Mini Book Talks (1)

I'm off to the middle school this morning to talk books to a bunch of seventh graders. This is the second time book talking at the school and it's great. I love seeing all the kids. But I really love the format. There are three of us talking about our favorite books. We line up the books on book carts. We each pick one book to book talk and then we ask the students what books they want to know more about. It gets everyone talking about books, which is fantastic.  Here are some of the books I'm bringing to talk about.

Criminal Mastermind vows to take over the world - nope not the President. A 12 year old boy from Ireland. He's going to kidnap a fairy and demand ransom to bank role his plan.

 Best friends like spying on the neighborhood at night, until one night when they see a crime scene at their guidance counselor's home. No one believes them. The guidance counselor claims she was pickling beets. But she's lying about something the girls are determined to prove it.

 What would you do if one morning you woke up to discover that you were actually a Princess?

 Kaitlin's dreamed of becoming a figure skating champion, but after she throws a major hissy fit on the ice, both her coach and her skating club decide not to work with her anymore. No one will take her - except the worst skating club ever.But if she wants to follow her dream, she'll need to pick herself back up and get to work. 

 Tommy's dad dies in a fire. Tommy, his sister, and his mother must learn to live without him. Tommy becomes angry at the world and a little reckless both on and off the football field. His behavior makes people start asking questions - should he be on the field with all this rage? Tommy lives for football, but if he can't control himself, it just might be one more thing of the past. 

Tween Tuesday Review: Wig in the Window

 * Comes out June 18th *

Sophie and Grace host midnight spy missions to improve their spy skills. Grace has wanted to spy on Sophie's school counselor Dr. Agford for ages. Grace has always found her suspicious, but Sophie never wanted to get too close. Dr. A has a reputation at school and Sophie doesn't need her attention.

They decide to peek in her windows, a one time exception. They see blood everywhere - and immediately call emergency services claiming to have witnessed a murder.

The next day at school, Sophie's called to the principal's office where her parents, Dr. A, and a police officer gather to talk about the incident the night before and the proper punishment. Now more than ever Sophie distrusts Dr. A. Could she be hiding something significant? If so, can Sophie figure it out without getting into more trouble?

My Thoughts: I really enjoyed this book: spies, potential murder, and the investigation made it hard to put down. I wanted to uncover the truth about Dr. A. The many twists and turns kept me on the edge of my seat. The relationship between Sophie and Grace added tension. With Sophie being a public school and Grace being home-schooled, they had various view points of both school and social interactions. They also had different groups of friends. I found Trista entertaining, especially her prank. I hope there are more Young and Yang myseries planned as this was fantastic!

Cover Thoughts: Great
Source: Sent for review