Tuesday, November 30, 2010

Best I've Read 2010: Giveaway



The BIR2010 Giveway officially starts in six days. But they do have a few Teaser giveaways. Hop on over and check it out.

This is not only an opportunity to win free books, but it will introduce you to ten very cool blogs.

To Read Tuesday


To Read Tuesday

Today is the first ever To Read Tuesday on Booklady’s Booknotes. These are just a few of the books on my to be read list.

Young Adult
The Eternal Ones by Kirsten Miller
Tangled by Carolyn Mackler
Declaration by Gemma Malley
Incarceron by Catherine Fisher
Extraordinary by Nancy Werlin
Twenty Boy Summer by Sarah Ockler
Matched by Allie Condie
The Replacement by Brenna Yovanoff
Torment by Lauren Kate
Pegasus by Robin McKinley


Mysteries
Roast Mortem by Cleo Coyle
The Cluttered Corpse  by Jane Maffini
Dirty Rotten Tendrils by Kate Collins
Bodywork by Sarah Paretsky
Fundraising The Dead by Sheila Connolly
Black Beans and Vice by J. B. Stanley
Night of the Living Deed by E. J. Copperman
You Better Knot Die by Betty Hechtman
Berried to the Hilt by Karen MacInerney
Mistletoe and Mayhem – Kate Kingsbury

Fantasy/Paranormal
Definitely Dead by Charlaine Harris
Storm Front by Jim Butcher
Foundation: Book One of the Collegium Chronicles by Mercedes Lackey


What’s on your to read list?

Monday, November 29, 2010

Lies by Michael Grant - Book Five of My Young Adult Dystopian Challenge


I can’t help but think of this book as Lord of the Flies on steroids.  It’s like driving by a car wreck - you can’t help but look.

Don’t get me wrong. I really like this series. Grant writes an engrossing page-turner.  I was on the edge of my seat and could hardly put the book down.   His characters are well developed, if frightening. You can’t help put care for and sympathize with the “good guys” and shiver, perhaps shrink away from the “bad guys.”


Lies is the third in this series, following Gone and Hunger. Plague is scheduled for release in April of 2011.  Nothing is ever easy in the FAYZ.  The residents barely survive one threat before facing another one.  In this latest installment, people thought dead now walk the streets, the non-freaks (Grant’s terminology, not mine) are beginning to resent the Freaks (those with strange powers), and what little semblance of order there was from the establishment of the Town Council quickly evaporates.  Zil, leader of the Human Crew sets fire to the town in an attempt to take power away from the mutants (freaks). Osray, now labeled the Prophetess by her strange new companion Nerezza, seems to be telling the children they should embrace the “poof” or maybe even death as a way to escape the FAYZ.  As tempers flare, people go hungry and the evil darkness threatens to return (if it ever really left), Sam, Astrid, Edilio and the others must find a way to survive.  And even if they survive what will they be facing next?

I can’t wait for the next installment.

Sunday, November 28, 2010

Young Adult Dystopian Challenge Book Four - Pretties by Scott Westerfield


The fourth book I chose for the Young Adult Dystopian Challenge is Pretties by Scott Westerfield.

In this sequel to Uglies, Tally Youngblood fights being a “pretty-head” after undergoing the operation that transformed her from an “Ugly” to a “Pretty.”  In the first book Tally had learned that the operation not only changes looks, but also gives the recipient brain lesions that change their personalities.  Until meeting up with one of the Uglies from The New Smoke, Tally had forgotten that she had volunteered to submit to the operation so she could test the pills developed to cure the lesions.  She and a fellow Crim, the Pretty Clique Tally joined after her operation, each take a pill, which allows them to stay focused for longer periods of time.  But her friend has a bad reaction to the pill and Tally must find away to escape New Pretty Town and meet up with the only doctors who can help him – those hiding in The New Smoke. 

This is book two of a trilogy. While a totally riveting story, it is not one that stands on its own. I strongly recommend reading these books in order.  Westerfield has created likable, but fallible characters involved in a complex and compelling plot. Upon finishing Pretties, readers will want to rush out and pick up the final book in the series: Specials.

Thursday, November 25, 2010

Happy Thanksgiving



We give thanks for unknown blessings already on their way.  ~Author Unknown

As we express our gratitude, we must never forget that the highest appreciation is not to utter words, but to live by them.  ~John Fitzgerald Kennedy

Thanksgiving Day comes, by statute, once a year; to the honest man it comes as frequently as the heart of gratitude will allow.  ~Edward Sandford Martin

May your stuffing be tastyMay your turkey plump,May your potatoes and gravyHave nary a lump.May your yams be deliciousAnd your pies take the prize,And may your Thanksgiving dinnerStay off your thighs!~Author Unknown

I am thankful for wonderful books and the authors who write them, free libraries and the librarians who make them run so smoothly.  I am thankful for my family, friends and the followers of  this blog.

May you have a wonderful Thanksgiving Day! And treat yourself to a good book!

Wednesday, November 24, 2010

Have You Read More Than 6?


Have you read more than 6 of these books? The BBC believes most people will have read only 6 of the 100 books listed here.

Instructions: Copy this into your NOTES. Bold those books you’ve read in their entirety, italicize the ones you started, but have yet to finish or from which you have read an excerpt.

I've read 46/100 and read part of another 8.

1 Pride and Prejudice – Jane Austen
2 The Lord of the Rings – JRR Tolkien
3 Jane Eyre – Charlotte Bronte
4 Harry Potter series – JK Rowling
5 To Kill a Mockingbird – Harper Lee
6 The Bible
7 Wuthering Heights – Emily Bronte
8 Nineteen Eighty Four – George Orwell
9 His Dark Materials – Philip Pullman
10 Great Expectations – Charles Dickens
11 Little Women – Louisa M Alcott
12 Tess of the D’Urbervilles – Thomas Hardy
13 Catch 22 – Joseph Heller
14 Complete Works of Shakespeare
15 Rebecca – Daphne Du Maurier
16 The Hobbit – JRR Tolkien
17 Birdsong – Sebastian Faulks
18 Catcher in the Rye – JD Salinger
19 The Time Traveller’s Wife – Audrey Niffenegger
20 Middlemarch – George Eliot
21 Gone With The Wind – Margaret Mitchell
22 The Great Gatsby – F Scott Fitzgerald
23 Bleak House – Charles Dickens
24 War and Peace – Leo Tolstoy
25 The Hitch Hiker’s Guide to the Galaxy – Douglas Adams
26 Brideshead Revisited – Evelyn Waugh
27 Crime and Punishment – Fyodor Dostoyevsky
28 Grapes of Wrath – John Steinbeck
29 Alice in Wonderland – Lewis Carroll
30 The Wind in the Willows – Kenneth Grahame
31 Anna Karenina – Leo Tolstoy
32 David Copperfield – Charles Dickens
33 Chronicles of Narnia – CS Lewis
34 Emma – Jane Austen
35 Persuasion – Jane Austen
36 The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe – CS Lewis
37 The Kite Runner – Khaled Hosseini
38 Captain Corelli’s Mandolin – Louis De Berniere
39 Memoirs of a Geisha – Arthur Golden
40 Winnie the Pooh – AA Milne
41 Animal Farm – George Orwell
42 The Da Vinci Code – Dan Brown
43 One Hundred Years of Solitude – Gabriel Garcia Marquez
44 A Prayer for Owen Meaney – John Irving
45 The Woman in White – Wilkie Collins
46 Anne of Green Gables – LM Montgomery
47 Far From The Madding Crowd – Thomas Hardy
48 The Handmaid’s Tale – Margaret Atwood
49 Lord of the Flies – William Golding
50 Atonement – Ian McEwan
51 Life of Pi – Yann Martel
52 Dune – Frank Herbert
53 Cold Comfort Farm – Stella Gibbons
54 Sense and Sensibility – Jane Austen
55 A Suitable Boy – Vikram Seth
56 The Shadow of the Wind – Carlos Ruiz Zafon
57 A Tale Of Two Cities – Charles Dickens
58 Brave New World – Aldous Huxley
59 The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time – Mark Haddon
60 Love In The Time Of Cholera – Gabriel Garcia Marquez
61 Of Mice and Men – John Steinbeck
62 Lolita – Vladimir Nabokov
63 The Secret History – Donna Tartt
64 The Lovely Bones – Alice Sebold
65 Count of Monte Cristo – Alexandre Dumas
66 On The Road – Jack Kerouac
67 Jude the Obscure – Thomas Hardy
68 Bridget Jones’s Diary – Helen Fielding
69 Midnight’s Children – Salman Rushdie
70 Moby Dick – Herman Melville
71 Oliver Twist – Charles Dickens
72 Dracula – Bram Stoker
73 The Secret Garden – Frances Hodgson Burnett
74 Notes From A Small Island – Bill Bryson
75 Ulysses – James Joyce
76 The Bell Jar – Sylvia Plath
77 Swallows and Amazons – Arthur Ransome
78 Germinal – Emile Zola
79 Vanity Fair – William Makepeace Thackeray
80 Possession – AS Byatt
81 A Christmas Carol – Charles Dickens
82 Cloud Atlas – David Mitchell
83 The Color Purple – Alice Walker
84 The Remains of the Day – Kazuo Ishiguro
85 Madame Bovary – Gustave Flaubert
86 A Fine Balance – Rohinton Mistry
87 Charlotte’s Web – EB White
88 The Five People You Meet In Heaven – Mitch Albom
89 Adventures of Sherlock Holmes – Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
90 The Faraway Tree Collection – Enid Blyton
91 Heart of Darkness – Joseph Conrad
92 The Little Prince – Antoine De Saint-Exupery
93 The Wasp Factory – Iain Banks
94 Watership Down – Richard Adams
95 A Confederacy of Dunces – John Kennedy Toole
96 A Town Like Alice – Nevil Shute
97 The Three Musketeers – Alexandre Dumas
98 Hamlet – William Shakespeare
99 Charlie and the Chocolate Factory – Roald Dahl
100 Les Miserables – Victor Hugo


Tuesday, November 23, 2010

If I Stay by Gail Forman


If I Stay is an intense and moving story about Mia, a talented cellist, who is the only member of her family to survive a horrendous car crash.  The story is told from Mia’s point of view as she experiences an out of body experience that allows her to be aware of what is going on around her, even while in a coma.  The story switches smoothly from present to past events.  We learn of Mia’s love of classical music, her fears of leaving her boyfriend for Julliard, and her relationships with friends and family.  This is a thought provoking novel that will cause the reader to take stock of their life and the things that mean most to them.  Keep a box of tissues handy.  Forman is a master storyteller.  Though written for young adults, many adults will enjoy this story as well.

Monday, November 22, 2010

Thankful For A Little Extra Time to Read/And A Book Trailer

It's Thanksgiving week here in the States.  Everyone is thinking more about the things for which we are thankful.  One of the many things I am thankful is books. (And as a librarian, my job is directly related to something I love.)  I especially thankful for all the wonderful writers who keep creating wonderful worlds in which I can escape.

Today I want to share a trailer for an upcoming book by one of my favorite authors.



Now, since school is out until next Monday, I'm going to indulge in something else on my thankful list - the extra time to do a little extra reading.

Saturday, November 20, 2010

The Grimm Legacy by Polly Shulman


Elizabeth Rew is a lonely teen feeling left out by her father who seems bent on ignoring her, her stepmother who just wants her to do chores and her classmates who don’t seem to know she exists.  What she needs is a dose of fairy tale magic.  When her social studies teacher recommends her for a job at the New York Circulating Material Library Elizabeth gladly accepts. There she makes friends with the other pages, beautiful Anjali, basketball star Marc and grumpy Aaron.  It’s not long before she realizes this is no ordinary library. Not only does the collection include things other than books, but also there are some very special collections, such as The Grimm Collection. At first Elizabeth just thinks these are items that inspired the fairy tales.  It’s not until valuable items start disappearing and she ends up trapped in the Grimm collection that she learns that fairy tales are real and many of the items actually came from some of her favorite child hood stories. She also learns that not all magic is good. Some of it can be dark and evil or at least snarky, like the famed “Mirror on the Wall” from Snow White.  Just as she’s getting used to the idea of working with magical items, Elizabeth gets caught up in a mystery surrounding the disappearance of many of the items.  Then Anjali disappears and Elizabeth, Marc and Aaron must rescue her before it’s too late.

The story follows a somewhat slower pace, but it feels right for this story. Not only does Elizabeth learn about the wonders in the collection, but she learns about herself as well as she begins to make friends with her co-workers.  Of course there is a touch of romance that will not appeal to the younger reader, but the romance is overshadowed by the intrigue and magic.  Readers who enjoy magical stories such as Harry Potter and The Sisters Grimm series will enjoy this book.  This is a good addition to any fairy tale genre collection.  I do not know if this a series, but I’d be willing to read more about Elizabeth and the Grimm Collection.

Recommended for Grades 3 and up

Friday, November 19, 2010

It's Friday - Time for Book Blogger Hop!

Book Blogger Hop


In the spirit of the Twitter Friday Follow, the Book Blogger Hop is a place just for book bloggers and readers to connect and share our love of the written word!  This weekly BOOK PARTY is an awesome opportunity for book bloggers to connect with other book lovers, make new friends, support each other, and generally just share our love of books!  It will also give blog readers a chance to find other book blogs to read!  So, grab the logo, post about the Hop on your blog, and start HOPPING through the list of blogs that are posted in the Linky list below!!

The Hop lasts Friday-Monday every week, so if you don't have time to Hop today, come back later and join the fun!  This is a weekly event!  And stop back throughout the weekend to see all the new blogs that are added!  We get over 200 links every week!!   Check out Crazy For Books for a list of participating blogs.



This week's question is:



 "Since Thanksgiving is coming up next week, let's use this week's Hop to share what we are most thankful for and what our holiday traditions are!"

This year I'm thankful for many things, but most of all I'm thankful for my husband (who is not deployed this Thanksgiving), my two sons, my parents by choice (who live in Texas), my many wonderful friends and that I'm in Colorado Springs and not Missouri.  And as always I'm thankful for books.

The Twelve Days of Christmas Cookbook


Though I love cookbooks and have quite a collection, I’ve never reviewed a cookbook before. This is a great one to start with.

The Twelve Days of Christmas Cookbook is a beautifully illustrated and formatted cookbook covering the twelve days of Christmas and beyond.  Recipes are organized into fun categories including “Breads A-Baking,” “Soups A-Simmering,” “Sides A-Steaming, and “Just for Kids A-Cooking.”  Cooks will have a hard time deciding which delectable recipe to try first: Buttermilk Cookies, Fireside Mocha Mix, Four-Layer Breakfast Dish, and Macaroni and Cheese Soup are just a few of the delectable recipes included in this delightful holiday cookbook.

A great gift for your favorite cook. I’ll be adding it to my collection.

Thursday, November 18, 2010

Big Nate Strikes Again by Lincoln Peirce

Cross posting from Mrs. Archer's Book Notes:




I received an Advance Reader’s Copy of Big Nate Strikes Again by Lincoln Pierce.  I did not receive any compensation for reviewing this book.

Kids who love Greg Hefley from Diary of a Wimpy Kid are going to love Nate Wright.  Parents will probably like Nate better.

Based on the comic strip “Big Nate” this series details the trials and tribulations of 6th grader Nate Wright.  Nate finally has a chance to win the coveted SPOFFY Trophy (Sports Played Only For Fun). He’s been selected as a team captain for fleeceball – an indoor version of baseball.  But nothing ever goes smoothly.  Kept after school by a teacher, Nate is unable to make it to the meeting to pick his team.  He lucks out and his best friends Teddy and Francis are on the team, but so is his archenemy – A+ know it all Gina!  Not only does he have to put up with Gina on his fleeceball team, he’s paired with her on a social studies project.  Can things get any worse or more hilarious?

The humor in this book is definitively age appropriate. As an elementary librarian I spend a good deal of time around young children.  The humor is right on target, but it’s not so obnoxious (as some kid like humor – Captain Underpants for example – can be) that adults will not enjoy it as well.  I love Jeff Kinney and his Diary of a Wimpy Kid series. But lets be honest, I think I like Nate better. (Don’t worry I’ll still anxiously await any new Wimpy Kid books.) Nate is one of those likeable characters.  Always up to something, but so charming you can’t help but like him.  If you work in a school, you know what I’m talking about.

As I mentioned in the beginning, I received an Advanced Readers’ Copy of this book.  I liked it so much that not only am I going to recommend it to my students, I’ve already ordered a hard cover copy of this and the first book in the series for my library at home.

Recommended for 3rd grade and up. (The AR reading level is 3.0 and even though Nate is a 6th grader, based on my experience I’m pretty sure 3rd grade and older will enjoy this book.)

Mrs. Archer’s rating: 5 of 5



Tuesday, November 16, 2010

Happy Haul-idays

Chronicle Books is hosting a giveaway: $500 worth of books to one blogger (and one person who left a comment on the winner’s blog)! 

Check out the list of books I’d like to win below – and make sure you comment! If you comment on this post and I win, you have a chance to win the books I picked out, too!

Above content taken from: http://silversolara.blogspot.com/2010/11/happy-haul-idays.html




Here is my wish list:


Murder Alfresco by Nadia Gordon
Death by the Glass by Nadia Gordon
Olive The Other Reindeer by J. Otto Seibold
Cake Pops by Angie Dudley
Port-a-Pug
Duck! Rabbit! by Amy Rosenthal
Clint Eastwood: A Life in Pictures
New Photography Manual
Cheese Tasting Party Kit
Cheese and Wine
Marilyn Merlot and the Naked Grape
Large Moleskine  Red Sketchbook
Large Ruled Moleskine Red Notebook

Looking for great holiday gifts? Check out Chronicle Books

Sunday, November 14, 2010

Samuel Blink and the Forbidden Forest by Matt Haig


Amazon Product Description
When Samuel and Martha are sent to Norway to live with their Aunt Edna after their parents' deaths, they soon learn her most important rule: NEVER-UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES-GO INTO THE FOREST. She doesn't offer an explanation, but Samuel suspects it might have something to do with a strange guidebook he finds in her attic: The Creatures of Shadow Forest. And when Martha wanders into the trees and is captured by some of the creatures described in the book, Samuel has no choice but to go in after her. What he finds there is an eerie world populated by trolls, truth pixies and other fantastical creatures.

I have to say I loved the narrator for this audio book. Simon Vance does an excellent job of bringing each character to life. He has a wonderful accent that draws the listener into the story.  Yet, I must say that at first I had a hard time with the story. I found it hard to like Samuel in the beginning. He was not a very likeable character. Granted he has just lost his parents in a terrible car accident. He has a right to be angry at the world. However, he seemed to be that way before the car accident.  The charm of this story is that Samuel’s character grows. He becomes concerned about something other than himself and eventually, the anger falls away to reveal a rather likeable young boy.  The subject matter is a little scary. Haig is an excellent story teller and tells a truly scary and somewhat gruesome story. Shadow Forest is a dark and scary place.  Yet the reader/listener can’t help but feel sympathetic toward all the characters that have been forced to give up their good natures to become as evil as the “Change Maker.”  However, I would not recommend this story for the very young.  It is perhaps a little too dark and scary.

Recommended for 3rd Grade and up.

Thursday, November 11, 2010

In Honor of Veterans Day - America's White Table by Margot Theis Raven and Mike Benny

Re-post from November 13th 2008 - I think this book is special enough that we should talk about it every Veterans Day.


America’s White Table by Margot Theis Raven and Mike Benny

The White Table is set in many mess halls as a symbol for and remembrance to service members fallen, missing, or held captive in the line of duty. It is also seen at many military banquets and balls. Solitary and solemn, it is the table where no one will ever sit.

As a military wife of almost19 years, I have seen many White Tables at many functions. They always give me a moment of pause, but their symbolism really hit home when I read Raven’s and Benny’s America’s White Table. In 2008 we were all planning for our Veteran’s Day lessons. Our school district is not closed on Veteran’s Day (which took some getting used to after having worked in a Department of Defense school for many years), but each school is required to do lessons centered around Veteran’s Day.

One of the teachers mentioned she was looking for a copy of this book. She wanted to share it with her students. I had never read the book, but I am grateful she brought it to my attention. Even though the classrooms were all doing various activities for Veterans Day, I decided the library could help with those plans by setting up a White Table in the library. Raven and Benny paint a wonderful story with their words and the illustrations, but sometimes, adults and children alike, need to be able to see and touch something to get its full meaning.

America’s White Table is a beautifully written and illustrated book that explains this touching memorial to our military in words that children can understand. Adults will also be moved by this book. I, myself, can’t read it without crying. (So much for being the tough Army wife.)

This is an excellent book to use for Veterans Day or Memorial Day. It is also a great gift for military families. I not only added it to my school's collection, but my personal collection as well.


AMERICA’S WHITE TABLE

Materials Needed: Small Table with an Empty Chair
White Table Cloth, Black Napkin
Glass (turned over), White Candle
Lemon Slice and Grains of Salt on a Plate
One Place Setting: fork, spoon, and knife
A Red Rose in a vase tied with a Red Ribbon

The table honors the men and women who served in America’s Armed Forces

“We cover a small table with a white cloth to honor a soldier’s pure heart when he answers his country’s call to duty.”

“We place a lemon slice and grains of salt on a plate to show a captive soldier’s bitter fate and tears of families waiting for loved ones to return.”

“We push an empty chair to the table for the missing soldiers who are not here.”

“We lay a black napkin for the sorrow of captivity, and turn over a glass for the meal that won’t be eaten.”

“We place a white candle for peace and finally, a red rose in a vase tied with a red ribbon for the hope that all our missing will return someday.”

"You are not forgotten so long as there is one left in whom your memory remains"



Monday, November 8, 2010

Buzz Off by Hannah Reed


Summary from back of the book:

When beekeeper Story Fischer is on the case, you can run-but you can't hive.
It's September-National Honey Month-in Moraine, Wisconsin, and things are looking up for Story Fischer. Her messy divorce is final; the honey from her beekeeping business has been harvested; and the Wild Clover, the market she owns, is thriving. Life seems pretty sweet until her mentor in the honey business is found stung to death in his apiary.
Story is still trying to explain to the panicked locals that Manny was killed by wasps, not honeybees, when another body is found floating in the Oconomowoc River. This time the evidence points to Story's ex. Sure, Clay's a womanizer and a buzz kill-but a murderer? Desperate to save her bees and her business (and, okay, her ex), it’s up to Story to find a way out of a very sticky situation.

I had hear quite a bit of “buzz” about this book and was worried that it might not live up to all the hype. I shouldn’t have worried.  I loved this first book in a new series.

To put it in terms Story would appreciate:

·      The theme is different from any other series I’ve read. 
·      The characters will keep you on your toes. Their quirks and foibles (from P.P. Patty to Story’s overbearing mother) will keep the hive buzzing. You’ll want to read more just to see how Story handles them all.
·      The fact that Story is successfully following her dreams will serve as an inspiration for all women who want to make it on their own.
·      Readers will want read more to find out what happens between Story and Hunter.

As I’ve said before I already follow many cozy series, in addition to reading a great deal of young adult novels.  My to read list is longer than I am tall and adding a new series to the list is not something I do lightly.  Reed’s solid writing and well-developed characters made adding this to my list of series to follow a no brainer. I’m looking forward to Mind Your Own Beeswax due out in May of 2011.

Sunday, November 7, 2010

The Lost Hero by Rick Riordan


Amazon Product Description
“After saving Olympus from the evil Titan lord, Kronos, Percy and friends have rebuilt their beloved Camp Half-Blood, where the next generation of demigods must now prepare for a chilling prophecy of their own:

Seven half-bloods shall answer the call,
To storm or fire the world must fall.
An oath to keep with a final breath,
And foes bear arms to the Doors of Death.

Now, in a brand-new series from blockbuster best-selling author Rick Riordan, fans return to the world of Camp Half-Blood. Here, a new group of heroes will inherit a quest. But to survive the journey, they’ll need the help of some familiar demigods.”

When I first heard that Rick Riordan was writing another series about Camp Half Blood, I prepared myself to be disappointed.  It’s often hard for the next book in a series to be as good as the first one, much less for a sequel to a series (I’m not sure that’s the right phrase) to be as good as the original series.  But Riordan more than meets the challenge.  This new Olympian series is a perfect continuation of the original one.

In The Lost Hero we meet three of the seven mentioned in the prophecy: Jason, who has no memory of his life before he wakes up on a school bus with Piper, who has the gift of persuasion, and Leo who is more than handy with his hands. As is the case with heroes, things get off to a rocky start and the trio soon finds themselves battling monsters before being transported to Camp Half Blood where they will learn their true identities and begin to prepare for their quest.

Riordan keeps things fast paced and suspenseful. The gods, especially Hera, know what is going on, but no one is willing to share that information with our heroes. Never fear, this intrepid trio does not let that slow them down.

If you enjoyed Percy and his adventures or if you enjoy mythology, this new series is a must read.  One of the things I enjoy about Riordan’s work is that it inspires me (and I’ve had students say this is true for them as well) to do a little research to refresh my memory on mythology.  Any book that students not only enjoy but encourages them to learn more is a definite winner.

Recommended for Grades 4 and up. (Even if you are an adult, you might consider reading this series. Not only will you be up to date on what the kids are reading, but you just might enjoy yourself.)

Booklady's rating rating 5 of 5.