CHECK IT OUT! Need a great read while you spend time away for the holidays? Look at these awesome choices!
Check out the book reviews below as well as our links to helpful booklists that can help you find an award-winning book to sink into. If you have a suggested read for Mrs. Casey, please let me know! ENJOY!
Iowa Children's Choice List
|
Goldfinch Award List
|
Amazon Best Books of the Month
|
FEATURE VIDEO OF THE MONTH:
The Blood Guard by Carter Roy
The Blood Guard by Carter Roy
Ronan Truelove has lived what seems like a normal life. He does alright in school and he’s involved in all sorts of activities. Well, everything seems normal until he leaves school one day to be picked up by his mom and told that his dad has been kidnapped.
What follows is a mess of running from an evil group Ronan never even knew existed with two new friends- Greta and Jack, Ronan is forced to grow up too fast and face dangers he never imagined, but Ronan shows just how brave he can be as he discovers who he is. Click the link below to watch the feature video of the month for The Blood Guard! |
Theodosia and the Serpents of Chaos
R. L. LaFevers
R. L. LaFevers
It seems only fair to start off our HOT summer reads review with my favorite book of the year: Theodosia and the Serpents of Chaos!
Theodosia is a young lady that finds herself spending countless hours in the museum where her father is curator. While her mother is off finding ancient objects to send back to the United States, Theodosia busies herself with a massive task- ridding all of the foreign objects of evil spirits. It's a large job, especially since nobody knows about it...except for Clive Fagenbush who suspects that Theodosia is up to something sneaky.
With Fagenbush at her heels, a pet cat that's taken on the life of an evil Egyptian spirit, and a troublemaker brother, the last thing Theodosia needs is for her mother to show up with the most dreaded of objects- a cursed statue of Bastet. But, that's not all. Now, the Heart of Egypt, a find of a lifetime, has disappeared from the museum.
Can Theodosia find the Heart of Egypt without alerting the wrong crowd? How can she possibly sneak away to Egypt? What exactly is the Brotherhood of Chosen Keepers and are they really the good guys? Is there a spy among Theodosia's most trusted friends?
This book has it all- evil spirits, a brave young woman, bad guys you just can't stand, and Egyptian magic! I loved Theodosia and I can't wait to read the rest of the series!
Theodosia is a young lady that finds herself spending countless hours in the museum where her father is curator. While her mother is off finding ancient objects to send back to the United States, Theodosia busies herself with a massive task- ridding all of the foreign objects of evil spirits. It's a large job, especially since nobody knows about it...except for Clive Fagenbush who suspects that Theodosia is up to something sneaky.
With Fagenbush at her heels, a pet cat that's taken on the life of an evil Egyptian spirit, and a troublemaker brother, the last thing Theodosia needs is for her mother to show up with the most dreaded of objects- a cursed statue of Bastet. But, that's not all. Now, the Heart of Egypt, a find of a lifetime, has disappeared from the museum.
Can Theodosia find the Heart of Egypt without alerting the wrong crowd? How can she possibly sneak away to Egypt? What exactly is the Brotherhood of Chosen Keepers and are they really the good guys? Is there a spy among Theodosia's most trusted friends?
This book has it all- evil spirits, a brave young woman, bad guys you just can't stand, and Egyptian magic! I loved Theodosia and I can't wait to read the rest of the series!
Liar & Spy
Rebecca Stead
Rebecca Stead
Liar & Spy was one of my favorite reads from last year. While it wasn't a typical choice for what I usually check out, I loved it!
Liar & Spy starts by introducing one of the main characters, seventh-grader Georges. At the beginning of the book, you find out that Georges has just moved from his old apartment building to a new place. He's pretty sad about it until he stumbles upon a secret spy club happening in his new building. Here, he meets Safer, his new best friend and the lead spy of the spy club. So what exactly do two middle school students spy on? The answer: Mr. X, the mysterious and creepy man who lives in the apartment upstairs. Operation Mr. X seems to be moving forward, but is Mr. X really who he seems? And what about Safer? Is anyone really who you thought they were? Prepare to be blown away by a surprise ending and the ever-pressing question...Who is Mr. X?
The author, Rebecca Stead, does an awesome job of using suspense and surprise to create a story with an ending that I never saw coming!
Liar & Spy starts by introducing one of the main characters, seventh-grader Georges. At the beginning of the book, you find out that Georges has just moved from his old apartment building to a new place. He's pretty sad about it until he stumbles upon a secret spy club happening in his new building. Here, he meets Safer, his new best friend and the lead spy of the spy club. So what exactly do two middle school students spy on? The answer: Mr. X, the mysterious and creepy man who lives in the apartment upstairs. Operation Mr. X seems to be moving forward, but is Mr. X really who he seems? And what about Safer? Is anyone really who you thought they were? Prepare to be blown away by a surprise ending and the ever-pressing question...Who is Mr. X?
The author, Rebecca Stead, does an awesome job of using suspense and surprise to create a story with an ending that I never saw coming!
A Dog Called Homeless
Sarah Lean
Sarah Lean
Cally has stopped talking because no one will listen to what she has to say. She has been seeing her dead mother; and no one- not even her father believes her. To add to the mystery, she always sees the same large, gray dog when she sees her mom.
Cally is certain that there is a link to why this dog only appears when her mother does, and the mystery deepens as Cally gets to know a homeless man (and a good friend) that she can communicate with, despite his blindness and limited hearing.
Will anyone listen to Cally when she finally speaks aloud? Who is this dog and what happened to her mom? Read this sweet story called A Dog Called Homeless to find out what happens!.
Cally is certain that there is a link to why this dog only appears when her mother does, and the mystery deepens as Cally gets to know a homeless man (and a good friend) that she can communicate with, despite his blindness and limited hearing.
Will anyone listen to Cally when she finally speaks aloud? Who is this dog and what happened to her mom? Read this sweet story called A Dog Called Homeless to find out what happens!.
Saving Zasha
Randi Barrow
Randi Barrow
Dog lovers and WWII lovers; do I have a book for you! In this post-WWII book set in Russia, there are few dogs around because of the devastation of the war. German shepherd dogs are especially despised and people who have them are even considered traitors and the dogs are often killed.
This becomes an issue when Mikhail finds an injured man with the most beautiful German shepherd he has ever seen. When he brings the injured man to his home the man dies, leaving Mikhail and his family with a beautiful dog to hide and protect.
However, hiding a dog is not easy. Katia is an annoyance to Mikhail, and determined to prove he is hiding a dog, and another soldier named Dimitri also suspects Mikhail is hiding something.
Read the book to see if Mikhail is able to save Zasha's life.
BONUS: If you like this, check out the companion book to Saving Zasha, called Finding Zasha.
This becomes an issue when Mikhail finds an injured man with the most beautiful German shepherd he has ever seen. When he brings the injured man to his home the man dies, leaving Mikhail and his family with a beautiful dog to hide and protect.
However, hiding a dog is not easy. Katia is an annoyance to Mikhail, and determined to prove he is hiding a dog, and another soldier named Dimitri also suspects Mikhail is hiding something.
Read the book to see if Mikhail is able to save Zasha's life.
BONUS: If you like this, check out the companion book to Saving Zasha, called Finding Zasha.