Imagine that your excellent language skills lead to a Secret Agent position behind enemy lines during World War II.  What are the risks, the thrills, the challenges?  How are Secret Agents trained and prepared?  What special equipment and tools will you need?  What will your mission be like?  Will you succeed and live to tell about it?  What if you are captured?  All this and more is covered in this exciting and interesting non-fiction book.  The illustrations are cartoon-style and the pages are full of facts presented in an easy to read format.   Accelerated Reader level 4.2, 1 point.

If you’ve ever been curious about the reality of climbing Mount Everest, this book will provide lots of information in an engaging and entertaining format.  Every page is busy, filled with cartoon style illustrations, text boxes and bubbles.  Although busy, the information is easy to follow.  The Everest climbing experience is told from the early attempts to summit, ending with the story of the first officially recognized  successful summit in 1953 by Hillary and Tenzing.  There is a glossary and index.  Accelerated Reader level 5.3, points .5.  This series provides interesting information about different experiences, jobs and famous people from history.

This series is an engaging way to be introduced to interesting jobs throughout history.  This book focuses on what life is like building cathedrals.  Written with a sense of humor, comical graphic novel-style illustrations, and lots of text boxes and bubbles, readers will follow a young apprentice mason as he becomes a Master.  All the hazards and challenges of building a cathedral are described.  The layout of the pages is busy but not difficult to follow.   There is a glossary and index.  Accelerated Reader test level is 4.7 and is worth .5 points.

The pictures in this book are great.  The sister is a “know-it-all”.  That left the story a bit flat I think.  The pictures are the best part of this story.

Young dragon livers will enjoy that part of the book.

This is a great book to help children interested in writing books.  It walks them through the entire process, from illistrations, to creating a story, to binding the finished product.

Creative writers with an interest in art would also enjoy this book.

This is a story about two teenage boys from different military sides of the Crusades.  Salim is an Islamic boy who is an apprentice to a Jewish doctor.  Together they are recruited by the Sultan Saladin for the war effort.  Adam, the other boy, is a peasant raised to squire from England.  His lord was one of the first to arrive on Holy soil.  Both armies have occupied the area around the city of Acre and are attempting to wait the other out of food.  Salim and Adam do meet each other and find that they could be friends.  The boys discover that their prejudices are unfounded.  Their bond solidifies and they work together to help each others families.

In the story, the characters are relatable and the internal conflicts they have can be found even in today’s world.  The author’s writing style is conversational which allows the reader to connect to the characters more.  The message in this historical fiction novel is clear:  Prejudices have no foundation.  Get to know someone before you judge them.

— Michael S.

In this science fiction novel, a  young boy named Rigg and his Father live alone in the wilderness as trappers.  His Father is constantly training and teaching him everything from different speech styles to math. When his Father suddenly dies, Rigg is faced with discovering the truth behind his Power.  In the village, Rigg meets another boy with a Power; they discover that their Power together allows Rigg to see people from different times.  So begins Rigg’s journey to discover his past.

This book forces the reader to be constantly thinking about what could happen next in the complicated plot.  Voracious science fiction fans will not be able to put this book down.  The author’s writing is very descriptive and well-paced.  The narrators of the story reveal sides of different worlds; always keeping the reader on the edge of their seat.  This adventure time travel novel is guaranteed thrills!

— Michael S.

An excellent resource for any health class,  “Junk Food” editor Ronald D. Lankford calls on guest authors, experts in the field, to write entries throughout the book.  Filled with up-to-date (2011) statistics, the author cautions the reader that many junk food companies know that the “best way to sell junk food is to make them appear healthier.”  Using techniques such as posting false health claims on packaging (“Zero Trans Fat” or “Contains Whole Wheat”) distracting the consumer from other unhealthy ingredients in the product, many companies trick the public into thinking they’re making smart choices.

Trying to deliver the truth to the reader, “Junk Food” offers some political solutions, such as taxing junk food to help pay for the increasing health care costs.  High blood pressure, kidney stones, heart stress, and obesity are all believed to be side effects of America’s addiction to junk food.

Again, this is a great resource to try to educate young people about making healthy food choices.  The book’s thorough data would make it a great resource for a report.  An “Organization to Contact,” complete with annotated bibliographies, is included at the back.

Written by real-life twins, Times Squared is a fun book for young middle school girls.  The story line was not predictable and kept my interest throughout, wondering what would happen next.

The main characters are twins, Emma and Payton, who experience many awkward moments tweens can identify  with.  Math nerds and fashionistas are represented, first as separate groups and then joining forces to protect their school’s pride and dignity.  Along the way, the girls also gained dignity and pride in themselves.

The cover art reflects the innocence of the seventh grade students and situations.  There were no mean girls or sexual inferences in this easy to follow book.  After finishing the book, I felt uplifted and satisfied knowing there are still light-hearted and relevant books written for middle school readers.  I think this book would be great for fourth through seventh grade girls.

(By Jamie Kenny)

Amber was switched at birth.  Her biological mom writes her letters begging her to reply and promises her the world.  Amber takes a day for herself at the beach to avoid thinking about the custody her biological mom was given.  She meets Cade, who is also on his own personal getaway.  The two teens confide in one another and by the end of the day romance sparks between them.

Using flashbacks throughout the story, the author slowly weaves the tale of Amber’s past and present.  The author uses verse format to depict the emotional journey of the main character.  Readers who enjoy a heartwarming story will be guaranteed a good read.

— Tyler Z.