The Mostly True Adventures of Homer P. Figg by Rodman Philbrick

The Mostly True Adventures of Homer P. Figg 
by Rodman Pilbrick

Text from video: Welcome everyone.  This video is about the Mostly True Adventures of Homer P. Figg,  written by Rodman Philbrick.  Homer and his older brother, Harold, are orphans under the care of their rotten Uncle Squinton Leach.  When Harold stops Uncle Squint from beating Homer, Uncle Squint sells Harold to the Union Army where he must serve three years or until he dies.  Homer knows that it was wrong to sell Harold because Harold is only seventeen, and not old enough to be sworn into the army. Homer is worried about Harold and wants to rescue Harold before he is killed in the war.  Homer leaves Uncle Squints farm and travels through Maine.  Where he meets slave catchers and scoundrels who steal his horse and make him stop at a house on the Underground Railroad.  Homer tricks the scoundrels and helps the slaves continue on their journey to freedom.    Mr. Brewster rewards Homer with a trip on a steamship to New York so he can find Harold.  While on the steamship Homer’s guardian is bamboozled and Homer is locked in the steerage with pigs.  Once in New York, Homer joins a traveling medicine show that follows the Union wagon trains.  Homer has one adventure after another and even ends up on a hot air balloon that takes him to a battle where he meets Coronel Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain.   Will Homer ever find Harold?  Will they serve the union army well?  Find out by reading The Mostly True Adventures of Homer P. Figg

Title:   The Mostly True Adventures of Homer P. Figg

Author:  Rodman Philbrick

Publisher: Scholastic  

Year: 2011 c 2009

ISBN:  978-0-439-66821-7

Genre: Fiction/Adventure/Historic

This book is for Ages: 9-14

Awards: Newbery Honor Book, ALA Notable Book.

AR Points: 7.0           

Subjects/Themes: Runaways, Orphans, Brother, Self Reliance, Family, Civil War

Plot Summary:  12-year-old Homer P. Figg runs away from his horrible uncle to rescue his brother Harold.  Harold was tricked into joining the union army.  Homer travels from Maine to Gettysburg hoping to free his brother and protect him from the dangers of war.  As Homer travels he meets, bandits, a Quaker, thieves and spies. The book is dedicated “To everyone whoever lied and found their way back to the truth”.  Homer is a boy like any other but his experiences are amazing. 

Review:  This book is a wild ride from beginning to end.  Homer’s tale will make you laugh.  It is an excellent read-aloud story you won’t want to put down. Homer struggles with right, wrong and telling the truth.  His story deals with serious issues like war and slavery from the point of view of a child.  Homer understands the dangers of war and is determined to save his brother.  Philbrick’s detailed descriptions bring this story to life.  I will miss Homer and his adventures.  I liked that the book includes a special section at the back with a recipe for Union hard tack and trivia about the Civil War.   

If you like this book you may also like:  The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, by Mark Twain. 

The Edge of the Sword by Rebecca Tingle

The Edge of the Sword

Author:  Rebecca Tingle

Publisher:  Scholastic

Year:  2001

ISBN:  0-439-41796-1

Genre: Fiction

This book is for Ages: 12 up

AR Points:      11.0

Subjects/Themes: Family Life, Marriage

Plot Summary:  Flaed is the 15-year-old daughter of the King.  She will be soon married to Alderman Ethelred.  She will leave the safety of her home and family to start a new life, but Flaed wants her freedom.  She wants to leave the watchful eyes of Red, the guard Ethelred has sent to keep her safe until the wedding.  Flaed plans and manages her escape right into the hands of kidnappers.  What will she do now?

Review:  Rebecca Tingle writes a historical novel based on real life strong female main character.  Unfortunately the relationships in just story just didn’t draw me in the way they should have.  While it is a good book it is not fantastic as I would have hoped.  If you like history and love to read, pick it up.  This book is not for reluctant readers.

City of Ember by Jeanne DuPrau

Title:   City of Ember

Author:  Jeanne DuPrau

Reader:  Wendy Dillon

Media: Digital Download

Publisher:  Listening Library; Unabridged edition   Year:  2006

ISBN:  978-0739331675

Genre: Fiction/Science Fiction

This book is for Ages: 9 up

Awards:  ALA Notable Book, Kirkus Editor’s Choice

AR Points:     9.0

Subjects/Themes:  Dystopia, Government Control, Courage, Family, Leadership,

Plot Summary:  Lina Mayfleet and Doon Harrow have just finished the 6^th grade and have new jobs.  Lina is a messenger, Doon works in the pipe works.  They live in the city of Ember in year 241.  Ember is a city without a sun or moon.  All light comes from lamps powered by a generator.  When the generator begins to fail Doon is convinced the city is in grave danger.  When Lina uncovers a mysterious message they work together to find a way to save the city.  

Review:   This book is one of the reasons dystopian or future imperfect books are so popular.  This is the perfect book for reader’s looking for something different.  The unabridged audio book version is enhanced with sound effects that bring the story to life.  This is a diverting book for listening to on your next road trip.

If you like this book you may also like:  The People of Sparks by Jeanne DuPrau. 

The Great Gilly Hopkins by Katherine Paterson

Title:   The Great Gilly Hopkins

Author:  Katherine Paterson

Publisher: Scholastic             Year:  1995 c1978

ISBN:  0-590-61389-8

Genre: Realistic Fiction

This book is for Ages: 9-13

Awards: Newbery Honor Book

 AR Points:     5.0

 Subjects/Themes: Family Life/Orphans 

Plot Summary:  11-year-old Gilly Hopkins is on her way to her third foster home.  She knows the social worker must be telling her mother all kinds of lies to keep her mother from coming to get her.  Gilly is determined to contact her mother so she can escape from this ugly dirty foster home.  Her new foster mother Mamie Trotter is a huge hippopotamus woman and William Earnest is a freaky kid who is afraid of everything.  Gilly plans her escape but is slowly drawn into this strange family.  When rescue finally comes, it’s not quite what Gilly expected.  

Review:  Did you ever feel like life was unfair.  So does Gilly.  Sometimes she handles things well and sometimes not.  But she does her best to take care of herself.  This is a moving story about family, love, and the hardships of real life. 

If you like this book you may also like:  Holes, by Louis Sachar The Bridge to Terabithia by Katherine Paterson

The Whipping Boy by Sid Fleischman

Title:   The Whipping Boy

Author:  Sid Fleischman

Illustrator: Peter Sis

Publisher: Greenwillow Books          Year:  1986

ISBN:  0-688-06216-4

Genre: Fiction/Adventure

This book is for Ages: 8-12

Awards:  Newbery Medal; SLJ Best Book; ALA Notable Book

AR Points:     2.0

Subjects/Themes: Adventure/Robbers and Outlaws/Family Life/Orphans

Plot Summary:  A young orphan boy named Jemmy used to live in the sewers catching rats until he became the Whipping Boy.  Whenever Prince Brat, I mean, Prince Horace is bad Jemmy is whipped.  Jemmy can’t understand why Prince Brat is such a rotten kid.  Prince Brat forces Jemmy to run away with him.  The boys are captured by cutthroat bandits, encounter gigantic roaring bears and seek shelter in the sewer filled with rats. 

Review:   This book is fun and full of adventure.  Prince Brat is a horrible child.   Jemmy doesn’t realize how lucky he is.  They both learn about who they are in this wonderful and wild story.  Sid Fleishman melds humor, adventure and understanding into his story.  The black and white illustrations created by Peter Sis are captivating.

If you like this book you may also like:  Shield of Stars by Hilari Bell, The Mostly True Adventures of Homer P. Figg by W.R. Philbrick, or   The Invention of Hugo Cabret, by Brian Sleznick,

The Schwa was Here by Neal Shusterman

Title:   The Schwa was Here

Author:  Neal Shusterman

Publisher: Puffin Books        Year:  2004

ISBN:  0-525-47182-0

Genre: Realistic Fiction

This book is for Ages: 12-adult

Awards: Horn Book Award; ALA Best Book for Young Adults; ALA Notable Book

 AR Points:     9.0

 Subjects/Themes: Family Life/Friendships/Blindness/Identity

Plot Summary:  Brooklyn Eight-grader Antsy (Anthony Bonano) meets the Schwa, the invisible boy that sits next to him in science class.  The Schwa is real but nobody seems to notice him.   Antsy decides to help the Schwa use his invisibility to their financial benefit.  They charge a fee for feats of invisibility like sneaking papers into the teacher’s correction pile and stealing a dog bowl from the town’s most powerful recluse.  But both boys are looking for something more neither wants to be invisible anymore.

Review:  Do you ever feel invisible?  Shusterman provides insight into the mischievous and sometimes heartbreaking invisible lives of young people.  This book is a quick read that my son and I really enjoyed.  It is a great story with insights about the young person’s search for recognition.

If you like this book you may also like:  Antsy Does Time by Neal Schusterman

Alabama Moon DVD 2009

Title:   Alabama Moon
Publisher: Faulkner-McLean Entertainment Year: 2009
Media: Film
This film is for Ages:  8 and up
Rating: PG
Subjects/Themes: Self Reliance, Trust, Death, Runaways Orphans

Plot Summary:  11-year-old Moon Blake lives in the forests of Alabama with his anti-government father.  When his father is injured and dies Moon is left of his own to travel to Alaska, where his father told him to homestead.  Moon is captured by a mean spirited constable and taken to the local home for boys.  Moon quickly escapes bringing his new friends Kit and Hal along.  The boys run from the constable and begin an adventure in the woods.   The boys encounter trouble and more trouble that tests their friendship and leads Moon to a new life.

Review:  This movie was great fun for a family movie night.  Jimmy Bennett does a good job playing the role of a scared and determined and bewildered boy who is learning the truth about the world in which he lives.  The relationship between Moon and Kit is a strong one that helps explain the transformation of Moon from recluse to a ordinary boy.  While I have not read the book I hope it does a better job of establishing the relationship between Moon and Hal.  Hal does something pretty nice for Moon at the end of the movie and I was disappointed with the consequences Hal suffers as a result.  The movie is a good family movie.  It has a generous touch of  adventure and sadness but like Moon  this movie is always hopeful.

If you like this film you may also like the book Alabama Moon by Watt Key and the Hatchet by Gary Paulsen.

The Higher Power of Lucky, by Susan Patron

Title:   The Higher Power of Lucky

Author:  Susan Patron

Reader:  Cassandra Campbell

Publisher:  Listening Library (Audio unabridged)  Year: 2007

ISBN:  978-0739338797

Media:  Digital Download

Genre: Fiction/Realistic

This book is for Ages: 8-12

Awards:  ALA Notable, Newbery Medal

AR Points: 5.0          

Subjects/Themes: Family Life, Adoption, Death, Hope, Addiction

Plot Summary:  10-year-old Lucky lives in Hard Pan California where the population is 43.  Two years ago, Lucky’s mother died in an accident.  Since then Lucky has learned to carry a survival kit. Brigitte her father’s first wife is Lucky’s guardian.  Bridgitte is homesick for Paris.   Lucky listens in to the Anonymous meetings at the center where she works.  She understands the need for a higher power but just can’t seem to find hers.   Lucky learns secrets about her friends and neighbors, secrets that can hurt people if she tells.  Sometimes Lucky’s meanness gland goes into overdrive.   Lucky is too wrapped up in her own pain to recognize the hurt in others and leads her to rock bottom.

Review:  This is a good book.  It deals with adult issues that many children have to face: the death of a parent, abandonment by a parent, feelings of isolation, and the need to find a reason for hardships of life.  Susan Patron’s characters are well developed.  Miles is a foil for Lucky, a version of her that is slowly being left behind.  He goes through the same changes she does.  Lucky searches for meaning, prayer, and tries to evaluate herself and her morals.  This is a good story.  I am not sure the major themes can be appreciated by all of  the audience for which it was written.

If you like this book you may also like: Lucky Breaks and Lucky for Good also by Susan Patron.

Goose Chase By Patrice Kindl

Title:   Goose Chase

Author:  Patrice Kindl

Publisher: Scholastic Press    Year: 2002 c2001

ISBN:  0-439-52039-8

Genre: Fiction/Fantasy/Adventure

This book is for Ages: 9-12

AR Points: 8.0          

Subjects/Themes: Orphans, Princesses, Geese,

Plot Summary:  14-year-old Alexandria Aurora Fortunata is an orphaned Goose Girl.  Happily having a tea party with her 12 geese when a hungry old hag comes along, Alexandria gives the old woman all her food, just a bit of bread and a little water.  The hag is a witch who casts a spell on Alexandria.  Alexandria is now more beautiful than the dawn.  She has enchanted golden hair complete with gold dust dandruff and her tears are diamonds.  Soon the townspeople find out.  The Prince and neighboring King both want to marry her they lock her in a tower until she decides who she will wed, but Alexandria just wants to be a goose girl.  Can her geese help her escape so she can go back home?  Alexandria embarks on a magical journey with a spectacular ending.

Review:  I enjoyed this book.  Kindl’s small and delicate stitches create a magical story with elements from Rapunzel and the Six Swans.  Alexandria is clever.   Her geese are quick and try to keep her out of trouble.  Kindl’s imaginative use of ordinary objects reminds me of the magical berries that grew in my own backyard when I was a child.  It was always amazing to see what they could do.  Kindl’s story is full of  originality and style.

If you like this book you may also like:  The Fairy’s Mistake, Princess Sonora and the Long Sleep or Ella Enchanted by Gail Carson Levine.  You may also like Dealing with Dragons, by Patricia C. Wrede.

 Text of video:  Welcome everyone.  Today’s video is about Goose Chase by Patrice Kindl  Where “living in a fairy tale isn’t all it’s cracked up to be”.   14-year-old Alexandria Aurora Fortunata is an orphaned Goose Girl.  She is happily having a tea party with her 12 geese.  A hungry old hag comes along so Alexandria gives the old woman all her food, which is just a bit of bread, and a little water.  The hag is really a fairy in disguise who casts an enchantment on Alexandria.  Suddenly Alexandria is more beautiful than the dawn.  She has enchanted golden hair complete with gold dust dandruff,  Alexandria’s tears turn into diamonds.  Soon everyone knows of Alexandria’s enchantment.  The wicked king from the next kingdom, who has a heart like a lump of coal wants to marry her and so does the young, handsome and but boring Prince of her kingdom.  Together they lock her in a tower until she decides which one of them she will marry, but Alexandria just wants to be a goose girl.  With the help of her geese, she manages a high flying escape right into the clutches of an Ogress.  Alexandria embarks on a magical journey full of imagination with a spectacular ending. To find out what happens read goose chase by Patrice Kindl

Bud, Not Buddy by Christoper Paul Curtis

Title:   Bud, Not Buddy

Author:  Christopher Paul Curtis

Publisher: Scholastic Year:  2002 c

ISBN:  0-439-22188-9

Genre: Fiction/Adventure/Historical

This book is for Ages: 8-12

Awards: Newbery Medal; Coretta Scott King Award

AR Points:  8.0 

Subjects/Themes: Family, Finding Your Place in the World,

Plot Summary:  After his mother’s death, Bud Caldwell is shuffled from the orphanage to foster home after foster home.  He finally has his fill of the cruel treatment and abuse.  Bud decides to go “on the lam.”  First he decides to “ride the rails.”   When Bud decides to go to Grand Rapids to find his father he meets a strange man who might be a vampire.  Bud also gets to hear Jazz music when he gets to the club of Herman E. Calloway.  Calloway says he is not Bud’s father and wants to send him away.  Will Bud ever find his family?

Review:  This is a great story.  Bud’s rules and things to remember help him to get through the rough spots in his world.  Bud is ingenious.  His character has all the fears of a 10-year-old on the run.  Bud is courageous.  He takes his control over his life.  While Bud cannot drive a car, he finds a way to steer himself on the right path.   Christopher Paul Curtis’ detailed descriptions are as delicious as sweet potato pie with whipped cream.

If you like this book you may also like:  Elijah of Buxton by Christopher Paul Curtis and Esperanza Rising

Dealing With Dragons, by Patricia C. Wrede

Title:    Dealing with Dragons

Author:  Patricia C. Wrede

Publisher: Magic Carpet Books         Year:  2002

ISBN:  0-15-204566-X (pbk.)

Genre: Fiction, Fantasy,

This book is for Ages: 8-14

AR Points: 8.0

Series: Enchanted Forest Chronicles

Subjects/Themes: Fantasy, Stereotypes, Being true to yourself. Parental expectations.

Plot Summary:  Cimorene is a princess.  The problem is she doesn’t want to be a proper princess.  She is interested in more than embroidery and dancing.  She tries to learn, fencing magic, cooking and Latin, but her parents tell her those things are not for a proper princess.  After her parents decide that she must marry Prince Therandil, Cimorene runs away to become a dragon’s princess. She gets the powerful Dragon Kazul to agree to let her stay and do some cooking, cleaning and organizing.  Cimorene’s life with Kazul is full of adventure.  First she must find a way to keep Prince Therandil and the other knights from trying to rescue her.  Then she needs to find and make a potion that will make her fireproof to dragon’s breath so she doesn’t accidentally get burned.  Finally when the wizards start sneaking around the dragon territory, Cimorene must figure out why and how to stop them.

Review:  Dealing with Dragons offers a twist on the traditional fairy tales where the princess is rescued by the handsome prince.  Cimorene is looking for adventure, not marriage.  She is witty and intelligent.  The dragons are not simply fire breathing monsters. It is fun to recognize the references to popular fairy tales that Wrede incorporates into the story.  An interesting and exciting plot and the variety of magical characters will make you want to read all the books in the Enchanted Forest Chronicles.  I wonder if Cimorene will ever decide to get married.

If you like this book you may also like:  Searching for Dragons, Calling on Dragons, Talking to Dragons all by Patricia C. Wrede; The Paper Bag Princess by Robert N. Munsch and Michael Martchenko.