middle grade

Book Review: The Rising Star of Rusty Nail

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The Rising Star of Rusty Nail by Lesley M.M. Blume
The Rising Star of Rusty Nail
by Lesley M.M. Blume

3 out of 5 stars

Franny is a piano prodigy in a backwards country town. When a mysterious Russian musician arrives in town, Franny begs her to teach piano lessons.

I was not impressed with this book. As a piano teacher myself, I was hoping for something more, but it was pretty basic. Most of the book is about the townspeople and their little country lives. It’s supposed to be funny, but I wasn’t laughing. I was annoyed with the ignorant people. I didn’t like any of the characters. The children are all brats. The adults are all incompetent. The characters are one-dimensional. The writing is good, but not amazing. Continue reading →

Book Review: The Elephant

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The Elephant by Peter Carnavas
The Elephant
by Peter Carnavas

5 out of 5 stars

Olive imagines her father’s sadness like a gray elephant that follows him around and weighs him down. She enlists the help of her best friend and her grandfather to figure out how to chase away the depressing elephant and cheer her father up.

I am so impressed with this thoughtful and sweet middle grade novel. The story is really emotional, and the writing gently leads us through the journey that Olive takes to reach out to her father. All the elements in the story dove-tail together so beautifully: a project that Olive is working on for school, an old broken bike, a colorful pigeon, a paper airplane that floats on the breeze, and a jacaranda tree in Olive’s backyard. Olive and her grandfather have a favorite song they love to sing together. Olive’s best friend, Arthur, reads a huge book all about elephants and shares it with Olive. There are a dozen little details like these that make this book truly special and meaningful. Continue reading →

Book Review: The Star Dunes

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The Star Dunes by Trudi Trueit
The Star Dunes (Explorer Academy #4)
by Trudi Trueit (Goodreads Author)

5 out of 5 stars


Cruz is in Africa searching for the missing clues his mother left behind for him to find after her death. The explorers help a family of mountain gorillas in Uganda, and then follow the clues to a desert region of Africa. The evil Nebula organization is breathing down their necks, and Cruz is devastated when one of his friends is targeted.

I loved this plot! There is plenty of action and suspense. I never knew what was going to happen next! I really loved that Lani is finally part of the team! She is such an interesting character.

The exotic locations are amazing, and I loved learning about different conservation efforts in Uganda and Namibia and all the national parks.

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Book Review: Pippa Park Raises Her Game

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In honor of Asian Pacific American Heritage Month, I can’t stop talking about “Pippa Park”, a middle grade retelling of Dickens’ “Great Expectations, with a Korean-American main character! I adored the book, and loved learning about the rich Korean culture!
Pippa Park Raises Her Game by Erin Yun
Pippa Park Raises Her Game
by Erin Yun (Goodreads Author)

5 out of 5 stars


When Pippa Park gets a basketball scholarship to a fancy private school, she feels pressured to pretend like she’s rich and cool so that she can fit in with her elite classmates. But how long can she keep up the farce, when her Korean family owns a laundromat and Pippa barely has money to buy a slice of pizza at the school cafeteria? With her grades slipping and her relationships in turmoil, Pippa begins to realize that some of her new friends have family secrets of their own.

This retelling of Dicken’s “Great Expectations” is utterly brilliant from start to finish!

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Book Review: Spark and the League of Ursus

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Spark and the League of Ursus by Robert Repino
Spark and the League of Ursus
by Robert Repino

2 out of 5 stars


Spark is a teddy bear, sworn to protect her owner from the monsters that attack in the night. But when a truly powerful monster threatens the children of the house, it will take a special league of bears to fight off the monster.

This book was darker and scarier than I expected. The monster is really freaky, with scales, insect claws, pincers, horns, spider legs, and the head of a human. The monster wears a creepy medallion around its neck with a human head on it that comes to life. Even with all the gross descriptions of this monster, I can’t quite picture it in my head. It’s like half-human, half scorpion. Ugh. Continue reading →

Series Review: Sherlock Academy

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Sherlock Academy by F.C. ShawWatson's Case by F.C. ShawThe Holmes Brigade by F.C. ShawSherlock Academy by F.C. Shaw

Sherlock Academy
by F.C. Shaw

4 out of 5 stars

Rollie and his best friend, Cecily, have just been accepted into the prestigious Sherlock Academy. They have to solve clues to figure out their class schedule, learn the art of disguise, decode secret messages to find out their assignments, and analyze fingerprints in the class roster. But there is a deeper mystery hidden in the library of Sherlock Academy! Throughout each book, Rollie and his detective friends work to stop the evil mastermind, Herr Zilch, who leads Moriarty’s old underground ring of criminals.

I loved everything about these books! The characters, the plot, the mystery, the action, the school, the writing style… everything is wonderful!
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Book Series Review: Warren the 13th Trilogy

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Warren the 13th Trilogy

by Tania del Rio (Author),  Will Staehle (Illustrations)
5 out of 5 stars

I loved this trilogy! The design is elaborate and the plot is mysterious. I loved the characters and the writing style. I flew right through the pages, and enjoyed the action in every chapter.

Warren is such a likable and interesting character! I really appreciated his curiosity, his resilience, and his love for the hotel. He feels connected to his parents and to his ancestors through their shared history in the hotel, and it gave the story a lot of depth to have that heritage. He finds clues that his father left behind for him, and that gives him the courage to face difficult circumstances.

There are so many great supporting characters, all unique and quirky and memorable.

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