3.5 Stars - Fast paced mystery

     Logan is shocked to learn about the murder of Mrs. Donaldson, the older lady who previously owned the home he and his family just bought.  Though it was creepy that someone had been killed in his home, Logan's family assured him that it was in the past - a random murder/robbery that went wrong. 

     Logan's new neighbor Arthur thought otherwise.  After researching the cold case, both boys are convinced that Mrs. Donaldson was targeted.  She had been accused of embezzling money from Magic Forest - the town's closed amusement park.  Many people felt like the real reason the old lady was murdered was because she simply knew too much - knew who really had stolen the money - and the killer found a way to keep her permanently quiet.

     Logan and Arthur decide to investigate further.  After finding a note written by Mrs. Donaldson left in Logan's attic, Arthur and Logan are determined find the money Mrs. Donaldson had hidden so many years ago.  What seems exciting and fun quickly becomes very serious - the closer they get to finding out the truth, the closer the killer follows behind them…patiently waiting on the chance to silence the boys forever  - just as he did many years ago to Mrs. Donaldson.

Friday, July 08, 2011

                                            

   4 Stars - Hilarious hijinks

Dave's dad is determined to teach him to be responsible.  He demands that Dave spend the summer before tenth grade working a job and earning his on spending money.  Working?  What about having fun with his buddies?  Picking up chicks?  Getting a good tan?  Dave isn't alone in his misery.  His best friends' dads are all on board with this idea - demanding that Curtis and Victor also work during their summer vacation rather than "goof off."  The three teens decide that they are creative enough to fool their parents by telling them they had a summer job, but actually come up with their own ways to earn money fast and then spend the summer doing whatever they actually want.  And it almost works at first.  Almost….

   After cleaning out their most prized possessions, the three teens earn over $5,000 at a yard sale - too bad they accidentally damage a brand new sports car during the sale and have to use all the money for repairs.  Not to be discouraged, the boys keep trying.  They even do the unlikely - case out the local bank that has been robbed and are able to find out who is responsible.  Too bad an old lady heard them talking and claimed the reward money for herself!  Readers will get a lot of laughs at the trouble and BAD luck the trio keeps encountering.  Dave, Victor, and Curtis end up spending much more time coming up with ways to get out of working than they would have actually working a summer job!  In the end, though, their determination NOT to work actually pays off in a big way.  Great read for students who enjoyed Happy Kid!  and Diary of a Wimpy Kid! 

Tuesday, July 05, 2011

5 Stars - "Feel good" book done right

     A new home for Matt was no big deal.  She'd been bounced around since the age of five from home to home after her mother died.  Maybe died wasn't even the right word.  She had been murdered by Matt's own abusive, alcoholic father.  Matt not only witnessed the beatings, she experienced her father's cruelty firsthand.

No reason to dwell, Matt thought. She was tough, right?  Just look at her appearance:  the piercings, dyed jet-black spiky hair, heavy combat booths...she looked like a freak, a goth, an emo kid.  Whatever - it worked.  It kept people away...that is until she moved in Jessica and Sam.

Living with a family of Quakers?  God had a pretty odd sense of humor, Matt thought.  Not to mention the other foster kid - drooling, "developmentally challenged," icky, and annoying...Matt just needed to graduate, keep quiet, and then move to Canada where she could be legally emancipated.

Jessica and Sam pretty much forced Matt to attend the Quaker meetings.  LIke she'd rather stay at home and babysit the blob?  Truth was, the meetings were not so bad, though.  They just sat there....meditating in their own thoughts....while sharing any feelings or experiences if they felt like it.  Rather than being super-religious, the members just seemed to want to create a better world, to be kind to others, and to promote peace.  Considering the violence Matt experienced growing up, she could live with those concepts.

Unfortunately, everyone around Matt doesn't want peace.  Her Western Civilization teacher Mr. Warhead, as Matt called him, was a war fanatic.  He quickly decided to target Matt due to her anti-fighting, anti-war beliefs.  The school bully soon joins in - making Matt's life a living hell at school.

Matt just wants to be invisible to everyone.  Jessica and Sam refuse to let that happen.  They continued to include Matt, considered her their daughter, talked to her about their own lives, and treated her with kindness, love, and respect.  Matt is shocked to discover she actually likes living with them, and for the first time, she is really part of family.  Will Matt be able to hold onto her happiness?

Some of the radical townspeople believed that the Quakers were anti-American and needed to be taught a lesson concerning what it meant to be patriotic and a "good American."  The only way to prove their point was to shut down their meeting place, wiping out some of the members and leaders in the process.

 Matt knows she has to stop the violence - despite her quaking fear of being hurt again and getting hit.  This time she wasn't going to lose the family she had grown to love.

Touching story which made me cry - more than once~!

Thursday, June 16, 2011

 

     4.5 Stars - Suspenseful, hip, funny new Hex Hall trilogy

  Sophie Mercer learned early in life she was different from everyone else.  Raised by her single mother, Sophie knew little about her father except that he was a male witch or warlock.  Sophie herself discovered that she also had supernatural powers and using them could create a little fun at school....at times, though, her spells could cause a lot of trouble.  Casting a love spell for a nerdy girl who was crushing on the popular guy at Sophie's school led to disaster at Sophie's school dance.  As a result, was sentenced to Hecate Hall until reaching the age of 18.  Once Sophie moves into Hecate Hall, trouble in Sophie's life really begins.

Hecate Hall, or Hex Hall as the students call it,  is no ordinary private school.  It's a reform school for supernaturals.  Sophie's human classmates have been replaced with teens who are witches, faeries, shapeshifters, werewolves, and even vampires.

Life at Hex Hall isn't so great for Sophie to put it mildly.  Archer, who could pass for an Abercrombie and Fitch model, did save Sophie her first day of school when one of the werewolves decided she would be a nice snack for him between classes.  Too bad Archer was already dating another witch - the impossibly beautiful Elodie. 

The classes sure were different from regular high school courses.  Sophie would learn to cast powerful spells and use her magic to defend herself should she be hunted by a member of the L' Occhio di Dio - a group based in Rome whose single puprose was to wipe out the existence of all supernaturals.  Right now, however, Sophie was helplessly behind all her classmates.  Raised by a human parent, she didn't have the benefit of being taught how to use her power and magic as the other students had.  Not only did she feel like the biggest loser next to them, Sophie's teachers seemed to always target her in front of others.  Why did they dislike Sophie so much? 

On the bright side, at least Sophie had a cool roommate.  Jessica may be a Vampire, but as a friend, she was fun and full of life.

Things at Hex Hall quickly begin to spiral downward when the witch Chaston is nearly killed...left alone on the bathroom floor with bite marks on her neck.  She wasn't the first student to be attacked.  First there was Holly, Jenna's old roommate, who also appeared to have been attacked by a vampire.  Sophie can't believe her new BFF Jenna would hurt other students...but others are convinced that she is the culprit and Sophie herself could be her next victim.

Sophie thinks she is defenseless should she ever face an attack.  Her powers still don't measure up.  What Sophie doesn't realize is she is actually the most powerful of them all.  The danger Sophie fears does not lie in the outside world but inside the halls of Hex Hall....the enemy wears their school uniform...and Sophie is the next target. 

It will be up to Sophie to find out who is hurting her classmates and how she can use her powerful magic in order to save them all....

Wednesday, June 15, 2011

4.5 Stars

Savvy never wanted to move to her aunt's farm in Rhode Island.  She knew that in order for her family top get back on their feet financially, though, it had to be done.  Savvy was determined to make the best of it - unlike her drama queen older sister Callie.  

Savvy ate, drank, and slept basketball.  Standing at 6'2", Savvy knew she would be a shoe-in at the middle school girl basketball try-outs.  When Savvy meets Gonzo, another 8th grader trying out for one of the district basketball teams, she finds out the team to aim for is the highly coveted, competitive, winning Varsity Girl's Basketball team.

Savvy knew as an 8th grader that making the team would be a long shot, but she always loved a good challenge.  To Savvy's surprise, she makes the cut!  Life after making the team, however, is anything but a slam dunk. 

 Coach Fitz tells Savvy she has mad talent but unless she boosted her game to the varsity level, she'd spend most of her time sitting on the bench.  Savvy's teammates were resentful that former players lost their positions on the team to make room two middle school girls.  Savvy thought she at least had one sure thing going for her - the attention of the hottest guy on the Varsity Boy's Basketball Team - until she sees him making out with her older sister at their summer barbecue back to school party.

Determined to still be a stand out, Savvy's hard work to boost her game to a higher level soon gets noticed.  The Coach begins playing Savvy and her teammates begin to accept and like her, realizing they ultimately need Savvy to take them to season playoffs. 

Life for Savvy becomes much sweeter....until someone discovers the steroids hidden in her gym bag... 

Tuesday, June 14, 2011