The Magician by Michael Scott

This great review is from 8th grader Emily M. "This is the sequel to The Alchemyst. Like the first book, Nick Fleming or Nicholas Flamel as he tells the twins his and Perry's real names, is certain that these are indeed the twins of legend. So he travels to the shadow realm of an ancient Elder to have them awakened. Sophie is the first to be awakened and Josh is jealous because the elder died before she could awaken him. But he is also afraid that Sophie won't wake up. Meanwhile, Dee has trapped the Sorceress on an island and has left a sphinx to feed off her aura. Check out this book because I promise it will be a fun read." Thank you, Emily!

The Alchemyst by Michael Scott

This review comes from 8th grader Emily M. "When I first started reading the book I thought it was pretty good. After a couple more chapters, I was thinking WOW this is a great book. The Alchemyst is about twins Sophie and Josh Newman that are believed to be the twins of legend. So Nick and Perry Fleming tried to investigate more about them. Meanwhile a Magician named Doctor John Dee is trying to bring back the dark elders. In order to do this he needs two things: a) the Codex, and b) the twins of the prophecy. To find out the whole story check out this magic filled book in your library." The Alchemyst is on the Rebecca Caudill list. Thanks, Emily!

Sophie Simon Solves Them All by Lisa Graff

Eight-year-old Sophie is a genius! She's reading college level text books and she especially loves math. When her parents won't buy her a new graphing calculator because it isn't what "normal" kids her age play with, Sophie must find a way to get $100 to buy it on her own. She soon figures out that friends can be helpful, but can they help enough? This is the book that Lisa Graff read from when she visited Harrison last year!

touchblue by Cynthia Lord

This book by author Cynthia Lord (author of Rules) is a novel about good luck, bad luck and fate.Tess and her family live on a small island off the coast of Maine. When the state threatens to close down their only school due to low enrollment, Tess is devastated because their family will then have to move off of the island. The islanders hatch a plan to save their school by becoming foster families to children who need families. However, things don't go as planned when Aaron arrives and is less than happy about being there. Will their plan to save the school work? Can Tess help Aaron accept his fate, or will Aaron run away?

Theodore Boone Kid Lawyer by John Grisham

This is John Grisham's first murder mystery for kids! Thirteen-year-old Theo dreams of becoming an exciting lawyer or a prestigious judge someday. He loves to hang out at the courthouse and he's already learned quite a lot about law, which he occasionally uses to help his friends and teachers with their small problems. When a murder trial begins (which is rare in his small town), Theo is especially interested. However, Theo soon becomes more involved than he wanted when he learns that there really was a witness to the murder! Unfortunately, telling this information could mean trouble for the witness, but not telling could mean that a guilty man walks free. This is an exciting, suspenseful book and more are sure to follow!

The Great Wide Sea by M.H. Herlong

After fifteen-year-old Ben's mom dies, his grieving dad packs up the family, sells the house, and buys a boat to live aboard for a year, which Ben is not happy about! This adventure story really becomes gripping when one day, Ben wakes up to find his dad missing from the boat! Ben and his two younger brothers must survive a raging storm at sea and eventually become stranded on an island where they must learn to live on their own. Fans of Gary Paulson's survival/adventure stories will enjoy this new book! The Great Wide Sea is on the 2011 Rebecca Caudill list.

The Mailbox by Audrey Shafer

When twelve-year-old Gabe gets home after his first day of sixth grade, he finds his Uncle Vernon has passed away in the house that they share together. Afraid that he might be sent back into foster care, Gabe doesn't tell anyone. When he gets home from school the next day, he finds his uncle's body has been taken, a new pet dog waiting for him, and a note that says "Do not be afraid". When the authorities eventually find out, Gabe ends up learning a lot about his uncle's past and he finds out that he is not alone. The Mailbox is a 2011 Rebecca Caudill book.

All Shook Up by Shelley Pearsall

Have your parents ever done something that embarrasses you? If so, then you can relate to 13-year-old Josh! When Josh's mom has to go to Florida to take care of his grandmother, Josh is sent to live with his dad in Chicago. Soon after arriving, Josh learns that his dad has been working as an Elvis impersonator and he tries everything he can to keep it a secret. When his dad is invited to perform at Josh's school, Josh does everything he can to prevent it with surprising results! All Shook Up is a 2011 Rebecca Caudill book.

Savvy by Ingrid Law

If you could have a special power, what would it be? Everyone in Mibs family has a savvy (her grandfather can move mountains and her older brothers can create hurricanes and spark electricity) and Mibs hopes hers will be to awaken people. Two days before her thirteenth birthday, when her savvy is going to be revealed, Mibs finds out that her father has been severely injured in a car accident. Mibs thinks she that if she can just get to her dad in the hospital, she might be the one who can wake him up and make him better. However, getting to the hospital proves tougher than she thought, and her savvy might not be what she expected. Savvy is a 2011 Rebecca Caudill book.

Scat by Carl Hiassen

When Nick's teacher disappears on a field trip to Black Vine Swamp, Nick and his friend, Marta, decide to investigate what happened to her. Meanwhile, classmate Duane (AKA "Smoke") is blamed for a suspicious fire that was started in the swamp that he insists he didn't set. The kids soon realize that something strange is going on that could threaten the swamp and the endangered animals that live there. This is a great mystery story! Similar to Flush and Hoot, Hiaasen's latest book is also set in Florida with a strong endangered species/environmental theme. Scat is on the 2011 Rebecca Caudill list.

The Red Pyramid by Rick Riordan

Riordan's first book in his new series, The Red Pyramid, is filled with adventure, battle, quests, and gods/goddesses of Ancient Egypt. The father of brother and sister, Carter and Sadie, is missing! The siblings are on a quest to save him, and defeat the evil god named Set, before time runs out and chaos rules the world. Carter and Sadie learn that their family is no ordinary family and that they have powers they didn't even know about! Fans of Percy Jackson and the Olympians will not be disappointed by Riordan's latest book!

The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman

While on my vacation to Yellowstone National Park, I read The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman (author of Coraline). This book is about a young boy whose family is killed. He is "taken in" by the graveyard that he wanders into and is raised by the various ghosts and creatures that live there. His new graveyard family protect him and teach him until he becomes a teenager and finally meets his family's killer. Fans of Coraline will enjoy this Newberry award-winning book by Gaiman. This book is sometimes creepy and a little scary and is intended for ages 10 and up.

Found (The Missing, book 1) by Margaret Peterson Haddix

I just returned home from an 11 day road trip to Yellowstone National Park in Wyoming! During the trip, we listened to the book Found by Margaret Peterson Haddix (author of The Shadow Children series). This first book in Haddix's new series starts out with a mysterious plane landing at an airport with only babies on board (36 babies!). The book then fast forwards 14 years to the lives of two teenage boys who are adopted and begin receiving mysterious letters. The boys start to investigate and find out some shocking answers about their past! This is sure to be an interesting new series! Found is on the 2011 Rebecca Caudill list.

Three Cups of Tea by Greg Mortenson & David Oliver Relin

I just finished reading Three Cups of Tea and it was very interesting! This is a true story of an ordinary man, named Greg, who raises money and travels to Pakistan and Afghanistan to build schools in villages that have no schools. It's amazing the difference that one person can have in this world. This story moves quickly and even has some action in it! I found it to be very motivational. This book is on our 5-6th grade BOB list.

Mrs. Anderson's Book Blog

This is Harrison's book blog. Visit this site to read about what I'm reading. Students, with your parent's permission, e-mail me reviews of the books you've read and I might post them here! I'd love to hear from you! danderson@hsd36.org