Mr. Revere and I / Robert Lawson 152 p. Deceased author Told from Animals point of view

Mr. Revere and I / Robert Lawson 152 p.  Deceased author Told from Animals point of view

Mr. Paul Revere's horse tells of the story of the American Revolution with charm and wit.  Once a member of the "King's" army, Sherry is destined for the glue factory when Sam Adams rescues her.  She becomes member of the Sons of Liberty under her new master Paul Revere.  Sherry and Revere made many rides, traveling to New York and Philadelphia to report on the political activities in Boston.   What a delightful way to learn of Revere's role in the founding of the United States.

Time Voyage / Steve Brezenoff 111 p.

Return to Titanic : Time Voyage / Steve Brezenoff 111 p. 20th Century Fiction and Time Travel

20th Century Historical Fiction + Time Travel

Tucker had to go to the museum with his mom. What a boring day! The museum is the official most boring place ever. She's setting up for a new exhibition on the Titanic. He and Maya get to open the last packing case labeled Special Collection Handle with Care. In it is a Titanic boarding pass issued by the White Star Line. It was issued to Liam Kearny to be used on the 11th day of April in the year 1912 to board at Queenstown, Ireland. When Maya goes to look closely at the ticket, it slips from its protective covering. They both grasp the actual pass at the same time and are instantly transported back in time to April 11, 1912, Queenstown, Ireland. Tucker and Maya meet Liam and his family. They explain what happens to the Titanic but are unable to convince the Kearny's not to board. And how are they to get back to their time?

First in the series Return to Titanic.

Echo/Pam Munoz Ryan/587 pgs.

Playing hide and seek, Otto finds himself alone in a forbidden forest. He stumbles upon three mysterious sisters who leave him with a prophecy,  a promise, and a harmonica. It's not an ordinary harmonica--it produces music no other harmonica can produce. Decades pass, and the harmonica finds its way into the hands of three very desperate people: Friedrich in Germany, Mike in Pennsylvania, and Ivy in California. This is a beautiful story of magic, fate, and how the lives of these three people are intertwined, and impacted by music--and one special harmonica. It's part fantasy, with a dose of historical fiction. Highly recommended!

The Serpent's Curse (#2 The Copernicus Legacy) / Tony Abbot / 496 pages

In The Serpent's Curse Dr. Roald Kaplan, his two sons (Wade and Darrell), along with Dr. Kaplan's niece (Lily) and her best friend (Becca) continue the search for twelve relics hidden around the world by sixteenth-century astronomer Nicolaus Copernicus. The relics had been part of a Time Machine, which was disassembled (with each component artifact separately hidden) by Copernicus, to protect the world from the Teutonic Order's diabolic plan to use the time machine for their own fiendish purposes. Those entrusted with knowledge about where the relics formerly were and currently are hidden became known as Guardians of the relics.

In this book of the series, the beautiful, yet ruthless, Galina Krause (head of the Teutonic Order) will stop at nothing in her race against the Kaplan family to gain the relics. To this end,  Galina has Dr. Kaplan's wife, Sara, kidnapped. 

With chase scenarios, near brushes with death, codes to decipher, puzzles, kidnapping, murders, hungry wolves, time travel, relics and adventure, this book will not only excite student readers; but, adults as well! 

The Forbidden Stone (#1 The Copernicus Legacy) / Tony Abbott / 419 pages

The Copernicus Legacy - The Forbidden Stone is an action packed adventure and mystery that captures the reader’s attention quickly and completely. This is the first of 12 novels and novellas that will tell the story and in each one an important relic must be found to ultimately save the world.

Filled with action and adventure, this story moves along at the speed of light even as it delivers quite a healthy dose of history and science. I was quite amazed at how seamlessly the author was able to integrate so many educational elements into this story without sacrificing the narrative. I learned quite a bit about Copernicus without ever feeling like the information was just getting dumped. The settings are quite dazzling, giving this book an uncommon scope for a title aimed at this age group. This is Davinci Code light and will be sure to find many fans among the 9 to 12 year old set.

Miracles on Maple Hill / Virginia Sorensen / 180 pages

     This is a Newbery winner from the 1950's about the transformation within the family after the father returns from war (probably WWII).  It sounds like PTSD before that was identified.  The father is angry and wants to be alone.  The family moves to the mother's grandmother's farm in rural Pennsylvania from Pittsburgh.     They arrive at sugaring time.  The story continues until after the next year's sugaring time.
     Marly, the daughter, is the main character and her interactions with her brother and family and the neighbor, Mr. Chris, form the story.  Her love of nature is the basis of the story.  It has the transformative power of nature as a theme similar to the book The Secret Garden.  The father mellows out and returns to his former self.  The descriptions of the flowers and plants make you wish you were on these adventures.  Marly's love of animals is a great addition as it points up the conundrums of man vs. animal ethics.  (I see her as a future animal rights activist).
     Very interesting in this book are the male/female roles.  Marly many times "lets' her brother be the first to see or do something because he is a boy and boys "need" to be first.  She is not allowed to roam while her brother can go anywhere he wants without even saying where he is going.  She also does the "women" chores while her brother does the "men" chores.  I love how she has glimmers of the future when she questions some of these things.  I see a budding feminist.  Good book.

Okay for Now / Gary Schmidt 360 p.

Doug Swieteck moves to "The Dump" in Marysville, New York where his father has found employment. He is saved by weekly visits to the public library where the librarian is teaching him to draw using the Audubon’s Birds of America as models. Doug keeps many secrets as he lives down the thug reputation of his middle brother. His father’s abuse is so realistic that you feel for Doug and his family. Doug uses what he learns from the bird prints as he moves from edgy to more open to life in Marysville. Schmidt amazingly integrates baseball, gym teachers, principals, theatrical escapades, and timely preoccupations like the Moon landing and the Vietnam War. This realistic story will resonate with you. And you will want to cry at times.

Return of Doug Swieteck who first appeared in Gary D. Schmidt's Newbery Honor book: The Wednesday Wars.

2012 Notable Children's Recordings

Queen of Hearts / Martha Brooks 214 p.

Set during World War II, teenager Marie-Claire and her younger brother and baby sister are all stricken with tuberculosis. Sent to the sanitarium near their Manitoba farm, they join the other "exiles" as they chase the cure.

Her anger and stubbornness shows as she Marie-Claire struggles with personal tragedy, loss of privacy, and separation from everyone she knows. Nicknamed the Queen of Hearts by her late uncle (a TB victim), she works to keep from turning her back on others.

No cure exists... the best is to arrest the disease. There Marie-Claire makes friends with roommate Signy. Though she lost her brother, it is through him that she meets Jack.

Martha Brooks recreates the TB ward with such accuracy and care. Turns out she was raised by a medical family on the grounds of a tuberculosis sanatorium.


2012 Notable Children's Books

Moon over Manifest / Clare Vanderpool 351 p.

Abilene Tucker arrives at Manifest, Kansas for the summer of 1936.  Her father has put her on the train, sending her to an old friend, Pastor Shady Howard, while he works a railroad job.   She wants to learn more about her father.  She discovers a cigar box filled with old letters and mementos from 1918. She and her new friends, Lettie and Ruthanne, read about a spy known as The Rattler.  This sparks their spy investigation.  Vanderpool artfully interweaves stories about 1936 and 1918.   Miss Sadie, a "diviner" slowly leads her through the story of Ned and Jinx.  Wonderfully enriched with historically details about World War I, the 1918 flu epidemic, and life in Manifest.

2012 Notable Children's Books

Jefferson's Sons / Kimberly Brubaker Bradley 368 p.

Kimberly Brubaker Bradley tells the personal side of  Thomas Jefferson's later years through the eyes of three of his slaves, Beverly, Madison, and Peter (a boy close to the Heming family). Beverly and Madison are sons of Sally Heming and Thomas Jefferson (generally accepted by historians).  Sally is very demanding that her children keep the identify of their father a secret.  Bradley gives an historically accurate account of slaves lives intertwined with the story of the Jefferson's life after his presidency.  Heming's children are given some better treatment (better work, even violin lessons) but they still were slaves, expected to work on the estate. Jefferson did free two of Sally's brothers but none after that.  Heming's children were freed:  two allowed to walk away and two in his will.  Bradley paints the evils of slavery with great sensitivity yet children will get it.

 2012 Notable Children's Recordings

Like the Willow Tree : the diary of Lydia Ame / Lois Lowry 216 p.

Only eleven-year old Lydia Pierce and her older brother Daniel survive the horrific flu epidemic of 1918 that took both their parents and baby sister in a matter of days.  Their grieving uncle takes them to be raised in the Shaker community at Sabbathday Lake near Portland, Maine.  In this installment of the Dear America series of diary novels, Lydia tells the story of their adapting to this new way of life.

2012 Notable Children's Books

Inquisitor's Apprentice / Chris Moriarty / 345 pages

This is an alternate history of turn of the century New York City when the city was clearly divided by ethnic and religious boundaries and magic was something most everyone could do.  Sacha is a young Jewish boy who becomes an apprentice to the greatest Inquisitor (police that seek out and deter magic crime) because he can see magic.  Turns out the evil wizards of Wall Street (Morgaunt, Astral, Vanderbilks, etc.) are trying to keep the power of magic for themselves so they can gain more power and money.  Historical characters such as Edison and Houdini are also featured in the story.  While accurate for the time period, the blatant bigotry, anti-Semitism, and ethnic stereotypes limit this to older elementary or middle school readers who would understand the context of the plot.

The Cheshire Cheese Cat / Carmen Agra Deedy & Randall Wright / 228 pages

This is a "Dickens of a Tale" that is perfect for reading aloud or handing to a 4-7 grader who likes really good books. Skilley is an alley cat with a secret. He takes up residence in the Ye Olde Cheshire Cheese pub supposedly as a mouser. However, one of the mice, Pip, discovers Skilley's secret and the two become a team. Pip has a few secrets of his own which play an important role in the plot. There are many references to the works of Charles Dickens as he and other British authors visit the pub to partake of the best cheese in all of London. Even Queen Victoria has a cameo role as she visits Ye Olde Cheshire Cheese in search of her missing raven (Maldwyn) who is missing from the Tower of London. Besides being a great story that offers plenty of action and is heavily dosed with humor and intriguing characters, The Cheshire Cheese Cat has some very important lessons for those who are growing up and discovering who they are and what is important. The bountiful illustrations of Barry Moser add even more to this totally awesome book. Highly recommended.

Along the River/ Adeline Yen Mah/ 182 pages

Adeline Yen Mah has written a biography of her life called "Chinese Cinderella". This book is not it, but it takes place in China during World War II. It is somewhat confusing. It seems to be a continuation of a story at the beginning with the author more just "telling" the story rather than really writing a fiction novel. Then, she gets into the real story which is a historical novel set back in an old dynasty. There, the characters and story come alive. The rest of the story was really just a frame to get into that part. The idea is that there are past lives and some people inherit past memories like other people inherit musical ability, etc. This inner story is fairly interesting and includes a great look into what it was like to live in China.

She also includes many Chinese words and characters in the back of the book. She has free Chinese lessons on her website.

Moon Over Manifest / Clare Vanderpool / 351 pages

This is the 2011 Newbery Award winner and it certainly deserves the award. So many times I cringe when the Newbery is announced and wonder...Is it a book that kids will want to read? Is it a book that helps readers to grow? Is it a book that will retain its appeal over the years? My answer for Moon Over Manifest is yes, yes, yes! This is truly a wonderful book. Perfect for reading aloud....a dreambook for any discussion group. Abilene Tucker, an 11 year old girl, daughter of a wandering dad, is not a character you can easily forget. Manifest, Kansas is the type of town you might know. The people of Manifest are not what they seem. The book is set in 1936 in the hardtimes of the Depression but it also flashes back to 1917-1918 and what was happening during that time. It is about stories and how stories are part of all of our lives and help us to understand who we are. Well, you just have to read this. You will not be sorry and you will want to share it. Read every single word...even the author's note and the acknowlegements. This is a book that is carefully woven and makes your heart feel full.

Moon Over Manifest/ by Clare Vanderpool/ 351 pages/ Newbery Award

This year's Newbery winner is a historical fiction story set in a small Kansas town during 1936. It centers around young Abilene Tucker, who arrives new to the town of Manifest right as summer is starting.

The story alternates between Abilene's current time in Manifest (in 1936) and what she hopes is her father's time in the town (in 1918). As she pieces together parts of the town's past and learns more about her own, she comes to some personal understandings about people in the town and about her own family.

The story was a slower read for me, but I did find the back and forth format between past and present helped keep me interested in finding out what happened next. Overall, I'd recommend it to upper-elementary school kids already into historical fiction.