Schooled by Gordon Korman

13-year old Capricorn Anderson (or Cap) is different from other kids. He has never watched television, tasted pizza, held money or attended a public school. He has spent his whole life living on a commune with his hippie grandmother, Rain. Rain is Cap’s only relative and has been his teacher and only friend. When Rain falls out of a tree and has to spend two months in a hospital recovering from a broken hip, Cap has to move into a foster home. He ends up staying with his social worker, a former commune member, and her sarcastic teenage daughter. Cap also has to attend a public middle school for the first time. From the moment Cap enters the school, (Claverage Middle or C-Average) his strangeness make him a target for bullying. He has long, uncut hair; wears hemp tie-dyed clothes and sandals made from corn husks. He practices Tai-Chi on the lawn and plays 60’s music on a guitar. The tradition at C-Average is to elect the strangest kid and biggest nerd to be the 8th Grade Class President (as a joke) so the in crowd can make fun of him all year and there is no one any stranger than Cap, The clique does their best to make sure Cap fails at every endeavor (especially planning the annual Halloween Dance) but their plan backfires when other students stop laughing and begin to revere Cap and his pure heart, peaceful ways and unending patience. Before long, the roles have been reversed and characters who were popular are outcasts and the biggest nerd becomes the most popular student. Each chapter is written by a different character so we see events from their point-of-view and to see how they each change as the story progresses. The book is funny and enjoyable and one many students will enjoy reading.
Recommended grade levels: 6-8

Character Education Topics: bullying, new kid fitting into a new school, pressure to conform, cliques, learning self expression, strength of character, accepting different generations and ideas.

The Plain Janes by Cecil Castellucci and Jim Rugg

This is the debut graphic novel in the Minx line for girls by publisher DC Comics. The main character is a girl named Jane. As she walks past a sidewalk café in Metro City, a terrorist's bomb goes off. Taking this as a life-altering event, the once long-haired blonde Jane cuts off all her locks and dyes them black.. Her parents, overtaken by fear, move the family to the small town in the country. Wanting to find a more substantial group of friends, she forgoes the popular airheads at her new school—reminiscent of her Metro City friends—and attempts to befriend a group of unpopular girls who are, coincidentally, all named Jane. Each Jane is unpopular in different ways—one is "Brain Jane," one an aspiring actress and one an athlete. With Jane's love of art, the girls form a secret girl gang called PLAIN—People Loving Art in Neighborhoods—and set out to make their world a better place. They build pyramids on the site of a planned strip mall ("The pyramids lasted for thousands of years. Do you think this strip mall will?") and populate the police department's lawn with gnomes. But to a community consumed with elevated threat levels, the attacks seem more ominous than generous, and P.L.A.I.N. becomes an outlaw group. All the while, Jane continues to write letters to John Doe, the unidentified man whose life she saved during the bombing—and who sits in a hospital, comatose, his sketchbook serving as her muse.
The book is a quick read and interesting. The plot deals with current issues in a new and different way. The writing seemed a little choppy and the plot was disjointed at times, but this book will probably appeal to middle school students.
Recommended grade levels: 6-8

Belle by Cameron Dokey

Publisher: Simon Pulse ISBN (library bind): 9781416961314

Price: $6.99 #pages: 204 Call number: Fic Dok

Annotation: Cameron Dokey recreates the story of “Beauty and the Beast” in Belle, the story of Annabelle and her family, who happen upon a magical wood and encounter a beast there. Annabelle’s love of wood-carving draws her into the mystery of the beast when she is asked to carve a branch of the Heartwood Tree, which will reveal true love. Dokey transforms a familiar story into an enjoyable tale that is surprising in its complexity and ability to depict true love.


Recommended grade levels: 7-11

The Good Neighbors; Book One: Kin by Holly Black

Illustrator: Ted Naifeh

Publisher: Scholastic, Inc. ISBN (library bind): 9780439855624

Price: 16.99 #pages: 117 Call number: 741.5 BLA FICTION

16 year old Rue’s mother has disappeared and her father has stopped going to work. Since her mother’s disappearance, things in Rue’s town have started changing and she has started to see strange things that make her think she’s crazy. In The Good Neighbors, Holly Black and Ted Naifeh introduce a world of magic parallel to our own. In Book One of their new series, Rue discovers that she actually belongs to the immortal world and not to the mortal one in which she has grown up. We are left wondering how Rue will adjust to her new life while solving the mystery of her purpose between the mortal and immortal worlds.



Recommended grade levels: 9-12

Airhead by Meg Cabot

Publisher: Scholastic, Point ISBN (library bind): 9780545040525

Price: $16.99 #pages: 337 Call number: Fic Cab

Em Watts is an average, somewhat frumpy, high school junior with a love for gaming and very little else. Her little sister, Frida, is a typical high school freshman who dreams of popularity and researches in CosmoGirl for the latest trends in order to become that way. Everything changes for Em when she is forced to accompany Frida to watch the latest music sensation perform at the opening of a Stark Megastore. Somehow, she ends up in the body of a super-model. Meg Cabot has begun a new series, which, reminiscent of the Princess Diaries series, takes an average character and launches her into a New York upper class lifestyle. Em must learn to let go of her old life and accept that she is now a 17 year old supermodel. Cabot has created an engaging and interesting character and plotline that will keep readers intrigued for many books to come.

Recommended grade levels: 8-11

The Knife of Never Letting Go by Patrick Ness

In a town inhabited solely by men, Todd Hewitt is the last boy, and the last innocent. That will change in one month when he turns thirteen and becomes a man. The secrets of Prentisstown are many and dark, although it should be difficult to keep secrets in a place where everyone can hear the "noise" or thoughts of everyone else, including animals. When Todd stumbles upon absolute silence for the first time in his life, he encounters something he never thought he would see...a girl. Todd had been told that all women and girls died years ago when the noise germ was released. Todd soon learns that almost everything he has been told is a lie. As Todd begins to learn the truth about his town and its history, he and the girl must run for their lives. The secrets of the past begin to unfold as Todd learns what it truly means to be a man.

*Slight spoiler alert*
This book started slowly, but I was soon completely engrossed. Todd is a compelling character and the action keeps the story moving quickly towards the conclusion. Unfortunately, the conclusion never comes. Granted, this is the first book in a series, Chaos Walking, but I expected at least some satisfaction. No. This book cannot stand alone. It ends in a cliffhanger that leaves you desperate for the second book, which is obviously the point. My advice, wait for the entire series before you begin or be prepared for disappointment.

The Attack on Pearl Harbor an Interactive History

The reader can choose their own adventure as they learn about the attack on Pearl Harbor. Students can take on the role of a Japanese pilot, an American navy sailor stationed at Pearl Harbor, or an American nurse. This book contains a few black and white photographs that help to add a realistic feel as you picture yourself in the attack.
As the reader makes decisions, they will gain a sense of what the attack was really like on a personal level. The last several pages contain a time line, other perspectives, Internet sites, and a glossary. This book could be a good pick to read aloud in the classroom, or a good title to suggest to history buffs or reluctant readers.