All this time at home has given me an opportunity to read many new children’s books. I thought I would share with you some of my new favorites. Many of these books are on order and will be available soon.
FUNNY BOOKS (My favorite genre):
Klawde: Evil Alien Warlord Cat
by Johnny Marciano and Emily Chenoweth
Interest Level: 8-12 yr.
Lexile Level: 660
Personally, I love funny books so reading Klawde: Evil Alien Warlord Cat was a delight! Klawde, an intergalactic overlord/emperor feline has been overthrown and exiled to planet Earth by teleporter. He lands in Elba, Oregon and is taken in by a young man (Raj) who has recently been transplanted with his family from Brooklyn, New York. Raj is dealing with his own crisis of being a city boy and having his mother sign him up for survival camp on an extinct volcano. Klawde reveals his situation to Raj who orders equipment from the internet so Klawde can build an escape transporter. There is laugh-out-loud dialog in this hilarious book. Fast read.
Bernice Buttman, Model Citizen
by Niki Lenz
Interest Level: 8-12 yr.
AR Level: 5th grade 1st month/ 7 points
Lexile Level: 780
If you’ve ever read The Best Christmas Pageant Ever you might remember the irascible Imogene Herdman. Picture a cross between Imogene and reality star Honey Boo Boo who intersects with Nonnatus House from Call the Midwife and you have yourself quite a book! I couldn’t put it down! Bernice is being raised in a trailer park by a “distracted” mother and 4 rowdy brothers. She is renown in school as a hateful bully and her dream is to be a famous Hollywood stunt woman. She has not been taught any manners and is rude and crude. When her mother leaves the family for some scheme to be on a reality show, Bernice is sent to live with her aunt who is a Catholic nun. OH MY!!!! The transformation is similar to Korman’s best seller: Restart.
A Zombie Ate My Homework
by Tommy Greenwald
Interest Level: 8-12 yr.
AR Level: 4th grade 1st month/ 5 points
Lexile Level: 560
This is a new series (trilogy) about a young zombie that was developed in a government laboratory who escaped and was taken in by a very kind family. This is a fast (short chapters) and fun read that I think the entire family will enjoy. (Great for reluctant readers!)
NONFICTION:
The Day the Universe Exploded in My Head
by Allan Wolf
Interest Level: 8-12 yr.
The Day the Universe Exploded in My Head is an enjoyable poetry book filled with great illustrations and funny informative poems dealing with space.
Gross as a Snot Otter: Discovering the World’s Most Disgusting Animals
by Jess Keating and Jessica Anne Morrison
Interest Level: 5 – 8 years (This seems like a very low leveI- I found it interesting and I’m 67.)
This book will have your children enthralled, horrified, and completely hooked! Great illustrations and amazing facts team up to make this a great selection!
FANTASY:
The Whispering Wars
by Jaclyn Moriarty
Interest Level: 8-12 yr.
AR Level: 5th grade 1st month/ 15 points
The Whispering Wars is a beautifully written fantasy filled with enchantments, nonstop action, stolen children and a magical flu (which creeped me out since I read it while quarantined with the COVID). For those who love a well plotted fantasy – this book comes highly recommended.
The Mystwick School of Musicraft
by Jessica Khoury
Interest Level: 10-12 yr.
This book is a Harry Potter-esque book with music as the vehicle of the magic. Amelia Jones has always dreamed of following her dead mother’s footsteps in studying at the Mystwick School to learn the magic of music. After she completely blows her audition she is thrilled to get the invitation to attend – but later finds out that it was issued by mistake and now she must prove her worth. This is a charming fantasy and sure to prove a worthwhile series.
GRAPHIC NOVEL:
InvestiGATORS
by John Patrick Green
Interest Level: 7-10 yr.
AR Level: 3rd grade 3rd month/1 point
This is a series of goofy fast-paced graphic novels based on the exploits of alligators who solve mysteries by traveling through toilets. If your kids love Dog Man and Captain Underpants this will be a winner!
SURVIVAL:
Lifeboat 12
by Susan Hood
Interest Level: 8-13 yr.
AR Level: 4th grade / 4 points
Lexile Level: 610
Lifeboat 12 is a fictionalized account of a World War 2 survival story. During the bombing of London children were sent to the countryside (The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe) for safety but they were also sent on ships to Canada. This was a great idea except that Nazi U-boats were torpedoing the ships. Ken Sparks a 13 yr. old Londoner is on the ship with 89 other children when the ship is hit and sinks. Because their boat was not swamped like the others and made it farther from the wreck, the rescue boats missed them. The book chronicles the horrific days of little water, scorching sun, cold nights, and the pain of “trench foot” while trying to row back to the motherland. It’s written in verse – so an easy read- especially for reluctant readers who love survival stories.
REALISTIC FICTION:
Finding Orion
by John David Anderson
Interest Level: 8-12 yr.
AR Level: 5th grade 3st month/ 13 points
Lexile Level: 790
This book is bizarre. Rion Kwirk’s family is very quirky. His mother named the children after constellations and his father works for a candy factory where he concocts unusual and sometimes disgusting flavors. Everything is turned even crazier when a clown arrives with a singing telegram to inform them that their grandfather has died. His dad’s father is the polar opposite of his son. Rion’s grandfather rides motorcycles and gives gifts like a taxidermied squirrel and crossbows. The story REALLY gets going when they attend the “FUN”NERAL and then discover that they must follow through with a scavenger hunt to find Grandfather’s ashes. As weird as it seems in the description, this is a poignant read and delves into forgiveness and what it means to be “family”.
