Jenny Nimmo has a great set of characters and adventures in the Children of the Red King series. As a lover of fanatasy, I’m an easy sell and this series has me searching out the next one to see where it goes. I find Charlie, the main character, likable and hopeful without being cloying or irritating. He makes mistakes and tries to correct them. He accepts the consequences of his behaviour and is always on the look out for the welfare of his friends and family. It’s too bad his mother is such a weak person. I’d like it if his mother had a bit more spunk but I suppose that would get in the way for the story plots. It’s been somewhat confusing to find my way through the naming and renaming of these books. The original series has a wonderful set of names which have been altered to reflect the Harry Potter franchise, “Harry Potter and the…”, now “The Blue Boa” is “Charlie Bone and the Invisible Boy”, but publishers have to do what publishers have to do.

I would recommend this series as an addition to the K-8 library. I wouldn’t add them to a 9-12. Charlie is 10 and although he ages as the series progresses, he doesn’t age as fast as Harry. The books are written for a younger audience and keep a more consistent tone than you see in the Harry Potter series. They are also a more consistent length. I believe these books would make an excellent read for the child who can’t yet manage the Harry Potter books both in maturity or reading level.

Rating #1 (Highly Recommended) #2 ✓#3 #4 (Not acceptable)

Interest Level: grades 3+ Reading Level: 4+

Curriculum Area: Language Arts

Themes/Topics: fantasy, adventure, magic, family, losses, good and evil

This is a book aimed squarely at the 8-12 year old boy niche. Part gross and disgusting, part humour, part revenge of the loser; it hits the mark. Charley Maplewood is turning 10. Thanks to a inappropriately timed birthday greeting, he decides it really is time for him to have a birthday party. The complication is he has no friends. It’s a shame the publisher didn’t see fit to add some drawings, a la Judy Blume’s Tales of the Fourth Grade Nothing or Roald Dahl’s Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. I believe pictures by someone like Quentin Blake would take this book from very good to terrific.  Still it’s an engaging read worth adding to a K-8 collection.

Rating  #1 (Highly Recommended) #2 ✓#3 #4 (Not acceptable)

Interest Level: grades 3+  Reading Level: 5

Curriculum Area: Language Arts

Themes/Topics: growing up, friendship, fitting in, family

First a disclaimer, this is a book intended for boys, I am not a boy.  I did not enjoy this book and I don’t think it should come close to your library.  I think Mike and Steve missed the boat on this one.  Raymond and Graham are entering grade four.  They are looking forward to ‘ruling’ the school.  It all goes down hill from there.  The lead up is Raymond’s fear of having a particularly nasty teacher but this doesn’t end up being the central story line at all.  I feel like I bought orange juice and then it was grapefruit.  The main story revolves around the Christmas play and the boys’ crushes on a couple of girls.  Boys in grade four, in my experience, do not have crushes on girls.  They are still pretty sure girls are disgusting and want as little to do with them as possible.  The story is set in an American elementary school which finishes after grade four, in my neck of the woods, elementary school ends in grade eight so the story line fits for a grade eight group of boys but these guys are 9 years old.   I’d be interested in reading a different installment of this series.  If Raymond and Graham stuck with body humour and inadvertent insults, I expect it would appeal to boys but not this one.

Rating  #1 (Highly Recommended) #2 #3 #4 (Not acceptable) ✓

Interest Level: grades 3+  Reading Level:  2 or 3+

Curriculum Area: Language Arts

Themes/Topics: growing up, school, overcoming challenges

Pastoral and warm; this is a book to delight lovers of fairies and fantasy.  At first I was reluctant to believe there could be a fresh take on a world of little people.  After all it has been done with The Littles and The Borrowers.  The title didn’t lead me to believe it would be a satisfying read but it exceeded my expectations and made me a believer.  A delightful read with quirky and interesting characters, a lush setting and engaging plot line.  Definitely worth purchasing for a K-8 library. Great companion for ” The Higher Power of Lucky” as it has similar themes.

Rating ✓ #1 (Highly Recommended) #2 #3 #4 (Not acceptable)

Interest Level: grades 3+  Reading Level:  4+

Curriculum Area: Language Arts

Themes/Topics: fantasy, fairies, change, family, moving

This book would be suitable for ✓ Lit Circles ✓ Kit Materials  ✓ Read Aloud (4+)

This book is a fair take on the mystery genre.  I enjoyed the main characters and watching them develop.  I found the villians a bit ‘pat’.   The ending was a little too neat and tidy.  Teacher librarians need to be aware of the embedded Christian perspective within this story.  The plot hinges on unraveling a set of  clues which are passages of scripture engraved on items in an old woman’s house.  I would be reluctant to add this book to a public school library.  I would definitely consider it for a Christian school library particularly if I wanted to ‘beef’ up the Christian fiction section.  Not a bad read but not a must.

Rating  #1 (Highly Recommended) #2 #3✓ #4 (Not acceptable)

Interest Level: grades 6+  Reading Level:  6+

Curriculum Area: Language Arts

Themes/Topics: mystery, family history

Armstrong takes you into life in the Elizabethan times a Sir Walter Raleigh’s page.  This is a thoroughly researched and compelling account of the first expansions of England into North America.  I am torn on whether to recommend this book for K-8 libraries.  I believe Armstrong handles the racism of his characters with deftness but I worry some about whether the racism of the characters will be a confirmation of the racism in the readers.  This book needs a companion book told from the First Nations perspective.  It needs a teacher who is aware of its colonialist perspective.  I almost thing the book  should come with a warning label.  Although exactly what it should read, I’m not sure.  I loved this book and I am aware of my own roots in a colonial perspective.  As a mature reader, I can see the racism of some of the English sailors and courtiers for what it is but I am a white girl, how would it feel if I was not? I’d add this book to my public library collection or personal collection in a heartbeat.  I am cautious for my K-8 public school library.

Rating  #1 (Highly Recommended) #2✓ #3 #4 (Not acceptable)

Interest Level: grades 6+  Reading Level:  6+

Curriculum Area: Language Arts, Social Studies

Themes/Topics: colonial times, exploration, living in Elizabethan England

This book would be suitable for ✓ Lit Circles ✓ Kit Materials

Dark and creepy are the words which come to mind when reflecting on Skellig.  This is a book with boy appeal.  Michael is moving into a new house after anticipating this event as something wonderful, something unexpected intervenes.  Michael’s mom has a very premature baby.  Now he is living in a run-down house with preoccupied parents and his own worries and grief about the baby, then he meets Skellig.  What Skellig is both Michael and we are never completely sure but it is definitely life-changing.  Skellig is a well-told and dramatic tale.  Definitely worth adding to the K-8 collection as a pleasure read.

Rating  #1 (Highly Recommended  ✓#2 #3 #4 (Not acceptable)

Interest Level: grades 4+  Reading Level:  5+

Curriculum Area: Language Arts

Themes/Topics: self discovery, identity, fantasy, love, grief, family

Ken Allan at Middle Earth has set the theme for this month’s Green Pen Society blogging.  He asked for reflections on, “What gets you flying”?   I am not a natural writer.  I have experienced failure in writing on numerous occasions.  I brought poems in grade ten to my English teacher.  He gave a muted, less than enthusiastic response to my writing.  I was discouraged.  I regularly received grades of a “B” or less in university at twice the effort of my husband-to-be’s A papers.  My comments were routinely something like, “A well-researched paper”.  My mother often mentioned having difficulty making sense of my writing.  I recall comments such as, “What are you talking about here?”  Still, I became a blogger.  Why?  I was and am exploring the fun and features of the world wide web.  I want to understand how it works, and what it can be used for.  I write to save my ideas, play with avatar makers, learn to post pictures and videos.  I enjoy hearing from people around the world and batting ideas around with them.  I feel connected to some of my online colleagues and participate because of my relationship with them. I am inspired by my colleagues.

Having a blog was my Master’s project but I didnt’ quit when my Master’s was complete.  I have floundered a little as the project was completed and I wasn’t sure how to continue and yet didn’t want to completely shut things down.  I have not been sure of the purpose of my blog and not having a purpose made it difficult to post.  My posts became less frequent and still are.  I am beginning to see a place for myself in book reviews from a teacher librarian’s perspective.  My reviews steer away from lengthy descriptions of plot and character and towards the possible connections and uses for the classroom.  I am inspired by my work.

Mostly the reviews are for me.  I want to remember authors and titles for future endeavours.  I love hearing from authors.  They pop up from time to time and comment on my reviews.  Knowing they might be reading my reviews is a daunting idea.  I want to give honest opinion but I may well hurt someone’s feelings.  I don’t like that idea at all.  I am hoping my awareness of author as audience will not make me censor myself too stringently.  I have a great respect for authors, people who write well and make vibrant and believeable worlds into which I may walk.  I am inspired by great books.

Dashti is a determined young woman.  In becoming the maid of a distracted and frightened princess, she unwittingly becomes a prisoner with her in a darkened tower.  Dashti remains positive and industrious during her confinement.  Her mistress is unpredictable and unhealthy but Dashti remains devoted and trust-worthy.  In addition to the confinement and darkenss of the tower, there are plenty of other difficulties and joys.  Dashti’s service takes her from the tower to the kitchen of a great king and then on as a scribe and healer.  Hale throws in enough excitement, romance and tension to keep you guessing.   This book will appeal to your young adult readers of fantasy and fairy tale.

Rating ✓ #1 (Highly Recommended) #2 #3 #4 (Not acceptable)

Interest Level: grades 6+  Reading Level:  6+

Curriculum Area: Language Arts

Themes/Topics: self discovery, dreams, becoming, identity, fantasy, fairy tale

This book would be suitable for ✓ Lit Circles ✓ Kit Materials

After reading Joyce’s post on avatars, I went to play at the make a Lego avatar site.