Provo Library Children's Book Blog

Enchanted Glass By Diana Wynne Jones Greenwillow Books, 2010. 292 pp. Juvenile fiction. When Andrew Hope inherits his grandfather's land and home, he never expects all the turmoil and craziness that inevitably ends up becoming his lot. However, when Aidan Cain shows up one day in need of care and shelter, he seems to be tailed by trouble--everyone seems out to get him. As the lands are spelled with magic of all sorts, Andrew finds himself inadvertently using magics he had forgotten about; things his grandfather had tried to teach him as a child but had slipped from his memory completely. Aidan is invited to stay with Andrew and they both begin having magical adventures while trying to figure out the responsibilities Andrew has as the new caretaker and owner of Melstone House. Diana Wynne Jones has produced yet another wonderful book with Enchanted Glass ! She has amazing storytelling talent and always produces memorable, complex, fascinating characters--and this book is no excepti...

Big Nate: In a Class by Himself written and illustrated by Lincoln Peirce Juvenile Humor 214 pages New York : Harper, c2010 Nate is destined for Greatness (despite his crazy hair)! At the moment, he is just your typical sixth-grader just floating through school trying to avoid the school bully and get the attention of a certain girl. Nate doodles his way through every class instead of taking notes and he is a master of creating nicknames for all of the teachers. One morning a friend gives him a fortune cookie that changes his life. "Today you will surpass all others" could mean anything. Nate spends the day trying to do something that will make the fortune come true. All I will say is that he succeeds in an entertaining and hilarious way! Big Nate will appeal to all those fans of Jeff Kinney's Diary of a Wimpy Kid . The diary-type format with loads of illustrations are great for reluctant readers as well as those who just want a funny book. I must say that personally, I e...

Mouse Magic Wizards of Mickey Vol. 1 all-ages graphic novel unpaged Los Angeles : Boom! Studios, 2010 Mickey is a sorcerer's apprentice, of course! When his master is off on an errand, he is left in charge of the village's Diamagic - the source of rain needed to grow their crops. Not surprisingly, Mickey goofs up and Peg-Leg Pete steals the Diamagic. Mickey leaves Miceland in shame, determined to regain the crystal that is so important to his neighbors. He stumbles into a competition for sorcerers where the final prize is the entire collection of Diamagics that would make the winner the Sorcerer Supreme over all the land. The only thing standing in Mickey's way is the fact that you have to compete as a team of three and Mickey is all by himself. Enter Donald Duck with pet dragon Fafnir and Goofy to complete the team and call themselves Wizards of Mickey. I am sure you can imagine the bumbling methods they use to compete in the games! An entertaining read for all ages.

Epitaph Road by David Patneaude juvenile/teen science fiction 266 pages New York : Egmont USA, 2010 Men are practically extinct and women rule the world. In the year 2097, teenager Kellen Dent is an object of great curiosity as one of the few young men in Seattle. He lives a fairly privileged life as his mother holds a high position in the PAC government that now runs the United States. Yet Kellen yearned to be with his father who lives the life of a loner and fisherman off in the north. When two new girls move into the apartment building, Kellen is forced to open his eyes and re-learn his history lessons. The kids end up in a race against time and another deadly outbreak of the male-killing virus. As usual I was intrigued by the post-apocalyptic plot. The selective killer-virus was a great way to swing the powers of the world in the opposite direction. However, I felt the characters were a bit shallow and I didn't grow attached to any of them. I would have loved to know more of th...

Dark Life by Kat Falls juvenile science fiction 297 pages New York : Scholastic Press, 2010 Earthquakes have destroyed much of the land on the Earth's surface. Rising water levels have made much of the remainder unable to support human life. To survive people are crammed into ridiculously tall stacked apartment buildings with no personal space whatsoever. A few have become pioneers and moved to the ocean floor, creating farms and raising fish as livestock. Ty was born deep-sea to a pair of scientist pioneers. He and his younger sister are among the only children thriving in the ocean depths. Ty thinks of nothing more than exploring his environment, doing his chores and looking forward to when he turns eighteen and can stake his own claim on a piece of oceanic real-estate. Then Gemma literally drops into his life. A stubborn Topsider who is searching for her older brother, Gemma yearns for her own space and independence. She just happens to pick a terrible time to visit the deep-sea...

by Sally M. Walker J Nonfiction Carolrhoda Books 2009 137 pages Sooooo interesting! What can we learn from coffins and skeletons found hundreds of years after the people were buried? Plenty! Walker takes us through the fascinating world of archeology as scientists dig up colonial era burial plots at several different sites in the Chesapeake area. Clues about life in the 1700's are "written in bone", as the author tells us. What that means is that bones hold clues as to how old a person was when they died, whether they were male or female, how they might have died, and even what kind of work they may have done. The reader will also learn a lot about the burial customs of the people who lived all those years ago. Well researched, with on site photography done by the author herself, Written in Bone is a great read, sure to keep your attention. For grades 5 and up.

by Cynthia Kadohata J Fiction Atheneum Books 2010 216 pages Setting: south Viet Nam, 1973 All Y'Tin wants is to take care of his villages' elephants. Lady, in particular, is his charge. He sees no purpose for school since his future is elephants. He plans on living in his peaceful village, with his father, mother, and two sisters, and being Lady's keeper and perhaps training others to take care of future elephants. But the ongoing war, which until now had stayed away from his remote village, changes his well laid plans. Y'Tin and his people must abandon their homes and hide in the jungle from the coming North Vietnamese. For the first time, Y'Tin knows fear and real uncertainty. His circumstances require him to quickly leave childhood behind and become a man. Well researched and written, Kadohata shows us life in Viet Nam during the war after the Americans leave. Y'Tin is a strong boy character, devoted to his family. Most admirable is his r...