The Evolution of Calpurnia Tate by Jacqueline Kelly

During a time when proper girls were supposed to learn how to cook and sew, Calpurnia wants to explore outside! She loves nature and she dreams of becoming a scientist one day. Calpurnia and her grandfather spent the summer by the river, conducting science experiments, and may have even found a new plant species! However, her world comes crashing down when she realizes that girls during her time aren't supposed to become scientists. Will she come to terms with her supposed fate? This historical fiction novel, set in the year 1899, is a Newberry Honor book and is on the 2012 Rebecca Caudill list.

Peak by Roland Smith

Fourteen-year-old Peak gets arrested for climbing tall buildings in New York City. After this, he is sent to live with his dad, who is a mountain climber, in Thailand. When he gets there, Peak discovers that his dad wants him to become the youngest person to climb Mount Everest. This amazing adventure story is about his climb, and the relationships he makes along the way. After reading this book, you will have a good idea of what it takes to climb very tall mountains! Peak is on the 2012 Rebecca Caudill list and is recommended for students in grades 5 and up.

Woods Runner by Gary Paulsen

This historical fiction novel is set during the Revolutionary War. Samuel (age 13), returns from hunting one day to find his village burned and his parents gone, presumably kidnapped by British soldiers and Iroquois Indians! He must use his survival and hunting skills to track down his parents and rescue them from their kidnappers. At the end of each chapter, Gary Paulsen adds facts about what it was like to live during that time. Because this book is set during the war, there are a few fighting scenes that are graphic. Recommended for grades 6 and up. Woods Runner is on the 2012 Rebecca Caudill list.

Scumble by Ingrid Law

Nine years after Mibs discovered her special talent in the book Savvy, Ledger Kale is discovering his and so far, he isn't impressed! All he seems to be able to do is break things apart. The angrier he gets, the bigger the mess he makes! When Sarah Jane Cabot, a local girl reporter, witnesses the strange events happening on Ledger's uncle's farm, She threatens to expose them all. Ledge has to learn to control or "scumble" his savvy in order to help save the farm. He soon learns that there may be more to his savvy than he originally thought. This companion novel to Savvy is an exciting and wonderful adventure and every bit as good as the first one. You'll meet new characters and catch up with old ones.

I'm Back!

Hi Everyone!

Over the past three months, I've been busy reading and reviewing books for the state's Bluestem Award for students in grades 3-5. Those of us on the reading committee, from all over the state, had to read 50 books from September through January! On January 29th, all of us met to discuss the books that we read and decide which 20 would make the final cut. We had some very interesting conversations during our meeting, but we finally selected the books for the list. You can see the list of books for 2012 here: www.islma.org/pdf/BluestemMasterList2012.pdf. Now I'm back on this blog again. I hope you will send me your book reviews to post as well (see Emily's reviews below for examples)!

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!