Callum Hunt has been imprisoned due to the wide spread fear most have developed once the people realized that the Evil Lord, Constantine Madden, continues to live inside of Call. Under the control of an evil follower, Call is being forced to use his powers to bring back the dead. Unfortunately, the only results anyone has gotten in attempting this task is creating a kaos ridden, until Call realizes the missing step in the process and raises his friend from the dead. Soon following, a large battle breaks out, and Call must find a way to to use his powers to stop the evil leaders and their kaos ridden in order to cease the battle while keeping himself alive… if that is even possible. This intriguing book is the fourth in the Magisterium series.

This Zoom into Sharks title includes information on the body, habitat, food, and life cycle of the sand shark.  Content is thin due to the simplistic text.  The short sentences and simplified concepts at times created their own confusion.  For example the information on their head shape, “They have flat heads.  Their heads are cone shaped.” seems to contract each other due to lack of explanation.  Photographs of sand sharks in various poses are sure to grab the interest of young shark fans.  The photographs, however, do not always directly support the text.

Abdozooom links are accessible with a QR code on the back of the book.  Abdozoom, an online research database for young learners is only available with a paid subscription.

Using simplistic language and short sentences, the book explains the purpose, history, construction and repair of dams.  The purposes given for building dams focuses mostly on how dams help or provide for people. The book does not give any examples of how dams can harmful to people or the environment.  The book supports new NGSS standards for engineering concepts.

Contains a simple Table of Contents and a Glossary.  No index

Tiddler is late for school everyday and everyday he has a story to tell about why he was late. Each story is outlandish and the others do not believe him except for Little Johnny Dory who tells it to his granny, who tells it to someone else. One day Tiddler is caught in a net and he ends up far, far away. He found his way back by tracing those who had heard his story.

With the title of “…. Cried Wolf”, I was expecting the moral where it is not good to tell lies/tall tales, but this was not the case in this story. Even with this, I thought it was a cute story.

Cy is a cyclops who loves to build and create things. The one thing he cannot make is a friend. He really wants a friend so he practices making eye contact, watches how his dog makes friends, practices making conversation, and tries to look like a friend. Cy builds a chariot to share with his friend. Cy sets out to find a friend to share his chariot with. The creatures in the story are from Greek mythology and there is a glossary of mythological creatures in the front of the book and labels the creatures in the back of the book. A great book for how to make a friend.

Dean Bob’s and Lou Tweet’s announces that they are going to have a class pet show. Dean and Lou are very excited to perform, but are worried their families will embarrass them.

The entire book is written in rhyme and I felt that it bogged down the book. This is book two and I had not read book one and I was several pages in before I had figured out that Bobs and Tweets were their families. I thought that this was a struggle to read and the readers that would be attracted to the cover of this book would struggle too.

Percy and Piper are on their family’s pirate ship when a storm starts up. Piper starts to tell Percy about the legend of the Sea Spirit. The storm picks up, so their parents send them below deck. They decide to hide in the closet, but Percy believes he sees a ghost and it is the Sea Spirit. The ghost turns out to be their dad’s pirate coat and hat. This book is written with short chapters with color illustrations on every page.

Tell the Wind and Fire’s title comes from a Charles Dickens’ quote from A Tale of Two Cities: “Tell the wind and fire where to stop…but don’t tell me.” This novel is a modern day retelling of A Tale of Two Cities, and begins with “It was the best of times until it was the worst of times,” a variation on the opening of Dickens’ novel.

This novel is a mixture of fantasy and romance set in a dystopian society in what was once New York City. NYC is now a city divided between extreme luxury (the Light side) and oppressive poverty (the Dark side). The main character is a courageous young woman, Lucie Manette, who was born in the Dark half of the city, but managed to create celebrity status in the Light side. Unfortunately, her name and face were easily identified, as were those of her boyfriend. When she is so distracted by happiness and loses track of time, and has to ride home on a public train, she and her boyfriend find that their fame is a detriment. Her boyfriend is captured by guards and accused of being someone / something that shocks and terrifies her.

Will Lucie be able to save him? When both halves of the city go up in smoke, and the revolution is in full force, will she be able to survive? And if she can’t save him, will she want to live even if she can survive?

This is an action packed story with pacing that is almost too hard to sustain. Recommended for those readers who like strong female characters, action, romance, fantasy, and dystopia. And for those who enjoy Dickens.

In this semiautobiographical novel, Jim Murphy feels his teachers are always out to get him. He is determined that this year will be different, but on the first day of sixth grade he is already in trouble. His teacher is always humiliating him, including having him assist the 2nd grade onstage where he has to dress up as a banana. He and his friends set out for revenge to embarrass his teacher.

A charming story about Lola Zuckerman who always seems to get herself into some trouble. Hilarity ensues as she offers to watch her friends’ dogs over Thanksgiving break when she can barely control her own dog from running away, and she must tell both her grandmothers that their pumpkin pie is “the best” when they come for the Thanksgiving meal.  Throughout all this, she hasn’t brushed her hair in days and she tries to cover up the knot that has formed using hats and other disguises. A light, fun-loving story that is sure to cause smiles and giggles for kids grades 2-5.