Ms. Bixby’s Last Day by John David Anderson

I read the description and thought, OH NO. This book is going to be sappy and predictable and boring...boy, was I wrong. It’s an emotional roller coaster and action-packed thriller all combined into one. It was NOT predictable in many ways. It had me laughing uproariously and then ripped out my heart over and over again and I LOVED EVERY MINUTE OF IT. This is one of those books I read in one day, carving out time I didn’t really have to devour a few pages. The story is told from 3 kids’ perspectives, altering chapters as the POV changes. Each character tells the next sequence of events but each child’s voice and story are so unique and yet woven beautifully together to tell a story of heart and courage and explains their connection to their sixth grade teacher. As a teacher, it made me really reflect on what I do to make sure I am one of the “Good Ones” and reinvigorated me for this upcoming school year. I have no idea how kids will respond to this, as it was hard to reflect with my kid hat on (which is never far away but this one struck too close to my grown-upness). If you are a teacher of middle school particularly, read this. Please. 

Paper Things by Jennifer Richard Jacobson

I struggled with this book...it seems contrived and worked too hard to create the scene or something. I wanted to like it. I wanted to like the main character, Ari, but there was something that made her seem...I can’t put my finger on it, but I didn’t connect. The dolls seemed to be put in the book as a theme to run through and give it a clever title, but didn’t really fit for me with the character herself. I guess there were just bits and pieces of this story that just didn’t flow for me. Regardless, it is the story of a girl who is left in the care of her brother after their mother dies...well he decides he’s not staying with their guardian any more and takes her with him. They couch surf and have no stability, causing her drama at school as she has a hard time getting work done well, etc. There are parts of this story I enjoyed, but not all of it. Not a raving review but I didn’t hate it. Realistic fiction

Ghost by Jason Reynolds

First off, I love Jason Reynolds. He has the voice of a kid, I think. This is about a kid who runs...fast, but he’s never been trained and never really had a purpose before. He inadvertently joins a track team, meeting a coach who challenges him in all the right ways and He begins to realize he has potential and perhaps, should start thinking about his future and maybe even work hard at things. What I love is his genuine struggle to succeed, the emotion you feel when his anger consumes him and his propensity for bad decisions. He does have a basic goodness about him but his anger is real and understandable and makes him human but also means you root for him. It’s a delicate balance and Jason Reynolds does it well. Fun book to read. Realistic fiction.

The Apothecary by Maile Meloy

I love it when there are 2 genres that mix...this one is historical fiction and fantasy. The year is 1952 and the effects of World War II on London are apparent and affecting the life of everyone there. As an American arriving to escape the McCarthyism running rampant in Hollywood, Janie Scott and her parents experience it first hand in it’s stark contrast to life in LA at the same time. Janie meets a boy at school and through various coincidences, helps Benjamin find his kidnapped father. There is a surreal fantasy element in that they can use potions to create things that make you invisible, for instance. In the race to find his father, they become partners in this adventure. Janie’s parents are somewhat unbelievable and it made me reflect that often characters like this have no parents because it’s easier to have the character run off for days at a time, etc. Regardless this is a fun book and keeps a good pace throughout the book. 

Code Name Verity by Elizabeth Wein

I know I have said this before but I LOVED this book. However, having said that, it is violent and has a raw edge to it that is not appropriate for middle school. It’s about a woman in the Second World War and how she becomes a spy. It’s a thrilling ride but much more of an adult book because of the content than a kid book. Because of that, I am not going to get into the plot or describe it very much. Suffice it to say it is fabulous, features women as heroes in a time when they weren't valued and is historically fascinating but has some super raw violence that puts it out of range.

Moo by Sharon Creech

Books by Sharon Creech always make me wonder. They always involve universal themes, but have characters on the edge or out of bounds of what I know of life. This is a book primarily about a girl Reena whose family moves from the urban life in a city to the boonies of Maine. She has a wide-eyed wonder about her, an innocence if you will. As she learns and adapts to the very different life in Maine, she jumps right in, not afraid of the various aspects of rural life. Her parents meet a crotchety old lady and have Reena and her brother Luke help her around the house. As you can imagine, struggles ensue, as the woman is particularly incompetent about giving directions. In these tasks Reena completes, she has to befriend a cow and ends up taking the cow to show at the state fair. The challenges Reena meets are entertaining and I found myself rooting for her and her brother. 

This is a cute story of innocence and the benefits of working hard. The prose itself is written almost in poetry format, as periodically there is a concrete poetry quality about it which doesn’t distract as much as I would have thought.  It actually enhances the voice. It was an easy read.

The Seventh Most Important Thing by Shelley Pearsall

The protagonist of this realistic fiction story is Arthur and one day he made a mistake. A big mistake. He picked up a brick and hauled off and hit someone with it, a man who wandered the neighborhood collecting garbage. Of course after he did it, everyone wanted to know why but Arthur doesn’t even know. On his court date, the man he hit, Mr. Hampton, ends up making a deal with the judge for Arthur to do community service. As the story unfolds, the reasons for Arthur’s anger are revealed. This is an interesting tale of how a boy connects with a strange man and how that helps him move past his anger and grow. Grades 5-8