Where the Mountain Meets the Moon by Grace Lin Fantasy * * * Stars (Pretty good) Minli lives in a small, poor, rural village in the shadow of Fruitless Mountain (called so because it is barren of life). Her parents – Ma and Ba – work hard cultivating crops, but barely manage to get by. Ma is bitter and resentful about their misfortune and poor circumstances, and when Minli uses one of her copper coins … Read more
I Don’t Like Gloria! by Kate Umansky illustrated by Margaret Chamberlain Picture book * * * * Stars (Great!) Calvin is a little dog whose people have just adopted Gloria, a fluffy, prissy cat who doesn’t understand that there are BOUNDARIES, and Calvin doesn’t like her. Gloria gets all of the attention and Calvin just gets in trouble. He’s justifiably upset, too. “The first thing she did was eat out of my bowl. MY bowl. … Read more
Mad Dog McGraw by Myron Uhlberg illustrated by Lydia Monks Picture book * * * Stars (Pretty good) Mad Dog McGraw is the meanest dog in the neighborhood, and the little boy who narrates this story hates him. He comes up with all kinds of schemes to get past the dog, but they all end the same way – with Mad Dog McGraw chasing him home. Then, after adopting a stray cat (called ‘Bait’), to … Read more
Starlight Goes to Town by Harry Allard illustrations by George Booth Picture Book * * * * Stars (Great!) Starlight the chicken has always dreamed of being a high fashion model in Milan, Italy, but she’s stuck in rural Tennessee. After numerous complaints she is visited by her chicken fairy godmother who tells her how to get what she wants – all she needs to do is wish hard and lay an egg. Starlight hatches … Read more
Crichtor by Tomi Ungerer Picture book * * * * Stars (Great!) Crichtor is a very special boa constrictor who belongs to an elderly French lady named Madame Louise Bodot. He was a birthday present to her from her son, who was studying reptiles in Africa. Although Crichtor was a surprise (he made Madame shriek when she opened the box), Madame quickly adjusts to her new pet – learning about his species at the zoo, … Read more
The Princess and the Pea adapted and illustrated by Alain Vaes Picture book * * * Stars (Pretty good) In this version of the Princess and the Pea, the prince announces to his gem-obsessed mother that he intends to marry. The queen is concerned that a royal wedding will cost a lot of money, however, and that marriage in general (the prince’s as well as anyone else’s) will deplete the amount of gems available to … Read more
Have You Seen My Duckling? by Nancy Tafuri Picture book * * * * Stars (Great!) Mother Duck has lost one of her ducklings. She – with the rest of her babies in tow – makes the rounds of the pond, asking other creatures they chance to meet, “Have you seen my duckling?” Sharp-eyed young ones will be able to point out the missing duckling in each of the illustrations – he’s not far from … Read more
Moon Over Manifest by Clare Vanderpool Realistic Fiction * * * * * Stars (Amazing!) 12-year-old Abilene Tucker’s father has raised her “on the rails”, but now he has chosen to abandon her in the town of Manifest where he spent his youth, as he heads back to his wanderer’s life. Abilene discovers a hidden box of keepsakes, which leads her and her new friends on a search for a spy. The objects in the … Read more
Skippyjon Jones by Judy Schachner Picture Book * * * Stars (Pretty good) Skippyjon Jones is a Siamese kitten whose mother sends him to his room after finding him curled up in a bird’s nest – he needs to do some “serious thinking before you leave this room, Mr. Fuzzy Pants, about just what it means to be a CAT.” It doesn’t take Skippyjon long to imagine himself as somewhere (and something) else, though, once … Read more
Mockingbird by Kathryn Erskine Realistic Fiction * * * * Stars (Great!) Caitlin’s (5th grader) brother Devon was killed in a devastating shooting at the Virginia Dare Middle School and she’s not sure life is ever going to be the same. She misses him, but she has Asperger’s syndrome, so her way of relating to people and the world is a little different than normal. It doesn’t help that Caitlin’s dad is falling apart with … Read more