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2/14/2021 0 Comments Wink by Rob Harrell
Title: Wink
Author: Rob Harrell Publisher: Dial Books for Young Readers (March 31, 2020) ISBN13: 978-1984815149 Genre: Realistic Fiction, Autobiographical Fiction, Middle Grade Topics/Themes: Dealing with illness, overcoming bullies/trolls, the power of friendship Diversity Tags: Cancer, Loss of Vision Recommended Age Level: 9-14 Personal Rating: 5 / 5 Summary: Seventh-grader Ross Maloy wants nothing more than to be able to go back to being a “normal” kid. Ever since he started some pretty intense treatments for his rare eye cancer, no one seems to be able to know how to interact with him: not his classmates and not his teachers. Even his best friends have started treating him differently. Granted, his mandatory brimmed hat and eye patch don’t exactly help him to blend in, but why can’t everyone see that he is still the same Ross he has always been? He must figure out a way to deal with his rising anger and grief, not only from the fact that he might very well go blind, but with anonymous internet trolls, changing friendships, and all the landmines that come from middle school. As Ross continues with his treatments, he learns some valuable lessons and tools from some unexpected sources to help him cope with all that life is throwing at him. Professional Reviews: “This title is delightfully good and different. Readers will be interested to know that Harrell draws from his personal experience. There are witty comic panels and other art interspersed throughout the text. Highly recommended.” – Lisa Gieskes, School Library Journal 2020 “Harrell, himself a cancer survivor, offers a frank account of cancer’s effects while keeping the subject matter accessible for middle grade readers. Ross never takes himself too seriously, and amusing black-and-white comics trace his unsavory experiences, capture the ironies of his predicament, and underline his creativity and sense of humor. Told in the first person, this lively novel showcases the author’s understanding of middle school angst amid the protagonist’s experience with a serious illness.” – Publishers Weekly, 2020 Personal Insights: For such a serious topic, this book has a delightful sense of humor that comes through the story to undercut and soothe the brutal reality of cancer. Interspersed with hand-drawn comics, Harrell has found a way to perfectly balance an important discussion about how being diagnosed with a serious illness affects your relationships and day to day life, and packages it in a story laced with humor and relatability so that kids in middle school can understand and see themselves reflected in the characters. Notable Quotes: "Different moves the needle. Different is where the good stuff happens. There's strength in different." Readalikes: (Summaries from GoodReads) Halfway Normal by Barbara Dee (2017) - Norah Levy has just completed two years of treatment for leukemia and is ready to go back to the “real world” of middle school. The hospital social worker warns her the transition back may be tricky, but Norah isn’t worried. Compared with battling cancer, how tricky can seventh grade be? Very. Everyone is either treating Norah like she will break at any second, or acting weird about all the attention she’s getting. Her best friend, Harper, does her best to be there for Norah, but she doesn’t get it, really—and is hanging out with a new group of girls, leaving Norah feeling a little unsteady. Norah’s other good friend, Silas, is avoiding her. What’s that about, anyway? When Norah is placed with the eighth graders for math and science she meets Griffin, a cute boy who encourages her love of drawing and Greek mythology. And Norah decides not to tell him her secret—that she was “that girl” who had cancer. But when something happens to make secret-keeping impossible, Norah must figure out a way to share her cancer story. But how do you explain something to others that you can’t explain to yourself? And then, once you find the words, how do you move forward with a whole new ‘normal’? Squint by Chad Morris and Shelly Brown (2018) - Flint loves to draw. In fact, he’s furiously trying to finish his comic book so he can be the youngest winner of the “Find a Comic Star” contest. He’s also rushing to finish because he has keratoconus—an eye disease that could eventually make him blind. McKell is the new girl at school and immediately hangs with the popular kids. Except McKell’s not a fan of the way her friends treat this boy named Squint. He seems nice and really talented. He draws awesome pictures of superheroes. McKell wants to get to know him, but is it worth the risk? What if her friends catch her hanging with the kid who squints all the time? McKell has a hidden talent of her own but doesn’t share it for fear of being judged. Her terminally ill brother, Danny, challenges McKell to share her love of poetry and songwriting. Flint seems like someone she could trust. Someone who would never laugh at her. Someone who is as good and brave as the superhero in Flint’s comic book named Squint. When Friendship Followed Me Home by Paul Griffin (2016) - Ben Coffin has never felt like he fits in. A former foster kid, he keeps his head down at school to avoid bullies and spends his afternoons reading sci-fi books at the library. But that all changes when he finds a scruffy abandoned dog named Flip and befriends the librarian’s daughter, Halley. For the first time, Ben starts to feel like he belongs in his own life. Then, everything changes, and suddenly, Ben is more alone than ever. But with a little help from Halley’s magician father, Ben discovers his place in the world and learns to see his own magic through others’ eyes. Book introduction from the author himself!
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Title: The Terrible Two (The Terrible Two series #1)
Author: Mac Barnett, Jory John, and Kevin Cornell (Illustrator) Publisher: Harry N. Abrams (January 13, 2015) ISBN13: 978-1419714917 Genre: Graphic Novel/Text Hybrid, Humor Topics/Themes: Friendship, New School, Rivalry Recommended Age Level: 8-12 Awards / Recognitions:
Summary: Miles Murphey is the new kid at school in Yawnee Valley, a small town known for its cows. Miles knows that on your first day at a new school you get to be whoever you want to be, but he only wants to be who he worked hard to be at his old school: the number one prankster. On that first day, however, he realizes he has some stiff competition for that title as an anonymous prankster outwits him at every turn, threatening to frame him as the principal hunts down the source of the escalating prank war. To make matters worse, the principal has partnered him with the obnoxious goody-two-shoes student as his guide and the school bully has targeted Miles as his newest prey. Is this rival going to be his mortal nemesis or can Miles form an alliance and combine forces to pull off the greatest prank in the history of pranks? Professional Reviews: “Coauthors and friends Barnett and John have created a fast paced, laugh-out-loud novel sure to appeal to those who appreciate a good prank and have a sense of justice. The caricature-like protagonists, particularly the childlike adult characters, add to the absurdity of the book, and the evolving relationship between the Miles and Niles is pure fun. Cornell's varied graphics perfectly capture the humorous tone and add their own comic appeal. This is a good candidate for reluctant readers and a natural next read for fans of Jeff Kinney's "Diary of a Wimpy Kid" series.” – Juliet Morefield, School Library Journal 2015 “Cornell's goofy cartoon illustrations (especially the blasé cows) add giggles aplenty. Fluffy, fast, fun reading for fans of Clueless McGee and the Wimpy Kid.” – Kirkus Reviews 2014 Personal Insights: As the reviews above mention, this book favors humor above all, and the hybrid of illustrations and text make for a perfect book for reluctant readers in grades 3-6. The authors have a simple and straightforward writing style that oozes deadpan humor and paired with the hilarious illustrations that perfectly match the text, I found myself chuckling to myself many times through this book, even reading it through my adult lens. I can imagine that kids, particularly the more ornery boys in a class, would get a kick out of this book (and series). Notable (and silly) Quotes: “Principal Barkin had a list of suspects that was exactly one kid long.” “That was a rhetorical question! Don't you even know what a rhetorical question is?" Miles didn't know whether to answer.” “Inside, Miles was wild, sweaty, jittery. Outside, Miles was boring, normal, like a shoe box.” Readalikes: (Summaries from GoodReads) My Like as a Potato by Arianna Costner (2020) - Ben Hardy believes he's cursed by potatoes. And now he's moved to Idaho, where the school's mascot is Steve the Spud! Yeah, this cannot be good. After accidentally causing the mascot to sprain an ankle, Ben is sentenced to Spud duty for the final basketball games of the year. But if the other kids know he's the Spud, his plans for popularity are likely to be a big dud! Ben doesn't want to let the team down, so he lies to his friends to keep it a secret. No one will know it's him under the potato suit . . . right? The Detention Club by David Yoo (2011) - Sixth-grader Peter Lee, in a desperate attempt to regain the popularity he had in elementary school, discovers that serving detention can win him important friends, much to the dismay of his over-achieving eighth-grade sister, Sunny. Desmond Pucket Makes Monster Magic by Mark Tatulli (2013) - Someday Desmond will be famous for his special effects wizardry, but for now he's just trying to make it through sixth grade at Cloverfield Memorial Junior High, which means he needs to stay one step ahead of the school's disciplinary officer, Mr. Needles. The only problem is Desmond just can't stop pulling pranks---like the time he attached a shrieking rubber goblin to the toilet seat in the teachers' bathroom. Mrs. Rubin screamed so loudly her wig flew off! Or the time he put giant motorized worms into the mashed potatoes in the cafeteria. Or the time Desmond and his best friend, Ricky, arranged for a three-headed ghost to crash his sister's slumber party. Rachel still hasn't forgiven him. And now Desmond has to stay prank-free for the rest of the year, or he won't be able to go on the class trip to Crab Shell Pier, home of the Mountain Full of Monsters ride! It's going to be tough, but Desmond has to try.
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