Webster Bible Church and Webster Christian School Library Blog

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In the Kingdom of Araluen, fifteen-year-old Will is apprenticed to learn the skills of a Ranger. After several months of training in archery, self-defense, tracking, etc., Will’s bravery and skills are tested during a hunting expedition and when the evil Morgarath plots war against the kingdom.

Two middle school boys strongly recommended the Ranger’s Apprentice series to me, so I was eager to give it a try. And I have to say that I really like this first book in the series.

Thrilling accounts of hand-to-hand combat will satisfy those boys who enjoy stories of brave knights going to battle. But the story is more than that. It’s also filled with ideas about self-defense, tracking, hunting, archery, etc. The characters are well-developed, and there’s much more to the plot than just fighting. What I liked best of all were the positive male role models that mentored and encouraged Will and his friend, Horace. Note: “Damn” shows up 5 times.

This book began as a series of stories John Flanagan wrote for his twelve-year-old son, Michael, to encourage him to read. The main character, Will, is based on Michael, and the moral of the story is that “the small guy can be a hero.”

Book 1 of the Ranger’s Apprentice series. Explore John Flanagan’s fun web site to learn more about Ranger’s Apprentice and his new series, Brotherband Chronicles.

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When twelve-year-old Erik Carlson’s parents are called up to active duty in Iraq, Erik gets sent to live with grandparents he barely knows  in North Dakota.

Erik’s grandparents, Oma and Big Darrell, seldom talk. Oma seems kind but nervous, while Big Darrell is brooding. When Erik rescues a hunting dog and finds his uncle’s old hunting gear, he sees his chance to escape the oppressive atmosphere.

Setting out with the dog, a hunting rifle and a few provisions, Erik plans to live off the land like a pioneer. Does he know enough to survive?

Cynthia DeFelice does a great job writing from a twelve-year-old boy’s perspective. Readers who enjoy books by Gary Paulsen or Will Hobbs should enjoy this survival story.

Recommended for grades 4-8.

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Most of us have heard the name Benedict Arnold, often used to describe a traitor. What did the man do to deserve such a reputation?

With engrossing narrative and riveting descriptions, Steve Sheinkin gives a full biography of the brilliant and brave yet violent and self-absorbed Benedict Arnold. How could the same man who heroically saved the American cause in Saratoga stoop so low as to jeopardize West Point and General George Washington?

Boys in particular who are looking for good “war stories” should enjoy this book. Note: Some swearing (pp.26-36).

Awards/Lists: Boston Globe – Horn Book Award for Nonfiction, 2011.

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15-year-old Callum Ormond is a hunted fugitive.

When Callum’s father, an Australian photo-journalist, went to Ireland to gather footage for a documentary,  he stumbled upon a secret that could make their family insanely rich.

Unfortunately, Callum’s Dad contracted a fatal disease and could not communicate verbally with his family before he died. While he was still able to draw, Callum’s Dad made a collection of pictures that hold clues to the “Ormond Singularity.”

Ruthless, powerful people are after the secret to the Ormond Singularity, and they know about the drawings. A stranger warns Callum that he must elude capture for 365 days.

January is the first in a series of 12 (one for each month of the year) called “Conspiracy 365.”

Complete with fast-paced action, mystery, a male protagonist, and a tantalizing cover, this book will strongly appeal to middle school boys.  With a 4.6 reading level, it’s a good suggestion for reluctant readers.

In fact, I got on the trail of this book series from reading a School Library Journal online article entitled “What Teens are Really Reading:  A librarian’s informaral survey uncovers the hottest YA fiction.”
Happily, there is no swearing and Callum is a respectful, responsible kid that cares about his family. 

While perhaps not as well written as books by Roland Smith and Gordon Korman, these books should appeal to fans of those authors.

Have you read other books in the series? If so, how do they compare to this first book?

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Fisher emerges from his birthing pod, dripping with gel, into a world of destruction. Although he was just born, his instincts tell him to flee as everything burns and crashes around him.

As Fisher explores the Ark where he has been in preservation for many years, he discovers he is the only human survivor. With a robot and a wooly mammoth as his companions, he searches for another Ark and other people.

The whole plot of this book is predicated on the concepts of evolution and environmental destruction by humans. Fisher uses profanity a lot (he finds it “useful for expressing frustration,” p.36), but the exact words are never stated in the text.

Although one book reviewer I read ahead of time used words like “brisk” and “suspenseful” to describe this book, I found the pace slow until about the middle. Click provided some comic relief. I don’t plan to buy a copy for our school library.

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Charlie West, age 17, wakes up bloodied and bruised, strapped to a chair.

Strangely, he has no recollection of how he got there. His last memory is of falling asleep in his bedroom.

Using his black belt karate skills, Charlie makes a harrowing escape from his captors only to find that the life he remembers no longer exists. Not only are the bad guys after him, but his parents have relocated and he’s been convicted of a crime he is sure he did not commit.

Where can Charlie turn for help as he tries to make sense of his living nightmare?

Good news: Teenage boys, the target audience, will like this book.

There’s non-stop action, karate, terrorists, guns, cars, police officers, a bomb, survival and adventure. Throw in an adoring girlfriend, and what’s there not to like?

Bad news:  The author’s multiple reference to skin tone–”white,” “dark brown, the color of chocolate,” “brown-skinned and foreign-looking,” “black guy”–are jarringly overt. Charlie gives his captors names like Rat Face and Chunky and describes them as having “mean, stupid features” (p.42) and “idiot eyes” (p.29).

Good news: There is absolutely no hint of inappropriate sexual content. In fact, Charlie likes his girlfriend (whom he describes in a “knee-length skirt”) because she’s a warm and caring person. That’s a positive example for teenage guys. Will it ring true with the readers?

Bad news: The school principal comes off looking bumbling and incompetent. Maybe the author, Andrew Klaven, is trying to portray him the way a teenage boy typically looks at a school principal. However, I felt the character was unrealistic and Klaven’s development of him communicated disrespect for authority (which teenage boys don’t need a lot of help fostering).

Good news:Klaven uses Charlie’s karate teacher, Sensei Mike, to communicate a helpful truth:

The truth is:  you can’t be anything you want to be. All that talk is garbage. I mean, I could try till my ears smoked, but I couldn’t write a symphony–not a good one, anyway.  I couldn’t throw a baseball ninety-five miles an hour or hit one out of a major-league park. I want to do all those things, but it doesn’t matter how hard I try–I just wasn’t given those abilities . . . . But this is also the truth:  if you try your best and better than your best, and work and push yourself until you think you can’t go on and then push yourself some more–then–then if you have a little bit of luck on your side–then you can be all the good things God made you to be. (pp. 136-7)

The Last Thing I Remember, book 1 in The Homelanders Series,  is on the 2011-2012 Truman Award Final Nominees List.

Other titles in the 4-book series include The Long Way Home, The Truth of the Matter, and The Final Hour.

When civilizer Aidan returns home to Corenwald after three years in Feechiefen Swamp, he is shocked to discover a newly formed party known as the Aidanites. They believe the revered “Wilderking Chant” makes reference to Aidan, and that he is destined to overthrow the tyrant King Darrow.

But wait, Aidan has no intention of leading any such rebellion. However, as Corenwald weakens, and the enemy Pyrthens threaten to invade, it’s clear the Aidenites are the only army his people have left. What soon transpires among civilizers, feechiefolk, Corenwalders, and Pyrthens alike, no one could have imagined.

-Publishers description

As the final book in the Wilderking Trilogy, “The Way of the Wilderking” provides a satisfying conclusion to a great story. Rogers continues the Biblical analogy with incredible descriptions unusual settings and characters. It is a hard book to put down.

This is classified as Youth Fiction but as with the previous installments, fantasy fans of all ages will enjoy this story. The author does a good job of drawing various story threads together into an exciting climax and conclusion. I definitely recommend the entire series.