I am on my final roundup for the holiday season! Now I am going to start with some honesty. My life has been so crazy this fall. Between teaching and having Hazel at boarding school (I'm almost always driving there on the weekends), I have not had a lot of time or energy to read, so all of these books I have not completed and really just started. I am sharing them today because I want to share them before the holidays, so you are aware of them! Today's books range from ages 8 - 18. We will go in order of the ages. The first book is Sylvia Doe and the 100-Year Flood by Robert Beatty. It is recommended for ages 8 to 12.
From the Publisher:
A hurricane changes the course of a river and the life of a lonely girl in this nature-based mystery-adventure by the best-selling author of the Serafina series and the Willa of the Woods series!Robert Beatty, a master at telling atmospheric tales of mystery and suspense set in the natural world, has crafted another ingenious, unputdownable story.
Thirteen-year-old Sylvia Doe has lived at the Highground Home for Children nearly all her life. Whenever the administrators try to place her with a foster family, she runs away–back to Mason, Highground’s caretaker and her best friend. The only place she feels like she belongs is with him and the horses he has taught her to love.
When a powerful storm causes the remote mountain valley where she lives to flood, Sylvia begins to encounter strange and wondrous things floating down the river. Glittering gemstones and wild animals that don’t belong–everything’s out of place. Then she spots an unconscious boy floating in the water.
As she drags him onto the shore and their adventure together begins, Sylvia wonders who he is and where he came from. And why does she feel such a strong connection to this mysterious boy?
From Me:
This is a book I wish I got into more. I honestly just couldn't find the time. It is such an interesting story. Sylvia has had a hard life, and she is a strong young woman. She knows what she wants but the adults in her world do not feel it is right for her. Then she helps to search for the horses as a big storm is hitting and her world changes forever. I haven't gotten far enough into the book to know exactly how her life will change. The book however draws you in and makes you want to continue to read it. It is an adventure book. I have read enough to know there is something magical happening in the storm. The animals and perhaps the boy who come down the river do not belong in the United States where Sylvia is.
It is well written and an interesting storyline. I had trouble stopping reading it whenever I picked it up. My issue was finding time to pick it up. I think kids will truly enjoy reading it.
Our next book is Westfallen by Ann Brashares and Ben Brashares. It is recommended for ages 8 to 12.
From the Publisher:
“What a thrilling—and chilling—adventure!” —Margaret Peterson Haddix, New York Times bestselling authorFrom #1 New York Times bestselling Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants author Ann Brashares and her brother Ben Brashares comes the first book in a “pulse-pounding” (Publishers Weekly, starred review) middle grade alternate history thriller trilogy that asks what it would be like in present-day America if Germany had won World War II.
Henry, Frances, and Lukas are neighbors, and they used to be best friends. But in middle school Frances got emo, Lukas went to private school, and Henry just felt left behind. When they come together again for the funeral of a pet gerbil, the three ex-friends make a mind-blowing discovery: a radio, buried in Henry’s backyard, that allows them to talk to another group of kids in the same town...in the same backyard...eighty years in the past. The kids in 1944 want to know about the future: Are there laser guns? Flying cars? Jetpacks, at least? Most of all, they want to know about the outcome of the world war their dad and brothers are fighting in. Though Henry is cautious—he’s seen movies about what happens when you disrupt the fabric of time—soon the present-day kids are sending their new friends on a mission to rescue a doomed candy store. What harm could that do? But one change leads to another, and when the six friends alter history in the biggest way possible, it’s up to them to change it back.
From Me:
Communication between times and being able to change history are the premise of this novel. What happens if Germany won World War II? This book explores this concept. Three friends who have grown apart in present time find a way to communicate with three friends (two Black and one white) in the 1940s. There are racial issues in the 1940s as well as the war going on. Once they realize they are in different decades (but the same garden shed) they want to know more. The kids from the 1940s want to hear about the future but things start happening as they learn more and do more. It changes the outcome of the war, and they have to figure out how to change it back.
Again, this is a book I want to keep reading. It is such an interesting concept. What would change in our time if Germany had won the war? What would you ask someone from that time period if you could talk to them as if it was a regular day in their life? What would you ask someone in the future? There are so many great ideas in this book and it would make a great class book for a unit on World War II or talking about history and how things would be different if the outcomes were different. It has so much that could be expanded on and kids will find it so interesting.
Our next book is All My Bests by Britnee Meiser. It is recommended for ages 10+.
From the Publisher:
In the tradition of Hello, Goodbye, and Everything in Between, this smart and emotional romance told through playlists and memories follows two young teens struggling to hold onto each other as their friendship changes.Starting high school brings big changes for Immie and Jack, who’ve been everything to each other ever since Jack crashed his skateboard into Immie’s yard when they were seven years old. All of a sudden, a game-winning goal catapults Jack into star status with the soccer team, and Immie is meeting new girl friends whose questions are making her wonder about the identity of her father for the first time in her life.
And amidst all of this, they’re both realizing their feelings for each other might run deeper than they thought. Can their friendship—and the promise of something more—weather the storm that is growing up?
From Me:
Let's face it, growing up is hard. It is even harder when you have to figure out the feelings of your relationship with your bestie as everything is changing. High school brings about big changes. It often means new friends, new activities, and a different lifestyle. Immie and Jack are going through all of this but are also trying to maintain their best friends' relationship. Then they also aren't completely sure about their feelings for each other. Is it more than friendship?
The character development in this book is wonderful. The story is told through memories that feel like journal entries written by Immie at least as far as I have read. Immie is the introvert who doesn't really socialize, and Jack is the extrovert who literally crashed into Immie's life and never left. High school begins changing that though and Immie is not liking it.
This book is perfect for kids struggling with changing relationships and looking forward to high school. It shares a bit of the challenges that one can face with a new school and a new era of life. It is another one I had trouble putting down (if only I could find the time to pick it up enough to finish it).
Our final book for today is The Buried and the Bound by Rochelle Hassan. It is recommended for ages 14 to 18. It is the first book in the series, The Buried and the Bound. The third book in the series is coming out soon! This book got stuck away in a bag and I only recently found it again. Sorry!!
From the Publisher:
A contemporary fantasy YA debut from Rochelle Hassan about monsters, magic, and wicked fae, perfect for fans of The Darkest Part of the Forest and The Hazel Wood.As the only hedgewitch in Blackthorn, Massachusetts—an uncommonly magical place—Aziza El-Amin has bargained with wood nymphs, rescued palm-sized fairies from house cats, banished flesh-eating shadows from the local park. But when a dark entity awakens in the forest outside of town, eroding the invisible boundary between the human world and fairyland, run-of-the-mill fae mischief turns into outright aggression, and the danger—to herself and others—becomes too great for her to handle alone.
Leo Merritt is no stranger to magical catastrophes. On his sixteenth birthday, a dormant curse kicked in and ripped away all his memories of his true love. A miserable year has passed since then. He's road-tripped up and down the East Coast looking for a way to get his memories back and hit one dead end after another. He doesn't even know his true love's name, but he feels the absence in his life, and it's haunting.
Desperate for answers, he makes a pact with Aziza: he’ll provide much-needed backup on her nightly patrols, and in exchange, she’ll help him break the curse.
When the creature in the woods sets its sights on them, their survival depends on the aid of a mysterious young necromancer they’re not certain they can trust. But they’ll have to work together to eradicate the new threat and take back their hometown... even if it forces them to uncover deeply buried secrets and make devastating sacrifices.
From Me:
Of the books, this is the one I have read the least. I honestly have not gotten far enough into it to give a real opinion. Since it got tugged away for so long I wanted to get it out there and share it with you though, so if you love young adult fantasy be sure to check this one out!
