THINGS IN THE BASEMENT by Ben Hatke Things in the Basement by Ben Hatke is not just a fall read. However, I have put it here for those of you who enjoy a little thrill and chill this time of year! The idea of Things in the Basement is brilliant. It is a graphic novel that encompasses just about every child's thoughts of their basement and the unknowns that could exist there. Thinking back I'm pretty sure all my kids went through a stage where they refused to go in the basement by themselves. Hatke understands and brings this childhood fear to life. In the novel we are introduced to Milo. One of Milo's infant twin sister's socks is missing. His mother sends him into the basement of the home they have just moved into to find it. What starts out as a trip to a traditional dark, dank basement quickly turns out to be quite the journey. Milo discovers that his basement is actually a series of rooms, chambers, and caverns. During his search for the missing sock, he encounters a skull, the ghost of a young woman (who has been searching for her missing sock for years), a green jelly monster that gobbles up everything in its path, strange little mushroom guys, a one-eyed octopus, and more. It is a long quest that will test Milo's bravery, develop perseverance, and help him understand what it means to be a friend (even to some unique creatures). We also find out where all the missing socks in the world go! HEADS UP- As mentioned before there is a skull, ghost, and other unique creatures that take the trip with Milo. He is asked if he is a wizard due to some of his traveling companions. The one part that bothers me a bit is when they enter into a Gothic-styled church. There is some type of woman there who is obviously a sort of caretaker of the church. She also has goats. She is dressed like a nun, but she has no face. Where her features should be is a cross. One of her goats is missing. The goat has a very unique name - Ibn Battuta. The real Ibn Battuta was a Muslim who lived in the 1300s. He was quite the traveler which fits this goat. There are some objects in the church and in this book that I wish I knew more about. They are a little odd and although I hate making assumptions, I get the feeling that Hatke is purposeful behind what he draws into his pictures. I looked for interviews to see if he discusses it at all, but not yet. After the book is out for awhile maybe we'll know more about it. Hatke does thank the National Gallery of Art for their "inspiration" and also database of open-license pieces that he uses in his work in his acknowledgements.

A GIFT FOR NANA by Lane Smith Grandparents can hold special places in the hearts of their grandchildren. A Gift for Nana by Lane Smith is the super sweet story of a little rabbit who wants more than anything to find the perfect gift for his Nana. It is not her birthday, it is not a holiday. He desires to bless her for who she is to him. So he sets out on his quest. This beautiful picture book is packed full of great action verbs, descriptive adjectives, and a few similes that make it a fun lesson for older kids as well! Smith is a two time Caldecott winner. This book does not disappoint in the illustrations area! Using a mix of gesso, oils, and cold wax yet drawn with an Apple pencil in Procreate, this book is delightful to the eyes!

THE LABORS OF HERCULES BEAL by Gary D. Schmidt The Labors of Hercules Beal by Gary D. Schmidt is an absolutely brilliant read! It is one of my TOP PICKS for the year, but it does come with a little warning, so make sure you read the HEADS UP section. Hercules Beal doesn't live up to his name. He's a scrawny little middle schooler, but that's not the biggest of his problems. His parents recently died in a car crash and his older brother, Achilles, has come home to run the family nursery/greenhouse business. On top of it all, he's starting in a new school and one of his teachers is a retired Lieutenant Colonel from the military. To make matters worse, Lieutenant Colonel Hupfer is assigning each student a Greek Mythology project, and Hercules's project is to consider each of the mythological Hercules's 12 Labors he had to perform as they might be done today and then write a follow up paper reflecting on each labor. Unexpectedly, life dishes Hercules Beal his own set of labors to overcome that will leave you laughing, crying, cheering, and so much more! Schmidt's idea in the creation of this book is absolute genius! HEADS UP- There is 1 cuss word in the book early on. There is what I would call crassness where the word "jerkface" is used often. Stay with me on this next one a moment - Hercules thinks his brother's girlfriend might be a vampire. She isn't. The book never refers to her as goth or emo even. She is a beautiful person who is a medical student. I almost get the feeling that Hercules is sorting through his pain and she gets labeled in the process. They deal head on with the vampire thing in the end.

BEFORE THE EVER AFTER by Jacqueline Woodson Fall = Football, right? Jacqueline Woodson brings us an absolutely wonderful, but highly emotional sports story, in Before the Ever After. ZJ's dad is a famous football player. Everyone knows him. Everyone loves him. But recently he hasn't been himself. He's dealing with debilitating headaches, he loses his temper easily which is very uncharacteristic, and his memory is shot. There are times he can't remember his closest friends' names. It's dumbfounding. How is this even possible? ZJ's dad has always been superman - invincible. After visiting multiple doctors, the consensus is all the concussions he's experienced over his career are now taking a toll on him. The question ZJ finds himself wondering is is this the new forever for his dad? Read past the next sentence I am going to tell you. This book is written in non rhyming verse. BUT it doesn't read like poetry, it reads like a story. Don't be afraid of it for your kids even if they typically dislike verse. The verse set up gives the book a very focused and extra emotional push due to the limited word choice that probably wouldn't happen the same way in a traditional chapter book. This book is fantastic, and I highly recommend it!

OCTOBER, OCTOBER by Katya Balen October, October by Katya Balen is the story of October, an 11-year-old girl who lives off the grid with her dad in the woods outside of London, England. Named after the month she was born, October and her father love the solitude, the wonder of nature (October rescues an owlet who becomes her constant companion), and the idea of living off the land. October's mother is still alive. She lived the secluded life with them once but hit a point, when October was young, when she couldn't handle the lifestyle anymore. She packed up to move back to London. Trying to take October with her, October, as a toddler, fought not wanting to leave her wooded home. Her mother agreed to leave her in the surroundings she loved so much with her father. Since then, October has held a bitter spot in her heart towards her mother for leaving. Every time her mother comes and visits she runs away and hides. One of these times her father follows her and climbs the tree October has hid herself in. He ends up falling from the tree and is hospitalized for a long time. While she waits to find out if her father will recover, October has no choice but to move to London with her mother. Everything is loud and stinky and she struggles with it all. (Think of a modern day Jungle Book story.) In the middle of it all is the fact that the city is no place for her precious owlet HEADS UP- SPOILER ALERT October has a very vivid imagination. She is constantly making up stories. She has some special rocks that she does deem her healing rocks and she leaves them with her dad in his hospital room. The book never gives credit to the rocks for the recovery her father makes. It honestly felt like a child giving something that is important to her to her injured father. This story is a story of redemption and forgiveness within a relationship. While the family never comes back together as a unit, they remain committed to each other. I really fell in love with this story while reading it. It is complicated and a bit messy. October is coming from the wild and has never been around society. She melts down and screams on many occasions. There is a lot of bitterness. At one point she whispers that she hates her mom and her mom hears it. But then there is a turning point. A bridge begins to form and a terrible accident leads to healing in more ways than one!

A WALK IN THE WOODS by Nikki Grimes. Illustrated by Jerry Pinkney and Brian Pinkney. Wow, I have been reading some lovely fall books the past few days! The first one I'm going to share is a picture book titled A Walk in the Woods written by Nikki Grimes and illustrated by Jerry Pinkney and Brian Pinkney. (More on our illustrators in a minute!) A Walk in the Woods is not specific to the fall season. However, it has to do with death and time spent in the woods. This moving picture book opens up with a boy looking in the mirror at himself. He is angry, because it's his father's eyes staring back at him, his father that has just recently died and been buried. Opening a letter that his dad left for him, the boy is sent on a walk in the woods to seek something his father hid for him. The woods are a special place where the two of them spent a lot of time together, so the boy is not looking forward to entering this hallowed space. But this place is exactly where the boy needs to go. If you are not familiar with the wonderful illustrative work of Jerry Pinkney, you will want to be. His work is amazing. A Walk in the Woods is impressive as well, but not in Pinkney's usual style. Jerry Pinkney actually passed away during the illustrating of this book. He completed all of the tight sketches for the manuscript. Jerry's son, Brian Pinkney, who is also an illustrator was asked to finish the work. (How interesting is that when the entire theme of the book deals with loss, specifically that of a son losing his father.) The pictures are swirly and not as defined as usual as you can see from the front cover. This gives the book an air of the loss and mixed up feelings we often encounter after losing a loved one.

THE SILMARILLION by J.R.R. Tolkien I really enjoy Tolkien. I love the richness of his stories and the beauty of his words. The world that he created is beyond astounding. I open his books, and I am whisked away to rugged landscapes - dense woods, craggy mountains, and in some places complete desolation. Man, elves, orcs, dwarves, etc. whisk past me as adventures abound. Swords clash. Arrows whizz. The sound rings out as light tries to push back the always encroaching darkness. This is Tolkien to me. However, I am not a Tolkienite or a Ringer as some of the most devoted fans are known. I cannot, for the life of me, keep all the stories and people straight! If you happen to be one, forgive me if I make a bumble of this post. In spite of this, I find immense delight in Tolkien's works. The Silmarillion is a collection of origins stories. Where did everything come from? How was Middle Earth created along with the characters we love so much? How did the rings come into existence? How did Morgoth become evil? Where does Sauron come in? This book is full of lineages and the stories that set the stage for The Lord of the Rings. The Silmarillion is what I refer to as a "dense" book. It is packed tight with names, places, and adventures. Thankfully, in the back, there is a handy index for reference if needed! HEADS UP- There is one story where unbeknownst to them, a brother and sister marry. They are devastated when they find out. Suicide does occur.

JESUS FREAKS / FOXE'S BOOK OF MARTYRS I am loving my son's history this year! We are doing American History but studying what our founding fathers looked back to in history and what they had personally come out of. Recently we were reading about Bloody Mary and read some writings by John Foxe. It was time to introduce my son to martyrs in history. I pulled out my copy of DC Talk's Jesus Freaks co-written with The Voice of the Martyrs (There is an updated version, and I have it on order) and a copy of Foxe's Book of Martyrs. Both books are collections of individual stories about people giving their lives or suffering greatly for their beliefs. After reading Jesus Freaks for a couple of days he came back to me and shared with me how very interesting the book is. (I can't really use the word "enjoying" when describing this book.) Today he is encountering a different type of hero than the ones our culture typically celebrates.

GOLDEN DELICIOUS: A CINDERELLA APPLE STORY by Anne Egan Smucker. Illustrated by Kathleen Kemly Anyone familiar with the Tamarack in Beckley, West Virginia? It's a favorite stopping place of ours when we travel south. I came across this wonderful story in their book area! Golden Delicious: A Cinderella Story by Anna Egan Smucker is a fun, nonfiction, picture book that tells the story of the unexpected discovery of the first Golden Delicious apple tree. A farmer named Anderson Mullins was inspecting his new farm and found the tree thriving in the middle of the orchard during a time when the rest of the apple trees were shriveling up. Mullins sent a Golden Delicious apple to a pair of brothers famous for selling apples and always on the hunt for a new variety to offer. This began the journey of the Golden Delicious to its well known status that it holds to this day. Oh, by the way, every Golden Delicious apple is a descendant from the original tree found in WV. Be sure and check out the author's wonderful notes at the end! ALONGSIDE ACTIVITIES- We have to have a few great activities to go along with this book! Even though we don't see as many yellow varieties in the grocery stores as red, there are a few available sometimes such as the Jonagold and Crispin. See if you can get your hands on a couple and compare their taste to the Golden Delicious. If you can't find yellow varieties, use red and green apples to compare to the Golden Delicious. How about making a clay golden apple? This craft is tied to Greek Mythology which you could certainly jump into, or you could just make your own apple! Note what they use for their paint colors. You can use this formula to come up with a "gold" look or you may want to choose some yellow varieties to blend your own! https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&opi=89978449&url=https://kidsactivitiesblog.com/244533/clay-greek-mythology-golden-apple-craft/&ved=2ahUKEwjR86zohbeBAxW7FlkFHQbtBxgQFnoECBYQAQ&usg=AOvVaw1wA9FYL-8tTvn0kTtTtJpW

WHERE THE RED FERN GROWS by Wilson Rawls When I think of fall Where the Red Fern Grows by Wilson Rawls is a book that comes to my mind. It's not because this book only takes place in the fall. It doesn't. The book follows a season of a boy named Billy's life. Growing up dirt poor in the Ozark Mountains, he desires more than anything to own a pair of hunting dogs, coon dogs to be exact, and to hunt. He works and saves his money until he is able to reach his goal, and he purchases a pair of redbone coon dogs he names Dan and Little Ann. Shhhh- do you hear that? The sound of crunching leaves and baying dogs on the scent of a coon in the distance? Look! A swinging light dances between the trees as Billy follows his dogs on the trail. Coons best beware of this trio! You cannot help but fall in love with Billy and his dogs. Good adventures happen that far exceed Billy's dreams, but with the good comes some devastating tragedy. HEADS UP- There is loss of life in this book through a horrible accident. There is also a small amount of language. P.S. The picture on the front of my copy is terrible! It looks like a redbone and a blue tick on the front instead of just redbones.

TWO DEGREES by Alan Gratz I was reading this book at just the right time. Sitting outside, cooking in 90 degree weather a couple weeks ago (that's hot for us Ohioans), gave me a slight feeling of the forest fire I was reading about. Two Degrees is a different type of Alan Gratz book. This one focuses on climate change instead of a historical atrocity. You follow three stories. The book opens with a girl, Akira, and her father out on a horseback ride in the woods of California. They are aware that there is a wildfire a little ways away but feel that it would never reach them. They are in for the scariest surprise of their lives when the wildfire does catch up to them, and they are surrounded by the blaze. The second story follows two best friends, Owen and George. They live in far north Canada where polar bears make their home. They are set to spend a weekend away together at an ice fishing cabin. The trip turns into a race for survival when they encounter a polar bear. The third story tracks Natalie who lives in Miami, Florida. Miami is encountering a hurricane that is destroying homes left and right and claiming lives in its wake. Gratz is a master storyteller. He leaves you hooked with each switching of the story to one of the other kids and their disaster. However... HEADS UP- If you are someone who believes that the earth goes through cycles versus climate change, this book scoffs at you. I think one of my biggest objections is how the kids have things figured out, and the adults look stupid because they don't believe in climate change. There is loss of life. Cars are left behind with people burned to death in the forest fire, drownings happen in the flooding. There are no details of the happenings, but people are found deceased and not in good condition. The last thing I want to mention is some crass humor. The book goes through spurts of situations where the boys call each other "ice holes" and other similar types of verbage.

REVOLUTIONARY WAR BOOKS A few more Revolutionary War time period books. Kendra shared in the comments of the previous post about Johnny Tremain being a favorite at their home. I agree! I pulled a few more books that we have read over the years.