The Red Blazer Girls : the Ring of Rocamadour

The Red Blazer Girls: The Ring of Rocamadour by Michael D. Beil

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


The red blazer girls are a modern day version of Nancy Drew. The new heroine is named Sophia St. Pierre. One day in English class Sophie sees someone in the window of the church across the way and she is asking for help. When Sophie and her friends go to find out who the person is, they discover that she is an older woman who needs help solving an old family mystery. The girls become involved in helping the woman solve the mystery, which is finding the "ring of Rocamador." The ring rightfully belongs to the woman's daughter. In order to find the ring, the girls have to solve mathematical puzzles that were created by the daughter's grandfather 20 years ago. The reader can't help but try to solve the puzzles too, which makes for some interesting math problems. The book was fun to read because of likeable characters (although many of the adult characters were pretty stock creations), and the application of math to solving the problems. The book could be a great possibility for math class literacy.



View all my reviews

I Am Number Four

I Am Number Four by Pittacus Lore

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


I watched the movie when I was halfway through the book, so I thought I could skim through the rest, but as with all book to movie adaptations, this turned out not to be true. The book was much better than the movie, and had a lot of details integral to the story that were left out of the movie. I do think this will be a hit with a lot of my middle school readers. True, there is a lot of violence, but it doesn't seem over the top. The main character, although an alien, has teenage appeal as he falls in love with Sarah, the daughter of the real estate agent who shows them the house they move to in Ohio. This is after escaping possible danger from the Mogadorians (aliens desiring to take over Earth) in Florida. Although, there are sequels to come, the book is a complete experience. You aren't left hanging, as you are with a lot of recent series. For lovers of action movies and books, this is one to read.



View all my reviews

Red Pyramid

The Red Pyramid by Rick Riordan

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


I think if you are like many of my middle school students who loved the Lightning Thief series by Riordan, you will love this new series,The Kane Chronicles. The Red Pyramid (first in the series) is about Egyptian Gods instead of Greek Gods, and the main characters are a brother and sister, Carter and Sadie Kane. But, the excitement and quirky sense of humor are very similar to Lightning Thief. The brother and sister, who have lived apart since their mother's death, are together on Christmas Eve with their father visiting a British Museum. They do not realize that their father is going to try to summon an Egyptian God, Set, during the visit. When their father makes his attempt to summon the God he blows up the Rosetta Stone, and unleashes five Gods, one the mortal enemy, Set. The God overpowers their father in the explosion, but Carter and Sadie escape. As they try to find out what happened to their father, the two discover they have magical powers, which they must use to save the world from the evil Egyptian Gods. With exciting short chapters, and humorous banter between brother and sister, the book is sure to please followers of Rick Riordan.



View all my reviews

Found

Found by Margaret Peterson Haddix

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


Haddix opens this new series with her usual intrigue. Jonah and Chip are friends. Jonah has always known he was adopted, but Chip only finds out that he is adopted when both boys start receiving ominous letters indicating that they are the "missing." It turns out that they were part of a planeload of babies that landed thirteen years ago, and then disappeared after the babies were taken off the plane. Jonah and Chip, and Jonah's sister Katherine, try to find out all they can about their mysterious connections to the planeload of babies. As usual with Haddix, the characters are likeable and well-developed. She also doesn't disappoint as she takes us twisting and turning through problems encountered in their identity search to the perfect set up for the next book. Certainly a must read for middle school.



View all my reviews

Fever Crumb

Fever Crumb by Philip Reeve

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


Fever Crumb was the adopted daughter of Dr. Crumb. He has often told her the story of how he found her in a basket and knowing he could not take her to the orphanage destroyed by the Skinner riots, he took her to his home. Fever grows up in a man's world of engineers. Her head is shaved and she is taught not to give into sentimentality. She must think and behave like an engineer, suppressing emotions. When she is sent on her first job to help Kit Solent on a secret archeology project, she has to travel the streets of London, where she is mistaken for a "Scriven", a mutant race of speckled people. The Scriven were virtually destroyed by bands of "Skinners" years before, but the fear of the race still exists among the Londoners. Solent rescues her from this first encounter, but the head of the Skinners has decided that she must be captured and destroyed. Fever has to elude her captors and in the process discovers who she really is. The story is actually the prequel to the "Hungry City Quartet," Reeves masterful steampunk series. I did not know this until after I read the book, proving that the book is truly a stand alone.



View all my reviews

The Kneebone Boy

The Kneebone Boy by Ellen Potter

My rating: 4 of 5 stars


The Kneebone Boy is the story of the Hardscrabble children: Otto, Max and Lucia (pronounced Lu-CHEE-a according to the never revealed but easily guessed narrator. The Hardscrabble children are living with their father, Casper, in a town called Little Tunks, near London. Their Mum disappeared five years ago, and their dad goes away on trips to paint famous royalty. Their father is usually quite careful about having them stay with Mrs. Carnival while he is away, but when he has to leave in quite a hurry, he decides to have them stay with his cousin Angela in London. It turns out cousin Angela is away on a holiday when they arrive. Apparently, there was a miscommunication with the girl asked to walk Angela's dog. The resourceful Hardscrabble children, alone in London, find their way to their Great-aunt Haddie's castle folly in Snoring-By-the-Sea. Here they have an adventure trying to find the mysterious kneebone boy, who supposedly is captive in the real castle behind where Great-aunt Haddie is staying. Their stay not only involves adventure, but uncovers other mysteries in their lives. Reminiscent of The Series of Unfortunate Events, the story thoroughly charmed me. Definitely a must read for the middle school crowd.



View all my reviews

The Strange Case of the Origami Yoda

The Strange Case of Origami Yoda by Tom Angleberger

My rating: 3 of 5 stars


The big question to be solved in this novel is whether or not the finger puppet created by "weird Dwight" really has the ability to give advice that can be trusted. Tommy documents several different first-hand accounts of experiences of fellow students and their encounters with Origami Yoda, Dwight's finger puppet. It seems that in most of the stories, Origami Yoda, really does have some amazing power, unlike his operator, Dwight. Since, no one believes Dwight could think of the answers that Origami Yoda gives, the Yoda must indeed be magical. Tommy's big question for Yoda is whether or not Sara likes him. Middle schoolers will have to decide for themselves whether or not Origami Yoda has magical powers. I think they will enjoy weighing the evidence. Fun story.



View all my reviews