Chapter One finds young (12 yr.) Max trying to escape from chains wrapped around his chest while water in rising inside  the tank he is in. Jonny Zucker, authors this fast paced action thriller and Ned Woodman’s black, white, and gray illustrations keep the reader on the edge of their seat all the way to the last page!

Max Flash’s parents are stage magicians who have trained their son well. Max is a “first-class escape artist, contortionist, and illusionist.” Max’s escape in chapter one has just qualified him for his first mission with DFEA – Department for Extraordinary Activity. Max is being asked by DFEA to enter the computer game world (inside the computer) and close a portal which a virtual game character is about to use to take over the real world using virtual world warriors. Max is given little time to prepare, but he is familiar with the computer games he is about to enter. Max narrowly escapes back into the real world from the virtual world as the portal is closing by using his contortionist skills.

As this book ends, Max is preparing for his second mission. So far, there are 6 missions.

Includes a Houdini Fact File.

TYPO on page 108,  line 4. ” Max kicked his the bars of the cage in frustration.”

The Gift is more of a book of art, with a gentle story, more than anything else.  The illustrations for the book are all done using a paper cutting technique from one single sheet of paper.  They are so finely detailed it is quite impressive to turn from page to page to see the various events of the storyline play out.  The story is a gentle story, but I’m not sure who is the audience for this book.  The story begins as a young girl sits in a clearing in the woods, making a flower chain, wishing she could be buried her when she is dead.  What?  Do little girls really think that?  She grows and goes through life, always coming back to the clearing, making it more beautiful by adding seeds and bulbs.  She is finally through with her life and her wish (The Gift?) comes true.  Just thinking that this is the place she wants to be buried when dead throws a pall over the story, even though her life is joyful.  I would have thought that as a young girl she would wish that she could build a house and live in the clearing.  So…the story I’m not so sure about, nor does it work as a read aloud.  But the artwork is absolutely beautiful.

This book is pretty much an attempt at a feel-good, you-can-do-it book.  Basically an account of Kerry Wood’s life, growing up in Texas and playing sports, but especially loving baseball.  Nothing in his life was too remarkable.  However, it is unusual for a 17-year-old to be a first round pick in MLB and then playing in the majors after just one game in the minors.  He was successful at a very early age.  But after that burst of success, there was a dark period in which he was injured.  I wish there would have been more detail about this, because I believe there is a link to pitching as much as he did at a young age and becoming injured.  I wonder if he ever regretted the fact that he didn’t go to college and if he would recommend that kids put education first.  I know that many kids take his message of hard work to heart and practice, practice, practice.  But, really, very few people are successful and make it into professional sports.  That same message should apply to school and education, which will open more doors for them.  Wood’s life seems rather one-dimensional–it’s all baseball.  The art is by school students grades four through eight.

Bible Detective, a puzzle search book, is an interesting way to teach about the Bible.  Each pair of pages show either a specific location in the ancient world or a specific event from the Bible, and includes a caption which explains the picture.  In a border around the picture are small icons plus a descriptor for the reader to find within the picture.  This is the perfect complement for an older and a younger reader to find and talk about the pictures, or a solo reader.  Specific people, events, and locations include Abraham, Egypt, Babylon, Jeruselum, and so on.  The last portion of the book contains answer keys.  This is a great book for those wanting to know more about the Bible.

Shark Wars, by EJ Altbacker, fits the archetypal mold of the hero’s journey.  A young shark, Gray, gets banished from the reef where he grew up for sneaking out into ‘the big blue’ in order to hunt.  Once removed from his comfort zone he gets mixed up in a war between two rival shark clans, the Goblin Shiver and the Razor Shiver.  Due to food shortages the sharks have begun warring for hunting rights and oceanic supremacy.  As it becomes clear both factions are corrupt, our heroes, former allies of Goblin Shiver, split off into their own faction, Rogue Shiver, and save the day.

In the beginning this book hints at interesting themes.  I was intrigued by the premise that it’s okay for sharks to hunt dumb fish, such as tuna, but not the more intelligent species.  Unfortunately this was not explored in detail, proving to be a backdrop for a series of terrible fish-related puns.  Set pieces such as the tuna roll sports game were groan worthy in the worst sense and came to overshadow the already-generic plot.  The mythology behind the series also seemed to be merely an elaborate ruse for shark puns, lacking the substance necessary to captivate.  If a child between the 8 and 10 has a strong interest in cookie cutter stories of good versus evil and a fondness for sharks this may be the story for them.

The Rites and Wrongs of Janice Wills captures the angst and insecurities of an American teenager through the observations of the main character.  Janice Wills is a smart, analytical young woman who aspires to be an anthropologist. She decides to catalog high school social behavior in anthropological terms as her entrance letter to college. Using the scientific approach to understanding human behavior, she identifies the rules and rituals of American teenagers.  She also participates in the local Miss Livermush Pageant and Scholarship competition, the local “must-do”, coming of age rite of passage for the young women in her small North Carolina town.  With her astute observations of social interaction of her peers, she comes to an understanding of her own behavior, especially that observing can inhibit participation and that honest insights can be hurtful.  Humorous, witty and occasionally painful, Janice Wills is a literary persona that is likeable, irritating and ultimately endearing.  This book is an enjoyable read for the high school  audience.

Prisoner B-3087 is the touching, heartbreaking journey of survival of a young Jewish boy during the Second World War. He becomes a man, celebrating his Bar Mitzvah, as the Germans restrict all Jews to the Warsaw Ghetto.  The subtle, tightening vice grip of Nazi control and determined hatred catch Yanek and his family off guard.  They all perish. He has only himself and his will to survive.  This true story of Jack Gruener, Yanek,  is written  as historical  fiction to emphasize the random, senseless cruelty that he endured for six long years.  The unimaginable horror of forced labor in ten concentration camps, two death marches, continual starvation, beatings and moments of almost certain death evoke empathy as well as disbelief that humans can do such things to each other.  This awareness of the past horrors is important to teach the terrible truths of genocide and the remarkable drive for survival in the human spirit.  This is not an easy book to read, but it is an important addition to the literary testaments of personal survival and endurance.

This is a fun story about two boys who get numbed about math, and can’t do math at all.  They learn that math is a big part of their life and they need to know math.  The boys have to go back to the museum, where they were numbed, they have to solve several strange math problems to help them regain their math skills.  They decide that they like math and the solving of the problems.

In this graphic novel, the first in a new series, Rufus goes to visit his grandma for a weekend.  She lives in a very private, wooded area.  While investigating the forest, Rufus finds a totem, a sasquatch necklace.  When he reads the word ‘sasquatch’ he turns into a sasquatch and can speak to the forest animals.  Wolves see him as an intruder and see that he has found the totem which protects the forest and blackmail him to give them the totem.  It’s an interesting story without much dialogue, but so much is told in the illustrations.  The characters were interesting, and the story left it as a cliffhanger for the sequel.  I will definitely get the next one.

Thomas Jefferson Builds a Library gives a brief history of the beginning of the Library of Congress and it’s current collection.  I have read many articles and books about Thomas Jefferson and was aware of his love of books.  However, Barb Rosenstock took a small factoid about an important man in the history of our country and was able to expand upon it, creating this lovely non-fiction picture book.  Additional information is included on just about every page in the form of a miniature book, open to reveal the page of  information.  From this book, it appears that Jefferson was obsessive about books, which dovetails nicely with his high value of education.  I found it interesting how many different and unusual subjects Jefferson collected.  I was left with the impression that great readers are smart people or maybe it’s smart people are great readers.    I hope students pick that up as well.

This book was really made for the younger student in mind.  First of all, each page is a different, bright color. Second, the text is also different colors as well as being bold and large.  And, third, there is a great balance of the text and photos, which give it a comfortable feel.  My only concern is that in several places within the book, it is stated that the dinosaur ‘might have’ done this or ‘might have’ done that and ‘could have’ this or that.  There is a lot of speculation as compared to actual facts.  However, a young audience will appreciate all the design that went into this book.

Gentle, kind, funny, and artistic all describe this new book by Daniel Kirk.  The characters and story reminds me of Piggie and Elephant books by Mo Willems.  There is a camaraderie between Pig and Rabbit that lets the reader think about friendship and what exactly friends like about each other.  This would be a great book to use for teaching social skills to students of all ages in elementary school.

Tedd Arnold’s illustrations are so distinctive, it’s easy to spot his work.  Fly Guy is a popular series in my school.  First-grade readers are able to both read the text and enjoy the art.  In Fly Guy and the Frankenfly, Buzz dreams that Fly Guy made a giant Frankenfly monster which scared him.  Who hasn’t had those kinds of dreams?  This is perfect for elementary libraries, plus the price is right.

This book is published in England and has an air of true English to it, such as “Mum” for “Mom”.  The illustrations are quite charming and suit the story perfectly.  This is a story of the germ battle going on in your toilet at home.  The main character is a boy who doesn’t wash his hands after using the toilet and the germs that ensue!  They transfer from the toilet bowl to his hands, and since he doesn’t wash, and then uses his toothbrush, Queen Bacteria’s army heads straight for his mouth!  King Antibod tries to thwart the queen’s army.  Who will win?  You’ll have to read this funny tale to find out.  Warning: this story may be bit “cheeky” for some folks.  It includes words like, “fart” and “runny bottom”.  This reviewer plans on placing it in her elementary library.  It provides a great lesson to be remembered: wash after using the toilet.

Nice quality binding, always appreciated in the priced non-fiction selection of books.  This science book explains how a solar and lunar eclipse occurs.  There is a section in the book which instructs the reader how to make their own model of an eclipse with a flashlight and ball and string.  Included is a glossary, other book recommendations, and a facthound website.  This reviewer explored all three sites and they were kid appropriate and had valuable information.  Recommended.

Well done!  This nonfiction book has enough visual appeal for the reader to scan and enjoy, and enough “meat” to it to hold your attention.  There is a nice balance and  selection of real black and white photographs, color photographs, maps, captions, and illustrations.  This includes a pull out map at the back, of the Antarctic, which includes Scott’s route to the pole.  Also in the back, an Index, further reading, glossary, timeline, and website.  The website is The American Museum of Natural History and has as much information as any student could desire.  The website was easy enough to navigate and from my one viewing, appropriate for all ages.

The only suggestion that I would have for this well-bound book, would be an improvement with the timeline.  It would be helpful to have it visual, instead of a vertical list.  Have it spaced with approximate proportions to time, maybe include an icon or inset map to show where.

The formatting of this book brings visual appeal and interest.  Differentiated fonts and brightly colored graphics give the reader not only “curb appeal”, but also interested faces about record setting football games.  It is basically a record book on football stattistics.

The back of the book has a further reading section, glossary and a Fact Hound website.  I followed both suggested sites and was relieved to find that they were geared towards children and not adults.  This would be an OK site to let a child explore.

This book would make a nice addition to a library collection.

Great photography gives this book a real boost, along with eye catching graphics.  This may entice reluctant readers who are interested in sporting facts to stick with this read.  Included are career statistics, team player, college play, and awards given to Tim Duncan.  Appreciated is an address located at the end of the book, that a child could use to write to this basketball star!

The usual further reading, glossary, and internet address are included.  The websites aren’t children’s sites, but would certainly contain some kid-appropriate material.  Depending upon age, the reader may need an adult to accompany them on the internet sites suggested.

This reviewer appreciates this large sized, non-fiction book!  Great photos of Baboons in the natural habitat with simplistic text: 3 sentences per page.  Each two pages taking a different topic: food, family, bodytype, etc.

This is a fact Hound books with suggested websites to further learning. All were appropriate.  Included were more books to read and a glossary of terms.

Recommended.

This is a nonfiction book with different theories about the Bermuda Triangle.  Great layout and visual with pictures and captions. Visually appealing.This is also a Fact Hound book, with internet sites to support further learning.  This reviewer visited the three websites suggested and found one that was truly kid-friendly.  The other were nice additions, at a reading level above where most children would be in a First Facts book series.

Recommended!

This shark book stands out from the others because of the sharp photography.  Many different species of shark are shown, as well as very close-up shots of denticles (skin and scales) and other interesting features.  The captions for these photos are filled with interesting factoids different from other shark books.  For instance, another shark book I reviewed showed their teeth and stated that sharks have just over 300 teeth.  This book, however, goes a step further and explains that when a shark’s tooth wears out, a new tooth moves in to replace it and that some sharks go through as many as 30,000 teeth in their lifetimes.  Wow!  That’s a lot of teeth!  The info seems fresher and more interesting.  Kids will love it!

Fire and Fury is the fourth and final installment of The Chronicles of Avantia series.  The story is of an evil warlord trying to reclaim the pieces of the Mask of Death which will enable to have total control over the land’ beasts and people.  Four young people are called ‘chosen riders’ and each has a special beast with whom they have telepathic communication and can travel quickly.  In each book a new ‘chosen rider’ is introduced until all four are working together to overpower the warlord and his evil army.  In this book, one of the chosen riders is actually a traitor, a boy who is under the villain’s spell.  In each of the previous books, there has been good characterization and lots of action.  However, in this fourth book, much of the book is spent explaining what had happened earlier.  I wanted to skip over the repetition and get to the end to see how it turns out (although it was pretty obvious).  Reluctant readers, mainly boys, will enjoy the action and fighting.

This beginning reader chapter book is a treat!  Beautiful illustrations and formatting.  The story is charming and integrated throughout are real Japanese words!   My only complaint is the big, loopy binding.  Perhaps this is temporary because it’s a new book?

Highly recommended for primary readers at the elementary level!

They’re called ‘freaks’ because they’re unusual and look unusual.  The main character is Sheba, who doesn’t have any family and grew up in a shanty on a rambleshack pier not far from London in the 1850’s.  She is sold to Mr. Plumpscutte, the proprietor of a traveling carny or freak show.  Sheba’s unusualness is that she has hair all over her body, including hands and face.  The older she gets the more she looks like a wolf-girl and is able to channel the snarling and gnashing teeth of a real wolf.  Other freaks in the show include Monkeyboy, self explanatory, Mama Rat and her trained rats, Gigantus, again self explanatory, and Sister Moon, an Asian girl with awesome Ninja skills.  This is the first ‘family’ that Sheba has known.  She is only required to sit and have paying customers come and stare at her.  One such customer was a small eight-year-old girl, stinky and filthy, who was fascinated but not frightened by Sheba.  The girl, Till, gave Sheba a broken marble, but it was the first thing anyone had ever given her and she was touched by the friendship.  Shortly afterwards, Sheba learns that Till has disappeared, as have other poor children who work along the riverfront.  Sheba and her ‘family’ set out to find her and the others, even as it becomes apparent that the people responsible for the missing children are willing to kill to keep their secret.  Larwood does an excellent job with characterization as well as the setting.  I actually thought I was beginning to smell the river’s waste.  The action is exciting as Sheba and her friends close in on the villains.  A well-rounded debut novel.

Shocking Sharks has a cover showing the head of a shark with it’s mouth open and it’s large, sharp teeth.  Also on the cover is a blurb stating, Walk on the Wild Side.  Altogether, the title, the picture, and the blurb are leading you to think that this will be a scary-in-a-good-way book.  But it’s just a ploy to get you to open the book.  In it you’ll find a pretty tame information with nice photos about sharks.  Nothing shocking or wild about it.  Kids all love shark books so this will make a nice addition to a school library.