Doodlebug: A Novel in Doodles by Karen Romano Young

5/5 stars

Doodlebug: A Novel in Doodles is written in the format of a sketchbook, and in the voice of a 7th grader, Dodo, telling the story of her family's move to San Francisco and the transitions they all experience. Dodo sketches and tells her story in a notebook, beginning with their drive to San Francisco, highlighting what she already knows about herself, that she is a visual learner and she learns better when she can doodle. 

She has been diagnosed as ADHD, an attention disorder, but has chosen not to take medication so she can deal with it in her own way, if her teachers will allow it. Why do we make rules? And who decides who should follow the rules and why? Should we all be the same person, or should we celebrate and embrace our differences? Doodlebug (Dodo's new name at her new school) faces these questions head-on as she tries to fit in to her new school. She's made new friends, but will she be able to stay at her new school with its rules?

Lunch Lady and the League of Librarians by Jarrett J. Krosoczka

5/5 stars


Lunch Lady and the League of Librarians is part of a series of graphic novels for the 3rd to 4th grade reader, those who enjoy Diary of a Wimpy Kid and humorous graphic novels. The Lunch Lady is a secret superhero, who along with her sidekick Betty serves up fun, adventure, mystery, and corn dogs to the school. A group of students knows her secret identity and helps the Lunch Lady when the librarians begin to act suspiciously during a Book Fair. Do the librarians have a nefarious goal in mind, or are they just nervous about the upcoming Read-a-thon?

The Boy Who Couldn't Die by William Sleator

4/5 stars


Booktalk: William Sleator has a knack for writing creepy, science fiction stories that draw you in, then leave you with more questions than you had at the beginning of the book. The Boy Who Couldn't Die follows this pattern, with an extra dose of creepiness. Ken's best friend dies in a plane crash, and in the middle of his deep depression, Ken decides that he must never die. He finds a woman who promises him that she can protect him from pain and death forever for only fifty dollars. He takes her up on her offer and finds that he can't be injured or killed, but he starts having nightmares which appear to be coming true. Ken decides that he doesn't want to be immortal any more, but it is not as simple as just reversing the process, and now his friends and family are involved. Is it true that you don't always want what you wish for, after you've gotten it? Creepiness factor and dark subject matter would lead me to recommend this book to older readers (6th grade on up), but there are other William Sleator books which are appropriate for the 4th-5th grade set.

No Passengers Beyond This Point by Gennifer Choldenko

5/5 stars


Booktalk: The author of Al Capone Does My Shirts has created another unusual and character-driven book in No Passengers Beyond This Point. This sci-fi fantasy book follows three siblings, India, Finn and Mouse Tompkins, as they tell their story in their own points of view in alternating chapters. India, Finn and Mouse have just been told by their mother that their house is being taken away by the bank and they will be moving to Colorado to live with their uncle. The three children are shocked, especially when they are told that they are leaving the next day on a plane, without their mother, who needs to finish up her job and the packing. Their adventure begins on this somber note, but when they land in an unusual place called Falling Bird, what awaits them is not their uncle, but some choices about life, family, and what is really important. Mouse is a five-year-old genius, but even she is having trouble figuring out how they are going to find their way home again from the mysterious Falling Bird.

Kingdom Keepers: Disney After Dark by Ridley Pearson

5 stars


Booktalk: Finn and four other kids have been chosen to be the first DHIs at Disney World, they are Disney Host Interactives, holographic versions of themselves who lead tours around the park. What they don't know is that one of the Imagineers has changed the source code for the holograph program so that Finn and his friends appear in the park after they have fallen asleep. Wally needs their help, some of the Disney villains, Maleficent, the pirates from Pirates of the Caribbean, and others, are part of a plot to take over Disney World, and then the world itself. Can Finn and the others stop the Overtakers from ruining the Disney dream? Great read for those who have been or who are planning a trip to Disneyland or Disney World, with many behind-the-scenes peeks at places which may or may not exist in the real Disney World.

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