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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While the king goes to war, his three children and a few trusted caregivers/protectors take refuge in a hidden fortress. Unfortunately, it soon becomes clear that there is a traitor in their midst. Escape is not possible from their ice-locked location, and so they must endure the Nordic winter and hope that the King rescues them before it is too late.

I chose to read this book because it won the Edgar Allan Poe Award this year, and the exciting front cover image added to my anticipation. Perhaps because I expected so much, I was a bit disappointed.

While the characters were well-developed, I found the action slow and the story overly moralized. The author, Matthew Kirby, is a school psychologist. It felt to me like the points he wanted to make for his audience drove the story.

Nonetheless, others may disagree with my sentiment. On the positive side, there is no  inappropriate content or swearing, although the Norse folklore can be quite dark at times with haunting from the undead.

Appropriate for middle school readers.

Awards/Lists: Best Fiction for Young Adults, 2012; Children’s Books of the Year, 2012; Edgar Allan Poe Award, 2012.

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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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Scrub gets sent to spend the summer with his Grandmother who runs an intergalactic bed and breakfast for aliens who want to vacation on Earth.

Funny, whimsical and tender, this story is a great blend of fun and good advice. Even includes a touch of romance.

With the conversational cadence of a middle school boy,  Scrub’s first-person narrative voices the feelings and thoughts of a tween. Scrub just wants to be with his friends and not stick out.

Scrub appreciates it when his grandmother trusts him and asks for his help. In fact, his Grandma actually listens to him and goes so far as to apologize to him (a first from an adult in Scrub’s memory).

Scrub grows to admire his grandmother who does what she wants and doesn’t care what other people think–sometimes a great message for teens who are paralyzed by peer pressure.

On the one hand, evolution is mentioned in passing (p.127). On the other hand, the grandmother says, “thank the Creator.”

An entertaining, out-of-the-ordinary story.

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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.

I believed that the only respectful way for me to deal with this subject was through the eyes of a child, and particularly through the eyes of a rather naive child who couldn’t possibly understand the terrible things that were taking place around him. After all, only the victims and survivors can truly comprehend the awfulness of that time and place; the rest of us live on the other side of the fence, staring through from our own comfortable place, trying in our own clumsy ways to make sense of it all.

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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.