The Rithmatist by Brandon Sanderson

Another great read from the 2016 Sequoyah Intermediate Book List was accomplished today.  It took me more days to finish this book, not the book's fault, just busy with Back to School craziness.  I would slowly, but surely read at least one chapter from The Rithmatist by Brandon Sanderson, a night, but today I plowed through the exciting ending.  The book leaves you wanting more, and thankfully book #2, The Aztlanian, has already come out and the book #3 is due soon.

This is a Steampunk book at its finest.  Joel, the main character, wants nothing more than to be a Rithmatist, those chosen to be the protectors against the dreaded chalkings.  Instead he's just the son of the chalkmaker.  He spends his days studying the defenses used by the Rithmatists and scores a summer internship with one of the best Rithmatist professor.  During the summers, after the regular students go home, the Rithmatist students stay to study more of the art of defense.  That's when students, one by one, start to disappear.  Will Joel's knowledge of the Rithmatists help put an end to the terror?

This book is actually the seond one on this year's Sequoyah list by author, Brandon Sanderson.  The first one I've already reviewed and loved.  This book is right up there as well, but I would choose Steelheart over this one - just my preference, of course.  I can easily see students dedicated to the genre of steampunk falling head over heals for this title.

FYI - If you look at the map on the end pages, you'll see the island of Tulsa.  Pretty cool!

Steelheart by Brandon Sanderson

Another great title on the Sequoyah Intermediate List is Steelheart by Brandon Sanderson.  I just finished it and looking forward to reading the sequel that's already out.

If you enjoy Marvel and/or Avengers comic style action, then this is the book for you.  Something in the past hit Earth and gave a select group of people super powers.  These people are called Epics, and the power has gone to their heads.  Flash forward and a group called the Reckoners study these Epics looking for their weaknesses in an attempt to restore order.

David is the main character and is bent on revenge after his father was killed by Steelheart eight years earlier.  Steelheart is said to be as strong as ten men and no bullet can penetrate his skin, but David saw him bleed.  He works his way into the Reckoners, where he's able to share all the information he has collected over the years of being an orphan.  The group uses his research to plan the ultimate assassination attempt.

This novel is action packed, with lots of twists and turns.  The ending is NOT what you're expecting!

First Day of School is Tomorrow!

I've been wanting to blog, truly I have!  It's been extremely busy in the library trying to get everything ready for the BIG day tomorrow.  Can't wait to start another great year!

Our district has a new superintendent.  She's trying to increase communication, especially with social media - more specifically Twitter.  I've become a twitter fanatic!  You can even spot me in this news clip:
http://www.newson6.com/story/29827507/superintendent-encourages-social-media-to-further-tps-success

She's planning on visiting our school in the morning to greet our students, and my principal has already assigned me on Twitter patrol.  It's an important job, and somebody's got do it!

After the craziness of First-Day-of-School, I promise to return to writing my book reviews.  Plus, I will be posting pictures of my bulletin boards and display case.  I believe in sharing, especially since I got the ideas from Pinterest!

Doll Bones by Holly Black

The creepy book Doll Bones by Holly Black will not be a hard sell to middle schoolers.  The cover alone will pull them in.

Three kids, Zach, Alice, and Poppy, have always enjoyed making up imaginary stories for their dolls.  These stories of pirates and mermaids always centered around one doll, the Queen, the porcelain figurine kept in the China cabinet at Poppy's house.  Now the friends are in middle school, and Zach is pressured into giving up this childish play.  Poppy, however, can't let it go.  She starts having nightmares about the Queen.  She finally convinces Zach and Alice to join her on a quest to put the haunted China doll's bones to rest.  The trio must discover if Poppy's vision are real.  Is this doll really the ghost of a girl?  Can they uncover the truth before the doll ruins their lives?  My favorite part is when they find refuge in the library, of course!

I love how Holly Black interweaves the history of porcelain making in the United States with the mystery of a haunted doll.  This spookish novel will grabbed the attention of teens looking for a ghost story.  I wish the ending was a little scarier, to satisfy their need to be terrified, but the creepiness will win them over.

Proxy by Alex London

Proxy is one of those books that are hard to put down.  You can't wait to read what happens next, because Alex London's writing is a roller coaster of a ride.

First of all, I should let you know that I loved Sid Fleischman's Whipping Boy way back when (used it when I taught 5th grade), and this book has the similarities.... but with updated twists today's teens will love.  the same theme is there, with a system set up where the rich kids have proxies who must endure their punishment.  In the Whipping Boy, it's the prince; because royalty couldn't be punished, so a peasant boy must suffer whippings meant for the prince's misbehavior.  Flash foward to Proxy, and now the rich pay the poor to withstand punishment intended for their misdeeds.

Syd, the main character, is the proxy.  His life is not his own, and he is forced to suffer punishment meant for bad-boy, Knox.  The book starts with Knox determined, once again, to break the rules.  He has a car accident and the girl with him is killed.  Let's just say, the consequence takes its toll on Sid. who's sentenced to death.  The roller coaster ride continues, and just when you think you've figured it out - BOOM!  Another twist!

I enjoyed this novel so much, I've already recommended it to two people.  I know it's going to be a hit with teens, especially ones into the dystopia genre.  This book is going to give the other titles a run for their money in the race for the Sequoyah Book Award for 2016.

Zebra Forest by Adina Rishe Gerwirtz

The last two book reviews have been historical fiction, so I'm taking a turn to a realistic or contemporary fiction title.  I'm not going to lie, Zebra Forest is a dark book.  The book opens with two siblings, Annie and Rew, living with their grandmother.  It's not an ideal situation from the start because, let's just say... the grandmother is quirky.  This is realistic fiction!  There's a prisoner break, and one of the convicts shows up at their house in the middle of the night.  I don't want to give away too much of this book, but this convict holds them hostage and turns out to be somebody important in their lives.  Each person must learn to cope, and each one handles it differently - again, realistic fiction.  There's no sugar coating in this novel.

The book is well written, and I enjoyed how the characters developed as each one had to deal with emotions, events, and life.  It would be a good read for those not interested in the standard sitcom book format - happy family, problem, gets resolved, and they live happily ever after.

The Fire Horse Girl by Kay Honeyman

Next up is another historical fiction novel.  Kay Honeyman's The Fire Horse Girl starts in China.  It's during the 1920s, and the country is in turmoil and just on the brink of the Cultural Revolution.  Many Chinese are fleeing their homeland, but immigrating to the United States is difficult, especially for women.

The main character is a young girl living with her father, grandfather, and housekeeper.  Her mother died during childbirth, and this young baby's destiny gets even worse as she's born during the worst year in the Chinese Astrological Calendar - the Year of the Fire Horse.  All of the bad characteristics seem magnified in Jade as she grows up in her tiny village.  Her strong will fuels her dreams of a better life for herself.  She wants adventure!

Next on the scene is Sterling Promise, who convinces the men of the house that Jade's uncle (her father's older brother) adopted him with plans of going to America before he passed away.  Sterling needs Jade's father to make the journey with him so a business deal could be completed.  He has all the necessary paperwork in order for Jade's father to pass as his older brother.  This is important because at the time Chinese immigrants were detained on Angel Island before being allowed into the US or being deported back to China.  After the San Francisco earthquake, all documents were burned, and this made it easier for Chinese immigrants to claim they were really US citizens.  However, US immigration officers would detain the Chinese in order to question them.  These questions would prove if they were really US citizens or not.  Sterling's paperwork was the "story" they would use during the interrogations at Angel Island.  They had to study and memorize it, so when asked they would know all the important details and not get mixed up.  Jade's father does not want to go, but Jade does.  Finally Sterling persuades her father into going by allowing Jade to go as well.

The story of Jade has many ups and downs.  You get to meet some interesting characters and read about life in China and for the Chinese settling in San Francisco during the 1920s.  It is obvious Sterling is a con, but, remember, Jade is strong willed.  She's a fire horse girl!