WHOA!! 


The 2012-13 Iowa Teen Award WINNER was 
 I AM NUMBER FOUR!  Did you read it? I have not yet!

and the winner for the 2012-13 Iowa Children's Choice Award is
RUNAWAY TWIN. (That one I reviewed here!!)  This is the 6th time author Peg Kehret has won the award!!

Surprise Kick by Ted Kershner

Book Description from Amazon.com 

Series: Zach Riley

Cody Ross had a hard time thinking about anything but soccer. Even at school, all he could think about was the World Cup trophy his best friend Mudman had created. Only it wasn't for an actual tourney . . . it was for the video game Soccer Slam. Now, Cody's parents think it's time for Cody and Mud to get out from behind the controllers and play with a real soccer ball. When the boys join the local team, they discover Mud is a great player--way better than Cody. Cody's a little jealous of Mud's abilities. Will Mud's talent end their friendship? Or will Cody learn sportsmanship and teamwork, and a few new moves along the way?

My 25 cents....This is an action packed sports story that boys and girls alike will probably enjoy reading.  It has black and white illustrations throughout that are a nice addition to the story.  It is a shorter book, only 80 pages, but definitely one with a message for everyone.  Our library has 3 other titles in this series as well--all are sports themed.

Tracking your Nightmare (Graveyard Diaries #1) by Baron Specter

Description from Amazon.com....
Jared Jenson lives next to Woodland Cemetery at the far corner of Marshfield. He used to think it was funny that he and his best friend, Stan, live by cemeteries, but now it's starting to creep him out. In his dreams each night, he sees people dragging bodies through the cemetery . . . until he is dragged for real! Ghostly grave robbers think he is supposed to be buried in the Potter's Field grave. Can Jared, Stan, and the rest of the Zombie Hunters track down Jared's nightmare and free them all from the grave robbers before it's too late?

My 25 cents....
First in a 6 part series, five students from small town Marshfield who all happen to live next to different cemeteries in town-make up the Zombie Hunters group. This is a great series for those who want "scary books" but aren't ready for the gruesome scary ones?!  The story and the diary entries make this a suspenseful, exciting read.  Other cool titles include:  Approaching the Undead, How Not to be Killed by a Zombie, To Werewolf of Not to Werewolf; All in a Night's Work and Vampires Are Not Your Friends.

Because of Mr. Terupt by Rob Buyea

Book Description from Amazon.com

It’s the start of fifth grade for seven kids at Snow Hill School. There’s . . . Jessica, the new girl, smart and perceptive, who’s having a hard time fitting in; Alexia, a bully, your friend one second, your enemy the next; Peter, class prankster and troublemaker; Luke, the brain; Danielle, who never stands up for herself; shy Anna, whose home situation makes her an outcast; and Jeffrey, who hates school.  Only Mr. Terupt, their new and energetic teacher, seems to know how to deal with them all. He makes the classroom a fun place, even if he doesn’t let them get away with much . . . until the snowy winter day when an accident changes everything—and everyone.

My 25 cents....This was a story that I didn't want to stop reading.  The author was a teacher for 4th and 5th grades and really knew what goes on in the classroom.  It's about what seems soooo important that turns out really isn't and little things that really are!  Each chapter (some only 1 page) is a different student telling part of the story.  That was a little confusing in the beginning, but don't get too hung up on that-you will know the character by the end.  I think every reader can relate to at least one of the students in this story!

Inside Out & Back Again by Thanhha Lai

Book Description from Amazon.com....

For all the ten years of her life, Ha has only known Saigon: the thrills of its markets, the joy of its traditions, the warmth of her friends close by, and the beauty of her very own papaya tree. But now the Vietnam War has reached her home. Ha and her family are forced to flee as Saigon falls, and they board a ship headed toward hope. This is the moving story of one girl's year of change, dreams, grief, and healing as she journeys from one country to another, one life to the next.

My 25 cents.....
Imagine learning that you must up and leave the only place you have lived for ten years and your father has been missing, as a prisoner of war, for the last nine years.  This was a fantastic story about change.  It wasn't all prettied up to make things look easier either.  Ha and her brothers were forced to face some difficult situations when classmates were not always accepting of their cultural differences.  The author wrote this story from personal experience and at one point says "No one would believe me, but at times I would choose  wartime in Saigon over peacetime in Alabama".  One thing that might be of interest to some readers is that this story is written in prose, so it reads rather quickly!  

Wonder by P.J. Palacio



Description from Amazon.com
I won't describe what I look like. Whatever you're thinking, it's probably worse. 
August Pullman was born with a facial deformity that, up until now, has prevented him from going to a mainstream school. Starting 5th grade at Beecher Prep, he wants nothing more than to be treated as an ordinary kid—but his new classmates can’t get past Auggie’s extraordinary face. 

My 25 cents...

This was one of the best books for teens I have read so far!!  I can't say enough about this book for older elementary and middle schoolers (and parents too!!).  This book is about inner beauty and acceptance and why it matters to everyone. The main character, Auggie, is a strong, independent 5th grader heading to school for the first time-after being home-schooled up until now.  He just wants to be one of the guys but has to work extra hard to find those that will accept him despite his facial appearance.  One thing I thought was really cool about this book (though I know there are students who will argue with me this point....) is readers never do get to "see" what his face looks like.  It's not important--what is important is the question "could you be friends with Auggie despite his appearance"? 

The Giggler Treatment by Roddy Doyle

Description from Amazon.com....
Imagine a wonderfully rude, children's version of "It's a Wonderful Life." At the beginning of the tale we have a good man, a caring man, heading for his job as a cookie-taster but also heading for a terrible fate (he's about to step in something smelly). Is this an accident? Who's responsible? (The Gigglers, elfen creatures whose pranks punish wayward adults.) What did he do to deserve this? (He yelled at his children unfairly, but actually this was a bit of a misunderstanding.) Can the impending mess be avoided? Working backward, Roddy Doyle spins the hilarious tale of Mr. Mack, his wife Billy Jean, his three children Robbie, Jimmy, and Kayla, their dog Rover and, of course, the irrepressible, sometimes hasty, but well-meaning Gigglers.

My 25 cents....
This book cracked me up.  It's gross, it's all about a man stepping (or not?) in dog poop.  But the way it is told keeps reader going!  Some of the "chapters" are only half of a page, and are called crazy things--for example: THE CHAPTER BEFORE THE NEXT ONE and THIS CHAPTER IS NAMED AFTER MY MOTHER BECAUSE SHE SAID I COULD STAY UP LATE IF I NAMED IT AFTER HER: CHAPTER MOMMY DOYLE.  The fact that the story is told going backwards it a hoot too!
The author also takes the time to explain the Irish vocabulary and culture in a fun, friendly way.