The Miscalculations of Lightning Girl, by Stacy McAnulty

 One of this year's OBOB titles for middle school, Lightning Girl is the first novel by McAnulty, but not her first book. This is the story of Lucy, who survived being struck by lightning four years ago which scrambled her brains just enough to make her a math genius! Fun, right? This story describes her first venture into middle school, being homeschooled after the lightning event, where she finds that not every problem has a solution...get it?  :)

The book starts off a little slow, I think, but by page 50 or so there is enough of Lucy on the pages to make you like her. Her social life consists of her Nana and her uncle Paul, so being tossed into 7th grade has many challenges, as you might imagine. Once I started to get to know Lucy I couldn't stop reading or rooting for her! When she takes up at a local animal shelter and befriends an abandoned dog, well...I was hooked. How can I NOT like a dog story, right? 

This book reminded me of Sharon Creech's Walk Two Moons, one of my all-time favorite books, which is a strong recommendation! Lucy is quirky, smart, independent, imperfect, brave...a great protagonist! I'm not sure McAnulty is quite Sharon Creech yet, but Lighting Girl is good enough to make me want to read more from her. And you'll love Lucy, Windy and Luke, as well as Cutie Pi- even Nana! A really good story, a great OBOB selection, and a cool cover, too - 4 paws!

Nathan Hale's Hazardous Tales, written and illustrated by Nathan Hale

 I've been wanting to read one or more of the books in this graphic novel series for some time, and finally got two of them in my paws. Wow, I'm so glad I did! They are funny, informative, fast-moving, and simply well-done! I read Treaties, Trenches, Mud and Blood about World War1, and Major Impossible, about John Wesley Powell, a 19th century explorer and Civil War soldier. 

Both books will teach you a lot about their subject but not in so much depth that it gets boring - at least I didn't think so. You are given enough information to understand the period and people in a better way but not so much info that it feels like you are reading a textbook. The graphic novel format helps with that, and the humor worked throughout the stories help as well! I found the humor funny, almost silly at times, but never too immature or predictable. This series, of which there are 10 books on all, is excellent, and it teaches about some important times and people in our country's history. I recommend these to fans of graphic novels and fans of non-fiction and historical fiction. Well done! 5 paws! 

                  

Children of Blood and Bone, by Tomi Adeyemi

 This is one of those books that is reviewed everywhere by everyone for months after it comes out, which always catches my attention - who doesn't want to read the next best book, right?! But I hesitated reading this because the reviewers give it the grade rating of 9th grade or higher, which makes it a little too mature for us at the middle school. But I remained open to it as a possible addition to the library collection, and finally bought a copy to read and review on my own, wondering why it was rated so highly yet only for high school or above.

Children of Blood and Bone is now the first in a two-book series, and comes in at just over 500 pages. Already that makes it not the right book for everyone. While reading it, I admit there were a few times I wished it were done so I could move on to my next book. However, in those moments I decided to trust the reviewers and keep reading...I am SO glad I did! The last 100 pages were some of the best action-packed, romance-laden pages ever! So fast-moving! After getting through a few of the slower parts of the story, I was rewarded with an overall remarkable story.

Adeyemi's first book mashes African history with fantasy and African-American sentiment into a wild blend of a story. If adventure, magic, kingdoms, wars and battles and romance is your thing, you will surely like this! I found that the reason some reviewers were giving it the higher grade rating was the romantic relationship that builds up as the story goes along, peaking at some intimate suggestions that I think most mature 8th grade readers could handle. Probably even mature 7th graders. In fact, I didn't find anything more suggestive than in any Twilight books, nor anything that would even make me blush. So a strong story, with older teen characters, doing and thinking what many older teens think about when it comes to someone they are attracted to - oh, and with a unique storyline, action and adventure thrown in. 

The closest comparisons I can think of for this book would be Tristan Strong Punches a Hole in the Sky, only for older middle school or high school readers. After reading the story, the Author's Note at the end of the book will make you cry. It's not the same to read it before the story - I did both. It will be something sure to move you after you complete the book. Not sure I would read the second book until I finished the first, but now I probably will dive in again. What happens to Zelie? 4 paws and a wag!

The Kingdom of Back, by Marie Lu

 LOVED IT!!!

The first book I ever read by Marie Lu was Legend, which I liked a lot. The second was Batman, which was very good, but I liked Wonder Woman, by Leigh Bardugo but part of that same super hero chapter book series, a bit better. The third book was Warcross, which I didn't expect to like but I really did! And now, Back, which is Lu at her best!

In this new book she blends historical fiction with fantasy, something I would have never guessed possible, and she does it brilliantly! This tells the story of the famous composer Mozart, and his sister, who is the main character in this story. Growing up together the two Mozart children are musical geniuses, but because she is female, he gets the attention, praise, accolades -  even though she is writing and playing as well, if not better, than he is. Her frustration leads her into a fantasy world where she is promised that things in the "real" world will go her way, in return for some favors by her to restore a prince to his rightful place in the kingdom, the Kingdom of Back.

Lu writes it much better than I can explain it, and all I can say is you HAVE to read this! This is one of the best books I have read this year...I may have to read it again! Awesome! 5 paws!

The Stars Beneath Our Feet, by David Barclay Moore

     "We often feel that we must say what we must say. It's also crucial, however, to listen to other voices. Listening, I think, is the best way to learn about those who differ from you. Reading is a form of listening."

    From the author's notes at the end of this book, and what a great, powerful message. Stars is the debut novel from author Moore, and this story of 12-year-old Lolly, growing up in New York City and trying to navigate life, choices, friends, enemies, family...all in the course of about a year. At times I found Moore's writing a little jumpy, as he wrote to mimic Lolly's thoughts, which don't always flow from one topic to the next smoothly. But this jumpiness was infrequent, and didn't take away from my understanding of Lolly or his story. 

    One of the author's praising the book wrote that the characters will stay with you, and they do. A very strong first book by a talented author. I look forward to reading more of Moore's books in the future. Not yet a Walter Dean Myers, Jason Reynolds or Jacqueline Woodson, he may well be headed that direction - a good voice in the diversity of teen books that is still so desperately needed.

I give this a strong 4 paws!

D-Day: The World War II Invasion That Changed History, by Deborah Hopkinson

Hopkinson is a Portland author, someone I've met a few times and who I enjoy talking to about her latest work. At least one of her books has been in OBOB (maybe more), and I was excited to read this newest non-fiction offering from her. The book goes very in-depth of the invasion of Normandy, France in 1944 as part of the United States's efforts to stop Hitler and spread of Nazi Germany as well as the other Axis Powers (Italy and Japan).

D-Day offers a lot of personal stories and voices, which is the strength of the book. For me, to hear a a story of a specific event or time in history told from the people who experienced it is the most powerful way to understand and appreciate what it was like at that moment in time. That is why I like a good historical fiction book - when an author can create characters and events that tell of a true period in history so that I can feel what it was like to be there and why certain things did or didn't happen, that creates a connection for me that is hard to beat! Hopkinson uses a lot of personal stories to describe this historical event and I liked "getting to know" a few of the people she relies on often to tell the story of this WWII invasion.

The book is divided into sections, which I found a little disruptive and broke the flow a bit. I would have also liked more maps so that I could really place the events that her sources were describing more clearly in my mind. She does include a lot of actual photos from the invasion period, which helps deepen my understanding and picture what things looked like then.

My last criticism of this book is that several times Hopkinson slips into a  promotion of the people who served in the war, and in this invasion in particular, which is warranted on the one hand, but she occasionally sounds like an advertisement for the armed forces rather than an author telling a story by laying out the facts and details. I think that World War II may have been the only large-scale war worth fighting in the modern age, due to the terror that Hitler and the Nazis were creating and delivering to the world. But that cause does not make war less terrible, nor does it make those on the right side of the fight all good. She mentions that Blacks were not treated as equals in the armed forces, and that women's roles were limited as well, but that both made important contributions. More of both of these aspects of the story would have helped the story feel more balanced, perhaps. In her warranted appreciation for the sacrifices thousands of people made for this cause, there was an occasional promotion of war in general, I thought, and that bothered me a little bit. I was hoping she offered something more thorough and thoughtful, perhaps, and a little less "hawkish".

In all, I enjoyed this book, and learned a lot about D-Day and this chapter of WWII history. If you are a fan of war history, particularly World War II, you may also find this book really interesting. If your interest is more casual, you may find this book bogs down a bit along the way, as it did for me at times. I don't think this is Hopkinson's best work so far, but it's decent. I'll always look forward to her next offering! 4 paws!

Queen of the Sea, by Dylan Meconis

A graphic novel book by a Portland, Oregon author and cartoonist, Queen of the Sea is a book that I really enjoyed! Spending a few days at the Oregon coast with my humans, what better title than this to read while listening to the surf pound against the beach all day? Meconis tells and draws a tale very loosely based on the Tudor family of 1500s England, with King Henry VIII, "Bloody" Mary and Elizabeth I - "loosely" to the point where I probably wouldn't call this historical fiction, but it IS a very good read!

Margaret is the main character and narrator, and after arriving as an orphaned baby on an island run by nuns, her life and story unfold as she becomes a teenager and other people and events shape her world. Friendship, romance, mystery, history, deceit all work together to create a graphic novel that is more dense than most, but, in my pug opinion, really really good! In fact I finished this book in three days, in between watching out the window for passing whales and fishing boats, eating, and sleeping - that ranks this one right up there with some of the better books I've read!

Well written, especially if you want something more like a chapter book or novel in content, and well drawn, this is a different graphic novel than most I've seen, and I like it! 5 paws!




Side note...look into author Carolyn Meyer if you want good teen chapter books about this era, and others, in history...she writes great historical fiction, among other genres, including the era covered in this graphic novel!  :)

Prairie Lotus, by Linda Sue Park

Prairie Lotus is the latest offering by Park, author of A Single Shard - Newbery winner and one of my all-time favorite books! Her writing is not action-oriented, so at times it may seem slow or plodding if you aren't used to her style. But I enjoy her work a lot! Her characters are always very well developed, and the stories she tells are deep, thorough, and interesting. I was excited when I saw this new release, and it's a pretty quick read!

Prairie is the story of Hannah, a half Chinese/half White girl living with her father in 1880s North America. They arrive in a town in South Dakota, one of many places they have lived, and through Hannah, Park tells of many of her own experiences growing up Asian in the United States. Set in the 1880s the bigotry Hannah faces takes many forms and comes from many people - not unlike the modern day, according to Park, and perhaps not very surprising to many of you. Hannah shows a lot of courage and growth as well as anger and sadness at what she experiences, as any of us would. Prairie is a wonderful story of late 1800s American expansion, our collision with native Americans then, and the ongoing trouble we, as a country, have reaching the "liberty and justice for all" that our nation aspires to. Park writes in her Author Notes of the influence the Little House on the Prairie books had on her as a young person, and how she has always wanted to tell a different version of that idealized prairie life, from the point of view of someone beside a White girl in a White family.  Prairie Lotus is a good, steady story that I recommend! 4 paws!

https://lindasuepark.com/

The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes, by Suzanne Collins

The newest addition to the Hunger Games series...awesome, right?!?  I was happy to get a copy of this so soon after its release, and it was a page turner! It's been a few years since I have read the first Hunger Games book, but it has stayed with me through regular check outs and, of course, the movie versions of the series - and because it is so darn good! This newest installment will not disappoint. This is the story of Coriolanus Snow as a teen - barely surviving member of the Snow family living in the Capitol ten years after the war between the Capitol and the Districts that resulted in the creation of the Hunger Games.  Coryo, as he is called by a few close friends, becomes a mentor for the latest Games recruits, and ends up in a romantic relationship with his District 12 recruit. Of course, that isn't easy, and it often doesn't go well. Add to that a friend who is bent on seeing the Districts overtake the Capitol, some weird snake creations, songbirds...a very intricate weaving of stories into one good book!

Collins has delivered another strong story and an alternate perspective into the Hunger Games world than the one previously viewed from Katniss' life and story. I will add that I felt the ending of this new book seemed rushed and slightly contrived, almost as if Collins had written Coryo into a corner and she didn't quite know how to get him out of it. That or she just needed to end the book and wasn't exactly sure what that looked like. But that could simply be my own take on a book that otherwise was difficult to put down. If you have had any liking of the Hunger Games series or stories, at all, read this - Collins is exceptional at what she does, and this one will not disappoint! 4 paws and a tail wag!

Two Can Keep A Secret, by Karen McManus

The second murder mystery by author McManus, Two Can Keep A Secret is reminiscent of April Henry, and fans of Henry's books will find a lot here to like! McManus's first book, One of Us is Lying, is a best seller, but I have not yet read it. This offering is good, full of twists and turns  - and plenty of murders taking place in a small town over a period of years - but not amazing. I found the number and names of characters to be a little confusing throughout - who is a sibling of whom, names of different characters that are very similar to other names, etc. - and a couple of times it seemed like the author had written herself into a corner and the solution was a little contrived, or written to get her out of the jam rather than in the best interest of the overall mystery. In all, if you're a murder mystery fan and cannot find enough new titles to keep you reading, you will like this book - and author! If you only want to try this genre to see what it's like, April Henry is the current reigning queen of the genre!  3 paws.