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Book Review: Wonder

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Wonder by R.J. Palacio

Wonder (Wonder, #1)
by R.J. Palacio

5 out of 5 stars

Auggie starts school for the first time, worried that the other children will treat him differently because of his appearance. He has had many surgeries to correct birth defects, but his face is scarred and he just looks different from other people. The principal has asked a few of the kids in his class to befriend him, but Auggie wonders if they even like him at all. As Auggie navigates his first year of middle school, his family are also struggling to adjust. His parents worry about Auggie, and his big sister Via has mixed feelings. Together this family discover new ways to connect as Auggie and his sister grow up.

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Book Review: In Aunt Lucy’s Kitchen

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In Aunt Lucy's Kitchen by Cynthia Rylant

In Aunt Lucy’s Kitchen (The Cobble Street Cousins, Book 1)
by Cynthia Rylant, Wendy Anderson Halperin (Goodreads Author) (Illustrator)

5 out of 5 stars

This adorable book follows three cousins as they stay with their Aunt Lucy for the summer. They decide to start up a cookie company, and they meet some interesting people when they deliver the cookies. One of them is a young man who blushes every time they mention their Aunt Lucy, and they deduce that he must have a crush on her. They come up with a plan for Aunt Lucy to meet him, but they will have to get very creative if they want their plan to succeed.

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Book Review: The Fairy Tale Fan Club

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The Fairy Tale Fan Club by Richard Ayoade

The Fairy Tale Fan Club: Legendary Letters Collected by C.C. Cecily
by Richard Ayoade, David Roberts (illustrator)

3 out of 5 stars

The Senior Secretary handles all the letters that come into the Fairy Tale Fan Club. Each letter asks a question of a famous fairy tale character, and we get to see their answers. One fan asks Rapunzel for advice about getting a haircut. Is it better to keep your hair long or cut it short?

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Book Review: A Nun in the Closet

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A Nun in the Closet by Dorothy Gilman

A Nun in the Closet
by Dorothy Gilman

3.5 out of 5 stars
When the abbey inherits a piece of land with an old house, Sister John and Sister Hyacinthe are sent to take an inventory of the property. They discover a wounded man hiding in a closet upstairs, and he begs them for sanctuary. The mysteries keep piling up when they find an old suitcase full of money, and there are jars labeled ‘sugar’ in the pantry that are definitely not full of sugar.

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Book Review: Blue Anchor Inn

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Blue Anchor Inn by Edwin Bateman Morris

Blue Anchor Inn
by Edwin Bateman Morris

4 out of 5 stars

Roger Brooke is down to his last dollar when he meets a lawyer friend who suggests a way that Roger could make some money – get married to a wealthy heiress that very night! The heiress has to fulfill a legal clause to be married within a few days or she will lose her inheritance. When they meet, the bride wears a heavy veil so that Roger won’t be able to recognize her, and they part ways after the marriage ceremony, planning to get a divorce one year later. One year later, Roger is still married and hasn’t heard anything about the planned divorce. He is vacationing with friends on an island at Blue Anchor Inn, when a lady calling herself Mrs. Brooke arrives on the island, and Roger wonders if it could be his wife!

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Book Review: Philippa Fisher’s Fairy Godsister

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Philippa Fisher's Fairy Godsister by Liz Kessler

Philippa Fisher’s Fairy Godsister (Philippa Fisher, #1)
by  Liz Kessler

3 out of 5 stars

Philippa is embarrassed by her parents, picked on and teased at school, and sad because her best friend just moved away. She wishes she had a fairy godmother who could make her life easier, but when a fairy named Daisy arrives, she is closer to Philippa’s age, more like a fairy godsister. Daisy has the power to grant Philippa three wishes, and every wish goes horribly wrong. Daisy doesn’t even like humans and just wants to get the job finished. Can these two let go of their bitterness and find some true happiness?

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Book Review: Crooked House

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Crooked House by Agatha Christie

Crooked House
by Agatha Christie

4.5 out of 5 stars

Charles and Sophia meet abroad and become engaged, but when Charles meets Sophia again in England, she refuses to acknowledge their engagement until the mystery of her grandfather’s murder is cleared up. Charles meets Sophia’s family, her aunts and uncles, and her step-grandmother. Each member of the family is suspicious of the step-grandmother because she was fifty years younger than her husband. They all think she must have gotten tired of waiting for him to die so that she could inherit his wealth. But Charles isn’t so sure, and Sophia is afraid that it might have been someone else in the family, someone close to her.

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Book Review: The Lost Kingdom

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The Lost Kingdom by Matthew J. Kirby

The Lost Kingdom
by Matthew J. Kirby

4.5 out of 5 stars

Growing up in the American Colonies, Billy wants to be a botanist just like his father. When Benjamin Franklin sends them on an expedition to the Ohio frontier, Billy is excited to be included with his father in the team of scientists and philosophers. Their mission is to find a lost Welsh colony that may have traveled to the Americas centuries before. With war with the French on the horizon, they will need allies on the frontier.

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Book Review: Strawberry Acres

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Strawberry Acres by Grace S. Richmond

Strawberry Acres
by Grace S. Richmond

4 out of 5 stars

When four siblings inherit a run-down farm, they aren’t sure whether to sell it or try to live there. Max opposes every plan to live in the farmhouse, since it will need extensive repairs, and it’s so large that they could never afford to furnish it. But Sally has her heart set on a peaceful country life, and she tries to persuade her brothers that they could make a living growing strawberries in the fields. Although the guys hate their stuffy city office jobs, they can’t imagine themselves as rugged farmers. They argue back and forth until finally, a disaster in the family compels them to make use of the farm, and they discover that they love living in the country.

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Book Review: Dickens’ Fur Coat and Charlotte’s Unanswered Letters

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Dickens' Fur Coat and Charlotte's Unanswered Letters by Daniel Pool

Dickens’ Fur Coat and Charlotte’s Unanswered Letters: The Rows and Romances of England’s Great Victorian Novelists
by Daniel Pool

3 out of 5 stars

I liked reading about how the Victorian novel rose to prominence and the different literary trends that came and went during the Victorian era. It was interesting to learn more about some of my favorite authors.
However, the book just drags on and on with really dry writing that made it hard to concentrate, and the sentences are so convoluted and long that it was difficult to follow sometimes.

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