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Published on Leave a comment on 2020 Book Olympiad

What a great group of books we have this year! I honestly cannot pick a favorite. These are book "blurbs" copied from Destiny, our online catalog. Even if you do not participate in Book Olympiad, I highly recommend these books.

Insignificant Events in the Life of a Cactus by Dusti Bowling: Aven Green loves to tell people that she lost her arms in an alligator wrestling match, or a wildfire in Tanzania, but the truth is she was born without them. And when her parents take a job running Stagecoach Pass, a rundown western theme park in Arizona, Aven moves with them across the country knowing that she'll have to answer the question over and over again. Her new life takes an unexpected turn when she bonds with Connor, a classmate who also feels isolated because of his own disability, and they discover a room at Stagecoach Pass that holds bigger secrets than Aven ever could have imagined. It's hard to solve a mystery, help a friend, and face your worst fears. But Aven's about to discover she can do it all . . . even without arms.

Not if I Save You First by Ally Carter: Six years ago Maddie lived in Washington D.C. with her father, a Secret Service agent assigned to the President's family, and her best friend was Logan, the President's son; but after her father was wounded in an attempted kidnapping the two of them moved to a remote cabin in Alaska and Logan never replied to her letters--but now he has suddenly turned up on her doorstep, and, while she has no intention of forgiving him for his silence, she soon realizes that first she has to save him from the winter wilderness and the men who are pursuing him.

Scythe by Neal Shusterman: In a world where disease has been eliminated, the only way to die is to be randomly killed ('gleaned') by professional reapers ('scythes'). Two teens must compete with each other to become a scythe--a position neither of them wants. The one who becomes a scythe must kill the one who doesn't.

A Curse So Dark and Lonely Eighteen for the three hundred twenty-seventh time, Prince Rhen despairs of breaking the curse that turns him into a beast at the end of each day until feisty Harper enters his life

Published on Leave a comment on My Favorites from summer

I LOVE LOVE LOVED this book. The cover might not grab you, but the story surely will. Dickens' thieving street urchin Oliver Twist has grown up - and guess what? Oliver was not a young orphan boy, but a girl named Olivia pretending to be a boy to be safer on the streets of London. Years have passed and things have changed drastically for Olivia. Taken in by a wealthy uncle, she now is a society debutante, attending balls, dinners, and upper class outings. But she can't quite seem to escape her past. A chance encounter with a handsome fellow (why does he look so familiar??) -has her sucked back in to the life she tried to leave behind.

Do you like videos games? This book is written with the concept of World War III being fought in space - virtually. The earth's resources are practically depleted and nation blocs (think the Allied and Axis powers of WWII) are fighting to control assets in space. Our main character, Tom, is a gamer phenom and gets recruited for the space force. At first, he's all in, but as time goes by and he gets a better understanding of the politics involved, he's not so sure that he wants to be a pawn in the system - but is it too late?

I know, not the best title or cover, but what a fun read this was! It is an improbable plot - a group of schoolgirls trying to solve the mystery of who poisoned their headmistress - all while governing themselves and the school without anyone realizing that something is amiss. They go to great lengths to not get caught, and some of their antics are hilarious.

Published on Leave a comment on Recent favorites

   The Charmed Children of Rookskill Castle

One of my current favorites from some of the newer books in our collection is The Charmed Children of Rookskill Castle by Janet Fox. Though we shelve it in our Mystery/Horror section, this book contains a touch of several other genres. It is set in 1940 Great Britain when children of city families were sent to the countryside to protect them from bombings, so it has a historical feel. The school to which our main characters are sent is not all it seems. There are both mystical fantasy and mystery elements to the story that are evident as our heroine, Katherine, has to discover why classmates are disappearing and why she is seeing other spectral children.

 A Night Divided by Jennifer Nielsen

This historical novel is set during the Cold War as the Berlin Wall is being built. Gerta and her family live in East Berlin, but like many families suffering under the conditions of the Russian held part of Germany, would like to escape to the Western section of the city that is controlled by either the Americans, French, or British.  Gerta's father and brother Dominic secretly slip into the western section on a scouting mission to prepare to bring the entire family, but end up trapped as the East Germans crack down on fleeing citizens and begin building the wall. Gerta is left behind with her mother and older brother, and all live in constant fear of arrest or death because of her father's previous "subversive" activities. After several years of separation, Gerta one day looks across the wall and to see her father on a platform doing a dance to a song he used to sing to her. Gerta feels sure he is trying to tell her something, and if she can figure it out, could it lead to a reunification of her family?

 The Other Wes Moore: One Name, Two Fates by Wes Moore

I am part of a book club populated by OMMS teachers and staff. This book was our January selection. It is the story of how the author was intrigued by a news account of a man with the exact same name and of the same background - even growing up in the same area of Baltimore - who was arrested and incarcerated for murder. He felt that just as easily, this could have been his fate. The book is a look into the factors that made a difference in the two men's lives. I was so inspired by this book that I bought the Young Readers' version for the library:

 Discovering Wes Moore

Published on Leave a comment on Book Olympiad

Battle of the Books has grown! Now along with the regular question-answer competition there are 3 new ways to participate; a book jacket redesign, creation of a book trailer in video format, and a skit, monologue or musical performance. Mrs. Hutchings is our faculty sponsor and you may read more about the competition in her blog. (You can find a link on the library webpage or through the OMMS website under the faculty tab -Hutchings/ELA blog - link on the right menu.)

These are the books that have been selected for this year.

       

One of the things I love about summer is that I have more time to read. Scythe, by Neal Shusterman, is one of my favorites from this summer. It is the first installment of a new series by the same author of the Unwind series.

"In a world where disease has been eliminated, the only way to die is to be randomly killed ('gleaned') by professional reapers ('scythes'). Two teens must compete with each other to become a scythe--a position neither of them wants. The one who becomes a scythe must kill the one who doesn't."

The Lie Tree is one of the more unusual books I have ever read. It is a historical fiction mystery with a strange element of fantasy.

"On an island off the south coast of Victorian England, fourteen-year-old Faith investigates the mysterious death of her father, who was involved in a scandal, and discovers a tree that feeds upon lies and gives those who eat its fruit visions of truth."

 

I actually listed to Etiquette and Espionage on audiobook. If you love British accents and British humor you would really enjoy listening to this book series, which we have available in our Overdrive collection. (Use your "s" number as your library card number to access the collection and download the books.) There are four highly entertaining books in the series.

"In an alternate England of 1851, spirited fourteen-year-old Sophronia is enrolled in a finishing school where, she is surprised to learn, lessons include not only the fine arts of dance, dress, and etiquette, but also diversion, deceit, and espionage."