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Guardians of the Gryphon’s Claw by Todd Calgi Gallicano , 373 pages.  Delacorte (Random), 2017.  $17. Language: G; Mature Content: G; Violence: G (some violence, without being graphic) BUYING ADVISORY:  EL, MS - ADVISABLE AUDIENCE APPEAL: AVERAGE Sam London has been dreaming about a gryphon – over and over.  When he pursues the dream to Death Valley, he finds not only a gryphon, but gets involved with a whole secret world of what he thought were mythical creatures.  With Dr. Vance Vantana, Sam sets off on adventure to save the Gryphon’s Claw – the object that stops most humans from seeing magical creatures – from the evil creatures who want to rule over humans.   Sam’s first adventure is a whole lot of fun.  And danger. Kids who like Brandon Mull or Chris Colfer will also enjoy this. Cindy, Middle School Librarian, MLS

Mist, Metal, and Ash (Ink, Iron, and Glass #2) by Gwendolyn Clare , 336 pages.  Imprint (Macmillan), Feb 2019.  $19 Language: PG-13 (33 swears, 0 ‘f’); Mature Content: G; Violence: PG-13 (some blood and bodies) BUYING ADVISORY:  MS - ADVISABLE AUDIENCE APPEAL: AVERAGE Elsa and the others were left behind and betrayed when Leo went off with his brother Aris and the edit book.  While Elsa’s heart hurts, she is determined to regain control of the editbook; if Aris learns how to use it, he and Garibaldi could destroy all the worlds. As she leaves on the hunt, she doesn’t realize that she is leaving the children in danger – something is wrong with Casa, too. Things get a bit more complicated in the second book of the series.  Not unexpected, of course.  Elsa spends her whole time trying to thwart Aris and Garibaldi and she unearths more complications.  I am wondering about the purpose of Casa going off the rails – hopefully that will weave in during the 3 rd book. Cindy, Middle School Libr

She Dared: Malala Yousafzai by Jenni L. Walsh, 128 pages.  Scholastic, 2019.  $7.   Content: Language: G; Mature Content: G; Violence: PG.   B UYING ADVISORY: EL, MS – ADVISABLE   AUDIENCE APPEAL: AVERAGE    Malala lived in Pakistan with her parents and two brothers.  She dreamed of becoming a doctor and loved everything to do with school.  When the Taliban leaders start to infringe on the rights of the people in her community, Malala starts to speak out against the oppression.  She is targeted by the Taliban and shot while taking the bus home from school.  She received medical care in England and has used her experience to try and bring attention to the needs of girls around the world.   This is a great succinct biography about Malala’s life.  I especially enjoyed the ending that includes all the ways that she has reached out and helped since this experience.  Her story is inspiring and courageous and this version of the story is well done without being scary.   C. Peterson

Jane Austen: Her Heart Did Whisper by Manuela Santoni , 95 pages. GRAPHIC NOVEL. Graphic Universe (Lerner), 2016.  Language: G (0 swears); Mature Content: PG; Violence: G. BUYING ADVISORY: MS, HS - ADVISABLE  AUDIENCE APPEAL: AVERAGE This is the story of Jane Austen’s family dynamics, the discovery of her writing talents, and her romantic experiences. This graphic novel hinges on the axis of her relationship with Mr. Lefroy, who enters Jane’s life as an arrogant character. Jane falls in love with him, and he her. When he leaves town, they continue corresponding and get engaged, but when Jane visits him after their time apart she realizes she does not love him anymore. This relationship is suggested to inform much of her writing.  I want to love anything that even mentions Jane Austen, but this was only okay for me. I thought the lack of color, all the illustrations are black and white, was a little monotonous and boring given the high emotions of the story. It is interesting to learn

Deceiver’s Heart by Jennifer Nielsen , 384 pages.  Scholastic, Feb 2019.  $18 Language: G; Mature Content: G; Violence: PG-13 (fighting) BUYING ADVISORY:  MS - ADVISABLE AUDIENCE APPEAL: AVERAGE Kestra accepted her role as the Infidante and tried to use the Olden Blade to kill Lord Endrick. When her plan fails, Endrick takes her memories to warp her into his puppet.  When she is again kidnapped by the Coracks, she has no idea who she was, nor who Simon is to her.  In order to restore her memories, she must dare to claim her magic.  But if she does, then she will lose Simon forever. Things get quite complicated in this second book.  I must admit I felt betrayed when Endrick took Kestra’s memories.  I know Kestra couldn’t just kill Endrick in the first chapter, but it felt like a trick.  I think I just have to accept that the magic and the danger takes a back seat to the romance - very convoluted romance. Cindy, Middle School Librarian, MLS

The Creepy Case Files of Margo Maloo: The Monster Mall  (Margo Maloo, #2) by Drew Weing , 120 pages.  GRAPHIC NOVEL  First Second (Macmillan), 2018.  $16.   BUYING ADVISORY: EL, MS – ADVISABLE   AUDIENCE APPEAL: HIGH    Charles is fairly new to Echo City, but what he has learned of the place is that there are monsters hiding throughout the city and not many people know they are there.  Charles had to get help from Margo Maloo for a problem he was having in his own home and ever since he has decided that he wants to alert all the kids in Echo City of the monsters in their midst.  Margo agrees to let him shadow her as she mediates between the humans and the monsters, so that Charles can get information to share with others so that everyone can get along.  Charles and Margo concentrate on the abandoned mall that has a lair of vampires.   What a fun read! Margo is a capable character who is cloaked in mystery and Charles is a cute nerd who is being introduced to this new way of looking at

In the Key of Nira Ghani by Natahsa Deen , 304 pages.  Running Press Teens, April 2019.  $18. Language: PG-13 (22 swears, 0 ‘f’); Mature Content: G; Violence: G BUYING ADVISORY:  MS, HS - ADVISABLE AUDIENCE APPEAL: AVERAGE Nira is barely making it through high school, with only Emily as her friend and Georgia, her pocket trumpet, as solace.  But things are changing – Noah, the local BMOC, and McKenzie, Nira’s chief tormentor, are horning in on the duo for some reason.  Even Farrah, her rich, stuck-up cousin, seems to be hanging around more. Between rocky friendships and the weight of her family’s expectations, Nira turns more to her music, but there is a chance for disaster. I like Nira quite a lot. Nira’s story is similar to many other previous stories about kids whose parents don’t want to leave any room for them to grow up and away and friendships that can – sometimes in good ways and sometimes away from each other. Who I don’t like is the jazz band teacher at her school – he is cal

The Perfect Secret by Rob Buyea , 364 pages. Delacourt Press, 2018. $16.99.  Language: PG (1 swear, 0 'f'); Mature Content: G; Violence: PG.  BUYING ADVISORY: MS - ADVISABLE  AUDIENCE APPEAL: AVERAGE  The kids from The Perfect Score are back for their 7th grade year. This year is all about secrets; everyone has secrets: Gavin is finally playing football, but the coach has something against him and won’t let him play - Gavin tells everyone football is great, but Scott knows otherwise - Scott’s football experience is also not as expected, he is terribly bullied by other team members. Randi has been invited to an elite gymnastics camp where she meets an unexpected relative. Natalie wants to get Mrs. Woods and Mrs. Magenta back together - but she’s been told their problems are a secret so this is harder than she anticipated. And Trevor . . . Brian has moved out, but Trevor is afraid Brian is headed for big trouble.  Buyea has written another engaging story, well told through th

Eleanor Roosevelt: Fighter for Justice by Ilene Cooper , 184 pages. NON-FICTION. Abrams, 2018. $18. Language: G (0 swears); Mature Content: PG; Violence: G. BUYING ADVISORY: MS - ADVISABLE  AUDIENCE APPEAL: AVERAGE This book covers the span of Eleanor Roosevelt’s life, with a focus in the second half of the book on her activities toward equality. As a youth, Eleanor experienced the deaths of many close to her, including both her parents and a sibling, as well as a transient lifestyle, moving from house to house. In her later years she battled against the prejudice of her youth by educating herself about the state of disadvantaged populations - women, children, immigrates, and people of color.  I appreciated the balance in this book, in that the author was honest about the racist things Eleanor had done, but explained how she moved past old beliefs and educated herself on compassion and representation. The book does go in to limited details on Eleanor’s husband’s affair, which may be a

Rickety Stitch and the Gelatinous Goo : The Middle-Route Run by Ben Costa and James Parks 208 pages GRAPHIC NOVEL Alfred A. Knopf 2018 $20.99. Language: PG (2 swears 0 'f'); Mature Content: G; Violence: PG (sword play, battles)  BUYING ADVISORY: MS - ESSENTIAL  AUDIENCE APPEAL: HIGH   Rickety Stitch is captured by a witch who uses his skeleton arm to reanimate what turns out to be the minion of the Gloom King - bad idea. The witch restores Rickety's arm with a different one - so he's got that skeleton's memories and an arm that digs and digs and digs. Now, this arm has a mind of its own and has dug it's way into another adventure, as Rickety and Goo search for more clues about what happened to them and why he is a walking, talking skeleton.  Another grand adventure! No mature content in this one, just great battles, surprise villains and heroes and another fine mess for Rickety and Goo. Includes an appendix with a link to listen to the songs online and a descri

The Greatest Treasure Hunt in History: The Story of the Monuments Men by Robert M. Edsel , 368 pages. NON-FICTION. Scholastic Focus, January 2019.  $19. Language: G; Mature Content: G; Violence: PG (some deaths, not descriptive) BUYING ADVISORY:  HS – OPTIONAL, ADULTS - ADVISABLE AUDIENCE APPEAL: HS – LOW; ADULTS – HIGH Near the end of World War II a special, though very small group of people worked frantically to find and save priceless art throughout Europe.  They not only needed to try to save it from damage, but also find the secret stashes that Nazi looters left all over. As an adult, I found this fascinating reading – I wish I had read it before my first trip to Europe so that I could even more appreciate the works of art I saw.  The writing is not great; Edsel tries so hard to keep things chronological that he jumps from person to person all over Europe – making things a bit confusing.  Only die hard WWII junkies will want to read this, though it has plenty of information to ac

Rickety Stitch and the Gelatinous Goo : The Road to Epoli by Ben Costa and James Parks , 208 pages. GRAPHIC NOVEL Alfred A. Knopf 2017 $14.99. Language: G (0 swears, 0 'f'); Mature Content: PG; Violence: PG  BUYING ADVISORY: MS - ADVISABLE  AUDIENCE APPEAL: HIGH  Rickety Stitch is a minstrel. He is also a "living skeleton" with a mind of his own - very unlike the other skeletons who work in the mines. When he and his friend the Gelatinous Goo are fired from their job in the torture chamber, Rickety goes on a quest, to find out who he really is (or was for that matter).  A little mature for elementary (some of the humor is a bit crude, but not too much for middle school) this delightful story is sure to be picked up in your library. Rickety dreams about a song which the reader can download online to hear the tune and enhance the reading experience. An appendix of sorts gives more detail about the characters and possible storylines for future installments. I'm

Odd One Out: Fiendishly Tricky Spot-the-difference Puzzles to Boggle your Brain . PICTURE BOOK. Penguin Workshop, 2018. $10. 97815247900882 BUYING ADVISORY: EL (K-3), EL, MS - ADVISABLE AUDIENCE APPEAL: HIGH This book includes a variety of different visual searches - sometimes you are looking for matching illustrations, something you are looking for the smallest illustration, sometimes you are looking for the odd-ones-out, and so forth. Each search also contains a fun fact about the item you are searching for and through.  This book is deceptively hard. My kids kept picking it up with confidence because the illustrations are so cutesy, but were repeatedly surprised how hard they had to look at and study the pictures. This is the perfect book in small doses. I loved the simple addition of the facts included with each puzzle. Did you know that “when it drizzles on a sunny day in Hawaii, locals call it ‘pineapple juice?’”   Jen Wecker, HS English Teacher

Neverworld Wake by Marissa Pessl , 336 pages. Delacorte Press, 2018.  $14. Language: PG (2 swears); Mature Content: PG-13;  Violence: PG-13 BUYING ADVISORY: HS – ADVISABLE.  AUDIENCE APPEAL: HIGH A year after her boyfriend's untimely death, in an attempt to understand what happened, Beatrice reconnects with her former best friends. After a raucous night out, and a harrowing car crash they are trapped in a never-ending loop of the same 24 hours. The only way out is for the five of them to agree on one person who will live to see the next day. Magical realism at its finest. This book is trippy in the truest sense of the word. I really enjoyed the pacing as well as the way the characters developed, it had all the existential crises of a New Adult book without the superfluous cursing or sex. Really interesting ideas about existence and growth as well as the secrets we keep from those we are closest to. Catherine, Library Teacher

Cook’s Cook: The Cook who Cooked for Captain Cook by Gavin Bishop .  PICTURE BOOK.  Gecko Press, 2018.  $18. 9781776572045 BUYING ADVISORY: EL, MS - ADVISABLE AUDIENCE APPEAL: AVERAGE In 1768 James Cook one ship and 94 men to search for a giant continent south of New Zealand.  When they returned home in 1771, 56 men were still alive. Cook’s cook, John Thompson, had to be thrifty, ingenious, and pragmatic to cook for so many men for such a long period of time. Unfortunately Thompson didn’t not live to see England again. A great way to show students how long travel used to take place and what life might be like on a sailing vessel.  Be warned -- they do talk a couple of times about eating dog and also kangaroo.  Unfortunately there is no back matter to help you with further research, nor to know how perfectly true the narrative is. A bad oversight indeed. Cindy, Middle School Librarian

Charlotte’s Bones: The Beluga Whale in a Farmer’s Field by Erin Rounds , illustrated by Alison Carver . NONFICTION PICTURE BOOK.  Tilbury House, 2018.  $18.  9780884484851 BUYING ADVISORY: EL, MS - ADVISABLE AUDIENCE APPEAL: AVERAGE As the ice age ended, the now fields of Vermont were covered by a massive inland ocean.  When one Beluga whale got caught in the grassy marshes, she was left behind as her pod swam away.  Left to discovered in a farmer’s field in 1849. What a great introduction to the fossil record, archaeology, the Ice Age, or many other topics.  I will be sharing this with my middle school science teachers to see who needs it for their classroom use for sure. Cindy, Middle School Librarian

Extreme Longevity: Discovering Earth’s Oldest Organisms by Karen Latchana Kenney , 91 pages. Twenty-First Century Books (Lerner Publishing Group), 2019. $30 Content: G  BUYING ADVISORY: MS, HS – ADVISABLE AUDIENCE APPEAL: AVERAGE Kenney introduces readers to several species of animals and plants according to how long their lives are. Some of these species live as long as humans, and some will live 5 or 100 times longer than humans do. These amazing organisms open a whole new world, and we have a lot that we can learn. I really enjoyed reading this book because it made learning fun through story telling. Kenney mixes facts with stories in such a way as to keep the interest of her readers, and she also defines words that younger readers might not be as familiar with. The best part is that Kenney uses the researchers and explorers in the book to inspire readers to look at the world with new eyes, to discover and be curious. Reviewer: Carolina Herdegen

Jolly Foul Play by Robin Stevens , 347 pages. Simon and Schuster Inc., 2016. $18. Language: G; Mature Content: PG (some LGBT content); Violence: PG BUYING ADVISORY: MS - ADVISABLE AUDIENCE APPEAL: AVERAGE It’s a new school year and Daisy and Hazel are back with three successful cases solved ready for new adventures and to see old friends.  Unfortunately, the new year isn’t starting out all that great. The head girl, Elizabeth, is is not a nice person, and she has her followers, the Five, keeping the other girls in line, which means a lot of yelling, intimidating, and terrorizing.  On the night of the annual bonfire, there is music, food, and games plus a much needed break after the stress of the first few weeks of school. The evening comes to a halt when Elizabeth is found dead. Once again Daisy and Hazel have a mystery to solve, and it appears that someone at the school is responsible, probably one of the Five.  With the help of their dorm mates, the Wells and Wong Detective Society

Lincoln in His Own Words by Milton Meltzer, illustrated by Stephen Alcorn, 221 pages.  Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 1993 (reprint 2018).  $13.  Content: Language: G; Mature Content: G; Violence: G.   BUYING ADVISORY: MS, HS – ADVISABLE   AUDIENCE APPEAL: LOW   This is a biography of Abraham Lincoln told with a mixture of the author’s explanations and Lincoln’s own words.  From the time Lincoln was little, he was interested in understanding the world around him.  He was a humanitarian and lawyer and he loved his country.  During his presidency, Lincoln tried to keep the country together during the Civil War and fought for slaves’ freedom.  In these moving speeches Lincoln’s goodness and passion for what is right becomes evident.   This is a slow read with lots of interesting facts and great quotes.  I think this book would work well in a classroom where the teacher can concentrate on specific quotes (not necessarily the whole book at one time) and have the students study history from Lin

Zombie Cross-Stitch by Kristy Kizzee and Erika Kern , 63 pages.  Thunder Bay Press, 2018.  $20. 9781684124121 BUYING ADVISORY:  GIFT - ADVISABLE AUDIENCE APPEAL: AVERAGE All the materials you need for 12 zombie-related projects (Except I don’t think there is enough canvas)! I would have rated this an ESSENTIAL gift, but the booklet is teeny – In order to really use it, you will have to blow the cross-stitch pages up larger.  I love the touch of not only including the patterns, but also a “one step further” for each craft, with a suggestion of where to use the completed piece (baby bid, pillow, coffee cozy, etc.) Cindy, Middle School Librarian, MLS