Ender's Game

Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card. Tom Doherty Associates. Published 1977.

This was my first time reading this book and it just so happens that the movie is around the corner. I found myself imagining a movie the whole time I was reading it, so I'm happy I won't have to wait long. I got into a big discussion with some other teachers about the author's personal opinions and whether or not we should let that shape our opinion of the book. Apparently their is an uproar happening over the movie releasing based on Card's views about homosexuality. It saddened me to know this about him, while at the same time, I really enjoyed the story and there was absolutely no derogatory statements made in the book as far as I could tell. Should we judge a book by the author's personal viewpoints? Is a book ever inherently separated from the author that created it? By supporting the book, are we supporting the author? I'd like to believe that a book, especially a Sci-fi classic such as this one, can be separated from the author in that it lives alone as a piece of art, taking on and creating it's own life separate from their own. Almost like a child from a parent. That being said, I'm not happy supporting him either.

Well...the book has a similar structure to the Harry Potter type of hero journey, where a young child is thrust into a position of great importance to complete a mission that is too powerful for him. The child must go off to school to hone the skills he needs to complete the mission but the stress of what is required of him begins to become a burden he can't handle any longer. Being that this book is sci-fi and not fantasy, we are also dealing with the idea of The Other and how we would handle coming across other intelligent life forms in the universe and what our actions say about our own humanity. Very compelling stuff. I kind of wish Card would read his own writing.

Interest level: Grades 5-8
Genre: Science Fiction, Action, Space

Questions to Readers: Do you think the ending would have changed if Ender had known the plan of the adults? Do you think the adults made the right choice? How does Ender change over the course of the novel? Do you think this was a change for the better?

Read-alikes: Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Ready Player One

Being Henry David

Being Henry David by Cal Armistead. Albert Whitman and Co. NetGalley.

For survival stories/mysteries with a little bit of romance and amnesia, this book fits the bill. But how many bills request all those things. I felt this book had a bit of multiple personality disorder, wanting to cover all it's bases and I wonder if this would put some readers off who are expecting one genre and then getting another. That being said, the pace moves relatively quickly (more so in the beginning than the middle to end) and it has a male lead character and an amnesia mystery story line that will keep mystery seekers interested.

Because the story opens on a boy who doesn't know who he is or where he is, be takes on the identity of the first thing that comes to him, the author of the book that a homeless man has taken off him and begun to eat. He become Henry David and decides to travel to Walden Pond as he finds this to be the only clue of finding his true identity. Without money or identity, Hank takes up with two homeless kids and gets himself into trouble. This is how the book opens and it feels very fast-paced, action survival story. But Hank quickly escapes this scene and ends up at Walden Pond where he must still struggle to survive but is helped by a number of people and goaded to stay by his crush on a girl that he runs into. This is where the story drags a bit for me. With the intense survival opening, I wonder if most readers will still around for the quieter paced average high school plot line in the middle. The amnesia story line picks up at the end and it gets to be a bit melodramatic but at least the mystery is solved. While the connection to Henry David Thoreau frames the story, it also doesn't seem to have much of a connection to the larger themes of loss, guilt and grief.

Interest level: YA (grade 6+)

Question to the readers: Faced with Henry David's situation, what would you have done in the beginning of the book? Why do you think Henry David came down with amnesia?

Read-alikes: Hatchet, North

Furry and Flo: The Big Hairy Secret

Furry and Flo: The Big Hairy Secret by Thomas Kingsley Troupe. Published by Capstone Young Readers. NetGalley. 

For the Beginning Chapter Book set, I really enjoyed this title. There was the use of underwear humor but at a minimum, the illustrations were cheeky and complimented the text, the action (once it started) kept pace and heightened when needed. There was plenty of mild foreshadowing that mildly hinted at things to come but not so heavy handed that all the secrets were given away early on. I enjoyed the anxious Furry and look forward to him and Flo forming a solid friendship in subsequent titles. There were a few questions I had as an adult reader about character details that I don't think will bother student readers so I was able to let them go. 

In this first title, Florence who prefers Flo, moves to yet another dingy apartment with her mother. Flo is not happy about yet another move and doesn't expect them to stay long but after discovering a boy in his underwear across the hall from her and a case of missing popsicles, Flo soon finds that there is more to this apartment complex than meets the eye. 

Intended reading level: Grades 1-3

First in series

Questions for Readers: If you were Flo, would you try to convince your mother to stay or leave the new apartment? What are your thoughts on Furry's predicament? 

Read-alikes: Notebook of Doom, Looniverse

Scarlet

Scarlet by Marissa Meyers. Published 2013 by Feiwel and Friends.

Another fun sci-fi fairy tale twist, this time with focus on Little Red Riding Hood. But don't worry, Lihn Cinder hasn't been left out. The second book in the Lunar Chronicles opens with the story of Scarlet Benoit in France and the disappearance of her grandmother. Trying to solve the mystery of her disappearance without the help of inept police, Scarlet pairs up with a wayward member of the Wolves,  what she believes to be a vicious gang of boys and men. Meanwhile, Cinder has escaped prison and commandeered a spaceship to try to track down the true story of her past and her relationship to the evil Queen Levana.

In Meyer's second book, she flips between story lines and tells each part through a different character's perspective. We see the world through Emperor Kai's thoughts as well as Cinder and Scarlet, with some other new characters too. This switch between characters and perspectives didn't bother me. Instead, it allowed me to see what was going on through this global story and how all the pieces fit together. I felt their was a lot more action in this book than the first. For some readers this is a bonus for others this might take away from the intrigue of the story line. All in all there was a solid ending with still enough suspense and cliffhangers to constitute the next two books in the series.

Intended Reading level: YA but younger grades okay
Second in series

Questions to Readers: Would you have told the captors your secret or done what Grandma Benoit did? Why or why not? If you found out that you were secretly a queen to another planet, how would you handle the news? Did Kai make the right decision, why or why not? Would you have done anything differently, and if so, what?

Read-alikes: Sisters Red and/or Sweetly by Jackson Pearce, Alex Flynn's books: Cloaked, Beastly, Bewitched, etc., Secrets of WondLa

Scott Pilgrim: Volume One and Two

Scott Pilgrim's Precious Little Life and Scott Pilgrim vs. the World by Bryan Lee O'Malley. Published 2004 and 2005, Oni Press.

I have to admit, I saw the movie first, and ever since then I've wanted to read the comics. The movie sticks closely to the humor and the style and even the story line. The comics add more as each volume is only about one fight or so. Manga-influenced, video game influenced, punk influenced, all those things rolled together.

The story is that Scott Pilgrim meets Ramona Flowers and finds that if he wants to continue to date her he has to battle the League of her Evil Ex-Boyfriends. But Scott's no angel either and his ex-girlfriends keep making appearances as well. Scott doesn't have a job, he lives in a one room apartment where he shares a bed with his gay roommate, he's in a band with one of his ex-girlfriends and the band's biggest fan is the high schooler he used to date. Throw in magical elements like travelling through sub-highways in people's brains and doors appearing out of nowhere and the fact that you can battle to the death for a small collection of coins and you get the Scott Pilgrim novels. Fun!

Intended reading level: YA (HS, some sexual situations)
First and second volumes in series of six.

Questions for readers: Do you think it's fair that Scott has to battle Ramona's exes? What would you do if you were Knives Chau? What do you think the phrase, "all's fair in love and war" means? Do you think this is an apt expression for these comics?

Read-alikes: shonen manga titles

The Notebook of Doom: Rise of the Balloon Goons

The Notebook of Doom: Rise of the Balloon Goons written and illustrated by Troy Cummings. ARC.

Release date July 2013.

I will definitely get this book for my kids. Who doesn't love a story about strange monsters especially when those monsters are Dancing Balloons? That makes me chuckle alone. It helps that the rest of the book is pretty funny too. For instance, one of the monsters in the Notebook of Doom is a Forkupine, which is a "small, metal rodent with a coat of tiny, sharp forks," with a warning that says, "Never pet a forkupine! Instead lure it near a plate of spaghetti." A fun fact is included that reads, "The forkupine is a distant cousin to the sporkupine, a creature which is less dangerous but also --let's face it-- less practical. "

Alexander is new to town and discovers a Notebook of Doom documenting different monsters when he accidentally goes to the school campus that is getting torn down. He starts spotting Dancing Balloons all over town while simultaneously discovering that the air is being let out of anything inflatable. Since his birthday is on Leap Year, his dad has decided to throw a birthday party for him. The guests are not what he expected...

Intended reading level: Grades 1-3
First in new series with 4 proposed titles.

Questions to the readers:
What monster would you add to the Notebook of Doom if you could make one up? What would its habitat be? What would it look like? What warnings would you give about it?

Read-alikes: Attack of the Fluffy Bunnies, Zombiekins, Pencil of Doom

The Looking Glass Wars

The Looking Glass Wars by Frank Beddor. Published 2006.

Alice is not Alice. She is Alyss. And she didn't fall into Wonderland, she fell out of it. Or at least, that's what this telling presupposes. Wonderland is a place of Imagination where anything can happen. Including the sister of the queen, Redd, heading a coup and taking off all the Royals' heads. Alyss must disappear into our world only to find her way back to Wonderland 13 years later to regain the thrown and find her true self.

This was an interesting take on the Wonderland tale but I had some issues with it. It was packed with violence so don't think that it would be good for younger kids just cause of the Alice in Wonderland reference. There is a lot of social commentary with Redd and her take over and there is a strange twisting of the past and the real history of Alice Liddell. Sometimes, I just felt like the formation of the story was off. You keep waiting for the story you know but it never comes and then its like the story that is written is trying to twist itself into what you would expect from what you do know. I see that there are a lot of people trying to pull off Maguire's Wicked but his ploy worked because he wrote his version for adults and could get a lot grittier and deal with adult issues.

But if you want action, a fast-pace, fantastical elements and a war, this book will keep some readers reading. I had one students who wasn't a fan and one student love it so 50/50.

Interest and Reading level: YA (the language could be accessible for younger but there is a lot of violent content)
Genre: Action, Fantasy
First book in a series of three, another series spin-off for the Mad Hatter as well

Comparable titles: Wicked, Peter and the Starcatchers, Artemis Fowl

Book Connections: Alice in Wonderland, the history of the British crown during the Victorian era, Street Urchins

Witch and Wizard

Witch and Wizard by James Patterson and Gabrielle Charbonnet. Published 2009.

All the girls are furiously demanding this book in the library right now, so I picked it up and gave it a read before bringing it in to the library. Basically, imagine Harry Potter had a sister, his parents were alive, but they lived in a world where Voldemort rules therefore no Hogwarts. On top of that, give it the sense of energy and fast pace from the Hunger Games and you have Witch and Wizard. I didn't think this book was as good as either of those two series but I was able to read all 300 pages of it in two hours so it definitely kept me hooked. There were some terms that the main characters don't even know and I kept expecting the other characters to finally tell them what they mean but it never happened. The book was also told in the perspective of the brother and sister, switching at random. This device doesn't bother me, but the fact that their voices and personalities were so similar, I didn't really see the point. We're told the brother is well-mannered and the sister mis-behaves, but I don't see it in their actions or in the way either of them tell the story. They both seem like the sister and I had to check to see whose section it was based on from the name on the top of the chapter just to tell the difference. But anyhoo, here's the story:

Whit and Wist are taken from their home in the middle of the night by guards of the New Order, or N.O. They are told that they will be put on trial for being a witch and wizard, but they have no idea what they're talking about until Wist suddenly burst into flames that hurt everyone but herself. In prison, they find that their emotions cause them to do other things like turn a boy they hate into a weasel, glow, float, stop things mid-air and sink into other dementions. Led on an escape mission by Whit's ethereal girlfriend, they enter other dimensions and learn that there is more to this world than they thought and more to who they are.

I will say this for the book. It definitely wasn't marketed just for girls or boys, which is nice and I think this is the reason for the two narratives from both a female and male character. So smart on their part. Even though the cover looks like it's for older readers, it would be fine for fourth graders or third even. At least for this first book.

Interest level: Grades 5-8 Reading level: Grade 5
Genre: Fantasy, Action
First in series.

Comparable Titles: Akata Witch, Hunger Games, Gregor the Overlander

Book Connections: Wiccan principles, Totalitarian regimes, theories about the afterlife

Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH

Mrs. Frisby and the Rats of NIMH by Robert C. O'Brien. Published 1971. Newbery Medal winner.

I may have read this when I was little, but I couldn't remember so I thought I would take a stab at it again. I find that I'm not into the animal books that much, so it took me a while to get into it, but around page 100 when Nicodemus starts to tell the story of the rats of NIMH I was hooked. While the beginning is full of details and great anthropomorphism of the animal characters, there is something about the tale of the rats that is so much more exciting.

After Mrs. Frisby's son gets pneumonia and can't be moved, she finds that winter is ending and they must move to their summer home before they are plowed under by the farmer. With the help of a crow and an owl, Mrs. Frisby is told to see the rats who will help her with her problem as long as she tells them her belated husband was Jonathon Frisby. She soon finds out the rats are more than you would expect and they tell her the tale of how they came to be hiding under the rosebush and how her husband was involved. Being much smarter than the average rats, they devise a plan to move her home so that she will not have to move her son and they won't be killed if they stay.

Once the rats are part of the picture there is a lot more action and it starts to feel almost like a spy book with them creeping about the laboratory and trying to find ways to escape and live. A Classic for a reason.

Interest level: Grades 3-6 Reading level: Grade 5
Genre: They say Fantasy, but I would think its more Action/Sci-Fi. The animals aren't really talking to humans and there are no magical elements.
First in series.

Comparable titles: Stuart Little, The Trumpet of the Swan, Wind in the Willows

Book Connections: Lab Animals, The Seasons, medicinal herbs, building your own society, the habits of rats and mice

Powerless

Powerless by Matthew Cody. Published 2009.

In the town of Noble's Green, children are Super heroes or Supers for short, but on their 13th birthday they mystically lose all their powers and have no memories of ever having any. When Daniel moves to town, his "ordinary" self will be the only one to come to the Super's rescue.

This is a mystery more than an action superhero plot and its a story about friendship and even loss. I liked that about this book. It was about so much more than having super human powers and fighting crime, in fact, there was very little crime fighting at all, and much more emphasis on the friends in the gang and their fear of growing older and losing their exceptional powers. The mystery was not predictable and the struggle at the end between The Shroud and Daniel made you wonder in the long run what choice Daniel would make overall. Plus, the sub plot is that Daniel's grandmother is sick which is why his family moved to Noble's Green so the tale of how kids deal with grief is thread through it as well.  I feel as though it's left open for a second in the series, but I think this book is complete as a whole and I almost worry that it would lose some of what made it exceptional, drained if you will, of its powers, if it were to continue down a line of super hero stories.

Interest level: Grades 5-8 Intended reading level: Grade 5
Genre: action, mystery, friendship

Comparable titles: The Sherlock Holmes books as they are mentioned throughout, Watchmen (for an older audience)

Book connections: Sherlock Holmes, green rock to look like a meteorite, camping survival kit

Archvillain

Archvillain by Barry Lyga. Published 2010.

I feel like I am the villain of this review, but this is the first book I've read that I can definitely say I did not like. I ended up skimming the last few chapters and skipping to the end even because I didn't want to waste any more of my time reading it. Usually, I can find something redemptive for why the kids would like it even if I don't (which could still be the case) but I can't even find that silver lining right now. I'm sad that I purchased this for my library even.

It's basically Megamind as a book only the main character doesn't really become a good guy in the end. We're set up with the premise that Kyle is popular and his popularity is based on the fact that he plays pranks on people to show them how foolish they are. Then he gets super powers when an alien appears. This alien is basically Superman as a kid. We are told that he just wants the world to see their foolishness, that they are "worshipping" an alien, but of course his "pranks" to show them this make him out to be the bad guy. The narrator is supposed to have that anti-protagonist style of Diary of a Wimpy kid, but I just can't help but really not like him. There is no humor or life lesson to be learned from his villainy. I thought the end would have him come around to being a good guy, but I guess he only saved some people by picking up a statue, but refused to join Mighty Mike in his do-gooding. I get that the book tells us that his things are backfiring and he's stopping the bumbling Mike from making stupid mistakes that make him look like he's evil but he's not, but I shouldn't have to be perpetually told these things. The book should just show it and all I really see is a kid that thinks he's so smart but yet hasn't done one smart thing. They've even set it up for a sequel so that he can be more of an archvillain. I'm all for the bad guy having a good side and vice versa and showing that there are multiple layers to each character, but this didn't work for me. It didn't have the kapow of Artemis Fowl or the different perspectives to bring us out of the villain's mind to make it work like Fowl did. Sad face.

Intended reading level: Grades 3-6 Interest level: Grade 5
Genre: humor, action

Comparable title: Artemis Fowl, Sidekicks