About Me

I'm the school librarian at G.S. Lakie Middle School. As you can see - me, reading and comfy chairs go way back. I still enjoy Asterix and many other graphic novels. My main reason for blogging is for reviewing books for the students and anyone else that might be interested in YA literature.

Sunday, May 24, 2009

Kaleidocsope eyes



Kaleidoscope Eyes by Jen Bryant

I just read this book this morning and have to say I quite liked it. It's got buried treasure what's not to like?

It's a novel written in verse (these usually end up being speedy reads, but I enjoy the interesting choices of words, quirky spacing lets you imagine the timing of things), set in New Jersey during 1968, young men are being sent off to Vietnam and being sent back in flag draped boxes.

The story begins with this great line: "I wake up every morning to Janis Joplin." The main characters thirteen-year-olds, Lyza, Carolann and Malcolm are preparing for what might be their last summer of freedom - and hoping it won't be boring. When Lyza helps her dad clean out her late Grampa's house, a mysterious surprise brightens the sad task. In her gradfather's dusty attic, Lyza discovers three maps, carefully folded and stacked, bound by a single rubber band. On top, an envelope says, "For Lyza ONLY." What could this possibly be? With the help of Malcolm and Carolann and a cryptic letter from Gramps, Lyza uncovers an impossible mystery: a three hundred year old pirate treasure that might be buried in her own New Jersey town.

Recommend it!

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