The Good War

 

There is a new eSports after school club.  It won't replace football which was cut but maybe the new computers and hype will generate some excitement.  The students who join decide to form teams and compete over the semester playing a really popular game based on WWII called The Good War.  But as things progress the teams get too competitive and one side even starts bringing in symbols and clothing and even ideology that reflects the Axis side.  Can the students learn from the past in order to heal the present and prevent things like this from happening again.

At one point in the book I was getting a bit concerned with the audience and then the exposure to the hate speech and symbols, especially in the chat room scenes. And then there was the conversation between the teacher and principal and I even discussed the book with my daughter (very smart, history major).  There really is a balance of exposing our students to hateful language and internet safety so they don't get sucked into it.

I have been around for a while and knew the name Todd Strasser but for some reason I was associating him with more fluff pieces - not sure why.  As I read the end of the book and saw that he wrote The Wave back in 1981 I remembered reading it and seeing the after school special.  That was 40 years ago... and we are still dealing with it.  Sigh.

City of the Plague God

 

Sikander misses his brother so much but work in the deli keeps him busy.  When an ancient god, Nergal, comes to visit Sik starts on a grand adventure.  Nergal is looking for something and believes Sik's brother sent it to him.  Enter Ishtar, Gilgamesh, and a host of other demons.  Oh, and don't forget a plague that makes Sik's parents sick and then all of NYC.  Can Sik find what Nergal is looking for and save everyone?

I truly love what Rick Riordan is doing with his imprints.  This highlights ancient Mesopotamian stories like Gilgamesh and also helps normalize some wording that has been radicalized.  This was really good. 

Unplugged

 

Gordon Korman just gets middle grade fiction.  He just does - friendships, conflict that has some edge but not too much, snark.

In this book Jett has been sent with his "watcher" to Oasis for the summer after some shenanigans.  At Oasis all participants give up their technology and seek to become "whole".  Jett hates it.  But when one of the kids finds a lizard Jett, the girl, and some others start to take care of it and start becoming friends.  But what is Needles exactly?   Who is the mysterious millionaire in the nearby town?  And is everyone on staff at Oasis on the up and up?

For me, this wasn't the best Gordon Korman book I have read.  It took a bit to really get going for me.  That being said, I will talk it up as I do all his books because they hit that middle grade sweet spot.

The Caged Graves

 

I am late to the party on this one but it's a case of now that I am off MSBA I can read what I want.  I will still be reading as much current middle grade lit as possible but now I also have time for others.  This was recommended to me months back and I loved it!

Since the death of her mother Verity has been living up north with relatives but now she has returned to marry a man she has only corresponded with.  Unfortunately, rumors and misdeeds surround the death of both her mother and her aunt as evidenced by the cages built around both their graves.  Can Verity get to the bottom of their deaths and a "curse" that dates back to the Revolutionary War?

Great historical fiction with a dab of romance, mystery, and suspense.

Music for Tigers

 

Louisa is not impressed when she is sent to Tasmania for the summer to hang out with her uncle.  She would rather spend all her time preparing for her violin auditions.  But that's before she learns about her great-grandmother Eleanor and her work to protect endangered species.  Most importantly, Louisa learns that maybe the Tasmanian tiger is not extinct after all.  But with "progress" threatening can Louisa and her friends save the tiger that they know is out there?

This was a pretty decent book especially dealing with neurodiversity and anxiety as subplots.

Tune it Out

 

Lou has an absolutely beautiful singing voice and her mother is sure they can make the big time with it.  But Lou hates it - loud noises scare her and she hates when anyone touches her.  But her mom won't listen.  And... their lives are a bit irregular.  Lou doesn't go to school and they live in their truck.  

It's the truck that ends up getting them in trouble.  Lou, obviously unlicensed, has to go pick up her mom from work but there is a snow storm and the truck slides off the road and Lou ends up with a concussion.  Enter Child Protective Services.  Soon Lou is off to live with an aunt she doesn't know going to a private school.  She hates it at first but as she adjusts and learns more about her life, things her mom kept from her, and more importantly that her fears have a name - Sensory Processing Disorder - she starts to wonder where she really wants to be.

This was a really solid book that shines a light on a topic that needs to be destigmatized.  Well done.

New Blog, New Directions

 

Over a year ago now my husband and I moved from out tiny home on Granny Kent Pond to a condo in Kennebunk.  At that time I really stopped posting as much in my "Reading by the Pond" blog.  I no longer live by the pond.  While the move has been good and necessary and is turning out to offer more than I anticipated I struggled with missing the pond, missing the ability to see it daily, the ability to just get in my kayak.  Then a pandemic hit. 

I still read a lot!  I am currently finishing up the Maine Student Book Award shortlist - only 5 books left - for the last time.  I have spent the last 8 years reading for the committee.  I would venture that I have read over 2000 books.  I have read every shortlist book which means I have read every book that has been on the list.  

In some ways though it has taken a toll...  I read instead of being as active as I should.  I read instead of being as social as I need to be.  I will still be reading but maybe will pursue some other hobbies too - I'd like to run a 10k and do more biking.  Maybe I can add in weights again.  Cross-stitch?  We'll see.  

New blog... new directions

The Retake

 

Zoe and Laura have been best friends forever but lately Zoe has noticed that Laura seems interested in other people, other activities and Zoe doesn't fit.    

Yep...  been there, done that - many times.  This is a really familiar middle grade trope and I must confess for the first 30 - 40 pages it was a tad irritating.  But then Zoe got a new app on her phone - the Retake app - and she was able to go back - several times to try and fix the friendship.  But at what cost?  And... was the friendship really worth saving or is it best to move on and grow.

As much as we want to diss the trope it is a real feeling around 6th and 7th grade as kiddos develop and change and grow.  Ultimately the story was quite hopeful and might help those who are going through the struggle.