The Oddmire: Book 1, The Changeling, by William Ritter

What fun! This is the newest book by the author of the Jackaby series, and like that series, it is clever and fun, a great mix of story twists and magical characters that deliciously blends humans with elves, gnomes, witches, and faeries. There are several laugh-out-loud moments throughout the story, places where Ritter twists what your brain is expecting from a scene or character into something unexpected, even if just slightly so, but enough to make you smile - like a friend leaving you an unexpected gift in your lunchbox! The Oddmire is written for a slightly younger audience than Jackaby is, and I would recommend this for late elementary to middle school readers, where Jackaby is more firmly placed in the middle school grouping. But both series are fun to read, making me want to continue on in the respective series, something that many book one's fail to do. 4 paws!

Resistance, by Jennifer A. Nielsen

Wow. Wow! This is one powerful story! So powerful I emailed Nielsen about 50 pages in and told her I thought this was her best book so far! Resistance is the story of the resistance movements that formed in Europe in response to Hitler and the Nazis in World War 2. The main character is a Polish girl, Chaya, although the other young people she befriends along the way become equally important and powerful in the story. Chaya passes as Polish, even though she is also Jewish, so escapes the most immediate effects of looking Jewish and the Nazis work to exterminate Jews from the world. She becomes part of the resistance movement in her home country, a very dangerous, painful, scary and brave choice indeed. Nielsen writes that she felt compelled to tell the story of these heroic young people, and I'm glad she did. It is very powerful, one of the best books I've read this year, and one of the strongest book of this historical era I have ever read! The lives these people led, the things they endured to try to lessen and end the Nazi occupation of their country, the lives they were able to impact in a positive way, albeit temporarily in many instances, was extremely moving. If you enjoy historical fiction, you have to read this! If you are not a fan of historical fiction, you still need to read this - one important story in world history that will make you wonder how it could have ever come to be and at the same time make you wonder if something like Nazi Germany could ever happen again. Recent events in our own country make me fearful that influential people who ignore rules of government for their own personal gains at the expense of most everyone are more dangerous even than they may appear at the moment. Read this book, be inspired and alerted. 5 paws!

Illegal, by Eoin Colfer and Andrew Donkin

A new graphic novel by the author of the Artemis Fowl series, one of my all-time favorite fantasy series! Illegal is a fictional account of real-world events involving people fleeing their country because of corrupt governments, extreme violence and danger, extreme poverty...looking for a better life somewhere else but at great risk of losing their life and/or their loved ones. I don't read too many graphic novels so I don't have a lot of comparisons to make, but the artwork in this is fantastic and really adds to the power of the story. Do yourself a favor and educate yourself about this aspect of what is happening in our world today and check this book out! 4 paws!

Jackaby, by William Ritter

What fun! On the back cover of this book a reviewer writes that this is a mix of Sherlock Holmes and Doctor Who, and I couldn't think of a better way to describe this story! Part mystery, part horror story with humor and wit throughout. Jackaby is a strong and likeable male protagonist, as is Abigail Rook. This book has adventure, monsters, mystery...I enjoyed it all the way through! My gauge of how much I like book one in a series is whether I finish it and immediately want to read the next book - which I do! I can't wait to find out what Jackaby and Rook get into next...if you are a fan of mysteries, and I know many of you are, and you like your books smart, check this series out! 4 paws!

Lincoln's Grave Robbers, by Steve Sheinkin

Sometimes you just have to go back to a favorite - book or author - to read something you KNOW is going to be good! One of my fave go-to's is Steve Sheinkin, and I was happy to come across this book a week ago, one I had not read yet. Sheinkin is my favorite non-fiction author, and this story is a true one about the plot to steal Abraham Lincoln's body from his casket and use it as leverage to get a money counterfeiter released from jail in the late 1860's. Yet another Sheinkin gem, and yet another story from our nation's history that was not in many of my history books! I will admit that this isn't the author's best book, but it is still a good one. If you want the best from this writer, go find Port Chicago 50 of Bomb, both OBOB books (Bomb is a past OBOB title, Port is next year's title) - I doubt you'll be disappointed!