Realistic Fiction

Just Grace and the Flower Girl Power

Mrs. Eaves by Mrs. Eaves

Just Grace and the Flower Girl Powerby Charise Mericle Harper

208 pages of friendship and problem solving just right for 2nd, 3rd and 4th grade girls (or older ones who just want a entertaining, quick well-written story that feels good to read)

Just Grace is a wonderful friend.  She isn’t always perfect, things don’t always work out, but her intentions are always from the kindest, most thoughtful place in her heart.  That’s why I like her.  In the first book from the Just Grace series we learn that Grace draws comics and that she has the super power of empathy.  Those key strengths are carried with her throughout the series.  Eight books later, Grace’s neighbor, Augustine Dupre is getting married.  How wonderful and exciting!  But Grace is not chosen to be the flower girl.  Once over that disappointment, she works to figure out how to support her friend and find a way to give her the best wedding present ever. (Silver bowls are boring!)  It will take everyone working together – even Mr. Scruffers and Crinkles, the cat to make it happen.  Grace has one chance to carry out her plan.  You’ll have to read Just Grace and the Flower Girl Power to see how it goes.

If you’re a Just Grace fan, want to discover your super power or see what other readers think about when reading check out this fun site by clicking here:  Just Grace

Lower the Trap

Mrs. Eaves by Mrs. Eaves

Lower the Trapby Jessica Scott Kerrin

125 pages of real life as a fisherman – you’ll be glad you read it.

Lower the Trap is first book in the Lobster Chronicles trilogy.  It tells the tale of lobstermen and fishermen in Nova Scotia.  The work is real.  The people are real.  The struggles are real and Graeme Swinimer is stuck in the middle.  He knows everything there is to know about Lower Narrow Spit and he is looking for more.  He intends to be a marine biologist when he grows up.  He has a saltwater tank in his room that he observes closely to discover any new secrets that might be revealed.  Mostly he discovers each new way his sister can sabotage his effortes.  Graeme knows there’s more to learn, but he doesn’t think he will find that in Lower Narrow Spit.  He “can’t wait” to be out and on his way.

But then his dad catches a gargantuan lobster that must be at least fifty years old.  It’s enormous and beautiful and amazing AND it is from his town… from his harbor…how could that be!   There is a twist of course.   It comes with Norris, Graeme’s least favorite schoolmate,  a mystery regarding their teacher’s stolen cactus and an auction that’s part of the town’s annual lobster festival.  An extra irritation in all of this is that Norris is the cannery owner’s son.  His family keeps the town going and he feels entitled .  He is sure Graeme will do what is “right” to give Norris and his dad what they want.

It seems like that just might be the case until more people get involved to make sure the fate of the lobster nor Graeme’s feelings about his town and future aren’t easily sold.  It isn’t always easy to know what is best, but it is always right to do what is just.

This story is honest and true.  It will make you think and help you understand how one small event can change a life and through that one many more will be enriched too.  The more I think about it, the more I like it – what seems simple at first is not at all.

Kidnapped by Gordon Korman

Mrs. Eaves by Mrs. Eaves ,

The Abduction,The Search and The Rescue

from the Kidnapped trilogy by Gordon Korman

Abduction (Kidnapped, #1)The Rescue (Kidnapped, #3)The Search (Kidnapped, #2)

 

adventure +action= page-turning excitement

Even though the Falconers have been proven innocent and their name has been cleared, their story isn’t over.   Aiden and Meg are walking home from school, Aiden’s worst fear becomes a reality.  A van pulls over and Meg is kidnapped. He tries to stop it, of course, but then barely escapes himself.  Aiden’s the only witness to his sister’s disappearance.  What should he do?  Why has Meg been kidnapped? Is it for ransom? Is it as a vendetta against the family? Is there an even bigger conspiracy at work?

Aiden knows he must work fast to figure out how to save her.  After all their time together working to clear their family name, Aiden knows Meg better than anyone else.  He knows she will leave clues whenever and however she can.  Meg, a fearless fighter, fends off her kidnappers and plans an escape.  Aiden, away from her,  must team up with the FBI – the very same agent who caused his family so much trouble before – to try to find her–tracking down clues only a brother could recognize.

Read The Abduction, The Search and The Rescue for a thrilling adventure complete with  unexpected twists and turns.  Which Falconer are you more like?  Or who would you like to be like if the situation ever arose?  I’d wish to be fearless but I don’t know if that could be true.  If it’s not that, what could be true…what would I do?  What would you do?

The post-script at the end of the third book shares how Meg has changed after her kidnapping and how she has realized what a gift freedom is.  It makes me question… in how many ways do we limit and enslave our actions and thoughts.  What happens when we take freedom for granted?

 

PS – thanks for the recomendation Maddie! – this isn’t a genre I’d pick up on my own.  Thanks for stretching me.

 

Bigger than a Bread Box

Mrs. Eaves by Mrs. Eaves ,

Bigger than a Bread BoxBigger than a Bread Box

by Laurel Snyder

223 pages of combined realistic fiction and fantasy for middle grade readers

Do all things have both a good and a bad side?

There are too many changes coming all too fast.  Rebecca’s home is in Baltimore.  It is where she belongs and where she needs to be, but she is not there.  She is in Atlanta feeling alone and angry and confused.  After the last angry fight, her mother grabbed her and her 2-year old brother, Lew and run away.  They left their father behind and ran to her Gran in Atlanta.  Atlanta is fine, but all wrong.

While hiding with her anger from her mom, Rebecca discovers bread box in the attic.  It stands out in that dusty place because it is shiny, bright and clean.  Rebecca brings it to her room where she learns of its power – things she wishes for — clothes, lip gloss, ipods — magically appear. Of course though, wishes have both good and bad sides and magic is never what it first seems to be.  Rebecca doesn’t stop to think where the items actually come from until it’s almost too late. By then, however, Rebecca realizes that what she truly wants — and needs — would never fit in the shiny red bread box.

Once you begin, you won’t want to stop – but do every once in a while.  This story brings up so many questions and ideas.  Snyder’s story is compelling. Rebecca is a totally real as she struggles with her desire to be popular and her instinct to do the right thing.

This book trailer created by a 12-year old reader is a wonderful summary of you should read this great book.

Out of My Mind

Mrs. Eaves by Mrs. Eaves

Out of My MindOut of My Mind

by Sharon M. Draper

295 pages of  courage, determination, love and cruelty

This book has been in my “to-be-read” pile for a couple of years.  Friends had recommended it and the reviews had been great – but new fantasies and series kept coming out and it got lower in the stack.  I never got around to reading it until two weeks ago when daughter asked me for a book that was like A Mango Shaped Space.  I said I wasn’t sure but maybe this and handed her Out of My Mind.  Two days later when I got up the book was sitting in the middle of my desk labeled with a post-it saying “AWESOME!” I began reading the next and the post-it is right.

In the book Melody has CP.  She can’t talk.  She can’t sit up.  She can’t feed herself or use the toilet on her own, but she has words – millions of them.  Though she has millions of words, she has never said one.  They’re all trapped inside.  Because of how she controls her body most people assume she has no intelligence.  She’s in the resource room with a whole assortment of disabled kids.  It’s sort of like a holding tank where the teachers do things, but no one is really teaching, and no one is learning anything intentionally.  That changes in 5th grade.

In 5th grade Melody gets a medi-talker – a device like Stephen Hawking has that allows her to type her thoughts so the machine can speak them for her.  She has a one-on-one assistant who believes in her and she participates in, and wins a spot on the Whiz Kid Team.  For the first time in her life people outside her family know she is smart. For the first time in her life Melody is part of a team – but she still can’t drink or control her limbs when excited or wipe her mouth if she drools.  That makes others uncomfortable and so “the morning that started out like crystal turns to broken glass.” You’ll never believe what happens possibly could – but it does.

I was so angry at so many of the people in this book.  They behave as no one should and yet I know their behavior mirrors real life.  I know it is easy to criticize others, and much more difficult to take action to do the right thing.  But we must!  This book makes you think about what it means to be a person –  a quality person.  It shows that flaws don’t lessen or leave with age and it shows that our beliefs are powerful things.

It is easy when it is easy, but what do you do when it is hard?  What do you do when it seem unbearable? What do you believe to be right?  Will you act on your convictions?  It is so hard to do…  I think Melody in Out of My Mind has a lot to tell you – she taught me a great deal.  I will be a much more careful teacher, friend and person because of her.

Leave a comment to let us know how she touches your life too.
















The Yound Man and the Sea



 Mrs. Eaves
by Mrs. Eaves
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Young Man And The SeaThe Young Man and the Sea


by Rodman Philbrick


192 pages of resourceful problem solving and skill (abilities I admire and wish I had!)


This year I have a group of students who love nature and everything about being outside.  They are interested in tracking and birding, fishing and falconry.  They have a great deal of knowledge and expertise.  These things are an exciting and important part of their lives.  I began to look for books that might compliment their interests.  Because of that search I was reminded of this book.  When it was published years ago, I was working with 6 year olds and I didn’t get entered on my “to read list” – but I loved Freak the Mighty so it stuck in my mind.  This year I wondered how 9 year olds would like it  – only maybe.  There are social situations that will be better understood by an older reader.  If you’re in 5th or 6th grade and think this is an interesting topic, I’m sure it’s for you.  Other middle grade readers could like it too.  I did and I like how Rodman Philbrick moderenized an old tale.  I also like how he looked at social class and and get you to question, “What makes a “classy” person?”


Living in a coastal fishing town, twelve-year old Skiff Beaman is struggling to survive.  Ever since his mother died, Skiff’s father has done nothing but lie on the “TV couch” and drink beer. He used to make his living fishing, but he hasn’t stepped foot onto his boat since his wife’s death. Skiff realizes that it is going to be totally up to him to earn money if they are to survive.


Arriving home at the end of the school day, at the end of the school year, Skiff discovers the Mary Rose, their boat, has sunk at the dock. Skiff decides that if he can raise and fix the boat he might be able to raise his dad off the couch and bring him back to life and back into Skiff’s life.  He takes it upon himself to raise the boat and with the help of ancient boat-builder, Mr. Woodwell and supportive, retired Captain Keelson figures out what has to be done each step along the way to repair the boat and rebuild the engine.


Skiff is determined.  He needs his dad back.  His work is cut out for him if he is to get the Mary Rose back on the water – back fishing and lobstering and earning a living for them. Not only must Skiff raise the sunken boat and earn money for the supplies to repair the boat, but he must also deal with the hostility of the rich brat Tyler Croft. Skiff works hard and is determination to succeed.  After numerous set backs, Skiff decides the only way he will be able to accomplish his goal is to set out to sea in his plywood skiff  (one of the last great things his dad had done when he made the boat for his birthday three years ago) to try to harpoon the bluefin tuna.


The second half of the book strongly parallels to Hemingway’s classic,  The Old Man and the Sea.  Read and enjoy.


 




















Olive’s Ocean



 Mrs. Eaves
by Mrs. Eaves
 






Olive's Ocean Olive’s Ocean


by Kevin Henkes – 217 pages – a Newbery Honor book


for middle readers interested in considering how life unfolds


Olive’s Ocean is a book to sit with for a while.  It is gentle and challenging at the same time.  It is about bravery.  It is about thoughtfulness.  It is about relationships, truth, regret and trust.


“Martha Boyle, you think too much.  And my dad says when you think too much, that’s when the trouble starts.”  Martha does think and wonder – why did Olive, someone she didn’t really know or talk to, think she was nice; the kind of person she would like to be friends with?  How come someone only twelve dies?  What does it mean confront your fears?


Everything in Martha’s life is rough and scratchy right now.  She doesn’t particularly like her family.  Dad yells all the time or leaves. Mom is totally focused on her work. Vince is too old to bother with her and she’s tired of taking care of Lucy all the time.  The usual summer routine at Grandma’s house on the cape isn’t the same.  Everything is complicated and changing.


What do you do to bring normal back? Can you?  Not really, but you can come to know yourself better and discover that life is complicated no matter what your age – it is full of a entire ocean of questions and puzzles to ponder.


 















Rules by Cynthia Lord



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With Catherine, saying she has a normal life doesn’t fit. She has a brother, David with a disablity, and it seems the whole wide world gives David the attention. Catherine has been trying to teach David rules like “don’s stand in front 0f the tv while other people are watching it” and “Say thank you when someone gives you a present (even if you don’t like it)” to protect herself, her family and David from the whispers and stares. But when she meets Kristi, the new, perfect neighbor that she had always wanted, and a paraplegic boy named Jason. And when she has a sudden change in behavior, she has to try to learn how to act around these people.


Praise for Rules by Cynthia Lord:


“A heartwarming first novel” — Booklist


“Catherine is an endearing narrator who tells her story with both humor and heartbreak. A lovely, warm read, and a great discussion starter.” — School Library Journal


Newbery Honor Medal


Schneider Family Book Award


ALA Notable Children’s Book




    

  • Click here for Cynthia Lord’s website.
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  • Her blog here.
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  • Her website on Rules here.
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  • And finally, to buy the book from Amazon.com here.
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Freak the Mighty



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“I never had a brain until Freak came along and let me borrow his for a while, and that’s the truth, the whole truth. The unvanquished truth, is how Freak would say it and for a long tine it was him who did the talking. Except I had a way of saying things with my fist and my feet even before we became Freak the Mighty, slaying dragons and fools and walking high above the world.”


–Freak the Mighty, Chapter 1, The Unvanquished Truth


The first time I finished this book was when my Aunt Patrice read it aloud to us at our Beach House. At first nobody, not even me looked forward to the read aloud at the end of the day, but when we got into it, or at least I got into it, I was hooked. This book is about a oversized boy and undersized boy both going into eighth grade. The two have vague childhood memories together but no other connections to each other. They form a deep friendship that no one would expect to become of them. Max and Freak (Kevin) are two peas in a pod they quickly morphed into Freak the Mighty. I highly suggest Freak the Mighty by Rodman Philbrick.


Click here for RodmanPhilbrick.com on Freak the Mighty.


Click here to buy the book from Amazon.com.















Anna Hibiscus



 Mrs. Eaves
by Mrs. Eaves
 






Anna HibiscusAnna Hibiscus


By Atinuke  illustrated by Lauren Tobia


Realistic Fiction – each book is about 100 pages long and seems right for most Grade 2 to Grade 4 readers (though I have to say I really enjoyed them and what I learned about Africa in the process)


School has begun and I am missing the relaxed luxury of reading each day.  I am missing the long quiet hours to plan and reflect.  School has begun, and yes there are things lost, but there are also wonderful things gained.  I have a chance to talk books with many reading friends and I have a new set of readers to learn about and find the books that will excite and engage them.


I think many of the girls in my classroom will love Anna Hibiscus.  I did. I read the four volumes and I learned about living in “Africa, amazing Africa.”  Anna lives in a compound at the edge of a city.  She is with her entire family – her father from Africa, her mother from Canada, her twin brothers, her cousins, her aunties and uncles and her grandmother and grandfather.  Living there is special.  Through Anna’s stories we learn about special talents and secret wishes.  We learn how family traditions contrast with modern life and how a balance can be found.  We learn about customs and culture.  Mostly we learn about differences and how to better appreciate them.


Anna is a strong individual.  She is adventurous and brave, concerned and caring, curious and inventive.  She does amazing things – shares her best Sunday clothes with children more poor than she could imagine, sings a solo for a visiting president in the National Stadium and finds a way to save water in the dry harmattan months.  It is good to read them in order because the stories in each volume connect (even when you don’t think they will.) Anna Hibiscus is growing up in a world that is finding a way to balance the old and the new – a real global community.  You can join her there she has a lot to offer.


Hooray for Anna Hibiscus! (Anna Hibiscus, #2)Have Fun, Anna Hibiscus! (Anna Hibiscus, #4)


Good Luck, Anna Hibiscus!