopefully they will go on to read Wonderstruck and The Marvels this summer.

Recently, I have been reading Notice and Note and have tried to implement its strategies when I'm reading. I definitely plan to start using these strategies next year with book club.

Some of my favorite quotes and some of the Notice and Note signposts I noticed:

This is a great look into how we often can't know everything about someone else. Sometimes people do things that seem mean and they would totally not give themselves the same label because they have reasons for what they're doing.
p. 168 Hugo blinked. He had never thought of himself as mean before. The old man was mean, not him. Hugo had no choice...he had to keep secrets, but he couldn't explain this to the girl.

Again and again (Everytime Hugo is about to steal something he tubs his buttons):
p. 186  Hugo continued flipping through the book, seeing if there was anything at all about automata, but the book was silent on the subject. Still, Hugo wanted it very much. He knew that Monsieur Labisse lent books to Isabelle, but Hugo didn't want to just borrow this one. He wanted to own it.
He slipped it under his arm and inched toward the door. He rubbed the remaining buttons on his jacket...

Ah ha moment (Hugo and Isabelle realize maybe they can help Papa Georges find happiness):
p. 374 "Did you ever notice that all machines are made for some reason?" he asked Isabelle. "They are built ot make you laugh, like a mouse here, or to tell the time, like clocks, or to fill you with wonder, like the automaton. Maybe that's why a broken machines always makes me a little sad, because it isn't able to do what it was meant to do."
Isabelle picked up the mouse, wound it again, and set it down.
"Maybe it's the same with people," Hugo continued. "If you lose your purpose...it's like you're broken."

then on p. 494 Isabelle and Hugo find out that Papa Georges was the one who painted an interesting picture of Prometheus that they saw. He says: "Then you know that Prometheus was rescued in the end. His chains were broken, and he was finally set free." The old man squinted one of his eyes and added, "How about that."

Goodreads summary:

Orphan, clock keeper, and thief, Hugo lives in the walls of a busy Paris train station, where his survival depends on secrets and anonymity. But when his world suddenly interlocks with an eccentric, bookish girl and a bitter old man who runs a toy booth in the station, Hugo's undercover life, and his most precious secret, are put in jeopardy. A cryptic drawing, a treasured notebook, a stolen key, a mechanical man, and a hidden message from Hugo's dead father form the backbone of this intricate, tender, and spellbinding mystery.