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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

It’s Not a Dinosaur!

A sneaky person takes a picture of Peanut, a baby dinosaur, and posts it on the internet. Now, there’s no way to keep Peanut a secret! Frank, Frank’s father, and Sara decide that they must take Peanut on a camping trip until the dinosaur’s new home is fenced. They pack up and head into the forest. While there, Frank’s dad wants to search for the Northosaurus he saw as a boy. The Northo isn’t a dinosaur, it’s a prehistoric reptile, but is he dangerous? The only way to find out is to find the Northo.

The third installment of The Dino Files is more suspenseful than the last. Not only does the group have to keep Peanut’s whereabouts a secret, they must also discover if the Northosaurus actually lives in the river. The story shows the fascination and fear that people might feel if dinosaurs were living. Although there is no violence, an angry group of people wants to capture the Northo because they think he’s dangerous. In the end, the Northo is left to enjoy his habitat. The interaction between Peanut and the Northo is a sweet addition to the story.

Readers who are new to chapter books will enjoy It’s Not a Dinosaur, with its easy vocabulary, short sentences, and black and white illustrations. The illustrations appear every 2 to 7 pages, which helps break up the text. This story also contains a glossary of dinosaur-related vocabulary at the back of the book.

Readers will enjoy the story’s suspense and will like learning about Peanut and the Northosaurus. For readers who dream of being a paleontologist, The Dino Files have dinosaur facts scattered throughout the series. It’s Not a Dinosaur! has a simple, suspenseful storyline that will help readers get ready for longer dinosaur stories such as the Dino Riders Series.

Sexual Content

  • None

Violence

  • None

Drugs and Alcohol

  • None

Language

  • None

Supernatural

  • None

Spiritual Content

  • None

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows

The ministry has fallen to He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named, who is the new Minister of Magic in all but name. Wizards and witches across the nation whisper, too frightened to fight, unsure of who to trust. And elsewhere, the Hogwarts Express is on its way to school without three of its students – Harry, Ron, and Hermione.

Rather than return to school, the three friends set off on a quest to find He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named’s horcruxes—and destroy them. Only then can He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named be stripped of his immortality and defeated. But seemingly insurmountable obstacles pile up, leaving the trio of friends scared, confused, and frustrated with the world and with each other. Near-death experiences abound in the most harrowing, adventured-packed book of the series. While the first half of the story may drag for some readers, the payoff is spectacular and the novel ends in a whirlwind of revelations.

This epic conclusion to the Harry Potter series satiates readers with a deluge of their favorite characters from all seven books, woven together in a realistic and nostalgic masterpiece. With plenty of twists and turns, readers will be reeling by the time they finish and sad that this marvelous adventure has finally come to an ending that is heartbreaking and joyful at the same time.

Sexual Content

  • Ginny kisses Harry on his birthday. “Then she was kissing him as she had never kissed him before, and Harry was kissing her back, and it was blissful oblivion, better than firewhisky; she was the only real thing in the world, Ginny, the feel of her, one hand at her back and one in her long, sweet-smelling hair.”
  • Auntie Muriel comments that “Ginevra’s dress is far too low cut.”
  • In a hallucination, Harry and Hermione kiss. “Riddle-Hermione . . . stretched like a snake and entwined herself around Riddle-Harry, wrapping him in a close embrace: Their lips met.”
  • Ron and Hermione kiss. “Running at Ron, she flung them around his neck and kissed him full on the mouth. Ron threw away the fangs and broomstick he was holding and responded with such enthusiasm that he lifted Hermione off her feet.”

Violence

  • He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named kills a witch. “The flash of green light illuminated every corner of the room. Charity fell, with a resounding crash, onto the table below.”
  • Harry and Hagrid are chased by Death Eaters. The fight takes place over eight pages. “As he looked back again two jets of green light flew past his left ear: Four Death Eaters had broken away from the circle and were pursuing them, aiming for Hagrid’s broad back.”
  • George loses an ear. Harry isn’t there during the fight, but afterwards he sees, “George, who was unconscious and whose face was covered in blood . . . Harry’s stomach lurched: One of George’s ears was missing. The side of his head and neck were drenched in wet, shockingly scarlet blood.”
  • The Order of the Phoenix raises a toast to a dead comrade. “The firewhisky seared Harry’s throat. It seemed to burn feeling back into him, dispelling the numbness and sense of unreality, firing him with something that was like courage.”
  • During a heated argument, “Scrimgeour limped toward Harry and jabbed him hard in the chest with the point of his wand: It singed a hole in Harry’s T-shirt like a lit cigarette.”
  • Kreacher has to punish himself when he misbehaves. “The elf was already punishing himself: He fell to the ground and banged his forehead on the floor.”
  • Kreacher hits Mundungus “over the head with a saucepan.”
  • When escaping from the Ministry of Magic, Harry “raised an enormous fist and punched him, sending him flying through the air.”
  • Ron accidently splinches himself. “Hermione laid bare Ron’s upper arm, where a great chunk of flesh was missing, scooped cleanly away as though by a knife.”
  • A snake disguises itself as a woman. “She moved weirdly: He saw it out of the corner of his eye; panic made him turn and horror paralyzed him as he saw the old body collapsing and the great snake pouring from the place where her neck had been.” There is a fight that takes place over three pages. “There was a loud bang and a flash of red light, and the snake flew into the air, smacking Harry hard in the face as it went.”
  • After Ron runs away, “Hermione launched herself forward and started punching every inch of him that she could reach.”
  • Hermione is tortured. It is not shown, but Harry heard. “Hermione’s screams echoed off the walls upstairs.”
  • Wormtail tries to kill Harry. “Wormtail’s wand emitted sparks; his silver hand closed around Harry’s throat . . . Wandless, helpless, Pettigrew’s pupils dilated in terror. His eyes had slid from Harry’s face to something else. His own silver fingers were moving inexorably toward his own throat . . . Harry tried to pull the crusting metal fingers from around Wormtails’s throat, but it was no use. Pettigrew was turning blue . . . he gave a last twitch, and was still.”
  • He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named kills several people in a fit of rage. “Green light erupted through the room; the kneeling goblin rolled over, dead; the watching wizards scattered . . . again and again his wand fell, and those who were left were slain, all of them.”
  • Dobby is stabbed. “Harry looked down at the silver hilt of the knife protruding from the elf’s heaving chest.”
  • Harry uses an Unforgivable Curse. “The Death Eater was lifted off his feet. He writhed through the air like a drowning man, thrashing and howling in pain, and then, with a crunch and a shattering of glass, he smashed into the front of a bookcase and crumpled, insensible, to the floor.”
  • Professor McGonagall duels Snape. “She brandished her wand at a torch on the wall and it flew out of its bracket . . . the descending flames . . . became a ring of fire that filled the corridor and flew like a lasso at Snape – Then it was no longer fire, but a great black serpent that McGonagall blasted to smoke, which re-formed and solidified in seconds to become a swarm of pursuing daggers.”
  • The final battle at the end of the book spans five chapters, with a few calmer scenes in between. Several people die. At one point, “The world was rent apart. Harry felt himself flying through the air . . . He heard the screams and yells of his companions without a hope of knowing what had happened to them – And then the world resolved itself into pain and semidarkness: He was half buried in the wreckage of a corridor that had been subjected to a terrible attack . . . and Fred’s eyes stared without seeing, the ghost of his last laugh still etched upon his face.” Later on, “The house-elves of Hogwarts swarmed into the entrance hall, screaming and waving carving knives and cleavers . . . Harry saw Yaxley slammed to the floor by George and Lee Jordan, saw Dolohov fall with a scream at Flitwick’s hands, saw Walden Macnair thrown across the room by Hagrid, hit the stone wall opposite, and slide unconscious to the ground.”
  • He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named kills Snape. “The snake’s fangs pierced his neck . . . his knees gave way and he fell to the floor . . . [Snape] fell sideways onto the floor, blood gushing from the wounds in his neck.”

Drugs and Alcohol

  • The adults often drink a glass of wine or brandy, either with dinner or during meetings.
  • After a fight, Hagrid asks if Mrs. Weasley has brandy “Fer medicinal purposes.”
  • Fred reminisces about an uncle. “Before he went loopy he was the life and soul of the party . . . He used to down an entire bottle of firewhisky, then run onto the dance floor, hoist up his robes, and start pulling bunches of flowers out of his –”
  • Champagne is served at a wedding.
  • Hermione gets catcalled by “a group of men . . . singing and weaving across the pavement.” They tell her to “ditch ginger and come and have a pint!”

Language

  • God is used as an exclamation once. Ron says “God, that’s revolting.”
  • Ron uses the word git several times.
  • Damn and hell are used a few times. Harry says, “Let’s get rid of the damn thing.”
  • Ron tells Malfoy, “That’s the second time we’ve saved your life tonight, you two-faced bastard!”
  • Neville tells He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named, “I’ll join you when hell freezes over.”
  • When Bellatrix almost kills Ginny, Mrs. Weasley shouts, “NOT MY DAUGHTER, YOU BITCH!”

Supernatural

  • Harry Potter is a wizard and lives in a world full of magic. He went to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, where he studied charms, potions, and defense against the dark arts. He is fighting a dark wizard who split his soul into seven pieces in order to become immortal. He works together with dragons and goblins in order to save the wizarding world from dementors and violent giants. In short, Harry is surrounded by magic and supernatural occurrences every day of his life. As such, not all instances are listed here.
  • Although the series revolves around magic, the story does not encourage children to try magic on their own. To cast a spell, wizards simply say a word and wave their wand. For example, saying luminos casts light.
  • Professor Trelawney made a prophecy about the Dark Lord before Harry was born. She does not remember making the prophecy afterward, but it is stored in a secret Hall of Prophecies hidden in the Ministry of Magic.
  • Harry can see flashes of what He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named is thinking and seeing, which causes his scar to burn.

Spiritual Content

  • There are ghosts in the castle that behave like regular (although transparent) people. One of Harry’s teachers is even a ghost.
  • He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named splits his soul and hides pieces of his soul in precious, hidden objects. His goal is to become immortal and unkillable. If he is killed, the pieces of his soul remain, and therefore he cannot truly die.
  • When visiting his parents’ gravestone, Harry asks about the inscription, “The last enemy that shall be destroyed is death.” Hermione says, “It means . . . you know . . . living beyond death. Living after death.”
  • When He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named tries to kill him, Harry has an out-of-body experience, a vision of being in a train station. He speaks to Dumbledore who tells Harry that he can go back and continue to fight, or he can board a train. Harry asks, “‘Where would it take me?’ ‘On,’ said Dumbledore simply.”

by Morgan Lynn

Forest of Secrets

Tigerclaw has become clan deputy, but Fireheart distrusts him more than ever. Suspicious circumstances surround the death of the former deputy, Redtail. Fireheart wonders if Redtail was really killed by an opposing clan or if Tigerclaw somehow killed him. Fireheart’s quest to investigate Redtail’s death might teach him that some secrets are better hidden.

Meanwhile, a food scarcity causes stress to build between the clans. With tensions high between all four clans, allegiance begins to shifts, leaving Fireheart wondering who he can trust. Even his best friend seems to be hiding secrets. Are there hidden threats that Fireheart knows nothing about? Is his own clan’s deputy working against him?

Hunter continues the beloved Warrior saga, picking up after the battle with ShadowClan and RiverClan. The clans still aren’t on friendly terms, which adds to the suspense. To help readers keep track of the changing allegiances and many characters, the book has a chart of allegiance. The third installment of the Warrior series, Forest of Secrets, must be read after the first two books in order to be understood.

 Forest of Secrets contains a forbidden love, in which two cats from a different clan risk everything to sneak away from their camps to be together. The secret relationship adds excitement and suspense. Readers will also enjoy a gratifying end to the book as Tigerclaw’s true intentions are finally revealed. Readers who have read the previous books will be drawn into the drama of divided loyalties and will enjoy watching Fireheart grow as a brave leader.

Sexual Content

  • None

Violence

  • When asked about a past battle, a cat explained, “Oakheart came out of nowhere. He sank his teeth into Redtail’s scuff and pulled him off Stonefur.”
  • While Fireheart and his friends were out, a badger attacked them. “Fireheart raked his claws down the badger’s side, and the huge beast rounded on him with a roar, jaws snapping. It was fast; it might even have caught Fireheart if Brackenpaw hadn’t leaped from the side, clawing for its eyes.”
  • ShadowClan wants Brokenstar, their former leader, to be executed, but ThunderClan doesn’t think it’s right to kill a cat in cold blood. Fireheart and his clanmates have to fight to protect Brokenstar. A fight breaks out. “He pinned Nightstar down, his teeth buried in the lead’s bony shoulder. Nightstar writhed under him and then heaved upward. Fireheart lost his balance and suddenly found that he was trapped—the warrior, though old, was still ferociously strong. Nightstar bared his fangs, his eyes gleaming. All of a sudden he reared back, letting Fireheart go. Shaking blood from his eyes, Fireheart saw that Brackenpaw had leaped at the ShadowClan leader and was clinging to his back with all four paws. Nightstar tried vainly to shake him off and then rolled over, crushing Brackenpaw against the ground. The apprentice let out a furious howl.” The fight goes on for three pages.
  • Tigerclaw shows up to try to kill Bluestar and take over the camp. “Graystripe was wrestling a rogue with a pale coat, the two of them rolling over and over as they tried to get ahold with teeth and claws. Brindleface and Speckletail were fighting against a warrior twice their size. Near the warriors’ den, Mousefur dug her front claws into the shoulder of a tabby, while her back claws shredded his flank. Then Fireheart froze with shock. At the other side of the clearing, Brokentail had pounced on his guard, Dustpelt, fastening his teeth in the younger cat’s throat. Dustpelt was struggling furiously to free himself. Though Brokentail was blind, he was still a formidable fighter, and he hung on. . . He was bowled over by a rogue cat. His flank stung as claws raked down it. Green eyes glared a mouse-length from his own. Fireheart bared his fangs and tried to bite down into the enemy’s shoulder, but the rogue cat battered him away.” The fight goes on for five pages.
  • Tigerclaw tries to kill Bluestar, but fails when Fireheart finds out.
  • Brokenstar’s mother gives him death berries, which kill him.

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.”
  • While the cats are arguing, Tallstar said, “You’re willing to give shelter to that . . . that heap of fox dung!”
  • When a cat said something stupid, another said, “That’s the most mouse-brained thing I’ve ever heard.”
  • Tigerclaw made a mistake and said, “Mouse dung!”

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.
  • When the cats got into an argument, a cat said, “He’d find fault with StarClan.”
  • When Fireheart was dreaming, Spottedleaf, the dead medicine cat, came to him and said, “Remember, Fireheart, water can quench fire.”
  • When they were talking, he said, “I swear by StarClan.” Twice.
  • Spottedleaf came to Fireheart in a dream to give him hope.
  • While Fireheart and Graystripe were in the river, Fireheart muttered, “StarClan help us.”
  • After they got out of the river, they said, “Thank StarClan.”
  • While a cat was complaining, another said, “He’d complain if StarClan descended from Silverpelt themselves to bring him bedding.
  • When the cats were trying to go to the gathering, they said, “StarClan would be angry if we didn’t try.”
  • While they were arguing at a Gathering Bluestar said, “Would you risk the wrath of StarClan?”
  • At the warrior ceremony to get your warrior name, the leader has to say, “Then by the power of StarClan, I give you your warrior name.”
  • Medicine cats have to go to highstones in order to share tongues with StarClan. When there, they can talk with them and receive advice.
  • When a cat said that she didn’t do enough, another cat told her, “Oh? StarClan told you that, did they?”
  • A cat died and to comfort his friend, Fireheart said, “She hunts with StarClan now.”
  • A cat was trying to kill another cat and said, “Remember me to StarClan.”
  • Spottedleaf came in Fireheart’s dream and said, “StarClan is calling you, Fireheart . . . Do not be afraid.”
  • Fireheart was thinking, “He could go on from this moment, guided by his leader, and with Spottedleaf and StarClan watching over him.”

by Paige Michelle

 

 

Two Dogs in a Trench Coat Start a Club by Accident

Every day Sassy and Waldo dress in a trench coat together and impersonate a human child, so they can go to school with Stewart. Everyone thinks that they are a new student named Salty from Liver, Ohio. The only one who knows the truth is Stewart.

Stewart has to stay after school for a club. Sassy and Waldo know that a club is a sandwich, but they do not know what a school club is. Sassy and Waldo decide to use their time waiting for Stewart and play games. As the two wait for Stewart, they eat snacks, take naps, and smell things. When their classmates find out what Salty is doing, they decide to join the club. The only problem is that Salty still doesn’t know what a club is!

Part of the story’s humor comes from Waldo and Sassy misunderstanding the people’s words. Although the misunderstandings are funny, they also help readers understand that words have multiple meanings. For example, when the clubs are preparing to make a float for a parade, Salty says, “Because I do not know what a float is except for the kind with ice cream. . . Ms. Twohey taught me about context clues, and I am context cluing to know that we are talking about floats, but we are not talking about ice cream.”

Seeing the world from a dog’s point of view is highly entertaining. The dogs clearly love Stewart and want to understand his emotions. When Stewart smells like “a combination of lost homework and the feeling of watching the ice cream truck drive away,” the dogs know that Stewart is not happy, and want to help him. Even though the story focuses on humor and silly situations, the readers will also learn the importance of communication and helping others.

Spectacularly silly, Two Dogs in a Trench Coat uses an easy-to-follow plotline and fun black and white illustrations to make reading a joy. Even the most reluctant reader will want to see the mischief that Sassy and Waldo get into. The font changes each time Sassy and Waldo talk, making it easy for readers to follow along with the conversation. Many of the words appear in large, bolded font, which adds interest to the page and also highlights the dog’s love of food. Two Dogs in a Trench Coat will keep readers entertained until the very end because of the easy vocabulary, illustrations that appear on most pages, and the ridiculously funny story.

Violence

  • None

Drugs and Alcohol

  • None

Language

  • None

Supernatural

  • None

Spiritual Content

  • None

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince

The world finally believes that He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named is back. While the ministry is scrambling to respond, Dumbledore has called the Order of the Phoenix, a secret society that fought He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named last time, back into service. Harry, who is still reeling from the death of his godfather, is ready to join the Order and fight. But things prove more complicated. He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named is in hiding, and the adults in Harry’s life seem to think it is more important for him to return to school than to join the Order and fight.

Dumbledore is the only person who seems to think Harry can be of use. Dumbledore enlists Harry’s aid in exploring one of the most cloaked mysteries in the magical world – how He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named rose to power and achieved immortality. While He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named has returned, Dumbledore believes there is a way to make the Dark Lord mortal once more, and Harry is the only one who can solve this vital mystery.

Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince continues the theme of a longer page count, which can be found in books 4-7 of the Harry Potter series. Although this novel has a serious tone, there are lighter moments that keep the story from becoming too heavy. The original cast continues to develop in interesting ways, and Harry’s frequent trips into He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named’s past bring vivid new characters to life.

While still appropriate for most elementary readers, the end of this story does include Inferius, which are dead bodies bewitched to do a dark wizard’s bidding. This scene may frighten more timid readers. However, more mature elementary students and junior high students will love exploring the mysterious web that is the childhood of He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named, and will wait with bated breath to see where it leads.

Sexual Content

  • Fleur is a beautiful French woman who kisses people on the cheek as a form of greeting. Once she, “swoop[ed] to kiss [Harry] on each cheek; He felt the places where her mouth had touched him burn.”
  • In a fit of rage, Mr. Gaunt tries to strangle his daughter. “His hands closed around his daughter’s throat . . . with a roar of rage, Morfin leapt out of his chair and ran at Ogden, brandishing his bloody knife and firing hexes indiscriminately from his wand. Ogden ran for his life.”
  • When Harry realizes Mundungus has been stealing Sirius’ things, he “pinned Mundungus against the wall of the pub by the throat.”
  • The headmistress of an orphanage mentions a bullying problem. “Billy Stubbs’s rabbit . . . well, Tom said he didn’t do it, and I don’t see how he could have done, but even so, it didn’t hang itself from the rafters, did it.”
  • Harry sees “Dean and Ginny, who were locked in a close embrace and kissing fiercely as though glued together.”
  • Ron gets a girlfriend and kisses her frequently. “There, in full view of the whole room, stood Ron wrapped so closely around Lavender Brown it was hard to tell whose hands were whose.”
  • After winning the Quidditch Cup, “without thinking, without planning it, without worrying about the fact that fifty people were watching, Harry kissed her. After several long moments – or it might have been half an hour – or possibly several sunlit days – they broke apart.”

Violence

  • Malfoy freezes Harry with a charm and, “stomped, hard, on Harry’s face. Harry felt his nose break; blood spurted everywhere.”
  • Snape has posters on the wall in his classroom. One is a poster of what happens when someone is attacked by Inferius (corpses bewitched to do a dark wizard’s bidding). The poster merely shows, “a blood mass upon the ground.”
  • Ron gets attacked by birds. He, “helped and covered his face with his hands, but the birds attacked, pecking and clawing at every bit of flesh they could reach.”
  • Ron punches Harry while under the influence of a potion. “A crashing blow hit him on the right ear . . . Ron’s fist was drawn right back; his face was contorted with rage.”
  • Dobby and Kreacher get in a fight. “Dobby sank his knobbly little fist into Keacher’s mouth and knocked out half of his teeth. Harry and Ron both leapt out of their beds and wrenched the two elves apart, though they continued to try and kick and punch each other.”
  • Harry uses a spell without knowing what it does. “Blood spurted from Malfoy’s face and chest as though he had been slashed with an invisible sword. He staggered backward and collapsed onto the waterlogged floor with a great splash, his wand falling from his limp right hand.”
  • Snape kills Dumbledore. “A jet of green light shot from the end of Snape’s wand and hit Dumbledore squarely in the chest. Harry’s scream of horror never left him; silent and unmoving, he was forced to watch as Dumbledore was blasted into the air. For a split second, he seemed to hang suspended beneath the shining skull, and then he fell slowly backward, like a great rag doll, over the battlements and out of sight.”
  • Dumbledore and Harry are attacked by Inferius. “The surface of the lake was no longer mirror-smooth; it was churning, and everywhere Harry looked, white heads and hands were emerging from the dark water, mem and women and children with sunken, sightless eyes were moving toward the rock: an army of the dead rising from the black water.”
  • There is a fight when Death Eaters get into Hogwarts. It takes place over seven pages. “One of the fighters detached themselves from the fray and flew at him: It was the werewolf, Fenrir. He was on top of Harry before Harry could raise his wand: Harry fell backward, with filthy matted hair in his face, the stench of sweat and blood filling his nose and mouth.” Later, a Death Eater “slashed at the air: Harry felt a white-hot, whiplike something hit him across the face and was slammed backward into the ground. Spots of light burst in front of his eyes.”

Drugs and Alcohol

  • The Minister of Magic offers the Prime Minister whisky during a meeting.
  • Snape serves wine to his visitors. “Snape poured out three glasses of bloodred wine and handed two of them to the sisters.”
  • When Dumbledore picks Harry up at the Dursleys, he conjures a glass of “Madam Rosmerta’s finest oak-matured mead” for everyone. The Dursleys don’t drink it, but Harry, “sipped. He had never tasted anything like it before, but enjoyed it immensely.”
  • The headmistress of an orphanage gets tipsy on gin during a meeting with Dumbledore. “It soon became clear that Mrs. Cole was no novice when it came to gin drinking. Pouring both of them a generous measure, she drained her own glass in one gulp.”
  • Professor Trelawny often leaves “a whiff of cooking sherry behind her.”
  • Harry is given Chocolate Cauldrons with firewhisky in them, but he does not eat them.
  • A professor has a “glass of mead in one hand” during a party.
  • After Christmas, the Fat Lady is hungover because she and her friend “drank their way through all the wine in that picture of drunk monks.”
  • Dumbledore “handed Voldemort a goblet of wine” when Tom Riddle applied to be a teacher at Hogwarts, many years ago.
  • Ron is poisoned by a glass of mead. “Ron had dropped his glass; he half-rose from his chair and then crumpled, his extremities jerking uncontrollably. Foam was dribbling from his mouth, and his eyes were bulging from their sockets.”
  • Professor Slughorn and Hagrid get drunk after a funeral. The scene takes place over seven pages. At one point, Hagrid and Slughorn were sitting side by side, arms around each other, singing a slow sad song about a dying wizard called Odo.”

Language

  • Damn and hell are used a few times. For example, Harry says Snape, “didn’t think my mother was worth a damn either.”
  • Mr. Dursley yells, “what the hell is that?” when he sees a house elf.
  • Ron calls his brothers gits.

Supernatural

  • Harry Potter goes to a school of wizards and is a part of an entire world of magic. His studies include divination, potions, and defense against the dark arts. He goes to school in a castle with magical rooms, house elves, and a potion master who can brew liquid luck. He encounters borrowed memories, the magical equivalent of zombies, and a prophecy. In short, Harry is surrounded by magic and supernatural occurrences every day of his life. As such, not all instances are listed here.
  • Although the series revolves around magic, the story does not encourage children to try magic on their own. To cast a spell, wizards simply say a word and wave their wand. For example, saying luminos casts light.
  • Professor Trelawney made a prophecy about the Dark Lord before Harry was born. She does not remember making the prophecy afterward, but it is stored in a secret Hall of Prophecies hidden in the Ministry of Magic.

Spiritual Content

  • There are ghosts in the castle that behave like regular (although transparent) people. One of Harry’s teachers is even a ghost.
  • He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named splits his soul and hides pieces of his soul in precious, hidden objects. His goal is to become immortal and unkillable. If he is killed, the pieces of his soul remain, and therefore he cannot truly die.

by Morgan Lynn

 

 

The Lonely Dead

For years, doctors have told Adele that she has schizophrenia, that the ghosts she sees are just a figment of her imagination. Adele is tired of living in a drug-induced fog and decides to ditch the drugs. But now the ghosts are back. When Adele finds her ex-best friend’s body and her ghost, she realizes the dead aren’t really dead and only she can talk to them.

When Tori’s body is found in a shallow grave, the police focus their investigation on Adele. As the prime suspect in the murder, Adele decides to find the killer, which means working with Tori’s ghost. When Tori begins questioning others, danger comes from all directions. Will she be able to find the murderer or will the murderer silence Adele forever?

The Lonely Dead has an interesting premise but lacks suspense or any sense of urgency. Adele lacks personality and common sense. In her search to find the killer, the clues come too easily and she makes unwise choices. It is difficult to believe that she would trust a murder suspect just because the suspect is good-looking. Even though Tori’s death should add a tragic tone to the story, it is hard to feel sorry for the self-centered girl who was mean to everyone and lacked self-control.

The story teaches about the dangers of alcohol and the importance of being aware of one’s surroundings. However, the author takes the idea of a blackout too far. Tori does not know who killed her because she blacked out, and Adele wonders if she blacked out and then killed Tori. Not only is this unrealistic, but Adele’s confusion borders on the absurd.

Adele is surrounded by turmoil; both her mother and grandmother died due to mental disorders, her harsh grandfather gives her little support, and she is friendless. The story focuses too much on Adele’s inner monologue as well as her past struggles. Instead of being interesting, the family’s background takes away from the murder mystery and adds little to the story. To make matters worse, the police, the student teacher, and the psychologist are all portrayed in a negative light.

One good point of the story is the focus on Tori’s bad behavior. Adele points out that Tori hurt people when she ignored them. Adele said, “You might not ever have laid a hand on them, but it still hurts when someone acts like you’re not even there.” You may want to avoid The Lonely Dead since the murder mystery lacks interesting characters, surprises, or a sense of urgency.

Sexual Content

  • Adele goes to kiss a boy. “My improvised plan is to cover his mouth with my thumbs and then kiss them. It’s a game kids used to play. . . And instead of kissing my thumbs, I press my lips against Charlie’s warm, soft ones.”
  • While playing hide and seek at a party, Adele ends up in a closet with Tori’s boyfriend, Luke. They kiss. Adele, “found my mouth suddenly pressed against his. We weren’t making a sound, but it was like everything inside of me was singing and shouting. I was alive and kissing. . . Under my hands, his shoulders were taunt with muscle. My nose filled with his sharp smell that was at once familiar and not. His mouth tasted like beer.” Tori finds them.
  • At the party, Tori was “dirty dancing with some of the guys, even at one point dropping the straps on her dress and flashing everyone.”
  • Someone says that Tori was “all over Ethan” even though he has a girlfriend.
  • Tori implied that she had a sexual relationship with a student teacher and “that it was her idea.”
  • One of the character’s dads was cheating on his wife, so she kicks him out of the house.
  • Luke kisses Adele. She thinks, “Luke’s lips are so soft, but then they press into me hard. I freeze. My heart pulses in my ears. My skin feels tight. It’s like I’m drowning, like there isn’t enough air.”
  • Adele kisses Charlie. “I put my arms around him. Then I close my eyes and press my mouth to Charlie’s. Just as I remember, his lips are soft and warm, and he tastes like peppermint.”

Violence

  • The story revolves around discovering who murdered Tori. When Adele finds the body, she discovers a “dark line that runs across her throat. She wasn’t choked with hands, but with something like a thin rope. Other, shallower red marks run from just under her chin to the hollow of her throat. Tori must have clawed her own skin, trying to save herself. On the back of her neck, the dark line ends in two purple-red oval bruises.”
  • Tori said her father never “leaves bruises,” but “he’s pushed me a few times when I made him mad. Once he grabbed me and wouldn’t let me go to a party.”
  • Adele meets the ghost of a prostitute that was killed by a customer. The ghost tells Adele, “The guy who did it was one of my regulars.”
  • When Adele’s grandfather discovers that Adele has stopped taking her medication, he slaps her. “My mouth falls open as the blood rushes to my stinging skin.”
  • A girl accuses Adele of killing Tori, then pushes Adele. Someone throws something at Adele. Luke steps in to protect Adele, and fists are thrown. “Then Luke hits him square in the nose. Justin staggers back, blood slicking his upper lip.” A girl slips and hurts her arm.
  • The person who killed Tori tries to kill Adele. “He shifts his grip, and the leash tightens even further, making me cough.” Adele hits the person in the throat and is able to escape. There is a chase and Adele is able to hit the person with a board. “It hits his head with a sound like a cantaloupe falling to the floor.” The person is arrested.

Drugs and Alcohol

  • When Adele is walking through the park, a girl calls out to her. Adele thinks, “I’m afraid of homeless guys, of drunk guys, of guys who might try to drag me into the bushes. Not of some girl who knows my name.”
  • Adele wonders if her friend is drunk or on drugs.
  • Adele sees ghosts, but her doctor and grandfather think she is schizophrenic. She is supposed to take pills to keep her from being delusional. Adele doesn’t like taking drugs because they “bleed the color from everything. How they make me feel dizzy and drowsy and sick to my stomach.”
  • Adele attends Tori’s party, where teens are drinking alcohol. The ghost of Tori doesn’t remember much about the party because she was drinking “shots.” When Adele saw Tori at the party, “she had a glass in her hand, and half of those times she was shouting ‘Shots’ then tossing down her drink.” The class discusses the dangers of drinking including alcohol poisoning and blackouts.
  • A class assignment asks students to think about Dwight. He “drinks on weekends, he turns into a different person. He is belligerent and aggressive, and often gets into fights.”
  • At the funeral viewing, “cigarette and even pot smoke lingers in the air, and a few of my classmates are tipping back flasks I’m pretty sure hold more than just water.”

Language

  • Oh God and Oh my God are used several times as exclamations.
  • Hell is used three times. For example, when Tori finds Adele kissing her boyfriend, she yells, “What the hell? What the actual hell?”
  • Crap, damn, and pissed are used once.
  • Tori calls Luke a jerk.

Supernatural

  • Adele can see and talk to ghosts of people and animals. The dead are tethered to their body by a cord that runs to their bodies ’ skull. Tori says that some ghosts, “who’ve been here a long time say that folks from really old graves keep getting fainter and fainter. A couple have just disappeared. And people who’re cremated—they say you never see them at all, even if the remains are buried here on the grounds.”
  • Adele meets the ghost of a girl who died on the Oregon Trail. The ghost tells her that wolves would dig up the graves. While on the trail she saw, “an arm lying in the wagon ruts. Just an arm. We never could find the grave from which it came.”

Spiritual Content

  • Tori wonders if she is in “limbo.” But Adele tells her, “I think the Catholics did away with that.” Then Tori asks, “So is this hell? Being stuck here with no one to talk to besides you?”
  • After Tori dies, she realizes how painful it is to have people ignore her, and she says, “Maybe God has a sense of humor.”

The Battle of Riptide

Gray and Barkley have always had to worry about Goblin shiver, but now the fish are whispering of a greater threat. Finnivus has a vicious armada, and he plans on expanding his empire. Finnivus won’t stop killing until he is the emperor of the seven seas.

Gray isn’t sure what he can do, but then Takiza appears. Takiza, a wise and mysterious fighting fish, has made Gray his apprentice. With Takiza’s instruction, Gray will learn what it means to be a great warrior. Gray isn’t convinced that he can learn how to defeat Finnivus and his armada. Can Gray find the courage to fight? Will he lead his shiver to a victory or to their deaths?

The second installment of the Shark Wars series ramps up the action as shark shivers struggle to survive. Finnivus, a spoiled king, gives the story a new, interesting threat. Readers will root for Finnivus’s demise because the young shark is a truly self-centered, evil king. Although it is no surprise that Gray will have to face Finnivus, the shark action is nicely interwoven between Gray’s training scenes.

New, interesting characters are added, which allows readers to see how the sharks must work together to defeat Finnivus. The battle isn’t portrayed in a glamorous way, but is portrayed as being ­­necessary to defeat evil. Although the death count is high, the deaths are not described in a gory manner. However, some readers may be upset when a shark eats her shivermates.

Readers who have not read Shark Wars may have difficulty understanding the dynamics of the characters. The sharks’ world is brought to life in a realistic, interesting way and includes shark language such as landsharks, shiver, chop chop, and greenie. The cover of the book has a picture of each shark, which allows readers to understand the size and physical differences of characters.

The Battle of Riptide explores the theme of loyalty and illustrates that loyalty should not be more important than doing what is right. The fast-paced story will keep readers interested with the well-developed characters, an evil king, and intense battle scenes. But the best part of the story is reading about Gray’s struggle to become a courageous leader worthy of being respected. With 242 pages and no pictures, Shark Wars is a good choice for fluent readers. Anyone who wants to swim into a good shark story will enjoy The Battle of Riptide. Readers will want to make sure they have the third book in the series, Into the Abyss, ready to read because even though Gray and his allies have won the battle, it is clear that the war will continue.

Sexual Content

  • None

Violence

  • When Snork gets stuck in the coral, Razor Shiver attacks. In order to defend his friend, Striker “hurtled out of nowhere and speared a streaking bull shark in the flank, butting it away from biting Gray. . . Barkley took on another bull as Shell rammed a third. It was a melee!” When Snork gets free, the group flees.
  • King Finnivus’s herald goes to talk to Razor. In anger, Razor, “roared and took the herald’s dorsal fin with one clean bite.” A battle ensues and, “after only a few fin flicks, there was blood everywhere. . . It was a slaughter. Then two Indi Shiver sharks—a blue shark and a mako—struck at Razor himself, one mauling his dorsal, the other taking his right fin. Razor was finished!” The attack happens over three pages.
  • Two sharks attack Gray and Barkley. “When Gray emerged from behind the pillar of coral, he was zooming straight at his attackers. Surprise! Gray smashed into the mako, snout to snout. He weighed much, much more than that shark and heard its spine audibly snap. It sank, a surprised look frozen on its face.” Barkley bites an attacking shark and, “the blue shark keeled over and sank, warm blood rising from the wound.” The attack happens over four pages.
  • Valenka plots Goblin’s death. She lures Goblin to a quiet location where ocean creatures inject him with poison. “The toxic dwellers stung Goblin on his belly and by the bends on his fines. Goblin screamed in frustration as the stonefish kept low and underneath him. . . Goblin stiffened as if he had swum into an invisible wall when the jellyfish stung him in the gills. . . With a last audible hiss, Goblin rolled belly up. . .Then Valenka bit Goblin in the gills.” The scene takes place over two pages.
  • After defeating Goblin shiver, the shiver is served to King Finnivus. Valenka takes part in the meal. “Valenka looked at the faces of her ex-shivermates arranged on a rock disc carried on the backs of four sea turtles. . . Halfway through the meal, Valenka discovered it wasn’t so bad. In fact, Streak was kind of tasty.”
  • When Finnivus demands Gray’s head for dinner, Gray attacks. “Gray roared, rocketing forward and catching the Indi mariners by surprise. He rammed the nearest one in the liver and ricocheted off two others. . .” Gray is able to escape and no one is injured.
  • The story ends with a multi-chapter battle. Many are killed, but most deaths are not described. During the battle, “Barkley barely avoided a bite at his left fin as he struggled to keep up. . . The richly tattooed armada commander, a young spinner shark, looked over an instant before Gray struck. The bite was clean and deep. Blood clouded the water as the spinner’s eyes rolled upward to the whites.” The Indi shiver retreats.

 Drugs and Alcohol

  • None

Language

  • Heck is used once.
  • Barkley tells another shark, “Suck algae, you big bully!”
  • Gray calls someone a “chowderheaded flipper.”
  • Two times, someone says, “Shut your cod hole before I rip off your tail and feed it to you.”
  • Finnivus yells at someone. “You are nothing but an old, krill-faced, jelly-brained drifter that my father should have gotten rid of a long time ago!”
  • Someone calls Gray a “jelly-brain.”

Supernatural

  • None

Spiritual Content

  • Sharks that die go to the “Sparkle Blue.”

 

Trick or Cheat?

Harris is excited about sharing the traditions of Halloween with Zeke. Zeke discovers that he can use his true form for his “costume.” Zeke wants Harris to have an amazing costume, so Zeke uses his powers to create a costume for Harris. Now Roxy feels left out because she and Harris always make their costumes together.

When Halloween finally arrives, Roxy is still upset with Harris. To make matters worse, another student is jealous of Zeke’s costume and tries to ruin it. Can Harris and Roxy keep Zeke’s costume from being destroyed? Who will win the Halloween costume contest?

Harris is the only human that knows that Zeke is an alien. When Zeke goes to school as his true self, others wonder about his “costume.” Will Zeke be able to keep his identity a secret? Readers will keep turning the pages to discover the answer. The story doesn’t just revolve around Zeke’s “costume,” but also focuses on Roxy’s hurt feelings. Even though Roxy is upset with her friends, she still helps them. Readers will learn that friends can be upset with each other and not want to talk to each other; this doesn’t mean that the friendship is over.

Readers will be drawn to the book because of the cute cover and the black and white illustrations that appear on every page. The fun illustrations will help readers recognize the characters’ emotions. The story will keep the reader engaged with its fast-paced plot, large font, simple vocabulary, and short chapters. Although Trick or Cheat? is the fourth installment of the series, the story can be enjoyed without reading the previous books. The humorous story is perfect for students who are transitioning to chapter books.

Sexual Content

  • None

Violence

  • A student puts a bag of flour over a door. The student was trying to destroy Zeke’s costume, but instead, “it fell right on top of Mr. Mulvaney. A cloud of white exploded right on the gym teacher’s head, and Zeke looked over to see him covered in flour.”

Drugs and Alcohol

  • None

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.”
  • Zeke used his power to “redirect” a bag of flour.

Spiritual Content

  • None

 

Bounce Back

Zayd has been working hard to prove that he can lead his team to the playoffs. When he injures his ankle, he’s forced to watch from the sidelines. Zayd feels as if his basketball dreams will never come true.  As Zayd watches from the bench, he struggles to figure out what his role is. Should he give his teammates advice or just cheer from the sidelines?

Zayd’s story focuses on Zayd’s basketball team as well as his Uncle Jamal’s upcoming wedding. The story shows basketball action and Zayd’s family life. Bounce Back gives readers a glimpse into the life of a large Pakistani family. Every member of Zayd’s family helps with Jamal’s wedding plans, and Zayd discovers that helping choreograph a dance is much like coaching basketball.

Bounce Back has less basketball action and focuses more on the changing dynamics of Zayd’s family. His father has a minor heart attack and has a difficult time finding the energy to exercise. Zayd and his sister think of a clever way to get their grandfather up and moving. The strong family bonds shine through and give the story more depth.

Even though Zayd cannot play, his parents make him support his team by attending practices and games. Zayd struggles with feeling jealous when he watches someone play in his position. Zayd says, “You don’t know how horrible it feels to sit there and watch and not play.” Despite the feelings of jealousy, in the end, Zayd learns the importance of helping his team despite his injury. Zayd’s coach is also portrayed in a positive light and leads his team to the playoffs without screaming or demeaning the players.

Readers can enjoy Bounce Back even if they have not read the previous books in the series. The easy-to-follow plot will engage readers. Zayd is a likable, relatable character that tells his story with humor and honesty. Bounce Back teaches the importance of helping others, even if it is from the sidelines. Some readers who enjoyed the Zayd Saleem, Chasing the Dream Series may also want to read The Contract Series by Derek Jeter.

Sexual Content

  • When Zayd’s uncle gets married, Zayd asks, “Dude, aren’t you supposed to, like, kiss the bride.” People laugh and then the imam says, “How about they. . . ahem. . . celebrate in private later.”

Violence

  • None

Drugs and Alcohol

  • None

Language

  • None

Supernatural

  • None

Spiritual Content

  • Zayd’s mother says, “Oh thank God. Then he sees her “mouthing a prayer.”
  • When Zayd’s grandfather becomes ill, his mother asks someone to “keep my father in your prayers.”
  • Zayd sees his grandmother. “She has her scarf on her hair and is praying. A worn copy of the Quran is sitting next to her.”

Fire and Ice

Fireheart has fulfilled his heart’s desire and is now a full member of ThunderClan. Fireheart and his friend Graystripe have their paws full with being newly anointed warriors. But Fireheart cannot forget WindClan’s disappearance. Soon he and Graystripe find themselves on a mission to go find WindClan. It is a perilous journey.

Adding more weight to Fireheart’s shoulders, is Graystripe’s secret romance. The two warriors have been given apprentices, but with Graystripe constantly sneaking off to meet a she-cat from another Clan, Fireheart is forced to train Graystripe’s apprentice in addition to his own. The weight of the world is on Fireheart’s shoulders, tensions are high between the clans, and rogue cats are threatening everything. In this exciting installment of the Warriors series, Fireheart faces not only an imminent battle, but betrayal from within his own Clan.

As the second installment of the Warriors series, Fire and Ice continues from where Into the Wild ended. The book continues to take the reader into the fantasy world of the cat clans. As readers progress through the books, they will become attached to the characters. Even though the story revolves around cats, the characters are relatable and deal with many human conflicts. The cats have to tackle issues relating to loyalty to oneself as well as others. Readers will relate to the characters who feel alone and different from everyone else. Fire and Ice contains mystery, good, evil, secrets, and love.

Fire and Ice matches the previous installment of the Warriors book with action, an important mission, and secret romance, creating a high-stakes story. The plot has several surprising developments. As readers get further introduced to the warrior social hierarchy with Fireheart and Graystripe’s new apprentices, they will fall in love with the characters and identify with them. Get ready for book three, Forest of Secrets, because readers will be clamoring for more after finishing Fire and Ice.

Sexual Content

  • None

Violence

  • While traveling back home through RiverClan territory, Fireheart and Graystripe get into a fight. “The RiverClan warrior raked his side with sharp claws. Fireheart twisted and bit into the fur of his attacker. He clamped his jaws tight and heard the warrior yowl, but the other cat’s claws only raked him more fiercely.” The whole fight takes three pages. One cat dies because they fell into the gorge while fighting.
  • Brokenstar came to invade ThunderClan’s camp. The battle took five pages. “Fireheart leaped straight for Brokenstar and grasped the dark brown tabby with his claws. Life as an outlaw had treated the former Clan leader harshly-Fireheart could feel the ribs of the flea-bitten tom beneath his fur. Bur Brokenstar was still strong. He twisted around and sank his teeth into Fireheart’s hind leg. Fireheart yowled and hissed with rage, but kept his grip. Brokenstar struggled forward, scrambling with his paws on the frozen ground. Fireheart felt his claws raking along Brokenstar’s bony flanks as the rogue warrior ripped himself free. Fireheart lunged after him, but other claws were grasping at his hindlegs.”
  • ShadowClan and RiverClan attacked WindClan. ThunderClan came to help in the battle that goes on for six and a half pages. “Fireheart spotted Morningflower wrestling with a ShadowClan warrior. The WindClan queen looked exhausted and frightened, her fur standing in ragged clumps. Still, she nimbly turned and scratched her attacker, but he was much bigger and knocked her easily to the ground with a heavy blow. With a howl, Fireheart leaped and landed squarely on the shoulders of the Shadowclan tom. He clung on when the surprised warrior spun and tried to shake him loose. Morningflower raked the tom with her claws as Fireheart dragged him to the ground. The ShadowClan warrior screeched and ripped himself free. He ran into the prickly camp wall and pushed his way through.”

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.”
  • Two cats were in an argument, and one said, “You’re 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. StarClan can help shape fate because they can see the future.
  • StarClan must accept new leaders. “Hasn’t he been accepted by StarClan yet?”
  • StarClan sends Barkface, the medicine cat, a message saying, “There is trouble ahead. This day shall bring an unnecessary death.”
  • A Clan leader gets nine lives. Bluestar lost one of her lives, and now she only has one more life left.
  • StarClan got angry that cats were fighting at a gathering, so they sent clouds to cover the moon. “StarClan sent clouds to cover the moon.”
  • A cat had to go and find a patrol and Fireheart said to him, “May StarClan go with you.”
  • When there was a warrior ceremony, Bluestar said, “Then by the powers of StarClan, I give you your warrior names.”
  • Spottedleaf, the dead medicine cat, came to Fireheart in a dream and said, “A battle is coming, Fireheart. Beware a warrior you cannot trust.

by Paige Michelle

 

The Wild Robot

ROZZUM unit 7134, more frequently referred to as Roz, is the sole surviving robot of a shipwreck that lost nearly two hundred other robots. The island Roz is stranded on is devoid of any human life, but there are a wide variety of wild animals who all see Roz as a monster. Eventually, Roz begins to blend in with the animals, and she even learns how to speak like them. Roz soon becomes a part of the island.

The harmony Roz and the animals enjoy does not last very long. A ship spots Roz, and three “RECO” robots are deployed to bring her back to society. The RECO units will use force to get Roz to leave, but she wants to stay with the animals she has grown so attached to. In addition to raising a gosling, surviving winter, and almost becoming an animal, Roz now has to survive an encounter with her own kind.

The Wild Robot is, at first glance, a seemingly lighthearted book about a robot learning to live alongside animals. Even though Roz has many human qualities, she is not entirely relatable due to her robotic nature. However, readers will relate to Roz being in a new environment and not knowing what to do.  Like many people, Roz must adapt and overcome obstacles. Through her struggles, Roz receives help from the animals on the island and learns the value of friendship. They endure numerous hardships together, including death and violence between animals. Death is presented in the book, but the characters die in relatively tame ways and learn to cope with the loss of their friends and even parents in a healthy way.

Even though the story focus on a robot, it provides themes that can easily be related to the real world. The Wild Robot explores the difficulties of integrating into a new setting, as well as an adopted family between a robot and a gosling. Roz and the animals have to trust each other when outsiders threaten their home, and they become closer as a result. The Wild Robot creates an environment of diverse characters that cooperate for a common good.

The Wild Robot tells its story through short chapters that describe events at a rapid pace. With short sentences, chapters, and simple vocabulary, the book is very easy to read. The pictures in the book are sprinkled throughout the chapters, and they are drawn in a cute comic style depicting the events that Roz and the animals experience.

Peter Brown has created a story of an outsider overcoming prejudice, and he has done so in both a tranquil and thrilling way. The Wild Robot introduces characters who are not humans but think and act like humans. Although the story isn’t full of excitement, Brown keeps the reader’s attention through beautiful descriptions of the island, diverse characters, and a unique plot, ultimately creating a powerful story. Instead of having a happy ending, the conclusion is open-ended which allows the reader to come to their own conclusions as to what Roz will do. Roz’s next adventure continues in the second book in the series, The Wild Robot Escapes.

Sexual Content

  • None

Violence

  • There is no violence between humans, but there are multiple instances of violence occurring with robots described in a human way. For example, during a shipwreck, “Robot limbs and torsos were flung onto ledges. A robot head splashed into a tide pool. A robot foot skittered into the waves.”
  • The protagonist of the story observes “vultures hunched over carcasses.”
  • A fox recounts his attack of a porcupine, “I didn’t think that porcupine could see me in the bushes, but when I went for his throat, suddenly there were quills in my face.”
  • The main character falls into a goose nest, leaving “two dead geese and four smashed eggs among the carnage.”
  • Again, the main character is a robot with human attributes but still faces violence. Two bears “slashed at Roz’s body” at one point.
  • In the aftermath of a harsh winter, Roz finds “A frozen mouse. A frozen bird. A frozen deer,” as well as several other animals that have frozen to death.
  • After the snow from the aforementioned winter melts away, the frozen creatures become visible, and “their corpses were slowly revealed.”
  • A farmer with a rifle shoots a goose, described from the animals’ perspective as “a bright beam of light [shooting] out from the rifle, and Longneck slumped to the floor.”
  • A goose is “plucked by her foot and flung to the ground” by a robot.
  • A rifle is pulled apart, and a “blinding explosion” results in “Roz’s arms and legs… completely blown off.”
  • Geese surround a rifle and pick it up, then use it to shoot a robot, creating “a beam of light” that left the robot’s chest “glowing brilliant orange… melting and oozing down his front.”
  • An opossum “rolled onto her back, stuck out her tongue, and died,” although it was only faking its death.

Drugs and Alcohol

  • None

Language

  • There are numerous instances of animals defecating, such as a robin “splatter[ing] her droppings across the robot’s face.”
  • Roz is called a “monster” and a “creature” by the animals multiple times.
  • Mr. Beaver is called “rude and stubborn.”

Supernatural

  • None

Spiritual Content

  • None

by Dylan Chilcoat

Showtime!

The King and Queen have asked Sasha to plan the Summer Solstice celebration. The celebration will bring the horses of Verdant Valley and Crystal Cove together. But Sasha has never planned a big party before. Even though she has a list to help her plan, there is a lot to be done before the party. Will Sasha be able to plan the perfect party?

Most of the conflict revolves around Sasha, who chooses her sister, Poppy, to perform in a special dance, which makes another horse angry. As Poppy prepares to dance, it becomes clear that someone is trying to sabotage her. The saboteur destroys Poppy’s property and gives Poppy food to make her sick. When the sabotage is discovered, the horse says, “I was wrong to try to stop her from being able to perform so I could get what I wanted.” Although the sabotage is revealed, the horse doesn’t receive any consequences for the bad behavior.

Younger readers will enjoy reading about flying horses and will be able to relate to the conflict between friends. Cute black and white pictures appear on every page. The simple sentence structure and vocabulary make Showtime an easy-to-read chapter book. If your little reader enjoys horse books, The Unicorn Princesses would also make a good choice.

Sexual Content

  • None

Violence

  • None

Drugs and Alcohol

  • None

Language

  • None

Supernatural

  • A horse stands on “his huge magic flying leaf” so he can go on to Mystic Mountain with the flying horses.
  • Horses who live in Crystal Cove eat food with magic in it.

Spiritual Content

  • None

Too Big to Hide

Frank and Sam spend the summers with their grandparents, who own the Dinosaur Education Center of Wyoming. They must keep Peanut, a baby dinosaur, hidden. This is made more difficult when Frank and Sam’s grandparents find a new fossil, prompting a family of scientists to show up. The scientists want to make a documentary about the new fossil. How can Frank and Sam hide Peanut from the scientists?

Readers who are new to chapter books will enjoy Too Big to Hide, with its easy vocabulary, short sentences, and black and white illustrations. The illustrations appear every 2 to 4 pages, which helps break up the text. Even though the text doesn’t indicate race, the illustrations depict the visiting scientists as African-American, adding diversity to the story.

This book teaches some new vocabulary words and also contains a glossary of dinosaur-related vocabulary at the back of the book. Readers will enjoy watching Peanut get into mischief and will like Frank’s positive interactions with his family, his dinosaur, and his cat. For readers who dream of being a paleontologist, The Dino Files has dinosaur facts scattered throughout the story. Younger readers will be able to follow the simple, suspenseful storyline and will want to read the third book in the series, It’s Not a Dinosaur.

Sexual Content

  • None

Violence

  • None

Drugs and Alcohol

  • None

Language

  • None

Supernatural

  • None

Spiritual Content

  • None

Into the Wild

Four Clans of wild cats share the forest. Their ancestors created the Warrior Code, an unbreakable law of the forest that all warrior cats must follow. But the warrior code has been threatened, and because of it, ThunderClan cats are in danger, and warriors are dying mysterious deaths. As the division between the clans widens, Bluestar is desperate to discover the truth behind the deaths and save her clan.

As tensions rise, a new cat appears. Rusty is just a typical pet who lives with the twolegs, but he dreams about living in the forest. When he meets ThunderClan, he is eager to join them, but first, he must fight to win acceptance by a clan that doesn’t want him. Will he be allowed to join ThunderClan? Can Rusty prove himself a brave warrior, or will his kittypet origins be his downfall?

Readers that pick up Into the Wild will jump into a wild forest that is ruled by cats. The fast-paced story shows the world from the cats’ point of view and uses realistic cat terminology. The cats’ world is beautifully described and has strong male and female characters. What truly makes this book (and series) worth reading again and again, is the character development and the surrounding drama. Fluent readers will adore Into the Wild because of the exciting battles, tense drama, and wide cast of characters. The cats often battle, and although the fighting is not gory, some of the evil cats scheme to raise their status by killing, manipulating, and deceiving others. Such actions are always portrayed in a negative light.

Readers will especially fall in love with Firepaw and his friends as they watch them grow up in the beloved ThunderClan. Into the Wild is more than a fun read, it teaches lessons of love, acceptance, and the merits of hard work. Readers will see how the different clans act like people; this gives readers an opportunity to see how others react to cultural differences and prejudice. Readers will learn that you cannot judge someone by where they came from. Get ready to read the rest of the Warriors series, because there will be no turning back once Into the Wild sinks its claws into you.

Sexual Content

  • None

Violence

  • When “Rusty” (Firepaw) went to the forest, he was attacked by Graypaw for trespassing. “The creature hit him like an explosion and Rusty was thrown sideways into a clump of nettles. Twisting and yowling, he tried to throw off the attacker that had fastened itself to his back. It was gripping him with incredibly sharp claws. Rusty could feel spiked teeth pricking at his neck. He withered and squirmed from whisker to tail, but he couldn’t free himself.” They fight for a page and a half.
  • When Rusty had to prove himself to the clan, he fought Longtail. “Rusty flattened his ears, narrowed his eyes and hissing, leaped through the startled cats to fling himself onto his tormentor. Longtail was completely unprepared for Rusty’s attack. He staggered sideways, losing his footing on the hard-baked earth. Filled with rage and desperate to prove himself, Rusty dug his claws deep into the tabby cat’s fur and sank in his teeth. No subtle rituals of swiping and boxing preceded this fight. The two cats were locked in a screaming, withering tussle that flipped and somersaulted around the clearing at the heart of the camp.” The fight goes on for a page and a half.
  • Firepaw mistook Graypaw for an enemy warrior and attacked him. “Claws unsheathed, he launched himself at the enemy and landed squarely on a set of furry, muscular shoulders. He dug in hard, gripping with thorn-sharp claws, ready to deal out a powerful warning bite.” They fight for one page until everything gets sorted out.
  • Yellowfang attacked Firepaw. “Firepaw screeched in shock as the she-cat slammed into him, knocking him sideways. Two heavy paws clamped down onto his shoulders, and iron jaws closed around the back of his neck. ‘Murr-oww!, he grunted, already thinking fast.” The fighting takes place over two and a half pages.
  • Firepaw tried to chase a kittypet out of his territory for one page. “Firepaw leaped onto its back in a single bound. Firepaw could feel the cat struggling beneath him as he gripped on with all his claws. It let out a desperate and terrified yowl.”
  • Ravenpaw told a story of a previous battle. “Fur was flying everywhere. Blood spattered the leaves of the bramble bushes, bright red against green. I’d just fought off a huge warrior and sent him squealing into the bushes when the ground shook, and I heard a warrior scream. It was Oakheart! Redtail raced past me, his mouth dripping blood and his fur torn. ‘Oakheart is dead!’ he howled. Then he rushed off to help Tigerclaw as he fought another warrior.”
  • The group of cats was attacked by rats. “Ravenpaw was struggling and clawing at the earth. Something has hold of his leg and was dragging him down into the ditch.”
  • ShadowClan was attacking the ThuderClan camp. “Firepaw caught hold of a tabby warrior queen, much larger than him, and sank his teeth deep into her leg. She yowled with pain and turned on him, lashing out with sharp claws and lunging at his neck with her teeth bared. He twisted and ducked to avoid her bite. She couldn’t match his speed, and he managed to grasp her from behind and pull her down into the dirt. With his strong hind legs, he clawed at her back till she squealed and struggled away from him, running headlong into the thick undergrowth that surrounded the camp.” Rosetail and Lionheart die in the battle, and the battle goes on for four pages.
  • Spottedleaf was killed by a ShadowClan warrior named Clawface.
  • Firepaw and Graypaw attacked Yellowfang. “Then they leaped. Yellowfang yowled with surprise and the two cats landed beside her and pinned her to the ground.”
  • Firepaw attacked Brokenstar with a patrol to get rid of him as a leader. “At Whitestorm’s nodded signal, the Thunderclan cats leaped into the battle. Firepaw grasped a silver tabby with his claws, but was shaken loose. He tumbled over and the ShadowClan warrior turned on him and gripped him with claws as sharp as black thorns. Firepaw managed to twist and sink his teeth deep into the cat’s flesh. The warrior’s yowl told him he had found a tender spot, and he bit harder. The warrior screeched again ripping himself free, and ran off into the bushes.”

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.”
  • When Yellowfang tries to get up and can’t, she mutters, “rat-droppings.”
  • Yellowfang got snappy and said, “Well, that’s my business mousefodder.”
  • After Firepaw made a mistake, Graypaw said, “that was a mouse-brained thing to do.”
  • When they capture a cat from another clan, Firepaw is forced to feed her. Dustpaw says, “Another day looking after that mangy old fleabag…”

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.
  • Cats go to the moonstone, “a gleaming rock, which glittered as if it were made from countless dewdrops,” to share dreams with StarClan and gain answers.
  • StarClan shared a prophecy that said, “only fire can save the Clan.”
  • A clan leader can be granted nine lives from StarClan, and if they die, they can come back to lead their clans. “I think you ought to know that, in the battle with the rats, it was not my fifth life that I lost, but my seventh.”
  • StarClan sends dreams to Firepaw predicting the future.
  • Cats are granted their warrior name, “by the powers of StarClan.”

by Paige Michelle

The Siren

Kahlen and her parents are on a luxury ship when suddenly the passengers begin jumping overboard and the ship sinks. In a panic, Kahlen calls out—she doesn’t want to die. The Ocean itself saves Kahlen and demands that she serve as a siren for 100 years. Kahlen and the other sirens use their beauty and deadly voice to lure humans to their deaths. Kahlen mourns for the strangers that she causes to die, but she is obedient to the Ocean who spared her life.

Kahlen loves her sisters but is looking forward to being released from her siren duties. In twenty years, Kahlen will be a regular human girl. But then she meets Akinli and falls hopelessly in love. Will she risk everything to be with the boy of her dreams? Or will the Ocean kill their love forever?

The story is told from Kahlen’s point of view. Much of the conflict in the story comes from the internal struggle of the sweet, submissive siren. After one date, Kahlen is so in love with Akinli that she cannot live without him. Akinli appears so infrequently that the readers will be left wondering why Kahlen is head over heels in love with him. Although their romance drives the story, there is not enough interaction and chemistry between the two to keep readers emotionally interested in the outcome of their tragic love story.

Although the siren’s world is interesting, most of the time the girls live on land, blending in with ordinary humans. Not only is the sea world underdeveloped, but so are Kahlen’s sister sirens. However, it is clear that the sirens care for each other and will go to any lengths to help each other. Having the Ocean as a character adds interest, but unfortunately, the possessiveness of the Ocean makes the sirens go to great lengths to hide their deeds from her. In the end, the Ocean is much like a possessive, overbearing mother who only thinks of her own needs.

Similar to Cass’s Selection series, The Siren is an easy-to-read story that follows one girl’s struggle. However, The Siren lacks the action of the Selection series. The Siren is like Romeo and Juliet without the fight scenes. For readers who don’t mind spending an entire book reflecting on one character’s internal struggle, The Siren will be an enjoyable read.

Sexual Content

  • Elizabeth goes to bars to find men where she is “quietly luring boys to bed.” She goes home with the men. “Elizabeth could regularly go to a stranger’s apartment, be as intimate as two people could be. . .”
  • Elizabeth says she has “shared plenty of . . . fluids with human men.”
  • Akinli and Kahlen kiss twice. “With my face still cupped in Akinli’s hand, he kissed me. It was brief, but it was enough to send fireworks running down my veins.”

Violence

  • When explaining the background of sirens, Kahlen thinks about a siren that “used her voice to make three girls who had teased her jump into a well . . . She’d put an entire town in an uproar, and the Ocean had silenced her to keep our secret.” Another Siren “murdered a household of people in the night, including an infant, in an outburst. . .”
  • Padma’s father tried to kill her because girls are “too expensive.” When the sirens find her in the ocean, her clothes, “Had been viciously ripped at. There were fresh bruises all over her arms and legs, but most horrifically, when we followed the trail of welts to her ankles and wrists, we saw there were cinder blocks tied to her, keeping her trapped.”
  • The sirens cause a cruise ship to crash and all the people on the ship die. “All around us, people plunged into the water, their fine dresses and slacks seeming grotesque against the backdrop of so much death. . . We sang until the last scream quieted, until the ship was resting on the Ocean floor.” The scene is described over three pages.
  • When a homeless man attacks Elizabeth, “She whispered in his ear to get him off her, and he threw himself into the Hudson.”
  • When the sirens cause a ship to crash, one man calls out to the girls until his voice was “thicker with gargled water” and then he died.
  • Padma and two others kill Padma’s parents because “none of us could allow her to live in the same world as her abusers did.” Their murder is not described.
  • The Ocean threatens to kill Padma. The Ocean “ripped Padma from Elizabeth’s arms, holding her in a vice grip of nothing but water. Padma screamed, trying to move her arms, but was completely paralyzed.”

Drugs and Alcohol

  • Kahlen goes out with her siren sisters and had “two drinks, hoping to take the edge off my nerves.”
  • Elizabeth goes to bars to pick up men. One evening, she chooses a boy who had “more to drink that she realized, and he passed out at their table.”
  • Akinli shows Kahlen a picture of him and another guy; the other guy “had a beer in his hand.”

Language

  • One of the characters says his roommate, “took lessons in how to be an ass.”
  • Damn is used twice.
  • Crap is used once.
  • Hell is used three times. For example, Kahlen yells at the Ocean, “Get the hell out of my head!”

Supernatural

  • The story revolves around sirens who are “servants to the Ocean” for a hundred years.
  • The Ocean is a living being that must feed on humans to survive.
  • The Ocean changes the girls into sirens. When Padma is changed, “The Ocean opened Padma’s mouth and forced a strange, dark liquid down her throat. . .” The change makes it so that the girls do not age, but their voices are deadly.
  • Akinli and Kahlen are dying from a mysterious illness. The Ocean explains, “If he hadn’t heard your voice, he’d be fine. . . Now, what happens to one body happens to the other. And since your voice has taken hold of him, killing him slowly, you fall down with him.”

Spiritual Content

  • Kahlen said a prayer.

I Hunt Killers

Jasper Francis Dent, who goes by Jazz, is the son of a famous serial killer who has been imprisoned for four years, but still has lasting effects on the boy’s life. Although Jazz is plagued by memories of the teachings his father gave to him, Jazz was almost adapting to living normally. He took care of his grandmother and had a best friend and girlfriend.

However, a serial killer imitating his father causes Jazz to change his life drastically. Instead of following in his father’s footsteps, he uses the inner workings of a serial killer’s mind to try to find out who is committing the murders. Jazz has to deal with reporters constantly hounding him, a sheriff who won’t let him look into the investigation, and a killer who is always one step ahead of everyone else.

I Hunt Killers has an exciting premise that hooks readers instantly. The story immediately throws Jazz into a crime scene surrounding a dead body. The gore and violence that the book opens up with are present throughout, but so is the thrill Jazz experiences trying to discover who committed the crime. The characters are well developed, unique, and convincing.

Jazz’s character is relatable because of his complexity and his competing desires. The reader is given a glimpse into Jazz’s thought process and is allowed to see his torment. Jazz wants to do good, but also struggles with the darker parts of himself, those parts that might be like this father. The themes in the book seem somewhat forced at times, but also provide messages related to independence, persevering through difficulty, and breaking cycles of abuse.

The book contains a somewhat predictable story, although the characters are unique and compelling. The story is written in a very approachable way, utilizing understandable language that clearly and quickly conveys Lyga’s message. At times, it seems like Jasper almost magically discovers clues to his victim. It is difficult to believe that a thirteen year old would reach the conclusions he does. This results in many of the revelations in the story feeling somewhat forced, and the twists feeling less surprising.

I Hunt Killers is a dark, disturbing, character-focused mystery in which the plot is often overlooked in favor of humor or graphic violence. Its story is predictable, but is otherwise an enticing read. The story shows the horrific nature of brutal crimes. Readers will want to take caution before picking up I Hunt Killers because of the subject matter, the graphic crime scenes, and the mind games that are played throughout the story.

Sexual Content

  • Many of the dead bodies in the book, including the first one, are found naked.
  • Jazz thinks of a time he and his girlfriend spent “tangled up” at their hideout.
  • Jazz says that another character’s reaction “felt like he’d just seen a nun do a striptease.”
  • Jazz mentions having a pistol pointed at his “thirteen-year-old junk” in a memory from when his dad was first apprehended. He is seventeen at the time the book takes place.
  • Howie wonders if the killer was just “having sex and stuff” and suggests that the killer’s girlfriend might have just hit her head and had a heart attack, resulting in him abandoning her at the scene.
  • Howie perks up at the mention of “cleavage” while a dead body is investigated.
  • Howie and Jazz contemplate whether or not the killer “did stuff” to his victim.
  • Jazz and Connie kiss several times. Their kisses range from a “quick kiss on the lips” to “kissing and groping” that includes descriptive visuals such as “the soft insistence of Connie’s plush lips, to the warm of her tongue” and “a long, lingering kiss that warmed him [Jasper] all over.”
  • Connie and Jazz spend the beginning of rehearsal “feverishly kissing and groping back in the wings.”
  • A character is suspected to have “entertained some R-rated fantasies about the girls in his class.”
  • Jazz says that “if you were in a room alone with her [Harriet Klein], you’d feel it.”
  • Gramma Dent accuses Jazz of “Putting [his] thing inside them [whores]!”
  • Jazz explains how serial killers often “jerk off” after revisiting crime scenes, which Howie says “ruined masturbation” for him.
  • Howie calls a toe ring “sexy.”
  • Jazz thinks about how he is obsessed with sex. “He was terrified of sex. Like every teenage boy, he was obsessed with it, of course, and wanted to have as much of it as humanly possible…”
  • When Connie sits on Jazz’s lap, “he felt himself respond to her weight in his lap the only way a teen boy should respond.” Then, Connie adjusts herself in Jazz’s lap and grinds “her butt into his groin in that special pleasant/painful way.”
  • Connie mentions how people dream about “having sex with a supermodel.”
  • A character whose initials are “VD” reminds Howie of “venereal disease.”
  • Jazz remembers how a female character’s breasts had pressed against him when they hugged.
  • When Howie is hospitalized, Jazz asks jokingly if he wants “a hot nurse and a stripper pole.”
  • Jazz recounts that one of Billy Dent’s victims was “sexually assaulted, invaded both vaginally and rectally.”
  • Jazz suspects that the killer used “a sex toy or something” on one of his victims.
  • Jazz says to Connie, “I bet I could warm you up,” implying sex. Connie “shifted, locking her ankles together.”
  • Jazz thinks that “any straight male snuggling with Connie would be desperate to get those jeans off.”
  • Gramma Dent, upon seeing a horde of reporters outside her home, believes they are enemy warriors and yells that “They’re gonna rape mongrel babies into me!”
  • Howie suggests to Jazz that he “stick [his] tongue down her [Connie’s] throat.”
  • Billy Dent asks if Jazz has “a little piece of tail [he] like[s] to bang,” and if “girls. . . line up for a taste of [his] dick.”
  • Billy Dent talks to his son and asks, “are you always the one buyin’ the rubbers? Hmm? Or maybe she’s on that pill? Cause you can’t always trust ‘em, Jasper. You look at them rubbers real close-like, see?”
  • Billy asks Jazz to “Tell Dear Old Dad your little pussy’s name.”
  • Billy describes a victim with “Perfect little titties.”
  • Billy says to Jazz “I’m glad you’re getting’ your dick wet.”
  • Billy is suspected to have left semen and committed rape at a murder scene.
  • G. William searched Jazz and placed a hand “uncomfortably close to the family jewels.”

Violence

  • The book opens up with a police scene surrounding a dead body, and it is made clear that this will be a common theme in the novel.
  • There are multiple instances of body bags being opened or used to store/view bodies. “Two cops approached the corpse with a body bag hanging limp between them… he focused on the struggle with the body bag.”
  • Jazz often imagines entering violent scenarios with different characters.
  • The killer’s specialty is to sever his victim’s fingers. Removed fingers are referred to as excised digits.
  • Billy Dent killed over one hundred people, whose deaths are frequently referenced.
  • Jazz experiences memories of his father describing his methods to commit murder. “Good boy. Good boy. (one cut, two cuts) Just like that.”
  • Vivid descriptions of dead bodies are provided. “Dead female Caucasian… Found at least two miles from anywhere in any direction. Naked. No apparent bruising. Missing fingers.”
  • Billy Dent kept trophies from his victims.
  • Jazz has what looks like the “biggest god-damn pistol in the entire universe [pointed] right at [his] thirteen-year-old junk.”
  • The experimentation process of serial killers is described as they try new methods of violence. “And they experiment. Cutting off the fingers…”
  • G. William threatens to shoot Jazz.
  • Jazz “was certain that the next day would have seen G. William dead by his own hand” if Billy Dent had not been found.
  • Jazz imagines cutting a finger off.
  • Jazz says that the death isn’t just “Joe-Bob McHick smacking around his girlfriend and then leaving her to die.”
  • An autopsy is performed on a corpse.
  • Jazz imagines G. William drawing his service revolver and putting “two slugs into his center of mass.”
  • A joke is made about pointing an excised finger.
  • Howie is a “type-A hemophiliac, which meant that he bled if you looked at him too hard,” and experiences large amounts of bleeding in the novel.
  • Jazz beat up Howie’s bullies.
  • Jazz experiences a bloody nose.
  • A reference is made to Hannibal Lecter, the cannibal villain.
  • Jazz thinks a crime would be easier to identify if there had been “some sort of savagery before death—torture, cutting mutilation…”
  • Victims are strangled.
  • During the investigation of a body, eyelids are peeled back.
  • Howie’s face bleeds profusely from a nosebleed.
  • Genocide and famine are referenced.
  • A body is nailed naked to a ceiling in a church. “Her head lolling downward, her limbs bearing the weight of her body. When the reverend who found the body called the police, the skin and muscle were already coming loose.”
  • An angered parent of a victim threatened to kidnap Jazz and perform his father’s crimes on him.
  • Eyes are removed from a corpse and fed to cats.
  • There are multiple references to famous serial killers.
  • Gramma Dent often threatens people with a shotgun.
  • Jazz imagines a character having a “Glock or Magnum” in their purse.
  • Jazz’s grandmother smacks him multiple times.
  • Billy Dent disjointed a corpse.
  • Billy Dent is said to have raped and abused his victims as well as killed them.“He tormented them. Tortured them. Raped them and abused them.” More details are given later on when Billy Dent’s victim is described as “Sexually assaulted, invaded both vaginally and rectally.”
  • Jazz imagines ripping out a character’s larynx.
  • Jazz wonders why Billy has not been shanked in prison, as well as why he hasn’t committed suicide.

Drugs and Alcohol

  • G. William is said to very rarely drink.
  • Jazz gives his grandmother a “poor man’s sedative” so that he can go out without her arguing.
  • Jazz also puts a “powerful tranquilizer” in his grandmother’s breakfast for a similar purpose.
  • Jazz’s grandmother is sedated and held captive by the novel’s antagonist.
  • Jazz “clambered down the fire escape like a monkey on crystal meth.”

Language

  • There is an immense amount of profanity including crap, Christ, God, Devil/Satan, Hell, idiot, moron, badass, douche, goddamn, demon, piss, whores, ho, bastard, ass, hellfire, jackass, smart-ass, butt, buttocks, damn, BS, pussy, titties, dick, bitch.
  • When Jazz tells G. William that he had been spying on the crime scene at the beginning of the book, “G. William slammed a fist on the desk and swore.”
  • A killer leaves behind his victim’s middle finger while taking other digits.
  • Doug Weathers is called a “bottom-feeding moron.”
  • Jazz and Howie say “bros before hos.”
  • Gramma Dent uses the “hellfire o’ Jesus” as an exclamation.
  • Jazz exclaims “Jesus!” at one point.
  • Connie gasps “Oh my God.”
  • Billy Dent is said to have “a real PhD in slinging high-grade horse manure.”

Supernatural

  • Witchcraft and witches are mentioned as a part of the Salem Witch Trials that took place in The Crucible.

Spiritual Content

  • G. William is said to have “catholic guilt.”
  • The Devil/Satan, demons, Heaven, Christ, and God are mentioned as slurs, although not in actual religious contexts.
  • Jazz describes faith as “being certain of something without any kind of evidence.”
  • Howie says that he “deftly avoids the crushing throngs of heathens.”
  • The Crucible is being performed by Jazz’s drama group, and he acts as a reverend in the play during the witch trials that were performed in Salem by the Puritans.
  • A quote from The Crucible says “Theology, sir, is a fortress; no crack in a fortress may be accounted small.”
  • A quote from The Crucible says “Man, remember, until an hour before the Devil fell, God thought him beautiful in Heaven.”
  • Gramma Dent has a collection of “religious dogma.”
  • Billy Dent says that “Cain slew Abel, all under God’s eye” as justification for his murders, specifically of Jasper’s dog Rusty.
  • Jazz asks that “God bless Ginny Davis.”
  • Billy Dent describes the sound of someone dying as “sacred an’ holy.”
  • Gramma Dent cries out “Praise God!”
  • Jasper’s grandmother recalls how she had “said all her Hail Marys” when she shifts into the persona of a young girl.
  • Billy Dent claims he is the god of his victims.
  • Jazz says Billy “had been a god” that he worshiped, although later states that Billy “had been a devil, not a god.”
  • Billy sighs “as if asking the Good Lord.”
  • A serial killer believes that Billy Dent, a serial killer, is a god, and that Jasper is a “child of divinity.”

by Dylan Chilcoat

 

No Slam Dunk

Wes Davies only cares about two things in life—his family and basketball. This year’s basketball season gives Wes the chance to be seen by college coaches. But a new teammate Dinero’s selfish play might get in the way of Wes’ goals of them becoming a real team. While Wes tries to navigate difficult teammates, he also worries about his father. Lt. Michael Davies has returned from Afghanistan with secrets and a growing drinking problem. Will Wes be able to overcome selfish teammates? Will he be able to reconnect with his distant father?

No Slam Dunk is a story that might seem very familiar to readers who are fans of Mike Lupica. This story mirrors Travel Team. Both books have the same age boys who love basketball, dads who have problems with alcohol, and a witty best friend. No Slam Dunk’s characters tend to fall flat as they are not fleshed out well. Wes’ mother and best friend are the stereotypical characters found in a book about family; a son who is passionate about a hobby or sport and wants his dad to be in his life, and a mother who loves her son and wants the best for him. While these characteristics are certainly not bad, they are not expanded in any detail, leaving the reader to see dull characters who are no different than any other character they’ve read about.

Although Mike Lupica’s talent as a sports writer is apparent, this novel’s storyline does not measure up to the reader’s expectations. The short chapters alternate between basketball and Wes’s life at home, which makes many of the book’s scenes feel rushed. Every other chapter focuses on basketball play after basketball play, which hinders character development. While Dinero and Wes’s relationship is shown as positive growth in both of their lives, it is one of the only relationships that is nurtured.

Wes’s father, Lt. Michael Davies, has just returned from Afghanistan, and he is dealing with PTSD, isolation, and alcohol abuse. Despite having a difficult time communicating with his father, Wes doesn’t seem to feel anger or any other strong emotions, which is unrealistic. The story looks at the struggle between Lt. Davies and his family superficially and does not dive deeper into how his drinking would truly affect his family.

Although the short chapters and simple vocabulary make No Slam Dunk a good choice for reluctant readers, those who do not enjoy or know about basketball will want to leave it on the shelf. Despite some superficial characters, young basketball lovers will enjoy seeing a character they can identify with.

Sexual Content

  • None

Violence

  • One of the men under Wes’s Dad’s command while they were in Afghanistan, describes the events that led to Wes’s Dad having PTSD. The scene is not graphic and lasts two pages. “He takes out the two Taliban guys operating it and climbs in back to where rocket launchers are. That was as far as he got before taking a bullet.”

Drugs and Alcohol

  • Wes’s dad came home from his second tour from Afghanistan and now has a problem with drinking. “He came home wounded this time, just not in the way that people think of a wounded soldier. And to make the pain go away, he drinks.”
  • After Wes’s second game, he gets home to find his dad on his doorstep. He is acting funny, and after Wes’s mom arrives, she tells him, “Don’t you ever come to this house again after you’ve been drinking.” Later Wes and his mom have a conversation about his dad. She calls him a “happy drunk.”
  • At the end of Wes’s game against the Rockets, his dad shows up extremely intoxicated and embarrasses Wes by yelling about the team’s play in front of the whole gym.

Language

  • While drunk, Wes’s dad yells at the end of a basketball game saying, “Throw my boy the damn ball!” He repeats this one more time.
  • Wes’s dad tells his mom that she makes “a damn fine cup of coffee.”

Supernatural

  • None

Spiritual Content

  • Wes and Dinero are about to play a rematch one-on-one game. Wes tells Dinero that there’s no way he’ll beat him again, and Dinero says, “since it’s Sunday morning, you better say a prayer, dude.”

By Hannah Neeley

 

 

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