Ziarnik, Natalie. Madeleine’s Light.

Ziarnik, Natalie.  Madeleine’s Light.  Boyd's Mills Press   unp  $17.95 978-1-59078-855-4 elem        E-BN       

This is the beautifully told and illustrated story of the artist Camille Claudel and her friendship with a small girl who inspired her to try to capture the souls of her subjects in her sculptures.  Camille goes to a small chateau looking for some rest and a place where she could work quietly.  To her surprise she encounters the granddaughter of the owner of the chateau, who had a brightness inside of her, a spirit that Camille wants to capture in her sculpture.  They form a friendship, and while little Madeline works on a miniature sculpture of a bird, a gift for her grandmother, Camille is using her as a model.
 

It is the sculpture of the little girl that changes the direction of the artist’s work and leads her to try to capture the souls of her subjects.   In reality, little is known of the little girl who inspired the artist.    -- Magna Diaz

Beautiful and vivid water-color pictures create a magical story.

Yolen, Jane. Bug Off! Creepy Crawly Poems.

Yolen, Jane.  Bug Off! Creepy Crawly Poems.     Boyd's Mills/Word Song  30p  $16.95  978-1-59078-862-2     elm/ms      VG-BN         

As they did in Mirror to Nature and Wild Wings, Jane Yolen and her son, Jason Stemple, offer a beautiful pairing of poems and photographs, this time exploring the fascinating world of insects.  In her introduction, Yolen admits that insects are not her favorite species, but she felt that the stunning photos needed a poetic accompaniment.  The result is a beautiful, whimsical, humorous and lyrical introduction to bugs.  Each poem is accompanied by factual information about each insect, and a breathtaking photo. Each is a two-page spread.  While some poems outshine others with their evocative qualities, each one is enjoyable.  The stars of this book, however, are the photographs.  They are truly stunning.  Yolen encourages young readers to write their own poems in the introduction.  This book will provide a wonderful springboard for writing activities in the younger and middle grades.  It is a delightful and visually stunning book.        

This book works on so many levels, visually, poetically, and as a introduction to writing activities, that it should be on the shelf in every elementary-school library.  As poetry, middle-school readers will enjoy it as well, and find the factual content useful.                                       -- Pat Naismith  

Yakin, Boaz, and Joe Infurnari. Marathon.

Yakin, Boaz, and Joe Infurnari.  Marathon.  Macmillan/First Second  180p      $16.99  978-1-59643-680-0    hs    VG-BN   Graphic nonfiction     

“The month: August, 490 BC.  Temperature: 108 degrees, Fahrenheit.  Distance from Athens to Sparta: 153 Miles.”

Eucles, a former Persian slave, has survived to become an Athenian messenger.  During the Battle of Marathon, he runs from Athens to Sparta (approximately 150 miles) to plea for Spartan assistance in the battle.   Eucles then immediately runs from Sparta to Marathon to deliver the Spartans’ reply.  Eucles and a small band of soldiers then run the remaining 26 miles from Marathon to Athens to deliver news from the battlefront and warn the citizens of Athens of the Persians’ impending attack from sea. 

Eucles’ actions were so heroic, particularly in the final leg of his run to Athens, that runners at the first modern Olympic Games in 1896 were inspired to recreate the Marathon-to-Athens race. 

Readers do not have to be history buffs to appreciate the drama of this thrilling graphic novel.  The tone and cartoons are reminiscent of Miller’s “300.”  Infurnari’s artwork is compelling.  But the plotting is a bit disjointed and readers need to stay focused to follow the story line as it threads back and forth in time.              

Graphic novels, Battle of Marathon                              -- Hilary Welliver 

Wylie, Sarah. All These Lives.

Wylie, Sarah.  All These Lives.  Macmillan/Farrar Strauss  245p  $17.99 978-0-374-30208-5 hs    VG-BN   Realistic fiction     

Dani’s twin sister Jena has cancer and requires a bone marrow transplant, and no one in the family is a match ... not even her twin sister.  Dani’s mom has always told Dani that she has nine lives, since she has survived some harrowing events.  Dani thus decides that if she actively goes about ridding herself of her extra lives, perhaps one of them will find its way to Jena.  As time passes with her family, and a new, unexpected friendship develops, Dani begins to wonder whether she is doing the right thing. 

This is a compelling story about the love between sisters, and the toll that cancer can take on a family.  Dani’s inability to donate bone marrow to her twin sister Jena tears her apart, causing her to push everyone in her life away and embark on a path that has her attempting to take her own life multiple times.  For each time that she survives, Dani believes that a life has been released to find a way to her sister.  The author uses Dani’s friendship with a school acquaintance, Spencer, as a pivot point for Dani to recognize that her approach is not healthy for either her or Jena.

The difficult subjects of cancer and suicide are brought to light in this YA novel that has the reader empathizing with all of the characters, and feeling satisfied with the conclusions reached at the book’s end.    Featuring the twin topics of cancer and suicide, this book will really engage YA readers in high schools.  It should also be included in public-library collections.     

Cancer-Fiction, Twins-Fiction, Suicide-Fiction                     -- Lynn Fisher          

     

Woelfle, Gretchen. Write On, Mercy!

Woelfle, Gretchen.  Write On, Mercy!  Boyd's Mills/Calkins Creek  unp  $16.95  978-1-59078-822-6        elem      E-BNe   Biography  

Mercy Otis Warren was an exceptional woman.  Born outside Boston in the eighteenth century to a prosperous lawyer and member of the Massachusetts House of Representatives, she was educated equally as well as her older brother Jemmy.  After she married James Warren, she continued to write poetry while raising their five sons.  When the call for revolution began, she took an active part in the political discussions that were held in her home.  After her brother was severely injured in a Loyalist attack, she became the unsigned author of many political plays and writings that circulated through the Boston area.  After the war she began her most ambitious project, a three-volume history of the American Revolution.

This picture-book biography about one of the lesser-known women of the Revolutionary era will open young readers’ eyes to the unusual life of Warren.  A highly educated writer in a time when women were supposed to care only for family and home, she was an active participant in the war effort.  Woelfle’s lively and informative narrative holds the reader’s interest, and the lovely gouache paintings are true to the styles of the time.  The book is enhanced by excerpts from Warren’s writings and ends with an author’s note, a reproduction of her portrait done by John Singleton Copley, a timeline, and a bibliography of books and web sites.  This is a highly recommended purchase for elementary-level libraries.                                                        -- Susan Ogintz 

Warsh, Sylvia Maultash. Best Girl.

Warsh, Sylvia Maultash.  Best Girl.  Orca/Raven  121p  $9.95      978-1-55469-897-4 hs    Series: Rapid Reads(Orca/Raven)      VG    Realistic fiction

Amanda Moss feels her whole life has been a lie.  Her parents did not die in a car crash, but her mother has died in prison, where she was living since being sentenced for killing Amanda’s father.  But did she do it?  Amanda must find out the truth.

Best Girl is an adoption story, a murder mystery, and a book about the road to self-discovery.  What Amanda’s adoptive mother Shelley wanted was her career as a hairdresser.  But Amanda yearns for a career in music.  When a stranger appears with a guitar, and the story that her dead birth mother was unjustly imprisoned for killing her father, Amanda’s view of the world abruptly changes.  In her search to find the truth, she encounters new friends, frightening circumstances, and the stunning truth.  This novel is well written, even with the controlled vocabulary, and it features believable characters, a taut plot, and a satisfying ending.  It is a quick read and a book the reader will not be able to put down.  

This volume is part of the Rapid Reads series.  There are 25 volumes in the series at this time.  The series serves to provide short, easy-to-read novels for adults and young adults with literacy and/or reading difficulties.  Best Girl is recommended for high-school students with reading difficulties.  These high-interest, very low-reading-level titles will appeal to challenged readers.

Mystery, Murder-Fiction, Suspense, Hi-lo books              -- Pat Naismith  

Wade, Mary Dodson. Deadly Waves: Tsunamis.

Wade, Mary Dodson.  Deadly Waves: Tsunamis.     Enslow  48p $23.93     978-0-7660-4018-2 elm/ms  Series: Disasters - People in Peril (Enslow) E-BNS

The causes and results of tsunamis are explained, citing three major tsunamis as examples.  On April 1, 1946, there was an earthquake off the coast of Alaska, causing a tsunami that destroyed a lighthouse on Unimak Island.  At the same time the wave moved toward Hawaii.  Many details from eyewitness accounts are included.  The second tsunami cited occurred on December 26, 2004, in the Indian Ocean.  It decimated Sumatra, Sri Lanka, and surrounding areas, killing 280,000 people.  There are now early-warning devises in the Indian Ocean, in addition to the ones in the Pacific Ocean.  The third tsunami detailed happened on March 11, 2011, in Japan.  Besides the loss of life, the text explains the destruction to the fishing industry, farmlands polluted by salt water, and the nuclear-power-plant damage.

The use of first-person reports and photographs both modern and old bring an intimacy and immediacy to the text.  The science is clearly explained.  With the inclusion of the most recent major tsunami in the world, this text is up-to-the-minute, yet very accessible for young students.

This book is very highly recommended for grades 4-9.  There are four titles in the Disasters - People in Peril series.  Each one addresses a different kind of disaster: tsunamis, terrorism, school shootings, and deadly storms. All are up-to-date and highly recommended for grades 4-9.                -- Joan Theal

Thorburn, Mark. The President and the Executive Branch.

Thorburn, Mark.   The President and the Executive Branch.  Enslow 104p  $31.93  978-0-7660-4063-2     jr/sr   Series: Constitution and US Government (Enslow)  VG-BNS      

This book covers the working of the executive branch, that is, the president of the United States and all his duties.  Under the presidency one finds that sixteen departments and the vice president’s office.  The departments include Commerce, Education, Health and Human Services, Homeland Security, Housing and Urban Development, Energy, Defense, and Agriculture.  Then you have the other departments: Justice, Labor, the Treasury, State, Interior, Transportation, and Veterans Affairs.  The last one on the list is Independent Agencies and Government Corporations.

The book goes on to illustrate examples of situations the president has had to deal with, and basically explains the job of the president of the United States.

The book includes an index, photographs, illustrations, historical facts, internet addresses, a bibliography, a glossary and a list of the men who have been the president of the United States.    

other titles in the series are The United States Constitution, The Supreme Court and the Judicial Branch, The United States Congress and the Legislative Branch, and The Security Agencies of the United States.                     -- Magna Diaz

Swain, Gwenyth. Hope and Tears.

Swain, Gwenyth.   Hope and Tears.   Boyd's Mills/Calkins Creek    115p  $17.95  978-1-59078-765-6     ms/hs       E-BN      Historical fiction/nonfiction

This beautiful book would best be used by a classroom teacher or teacher-librarian who is leading a study of immigration to the US. The author has researched some of the many immigrants who made their way to America through Ellis Island, as well as the people who worked there, and even some contemporary people who have immigration-related stories to share.  From her research, and the wonderful photos she dug up, she has written poems, letters, and even e-mail messages ostensibly "by" the historical figures she discovered.  The concept is perhaps a little "hokey", but the end result is fascinating and thought-provoking.  The book is a creative mix of fact and imagination that will draw kids into the Ellis Island immigration experience of the late 19th and early 20th centuries.  However, students may not pick up this book and read it on their own (unless they are personally fascinated with Ellis Island to begin with).  So they may need a teacher or librarian to introduce the book to them, in the context of a unit on immigration.

Or, parents may want to purchase the book after a family visit to Ellis Island or a browse through old family photos of the "old country".

The organization, writing, and choice of photos are all brilliant. This is highly recommended! Don't let it be neglected on a shelf!      This is recommended for middle schools and high schools that study immigration to the United States, and for any public library.    

Immigration, Ellis Island                                        -- Carol Kennedy  

Strohm, Stephanie Kate. Pilgrims Don’t Wear Pink.

Strohm, Stephanie Kate.  Pilgrims Don’t Wear Pink.    Houghton Mifflin/ Graphia  204p     $8.99 978-0-547-56459-3      ms/hs       E-BN  Realistic fiction

Libby loves history and is completely excited to serve as a costumed historical interpreter at a museum in Maine where it is perpetually 1791.  She loves teaching her young campers all about open-hearth cooking and a variety of needlework crafts.  She also meets two young men.  In the “hunk” she thinks she has met the man of her dreams, but she also has to deal with the Star-Trek-loving nerd.  She also gets drawn into the mystery of a possible ghost aboard the small ship on which she is living.  Libby always presses forward since she is determined to make it work.  She eventually comes to see these two romantic interests for their true selves.

The wardrobe malfunctions involved are hilarious and easily seen by the reader. The author admits to a shoe fetish but must also be very fashion savvy.  The descriptions of open-hearth cooking and nautical terms are evidence of her extensive research.

Set in a living-history center, this novel at times reads as historical fiction, but it is also a mystery and a romance novel while still firmly realistic fiction.  Middle-school and high-school girls will thoroughly enjoy this first novel.

Mystery-Fiction, Romance-Fiction, Historical fiction        -- Joan Theal

Streissguth, Tom. Security Agencies of the United States.

Streissguth, Tom.  Security Agencies of the United States.  Enslow      104p  $31.93  978-0-7660-4064-9  ms/hs  Series: Constitution and US Government (Enslow)   VG-BN

     

The federal governmental organizations that are responsible for the safety and security of the United States are the topics of this book.  Presented are the Department of Homeland Security, OSS & Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), National Security Agency (NSA), and Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI).      Well written and documented, the book puts together a very interesting history of the major federal organizations responsible for the security of this nation. Beginning with the history of each organization, the author then talks about how each one is structured and functions, and the importance of the individuals within each one.  Interspersed are the key events that were the impetus for the creation of each organization, and the role that it played in investigating some of the most pivotal events in 20th-century America.  Well-captioned photographs are found throughout the book, adjacent to the text to which they relate.  A timeline, glossary, chapter notes, a list of references for further reading, internet addresses and an index conclude the book.

The series Constitution and US Government is an excellent collection of five titles addressing the U.S. Constitution and the various branches and organizations of the U.S. government: The President and the Executive Branch, The Security Agencies of the United States, The Supreme Court and the Judicial Branch, The United States Congress and the Legislative Branch, and The United States Constitution.  This series is well written and thoroughly documented, as each book contains extensive chapter notes, as well as print and web resources.

This book is a highly-recommended addition for any middle-school and high-school library collection, as well as public-library collections.    -- Lynn Fisher   

Stout, Glenn. Able to Play: Overcoming Physical Challenges.

Stout, Glenn.  Able to Play: Overcoming Physical Challenges.  Houghton Mifflin/Sandpiper  88p   $5.99      978-0-547-41733-2   secondary  Series: Good Sports (Sandpiper)  E-BNS      

Never patronizing, Able to Play shares the inspiring stories of four baseball players:  Mordecai "Three Finger" Brown, Ron Santo, Jim Abbott, and Curtis Pride.  Each faces physical challenges that, with determination and guts, they didn't just overcome, they excelled.  This book is a game-changing celebration of overcoming odds that will appeal to sports fans while simultaneously providing material for research. Fans of Matt Christopher, Dan Gutman, and Mike Lupica will be quick to pick up this volume.

Mordecai Brown lost a finger, Ron Santo had debilitating diabetes, Jim Abbott had only one arm, and Curtis Pride had a hearing disability.  Stout offers an unvarnished portrayal of the trials these players faced as the result of their disabilities.  These challenges range from people staring to people assuming that they wouldn't be able to perform as well as able-bodied players. 

Kudos to the parents who raised these men with a "can do" attitude.  Readers will find the focus on successes rather than weakness or failure, and may come to realize that people with disabilities can still become contributing members of society, with compassion, support, and determination.         

n  Hilary Welliver