Emerald Atlas (galley)

Emerald Atlas (galley) by John Stephens pub April, 2011 from Knopf.
Audience: 5th-7th grade
My Rating: 3* of 5
Summary: Kate, Michael, and Emma have been in one orphanage after another for the last ten years, passed along like lost baggage. Yet these unwanted children are more remarkable than they could possibly imagine. Ripped from their parents as babies, they are being protected from a horrible evil of devastating power, an evil they know nothing about.
Comments: Thank you, Cindy B., for loaning this ARC of Stephens' debut novel. Pacing was off for me and several aspects seemed too Harry Potter-ish to be original. Some compelling characters, though, in Dwarf, Witch, and Gollum-esqe categories. The climax was confusing and relied upon the reader remembering a detail from much earlier in the book; in general the time-travel "rules" were fuzzy to the point of disbelief. The late appearance of the true antagonist (very a la Voldemort) showed promise for the next two installments.
Read-Alikes: Harry Potter series, Series of Unfortunate Events

When You Reach Me (audio)

When You Reach Me by Rebecca Stead. 2009.
Audience: Grades 4-7th; ages 9-14
My Rating: 4*s of 5
Summary: As her mother prepares to be a contestant on the 1980s television game show, "The $20,000 Pyramid," a twelve-year-old New York City girl tries to make sense of a series of mysterious notes received from an anonymous source that seems to defy the laws of time and space.
Comments: I kept seeing reviews for this book and decided to give it a listen. It is a great puzzle-read with a well written girl protagonist. It was very satisfying to keep track of each subtle clue as it clicks into place. More than anything, though, it is a book about relationships. A passage about racism is deftly but clearly handled. I enjoyed this clever story and find myself thinking about it from time to time.
Awards: Newbery medal!
Read-alikes: A Wrinkle in Time (more of a companion book than a read-alike), Chasing Vermeer by Balliet

Found by Haddix (audio)

Found (The Missing, book 1) by Margaret Peterson Haddix. 2008.
Audience: Grades 4-8; ages 10-14
My Rating: 2*s of 5
Summary: When thirteen-year-olds Jonah and Chip, who are both adopted, learn they were discovered on a plane that appeared out of nowhere, full of babies with no adults on board, they realize that they have uncovered a mystery involving time travel and two opposing forces, each trying to repair the fabric of time.
Comments: I finally listened to this book after hearing a lot of buzz about it. Well, I don't feel buzzed by it. The concept is great, but the pacing, dialogue, and *language* dragged it down for me. IMHO Haddix's word choices, especially during dialogue, seem old fashioned to a point that it pulls me from the story and characters. Hearing these outdated choices read aloud was extra enervating! In the genre, Unwind is so incredibly better, but unfortunately for an older audience. But, hey, older kids seem to be liking this book so what do I know?!

Awards: Lone Star list 2010
Read-alikes: Unwind by Shusterman (for teens)

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!