Just Ella by Margaret Peterson Haddix

Every girl dreams of meeting Prince Charming, being swept off her feet to go live in the castle and living happily ever after, and Ella  Brown has just found herself living that dream.  The only problem is, that dream has turned out to be a nightmare.  Prince Charming has turned out to be Prince Boring, life in the castle is full of rules and time spent doing things that really don’t matter, and Ella wants out!  When Ella (now Princess Cynthiana Eleanora) tries to back, out of her engagement to the Prince, she meets up with some unexpected resistance.  Will Ella be able to escape from the castle and make a life for herself?  Read “Just Ella” to find out … I think you’ll like this interesting take on a familiar fairy tale.

Middle School Is Worse Than Meatloaf: A Year Told Through Stuff by Jennifer L. Holm

My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Jennifer L. Holm tells the story of a middle-schooler’s life “through stuff”. Each page is different — entries include school assignments, report cards, notes back and forth between the main character Ginny and her mom, others between Ginny and her friend Becky Soo. You get a feel for how Ginny sees life and deals with various situations through these documents, as well as her “Big To Do List” — which changes as the year progresses. There is a bit of a story that happens throughout as well — mysterious things happen and over time you are able figure out who is responsible because of the things Ginny has included. This was a very cute and quick read! I think students in 5-8th grades will really enjoy this one!

Math Fables by Greg Tang

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

A very cute book with 10 different rhymes for the numbers 1-10. For each number all related addition problems are included in the poem. A great way to show children how all numbers are made up of other smaller numbers.

The Red Pyramid by Rick Riordan

This new series by Riordan is centered around Egyptian mythology, which I don’t believe I’d ever read anything about, so I really had to pay attention to the characters and what was going on, or I would have easily been lost. Overall a good read, I think the upper elementary and higher crowd will really like it if they are into adventure stories.

Sabotaged by Margaret Peterson Haddix

This third book of Haddix’s “The Missing” series finds Jonah and his sister Katherine helping Andrea, who is really Virginia Dare, return to her real time period (1610). Unfortunately Andrea has been convinced by an unknown individual that if she changes the date on the “eludcidator” she might be able to change history and keep the parents that’s she’s always known from dying in a tragic car accident. Will Jonah, Katherine and Andrea end up at the right point in history to fix the problems caused when Virginia Dare was taken from her rightful place in time? Reader’s who have enjoyed the first two books in the series will undoubtedly enjoy this one as well, although I have to say I liked the first two better.

Christmas in Camelot by Mary Pope Osborne

Part of the “Magic Tree House” series, this book has Jack and Annie traveling to Camelot where they find things are not as they should be. Jack and Annie agree to go on a quest to the “Otherworld” to try to get find and bring back some water from the cauldron of memory and imagination. Will Jack and Annie be able to get past the keepers of the cauldron and safely bring the water of memory and imagination back to Camelot to restore the joy before it’s too late?

Hoot by Carl Hiaasen

Roy Eberhardt  is trying to get used to living in Florida — his family has just moved there from Montana.  He’s also trying to stay out of the way of a bully, Dana Matherson.  While enduring one of Dana’s attacks on the bus, Roy’s attention is caught by a strange boy running barefoot and running very fast.   It takes Roy a couple of days but he does find the boy and ends up in a strange friendship with the boy and his step sister.  He ends up finding out that the boy, “Mullet Fingers” is trying to stop a pancake restaurant chain from building a restaurant on top of the dens of some burrowing owls.  Will they be able to stop the company from destroying the habitat of these protected animals?

Sent by Margaret Peterson Haddix

Book 2 of “The Missing” series picks up right where book 1 “Found” left off.  Jonah, his sister Katherine, his friend Chip and their new friend Alex are hurtled back in time where Chip and Alex find out their true identities … Edward V, King of England and Richard, Duke of York.  The kids must find a way to “fix time” and make it possible for Chip and Alex to return to the 21st century without altering history.  Can they do it?

The Talent Show from the Black Lagoon by Mike Thaler

Part of the Black Lagoon Adventures Series — It’s time for the dreaded school talent show but the main character of this “Black Lagoon” story isn’t sure what his best talent is.  He can burp “Yankee Doodle” after drinking a soda and squirt milk out of his nose, but are those really stage worthy talents?  When he thinks about the talent show’s outcome, he imagines the worst.  Will he come up with a true talent to share, or will his nerves get the best of him?

Ella Enchanted by Gail Carson Levine

Ella received a fairy gift (curse) when she was a baby … she was given the gift of obedience.  While this may not sound at first like a curse, it truly turned out to be.  This “Cinderella” story follows Ella as she grows up, suffers through the commands of her stepmother and stepsisters and falls in love with a prince.  Will she be able to overcome her curse and marry her prince?  Read Ella Enchanted to find out if Ella gets to live “happily ever after.”