I have never read a novel by Elizabeth George Speare that I didn't like, and Calico Captive is no exception. Like Katherine Paterson's Bread and Roses, Too, this book is based on a true story. The main character is Miriam Willard, a young woman who, along with her family, is captured by Indians, forced to travel on foot to Montreal, and held for ransom there for months. This all takes place in 1754, during the French and Inidian War. 
Bread and Roses, Too, by Katherine Paterson, transports readers to Lawrence, Massachusetts during the 1912 mill workers' strike. Rosa Serutti lives with her family in a tenement near the mill where her mother and sister work. Like all the mill workers, they are extremely poor and often do not have enough to eat. Rosa is lucky enough to be able to attend school, yet her mother cannot afford to buy all the books and other supplies Rosa needs. At the beginning of the story, Rosa meets Jake Beale, a boy who is even worse off than she. Jake's father is pretty much good for nothing, and Jake often is afraid to go home, so he sleeps wherever he can. When Rosa allows him to sleep in her family's home one night, the two kids do not exactly become friends, but they renew their acquaintance later in the story when they meet on a train bound for Vermont. Rosa, along with many other children of the striking mill workers, is sent to live temporarily in Barre, Vermont, where union sympathizers take them in until the end of the strike. Jake was not supposed to be on the train, so he asks Rosa to help him by saying he is her brother. Rosa reluctantly agrees, and of course her first small lie is only the first in a series of lies that become necessary to explain Jake's presence.
With Bread and Roses, Too Katherine Paterson makes this moment in history both accessible and interesting for a young audience. The appalling conditions people like Rosa and her family had to endure are well balanced by the solidarity and hope of the union and the caring people who support the strikers. This one is well worth reading.
As a big fan of Gary Schmidt's books, I was happy to finally get a copy of his latest, Okay for Now. The story is narrated by Doug Swieteck, an 8th grader with many problems, including an abusive father and an older brother who bullies him. At the beginning of the story, Doug's father loses his job and they have to move to Marysville, New York, a town Doug henceforth refers to as "stupid Marysville" because he has such a difficult time adjusting to his life there. Doug has many complaints, but I was never annoyed reading about his troubles because underneath the whining, buried deep under his cynicism, I always sensed a nugget of hope. This small ray of goodness shines through when he describes the positive things in his life, such as his time spent in the library learning to draw, his relationship with his mother, and his relationship with his father's boss, Mr. Ballard. In fact, I think Doug's distinctive voice is one of the things I like best about this book. He tells his story honestly, only holding back when what he wants to describe is just too painful to put into words. He quite often asks his reader, "Do you know how that feels?" Invariably, I had to answer "no" when he asked this question, but I also knew that I had a much better idea after having read what he had to say.
One thing I had to laugh about was particular to my copy of the book. On page 184, when Doug says, "Reader, I kissed her", the word kissed has been covered with white-out! I guess at least one reader disliked mention of romance in his/her stories. This sub-plot is handled with a very light touch, though, so I hope the white-out wielding reader did not give up the book because of it.
Mushy stuff aside, I really loved this book. I will not be at all surprised if this book wins the Newbery Medal this year. It's that good.
Phyllis Reynolds Naylor is one of my favorite children's authors, so I decided to read Emily's Fortune, which was published last year. The book features a quiet 8-year-old named Emily Wiggins, who at the beginning of the story finds herself suddenly orphaned when her mother is killed in a carriage accident. Emily's Uncle Victor is her closest blood relation, but she does not want to live with him because she knows he is unkind. Emily's Aunt Hildy offers to become her guardian, so Emily boards a stagecoach to travel to Aunt Hildy's home. It is during this journey that Emily's adventures ensue. Despite its tragic beginning, the book is really very funny. For example, Emily's neighbors are named Mrs. Ready, Mrs. Aim, and Mrs. Fire. Emily's fellow passengers on the stagecoach are a riot. I especially enjoyed Petunia and Marigold's shameless flirting with Uncle Victor, and Jock's tendency to get the names of things wrong.
At 146 pages, with plenty of illustrations and large type, this is a short, easy-to-read story that would be a good one to recommend to middle grade students looking for a quick read for a book report due tomorrow.
A Northern Light, by Jennifer Donnelly, is based on a true story. In an author's note, Donnelly explains:
"On July 12, 1906, the body of a young woman named Grace Brown was pulled from the waters of Big Moose Lake in the Adirondack Mountains. The boat she'd been in had been found capsized and floating in a secluded bay. There was no sign of her companion, a young man who'd rented the boat under the name of Carl Grahm. It was feared that he, too, had drowned. Grace Brown's death appeared to be an accident, and neither the men who dragged the lake nor the staff at the hotel where the couple had registered could have forseen that they would soon be embroiled in one of the most sensational murder trials in New York's history." (p. 381)
OK, I'm really having fun now! Here is another video booktalk. This one is about The Adventures of Nanny Piggins, by R. A. Spratt.
I recently finished taking an Infopeople class called "Reel in Readers." We were introduced to many tools, such as Animoto, Scratch, and Camtasia, which are available for creating and editing videos. Here is a link to a booktalk I just finished on Emmy and the Incredible Shrinking Rat, by Lynne Jonell:
V is for Vengeance, Sue Grafton's latest entry into her alphabet-themed mystery series starring private detective Kinsey Millhone, roped me in immediately, as usual. I haven't read many novels written for an adult audience in the last several years, but Grafton's novels are always an exception to that rule. I dug out my paperback copy of A is for Alibi and discovered that book was copyrighted in 1982. The paperback edition that I have was printed in1987, so that probably means that I have been enjoying Grafton's series for over 24 years. Since she still has four more letters to go, I hope the streak will continue for some time to come.V is for Vengeance pits Kinsey against an organized crime ring that shoplifts from retail stores. Although the time differential that contributed so much to U is for Undertow (one story set in 1967, another in 1988) is missing here, the story follows a similar pattern, alternating chapters about Kinsey and her righteous quest to bring shoplifters to justice with sections detailing the marriage difficulties and social hypocrisies of a wealthy couple. I really enjoyed the shades of gray Grafton uses to paint her characters. Even the mob boss, Dante, comes across as sympathetic, in his own way. I can't wait for W!
This Dark Endeavor: The Apprenticeship of Victor Frankenstein
0 comments Posted by Shelly at Monday, November 21, 2011
In This Dark Endeavor: the Apprenticeship of Victor Frankenstein, by Kenneth Oppel, Victor is 16 and his twin brother, Konrad, has fallen ill and may die. Desperate to save his brother, Victor contacts a shady alchemist named Dr. Polidori, who sends Victor, his cousin Elizabeth, and his friend Henry on a creepy search for the ingredients to create the Elixir of Life. Victor is convinced that if all the doctors his wealthy father calls to Konrad's bedside fail, then he will be able to save his brother with this magic potion. The three teens' adventures make exciting -- nay, breathless -- reading, and the whole story sits just this side of horror. I enjoy reading tales like this one that re-imagine the worlds of classic literature, and Oppel has done an excellent job of imagining Frankenstein's youth and setting the stage for Mary Shelley's classic story. The love triangle here to adds to the tension and provides rich, meaningful character development. I really enjoyed this spine-tingling, darkly romantic story. 
Ivy and the Meanstalk, by Dawn Lairamore, is the sequel to Ivy's Ever After, which I loved. This time, Ardendale is threatened by Largessa, a female giant who has not been able to sleep ever since Jack (of beanstalk fame) stole her magic harp. Since this happened hundreds of years ago, she is in a very nasty mood and tells Ivy she will start throwing large boulders to rain down on Ardendale if the harp is not returned.
Ivy consults Drusilla, her fairy godmother, and discovers that the harp is probably in Jackopia, so Ivy and Elridge fly to Jackopia to retrieve it. Of course, the present king of Jackopia flatly refuses to give up the harp, not caring that his stubborness will result in the total destruction of an entire kingdom and all its people. This is a fairy tale, so it should end with a happily ever after ending, but you'll have to read the book to find out!
The only child character in Eleanor Updale's Montmorency: Thief, Liar, Gentleman is Cissie Longman, the rather obnoxious hotel manager’s daughter. The main character, Montmorency, doesn’t even interact with her very much. Nevertheless, I can see kids really enjoying this book because Montmorency is such an engaging character. He is a scofflaw, but one whose history generates sympathy. He is clever, but also a bit vulnerable, so his success does not always seem predetermined. And he manages to live a double life, always on the cusp of discovery and ruin, and that gives his story enough suspense and adventure to keep the pages turning.Readers first meet Montmorency when he is in prison. He had enjoyed quite a career as a thief before having an unfortunate run-in with a wicked piece of machinery during one of his raids. He would most certainly have died if not for the ministrations of Doctor Farcett, who eagerly tested some of his latest medical theories as he saved Montmorency’s life. The patient is given the name “Prisoner 493,” and Doctor Farcett is allowed to transport him periodically to meetings of the Scientific Society so that he can use him as a display. Prisoner 493’s scars are bared for all to see, poke at and prod during these sessions.
When Prisoner 493 is released from prison a few months later, he uses the newly built sewer system, which he learned about during one of the Scientific Society meetings, as an escape route and returns to his thieving ways. This time, though, he creates not just one but two new identities for himself. Scarper is his lower class persona, and it is he who robs the city’s wealthy and scurries into the sewer to escape. His second persona takes the name Montmorency, and he is a gentleman who lives in a high-class hotel, enjoying the high life. It’s interesting to see how the former Prisoner 493 juggles his two personalities, claiming that Scarper is Montmorency’s servant.
The book is set in Victorian England, one of my favorite historical periods, and this certainly added to my enjoyment of this imaginative and well-written tale. Updale has written three sequels, and I look forward to reading them.
I had not read anything by Jessica Day George before reading Princess of the Midnight Ball. This surprised me because her books seem to fit in well among my favorite “fairy tale” books such as Once Upon a Marigold, Ella Enchanted, and Hatching Magic. This story adapts the traditional tale of the twelve dancing princesses into a full-length novel with great success. 
Dawn Lairamore’s Ivy’s
Ever After delighted me from beginning to end, and I’m looking forward to
reading the sequel, Ivy and the Meanstalk,
which is due out in a few days. The main character’s name is really Princess
Ivory, but she likes to go by Ivy instead because she has little use for the
stiff formalities normally expected of a young woman of her royal rank. She
learns shortly before her fourteenth birthday that, in order to satisfy the
terms of a generations-old peace treaty with the local dragons, she must stay
locked in a tower until a prince comes along and slays the dragon
guarding her. As a practical, no-nonsense kind of gal, she naturally questions
the wisdom of a practice that will leave her alone, locked away in a tower,
possibly for years. Her father, the king, refuses to budge, however, and she
eventually agrees to go.
In Josh Berk's The Dark Days of Hamburger Halpin, Hamburger Halpin is actually the screen name used by Wil Halpin, an overweight, deaf high school boy who has recently left his special school for the deaf to attend Carbon High School. On a field trip to a coal mine, one of his classmates, a popular jock named Pat Chambers, is murdered. Wil teams up, Hardy Boys style, with his friend Devon Smiley, to solve the case. I enjoyed learning more about deaf culture, hearing the many deaf-themed jokes that Wil and his friend share, and following the pair on their adventures. This is a solid mystery with an unusual protagonist, and I liked it a lot.There is one thing that bothers me about this book, though. The plain, dark blue cover features cartoon drawings of some of the characters from the book, suggesting a book appropriate for a younger audience. And the story is well suited for elementary or middle school kids. However, the sexual references/innuendo sprinkled throughout the book give me pause, enough that I would be more comfortable recommending this book to older teens.
I felt the same way about I am a Genius of Unspeakable Evil and I Want to Be Your Class President, by Josh Lieb. I remember noticing a considerable amout of sex talk when I read this book, too. I appreciated the humor in both of these stories very much, but I wonder if these authors' choice to write for a more mature audience has shrunk what may have been a robust market for their books?
Skulduggery Pleasant/Scepter of the Ancients
0 comments Posted by Shelly at Wednesday, September 21, 2011
Add Derek Landy's Skulduggery Pleasant (also published as Scepter of the Ancients) to your read-alike list for the Percy Jackson books, not because it has anything to do with Greek mythology, but because it's very funny, features a great cast of characters, and tells an exciting and imaginative tale of magical adventure and derring-do. Stephanie Edgley's uncle dies at the beginning of the book, and she discovers that her famous-author uncle left her his house and most of his fortune. She makes the aquaintance of one of her uncle's good friends, a living skeleton detective named Skulduggery Pleasant. Stephanie is soon swept into Skulduggery's magical world as she helps him investigate her uncle's murder. She finds the danger she encounters there both terrifying and exhilarating. Cool villains with clever names, lots of witty wordplay, combined with a buddy cop story set in a magical world make this one a winner! There have been three books published in the U.S. so far. Books 4, 5, & 6 are available in the U.K.
Alex and the Ironic Gentleman, by Adrienne Kress, shares its brand of humor with the Series of Unfortunate Events books by Lemony Snicket. Example: the beginning of chapter 11:
"What is a bad sign? Perhaps one that has mud all over it so you can't read how far it is until the next highway service center. Or perhaps one that is so rebellious that, no matter how many times you write 'Danger: Falling rocks ahead,' it insists on saying 'Do Come Over Here and Stand Under this Precariously Teetering Boulder.' " (p. 71)
This story both surprised and delighted me. Once she figured out that she needed to go there, I expected Alex to quickly make her way to sea. However, her journey to the ship took a meandering route, and she had the opportunity to meet and interact with several characters who would not have been out of place in Alice's Adventures in Wonderland. The Extremely Ginormous Octopus, with Alex's help, discovers his call to the stage; the three Daughters of the Founding Fathers' Preservation Society pursue Alex relentlessly, all because Alex dares to cross the sacred rope restricting access in the Steele manor house; and Lord Poppipnjay, owner of a guest-free hotel in the middle of a forest, hires Alex as his assistant because he is convinced she can read his mind. There a many more wonderfully imagined and realized characters to savor as one makes her way through this story. I will recommend it to fantasy fans who are looking for something that will make them laugh but that is also a little off the beaten path. I enjoyed this book!
I have recently created a pathfinder for second grade series, and I decided to read a book from Patricia Reilly Giff's Zigzag Kids series. I chose Flying Feet, not realizing that it is the third in the series until after I had finished it. No matter, it was cute. The series seems to feature a different child at the school for each book, and for this story we read about Charlie, who is an inventor. Whenever he gets an idea for another invention, her feels a buzz in his head. Charlie's Flying Feet invention is a pair of sticky tennis shoes that are supposed to allow the wearer to easily climb up a wall. Unfortunately, this invention, like his last idea for a Breathe-Underwater Box, falls flat. Fortunately, Charlie find success elsewhere when he is able to help the school janitor clean up a big pile of junk, as well as help the kids enjoy "come as a character" day.
It had been a long time since I had read any books written for this young audience, but I do remember the Magic Tree House and Bailey School Kids books well. I cannot say that I liked this book as well as those, but I would certaily recommend it. Kids should probably try to start the series with the first book, though!
Over the Labor Day weekend I read Knightley Academy, by Violet Haberdasher. Comparisons to Harry Potter are inevitable with this book, as there are so many parallels between the two series. The main character is Henry Grim and, like Harry, he is a mistreated orphan who is surprised to be accepted to a special school. Henry is to learn to be a knight, and when he gets to school he finds Ron- and Hermione-like friends, as well as a Draco-like enemy. There is, of course, evil afoot, which Henry and his friends discover when they travel to a Durmstrang-like school for an inter-school, Triwizard-like tournament. I hope I'm not overdoing the Potterisms, but they are really obvious in this story. Nevertheless, I did enjoy this book very much. Haberdasher has created an interesting world here with a likeable hero. I'm not sure whether I should label this a fantasy, since there so far have been no references to magic or time travel or made-up creatures. One of the subject headings listed in our catalog is "Alternative Histories," and this seems to sum it up well. The story is set in Victorian England, but, of course, Knightley Academy is fictional. I'll be interested to read the next book and see where this series goes.
Nancy and Plum, by Betty MacDonald, surprised me because it is so different from her Mrs. Piggle-Wiggle books. This is the story of two girls named Nancy and Pamela (Plum) Remson who are left in the care of their childless, clueless uncle when their parents are killed in a train wreck. His new responsibility evidently overwhelms Uncle John to the point that he leaves them at the first place he can find: Mrs. Monday's boardinghouse. It turns out Mrs. Monday is simply ghastly: greedy, cold-hearted, and cruel. She takes Uncle John's money but feeds the girls horrible food, clothes them in worn-out rags, and forces them to work like slaves. Fortunately, her brother, Tom, also lives on the property. Although he is just as afraid of his sister as are the girls in her care, he does help Nancy and Plum on the sly whenever he can.
Nancy and Plum's fortunes begin to change when they run away and sleep in a haystack belonging to a kind, generous couple named Mr. and Mrs. Campbell. The Campbells are Mrs. Monday's polar opposite, and they eventually give Nancy and Plum a chance to live a happy, normal life. This sweet, happy ending was not unexpected. However, I was startled several times by the girls' unforgiving nature. For example, Plum openly mocks Mrs. Monday in front of Miss Appleby, the librarian, and says she would like to drop a heavy dictionary on Mrs. Monday's toes (p. 86-88). Plum's feelings toward Mrs. Monday are certainly understandable, but I was still shocked that such a sweet little girl would be portrayed as having a dark side.
The Emerald Atlas, by John Stephens, channels The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe into a confusing and overly long mishmash fantasy adventure for three children named Kate, Michael, and Emma. Instead of a wardrobe, the magic conduit is a book known as "the Atlas," and instead of bringing them to a different world it brings them to a different time. I had difficulty keeping track of which characters were doing what, where, and when. Also, the story seemed to be drawing to a close several times but then it was extended by some crisis or another. 
Perusing people's comments about Charles Boardman Hawes' Newbery Medal winner, The Dark Frigate, posted on Goodreads, I was gratified to learn that I was not alone in having difficulty finishing this book. The arcane language, which is full of "thee's" and "thou's" and "quoth he's," made me feel as though I was reading Melville instead of a children's book. The story was actually quite interesting for me, as I enjoy reading about seafaring adventures and pirates. I also relished the quiet menace with which Hawes so subtly infuses his villain, the pirate captain Tom Jordan. Jordan is usually referred to as "the Old One" in the book, and he does seem to exude both the wisdom and cynicism that old age can bring. He is truly terrifying. I doubt if I will be recommending this book to kids, though, unless they are intent on challenging themselves with something completely different than they've read before. 
I loved the first two Penderwicks books, so I picked up The Penderwicks at Point Mouette expecting a great read. I was not disappointed. Jeanne Birdsall's third book in this warmhearted series finds the family on vacation again, but this time they are not all together. Mr. Penderwick and his new wife, Iantha, are out of the picture in England, and Rosalind, the OAP (oldest available Penderwick) is in New Jersey vacationing with a friend. The story centers, then, on the younger three sisters, Skye, Jane and Batty, as well as the girls' very good friend, Jeffrey Tifton, who joins them for the two-week stay at a small cottage in Point Mouette, Maine. Rosalind's absence necessitates Skye's appointment as acting OAP, a role she feels herself ill-equipped to handle. It turns out that Skye does still need some practice being in charge, but her mistakes are harmless and quite funny. Jane, the budding author of the family, suffers from writer's block while she attempts to write a new Sabrina Starr book. She also develops a very dramatic crush on a local boy named Dominic, who inspires her to write (pretty bad) poetry instead. The man who lives next door to the Penderwick's rented cottage, Alec, becomes a good friend, and there is a surprise twist at the end of the story which involves him. This book is full of interesting, well-developed characters and humor. I loved it!
In Everything on a Waffle, by Polly Horvath, 11-year-old Primrose Squarp is orphaned when her parents are lost at sea during a storm. At least, that's what most inhabitants of her Canadian town, Coal Harbour, believe. Primrose "just knows" that her parents are still alive and will return to her someday soon. In the meantime, she goes to live with her Uncle Jack, who cares for her the best he knows how. Since her uncle is away from home much of the time, Primrose finds a second home at a local restaurant called The Girl on the Red Swing, where the owner, Miss Bowzer, serves all her dishes on a waffle, so that her customers will have "a little something extra" with their meal. Miss Bowzer teaches Primrose to cook several dishes, and Primrose includes the recipies in the book.
Lunchbox and the Aliens, by Bryan W. Fields, caught my eye because of the cover art. That dog is just so cute. In the story, though, Lunchbox would probably not like being called "that dog," because he was abducted by aliens and came back to Earth as a very smart hound. Lunchbox and his boy, Nate, build a froonga-making machine using parts from Nate's father's inventions. Froonga is a food the aliens who educated Lunchbox just love, and it just so happens that it can be made from garbage (which is, of course, plentiful on Earth). It's a good thing the aliens, Grunfloz and Frazz, have Lunchbox to help them, because they have run out of food and are a long way from home. The best parts of this story for me were hearing what Lunchbox was thinking when he observed human behavior. For example, at a park one day, Lunchbox watches a young man play frisbee fetch with his dog. Lunchbox wonders why the dog keeps bringing the frisby back to the man, when the man keeps throwing the frisbee away and it seems clear he doesn't want it (lol!).
Although I stumbled on just a few too many "alien" words while reading this story, I thought it was a light, fun read. Kids who like books about heroic pets will probably enjoy it, too.
In Don't You Know There's a War On?, by Avi, 11-year-old Howie Crispers lives in Brooklyn, New York, in 1943. It seems to him that everyone uses that phrase, "Don't you know there's a war on?" to explain away anything unpleasant or inconvenient that he has to suffer through or cope with. His father is away at the war, and his mother spends most days doing her part in the war effort by working in an airplane factory. Then Howie learns that his favorite teacher, Miss Gossim, is going to be fired, and he simply cannot accept that wartime necessity explains away this injustice. He therefore decides to try to help her by convincing the principal that she should be allowed to stay. Eventually, he gets most of the kids in his class to help.This story, narrated by 16-year-old Howie, gives kids a great feel for what WW II daily life was like. He talks about collecting scrap "for the war effort," blackouts, dads and brothers off at war, and censored mail (his family receives a "swiss cheese letter" from his dad). It's also a touching coming of age tale. I suspect there are many kids who harbor secret crushes on their teachers, and they will most likely enjoy reading about Howie's experience. This is one I listened to, and the narration is terrific, complete with different voices for each character. Kids looking for a good book for that historical fiction assignment will probably be happy they chose this one.
I suppose the humor in R. A. Spratt's The Adventures of Nanny Piggins is not for everyone, but I loved it. Nanny Piggins is (surprise!) a pig whose former job was being shot out of a cannon at a circus. She applies for the job of nanny to Derrick, Samantha, and Michael Green, whose father, Mr. Green, is so miserly he won't even pay for a proper advertisement in the newspaper when he finds himself in need of child care. He therefore hammers a sign on his front lawn that says, "Nanny Wanted: Enquire Within" and waits for someone to show up and take his children off his hands so he can spend more time at the office. Nanny Piggins is the only one who applies, and although Mr. Green would prefer a human, he hires her because she is willing to work for only ten cents per hour. 
One Crazy Summer, by Rita Williams-Garcia, has had some buzz about a possible Newbery Medal in its future, and now that I have read this book I agree that it is a strong contender. Delphine, Vonetta, and Fern live with their father and grandmother in Brooklyn, N.Y., but in 1968 they fly to Oakland, Ca. to spend the summer with their mother, who abandoned them several years before. When they arrive, their mother, Cecile, makes it clear they are not wanted. She shows them no affection, forbids them from entering her kitchen, where she spends time writing poetry and printing flyers for the local Black Panthers, and feeds them only take-out food. During the day, Cecile sends the girls to a day camp run by the Black Panthers, where they eat free breakfast and participate in organized activities to learn about their rights and do their part for the cause. From the start of this visit, 11-year-old Delphine, as the eldest, is forced to take charge of caring for her sisters, but her responsibilities grow when Cecile is arrested, along with two men who are Black Panthers. Delphine narrates, and her voice is absolutely delightful. She is 11 going on 30, and her attempts to cope with and explain to herself her mother's bizarre behavior seem perfectly suited to a smart, responsible 11-year-old girl who yearns for a mother. This book is both touching and immensely entertaining. I enjoyed it and recommend it.
Book 1 of The Missing series by Margaret Peterson Haddix, Found is a quick, exciting read. The story involves Jonah Skidmore, his sister, Katherine, and Jonah's friend, Chip, in solving the mystery of some mysterious letters mailed to Jonah and Chip. The first letter says, "You are one of the missing," and the second leter says, "Beware! They're coming back to get you." Neither letter gives a return address or any other indication of where it came from or who sent it. As the kids learn more, they become more and more convinced that they are in real danger. I wanted to immediately start book 2, Sent, because Found ends in a serious cliffhanger!
I have been reading books about Sherlock Holmes recently, so I decided to try Tracy Barrett's The 100-Year-Old Secret, which is Book 1 of a series called The Sherlock Files. This is a shorter book than others I have read recently, such as Shane Peacock's Eye of the Crow, or Nancy Springer's The Case of the Missing Marquess, and it is meant for a younger audiece. Whereas Eye of the Crow is about Sherlock Holmes as a young boy, and The Case of the Missing Marquess is about Holmes's younger sister, The 100-Year-Old Secret is about twins Xena and Xander Holmes, who are modern day decendants of Sherlock Holmes. The twins are given their famous relative's unsolved casebook, and they decide to try solving the mystery of a missing painting called Girl in a Purple Hat. The twins are likeable, resourceful sleuths, and they solve the mystery without too much danger to themselves, so I think this is a good mystery series to recommend to 3rd and 4th graders.
I really enjoyed Molly Moon's Incredible Book of Hypnotism, by Georgia Byng. This is the first book in a series about an orphan named Molly Moon who has an incredible gift for hypnosis. She discovers this gift when she reads a book she finds in the library. Her first subject is the dog who lives in the orphanage (this is the dog on the cover), and she ends up flying from her home in England to New York, where she uses her ability to become rich and famous. In the beginning of her adventure she is pretty selfish and manipulative. However, in the end she realizes this and makes good by helping many people, including the children in her orphanage. You really need to suspend disbelief when reading this book, because she truly does live out a fantasy life of being able to make just about everyone around her cater to her every whim. Also, some of the plot twists that get her out of trouble are pretty far fetched. Still, it's a fun story with a happy ending, and I would like to read more about this little girl and her dog.
The Tiger Rising, by Kate DiCamillo was one I listened to in the car on the way to work and back. This is a short, sad book. The main character, Rob Horton, and his dad have moved to Florida after Rob's mother's death. Rob is plagued with a perisitent rash on his legs, and he is bullied at school. Both Rob and his dad are still grieving over their recent loss, and Rob's dad refuses to talk about it. He goes so far as to not allow Rob to say his mother's name. One day Rob discovers a caged tiger behind the hotel where he and his dad are living. Rob and his new friend, Sistine, decide they want to free the tiger from its cage. The caged tiger clearly represents the unexpressed emotions that are eating away at Rob and his father. I wonder whether the 4th graders for whom this book was written will understand this, though. 