Kids Blog : reviews, fiction

Stolen children??!!

UndergroundLibrarian@evpl — Thu, 27 Nov 2008 01:20:00 GMT

Fourteen-year-old Amy had just completed a babysitting course, but as Peg Kehret wrote in the first paragraph of Stolen Children, "it did not cover what to do if two thugs with a gun showed up. She had to figure that out by herself."

As you can tell from the title, Amy and her 3-year-old charge Kendra were kidnapped. They were taken to a remote one-room cabin with no electricity or plumbing and very little food. Amy did her best to keep Kendra distracted from their plight while trying to figure out how to sneak clues onto the daily videotapes the kidnappers took to send to Kendra's parents.

The kidnappers were new at this endeavor and what little plans they had made fell through before they even began. Amy knew that they had only intended to kidnap Kendra and had no use for Amy. Since she was old enough to recognize them, Amy was sure they planned to kill her before they returned Kendra, even if the ransom was paid. And even though it was obvious that the kidnappers were none too bright, there was still the threat of that gun, and a knife, too.

This story plot is a lot like another book I read a long time ago, Prisoners at the Kitchen Table by Barbara Holland. That title is no longer in print, or in the public library system. Has anybody else out there read it?

One way this one is different is that it tells the story from the point of view of various people. Most of it is through Amy's eyes, but parts of it are through her best friend Jorja who works on figuring out Amy's hints on the videos and what they might mean. We also see things from the point of view of other minor characters who might be able to help the girls get rescued.

It was hard to stop reading this book until I got all 165 pages finished. I HAD to know what was going to happen to Amy and Kendra!

Honey Cake

mrsweasley@evpl — Fri, 21 Nov 2008 21:39:00 GMT

Every year, David's mother bakes a honey cake for Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year celebration. Eating honey cake symbolizes the hope that the new year will be sweet. David's sister Rachel expresses the opinion of all Denmark in 1943: "A sweet year would be a year without Nazis."

For three and a half years, the Germans have occupied Denmark, and now word comes that the Nazis plan to round up Denmark's Jews. Even with the help of friends, can David's family find a way to leave the country before they are sent to a concentration camp? Secret messages, breathless escapes and courageous resistance will keep you turning the pages of this history-based story. Author Joan Betty Stuchner includes Mama's Honey Cake recipe to help you taste the sweetness of hope for freedom that David's family shared.

More Pilgrims?

UndergroundLibrarian@evpl — Wed, 19 Nov 2008 20:57:00 GMT

With Thanksgiving on the way, it's a good time to consider the definition of a Pilgrim. Molly's Pilgrim by Barbara Cohen does just that. When Molly explains to her mother what her teacher told her about why the Pilgrims came to America, Molly's mother thinks it describes why their family came from Russia less than a year ago, too.

Molly's English isn't really good yet, and she suffers a lot from the teasing she gets for being different. Written in 1983, this book provides a good jumping off spot for discussions of tolerance and differences and how it feels to be the odd one out. Along with what IS a pilgrim, anyway?

How Long Could YOU Keep From Talking?

UndergroundLibrarian@evpl — Thu, 13 Nov 2008 23:12:00 GMT

Dave was normally a pretty noisy 5th-grader. In fact, maybe he was a loudmouth. But after reading about Gandhi, and how for many years he spent one day a week not talking at all, Dave thought it was worth finding out what it would be like to keep silent. After about a half day of trying silence on his own, he and Lynsey took up a dare to make silence a contest between the 5th grade boys and the 5th grade girls. They set the time limit of 2 entire days. Exceptions were only that they were allowed to respond to a teacher with a 3-word answer. Any more words counted as points for the other side.

What happened to the teachers when the lunch room was entirely silent? How did they manage in their classes?
Who won? And how DID it feel to keep mostly silent for all that time?

Andrew Clements has come up with another unique situation for his characters in No Talking.

Do you think you could keep silent for even one entire day?

Invention of Hugo Cabret

UndergroundLibrarian@evpl — Fri, 25 Jul 2008 20:08:00 GMT

This is the Caldecott Award winner with the most pages ever. The detailed pictures are fascinating. Brian Selznick's inventive artwork carries the bulk of the story line.