Captain Nobody - by Dean Pitchford

Who is Captain Nobody?  It all starts during a football game, THE BIG GAME, where fourth-grader Newt Newman's older brother Chris, the star quarterback of the high school team, is out to make history.  He does, but not quite in the way he intended.

This story follows Newt and his two best friends, tall-girl J.J. and short but drum-crazy Cecil, as they navigate being the least-popular kids in fourth grade, but also as they struggle to find a way to come to terms with a tragedy that strikes Newt's family.  I really can't tell you what happens, but trust me that it is BIG.

Before you know it, Newt is dressing up in his brother's old clothes and calling himself Captain Nobody.  Of course, that isn't enough to make anyone a super hero.  Really.  Or, is it?  And what kind of superhero would "Captain Nobody" be, anyway?  That, dear reader, is the key to the whole story!

This is such an amazing, heartfelt, readable story that my 6-year-old and I, who just finished listening to it on CD in the car, have been lingering in the driveway because we just don't want to turn it off!  Equal parts funny and touching, this is a really fantastic book.  It is not part of a series, but stands alone as a testament to the power of courage and friends to make everything better.

The Classroom - by Robin Mellom

How does a socially-clueless guy not only survive but thrive in his new middle school? There's only one option:  Go Epic.

Told like a video documentary, this coming-of-age story follows Trevor, a fun but awkward 7th grader whose guiding light, his best friend Libby, has decided to back off and let him solve his own problems this year.  This promises to be a disaster, but that's what makes it so much fun to read about!  As Trevor navigates this difficult transitional point in his life, trying to make new friends, avoid the bullies, survive the classes, and reach his epic potential, there are many more flops than successes, and much of it is comic genius.  His neurotic friend Libby, who has tired of saving his butt time after time in elementary, sits back and watches the drama unfold as Trevor eventually figures things out and takes his future into his own hands.

Kind of like the Wimpy Kid books, but with more likeable characters and fewer illustrations, this is a pretty good book, especially for 3rd-6th grade boys who want a good laugh and a quick, interesting book to tell your friends about.

Codename Zero - by Chris Rylander (Guest Review by Nicholas)

Not much happens in North Dakota. At least that's what they want you to think...

Codename Zero is an awesome book about an average prankster who is pulling a prank involving fainting goats. Curious? Read more to find out.  When suddenly, a sweaty man shows up carrying a package and says, "Don't open it," what do you think our hero, seventh-grader Carson Fender does? He opens it (of course), and he is life changes forever.

Read this book if you like average people becoming powerful.  I give it five stars for its cool hideouts, weird friends, and unlikely heroes.

(Thank you to fifth-grader Nicholas H., who read this in one night and is never far from a stack of books, for this guest review!)

Agent Colt Shore: Domino 29 - by Axel Avian

How does a teenage boy end up an international agent fighting to save the world from bad guys?  There are so many books with similar plots on the market now that I didn't expect anything original from this one.  That's where I was wrong.

First-time author Avian blew me away with his character, Colt Shore. This teen enjoys hanging out with his friends and doing normal stuff, but when a mysterious stranger, a slick Bond-like gentleman with a fancy car, shows up in his house one day and announces that they are leaving for Colt's new school, everything changes.  Of course it is a secret school for young members of an international organization that fights bad guys... but it's not for spies.  An "agent" is tasked with supporting the good guys rather than hunting down the baddies, and that's what Colt begins training to do.  A series of surprising events and revelations carry him into places he never expected to go, saving people he never expected to meet, and making choices he never wanted to make.  It is a thrilling adventure, with rock and roll, cool gadgets, and wild stunts.  Yes, even a hint of romance, too.

Best of all, this book is a true original in a genre packed with copycats.  Alex Rider is the king of teen spies, but Colt Shore beats him out in several ways.  Colt is down-to-earth, humble, and does what is needed without thinking of himself.  He is an Everyman hero, a character that you can identify with and that you will cheer for from cover to cover.  I could hardly put this book down, and suspect I'm not the only one.  Despite its psychedelic but somewhat unappealing cover, this book is a keeper.

A Crooked Kind of Perfect - by Linda Urban

I know, I know... kind of a girly cover.  Well, it's about a girl.  And a boy. And her dad, and a really big organ, and another girl who is really snotty and spoiled, and some more organs, and a piano.  Right.

This is the story of Zoe, a ten-year-old girl who dreams of one thing: Becoming a piano prodigy and playing at Carnegie Hall.  When her agoraphobic dad (he's afraid of leaving the house) buys her a wheeze-bag organ instead, she is sure things can't get any worse.  With her mom spending every spare moment at work, and class tough-guy Wheeler following her home, things get even stranger for Zoe.  How can a normal girl possibly deal with an organ, misguided parents, and this strange new friend?  By finding out that the world can be perfect after all, just in a slightly crooked way.

This is a delightful story about not just dealing with the life you're given, but finding a way to thrive.  Zoe thinks she's just a normal girl surrounded by oddballs, but to the readers, they all become heroes.

Cosmic - by Frank Cottrell Boyce

Liam is tall for his age.  He's 12, and just wants to be treated like a kid, but he looks so old that waitresses won't even let him see the kids' menu.  The school bus driver won't pick him up, because he thinks he's an adult.  The guy at the Porsche dealership gives him the keys for a test drive, because he think's he's a dad. Well, it's not ALL bad, it seems.

When Liam and his schoolmate Florida decide to act like father and daughter, it turns out to be pretty fun.  The faint mustache Liam has sprouted help them pull it off, and they get into all sorts of mischief, including a trip to China to visit a brand new theme park.  Before long, though, things get a bit out of hand, and Liam is telling his story... from outer space.  Okay, things got REALLY out of hand!

This is a hilarious story of one boy who isn't who everyone wants him to be, but who can't figure out who he really is until it's a bit too late.  If you're a bit tall compared to your peers, this book can be a warning.  For the rest of us, it is just a fun yet thoughtful adventure.

100 Cupboards Series - by N. D. Wilson

What began as a humdrum series has taken me for a wild ride, from which I may never recover!  I have to admit that 100 Cupboards did not especially impress me.  It turns out that this is one of those series where you just get through the first book to prepare you for the amazing story to follow!  The second and third books wowed me and left me reeling.  There were elements of the Lord of the Rings and Harry Potter, and a fantasy tale unfolded that was epic in scope and in imagination.  Through it all, N.D. Wilson keeps things light with his sly humor and humble, down-to-earth hero, Henry.  Is this really the kid who will save the world?

This series follows Henry to a farm in Kansas, and from there through a number of cupboards that he finds in his uncle's farmhouse attic.  Those cupboards lead to different worlds, which provides quite an adventure for Henry and his cousin Henrietta, but also a bit of risk.  In fact, before we know it, chaos strikes, and the fate of the world is in question.

If you like epic adventure fantasy stories, baseball, or Kansas, this is your series.  Don't you dare abandon it if the first book puts you to sleep, just keep going and you'll never regret it!

Deadweather and Sunrise: The Adventures of Egg, Book 1 - by Geoff Rodkey

Egg is just your average thirteen-year-old boy, living with his grumpy dad, two violent siblings who hate his guts, a brainless tutor, and a bunch of washed-up pirates on a smelly volcanic island.  His life gets a little more interesting when his family suffers a tragic fate, he meets the love of his life, and her father promptly tries to kill him.  Before long, Egg has uncovered the father's evil plans to... well, to do some nasty stuff, like your typical criminal mastermind.  Good action, great characters, and an ending that leaves us waiting eagerly for the next chronicle.

This is a great new series that will appeal to pirates, children with nasty siblings, and island-lovers.  The rest of you will like it too, as this series has a lot going for it.  Check it out, and see whether you're more of a Deadweather person, or a resident of Sunrise!



Copper - by Kazu Kibuishi

If you enjoy Calvin and Hobbes for its humor, wisdom, and the interaction between a boy and his animal, you'll surely enjoy Copper.  This beautifually drawn book of short but poignant comic strips is, in my mind, a masterpiece.  Follow Copper and his dog Fred through all sorts of imaginative journeys.  Fred is nervous and scared, while Copper is curious and ready to explore. These two personalties play off one another perfectly through adventure after adventure.

If you're ready for a more grown-up comic, but still one that's childish and wholly appropriate for all ages, check this out.

Cheesie Mack is not a Genius or Anything - by Steve Cotler

If you're reading a book, and the main character keeps telling you to go check out his website, do you think that's cool, or annoying?  It bugged me, but maybe you would like that kind of thing.

This book is narrated by a boy called Cheesie Mack, a 5th-grader with an annoying sister, grumpy grandpa, funny friend, and your fair share of typical 5th grade problems.  It centers around the end of  his fifth grade year, when he finds a valuable coin, gets in deep trouble with his principal, investigates a local "haunted" house, makes a new friend, uncovers a mystery, eats a doughnut, and has a few other adventures, which I'm hard-pressed to recall right now. The truth is, it was an okay book, but I never really connected with or came to like the main character, so didn't really enjoy the book. There's a sequel coming out, and reviews I've read show that many kids like it, so it may be worth a shot.  For a preview, check out that website the kid kept bugging me to visit, www.cheesiemack.com.

Chasing Lincoln's Killer - by James Swanson

If you're looking for an action-packed historical drama, all of it true, then you've got to check out this amazing book.  It's the story of President Lincoln's assassination back in 1865, what led up to it, and how the killer James Wilkes Booth escaped and was caught.  This book takes us into both the assassin's mind, and that of his pursuers, so that we are both fully aware of what's happening at any given moment, and also eager to see what happens next.  It's an excellent piece of writing, accurate and informative, not to mention hard to put down.

I've read a lot of books about President Lincoln, but this one really paints a clear picture of his life and important accomplishments for young readers.  Of course, it also focuses on the crime that ended his life and the ensuing manhunt, which is far more fascinating and complicated than I had been aware of.  This is a great book for history and mystery lovers, and may be the book that creates some new junior history buffs.

Brixton Brothers # 1: The Case of the Case of Mistaken Identity - by Mac Barnett

Steve wanted to be a detective more than ANYTHING.  At least he did until this seventh grader was accused of treason against the United States, and became the subject of a major manhunt by both ultra-secret highly-trained killer librarians and the bad guys, who were not nearly as scary as the good guys.  As Steve ran for his life, learned more about quilting than any teen boy would ever want to know, and tried to solve the country's greatest criminal mystery, he began to think that the detective's life isn't so great after all.  He'll either solve the mystery himself or get himself and his dopey best friend sent to prison forever.

This a pretty good mystery, and a goofy but fast-paced thriller.  It's kind of like the old Hardy Boys books, but much more silly.  The pictures are great, and the characters are interesting, in fact I enjoyed this much more than I had expected to.  My copy has a much uglier cover, and I'm glad the publisher made a change so quickly.  If you like mysteries and detective stories, you'll probably get a kick out of this series, and have a few laughs as well.

The Conch Bearer - by Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni

Anand's father has disappeared, his little sister hasn't spoken a word in months, his mother is overworked and miserable, and he is stuck working for a nasty, cruel tea seller in his town of Kolkata, India.  When an old man appears one day and mysteriously asks Anand to leave his family behind to help transport a magical conch shell back to a distant valley to save it from an evil man with powerful harmful magic, the story really begins.  This is the tale of Anand's journey through modern India, battling dark magic and trying to stay strong in the face of powerful temptations.  It is a journey not only to save the conch, but to find out what's most important to Anand, and to help him find himself.

How could I have overlooked this book for so long? It's a beautiful story, an epic, magical tale in a medium-sized book.  Magic is central to the book, but doesn't take over the story.  Readers will love all the action and adventure, but also the chance to feel what Anand feels as he makes the most difficult decision of his life.  This book will leave you wanting more.

Children of the Lamp 1 - by P. B. Kerr

Two nice American children, Philippa and John, were just minding their business and having their wisdom teeth removed, when all of a sudden their strange English uncle visited them in a dream and tells them to come visit him right away.  It's odd enough that they had the same dream, but when they ask their parents to go, things start to get really weird.  Talk about weird, it turns out that Uncle Nimrod is a djinn, a genie descended from a famous family of genies, and has both magical powers that astound the children, and important responsibilities that frighten them.  John and Philippa end up having more in common with their uncle than they ever would have expected, and as they learn the true story of their family they must also help him to capture or destroy the leader of an enemy clan of djinn.

It's interesting stuff, and lovers of magic will enjoy this story, and the many others in the series.  If you love Egypt, genies (djinn), fantasy history, weird uncles, magic, spending lots of time in tiny little bottles, turning into a camel, or the classic stories in The Arabian Nights, then this is truly the book for you.  Note: There are at least three different covers, and the most popular one (not shown) is really cheesy, but the book is not.

Carlos is Gonna Get It - by Kevin Emerson

Have you ever been in one of those situations where you agree to do something you know you shouldn't, but you don't want to let your friends down?  That's where 7th grader Trina is when this story begins, and this tale, set in an urban middle school near Boston, follows the choices Trina makes and the consequences of those decisions.

All 7th graders are a little weird, but Carlos seems to have some pretty unique characteristics that annoy his classmates to no end.  He disrupts class, doesn't follow the rules, and seems to get away with things that noone else would ever get away with.  The catch:  It's not his fault.  When Trina and her friends decide to teach Carlos a lesson for annoying them so much, it's a pretty nasty thing to do. Will any of them have the courage to stand up for what's right?  Follow along as their friendship is tested to its very limits.

This is an interesting story in part because it's such an accurate portrayal of what kids that age really go through daily, and because it does not have the nice happy ending you'd expect.  Everyone doesn't learn their lesson, and everything doesn't turn out just fine. But that's just like real life, isn't it?

This book is also notable for the way it portrays a diverse cast of characters without making a big deal of it.  There is a strong need for more everyday cultural diversity in popular children's literature, and thiis book is a great addition to the field.

The Hunger Games series - by Suzanne Collins

When an author is this good, people take notice. Yes, I am a HUGE fan of Suzanne Collins' The Underland Chronicles, but her latest series is even better. While not an ideal series for my usual crowd (fourth graders), this mature series is perfect for teens through adults who are looking for an intoxicating new series that will capture their imagination and win their hearts. The first book is The Hunger Games, the second Catching Fire, and that's it for now.

In a fantastical future world, set in the country of Panem, which occupies the land of the United States, a cruel and controlling government rules its twelve districts with an iron fist. Each year all of the districts must provide two children to participate in the Hunger Games, a televised battle to the death. Of the 24 children selected, there can only be one survivor. Katniss is good with a bow, as she has been hunting since she was old enough to string a bow, but does she have what it takes to survive the Hunger Games? And if she does, what then?


This series brims with interesting characters, big ideas, emotional drama, action, and of course, love. There is death, romance, violence, anger, kindness, and everything else required to keep a reader on the edge of his seat until the last page, and to toss the book down and run to the bookstore, begging for the next volume in the series. Yes, it's that good.

The theme of the stories has some similarities to Margaret Peterson Haddix's The Shadow Children series, and I think readers of those books (Among the Hidden, etc.) will also fall head over heels for this series.

Read the first two books, get yourself a mockingjay pin, and join me in pacing impatiently while we wait for the next book.

Check out this Barnes and Noble page about The Hunger Games, and be sure to watch the B&N Studio VIDEO!!

City of Light, City of Dark - by Avi and Brian Floca

It turns out that the island of Manhatten in New York City was actually loaned to humans from the shape-shifting creatures called Kurbs hundreds of years ago.  As part of their agreement, the Kurbs will continue to let humans live on the island, and will provide them with heat and light, if each year a human is able to find a small item that the Kurbs hide somewhere on the island (a bus token), and return it to a secret location.  The year this story takes place, the human responsible for this is having a bit of trouble due to a nasty old man, a lying father, a curious boy, a loyal dog, and some spying birds.  Will she be able to find and return the token in time, or will the Kurbs take the island back, and allow the entire city to freeze to death?

This graphic novel is brimming with suspense, fantasy, heartbreak, and joy.  The characters are lovable and frustrating (except for the bad guy and his birds, who will get your blood boiling), the illustrations are AMAZING, and the story keeps you on the edge of your seat.   

The Calder Game - by Blue Balliett

This is my favorite story yet by this talented teacher-turned-mystery-writer.  I met her once at a Barnes and Noble author reading, and Ms. Balliett is every bit as interesting as her books suggest.

In this, the third in the Chasing Vermeer series, three children must use all of their knowledge and talent to solve the mystery of a vanished statue.  This is no ordinary statue, but a huge piece of modern art that disappeared from a charming English village one night.  There are so many clues that pop up, but which ones are the right ones to follow?  Calder Pillay thought he had the mystery solved, but then HE disappeared!  Can his friends Petra and Tommy save him and solve the mystery before it's too late?

This series is challenging for many readers, but in a good way.  Start with Chasing Vermeer, and if you like it, continue with the series, and your life will be a little bit better for having made that choice.

Crows & Cards - by Joseph Helgerson

When Zebulon Crabtree turned twelve in 1849, his parents sent him up the Mississippi River to serve as an apprentice to his uncle, who worked with animal skins as a tanner.  Along the way, Zeb got sidetracked by a professional gambler, a professor who plays violin for his pet chickens, and Indian chief and his daughter, and a host of other wild characters.  Zeb never did make it to his uncle, but the adventures he had instead make for a very exciting and interesting story.

This book is a quick-paced historical adventure, the only drawback being that it's written with kind of an old-timey voice, and today's readers won't understand some of the words used.  The author tried to fix that by adding a dictionary (glossary) to the back of the book, but I'm not sure how much that will help the average fourth grade reader.  This is such a new book (published three months ago), that I haven't talked to any kids who've read it, and I may be (as I usually am) pleasantly surprised by how they don't get bothered by language as much as I do.

Read this if you like rollicking tales of the old west, or if you want to see what happens to a boy the age of today's sixth graders who has to survive on his own in a wild city at a wild time in the wild west.  It's funny (if you get the jokes), historically accurate (with an afterward explaining everything at the end), and a book you can learn from at the same time as you enjoy yourself.  It's a book with a cool cover, a boring title, and unforgettable characters.

If you like this, you may also enjoy The Misadventures of Maude March and Gary Paulsen's Mr. Tucket stories.

Clementine - by Sara Pennypacker

What has curly red hair, a baby brother with a million vegetable nicknames, and the ability to drive her teacher, principal, and neighbors absolutely bonkers? Third grader Clementine, of course! She is a spunky little girl who lives with her parents and brother in the basement of a large city apartment building, where her dad is in charge of maintenance. Clementine tends to think a little different than most people, and things she sees as perfectly fine (coloring her friend's head and hair bright red with ultra-permanent markers) don't make as much sense to other people. While most adults would use words like inattentive and hyperactive to describe her, kids would just say funny.

This charming book is basically a collection of related short stories about Clementine, describing a week of her life. Most of the incidents are very funny, but there are some tender moments too, and everything seems to work out in the end. It is a good book for readers looking for a laugh, especially those who enjoy Judy Moody and Junie B. Jones stories.