Books | Page 56 of 82

The Mutant Mushroom Takeover, realistic scary fiction for middle grades

Our 11-year-old read came into the bedroom with The Mutant Mushroom Takeover under his arm. He tossed the book on the bed. “How was it?”, I asked. “It was too scary, so I couldn’t finish it”, he said as he got another book from our nightstand. If books were meat he’d be a Tyrannosaurus Rex, so I was curious about this one. About half of the way through the book I understood what he meant, but wanted to add a caveat. It’s not that scary. It’s more of a slow-building, realistic fiction book that’s perfect for middle school students.

The Mutant Mushroom Takeover is realistic fiction with just enough scares to pump up middle school readers.

Boo. A realistic fiction book with grounded dread and paranoia

My Pencil and Me, a gloriously odd letter of encouragement

My Pencil and Me by Sara Varon joins an elite club of books that is currently held by How This Book Was Made and Attack of the Stuff. All three of those releases are absurdly happy books that kids will enjoy, perhaps scratch their heads at, but certainly come back for more. Sara Varon’s My Pencil and Me is the softest and youngest skewing book on that list. If you have a child four-years-old and up who likes dogs, doodling, playful monsters, and having fun, then My Pencil and Me is one that you need to dig into ASAP.

Creative, odd, engaging and encouraging

Escape From A Video Game: The Secret of Phantom Island review

Our now 11-year-old son loved the Trapped in a Video Game book series by Dustin Brady. He read all of them and was quite bummed out when that series ended. Thus, when Escape from a Video Game: The Secret of Phantom Island arrived he was very excited. That excitement didn’t last long and I was curious as to why he gave up on the book less than 10 minutes after starting it. The answer will make some readers agree with him, might re-categorize the book for others, or have those puzzle kids jumping through book hoops to do the book.

Puzzle and choose-your-adventure peeps come hither

Backward Science bridges the past and present for ages 9 and up

Backward Science is reverse engineering’s brother, the two of them live at that house down the road with all of the car parts that are just outside of where you can see them. That way they can avoid the HOA penalties. That phrase also sound like something your parent might say after you create something. “That’s some backward science there”, dad would say as he’s trying to compliment you, but really wants the end product or creation thereof to be more polished. In this instance, Backward Science is the perfect name for a book that takes a look brief look back at how we lived, made stuff or got around before things were as modern as they are today.

Stealth learning and overt fun for upper elementary and up

Claris, The Chicest Mouse in Paris Holiday Heist is an acquired taste

When I was a kid the only comic book that one of my friends was allowed to read was Richie Rich. Whenever we’d go on trips I’d bring my Spider-Man comic books and he’d bring the ones that he was allowed to read. It’s not that I didn’t like Richie Rich, it’s just that there was very little relatable in that comic book. Cut somewhat from the same cloth is the children’s illustrated book series Claris. Claris, The Chicest Mouse in Paris Holiday Heist leaves me with a conflicted feeling. It’s obviously cute, has beautiful drawings and nice characters, but is annoying and pretentious at the same time.

Like Bonfire of the Vanities, but with a mouse

Steven Universe End of an Era, fun, loving and educational

From a story about gems to a fabled opus on friendship, growing up, to its being a beacon in the LGBTQ world, imagination, creativity and so much more. When I first started watching Steven Universe it was all about the gems, earnest characters, and, to an extent the songs. After reading Steven Universe: End of an Era, I now know that it had much more in common with How I Met Your Mother than I ever knew.

Steven Universe: End of an Era is an approachable love letter to the Cartoon Network show that doubles as a ‘making-of’ from its creator.

Great for fans of the show or animation fans who want to peek behind the curtain

Elvin Link is middle-grade comfort literary humor food

If the middle school mind could be accessed as easily as a filing cabinet then you’d see files on everything that’s represented in Elvin Link, Please Report to the Principal’s Office by Drew Dernavich in there. There’d be a file on doodling, hanging out with your best friend, a conspiracy theory file (that also includes parents), a large folder on school issues like acquaintances/bullies, and many other files that get changed or moved to the front as they get older. Elvin Link captures that middle-school essence in the best and sweetest of all possible ways.

Elvin Link is the hopeful first book in a series that hits middle-school readers on the funny bone in a slightly different way.

Middle School jokes and humor for ages 9 and up

I Love My Fangs, a toothy tale on change and monsters

Is losing one’s tooth a time to panic or a rite of passage? How someone answers that might depend on how old they are and whether or not they’re a vampire. I mean, what if the very definition of what embodies you (or at least, what you think embodies you) were to change? In I Love My Fangs! the specific change that’s being referenced is one that every adult experienced 20 times. The first couple of times might have been traumatic, but after that, it was all gravy and tooth fairy expectations.

I love my fangs!, tooth betold, ages 4-8 will also dig this book