Madison Morgan: When Dogs Blog is the story of Madison who loves dogs and wants nothing more than a dog of her own. When she finally convinces her stepfather to get her a dog, he bring home Lilly, a small rescued dog. Lilly isn’t at all what Madison imagined, but as she learns about the […]
Aurius
June 24, 2014 by Leave a Comment
Full disclosure: As I write this review, I’m sitting at a game convention. I spent the last week helping my daughter put the finishing touches on a couple of costumes she’ll be wearing here. I may have actually been the worst possible audience for Aurius. Aurius tells the story of Jacob, a 15 year old […]
The Tiger Rising
May 23, 2014 by Leave a Comment
The Tiger Rising is quite short, just over 100 pages with chapters of 3-4 pages each. However, there’s a lot contained in this slim volume. It has “Literature Circle Questions” at the end because it was pretty much designed for that kind of situation—short enough for everyone to read, with enough metaphor to fuel tons […]
Stick Dog Wants a Hot Dog
May 21, 2014 by Leave a Comment
Stick Dog Wants a Hot Dog is the second book in the Stick Dog series. It’s useful but not necessary to read the first one before reading this one, but I’ll assume you read my review of the first one. The tone and approach are similar, with the narrator asking the reader not to give […]
Stick Dog
May 16, 2014 by Leave a Comment
When I told my son I wasn’t a huge fan of Potterwookiee, he said that if I want books that look like they’re written by middle schoolers, I should totally read Stick Dog. So I did, and he was right. The cover looks like one of those school notebooks with the sewn binding and a […]
Potterwookiee
May 13, 2014 by Leave a Comment
We bought Potterwookiee at a Scholastic book fair because it combined Harry Potter and Star Wars, two of my son’s favorite universes. He read it a while ago and I think he said it was ok. I finally got around to reading it, and I’m equally unimpressed. It’s part of The Creature from My Closet […]
Zeely
May 9, 2014 by Leave a Comment
Zeely is the story of the summer that Elizabeth and her younger brother John spend at their uncle’s farm. Elizabeth, determined to have an eventful summer, decides that the way to start is for her and John to take on new names—they become Geeder and Toeboy for the rest of the summer. When Geeder spots Zeely, the […]
Angelfish
May 6, 2014 by Leave a Comment
Angelfish is about Robin, a young aspiring ballerina living in San Francisco. (I don’t think it gives her age, but I would guess about 14 or 15.) When she accidentally breaks a shop window, she offers to work after school for free to pay for it, rather than telling her parents and risk getting grounded […]
The Road to Paris
May 2, 2014 by Leave a Comment
The Road to Paris is a picture of a short period in the life of nine year old Paris, a girl in foster care. She’s been in some really horrible situations, but now she’s with the Lincolns in a more stable and loving home, learning who she is, how to cope, and what she wants […]
The Unwanteds
April 30, 2014 by 1 Comment
The Unwanteds is a dystopian novel quite suitable for the middle grade set. Quill, an island nation, is walled off, armed heavily against the threat of an undefined enemy beyond those walls. The world is bland, gray, and decaying. The leader, High Priest Justine, rules with an iron fist. Everyone has their place, and all […]
