Twelve-year-old Claire loves skating on the cow pond in her yard. She doesn't like competing if a judge is anywhere in the building. She's good at math and knows she's needed to help run the family farm and maple sap business. So how can she accept a scholarship to train at Lake Placid? Claire enters the world of competitive skating and learns some surprising truths about herself.

Reviewed by: donna

Date read: 4/19/2011

ISBN-10: 0802720811

ISBN-13: 9780802720818

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Middle school student Sara feels as if she exists on two planes. Sometimes, she is happy and excited, the next moment, she is plunged into despair. Sara has been living with her Aunt Willie, her older sister, Wanda, and younger brother, Charlie, since her mother died and her father left. An illness with a high fever has left Charlie unable to speak and with the intelligence of a much younger child. Sara feels it is her responsibility to care for Charlie and defend him against the world, especially against boys like Joe Melby. Charlie disappears one night and Sara is sure that he has gone to look for the swans they watched the previous day. Before too long, Aunt Willie calls the police and the whole community is on the alert. When Joe Melby offers to help Sara search for Charlie, she isn't at all sure she wants to accept. While the suspense builds, Sara finds she is also on another search, for herself.

Similar books: The Silent Boy by Lois Lowry

Awards won: John Newbery Medal

Reviewed by: vverscaj

Date read: 1/13/2011

ISBN-10: 0670681903

ISBN-13: 9780670681907

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At the beginning of summer vacation, Sam, Joe and Fred find themselves transported to a bizarrely bookish universe. They find themselves trapped in their summer reading list. Can they find The Book, and get home, before the Headless Horseman, and a dastardly Mr. (Teddy) Bear, do away with the heroes of their stories OR will Alice become Frankenstein in Wonderland?

Reviewed by: sc

Date read: 3/27/2009

ISBN-10: 0670880418

ISBN-13: 9780670880416

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This book is a stunning reinterpretation of the classic Norse tale 'East of the Sun, West of the Moon'. The youngest of a large family, the Lass is blessed with the mystical ability to speak to animals. Because of her ability, she does not fear the giant polar bear who asks her to accompany him to his palace for one year. In return, he will grant her family the means to have a better life. The Lass agrees, much to the displeasure of her eldest brother, whose own adventure in the frozen north is something of a mystery. At the ice palace, the Lass is attended on by all manner of creatures. They are all equally surprised to find that she can speak to them. Yet, when she tries to befriend them, they tend to disappear forever. In addition to the company of the bear and the servants, a mysterious man accompanies the Lass to bed each night. In spite of the peculiarities of her situation, the Lass comes to enjoy her new home. When the Lass' father falls ill, the bear allows her to go home for a time with the agreement that she will return with him to his palace. Upon hearing about the night visitor, the Lass' mother convinces her to take a candle with her to see the visitor's face. In spite of her intention not to use it, curiosity gets the best of the Lass and she lights the candle. The beautiful prince that sleeps beside her wakes to tell her that he was also the polar bear, under a spell, and that since she could not wait a year to see him, he must now wed the troll queen. The prince disappears and the Lass is left determined to right the wrong she did by saving him from the troll queen's palace that lies East of the sun and West of the moon. Her encounters in the ice palace are just the beginning of an entire world of magic and adventure that she braves to rescue her enchanted prince.

Similar books: East o' the Sun & West o' the Moon by Gillian Barlow, The Princess and the White Bear King by Tanya Robyn Batt, East by Edith Pattou,

Reviewed by: mlp

Date read: 6/2/2011

ISBN-10: 1599901099

ISBN-13: 9781599901091

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Just two months after his grandmother dies, ten-year-old Spoon is already starting to forget her. His dreams about her are starting to fade. He knows he needs to find something to help him remember her. Taking her well-worn playing cards from his grandfather's house soothes him, but when he hears his grandfather is looking for them, he is lost about what to do. This is a poetic, gentle book about learning to cope with the loss of someone you love.

Reviewed by: emc

Date read: 12/31/2009

ISBN-10: 0141300957

ISBN-13: 9780141300955

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