Summer Camp Pick: Camp Shady Crook

Camp Shady Crook
by Lee Gjerstsen Malone
Aladdin
2019
276 pages
ISBN: 9781534422261

Archie Drake has the perfect scam at summer camp: pretend to somehow be related to THE Archie Drake, a famous billionaire. All the campers whisper and think he is the son or grandson of the guy
anyway, so why not just play along? Rich kids will give him money, candy, clothes and luggage if they think he's rich, too. The truth is: Archie is there on scholarship, but he's not fessing up to that.

When smart aleck girl Vivian shows up and threatens to ruin his scam, Archie cuts her in for a piece of the action. Secret partner Oliver doesn't want a girl to be part of their team, but Archie convinces him it's better to keep her close where they can watch her.

Camp Shady Brook is the worst summer camp on the east coast, maybe even in the entire nation. Ms. Hess runs it like an evil prison matron. The owners haven't spent a dime in upkeep on the camp and it shows. Screen doors hang loose on cabins, the lake is polluted, decks are full of splinters and shaky, the food is worse than slop, and the kids have nothing to do. Archie and Vivian make it their business to find out where all the tuition money goes, and they suspect Miss Hess of stealing it.

Camp Shady Crook is a delightful middle grade romp perfect for readers who love summer camps and cons. Even reluctant readers will find the short chapters an inviting and entertaining read.

Brilliant cover art and art continues on spine to make this book attractive in a book case or on a shelf in the library or retail book store.

Here is the spine art

Recommended grade 5 and up.

FTC Required Disclaimer: I received this book from the publisher. I did not receive monetary compensation for this review.




































Camp Shady Brook









anyway, so why not just play along.


Archi Malone has the perfect

ISBN:

Spooky Middle Grades Pick: The Gathering (Shadow House, Book 1)

The Gathering
Shadow House, Book 1
By  Dan Poblocki
Scholastic
2016
224  pages  (with some illustrations)
Available August 30, 2016

"Shadow House has everything I love--strange characters, magic and the supernatural, endless danger and adventure--and a mystery I dare any reader to try to solve. I can't wait to read the whole series!"--R.L. Stine, author of Goosebumps (from the ARC mailing)


Creeptastic! Suspense driven and utterly entertaining, The Gathering (Book 1) will leave young readers breathless! The Gathering (Shadow House, book 1) is the best middle grades read I've read in a long time!

 "Enter Shadow House, if you dare"...beware who you trust and try to remember the way you passed, but that won't be enough. In Shadow House, passages change, doors appear and disappear, strange children threaten from the shadows. Something bad has happened here and for the new kids, they have to solve the mystery in order to free themselves from the hold the house has over them.

Strangers orphan Poppy, twin child actors Dylan and Dash, musical prodigy Marcus, and shy girl Azumi meet at the abandoned edifice of Shadow House, each being summoned there for different reasons. Poppy thinks she's meeting her great aunt Delphina who will give Poppy a "forever home." Marcus thinks he's accepted into an exclusive music program. Dylan and Dash think they're set to star in a new series and Azumi wants to escape the Pacific Northwest, her sister's strange disappearance,  and attend an East coast boarding school. The children enter the stone building and are intrigued by its vast grandeur but mystified by the look of the place. It looks abandoned--as if lost in time. The furnishings, paintings, and even some paperwork in an office look to be decades old.

As the kids begin to investigate, they split up (never a bright idea!) I guess these children have never seen a scary movie or read a scary book. As they are separated, each encounters a strange child in an animal mask. The apparitions begin to threaten them. The kids are going to have to work together if they expect to survive Shadow House!

Wildly imaginative and spooky, readers may have to sleep with the lights on!

There is a FREE app in the works for  phones or tablets at Shadow House. Create a username and password and log in. you can read ghost stories, "...where the choices you make determine your fate."

This is a Scholastic book, so I am sure it will be a huge seller at back to school and fall book fairs. Keep your eyes open, books 2 and 3 are scheduled for January 2017 and September 2017 respectively.

Highly, highly recommended grade 3-up. Perfect for tween and middle grade readers. Reluctant readers will devour this series.

FTC Required Disclaimer: I received the ARC from the publisher. I did not receive monetary compensation for this review.

Book Club Pick: The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry

The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry
by Gabrielle Zevin
Algonquin Books of Chapel Hill
2014
258 pages
ISBN: 9781616203214

Available April 1, 2014

From the author's website:

“Funny, tender, and moving, it reminds us all exactly why we read and why we love.”—Starred, Library Journal

“In this sweet, uplifting homage to bookstores, Zevin perfectly captures the joy of connecting people and books . . . Filled with interesting characters, a deep knowledge of bookselling, wonderful critiques of classic titles, and very funny depictions of book clubs and author events, this will prove irresistible to book lovers everywhere.” —Booklist

“Surprisingly expansive… Zevin is a deft writer, clever and witty, and her affection for the book business is obvious.” —Publishers Weekly

“Sometimes funny, sometimes true to life and always entertaining . . . A likable literary love story about selling books and finding love.” —Kirkus Reviews

“I don’t appreciate the position I’m in with The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry. I resent the skill and verve that Ms. Z. shows in this quirky, punchy novel. I don’t like that it’s so readable, so appealing. I disdain its damnable charm, its succinctness, its crisp, clear tone! AAAUGH! . . . VERDICT: This lightning fast read is super-enjoyable; hide it inside a Popular Mechanics.” —Library Journal‘s Books for Dudes blog


From the publisher's The Algonquin Reader, Volume 3, issue 1, says Zevin:

"The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry, my eighth novel, is about a bookstore and a bookseller and a stolen manuscript and a girl abandoned in a poorly stocked children's section. You must already know how this is going to end--I've already told you I come from a family who believed that no child left in a bookstore ever came to any harm."

Blogger's Review:



The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry is THAT book that will stick with you for years to come, nay not years,  decades to come. It is everything that a novel should be! Zevin's carefully crafted prose and dynamic word choice  is evocative of  F. Scott Fitzgerald's finest writing.

Widower A.J. Fikry owns a small book shop on Alice Island just off the coast of Cape Cod. Fikry's wife Nic died in a car accident a year prior, and he mourns her death daily. His small book shop's proceeds are slipping; summer people buy a few books but they do not have A.J.'s  refined  and somewhat pompous taste in literature.

One morning a bleary eyed, hungover  Fikry discovers he's been robbed! His priceless manuscript of Tamerlane has been filched, and his early  retirement is now out of the question. A strange but not unwelcome discovery left in the children's section of the book shop  changes Fikry's life forever.

What does it mean to love and be loved? Can a persnickety pessimist find love again? What does it take to heal a broken man?

This novel reminds readers that life is short, true friends are priceless, blessings are numbered, and when something unexpected happens, revel in happiness, and let go of  sorrows.

The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry is about the relationship a writer has with the reader of his carefully crafted story and that  sense of fulfillment that a reader takes away from a story. Zevin's characters honor books and reading and truly commit themselves to fine writing. Any reader who loves books and lives for books will find a treasure trove of gems  in The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry.

This novel will break publishing records and is likely to be around for a very long time. Rights have been sold in 20 different countries, and book stores may have trouble keeping up with demand for this title. My top three books of all time has just changed. The top three of all time are: To Kill a Mockingbird, The Storied Life of A.J. Fikry and Life Among Giants. If I could only read those three books for the rest of my life, it would be more than enough to keep me happy.

So highly recommended that I'm shouting it from the rooftop: Buy this book! It will change your life.
Highly, highly recommended for mature readers and adults. Adult situations. Life situations.

FTC Required Disclaimer: I received this book from the publisher. I did not receive monetary compensation for this review.

This review has been posted in compliance with the FTC requirements set forth in the Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising (available at ftc.gov/os/2009/10/091005revisedendorsementguides.pdf)

Book Club Pick: Life Among Giants

Life Among Giants
by Bill Roorbach
Algonquin Books of Chapel Hill
2012
331 pages

Read what others are saying

A sweeping saga, an epic tale, a story replete with steamy seduction, passionate romance, boundless sorrow, and relentless yearning, Life Among Giants is Gatsby-ish in its description of an era in American history when rock stars ruled and English rockers  invaded. Skirts were short and the summer of love was possible.

David "Lizard" Hochmeyer is seventeen and a talented football star. He leads his school to gridiron victories but gets kicked off the team for not cutting his hair. Lizard is a standout and could care less what the coach thinks. Older sister Kate babysits for the neighbors--British rock legend Dabney Stryker-Stewart and his beautiful but dangerous wife Sylphide. Their son Linsey is "profoundly challenged" and Kate helps out with his care. David is enthralled with Sylphide, a famous ballerina who haunts his dreams and threatens his future. The famous family lives at High Side--the mansion across the pond from David's ordinary three bedroom family home. High Side is a proper mansion and the Stryker-Stewarts are the golden couple and darlings of the press.

Lizard goes off the college and plays football for Princeton and later signs a contract with the NFL playing for the Miami Dolphins. In all those years, he keeps tabs on the beautiful Sylphide--he cuts out news and magazine clippings for a scrapbook of all her escapades and dreams of her constantly.

The story  continues as Lizard learns to cook and returns to his boyhood home, taking up residence and watching the mansion across the pond. David and Kate question the past--the death of Dabney and the deaths/murders of their parents. The court ruled it an accident but there is their dad's missing briefcase and the FBI case against his company. Sylphide plays a part in all the drama, and Kate blames her for every death. Lizard is blinded by love and desire.

Lizard opens a restaurant with friends Etienne and Ru-Ru and they become a culinary success. The real story of Dabney's death is revealed and a plan to punish the murderers comes together. Revenge is sweet, but to get away with murder is oh-so sublime!

You won't forget Life Among Giants. It is likely to stay with you a lifetime--the larger than life characters of Lizard and Sylphide will join the ranks of literature's great lovers--Antony and Cleopatra, Romeo and Juliet, Tristan and Isolde. Author Roorbach has created a masterpiece of mythic proportions. This is a novel that can be read again and again. It's that good. I loved Life Among Giants and it has made it to my best books of all time list along with To Kill a Mockingbird and The Shadow of the Wind.

Highly, highly recommended for mature readers grade 9-up. Language, mature situations, murder, romantic triangles.

FTC Required Disclaimer: I received this book from the publisher. I did not receive monetary compensation for this review.