Readers' Beach

This is another GIRL book. I try to read lots of different kinds, but I ran out of books one day and had to visit this old friend.

Anne of Green Gables (by L. M. Montgomery) was originally published in 1908. The language can be hard for kids to understand at first. It’s written in a more formal style than we are used to nowadays, but those with fairly good vocabularies should be able to get used to the style within a few pages.

We first meet Anne Shirley as she is picked up from the train station by Mathew Cuthbert. Mathew is an older man who doesn’t talk much and prefers to be left alone. When Anne starts to chatter, Mathew discovers that little girls (whom he’s never really cared for from past experience) can actually be interesting. Anne is an orphan who has come a long way to become part of Mathew’s family. At least she thinks so. But Mathew knows there has been some terrible mistake. He and his sister Marilla sent word to the orphanage to send them a boy to help with chores on the farm. The specifically asked the asylum not to send a girl. But Mathew enjoys the girl’s talk and doesn’t have the heart to tell her that she will have to go back to the orphanage.

Anne of Green Gables is the story of Anne’s experiences at Green Gables, the home of the elderly brother and sister. We learn some of Anne history: that she’s been passed from home to home and received terrible treatment from just about everyone she’s ever met. But the past has not dampened Anne’s spirit. She is the very definition of optimistic. Her shining personality begins to work on the hardened Miss Cuthbert. But, will Marilla agree to let Anne stay? Will Anne make a “bosom” friend? Will she learn to get along with the cheeky Gilbert Blythe? Read the book (or better yet, the entire series) and follow the many misadventures (or scrapes as she calls them) of Anne Shirley.

I’m reading three books right now: one classic, one Young Adult and one Kid’s book. I won’t try this again. It puts me too far behind.

I am in the middle of Moon Over Manifest by Clare Vanderpool, which is the latest Newbery winner.  It’s historical, so of course, I am really enjoying it. It takes place during the Great Depression with flashbacks to World Ward I.

Abilene has been sent by he father to live with friends in Manifest, Kansas while he looks for work. These are her father’s friends. Abilene has never met them. But she’s used to moving around. She’s good at judging the lay of the land in new towns and figuring out how to get along. But, Manifest is not like other towns.

Abilene finds a box of old letters, leading to a mystery. Was there ever a WWI spy in Manifest? And could that spy still be around? And who is the old Palm Reader that everyone else is so afraid of? Are the kids she thinks she already knows (assumptions based on past experiences) really all that bad?

Well, I haven’t finished the book yet. But I am truly enjoying it. Abilene is a spunky character. Her relationship with her absent father is clearly strong, and the people she finds herself surrounded by are interesting to say the least. I highly recommend you give this book a try.

Ledger Kale belongs to a very special group of families. In these families, each member receives a special gift upon his or her 13th birthday. These are no ordinary gifts. They are super powers. But not your run-of-the-mill superpower like super strength. In Ledger’s family you never know what you are going to get as a savvy. One cousin controls the weather. Another, electricity. Another, insects. Another, plants. Cousin Mibs can communicate with any drawn image, as long as it’s on the skin (see Savvy).

Ledger’s thirteenth birthday has come and gone and no one has seen his savvy, because he is ashamed of it. You’ll have to read Scumble to find out what that savvy is. Now, Ledge and his immediate family are on their way to a Savvy family wedding, and a very unwanted guest has stowed-away in their van. Can Ledge get rid of her before the family’s savvy secret get out?

January’s book:

Those of you who have heard (or read) me rave about Theodosia will not be surprised when I say that Theodosia and the Eyes of Horus is great fun. Our heroine, eleven year-old Theodosia Throckmorton is up to her tricks again in this third book in the series by R. L. LaFevers. She is still battling the forces of evil with the help of ancient Egyptian magic and a mysterious secret society, the Brotherhood of the Chosen Keepers.

Once again, the Serpents of Chaos are after a powerful magical artifact which they plan to use to create chaos in the world. The group’s actions have not been hard to follow. The trouble is, Theo doesn’t know what they are after; and her old friend, Lord Wigmere, doesn’t seem to be interested in helping this time around. Could it have something to do with the dusty old tablet Theo found in the storeroom?

With the help of her brother Henry, a dubious magician named Awi Bubu and her partner Sticky Will, Theo sets out to solve the mystery and once again stop the Serpents of Chaos.

My apologies for the down time. There was an issue with my account and I was locked out for quite a while. All is fixed now, so I can get back to reviewing books for you. Here is a review for a book I read back in November:

Bag of Bones is the second in the Five Kingdoms series. I have not read the first book in the series, but I couldn’t resist the cover of this book. Even so, I didn’t have any trouble following this fantasy story.

There is magic in the Five Kingdoms. Witches (all good, because the evil witches were banished long ago), talking animals, trolls, you name it. Loobly Dirty is a young orphan and servant of a group of good witches. Since all of the evil witches have been banished from the Five Kingdoms, everyone is surprised when Truda Hangnail appears at a witch’s meeting. Truda is evil. Truly evil. No one can stand against her spells, so the good witches are quickly shrunk to the size of mice – out of the way of Truda’s dastardly plan.

Queen Bluebell is very old. Her only daughter ran away years ago. Since the royal line is passed down through females, and Queen Bluebell’s only relative is a boy, she must choose a girl to succeed her to the thrown. Truda’s plan is to bewitch the queen and force her to name the old hag as her successor.

Fortunately, Loobly isn’t affected by Truda’s black magic. She overhears Truda’s plan and sets out to save the Kingdom with the help of Trueheart Gracie, valiant Prince Marcus, Marlon the talking bat, and Gubble the troll. But will they be in time to save the kingdom from Truda?

This is not a new book. In fact, it’s pretty old. But, it’s still one of the best books I’ve ever read. And, it’s the book that turned me (a decided NONREADER) into a Book Fiend at the age of 12. Yes, you read that right.  I didn’t like to read until I was 12 years old. And this book did the trick.

Weezie is a plain tomboy growing up on an island in the Chesapeake Bay. She has a beautiful non-identical twin sister named Caroline. Times are hard in their fishing community, but somehow their parents always find the money and time for anything that Caroline desires. Weezie is left to shift for herself, along with her best friend Call (an awkward asthmatic kid with very little imagination).

The story follows Weezies would-be adventures with Call, her strained relationship with Caroline and the trials and tribulations of girl heading into adolescence without a clue and with very little guidance. Weezie’s parents love her, but her needs are always put off in favor of her delicate and more high-maintenance sister. The grandmother is down-right mean to Weezie, going so far as to quote the Bible to describe the difference between the girls: “Jacob [the younger twin in the Bible story] have I loved, but Esau [the older twin] have I hated”.

I highly recommend this book to fifth grade girls. Especially those who feel left out.

I haven’t read the first book in this series, Samuel Blink and the Forbidden Forest. I ordered both books that the end of last year and only Runaway Troll came in. That didn’t stop me from absolutely loving this book. And it didn’t stop me from understanding the story thanks to a short overview of The Forbidden Forest in the first few chapters of the latest book.

Samuel and his sister Martha lost both of their parents in a terrible accident. Since then, they have lived with their aunt in Norway. In the first book, Martha runs into the Forbidden Forest and Samuel has to go in and rescue her from the dangerous creatures who live there. In this book, someone from the forest has come looking for Samuel – a young troll on the run from a horrible creature called The Betterer. Samuel, Martha and Aunt Eda must find a way to get the troll back to the forest before anyone (in particular, a real estate developer with designs on the forest) sees him. That is, if they can keep up with him.

The book is funny and has a good blend of fantasy and reality. The characters are likable. They all have faults, which makes them believable, even in this fantastic story. The only thing I did not find “believable” was the change in one particular character. But, that was just a mild annoyance. I honestly think the author got stuck and felt he had to make that character change to get out of pickle in the story.

The Runaway Troll is fun to read and might make you stop and think about the way you treat people who are different from yourself.

This is the author’s first book, and I have to say that I am very impressed. It’s well-written and well-paced. The characters are likable. I couldn’t put it down.

Olive is the lonely daughter of two very logical mathematicians. Olive is creative and quirky and her parents just can’t figure her out. The family has moved – again. But this time they have moved into a huge old stone mansion instead of a tiny beige apartment. There is much to explore. And as Olive moves from room to room she finds interesting stuff – like ladies’ gloves and hankies, and an old pair of spectacles. In every room of the house are old paintings which Olive finds intriguing, though she can’t put her finger on why. Something’s just not right about them.

One day, Olive is exploring and playing with her latest treasure, the old glasses. She props the glasses on her nose and things start to get really interesting – adventure involving three large cats, hidden rooms and a truly evil villain.

The Shadows is the first in a new series entitled Elsewhere. Though this story is tied up nicely at the end, I can’t wait for the next installment to find out what Olive and her feline companions get up to next.

There is only one thing that I did not like about this book. I detest cliff-hanger endings. I loved this book up until the very last page.

Penelope Lumley is a recent graduate of the Swanburne Academy for Poor Bright Females. She is only 15 years old and has just been hired as the governess (a teacher that lives with and teaches the children of wealthy people) at Ashton Place. She’s been well trained for the job of governess. But her pupils are not average children. They were found in the woods of Ashton Place (a large fancy estate). Apparently the children were raised by wolves. When Penelope arrives, they can’t speak, and are filthy with wildly overgrown hair. They communicate with each other through barks and howls.

Is Penelope worried? No. She looks on the situation as a challenge and soon wins over the three wild children. She works wonders with their manners and behavior, but nothing is enough to win over the lady of the house, Lady Constance. Lady Constance would rather be rid of the Incorrigibles. But, Lord Frederick won’t think of sending them away.

Why is Lord Frederick so set on keeping the children? Why does the servant, Old Timothy, watch them so closely? Who has set out to destroy Lady Constance’s Christmas party and blame the children? Read the book and see if you can figure it out!

Christina is the daughter of a scientist in a town devoted to science. Her mother died under mysterious circumstances when Christina was very small. Since then, her father has gone to extraordinary measures to protect her. She is home schooled – most of her lessons are delivered via the computer. The only outside person she ever sees is her piano teacher. Christina only gets an hour a day outside, but she is forbidden to leave the yard of the mysterious old mansion where she lives. All she can do is watch the world on the other side of the fence and dream of escaping.

This book revolves around Christina, her quest for freedom, Taft – an orphan boy who collects garbage for the town, and the mysterious substance known as Zoom- which Christina discovers has many strange characteristics. Will Christa escape? Will she discover what really happened to her mother? Will Taft be able to help his fellow orphans? Will they discover the secret of Zoom?