Tadpole by Ruth White

Carolina Collins, her 3 sisters, and their single mother are surprised when their cousin shows up in the summer of 1955. Surprised, but pleased. They love having 13 year old 'Tadpole' with them, and enjoy their time together. Soon, though, they discover why their guitar-playing cousin is really there, and jump to try to protect him.

All the while, Carolina is trying to figure out what she is good at. Each of her sisters seems to know exactly what it is they excel at, but Carolina is stuck. 'Tad' sees something in her that she'd never seen herself which motivates her greatly.

This book had me thinking about how important it is to let people know what talents and good character qualities I see in them, because maybe they haven't been told that before.

Tadpole, by Ruth White, is a story I could hardly put down. The characters do such interesting and real-life things that it was very dear to me. Recommended for 4th-7th grade.

To read an interview with the author, click here.

Code Talker by Joseph Bruchac

Kii Yazhi is a Navajo boy who is sent to boarding school. There, the whites change his name to something more manageable for them: Ned Begay. His whole Navajo identity is stripped away, as with all the other Navajos at the school, and they are forced to speak English. The consequences of not doing so range from soap in the mouth to being chained in a cold basement.

During high school Pearl Harbor is attacked, and Ned wants more than anything to join up and fight the Japanese.  He eventually becomes a Marine-- one with a very special job. They use the Navajo language, which is very difficult to pronounce if you haven't been learning it your whole life, as their code. That code is one of the big reasons the Central Powers won the war.

This novel outlines in a clear, interesting way many of the battles and events are told. It is written as a grandfather telling about this part of his life to his grandchildren, so the actual descriptions of the battles were not too intense. This code remained a secret for years, and those who were central to using it and helping with the war effort were required by the government to keep it all a secret for more than two decades.

This novel by Joseph Bruchac is historical fiction, and highly recommended for middle school-ers. Through this book I became interested in this era of history and read a few others set at this time. For an interview with the author, click here.

Frindle by Andrew Clements

Frindle, a comedy by Andrew Clements for middle school students, tells the story of a boy who changes the name of a 'pen' to 'frindle'. It started as a harmless prank to annoy his teacher, but things start spiraling out of control and the media starts going crazy. Things might not end as smoothly as his ideas from past years, and Nick isn't sure what to do. Even if he wanted to, he couldn't really stop people using 'frindle' instead of 'pen' since the name-change has spread much farther than his school.

Frindle reminded me a bit of Avi's 'Nothing But The Truth', but I liked Frindle's ending better.

Frindle was an enjoyable read with a satisfying ending that's somewhat unexpected.

Maniac Magee by Jerry Spinelli

At the age of 11, Jeffery Magee runs away. Since his parents had been killed in an accident eight years ago he had been living with his loveless aunt and uncle. So, he runs away. He runs and runs and runs until he stops in Two Mills, Pennsylvania.  Magee spends time on both sides of town, looking for a home, for a real family. During that time spent in East End and West End, apparently not noticing that one side is all white and the other is all black, Magee makes several friends and many enemies. Will he find a home? Will this kid, allergic to pizza, ever fit in?

Written by Jerry Spinelli, the realistic fiction book Maniac Magee is a quick read. I very quickly came to love each of the characters, and could hardly set the book down. It talks about friendship, family, racism, enemies and so much more.

I love this part of the book:

" As he passed them, he said, "Hi." Just that—"Hi"—and he was gone. They stopped, they blinked, they turned, they started after him, they wondered: Do I know that kid? Because people just didn't' say that to strangers, out of the blue. "

 I like it because it is a reminder that it's the little things that leave an impression, that people remember and cherish. It was the lack of those little things that drove Magee to run away from his aunt and uncle, and he determines to include 'little things' in his new life, even if others didn't expect them.

 One of the things Maniac Magee made me think about was how an outsider would see my family. What would they notice and appreciate that I've been taking for granted? What about you-- what would an outsider appreciate about your family that you've been taking for granted?