Twelve-year-old Zoe Bennett goes to a private school for gifted students, but she hasn’t yet found her own “gift.”  For Zoe, that’s a problem, though it is one that lots of public school students would probably be willing to trade for.   Still, with a sister who’s a talented actress and a brother who’s a math whiz, Zoe is seen as an outsider at her school, and is the prime suspect when mysterious notes start showing up in lockers around the school.

Though many kids may not identify with the special school, they will identify with a girl who feels like she’s not part of the “in” crowd.  And the all -too -familiar cliques, rumors,  and mean kids are here too.  Zoe finally does discover something she’s interested in when Lucas, the nerdy new student, drops his notebook,  Zoe sees that it’s written in code, and discovers that she can read it.

Classes in Zoe’s specialty, cryptoanalysis, might not be offered at most schools, but the lessons Zoe learns about making friends and fitting in are pretty much the same everywhere.

There’s an answer key for the ciphers, plus bibliographies with books on codes and ciphers, and also on Mayan civilization and writing.

Greek myths are exciting and kids love reading about them.  Odysseus is always a popular hero and the story about the cyclops is one of the best.  Odysseus and his men came to an island and found a cave full of food.  Waiting, they found that it was a cyclops who lived there and he was none too friendly.  For breakfast and dinner he would eat two of Odysseus’s men.  Finally they came upon a plan.  They would give the cyclops some wine and when he fell asleep they would blind his one eye.  After doing so, they disguised themselves as part of the sheep and slipped out of the cave.  I especially enjoyed the cleverness of Odysseus when he said his name was Nobody, so when enraged, the cyclops yelled ‘Nobody did this to me!’  Fun reading for kids.

The first sighting of the Loch Ness monster was in AD 565.  Throughout time, there have been reported sightings of Nessie, but none have been confirmed.  Hoaxes and fakes have been reported as well, making the reality of there ever being a monster is quite dubious.  Kids enjoy reading about monsters, however, and they’ll enjoy this one, also.

The Infinity Ring is a new series similar to 39 Clues.  There are several books all written by different authors, plus games cards to allow online playing.  A Mutiny in Time is the first book in this new science fiction series.    The Infinity Ring is actually a time travel device which allows participants to travel back or forward to any time.  The story is based in the future and that the earth is being destroyed by volcanic eruptions, earthquakes, hurricanes, tornadoes, climate change, and a ruling group which refuses to recognize it.  Dak and his best friend Sera, plus Riq, travel back in time to undo the breaks in history, all of which have have compiled to create these disasters.  In this first book, they travel to Spain and set out as deckhands on the voyage with Christopher Columbus.  Apparently Columbus was a bad guy and his men mutinied and killed him.  The futurists must stop the mutiny and allow Columbus to discover the new world and set history correct.  Fast paced with lots of action.  Kids not familiar with history might become confused.  But as with 39 Clues, this series will also become a hit.

Though fishing isn’t on my list of favorite pastimes, I found this small book fascinating.  It is full of tips on how to catch fish, but also takes readers to spots around the world where fish are caught.

Australia’s Sydney Harbor, the weir across Italy’s River Arno, and the Mekong River were the locations that interested me the most.  My vote for best picture goes to the Mekong fisherman holding a 644.6 pound catfish in his arms. It is the largest freshwater fish ever caught.

This book is a worthy addition to any library, and researching these fishing holes must have been great fun.  Short, factual text boxes, bright and attractive pictures, and helpful fishing tips are on every page.  A glossary explains fishing words.  Websites, books, and magazine titles are included.