February Grades 5-6 Book Club: The Incorrigible Children of Ashton Place: The Mysterious Howling

                                                                                                                            We had a very interesting discussion about The Incorrigible Children of Ashton Place: The Mysterious Howling by Maryrose Wood. Aljulanda, Cameron C., Eva, and Harry were present. Please find some of the comments about the book below. 

The narrator says that Penelope Lumley is "perfectly match[ed]" to "what any reasonable person might expect a young governess to look like". What adjectives would you use to describe Penelope?

Cameron: Worrisome, compassionate

Eva: Very intelligent, really young-looking, boring

Harry: Plain, normal/not-normal

When Penelope first tells the story of the ponies, she says that Silky's rough behavior is not his fault because he has "known no kindness or tender care in his life". Do you agree or disagree? Are people and animals responsible for acting badly if they've never been taught to act in a better way?

Cameron: I'd say that that would be correct. The dog with the collar (later in the book) was an example of this.

Eva: I'd say that this is true. It's not anyone's fault if they don't know any better.

Harry:  I think it depends on which person. If they're a good person on theinside, it would be true. Sometimes the opposite can be true.

Describe Lady Constance. By the end of the story, do you feel any pity or compassion for her? Why or why not?

Cameron: Not so much. She always so strict and mean about everything. She doesn't seem to understand that the children were raised by wolves.

Eva: I didn't feel any pity for Lady Constance because she expected a lot from children who were raised by wolves. She was so strict. She was the ruin of the party.

Harry: I only felt a little sorry for her. She was feeling stressed.

How does the author incorporate humor into the story? Which scene or line from the book do you think is the funniest?

Cameron: I thought that the part of the face outside had someone thinking it was the face of Christmas past. Or when the kids staged the poem.

Eva: I thought that their poems were funny. They included wolves. They incorporated a poem into a poem by a wolf.

Harry: The dance was probably the funniest segment.

Side note about their names: Alexander, Beowulf and Cassiopeia are such hard names (at least the last two) to pronounce.

Penelope explains irony to the Incorrigibles as "when you say one thing but mean something else .... or when you expect things to happen one way and then they turn out quite differently". Based on this definition, can you find examples of irony in the novel? How does the author use irony as a form of humor?

Cameron: The Mayhem for Boys book.

Eva: The interview was ironic. Penelope thought that it was going to go one way and then it was exactly the opposite. They never talked about the children.

Harry: Everyone's concern that the children wanted to eat the squirrel and then they really just wanted to have it as a pet.

The narrator defines hyperbole as the "practice of overstating the case". Find an example of hyperbole in the book, and explain why you think the subject of your example is being exaggerated. Is it for humor, emphasis, dramatic effect, or something else?

Cameron: Lady Constance.

Eva: When Penelope talks to Lady Constance and says how Cassiopiea is such a mathmatecal genius, etc. that is a case of hyperbole. It's used for dramatic effect. Hyperbole is used in instances that could never actually happen ("I'm so full I could burst")

Harry: Practically everything about Lady Constance is hyperbole. She is a living hyperbole.

Penelope buys books as presents, and she carefully tries to pick out the perfect book for each person on her list. Make a list of five of your family members or friends. If you could give each of them the perfect book, what would you choose? Explain your selections.

Cameron: I would buy my friend Josh the new Lego book. I would get Beauty and the Beast for my sister.

Eva: I have an idea of what kind of book I would get friends. I would get a book about ancient Egyptian cats. I would get my sister a 70's/80's book.

Harry: I'd get Robert a sticker book that is Star Wars, Despicable Me, Cut the Rope or similarly related.

What other stories about orphans have you read? Consider Anne of Green Gables, the Boxcar Children books, The Graveyard Book, the Harry Potter series, Oliver Twist, The Secret Garden , and A Series of Unfortunate Events. How are other orphan stories similar to and different from The Incorrigible Children of Ashton Place? Why do you think stories about orphans are appealing to young readers?

Cameron: I think that Peter Nimble is a good example. He was an orphan.

Eva: I think orphan books are popular because they have had tough lives. They're not like normal kids with regular house, friends, etc. They are usually living with other people, in an orphanage or foster home. They often develop powers.

Harry: Practically anything that I've ever read that is good has an orphan in it. Orphans are popular are kids who are raised by someone sometimes tough. They have to fight for themselves. They have learned to survive for themselves.

What is a mystery? What mysteries are introduced in the book? Which of these mysteries are solved during the course of the narrative and which remain unsolved? Do you have any suspicions about how some of the unresolved mysteries might play out in later books in the series?

Cameron: What makes Lady Constance such a strict, mean lady? I expect that she was a spoiled child. I suspect Timothy is a fraud. He might be the one who sent the letter to the theater group.

Eva: The mystery of who the childrens' parents are. Maybe it's someone from Lord Ashton's club. I think that Penelope might be related to the kids.

Harry: How did Penelope get where she is? What's her origin story? Why is Penelope's hair the same as the Incorrigibles? What's going on with Lord Ashton? Why does he keep disappearing? Who (and why) are the children getting wound up in order to fail?

Al: How did the kids get in the barn?

The Grades 5-6 Book Club selection for March is The Incorrigible Children of Ashton Place: The Hidden Gallery by Maryrose Wood. This sequel to this month's book is described as such: "Fifteen-year-old Miss Penelope Lumley, a governess trained at the Swanburne Academy for Poor Bright Females, takes the three Incorrigible Children of Ashton Place to London, England, and learns they are under a curse."--summary. Copies of the book will be available behind the Circulation Desk within the next week. Please remember to register for Book Club so that we know how many people will be attending.

Grades 5-6 Book Club Recommendations for March

Fever 1793 by Laurie Halse Anderson

In 1793 Philadelphia, sixteen-year-old Matilda Cook, separated from her sick mother, learns about perseverance and self-reliance when she is forced to cope with the horrors of a yellow fever epidemic.- summary Book Trailer

The Green Glass Sea by Ellen Klages
It is 1943, and 11-year-old Dewey Kerrigan is traveling west on a train to live with her scientist father--but no one will tell her exactly where he is. When she reaches Los Alamos, New Mexico, she learns why: he's working on a top secret government program.- summary Book Trailer

The Incorrigible Children of Ashton Place: The Hidden Gallery by Maryrose Wood
Fifteen-year-old Miss Penelope Lumley, a governess trained at the Swanburne Academy for Poor Bright Females, takes the three Incorrigible Children of Ashton Place to London, England, and learns they are under a curse.- summary 

January Grades 5-6 Book Club: Escape from Mr. Lemoncello's Library

We had a very interesting discussion in January about Escape from Mr. Lemoncello's Library by Chris Grabenstein. Abigail, Cameron C., Ella, Erin, Eva and Harry were present. Cameron T. submitted his comments via email. Please find some of the comments about the book below. 

1. In the beginning of the story, Kyle's teacher and his mother compare him to his brothers. Have you ever been compared to your siblings or other students? How did it make you feel?

Abigail: Nope.

Harry: I have not.

Cam: As far as I remember, no.

Erin: Yes, because it's us comparing ourselves to each other. I really don't care about our comparisons. With other students, our comparisons are about art.

Eva: I'm pretty sure no.

Ella: I would say the total opposite. We have been compared to our dogs. ("You need to be good like our dog, "so-and-so".)

Erin: Our older cat has more attitude so it's compared to my older sister.


2. On the statue of Mr. Lemoncello, there is the following quote: "Knowledge not shared remains unknown." What do you think that quote means?


Abigail: Like the government.

Cam: I was thinking that if the world doesn't know knowledge that is kept, then the world does not gain.

Erin: What is too much for one, perfect for two and is not possible to be kept at three? A secret. Knowledge is like a shared secret.

Eva: It means that if you don't share what you know, no one else will know it.


3. Charles says, "You should never help your competition." Do you agree or disagree? Explain.

Abigail: Disagree. Because if everyone joins together, everyone wins.

Ella: I disagree because it's not about winning or losing. You could have gained a friend or someone who supports you. In the book, Charles was the only one who didn't team up and he didn't win. He was so mean to everyone.

Cam: Treat people how you want to be treated.

Eva: I think that it matters with the prizes and the rules of the competition. If only one person can win, it's hard to choose a single winner if you group up. If multiple people can win, then grouping up is good because everyone can win and learn.

Erin: I would say that I disagree but if everyone teams up in one big team, it's not much of a competition. 

Ella: They still all could have lost.

Harry: It depends on what people you are competing with. If you are competing with a jerk, you wouldn't want to team up.

Cam: It's also dependent on people's personalities. You should always help others because they'll be thankful to you and give you something in return.


4. At one point, the Lemoncello dummy says, "It's not whether you win or lose, it's how you play the game." Do you agree or disagree? Explain.

Erin: I agree because it goes to show how you are being a good sport or not. If you're helping people out, etc.

Abigail: I agree. It should be about how you play the game.

Cam: I agree because you can get a lot of knowledge from how you play the game.

Eva: I agree. Charles was playing the game opposite from this quote. He was playing the game all about winning. The other team was playing more by the quote and they were playing it better.

Cam: Maybe Charles learned his lesson. Maybe he didn't learn his lesson.

Harry: I think that it's true. You don't have fun in the game if you only care about winning. How you play the game is the important thing. It's boring to only focus on winning.

Ella: First, I thought it funny that Mr. Lemoncello says that, you need to listen to him. I agree because when you compete in anything, it's how you act that gets you to winning or losing. If you're a poor sport, you're not being the best you can be. 


5. Miguel says "A library should be a know-place for know-bodies." What does that mean?

Ella: People should learn things at the library. Bad joke.

Erin: People go to the library to learn and read. You know things when you go to the library.

Cam: People add more knowledge when they go to the library.


6. Who was your favorite character and why?

Erin: Mr. Lemoncello because he's full of questions, riddles and is funny.

Abigail: Sierra Russell because she just kept reading and she ended up having a lot of energy and helping them out.

Ella: Two characters. I liked Miguel because he had the smarts to make funny-dumb jokes. I liked Charles because he's so rude to everybody. It's so unreal that it's funny. He's so full of himself. Haley as well.

Eva: I liked Sierra Russell because of how much she read. I didn't like her as much when she wasn't very active when they were exploring the library. She missed a lot of what other people saw.

Harry: I liked Kyle. I always like the main character. I also liked Sierra.

Cam: Mr. Lemoncello because he's really funny and he reminds me of Willy Wonnka.



7. Please rank the book from 1-5.

Cam: 5 3/4

Harry: 4 1/2

Eva: 5

Ella:4 7/10

Abigail: 4- it needs more riddles

Erin: 4 9/10- it needs more juice

Here are some thoughts I had about the book. My favorite character in the book is Sierra Russell. She is my favorite because at the beginning of the escape game, everybody thinks that she is not going to participate in the challenge because she was constantly reading her book(s), but instead potentially wins the game for team Kyle with her literature knowledge. Hooray for underdogs! My favorite part of the book is when Kyle and his teammates decide to play the game Mr. Lemoncello's Bewilderingly Baffling Bibliomania to find the clues. I thought it was very clever thinking that the library version was just a bigger version of the real game. I also liked it when Kyle broke the window in his basement to best his two older brothers in the game at the beginning. I thought is was funny when Sir Charles went home for breaking that one simple rule. I thought Chiltingtons never lost! Too bad Charles, better luck next time. Oh yeah, there is no next time! Haha. If I were to change one scene in the book it would be...(drumroll) no scene. I thought that the book sailed simply smoothly and that the clues and puzzles were all perfect. I liked how in the middle to end, the author had one or two chapters about Kyle and his team, then a chapter about Charles and his team. I swear, I could not figure out one puzzle until it was solved, except the word one at the very end that was on the glowing tile. I solved that one within 60 seconds. Overall, I would give this book a 4 4/5 stars because it was funny and I guess you could say interactive. I loved it! - Cameron


The Grades 5-6 Book Club selection for February is The Incorrigible Children of Ashton Place by Maryrose Wood. "Fifteen-year-old Miss Penelope Lumley, a recent graduate of the Swanburne Academy for Poor Bright Females, is hired as governess to three young children who have been raised by wolves and must teach them to behave in a civilized manner quickly, in preparation for a Christmas ball."--summary. Copies of the book will be available behind the Circulation Desk within the next week. Please remember to register for Book Club so that we know how many people will be attending.

Grades 5-6 Book Club Recommendations for February 2014

Liesl & Po by Lauren Oliver

A mix-up involving the greatest magic in the world has tremendous consequences for Liesl, an orphan who has been locked in an attic, Will, an alchemist's runaway apprentice, and Po, a ghost, as they are pursued by friend and foe while making an important journey.- summary Book Trailer

The Girl Who Circumnavigated Fairyland in a Ship of Her Own Making by Catherynne M. Valente

Twelve-year-old September's ordinary life in Omaha turns to adventure when a Green Wind takes her to Fairyland to retrieve a talisman the new and fickle Marquess wants from the enchanted woods.- summary Book Trailer

The Incorrigible Children of Ashton Place: The Mysterious Howling by Maryrose Wood

Fifteen-year-old Miss Penelope Lumley, a recent graduate of the Swanburne Academy for Poor Bright Females, is hired as governess to three young children who have been raised by wolves and must teach them to behave in a civilized manner quickly, in preparation for a Christmas ball.- summary Book Trailer

December Grades 5-6 Book Club: Peter Nimble and His Fantastic Eyes

For December's Book Club, we read Peter Nimble and His Fantastic Eyes by Peter Auxier. Those attending were Eva, Erin, Cam, Cameron and Harry were present.  Here are our thoughts...

(For more Peter Nimble fun, check out: Peter Auxier's Peter Nimble website: http://www.peternimble.com/mischief/)

If I could be a character from this book it would be:

Erin: Sir Tode. I think he's kind of funny. And I love mustaches.

Harry: I'd want to be Peter. Or a rebel ape who fought against the other apes.

Eva: I'm still thinking because most of the people in the kingdom were being tortured. And the people back in the real world were mean. No one was really nice.

Cam: I'd love to be Good Old Frederick. Because he's giant and able to kill a sea-serpent. 

Cameron: I'd like to be one of the apes. Longclaw.

Would you trade one of your senses to have a really interesting skill?

Erin: I would give up my sight for really good hearing.

Eva: I would give up my smell for something like really good eyesight. To see super far (hundreds of miles). Or I would get really good touch for weaving and knitting.

Harry: I would give up my eyes because my other senses would be amplified. Or my nose because my sense of smell already isn't great. I might be willing to give up my taste because then I could eat things that I think taste bad.

Cam: I'd give up my ears to have the Force. I'd give up my sense of smell to control weather.

Cameron: I would give up taste to be able to jump high like a kangaroo.

Talk a little bit about friendship and loyalty in this story.

Cameron: At the end of the book, when Sir Tode found the Fantastic Eyes for Peter. That about sums it up.


What do you think about the ending of the book? Was it a good conclusion to all of the adventures?

Erin: It was really good. They should make more adventures. In books, sometimes people die. This happens in books. (this led to a long Harry Potter Part 7 discussion)

Eva: Parts of the book were really predictable. It was obvious that Peter was Prince NoName. The green eyes were the last piece of the puzzle.

Harry: It was really good. None of the really important characters got killed, which was good.


Did you think that Peter should have stayed blind? And Sir Tode stayed a cat/human/horse?

Erin: Sir Tode should stay like that. Peter should definitely have his eyes back.

Cam: The eyes were a cool trick.

Eva: There should be another book because you're not sure if Sir Tode changed or not. I kind of like where the story went because you didn't fully know what happened with all of the characters.

Harry: I think Peter should have gotten his eyes back and Sir Tode should have become a human as well.

Cameron: Peter should not have stayed blind. Having his eyes back makes him the true king. 


Erin: What are the eyes made out of? Are they gold, emerald and onyx eyes or the irises?
 

Did you like the author's style? With the wry humor? And the violence? Did you expect so many characters to die?

Cameron: I liked the author's style. There was wry humor. The author would sometimes address the reader. And the dying people was silly and funny.

Cam: I want to talk about the eyes again. A cross between treasure and eyes. A little bit soft like regular eyes with some treasure that was put into them by magic.

Erin: I think maybe the eyes were flipped.

Cameron: How would Peter Nimble take his eyes out?

(humorous discussion of him taking his eyes out with the hook)

Eva: What if he stabbed someone by accident?

Harry: I think that they can take out the fishhook and put in a magical hand.

 
What's Peter Nimble's next adventure going to be?

Cameron: He's going to try to find the old hag but it could lead to Peter Nimble and Sir Toad's demise.

Erin: The rats go into battle with the hag against Peter and Sir Toad. The dragon eats Sir Toad. And the hag turns Peter into a rat. And the dragon eats the rat. The end.

Cam: I think that the hag leads them into a trap. The rats lead them into a trap. Then the hag gets rid of the curse. Sir Toad starts stumbling around because he forgets how to walk on two legs.

Eva: I thought that the first half was finding the island and they had to go through a bunch of obstacles. And then the second half is the witch needing saving. The apes are 100 times the size of a normal rat. I'm not 100% sure what is going to happen. They don't necessarily die.

Please rate this book from 1-5, with 5 being the best:

Cameron: 4.752

Eva: 4.5

Erin: 3.5 (because not as many people died)

Cam: 5 (one of the best books I've ever read)

Harry: 4.9 (it was very good but there are tiny bits that take away from it)

Cameron: I read about 100 pages while watching football. That means I really liked it.

The book for the next Book Club meeting is Escape from Mr. Lemoncello's Library by Chris Grabenstein. We will be meeting on Wednesday, January 8th at 4:00 p.m. (PLEASE NOTE THE TIME. IT WILL ONLY CHANGE FOR JANUARY) Copies of this book will be available behind the Circulation Desk within the next few days. Please come with recommendations for January's Book Club selection. Thanks!

Grade 5-6 Book Club Recommendations for January

The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman

It takes a graveyard to raise a child.

Nobody Owens, known as Bod, is a normal boy. He would be completely normal if he didn't live in a graveyard, being raised by ghosts, with a guardian who belongs to neither the world of the living nor the dead. There are adventures in the graveyard for a boy—an ancient Indigo Man, a gateway to the abandoned city of ghouls, the strange and terrible Sleer. But if Bod leaves the graveyard, he will be in danger from the man Jack—who has already killed Bod's family.- amazon.com Book Trailer

Escape from Mr. Lemoncello's Library by Chris Grabenstein

Twelve-year-old Kyle gets to stay overnight in the new town library, designed by his hero (the famous gamemaker Luigi Lemoncello), with other students but finds that come morning he must work with friends to solve puzzles in order to escape.- summary Book Trailer


Bomb by Steven Sheinkin

In December of 1938, a chemist in a German laboratory made a shocking discovery: When placed next to radioactive material, a Uranium atom split in two. That simple discovery launched a scientific race that spanned 3 continents. In Great Britain and the United States, Soviet spies worked their way into the scientific community; in Norway, a commando force slipped behind enemy lines to attack German heavy-water manufacturing; and deep in the desert, one brilliant group of scientists was hidden away at a remote site at Los Alamos. This is the story of the plotting, the risk-taking, the deceit, and genius that created the world's most formidable weapon. This is the story of the atomic bomb.

Bomb is a 2012 National Book Awards finalist for Young People’s Literature. amazon.com Book Trailer

Three Times Lucky by Sheila Turnage

A hilarious Southern debut with the kind of characters you meet once in a lifetime

Rising sixth grader Miss Moses LoBeau lives in the small town of Tupelo Landing, NC, where everyone's business is fair game and no secret is sacred. She washed ashore in a hurricane eleven years ago, and she's been making waves ever since. Although Mo hopes someday to find her "upstream mother," she's found a home with the Colonel--a café owner with a forgotten past of his own--and Miss Lana, the fabulous café hostess. She will protect those she loves with every bit of her strong will and tough attitude. So when a lawman comes to town asking about a murder, Mo and her best friend, Dale Earnhardt Johnson III, set out to uncover the truth in hopes of saving the only family Mo has ever known.

Full of wisdom, humor, and grit, this timeless yarn will melt the heart of even the sternest Yankee.- amazon.com Book Trailer

November Grades 5-6 Book Club: Chomp by Carl Hiaasen

For November's Book Club, we read Chomp by Carl Hiaasen. Those attending were Cam, Eva and Harry. Andreas and Harry chimed in via email. Here are our thoughts...

If I could be a character from this book it would be:

Harry: I wouldn't want to be any of the characters. They don't have anything that I like. Almost everybody in the book got bitten.

Eva: I wouldn't want to be any of the characters. I wouldn't want to be Tuna because she went from being abused by her father to being on a TV set where everyone was getting wounded.

Cam: I could dress up as a zombie if I was Wahoo because his missing thumb would be cool and creepy.

Would you watch Derek Badger's show?


Eva: It would depend on how much I knew was being faked and how much was real.

Cam: Most survival shows seem more realistic than this one.

Harry: I wouldn't watch the animal eating scenes.


Do you like Mickey?

Eva: He was kind of crazy in that he antagonized Tuna's father when he had a gun.

Harry: He didn't like animals to be picked on.

Cam: Or kids. 


Would you want to have Wahoo's job?

Eva: No. Because it's really dangerous and I can see that Derek Badger is the kind of person who wanted all of the wildlife scenes to be real and that's just dangerous.

Harry: I wouldn't want the job. Eva's reasons and the biting reason.

Cam: I would want to have Wahoo's job because it's interesting and I've always wanted to work with really strong animals. I love snakes. When I held reptiles during the Summer Reading Program, I realized that I really like reptiles.

Eva: I thought of another reason. I really don't like snakes.


Did you think that Tuna should have run away from her father?

Eva: I think that she should have because her father had a gun so she really couldn't fight back when he was abusing her.

Harry: I think she should have run away. Her dad was horrible. In the end, she got away from her dad and he was arrested.

Cam: And no one got killed. Except for Mickey's toe.




Did you like the author's style? With the humor? And also the cliffhangers at the end of the chapters?

Harry: The writing style gets you hooked in and makes you keep reading.

Eva: I thought that since Mickey was one of the main characters, he wouldn't die.

They got into a discussion about Lemony Snicket and the "deaths" in that series.

Would you be able to do Raven Stark's job?

Eva: No. Because she has to handle Derek Badger's craziness.

Harry: She got to see all of the blunders on the reel at the year-end party though.

Cam: And tantrums.

Eva: Derek Badger is definitely a handful.

 
Do you think that Derek is a bad person or he's just clueless? Did he learn from his mistakes?

Cam: He's clueless and spoiled.


Harry: He's an idiot and spoiled.

Harry: He got fired because he wanted a higher salary. I think that after saving everyone's lives, he deserved more that getting fired. 

Eva: Even though he thought he was a vampire, he's still pretty nice. I thought that when he was trying to save the others, he was a different person. But then when he realized he wasn't on camera, he showed that he was back to his old self.

Harry: Everyone has a moment of goodness. And they deserve recognition if they become a better person, even if for only just a moment.

 
Do you think that Mickey should have taken the job at the end of the book?

Harry: The show would always involve animals getting hurt and Mickey can't stand that. I'm the same as Mickey that way.

Cam: If Derek were still on the show, Mickey could get back at him in a funny way.

Harry: By doing that, he'd only give him more to get back at.

Eva: I would think that he should take the job. He still needs money.

 
Funny moments:

Cam: Quote: "Don't worry; I'll treat them like they're my own." Response: "That's what I'm afraid of." When he gets chomped by the bat. When the salamander goes up his shorts. The part where he climbs up a tree and tries to secure his position with a cheap copy of a Swiss Army knife.


Eva: I thought that the funniest part was when the bat chomped on his tongue. It stayed on his tongue. Mickey knew to tickle the bat to get the bat off Derek's face.

Harry: Still thinking...one of them was when he tried to get an eagle egg. When he got to the bottom of the tree, park rangers were there who banned him from National Parks for the rest of his life. One of the funniest parts was Derek Badger's funniest moments. This would make a great movie.

Eva: Another funny part was when he was on a tree branch upside down and he thought he might grow wings and become a vampire. 

Harry: Once he was fired, I bet they posted all of Derek's blunders on YouTube. 

Eva: I think that they should have made a TV show called "Derek Badger's Funniest Moments".

Cam: All of the clips put together could be called "Expedition Survive-Fail".

Eva: "This is the real in reality TV."


If you could have a reality show, what would it be about and what it be called?

Harry: I would make something like Mythbusters or Cryptids. I might make something like that. Like Finding Bigfoot.

Eva: I have 2 ideas. The first would be to go to many different places and see the owls there. The second would be to go to places that had temples and ruins from when people believed in gods and goddesses.

Harry: I would name mine Urban Legends Revealed and the other Hunters of the Cryptids. They would both talk about different things.

Cam: I have to think about it. Maybe Hunting Down Sasquatch.



Comments from Andreas and Cameron:

Chomp was a great book! There were some really big cliff hangers and scary details like the shootings and the bitings. I also read the other books in the series as well. Hoot and Flush were the best because it had the most suspense.- Andreas

AND

I read Chomp, and I realllllly enjoyed it.  The beginning was a little slow, but when Derek Badger came, the book really picked up.  My favorite character was Mickey Cray, because not only was he an all around cool dude, but he was funny when he talked with Derek and made fun of him.  A lot of the things Mickey said put a grin on my face.  Also, Mickey was risk-taking when he put himself in harm's way to give Wahoo and Tuna and Link a chance to go to Sickler's dock and get away from Tuna's father.  I really liked the book. -Cam

 

Please rate this book from 1-5, with 5 being the best:

Harry: 4.5 It was missing action in the beginning but was pretty much awesome.

Eva: 2-2.75 It was hard to get into in the beginning. It went from interesting to not interesting to interesting and on and on.

Cam: 5.5 It was the best one I've read. It was extra good.

The book for the next Book Club meeting is Peter Nimble and His Fantastic Eyes by Jonathan Auxier. We will be meeting on Wednesday, December 11th at 3:00 p.m. Copies of this book will be available behind the Circulation Desk within the next few days. Please come with recommendations for December's Book Club selection. Thanks!