Greenglass House

Greenglass House

By Kate Milford

Grade level: 4 through 6

I was just poking around some book sites when I ran into this book. The cover fascinated me and I thought it was so pretty. I had to find out what it was about. From what I found out, it is very similar to Mysterious Benedict Society and Blue Balliet's Chasing Vermeer series. The Mysterious Benedict Society is another book whose cover fascinates me. Yes, I judge books by their covers. 

Anyway, Greenglass House is about an old inn in the winter when business is rather slow. The innkeepers adopted son Milo has plans to just chill during his holiday break, but the guest bell begins to ring and keeps ringing until the whole inn is filled with secretive guests. As things go missing and folks start to get a little uppity, Milo and the cook's daughter, Meddy, begin to do their own investigating and find out the truth behind Greenglass House and themselves.

Hmmmmm, sounds like a mystery to me!! From what I hear, that's perfect for Anne Arundel County!!

The Thickety by Sophie Davis

The Thickety: A Path Begins

By J. A. White

Grade level: 5 through 7

Age level: 10 years and up

The story is about a little girl, Kara, whose mother was convicted of witchcraft when she was six years old. Her and her little brother have been forever shunned by their community because of their mother. The community believes that magic is evil and evil also lives in the dark forest that surrounds the entire island. The forest is known as the Thickety. Kara is lured into the forest by a strange bird and she finds a book with unusual powers that may belong to her mother. The Thickety is the first book of the series. Book 2 - The Thickety: The Whispering Trees comes out 10 March 2015. 

Mysteries Are Number One In The County

The Capital ran an article recently about the surge in mysteries. It seems that Anne Arundel County loves their mystery reading! James Patterson and John Grisham are the favorites and account for 4 out of 5 of books borrowed from the public library. These, of course, we accounting for adult books. But James Patterson has been delving into children's books lately as well and seems to be a hit with the youngsters. His book "I Funny" is a Maryland Black-Eyed Susan Nominee this year and another book of his, "First Love", was in the top 5 of borrowed library books.

The Top 5 Young Adult books borrowed from the public library are:
- "Mocking Jay" by Suzanne Collins
- "The Fault In Out Stars" by John Green
- "The Hunger Games" by Suzanne Collins
- "Catching Fire" by Suzanne Collins
- "First Love" by James Patterson and Emily Raymond

For Children's books the top 5 are:
- "Diary of a Wimpy Kid: Hard Luck" by Jeff Kinney
- "I Spy Fly Guy" by Tedd Arnold
- "Pete the Cat: Rocking in My School Shoes" by James Dean and Eric Litwin
- "The Day the Crayons Quit" by Drew Daywalt and Oliver Jeffers
- "Don't Let The Pigeon Drive the Bus!" by Mo Willems

If you'd like to jump on the mystery bandwagon, then try these mysteries on for size!

* "Suspicion" by Alexandra Monir
* "The Invisible Library" by Genevieve Cogman
* "Once Upon A Grind" (Coffeehouse Mystery #14) by Cleo Coyle
* "Spell Booked" (Retired Witches Mystery #1) by Joyce Laverne
* "Sparrow 59" (The Sleeper's Coalition #1) by Devon Ashley (new adult book)
* "No Test for the Wicked" (Lexi Carmichael Mystery #5) by Julie Moffett
* "A Hiss-tory of Magic" (A Wonder Cats Mystery Book 1) by Harper Lin

A. G Howard...Again?

Ok, so I'm intrigued with this series. I'm pretty sure I've written about it before, but the covers are so breathing taking and the whole story being based around Alice In Wonderland makes me want to read it. Fairy tales are a big thing right now which I love. The best part being that they are not your typical fairy tales. Writers are getting to be pretty creative and the stories they are coming out with are captivating. What made me mention the A. G. Howard books again? Well, the third installment is coming out this month ~ Ensnared. So I've got a challenge for you. First read the original Alice In Wonderland and then start working on the series. When you're done, come back here and tell me all about it!!!

Coming 6 January 2015!

Top 10 Lists of 2014

Now that 2014 is over, let's have a little look at the Top 10 Lists.

Best Middle Grade and Children''s
1. "The Blood of Olympus" by Rick Riordan
2. "Diary of a Wimpy Kid: The Long Haul" by Jeff Kinney
3. "The Iron Trials" by Holly Black
4. "Sisters" by Raina Telgemeier
5. "Land of Stories: A Grimm Warning" by Chris Colfer
6. "Brown Girl Dreaming" by Jacqueline Woodson
7. "The School of Good and Evil" by Soman Chainani
8. "The Shadow Throne" by Jennifer A. Nielsen
9. "Dork Diaries: Tales From The Not-So-Glam-TV-Star" by Rachel Renee Russell
10. "Snicker of Magic" by Natalie Lloyd

Young Adult Fiction
1. "We Were Liars" by E. Lockhart
2. "Isla and the Happy Ever After" by Stephanie Perkins
3. "Panic" by Lauren Oliver
4. "To All The Boys I've Loved Before" by Jenny Han
5. "Take Me On" by Katie McGarry
6. "Love Letters Dead" by Ava Dellaira
7. "Don't Look Back" by Jennifer L. Armentrout
8. "The Impossible Knife of Memory" by Laurie Halse Anderson
9. "I'll Give You The Sun" by Jandy Nelson
10. "Since You've Been Gone" by Morgan Matson

Picture Books
1. "The Pigeon Needs A Bath" by Mo Willems
2. "The Book With No Pictures" by B. J. Novak
3. "Julia's House for Lost Creatures" by Ben Hatke
4. "Tuesday Tucks Me In: The Loyal Bond Between a Soldier and his Service Dog" by Luis Carlos Montalvan
5. "What Do You Do With An Idea" by Kobi Yamada
6. "Sparky!" by Jenny Offill
7. "Josephine: The Dazzling Life of Josephine Baker" by Patricia Hruby Powell
8. "Hi, Koo!" by Jon J. Muth
9. "Here Comes The Easter Cat" by Deborah Underwood
10. "Quest" by Aaron Becker

These lists were from the Top 10 Goodreads Choice Awards and I think they're pretty good. If we don't have them on the shelves, then feel free to order your copy!

Happy 2015!!!

Truly Great To Read Aloud...With A Slightly Older Audience

How They Croaked
By Georgia Bragg
Illustrated by Kevin O'Malley

Okay, this isn't REALLY holiday reading, BUT...it's a great way to get together with the older kiddies in your homestead AND learn some really cool history AND read out loud like you did when they were 2! My kids are 13 and 14 and we would read one person a night after dinner. They got to choose the awfully famous and I got to read their awful end. The book is not written like the horribly dry history books that they trudge through in school. This is exciting stuff with puss and fat and beheadings and blood-lettings and all kinds of creepy "cures" doctors back then would put the critically ill through. The book also features some of the most famous folks in history from King Tut to Julius Caesar to George Washington to Albert Einstein. Even the not-so-terribly-famous like James Garfield who we all were quoted as saying "Who?". By the way, he's a president. By the way, he laid around with an infected bullet wound while his doctor's tried to find it/pry it out...with their fingers. Bottom line, it's a fun read for everyone and a great way to get the teens off the phones and video games. You may not only share a few laughs, but walk away with a few more history smarticle particles.

Upcoming - How They Choked!! Can't wait!!