Waiting on Wednesday: No Brainer: Diary of a Wimpy Kid #18 by Jeff Kinney

Image: Abrams Books

No Brainer: Diary of a Wimpy Kid #18 by Jeff Kinney. 224 p. Amulet Books/ Abrams, October 24, 2023. 9781419766947.

Waiting on Wednesday features No Brainer by Jeff Kinney. #18 in the very popular Diary of a Wimpy Kid series is coming on October 24! 

Publisher synopsis: Up until now, middle school hasn’t exactly been a joyride for Greg Heffley. So when the town threatens to close the crumbling building, he’s not too broken up about it.

But when Greg realizes this means he’s going to be sent to a different school than his best friend, Rowley Jefferson, he changes his tune. Can Greg and his classmates save their school before it’s shuttered for good? Or is this the start of a whole new chapter for Greg

#tbt: Amulet #1: The Stonekeeper by Kazu Kibuishi

Image: Scholastic Inc.

Amulet #1: The Stonekeeper by Kazu Kibuishi. 192 p. Graphix/ Scholastic, 2008. 9780439846813.

Happy Thursday! #tbt features Stonekeeper by Kazu Kibuishi. Emily, her brother and mother are grieving the loss of her father in a car accident when her mother decides to move the family to her childhood home. It has fallen into disrepair and needs a good cleaning. While doing so, Emily finds an amulet in her grandfather's study and her brother helps her put it on. That night, Her mother is kidnapped by an arachnopod and Emily and Navin follow them into a parallel universe in order to save her. 

This fantasy graphic novel series starter is fast-paced and features amazing artwork. It is a TMS favorite. It has also won several state award since its publication in 2008. 

Waiting on Wednesday: Waverider by Kazu Kibuishi

Image: Scholastic Inc.

Waverider by Kazu Kibuishi. 256 p. Amulet $9. Graphix/ Scholastic, February 6, 2024. 9780545828659.

Waiting on Wednesday features Waverider by Kazu Kibuishi. Amulet fans rejoice! The long-awaited ninth volume in this beloved series has a publication date! It's not until February 6 of 2024, but yay!

Publisher synopsis: After her confrontation with Ikol, Emily finally understands the stone's power and what she must do to defend Alledia from the shadows. As she travels to Typhon to help her mom and Navin, Prince Trellis returns to the Kingdom of the Elves to save his countrymen — and confront the fraud who has seized power in the absence of a king. The threat of darkness follows all Stonekeepers closely, and it will take the strength of both new friends and old foes to conquer it... and survive.

Middle Grade Monday: Captain America: the Ghost Army (Original Graphic Novel) by Alan Gratz.

Image: Scholastic Inc.

Captain America: the Ghost Army (Original Graphic Novel) by Alan Gratz. Illustrated by Brent Schoonover. 176 p. Scholastic/ Graphix, January, 2023. (Review of finished purchased copy.)

Happy Monday! I hope you enjoyed your weekend. We had torrential rain on Saturday and partial sunshine on Sunday. I was able to close my move ring despite the rain and crushed it on Sunday with almost twelve miles! Mowing my lawn needs about 1.5 miles of steps! The rest was walks with the Boo bear.

Middle Grade Monday features Captain America: the Ghost Army (Original Graphic Novel) by Alan Gratz. Mr. Gratz's many fans at TMS will be happy to know that he has written a graphic novel! It's historical fiction, of course. It's World War II and Capt. America and his feisty sidekick Bucky are in the fictional country of Transia on the eastern front. They're sent to help the British hold their position, but are struggling because they're outnumbered. Just in time, they hear the rumble of artillary, which sends the Nazi's running. It turns out, their saviors are just a few soldiers driving Jeeps, led by a Japanese-American soldier named Jim Morita. Morita's "Ghost Army" has been an effective tool, but little do they know that they will be facing an army of real ghosts that are immune to Capt. America's shield.

I am totally ignorant of the Marvel Universe myself and cannot comment about canon, but this was an engaging read. There's historical meat embedded in a quick-paced action adventure whose ending promises more to come. The art zings. 

Captain America: the Ghost Army belongs in all kinds of libraries. 

Fact Friday: A First Time for Everything by Dan Santat

Image: Macmillan

A First Time for Everything by Dan Santat. 320 p. First Second/ Macmillan, February, 2023. 9781626724150. (Review of finished copy borrowed from public library.)

Fact Friday features A First Time for Everything by Dan Santat. Years before becoming a Caldecott Medal-winning author/ illustrator, Dan Santat was an introverted middle school student doing his best to fly under the radar of teachers as well as classmates. He is the only child in his family and his parents want him to spread his wings a bit. Their answer is to send him to Europe on a class trip the summer after his eighth grade year.

He really doesn't want to go and is dismayed to learn that some of his female tormenters are in the group. He learns some lessons the hard way, such as unwittingly eating an entire basket of delicious French bread only to find that he was getting charged for each! He discovers Fanta and revels in the art at the Louvre. 

The art is just gorgeous. Landmarks and cityscapes are brought to glorious life and flashbacks are done in muted blues and add context. At turns hilarious and poignant, readers will relate to the angst and ache while also marveling over life before smart phones and social media. 

#tbt: Fever, 1793 by Laurie Halse Anderson

Image: Simon & Schuster

Fever, 1793 by Laurie Halse Anderson. 272 p. Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers, March, 2002. 9780689848919.

Happy Thursday! #tbt features Fever, 1793 by Laurie Halse Anderson. It's August and it's hot in Philadelphia, the new capital of the fledgling United States. Fourteen-year-old Mattie Cook drags herself out of bed to help her widowed mother run a bustling coffee house. Yellow Fever is spreading through the city. Wealthier families are leaving to stay in country homes. 

Ms. Anderson brings to life the sights, smells and sounds of Philadelphia and a plucky, resilient narrator. Readers will root for  Mattie as she deals with the unthinkable. 

Since its publication in 2002, Fever, 1793 has been named to numerous state awards lists and Best Books lists. More importantly, this suspenseful tale has made readers of quite a number of students who do not identify as readers.

Waiting on Wednesday: The Last Rose by Leah Cypess

Image: Penguin Random House

The Last Rose by Leah Cypess. 256 p. Sisters Ever After #4. Delacorte Press/ Penguin Young Readers, December 5, 2023. 9780593481332.

Happy Wednesday! Today promises to be a lovely day with dipping temps and a refreshing breeze. It's also the last day of state testing in ELA and Math. Tomorrow and Friday are make up days and the fifth and eighth graders take the science state test next week.  

Waiting on Wednesday features The Last Rose by Leah Cypess. This is book four of the Sisters Ever After series. I learned about this sweet series of fairy tale retellings earlier this year from a fifth grader. The Last Rose is due out on December 5. 

Here's the publisher synopsis: The fourth book in the Sisters Ever After series of fairy tale retellings, this is the wild story of Mera, the only one who can save her beautiful older sister when she is kidnapped by the Beast who viciously rules over their small village.

For as long as Mera can remember, she and her sister Darina have feared the Beast who lurks in the castle above their village. On countless nights they have locked themselves into their home while the Beast led his hounds on the Wild Hunt, preying on anything in his path.

Now Darina has been kidnapped by the Beast, and only Mera can save her. But she soon finds that in the Beast’s eerie, magic-haunted castle, nothing is quite what it seems—including her own sister. Here, Mera will discover the dark secrets that have bound her village to the Beast for so long.

But in order to set them all free, she will have to face the most dangerous secret of all: the truth about herself.

If you're a reader who enjoys fairy tale retellings, check out this series.

Middle Grade Monday: Bloom by Kenneth Oppel

Image: Penguin Random House

Bloom by Kenneth Oppel. 336 p. Random House Children's Books, Mar. 2020.

Happy Monday Tuesday! I hope you enjoyed the beautiful weekend. If I don't get these posts up the first thing in the morning, I rarely get back. Middle Grade Monday features Bloom by Kenneth Oppel. Anaya lives on a small island near Vancouver with her botanist dad and Mounty mom. She, her former bff, Petra and new kid, Seth all suffer from odd allergies. After three days of drenching rain, weird black plants with sharp points start growing. They are almost impossible to remove and cause injury to anyone who tries. Soon, they grow snake-like vines that writhe and choke anything in its path, including humans. It turns out, this isn't just a problem on their little island. The entire world is dealing with these deadly plants and scientists and the military are struggling to find a pesticide.

Curiously, the three teens are immune to the effects of the plants and the reason why is a bit horrifying. The pace of this cinematic, sci-fi thriller is whiplash fast and leaves readers panting for the next installment.

What's New?

"Stacking the Shelves" was a weekly meme hosted by Tynga's Reviews. It seems the blog is gone though, so I will just continue to post a "What's New? post whenever I receive new books. 

For Review: 

Image: Penguin Random House

Every Body: a First Conversation about Bodies by Megan Madison, Jessica Ralli & Tequitia Andrews. unpaged. First Conversations series. Rise/ Penguin Young Readers Group, May, 2023. 

Publisher synopsis: Based on the research that race, gender, consent, and body liberation should be discussed with toddlers on up, this read-aloud board book series offers adults the opportunity to begin important conversations with young children in an informed, safe, and supported way.

Developed by experts in the fields of early childhood and activism against injustice, this topic-driven picture book offers clear, concrete language and beautiful imagery to introduce the concept of BODY LIBERATION. This book serves to celebrate the uniqueness of your body and all bodies, and addresses the unfair rules and ideas that currently exist about bodies. It ends with motivational action points for making the world more fair for all!

While young children are avid observers and questioners of their world, adults often shut down or postpone conversations on complicated topics because it's hard to know where to begin. Research shows that talking about issues like race and gender from the age of two not only helps children understand what they see, but also increases self-awareness, self-esteem, and allows them to recognize and confront things that are unfair, like discrimination and prejudice.

These books offer a supportive approach that considers both the child and the adult. Stunning art accompanies the simple and interactive text, and the backmatter offers additional resources and ideas for extending this discussion.

Image: HarperCollins Publishers

The Fire, the Water and Maudie McGinn by Sally J. Pla. 330 p. Quill Tree Books/ HarperCollins Publishers, July 11, 2023. 9780063268791.

Publisher synopsis:Neurodivergent Maudie is ready to spend an amazing summer with her dad, but will she find the courage to tell him a terrible secret about life with her mom and new stepdad? This contemporary novel by the award-winning author of The Someday Birds is a must-read for fans of Leslie Connor and Ali Standish.

Maudie always looks forward to the summers she spends in California with her dad. But this year, she must keep a troubling secret about her home life—one that her mom warned her never to tell. Maudie wants to confide in her dad about her stepdad's anger, but she’s scared.

When a wildfire strikes, Maudie and her dad are forced to evacuate to the beach town where he grew up. It’s another turbulent wave of change. But now, every morning, from their camper, Maudie can see surfers bobbing in the water. She desperately wants to learn, but could she ever be brave enough?

As Maudie navigates unfamiliar waters, she makes friends—and her autism no longer feels like the big deal her mom makes it out to be. But her secret is still threatening to sink her. Will Maudie find the strength to reveal the awful truth—and maybe even find some way to stay with Dad—before summer is over?

Purchased: Nothing!

What's new on your pile?

#tbt: A Hero's Guide to Saving Your Kingdom by Christopher Healy

Image: HarperCollins Publishers

A Hero's Guide to Saving Your Kingdom by Christopher Healy. Illustrated by Todd Harris. 468 p. Walden Pond Press/ HarperCollins Publishers, May, 2012. 9780062117434. (Own)

#tbt features A Hero's Guide to Saving Your Kingdom by Christopher Healy and illustrated by Todd Harris. The four princes Charming are not quite living happily ever after, and neither are their respective princesses, Cinderella, Snow White, Rapunzel and Sleeping Beauty can take care of themselves, thank you very much. 

This inventive fractured fairy tale is fast-paced and often laugh out loud funny. It was published in 2012 and is Mr. Healy's debut novel. It is the first book of a trilogy. 

Waiting on Wednesday: One of Us is Back by Karen M. McManus

Image: Penguin Random House

One of Us is Back by Karen M. McManus. One of Us is Lying series #3. 368 p. Delacorte Press/ Random House Children's Books, July 25, 2023. 9780593709184. 

Waiting on Wednesday features One of Us is Lying by Karen M. McManus. I don't know how I missed this, but I am so glad that I caught a tweet about it! All of Ms. McManus' books are very popular at my school. 

Publisher synopsis: The third time's a charm.

It's been almost two years since Simon died in detention, and the aftermath has been hard to shake. First the Bayview Four had to prove they weren't killers. Then a new generation outwitted a vengeful copycat. Now the entire Bayview Crew is back home for the summer, and everyone is trying to move on.

Only, this is Bayview, and life is never that simple.

At first the mysterious billboard seems like a bad joke: Time for a new game, Bayview. But when a member of the Bayview Crew disappears, it's clear this "game" is serious—and whoever's in charge isn't sharing the rules. Or maybe there aren't any.

Bronwyn. Cooper. Addy. Nate. Maeve. Phoebe. Knox. Luis. Kris. Everyone's a target. And now that someone unexpected has returned to Bayview, things could start getting deadly.

The thing is, Simon was right about secrets—they all come out eventually. And Bayview has a lot it's still hiding.

Teen Tuesday and Audiobook Review: The Stolen Heir by Holly Black

Image: Hachette Book Group

The Stolen Heir by Holly Black. Unabridged e-audiobook, ~10 hours, 14 minutes. Read by Saskia Maarleveld. Hachette Audio, January, 2023. 9781549135033. (Review of e-audiobook downloaded from public library.)

Happy Tuesday TMS Readers! Teen Tuesday features The Stolen Heir by Holly Black. Ms. Black returns to the kingdom of Elfhame in book one of a planned duology. She really is the undisputed queen of stories of the faerie folk. Make no mistake, this world is not full of benign little Tinker Bells. This world is savage.

The story takes place eight years after the Battle of the Serpent. Queen Nore has imprisoned Madoc in the Ice Needle Citadel and Queen Jude has sent her half-brother, Prince Oak, now eighteen, on a quest to free him. Queen Nore's ransom is a missing relic. Suren, Wren, has been living rough in the human world when she is hunted by the hag Bogdana. Oak rescues her and she joins him on his quest. Once upon a time, the two were betrothed.

This dark and twisty tale enchants from the beginning. I read this with my ears and enjoyed new-to-me narrator, Saskia Maarleveld's well-paced performance. The ending was so riveting that I missed my exit on my drive home from Massachusetts on Sunday and got stuck in traffic on 95 all the way to the George Washington Bridge in the rain! Now, I breathlessly await the next book, The Prisoner's Throne, due out in February, 2023. Mature readers who enjoy dark fantasy will enjoy this. Highly recommended! Happy reading.

PS: isn't that cover amazing?

Middle Grade Monday: School Trip by Jerry Craft

Image: HarperCollins Publishers

School Trip by Jerry Craft. 256 p. Quill Tree Books/ HarperCollins Publishers, April, 2023. (Review of finished purchased copy.)

Oops! Forgot to post this yesterday! Happy Monday! What an awful, rainy weekend! Driving in the rain is just the pits and I had to drive to and from Massachusetts this  weekend! Thank goodness it was for a happy event and I had an excellent audiobook (tune in on Tuesday). 

Since TMS is winding down class trip season, now seems to be a good day to feature School Trip by Jerry Craft for Middle Grade Monday. Jordan is finishing eighth grade at Riverdale Middle School. He's excited for his upcoming school trip to Paris. He and his friends have plans to room together and roam the City of Lights. They don't count on their fave teachers not being able to make the trip nor are they happy that Andy will be a roommate. When Jordan receives an acceptance letter to his dream art school, he surprised that his joy is tempered with worry.

This third installment in the New Kid series is just as insightful, hilarious and endearing as the two previous books, the Newbery-winning, New Kid and Class Act. Happy reading and happy May Day!