Real Sisters Pretend

 

Title: Real Sisters Pretend

Author: Megan Dowd Lambert

Series: N/A

Recommended for: 4-8 yrs old, K-5

Pages: 32

Call Number/Link:  E Lambert, M.

Synopsis: This warm, engaging story, which unfolds entirely through the conversation of two adopted sisters, was inspired by the author’s own daughters, whom she overheard talking about how adoption made them “real sisters” even though they have different birth parents and do not look alike. I like how this shows the different type of parenting families that exist and that the sisters are from different cultures as well.  A great read aloud in a classroom or for a family to read together.

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Crash! The Cat

Title:   Crash!  The Cat
Author:   David McPhail
Series:   —
Recommended for:  Preschoolers, toddlers, babies
Pages:   32 p.
Call Number/Link:   E MCPHAIL, D.

Rating:   ***

 

Synopsis:

“The family cat destroys everything in his path, and the two girls who love him worry that he may be sick or blind in this story of unconditional pet love”– Provided by publisher.

Comments:

Really cute book!  It has minimal text and expressive illustrations.  It would be a good choice for  Toddler Time, Lapsit and as a shorter selection for Preschool Storytime.

Could be used for these storytime themes:  cats, messes, sisters, pets, family life

 

 

 

The Season

 

Title: The Season
Author: Jonah Lisa Dyer and Stephen Dyer
Series: n/a
Recommended for: 8th grade and up
Pages: 344
Call Number/Link:  Teen Fiction Dyer, J. 

Synopsis:     “When her mother enters her and her twin sister as debutantes for this year’s deb season in Dallas, soccer star Megan McKnight is furious. She has no interest the dress-filled life of a socialite deb, but her season turns out to be one full of twists and turns – and more than one dashing suitor!”–  

I really liked this book, it was fun, full of exciting events and you would never have guessed the ending.  A fun read for upper middle school, high school and college.  Previous readers have said is related it to pride and prejudice meets tomboy and the texas tradition.

 

Ghosts

Title: Ghosts
Author: Raina Telgemeier

Series: N/A Expected Publish Date September 13, 2016
Recommended for: 8th – 12th grade
Pages: 256
Call Number/Link:  GN TEEN

 

 

 

 

Synopsis: Catrina and her family are moving to the coast of Northern California because her little sister, Maya, is sick. Cat isn’t happy about leaving her friends for Bahía de la Luna, but Maya has cystic fibrosis and will benefit from the cool, salty air that blows in from the sea. As the girls explore their new home, a neighbor lets them in on a secret: There are ghosts in Bahía de la Luna. Maya is determined to meet one, but Cat wants nothing to do with them. As the time of year when ghosts reunite with their loved ones approaches, Cat must figure out how to put aside her fears for her sister’s sake — and her own.

Opinion:  I was asked to review an ARC copy of this book for my library.  I thought it was quite good.  Nice to see that there is going to be an interesting graphic book about Dia de los muertos.  This book is well written and respectful of the topic. I really liked the ways in which they explained the spirits though the ending is a bit different.  A must read if wanting to know more about the topic but definately meets a fans expectation of great visual quality at the level of a teen. I would recommend for middle and high school readers.

 

100 Days of Cake

Title:    100 Days of Cake
Author:   Shari Goldhagen
Series:  —
Recommended for:  teen girls who like sad books and aren’t picky readers
Pages:   339 p.
Call Number/Link:   Teen Fiction Goldhagen, S.

Rating:  *

 

 

 

 

Synopsis:

“Molly suffers from depression, and when she finds out that the exotic fish store she works at is closing down, her whole life, which is already hanging on a thread, starts to crumble”– Provided by publisher.

Comments:

The title immediately grabbed me.  100 days of cake?  What a wondrous idea!!!!

Spoiler alert:  it’s not really about cake.  deep sigh.

It is the summer before her senior year of high school, and Molly is battling a severe case of depression.  It is not a new development in her life.  Molly is on antidepressant medication and sees a counselor once a week, but she continues to struggle.  It doesn’t help that she has a crush on her counselor, or that he makes a pass at her.

Molly’s mother was feeling a bit desperate when she heard the idea that baking a cake per day for 100 days could lead to happiness.  She decided it was worth a try.

Molly’s best bud at work (another high school student) is interested in Molly, but she is too scared to date him.  She thinks he’ll be disappointed when he finds out that she’s not super cheerful and fun.  (He already knows, but likes her anyway.)

Had to force myself to finish the book.  I can usually read quickly, but plodded through this one.

 

 

The Lost Twin

Title:The Lost Twin

Author: Sophie Cleverly

Series:Scarlet and Ivy

Pages: 290 pages

Recommended for: 3rd – 6th Grade

Synopsis:After her troublemaking twin, Scarlet, vanishes from Rookwood Boarding School, shy Ivy tries to track her down, using pieces of Scarlet’s journal carefully hidden all over the school for Ivy to find.

Ivy is invited to go to Rookwood Boarding School to take her twin sisters spot at the school.  Ivy doesn’t want to go, but isn’t given a choice.  Once, she gets their the headmistress tells her she has to pretend that she is Scarlet. Ivy knows something is up, but not sure what to do.  She stumbles pieces of her sisters diary and starts to piece together what happened.

This is set in the 1930, but really the only thing that sticks out as different from modern times is that corporal punishment is still allowed.  It is an interesting story and I would read the next in the series, but it was not a book I couldn’t put down. It is even paced and well written.  I like that Ivy is a strong main character, even thought she doesn’t thing she really is.

 

 

Paris for Two

Title:    Paris for Two
Author:   Phoebe Stone
Series:  —
Recommended for:  tween girls
Pages:   257 p.
Call Number/Link:   J Fiction Stone, P.

Rating:  ***

 

 

 

 

Synopsis:

Twelve-year-old Petunia is used to living in the shadow of her fourteen-year-old half-sister, Ava, their mother’s favorite.  Now that the whole family has moved to Paris for a year, Pet finds herself stepping into the light, making new friends, uncovering secrets, and, inspired by the classic French dolls she has found, revealing an unexpected talent for designing dresses–and her beautiful sister does not take it well.

Comments:

I was curious when I saw a book titled Paris for Two in the juvenile fiction collection.  Between the title and the cover, my first guess was that it would be a romance.  For kids who read juvenile fiction?  Yikes!

Happily, I was wrong.  The book was about Petunia’s experiences in Paris.- dealing with her family, making new friends and time spent designing/sewing dresses.  It is an understatement to say that Petunia and her sister weren’t close at the beginning of the book.  I was so bothered by the way the mother and older sister treated Petunia that I almost abandoned the book within the first 50 pages.

But it was set in Paris so I continued to read.

While I primarily consider the book realistic fiction, it also has bits of historical fiction, some parallels with the Cinderella story and snippets of innocent romance.  It seems to me to have a fairly narrow intended audience:  tween girls.