Henry has the perfect life, or so it seems.  Born into the riches of Medina (aka land of Bill Gates and friends), he has made all the right moves to prepare himself for  Harvard Law School and a career as a politician.  With girlfriend Catharine by his side, this power couple couldn’t be stopped—until dark eyed, dark haired Anne Boylen crashes into their lives.  Henry’s whole being flips out whenever Anne appears.  There’s nothing he can do to stop his passion for everything that is different about Anne.  Though Anne is not the type of person who will bend over  to fit into a new crowd, to please Henry she is led into situations that totally compromise her.  The constant tension in the book is whether they will make it through together or apart.  A play on the love story of the real Henry VIII and Anne Boylen, readers can wonder how far the author will stray from history while being whipped up in some over the top lusty lines.  There is no outright sex but foreplay abounds.  Some will see this as too “oh, my” while others will drink it up like they did for Bella and Edward.  It could be a fun addition to most high school libraries.

At first glance you might think this is a picture book for grade schoolers, but you’d be wrong. Oh, small children might sit still while you read it to them, but on a deeper level, this is an allegory poking fun at uneducated, simple people.

The story is told in three parts. Part one, the LEEKS, tells about how uneventful a leek’s life is in the vegetable garden. So, when a cow comes along telling them he is Santa they get very excited. The cow invites them to come home with him. “The leeks line up, orderly and disciplined, and one after the other they squeeze through the fence.” Right into the waiting cow’s mouth.

In part two, the CARROTS, in the garden are laughing at the leeks and their demise. Then the carrots begin to worry the reindeer might come and eat them, too. After long discussion where nothing is accomplished, one carrot suggests digging a tunnel a escape from the reindeer. The plan is carried out in teams. The carrots’ tunnel soon runs into a colony of bats. At first the carrots are worried the bats might eat them, but the bats are friendly. The bats are going to a party. The carrots ask if they can come along. No problem. The bats and carrots emerge from the tunnel in a warren full of wild rabbits.

In part three, MIXED VEGETABLES, off in another section of the garden a leek named Romeo finds a carrot named Julienne. They spend their nights whispering together, away from the other vegetables, until one dawn they are discovered. The Leeks are against the Carrots and vice versa. Then the other vegetables from the garden get involved in the insults. Romeo and Julienne sneak away.The vegetable garden is a battle zone. The gardener sees the aftermath and turns the smashed vegetables into soup. And the cow and a rabbit enjoy Romeo and Julienne.

Perceval Barrier’s illustrations are all done in varying shades of orange and green with cartoon conversation bubbles, in addition to the regular text.

Scooby and the gang spend the week at the Tumblewee Ranch.  The owner, Slim Jim, explained to them that someone was stealing his best horses.  Of course Scooby and the gang offer to help solve the problem and as a cover they join a rodeo clown class.  It is no surprise that Shaggy and Scooby are naturals when it comes to goofing around.  Shaggy and Scooby put their rodeo skills to good use and catch the horse thief.  The story follows the standard Scooby mystery story line and is sure to capture the interest of Scooby fans.

The twins Carlos and Carmen are tired of all the rain and can’t wait to go outside again to play. They’re thrilled when they wake up and the rain has stopped.  When they look outside, however, they find their yard covered in water.  The twins make the most of this unexpected development by jumping, spashing, and playing in the water until they are muddy and soaked.  Knowing they can’t go inside in such a messy state, they call their Mom outside.  Instead of being upset, their parents join in the fun, turning an inflatable mattress into a home-made water slide.  They made up for 3 days of rain with a week’s worth of fun in one morning.

These Hispanic characters intersperse the text with short phrases in Spanish. All Spanish terms and phrases are translated into English in the back of the book.  A fun engaging story with energetic characters that is sure to interest young readers.

This title introduces the reader to the land, animals and culture of Bangladesh.  By focusing on the uniqueness, strengths, and challenges of living in Bangladesh the book provides students a good opportunity to find connections and notice differences with their own life.  Maps, graphs, fun facts and vivid colorful photographs help to keep the reader engaged.

Contains Table of Contents, Fast Facts, Glossary, Learn More and Index.  A level 5 Blastoff Reader.

To take care of his or her amazing body, a child needs to eat well, keep moving, fight germs, enjoy fresh air, stay clean, and sleep well.  This title separates these concepts into individual chapters.  The large, easy-to-read text is organized into short segments on each set of pages. Images are colorful and engaging.  This is a good title for young independent readers needing short texts.

Contains Table of Contents and Glossary of bold terms, but lacks an Index.

Also in the series Looking After Me: How Do We Move?; Going to the Doctor; and Going to the Dentist.

Sixteen tales of trailblazing homesteaders, entrepreneurs and fable-rousers who overcame the hardships of the 1840’s coming west and settling.  The stories are researched through diaries, journals, letters and written songs.   Excellent for women’s studies, or history of the west.  Includes notes for each chapter, bibliography and index.

Gerta’s father and brother visit West Berlin when the Berlin wall went up, nearly over night, trapping Gerta, her mother and second brother in East Berlin and separating their family for four long years. Meanwhile, the Stasi police has bugged their apartment so the family cannot talk freely in their own home about the government’s horrific control. Then Gerta spots her father on the other side of the wall signaling her to dig. Getting a secret note from her father, she realizes the location and risks her life to dig an underground tunnel under the width of the wall to freedom. Excitement and danger mixed with complications and setbacks make this book a great read.

It is unfortunate that Larissa’s family has been cursed with family members’ untimely deaths throughout the generations. Well, Larissa helps her parents by cleaning the family’s antique shop where she encounters a creepy doll that has been in the family for years, and then gets strange calls on a disconnected, antique phone with messages to trust the fireflies. Larissa finds the fireflies at the Bayou Bridge where she time travels learning of her great grandmother’s disrespect which caused the curse. It is up to Larissa to save her family’s future! This story is written so mysteriously that it will entice readers!

This is a story set at Christmas time. It begins in a forest with a winter storm blowing through the bare branches of trees. Only the little fir tree is calm, quiet, and comforting to the forest animals in need of new homes due to the forest’s broken branches. The storm calms at midnight “For far away, a baby had been born beneath a star, while heaven’s angels danced and sang for joy.” Later, “stars from the angels’ cloaks drifted down through the still air.” The trees with their bare branches all wanted the stars to land on them, but the stars only landed and stayed on the soft green branches of the fir tree “the place where there is love.”