SCARLET by Melissa Meyer YA - Book 2 of the Lunar Chronicles by Marissa Meyer, Scarlet, has an element of gruesomeness. If you haven't read Book 1, Cinder, this post has some SPOILERS in it!! Cinder (Cinderella) is on the run from evil Lunar Queen, LeVana. Enter Scarlet, our modern Little Red Riding Hood. Scarlet's grandmother was a part of a secret mission that protected Cinder when she was a child. Queen LeVana has put together an army that is a cross between Lunar men and hybrid wolves, soldiers that will stop at nothing to fulfill their mission of takeover and capturing Cinder. What does Scarlet have to do with this? She holds the info they need to locate the missing Cinder. HEADS UP- What makes this book a bit gruesome is the hybrid Lunar/wolf soldiers. When they kill they tend to resort to ripping throats out like a wolf would. This happens 3-4 times.

LITTLE BRITCHES by Ralph Moody Little Britches: Father and I Were Ranchers is an excellent autobiography by Ralph Moody. I love the opening sentence. "I never really knew Father very well till we moved to the ranch on the Fort Logan- Morrison road, not far from Denver." From here we launch into the story of 8-year-old Ralph and his family leaving the city life for a life on a ranch due to his father's health concerns. What follows is a series of Ralph's adventures and how he grows and matures through them. Some stories are funny. Some are heartbreaking. Ranching is not an easy life, and because of this readers are pulled in and develop a deep respect for Ralph. Very well written. HEADS UP- One of the neighbors tends to put a few swear words in when he talks.

FAIRY TALE RETELLINGS YA Cinderella retellings- If you have older girls like I do, they never grow out of the magic of fairy tales. What's not to love about overcoming hardship, wrongs righted, balls, fairy godmothers, and sigh the prince! Recently I picked up a new retelling by Melissa De La Cruz. Cinder and Glass puts its own spin on things in that Cendrillon (Cinderella) doesn't fall in love with the crown prince, but his brother. Unfortunately, I quit this book because there were several parts of the book dedicated to Cedrillon's stepsister who is gay. All truth be told, I flipped to the end of the book, because even at my age you want to know if Cendrillon ends up with a fairy tale "Happily Ever After" ending. (I'm not telling!) So, I went on the hunt through our shelves to find a couple replacements. My girls had read the two books I found, but I hadn't. Since they are both away at college, I had to sit down and enjoy some more fairy tales! The first one I read was Before Midnight by Cameron Dokey. What makes this retelling unique is the stepmother is not the nasty adult in Cendrillon's (Cinderella's) life. Someone else is! It really takes a little getting used to when the stepmother and stepsisters are helping her. This retelling is well-written and clean! The second retelling is Cinder: The Lunar Chronicles by Marissa Meyer. I am not typically a sci-fi person, but this book hooked me. Cinder is a cyborg who has very little recollection of her past. That past, however, has a lot to do with Earth's future and a certain Prince Kai. Told in an Asian futuristic setting, don't expect to have all your questions answered in one book. Lunar Chronicles covers 4 main books, a bridge book, and a novella. As the series continues more fairy tale characters are put in the limelight. The first book does contain 2 d***s. Other than that it's a good read.

CODE OF HONOR by Alan Gratz Back to Alan Gratz! My husband and son are tearing through his books. They finish one and into my pile it goes with a "You've got to read this!" Code of Honor is not your standard Gratz book. Typically Gratz will take a historical event and write a fictional story around it. In Code of Honor, the Smith family is rocked to the core when their son Dairus, a West Point graduate and U.S. Army Ranger, is accused of being a terrorist. Told from the view of younger high school brother, Kamran, this family is ripped to shreds in the media and by friends when Dairus starts showing up in al-Qaeda training exercise and completed mission hit videos. The family is quickly separated and "detained" while the U.S. Government figures out what is going on. Only one person believes in Dairus's innocence, and that's Kamran. But what can he do about it? I have really loved the Gratz books. Honestly though, this one took me a little while to get into, but once I did I was hooked. I revolt inside about the idea that our government barges into people's lives and takes their freedoms away (although we have seen it happen in the past- Japanese and WWII) . Then at the same time I find myself internally arguing about safety for fellow people. This book is one that you must wrestle through your beliefs on tough issues.

UNSPOKEN by Henry Cole Coming off the heels of Uncle Tom's Cabin in our reading is this picture book from the Underground Railroad, Henry Cole's Unspoken. This wordless picture book speaks volumes through Cole's detailed pencil drawings of a young girl that discovers a runaway slave hiding in her family's barn. The rest of the family has no idea the slave is there, and when slave hunters come looking, the little girl keeps the secret safe. Cuddle up your kids and let your heart be moved while filling in the words to accompany the powerful illustrations.

A BEAR CALLED PADDINGTON by Michael Bond Callie loved this book SO MUCH, she wanted to approve my post to make sure I didn't "mess it up!" Here goes! A Bear Called Paddington by Michael Bond is one of those "perfect" books for kids. It is the perfect mix of tenderness and humor. Paddington arrives in London from Darkest Peru. His deepest want is to find and belong to a family. After the Brown family finds him at the train station (my boss is telling me I can't say which train station or I will give too much away), they decide they can't leave him there and promptly take him home. What follows is several chapters of pure joy as Paddington gets into funny little mishaps and genuinely shows his love for his family and community. We could all use a Paddington in our lives. If you are so lucky to find one make sure you have plenty of marmalade! ALONGSIDE ACTIVITY-How about some marmalade? Marmalade is very unique in that it is a jam-like spread made with the entire fruit. In Paddington's case, it would be the entire orange. Sample some and see if it becomes a new favorite for toast, English muffins, etc. Brew up a pot of tea and really feel like an English household. RECOMMENDATION for MOMMA- I cannot in good conscience step into the world of Marmalade and not mention Jan Karon's Mitford series. If you have never read them, they are fantastic! (Think Adventures in Odyssey for adults!) One of the characters is famous for her marmalade cake which Jan Karon invented for her series. Readers wanted a recipe so badly a chef from Victoria Magazine created the famous dessert. Enjoy the series, and if you are feeling adventurous you can bake up the sweet, tangy delicacy! I will share the recipe!

INTRVIEWING YOUR DAUGHTER'S DATE by Dennis Rainey Do you have a daughter (or daughters) close to or in the dating age like I do? One of my heart's desires is to help them navigate the dating minefield with as little emotional hurt as possible. One of the ways to do that is to get to know who they are dating. In Dennis Rainey's short read Interviewing Your Daughter's Date: 30 Minutes Man-to-Man you will learn the importance of getting to know the potential young man in your daughter's life. Written primarily to fathers but certainly appropriate for single mothers and mothers to read, Rainey doesn't shy away from knowing who it is that is taking some of his earthly treasures out from his home and the expectation on how they are to be treated. Highly recommend!

UNCLE TOM'S CABIN by Harriet Beecher Stowe Annie (10th grade) and I just finished Uncle Tom's Cabin by Harriet Beecher Stowe. This was the first time I had read this classic , and I was very moved. Set up in a similar way to the popular TV series Downton Abbey, Stowe allows us to peek into the lives of her characters from the masters to the slaves, northerners to southerners with many different beliefs and view points on slavery. The character of Uncle Tom quickly implants itself in our hearts and the perils and mistreatment he endures while clinging to his faith will cut you to the quick. Stowe was the Dickens of the slavery time. Her desire was to reveal the truth, plight, and intelligence of the African race, and she does it beautifully. In a meaty book like this, my daughter and I read a few chapters separately and then meet up to discuss what we've read. That way I can make sure she's comprehending the depth of the book, and we can discuss the atrocities that are brought to light. HEADS UP- There is a tiny bit of language. The abuse and murder of slaves and the use of good looking women slaves by their masters is discussed.

FALL READS Looking for some more fall fun books to share with your kids? Check out these great "treats" (no "tricks" here!). The Scarecrow - by Beth Ferry - written in rhyming verse, this fall tale shows the compassion of a lonely scarecrow The Scarecrow's Dance - by Jane Yolen- a moment's pause to speak about Yolen, author of over 365 books. If you see one of her books, it's a good one! Scarecrow's Dance, written in rhyming verse, is about a scarecrow who has the opportunity to shirk his duty until an encounter causes him to change his mind and value his work. Fletcher and the Falling Leaves - by Julia Rawlinson- sweet, little Fletcher the Fox is worried that his tree is sick when it starts dropping all its leaves. He does everything he can to help it, but the tree has a surprise in store. Hibernation Station - by Michelle Meadows- is the adorable story of a group of pajama-clad animals getting ready to hibernate together. Unfortunately, someone has the order all messed up and no one can sleep. Pumpkin, Pumpkin- by Jeanne Titherington- Jamie plants a pumpkin seed and watches it grow into an amazing result. The Pumpkin Patch Parable- by Liz Curtis Higgs- looking for a Christian object lesson to use while you carve your pumpkin? This book will give you a whole new way to view your pumpkin!

THE ROAD NOT TAKEN by Robert Frost. Illustrated by Vivian Mineker Robert Frost's well known poem The Road Not Taken is stunningly illustrated by Vivian Mineker. It doesn't matter what age you are, anyone can relate to this picture book that starts out in a yellow wood where a decision is made about which path to take in life. In the book, you follow a boy as he picks his path and then see how the rest of his life unfolds from that point. ALONGSIDE ACTIVITY- Take a walk in the woods and when you come to a fork, if possible, allow the kids to decide which path to take. At the end, discuss the choices made and reflect on what following a different path may have meant! Tie this to decisions in life.

THE NIGHT GARDENER by Jonathan Auxier The Night Gardener by Jonathan Auxier is fantastic! Brother and sister, Molly and Kip, are in need of a place to work and live since their parents are lost at sea. Hired on as servants at a crumbling estate in the middle of a "sour" woods, they soon find out that a strange tree and a mysterious visitor are slowly stealing the lives of the family that live there, and it's not the first time it's happened. This book is not what I would call horror, because it is not bloody or gory. However, the mysterious visitor is definitely scary. He does slowly take the lives of people by their decisions to pursue their wants in life. He does have graves predug for his victims. Wrapped in the middle of this story is Auxier's strong messages that he gives to his readers - choosing things over people and the consequences of that, and the difference between stories and lies. My age recommendation is going to be 6th grade and above on this one. ALONGSIDE ACTIVITY-Be sure and check out the author's notes at the end where he shares all of the classic books that influenced the writing of this one. Some as far back as from his childhood.

BETWEEN TWO KINGDOMS by Suleika Jaquad Autobiography Between Two Kingdoms: A Memoir of a Life Interrupted by Suleika Jaouad is not an easy book to read. Jaouad recounts her journey of dealing with a diagnosis of leukemia at around 23 years of age. Being a non-stop go getter in her pre-cancer life, she shares the hardships of having to put life on hold for four years to begin the process of becoming healthy again. What she mistakenly believes is that her life will return to its former way after she receives the cured word. When it doesn't, she loads up and sets out on a 15,000 mile trip across the U.S. to continue her healing and meet several of the people who wrote to her during her cancer journey. Very heart-wrenching, but very moving. HEADS UP- There is a decent amount of language including a few F-bombs. Her journey begins in college, and she is a partier (drug and alcohol usage). She also lives with her boyfriend and while there is no details, sex does come up.