Category Archives: reviews

Middle Grade Monday Book Review: The Wee Free Men by Terry Pratchet

The Wee Free Men by Terry Pratchett, illustrated by Stephen Player

A nightmarish danger threatens from the other side of reality . . .

Armed with only a frying pan and her common sense, young witch-to-be Tiffany Aching must defend her home against the monsters of Fairyland. Luckily she has some very unusual help: the local Nac Mac Feegle—aka the Wee Free Men—a clan of fierce, sheep-stealing, sword-wielding, six-inch-high blue men.

Together they must face headless horsemen, ferocious grimhounds, terrifying dreams come true, and ultimately the sinister Queen of the Elves herself.

Three things for a kid to like

1. It’s hard to beat Terry Pratchett for humorous fantasy. On a bookshelf full of gloom and doom alternate worlds this story is set in a place that holds all the thrills and chills a kid is looking for and is genuinely hilarious besides. It will work particularly well for fans of British humor. If you’ve got a young reader who is driving you crazy quoting Monty Python and Dr. Who, this is the book for him.

2. Dream worlds are tricky to pull off in a story and it’s an element that made this a challenging read in the original edition. The pictures here do much to enhance the dream world Tiffany enters without overtaking it entirely and leaving nothing to the imagination. In my opinion the illustrations are just scary enough but not so vivid as to be daunting to a tender-hearted reader.

3. There is amid all the boogymen and monsters, some really thoughtful elements about the nature of dreams and the problems associated with getting everything you ask for. Plenty to inspire good conversation.

Something for the writer to think about

I’m seeing more illustrated work for middle grade readers all the time and I’m very happy about the change. I love it that there is more work for the many working artists I know. I think it makes a challenging text more inviting to a struggling reader and more accessible to an immigrant child who often comes to the page with little context for the stories he finds at school. In my own work I’ve been thinking a lot about how I can, not so much beg my publisher to put art inside, but create a story in which the images are integral to the plot and therefore necessary to the finished book.

The most recent two Newbery winners will illustrated and I’d love to hear your recommendations in the comments for other illustrated middle grade books you think were particularly well done.

How I came to review this book.

I first read this book aloud to my kids many years ago and loved it then. Recently I found a beautiful illustrated edition at my library and gave the book a re-read. Not every book I like stands up to re-reading but this one did.

Middle Grade Monday Book Review: Five, Six, Seven, Nate! by Tim Federle

Here’s what it’s about:

In the sequel to Better Nate Than Ever, Nate Foster’s Broadway dreams are finally coming true.

Armed with a one-way ticket to New York City, small-town theater geek Nate is off to start rehearsals for E.T.: The Broadway Musical. It’s everything he ever practiced his autograph for! But as thrilling as Broadway is, rehearsals are nothing like Nate expects: full of intimidating child stars, cut-throat understudies, and a director who can’t even remember Nate’s name.

Now, as the countdown to opening night is starting to feel more like a time bomb, Nate is going to need more than his lucky rabbit’s foot if he ever wants to see his name in lights. He may even need a showbiz miracle.

The companion novel to Better Nate Than Ever, which The New York Times called “inspired and inspiring,” Five, Six, Seven, Nate! is full of secret admirers, surprise reunions, and twice the drama of middle school…with a lot more glitter.

3 things for a young reader to love

1. The thing I loved the most about my childhood reading was being swept away to someplace new and exciting and this book has that in spades! The backstage look at Broadway as a child performer was fun and fresh and eye-opening. Even if you’ve never been in a show or wanted to perform there’s something appealing, and I think fairly universal, in the summer-campy, we’re-all-in-this-together vibe that Federle presents in this story.

2. For kids who do love the theater and are acting, singing, or dancing in community shows I think they’ll find a kindred spirit in Nate, who is such an appealing blend of strengths (memory for lines, heart, team spirit) and weaknesses (perhaps not the best dancer on the set). The arts are so often the red-headed stepchild of after school sports, it’s nice to have a book that celebrates theater with such unabashed joy.

3. The crush in a middle grade book is so tricky to get just right because middle grade kids are all over the map about romance, from deeply repelled to just as deeply intrigued. Nate hits the sweet spot with a story that manages to capture the intrigue of secret admirer notes and the slightly befuddled, what-just-happened-there of a first kiss without ever heading into territory that seemed to be icky or off-putting to the middle grade sensibility. Kids who are ready for a first kiss in a book will love this. Kids who aren’t quite ready for that probably won’t be grossed out.

Something for a writer to think about

Tim Federle has done something fairly amazing here. He’s got a story with a boy’s first kiss with another boy and yet it’s not a coming out story, not really even a story about being gay. The driving conflict in the story has everything to do with the show and orientation is not the contentious issue. Which seems exactly where the middle grade sensibility is with LGBT issues. The characters aren’t brimming over with anxiety about being gay because most kids in 4th to 8th grade are not at all concerned with the issues that drive such passion from older generations. It refreshing to see in print and I hope we see a lot more of it.

Likewise Federle has written a story with a kid who is a little self conscious about his body size without it being a book about a fat kid who needs to get thin. Nobody’s plaguing this kid to lose weight (although they’d like him to be a better dancer). He, in fact, doesn’t get in shape over the course of the story. His eventual triumph is based on his generous spirit, his ability to memorize other people’s parts, and his willingness to perform open heartedly. Qualities which have nothing to do with body type. Again, refreshing and well worth emulating! It’s got a razzle-dazzle cover, but this book is far more subtle than first meets the eye.

How I found this book

Unlike many of my reviews, I’ve never met the author. There are many theater-loving young people in my life which is why I picked it up at my public library and why I’ll be recommending it to lots of singing, dancing and acting kids I know.

Middle Grade Monday Book Review: Open Mic: riffs on life between cultures

Ten authors — some familiar, some new — use their own brand of humor to share their stories about growing up between cultures. Henry Choi Lee discovers that pretending to be a tai chi master or a sought-after wiz at math wins him friends for a while — until it comically backfires. A biracial girl is amused when her dad clears seats for his family on a crowded subway in under a minute, simply by sitting quietly between two uptight women. Edited by acclaimed author and speaker Mitali Perkins, this collection of fiction and nonfiction uses a mix of styles as diverse as their authors, from laugh-out-loud funny to wry, ironic, or poignant, in prose, poetry, and comic form.

Three things for a middle grade reader to love

1. As the editor of this collection Mitali Perkins says, “humor crosses boarders like no other literary device. Shared laughter fosters community and gets us talking about issues that might otherwise case division or discomfort.” Here are ten wonderful jumping off places for family and classroom conversation.

2. I’m delighted to see the graphic novel format represented in a short story collection and I think Gene Luen Yang has something particularly valuable to share: the experience of speaking out against a film he felt represented his race unfairly. The unexpected happy ending was an invitation to write a better story himself from Dark Horse Comics. (Hurray for my hometown comics publisher!)

3. I found the most poignant story the one Olugbemisola Rhuday-Perkovich wrote about her own experience as a high achieving student applying for college. Perhaps because one of my children is a senior this year and is in the throes of college acceptance drama, it struck a particular chord. In some ways it is the most YA of the stories as it deals so directly with college admissions but I think the experience of high achieving minority students is fraught with this particular brand of prejudice long before senior year.

Something for myself to think about as a writer

My godparents gave me a book of short stories when I was 8 years old. I remember because it was the first “grown-up” book I’d ever received as a gift. I’ve always loved short stories and this collection made me think about why I love them so much. The truth is, the story Rhuday-Perkovich wrote about college admissions could have been a whole novel. Most high schools have that pack of kids who take AP classes and compete on the debate team and get involved in music or drama. She could have written a novel. The story Francisco X. Stork wrote about a brother and sister enfolding their younger gay-but-not-out brother in that unwise but fiercely protective love siblings have for each other, could have been a novel too. But I love the impact of the shorter form. It forces the writer to sift through a multitude of ideas and information about a character and present only the most powerful moment. Concentration. Focus.

I’ve just finished a full novel revision and am engaged in that lengthiest of ping pong games, the editorial process. I think, what ever else I accomplish in February I want to write at least a half dozen short stories, just to see what new story ideas will bubble up in this new year.

Middle Grade Monday Book Review: Seven Stories Up by Laurel Snyder

In this companion to Bigger than a Breadbox a leap back in time and an unlikely friendship change a family forever. Annie has never even met her grandmother before. In fact, she’s never had much family to speak of. So when she and her mother pull into the drive of her grandmother’s home in Baltimore, Annie can hardly contain her excitement!

But when she actually meets her grandma, the bitter old woman doesn’t seem like someone Annie could ever love, or miss. Until one magical, stormy night changes everything.

It’s impossible that Annie could have jumped back in time. . . right? But here she is in 1937— the year her grandmother was just her age! Molly is an invalid. She lives by herself, on the top floor of a hotel. She seems a little lonely, but friendly and fun, nothing like the horrible old woman Annie just met.

Annie entices Molly down from her room, and together the two girls roam. They sneak around the grand hotel, and explore the brick streets of old Baltimore. Carnivals and taxis, midnight raids on the kitchen. The two grow closer.

But as Molly becomes bolder, and ventures further from the safety of her room, Annie begins to wonder how she’ll ever get back home. Maybe she’s changed the past a little too much. . .

3 Things for a Middle Grade Reader to love

1. TIME TRAVEL! One of my favorite kinds of story when I was a MG reader. And not some grand cloak and dagger plot but a unique friendship story set cosily within a single family.

2. The level of detail for the 1937 setting is just right. Lots of rich imagery and vivid details about city life in Baltimore, but not heavy handed historical themes. There were difficult things going on in this country in the late 30s and Snyder does a good job of mentioning them without highjacking the story. I had an ARC to read which suggested that there will be illustrations at the chapter headings but I haven’t seen them. Even without illustrations I had no trouble picturing the particulars of the setting.

3. There’s a dumb waiter! I was fascinated by those as a child. The details of sneaking in and out of the hotel are great! I remember climbing through the laundry chute and out the window and shinnying down drainpipes–not that I needed to mind you–I did all this for the sheer entertainment of it. Great fun! Okay, to be fair, there are sad bits. But I was totally won over by the fun and the sad parts only made the skulking around more appealing.

Something for a writer to think about

I am not brave enough to write a time travel book. I love them. They seem hopelessly complicated to me and bouncing back and forth, I think, can be a lot to ask of a reader. I really like how the time travel bit worked out in Seven Stories Up. I particularly like the way Annie’s character built herself a mental bridge of stories about her mother to keep the path home open. I do think that story, and family story in particular, is a way kids in trouble find their way home, like Hansel and Gretle’s pebbles in the forest.

How I found this book

Once again a non-objective review! Laurel is a friend and the ARC came to me by way of my regional sales rep. Thanks Deanna!

Middle Grade Monday Book Review: Rogue by Lyn Miller-Lachman

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Rouge is the poignant story of a girl coping with Asperger’s syndrome as she navigates the foreign territory of friendship…

Kiara has a difficult time making — and keeping — friends. She has Asperger’s syndrome, so relating to other people doesn’t come naturally. Most of the time, she relies on Mr. Internet — her go-to when the world doesn’t make sense, which is often — and her imagination, where she daydreams that she’s Rogue, one of the mutant superheroes of the X-Men. In the comics, Rogue hurts anyone she touches, but eventually learns to control her special power. Kiara hasn’t discovered her own special power yet, but when Chad moves in across the street, she hopes that, for once, she’ll be able to make friendship stick. She’s even willing to keep Chad’s horrible secret, if that’s what it takes. But being a true friend is complicated, and it might be just the thing that leads her to her special power.

3 Things for a middle grade reader to love

I should begin with a caveat. This is marketed as a YA book and for good reason. It deals directly with a child who lives in a home where illegal drugs are being made. A middle school boy and one much younger, live in the house and are cruelly treated by their parents. That said there is very little in the way of swearing, no sex or romance, and the violence happens for the most part “off screen”. It’s not for a tender-hearted reader but I think it’s a valuable conversation starter for a kid with a taste for realistic fiction with a harder edge.

1. There are quite a few books about kids on the autism spectrum these days. Here is one written by a person with Aspergers Syndrome, and shows a keen insight into a kid who longs for friendship and connection even while her outward actions seem to signal the opposite. It also shows how vulnerable a highly intelligent child can be if she is not emotionally and socially sophisticated.

2. For kids who love real life drama and conflict with no magical solutions and no super powers or wise mentors to save the day, this is the perfect book.

3. BMX bike riding is really popular and I seldom see it portrayed in a book. I don’t see a lot out there for comic book fans to read that isn’t also a comic book. It would be a huge mistake to think that a kid who likes comics and graphic novels can’t or won’t read something else, so if you’ve got an X-men fan in your life, here’s a novel that’s likely to strike a chord.

Something for a writer to think about.

Something my own editor and I have gone back and forth on with each of my manuscripts is whether the character sounds authentic to his or her age. It’s a tricky problem because kids in real life sound worldly-wise one moment and babyish the next. A characters position in the family and region of the country have a huge impact on how sophisticated they sound. So how to capture the “true voice” of a character without confusing the reader about the characters age is always a challenge. I thought Kiara’s character did a good job of both sounding highly intelligent but also young for her age and naive.

How I came to review this book

As always I make no claims to objectivity. Lyn Miller-Lachman is a friend and gave me an ARC of her book. I would have reviewed this one many months ago but the kids in the carpool found it and passed it around and then another friend wandered off with it and then my own kids read it. Not that I pushed the book on them by any means, in fact I was rather put out when the book vanished for months. But I’m happy to have finally gotten a chance to read it.