My Big Mouth

My Big Mouth: 10 songs I wrote that almost got me killed by Peter Hannan

Summary:

Davis Delaware is not from Delaware. But try telling that to everyone at his new school. When you move in the middle of ninth grade, people are going to think whatever they want about you. If they pay attention at all.

Blending in is fine with Davis. He just wants to doodle in his notebook. Make a few friends. Not rock the boat. Easier said than done. Because when he starts a band called the Amazing Dweebs with beautiful Molly and nerdy Edwin. Davis rocks the boat big-time. And all that rocking gets the attention of school bully Gerald "the Butcher" Boggs. Now Davis is suddenly king of the school - and the Butcher's next target. This can't end well.

Here's the book trailer

Wonderstruck

Wonderstruck by Brian Selznick

This my friends is the book I've been anxiously waiting for. I absolutely loved Brian Selznick's first book  The Invention of Hugo Cabret and now we have another beautifully illustrated cleverly crafted book to put along side it on the shelf. I'll rave about it soon at school.
 Till then here is the trailer.



For those of you that have read The Invention of Hugo Cabret you'll be happy to know it will soon come out as a movie.



And just because I think Brian Selznick is a genius. Here's some more.

13 Gifts

13 Gifts by Wendy Mass

I just got this one in, and well the first three chapters have been great. How many of you would steal the school pet mascot in order to fit into a more popular group at school? What if that school mascot was a goat? Are you still in for it? Well this is exactly what Tara Brennan finds herself faced with in the very first chapter. No spoilers here.

The Eleventh Plague

The Eleventh Plague by Jeff Hirsch

Sorry everyone, but this one is going home with me first (actually I've nabbed the advanced readers copy) our library copy should be on its way soon. Till then this will have to be your appetizer.

Summary:
Sometimes the only way to survive is to keep moving.
America is a vast, desolate landscape left ravaged after a brutal war. Two-thirds of the population are dead from a vicious strain of influenza. People called the sickness the Eleventh Plague.
Fifteen-year-old Stephen Quinn was born after the war and only knows the life of a salvager. His family was among the few who survived and took to roaming the country in search of material to trade. But when Stephen's grandfather dies and his father falls into a coma after an accident, Stephen finds his way  to Settler's Landing, a community that seems too good to be true. There Stephen meets strong, defiant, mischievous Jenny, who refuses to accept things as they are. When they play a prank that goes horribly wrong, chaos erupts, and they find themselves inthe midst of a battle that will change Settler's Landing and their lives - forever.

And Hunger Games author Suzanne Collins had this to say : "The Eleventh Plague hits disturbingly close to home... an excellent, taut debut novel."

Here's the book trailer.

The Magnificent 12 : The Call

The Magnificent 12 : The Call by Michael Grant

Some of you know I loved Michael Grant's  GONE series, so I can hardly wait until this one shows up. In the meantime I'll give you a little taste of what to look forward to.

Summary from the publisher:
Until the 3000 year-old man appeared in the boy's room, middle-schooler Mack MacAvoy had resigned himself to leading a middling, unexceptional life. That was before the ancient bathroom crasher identified Mack as one of The Magnificent Twelve, a group of talented 12-year-olds who have been empowered to save the world. Before they can do that however, Mack must track down these other special children and prepare to do battle. Action, magic and laughs.

And there's a book trailer.
REad ON

The Secret Kingdom

The Secret Kingdom by Jenny Nimmo

This is a prequel book which provides background to the origins and adventures of Charlie Bone's magical ancestor The Red King. For those of you who don't know Charlie Bone yet, this is a great series filled with magic and adventure (a great read alike to the Harry Potter series.)

Timoken is a prince born in a secret kingdom. At his birth, a forest jinni bestows magical gift upon him: a cloak made by the last moon spider and a potion called Alixir. When the peaceful land is attacked, Timoken and his sister Zobayda, must find a new kingdom to call home. Together with only the magical gifts and a talking camel, the siblings set off.

In this brand new series bestselling author Jenny Nimmo takes readers on an extraordinary quest with one of her most powerful and mysterious characters, the one who started it all for Charlie Bone and the Red King.

Here's the book trailer.

Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children

Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs

From the bookjacket.

A mysterious island.

An abandoned orphanage.

A strange collection of very peculiar photographs.

It all waits to be discovered in this unforgettable novel that mixes fiction and photography in a thrilling reading experience. As our story opens, a horrific family tragedy sets sixteen-year-old Jacob journeying to a remote island off the coast of Wales, where he discovers the crumbling ruins of Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children. As Jacob explores its abandoned bedrooms and hallways, it becomes clear that Miss Peregrine's children were more than just peculiar. They may have been dangerous. They may have been quarantined on a deserted island for good reason. And somehow - impossible though it seems - they may still be alive.

A spine-tingling fantasy illlustrated with haunting vintage photography, will delight anyone who relishes an adventure in the shadows.

I'm only a third of the way through, and so far I love the blend of curious photos and the mystery that it has sent Jacob on. Is his imagination working double time or can there really be monster out to get him and his family.

I'd love to speak with the author on how he developed this concept - which came first the photos or the story?

Here's the book trailer.

Darth Paper Strikes Back

Darth Paper Strikes Back by Tom Angleberger

Not such a long time ago, in a middle school not so far, far away...
Something amazing happened. A weird kid named Dwight made an origami finger puppet of Yoda. (That wasn't the amazing thing- just typical Dwight weirdness.) The amazing thing was that Origami Yoda gave great advice. He could predict the date of a pop quiz, tell a guy if a girl liked him or not, and keep kids from embarrassing themselves in a dozen different ways. Most of the sixth graders were convinced he was using The Force.
But now, a year later, it's a dark time at McQuarrie Middle School. Dwight has been suspended and may be expelled, which means no more Origami Yoda. Even worse, Darth Paper, a puppet created by Dwight's nemesis, Harvey, has take Yoda's place. He spews insults and evil and just may be responsible for getting Dwight kicked out in the first place. Now the kids of McQuarrie are trying to build a case to save Dwight. This is their case file.

Loved the first book, can't wait to dive into this one.

Read On.

Things that go bump in the night

3:15 - Things that go bump in the night by Patick Carman

Some stories are best told in the dead of night.
3:15 means several things. It's a time when things go bump in the night. A place where spooky stories find a home. A feeling... that chill running down your spine.
It means 10 terrifying tales that you'll experience in 3 parts. A frightful audio introduction. Several spooky pages of text. And a creepy video conclusion you can watch online. All in 15 minutes or less.
Step into the world of 3:15 an d you'll meet Cody Miller, whose greed leads to a grave mistake. Emma Franklin, who learns that not all childhood fears are foolish; Dylan Smith, who should know better than to show off his snowboarding skills on a haunted mountain; and more.

Patrick Carman does it again, recreating a genre we already love (ghost stories) by adding the elements of brilliantly spooky audio and video - sandwiching a great stories to read. Can't wait for more.
Here's a taste of what I'm talking about in the intro trailer.

The Emerald Atlas

The Emerald Atlas by John Stephens

Kate, Michael and Emma have suffered through ten years odious orphanage "care" ; now they have slipped into the care of the eccentric, distrubingly mysterious Dr. Pym. While exploring their new home, the children discover a magical green book. With that discovery, a decade of tedium dissolves into cascades of dangerous time travel adventures and struggles with a beautiful witch and deciededly less attractive zombielike Schreechers.

This is next on my to read stack. Can't wait, have students telling me about it.
In the mean time here's an interview with John Stephens and the book trailer.