Posted by Rebekah
Categories: Adventure, Fantasy, Fiction, Older Readers, Review
Tags:Animals, Dragons, Scary, The Door Within, Unicorns, Wayne Thomas Batson
30 Comments »
Our rating: 
At his first day in the new school, Aidan meets a girl by the name of Antoinette, who, he discovers, believes in King Eliam, but has never been to the Realm. She confides to Aidan that she’s been having nightmares lately, which Aidan believes is a sign of King Eliam calling her to the Realm. Mindful of his friend Robby, Aidan asks her to find Robby’s Glimpse and try to make him see the truth. Antoinette’s parents, who also believe, agree that she may go, and Antoinette journeys through the Door Within to face a danger greater than any of them imagined.
Paragor has not lessened his dark designs and is at work unleashing an evil, held captive since long ago. Antoinette is chosen to be the Twelfth Knight on a mission to convince Yewland’s queen that breaking an alliance with King Eliam would be fatal. They travel to Yewland only to discover the enemy has not wasted his time. The leader of the Knights decides they must warn another kingdom, but Antoinette has found Robby’s Glimpse. Lord Kearn, one of Paragor’s chief servants. She decides to disobey the knights and try to talk to Kearn. A choice that leads to a disaster only King Eliam can right.
I enjoyed this book immensely. I whipped through it in two days flat. Actually, a day and a half, then I read the third one in a second half of the second day. (How was that for confusing?) There’s a lot of action, and it felt very real as I read it. The characters weren’t cheesy or overplayed. In fact, I would find myself cheering them on or getting frustrated at Antoinette for her disobedience. Some of the fight sequences were a little more on the—how do I say this?—messy side of things. Let me see, what else might you want to know… The new badguys are very creepy, Yewland is pretty cool. Oh, and if anyone panics when Antoinette goes after Kearn, don’t worry. Nothing drastic happens, although I wouldn’t want to be in her shoes.
Posted by Jordan
Categories: Adventure, Fantasy, Fiction, Incredibook!, Older Readers, Review
Tags:Animals, Bryan Davis, Dragons, Dragons in Our Midst, Long Read, Scary
4 Comments »
Our rating:
Billy Bannister is not your ordinary kid. His breath is so hot that it sets off the sprinkler system at school. After this incident, Billy’s parents realize they need to tell him a big secret: Billy’s father used to be a dragon, making Billy a half dragon! Things are further complicated when a mysterious slayer appears, whose family has tracked Billy’s father since he took on human form. Now Billy and his new friend Bonnie (also a half dragon) are involved in a dangerous dragon hunt, fleeing from a mysterious slayer who will stop at nothing to kill Billy, Bonnie, and Billy’s father. Meanwhile, Billy’s friend Walter and his teacher Professor Hamilton try to piece together clues in order to aid Billy and his family.
And that’s just the basic plot! Davis tells a great story that is very believable. There’s all sorts of intense excitement going on all over the place, so much so that I don’t think I felt safe at all until the very end. As you can probably tell, the plot moves along at a lightning pace, barely stopping for long enough for you to catch your breath. Delightful, amazing, and (I know I’m gushing) brilliant!
Posted by Becca
Categories: All Ages, Fiction, Review
Tags:Animals, Dogs, Good Read Aloud, Meindert DeJong, Out of Print, Quick Read
Add a comment »
Our rating:
Jon and Vestri are staying at their grandparent’s farm for summer vacation. While they are at the farm, their grandpa tells them about some puppies that are being given away. He sends Jon and Vestri to pick one, but their grandparents end up coming along, too. Because they are unwilling to separate the puppies, Jon, Vestri, and their grandparents take all three. The rest of the summer is fun for Jon and Vestri, until the final days of vacation come and they are faced with the fact that they will have to leave the puppies behind when they go back home.
Puppy Summer is a short book, but it is still a good one. I love how DeJong did the whole thing about the hat (which I couldn’t include in the review without giving away too much of the story). Puppy Summer is out of print.
Posted by Sarah
Categories: Fiction, Historical Fiction, Review, Younger Readers
Tags:Animals, Award Winner, Cats, Chickens, Dogs, Good Read Aloud, Horses, Patricia Maclachlan, Quick Read
7 Comments »
Our rating:
Out in the country of early America, Anna and Caleb’s father puts an ad in the newspaper for a wife. His previous wife died not long after Caleb’s birth. A woman named Sarah answers the ad and comes to live with them for a month for a trial period. But often she misses the sea, where she came from. Will Sarah stay, or will she return to the sea?
A somewhat simple, short story. I read Sarah, Plain and Tall in about an hour, if I remember correctly. This book might be a little better for people younger than me. It’s alright, but not my favorite. Oh, and Sarah, Plain and Tall is the beginning of a trilogy. There are two more books after this one.
Posted by Rebekah
Categories: Non Fiction, Review, Younger Readers
Tags:Animals, Award Winner, Dogs, Funny, Good Read Aloud, Indians, raccoons, Sports, Sterling North
1 Comment »
Our rating: 
Just another walk in the woods. A bag of cookies, his dog Wowser, and his good friend Oscar—what else could Sterling North want? Then Wowser finds a den-full of raccoon kits, and the boys decide to take them home. They can’t take them home without the mother, so they determine to catch the treed raccoon . . . with the aid of no more than a pocket knife and their jackets. The results are laughable. In the skirmish, the mother and three kits escape, but one of the kits isn’t quick enough. Sterling takes tiny Rascal home and obtains permission to keep him. Getting the permission isn’t hard, as his mother is dead, his older sisters are living away from the house, and his older brother is fighting in the war. His father lives in a world all his own, only occasionally taking time to be with his young son. He doesn’t mind the raccoon—or the canoe Sterling is building in the living room. Everything progresses wonderfully until Rascal develops a taste for sweet corn. The angry neighbors, robbed of their crops, demand that Rascal be kept in a cage. How can Sterling lock up a young, wild creature? Some tough decisions face him and he has to answer them.
I love this book. It is so interesting and enjoyable. Rascal is such a cute raccoon! Sterling North does a wonderful job of telling the story. There are so many adventures and characters. The memorable incidents with his older sister Theo’s missing engagement ring, the school bully, and the pie-eating contest. Very funny and memorable. Unfortunately, there are a few evolutionary references and, if I remember correctly, a mild bad word or two.
content rss
