Friday, January 30, 2015

Reading - Big Nate and Friends

Big Nate and Friends by Lincoln Peirce

 
Sixth-grader Nate Wright is on top of the world . . . with a little help from his friends! His best buddies, Francis and Teddy, stick with Nate through thick and thin—usually thin. They've seen it all. Nate's disastrous love life, his chess tournament trash talking, even his misguided attempt to be a "bad boy." Along the way, Nate and his pals are joined by Artur, the gentle exchange student who's popular with almost everyone. And don't forget Gina, the teacher's pet who gets an "A" for annoying. They're all here in this collection of cartoons, featuring highlights from Nate's most hilarious adventures.

Monday, January 26, 2015

Reading - Big Nate on a Roll

Big Nate on a Roll by Lincoln Peirce

A Junior Fiction



Nate's a big deal in his scout troop . . . until Artur—aka Mr. Perfect—joins. Now Nate's stuck in second place. And Artur means business. Will Nate take the grand prize? Or wipe out, big time?

Saturday, January 24, 2015

Reading - Big Nate Goes for Broke

Big Nate Goes for Broke by Lincoln Peirce

A Junior Fiction


Mighty Jefferson Middle School always wins. Then Nate decides it's time to go from zeroes to heroes! Will Nate crack under the pressure of the "Ultimate Snowdown"? Or lead P.S. 38 to its biggest victory ever?

Tuesday, January 20, 2015

Reading - Big Nate Flips Out

Big Nate Flips Out by Lincoln Peirce

A Junior Function


Everyone knows N-A-T-E does not equal N-E-A-T!

And when Nate's sloppiness gets out of hand, his best friend, Francis, is in serious trouble. Can Nate clean up his act, or will he flip out first?

Saturday, January 17, 2015

Reading - Clarice Bean, Don't Look Now

Clarice Bean, Don't Look Now by Lauren Child

A Junior Fiction



 
It’s the worry you hadn’t even thought to worry about that should worry you the most. At least that’s how it looks to Clarice Bean, who has been writing her worries in a notebook — things like Worry no. 1: infinity, or Worry no. 3: change. And now that her worst never-imagined worry has happened — her utterly best friend is moving away forever — Clarice doesn’t even care about her tickets to the Ruby Redfort, girl detective, movie premiere. That is, unless something happens to change things again. . . .

Thursday, January 15, 2015

Reading - Genius Ideas (Mostly) (Tom Gates)

Genius Ideas (Mostly) (Tom Gates) by L. Pichon

A Junior Fiction


Seeing Delia without her sunglasses on is a BIG shock, but that`s nothing compared with the surprise Dad has in store for me with his new found fitness regime. He says he`s going to compete at my Sport`s Day. Shame! Meanwhile Derek, Norman and I keep practicing in DOGZOMBIES so we`re really ready for the school Talent Show.

Reading - Mrs Pepperpot in the Magic Wood and Other Stories

Mrs Pepperpot in the Magic Wood and Other Stories by Alf Proysen

A Junior Fiction


Mrs Pepperpot never knows when she's going to shrink to the size of a kitchen pepperpot, and it's usually at the most inconvenient moments! But being small can be a lot of fun too -- Mrs Pepperpot will meet the little people in the Magic Wood, be taught to swim by a frog, and even sit on a mouse's back!

A compilation of nine short stories including: Mrs Pepperpot in the Magic Wood; Mrs Pepperpot and the Puppet Show; Midsummer Eve with the Ogres; Mrs Pepperpot and the Baby Crow; Mrs Pepperpot Learns to Swim; Mrs Pepperpot Gives a Party; Sir Mark the Valiant; Mrs Pepperpot turns Detective; Mrs Pepperpot and the Brooch Hunt.

Tuesday, January 13, 2015

Reading - Utterly Me, Clarice Bean

Utterly Me, Clarice Bean by Lauren Child

A Junior Fiction



It's not easy to concentrate at school when mysterious things are happening all around you. In fact, Clarice Bean is starting to feel just like her favorite heroine: Ruby Redfort, schoolgirl detective. Clarice and her utterly best friend, Betty Moody, are planning to ace their book project about Ruby and win the class prize, until Betty disappears into thin air, and horrible teacher Mrs. Wilberton teams Clarice up with the naughtiest boy in school. Will her new partner ruin everything? Will Betty ever come back? And what on earth happened to the silver trophy everyone's hoping to win?

Sunday, January 11, 2015

Reading - The Boy in the Dress

The Boy in the Dress by David Williams

A Junior Fiction


 
Everybody needs friends? especially a boy in a dress! Dennis' life is boring and lonely.

His mother left two years ago, his truck driver father is depressed, his brother is a bully and, worst of all, "no hugging" is one of their household rules. But one thing Dennis does have is soccer - he's the leading scorer on his team. Oh, and did we mention his secret passion for fashion?

When Dennis' friend Lisa discovers his stash of Vogue magazines, she convinces him to vamp it up and wear a dress to school. But in class, his hilarious hijinks as "Denise" are brought to a screeching halt when the headmaster discovers his secret and delivers the worst punishment of all - Dennis is expelled from school and therefore forbidden to play in the soccer Final Cup!

Can the team win the most important game of the year without their star player? And, more importantly, will Dennis gain the love and respect of his friends and family, even in a dress?

Friday, January 09, 2015

Reading - Mrs. Pepperpot to the Rescue and Other Stories

Mrs. Pepperpot to the Rescue and Other Stories by Alf Proysen


 

Mrs Pepperpot is as busy as always, and mindful that she is likely to shrink to the size of a Pepperpot at any time. She doesn't know when or where it might happen but she can be sure she'll have an incredible adventure.

A compilation of twelve stories including: Mrs Pepperport to the Rescue; Mrs Pepperpot on the Warpath; The Nature Lesson; The Shoemaker's Doll; Mrs Pepperpot is Taken for a Witch; The Little Mouse Who Was Very Clever; Mrs Pepperpot's Birthday; The Dancing Bees; How the King Learned to Eat Porridge; Mrs Pepperpot Turns Fortune Teller; The Fairy-Tale Boy; The Ski-Race.

Reading - No Way to Kill a Lady

No Way to Kill a Lady by Nancy Martin


 
Not much is going right these days for once rich, now impoverished Nora Blackbird—what with her lover under house arrest and her best friend in the slammer. Then Nora and her sisters receive word of a million-dollar inheritance....

Great-aunt Madeleine Blackbird has died in a volcanic eruption on an Indonesian island and left her fabulous Bucks County estate to the three Blackbird sisters. But when Nora and her scandal-ridden sisters, Libby and Emma, go to claim their windfall, they find the house in decay and all of their aunt’s to-die-for treasures gone. They also find a woman’s body....

Nora feels compelled to seek out the truth, but even with help from her mobster boyfriend, Mick Abruzzo, who provides distractions both dark and delightful, solving this case proves challenging. Relatives are circling to claim a share of Madeleine’s property, the suspect list is growing, and Nora’s wild and wacky sisters are adding one surprise after another. It’s enough to put Nora’s couture undies in a serious twist!

Saturday, January 03, 2015

Reading Thora

Thora by Gillian Johnson

A Junior Fiction

 
 
'Ten years at sea, ten years on land ...' It's time for Thora - half-mermaid, half-human - to leave the sea and join the rest of us on dry land. She's ten now, and the Sea Shrew's prophecy says that her days on the deep are done. Leaving her mermaid mother and taking her pet peacock, Cosmo, Thora does her best to settle down in the seaside town of Grimli. But trouble is brewing - as it so often is, when Thora's around - and she comes face to face with Frooty de Mare, a fat-cat businessman who hates mermaids ...Thora's nothing if not determined, though. She'll stop Frooty's sinister plans, whether he likes it or not ...