Format: Chapter Book Fiction

Inkmistress

InkmistressInkmistress (Of Fire and Stars, #0.5) by Audrey Coulthurst
Published by Balzer + Bray on March 6th 2018
ISBN: 0062433288
Pages: 400
Goodreads
three-stars

Asra is a demi-god in a world full of magic. She has never known her parents and lives alone on the mountain away from humans who would want to use her for her power. Asra’s power comes from her blood which can be used to write the future. When the village below her mountain is destroyed, her mortal lover, Ina, vows revenge on the King who did not send protection. At first, Asra uses her powerful magic to help Ina, but this help is not accepted well from Ina. Throughout this hero’s journey, Asra feels betrayed by everyone that she has ever loved, so much so that she begins to wonder if she has ever really been loved. After acquiring the Fatestone, Asra’s magic becomes more powerful and she must choose to use her power to change the past or to control the future. This fantasy story set in the same world as Coulthurst’s Of Fire and Stars and is a strong choice for its female characters and nuanced, diverse love stories. Recommended for Grades 8 and up.

Elizabeth Andersen, Librarian, Westbrook High School

three-stars

Ogre Enchanted

Ogre EnchantedOgre Enchanted (Ella Enchanted, #0.5) by Gail Carson Levine
Published by HarperCollins on October 16th 2018
ISBN: 0062561219
Pages: 352
Goodreads
four-stars

Gail Carson Levine returns with a prequel to her Newbery Honor Book, Ella Enchanted. Evie is a fifteen year old girl who wants to become a healer and is focused solely on furthering her medical knowledge and career. When her best friend, Wormy, unexpectedly proposes, she gently tells him, no, she’s far too busy to marry. Unfortunately, Lucinda, a fairy known for her… challenging gifts overhears and curses Evie to become an ogre. She has sixty two days to agree to marry someone or she’ll be stuck as an ogre forever.

Evie tries to make the best of her situation, especially when a deadly disease starts to spread through the kingdom, but she experiences a lot of prejudice along the way. In the end, no real lessons seem to be learned about others’ differences–ogres are not granted a better position or more understanding in the long run– though Evie becomes more confident and aware of her capabilities.

Levine’s stellar writing and character development is on display, as always. She has a gift for crafting interesting, original, and empowering takes on fairy tales that are a pleasure to read. As a long time fan of Ella Enchanted, part of the enjoyment of the book was spoiled by Levine twisting an element of her original creation. Ella’s parents are characters in the book. Ella’s father, who originally comes across as weak-willed but good at heart, is shown to be more deceptive and self-serving. Ella’s mother is shown to be even lovelier than we realize in the original book, but her suffering is doubled when another of Lucinda’s spells means that she will always love for her husband, but he will never be able to love her in return–a cruel fate for a character who already dies early.

Still, this book will be in high demand wherever fairy tale retellings, adventure stories with strong girls, and Gail Carson Levine are in high demand. Recommended for grades 4-8.

Reviewed by Sarah Cropley, Scarborough Public Library.

four-stars

The Misfits Club

The Misfits ClubThe Misfits Club by Kieran Mark Crowley
Published by Macmillan on June 1st 2017
ISBN: 1250079268
Pages: 320
Goodreads
three-stars

The Misfits Club tells the story of five kids in modern-day Ireland. Brian, Hannah, and the twins, Sam and Chris, created the Misfits Club when they were eight in order to solve mysteries. Now, it’s time for the club to disband, but they’ve still never solved anything. The club members persuade the new girl, Amelia, to join as they give it one last go over the summer holidays. They convince her to investigate a spooky old house and are shocked when they find a real mystery inside.

Humorous and serious in turns, this story fulfills many of the mystery/adventure/gentle spook wants for the middle grade group. Though the characters aren’t always the most developed and pop culture references may be hit or miss, this book will be popular where these genres are in high demand.
Reviewed by Sarah Cropley, Scarborough Public Library.
three-stars

A Parade of Elephants

A Parade of ElephantsA Parade of Elephants by Kevin Henkes
Published by Greenwillow Books on September 25th 2018
ISBN: 0062668277
Pages: 40
Goodreads
four-stars

This gentle, clearly defined picture book is perfect for one on one sharing with the youngest readers.  Five elephants, each a different pastel color, go round and round, march in a line, go in and out, over and under and finish the day by blasting stars from their trunks to populate the night sky.  The layout of large font, repetitive text and simple sentences lends itself well to new readers practicing their reading skills.  Unsure if a return read will be elicited, but generally, as younger readers feel accomplished they move on to the next book, this may not be a problem.    Henkes keeps the same elephants for all the spreads and the placement of text changes per the action on the page. Useful for preschool circle times about elephants, opposites or colors.

Reviewed by Sheila Dube, Springvale Public Library, Springvale

four-stars

Wed Wabbit

Wed WabbitWed Wabbit by Lissa Evans
Published by David Fickling Books on February 27th 2018
ISBN: 1338185276
Pages: 256
Goodreads
five-stars

This fantasy, adventure story for readers in grades 4-6 may start as a realistic, grief story, but quickly throws the reader into a whimsical, yet dark world that conjures up a mix of Wonderland, Willy Wonka, Candyland and the bubbly, brightly colored Teletubbies.  Ten-year-old Fidge, short for Iphigenia, has tried to support her mother in watching her 4-year-old sister Minnie since their father died two years ago.  As they are packing for a vacation trip, her patience wears thin.  Fidge kicks Minnie’s beloved stuffed bunny, Wed Wabbit, into traffic and her sister is hit by a car trying to retrieve him.  Minnie is rushed to the hospital and Fidge is sent to her Uncle’s family to wait where her dotted- on agoraphobic, germophobic cousin Graham pushes her to the breaking point.  And then the lightning strikes and the children find themselves in a world resembling Minnie’s favorite book “The Land of Wimbley Woos” where all the color coded Woos speak in rhyme and Wed Wabbit is soaking up all the colors.  As Fidge and Graham identify the problems in Wimbley land and try to escape back home, they learn how to help each other, identify the strengths of others (the Wimbley Woos, of course!) and see their situations in a different way.  Evan’s comic timing is just right and the characters are ones you would want to have as your friends.

Reviewed by Sheila Dube, Springvale Public Library, Springvale

five-stars

Grump: the (Fairly) True Tale of Snow White and the Seven Dwarves

Grump: the (Fairly) True Tale of Snow White and the Seven DwarvesGrump: The (Fairly) True Tale of Snow White and the Seven Dwarves by Liesl Shurtliff
Published by Knopf Books for Young Readers on May 29th 2018
ISBN: 1524717010
Pages: 304
Goodreads
four-stars

Born too close to the surface, Borlen is nothing like his mine-dwelling, dark-loving, rock-crunching dwarf parents. Well, the rock-crunching is still applicable, but the deeper into the caverns and mines Borlen goes, the sicker he feels. He craves the light and fresh air of the Surface and thrills at the possibility of seeing things like leaves and flowers and trees. His intolerance of all things darkly dwarf, including his mining crew of six other dwarfs, and his poor attitude earn him the nickname “Grump”. When, by chance, he does make it to the Surface, he is befriended by Queen Elfrieda, known to the audience as the Evil Queen in the story of Snow White. But what does Grump know of humans? He is thrilled by the delicious gems she feeds him and the adoring interest she pays him without seeing her nefarious intent. When she learns that taking a dwarf by the beard binds him to the whim of the taker, she commands him to do as she says. He is able to flee, but not before leaving her the gift of a magic mirror with which she brings about the famous demise of that girl with skin as white as the driven snow. When Grump meets Snow White, she, too, takes him by the beard, unbeknownst to her, and since she has a purer heart, she does it with no malevolent intent; in fact, it leads to her happily ever after, as we knew it would. Shurtliff is a talented writer who challenges her middle grade readers with wonderful vocabulary and who creates endearing characters, even the villainous ones. She deftly spins her fractured fairy tales so that in the end you find yourself asking: is this really the way that it happened? Definitely add to juvenile and middle grade collections and, if you don’t already have them, add her other titles Jack, Rump, and Red too.

Note to publisher: while the covers of Shurtliff’s books are colorful and veer toward adorable, the picture of Grump on the cover is so far off the description in the book as to be off-putting. His beard was mentioned at least a hundred times and the cover is of a petulant, decidedly beardless child.

Reviewed by Jill O’Connor, Merrill Memorial Library, Yarmouth

four-stars

The Adventures of a Girl Called Bicycle

The Adventures of a Girl Called BicycleThe Adventures of a Girl Called Bicycle by Christina Uss
Published by Margaret Ferguson Books on June 5th 2018
ISBN: 0823440079
Pages: 320
Goodreads
five-stars

Handpies! Family feuds! Stampeding pigs! A runaway Kentucky Derby horse! A man in a chicken suit! Mostly-silent monks! French cuisine! A friendly ghost! Cookies! And among all of this, a girl on a bicycle looking for a friend. This refreshing middle grade novel offers some of the quirkiest characters and scenes this reviewer has ever encountered. When Bicycle shows up at the Mostly Silent Monastery as a toddler wearing only a shirt with a bicycle on it (how she receives her name, of course), she is taken in by the not-so-silent, big-hearted, well-intentioned Sister Wanda who does all of the talking for the Mostly Silent Monks. She also does all of the schooling and socializing of Bicycle, or she tries to. When she gets it into her head that Bicycle needs to attend the Friendship Factory Camp, where she is guaranteed to make at least three friends, Bicycle knows that the only friend that she needs to make is the world-famous cyclist Zbig Sienkiewicz. So she sets off on a 4000-mile bike trip across the United States to prove her point and meet that friend. What follows is a madcap adventure like no other filled with silliness, fantastic scenarios, and plenty of delicious fried pies. Bicycle will win your heart and prove that making friends is easy when you have an open mind, a sympathetic ear, and a rumbling stomach.

Reviewed by Jill O’Connor, Merrill Memorial Library, Yarmouth

five-stars

Ballet Shoes

Ballet ShoesBallet Shoes by Noel Streatfeild
Published by Random House Books for Young Readers on November 6th 2018
ISBN: 0525578617
Pages: 304
Goodreads
two-stars

This reprint of the 1937 story about three orphan sisters who become a family under a boarding house roof and train for dance and theater only sports a new book cover done by Danielle Kroll.  This new art gives the books a flat, matte, retro look that may not provide the desired results of new interest in the “Shoe” series.  The book’s copyright was renewed in 1965 and it was published again in 1993 and then again in2007 when the movie version was released.  Although a favorite of this reviewer in the early 1970’s because of the ballet and performing story line, the rereading for this review did not inspire a return to the story series. The British setting and the time period feel outdated, and the various character’s minute details of their day, which seems to be similar to homeschooling and focused on training at the academy, is the center of the action .  There are even pages of a theater script within the body of the story that the older sisters are required to learn.  Easy to skip this section.  The readership will most likely be girls in grades 4-6 who are interested in dancing or theater.  Libraries looking to replace an old copy will find this one serviceable.

Reviewed by Sheila Dube, Springvale Public Library, Springvale

two-stars

Carols and Chaos

Carols and ChaosCarols and Chaos by Cindy Anstey
Published by Swoon Reads on October 9th 2018
ISBN: 1250174872
Pages: 328
Goodreads
two-stars

This is the fourth installment of Anstey’ regency romance series.  The copy reviewed is in paperback and suitable for readers in 9-12 grades.  This title features the footmen, valets, butlers, cooks and maids to the characters from Anstey ‘s “Suitors and Sabotage”.  It is 1817 during the yuletide season in England.  Matthew and Kate have their respectable positions with the specific responsibilities to the families that are visiting Shackleford Park for the holidays.  Their immediate attraction to each other bonds them together when it is found that a counterfeit coin scheme has influenced one of the staff.  Predictable danger, multiple characters and the time period’s societal rules make for a safe, light holiday romance story.

Reviewed by Sheila Dube, Springvale Public Library, Springvale

two-stars

The Thank You Book

The Thank You BookThe Thank You Book by Mary Lyn Ray, Stephanie Graegin
Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt on September 4th 2018
ISBN: 0544791363
Pages: 32
Goodreads
five-stars

This is a deceivingly simple book, a basic title, a small, slim volume that speaks volumes. Ms. Ray reminds us what “thank you” means and the many times the reader could use it if only it was thought of. Saying thank you is  good manners, but it should be used for a beautiful day, the world and everything in it, swings, slides, glue, parades to mention just a few. Simple text, that young readers can relate to, explain the use of these two simple words. The pencil and watercolor illustrations are simple yet give meaning to “thank you.” This little book with its cozy pictures can be used to begin a discussion on what we are thankful for. It is a book that demonstrates kindness and civility in a world that could use such a reminder.

five-stars