Flora & Ulysses

Flora & Ulysses by Kate DiCamillo and illustrated K. G. Campbell

Five paw prints

Flora is girl in need of a friend...she just doesn’t know it.  Her parents are divorced and her father lives on the other side of town.  An annoying boy has just moved into the house next door and he thinks he is blind.  Her mother is an author who writes romance novels and she wants Flora to read more books.  But her mother doesn’t want Flora to read comic books.  Unfortunately, Flora LOVES comic books, especially comic books with super heroes.  Flora would really like to meet a superhero.  Ulysses is a squirrel.  He was sucked into a vacuum cleaner.  Now he LOVES Flora.  And Flora...she thinks Ulysses IS a superhero.  Together they have some very interesting adventures.  This is such a sweet and wonderful book.  I never would have thought I would enjoy a book where one of the main characters is a squirrel, especially a squirrel with superpowers.  And while I believe this book can be read and enjoyed by oneself, I feel this book is best shared out loud with a little friend; a friend who loves a good animal book at bedtime.  To learn more about this book visit http://www.floraandulysses.com/home.html or http://www.katedicamillo.com/books/flora.html.

Ball

Ball by Mary Sullivan

Don't forget to click HERE if you want to hear Ms Becky read, her daughter help, and her dog look for a ball.

Five paw prints.  Balls are great fun, especially if you are a dog that has a special girl to play with every day.  But, what happens when the little girl is no longer available?  Who will play ball with the dog?  Will it be the mother, the baby, the cat, or worse yet...will he be forced to play by himself?  Oh no, what will the dog do?  IT'S THE END OF THE WORLD!!!  What a great book.  Told from the point of view of the dog, you need to "read" the pictures to understand the book.  There is only one word in the entire book and you might be wondering "why".  Well, the main character is a dog and he only knows one word.  I'll let you guess which word.  To learn more about Mary Sullivan visit, http://www.marysullivan.com.

The Princess in Black

The Princess in Black by Shannon Hale & Dean Hale and illustrated by LeUyen Pham

Four paw prints.  Somewhere in a land far away from here there lives a girl named Princess Magnolia.  Like all princesses, Princess Magnolia wears nothing but pink, knows how to make hot chocolate and sweet scones, and of course, she own a lovely unicorn.  But, Princess Magnolia has a secret.  She is really The Princess in Black and when no one is looking she defends her kingdom from danger, especially big blue monsters that like to eat goats.  Unfortunately, Duchess Wigtower is determined to discover ALL of Princess Magnolia’s secrets.  So, will Duchess Wigtower discover the secret, will the blue monster eat all the goats, will the goat boy trust his instincts about the Princess in Black, will Princess Magnolia be able to hide her black socks?  This is the first book in a new series by Shannon Hale and Dean Hale of Rapunzel’s Revenge fame.  This is an especially nice book because it shows that girls (princesses) can be smart, clever, strong, AND pretty and polite at the same time.  Girls don't need to choose to be one type of person or the other.  I realize there are more and more books showing that girls can be anything, but I feel this is one of the better examples for younger students.  To learn more about The Princess in Black visit, http://www.candlewick.com/book_files/076366510X.art.1.PDF.

The Case of the Case of Mistaken Identity by Mac Barnett and illustrated by Adam Rex

Reviewed by Miss Dewey at Orenda

Four paw prints. Steve has a problem. It's Friday, his teacher just assigned a report, and the report is due on Monday. This is bad enough, but his topic is quilting (he hates quilts) and his friend's topic is detectives (Steve wants to be a detective when he grows up). Life is just too unfair. For most kids this would be a huge problem, but Steve's life is about to get worse. He ends up spending his weekend trying to escape evil thugs, secret agent librarians (it seems they are mad he borrowed a quilt book from the public library), and he needs to find a missing quilt that holds the key to national security. Oh, did I mention Steve is only 12 years old? I love this book. It has mystery, action, adventure, humor, quilting, and some very intertesting librarians. What more does a good book need? How about a good sequel? It's coming...this book is the first book in a new series called The Brixton Brothers. If you want to learn more about books by Mac Barnett visit: http://www.macbarnett.com/.

Fic Rex

Amelia Rules: The Whole World's Crazy by Jimmy Gownley

Reviewed by Miss Dewey at Orenda

Four paw prints. Amelia is having a bad year. Her parents just divorced so she is forced to leave the city, her friends, and her dad. She now lives with her mom and her Aunt Tanner in Tanner’s house in the suburbs, goes to a new school, and she has to make new friends. What’s worse…the group she becomes friends with is part of the “nerd group”. What a way to begin 4th grade! But through it all Amelia becomes a superhero, gets to know the school principal very well (for all the wrong reasons), takes on the school bullies, learns a lot about Santa Claus, and she learns even more from her Aunt Tanner. I guess you can learn and survive when you are in 4th grade. This is a great book to read whether you are having a bad year or not. Even if you only read for fun you may actually learn (On no, not learn!) something…especially about Santa. If you want to learn more about Amelia then you should visit the Ameliaverse website at http://www.ameliarules.com/. You can even listen to her TALK about “nowhereville” Pennsylvania.
Fic Gow

Babymouse: Monster Mash by Jennifer L. Holm and Matthew Holm

Reviewed by Miss Dewey at Orenda

Four paw prints. Her favorite colors are black, white, and orange. And, she’s back! Babymouse is getting ready to celebrate one of the best holidays of the school year. HALLOWEEN!! She and her friend Wilson are planning to be very scary and then host a party at Babymouse’s house. But too many people think they have been invited to the party. The ending could be anything but TYPICAL. Oh yea, pink is still her favorite color…but not at Halloween. And don’t forget to visit her website http://www.babymouse.com/ .
Fic Hol

Knights of the Lunch Table: The Dodgeball Chronicles by Frank Cammuso

Reviewed by Miss Dewey at Orenda

Five paw prints. So you like graphic novels, like Babymouse, but Babymouse has too much pink for you? Have you tried the new series Knights of the Lunch Table? In The Dodgeball Chronicles, the first book in this series, Artie has moved to a new school and he’s miserable. He has no friends, all the “cool” kids play dodgeball (he’s terrible at dodgeball), and he has quickly become a target of the school bullies. What’s a new kid to do? Well, he becomes friends with other outcasts, opens the hardest locker in school, and challenges the bullies to a “winner take all” game of dodgeball. This may not be Artie’s best week in school but it may be his last. To learn more about this book visit http://www.cammuso.com/ .
Fic Cam

Babymouse (series) by Jennifer L. Holm and Matthew Holm

Reviewed by Miss Dewey at Orenda

FOUR paw prints. Let’s get one thing straight…I LOVE BABYMOUSE! She’s fun, she’s sassy, she’s willing to try (and sometimes fail) new things, she’s imaginative, and she wants a dog. In the first eight books she has been a hero in gym class, learned a new instrument, learned how to ice-skate, and attended a school dance. All this while trying to survive school with her friends and trying to avoid the school bully. These books are graphic novels and only three colors are used in every book, black, white, and pink. Pink is Babymouse’s favorite color. I realize not all kids like to read so Babymouse is perfect because there are very few words. But you must read the words to understand the pictures and you must look at the pictures to understand the words. Graphic novels can be kinda tricky that way. Well, if you decide you like Babymouse as much as I do, don’t forget to visit her website. It can be found at www.randomhouse.com/kids/babymouse/homepage.htm.

Fic Hol

The Pigeon Wants a Puppy! by Mo Willems

Reviewed by Miss Dewey at Orenda

FIVE paw prints. In the past Pigeon has wanted to drive a bus, eat a hot dog by himself, and stay up late. Now Pigeon has created a new list of all the things he wants and coming in at #30 is Pigeon’s wish for a puppy. Pigeon promises to take good care of a puppy. He would water the puppy once a month and give it plenty of sunshine. Pigeon especially wants a puppy for piggyback rides and as a partner to play tennis. But is a puppy really the best pet for Pigeon. I loved this book. The pictures have lots of details without being busy. There are not many words on the pages so a student who needs help with reading won’t be overwhelmed yet there are enough “big words” to challenge stronger readers. Finally, Pigeon wants a puppy! How can anyone dislike a book with a puppy? Now in case you want more PIGEON you can visit his website at http://www.pigeonpresents.com/.
E Wil

Shen Kids Read!

Your Orenda Elementary School library teacher (Mrs. Manore) and her library mascot (Miss Dewey) want to share good books with you! Take a look at what we are reading and often adding to the shelves of YOUR school library! If you would like, post a comment, but remember to use only your first name and last initial and the name of your school in order to keep safe on the web. Enjoy your summer reading.