Half Magic

Half Magic by Edward Eager, 1954.

I stumbled upon this and couldn't put it down. For a juvenile book written 50 years ago, it is remarkably timeless. It reads with a dash of playful sarcasm that remided me of Peter Pan or Dahl. The four children (three girls, one boy) foil each other nicely and their magical adventures pull the reader along. Even the moral of the story, as well as the satisfying wrap up, are handled so delicately as to make it a pleasure to read.

What a pleasant surprise I found in Half Magic!

Allie Finkle's Rules for Girls: Moving Day

Allie Finkle's Rules for Girls: Moving Day by Meg Cabot. 2008.
Audience: 8-12, Grades 3-5
My Rating: 4.5*s out of 5
Summary: When nine-year-old Allie Finkle's parents announce that they are moving her and her brothers from their suburban split-level into an ancient Victorian in town, Allie's sure her life is over. She's not at all happy about having to give up her pretty pink wall-to-wall carpeting for creaky floorboards and creepy secret passageways-not to mention leaving her modern, state-of-the-art suburban school for a rundown, old-fashioned school just two blocks from her new house.
Comments: How does Meg Cabot do it? I have enjoyed everything I've read by her, regardless of the subject or audience. Her writing is current and vernacular, but doesn't seem dumbed-down. Allie was honest, independent, and endearlingly flawed. At first I thought the "rules" concept would get in the way, but instead it nicely threaded the story together. My favorite rule (very hard to choose just one)..."When you finally figure out what the right thing to do is, you have to do it, even if you don't want to."
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The Sisters Grimm: The Fairy-Tale Detective (Book 1)

The Sisters Grimm: Fairy-Tale Detectives by Michael Buckley. 2005.
Audience: 10-12, Grades 4-6
My Rating: 3.5 *s of 5
Summary: Orphans Sabrina and Daphne Grimm are sent to live with an eccentric grandmother whom they have always believed to be dead.
Comments: Slow start, excellent grandmother character, cliff-hanger ending, clever characters, subtle detective clues.
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The Tales of Beedle the Bard

The Tales of Beedle the Bard by J.K. Rowling. 2008.
My Rating: 4.5*s out of 5

Audience: Ages 8-12/Grades 4-8

Summary: Contains five illustrated moral tales for children from the world of Harry Potter, reportedly discovered and translated by young witch Hermione Granger, with an introduction and commentary from Albus Dumbledore, headmaster of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.

Comments: Delightful, quick read, okay as introduction to HP series, clever, wish it had been longer or ended differently

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The Penderwicks on Gardam Street

The Penderwicks on Gardam Street by Jeanne Birdsall. 2008.

My Rating: 4*s out of 5
Audience: Ages 8-12/Grades 4-8
Summary: The four Penderwick sisters are faced with the unimaginable prospect of their widowed father dating, and they hatch a plot to stop him.
Comments: Fun read for girls, heightened/unrealistic dialogue, variety of ages/personalities to relate to, well paced, satisfying ending
Awards: 2009-2010 Bluebonnet nominee
Read-alikes: The Penderwicks

Swindle by Korman

Swindle by Gordon Korman. 2008.

My Rating: 3.5 *s out of 5
Audience: Ages 9-12/Grades 3-6

Summary: After unscrupulous collector S. Wendell Palamino cons him out of a valuable baseball card, sixth-grader Griffin Bing puts together a band of misfits to break into Palomino's heavily guarded store and steal the card back, planning to use the money to finance his father's failing invention, the Smart Pick fruit picker.

Comments: Face paced, predictable, morally ambiguous, entertaining, suspenseful

Awards: 2009-2010 Bluebonnet nominee

Read-alikes: Millions by Frank Cottrell Boyce