Swim That Rock

Reviewed by: Elyse Davis - Wells Public Library, Wells, Southern Maine Library District

Review Date: June 6, 2014

Review

This book captured my attention right away. The boy in the book doesn't really believe that his dad is gone because they never found a body. Because of the uncertainty of his father's fate the book has an element of suspense to it. It's a great family story of a boy and his mother working hard and over coming many obstacles to save their way of life. The relationships that are presented in the story are very real and endearing. I highly recommend this book. It teaches the reader about the world of being a quahoger in Rhode Island.

Overall Book Score: excellent

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About the Book

Author:

Rocco, John

Publisher: Candlewick Press

Book Type: chapter book fiction

Genre: mystery, realistic fiction

Audience: grades 7-9, grades 10-12

Binding Type: trade edition

Binding Quality: good

ISBN: 9780763669058

Price: 16.99

Nanny X

Reviewed by: Elyse Davis - Wells Public Library, Wells, Southern Maine Library District

Review Date: November 5, 2014

Review

A creative story to keep readers from grades 2 to 7 captivated. I spy story with a fun twist. The Nanny is actually a secret agent. Nanny X comes with a packed diaper bag that is actually a bag of useful spy gadgets. Each chapter is illustrated with a little illustration of the baby item that will be the most useful for the scene. The chapters are written through different perspectives. One from the boy of the family and one from the girl of the family. Together the family and their new Nanny help solve the mystery of why people are getting hit in the head with coconuts. There is a bit of an eco-fiction element to this book and it would be great to pair it up with The Gorillas of Gill Park by Amy Gordon.

Overall Book Score: excellent

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About the Book

Author:

Rosenberg, Madelyn

Illustrator: Donnelly, Karen

Illustration Quality: good

Publisher: Holiday House

Book Type: chapter book fiction

Genre: mystery, realistic fiction

Audience: grades k-3, grades 4-6, grades 7-9

Binding Type: trade edition

Binding Quality: good

ISBN: 9780823431663

Price: 16.95

Battle of the Beasts

Reviewed by: Elyse Davis - Wells Public Library, Wells, Choose Library District

Review Date: November 8, 2014

Review

This is the second book in the House of Secrets series. Although this is a book in a series if you happened to read this book first it does recap frequently what happened in the first book. This is a book chock-full of adventure, suspense and wonderful richly developed characters. The age in which the book is intended for seems a bit young for some of the content. An example of this is when they hang one of the main characters upside down in a dungeon and cover him with cheese so the rats can eat the cheese. Except for a few scenes like this one the story really moves very smoothly and is an edge-of-your-seat read. Chris Columbus is a screen writer who has brought us many exciting and wonderful movie tales and I can totally see this coming to life on the big screen.

Overall Book Score: good

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About the Book

Author:

Ned Vizzini, Chris Columbus

Illustrator: Call, Greg

Illustration Quality: very good

Publisher: Balzar and Bray - Imprint of HarperCollins

Book Type: chapter book fiction

Genre: adventure, fantasy

Audience: grades 4-6, grades 7-9

Binding Type: trade edition

Binding Quality: good

ISBN: 9780062192493

Price: 17.99

Moldylocks and the Three Beards

Reviewed by: Elyse Davis - Wells Public Library, Wells, Southern Maine Library District

Review Date: November 10, 2014

Review

Princess who isn't like a princess at all feels a rumble in her tummy one night and falls through a portal into fairy tale land through her refrigerator. She meets a fairly well known fairy tale character with a slightly different name. Not Mother Goose but Mother Moose. This is the first in a series and the tales that are told in fake-believe are very creative and humorous. For readers who like fractured fairy tales this will be a great series to get into.

Overall Book Score: very good

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About the Book

Author:

Jones, Noah Z.

Illustrator: Jones, Noah Z.

Illustration Quality: very good

Publisher: Branches an imprint of Scholastic

Book Type: chapter book fiction

Genre: fantasy

Audience: grades k-3

Binding Type: reinforced trade binding

Binding Quality: very good

ISBN: 9780545638401

Price: 15.99

This Book's Maine Connection: Maine author,Maine illustrator

The Barftastic Life of Louie Burger Class B.U.R.P

Reviewed by: Elyse Davis - Wells Public Library, Wells, Southern Maine Library District

Review Date: November 11, 2014

Review

This book is full of lots of interesting characters. From the main character who has a love of old comedians like Charlie Chaplin to his younger sister who is very unicorn obsessed. Also, we can't forget to mention his father who loves to decorate for Halloween but is stuck to a budget. Louie Burger is a boy who loves comedy and keeps a notebook of all his jokes and comic acts. Another thing that he keeps in that notebook are a list of acronyms of kinds of people there are at school. He is trying everything to not be a class B.U.R.P (Boy Used to Ridicule and Put-downs). The theme of trying to be popular is one of the main themes of this book but it is not until the end of the book that Louie realizes that popularity isn't everything and if you just use your strengths you'll be okay. I can see this book appealing to those readers who enjoyed Diary of a Wimpy Kid and Big Nate.

Overall Book Score: good

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About the Book

Author:

Meyerhoff, Jenny

Illustrator: Week, Jason

Illustration Quality: very good

Publisher: Farrar Straus Giroux

Book Type: chapter book fiction

Genre: realistic fiction

Audience: grades k-3, grades 4-6

Binding Type: trade edition

Binding Quality: good

ISBN: 9780374305215

Price: 13.99

The Garden Monster

Reviewed by: Elyse Davis - Wells Public Library, Wells, Southern Maine Library District

Review Date: November 11, 2014

Review

There are three books so far in the Fiercely and Friends series. In this particular volume Fiercely the dog helps his girl and boy figure out what the mystery plant that is growing in their garden. It's a large plant and Fiercely's job is to protect the plant from things that might want to eat it. They all get ready for a vegetable parade and hope to win a medal. The illustrations are very bright, big and appealing. It would be nice to have a big salad in front of you when you are reading this because the pictures make you want to eat some vegetables. This is a great book to read in September during harvest time or in the summer for planting time.

Overall Book Score: very good

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About the Book

Author:

Giff, Patricia Reilly

Illustrator: Palmisciano, Diane

Illustration Quality: very good

Publisher: Orchard Books and imprint of Scholastic Inc

Book Type: chapter book fiction

Genre: realistic fiction

Audience: grades k-3

Binding Type: library binding

Binding Quality: very good

ISBN: 9780545433792

Price: 16.99

Shark Kiss, Octopus Hug

Reviewed by: Elyse Davis - Wells Public Library, Wells, Southern Maine Library District

Review Date: November 11, 2014

Review

A mediocre and forced tale of an Octopus who wants a kiss and a shark who wants a hug. Best friends who look at the people on the beach everyday and try to come up with schemes that will make it so in the end they get a hug or a kiss. The schemes they come up with are a bit "out-there" and it makes them seem like a crazy octopus and shark instead of someone you might actually want to kiss or hug. After coming up with lots of schemes that don't work they end up giving each other the kiss and hug that they desire. The illustrations are better than the text but those seem to be washed out and not bold and bright.

Overall Book Score: fair

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About the Book

Author:

Reed, Lynn Rowe

Illustrator: Cornell, Kevin

Illustration Quality: good

Publisher: Balzar and Bray and imprint of Harper Collins Publishers

Book Type: picture book fiction

Genre:

Audience: preschool, grades k-3

Binding Type: trade edition

Binding Quality: good

ISBN: 9780062203205

Price: 14.99

Buzz kill

Reviewed by: Elyse Davis - Wells Public Library, Wells, Southern Maine Library District

Review Date: November 11, 2014

Review

A very fast-paced intriguing mystery that has a main character who loves Nancy Drew and is a little like Veronica Mars. One day during a football game Senior Millie starts to create a list of the people who would like to see the Head Football coach dead. One of those suspects is a very hot quarterback with a past. As Millie tries to figure out who the murderer is she also mourns her mother who died of cancer,tries to protect her father who is also a suspect and falls in love with the hot quarterback with a past. Fantaskey creates some great characters to help Millie find who did the murders including a very important endearing character who just happens to be a librarian. The author really knows how to keep you reading and keep you guessing until the very end.

Overall Book Score: excellent

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About the Book

Author:

Fantaskey, Beth

Publisher: Houghlton Mifflin Harcourt

Book Type: chapter book fiction

Genre: mystery

Audience: grades 7-9, grades 10-12

Binding Type: trade edition

Binding Quality: good

ISBN: 978054739310

Price: 17.99

Parched

Reviewed by: Elyse Davis - Wells Public Library, Well, Southern Maine Library District

Review Date: November 11, 2014

Review

Among all Dystopian Fiction this one will stand out because not only is there a group going against the head government but there are robots that are helpful, murderous and a love interest. Tess leaves the comfortable existence she has in Eden to go out into the Badlands because her mom is dead and the robot that her mom was working on had a big part in that tragedy. Water is a very valuable but scarce resource in the Badlands. One day a girl comes to find Tess to come back to Eden to be apart of a group called Kudzu to help fight the Trust. While getting used to living in Eden again Tess has to deal with many struggles and has to decided if being a part of Kudzu is the best thing for her. This book brings forth some issues on conservation, loving a machine, and fighting for others.

Overall Book Score: excellent

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About the Book

Author:

Clark, Georgia

Publisher: Holiday House

Book Type: chapter book fiction

Genre: science fiction

Audience: grades 7-9, grades 10-12

Binding Type: trade edition

Binding Quality: good

ISBN: 9780823429493

Price: 17.95

Bruno and Titch: A Tale of a Boy and His Guinea Pig

Reviewed by: Elyse Davis - Wells Public Library, Wells, Southern Maine Library District

Review Date: November 11, 2014

Review

One day a very inventive kid named Bruno who likes to wear a stainer on his head buys Titch who is very excited about going to live in a Big Person's house. Bruno keeps Titch busy with all sorts of things that he builds. The best thing that he builds is a great house for Titch. Even though Bruno isn't quite a big person Titch is very happy with Bruno.

Overall Book Score: very good

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About the Book

Author:

Dempsey, Sheena

Illustrator: Dempsey, Sheena

Illustration Quality: very good

Publisher: Candlewick

Book Type: picture book fiction

Genre:

Audience: preschool, grades k-3

Binding Type: reinforced trade binding

Binding Quality: very good

ISBN: 9780763673161

Price: 16.99

Monkey Me and the Golden Monkey

Reviewed by: Elyse Davis - Wells Public Library, Wells, Southern Maine Library District

Review Date: December 8, 2014

Review

Part graphic novel, this is a fun story of an energetic boy who turns into a monkey when he gets too excited. His sister is there to help him calm down and turn into a boy. Memorable characters and a bit of mystery make this an excellent book for read alouds and independent readers.

Overall Book Score: excellent

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About the Book

Author:

Roland, Timothy

Illustrator: Roland, Timothy

Illustration Quality: good

Publisher: Branches / Scholastic

Book Type: chapter book fiction

Genre:

Audience: grades k-3

Binding Type: paperback

Binding Quality: good

ISBN: 9780545559768

Price: 4.99

The Princess in Black

Reviewed by: Elyse Davis - Wells Public Library, Wells, Southern Maine Library District

Review Date: November 21, 2014

Review

A very memorable addition to the stories about princesses. This princess has a secret identity as well as her unicorn. Her job as the "Princess in Black" is to protect the goats from the goat-eating monsters. While she is out on a rescue mission she has to leave a nosy Duchess at her palace. Princess Magnolia is worried that the Duchess will find out her secret. The names of the characters are very clever. There is a goat boy who is a very important character that adds so much charm to this really enticing tale. For readers who can breeze through Bink and Gollie by Kate DiCamillo this will be a great book to read.

*Cream of the Crop nominee

Overall Book Score: excellent

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About the Book

Author:

Hale, Shannon

Illustrator: Phan, Leuyen

Illustration Quality: excellent

Publisher: Candlewick

Book Type: chapter book fiction

Genre: fantasy

Audience: preschool, grades k-3

Binding Type: reinforced trade binding

Binding Quality: very good

ISBN: 9780763665104

Price: 14.99

Zoe's Jungle

Reviewed by: Elyse Davis - Wells Public Library, Wells, Southern Maine Library District

Review Date: September 16, 2014

Review

A very endearing story about sisters using their imagination during a visit to the park. A realistic interaction between parent and children makes this book an excellent read.

Overall Book Score: excellent

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About the Book

Author:

Murguia, Bethany Deeney

Illustrator: Murguia, Bethany Deeney

Illustration Quality: good

Publisher: Arthur A. Levine Books

Book Type: picture book fiction

Genre:

Audience: preschool, grades k-3

Binding Type: trade edition

Binding Quality: good

ISBN: 9780545558693

Price: 16.99

Troll Swap

Reviewed by: Elyse Davis - Wells Public Library, Wells, Choose Library District

Review Date: August 14, 2014

Review

A cute, humorous creative story about a troll and a girl who switch places but then figures out there's no place like home. The language used in the book is very rhythmic. The names are very similar which makes a nice cadence to he text. The pictures and extra text add so much tot he story.

Overall Book Score: excellent

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About the Book

Author:

Hodgkinson, Leigh

Illustrator: Hodgkinson, Leigh

Illustration Quality: excellent

Publisher: Nosy Crow/Candlewick Press

Book Type: picture book fiction

Genre:

Audience: preschool, grades k-3

Binding Type: reinforced trade binding

Binding Quality: excellent

ISBN: 9780763671013

Price: 15.99

Poppy the Pirate Dog's New Shipmate

Reviewed by: Elyse Davis - Wells Public Library, Wells, Southern Maine Library District

Review Date: August 14, 2014

Review

A great easy chapter book that is really entertaining and endearing. It's a good story to share about acceptance and introducing new people (or animals) into a family. Poppy think talks and it is written in a different font instead of using quotation marks. This is a neat introduction to that writing technique.

Overall Book Score: excellent

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About the Book

Author:

Kessler, Liz

Illustrator: Phillips, Mike

Illustration Quality: good

Publisher: Candlewick Press

Book Type: picture book fiction

Genre:

Audience: grades k-3, grades 4-6

Binding Type: reinforced trade binding

Binding Quality: excellent

ISBN: 9780763667511

Price: 14.99

Uni the Unicorn

Reviewed by: Elyse Davis - Wells Public Library, Wells, Southern Maine Library District

Review Date: December 4, 2014

Review

An endearing book about a unicorn who believes in little girls. All the other unicorns make fun of him and says that there is no such thing as little girls. Of course there is a little girl who believes in unicorns. Each of the characters think of all the wonderful and magical things that they would do together. The illustrations are very brilliant and bold. The illustrator has done work on animation for Disney and it shows. Those kids and adults who fell in love with the littlest girl in Despicable Me and her love for unicorns this will be one of their favorite books.

Cream of the Crop recommendation

Overall Book Score: excellent

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About the Book

Author:

Rosenthal, Amy Krouse

Illustrator: Barrager, Brigette

Illustration Quality: excellent

Publisher: Random House

Book Type: picture book fiction

Genre: fantasy

Audience: preschool, grades k-3

Binding Type: trade edition

Binding Quality: good

ISBN: 9780385375559

Price: 17.99

Emma and the Blue Genie

Reviewed by: Elyse Davis - Wells Public Library, Wells, Southern Maine Library District

Review Date: December 4, 2014

Review

A good addition to the "genie in a bottle" stories. This time the genie can't grant wishes yet because his nose ring was stolen by the evil green genie. A little girl and her dog set out on an adventure to help the genie get back his nose ring and to help the caliph of barakash. His country has been destroyed by the green genie. All turns out well. In the end when the little girl gets to make her wishes they are indeed unique wishes and because she can't think of a third wish she gets her very own genie to take care of. Another great tale that is brought over to the United States by the very talented Cornelia Funke. This was translated by Oliver Latsch. Being a translation some words didn't translate quite correctly.

Overall Book Score: very good

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About the Book

Author:

Funke, Cornelia

Illustrator: Meyer, Kerstin

Illustration Quality: very good

Publisher: Random House

Book Type: chapter book fiction

Genre: adventure, fantasy

Audience: grades k-3, grades 4-6

Binding Type: trade edition

Binding Quality: good

ISBN: 9780385375405

Price: 9.99

Marlene, Marlene, Queen of Mean

Reviewed by: Elyse Davis - Wells Public Library, Wells, Southern Maine Library District

Review Date: December 4, 2014

Review

A pretty good story about bullying by an actress who knows mean. A story in rhyme that seems a little forced. When Marlene tries to be be her mean self one day the kids rally together and decide to not let her meanness bother them. It throws her off and she has to learn how to be without being mean. It does send a nice message that it's easy to be mean but it takes some effort to be "decent."

Overall Book Score: good

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About the Book

Author:

Lynch, Jane

Illustrator: Tusa, Tricia

Illustration Quality: good

Publisher: Random House

Book Type: picture book fiction

Genre: realistic fiction

Audience: preschool, grades k-3

Binding Type: trade edition

Binding Quality: good

ISBN: 9780385379083

Price: 16.99

Ancient Animals: Saber-Toothed Cat

Reviewed by: Elyse Davis - Wells Public Library, Wells, Southern Maine Library District

Review Date: December 4, 2014

Review

A very good book about the saber-toothed cat. This is one of the first books that I have read that has referred to these ancient beasts as a cat and not a tiger. The illustrations are remarkable. The illustrator must have done a lot of research to depict these ancient creatures so precisely. The author must have done lots of research also to bring a very detailed glimpse of this creature's every day life to the page. She touches on such subjects as survival of the fittest and the food chain.

Overall Book Score: very good

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About the Book

Author:

Thomson, Sarah L.

Illustrator: Plant, Andrew

Illustration Quality: excellent

Publisher: Charlesbridge

Book Type: chapter book nonfiction

Genre:

Audience: grades k-3

Binding Type: reinforced trade binding

Binding Quality: excellent

ISBN: 9781580894005

Price: 12.95

This Book's Maine Connection: Maine author

Sleuth on Skates

Reviewed by: Elyse Davis - Wells Public Library, Wells, Southern Maine Library District

Review Date: December 16, 2014

Review

A funny new mystery series with a very cheeky main character. As I was reading this book I was reminded of Pippi Longstocking. She was a very strong willed opinionated curious girl. Sesame Seade is all these things and more. Against the demands of her parents she recruits herself to help solve the mystery of a missing ballet dancer. For those readers who are very technical this is a great book to get them reading because technology plays a big part in the mystery. If you are in need of a fast paced mystery with a slightly hyperactive character this is your book.

Overall Book Score: good

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About the Book

Author:

Beauvais, Clementine

Illustrator: Horne, Sarah

Illustration Quality: good

Publisher: Holiday House

Book Type: chapter book fiction

Genre: mystery,realistic fiction

Audience: grades k-3,grades 4-6

Binding Type: trade edition

Binding Quality: fair

ISBN: 978823431977

Price: 16.95

Creature Keepers and the Hijacked Hydro-Hide

Reviewed by: Elyse Davis - Wells Public Library, Wells, Southern Maine Library District

Review Date: January 13, 2015

Review

This book is the first in very adventurous, clever and gripping tale about a group of people whose job is to protect the Cryptids of the world. Part of this tale gives new meaning to the phrase,"when life gives you lemons, make lemonade." This is a great new series for people who like Obert Skye's series The Creature from my Closet.

Overall Book Score: excellent

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About the Book

Author:

Nelson, Peter

Illustrator: Rao, Rohitash

Illustration Quality: good

Publisher: Balzar and Bray and imprint of Harper Collins Publishers

Book Type: chapter book fiction

Genre: adventure

Audience: grades 4-6

Binding Type: trade edition

Binding Quality: good

ISBN: 9780062236432

Price: 12.99