Paper Towns - by John Green

This is an amazing story, and it definitely earns its "Teen/Young-Adult" category label, but not for the same reason as many books in the genre.  This is the story of Quentin, a high-school senior who finally gets the chance to hang out with his dream girl, his next-door neighbor, the crazily popular, wild, and unattainable Margo, for one wild night.  From those after-dark adventures, the book follows a sort of mystery path as Quentin searches for what he can't quite find, but which he seems to have been chosen to search for.  I don't want to give anything away here, so will stop there.

It is a story of running away and other ridiculous teenage shenanigans, and is not an appropriate guide for the development of children's choices or character.  There are scenes of teen partying and allusions to more "adult" topics, but nothing too explicit here.  For any teen looking for a riveting story, this is a fantastic read, which is to be expected from this author.

We Were Liars - by E. Lockhart

This is not a book to be taken lightly.  It is a book for teens, and I would say age 12 would be a good time to read it.  That said, it was an amazing and surprising story that I could not put down.

It's all about four kids who grow up together during summer's at their families private island off the coast of Cape Cod in Massachusetts.  Rich kids, that's right.  Privileged trust-fund children of privileged trust fund mothers, and everybody is just about perfect.  They are, after all, the Sinclair family.

The only thing is, everything is not quite as perfect as it seems. The title is perfect, and hits you on different levels by the end of the book.  As you read, you begin to realize that characters are twisted in unexpected ways, and that they are all twisted together as well.  The story is told from a seventeen-year-old girl, Cadence, about her fifteen-year-old self one summer on the island, and what happened that summer remains a mystery to us, and to Cadence as well, until the very end of the book.  It is suspenseful, full of interesting bends, and a very rewarding read.

The "teen" rating reflects some thematic elements that elementary-age children just don't need to think about.  Grab a copy of this for the teen in your life, and let them know it will be one knockout of a story.

Miss Peregrine's Home For Peculiar Children - by Ransom Riggs

This is an odd book.  Just like it is when I refer to Lemony Snicket's books, that is a real compliment.

Growing up, Jacob was always in awe of his grandfather's fantastic, unbelievable stories.  The tales grew harder to believe as Jacob grew older, but when his the older man passes away and leaves him a cryptic message, the 16-year-old ends up on a far-fetched adventure to uncover the truth of his grandfather's past.  In the wild of Wales, he discovers something quite unexpected, and the story goes from there.  I mean, it REALLY goes, well beyond the expected and into some funky stuff.

This story combines unusual historical photographs with a touch of the supernatural to produce one wild, amazing story.

Son - by Lois Lowry

Not at all what I expected.  How many times have I written that, yet it's perfectly true here.  You'd think I'd learn to not expect anything, and to just go with the flow, yet when I read the back of this book, about how a mother goes searching for her son, I definitely did not to read about an adventurous, mystical quest, and an epic battle between good and evil!

This is a powerful book on many levels.  Any parent will relate to it deeply because of the strong parental themes, but any child will be swept up in the mystery and adventure of Claire's quest to regain what once was hers: Her son.  Claire was born in the futuristic and utopian/dystopian village that was the setting of The Giver and its sequels: The Messenger and Gathering Blue.  Unlike these three, this fourth and last book of the series takes its characters on long, fantastical journeys, into new and mysterious lands, and places them in harms way again and again. Although it is a fitting end to the series, you could easily read this book on its own without ever having heard of The Giver.

This is an amazing, surprising, hair-raising, emotionally touching book.  It has elements of the movie Rocky, especially the training scenes as Rocky builds strength to take on that Russian powerhouse.  At the same time, it is reminiscent of the best Harry vs. Voldemort battle scenes in the Harry Potter books.  Yes, there is adventure and action, though sometimes you have to wait for it... wait for it... though it is worth the wait.

Not at all what I expected, but so much better!

The Wednesday Wars - by Gary D. Schmidt

This book was so much more enjoyable than I expected!  I guess I shouldn't have been surprised, given how much I liked this author's writing in Lizzie Bright and the Buckminster Boy.  It's a tale of the 1960's, focusing on the life of one unlucky boy, Holling Hoodhood, a seventh-grader at Camillo Junior High.  At first we think the story is about his nasty teacher, Mrs. Baker, who tortures him each Wednesday while all the other students in his class go elsewhere for religion class.  She makes him read Shakespeare, for goodness sake!  Soon we dig deeper, the story expands, and it's a fabulous ride.

Dust-covered cream puffs, yellow leotards with feathers on the butt, escaped rats, a cranky and demanding father, and so many more mini-stories fill this book that it's almost hard to keep track.  By the end, the author has woven them all together into a coming-of-age story that speaks to that time in American history, but also to anybody who has been a teenager and lived to tell about it.

Some of the writing is at a high level:Quoting Shakespeare to make inside jokes, digging into the topic of the Vietnam War, but the author pulls it off well, and a discerning reader will have no trouble.  I'd recommend this book to 10-up, to fans of the 60's, people who like to run, and anyone who wants a surprisingly great story to enjoy.

Shiver - by Maggie Stiefvater

A werewolf and a teen girl fall in love, where have we heard this story before?  I picked this up because I wanted to see what teens are reading these days, and this one had some great reviews.  It ended up being a more fun read than I expected, with interesting characters and a slightly twisty, catchy plot. 

This is the story of Grace, a wolf-obsessed high school girl in northern Minnesota who soon discovers that there is more to the wolves in the woods behind her house than anyone guessed. That's right -  they're werewolves!  When she and one of the wolves fall for one another, the lyrical romance of two young lovers with major obstacles to their romance takes over, and it's just as sweet a story as any werewolf romance could hope to be. 

Shiver is definitely a teen book, due to the emotional and (some) physical themes and situations.  I would not recommend it to my fourth graders, but middle school girls and maybe boys will probably enjoy it.  Lovers of wolves, poetry, and old trucks will get a kick out of this new series.

The Girl Who Could Fly - by Victoria Forester

Piper McCloud is extraordinary. No, really. She can fly.  This is just some random girl on a little farm, growing up with her quiet parents, and she can fly.  Before you know it, she's causing all kinds of trouble and is spirited away to a secret school for children with special gifts like hers, and everything is wonderful for her. 

Well, not so wonderful, perhaps.  Wonderful is not when people try to suck your brain and your memory out of your head. Wonderful is not when an invisible dude keeps sneaking up on you.  Wonderful is not when someone you thought was your closest friend betrays you to your biggest enemy.  Nor when you're being slowly poisoned.  Perhaps if you want to know what's really going on in this super-secret school for children with amazing powers, you'd better read the book yourself, which I would highly recommend.  The fact is, despite its boring title, this is a wonderful story, heartwarming, shocking, adventurous and thought-provoking.  Piper will win your heart just as easily as she can soar through the clouds.

Anything but Typical - by Nora Raleigh Baskin

It's not easy being different, sometimes.  Nobody knows this better than sixth-grader Jason, who has been diagnosed with a number of fancy letters and terms, including the one that counts:  Autism.  Although this kid has some built-in problems with person-to-person communication and controlling his actions at times, it doesn't keep him from being awesome.  Jason is smart, funny, and an amazing writer.  Unfortunately, some people only see what's on the outside, and that is not good for Jason.  While lots of people make fun of him, including classmates and even his cousin (!), there are those who don't care about his differences, but appreciate him for who he is inside.

One of those people who appreciates Jason is a girl he met on a website for young writers, where he posts his fictional stories for his online friends to read.  This girl, PhoenixBird, seems to be the girl of his dreams, but when it turns out that he will actually get to MEET HER, Jason freaks.  What happens when they meet face to face?  Will Jason find a way to be cool with who he is, even when others judge him from what they see?  This book answers these questions and more in a funny, but thought-provoking manner.  It's a book that makes you reconsider what you thought you knew about those people who are, as the title suggests, anything but typical.

I'd Tell You I Love You, But Then I'd Have to Kill You - by Ally Carter

No, Mister K has not become a teen girl, even though that's the ideal audience for this book.  When I saw a fourth-grade girl reading this at lunch last week, I just had to see what it was all about, with a title like that.  It turned out to be a very enjoyable book, the first in what seems like a well-written, action-packed series of spy novels for 12-year-old girls.

Cammie is a sophomore at the Gallagher School for Exceptional Girls, which seems like an expensive prep school for smart rich girls, but is actually a top-secret spy academy, where the world's best secret agents (who all happen to be female) are trained.  Not only does Cammie speak 14 languages, know how to kill with her bare hands, and have expert disguise and camouflage techniques, but she's also got a crush on a local boy, and and this is one situation that her training did NOT prepare her for.

Like the best school stories (Harry Potter, Andrew Clements books, and so on), this one features a spunky main character who has some shortcomings that her best friends help to balance out.  The three main girls have a series of adventures in and around their school, and along the way the reader gets an excellent feel for the setting of the series, and the interesting characteristics of the main batch of characters.  It's like a mix between Harry Potter (rule-breaking kids at a boarding school full of oddball teachers) and Alex Rider (teenager turned into a dangerous and talented spy), but is much more girly than either.  Girls, you've got to check this one out.

Special thanks to Chloe, a possible Gallagher girl herself, for introducing me to this series. She serves excellent tea! (Finish the book and you'll get it too.)

The Golden Compass - by Phillip Pullman

I just realized that I've never written a review of one of my all-time favorite children's books, The Golden Compass!  This is the first in a darkly named trilogy called His Dark Materials, the meaning of which won't be entirely clear until you've finished the third book.  This is a series which has attracted controversy for the anti-religion overtones some read into it, and for its author's rebellion against the overly religious Chronicles of Narnia series.  Mister K, however, is able to read past those things, and enjoy books for their literary splendor.

This is the amazing story of Lyra, a young girl whose parents have left her in the care of the scholars at Oxford University in a slightly re-imagined historical England.  This curious and courageous heroine is kept constant company by her daemon, a small critter named Pan.  As she sets off on a course of action that includes saving her uncle's life, escaping the dreaded Gobblers, joining the mysterious Gyptians, and raiding a secret facility in the far Arctic north, Lyra encounters an incredible cast of characters.  There is a Texas balloon pilot, a frustrated but brave polar bear, a nasty lady with ties to Lyra's past, and many more curious and fascinating people and creatures.

This is a rollicking, imaginative adventure, one of the best I've ever read!  Mr. Pullman is simply brilliant.  If you're up for a challenge and want to experience an unforgettable read, this is one of my top recommendations.

Special Notes:  Skip the movie, know that the sequels get progressively stranger, and check out the audio recording of this book, which will help with your pronunciation of places and names, and which features a FULL CAST, something very unusual and wonderful indeed!

Harry, a History - by Melissa Anelli

I came across this book by accident, browsing the shelves at my local library.  When I found it, I had already read all of the Harry Potter books at least twice, and I was definitely fan.  This book, however, rekindled my fascination with and love for the Potter series, turned me on to a new branch of music (Rock out to Wizard Rock!), and gave me a new appreciation for the community-building power of literature.

Melissa Anelli runs a Harry Potter fan website, The Leaky Cauldron.  My first visit to this interesting site was after reading this book, and I was amazed at what I found.  There are a ton of Harry Potter fans who have taken their fandom FAR beyond the level of my own, which consists mainly of reading the books, talking to freinds about them, and then reading them again.  Harry Potter fandom has become a universe of its own, it seems, with communities, websites, bands, conferences, and a host of truly fanatical fans.  This book chronicles the rise of this Potter-fan universe from the very beginning, and includes captivating interviews with J.K. Rowling herself.  I thought I was well-versed in the history of the series, but this book showed me the REAL story, and it's amazing.

If you're a Potter fan of any age (perhaps teen and older, actually), pick up a copy of this memoir and rekindle your own love of the (arguably) greatest series of all time.  In the meantime, look up my new favorite band, Harry and the Potters, and get ready to rock, Wizard-Style!

Milkweed - by Jerry Spinelli

Picture a small boy with no name, no friends or family, and only the ability to steal things without getting caught.  He is a gypsy child, running and running, with nowhere to go and all alone.  Within pages, you realize that this boy is caught in the middle of Warsaw, Poland, as it is being invaded by the Nazis during World War 2 in 1940.  As the Nazis round up all the Jews in Warsaw and imprison them behind a large wall, our hero's story takes flight.  He begins to understand the world, making friends and finding a way to survive at a time when all around him are suffering horribly. 

This is a powerful story about a young boy who experiences firsthand the horror of the Holocaust.  It brings a fresh perspective on this very dark point in human history, but does so in a way that leaves the reader hopeful, as you realize that even in the darkest hour, there are those willing to fight back, and those able to keep hope alive.  Milkweed is an emotionally powerful story, and not one to read lightly.  For teens curious about the human side of the Holocaust, or simply wanting to read an unforgettable, moving story, this is the book for you.

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!!

Airborn - by Kenneth Oppel

Imagine a world in which large airships, zeppelins, sailed the skies in place of jets, carrying people and cargo around the world.   In this world, young Matt Cruise has found his dream job on the airship Aurora.  This was the ship his father had worked on, and it was Matt's destiny to follow in his father's footsteps.  Follow along as Matt has adventure after adventure, and you will begin to wish YOU could sail on the Aurora too.

At first, I loved this book because of its excellent descriptions of this alternate history, and the amazing airships.  Before long, though, I realized that this was really quite an adventurous story, and whenever I thought the story had settled down, the author threw in some more twists and turns.  It's a great book for those who love adventure stories, for those who have an interest in airships or even sea-faring ships, and for anyone who simply loves a well-written story.  This is the first in a trilogy, and it seems that the author has only gotten better after his Silverwing series.

Word Nerd - by Susin Nielsen

I first picked this up because I love Scrabble, and the cover appealed to me. (So sue me, even Mister K judges a book by its cover occasionally!)  Once I started reading, I was hooked.  This is definitely a book for older readers (TEEN section), but it really captures what it's like to be a preteen boy who's allergic to everything, has a crazily overprotective mother who can't hold a job for more than a year, living in the basement of a convicted felon's house, and playing Scrabble with professionals.  If you like that stuff, read this book.  If that sounds weird, read it anyway, and you'll probably be as impressed as I was.  Let's hope this Canadian author keeps up the good work and brings us more interesting books like this.

The Graveyard Book - by Neil Gaiman

If you've read Coraline or any of Gaiman's other books, you know this author writes spooky, weird stories.  This book, which happened to with the NEWBERY Award (impressive, to a point), is... a spooky, weird story.  It is, however, a very interesting, well-written, and worth-reading weird spooky story! 

Imagine a toddler who somehow escapes his house while his parents are being murdered, and who toddles his way to a graveyard, where the ghosts agree to raise him as their own child.  That's how the story begins, and that toddler, who the ghosts name Nobody Owens, grows up not only learning everything the ghosts, ghouls, witches, and other supernatural beings can teach him, but wanting to seek revenge for the murder of his family members.  It's an exciting, interesting story, but it's not for the faint of heart. 

The story is based on the classic book The Jungle Book, written by British author Rudyard Kipling in the late 1800's.  While that story (turned into a Disney movie, which is nowhere near as interesting as the book) focuses on a boy who is raised by jungle animals, this book, as I said, involves ghosts raising an orphan in a cemetery.  That part isn't as spooky as you'd expect, and it's a lot more interesting than any other ghost story you're likely to read.  The Graveyard Book is set in modern-day England, which adds an interesting twist for American readers.

Read this if you want to see why it won the Newbery, if you're interested in spooky, well-told tales, or if you have simply always wanted to be adopted by ghosts yourself, and to live in a centuries-old crypt in a lonely graveyard.

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.

Mariel of Redwall - by Brian Jacques

An evil rat king, a brave mouse maiden, a powerful badger leader, four daring hares, and more squirrels and moles than you can keep track of. That's what this book has to offer, as well as wild storms at sea, bloody fights, daring rescues, and much more adventure than you would ever hope for. If you love long, challenging books full of adventure and amazing characters, you've found your next book!

If you have never read one of Brian Jacques' Redwall books, you are really missing out. It is truly one of the best series I have ever read, and you can read any of the 19 books in any order you like. The characters are woodland animals in a place very much like England, but hundreds of years ago, before electricity or modern technology. The animals seem just like people, but they have all of the characteristics of their species too. It's hard to explain, so take a peek at the author's website at www.redwall.org to learn more about the series.

The books are difficult for normal fourth grade readers, but I recommend checking out the audio book versions, which are read by a cast of actors and actresses, including the author himself as narrator. (That's how I read this one myself, to be honest, and it was better than reading it myself!)

The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian

In this amazing, mature-audiences-only story of one boy's growing up, author Sherman Alexie pulls the reader into the life of a smart, brave, troubled boy, Junior, a Spokane Indian. Junior wants to make something of his life, and gets his parents to enroll him in the all-white high school in the farm town down the road, where he can start fresh, and have more opportunities. The problem is that he doesn't end up fitting in anywhere he turns. On the reservation, they hate him for leaving, and in his new school, though he is accepted, he never really feels like he fits in or belongs.

This story is not one to be taken lightly. Based on the author's own experiences, this book explores some difficult issues of race, the problems facing Native Americans on reservations, feelings of exclusion and loss, and death. It is a story that will stay in your head well after you have finished reading it, long after your tears have dried. I would not recommend this book for elementary school students in general, though some could surely appreciate and understand the story. Some parts are a bit vulgar, though in a way most boys will understand and appreciate more than their mothers would like. It's billed as a Teen book, but adults will appreciate it too.

One of the coolest things about this book is the way it is illustrated. The illustrator, Ellen Forney, filled the book with cartoons that were supposedly drawn by Junior as he told his story. The drawings help to tell the story, bring it alive, and make you laugh your head off.