Kids Fiction
MOUSENET by Prudence Breitrose
When an inventor created the world’s smallest computer–the Thumbtop–the Mouse Nation knew that they were about to enter a new age. Finally, a computer that was the perfect size for a mouse to operate! No more jumping back and forth across the letters on a keyboard! No more skulking around after the humans went to sleep! At last, the mice would take their rightful place in the technological age, along side their intellectual equals, the humans. That is, if they are able to win over the inventor’s niece, Megan, and establish the world’s first human-mouse alliance.
Mousenet was a light read. There was very little suspense or major obstacles for the characters to overcome, and most tasks that the characters undertook seemed to work out unbelievably smoothly. In addition, the environmental message was incorporated slightly clumsily and came off as heavy-handed. Still, the Mouse Nation the author created was a fun fantasy to imagine and the characters themselves were overall believable and likeable. I would recommend this to readers in grades 4-6 who enjoy animal stories.
If you liked Mousenet, you might also enjoy Emmy and the Incredible Shrinking Rat by Lynne Jonell, Freddy by Dietlof Reiche or Babe, the Gallant Pig by Dick King Smith.
WHALES ON STILTS by M.T. Anderson
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Lily has always considered herself to be boring. Compared to her friends Katie (the star of the Horror Hollow adventure book series) and Jasper (the famous boy inventor), Lily is boring. She never has any adventures of her own. But when she stumbles upon the plot of an evil half-human half-whale criminal mastermind who is determined to conquer the world with an army of whales on stilts . . . well, her life is about to get a whole lot more interesting.
This silly sci-fi novel reads like a superhero cartoon, complete with a snarky omniscient narrator, larger-than-life characters, and absurd action sequences. It is very, very silly, so don’t expect much substance. But it is a fun read for elementary age kids (grades 3-4) who like books like Captain Underpants, Magic Pickle, or the Lunch Lady series.
If you liked Whales on Stilts, you may also like Emmy and the Incredible Shrinking Rat by Lynne Jonell or “Who Could That Be At This Hour?” by Lemony Snicket.
CHITTY-CHITTY BANG BANG by Ian Fleming
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At first, Jeremy and Jemima are disappointed to see the beat-up old car that their brilliant inventor father, Caractacus Potts, wants to refurbish. But they have no idea of the adventures that are in store for them. Not only does the car begin to run smoothly again, it seems to come to life with a brilliant mind of its own. When danger is near, Chitty Chitty Bang Bang (as they come to name the car) can soar up into the sky and fly away or turn into a boat and float out to sea. But it isn’t long before Chitty Chitty Bang Bang’s amazing abilities lead the Potts family into trouble. After stumbling upon a band of gangsters’ cache of explosives, it will take all of the Potts family’s–and Chitty Chitty Bang Bang’s–cleverness and skill to escape from the crooks and bring them to justice.
The book Chitty Chitty Bang Bang is vastly different from the film adaptation of the same name. The book is shorter, simpler, and (in my opinion) significantly less scary, due to the absence of the child-catcher. Personally, I like the movie better, probably because I like complicated scary musicals. But the book is certainly enjoyable in its own right, particularly if you do not compare it to the film. If you like fun, light fantasy adventure stories, give this classic a try!
NIGHTSONG by Ari Berk
When the time comes for little Chiro the bat to fly out into the world in search of food on his own, he is afraid. How will he see in the dark? But his mother encourages him to “use his good sense” and sing his song. If he does this, the world will become clear to him. At first when Chiro flies out of his cave, he cannot see a thing. But once he begins singing, he can see the world as clear as day.
This is an adorable new picture book with entrancing illustrations by Loren Long. It is slightly long for a preschool storytime, although it may work, depending on the attention span of your group. It would be great for kids in grades K-2 and as a conversation starter about the five senses and/or echolocation!
WILLIAM’S MIDSUMMER DREAMS by Zilpha Keatley Snyder
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When William and his younger siblings escaped from the home they shared with their abusive half-brothers, the Baggetts, he thought they had left their Baggett identities behind them. Adopting their aunt and new guardian’s last name of Hardison, they get a fresh start in a new town. Best of all, William may have a chance to pursue his dream of becoming a Shakespearean actor by auditioning for the role of Puck in a nearby professional production of A Midsummer Night’s Dream. But although the acting portion of the summer goes just as he imagined it would, friendships and family relationships begin to make his summer more complicated. Most ominously, his understudy for the role of Puck seems willing to go to any length to get William out of the role.
Despite the fact that this book was about Shakespeare, it was not my favorite Zilpha Keatley Snyder book. The Egypt Game was significantly better. But if you like theatre and you like realistic fiction, this book may interest you. It is fairly slow-paced and focuses on William’s development as he learns more about himself, his hopes for the future, and his relationships with the characters around him.
THE WESTING GAME by Ellen Raskin
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Sixteen seemingly unconnected people are invited to live in Sunset Towers, a strange apartment building with the West wall made solely of window glass, looking out toward the beautiful sunsets and millionaire Samuel Westing’s old mansion. But when several of the children sneak into the Westing house on a dare and discover the millionaire’s dead body, the sixteen strangers learn that they are not unconnected after all. They are all named as heirs in Samuel Westing’s will. The will itself, however, is unconventional to say the least. It claims that Samuel Westing was murdered by someone in Sunset Towers and challenges the heirs to find the murderer in order to inherit the $200 million fortune that Westing left behind. The heirs divide into eight teams, and each team receives a different clue. Now the race is on to discover who killed Samuel Westing and nab the $200 million before the mysterious killer strikes again.
Anyone who enjoys the Thirty-Nine Clues series should check out this 1979 Newbery Award winner. Although similar in plot, however, the style could not be more different. Sixteen eccentric characters compete in a bizarre and confusing game that will keep the reader as invested as the characters in puzzling it out. Ultimately, however, the point of the story is not the murder mystery but the development of the characters individually and as a community.
If you liked The Westing Game, try The Mixed-Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler. If you enjoyed the somewhat eccentric characters, you may also enjoy A Wrinkle in Time and Saffy’s Angel.
GOOD MASTERS! SWEET LADIES!: VOICES FROM A MEDIEVAL VILLAGE by Laura Amy Schlitz
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What was life like for children growing up in Medieval times? Some were peasants, tied to the land they farmed, so poor they had to trick and steal from their lords and masters just to make sure they had food to eat. Others were apprenticed to tradesmen in the village, working as blacksmiths or falconers. And others were children of the lords living in luxury inside their palace halls.
Good Masters! Sweet Ladies! tells the stories of over twenty Medieval children and their variety of dreams, fears, pranks, mistakes, and achievements. The stories are written as monologues and dialogues which could be read aloud as a play. They can also be read silently as short first-person narratives. The monologues are interspersed with more information about each of the time periods to keep readers informed about the history and culture surrounding the characters. A Newbery Award winner, these plays are a fun read for anyone who enjoys historical fiction. If you would like a more dramatic experience, listen to the audio book which has each character read aloud by a different actor!
If you liked Good Masters! Sweet Ladies! you might like Crispin by Avi.
THE 100 YEAR OLD SECRET by Tracy Barrett
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Xena and Xander Holmes have always been very observant. They can notice things about a person and deduce his occupation or details about his personal history. It is their favorite game. But when they learn that they are the great-great-great-grandchildren of the famous Sherlock Holmes and that they have files upon files of his unsolved cases at their disposal, they decide to upgrade their game to solving real-life mysteries. Their first mission: to find a priceless painting that disappeared over a century ago.
If you like the Thirty-Nine Clues series, you need to check out the Sherlock Files. There are plenty of clues to unravel and a decent amount of suspense in this mystery series. If you like character-driven mysteries, however, you will not find a lot of depth here. For character-driven Sherlock Holmes-related mysteries, I would instead recommend the Enola Holmes books by Nancy Springer.
SPORK by Kyo Maclear
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Little Spork didn’t fit in with the other silverware. He was a little bit fork and a little bit spoon, but not enough of either one to feel that he truly belonged with either group. And he never got picked to be set at the table. Until the Messy Thing arrived and all of the cutlery customs went out the window. Could the spork have found his purpose at last?
As you may have gathered, this is one of those picture books that is supposed to make kids who feel “different” or who “don’t fit in” realize that they have unique talents and contributions to the world. It most directly addresses the concerns felt by children whose parents each come from a different racial or ethnic group. Also, the main character is a spork. What more could you want?
ALL THE LOVELY BAD ONES by Mary Downing Hahn
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Corey and Travis are bad. Not evil, but mischievous. They were “not invited back” to summer camp as a result of all of the pranks they pulled last year, so instead their parents send them to spend the summer at their grandmother’s bed and breakfast inn in Vermont. They are afraid the summer may be boring until they find out that the inn is supposed to be haunted. Their grandmother insists that all of the ghost stories are nonsense, but Corey and Travis realize they could have a lot of fun pretending to be ghosts and frightening the guests. That is, until they accidentally wake the real ghosts from their sleep. . . .
Mary Downing Hahn excels at writing creepy ghost stories with a historical twist. In this particular story, the realistic depiction of a nineteenth century poor farm is perhaps more horrifying than the ghosts themselves. A great scary story with an interesting history behind it. I highly recommend it!
Susan the Librarian 