Book Scavenger

One of my students alerted me to this gem of a book.  It is the story of a girl named Emily who is hooked on a book scavenger hunt game.  The game was created by a world famous publisher who has been attacked and hurt.  The book Emily finds is the first clue in his latest game, but she doesn't realize it at the time.  This book reminded me A LOT of Escape from Mr. Lemoncello's Library with its puzzles, clues, and references to great works of literature.  I also enjoyed the reinforcing lessons of protecting one's identity online. (FIC BER)

Last Stop on Market Street

This picture book is this year's Newbery Winner.  Newbery.  Not Caldecott...although it received a Caldecott Honor as well.  Newbery awards are given to the best contribution to children's literature for the year.  It almost always is a chapter book.  This year, it broke from that tradition.  This is a story of a little boy who is on a bus ride with his grandma.  He is complaining about all the things he doesn't have, while his grandma is pointing out all the beautiful things in life they would miss if they did not take the bus.  (PIC DEL)

Finding Winnie

This is the winner of the 2016 Caldecott Award.  It is the true story of the bear that was the inspiration for Winnie the Pooh.  The author of the story is the great-granddaughter of the man who first owned Winnie.  It is a wonderful story, beautifully illustrated that all children will be able to relate to.  Who doesn't love Winnie the Pooh????? (PIC MAT)

The Thing About Jellyfish

This novel by Ali Benjamin is a bit mature in content.  I would suggest a middle-school reader.  The main character has lost her best friend and Suzi can not accept that. She needs a better reason that she died.  Their last exchange was horrible and she is wracked with guilt and sadness.  She stops talking.  She starts on a quest to make sense of the senseless. It is a sad story of grief and coming to terms with the death of a loved one.

Crenshaw

Katherine Applegate won a Newbery award a few years ago for The One and Only Ivan.  In her latest story, rather than a gorilla, she has an imaginary cat as her title character.  His name is Crenshaw and he is brought into existence by the imagination of a boy who is going through some serious problems in his life.  Jackson likes truth...scientific truth.  But he can't face the truths in his life and that's where Crenshaw fits in.  This is a touching story about a family's struggles with poverty and a boy's need to feel more in control of his life.