TK Stone's Library Blog (not an official EIS website)

When I first set my goal of 61 books for the summer (1 book per day for June and July), I really didn’t think I would reach the goal, but I considered it a good goal, nonetheless.  Today, I finished book number 42 on my way to 61.  While I haven’t done a great job blogging about the books I have been reading, I have been keeping a running list of them on this blog (see the summer reading tab above) and I’ve been trying to rate them on GoodReads (go to www.goodreads.com and search for David Grossman to see my ratings and a few comments).  Here are some comments on some of the more notable books that I have read recently.

I absolutely loved Slob by Ellen Potter.  This book is on the Bluegrass Nominee list for this year, and that is what put it on my summer reading list.  In the story, we see the main character, Owen, struggling with bullies, making friends, fitting in, and with his weight.  Towards the middle of the book, we learn that there is an even bigger struggle going on in his life, but you will have to read to determine what that is.  His ultimate struggle seems to be against the scariest dude at the school, Mason.  Owen, and the reader alike, soon realize that there is more to people that what we see when we first meet them.  This is a quick read that is very relevant to middle school today.

Another of the books that I enjoyed was The Strange Case of Origami Yoda by Tom Angleberger.  If you enjoyed Diary of a Wimpy Kid, then you will love this book.  It is written in that same diary style with drawings and doodles in the margins.  It’s basically the story of an awkward middle school kid who makes an origami Yoda.  Everyone believes that the origami Yoda has magical powers because it dispenses great pearls of wisdom.  Tommy must decide if Yoda is really that smart before he acts on Yoda’s advice about a girl that he likes.  You will have to read the book to see if he takes Yoda’s advice and if he “gets the girl.”

I.Q. Book One:  Independence Hall by Roland Smith is in a different genre than those two realistic fiction books.  While it is realistic fiction, it is also a suspense novel and a page turner.  The main characters, Q and Angela have been thrown together in life because Q’s mom is marrying Angela’s dad.  Together as a family, they are taking a cross country road trip and beginning the parents’ careers as musicians.  Along the way, things begin to unravel a little.  There are spies following the tour bus and a mysterious “roadie” named Boone shows up.  He seems to be much more than just a band roadie.  Can Q and Angela trust him, and just how much danger are they in anyway?  You will have to read the book to discover the shocking conclusion.  You can also check out the sequel, I.Q. Book Two:  The White House.

Sunday night I stayed up until 2 am to finish Gone by Michael Grant.  This was an intense fantasy book.  The book starts on a normal day in a normal city when all of the sudden all of the people in the city 15 and over disappear into thin air.  This leaves a city full of children and teens to cope with the mess made when the adults disappeared (fires, wrecks, babies needing care, etc).  Meanwhile, those left behind find that they are surrounded by an impenetrable barrier.  Couple that with the traditional battle of good versus evil and this is quite a thriller.  It’s the first in the FAYZ trilogy.

I also read The Arrival by Shaun Tan.  This wordless picture book is an interesting look at what it might be like to be an immigrant in a foreign land.  While some of the pictures are a little strange, what they portray is no more strange than what immigrants might experience in a foreign land with foreign customs.

Galileo by Leonard Everett Fisher is a short biography of the great scientist.  This book highlights the resistance of many to some of the new ideas of science proposed by Galileo and Copernicus, highlighting the rift between Christianity and science.  Parts of this book would be great to use in a science class to emphasize the need to change hypotheses in light of new observations.

Currently I’m reading The Brooklyn Nine, As Easy as Falling off the Face of the Earth, and Trackers: Book One.

Yesterday I finished Cities of the Dead:  Finding Lost Civilizations which was an interesting read about archaeology and how archaeologists look for “lost” civilizations.  This book contains chapters about the lost city of Atlantis, an historic trading city named Ubar, and Easter Island.  The information is fascinating, and the layout is engaging.

I also read More than Anything by Marie Bradby.  This book highlights the importance of learning to read–”more than anything” the main character in the story wants to learn to read.

Today’s book was Jane in Bloom.  When I pulled it from my bag of books to read, I had no idea that it would be about a family grieving the loss of their oldest daughter due to an eating disorder.  The author paints a picture of how different members of the family deal with the loss.  Each member handles the loss differently.  While there isn’t exactly a “happy ending” the resolution leaves the reader with a feeling of hope for the future in spite of loss.

I’m still working on Gone by Michael Grant.

Today is the third official day of my book a day adventure.  I am already feeling the crunch of trying to ready 61 books in two months.  So far, I’ve ready The Sky is Everywhere, Vlad the Impaler, and Roanoke:  The Mystery of the Lost Colony. 

Vlad the Impaler shed some light on a violent historical figure from whose name Bram Stoker created Dracula.  I was intrigued as I learned about this historical figure whose name I had heard before, but about whom I knew nothing.  Now I know enough to be glad that I didn’t live in his kingdom.

In Roanoke: The Mystery of the Lost Colony, I explored the historical and political events surrounding the founding of the colony on Roanoke Island and the disappearance of the colony.  While I wasn’t enthralled with the writing, I did learn about how politics played a huge role in the failure of the colony. 

Currenty I’m reading Gone by Michael Grant.  It’s the first in a trilogy of books that follow the lives of several youth after everyone over the age of 15 mysteriously vanishes from their town.

The Book Whisperer has issued a summer challenge to read a book a day for each day of summer vacation.  That’s quite a lofty goal and I’m not sure I can make it, but I’m going to try.  I am hoping to ready 61 books this summer.  That’s a book a day for each day in June and July.

Book number 1 is The Sky is Everywhere by Jandy Nelson.  Keep following the blog for updates on how I’m doing reaching my goal and for reviews of many of the books.

I just finished The Rock and the River by Kekla Magoon.  This book is set during the Civil Rights Movement in the United States.  As a matter of fact, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s death is an important event in the book.  This book focuses on Sam, a young African-American trying to determine how he fits into the Civil Rights Movement.  Sam’s father is a fairly well-known lawyer who follows Dr. King’s nonviolent methods, leading rallies and demonstrations.  Sam’s older brother, on the other hand, is beginning to follow the Black Panthers.  Sam is stuck trying to decide which of these two extremes he should follow.  Several events in the story (including the beating of one of Sam’s friends by the police) force Sam to make his choice much sooner than anyone in his family would like.

If you want to experience some of the intensity and emotions of this time period, this book is for you.  And it has an ending that you won’t be expecting.

I took two trips to Barnes and Noble this weekend to support the library’s bookfair there.  Today, I wasn’t looking for anything in particular, just looking (I had a gift card to spend).  I was pleasantly surprised to find the 8th (and final) Charlie Bone book on the shelf.  I have been an avid follower of Charlie Bone since I first discovered him in Midnight for Charlie Bone. While I hate to keep comparing fantasy series to Harry Potter, if you like Harry Potter, you will also like Charlie Bone.

Charlie, much like Harry Potter, lives in a world inhabited by some people who are endowed with magical abilities and many people who have no magical abilities.  Charlie spends weekdays at Bloor’s Academy which is a special school for children who are endowed.  Unlike Hogwarts, the headmaster of Bloor’s is not a kind wizard, rather he is an evil character, bent on keeping the endowed children under his control.

Throughout this series, we see the balance of power shift from good to evil and back several times.  Each time a new endowed student comes to Bloor’s there is anticipation on both the “good” and the “evil” side to see how the balance of power will shift.

The one person who, it seems, could help Charlie the most, his father, is absent through most of the series.  It will be interesting to see if he returns in the 8th book to help Charlie and set things right, once and for all.

You can find books 1-7 of this series in the library.  Start with them, because book 8 won’t be available for check out until I finish reading it.

I have long been a fan of fantasy.  I loved the Harry Potter books, Lord of the Rings, and many others.  However, I was a little hesitant to pick up City of Bones (Book one of the Mortal Instruments Trilogy), thinking that it would fall into the vampire genre that I have typically avoided.  When I finally did begin reading City of Bones, I found that I enjoyed it as much as I have any other piece of fantasy that I have read.  Reminiscent of The Warrior Heir and its sequels, this series examines a fantasy world of vampires, werewolves, demons, and demon hunters that exists alongside the “mortal” world.  And like so many other fantasy series, there is a character who has no idea that she doesn’t really belong in the “mortal” world, but is, in fact, a member of the fantasy world as a demon hunter.

This book pits four young heroes and heroines and their one mortal friend against evil enemies that seem impossible to defeat–evil enemies seeking ultimate power over both the mortal world and the spiritual world.  Will evil prevail over good, or will the four young demon hunters and their one mortal companion succeed in defeating the evil Valentine?  You will have to read the book to find out, and once you do, you will be anxious to read the second and third installment of this action-packed trilogy.

A rainy Sunday afternoon is great for reading or watching baseball on television.  Today I’m watching baseball on television and writing about a baseball book that I recently finished reading.  Change-Up: Mystery at the World Series is one of four books featuring Stevie and Susan Carol as young sports writers who have a knack for uncovering great mysteries and great stories.  In their other books, they cover the NCAA final four, the US Open, and the Superbowl.  This book finds them covering the baseball World Series between the Red Sox and the Washington Nationals.

Baseball fans will love the book because the author, a real-life sports writer, includes many details of each of the games that Stevie and Susan Carol cover.  However, even those of you who are not baseball fans will love the mystery that the reporters are trying to solve.  As with any good mystery, there are those trying to solve it, and there are characters in the story that will do anything to keep the truth from coming out.

When Susan Carol and Stevie finally get all the pieces, they are forced consider whether every story uncovered is a story that needs to be told.  This might be a lesson in journalism ethics that today’s media needs to consider.

Bottom line:  if you like baseball, this is a book for you.  If you like mysteries, this is a book for you.  Stop by the library today and pick up one of Susan Carol and Stevie’s sports journalism adventures.

Before Pepper was born, his aunt had a vision in which she learned that Pepper would not live past his 14th birthday.  The book starts on Pepper’s 14th birthday when he awakes realizing that he will die that day.

Fourteen-year-old Pepper is not sure how his death will come, but he is sure that it will.  Throughout the book, he is always looking over his shoulder for the angels who will be bringing his death.  He doesn’t sit idly by and wait for death to come, though.  He begins a series of adventures by stealing a ship–his father’s ship.  With this one act, he sets himself on a course that will take him through several cities and several identities.  Will he survive his 14th birthday?  You will have to read to find out.

If you liked The Mostly True Adventures of Homer P. Figg, or The Thief Lord, then you will enjoy this book.