Middle Grade Review: Out of Range

 

Abby, Emma, and Ollie have not been getting along lately. Their parents have had enough. They girls have been sent to camp this summer. But it's not your usual kind of camp. Instead, they go hiking for hours and are supposed to be learning discipline. 

But the prank war between the sisters hasn't eased up. If anything, it's gotten worse. 

On the last day of camp, when they are supposed to be packing up and heading back to civilization, the counselor has had enough. The three sisters and the counselor leave for a punishing hike. But the sisters and the counselor get separated. The three girls find themselves alone; they're going to need each other in order to survive. But can they put their differences aside? 

My Thoughts: I really love survival stories. This middle grade read was fantastic. Lots of action and danger from the survival portion but also lots of drama from the fights between sisters. All three sisters have reasons to be annoyed at the others, but those reasons are slowly built into the story. Each of the sisters has a perspective in the story and the timeline weaves back and forth between present day and the past. This was a great read.

Cover Thoughts: Perfect - I like how it leans into the danger

Source: My Library

Library Recommendation: Perfect for summer reading's theme. Highly recommended for your school and public library. 

Teen Summer Reading (4): Adventure Begins at Your Library

The past weeks, we have talked about craft ideas and food ideas. It's time to talk about books.

It's a little harder to create a booklist for the teens and middle grade crowd with new books, so this is a bland of new and older books that fit the theme.

A booklist featuring survival stories from wildfires, rock climbing, hiking, the elements, and danger

Books included:

Peak

Take

The Canyon's Edge

Be Not Far from Me

Alone

Just Keep Walking (review coming soon)

Five Total Strangers

Trapped

Far From You

Devil's Breath

Thin Air

The Lake House

Life as we Knew It

Up in Flames

Paradise on Fire 

This is the last summer reading post; I hope you enjoyed this series. 

Review: Lost in the Antarctic

About the Book:  There wasn’t a thing Ernest Shackleton could do. He stood on the ice-bound Weddell Sea, watching the giant blocks of frozen saltwater squeeze his ship to death. The ship’s name seemed ironic now: the Endurance. But she had lasted nine months in this condition, stuck on the ice in the frigid Antarctic winter. So had Shackleton and his crew of 28 men, trying to become the first expedition ever to cross the entire continent. Now, in October 1915, as he watched his ship break into pieces, Shackleton gave up on that goal. He ordered his men to abandon ship. From here on, their new goal would be to focus on only one thing: survival.

  - summary from the publisher

My Thoughts: I really enjoyed this narrative nonfiction - those men went through the ringer. I'm sure that I wouldn't have survived a tenth of the horrors they went through. While this book isn't graphic, it does touch on some gruesome parts. I felt terrible for the animals in this book  - their treatment made me tear up. I felt heartsick for the men for all the horrors they went through, it seemed like one horror after another. Which kept me turning the pages because I needed to see how everything turned out. I liked the additions of the photographs and the maps, they added to the story. Perfect for readers who like survival and/or adventure stories. 

About the Author:

Tod Olson is the author of the historical fiction series How to Get Rich and the four books in the Lost series--Lost in the Pacific, 1942; Lost in Outer Space;  Lost in the Amazon; and Lost in the Antarctic. He has written for national magazines on the Columbine school shooting, homeless teens, the murder of Matthew Shepard, and many other stories of interest to children and young adults. Tod holds an MFA from Vermont College of Fine Arts and lives in Vermont with his family, his mountain bike, and his electric reclining chair. To learn more, and to download free teaching resources, visit his website: todolson.com.

Praise for previous titles in the Lost series

★"A riveting, completely engrossing true survival story." —Kirkus Reviews (starred review)

"Engaging... A great choice for collections." —School Library Journal

Doesn't this sound good?

You can win a copy! 

One lucky winner will receive Lost in the Antarctic, courtesy of Scholastic, Inc. (U.S. addresses).

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