Book review - A Day at the Beach

 

Title: A Day at the Beach

Author: Gary D. Schmidt and Ron Koertge

Genre: realistic fiction

Age range: middle grade

Similar book: You are Here edited by Ellen Oh

Summary (provided by publisher): Here’s what’s so cool about the beach. Kids are everywhere! Kids you know, kids you want to know. Wandering from one blanket to another, from one family to another. Somebody’s mom reads a fat summer novel. Somebody’s dad snores with an iPad on his chest. Babies cry. Girls laugh. Frisbee players whoop! Kites in the perfect blue sky.  

Some kids bodysurf. Some don’t even like the water. They build sand cities for their friends and sand jails for the grown-ups, and when the tide comes in everything gets washed away. 

There’s the other world, where all kids hear is tomorrow, next week, next year. And then there’s the beach, where everything is right now! 

Why can’t every day be a day at the beach?

What I liked: With Schmidt and Koertge behind the narrative you know you're headed for tight, carefully chosen prose and emotional depth. This book is more of a collection of connected vignettes than a regular narrative so we never follow a character for long, but each moment is well explained and has its own impact over all.

What I didn't like: Since each vignette is quite short, there are moments when we are definitely left wanting more, storylines that are woefully incomplete.

Advanced Reader Copy provided by NetGalley

Pick 6: Verse novels

 It's April and that means it's poetry month. What better way to celebrate than by reading a couple of verse novels. Time to reread Love That Dog. Or, maybe try a new one. Here are six verse novels for kids or teens published in the past six months.

Six new verse novels:

1. Radiant by Vaunda Michaux Nelson
2. Safe Harbor by Padme Venkatraman
3. Where the Heart Should Be by Sarah Crossan
4. It's All or Nothing Vale by Andrea Beatriz Arango
5. (S)kin by Ibi Zoboi
6. Glitch Girl by Rainie Oet

Non-fiction book review - Rise and Fall

 

Rise and Fall by Peter Allen

When we learn ancient history in school, we tend to learn very little. We get a few broad strokes on the "most important" civilizations, their contributions, and what came after them. This book is far more complete than anything I (at least) learned in grade school. Not only does it include exploration of a broad range of civilizations, many of which are often completely ignored by text books, but it looks both at the contributions and likely causes of their eventual collapse. If you have even a passing interest in history, this is a solid read.

Advanced Reader Copy provided by NetGalley

WWW Wednesday

 What are you currently reading?

Glitter Gets Everywhere by Yvette Clark - After her mother's death from cancer, Kitty and her family move from London to New York.

What did you recently finish reading?

A Day at the Beach by Gary D. Schmidt and Ron Koertge - A collection of loosely connected vignettes of the experiences of kids at a beach.

What do you think you'll read next?

The Pecan Sheller by Lupe Ruiz-Flores

Non-fiction book review - Rabbitology

 

Rabbitology by Ilaria Demonti

Who doesn't love a rabbit? If your kid is a bunny enthusiast, this is a solid introduction to rabbit biology. It is a fairly complete encyclopedia including taxonomy, breeds, diet, and a comparison to hares and other lagomorphs. The illustrations are charming and included on every page (though in some cases photos may have been clearer). 

Advanced Reader Copy provided by NetGalley

Book review - How to Be True

 

Title: How to Be True

Author: Daisy May Johnson

Genre: adventure

Age range: middle grade

Similar book: The Millicent Quibb School of Etiquette for Young Ladies of Mad Science by Kate McKinnon

Summary (provided by publisher): Edie Berger is a prankster, the daughter of activists, and a revolutionary in her own right. Paris is Edie’s home and her favorite place in the world. But when her parents decide to travel the globe fighting for good causes, Edie is left in the care of Odette, her strict grandmother—and, ultimately, shipped off to boarding school in England.

A school trip finds Edie back in the streets of Paris, exploring with her friends and forced to confront the grandmother who sent her away. But is there more to Odette than Edie realizes? Featuring madcap adventures, pastries, macarons, an intrepid army of first-years, a secret underground network of nuns, a truly excellent art heist, and lots of bravery, this is a story about loving with your whole heart and standing up for what you believe in.

What I liked: For all of its rather ridiculous details, this book manages to stay fairly grounded. The messaging is wide ranging. It not only stresses the importance of staying true to yourself but also encourages understanding and empathy. The characters all have at least a little complexity to their motivations and even our hero makes poor choices from time to time. It is both fun and heart-felt.

What I didn't like: I don't typically care much for an intrusive narrator in children's fiction. If not handled correctly it can become a way of talking down to the reader. Johnson handles the narration well, keeping it accessible. There are a number of footnotes in each chapter. While these notes are primarily amusing some readers will find them more irritating.

Advanced Reader Copy provided by NetGalley

WWW Wednesday

 What are you currently reading?

The Girl and the Robot by Oz Rodriquez - Mimi's been trying to fix everything since her Papi was deported. Then she finds a robot that seems to have crashed down from space.

What did you recently finish reading?

Drew LeClair Gets a Clue by Katryn Bury - A cyberbully at school is the perfect distraction when Drew's mother leaves - for good this time.

What do you think you'll read next?

Cincinnati Lee, Curse Breaker by Heidi Heilig