Posted on by Maureen

The Last Boy at St. Edith’s by Lee Gjertsen Malone

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I received a copy of this book from Netgalley/the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

I first heard about The Last Boy at St. Edith’s last summer when I began to follow author Lee Gjertsen Malone on Twitter. I knew that this was a book that I wanted to read, and I was very excited when I received an opportunity to read an advanced copy via Netgalley.

Jeremy Miner is a seventh grade student at St. Edith’s Academy. The school was coeducational for a few years, but all the other boys have moved away or transferred to other schools. Jeremy hates being the only boy at an all-girls school, but his mother will not allow him to transfer. So, Jeremy does what any reasonable person would do in this situation: he formulates a plan to get himself kicked out of school. He and his friend Claudia come up with a series of pranks, and while Jeremy tries to set guidelines about no one being humiliated or no property being damaged, things don’t always go according to plan. As Jeremy gets closer to achieving his goal, he realizes that his actions are affecting those around him- is this really what he wants? Read more

Posted on by Maureen

Auggie & Me by R.J. Palacio

51ypc4llh4lI read Wonder a couple of years ago, and absolutely loved it. This middle grade book shows up on the summer reading list every year, and has become a modern children’s classic. Wonder tells the story of Auggie, a young boy with a craniofacial abnormality. He has been homeschooled for his entire life because of his numerous surgeries and procedures, but he wants to attend a regular school. He starts fifth grade at a small private school in Manhattan, and Wonder is the story of what happens during that fifth grade year. It’s told from multiple perspectives: Auggie, his older sister, his classmate Summer, etc.

Author R.J. Palacio has assembled a collection of three “Wonder Stories”. They were originally released on the Kindle as “Kindle Singles” which could be purchased separately, but last fall, they were released together in one hardcover book as Auggie & Me. Read more

Posted on by Maureen

This is Where It Ends by Marieke Nijkamp

41iu42b0bynlI received a copy of this book from Netgalley/the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

I have always enjoyed young adult books. Even though I am past the target audience, I still enjoy browsing at the bookstore or checking out the new release shelf at the library. As soon as I read the summary of This is Where It Ends, I knew that I wanted to read it.

This is Where It Ends is the debut novel of author Marieke Nijkamp. It is the story of a school shooting at Opportunity High School in Opportunity, Alabama. The entire story takes place in less than an hour, methodically broken up into chunks of a few minutes at a time. There are four different narrators, each of whom has a connection to Tyler, the lone shooter. Claire dated Tyler briefly the year before. Autumn is Tyler’s sister. Sylv is Autumn’s girlfriend. Tomas is Sylv’s brother. Some of these narrators are in the auditorium when the shooting begins, and some are not. Each of these characters has experienced setbacks, even devastating losses. These incidents have affected them profoundly, and shaped their personalities and their hopes and dreams for the future. But none of that matters when Tyler storms into the high school auditorium and starts shooting. All that they can do is hope and pray that they will survive the onslaught, as Tyler exacts his revenge methodically and without any remorse. Read more

Posted on by Maureen

Pippa Morgan’s Diary by Anne Kelsey

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I received a copy of this book from Netgalley/the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

I was not familiar with the Pippa Morgan series when I received the opportunity to read the first book- Pippa Morgan’s Diary– but I fell in love with Ann Kelsey’s middle grade series almost immediately.

Pippa Morgan is undergoing some major life changes: her best friend moved to Scotland, and her parents are getting divorced. So when Catie, one of the most popular girls in the class, befriends Pippa, things are looking brighter. There’s just one problem: Pippa may or may not have told a small lie about having auditioned for a popular reality singing competition. Catie is so impressed that she signs Pippa up for the school talent show. There’s just one tiny problem: Pippa cannot sing at all! And now she’s afraid that if she tells the truth, Catie will no longer want to be her friend, and Pippa truly values Catie’s friendship. With the day of the talent show approaching, Pippa does not know what to do, and she is running out of excuses!  Read more

Posted on by Maureen

D.C. Trip by Sara Benincasa

51gquldopplI received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

A trip to our nation’s capital city is a rite of passage for many American schoolchildren. I sold candy bars and wrapping paper to offset the cost of a sixth grade trip in 1991. Now, given that the internet was not invented yet, and we had not been emboldened by social media, I cannot report any shenanigans aside from eating handful of salt at a suburban Virginia Chi-Chi’s. When I received an opportunity to read Sara Benincasa’s new novel D.C. Trip, I was very excited. A group of high school students with only two chaperones- what could possibly go wrong? Read more

Posted on by Maureen

Penelope Perfect: A Tale of Perfectionism Gone Wild by Shannon Anderson

I received this book from Netgalley/the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

Penelope Perfect is a picture book by Shannon Anderson. Penelope is a little girl in elementary school. She maintains a meticulous routine: she wakes up at 5:00, she always double checks her work, her desk is organized, and she even stays in at recess to do schoolwork. When a storm knocks out the power to her house, everything goes wrong; the alarm doesn’t wake her up, she doesn’t have time to comb her hair, and she even gets a B on a test. But when Penelope decides to go outside at recess and actually play with her classmates, she realizes that always being perfect might not be as perfect as she thought it was.

The illustrations were provided by Katie Kath. I found them to be quite charming. There’s such a contrast between the first half of the book and the second half. Penelope is dressed very nicely, her schoolwork is flawless, and she even uses antibacterial wipes before eating lunch. In the second half of the book, Penelope has to rush around because she is late. Her clothes are a little messy, and her hair is wild. Her facial expression is pained at first, but then she begins to smile when she realizes that she feels comfortable.

I read Penelope Perfect with all three of my girls. There are some great discussion questions at the back of the book, and we spent some time discussing Penelope’s story. My girls do have some issues with rigidity, but they aren’t perfectionists. If anything, my oldest girl tends to rush through her work and make careless mistakes. There were still lessons that we could take away from reading this book: accepting that it’s okay that things don’t go the way we expect them to, and finding the positive aspects of a negative situation.

I would recommend Penelope Perfect. The material is presented in a very engaging manner with rhyming quatrains. This is a wonderful teaching tool for children in elementary school, and I think that there are aspects that all children can relate to even if they don’t tend to rely on routines.
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Posted on by Maureen

Jasper John Dooley: Lost and Found by Caroline Adderson

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I received this book from Netgalley/the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

My girls and I read a lot of books, but I was not familiar with Jasper John Dooley before I read Lost and Found. Jasper John was so delightful that I immediately checked two of his other adventures out from the library. Jasper John Dooley is a series written by Caroline Adderson.

Jasper John Dooley is an adorable little boy whose manages to turn everyday occasions into fun adventures. In Lost and Found, he discovers a Marcel Mouse figurine in a box of old toys at his grandmother’s house. Marcel Mouse was Jasper’s father’s favorite television show, and Jasper knows that Marcel Mouse is very special. He wears Marcel on a string around his neck, but it is not very easy to keep track of the little mouse! Jasper and his friend Ori also find a “game that bleeps” in the lost and found box at school, and they take turns borrowing it. Jasper learns some important lessons over the course of the book, and relies on help from his friends and family. Read more

Posted on by Maureen

Gargoyle Hall: An Araminta Spookie Adventure by Angie Sage

I received this book from Netgalley/the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

I was not familiar with Angie Sage’s Araminta Spookie series when I received the opportunity to review Gargoyle Hall, but now that I have done so, I will be picking up the rest of Araminta’s adventures!

Araminta Spookie is a young girl who lives in a big house with her family and her friend’s family. They are an eclectic bunch, like the Munsters or the Addams family. Araminta always has good intentions, but she is also rather “spirited” and her good intentions don’t always yield good results. Read more

Posted on by Maureen

Poppy’s Best Paper by Susan Eaddy

I received this book from Netgalley/the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

I know you’re not supposed to judge a book by its cover, but as soon as I saw Poppy’s Best Paper, I knew that my three girls would love it. This delightful picture book was written by Susan Eaddy and illustrated by Rosilande Bonnet.

Poppy is an enthusiastic little rabbit full of joie de vivre. Some might also call her “spirited”. Poppy wants to be a writer when she grows up, so when her class receives an assignment to write about what they want to be when they grow up, Poppy doesn’t spend a lot of time on her paper, but she is sure that she is going to be the one whose paper is read aloud by the teacher. When she isn’t picked, she huffs and doesn’t congratulate her best friend, whose paper was the one read aloud. When this scenario is repeated the next day, Poppy throws a tantrum and continues to misbehave at home. Can she pull herself and write the perfect paper? Read more