FERRIS by Kate DiCamillo Ferris by Kate DiCamillo takes a different approach than her usual books. It starts with a family. A family that is not perfect, but they love each other tremendously. Ferris, whose real name is Emma Phineas Wilkey, was born under a Ferris wheel at the local fairgrounds. Experiences that surround her are typically unforgettable and that includes the summer before fifth grade. It was that summer that Uncle Ted and Aunt Shirley split over the fact that he wanted to paint a history of the world and moved into their basement. It was that summer that Grandma Charisse started seeing a ghost that needed help, and Ferris didn't think she was making it up. It was that summer Ferris's little sister (think of a Ramona Quimby type character but to the next level) decided she wanted to be an outlaw, so she attempted to hold up a bank. It was also that summer that Ferris discovered that she could trick bees and raccoons. But I think (so this is me speaking) what Ferris discovered most of all through her summer, is that she could choose to do things that brought people together. There are some very moving parts in Ferris's story, and there are some down right laugh out loud funny parts. And you may have a comment or two on some parenting. HEADS UP- There are two things to talk about here. One is the ghost. It is not a scary ghost. SPOILER ALERT The ghost is the wife of a man that died in war. Before he left, he ordered his wife a chandelier from Paris. She never lit the candles on it when he didn't come home. She regrets it now and wants to see it lit, so he can find his way home. Second is that on two occasions in the story, Ferris is around animals and pretends she isn't there so maybe they won't see her. This gives her an out of body experience where she can see down on her family. The book doesn't tell how she's able to do this. There is no magical element to it. It is a little hard to understand why DiCamillo put it in. It does give Ferris the ability to view her family in their entirety, and it saves her sister's life.

SURVIVNG SAVANNAH by Patti Callahan In Surviving Savannah, author Patti Callahan pens a moving historical fiction based on the true event of the sinking of the steamship the Pulaski. Reminiscent of the sinking of the Titanic, the Pulaski was a luxury boat moving wealthy families from Savannah to Baltimore, so they could escape the sweltering summer heat. When a boiler explodes, the ship quickly becomes a sinking vessel of death which claims the lives of many people including entire families. Similar to the Titanic, there were not enough lifeboats for everyone. The ship sank to the bottom of the ocean along with lots of treasures from the wealthy families and was never found.... until now. Intertwined in this story from the past, is the present day story of Everly Winthrop. Born into a wealthy Savannah family, Everly was raised with the story of the Pulaski. After the wreckage is found, she is asked to help curate the museum display that will tell the story of so many lost lives that still touch the people of Savannah today. She struggles with the weight of this task as she has recently experienced a loss that she can't let go of. HEADS UP- Surprisingly, there is a fair amount of profanity in this book (no F bombs). While the story itself is very good, the added language is so unnecessary that it gives it a feel of being added just to have it. There is also a comment about Everly having someone in her bed.

COLD-CASE CHRISTIANITY FOR KIDS by J. Warner Wallace and Susie Wallace Recently, we finished up Cold-Case Christianity For Kids by J. Warner and Susie Wallace in our family devotions. This book about Christ takes a different approach than typical Christian books do. Authored by a true blue, cold-case detective, J. Warner Wallace treats this like a case that he is reopening to solve. What does he want to know? He wants to know if the story of Christ and what he did is true or false. Wallace takes us through the steps of investigation, gathering evidence, witness testimony, crime scenes, and more. It's a very interesting way to study Christ and what he did for us. Highly recommend!

ELIJAH'S EASTER SUIT by Brentom Jackson. Illustrated by Emmanuel Boateng. Typically Easter Sunday is a day that most people take a little more consideration in their church attire (if that's not you, no shame here!). Spring colored items are pulled out of storage or new clothing shopped for as we prepare to celebrate our risen Lord and the arrival of spring. Elijah's Easter Suit tracks Elijah's search for the perfect outfit. Now, I'm going to put a little pause in here. There is a part of this book that makes me cringe a bit. His desire to do this is because the pastor acknowledges from the pulpit and the church applauds one person who wears something "spectacular." I almost quit the book right there. What kept me going was the remembrance of what his suit looked like on the front cover, so hang on to that picture. Despite searching all over town Elijah cannot find the right suit. When sharing this with some of the older church members they tell him "it's not about winning a competition", but " it's about remembering their culture." These older church elders share about a time they had to make their clothes, because they were not allowed in stores. Armed with this new info, Elijah goes home and collects fabric from memorable people and events in his life and fashions his suit. I think you can guess how the book wraps up from here, but I do want to mention the Author's Notes in the back. He traces the desire to dress up for African Americans back to slave days when Sunday was the only day other clothing could be worn than slave cloth. He goes through segregation when it was difficult to shop in stores and how African Americans overcame the obstacles. Overall it was an interesting look at Easter dress in the African American culture.

MEXIKID: A GRAPHIC MEMOIR by Pedro Martin One of this year's Newberry Honor Award winners, Mexikid: A Graphic Memoir by Pedro Martin, is the true story of the author's family's 2,000 mile return to Mexico to pick up their Grandfather and bring him back to the United States to live with them. Packed in a Winnebago RV, the Martin family, consisting of Apa (Dad), Ama (Mom), and 9 kids, has all the adventures, laugh out loud moments, and moving times you can imagine a family of this size having. Told from the point of view of Pedro/Peter (number 7 of 9), who loves superheroes, gives this story a larger than life feeling, especially since the grandfather they are going to bring back is a former Mexican-Revolutionist with a few tales of his own. The kicker? The story is true and the back of the book is chock full of family photos to prove it. This is a fun read, but there are a couple of bumps to be aware of! HEADS UP- There are a couple profanities. There is a Little Peepee Man. This is a kewpie doll they find at the market that when filled with water, a person can squeeze his hat and he pees. There is some crude humor. Some of it is hilarious. For example the kids that were born in Mexico can handle drinking the raw milk. The ones who were born in the states cannot. When one of the American born kids drinks a drink that has raw milk in it, his older brother grabs him and immediately starts running for the RV, because he knows a serious case of the runs is about to hit him. They have several hilarious names for what happens.

SUGARING TIME by Kathryn Lasky. Photographs by Christopher G. Knight Today we finished up our maple syrup making. The house smelled so delicious in a way a scented candle could never mimic. Recently, I had picked up another picture book on the syrup making process but had pretty well decided I was going to save it for next year. After all, Ohio has been seeing some warmer days, and it felt like the syrup season was passed, until today. Today our temps dipped down and snow flakes fell off and on. Then my husband did the final boil. It was too good an opportunity to pass up. Sugaring Time by Kathryn Lasky won the Newberry Honor in 1984. A photo biography book of the Lacey family and their maple syrup season, Sugaring Time is set in Vermont in the month of March. The black and white pictures take us back to another time when the sap gathering was done by horse and sled. Making syrup is not an easy job especially when done the old fashioned way. It is time intensive, but despite all this it is very rewarding, and this book depicts that well! Sugaring Time is what I refer to as a meaty picture book. There are pictures on every page, but there is a lot of text to go with the pictures.

YOU THE STORY: A WRITER'S GUIDE TO CRAFT THROUGH THE MEMORY Most of us are familiar with Ruta Sepetys' writing. Her amazing ability to write historical fiction in a way that causes us to see the scenes unfolding before us and feel the emotion is incomparable. With these thoughts in mind, how fun it was to discover that she has a book that takes a reader through the art of crafting a story based on their memories. Woven throughout this book are various vignettes from Sepetys' life. From manager of rock and roll groups to a mentor for prison inmates to amazing writer, Sepetys has many moving and hilarious tales she shares. More than one time I laughed out loud while in a group setting reading her stories. So what do you do with a book like this? Really there are a few options. First, the most obvious, if you think about writing or if you do write and want to grow your skills, it's a great read. Second, while it is an instructive book, the little glimpses Sepetys gives us of herself make this a fine book for pleasure reading. Third, I would seriously consider making this a part of my high schooler's writing curriculum for the year. It is well done. HEADS UP- There are a couple of things to be aware of in the book. While she doesn't share a lot of the less than desirable things I'm sure she encountered in the rock and roll world, she does share the story of one performer completely stripping while in a club and bearing all to the world while on stage. She does not go into details about physical descriptions but does let us know that the results were not favorable for this performer. When working with inmates there are a few profanities from the inmate ( no F-bombs). She also talks about the ability she had as a young girl to talk in different voices including a "devil voice" she would use to play tricks on people.

SOPHIE MOUSE: THE CLOVER CURSE by Poppy Green. Illustrated by Jennifer A. Bell This was my latest pick of the Sophie Mouse series, The Clover Curse. If you are just joining us, this darling little series does NOT have to be read in order. I am just picking them up and reading them as they apply to the seasons. I will give you a "heads up" that this one centers around the idea of "luck." Read the review and if it is not a good fit, it is fine to skip this one! I will be continuing to read through them! The Clover Curse is not necessarily a St. Patrick's Day read, but it does have to do with the idea of "good luck." Sophie finds a four leaf clover while out painting one afternoon. Elated she picks it, knowing that it is supposed to bring good luck. What ends up happening is a series of bad luck. When she confides to her friend that she found a four leaf clover and picked it, her friend shares with her a legend that is being passed around school that if you pick four leaf clovers then you are cursed with bad luck. Poor Sophie doesn't know what to do. She throws the four leaf clover away, but is that enough to get the bad luck to stop? SPOILER ALERT While at school a few days later, it comes out that one of the students made up the legend while playing a game with his friend. There never was a curse of bad luck. Sometimes we just have bad days. The book does end with Sophie being back out painting again. Regretting that she threw the clover away, she paints a good luck charm (which means she paints a picture of a four leaf clover).

RUMPELSTILTSKIN retold by Paul O. Zelinsky I know Rumpelstiltskin isn't exactly an Irish tale. In fact, it's German! However, I'm going to add it to my SPRING SERIES BOOKLIST because it centers around the love of GOLD! Most of us are familiar with the tale of Rumpelstiltskin. The poor miller who brags to the king that he has a daughter who can spin straw into gold. The king who can't let an opportunity like that pass. Who takes her home and commands her to spin the straw into gold. The daughter who trades away everything she has including her first born child if the little man who appears will spin the straw into gold for her. So why read a story like this to a child? I do, because it presents a prime opportunity to talk about the cost of lying and the ugliness of greed. Both traits almost cost a young woman her life! It almost cost a young mother her future child. Our character matters in life. Paul O. Zelinsky won the 1987 Caldecott Award for Rumpelstiltskin. The beautiful artwork is rich in jewel tones befitting a tale of royalty and gold.

THIS SEAT'S SAVED by Heather Holleman Some books just hit home. Some books just resonate because most of us have experienced at one time or another what This Seat's Saved by Heather Holleman is all about. Typically, somewhere along the way between middle school and high school you experience a time where friends that you thought were your best friends take another road, and you are left standing in the dust watching their backs retreat in the distance with new friends. No longer are you invited to overnight parties and no longer is a seat saved for you at their lunch table. We've all been there. Elita and Margo were the best of friends until Jr. high started. Now Margo is hanging out with a new group of friends, and Elita isn't even on the outskirts of it. Confused over what is happening, Elita doesn't know how to navigate the changes until a chance encounter with a fox and an older woman's secret about Christ helps her find her way. Even though this book is written about Jr. High, the message is one that will resonate with high schoolers as well. Powerful!

THE BERRY PICKERS by Amanda Peters I have a love for blueberries. We grow them, pick them, eat them, freeze them, and bake with them. All truth be told, my kids get tired of them, but I don't! I love their juicy freshness, and they will forever be a tie to my Michigan grandparents for me. When I saw Amanda Peters' The Berry Pickers while I was perusing the shelves at the bookstore, I snatched it up. The cover artwork alone is captivating, not to mention it combines blueberries, family, and mystery all together and serves up one very engaging story. The book follows a Mi'kmaq family who every year leaves Nova Scotia and heads to Maine to pick berries for a wealthy blueberry farmer, Mr. Ellis. Told from the perspective of the second to youngest child, six- year-old Joe, this hauntingly beautiful story shares the guilt he carries about the disappearance of his youngest sister, 4-year-old Ruthie, from the fields one day. He was the last person to see her and even though he had nothing to do with the disappearance, he cannot let go of the idea that he should have done more. She is gone without a trace. Every year the family returns, they search for Ruthie. Was she taken, was she killed? These are questions that the family wonders for years until ..... That's all the further I'll go. Just be prepared for a book with high emotion, and some good old twists and turns. HEADS UP- Yes, there are two things we have to discuss a moment. One is the language. There is a fair amount in this book including a handful of F-bombs. Second, there are two women who spend a lot of time together. You wonder if there is a relationship and it is not until the end when one of the women is asked about it. She acknowledges it, but talks about the times (1960s-70s) and that they both enjoyed having their own homes and some space. There are no romantic details to the relationship. They are just typically together.

THE DEAD SEA SQUIRRELS; SQUIRRELED AWAY by Mike Nawrocki Squirreled Away is Book 1 in The Dead Sea Squirrels series by Mike Nawrocki (Veggie Tales co-creator). This fun, early chapter book (think Magic Treehouse or Sophie Mouse length) takes kids on an adventure with Michael and Justin who are on an archeological dig with Michael's Dad. Cleverly written with a good dose of humor (they discover petrified squirrels in sea salt), this book deals directly with the act of disobedience and dangerous situations that can occur from not obeying. It is a book that can be a great bridge to important discussions for parents to have with their kids. Be sure and see the end notes where some great info is given about the Dead Sea Scrolls. Oh, by the way, the squirrels may not be as petrified as Michael thought!