Middle grade fiction

Unusual Chickens for the Exceptional Poultry Farmer by Kelly Jones, illustrated by Katie Kath

~ Janet Dawson ~ 2 Comments

 Published by Knopf Books for Young Readers

Summary:  12-year-old Sophie’s family has recently moved to the farm her father inherited from his Uncle Jim.  Her dad is recently unemployed and her mom is a freelance writer trying to pay the bills, so Sophie is left to her own devices to explore the farm.  She discovers a mysterious and unusual chicken named Henrietta living on the property, and soon a few more supernatural chickens show up, along with a potential chicken thief.  Sophie embarks on a correspondence with a mysterious woman named Agnes who supposedly runs Redwood Farm Supply, and who offers Sophie encouragement and chicken advice.  Told entirely in letters to Great Uncle Jim, Agnes,  and her deceased grandmother, the story follows Sophie as she figures out both the chickens and the humans in her new community.  Ages 8-12.

Pros:  Sophie is a likeable character, and the chickens with supernatural powers add an interesting element to the story.  The plentiful illustrations, quizzes, chicken manual excerpts, and other documents are a nice addition to Sophie’s letters.

Cons:  Although this book has gotten great reviews, I had a tough time getting through it. The story didn’t grab me, and I’m just not that into chickens.

Echo by Pam Munoz Ryan

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Published by Scholastic Press

Summary:  Otto, lost in the forbidden forest, stumbles upon three mysterious girls and learns the story of how they were cast out by their father, the king, who wanted a son.  They give Otto a magic harmonica.  Many years later, the harmonica passes to Friedrich in Germany, then to Mike in Philadelphia, and finally, to Ivy in California.  Friedrich, born with a large birthmark on his face, is struggling to survive in 1933 Germany as Hitler is coming to power.  Mike is determined to keep himself and younger brother Frankie together when an unexpected stroke of good luck gets them out of their orphanage.  Is his new home too good to be true?  Soon after Ivy’s beloved older brother joins the army, her family is hired to run a farm owned by a Japanese family who has been taken away to an internment camp.  Are they spies, or just a family struggling to survive, like her own?  All three stories converge when the grown-up Friedrich, Mike, and Ivy are brought together in 1951 by their love of music.  Otto’s story concludes the book, revealing the missing part of the harmonica’s journey.  Grades 5-8.

Pros:  If you only read one book in 2015, here it is.  Look for this title next January when Newbery honors are announced.

Cons:  At 592 pages, this book is well into doorstop territory.  Younger readers may struggle to handle the four separate stories.

Breaking the Ice by Gail Nall

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Published by Aladdin

Summary: When shy Kaitlin has an uncharacteristic temper tantrum at an ice skating competition, she finds herself banned from her own skating club and most of the other clubs in the area.  The only place that will take her is the run-down Falton “Fall Down” Club, but Kaitlin is desperate enough to follow her Olympic dream to try it.  Despite the bumpy ice, ancient Zamboni, and eccentric coaches, she finds herself making new friends and learning a whole new way of skating.  Greg, her new coach, encourages her to express herself through her skating, which just confuses Kaitlin.  Braedon, the cute ne’er-do-well of the club, encourages her to skip classes and pull pranks that she’s sure will get her in trouble.  Kaitlin and her friends end up at Regionals, where a secret party almost gets Kaitlin kicked out of the competition.  Will she be able to put her new experiences into skating a winning program?  Grades 4-7.

Pros:  Middle grade readers will root for Kaitlin to come out of her shell while enjoying a great sports story.

Cons:  The stock middle school characters (loyal best friend, potential crush, misunderstood mean girl) are not particularly original.

Gone Crazy in Alabama by Rita Williams-Garcia

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Published by Amistad

Summary:  Sisters Delphine, Vonetta, and Fern are back in the final installment of this trilogy.  Having started their journey with their mother and the Black Panthers in Oakland, continued it at home in Brooklyn, they conclude with a visit to their grandmother and great-grandmother in Alabama.  Narrator Delphine is concerned that her family is breaking apart.  Her new stepmother is expecting a baby, Uncle Darnell and his favorite niece Vonetta are no longer speaking, and their great-grandmother and her sister refuse to see each other, although they both enjoy relating their own versions of family history to the three girls.  It takes a near tragedy to bring the family together again, but in the end all members of Delphine’s family, even her California mother, are under one roof, and the bonds of sisterhood are stronger than ever.  Grades 4-7.

Pros:  The first two books in this series were multiple award winners, and this one is sure to be too.  Chock full of unique, well-drawn characters, rich historical details, and you-are-there settings, this is historical fiction at its best.

Cons:  This book will be more enjoyable for readers who have read the first two.

Jack: The True Story of Jack and the Beanstalk by Liesl Shurtliff

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Published by Knopf Books for Young Readers

Summary:  Jack’s seven-times-great grandfather and namesake was a giant killer, and Jack is sure he is destined for adventure.  When his neighbor’s cabbage crop disappears overnight, Jack is the only one who believes the crazy peddler who says that it’s the work of giants.  A few nights later, the giants come back, this time to wipe out the entire village and its neighboring farms.  Jack’s father gets taken away, and Jack is determined to find the giant’s land and rescue Papa.  He questions the peddler, who gives him three giant beans in exchange for the family cow (and last source of food).  You may think you know the rest of the story, but just wait.  There are pixies, a greedy king, an adventurous younger sister who follows Jack up the beanstalk, and a curse on giant land that only Jack can break.  Recommended for grades 3-7.

Pros:  This fun retelling of Jack and the Beanstalk is nonstop action, taking place in a magical world rich with details and engaging characters.  It would make a great read-aloud for elementary kids, and could include comparisons to other versions of the story. Look for the companion book Rump, a retelling of Rumpelstiltskin.

Cons:  At over 300 pages, this could be an ambitious undertaking for younger readers.

Ava and Taco Cat by Carol Weston

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Published by Sourcebook Jabberwocky

Summary:  When Ava’s mom tells the family about the beat-up cat being treated at the vet clinic where she works, Ava decides she must have this cat for her birthday.  She launches an ingenious, and ultimately successful, campaign, and the cat is theirs.  She and her family love all kinds of wordplay, and they give their cat a palindrome for a name, Taco Cat.  Written in diary form, Ava relates how she helps the timid new cat bond with her family, and how he influences aspects of her life like friendships and her writing.  A story she writes about Taco ends up in the newspaper, and disaster strikes when Taco’s original owner sees it.  Ava is forced to make a very difficult decision about what is best for her new pet.  Grades 4-6.

Pros:  Ava is an endearing, intelligent, and not overly sophisticated narrator.  The diary format keeps the story moving swiftly.  Fans of Judy Moody and Allie Finkle will enjoy this book and its predecessor, Ava and Pip.

Cons:  Ava occasionally seems a bit wise beyond her years.

The Island of Dr. Libris by Chris Grabenstein

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Published by Random House Books for Young Readers

Summary:  Summer’s not looking too exciting for Billy.  His parents have recently separated, and he’s staying with his mother at a lakeside cabin that has no TV.  Forced to read books, he discovers that whatever he reads comes to life on an island in the middle of the lake.  Billy teams up with his neighbor Walter as well as Robin Hood, Tom Sawyer, Pollyanna, and Hercules to find treasure that’s supposed to be buried on the island.  Their efforts are constantly thwarted by the Sheriff of Nottingham, Jack’s giant, and the neighborhood bully.  As fun as the adventures are, the questions remain: who is Dr. Libris and why does his library come to life on the island?  In his quest to learn the answers, Billy learns about the power of his own imagination.  Recommended for grades 4-6.

Pros:  Lots of action, humor, and some fun puzzles to solve.

Cons:  Many of the literary allusions may be lost on readers not familiar with the classics.

 

Lucky Strike by Bobbie Pyron

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Published by Arthur A. Levine Books

Summary:  Nate is the unluckiest boy in the whole town of Paradise Beach, Florida.  Fortunately, he has a good friend, Genesis (Gen), who sticks with him no matter how many unlucky things happen to him.  His bad luck culminates on his birthday, when he’s struck by lightning while playing miniature golf.  When he regains consciousness, he slowly begins to realize that his luck has changed.  The toaster that always burned his toast now toasts it to golden perfection.  He fixes engines just by touching them.  And the kids who used to bully him and Gen now want to be his friend.  It’s all great fun at first, but gradually his new-found luck begins to take him away from Gen, and he starts to wonder if people like him for himself or his good luck.  Will it take another force of nature to get Nate’s life back on track?  Recommended for grades 4-6.

Pros:  Great setting, quirky but not too quirky characters, and a fun plot.

Cons:  The story was a little slow in parts.

Ratscalibur by Josh Lieb

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Published by Razorbill

Summary:  Joey isn’t very excited about moving to the city, and isn’t much comforted when Uncle Patrick shows up with a gift—a new pet rat.  That night, though, the rat talks to Joey, and the next thing Joey knows, he has turned into a rat himself.  The rat sends him on a quest, and Joey the rat discovers the Lower Realm, a kingdom of rats and other creatures that lives throughout the city.  Joey notices that most of the rats are armed, so he decides to grab a plastic spork he sees stuck in a stale biscuit.  He pulls it out, and all the rats fall silent.  It turns out that spork is Excalibur, the Spork in the Scone, and the fact that Joey has pulled it out means he is destined to be a hero.  And the adventure begins….  Recommended for grades 3-6.

Pros:  I’ll admit, my expectations of a book called Ratscalibur penned by a TV writer were pretty low.  I was happily surprised by this exciting adventure story peopled (ratted?) with a cast of interesting characters.  The magic (or ragic, as it’s called in the rat world) has a complicated set of rules which were fun to learn about, and there’s a surprising twist near the end which seems to lay the groundwork for a sequel.

Cons:  Many of the Arthurian allusions will be lost on young readers.  Indeed, I have a feeling quite a few were lost on this older reader.

The Curious Cat Spy Club by Linda Joy Singleton

~ Janet Dawson ~ 2 Comments

Published by Albert Whitman & Company

Summary:  When Kelsey helps stop a runaway zorse (a cross between a horse and a zebra), she gets more than she bargained for.  The zorse belongs to Becca, one of the most popular girls in school.  Ducking into an alley to avoid a boy from school, the two girls discover a bag of kittens in a dumpster.  A third member, Leo, gets involved in the rescue, and the unlikely trio decides to form a club to protect the kittens until they can find them homes.  Kelsey has always dreamed of being a detective, and now she has a real mystery on her hands…who put the kittens in the dumpster?  As the Curious Cat Spy Club works to solve it, they uncover a whole pet-napping ring right in their neighborhood.  Recommended for grades 4-6.

Pros:  This well-paced mystery will keep readers guessing right up to the end.  In Nancy Drew-like fashion, the last few chapters involve an exciting run-in with the villain and more than one narrow escape.  There are interesting subplots that give the characters more depth, such as Kelsey’s and Leo’s family issues and Becca’s thwarted romance.

Cons:  Kelsey didn’t get to keep her kitten.  But the cover says this is an exciting new mystery series, so there may yet be hope.