Wednesday 30 December 2020

When You Trap a Tiger

 

When You Trap a Tiger
By Tae Keller

"Long, long ago, when tiger walked like man..."

The summer before grade 7, Lily, her sister, and her widowed mother move in to take care of their elderly grandmother, Halmoni. We first meet the family on their drive up from California to Washington State when Lily sees a tiger in the middle of the road and talks to it. Soon bedtime stories swirl with reality as Lily wonders what is true and what is false. Trapping and striking a deal with this tiger, she agrees to find the story jars, open them, and (this is the hardest part) listen to their stories. Thinking by doing so, Halmoni will be healed, Lily listens to these stories fueled by Korean folklore. Ages 10-14.

Newbery Award Winner.


Wednesday 23 December 2020

When Stars Are Scattered

When Stars Are Scattered
By Victoria Jamieson and Omar Hassan

When Stars Are Scattered is a warm and welcoming graphic novel that introduces us to two brothers, Omar and Hassan, who are from Somalia but staying in a Kenyan refugee camp after their father dies in the Somalian Civil War and they are separated from their mother. This is based on a real-life story that the author, Victoria Jamieson, wrote after collaborating with one of the brothers, Omar. Omar is the one who takes care of his younger brother because Hassan has special needs, and their story continues on for years in this novel until Omar is nearly an adult. Through Omar’s narration, we find out how traumatic their lives have been, and how he wants to have hope for the future, enough for both brothers. Ages 9-12.

Friday 18 December 2020

The Longest Night of Charlie Noon

https://secure.syndetics.com/index.aspx?isbn=9780593173084/MC.GIF&client=richplvtls&type=xw12&oclc=
The Longest Night of Charlie Noon

By Christopher Edge


Charlie Noon has one friend at her new school in rural England.  Dizzy is a bit of a scatterbrain, but nonetheless, he is kind to Charlie.  When Dizzy finds some coded messages made of sticks in a clearing in the woods, he enlists Charlie’s help to come and decode them.  Neither of them tell their parents where they are going, but they plan to be back before anyone notices that they’re gone.

Before they set off, mean Johnny Baines warns them that Old Crony, a terrifying old man who eats children, lives in the woods.  But Charlie and Dizzy are undeterred.  When Johnny plays a trick on them, all three of them end up lost.

As night falls, Charlie, Dizzy and Johnny know they must find their way out, but nothing is as it seems.  Bird calls begin to sound like Morse code, the stars in the sky have changed, and Charlie can’t even see the lights of the village when she climbs a tree.  And there’s a strange presence in the woods – but is it really Old Crony?  Or something else?

The Longest Night of Charlie Noon is more than a survival story.  Author Christopher Edge combines World War I history with time travel to create something very unique.  The end of the book even introduces kids to the science behind the story.  If you want to try reading something a little different, try this book!

Monday 14 December 2020

A Field Guide to Getting Lost

https://secure.syndetics.com/index.aspx?isbn=9781534438491/MC.GIF&client=richplvtls&type=xw12&oclc=
A Field Guide to Getting Lost

By Joy McCullough

Sutton is almost ten years old and is very scientifically minded.  She spends her days programming robots to navigate a maze she has created.   She has inherited her scientific skills from her mom who is currently living in Antarctica studying penguins.  Sutton’s parents are divorced, so she lives with her dad, but she is really hoping her mom can be back in time for her birthday.

Luis is interested in creative writing, fantasy and superheroes.  He’s also extremely allergic to peanuts and bee stings, amongst other things.  His dad passed away when he was little, so it’s just Luis and his mom in their cute little house in a Seattle suburb.

Sutton and Luis don’t have much in common, but they are going to have to learn to get along because their parents are dating. When Sutton’s dad and Luis’s mom decide to take them on a “family date”, both kids are dismayed to learn that they will be going on a hike.

The trail at Discovery Park is new to them and soon both kids discover a “tunnel” that leads through some bushes.  Sutton and Luis enter the tunnel, asking their parents to meet them on the other side.  But the tunnel takes some unexpected twists and turns and before long, these two unlikely companions realize that they are lost.

Without their parents, both kids know that they will have to rely on themselves.  Luis is terrified of possible bee encounters and Sutton isn’t too keen on crossing some of the park’s bridges.  Can these two figure out how to work together to find their way back to the parking lot?

A Field Guide to Getting Lost is a lovely story about learning to adapt to the changes in our lives.  It will especially appeal to children who have lost a parent or whose parents are separated or divorced.

Thursday 10 December 2020

Three Keys

Three Keys
Three Keys

By Kelly Yang

Mia Tang returns in this follow-up book to the amazing Front Desk.  This time, Mia and her parents, along with some of their friends, are the owners of the Calivista Motel in Los Angeles.  While they are always willing to welcome immigrants to their motel, there is a growing anger in many Californians toward undocumented immigrants.

A hot topic of discussion in Mia’s grade six class is Proposition 187, a bill designed to make life much more difficult for “illegals”.  If Prop 187 gets passed into law, undocumented immigrant children will no longer be allowed to attend school.

Mia is outraged by this idea, but the effects of Prop 187 really hit home when she learns that she actually knows many undocumented immigrants, some of whom are among her best friends.  When one of them gets put in jail, Mia and her friends get to work to try to keep him from getting deported.

Three Keys also tackles other issues faced by immigrants, such as the loss of their culture and the difficulties they have finding good jobs in the United States.  Mia’s mom, for example, was an engineer in China, but in the U.S. she must clean motel rooms.

This is another fantastic book by Kelly Yang.  Although it takes place in the early 1990s, the issues of discrimination and racism continue to resonate today.  Three Keys will also have readers cheering for Mia and her friends – even though they are kids they are willing to take on the fight against racism.  A highly enjoyable read!

Friday 4 December 2020

Out Of This World

Out of This World
Out Of This World

By Chris Wooding

Jack is just an ordinary twelve-year-old kid.  His parents, however, are anything but ordinary.  Jack’s dad is always putting him through grueling assault courses where Jack must fend off hidden attackers.  His mom is always testing him on science and math concepts.  Neither of Jack’s parents ever seem to sleep and both of them always wear black tracksuits.

Jack has moved many times in his life so he doesn’t have any close friends.  When he starts attending yet another new school, Jack is befriended by Thomas, an out-of-shape nerdy kid who is forever sucking on his inhaler. 

One afternoon, Thomas drops by Jack’s house unannounced.  As he begins to explore, he discovers some rather strange machines hidden in the attic.  When Thomas presses a button, he releases a beam of light that changes both their lives forever.

Before Jack realizes what’s happening, some very aggressive aliens appear and they have one target: Jack.  As he runs from them he begins to understand why his parents have been testing him his whole life.  The aliens believe that Jack is someone called Gradius Clench – some want him dead, and others are willing to take him alive.  Soon Jack is caught up in an interstellar war complete with spies, mind-readers, flame-throwers and gates that transport ships between galaxies.  Jack and Thomas are whisked away with some very unlikely new friends.

But who is Jack really?  Jack himself longs to find out.  As he learns more about his parents, Gradius Clench, and the rest of the universe, Jack must make some important decisions about his life.  But can he also help save Earth from certain destruction?

Author Chris Wooding makes science fiction fun.  Those who like space aliens and superheroes will love Out Of This World!