This is a lovely picture book by Jackie Mims Hopkins, illustrated by John Manders. Just like the original story, Goldie goes into the bears’ house, but instead of porridge, she finds books. This book allows the librarian to teach the five finger rule as well as how books should be treated and put on the shelves. I enjoyed reading this book to my Kinder, Pre-kinder and Senior students. Yes I said Seniors. They were surprised by the ending which made the book more fun for all of us.
« The Hunger Games
I must say that when my daughter told me about this book by Suzanne Collins, I did not want to read it. I thought that the whole idea of having children killing children was very barbaric. Why did I change my mind. Well that’s easy; I had a student patron come in and tell me that I needed to read this book. He then took his book, put his name in it and told me I could borrow his. How could I say no? I read it cover to cover. It was a very good book. It reminded me of 1984 by George Orwell. I am still not pleased with the fact that children kill other children, but I feel the author really made me empathize with Katnis’s situation. I found that I could not put the book down and even went on to read Catching Fire . Although my daughter has read all three, and has disclosed what happens at the end of the third, I can’t wait to read it. I will be forever grateful to that student for sharing his book with me. 
Goldie Socks and the Three Libearians »« LIBRARY LIL
This book, by Suzanne Williams, has pictures that are very vivid and vibrant. This story was very inspiring for me as a librarian. It is a story about a librarian who loved books since she was a child. She grew up and became the town librarian, but no one went to the library. Needless to say she had her work cut out for her as she competes with television. Sound familiar? Yes, that is how I feel sometimes, but that’s OK, because I know that I work hard to bring patrons into my library just like Lill. No, maybe I don’t push a book mobile in a storm to get books to everyone, but I do my best. See what else Lill has to do to get people to come to her library. It is worth reading.
The Hunger Games »« Brendan Buckley’s Universe And Everything In It
This book by Sundee T. Frazier is a wonderful example of the innocence of a child and the ignorance of some adults. I don’t know why it caught my attention as I was putting away the books in the library, but I opened it up, and I was hooked. The story starts with a boy thinking about finishing his chores on the first Sunday of summer break and what he was going to do next when I got to these sentences: ” ‘From dust we come and to dust we shall return.’ And then I started looking more closely at the gray particles I was picking up with my dust rag, and I thought, What is this stuff anyway?” When I got to this sentence, I knew I was going to finish this book. I liked the way this character went from a sad subject, the death of his grandfather, to “What is this stuff anyway?” I didn’t expect it to deal with a racially mixed family. It was interesting to see, however, how the adults in this story deal with Brendan and his questions, and how Brendan deals with getting the answers to these questions even when no one wants to give him the answers. I liked how Brendan uses science to find his answers and to teach his grandfather a lesson about being part of a racially mixed family. I think that this story should be read by everyone because it teaches us that we are all the same. We are humans beings!
LIBRARY LIL »« Shakespeare bats cleanup
I had always wanted to read this book. I wasn’t expecting a story written in prose, especially when it has a baseball player on the cover (at least my book does) but that was what I found. It is about a boy who plays baseball, but due to an illness mono, he is bedridden. His father who is a writer gives him a journal that he begins to use to write poems. I have to say that I learned and relearned many rules about the different types of poems through this book. Although this book is written in poetry, I enjoyed how it is still a story with substance. It is funny on one page, sensitive the next, and teaching about poems through the eyes of a student on the next. I have to say that sometimes it is easier to understand when a fellow student explains something than when a teacher does, and that is what happens here. The author creates a wonderful story that we see through the eyes of the main character. We see him go from the best player on the team to one of the worst due to his illness, but by the time he is playing again, he is more interested in writing. I enjoyed this book a great deal. I can see myself revisiting this book again and again.
Brendan Buckley’s Universe And Everything In It »« Wuthering Heights
I have to say that I had never read this story by Emily Bronte, so when I saw this version from the Real Reads series I had to read it. I have to say that it was retold very well. Although I have never read the original, this version was still able to share the plot of the story well. It was interesting to read, and it shared the characters personality well. I also liked that it included a section called Filling in the Spaces where some of the points that had to be cut were explained in order to “fill in the gaps.” I recommend this book to my younger patrons, and I hope that it will inspire them to read the original. As for me, I find myself stuck. The story seems so tragic to me that I don’t know if I will ever read the original even though I am very curious about it. Only time will tell.
Shakespeare bats cleanup »« Bus 99
I was curious about this thin book by Teri Thomas when it got turned in to the library. It is part of a series of quickreads. I have to say that I enjoyed the adventure of a boy who is transported to a different world where the accident that changed his life never happened. I liked that it was a quick read, and that the story had a great deal of detail which allowed me to visualize what was happening. It was so well written that I was able to, in a short time, empathize with the character as he went through this adventure. I recommend this book to everyone.
Wuthering Heights »« Stuck On Earth
This is a novel about an alien who inhabits the body of a 14year old boy. The purpose of this is to determine if Earthlings should keep the Earth or be destroyed to allow another alien race to inhabit the planet. The major problem is that the boy that was chosen happens to be an outsider, ostracized and bullied by his classmates. I like science fiction as a rule, but I had a little trouble following some of the science terms used which took away from the story. Over all, it was interesting how the author sets up the story so that at one point the reader knows there is an alien, but half way through you start to wonder if this is just in the boys head. I liked this story even though it deals with bullying, and family problems; it shows how truly mean people can be to each other.
Bus 99 »« The Last Summer of the Death Warriors
Who thinks of death when you are young and full of energy? The answer might be someone who is not young, or healthy or full of energy. This story deals with a young man, Pancho, who has had to deal with death when he loses his father to a job related accident and then his sister. Because he is still a minor, he is placed in an orphanage where he is partnered with D.Q. a boy who is fighting cancer. This is a powerful story that brings up the idea of treatments that make you feel worse. D. Q. questions the idea of extending his life, but at what cost? Is it worth living a little longer if that extra time is spent, “puking your guts out”? While D. Q. goes through his situation, he writes what he calls the “Death Warriors Manifesto.” He is working to make Pancho a Death Warrior. Pancho is working at finding the man that was with his sister when she died. I have to say that I had some trouble getting through this book. It is not the kind of story that I usually like to read for pleasure. Even though the story is written at the fourth grade level, the message and the situations that both these boys go through are thought provoking. What would I do if I were in D. Q.’s or Pancho’s situation? God only knows, but I hope that I would be able to do it with the same grace, strength, and faith that these boys show in this story.
Stuck On Earth »« House of Night Novels
If you like stories about vampires, you will like these novels. I listened to Betrayed, and Chosen through a Playaway. They were narrated by Edwin Wren who did a great job of bring the story to life. I have always enjoyed this type of genre. I have to say that while this story is different in that vampire or vampyre fledglings go to a prep school called the House of Night, and yes school is held at night, these students aren’t created as they are in other more traditional novels. Also, these students are given some powers that can be considered magical yet totally natural. Zoey, the main character, has an “affinity for all five elements” which is so rare, it has never happened before. While some of the old characteristics are still in play, the new stuff makes for an interesting story. Besides having to deal with all the new vampire stuff, Zoey needs to deal with being a teen. Wow, like being a vampyre wasn’t hard enough. I recommend this story for young adults because of some adult language and situations present in the story. Although I am recommending this story for young adults, I can see junior high students wanting to read these stories especially if they are fans of the Twilight Series.
The Last Summer of the Death Warriors »« Froggy Goes to School
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