A Net in Time

Curriculum and book reviews, faith, homeschooling and more!

Books for Middle School

The Invisible Boy

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Oh, what a difficult subject and how carefully Alyssa Hollingsworth approaches.  The Invisible Boy makes the topic of human trafficking accessible to middle schoolers.  Well written, once I picked it up I had to continue until I was done.  I needed to know that everything would turn out okay for Eli. 

The Invisible Boy - hollingsworth

What I am Reviewing

Roaring Brook Press has come out with a compelling read in The Invisible Boy by Alyssa Hollingsworth.  Deborah Lee illustrates in a comic book format.  320 pages.  My ARC copy was trade paperback, you will find it on amazon as a hardcover with fly.  (affiliate link)

A love of comic books brings ace girl reporter Nadia Quick into relationship with two very different individuals.  They each get their own superhero names.  As the book progresses we learn a hard truth about Eli and his life. Once this hard truth is realized events proceed very quickly. Human trafficking and child abuse are not easy topics to cover.  Hollingsworth pulls it off giving middle school students information that just might save a life. 

I am reviewing The Invisible Boy on behalf of Raincoast Books.  

The Details for The Invisible Boy

23 chapers, 320 pages, Epilogue and author’s note.   EVERY page is worth reading, every comic strip worth perusing.  Nadia has a case to pursue and through that a story to tell. Will it be the right one?

The Invisible Boy - hollingsworth

Each chapter opens with a one page comic, the story leading from one chapter to the next. Pay attention to them, they will either give clues for what is to come, or hint at what has passed.   I didn’t see fully developed comics for each chapter in this ARC copy, many were just mock-ups.  As such I can’t tell you if the comic strip is complete, but I was intrigued.

sample page from The Invisible Boy - hollingsworth

Easy to read text, with clear sensitivity to the subject at hand.  The characters are very real.  I could clearly see Nadia with her quirkiness would result in few friendships, that Paddle Boy would be a bit taken aback by his quirky neighbour, and the fear in Invisible Boy.  The parents made mistakes and owned up to them. 

Make sure you read the epilogue and author’s note.  They give important information that rounds out the story. 

The Invisible Boy - hollingsworth

Recommendation

The Invisible Boy is a great book. I enjoyed reading it and felt a strong desire to finish it once I started it.  It teaches about a difficult subject and what middle schoolers can do to help break the cycle. 

For sensitive readers, you might want to read the book with them.  The close of the book has some intense sections that could bother some readers. 

It’s worth reading just for the story. It is good enough to be a useful addition to a study on 

A Game of Fox & Squirrels

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Abuse is a hard topic to deal with, but in A Game of Fox & Squirrels, Jenn Reese does an excellent job of conveying the thoughts and emotions of one young girl.  11 year old Samatha is the protagonist of this story, and through her eyes, we are introduced to a child’s confusion, and a journey to healing. 

a game of fox & squirrels

What I am Reviewing

A Game of Fox & Squirrels is written by Jenn Reese and published by Henry Holt & Company.  Geared for middle school readers it runs at 228 pages.  I received an ARC version, it sells as a hardcover.   This book is being reviewed on behalf of Raincoast Books.   Family Abuse and dealing with dysfunctional relationships are the themes of this compelling chapter book for middle school.  21 chapters round out the pages.

A short synopsis: After an incident shatters their family, eleven-year old Samantha and her older sister Caitlin are sent to live in rural Oregon with an aunt they’ve never met. Sam wants nothing more than to go back to the way things were. . . before she spoke up about their father’s anger.
When Aunt Vicky gives Sam a mysterious card game called “A Game of Fox & Squirrels,” Sam falls in love with the animal characters, especially the charming trickster fox, Ashander. Then one day Ashander shows up in Sam’s room and offers her an adventure and a promise: find the Golden Acorn, and Sam can have anything she desires.

The Details on A Game of Fox & Squirrel

The author’s sensitivity to this topic is found from the get-go.  Her dedication reads: “For everyone  lost in the woods: I promise you, there is a way out.” 

a game of fox & squirrels

Samantha, 11 years old, in such a hard position.  Having to tell secrets she’d learned to keep quiet about.  Feeling trapped and in a new place.  Her pain and confusion so very evident.

But there’s the “and yet”.  She has an Aunt who knows and cares even if she’s a stranger.  Samantha needs to learn who to trust. Is is possible?

Perhaps a game will help her learn.

a game of fox & squirrels

Each of the 21 chapters opens with a new list of the rules about the Game Fox & Squirrels.  In each chapter more of Ashander’s personality emerges.  With each chapter Samantha learns more about her options.  

The fox is not to be trusted, the fox is a difficult opponent, but with help… perhaps that fox can be defeated!

a game of fox & squirrels

As one might expect in a game of Fox and Squirrels, riddles abound.  Can they be solved?  Can the fox be outsmarted?  What reward awaits at the end of the game?

My Thoughts

So tastefully and well-done.  A Game of Fox & Squirrels kept me intrigued throughout, rooting for Samantha to come through in the end.  Samantha and her sister walked a hard road, sisters watching out for each other.  They needed to be caring for each other when others did not. 

With a burden lifted, how does a child survive?  Samantha needed to learn this.  How to do so wasn’t easy.

There is so much I loved about this story.  Being a person with a fine imagination I can totally see a lost 11 year old getting caught up in a game.  The magic inherent in a good imagination can help heal a heart when the love of the real world is apparent. 

The only caution I add, because it matters, the Aunt is married in a same-gender relationship. 

On the Horizon

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“Back home, in his
small New York town,
friends got Christmas cards
that year from Silas.

He’d mailed them nine days
before he died.” (p 23, on the horizon)

On the Horizon by Lois Lowry is a quiet reflective look in both sides of World War 2.  Seeing the pain and loss of Pearl Harbour, and later, seeing the pain and loss of Hiroshima.  Poetry that shows the effects of devastation both sides of the war. 

Sometimes we are hit hard by the unexpected.  I did not expect how this lovely book would affect me.  My heart begs you to read this book as well.

In On the Horizon, Lois Lowry did an excellent job of reminding me of the horrors and heroism of the war.  Carefully written lines helping us to the the poignant beauty in people caring for each other in a time of utter stress.

A soldier carrying a boy safely to his dad, a wounded twin crying out in determination to save a brother, a four year riding a tricycle – buried with it, a band ready to play – called to duty – dying in the process.  Hard words, softly written.  Definitely worth a read. 

On the Horizon

Art Work for On the Horizon

Simple drawings dot the pages, just gray-scale pencil drawings. Kenard Pak is the illustrator. In the ARC sample that I received, not all the drawings were complete. The ones there were all relevant to the poem they were connected with, like the outline of a young person standing on a beach or a child riding a tricycle.

On the Horizon

Details about What I am Reviewing

80 pages, 41 pages divided into three sections.  These sections are On the Horizon, Another Horizon, and Beyond the Horizons. She closes with a personal note about her history. So fascinating to see how these events connected with her own personal history.  Reading these personal notes just added to the deepness I felt.

A most excellent book well worthy of being read. I am so delighted that Raincoast books sent it to me!  🙂  Youth (and perhaps their parents) in grades 5-7 should find On the Horizon an easy read. American military history brought to life, showing the impact of war. 

Gloom Town

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My current review is about Gloom Town, a sad town sitting on a seaside coast. Everything about this book bespeaks a grim sad life where everything is a struggle.  Gloom Town has little to draw to it and fewer opportunities indeed.  Then Rory gets a job!  He’s able to help him single-parent mom out! This story is about what happens next. 

Gloom Town

What I am Reviewing

Raincoast BooksClarion Books published this intriguing read Gloom Town by Ronald L. Smith.  This 32 chapter book rounds out to 288 pages.  I received a trade paperback advanced readers copy to review.   It will be released in February as a hardcover.  Reviewed on behalf of Raincoast Books. 

Gloom Town contains some horror, magic and suspense all at a middle school level.  You’ll find humour to break up the tension as together together, Rory and his friend Isabella set out to uncover exactly what Foxglove and his otherworldly accomplices are planning. Can they devise a strategyto defeat them? 

Gloom Town, backcover synopsis

The Details of Gloom Town

Two best friends form the foundation of Gloom Town.  One brave enough to work at the scariest place in town.  The other learning skills that most don’t know about.  Together they learn the importance of friends working together to solve problems. 

Gloom town

This illustration at the beginning of the book spells out the tone really well.  When I opened up this page I wondered what type of book I was getting myself into.  The characters proved interesting, the bad individuals chilling, and the helper lads were a mixed bag with humour mixed in. 

Gloom town

You’ll find some surprises hidden within the pages. Moves that you might expect a character to make the didn’t happen.  Events transpiring that make you think what? What just happened there??  One such instance was how the whole story ended, it was totally not one that I had anticipated. 

Gloom Town, table of contents

Recommendation

It’s honestly not the sort of book I would normally read.  I don’t tend to read scary or creepy books well.  I think that Gloom Town being a middle school read was it’s saving grace.  It means the creepy stuff isn’t as bad and you know that somehow they will get through it. 

I loved how they needed to use their wits, build upon skills they already possessed, and count on each other. Friends who KNEW they were friends and could totally count on each other. Good stuff in that. 

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Lost Tide Warriors

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Have you ever started a book and then wondered… where in the world is this book going?  Lost Tide Warriors surprised me and has left me longing for a second book.  I so deparately want to know who Fionn will become.   Fantasy, magic, and mystery.  Good vs evil.  The battle endures.  It is my pleasure to bring my latest review to you. 

Lost Tide Warriors, review image

What I am Reviewing

Catherine Doyle has put together a middle school read that starts off slow and gradually builds.  Creating characters that intrigue you!  Bloomsbury Children’s Books published this 340 page chapter book.  My advanced reader’s copy came as a trade paperback, the final should be hardcover with a fly.  Lost Tide Warriors is part of A Storm Keeper’s Island Novel series.  Book One I think. I am reviewing this book for Raincoast Books. 

Lost Tide Warriors Synopsis

The Details of The Lost Tide Warriors

The location of this story is Arranmore Island where people are either descendants or non-descendants of the original inhabitants.  Descendants can wield magic, non-descendants cannot. 

Fionn is a storm keeper, leader of the Island, though but a lad.  His magic is proving elusive and evil lurks. 

Knowing this, we are led into a world where danger lurks and gets stronger by the day. Fionn needs to figure out what to do. Will he solve it by books’ end?

Characters are carefully built up. Fionn, his grand-dad, his mom and sister.  We meet his friends, discover his enemies.  Characters you’d know if you met them on the street. 

Well written, the only illustrations grace chapter pages. A towering wave of water, could this have something to do with how the story plays out?

Lost Tide Warriors

Easy to read, the text is a great size. The story flows easily from one page to the next with appropriate cliff hangers.   There are a couple of sections that didn’t set well with me until the explanation came for them later.  If you have youth who are easily alarmed this might not be the book for them. Overall, it was a good read. 

Lost Tide Warriors

Recommendation

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Key Books for Middle School

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One of the joys I have in life is being able to review books.  I’ve met some gems along the way.  It’s worth a post to recall the best over this past year.  I bring you some key books for middle school.  Each link is to my review of that book.  

Key books for Middle School

Key Non-Fiction books

The Complete Baking Book for Young Chefs.  I liked this book.  The only thing I wished it did was be broader based.  But baking is an excellent skill to learn!  🙂

Animal Atlas.  This is one of the nicest animal books I’ve reviewed.  Lots of interesting facts, and interactive elements too. 

Crossing on Time by David Macaulay.  Excellent information and illustration about steam ships.  Just fascinating. 

Spies. Lies and Disguise.  A book I chose to keep!  And I don’t keep many.  But this one I thoroughly enjoyed and look forward to sharing it with my lad.  A World War 2 book. 

Spies, Lies, and Disguise review

The Flag Book is another book I chose to keep.  By Londely Planet, a well put together book with lots of curious information about flags. 

Dark Skies.  I admittedly waffled on adding this one as I received a ARC copy and some of the destinations… I would want to see them in colour.  Having everything in grey scale was the only negative. Astro-tourism.

The Flag Book

Key Fiction Books

Prairie Lotus.  I liked this, in the style of Little House in the Prairie book.  Introduced me to history I wasn’t highly familiar with. 

Time Sight.  It took me a bit to get into it, but in the end this was a very enjoyable read. Second sight, Scotland, history, a well-written package.

I’ve told my son a fair bit about this next book, Under the Broken Sky.  He is planning on reading it after he finished the Camp X series (which he’s told me I HAVE TO read.  🙂  Japanese in China, World War 2, their story.  Not an easy read, but a good read. 

Dog Driven.   Such a good read.  Dogs, a race, youth learning who they are, and who they need to be.  Good stuff. 

Time Sight Review

StarGazing.  I remember being surprised by this book.  A good read that I happily recommend to others.  🙂  Chinese-americans learning to live life in all their variations. 

The Giant from the Fire Sea.   A decently good read.  🙂  Fantasy, growth, determination, mystery to solve. 

Stargazing by Jen Wang

Key books for middle school, true-life

This section contains books based on real life. 

 So Into the Blizzard is the story of the heroes of a mega blizzard in 1978.  Again, not an easy story, but a good one.  Well-written.

Born to Fly.  A story based on a women’s race.  Excellent way to understand early aviation history in the eyes of the women who joined in. 

The Heart Changer.  I read this biblically based story for the crew.  I liked it. Definitely worth sharing. 

It Rained Warm Bread.  I recently read this with my lad, and it sparked good conversations.  Poetry that reads like a book about real history.  A World War 2 book. 

Locked in Ice.  Fascinating piece of history in an easy to read and understand chapter book. Learn about Fridtjof Nansen and his trip to the North Pole. 

Born to Fly

And there you have it, my tops picks for middle school reads over this past year.  Great books.  Lots of reading for fun and learning.  Pick one of these key books and the middle school youth in your life are sure to be delighted.

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Others in this series

Good Books to Read

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So I’ve spent the last four days battling a nasty cold.  I spent Friday sleeping.  Saturday reading,  Sunday dozing off and on, reading, and finding an appetite returning, and today I’ve just been VERY grumpy and blowing my nose a lot.  I know WAY too much information eh?

The biggest benefit of being sick is the uninterrupted time to just read.  No feeling guilty, just needed time to heal and read.  It’s good that!

Do I like the headaches and being only to read in small doses?  Not really.  I’d rather just read all day long, but headaches from head colds precluded that.  All that preamble to say I found some good books to read.

We are all Greta

we are all greta

I have a review coming for We are All Greta which is why I read it.  I have to say I read it with a fair bit of skepticism. I still feel a bit skeptical about it all, but she does make a person think a bit about the state of the earth we live on.  This book isn’t written by Greta but is based on her passion for climate change.  The author wants us to think about how we can save the world in a large number of ways.  She is thought-provoking, but not really answer giving.  Stay tuned for the full review. 

Salvation in Death

Salvation in death

I am not actually finished Salvation in Death. I’m currently about 1/2 way through.  I am a fan of J.D. Robb.  Her writing style connects with me.  A touch of romance, with a huge mystery works well for me.  This book has sat on my shelf for the past year begging to be read but I never really had the opportunity.  Our short camping trip earlier this year wasn’t long enough for me to get to it!    Priest gets murdered, and the hunt is on for the killer.   Lieutenant Eve Dallas is a fascinating detective, and her hubby well.. yum!  Not too scary, with not too gruesome of details, just an excellent murder mystery fit for a Sunday afternoon. 

The Revolt

The Revolt

My son was gifted this book by his gramma and read it last year.  When he was finished he said “Mom, you should read this book, it’s interesting.”  Since it was sitting at the top of my “read for fun pile” it was the first I grabbed up.  

I recalled when my lad started The Revolt, he said it was hard to read at first.  Once he got about 1/3 of the way through he started to talk about how he was enjoying it.  I had the same reaction.  Took me a while to get past the authors’ style of writing, he gave it a real Old English feel, I started to enjoy the story.  Learning about John Wycliffe’s early life as a scholar and teacher.  Understanding why the time was right for the Reformation to occur.   Politics, disease and abuse all set the scene.  Recommeded reading for anyone interested in the early years of the Protestant church.

Another Quest for Celeste

Another Quest for Celeste

I admittedly, as does my son, remember with fondness A Nest for Celeste.   We so enjoyed this book, it was so good.  I eagerly awaited readaing Another Quest for Celeste.  It was a good read, it wasn’t as good as the first book.  The involvement of Abe Lincoln didn’t happen until at least half-way through, and honestly could have been the story of any boy back in the day. 

BUT it was the story of Abe Lincoln, having to deal with a difficult father.  Abe Lincoln with a step-mom who pushed him to learn to read and write, who encouraged his academic endeavors.   It was Abe Lincoln, who as a child, walked miles to borrow books from anyone around.   

And through Celeste we see the beauty and danger of river boat travel, and the majesty of the forests with their abundant wildlife, and different modes of transport.   Read this book if only to see the beautiful drawings within.  

The Raging Storm

The Raging Storm by Erin Hunter

Book 6 in the “A Vision of Shadows”series by Erin Hunter, The Raging Storm is a good read.  Thoroughly enjoyed this read. The lad and I have enjoyed the Warrior Cat series from the very start.  There have been odd bits that haven’t worked well, but overall, it’s a good series with a fairly predictable pattern. The cats have learned and grown over the course of the series. 

In this particular book the cats have to learn to work together not only as individual clans but also as a joined unit. Can they put aside their squabbles to work with each other so they can save everyone?  Read the book and find out!  🙂