How can a group of students stop the tide of fear caused by reports of ghosts and murder in the  abandoned Ludlow House in the small town of Banesville? Hildy and Zach use the school  newspaper to challenge the local newspaper’s coverage of events.

When the city’s newspaper  editor pressures the school to stifle the school paper, Hildy and Zach go “underground” with the  help of a restaurant owner and a former newsman. Will they be able to stop developers from  tearing down the orchards for a theme park, to determine who or what murdered the stranger on  the old Ludlow place, and to unmask the ghost?Prepared by: Linda Rosenlieb

lrosenlieb@edgefield.k12.sc.us

Friday, August 06, 2010

from Booklist:

Early in this hilarious what-I-did-on-my-summer-vacation account, Greg Heffley cynically records his clueless mother’s promise that despite tight budgets, it would still be “the best summer ever.” Boy, was she wrong! Instead, the summer brings a long list of miseries: the anxiety-provoking shower at the public pool, a falling-out between Greg and his best friend, and, worst of all, “family togetherness.”

Friday, August 06, 2010

 Since she can remember, Katarina's relatives have been grooming her for the family business--thieving. But when Kat tries to go straight and leave the Life for a normal life, she's promptly kicked out of her new school for stealing the headmaster's car and mounting it on the school fountain. Although she could have done it without breaking a sweat, ironically, this time, she's innocent.

In fact she was framed--by another highly-skilled thief. Her friend and brother-in-trade Hale, with his mischievous smile and limitless bank account, has appeared out of nowhere to bring her back to the Life, back to the family Kat tried so hard to escape. Hale has a good reason: A powerful mobster has just been robbed of his priceless art collection and he wants to retrieve it. Only a master thief could have cracked this vault, and Kat's father isn't just on the suspect list, he IS the list. Now, caught between Interpol and a far more deadly predator, Kat's dad needs her help.

summary from http://www.fantasticfiction.co.uk

 

Friday, August 06, 2010

from School Library Journal

Up-More than 200 years in the future, Comet Bhaktul hurtles past Earth, leaving a deadly contagion in its wake. Bhaktul's disease threatens to annihilate the human race within a decade, but the mysterious illness only affects adults. Scientists worldwide scramble to find a cure, while one scientist proposes a controversial project to preserve humanity, should other efforts fail. Under Project Galahad, 251 teens are sent on a mission to reach a habitable planet free of Bhaktul's contamination. As Galahad enters space, the young people must deal with the intense pressure of saving humankind and the sadness of leaving their families behind. Sixteen-year-old Triana, the ship's commander, must manage daily operations while also dealing with her father's recent death. Matters escalate when, less than a week out, one of the teens spots an adult onboard, a potential Bhaktul carrier. With the help of the Council and the ship's computer brain, Triana does her best to solve the mystery of the uninvited passenger and save their mission.

Friday, August 06, 2010

Bounce

    

5 Stars - This is a great story about changes, accepting new people into your life, and letting people love you - even when you may not love yourself

Evyn's life is suddenly turned upside down.  Her stepfather is marrying a woman he barely knows.  And to top it off, Ev has to now move states away from her BFF - to live in a strange town with a new dazzling stepmother and her five children that Ev and her brother, Mackey, have never met!

Sure Eleni tries to act nice, like she's happy that Evyn and her brother are now part of her goofy family.  Evyn doesn't need her, though.  She has her dead mother who still talks to her at night, supports her, and loves her...a mother she hasn't seen since she passed away, dying in a car accident, when Evyn was just one-year old.

Things only continue to get weirder.  Evyn's stepsisters are impossibly perfect, and her college-aged stepbrother Linus is so incredibly hot he makes her drool.  How sick is that?

 The popular girls at school suddnely all want to hang out with her because of her cool new brothers and sisters....until they become angry at Evyn for not hooking them up with her cute stepbrother....then suddenly Ev is an outcast and the It Girls become the Mean Girls. 

To make matters worse, Evyn's best friend back home, Jules, has suddenly become Miss Popular and never has time to even talk to Ev on the phone. Ev's mom keeps telling her to be happy, to not walk - but to bounce.  Evyn will bounce.  She's ready to bounce away from this life forced on her - a life she didn't choose or want.

Friday, August 06, 2010