October 31, 2015

New Spooky Books Stacking My Shelves

Stacking the Shelves was started by Tynga over at Tynga's Reviews.

This is a fun meme were people share the books they got this week. 
In honor of Halloween I thought I'd share what new spooky books are stacking my shelves! 


Daughters Unto Devils by Amy Lukavics
The Devil and Winnie Flynn by Micol Ostow and David Ostow
(although that one isn't really spooky but it was in their spooky box)

From my Swapoween Partner
Bits & Pieces by Jonathon Maberry
The Lost Boys dvd

Won
Ghostlight by Sonia Gensler

OwlCrate
The OwlCrate box this month was spooky related!
I was so very excited to see it had A Madness So Discreet!!! I've wanted this book! 

Magnetic bookmarks are my favorite :) 

I LOVED this Edgar Allan Poe pouch!!!! 

And lastly I wanted to share my current read:
Doctor Sleep by Stephen King

One of my favorite books is The Shining. I loved that book! So I thought this was the perfect time of year to start the sequel. I will say that after reading the first 30 pages I did have a creepy dream that night! 

October 29, 2015

Graphic Novel Review: Sunny Side Up #gncelebration

This month I'm participating in a celebration of graphic novels.
My students love graphic novels, and I always feel like I should be reading more, so I can recommend more.
This month long celebration will help me do just that!

The month is being hosted by:
Franki Sibberson and Mary Lee Hahn of A Year of Reading
Alyson Beecher of KidLit Frenzy
Tammy Mulligan and Clare Landrigan of Assessment in Perspective


Each Thursday I post a review of a graphic novel.

Today it's:


Sunny Side Up 
by Jennifer L. Holm and Matthew Holm
Sunny Lewin has been packed off to Florida to live with her grandfather for the summer.  At first she thought Florida might be fun -- it is the home of Disney World, after all.  But the place where Gramps lives is no amusement park.  It’s full of . . . old people.  Really old people.
 
Luckily, Sunny isn’t the only kid around.  She meets Buzz, a boy who is completely obsessed with comic books, and soon they’re having adventures of their own: facing off against golfball-eating alligators, runaway cats, and mysteriously disappearing neighbors.  But the question remains -- why is Sunny down in Florida in the first place?  The answer lies in a family secret that won’t be secret to Sunny much longer. . .

I found this to be a very cute yet touching book.  At first it comes across as just a cute simple story about a young girl spending the summer with her grandfather in 55+ senior housing.  You can feel her pain when she realizes she'll be spending the summer with people much older than her! I think back to myself at her age and I would've hated it too! As the story progresses slowly it's revealed that things at Sunny's home were not so good - that something happened with her older brother.  At the same time you see she doesn't want to share with anyone what has happened.  That made me really feel for her because you know she must be hurting if she doesn't want to talk about it.  As she makes friends with Buzz, she settles in more, but you can still tell she's on edge or bothered by what happened at home.  And slowly you get the whole story about her brother.  What Sunny learns is that if you try to stuff down your feelings they have a way of coming out!

In the end it turned out being a cute story that reminds us and tells kids that you need to talk about things that are bothering you.  Otherwise they'll fester. And that does no one any good.


October 27, 2015

Book Review: Took by Mary Downing Hahn

Title: Took
Author: Mary Downing Hahn
Book Obtained: From publisher for honest review

“Folks say Old Auntie takes a girl and keeps her fifty years—then lets her go and takes another one.”   Thirteen-year-old Daniel Anderson doesn’t believe Brody Mason’s crazy stories about the ghost witch who lives up on Brewster’s Hill with Bloody Bones, her man-eating razorback hog. He figures Brody’s probably just trying to scare him since he’s the new kid . . . a “stuck-up snot” from Connecticut. But Daniel’s seven-year-old sister Erica has become more and more withdrawn, talking to her lookalike doll. When she disappears into the woods one day, he knows something is terribly wrong. Did the witch strike? Has Erica been “took”?


Mary Downing Hahn has always been a favorite of the students I teacher.  5th-8th graders love her books.  IF they like scary books - they they want to read her!Wait Till Helen Comes is one they always talk about.  So when I saw that she had this new book out I knew I needed to read it.  Now fair warning - if you get even the littlest creeped out by a book, this one may not be for you.  I mean look at the cover alone! Scary books can scare me, but I still love them!  

How was the creep factor? Good! I could see this book keeping my middle school students up at night.  For one thing Erica has this doll "Little Erica".  That doll plays different roles in the book, and some make you not want to have a doll in your room!  I found the doll more creepy than Auntie and Bloody Bones!  Auntie, to me, was more mean that creepy.  Also much the book is trampling through the woods in the dark.  I grew up where there were no woods - the the wood tend to scare me.  Add darkness to that, and the tension was really high during those scenes!

Over all story? Good.  I liked how the whole story rounded out.  It had a great ending that left me feeling good!  Which was fantastic after so much tension!

Would I recommend it? YES! First I would ask my middle schooler is they liked creepy books.  If they said no I'd find something else.  But if they said yes I would give this to them right away! 

Best stick-with-you image? That doll at the end! 

October 23, 2015

SWAPOWEEN Show-Offs!

This year I'm really into swaps and book box subscriptions.  So this month I participated in the Swapoween Swap hosted by Chaotic Goddess Swaps.  

I was paired with Lauren from Shooting Stars Mag.

The focus of this swap - if you haven't guessed - was Halloween items!

Here's what Lauren sent me!


It was so much fun opening this box!!! Look at all the fun stuff.  My kids and I will be digging into the brownies next Saturday! And I believe all the candy is already gone :)

Two best items:
The Lost Boys movie!!!! I loved this movie when I was younger.  Such a classic.  I had the soundtrack and everything.  So excited to watch it again.

Aaaaaaaand: Bits & Pieces by Jonathn Maberry!!!!! 
I was sooooooo excited to see this book.  I love the Rot & Ruin series.  I really really do! 
So getting this book was super exciting for me.  
I cannot wait to dive into it.

Thank you so much Lauren!



October 22, 2015

Book Review: Nil by Lynne Matson

Title: Nil
Author Lynne Matson

On the mysterious island of Nil, the rules are set. You have one year. Exactly 365 days--to escape, or you die.

Seventeen-year-old Charley doesn’t know the rules. She doesn’t even know where she is. The last thing she remembers is blacking out, and when she wakes up, she’s lying naked in an empty rock field.

Lost and alone, Charley finds no sign of other people until she meets Thad, the gorgeous leader of a clan of teenage refugees. Soon Charley learns that leaving the island is harder than she thought . . . and so is falling in love. With Thad’s time running out, Charley realizes that to save their future, Charley must first save him. And on an island rife with dangers, their greatest threat is time.
 



My first thought as I was reading this was - if you liked The Maze Runner you should check this out! Or if you enjoyed this book - you should try The Maze Runner.  It definitely has some similarities, but it also has some unique plot points that make it really stand out and different from any other book.

I loved the concept of the book - how you are swirled up and dropped on this island with only one year to escape.  That ticking clock really added a level of tension to the story.  I also really liked that it alternated between Charley and Thad.  It gave you a much fuller sense of what was happening in the story.  I will admit every once in a while I got confused about who was telling the story at that point, but it didn't happen very often.  Charley was a pretty cool girl.  She was very level headed and calm in a situation I would've been in full panic mode about!! Instead she stepped up, accepted it and found a way to try and figure the whole island out.  I questioned at a few points if her reaction was realistic.  I mean she as very calm about it! But I thought that different people handle things in different ways.  And a few other characters didn't handle it as well so that balanced it out!

The relationship between Charley and Thad was great too.  In any other situation I'm not sure I would've bought how quickly they connected, but the situation was not normal.  And with the clock ticking I completely accepted it! 

The ending was great! Loved it.  Not at all what I thought would happen when I started the book.  I'm curious to know what happens in books two (and three since I just saw the cover release for it), because of how this book ended.  

Over-all it was a fast read filled with action, mystery and some romance as well!



October 21, 2015

Wow: I Woke Up Dead at the Mall by Jody Sheehan

This post is inspired by a meme hosted by Jill over at Breaking the Spine.


Today I'm waiting on:
I Woke Up Dead at the Mall

Ok this one grabbed my attention for two reasons.
1. The title! Seriously what a title!
2.  It's at the Mall of America.  I live half and hour from MOA, so that really interested me!

Release Date: March 22, 2016

When Sarah wakes up dead at the Mall of America, she learns that not only was she murdered, her killer is still on the loose. I WOKE UP DEAD AT THE MALL is a terrifically fun & voicey YA novel that tackles some of life’s – and the afterlife’s – biggest questions.  
When you’re sixteen, you have your whole life ahead of you. Unless you’re Sarah. Not to give anything away, but . . . she’s dead. Murdered, in fact. Sarah’s murder is shocking because she couldn’t be any more average. No enemies. No risky behavior. She’s just the girl on the sidelines.

It looks like her afterlife, on the other hand, will be pretty exciting. Sarah has woken up dead at the Mall of America—where the universe sends teens who are murdered—and with the help of her death coach, she must learn to move on or she could meet a fate totally worse than death: becoming a mall walker.

As she tries to finish her unfinished business alongside her fellow dead teens, Sarah falls hard for a cute boy named Nick. And she discovers an uncanny ability to haunt the living. While she has no idea who killed her, or why, someone she loves is in grave danger. Sarah can’t lose focus or she’ll be doomed to relive her final moments again and again forever. But can she live with herself if she doesn’t make her death matter?

October 20, 2015

Wolf By Wolf Release Day Blitz +GIVEAWAY

Tour hosted by RockStar Book Tours

I am so excited that WOLF BY WOLF by Ryan Graudin releases today and that I get to share the news, along with an awesome giveaway!

I read and reviewed Walled City and enjoyed it, so I'm super interested in this book.  


If you haven’t yet heard about this wonderful book by Ryan, be sure to check out all the details below. 

This blitz also includes a giveaway for a signed finished copy of the book with a special WOLF BY WOLF pin! US only. 
So if you’d like a chance to win, enter in the Rafflecopter at the bottom of this post.

To kick off the blitz we have a special note from the author!

"Once upon a different time, there was a girl who lived in a kingdom of death. Wolves howled up her arm. A whole pack of them--made of tattoo ink and pain, memory and loss. It was the only thing about her that ever stayed the same.

Her story begins on a train."

And so begins the story of Yael, a girl who can change her appearance to mimic any other female. A girl who must win a 20,000 kilometer cross-continental motorcycle race from Germania to Tokyo so that she can have an audience with Adolf Hitler. A girl who has every intention of killing him.

Whenever I describe the premise of WOLF BY WOLF to people, the reactions I get are quite similar. It's the "are-you-insane-or-are-you-onto-something" face: dropped jaw, squiggly eyebrows. I must admit, I felt many of those same feelings when I first started penning Yael's story. Alternate history + sci-fi + epic motorcycle journey felt like a strange recipe for a novel. But I pushed through my fears and kept writing, and I couldn't be happier with the result. I, for one, don't think I'm insane, but I'll let you, dear reader, come up with your own conclusion.

Happy reading!

Ryan Graudin

About the Book:

Title: WOLF BY WOLF
Author: Ryan Graudin
Release Date: October 20, 2015
Pages: 400
Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
Formats: Hardcover, eBook

Code Name Verity meets Inglourious Basterds in this fast-paced novel from the author of The Walled City.

The year is 1956, and the Axis powers of the Third Reich and Imperial Japan rule the world. To commemorate their Great Victory over Britain and Russia, Hitler and Emperor Hirohito host the Axis Tour: an annual motorcycle race across their conjoined continents. The victor is awarded an audience with the highly reclusive Adolf Hitler at the Victor's ball.

Yael, who escaped from a death camp, has one goal: Win the race and kill Hitler. A survivor of painful human experimentation, Yael has the power to skinshift and must complete her mission by impersonating last year's only female victor, Adele Wolfe. This deception becomes more difficult when Felix, Adele twin's brother, and Luka, her former love interest, enter the race and watch Yael's every move. But as Yael begins to get closer to the other competitors, can she bring herself to be as ruthless as she needs to be to avoid discovery and complete her mission?


About Ryan:

Ryan Graudin grew up in Charleston and graduated from the College of Charleston with a degree in Creative Writing in 2009. She is the author of All That Glows and The Walled City. She resides near Charleston with her husband and wolf-dog. You can find her online at www.ryangraudin.com.





Giveaway Details:
1 winner will receive a signed finished copy of the book with a special WOLF BY WOLF pin. US Only.
Ends on October 26th at Midnight EST!

a Rafflecopter giveaway


October 19, 2015

Snap Shot Reading: Doctor Sleep

To keep blogging simple I like to just post a picture of the current book I'm reading.  

Today that book would be:


I LOVED The Shining!!
I started reading it while waiting for my son, at night, in the dark!
I read one chapter and had weird dreams! 
This could be interesting! 


October 16, 2015

Graphic Novel: Oh Brother! Brat Attack! #GNCelebration

This should've gone up Thursday but I already had posts I had promised to post!

This month I'm participating in a celebration of graphic novels.
My students love graphic novels, and I always feel like I should be reading more, so I can recommend more.
This month long celebration will help me do just that!

The month is being hosted by:
Franki Sibberson and Mary Lee Hahn of A Year of Reading
Alyson Beecher of KidLit Frenzy
Tammy Mulligan and Clare Landrigan of Assessment in Perspective


Each Thursday I'll post a review of a graphic novel.

Today it's:

Oh Brother! Brat Attack!
by Bob Weber Jr. and Jay Stephens
Oh, Brother! stars the sibling duo of Bud and Lily, who humorously interact within the leafy confines of their middle-class suburban home and neighborhood. Whether they are playing together in the family room or running amok in the schoolyard, Bud and Lily elevate the act of one-upmanship to Code Red levels. Lily is the quintessential slightly older and far more sensible sister. She takes it upon herself to look after her uninhibited, prank-loving younger brother, Bud. While Lily wins the occasional battle with her cool-headed maturity, Bud is intent on winning the war with his brazen brand of mischief. Despite their obvious differences, Bud and Lily love each other deeply and have a strong sibling bond.

I just received this book in the mail from Amp! Comics for Kids, so I thought I'd read it for the graphic novel feature.  It's a very cute book! I have a daughter and son who are almost 2.5 years apart. I could see so much of their relationship in this book.  Him doing anything to annoy her.  Her being annoyed - or just flat out embarrassed at something he does! It captured that perfectly.  And then the few times where they actually admit in some small way that they care about each other - that was captured perfectly too.  I could see any girl with a little brother relating to and laughing with this book.  And I could see any little brother reading this book and giggling and finding new ways to annoy his sister!

The artwork is simple yet effective - with the stoke of an eyebrow you can see how the sister is feeling! It's bright an colorful with large panels allowing details to be seen.  Well done in this aspect as well.

I will admit I was surprised that it is more of a comic strip book then a full story.  Each page is it's own little story, so there isn't an overlying story from beginning to end.  It's like the Garfield books in the library that the kids love so much.  So I'm no so sure I could label this one graphic "novel" simply because it doesn't tell a story, and if you are looking for that this book won't work.  I do think it could lead kids into true graphic novels, because they would enjoy this one, and you could lead them to others that tell a story.  

In the end - cute book anyone with siblings can relate to! 


October 15, 2015

KIKI & JACQUES Release Day Celebration +GIVEAWAY


Today I've very excited to be a part of the release day celebration for Kiki and Jacques!

ABOUT THE BOOK
Kiki and Jacques
Author: Susan ROss
Pages: 128
Reading Level: Middle Grade

Release Date: October 15th, 2015
Publisher:  Holiday House

SYNOPSIS:
A local boy and a refugee girl from Somalia overcome cultural challenges in a small Maine town.

Twelve-year-old Jacques meets Kiki, a Somali girl with a mysterious scar. Jacques expects to be captain of the soccer team, by Kiki’s brother, Mohamed, becomes his new rival. Kiki is also a talented player and wishes her family would let her join the girls team. A dangerous older boy implicated Jacques in a blot to rob the Army Navy Store, but Mohamed is mistakenly arrested. The boys on the soccer team shun Mohamed, and Jacques must decide if he will step forward.

BOOK LINKS
B&N

PRAISE
“Jacques and Kiki are intriguing chracters, strong and empathetic. Despite problems of culture, they find their way to friendship in a story that is beautifully crafted. A stunning debut novel.”
                         -Patricia Reilly Giff, Two-time Winner of the Newberry Honor (Lily’s Crossing                              and Pictures of Hollis Woods)

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Susan Ross grew up in Lweiston-Auburn, Maine, and adored spending time at her family’s cottage on the maine coast. She attended Brown University and NYU School of Law.
After practicing law, Susan taught legal writing in Brooklyn and in Budapest, and creative writing to kids in Connecticut. She led “art smart” for many years in her three children’s elementary school classes and assited with weekly writing workshops at their international school in London. Susan loves hanging out in a classroom and teaching kids about writing and literature!

KiKi and Jacques was inspired by the large influx of New Mainers from Somalia to Susan’s hometown in Maine. It is her debut middle grade novel.

Currently Susan lived with her husband and teenaged daughter in Connecticut. She teaches writing at Westpoint Writers Workshop and is a trustee at the local library.

Find her at:

GIVEAWAY

One Winner will get a $25.00 B&N Gift Card

Must be 13+ To Enter | Open To US Only

a Rafflecopter giveaway

October 14, 2015

October Release Giveaway Hop


As we settle in to fall, and get our reading lined up for the winter months - October has some fantastic releases!
Because of this I'm participating in the October New Release Giveaway Hop!
This hop is hosted by: Suze at Suze Lines, Loves Finds and Dreams  Shannon from It Starts at Midnight.

Here's your choices!


To find other giveaway check out the links below:

To enter:
Fill out Rafflecopter
Must be a US resident
Must be at least 13

Guest Post: Sherri L. Smith Author of The Toymaker's Apprentice +GIVEAWAY

When I was little (ok an even now) I always wanted to be a ballerina, and of course I loved the ballet The Nutcracker.  When I lived in Boston I finally got to see it performed on the stage, and it was magical.  

So when Penguin Random House approached me about highlighting The Toymaker's Apprentice I said yes because - HELLO it's a retelling of The Nutcracker!!!




About the Book
Stefan Drosselmeyer is a reluctant apprentice to his toymaker father until the day his world is turned upside down. His father is kidnapped and Stefan is enlisted by his mysterious cousin, Christian Drosselmeyer, to find a mythical nut to save a princess who has been turned into a wooden doll. Embarking on a wild adventure through Germany, Stefan must save Boldavia’s princess and his own father from the fanatical Mouse Queen and her seven-headed Mouse Prince, both of whom have sworn to destroy the Drosselmeyer family. 






About Sherri L. Smith
Sherri L. Smith is the award-winning author of YA novels Lucy the Giant, Sparrow, Hot Sour Salty Sweet, Flygirl and Orleans. Her books have been listed as Amelia Bloomer, American Library Association Best Books for Young People, and Junior Library Guild Selections. Flygirl was the 2009 California Book Awards Gold Medalist. Sherri was a 2014 National Book Awards judge in the Young People’s Literature category. She is a three-time writer-in-resident at Hedgebrook retreat in Washington State, as well as a resident at Wassard Elea retreat, in Ascea, Italy.
Sherri is visiting The OWL today with a guest post.  Since this is her first middle grade novel I thought it would be fun to hear from her what she was like in middle school!!

Welcome Sherri!

Gack! Me as a middle schooler. Let’s see… fifth grade was elementary school for me. We didn’t have middle schools where I lived. I would have had braces and been a quiet, bookish sort. That was pretty much true up through 8th grade. I also wore a retainer with a rubber band across my front teeth. I read a lot of everything at that age, but fantasy was becoming a front runner. Lloyd Alexander’s Chronicles of Prydain were favorites of mine, along with his Westmark trilogy (an influence on Toymaker for sure). Around 4th grade, I discovered Susan Cooper’s The Grey King misshelved in my elementary school library. I devoured it and was equally thrilled and dismayed to discover it was the fourth in a series called The Dark is Rising Sequence. Thrilled because it meant there were more books (!), dismayed because I hoped I hadn’t ruined anything by reading it out of order (I hadn’t). To this day, I’d recommend both Alexander and Cooper to anyone.

I was a day dreamer. I grew up on Arabian Nights, the Andrew Lang Fairy Books, Peter Pan and Charlotte’s Web. For me, the pages of a book were far more familiar and comfortable than the outer world. I love the camaraderie of these stories as much as the adventures themselves. Such different personalities had to team up to save their world or each other from the darkness. Isn’t that what everyone wants to find in real life—their very own band of companions to help weather the road? I know I do.

The year my parents divorced, I was in 7th grade at a new school in a small town that was very different from the cities I had lived in up to that point. Either because they saw what I was reading, or hear me say something just right, but a group of kids invited me to one of their barns to play Dungeons and Dragons. The boy who asked me was actually named Merlin. I kid you not. With an invitation like that, I remember thinking, “This is it! This is how the journey begins!”

Except… we didn’t have a car, and the bus didn’t go to Merlin’s farm. So I had to refuse that call to adventure. That never happened in Tolkien. *Sigh.* And, if you are wondering, I have yet to play D&D—a real loss, since I always wanted to write monster manuals.

Thank you Sherri for sharing that with us! I love the story, and someone needs to find you a game of D&D!

To see more of The Toymaker's Apprentice tour check out the sites below:
The Book Smugglers – guest post – 10/12
Novel Novice – interview – 10/13
Owl for YA – guest post – 10/14
The Compulsive Reader – 25 Random Things - 10/15
Teen Librarian Toolbox – review -  10/16
Green Bean Teen Queen – guest post – 10/19
Kid Lit Frenzy – interview – 10/20
Great Imaginations – review – 10/21
The Children’s Book Review – top 5 list – 10/22
Word Spelunking – guest post – 10/23


I have both an ARC and finished copy of the book.  Not needing both I'm going to give one away!
Must be a US resident
Must be at least 13


a Rafflecopter giveaway

October 13, 2015

Mercy Watson by Kate DiCamillo - Anniversary Celebration

Some of you might know that I'm currently in school to get my licence to become a school library media specialist.  It's something I should've done years ago, but at least I'm going back to it now!

Throughout the program I take classes on picking books for different grade levels.  This summer I was introduced to the Mercy Watson books by Kate DiCamillo and fell in love with them!!! They are the cutest books ever.

Well I was approached to help celebrate the 10 anniversary of the Mercy Watson books! Of course I said  yes.

First I want to review one of the books, so maybe you'll get a taste of how cute these are.

Mercy Watson Goes for a Ride
Mr. and Mrs. Watson's porcine wonder, Mercy, loves nothing more than a ride in the car. It takes a fair amount of nudging and bribing and a "You are such a good sport, darling" to get the portly pig out of the driver's seat, but once the convertible is on the road, Mercy loves the feel of the wind tickling her ears and the sun on her snout. One day the Watsons' motoring ritual takes an unexpected turn, however, when their elderly neighbor Baby Lincoln pops up in the backseat in hopes of some "folly and adventure" — and in the chaos that ensues, an exuberant Mercy ends up behind the wheel! Soon there's a policeman on her tail, a struggle for the brake, and a blissfully airborne Mercy. Of course, it's nothing that an extra helping of buttered toast can't fix! 

For me one of the strength of this book is the facial expressions of Mercy.  If you look at the cover you get just a taste of them.  In this book they are fantastic as Mercy's car ride turns out nothing like she expected! I actually giggled at some of them! As a teacher I could so see using them to teach students about drawing inferences.  Her face says so much! The faces of the others in the car do too, but it was Mercy's I loved.  The other thing I love about this series is it's retro feel.  It looks like a book that might have been written long before it actually was.  I found that so enduring.  I went into this book a little hesitant since I'm not a huge reader of this age group, but I left it smiling! 

Here's a bit about the 10 year celebration taken from the press release:


Happy Birthday Mercy Watson!
One of the most popular chapter book series for newly independent readers turns ten
And beloved creators Kate DiCamillo and Chris Van Dusen give fans even more reason to celebrate with a new spin-off series Tales from Deckawoo Drive.


Mercy Watson, the best-selling early chapter-book series written by the two-time Newbery Medal winner and National Ambassador for Young People’s Literature Kate DiCamillo celebrates its tenth anniversary this year. Launched in 2005 the fun-filled stories aimed at readers age five to eight star Mercy Watson, Deckawoo Drive resident, lover of hot buttered toast and the most single-minded of pigs when it comes to the pursuit of adventure – and treats. Illustrated in full color by award-winning artist Chris Van Dusen in his signature retro style, the Mercy Watson books are a popular choice with younger readers making the transition from picture books to chapter books. 

And guess what! Kate DiCamillo has a new series just premiering:
Tales from Deckawoo Drive

Last year Kate DiCamillo reunited children with Mercy and her neighbours in the first book in her spin-off series, Tales from Deckawoo Drive. Once more illustrated by Chris Van Dusen, and with all the rip-roaring adventure of Mercy Watson, the series is aimed at older readers of six to nine. 

The first title in the new series, Leroy Ninker Saddles Up, became a New York Times bestseller and Amazon Best Book of the Year. Leroy and his rusty rather than trusty steed Maybelline star in this love story bursting with impassioned declarations and plenty of hilarious horsing around. This summer saw the release of book two, Francine Poulet meets the Ghost Raccoon,

Tales from Deckawoo Drive is the perfect follow-on for original  fans who grew up with Mercy Watson and are ready to move on to a longer read. And for those readers new to Deckawoo Drive, this series is a wonderful introduction to a warm and witty world where readers are left feeling all buttery-toasty inside. 

Join In the Fun
Check out the new Mercy Watson Hot Buttered Toast fan club, now online at www.mercywatson.com

DON’T MISS Kate DiCamillo in a LIVE national author webcast

The live event will take place on 10/15/15 hosted by Pittsburgh Arts & Letters as part of the ‘Stories Connect Us’ community reads program. The live streamed event is FREE and open to classrooms as well as the general public. Join Kate for a virtual discussion of the Mercy Watson series and the continuing stories of Deckawoo Drive with young readers. Find out more at www.katedicamillolive.com

If you have a little one in this age group check these books out!!!!