What the Junior Room Is Reading2008 Archive2007 Archive2006 Archive

November

J/F/DAHMECreepers2008, 232 p.Grades 5 – 8
Courtney‘s family has moved to an old stone house that sits next to an early Puritan cemetery in Murmur, Massachusetts. Both the house and cemetery are steeped in history, and draped in ivy. Ivy creeps everywhere, growing faster than it can be pulled, and it seems to breathe and take on a life of its own.

At the cemetery Courtney meets Christian and Margaret Geyer, an eccentric father-daughter team who give graveyard tours. She is quickly drawn into their family mystery, learning that an ancestor of the Geyer family, named Prudence, once lived in Courtney’s family home. When young Prudence met an early death, her distraught father made an arrangement with a witch to bring Prudence back to life. As the ivy increasingly invades Courtney’s life, she realizes that spirits, both visible and invisible, are luring her deeper into the mystery.

Miss Diane says, “Creepy. This is a just eerie enough to keep your interest, but not so much so that you need to keep the lights on at bedtime.”

J/F/DITERLIZZIKenny & the Dragon2008, 151 p.Grades 3 – 4
Kenny is a rabbit who lives near a town called Roundbrook, a village which is populated by a variety of animals including badgers, frogs and others. The young hare befriends a gentle dragon named Grahame, who enjoys painting, poetry and pastry.  When the townsfolk get wind of the supposedly fearsome creature in their midst, they set out to dispose of the giant lizard.  Kenny thinks of an ingenious solution to save his new friend.

Miss Suzanne says, “This is like a happy version of the song Puff the Magic Dragon.  Grahame, the dragon is quite refined in his tastes, and he and Kenny share an interest in literature. There are quite a few pen and ink drawings that are adorable.”

J/F/FROSTDiamond Willow2008, 111 p.Grades 6 – 8
Willow prefers spending time with her family’s sled dogs more than she enjoys school, where she has few friends and is content to go unnoticed.  Now, at the age of twelve, she is finally being allowed to take the two-hour sled trip to her grandparent’s house on her own.  On her return trip, she has an accident which threatens to blind their favorite dog Roxy, the family’s lead dog.  When her parents consider euthanizing the dog, Willow decides to take Roxy back to her grandparents and gets lost in a storm along the way.

Miss Kelly says, “In easy-to-read verse, with selected heart-felt words in boldface, this is a quietly powerful book. Also used as a device are chapters by ancestors who are now animals in the wild. These ancestors keep track of Willow’s progress and sometimes guide her.  Willow’s struggles include popularity, independence, and responsibility. Readers who like dog stories or the adventure of Hatchet, will enjoy this book.”

J/F/LAWSavvy2008, 342 p.Grades 4 – 7
The Beaumont family has always been different.  At thirteen, each Beaumont child develops a “savvy,” or unique magical talent.  The mother of the clan has a knack for doing things perfectly the first time, from pie crust to playing the piano.  Grandma can catch radio waves from the air and trap them.  The two older brothers of the family have more violent savvies – one calls up storms when he is upset and the other channels electrical current.  These more violent savvies have led the family to settle in rural Kansas where electrical oddities and storms are less likely to be noticed.  Mibs (aka Mississippi Beaumont) is just shy of her 13th birthday when she will receive her savvy.  On the eve of her birthday, her father is in a car accident and left in a coma.   Her mother leaves Mibs and goes to the hospital.  Mibs feels certain her new savvy will be the key to waking her father.  She and her brothers stow-away on a Bible salesman’s bus that they believe is headed to Salina where her father is in the hospital.

Miss Amanda says, “This book is filled with characters you have to root for: Lester the salesman who needs the confidence to ignore his over-bearing ex-wife’s putdowns; Rocket the older brother unable to control his electrical outbursts; Bill Jr. the preacher’s son with a big secret and an even bigger crush on Mibs; and Samson the younger brother with a knack for disappearing.  There is a lot of warmth in this book and I really can’t imagine liking it more – unless perhaps if I’d read it when I was young.  I’d highly recommend it for readers who like warm fantasies.  It’s similar to the works of Kate DiCamillo and Polly Horvath.  This is the story of a family crisis told with magical charm and unforgettable characters.”

J/F/LOOKAlvin Ho: Allergic to Girls, School and Other Scary Things 2008, 172 p.Grades 2 – 4
Alvin Ho is allergic to everything, mostly because he is afraid of everything. The thing he is most allergic to is school. Alvin is so allergic to school that he can’t speak in school.  It’s hard to make friends when you can’t speak. Making friends becomes more difficult when Alvin is stuck sitting next to Flee, a girl who wears an eye patch and walks like she has a peg leg.  Alvin seeks advice from his brother and father about making friends. Alvin learns that chicken pox don’t come from chickens, that piano lessons can be scary, and being a gentleman is the most important thing (if he could just remember what a gentleman does!). Oh, and Alvin learns how to insult like William Shakespeare.

Miss Sharon says, “I thought this was spectacular!  The writing is well-crafted and the characters are well-developed.  The setting (Concord, MA) even plays an important part in the book. Alvin is one funny kid, if he could only get over his fear of everything. The whole family was delightful, from little Anibelly who saves Alvin more than once, to his older brother Calvin who is great at giving advice to his parents who love their son.  Even Gunggung (grandpa) helps out.  A real treat! And, it makes for a great read-aloud.”