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Game of Stars

Twelve-year-old Kiranmala just wants to be normal, despite having been born an Indian princess in the Kingdom Beyond, an alternate dimension. So, when the Demon Queen shows up in her dreams, Kiranmala doesn’t want to listen to the demoness.

After a visit with some all-seeing birds, Kiranmala finally, reluctantly goes to the Kingdom Beyond and finds that the Kingdom Beyond is in danger. A game show reigns supreme, society is fraying, and everyone is running scared or imprisoned. Kiranmala knows her father is behind the game show, but is there any way she can beat him at his own game?

The second installment of the Kiranmala and the Kingdom Beyond Series, Game of Stars takes readers on an action-packed ride through the Kingdom Beyond. The story brings back some beloved characters from the first book and adds new characters as well. This story will be confusing if readers have not read The Serpent’s Secret first!

The story revolves around the Indian culture and mythology, with many of the creatures straight out of Bengali folktales. For those not familiar with the culture, some of the references to Indian food, clothing, and monsters may be confusing as they lack adequate description. The cute black and white illustrations scattered throughout the story help the readers visualize some characters and events, but there needed to be more of them. Although it is exciting to have an Indian heroine, the story may be frustrating to follow for those unfamiliar with the customs.

A drawback to this book is that none of the characters talk like normal people, and much of the dialogue is childish. Some creatures talk in rhymes and riddles, which is fun. However, the characters continually use name calling throughout the story, which adds to the childish tone. For example, someone calls the Serpent King a “scummy snake” and a “pooper-scooper.” Even the Demon Queen’s and the Serpent King’s dialogue makes them seem more like whiny children rather than strong adults.

As Kiranmala travels through the Kingdom Beyond, she considers the nature of good and evil. Through her experiences, she learns that being human or a rakkosh doesn’t define you; instead, it is how people act that makes them good or evil. Throughout the story, Kiranmala worries that she will become evil like her father. A professor tells her, “No one turns good or evil by magic. That’s not how it works. You become evil when you choose to act against your conscience again and again. Being good or evil is about the decisions you make each and every day. It’s not something that just happens to you.

For those who haven’t picked up the Kiranmala and the Kingdom Beyond Series, you may want to try Aru Shah and The End of Time first because it is less confusing but still revolves around India’s mythology. Middle school readers will enjoy the riddles, the funny characters, and the exciting chases.  Overall, Game of Stars is an action-packed story that shows that a strong, smart girl is capable of heroic deeds and saving the prince.

Sexual Content

  • A store vendor tells Kiranmala a story. “Well, when the Raja wasn’t having any heirs, he called upon a rishi, one of those sadhu-sanyasi guys who meditates on the mountaintop and knows all sorts of magic shajik. . . So, anyhoo, this guy gave the ranis a super-magical fertility root to share so they would all have babies.”
  • As part of the contest, there is a promotional poster that shows Kiranmala about to kiss a boy.

Violence

  • Kiranmala sees her imprisoned friend and thinks, “Neel did look terrible. . . he also looked skinny and, weirdly for a half rakkhosh who hardly needed sleep, tired. He had big dark circles under his eyes, a fading bruise on his cheek, and one side of his lip looked puffy, like he’d been on the wrong side of somebody’s fist. . . Both of his wrists were bound in cruel metal shackles. The chain from his wrists led to shackles that bound his ankles too.”
  • When Kiranmala tries to free Neel from prison, Bogli tries to stop her. Kiranmala “let my arrows fly. Unfortunately, about 50 percent bounced right off Bogli’s scales. The other 50 percent that found their mark didn’t’ seem to do much damage, but hung there, kind of boinging” Neel uses a fork to stab “Bogli’s slimy skin.” During the fight, Bogli “smacked Neel hard across the face. Because of his shackles, Neel didn’t have super balance, so he fell hard, unable to use his hands too much to break his fall. . . He got in a blow to the monster’s thigh with both his shackled hands before Bogli flicked him off like a mosquito, then pinned poor Neel under a giant, warty foot.” The fighting continues for nine pages; no one is seriously injured.
  • When Kiranmala takes the Serpent king’s tooth, he tries to get it back by “flinging uneven green bolts of energy at us in between giggles. . . I nocked arrow after arrow in my bow, but they didn’t seem to bother Sesha. And as if the flying bolts of pain weren’t bad enough, at the Serpent King’s cry, the scraggly lawn outside the dentist’s office filled with snakes of all kinds. . . they slithered viciously in our direction, surrounding Ai-Ma in a trice. They hissed and snapped at us.” The scene takes place over two pages.
  • When Kiranmala goes to talk to a professor, he starts throwing fish at her. Kiranmala “found myself being pelted by something wet and slimy. A story of wet of slimy things actually. . . I put my hands up to protect my face, but the onslaught of rapid-fire fish kept flying at me, flapping on my skin with their scaly cold.” The professor stops throwing the fish when he realizes Kiranmala is not a ghost.
  • Soldiers parade Kiranmala past a prison cell, where she sees Neel’s grandmother Ai-Ma, “her shoulders hunched and face grim. There were some disposable teacups hanging from her few strands of hair and little burn marks like someone had thrown hot tea at her. Off her skin hung strange patches of vegetable peels and plastic bags too, like people had been using her as a target for throwing garbage.
  • Kiranmala must pass a test and if she does not, a witch and her sister will “eat you and the prisoner’s livers for a snack! While they’re still in your bodies.”
  • In order to save Neel, Kiranmala must rip off a bee’s wing, but because the bee is the Rakkhosi Queen’s soul, the queen will also die. The Rakkhosi Queen tells Kiranmala, “Do it!” When Kiranmala refuses to rip off the bee’s wing, the Rakkhosi Queen, lunged at me. I screamed. I really thought she’d just had it and was going to kill me, but it wasn’t me she was after. Her sharp talons grabbed the bee out of my hand, and in one swift motion, she tore off its wing. Her scream. . . Deep and horrible, like someone was being cut in two. The demoness dropped the sword and then fell down heavily next to it . . . She writhed now on the floor, her arm at a horrible, unnatural angle.”
  • The Serpent King tells Kiranmala, “I want to kill you and the Rakkhoshi Queen both.” The Serpent King then “shot a bolt at me, encasing me in one of his green orbs of pain and torture. Immediately, I dropped to my knees inside the floating bubble. The sharp, hot pain on my skin and in my bones was so intense, I couldn’t stop from crying out.” Neel charged “at Sesha with his sword raised. They clashed, sword to green bolt, making an enormous explosion of light every time their weapons made contact.” During the fight, Kiranmala must fight a ghost who took Neel’s brothers’ form. The Serpent King uses two stones, and when their power combines, “Neel’s mother was floating up off the ground now, her glowing body losing its form, becoming water and then fire, earth and then air, over and over again.” The battle scene takes place over three chapters. With the help of her friends, Kiranmala is able to free Neel and save his mother.

Drugs and Alcohol

  • None

Language

  • Crapola and crud are used once.
  • Dang and heck are used twice.
  • Darn in used four times. For example, when Kiranmala sees Neel in prison, she yells, “I’ll rescue you if I want to and you’ll be grateful, darn it!”
  • Throughout the story, there is name calling. For example, a demoness calls Kiranmala Loonie-Moonie, pea-brained tree goat, and a pathetic puppy from Parsipppan.” Someone calls the Serpent King a “scummy snake” and a “pooper-scooper.”
  • Several times the skateboarding resistance is referred to as scum.
  • Neel’s mother calls him an idiot.

Supernatural

  • Barngoma and Bangomee, are birds with human heads. When Kiranmala sees them, “they didn’t speak out loud but somehow, their words slipped into my brain. . . their voices floated into my head in a weird, nasal unison.”
  • Barngoma and Bangomee use their power to hypnotize Kiranmala. “They opened their eyes wide, and again, I felt like I was falling into their swirling rainbow irises. Those swirly, whirly birdie eyes somehow pulled me out of myself so much that I actually felt separated from my body and spirit. . . Falling into the giant birds’ eyes was the wackiest, weirdest thing. I felt like I was flying through a movie on super-duper fast forward.” When she is in a trance, she sees her friend imprisoned and can interact with him.
  • Barngoma and Bangomee create a wormhole that takes Kiranmala to the Kingdom Beyond. Kiranmala advises, “If you have never driven an auto rickshaw through a rip in the fabric of space-time created by two giant, hippopotamus-sized birds, I strongly recommend wearing a bike helmet when you do.”
  • Kiranmala learned that “rakkhosh were actually, in some weird, interdimensional way, the same thing as back holes.”
  • Bolga was “born from a well of dark energy.” She has “webs between her toes, gills along her neck, and webbing fanning out beneath her giant arms.”
  • Kiranmala sees the birth of the Chintamoni and Poroshmoni stones. When she enters the wormhole, “the last thing we saw floating by us in space-time were some gods and demons churning an ocean of milk. They pulled on a familiar-looking snake wrapped around a mountain that operated as a churn. Out of the ocean rose medicine and poison, light and dark, good and evil, and then a sparkling white stone and a glowing yellow one.”
  • Kiranmala explains “the power of Chhaya Devi’s vials. They held the shadows of trees inside. Once freed, the shadows reconstituted themselves like expanding sponges. Super-powerful, tree-shaped magic sponges, that is.”
  • Kiranmala is able to understand parkkhiraj horses.
  • Kiranmala and Neel are able to communicate through the moon’s reflection. Neel says, “When I look up at the moon through the cell window, I can see you reflected there.”
  • Kiranmala has to face ghosts, which is dangerous because “looking at a ghost face-to-face while it was calling me would make my soul forfeit for the taking.”
  • Before Kiranmala dives into the ocean, someone “spun some sort of land rakkhosh dryness spell over me so that my clothes, pack, and weapons would stay dry and I dived into the water.”
  • Kiranmala goes to a hotel and sees a ghost, who was carrying its head. Later, she discovers that the hotel is alive.

Spiritual Content

  • The story focuses on Indian mythology, including mythological monsters and demons.

 

Edge of Flight

The boxes are packed. Tuition has been paid. But before Vanisha leaves, she wants to go rock climbing with her friends one last time. So far, she has been unable to complete the Edge of Flight, the toughest rock climbing route Vanisha has ever faced. This time, she’s determined to make it up the cliff.

When Vanisha and her friends, Rusty and Jeb, set up their campsite, they discover an illegal marijuana grow. When Jeb decides to explore the marijuana field, a group of bikers discovers him. When Jeb is shot, he needs immediate help. But the bikers are looking for the kids. In order to save her friend, Vanisha must conquer the Edge of Flight, hike into town, and avoid unexpected dangers. Can Vanisha overcome her fear to save her friend?

Edge of Flight is not only about rock climbing, but also about teens making decisions about their future. Vanisha plans to attend college in the fall; however, she is unsure of what she wants to do. Through her experiences, she learns, “You’ve got to take one road or the other. You’ve got to decide. And no one can decide for you. It’s your decision. Because it’s your road. You’re the one who has to walk it. Not your mom. Not anyone else.” The story has a positive message about discussing your dreams with your parents, but also the importance of making decisions that are best for you.

Vanisha’s college conflict will resonate with many high school students. The easy-to-read language, straightforward plot, and short length will appeal to reluctant readers. However, those not familiar with rock climbing may not understand all of the terminology without the aid of the glossary, which is at the back of the book. Although the story should be suspenseful, the character development is lacking, which makes it difficult to connect with Vanisha and her friends. Confident readers should skip Edge of Flight and instead read Jaimet’s other book, Endangered: A Death on a Deadline Mystery, which is an excellent mystery.

Sexual Content

  • None

Violence

  • Jeb goes to explore an illegal marijuana grow and someone shoots at him. “Another shot rings out. Jeb stumbles and crumbles to the ground.”
  • A group of men is at a campsite drinking beer, and they smash Jeb’s truck with a tire iron.
  • A man grabs Vanisha. “He laughs, his breath hot in my ear, and drags me towards the campsite.” Vanisha’s friend tries to help. A short fight ensues, and someone pulls a hunting rifle on the group. No one is injured.

Drugs and Alcohol

  • Vanisha and her friends come across an illegal marijuana grow. The experience makes Vanisha wonder if she can trust her friend. She wonders, “What if he’s got a stash of weed in his glove compartment, or hidden under a seat? What if he’s got a couple of cans of beer hidden among all of the junk in the back of his trunk?”
  • A woman tries to help Vanisha. In order to get around the men, she tells Vanisha, “Honey, if I know them boys, they’re already drunk and stoned already. They’ll pass out eventually. I’m just gonna help them along with a little home brew and Southern charm.”

Language

  • A boy says “‘scuse my dumb ass for livin.’”
  • “Sweet Lord Jesus” is used as an exclamation once.
  • A boy calls his friend a moron.
  • A man is “pissing against” a truck.

Supernatural

  • None

Spiritual Content

  • None

The Genie’s Curse

Rapunzel loves being a princess because it’s so much fun. Disaster strikes when she accidentally breaks a magical urn and blames it on Ella. The urn belonged to a genie, who is now very angry. The genie cast a spell on Rapunzel. Now everyone in Tale Town blames everything on Rapunzel. In order to avoid the angry town people, Rapunzel leaves town. Can a little green monkey called Alphege help Rapunzel? Will Rapunzel lose her new friend, Ella, if she tells the truth behind the curse?

Each book in the series focuses on a different character but continues from plot points in previous books. The Genie’s Curse has non-stop action and funny humor. The plot jumps from disaster to disaster, which makes the story interesting, but confusing. The large number of characters and difficult vocabulary make The Genie’s Curse a good choice for confident readers. There are several characters that have been cursed and only appear as humans for part of the time; this may cause confusion for some readers.

Rapunzel’s parents are absent for most of the book and are more concerned with vacationing than being good rulers. Although the story has a good theme—honesty is the best policy—the ending falls flat. When the queen discovers that Rapunzel lied, she says, “I’m very proud of you, Rapunzel. Your brave words have shown me that there is more to life than being pretty and having lovely things. And to reward you, I shall buy you two new ponies and a party dress!”

Black-and-white pictures help bring the characters and actions to life. The evil villains are not scary, but add suspense to the story. The Genie’s Curse is an entertaining story that allows readers to jump into the fairy tale world.

Sexual Content

  • None

Violence

  • Rapunzel accidentally destroys a hermit genie’s home. When she lies to her parents about who broke the urn, the genie curses her. He tells Rapunzel, “From now on every single thing that goes wrong in Tale Town will be blamed on. . . YOU!”
  • A troll tries to cook Alphege in a pot of oil. “The troll held Alphege just above the pot and grinned as he lowered the small green monkey toward the bubbling oil.” Alphege turns into a boy and “kicked his legs out and knocked the pot over, splashing oil all over the floor.”
  • Town people chase Rapunzel. The group chases her, “throwing silverware, dishes, bread, cushions, and anything else they could find.”

Drugs and Alcohol

  • None

Language

  • None

Supernatural

  • Tale Town has a magical tree. “If you ran your finger along the branch, the story would happen inside your head.” The tree has a spell of protection, which “means that the only way to trim off a story is using the Sacred Shiny Story-Snipping Shears.”
  • Spells are cast throughout the story. For example, the wicked witch cast, “a spell on Ella that makes her want to fix everything. Someone gives Ella a necklace that makes it so ‘no spells or curses will have any effect on her at all!’”
  • Alphege was cursed so that he looks like a green monkey most of the time. He can “look human for one day every week. . . I can change back and forth as often as I like. . . so long as I’m not a boy for more than twenty-four hours every seven days.”

Spiritual Content

  • None

 

Aquaman: Undertow

Thirteen-year-old Arthur Curry wonders why his mother left when he was only three years old. He wonders why he doesn’t fit in with the other students at school. Arthur doesn’t like when other students call him freak or fish boy. When Claudia befriends him, Arthur wonders if she’ll decide he’s too weird to be her friend.

Arthur wants to learn about his mother. He also wants to figure out why he seems more comfortable talking to an octopus than kids his own age. When a huge storm strikes Amnesty Bay, Arthur discovers that he has the ability to help others. But should he help the boys who have bullied him for years?

Younger readers will enjoy Aquaman: Undertow because it shows that even superheroes can often be misunderstood. The short chapters and easy vocabulary make the book feasible for reluctant readers. The story does not follow the movie, which might disappoint some readers. The bullying conflict comes to a satisfying end that highlights the importance of helping others, no matter who they are or what they’ve done.

Aquaman: Undertow gives a unique insight into Arthur’s early teenage life. Although the plot is not well developed, readers will be able to relate to Arthur as he struggles with being bullied. The story has rough transitions, and some of the scenes end abruptly. The story jumps from Arthur’s current life to his nightmares, and then to Arthur’s father telling stories about the past. Despite the choppy transitions between scenes, readers will enjoy getting to know the boy who becomes Aquaman.

Sexual Content

  • None

Violence

  • At a school field trip, Arthur is looking at fish. “The next thing Arthur knew, a hand was palming the back of his head, and his face was shoved against the glass tank. Arthur winced.” A friend helps Arthur.
  • At the aquarium, two boys bully Arthur. One of the boys, “grabbed his shirt and banged him up against the glass. Arthur noticed that the crowd of classmates and other aquarium visitors were not staring at him. . . His back was pressed against the glass as Arthur watched Matta and Mike continue their taunting, their name calling, their bullying.”

Drugs and Alcohol

  • None

Language

  • Matt and Mike call Arthur names, including “freak” and “fish boy.”
  • Claudia calls a boy a “jerk” several times.
  • Arthur says “dang” once.
  • A boy says “frickin’” once.
  • A fisherman exclaims, “What the hell?!” Later another person asks the same question.

Supernatural

  • Arthur can understand how fish feel, can swim under water, and has superhuman strength.

Spiritual Content

  • None

The Unicorn Quest

Claire’s great-aunt Diana mysteriously disappeared. As her only family, Claire, Sophie, and her parents plan to spend the summer cleaning out Diana’s house, which is cluttered with her aunt’s collection of strange artifacts. When Claire and Sophie discover a ladder in the fireplace, Sophie leads the way up. . . and up. . . and up. They discover a fantastical land called Arden, filled with castles, magic, and dangerous creatures. Claire makes Sophie promise never to climb the stairs again.

When Sophie disappears, Claire knows she must be brave enough to search for her sister by going up the ladder. When Claire gets to Arden, she discovers a world full of danger. Four guilds of magic no longer trust each other. All of the unicorns have disappeared. Horrible wraiths roam at night. And Sophie is missing. Claire must find the courage to search for her sister, but first she must discover the secret of the unicorns.

Claire is fearful that her sister is in danger, which propels her to team up with two others—Netta and Sena—in order to find Sophie and a stolen unicorn relict. Because Arden’s war happened in the past, the action included in the book is not scary. Instead, readers will be enthralled with Arden’s strange creatures and magic.

The land of Arden is well developed, and the author uses beautiful descriptions to bring the setting to life. Even though the story contains some exciting scenes, the long descriptions slow down the pacing of the plot. The story follows a typical epic format—a girl is forced to go on a quest, teams up with others, and travels from place to place searching for answers. Readers expecting a story about sisters and unicorns will be disappointed, because there is little interaction between Claire and her sister, and the unicorn only appears for a brief flash at the end.

The Unicorn Quest will entertain strong readers who like reading about magical lands and characters going on a quest. Although the story is not unique, Claire is a believable character that overcomes her fear as she searches for her sister. The sweet ending has several surprises and will leave the reader wanting to pick up the next book in the series—Secret in the Stone. The Unicorn Quest will appeal to those who like stories such as The Last, by Katherine Applegate, and Podkin One-Ear, by Kieran Larwood.

Sexual Content

  • None

Violence

  • A wraith tries to attack Claire, but before it does Sophie, “had thrown herself onto the thing’s back and was desperately pounding at its shoulder blades, her fist sinking into the shifting, smoky blackness that hung around it. . . Claire scooted away from the creature, but then there was another shriek—from Sophie this time—and Claire watched in horror as the beast’s clawed hand reached behind and finally peeled Sophie off its back, throwing her to the ground.” With help, the girls are able to escape.
  • When Claire climbs up the ladder to get to Arden, she is attacked. “The air whooshed out of Claire as something—someone—tackled her from behind. She felt a knee land firmly on her lower back, pinning her to the ground. Pain ripped through her shoulders as her arms were yanked behind her. . .Claire coughed, spitting out the dirt that coated her mouth from the fall. Something cold and hard suddenly pressed at her throat: the edge of a knife.” Claire is then taken into the city, where she is put in jail.
  • While stuck in a cave a wyvern appears. Claire uses magic to put the wyvern in a cage. “The wyvern strained, its shoulders pounding against the rock-cage. To Claire’s dismay, the wyvern’s scales seemed to be chipping away at the bars, widening the space little by little.” Claire calms the wyvern, and the group gets out of the cave safely.
  • A man tries to club Claire, so she holds her sword as if it is a baseball bat and, “swung at the club, trying to keep it away from her. Sword and club met with a clang that reverberated through her.” Someone stops the man from hurting Claire.
  • When Sophie is shot with an arrow, “a scream burst out of Claire as her sister’s blood poured over her knees. . . Sophie’s pitiful whisper made Claire grab on to her tighter. . .” A man picks up Sophie and lays her, “at the foot of Queen Rock,” in order to perform a ceremony.
  • A wraith grabs Claire. “As its skeletal hand, smelling of rotten flesh, tightened around her neck, Claire knew, in that horrible way one always knows, that she had made an irrevocable mistake. She gasped for breath as the wraith dragged her slowly back. . . Dark thoughts wrapped around Claire’s mind as she felt herself drowning in the wraith’s cold.” Claire uses magic to save herself.

Drugs and Alcohol

  • Claire is given Sinceri Tea, which is, “distilled from forget-me-not petals for recollection, sunflower seeds for openness, and a blade of hedgehog grass from the beaches of the Sunrise Isles. It will ensure you cannot lie when you answer.”

Language

  • None

Supernatural

  • Claire and Sophie find a ladder in a fireplace. When they climb the ladder, they end up in Arden—a world where magic is real.
  • In Arden, there are four guilds of magic. Forgers work with metal, Gemmers work with rocks and gems, Spinners weave magic from thread, and Tillers work with all that grows from the earth. “Our magic, guild magic, only extends to what’s around us. . . The magic doesn’t come from within us, but from the things around us—plants, rocks, thread, metal. All we do is encourage the magic that naturally exists in those things, to make plants grow bigger and faster and stronger, for instance.”
  • Wraiths are dangerous creatures that kill humans. Claire describes a wraith as “big and dark and cold. It kind of looked like a skeleton wrapped in shadows.”
  • Nett uses Mile High Potion to turn a blade of grass into rope. Nett, “let a drop of something green tumble onto a blade of grass. With his thumb and forefinger, he pinched the blade and gave it a twist . . . The blade of grass was growing longer and larger, going from the length of some floss to shoelace size in a matter of seconds.”
  • While in a shop, Nett finds a revealer, which, “reflects a person’s greatest flaw. . . It’s a horrible thing to have the nastiest, most secret thoughts within you revealed to all.” He also finds an herb that will, “take away the eater’s ability to make decisions for an hour, or four years, depending on the amount consumed.”
  • Claire discovers that she is a Gemmer and can talk to wyverns.
  • A woman uses a magic threat to choke a man. “Francis dropped to his knees as though someone had set a bag of bricks on his shoulders. His arm flailed as he tried to push his Royalist cloak off, but as hard as he tried, he could not lift the garment from his shoulders. There were a few snaps as his ribs cracked.”

Spiritual Content

  • None

The Chupacabras of the Rio Grande

Professor Fauna hears a news report about something that has completely drained the blood from a cow’s body! The professor thinks a chupacabra may be the culprit. Professor Fauna bursts into Elliot and Uchenna’s classroom and flies them to Laredo, Texas.

Once they arrive in Texas, the kids team up with local kids Lupita and Mateo, their brilliant mother Dr. Alejandra Cervantes, and their father Israel. However, helping the chupacabras isn’t the only problem. The people of Laredo are also angry about the building of a border wall. Is there any way to help this divided community? Can the Unicorn Rescue Society save the bloodsucking creature?

As Uchenna and Elliot search for clues that will help them find the chupacabras, they also learn the complicated issue of building a border wall. When talking about the border wall, Professor Fauna said that a border wall is intended to enforce the law, but it is also, “dividing communities and families who have always lived on both sides of the border.”

The kids also meet Andrés, who is having a difficult time because he is separated from his parents. Andrés was born in the United States, but his parents weren’t, so they were taken to a detention center. The story shows that people can disagree about the border wall but still be friends. In the conclusion, the theme is made clear; “Governments create borders. But for families—of chupacabras and people—borders just keep them apart.” The author’s view on immigration is made clear; although it ties into the story, the story only shows one side of the argument.

The Chupacabras of the Rio Grande has a well-developed plot full of suspense and adventure. The addition of the Cervantes family allows readers to learn about the Mexican heritage. Although the story takes a more serious tone than the previous books, readers will enjoy the interaction between the characters. In the end, the story highlights the importance of working together despite differences. The Chupacabras of the Rio Grande is an entertaining story that could be used as a starting point for a good discussion on immigration.

Sexual Content

  • None

Violence

  • The chupacabra runs into a flea market where it, “leaped from the table and slammed into an elote cart, knocking it over. Corncobs and kernels and cream and liquid chili went spraying all over the asphalt.” At one point an, “elderly woman . . . threw a charger at him.”

Drugs and Alcohol

  • None

Language

  • “Heck” is used twice.

Supernatural

  • None

Spiritual Content

  • When Uchenna and Elliot go to the Cervantes’s house, they see a niche that has a statue of the Virgin Mary. The Cervantes’s also have an, “alter to our abuela. . . She was the family matriarch.”

After Zero

Elise has spent years hearing her friend Mel talk about her friends at school. When Elise’s mother finally decides that Elise can go to public school, she is excited. But she soon discovers that it’s easy to say the wrong thing. When Elise accidentally spills a secret and makes a social media mistake, she decides it’s better to be quiet. Now, Elise tries to say as few words as possible. She keeps a notebook full of tallies, marking each word she says. Her goal is to get to zero words spoken.

At school, Elise is known as the quiet girl. She has made no friends, and even Mel is drifting away from her. Now, Elise isn’t sure she could talk if she wanted to. But when she learns a shocking family secret, Elise learns that silence may not be the answer for everything.

After Zero is a beautifully written story about Elise’s personal struggle. Readers will relate to Elise’s desire to make friends and her inability to understand social norms. Like many, Elise would like to connect with someone, but she’s so afraid of saying the wrong thing that she is unable to talk. The story focuses on Elise’s thoughts and struggles, which allows the reader to understand Elise’s thought process. Some of the girls become hostile because they misunderstand Elise’s silence. They do not understand that Elise truly believes that, “silence is the means of avoiding misfortune.”

Although Elise is lonely and bullied at school, her family life is even worse. Her mother hardly ever talks to her. When she gets in an argument with her mother, her “mother’s eyes flash. I’ve seen it before. Whether the loathing is for me or my father, or both, I’m not sure.” Elise lives in a silent world, which forces her to spend too much time focusing on her inner thoughts. After Zero explains Elise’s anxiety in a way that is understandable, allowing the reader to feel compassion for her.

The first person narration allows Elise’s personality to jump off the page. The story is the perfect blend of Elise’s internal turmoil and outside conflicts. The easy-to-read story highlights the importance of forgiveness and friendship. Elise’s story is not only enjoyable, but it will also stay with readers for a long time. Anyone who reads After Zero will come away with a new understanding of others’ struggles with anxiety. The story will also show readers the importance of having empathy for their peers.

Sexual Content

  • None

Violence

  • When Elise is lost in the woods, she comes across three teenagers who steal her backpack. “The girl and the curly-haired boy yank my wrists behind me and push me to the ground, pinning me there on my stomach. I jerk and squirm and try to shake them off. . . They put their weight on me with their hands and elbows, and one of them rests the sole of a boot against my cheek, pressing my face to the ground.” In order to get loose, Elise kicks the boy and later slams her elbow into the girl’s leg.
  • When Elise is lost in the woods, she sees a house. She’s afraid when she hears someone coming closer. “A boot plants itself in the grass behind me. I summon my muscles, or what’s left of them, and swing around, punching him hard, wherever my fist hit first. . . It turns out I hit a private area. He staggers back, clutching himself, his face contorted.”
  • At school, a group of girls gets upset that Elise won’t talk to them. One girl, “comes towards me, whipping a nail file out of her pocket. . . She grabs my wrist and twists it behind my back so fast and hard that I almost cry out. . .She pushes me against the guardrail again, and it rattles. . .” When Elise begins to fight back, a teacher appears and saves her. The scene takes place over five pages.
  • One of the teachers presents a poem about her sister that committed suicide.

Drugs and Alcohol

  • Elise had been told that her father was killed by a drunk driver. Later, she discovers that her father was driving drunk and had killed her two brothers.
  • Elise finds a picture of her father standing with her brothers. Her father, “was raising a beer bottle to the camera.” In another picture, “Emerson is sitting on my father’s shoulders while my father smiles at the camera, a beer can in hand.”

Language

  • A boy calls his friend a “doofus.”

Supernatural

  • Elise has a vision of her brother and Granny P. When she tries to talk to Granny P., she disappears. Later, the story hints that Elise hallucinated because she was so tired.
  • One of Elise’s teachers has a stuffed raven. The story implies that the raven comes to life and helps Elise in several situations. When the stuffed raven disappeared from the classroom, the teacher tells Elise, “Sometimes when we feel lost, the universe sends a little help. Something or someone to guide us on our path…And that can come in the most unexpected form.”

Spiritual Content

  • Elise’s mother does not celebrate her birthday, and her friend thinks it may be because she’s a Jehovah’s Witness. But Elise’s mother, “isn’t religious. I still remember the day a pair of missionaries came to our door and asked if she believed in God. ‘Once upon a time,’ she replied, and she shut the door in their faces.”
  • Elise finds a card that someone gave her mother. The card says, “praying your sons will pull through.”

I Believe in A Thing Called Love

Desi has a plan for everything. With a plan, anything is possible. That’s how she became the student body president and a soccer star. That’s how she’ll get into Stanford. Desi knows how to plan. She knows how to study. But, when it comes to boys, Desi is a flailure. “Flirt + failure = flailure.”

Desi is a disaster at romance. But when a hot art student moves to her school, Desi decides she wants to capture his attention. After watching Korean dramas, Desi realizes that love is, “like a freaking equation!” Desi is determined to be like the K drama’s unlucky heroine, who always ends up with her true love. Desi follows her, “K Drama steps to True Love,” and goes after the moody, elusive artist Luca Drakos. After a boat rescue, love triangle, and staged car crash, will Desi end up in the arms of Luca?

I Believe in A Thing Called Love will capture the reader’s heart from the first chapter. Told from Desi’s point of view, readers will laugh at Desi’s crazy antics, understand her insecurities, and root for her as she goes after the guy of her dreams. Desi wants to control everything, but this smart nerdy girl is hilariously clueless when it comes to boys. Desi isn’t portrayed as a stereotypical smart girl; she also isn’t perfect, and Desi’s imperfections make her even more lovable.

Desi has a strong and warm relationship with her father. Despite the fact that he is a mechanic and often has grease-stained hands, despite his imperfect English, and his love for watching K dramas, Desi is never embarrassed by her father. Desi’s father isn’t just a background character, but a well-developed part of the story. Desi’s father understands her quirks but doesn’t try to change her. The readers will appreciate the scenes with Desi and her father just as much as the failed romance scenes.

I Believe in A Thing Called Love isn’t just a typical teen romance. Through Desi’s experiences, readers will learn valuable lessons. When Desi is afraid that she is acting weird, Luca tells her, “Everyone’s weird, though. If you’re not even a little weird, you are truly weird. In a bad way. Not in the good way.” When Desi thinks about giving up on love, her father tells her, “You cannot control who you love, Desi, but you can always control how hard you fight, okay?” In the end, not all of Desi’s plans work out and despite the pain of failure, Desi knows life can still be good.

Do not pick up I Believe in A Thing Called Love unless you have time to finish the book because once you pick it up, you will not want to put it down. I Believe in A Thing Called Love takes a humorous look at first love and will leave readers with a smile. Desi is a heroine that will not be forgotten easily. The story ends with a list of K dramas that readers may want to watch. And after seeing Desi put the K drama’s love formula to the test, readers may also become hooked on K drama’s themselves.

Sexual Content

  • Desi thinks back to fourth grade when “a boy asked me if I want to look at his ‘special’ books and I told him I wasn’t allowed to look at pornography. Turns out it was comic books and he didn’t even know how boys were made yet. I was the fourth grade perv.”
  • Desi thinks about how Korean romantic comedies are different than in America. One difference is that “in American shows, the leads would barely blink twice before jumping into bed.”
  • Desi tells her friend, “I’m not an experienced seductress who like, has men drinking champagne from her high heels.”
  • Desi’s friend tells her, “I, too, think one should get laid before entering college.”
  • When Desi talks about her crush, a friend says, “I don’t want to see flailure heartbreak. I was hoping it was just you needing to round out your high school years with a good old-fashioned devirginizing.”
  • Desi goes to a “sex party” that was, “fertile ground for hooking up. . . there were rooms for spin the bottle and seven minutes in heaven.” Desi goes into the seven minutes in heaven closet with a friend. They just sit around and look at their phones.
  • Desi wonders, “Was everyone having sex but me? God.”
  • Desi’s friend Fiona is a lesbian, who has dates with a lot of girls. “Girls lined up for Fiona every year. Sometimes it was the classic bad-girl type and they’d make out rebelliously in the hallway at school.” The story talks about how her family reacted when she came out. “Her family eventually recovered, although they still weren’t thrilled with her active love life. I’m pretty sure that would have applied to boyfriends, too, however.”
  • Desi and another girl see Luca kissing a girl.
  • Desi thinks Luca is going to kiss her. “His eyes met mine and suddenly. . . suddenly it felt real . . . This was it. Kiss time. Holy crap. A wave of heat passed between us—the vibrations of our bodies’ atoms and molecules transferring heat. . . And then he blinked.”
  • Luca and Desi kiss. “Lips met mine, soft, a little chapped, and warm. My eyes were open in true K drama heroine fashion.”
  • Desi, “brushed my lips against his. Soft and a bit hesitant. And he kissed me back just as softly, with a little pressure at the very end.”
  • When Luca picks Desi up, he quickly kisses her. “My skin buzzed, every part of me awake and alive.”
  • When Luca finds out he got a scholarship, Desi and he begin jumping around. “Then suddenly we weren’t jumping anymore—just a whole lot of kissing.”
  • Desi and Luca kiss. “He strode over, pulled me into his arms, and kissed me. Not a gentle, sweet kiss—but an urgent one.”

Violence

  • Desi thinks back to first grade when, “I kicked my first crush, Jefferson, in the nuts during taekwondo class, and he had to be taken to the ER.”
  • Luca covers Desi’s mouth so she will be quiet. She, “responded by biting his gloved hand. I tasted rubber. He yelped and let go of me. . .”

Drugs and Alcohol

  • After binge watching television series all weekend long, someone asks Desi, “What! Are you on speed?”
  • When Desi is at home, her dad took, “a sip of beer.”
  • Desi and her friends go to a “sex party” where there is alcohol.
  • Someone asks Desi, “Are you high?”
  • Someone is upset that Desi didn’t want to be her friend. The girl says, “You would never talk to art freaks who smoked pot.”
  • Desi and her friends go to the beach and her friend, “took a swig of beer.”

Language

  • Profanity is used often. Profanity includes ass, bitch, bitchiness, badass, bullshit, crap, dang, damn, douche, f-ing, hell, holy shit, freaking and shit.
  • Pissed, motherf-ing and fuck are all used once.
  • Oh my god, God, Oh Lord, Oh Sweet Jesus, and Jesus are often used as exclamations.
  • Desi thinks, “I might be a flailure in love, but I was the motherf-ing boss of studying.”
  • Someone asks a boy, “Why do you even hang out with a bunch of girls, anyway, you caveman douche.”
  • When someone suggested getting a hummer limo for prom, Fiona says, “I’d rather eat dick.”

Supernatural

  • None

Spiritual Content

  • None

Sasquatch and the Muckleshoot

Elliot wants life to be normal. Uchenna wants adventure. But when Professor Fauna takes the kids to the Pacific Northwest on another mission in the Muckleshoot territory in Washington, they discover that film crews have arrived in masses. The news crews want to find Bigfoot. But the news crews aren’t the only danger. The Schmoke brothers plan to clear the forest. Is there any way the Unicorn Rescue Society can help keep the Sasquatch hidden? Will the Sasquatch’s territory be destroyed by chainsaws?

The third installment of The Unicorn Rescue Society has the same lovable characters and the same evil villains. As the group heads to the Pacific Coast, the narration shows a strong love of nature and teaches the importance of taking care of the natural world, which includes logging responsibly. When the group arrives at their destination, they meet Mack, who shares the Muckleshoot’s culture.

Mack shares some of the Native Americans’ history, including how the “white folks. . . believed the white way of life was superior.” Because of this belief, the whites forced the Native Americans to give up their languages and customs. The white called this, “Kill the Indian and save the man.” Now the Native Americans are using some of their casino money to buy back the land that the whites stole from them. Even though the story shows the Muckleshoot people care for the forest and the animals, much of the dialogue seems to promote a political agenda instead of teaching about the Native American culture.

Sasquatch and the Muckleshoot is not as enjoyable as the first two books because the plot focuses less on the adventure of helping the mythical creature. The professor and kids do very little to help Mack find a solution to help the Sasquatch. In addition, the absent-minded professor is taken to the extreme. Even younger readers will have a hard time believing that the professor is so clueless that his plane runs out of gas. And how many times can the professor crash land his plane without anyone getting injured?

Readers will enjoy the black-and-white illustrations, funny puns, and the way Mack calls Elliot by a variety of names such as “Screams A Lot.” Other positive aspects of the story are the diverse characters and the use of Spanish and Lushootseed words and phrases. Sasquatch and the Muckleshoot has some humorous scenes, and readers will enjoy watching Elliot overcome his fear. Unlike the first two books in the series, Sasquatch and the Muckleshoot is missing much of the action and adventure that made the first two books fun to read.

Sexual Content

  • None

Violence

  • Four men capture the professor. The professor is, “smacked on the face with his shoe, but the others quickly grabbed his arms and legs. He struggled, but their hands were strong as tree roots.” The men tie up the professor.
  • When Uchenna, Elliot, and a friend dress up like Sasquatch, men try to grab them. The men, “grabbed the three juvenile Sasquatch and tried to wrestle them to the ground. The small furry ones fought valiantly, striking out with their fists and kicking the shins of the hard-hatted attackers. But they were overpowered and pinned to the mossy forest floor.”

Drugs and Alcohol

  • None

Language

  • “Darn” is used once.
  • A news reporter calls someone an “idiot.”
  • One of the characters knew someone in middle school who was a “real jerk.”
  • A man calls someone a “fool.”

Supernatural

  • None

Spiritual Content

  • None

Misfit

Devin can speak to animals, which helps her be a caring creature caretaker. She would rather be out in the woods healing animals than inside learning to be a princess. But she’s twelfth in line for the throne of Enchantasia, so there is no way she can avoid going to the Royal Academy.

Devin didn’t read the required material because she was too busy helping animals, but as soon as she arrives, she realizes that she is horribly out of place. While Devin is excited to meet Olivina, the beloved fairy godmother to Cinderella, Snow White, and Rapunzel, she is also enrolled in classes that don’t suit her interests, such as “How to write a love note,” and “From cha-chas to charming princess.”

When danger appears, Devin discovers that Olivina is obsessed with teaching the princesses to wait for the princes to save them. The students aren’t learning to rule a kingdom, but learning to be helpless. Devin knows that something is amiss. When the fairy godmother threatens to banish Devin, Devin must decide if she will act like a proper princess or if she will search for the secrets that Olivina is hiding.

Besides being an entertaining story, Misfits shows that not everyone can fit into a mold. Devin isn’t the only character that is unique. There’s a prince that is more interested in chopping vegetables than chopping off dragon’s heads. Another royal is more interested in telling the truth in her tabloids than talking about the latest fashion. These unique characters’ bravery shines as they fight to keep their classmates safe from fairy-tale monsters.

Throughout the story, Devin is frustrated by the princess rules. Snow White tells Devin, “What Olivina wants for all of us, more than anything, is to feel safe and secure in our roles.” The fairy godmother, Olivina, is upset when Devin saves herself and others from danger. Olivina says, “But that wasn’t your role to play, was it? You were supposed to let the princes do that. If they can’t rescue you, what are they good for?” Throughout the story, readers will learn that sometimes people need to break out of the roles society has given them.

Another theme is the importance of being honest. Professor Pierce teaches that it is important to, “be honest. Honesty is important in a royal—in all humans. . .” He also tells Devin, “Being royal means acting responsibly with the power that you’re given. It’s about making tough decisions for the good of your subjects.”

Full of fantastic fairy tale fun, Misfits follows Devin who is a lovable, unpredictable character. Devin isn’t interested in ball gowns or shoes, and she definitely isn’t interested in reading the required academy reading, which leads her into trouble right from the start. Devin’s caring, questioning behavior makes the reader root for the spunky girl. The cliff-hanger ending will leave readers eager to read the second book of the series, Outlaws.

Sexual Content

  • None

Violence

  • During a school ball, harpies attack. “A harpy snatches Hazel with its talons and flies off with her as princesses shriek in panic. Guests start stampeding in all directions. . .” The scene takes place over eight pages. While the teachers hide, the students come up with a plan to defeat the harpies.
  • When a student steals a dragon egg, the dragon attacks. A prince, “grabs another boy’s dagger and stabs it into the dragon’s tail. The dragon roars so loudly that the ground shakes violently.” Fire “rains down on the room.” Fairies put out the fire, and three students are able to return the egg.
  • When Devin goes to gym class, she is kidnapped. “A sack is pulled over my head as hands grab my ankles. Rope is wound around my hands and feet before I even have time to scream.” She is put in a room with other bound princesses. “Three more beams hit the floor in quick succession, one cracking the floorboards. The entire room starts to rumble and shake, while black smoke pours through the window.” The scene takes place over 11 pages. The girls escape unharmed.
  • During a school ball, the witch from Hansel and Gretel appears. “A huge plume of smoke billows from the middle of the dance floor. There are screams and shouts and running.” The witch steals the fairy godmother’s wand, and “Olivina passes out, hitting the floor hard, like a pancake. . . Boom! Boom! Boom! The students around us barely move before they collapse like Olivina, their swords and tiaras rolling onto the ground.” Someone is able to grab the magic wand from the witch, and “Poof! The witch dissolves into thin air.” The scene takes place over five pages. No one is injured.

Drugs and Alcohol

  • None

Language

  • Devin uses the phrase, “Holy harpies,” when she is surprised.
  • “Darn” is used twice.

Supernatural

  • The story takes place in a fairy tale world. Magic is occasionally used. For example, the academy has a protection charm.
  • The fairy godmother travels by Poof Dust. She uses this to magically transport herself and others.
  • Devin can talk to animals and she knows several animal languages, including squirrel.
  • The official dressmaker uses magic to help create her dresses. The dressmaker, “snaps her fingers, and magic wands shoot off tables to finish the tasks she was doing for each girl.”
  • Milo is a talking mirror who can watch the girls and give them encouraging words.

Spiritual Content

  • None

Atlantia

The underwater world of Atlantia has been Rio’s home forever, but she dreams of living in the Above. When Rio has the chance to choose where to live, she wanted to choose the Above. But when her mother dies everything changes. Rio knows she must stay in the Below with her sister Bay. But when the day to choose comes, Bay makes the unexpected decision to go Above. Rio is stranded in the Below with no family. Now Rio only has questions. Was her mother murdered? If so, who wanted her dead? Why did Bay choose to go to the Above?

While Rio searches for her answers, she must hide her own secret. She has always hidden her powerful siren voice. When Rio’s estranged aunt Marie suddenly takes an interest in her, Rio wonders if Marie has discovered her secret. Can Marie be trusted to help Rio go Above, or will Marie lead her into danger? Rio hopes that Marie can answer her questions, but soon she learns that Atlantia’s history is more complex than the people have been told. Rio must listen to the voices of the past. And in the process, she hopes to save herself and her city.

The world of Atlantia is described in beautiful detail; however, the descriptions of a complex religion and history of the city make the beginning of the story slow. Although Rio is an interesting character, many may have a difficult time relating to her. When her sister Bay leaves to go to the Above, Rio is devastated and only thinks about how to join her sister in the Above. Because Rio had always planned to leave her sister, her motivation for going Above doesn’t ring true.

Atlantia is full of mystery, intrigue, and a dash of romance. Told from Rio’s point of view, readers get a look into what the world could look like if people destroy the land above the sea. Through Rio’s experiences, the reader will learn several positive messages including the importance of speaking up for yourself and others. Rio learns that many of the problems between the Above and the Below come from misunderstandings and fear. “People fear those who are different when really we are so much the same.” Rio realizes that “in order to save our city, we have to love each other more than ourselves.”

The ending of the story leaves a lot of unanswered questions, but it also has several surprises. Readers who want to read about mermaids should leave Atlantia on the shelf. Even though the story has sirens, the sirens are humans with a voice that can control people. If you enjoyed Ally Condie’s Matched series, and want to read more from the same author, just be aware that Atlantia is lacking the same action and suspense that makes the Matched series so enjoyable. Readers will either love or hate Atlantia. Some will find the slow pace and the lack of character development frustrating. However, others won’t be able to put the book down because of the mystery and the interesting premise.

Sexual Content

  • Someone saw Rio’s sister kissing a boy. The person said, “I don’t want to speak for them. But yes, it did seem like there was something between them. Something real.”
  • True kissed Rio. “Right here under the trees, right here on my lips, and then on my neck, his fingers strong on my back, pulling me hard and close to him. . . He is good at this. I am good at this. We are good at this.”
  • Rio and True are on a gondola when “true’s lips brush against mine and I kiss him back. We hold each other tight. Earlier, under the trees, we were hungry and relieved to touch each other. We are still hungry.”
  • Rio and True kiss. “True’s lips skim my cheekbone and then he finds my mouth and I kiss him back, reaching to touch the beautiful planes on his face.”

Violence

  • Marie tells a story about two siren sisters who fought in the temple. Their voices killed some of the worshippers who, “fell with blood streaming from their ears and terror in their eyes.” Because of the sisters, the Counsel put the sirens under their governance. One of the sisters didn’t agree with the new rules and committed suicide by drowning, “herself in the wishing pool.”
  • Rio’s mother was killed by the Counsel. The members, “called her in for a meeting. When she arrived, they gave her something to drink, as was the custom, and they had each put some of the poison in her cup. They all did it.”
  • When a transport takes a group of sirens to the Above, they are killed. “Another siren starts to run. Before she’s taken more than a few steps, the people in the boats shoot her down too. . . She doesn’t even breathe, only bleeds.” The scene takes place over several days.
  • One of the leaders of the Above is killed. The murder is not described but Rio sees the body and the “wild hair and his poor, dead face. I put my hand on his chest, but I feel no rise and fall, no heartbeat.”

Drugs and Alcohol

  • None

Language

  • None

Supernatural

  • The gods gave Atlantia a miracle by sending sirens, people who can use their voice to control others. “There have never been two sirens from the same family line. We’ve always believed that the siren voice was a gift from the gods, not simple genetics. In order to be a minister, a person must show that they “cannot be swayed by sirens. They are chosen, in part, for their ability to resist.”
  • Marie, a siren, has the ability to communicate through a shell. She gives Rio a shell and tells her, “all you have to do is ask a question into that shell and then listen for the answer to come back to you.” Marie can also record voices into the shell, but the voice can only be used once.
  • Marie can, “hear voices from people who are gone. Who died hundreds of years ago. I hear voices in the walls of Atlantia, especially siren voices. They’ve been saved up, embedded in the walls.”
  • One of the characters can tell if a siren is telling a lie. “If I listen closely, I can hear something in their voices when they’re not telling the truth. It sounds like the wrong note in a song.”

Spiritual Content

  • Atlantia’s gods are the same gods as the ones above, but they take different shapes. When the people came to Atlantia, the leaders, “assigned land-animal faces and bodies to the gods for those of us who worship Below, and sea forms for those Above.”
  • The Atlantia religion was, “agreed upon by the sirens and the people together. They studied old histories. They learned about the gods. And then they shaped it all to fit the way their lives were. The Counsel took our religion to the Above, and the Above began to believe as well.”
  • The people of Atlantia are taught that those who live below have a “short life, illness, weakness, and misery. . . It is fair. It is as the gods decreed at the time of the Divide. Some have to stay Above so that humanity might survive Below. . . Thanks to the gods for the sea where we live, for the air we breathe, for our lives in the Below.”
  • Rio’s mother told her that, “some people say that the sirens are miracles, not people. . . Can you imagine believing such a thing? People can be miracles.”
  • Rio’s mother told her, “The gods know everything. . . They know how difficult this is. And they are pleased with you.”
  • Rio’s friend said, “I believe in them (the gods) so much that I don’t think they need statues everywhere to be powerful.”
  • When a portion of Atlantia has to be sealed off, many people die. Rio prayed, “and it’s not to Efram or any of the tiger gods, or any of the gods at all. It’s their faces I picture; it’s hers. My mother’s.” Later, Rio again prays to her mother and the gods.
  • Some people worship Rio’s mother and light candles for her.
  • Rio learns that “the temple, the gods, all of it, was a façade, a conceit. It was a way to make things more beautiful. . . No one thought of the gods as gods. They thought they were gargoyles. Decorations.” But later, the “people came to believe.” Later Rio wonders what it would be like to fashion your own gods.

The Last

Byx, a dairnes, has always been a part of her family and a part of her pack. She has always had the love of her parents and the guidance of her pack. One terrible day, Byx wanders off from her pack’s nest. When she returns, she discovers that soldiers have killed everyone. Now Byx is the last of the dairnes. The endling.

As the youngest and the smallest of her siblings, Byx doesn’t feel like she is capable of taking off on her own. But she has no choice. She’s alone. Byx sets off on an epic journey in search of a legendary island where other dairnes may live. In her search for the island, she must travel through a war-torn kingdom and flee from knights who want to kill her.

During her travels, she finds allies who join her. There’s Tobble, the worthy wobbyk, Khara, the girl of many disguises, Renzo, the honorable thief, and Gambler, the principled felivet. Their enemies will stop at nothing to kill Byx, the last of the dairnes. Will Byx’s allies be able to keep her alive?

Byx’s story comes to life as she tells her own story of heartbreak and hope. As Byx meets others, she feels incapable of leading because she was the runt, and she feels like she was “too young to be clever. Too small to be helpful.” Many readers will relate to Byx’s insecurities, but also her determination to keep working towards her goal. Even though Byx feels that “this hope of mine is ridiculous. And I’m a fool,” others choose to follow her because Byx believed in them first. Through Byx’s experiences the message is clear; it is never wrong to hope.

The interesting and compelling characters are one of the best parts of the story. Readers will fall in love with Tobble, who according to wobbyk code, must save Byx’s life three times. Even though Tobble is small, he’s determined, fiercely loyal, and willing to fight for others. Each character has their own reasons to help Byx, but through teamwork they overcome obstacles. Each character has unique talents, which allow them to help their friends.

The Endling highlights that all people are capable of being a hero or a villain. In the story, humans are portrayed as untrustworthy deceivers who are hungry for power. Humans “do not understand the balance of life. They do not understand their will to dominate and control, to use and abuse, is destructive to all.” Throughout the story, humans are shown in a negative light, and younger readers may be frightened by the deception and the violence in the story. Much like real life, the death in the story is disturbing and the scenes may remain with the reader for a long time.

From the very first page, Applegate creates captivating settings and fascinating characters readers will love. The fast-paced adventure shows that even those who feel unworthy can become leaders. The Endling is an epic story that will take readers to an imaginative world where good must fight evil in the hopes of saving the last of the dairnes.

Sexual Content

  • None

Violence

  • A group of humans begins shooting arrows at Byx, who jumps off a cliff and glides down to the sea. Byx is safe from the poachers, but they kill her pack. Byx hears the “howls and screams. Agony. Pain beyond words. Terror and despair.” She then sees her family “piled on the ground like discarded hides, blood pouring, white and pearly, soaking the leaves, eyes glassy and open, mouths open. Torn and stabbed.”
  • When Byx tries to run to her dead family, someone hits her with an arrow. “It wasn’t a killing arrow. It was an arrow meant for capture. . .” When Byx continues to struggle, the person hits her on the back of the neck, but she “felt it for only a second, maybe two, before I was lost in swirling darkness.” Later the person cleans Byx’s wound.
  • Byx thinks about her dead family and all that she saw. She “closed my eyes and heard the screams. I smelled the brackish blood, steel and iron, sword and armor. I saw a spear poking at the dead bodies, the pitiful dead piles of fur.”
  • A giant snake pins Byx to a tree. She “struggled, but with each movement the enormous snake coiled around me, tightening its hold. . . I tried to free my arms, but the strength of the huge serpent was infinitely greater than anything I could muster.” Byx’s friend Tobble tries to help. “He leapt to my defense, digging his teeth into the serpent that had pinned me, but suddenly the little wobbyk was snatched away, as if someone had him on a string.” Someone appears and chops the snake in half, and “the two pieces thudded to the ground. They writhed for a moment, then went still.” The scene takes place over four pages.
  • A group of soldiers discover Byx and her friends hiding. Gambler, a huge cat, “swiped at a careless constable, leaving bloody tracks down his sword arm.” As they try to escape, “a reckless raptidon constable came at him, talons at the ready. In one move, Gambler knocked him out of the sky and sent him in a tangled, bloody heap down to the ally below.” They are able to flee safely.
  • Khara talks about her great-grandfather, who was “given the treatment reserved for traitors. . . He was roasted over a slow fire for days, screaming in agony, before they finally cut off his head.”
  • When knights begin following Byx and his group, Gambler attacked the knights so his friends could escape. Gambler, “flew through the air, paws outstretched, and slammed full force into the knight. The knight toppled from his horse but was up in a heartbeat, reaching for his sword. Gambler leapt on the knight before he could draw. . .” The knight uses magic to shoot a spear, “from the end of the spear came a jet of flame.” The grass catches fire and the group ran for their life.
  • A soldier sees Byx, assumes he is a dog, and kicks him, “in my ribs with enough force to knock me over.”
  • When Byx’s group comes across a rat-like creature that spies, Gambler attacks it. “. . . Gambler ended the creature’s life with a bite that crushed its skull.”
  • A group of guards throw a net over Byx. His friends try to help. During the scene, Khara, “staggered from a savage blow from the hilt of a guardsman’s sword against the side of her head. Her eyes rolled up.” During the fight, Tobble “hurled himself with mad fury on the guardsman. . . dug his claws into the man’s ears, and began ripping at his nose. . . Blood flew everywhere.” The scene takes place over 6 pages.
  • When Khara accuses someone of treachery, the person “swung a backhand and hit the side of her face with a sharp report that seemed to echo off the walls.”
  • A knight suspends a boy above a fire. “The knight meant death to come slowly to his human prisoner.” Before the boy can be roasted, Byx and Gambler save him.
  • The knight attacks a group of guards. “Crossbow bolts few. One missed. One struck the Knight in his right thigh.” As the guard tries to escape, one of the men was “wreathed in flames.”

Drugs and Alcohol

  • Byx and his friends go into an inn where, “two barmaids threaded through the crush of people, carrying pitchers of ale, mead, or cider.”

Language

  • None

Supernatural

  • Byx is a dairne who can tell if someone is lying because she can “feel the falseness.” Byx explains that when she hears a lie, “there’s something missing, and you hear the wrongness of it. You feel it in your belly. . .”
  • Some of the characters know “theurgy” which is the “study of spells and incantations.”
  • A natite has a fishtail and is “vaguely human in shape. . . Green flesh covered its powerful shoulders and chest, and two huge, writhing tentacles rose from the creature’s shoulder blades.” In order to cross the sea, Khara must pay a “blood tax” that allows the natite to “pin down elements in it that identify a particular person. Somehow, by means we don’t understand, they can share this information instantly with every other natite in the world. Once they know who you are, if you cross the sea again, they will know you by some obscure natite sense . . . It’s like having your travel documents.”
  • One of the characters is a seer who has “magical runes and seals, the visible manifestation of powerful theurgic charms. It is said that she cannot be killed.”
  • Khara has a magical sword that conceals its true nature until it is drawn in anger.

Spiritual Content

  • Byx hears a voice and wonders, “Was it some echo of my mother’s voice? Did she still call to me from the land of dead?”
  • One of the characters sings a song about the beginning of the world. “In ancient times/When life was new, /The great ones met/At Urman’s yew. /Beneath the tree, / Beside the sea, / They planned the world /For you and me.”
  • Byx asks what a ‘knight of fire’ is. Someone replies, “Pray to your gods, dairne, that you do not find out the answer.”
  • When Gambler thinks he is about to die, he sings a song. He explains, “It’s a death song. Felivet who knows he is about to die sins his love to the moon and stars, our guides.” Gambler says that he will never end his own life because “we believe that a felivet who dies well in battle ascends to a great forest above the clouds. There we hunt endless prey and gather sometimes without others of our kind to tell of our great deeds in life.”
  • Byx and her group are looking for a moving island. Someone says that, “the sentient islands are gods to many. Others think they’re home to foul beasts and monsters. Still others believe that anyone who sets foot on the island will be eaten, consumed by the very trees.”
  • The Knight of Fire chases Byx and his group. In order to get rid of the knight, they make a trap. When the knight approached the group, “Khara, screaming, attacked the knight . . . The knight, unable to stab her, instead slammed the pommel into her face. Khara fell back, her nose spraying blood.” The knight, “tumbled into the stake-filled gully.” Byx hopes “never to see anything as awful as the sight of the fearsome Knight of the Fire and his charger, pierced through with sharpened sticks. The knight had died instantly. His horse, impaled by five spears, still lived, whinnying and kicking, but it was clearly doomed.”

 

Page

Kel survived her first year as a page, but her training is only increasing as she gets older. She still has her studies and combat training, riding, and etiquette lessons. But now that Lord Wyldon has discovered her fear of heights, he constantly gives her tasks that test her limits—such as climbing to the top of the palace wall and mapping the lands beyond. To her friends, Kel insists that Lord Wyldon is just training her to be a better knight, but secretly she wonders if he is trying to drive her to quit.

Meanwhile, Joren claims he wants to turn over a new leaf and be friends. Kel outwardly agrees, but worries Joren is merely becoming craftier. Still, she has little time to worry about what Joren and his friends are up to because she is horrified to discover that she is becoming a woman. First, her breasts begin to grow, and then she starts her monthlies. While Kel wants things to stay exactly how they were, at least one of her friends has begun to notice that Kel is a girl…

Page is a strong follow-up to the first Protector of the Small novel. The same enjoyable cast remains, with the interesting addition of new characters such as Kel’s maid Lalasa. Similar to the first book, Kel has to prove herself capable despite her perceived “weakness” of being a girl. One obstacle that Kel must overcome is her deep fear of heights. Even though she does not want to confront her fears, she proves that she has the strength to pursue her dream. As Kel progresses through her training, Page continues with the theme of behaving honorably, as a true knight should.

Readers will enjoy the advancement of Kel’s training and watching as her relationships with her friends grow and change. Kel’s maid Lalasa is a well-developed character that grows throughout the story. At first, Lalasa is timid because she has suffered great abuse from men. However, while she is in Kel’s service, Lalasa develops confidence and flourishes into a capable young lady. This story highlights the importance of friendship as well as the importance of perusing one’s dreams.

While this book covers the span of three years, where the first book covered only the span of one, the story does not feel rushed or lacking. Kel is a unique heroine who must fight against her own fears as well as discrimination. Both male and female readers will be drawn to Kel’s world and will come away with a positive message—with hard work and determination, dreams can come true.

Sexual Content

  • Garvey asks Kel’s friend, “So, Faleron, you’re friends with her now because you can have her whenever you want?” In retaliation, Neal says, “Joren is so pretty. Say, Garvey, are you two friends because you can have him?”
  • When thinking about self-defense, Kel remembers how, “Nariko had taught the court ladies, including Kel’s family, how to preserve their honor from rapists.”
  • Kel tells Neal, “What you said about Harvey and Joren—it’s not an insult in Yaman. Some men prefer other men. Some women prefer other women.” Neal replies, “In the Eastern Lands, people like that pursue their loves privately . . . Manly fellows like Joren think it’s a deadly insult to be accused on wanting other men.”
  • Kel is shocked to notice she is growing breasts. “Flabbergasted, Kel stared at the front of her nightgown. Sure enough, there were two slight bulges in the proper area for such a thing.”
  • Kel starts her period. “Blood was on her loincloth and inner thighs. She stared at it, thinking something dreadful was happening. Then she remembered several talks she’d had with her mother. This had to be her monthlies, the bleeding that told every girl she was ready to have babies if she wanted them.”
  • Kel’s mother tells her that she, “didn’t have much of a bosom until I got pregnant . . . your sister Patricine, though, she developed at twelve . . . Remember-you may be able to do so, but no one can force you to have babies. You do have a choice in these things. I’ll get you a charm to ward off pregnancy until you are ready for it.”
  • Owen asks Kel, “When did you turn into a real girl?” Kel replies, “I’ve been a girl for a while, Owen.” He then exclaims, “It’s not like you’ve got melons or anything, they’re just noticeable.”
  • When a man attacks her maid, Kel threatens to take him, “‘before the court of the Goddess . . . A man convicted of hurting women in the Goddess’s court faced harsh penalties; those for actual rape were the worst of all.”

Violence

  • Kel gets in a fight with a group of bullies. “Garvey came at Kel from the right, punching at her head. She slid away from his punch, grabbed his arm, pushed her right foot forward, and twisted to the left. Garvey went over her hip into Vinson, who’d attacked on her left. Joren, at the center, came in fast as his friends hit the wall. Kel blocked Joren’s punch to her middle, but his blow was a feint; his left fist caught her right eye squarely.”
  • The squires get in a fight when Neal insults Joren. “Garvey roared and charged, but Joren got to Neal first. Before they landed more than a punch each, Neal’s friends, including Kel, attacked them. More boys entered the brawl, kicking and hitting blindly, striking friend as often as foe. Kel nearly fainted when someone’s boot hit her bruised collarbone.”
  • Kel and her friends are attacked by a group of bandits. The fight takes place over the course of eleven pages. “The enemy coming at her raised a short, curved sword. She saw he would be unable to touch her until he was directly alongside. Kel dropped her extra spear out of her way, making sure she wouldn’t trip on it. She brought her other spear point-down by her right calf, holding it in the glaive position broom-sweeps-clean. The Hillman was almost on her, just five yards, now –She stepped forward, to the right of the charging raider, and brought the spear up in a firm, sweeping movement. The leaf-shaped blade, razor-sharp, cut deep into the man’s leg before Kel had to dodge the downward sweep of his sword. The man turned his horse and came back at Kel. This time she drove her spear through his belly, where it lodged.”
  • Kel fights off a man who attacked her maid. “Rather than shatter Vinson’s kneecap, she hit just above it, where the thigh muscle narrowed. He lurched, knocking Lalasa against the window frame, then let go. Lalasa scrambled back inside Kel’s room, tears streaming down her face.”

Drugs and Alcohol

  • Adults sometimes drink a goblet of wine with dinner.

Language

  • Phrases such as Goddess bless and by the gods are used frequently as a part of Tortallian culture.
  • The word wench is used several times.

Supernatural

  • Kel lives in Tortall, a world filled with monsters and magic. The monsters include griffins, centaurs, and more. Some are good, some are not. Kel even has a basilisk for a teacher.
  • Several people at court have the Gift, which can be used for light, to heal, and more. One time, the king, “called a ball of light from the air so he could read.”

Spiritual Content

  • Tortall has many gods. They are named differently but are similar to the Greek gods. For example, Mithros is the god of the sun, and there is a god of death. The gods are mentioned often in the Tortallian culture, but are not an integral part of the plot.
  • Characters often pray before meals or battles. “We ask the guidance of Mithros in these uncertain times, when change threatens all that is time-honored and true. May the god’s light show us a path back to the virtues of our fathers and an end to uncertain times. We ask this of Mithros, god of the sun.”
  • When climbing a terrifyingly high tower, Kel thinks that “When I reach the Realms of the Dead . . . I’m going to find the genius who designed this tower and I’m going to kill him a second time. Horribly.”

by Morgan Lynn

 

Because I Love You

A long time ago, Shaddai built a village for the children to live in. The children were safe to play and spend time with Shaddai, who was always near. Shaddai would sing to the children and tell them stories. He knew everything about the children—who was shy, who was afraid, and who was curious.

One day Shaddai built a wall around the village. He loved the children and wanted to keep them safe. But Paladin was curious. He wanted to see what was on the other side. Despite the warnings of danger, Paladin crawled through a hole in the wall and was soon lost in the dark forest.

Because I Love You is a parable about God’s love. Shaddai, like God, listens, protects, and loves his children. Even though Paladin chooses to do what is wrong, Shaddai loves Paladin and goes to finds the lost boy. Although the message of God’s love will be clear to adults, the story’s message may need to be explained to younger readers. The story explores the idea of free will as well as God’s desire for us to do what is right. Some readers may not understand why Shaddai created a hole in the wall that Paladin could crawl through or how the hole closes once Paladin goes through it.

Beautiful full-page illustrations show scenes from the village and make Shaddai’s caring nature shine.  Even though Because I Love You is a picture book, parents will need to read the story aloud because of the text heavy pages and difficult vocabulary. For parents looking for a book that teaches about the Christian faith, Because I Love You would make an excellent addition to a child’s library. Readers will enjoy looking at the pictures over and over again as well as having the story read to them aloud.

Sexual Content

  • None

Violence

  • None

Drugs and Alcohol

  • None

Language

  • None

Supernatural

  • None

Spiritual Content

  • None

 

A Dangerous Path

Times are rough in the forest, and all the Clans are wary of each other. With ShadowClan’s new and dangerous leader, Tigerstar, everyone in ThunderClan is on edge. None of the other Clans see anything wrong with Tigerstar’s leadership, but Fireheart knows better. Fireheart is convinced that the new leader will bring danger, and he has a feeling that something terrible is brewing. Dreams of danger haunt Fireheart, who worries that there is a connection between his foreboding dreams and Tigerstar’s rise to power.

There is also a strange evil loose in the forest, lurking in the shadows. When the leader of ThunderClan turns her back on StarClan, Fireheart is not sure what to believe. Should he trust in StarClan and his dreams to lead the Clan to safety? Has StarClan abandoned them?

The fifth installment of the Warrior Series has a slow pace that continues for the first half of the book.  Like the previous books, the cats hunt, go to meetings, and train apprentices. Although many aspects of the books are repetitious, the number of characters and the complexity of the plot may confuse some readers. The story continues to hint about a terrible danger, but the mystery behind the danger takes too long to solve. Still, once revealed, it creates a tense climax for the novel.

The story focuses on Bluestar, who has suffered a devastating loss and has become irrational as a result. Bluestar’s negativity gives the book a darker tone. Although the story is still a good adventure that allows readers to see into the cats’ world, A Dangerous Path has a more mature tone and adds themes of danger, death, and violence. The story covers some difficult topics such as Cloudkit’s skepticism regarding StarClan, and a cat willing to scheme to kill others. For those who have fallen in love with the Warrior series, A Dangerous Path sets up an epic battle that will take place in The Darkest Hour.

Sexual Content

  • None

Violence

  • Leopardstar and Bluestar fight over territory. Other cats join the fight. Leopardstar yowled and launched herself at Bluestar. “The two cats crashed to the ground, spitting and clawing. Fireheart sprang forward to help his leader, but before he reached her a warrior crashed into his side, bowling him over and sinking his teeth into Fireheart’s shoulder. Fireheart scrabbled against the RiverClan cat’s belly with his hindpaws, desperate to break his grip, and slashing at his enemy’s throat. The tabby warrior let go and backed off yowling.” Many cats are injured, but no one is killed. The fight takes place over six pages.
  • A group of cats was looking for two apprentices. When they find them, “Foul-tasting bile rose into his throat as he took in the scene in front of him. . . In the middle of the clearing Swiftpaw’s black-and-white body lay motionless, and just beyond him, Brightpaw. . . The apprentice lay on his side, his legs splayed out. His black-and-white fur was torn, and his body was covered with dreadful wounds, ripped by teeth far bigger that any cat’s. His jaws still snarled and his eyes glared. He was dead, and Fireheart could see that he had died fighting.”
  • Fireheart finds a dead cat, but it is not described.
  • Graypool’s “paws slid from under her. She rolled down the steep slope in a scramble of legs and tail, and landed hard against one of the rocks the pulled out of the turf. There she lay, and did not move again.”
  • While Snowkit was playing, there was a hawk. “The hawk plunged down toward the clearing. Snowkit screamed as the cruel talons fastened onto his back. The great wings flapped. . . As the hawk lifted off, she sprang upward and snagged her claws in the white kit’s fur. . . The hawk released the kit with one foot and scored its talons across Speckletail’s face. The she-cat lost her grip and fell back, landing heavily on the ground.”
  • Tigerstar attacks Fireheart, in the hopes that the dogs will catch up and kill him. “Fireheart struggled desperately to get free, lashing out with his hind paws to claw a tuft of fur from his enemy’s belly. . . The reek of his scent was in Fireheart’s mouth and nostrils, and his amber eyes glared into Fireheart’s own.” After Tigerstar let go of Fireheart, the dogs came. “Pain stabbed him as sharp teeth met his scruff. His limbs flailed helplessly as the dog lifted him from the ground and shook him from side to side. He twisted in the air, struggling to claw eyes, jowls, tongue, but his thrashing paws met nothing.” Bluestar knocks the dog off balance, saving Fireheart and sending the dogs and her into the gorge. Fireheart jumps in and tries to save her, but it is too late. He gets her to shore with the help of two RiverClan warriors, but Bluestar dies on shore.

Drugs and Alcohol

  • None

Language

  • When angry, the cats occasionally call each other terms such as mouse dung, crowfood, furball, and mouse brain. For example, Bluestar got angry and said, “What a mouse-brained fool.”
  • Someone asked Fireheart, “Are you just going to stand there and let that piece of fox dung take over?”
  • Tigerstar asked a cat about some kits, and when she did not respond right away he snapped and said, “Tell me whose kits they were, old crowfood.”
  • When they started talking about StarClan, a cat said, “You don’t really believe that load of thistledown, do you?”
  • When he was falsely accused, Tigerstar said, “All this is a pile of mouse dung.”
  • When preparing to go into battle, a cat says, “They’ll make crowfood out of us!” This phrase is used twice.
  • Someone made a bad choice and a cat said, “What a mouse-brained idea!” This phrase is used three times.
  • Several time a cat is called a furball. For example, when the Clan was mad at someone, another cat said, “Then half of the Clan are stupid furballs.”

Supernatural

  • None

Spiritual Content

  • StarClan is the heavenly tribe of dead warrior cats that watches over all the cat clans. Cats that die go to StarClan and can come back in dreams to share visions or prophecy. StarClan can help shape fate because they can see the future.
  • One of the cats “is afraid she’ll go to StarClan soon.”
  • A cat died so it is said that, “she hunts with StarClan now.”
  • Cinderpelt received a dream from StarClan and tells Fireheart about it. She said she heard a huge animal walking saying, “Pack, Pack and Kill, Kill.”
  • Spottedleaf and Yellowfang are medicine cats that walk with StarClan. They visited Fireheart’s dreams to give him advice.
  • If a leader or medicine cat needs to speak with StarClan, they go to highstones. When they are there, they touch the moonstone at night and can share dreams with StarClan.
  • When the cats were fighting, a cat yelled, “Defend yourself or I swear by StarClan I’ll kill you.”
  • When a cat is made into a warrior, the leader says, “By the powers of StarClan, I give you your warrior name.”
  • A cat believed she had made StarClan angry so she said, “I have brought down the wrath of StarClan on you.”

by Paige Michelle

The Collectors #1

Van notices things. He keeps his eyes open and finds all sorts of things that other people don’t notice. A marble in the grass. A tiny astronaut with one arm raised. But Van is small and most people don’t notice him.

One day, Van notices a girl and a silver squirrel stealing a coin from a fountain. But what’s even stranger is that the girl notices Van. When Van sees the silver squirrel stealing a birthday wish, Van decides to follow the squirrel and find the mysterious girl. What he finds instead is a dangerous place where wishes are real. He discovers that the Collectors steal wishes and put them away before they can come true. But soon, Van realizes that not all wishes are good, and some good wishes can have dangerous consequences.

Beautiful descriptions create an enchanting mythology around wishes. Van’s curiosity, powers of observation, and desire to do what is right lead him into a world of trouble. Van isn’t sure who to trust—Mr. Falborg who is friendly and seems kind or the Collectors who are shrouded in secrets. This conflict lasts until the end of the story and leads to an unexpected conclusion.

Van’s character is not only well developed, but he is also unique. He must use a hearing aid and often has difficulty communicating. Van struggles to understand people who don’t face him as they speak or when they speak too quickly. Throughout the story, Van has to work out what he thought someone said and translate it into what they most likely said. Having a main character with a hearing impairment allows readers to understand Van’s disability. At one point in the story, Van gets angry, asking, “Why does everybody think I want to hear the way THEY do!?” Van shows that he doesn’t need to be “fixed” and be like everyone else.

The Collectors explores the idea of power and unintended consequences. When it comes to Wish Eaters, “It’s not a matter of good or bad. It’s not about kindness or evil. It’s not even a matter of intentions. You can mean to do good and still do terrible things. . . If you give someone, anyone, too much power, enough power that they can control everyone around them—then you run a terrible risk.” The Collectors is a fantastic book that has magic, suspense, humor, and a talking squirrel that is obsessed with the smell of food.

This kid-friendly mystery is suspenseful, but not scary. At one point in the story, Van wonders if Wish Eaters are, “more dangerous than a bunch of guys who steal me out of my bed in the middle of the night and angle me over a bottomless pit?” Strong readers will want to pick up The Collectors to find out the answer.

Sexual Content

  • A boy thinks that Van’s mother and his father are “probably kissing.” When the boys go to spy on their parents, they discover that “Their hands were very close together, but their lips were several inches apart.”

Violence

  • When Van discovers where the Collectors conduct their business, a man threatens him. The man says, “Do not come back here. Do not mention anything about us, or about this place, to anyone. We will be watching you. . . And if we find out that you have spoken of us, you and anyone you’ve told will have to be . . . removed.”
  • Two dark-coated men kidnap Van. “Someone tugged a black cotton bag over Van’s head. Van felt the jostle of being lifted over the window. . . He tried to scream, but the bag seemed to trap the sound inside his own head. . .” Van is not injured.
  • Van’s mother is hit by a car. Van sees her “leg was bent at an impossible angle.”
  • Collectors try to capture a Wish Eater that “was larger than a city bus.” The monster charges at Van. “Van could hear its huffing, hungry breath. . . Cell doors rattled as it charged by.” The Collectors chase after the Wish Eater. “The beast spun. Its whipping tail knocked several people off their feet. Its teeth snapped at two others, catching and tossing them backwards.” The scene takes place over 4 pages. No one is injured.
  • Someone makes a wish that puts Van in an underground train tunnel. Van was, “standing on the tracks. He was deep, deep below the earth. There was not a platform in sight . . . There was no safe space to escape to, and no time to run.” Van is uninjured.

Drugs and Alcohol

  • None

Language

  • God is used as an exclamation once.
  • Someone calls Van a moron.
  • Someone calls Van a “little idiot.”

Supernatural

  • The Collectors are a group of people who “see things normal people don’t see and hear things they don’t hear. We live longer than normal people can live. We don’t get born. We’re wished.”
  • The Collectors take people’s wishes and put them in bottles so that the wish can never come true. Pebble explains that people’s wishes shouldn’t come true because “Do you want to get trampled by dinosaurs? Do you want an eight-year-old boy to be king of the whole world? Do you want every food in the world to taste like chocolate ice cream?”
  • A wish is an unpredictable thing because “wishes are extraordinarily hard to control. And once a wish becomes a dead wish, once no limitations remain, once that wish is nothing but magical energy—it becomes an exceedingly powerful thing. It is pure chaos.”
  • Wish Eaters can be of various shapes and sizes. One Wish Eater was “a giant, roaring, rippling beast. It was shaped like a stretched-out crocodile, with a thrashing tail, a triangular head, and a long . . . long . . . impossibly long snout full of jagged, needle-sharp teeth.”
  • If a Wish Eater eats a wish, the wish comes true, if it is a “variable wish. A living wish. An authentic wish. A wish with its roots in the magic of millennia.”
  • When Van wishes to go somewhere unnoticed, a toy sleigh and reindeer come to life and grow. The sleigh “hung in the night air just outside his bedroom window, twinkling with a haze of pearly mist. It swelled and stretched until it was the size of an actual sleigh, and the plastic reindeer were as big as real reindeer, and the plastic Santa that turned its cheery smile towards Van was just the right size for a jolly old elf.” The sleigh takes Van to his destination.
  • Someone makes a wish that makes Van let Wish Eaters out of their cage. “Panic spread through Van’s chest. What was he doing? Why was he doing it? And how was he doing it without even trying? . . . Something was controlling him. Van realized it with a dizzying jolt. Something else was moving him . . .”

Spiritual Content

  • None

Into the Abyss

Gray and his alliance of shivers—Riptide, Coral, and AuzyAuzy—want peace. But Emperor Finnivus is determined to bring the entire ocean under his command. Even though Gray and his alliance defeated Finnivis’s armada once, the bloodthirsty emperor is determined to feast on the heads of every shark he conquers.

Despite a tragic loss, Gray must prepare his forces to defeat the emperor’s armada. With no one to tell Gray what to do, Gray must figure out a way to vanquish Finnivus and his evil forces. Gray and his friends are outnumbered by a superior force. The fate of the Big Blue depends on Gray leading his alliance to victory. Can Gray become the leader that his sharkkind need to defeat Finnivus’s evil?

The third installment of the Shark Wars series follows the same format as The Battle of Riptide. The majority of the story follows Gray and his alliance as they train to defeat Finnivus, and an epic battle ensues. Takiza appears less frequently, which allows Barkley to play a bigger role. Barkley must take his place as a leader, but he is frustrated because some of the other sharks don’t respect him. Instead, they insult his entire species. Barkley must use creative thinking to earn the respect of others. He learns, “If you want them to listen, you need to prove to them you’re listening too.”

The evil Finnivus becomes even more malicious. As his armada defeats other shivers, they capture pups and brainwash them into thinking Gray’s alliance is responsible for their parents’ deaths. During the battles, Finnivus uses the pups because he knows other shivers will be reluctant to hurt the younger sharks. Finnivus’s evil actions may upset some readers. Although the death count is high, the deaths are not described in a gory manner. However, the detailed deaths of some of the characters may disturb some readers.

Into the Abyss shows the difficulties of becoming a leader; however, by the end of the story Gray and Barkley both show admirable courage. As Gray tries to recruit orcas to help with the fight, he says, “What I know is that sometimes you have to swim out and be counted, no matter what. . . You’ve fooled yourselves into thinking that not taking a side is the best and fairest thing to do. . . By ignoring this evil, you join with it—because you allow it to happen.”

Readers who have read the previous books will enjoy following Gray and Barkley as they fight against evil. Although the story follows the same format as the previous series, the story still contains some surprises. Fluent readers will enjoy the comradery of the sharks as they join together to fight an epic battle, where good overcomes evil.

Sexual Content

  • None

Violence

  • Finnivus orders his armada to kill, “a pitiful force of prisoners. . . Moments after the command was shouted by Finnivus, it was over. Not a single one of the opposing hundred and fifty prisoners remained.”
  • Two mako shark assassins attack Gray. To defend himself, “Gray did a Bull Shark Rush at the closest shark, smashing him against a razor sharp coral wall. . .” Gray’s friends help defend him. One of the assassins, “had been speared by pointed rods of coral in three different places, including through the gills. . . The mako worked his jaws back and forth, close to death. He spit up a gob of blood as the light faded from his eyes.”
  • When a herald gives Finnivus bad news, the emperor eats her. “The emperor ripped off another piece of the royal herald who had the bad luck of having to deliver the message.”
  • Finnivus sends a group of pups to fight Gray’s armada. Lochlan leads the pups away and “the frenzied cluster of Indi pup mariners engulfed him. Lochlan winked at Gray. Then the AuzyAuzy King was swarmed by hundreds of sharks as the pups went into a feeding frenzy.” Gray wasn’t sure what to do, but, “time slowed as sharkkind died all around him, spiraling away to the Sparkle Blue.” Many sharks die before the end of the battle, which is described over eight pages.
  • Finnivus’s armada kills many of the Riptide scouts. “Finnivus ate one of the mangled prisoners immediately, not waiting for the royal seasoners to do their work.”
  • Takiza slaps Gray. “Takiza gave him another stinging slap on his snout. It was loud even in the heavy waters of the training field and made a crackling noise that echoed among the coral spires.”
  • Barkley and some of his friends capture an Indi pup, who is knocked out cold. When the pup comes to, he cries, “Don’t eat me alive! Send me to the Sparkle blue, but don’t eat me while I’m still alive!” Barkley is able to reunite the pup with a family member. Later, the pup tells Gray, “Finnivus told us about you! He said you were the ones who came and destroyed my home! You ate my mother and father—while they were still alive!”
  • Finnivus has urchins attack Whalem, who, “felt the acid drip from their bodies and howled.” Whalem dies.
  • An epic battle takes place over several days. During the battle, “Gray could see at least thirty or forty Indi sharkkind spiral downward in their death throes on the way to the Sparkle Blue.” During one of the fights, “the two armadas met with a howl and a crash, both sides ripping and tearing for their very lives. There were so many sharkkind whirling and twisting away in their death agonies that a constant cry of pain and anguish vibrated the waters all around them.” During this time, Finnivus kills his mariner prime. The battle takes place over three chapters.

Drugs and Alcohol

  • Valenka tries to poison Finnivus and his court.
  • Takiza gives Gray, “a large dose of maredsoo, the glowing deep-ocean energy greenie.”

Language

  • “Heck” is used once.
  • Finnivus calls someone a “dolt.”
  • Several times in the story a shark is called a “chowderhead” or other names like “jelly drifting flipper,” or “fat frill-face.”
  • When Gray hurts an octopus, the octopus calls him “a stupid jerk.”
  • Takiza insults Gray. “The betta basically called him an idiot in his wordy way.”
  • Barkley calls Gray a “fat lumpfish.”
  • Gray tells Takiza that he sounds like a “cranky shellhead.”
  • Whalem calls Finnivus an “idiot.”

Supernatural

  • None

Spiritual Content

  • Sharks that die go to the “Sparkle Blue.”
  • Takiza tells Gray to “pray to Tyro.”
  • A shark prays to Tyro asking him for help.
  • Takiza tells Gray about a prophecy. “He shall come from the depths of ocean prehistory. . . a megalodon will arise and win the unwinnable war.” Takiza believes the prophecy is about Gray, but he admits prophecies, “are irritatingly unclear. But the verse does seem to be speaking of someone remarkably like you, in an uncomfortably similar situation to the one we find ourselves in today.”
  • When Whalem is knocked out, he sees, “sparkling lights everywhere.” He also sees his friends who are swimming in the Sparkle Blue. One of his friends tells him that it’s not his time. Later, “the colorful lights returned. How everything sparkled! Then, Whalem was with his friends again, and he was happy.”

The Mystery Valentine

Zeke doesn’t understand the Earth tradition of Valentine’s Day. Harris tries to explain why people give candy and cards on Valentine’s Day, but Zeke is still confused. When Zeke gets an anonymous valentine, Harris wants to help him discover who sent it. In order to decide who gave Zeke the valentine, he decides to give some of the girls in his class a gift. He gives gifts that the girls on his home planet would love, but the girls on Earth don’t like the same things. How can Zeke find his secret admirer? Will he come up with a gift that an Earth girl will like?

Earth children will giggle as Zeke tries to find the perfect valentine gift. Even though Zeke wants to show his appreciation, he doesn’t understand what Earth girls like. The story has many silly situations such as when Zeke presents a bucket of worms to a girl, who isn’t happy about the “gross” gift. The fun black and white illustrations show the characters’ reactions to Zeke’s gifts as well as his confused facial expressions.

The sixth installment of The Alien Next Door series takes a humorous look at the traditions of Valentine’s Day. Readers can enjoy the story even if they have not read any other books in the series. Although the story focuses on Zeke, Harris makes an appearance and helps Zeke understand the differences between how humans see things, like mice, in comparison to how Zeke sees things. Readers will learn the importance of thinking about other people’s perspectives.

The Mystery Valentine has the same format as other books in the series—easy vocabulary, short sentences, and dialogue. Readers who are transitioning to chapter books will enjoy the illustrations and the easy-to-read format. The Mystery Valentine is a silly story that will leave readers wanting a chocolate bar and wanting to read more about Zeke’s adventures on Earth.

Sexual Content

  • None

Violence

  • None

Drugs and Alcohol

  • None

Language

  • None

Supernatural

  • None

Spiritual Content

  • None

First Test

Keladry of Mindelan dreams of becoming a lady knight. A generation ago, that would not have been possible. But ten years ago, the King announced that ladies could try for their knighthood. In the decade since, no girl has dared to try. Until now.

Kel knows becoming a knight will not be easy. Years of hard training and study lie between Kel and her dream. But that’s not all. Kel did not know she would be placed on probation—something no boy has ever endured. And she did not realize how much resistance she would meet. Knights don’t think she is strong enough, her trainer does not think women should be knights, and the other trainees are determined to drive her away.

A delightful start to the Protector of the Small Quartet, First Test is a thoroughly enjoyable read. Kel is a brave and kind soul that readers will fall in love with. The other characters in this book are also refreshingly well-developed, from her training master and friends, to her enemies and even her horse. Protector of the Small is an enjoyable story filled to the brim with equal parts fun and excitement. It teaches readers how to be a true knight—how to be honorable, selfless, brave, and to always protect those who are weaker than yourself.

Kel wants to fight, but she’s not interested in glory. She wants to use her shield to protect those who can’t protect themselves. Unlike many female heroines, Kel doesn’t disguise herself as a boy or throw temper tantrums. Instead, she uses quiet determination and her intelligence to overcome obstacles. Kel’s story touches on themes of friendship, bravery, and shows the importance of not bullying others.

Several characters from the Song of the Lioness series appear throughout The Protector of the Small series, which will be a treat for fans of Alanna. However, readers do not have to read the Song of the Lioness series first in order to understand this series. Jump into a medieval world where fantasy and action combine to create a girl-centered adventure that will keep readers turning the pages until the very end.

Sexual Content

  • None

Violence

  • Kel survived a pirate attack when she was a girl. “The lady tumbled to the ground. Kel slid out the door on her belly. Turning, too startled to cry, she saw the lady at her mother’s feet. There was an arrow in the Yamani woman’s back.”
  • Kel fights with a group of boys when they try to drown a bag of kittens. No one is seriously injured. “Another lad grabbed a branch and swung at her; she blocked it with hers, then rammed the length of wood into his stomach. He doubled over, gasping.”
  • Kel tries to rescue a bag of kittens from a spidren that wants to eat them. The spidren bites a kitten in half, then comes after Kel. Kel freezes in terror, and she does not see when soldiers kill the spidren.
  • Kel fights a group of bullies several times. “Gripping Zahir’s index finger, Kel jammed her thumbnail into the base of Zahir’s own nail . . . He yelped and let go. Joren lunged for her. She stepped back, ducking under Zahir’s frantic punch . . . She grabbed Joren’s tunic and turned, kneeling as she did. He went flying over her shoulder.”
  • The pages say that “a page failed the examinations about six years ago and jumped off the Needle.”
  • The pages go on a spidren hunt with a group of knights. The spidren took a woman, and the knights say they have to find the spidrens because, “Often they bite off a victim’s limb, then slap a web on it, to keep them from dying of blood loss. The woman they took may yet live.”
  • The pages fight when the knights find the spidrens. “The weapon’s slim razor point sliced through the spidren’s chest and arm, releasing a spray of dark blood. Kel reversed the spear and cut back, dragging the blade down. It bit into the spidren at the neck and stuck there as crossbow bolts riddled the immortal.”
  • After the battle, soldiers rolled, “a barrel of blazebalm into the [spidren’s] nest. A mage whispered, and the blazebalm roared into flames. Hearing the young shriek as they burned, Kel found it was her turn to vomit.”

Drugs and Alcohol

  • Adults sometimes drink wine with their meals.

Language

  • Phrases such as Goddess bless are used frequently as a part of Tortallian culture. One time, Alanna thinks, “Goddess bless . . . How will I ever get on with him if I’m to help this girl Keladry?” Another time, Neal asks Kel, “Why in the name of all the gods in all the Eastern and Southern Lands would you start a fight with them?”

Supernatural

  • Kel lives in Tortall, a world filled with monsters and magic. The monsters include griffins, centaurs, and more. Some are good, some are not. Kel even has a basilisk for a teacher. “The creature was fully seven feet tall, not counting the long tail it used to balance itself, and it was viewing her with fascination. Its large gray slit-pupiled eyes regarded her over a short, lipless muzzle.”
  • Several people, called mages, have the ability to use magic and some can heal with magic. Kel’s friend Neal is one of them. “Neal rested her foot on his hands and bowed his head. A soft light of such a deep green as to be nearly black shimmered between his palms and Kel’s flesh . . . The pounding in her foot began to soften until it had ceased. Her toes shrank back to their normal size as she watched.”
  • “A mage was briefly granted the power to raise the dead last year.” One of the things he brought back to life was, “a kind of living skeleton, a creature of bone and air. It had flown to perch on her, yet its wings were empty, slender fans made of very long finger bones.”

Spiritual Content

  • Tortall has many gods. They are named similarly to the Greek gods. For example, Mithros is the god of the sun, and there is a god of death. The gods are mentioned often in the Tortallian culture but are not an integral part of the plot.
  • Characters often pray before meals or battles. “We ask the guidance of Mithros in these uncertain times, when change threatens all that is time-honored and true. May the god’s light show us a path back to the virtues of our fathers and an end to uncertain times. We ask this of Mithros, god of the sun.”
  • While visiting a foreign land, Kel hears about their sacred relics. “They are the swords given to the children of the fire goddess, Yama . . . The short sword is the sword of law. Without it, we are only animals. The long sword is the sword of duty. It is the terrible sword, the killing sword.”

by Morgan Lynn

 

 

 

Louisiana’s Way Home

Granny thinks the day of reckoning has arrived. In the middle of the night, Granny wakes up Louisiana, telling her they must leave immediately. Granny often had ideas in the middle of the night, so Louisiana thinks that they will return home soon. But this time, Granny crosses the Georgia border and drives into Florida.

Now Louisiana is living in a hotel room with her sick Granny. Louisiana doesn’t want to be separated from her best friends or her pet. She wants to find her way home. But soon, Louisiana begins making friends. She meets a boy with a crow that sits on his shoulder, a kind minister, and a grumpy hotel owner. As Louisiana tries to navigate a new town, she wonders if “the curse of sundering” will determine her fate? Will Louisiana always be forced to leave those she loves?

Louisiana’s story “is a long and tragic story full of dark alleys and twists and turns and many unexpected happenings. . . And also curses. There are curses in the story.” Louisiana’s Way Home is told from Louisiana’s point of view, which allows the reader to understand Louisiana’s thoughts and emotions. Louisiana is a spunky, irresistible character who struggles to understand her well-meaning, but unstable Granny.

Throughout the story, Dicamillo expertly crafts an array of characters who are both realistic and interesting. Some adults are so jaded by their own experience that they have lost all compassion, and others who are willing to open their doors to a lonely, lost child. However, the most fascinating character is Burke; he is “the kind of person who, if you asked him for one of something, gave you two instead.”

Louisiana’s Way Home is realistic fiction that touches on themes of friendship, family, love, and forgiveness. The story also shows the importance of attending school. When Burke skips school, his mother tells him, “After a time, it will catch up with you, and you will find that life has closed its doors to you. . . Open doors. That is what we want—doors that are open to us.”

Even though Louisiana’s Way Home uses simple sentences, the word choice may make the story difficult to read. For example, the author uses words such as inopportune, ascertained, irrelevant, and juncture. At the beginning of the story, Louisiana talks about a “curse of sundering” that has affected her family; however, the meaning of the word sundering isn’t discussed until much further in the book, which may cause some readers to be confused about the curse.

Even though Louisiana was introduced to readers in Raymie Nightingale, readers do not need to read the story to understand and enjoy Louisiana’s Way Home. As Louisiana navigates difficult situations, she learns that “We all, at some point, have to decide who we want to be in this world. It is a decision we make for ourselves.” As Louisiana tries to figure out who she wants to be, readers will be engrossed in her heartwarming story.

 Sexual Content

  • None

Violence

  • None

Drugs and Alcohol

  • After having all of her teeth removed, the grandmother is given antibiotics and painkillers.

Language

  • None

Supernatural

  • According to Louisiana’s grandmother, there is a curse of sundering on the family. The curse began when “My great-grandfather sawed my great-grandmother in half, and then he walked away. He left my great-grandmother on the stage. Sawed in two. . . Someone else put her back together. . . and the two of them ran away together and my granny was left entirely alone.”

Spiritual Content

  • Louisiana thinks, “Granny didn’t believe in heaven. But that didn’t mean I had to not believe, did it?”

Trapped

When the snow started falling, students were excited to be released from school early. Scotty and his friends Pete and Jason are among the last seven kids at their high school waiting to get picked up. But as the snow continues to fall, they realize that no one is coming for them. The boys aren’t too upset about staying the night at the school, especially because there are two pretty girls who are stuck with them.

At first, being trapped in the school doesn’t seem so terrible. After all, they are safe from the snow, and there’s enough food to feed 400 students for a week. But then the power goes out, then the heat, and then the pipes freeze. The students watch as the snow continues to fall. As the days pass, the snow inches higher and higher. Suddenly, the roof shudders and begins to cave in. How will they survive in a freezing school that is in danger of crushing them? Should someone set out for help?

Told from Scotty’s point of view, the story uses a matter-of-fact tone to discuss the disastrous blizzard. Although Scotty is clearly worried about the snow, he also worries about typical teen issues—missing basketball, talking to a pretty girl, getting rid of a big zit, and keeping the peace. Readers will be drawn into the suspenseful story not only because of the impending disaster, but also because Scotty is a relatable teen.

Scotty is trapped in the school with several people that he considers stereotypical teens. He thinks that one boy is a trouble maker and the other is an emotionally disturbed goth. However, when Scotty is forced to spend time with the two boys, he realizes that his perception of them was incorrect.

The ending is abrupt, and although the reader learns what happens to many of the characters, the conclusion does not answer all of the questions about who lives or dies. The story will make readers question why the characters withheld information that may have led to the death of another. The quick read will leave readers wondering what they would do in a similar situation. Trapped is an engaging story that both reluctant and strong readers will enjoy.

Sexual Content

  • A boy said that he was going to go to the dance “‘cause I’m going to get me some.” The boy was planning on going to the dance with a girl with whom he had, “gotten his hands up her shirt just last week.”
  • Scotty thinks that his friend snuck off to make out with a girl. “It just kind of bothered me that he didn’t feel like he couldn’t tell his friends about it.”
  • When Scotty is alone with a girl, he thinks about “making a move, try to kiss her.”

Violence

  • After a misunderstanding with a girl, Pete hits Les. Pete “took the first swing, which I guess is how he landed it. Then Les had just dismantled him. He hurt practically every part of him. . . Pete was lying on his side on the floor, holding his hand up to his nose or high right eye or maybe both.” Pete is not seriously hurt.
  • A boy flips a snow-kart and the cart lands on him, killing him. Scotty finds his body. “I saw it all: the soft horrible blue that had crept into his face, the way his hands were frozen stiff, like the curled talons of a bird.”

Drugs and Alcohol

  • A boy talks about a blizzard that happened in the ’60s. Scotty said the blizzard probably lasted a day. “Those people were stoned.”

Language

  • Profanity is used occasionally. Profanity includes crap, piss, frickin’.
  • When the electricity went out, kids were upset, and there were “F-bombs going off like fireworks.”
  • A group of boys plans on working on a “crappy go-kart.”
  • Someone calls a boy a jerk. Later someone calls a boy a moron.
  • “Screw you” is used several times.

Supernatural

  • None

Spiritual Content

  • When a girl stops two boys from fighting, someone thinks, “Thank God there are girls around.”
  • After being stuck in the school for several days, Scotty prays. “I prayed for myself. I prayed for my mom. I prayed for all of us. . . I just curled up tight in the scratchy wool and whispered.” Soon, his friend Jason joins in the prayer. Scotty thinks, “It was probably the ten-thousandth time I’d heard Jason say ‘Jesus,’ but it was the first time I’d heard him mean it.”
  • Scotty and several others pray. Someone calls them “Bible thumpers.” When Scotty prays, he decided to pray to “the archangel Gabriel. He’s the one with the trumpet, the one that made the announcement.”
  • Scotty “prayed to Gabriel again. I figured God and Jesus were hearing from a lot of people at this time of night. But who else was praying to the less glamorous of the two archangels. . . I prayed for him to keep my mom safe instead, though if I’m being honest, I was sort of hoping he’d be impressed by my selflessness. . . I’m pretty sure they (angels) don’t fall for dumb tricks like that.”

Rising Storm

Fireheart’s enemy, Tigerclaw, has been exiled from ThunderClan. Even with him gone, the clan is still shaken. Because Fireheart is now the deputy, he has to hold the entire Clan together. No matter how he tries to forget Tigerclaw, he cannot shake the feeling that he is still out there, waiting for the perfect moment to strike. With his apprentice acting up and breaking the code, a major sickness in ShadowClan, and Bluestar on the edge, Fireheart struggles to keep the Clan together.

Along with attacks from different Clans and rouges, ThunderClan is at risk. Bluestar is getting weaker, and with the recent betrayal of Tigerclaw, everyone is worried about her. She is a shell of her former self and is haunted by sinister omens. Everyone knows that a storm is coming. Will Fireheart be able to unite his clan?

Rising Storm picks up immediately after the last book, which is a time of great fear for ThunderClan. The tone of this book is darker, full of suspense and dread of the unknown. Readers will enjoy seeing Fireheart grow into a capable leader and will be anxious to see if Bluestar can regain her confidence, or if she will continue to spiral. One of the best aspects of this book is the constant action, as it’s full of battles, cliffhangers, and plot twists. The ending will leave readers shocked, so make sure you have the next book ready! The drama will continue in The Dangerous Path.

 Sexual Content

  • None

Violence

  • The WindClan cats fight Fireheart and his friends. “Deadfoot leapt from the badger set onto his back, he rolled with him, falling to the ground and throwing the WindClan deputy off . . . He pushed back down with his hindlegs and flung himself at Deadfoot. The WindClan tom gasped as Fireheart knocked the breath from him.”
  • Fireheart is attacked by dogs. “With a vicious snarl, the dog lunged at him. Fireheart whipped around and lashed out with his forepaws, his claws sharp as blackthorns. He felt the flesh rip on the dog’s swaying jowls and heard it yelp in pain.”
  • Fireheart attacks Whitethroat because he thinks that Whitethroat killed his friend. “He let out a furious screech and flung himself at Whitethroat, who shrank away, hissing. Fireheart knocked the ShadowClan warrior back, and Whitethroat landed limply on the ground.”
  • Fireheart and Tigerclaw got into a fight. “Tigerclaw’s eyes widened with surprise as Fireheart crashed into him, claws unsheathed and hissing with rage . . . Fireheart felt himself being flung from Tigerclaw’s back, felt the impact of the parched ground as he landed on his side. He gasped for the air that had been knocked from his lungs and struggled to his paws. He wasn’t fast enough. Tigerclaw pounced on him, pinning him to the ground with claws that seemed to pierce Fireheart to the bone . . . In desperation Fireheart pushed us with his hind legs, his claws raking for a hold on Tigerclaw’s belly . . . The gray warrior lunged at Tigerclaw’s exposed belly, knocking him backward. Fireheart whipped around and bit the shoulder of the cat that clung to his hindleg until he felt his teeth scrape against bone. He released the rogue when he squealed, and spat out the blood that had dripped into his mouth.” The fight goes on for three pages.
  • After the fire, Fireheart and Graystripe look for the cats that were left behind. They find a dead cat and see, “where Halftail’s scorched body lay at what used to be the entrance to Yellowfang’s fern tunnel.”
  • When Fireheart found Yellowfang, “She lay with her legs crumpled beneath her, soot-covered and wheezing, too weak to move. She could barely hold his gaze, and when she spoke her voice was breathless and feeble.”

Drugs and Alcohol

  • None

Language

  • When angry, the cats occasionally call each other terms such as mouse dung, crowfood, furball, and mouse brain. For example, Bluestar got angry and said, “What a mouse-brained fool.”

Supernatural

  • None

Spiritual Content

  • StarClan is the heavenly tribe of dead warrior cats that watches over all the cat clans. Cats that die go to StarClan and can come back in dreams to share visions or prophecy.
  • When a cat dies, they go to StarClan. StarClan guides and helps the cats through dreams and prophecies. StarClan can help shape fate because they can see the future.
  • Bluestar said that StarClan had summoned her and that she had to go to answer the call. Bluestar went to the Moonstone in order to speak with StarClan, their warrior ancestors.
  • When the cats were discussing something, someone said, “Only StarClan knows.”
  • When they were joking around, Cinderpelt said, “May StarClan banish all the fleas from your nest.”
  • When something big happened, a cat said, “Perhaps it was what StarClan intended.”
  • When Fireheart dreamed, Spottedleaf, the dead medicine cat, came and said, “Beware an enemy that seems to sleep.”
  • When they were arguing Cinderpelt said, “What in StarClan is worrying you?”
  • A cat said, “Perhaps StarClan has a different destiny for him.”
  • Spottedleaf came to Fireheart’s dream and warned him about the fire.
  • Smallear got mad and said, “I told you StarClan would show its anger!”
  • When raining started falling after a fire, Fireheart interpreted it as, “StarClan was weeping for all that had been lost.”
  • As Yellowfang was dying, she said, “StarClan may judge me how they will.”
  • Because Patchpelt and Halftail died, Fireheart said they, “are with StarClan now.”
  • When Fireheart told Runningnose that Yellowfang died, he said, “She died trying to save a Clanmate from the fire. StarClan will honor her bravery.”

by Paige Michelle

The Portal

Rose lives an ordinary life with her mother. She loves her friends and has a fashion blog, which has a lot of hits. Everything changes when Rose’s mom is killed in an auto accident. Rose is sent to live with a grandmother she barely knows. To make life worse, a group of mean girls makes fun of Rose’s fashion-forward looks. Now Rose must deal with being the target of bullying as well as trying to understand her grandmother’s dementia.

Rose finds peace in her grandmother’s greenhouse. One night, a strange glowing light appears in the greenhouse. When Rose goes to investigate, she is thrown five hundred years into the past. Rose is now the servant of Elizabeth, the daughter of King Henry VIII. When Rose finds a locket with two mysterious pictures in it, she begins to wonder about her own past. Can the locket reveal mysteries about her parents?

Rose goes back and forth between the present and the past. Although many connections are made between the two time periods, some readers may not like the jumpy nature of the story. As Rose goes into the past, the reader learns fun facts about the time period as well as gets a peek into the dynamics of the royal family. Rose’s love of fashion is integrated into the story, and Rose includes pictures of the time period’s clothing and shoes as part of her blog. In both time periods, the author’s theme is clear: all people should be treated with respect and kindness.

Readers will be able to relate to Rose, who is not portrayed as a perfect character. Rose struggles with fitting in, and even though she recognizes that people should be treated with kindness, she doesn’t always show kindness herself. However, Rose is lovable because of her curious nature and her willingness to stick up for others.

Even though The Portal doesn’t explain the magic of time travel well, readers will still find the fast-paced story enjoyable. The conclusion feels a little rushed, and not all of the pieces fit well together. Despite this, The Portal is an entertaining read that has a dash of historical facts. Younger readers who enjoy time travel stories with strong female characters may also want to read The League of Archers and Ruby Red Trilogy.

Sexual Content

  • None

Violence

  • Mean girls push Rose into her locker and then shut it. Rose felt a shove and then “her head banged against metal; then there was a slam. Complete darkness.”
  • When Rose goes back in time, she meets Princess Elizabeth, whose father was King Henry the Eighth. The King, “chopped off her mother’s head.” Later in the story, one of the characters thinks about the King’s dead wives. “People didn’t talk about witches, not since the king had chopped off his wife’s head, Queen Anne. But that was four wives ago. Of course, after Anne, the second head to roll was Catherine Howard’s a few years ago, but she wasn’t considered a witch, just a wanton seductress.”
  • While ice skating, a mean girl intentionally runs into another girl, making her fall.
  • A group of mean girls chase Rose and throw things at her. Rose “heard the girls closing the distance and shoved an empty trash can that clanked down the alley towards them. . . She heard someone take a hard fall and gasp as if the air had been knocked out of her.” Rose’s cat, “sailed over her head, her claws spread in attack mode.”
  • While back in time, a group chases a “fool” and throws eggs at her. When Rose talks to the girl, she says, “But I’m a fool. Fools are born to be teased.”

Drugs and Alcohol

  • A mean girl spreads a rumor about a teacher. The girl “claimed Ms. Elfenbach was drunk or something when she graded a test last year. She started a rumor that she was an alcoholic.”
  • Rose’s father wants to talk to her, but wants to wait “until evening, when most of the people were well into their cups and might not notice if he carefully approached her.”

Language

  • Good Lord, oh my God, Oh God, and OMG are infrequently used as an exclamation. For example, Rose thinks, “OMG, I’d die for those shoes!”
  • Darn is said a few times.
  • When Rose goes back in time, she calls someone a “jerk.” Others pick up the term and occasionally use it.
  • One of Rose’s friends says that a mean girl was “going to have (her dad) sue me for libel when I called her a jerk. . . The funny thing is, her dad is kind of a jerk.”
  • Someone calls a boy a “sack of pig droppings.”

Supernatural

  • Rose has a gene that allows her to time travel. The magic of time travel is not explained, and Rose does not understand what causes her to go back in time. When Rose goes back to the future, those in the past are not aware of her absence.

Spiritual Content

  • When someone uses the phrase “God’s kneecaps,” Rose thinks it is “the most fun swear ever. . . She pictured God sitting on a throne of cumulus clouds. His flowing celestial garments hiked up a bit, exposing knobby old knees crowning skinny, slightly hairy legs. Maybe God would be groaning a bit— ‘Oh, lamentations! My arthritis is kicking up again!’”
  • Princess Mary is, “very religious. She spends a lot of time in the chapel.” The fact that her father was a protestant and she was Catholic is discussed. Rose remembers reading that Mary was “England’s most horrific monarch. . . Her passion for God and burning Protestants had earned her the name.”
  • Princess Mary flogs “a servant whom she suspected of heresy. Dressed in fine gowns but with bare knees, she (Princess Mary) would crawl on stone to offer her prayers to the Virgin Mary. She was so proud of those knees if they were bloodied by the end of the ritual. It was rumored that she beat herself on Good Friday in penitence for Christ’s crucifixion.”
  • Princess Elizabeth says that “A king or a queen can’t be wrong. Nor can a princess who might someday become queen. It’s their divine right.” They are not God, but they are “given that right by God.”
  • A character prays to God.
  • When the king dies, the “servant mourners” had to “fall to their knees and pray for the soul of their king.”
  • A servant tells Rose, “The court regards people like myself as a curious little aberration that was created by God for the sole entertainment of royalty and court.”

 

 

 

Baseball Blues

Baseball season brings excitement to Zeke, Harris, and Roxy. They are all on the same team and are looking forward to playing together. Zeke doesn’t know how to play baseball. After watching baseball on T.V., Zeke learns that he can use his alien powers to hit and pitch better than anyone else on the team. Harris thinks Zeke is cheating. He wants Zeke to play without using his powers, but Zeke doesn’t see what’s wrong with using his special abilities. Will the baseball season be the end of Zeke’s and Harris’s friendship?

Readers do not need to be a fan of baseball in order to enjoy Baseball Blues. Although the story focuses on baseball, it also touches on themes of friendship and doing what is right. Even though Zeke doesn’t know anything about baseball, he is one of the best players on the team. Harris thinks Zeke should improve his skills through practice instead of using his powers. When Zeke uses his powers to redirect the baseball, Harris tells him, “It’s a shortcut and it’s cheating. It’s not fair to the other players. You need to improve your skills through practice.” In the end, Zeke learns that playing fairly is more important than winning the game.

The story also models how to be a good friend. When Harris is upset with Zeke, he talks to him and explains why he is upset. Harris also worries “more about his friendship with Zeke than about Zeke using his powers.” To make matters more difficult for Harris, he can’t tell Roxy why is he upset with Zeke’s impressive baseball skills because he “promised to keep Zeke’s secret, even if it costs me his friendship.”

The fifth installment of The Alien Next Door series takes on a more serious tone as it teaches the importance of honesty. However, the readers will still enjoy the fast-paced story and the black and white illustrations that appear on every page. The pictures highlight Harris’s emotions as he tries to work through his problem with Zeke. Like the previous books in the series, the story uses large font, simple vocabulary, and short chapters which are perfect for students who are transitioning to chapter books. Baseball Blues will be a hit with younger readers.

Sexual Content

  • None

Violence

  • None

Drugs and Alcohol

  • Roxy tells Zeke that some professional baseball players cheated by using steroids. She explains, “It’s something the league banned that makes players unfairly strong, no matter how hard the other players exercise and practice.”

Language

  • None

Supernatural

  • Zeke is an alien who can change shape. Zeke explains, “People from Tragas have the ability to change our appearance. We can make ourselves look like the inhabitants of whatever planet we’re currently on.”

Spiritual Content

  • None
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