Floors by Patrick Carman (September, Scholastic hc, $16.99) 
is the first book in a fun new series. Merganzer Whippet has been missing for precisely 100 days from The Whippet Hotel, New York’s most exclusive and eccentric hotel. On this day Leo Fillmore’s life takes an unexpected turn when he finds a box in the duck elevator (yes actual mallards, for life is better when there is a duck around), transforming him from a simple maintenance boy (he helps his dad maintain all the VERY unique features of the hotel; from the cupcake room, to the duck pond on the roof) into an adventurer. He has only four days to uncover the secrets his home holds; if he doesn’t, The Whippet will be sold to a developer and destroyed.
This is a really fun book, while it does remind me a bit of Willy Wonka, it does so only in the most general of ways. I really enjoyed reading it and look forward to where the series will take me next. The story and charters are engaging and multidimensional which is a great find in a kid's book. This is a great book for a boy (or an open-minded girl) between the ages of 9-12. (It is too new to have the AR points yet, I will update this when they do!)
Vanished by Sheela Chari (August, Hyperion hc, $16.99). 
A veena is a traditional Indian string instrument, used to play classical Indian music. The strings are plucked and pressure applied to the frets in order to change the notes when playing. It is part of the lute family of instruments.
Neela dreams of becoming a famous musician when she grows up. Playing for her audience on her special veena, the one her grandmother passed down to her--- the one with the dragon carved on it. This dream comes crashing down when her veena vanishes from a church Neela ducks into to escape a sudden storm. Neela becomes obsessed with finding her missing veena, following the clues, receiving a threatening note and discovering a curse. All of which lead her back to India and the store where her grandmother bought the veena originally.
This is an engaging mystery I enjoyed reading. It uses tools of investigation available to kids in believable ways, which is great to read. I also enjoyed the multicultural taste of the book, the author does a good job of adding both American and Indian cultures in a way which avoids stereotypes. As well as avoiding becoming heavy handed with the multicultural theme of the book.
I would recommend this book for girls (or open minded boy---there is a boy in this book, however it is told exclusively from Neela’s point of view), from ages 9-12 (It is too new to have the AR points yet, I will update this when they do!).
Gilda Joyce-- Psychic Investigator by Jennifer Allison (Puffin, $7.99). 
Gilda Joyce is trying to learn how to become a psychic from her handbook The Master Psychic’s Handbook: A Guide to Psychic Principles and Methods by Balthazar Frobenius. When Gilda believes she gets a psychic vibration that her cousin (to whom she has never spoken to or seen and her mother barely knows) needs her, she invites herself to stay with them, in San Francisco, for the summer to try and get to the bottom of the mystery she uncovers upon arriving!
This is a really funny and touching story. Dealing with loss and grief in very constructive and non-gloomy way which furthers the story and adds to it without ever becoming distracting. The humor made me laugh out loud several times, Gilda is an over-the-top teen who uses creative ways to find the truth of things. This is a really great book I would highly recommend this series. The second book in the series, Gilda Joyce : The Ladies of the Lake was nominated for an Edgar Award in 2007! Gilda has a new adventure, The Bones of the Holy (Dutton hc, $16.99), released in June!
I would recommend this series for girls 9-14. This book is worth 10 AR points (the rest of the series varies from 10-12 AR points)
Benjamin Pratt & The Keepers of the School: We The Children by Andrew Clements (Athenaeum, $5.99). On the way to class Benjamin stops to help the school janitor who has broken his ankle, before the paramedics arrive he lets Benjamin in on a secret….. Hidden somewhere in the school is the information needed to stop real estate developers from bulldozing the school and erecting an amusement park. Because the school belongs to the children for them to learn and laugh, not for nefarious politicians to sell…. Little does Benjamin know this discovery is only the beginning of the adventure!
This is a really fun story filled with action and intrigue which draws the reader in. I enjoyed reading it, as well as the pen and ink drawing which are uniquely placed throughout the text (they add and expand the story rather than being distracting as some illustrations can be). It does also impart information about sailing as well, without becoming too technical (or gasp, make it seem like you might learn something!). This story doesn’t ever drag or seem cliché, which is a great feature in a kid's book!
I would recommend this for a boy (or an open-minded girl, Ben has a great female character he confides in, and helps him. However the story is told exclusively from Ben’s point of view), from ages 7-11. It is worth 3 AR points. The new installment to this series is out! Fear Itself (Athenaeum hc, $14.99).
Haunting Violet by Alyxandra Harvey (Walker hc, $16.99). 
Violet lives in London in the year 1865 with her mother and two childhood friends. Her mother is a Spiritualist by trade and is all the rage in London. However Violet is conflicted about this fame, since it often means duping those in grief…… since her mother’s is a fraud. Violet’s mother manages to land an important engagement at an Earl’s estate, one which could open doors to much more important members of society. Everything is going according to plan, until Violet starts seeing real ghost…. One in particular, a sixteen year old girl, who won’t leave her alone until Violet solves her murder.
I could not put this book down! It is a novel placed in history, which slyly slides in real issues of the day which correlate to many of today’s issues without diminishing the story a bit. I found it had far more substance than a good portion of the teen novels I have read recently for work. I cannot wait to see if a sequel to this novel is published!
I would highly recommend this book for a girl (since it is told exclusively from Violet's point of view) from ages 13-18. It would make a good cozy read for an adult as well who likes historical novels. (It is too new to have the AR points yet, I will update this when they do!)
Ruby Red by Kerstin Gier (Henry Holt hc, $16.99). Sixteen-year-old Gwen lives with her extended and eccentric family in an exclusive London neighborhood. In spite of her family's peculiar history she'd had a relatively normal life so far. The time traveling gene which winds it way though the female line of her family is supposed to have skipped over her generation. So she is stunned when she starts taking leaps into the past. Gwen is totally unprepared for time travel, the fancy clothes, a mysterious secret society, and Gideon, an obnoxious know-it-all and of course a guy.....
This is one of the few time travel books which has both a believable (as far as time travel goes) premise for the traveling as well as one of the best beginnings of a series I have read in a while. The book has a complete plot in and of itself, as well doing a great job in setting up plot lines for the rest of the series. I really enjoyed reading it!
I would recommend this book for girls between 12 and 17. (It is too new to have the AR points yet, I will update this when they do!)
Recent Comments