THE BLAZING BRIDGE for Marvelous Middle Grade Monday

Posted on February 27, 2017 by Greg Pattridge

The Blood Guard trilogy concludes with THE BLAZING BRIDGE. blazing-bridge-cover The excitement and adventure follows the first two installments: THE BLOOD GUARD and THE GLASS GAUNTLET. New readers to the series could get by with just reading Book 3, but they’ll miss the fun lead-up to this fitting end.

Young Evelyn Ronan Truelove (he prefers just Ronan for obvious reasons) takes you through many of New York City’s iconic sights like Times Square, Madison Square Garden, and an epic finale on the Brooklyn Bridge that you see on the cover.

Thirteen years old now, Ronan must  protect his friend, Greta, from the deadly Bend Sinister. Their youthful exchanges were some of my favorite parts. Dawkins, a much older friend, is also along for the ride. His role is to lead but also push Ronan toward the person he is to become.

Action packed, humorous, and rather scary in parts–these three elements alone make it a perfect choice for middle grade readers. Check out my interview with Carter Roy posted last Friday.

PUBLICATION DATE: 2017   PAGE COUNT: 240

FULL PLOT (From Amazon)

Ronan Truelove’s best friend, scrappy smart aleck Greta Sustermann, has no idea that she is one of the thirty-six Pure souls crucial to the safety of the world. But Ronan’s evil father has figured it out—and he’s leading the Bend Sinister straight to Greta. If they capture her, she’ll suffer a fate far worse than mere death. But to get to Greta, they’re going to have to go through Ronan first.

Standing with Ronan are plucky hacker Sammy; witty, unkillable Jack Dawkins; and a sharp-tongued woman named Diz, who drives a dangerously souped-up taxi. One breathless close call after another leads to an ugly showdown: Ronan alone against his father, with the fate of Greta, his friends, and the entire world hanging in the balance. Will Ronan be able to rise up and prove once and for all that he has what it takes to join the Blood Guard?

By turns heart-stopping and hilarious, The Blazing Bridge brings the Blood Guard trilogy to a surprising, clever, and altogether thrilling conclusion.

FIVE THINGS TO LIKE ABOUT: THE BLAZING BRIDGE by Carter Roy

  1. The pacing might have you finishing the story before you’re ready. The tense scenes are mixed in well with the calmer parts.
  2. Ronan’s unfortunate relationship with his dad comes full circle on The Brooklyn Bridge. A sad, but necessary encounter.
  3. I hope the next time I’m visiting New York City, I can get a ride in Diz’s cab. Here’s one cab driver who you might not want to argue with.
  4. Jack Dawkins, the young in appearance but way older member of the Blood Guard, makes a great character. Ronan describes him this way: Jack Dawkins is like your best friend’s annoying older brother–a skinny hipster who acts all worldly even though he looks like he’s still in his teens.
  5. Pulling off a successful single book is hard enough, but here we have a satisfying trilogy that never drags and always has the plot moving forward. Could there be a YA story next featuring this cast? I can only wish.

FAVORITE LINES:

Greta wrapped her fingers around my wrist and twisted her arm to throw me off balance, then yanked me over her foot.

I tripped and sprawled on the ground at Elmo’s feet.

“What was that for?” I asked Greta.

“I’m not some maiden in distress to be carried out of harm’s way, Evelyn Ronan Truelove,” she said.

Elmo gave me a hand up.

“I never said you were!” I said, raising my hands in surrender.

AUTHOR QUOTE:
From a list of  promises Carter says will not happen in this third story:

—It will not leave any threads unknotted. That is to say, it will tie up all the story threads from books one and two—including some that you think I forgot about, or which you didn’t even notice because they flew past so quickly.

(For the entire list visit Carter’s Web Site )

GIVEAWAY!

One lucky winner will receive a complete set of all three Blood Guard books (THE BLOOD GUARD, THE GLASS GAUNTLET, and THE BLAZING BRIDGE). (U.S. addresses only.) To enter just leave a comment. Good luck.

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Check the links to other Middle Grade novels over at Shannon Messenger’s Marvelous Middle Grade Monday post.

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Interview with Author Carter Roy

Posted on February 24, 2017 by Greg Pattridge

Happy Friday everyone! Today I have Carter Roy, author of The Blood Guard series, who has somehow found the time to answer a few questions during the launch week of his new middle grade novel, THE BLAZING BRIDGE–book three of the Blood Guard Trilogy.  I’ll have a review this coming Marvelous Middle Grade Monday:

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Make a comment either today or on my review post this Monday for a chance to win a great giveaway. One lucky winner will receive a complete set of all three Blood Guard books (THE BLOOD GUARD, THE GLASS GAUNTLET, and THE BLAZING BRIDGE). (U.S. addresses only.) Good luck to all who enter.

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Before I begin the interview, here’s the background on this gifted author:

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Carter Roy has painted houses and worked on construction sites, waited tables and driven delivery trucks, been a stagehand for rock bands and a videographer on a cruise ship, and worked as a line cook in a kitchen, a projectionist in a movie theater, and a rhetoric teacher at a university. He has been a reference librarian and a bookseller, edited hundreds of books for major publishers, and written award-winning short stories that have appeared in a half-dozen journals and anthologies. His first two books were The Blood Guard and The Glass Gauntlet. He lives with his wife and daughter in New York City and can be found at www.carterroybooks.com or on Twitter @CarterRoyBooks.

Without further delay… A big welcome to author, Carter Roy.

First off, you’ve had many different careers before you became a writer. What prepared you most for the job of putting a compelling story together for young readers?

I wish I could point to one of my weirder jobs as being a particular help with my writing—you know, “on the cruise ship, it fell to me to entertain the passengers when we were becalmed at sea for three weeks!” or something similarly nutty. But the truth is more boring than that. (It usually is.)

I have been very lucky in that I worked as an editor of novels for kids, and with some of the best writers in the business—Bruce Coville, Jane Yolen, M.T. Anderson, and on and on. There’s nothing quite like helping an established writer refine his or her work to show a fledgling writer how stories are put together. I did my best to pay attention.

What are the positives of writing a trilogy along with the challenges?

As a reader, I often lamented “middle-book syndrome”—the way that a lot of trilogies sag in book two. Book one is always fun (a story is beginning!) and book three is usually satisfying (at last the story is wrapped up!), but that middle entry? It was often stuck in No Man’s Land: not allowed to start or end anything, and as a result books two can have identity problems.

I tried to avoid that in The Glass Gauntlet. In addition to carrying on the main storyline, I added a separate story about the kids undergoing the twisted Glass Gauntlet competition. My hope was that what initially appeared to be unrelated to our main story would provide a nice kick of surprise when it actually turned out to be intimately linked to that storyline. Did I succeed? Beats me.

Writing a trilogy gives a writer many opportunities like that to “change up” the story. That is, to keep redefining the central conflict—to make it bigger or badder. In book three, for example, Ronan and Dawkins realize that they’ve misunderstood their enemies’ goal from the very start. The situation is much more dire than they’d ever imagined and doom is much closer to hand.

The Blood Guard series is full of suspense and surprises in almost every chapter. How do you go about crafting this type of story? Do ideas come as you write or is it all planned out ahead of time?

Ah! Am I a planner or a pantser? (“Pantser” as in “by the seat of the pants”; not, as you might fear, because I am one of those creeps who yank down other people’s pants.) (For the record, I am not.)

Truth is, I use both methods. I outline the larger story and the big action moments chapter by chapter so that I have some sort of road map for where the story is going. And then I feel safe to throw away the outline as I write.

Why do that? First, sometimes the outline will say only something along the lines of “backstory about Dawkins.” (This was true in book three.) At that point, I had no idea how it would fit into the story, but I knew that I wanted it, and in terms of pacing, figured I could take a breather with that chapter. (And it turned into two chapters—which meant rejiggering some later chapters in the outline. )

Second, I really try to give the books have an almost ridiculous forward momentum so that even the most reluctant of readers will be hooked. So whenever I feel the story needs to be goosed, I do something—such as pull forward some piece of action that I’d been saving for later. Or I rearrange the boring parts of the story. (That is, background, exposition, that sort of thing.)

This is what happened in book one when we learned the truth about Greta. Originally that was going to be in book two, but … why wait?

Ronan Truelove is such an endearing character. How was he created in your mind and did Ronan come first or the story?

I’m glad you find Ronan endearing; I kind of like him myself! The idea behind the story of the Blood Guard came first, but then right on its heels came Ronan—a boy who wasn’t “the One,” or special as so many protagonists are in so much middle grade and teen fiction. I was hoping Ronan could just be a normal kid who gets swept up into extraordinary events, because when I was a reader Ronan’s age, living in the suburbs of San Diego, I longed for adventures to come find me. It never did, so as an adult, I invented my own.

What is the biggest challenge of being an author in today’s publishing world?

Probably the biggest challenge facing a writer in today’s world is simply in getting the word out about one’s books. There are so many different leisure time and entertainment options clamoring for our attention: movies, television, video games, social media, as well as the entire bookstore of other books. And most of those things are available at the touch of a finger. Getting a potential reader to give you a chance can look almost impossible.

And yet it does happen, so I write on, fingers crossed that the books will find their readers.

What advice would you give to middle grade readers who aspire to be authors?

My advice is that a would-be writer should write, write, write, and write. Write every day. Make it a habit. Finish what you write. And then revise what you write (because all good writing is rewriting). The best way to learn is to do it, and to do it regularly.

What other writing projects do you have planned for the future?

At the moment I am revising a novel for publication in the next year or so. It’s a standalone story for middle graders called Very. That title may change, but it is the name of the main character, Veronica, which is shortened to Very. She’s a girl who, through no fault of her own, becomes lost in what may very well turn out to be God’s library. It is a change of pace from the Blood Guard novels, and is a book about storytelling and magic, about fate and being the author of one’s own story. I hope readers embrace Very as eagerly as they have Ronan!

Thank you for your time, Carter.

Thank you, Greg.

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Celebrate President’s Day with OUR COUNTRY’S PRESIDENTS

Posted on February 20, 2017 by Greg Pattridge

“I do solemnly swear…”

I’m sure many of you were like me this past November, glued to the the screen as we watched this year’s presidential election come down to the wire. Author Ann Bausum and the editors at National Geographic Children’s Books also gave the night their undivided attention but for far different reasons. They had a deadline to meet.

National Geographic’s Our Country’s Presidents (ages 10+) is released every four years presidentsjust in time for the inauguration.  In this newest edition there are profiles of the 44 individuals who have served as President, plus extensive coverage of the 2016 presidential campaign as well as America’s newest commander in chief.

I read the book in order through all 224 pages. The next time the category of U.S. Presidents pops up on Jeopardy–watch out. I’ll ace every question. Of course most readers will probably use this source like an encyclopedia, looking for one specific piece of information. Even the most obscure facts can be found…

  • Who had the shortest term in office? (William Henry Harrison–41 days in 1941)
  • Who had the longest inauguration speech? (Harrison again at one hour and twenty minutes)
  • Which president is consistently ranked among the worst in U.S. History because of widespread corruption? (Warren G. Harding, 1921-1923)
  • Who lived the longest? (Gerald Ford, 93 years old at his death)

But don’t be misled that OUR COUNTRY’S PRESIDENTS is just a compilation of facts. There is so much more. The encyclopedia is divided into six eras in our history from THE PRESIDENCY AND HOW IT GREW (1789-1837) all the way to FOOTPRINTS ON THE GLOBAL FRONTIER (1981-present). Each section begins with a timeline of important events in that era.

Next is the official full color portrait or photograph of each president from that era followed by a 2-6 page profile. You will also find a fact box with the president’s official signature along with a wide variety of additional information, including how many states were in the Union at the start of their term.

Nearly two dozen bonus two-page spreads are scattered throughout the book jumping into topics beyond what is covered about the 45 presidents. I enjoyed: You’ve Got Mail: Swapping Letters With the President; Kids in the White House: At Home in the Spotlight; and Presidential Landmarks: from Log Cabins to Libraries.

The book ends with more delights, including a four page chart of the election results (I hadn’t recalled Jimmy Carter’s attempt at a second term earned him only 49 electoral votes!).

There are also ways to learn more with a selection of books, websites, videos, and places to visit. A handy bibliography and index help direct readers to the information they need.

Teachers, parents, and students will find this encyclopedia a hard one to put down. Don’t worry, you have four years. Plenty of time for each of us to discover the inspiration of our unique history in the White House from this fantastic source.

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Author Carter Roy stops by this Friday to answer a few questions. He’s about to launch the third book in the BLOOD GUARD series. See you then!

Make a comment below if you have time. I enjoy reading all of them.

Check the links to other Middle Grade novels over at Shannon Messenger’s Marvelous Middle Grade Monday post.

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IN THE FOOTSTEPS OF CRAZY HORSE for Marvelous Middle Grade EXTRA

Posted on February 17, 2017 by Greg Pattridge

A finalist for the 2016 Cybil’s award, this story is about the journey a grandfather takescrazyhorse with his grandson to understand the life and heroism of Lakota Indian leader, Crazy Horse. It begins in South Dakota and moves into Nebraska, Wyoming and Montana. Each stop is another place where Crazy Horse left a part of his heritage. Landscapes, monuments, and landmarks trigger each part of his story.

There is a reason for the trip as Jimmy, the grandson, has been bullied for the way he looks (too white) and he doesn’t have the courage to stand up to his tormentors. This sub-plot occurs at the beginning and end, but otherwise Jimmy is in learning mode the entire way. He says “Wow” a lot as he soaks up the story along with the rest of us.

Most of the book is a recounting of the struggles and decisions Crazy Horse made to save his people from the intrusion of the white man, or Long Knives as they are known. This would make a great companion source in a history class as Crazy Horse’s plight has never been so clearly stated. If all you’ve heard about is Little Big Horn, then you’ll be in for quite a learning experience as you wrap yourself around the story with compassion and understanding.

PUBLICATION DATE: 2015   PAGE COUNT: 176

FULL PLOT (From AMAZON) Jimmy McClean is a Lakota boy—though you wouldn’t guess it by his name: his father is part white and part Lakota, and his mother is Lakota. When he embarks on a journey with his grandfather, Nyles High Eagle, he learns more and more about his Lakota heritage—in particular, the story of Crazy Horse, one of the most important figures in Lakota and American history. Drawing references and inspiration from the oral stories of the Lakota tradition, celebrated author Joseph Marshall III juxtaposes the contemporary story of Jimmy with an insider’s perspective on the life of Tasunke Witko, better known as Crazy Horse (c. 1840–1877). The book follows the heroic deeds of the Lakota leader who took up arms against the US federal government to fight against encroachments on the territories and way of life of the Lakota people, including leading a war party to victory at the Battle of the Little Bighorn. Along with Sitting Bull, Crazy Horse was the last of the Lakota to surrender his people to the US army. Through his grandfather’s tales about the famous warrior, Jimmy learns more about his Lakota heritage and, ultimately, himself.

FIVE THINGS TO LIKE ABOUT: IN THE FOOTSTEPS OF CRAZY HORSE by Joseph Marshall III (A 2106 CYBILS MG Fiction Finalist)

  1. A handy map appears before the story begins tracing the route Jimmy takes with his grandfather. You’ll be wanting to visit some of the same sites.
  2. An extensive 16 page glossary covers all the words and Indian names young readers may not be familiar with. A great source to even read ahead of time.
  3. I came away with a reminder that in war there are no winners–everyone loses something.
  4. This is a unique book that shows diversity in a different way than most MG stories.
  5. The connection you can make with your own culture by listening to family members who have a few more miles under their belts.

FAVORITE LINES: 

“The problem is,” Anne McClean would say, “your three Lakota parts are all hidden inside. Your one white part is on the outside.”

Jimmy understood what she meant, but it didn’t make him feel any better. It was the main reason Corky and Jesse teased him.

“You’re just an Indian pretending to be white” was what Corky liked to say.

ABOUT JOSEPH MARSHALL III

Joseph Marshall III was born and raised on the Rosebud Sioux Indian Reservation and is an enrolled member of the Sicangu Lakota (Rosebud Sioux) tribe. Because he was raised in a traditional Lakota household by his maternal grandparents, his first language is Lakota. In that environment he also learned the ancient tradition of oral storytelling. (For More visit Joseph’s Author Website.)

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Make a comment if you have time. I enjoy reading all of them. Click on the comments link below.

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And The Winner is…

Posted on February 15, 2017 by Greg Pattridge

shackles-from-the-deep                                  crossingtheline-cover

The winner of my recent giveaway for SHACKLES OF THE DEEP and an ARC of CROSSING THE LINE is Rosi Hollinbeck. Congratulations. You can catch Rosi’s reviews and her own giveaways at THE WRITE STUFF.

I’ll have another giveaway of a timely new novel, THE ONLY ROAD, coming up next month. Meanwhile check back on Friday for my feature on IN THE FOOTSTEPS OF CRAZY HORSE.

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ZACK DELACRUZ: JUST MY LUCK for Marvelous Middle Grade Monday

Posted on February 13, 2017 by Greg Pattridge

Zack returns in book number two of the series. No worries if you missed book one, ME AND MY BIG MOUTH, where Zack tries to save the sixth grade dance. This is a totally new adventure set two weeks later. justmyluck

Zack is back to his normal self staying clear of bullies and generally keeping a low profile at Davy Crockett Middle school in San Antonio, Texas. It lasts about 7 pages when Zack spots the new girl he must talk to, but an embarrassing loss in a key part of his clothes disrupts that move. Zack tries many more times throughout the story to get this girl to talk with him, but she won’t. It’s not until the climatic ending when Zack finds out why.

Funny and memorable, Zack is sure to please reluctant readers with the 30 short chapters. His narration is spot on and you’ll learn a few things about the culture and community of San Antonio. Who knew something called a cascarone would bring so much delight to a middle school. Even without one, this story brought delight to me.

PUBLICATION DATE: 2016   PAGE COUNT: 192

FULL PLOT (From Amazon)  Zack Delacruz is back—and eager to meet Abhi, the new girl at school. But things get off to a rough start when he accidentally knocks her to the ground during a game of dodgeball. And whenever he tries to make amends, she just ignores him. Nothing works—not his friends’ advice or his “lucky” cologne. In fact, he just seems more and more cursed! Then, at the Fall Fiesta-val, Zack finally learns the real reason behind Abhi’s cold shoulder . . . but not before total chaos erupts. With a runaway train, exploding confetti-filled eggs, and Abhi’s terrifying older brother, will Zack ever get a chance to talk to his crush? In the end, Zack learns what it means to believe, to listen, and to be a good friend.

FIVE THINGS TO LIKE ABOUT: ZACK DELACRUZ: JUST MY LUCK by Jeff Anderson

  1. San Antonio is a setting I’d never read in an MG book. Having visited the city myself, it was fun to see it from the inside through the author’s eyes.
  2. Middle school for a sixth grader is portrayed to perfection here. One day you’re in elementary school on top of the heap, then middle school slams you hard with the realities of growing up.
  3. Zack’s parents have joint custody. It’s an accurate view of life for the parents and Zack.
  4. Any bad day at school you’ve ever had will seem like a minor inconvenience compared to what Zack goes through.
  5. The inside covers have an illustrated page of students in the front and faculty in the back. A yearbook style look at the diversity and quirks of those pictured.

FAVORITE LINES:

I wondered if Mrs. O’Shansky, the head cafeteria lady, had made the tables-are-for-eating-students sign. If she did, she ought to loosen her hairnet for more blood circulation to her brain. One thing’s for sure, whoever wrote that sign didn’t have Mrs. Harrington for English. That lady is all about “your writing making sense.” You have to know what punctuation means. Especially when it’s “published,” and I know anything laminated is definitely published.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR Jeff has been sharing writing strategies with teachers and students for over 25 years. Whether presenting at national conferences like NCTE, ASCD, or in classrooms or writing his books for teachers or middle grade readers, Jeff’s passion for writing and grammar inspires teachers and young writers to soar. When he’s not writing with his “revising” dogs at home near downtown San Antonio, Texas, he’s walking, talking, or doing staff development around the US (and sometimes New Zealand).

To learn more visit Jeff’s web site on writing and publishing  at WRITE GUY.

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The Cybil’s MG Fiction winner for 2016 is GHOST!

ghost-9781481450157_hrI reviewed GHOST back in November (see it here). Below is the description the judges wrote for the Cybil’s announcement:

Ghost is a true joy to read, share, and celebrate the powerful messages. You’ll remember many of the passages long after reading. Ghost’s spot-on unique voice and amusing insights are surprising and always in character. This budding track star has a lot of societal strikes against him: poor, African-American male, a victim of violence, child of a single-parent household, and his father is in jail. It would be easy for him to give up and join a gang, but instead he discovers the power of teamwork and consequences for his poor choices. Ghost is an engaging and fully realized character and many kids will find something to relate to.

The supporting characters are also multi-dimensional, each with a story of their own. This begins with Coach. The benefits of hard work and practice are something Ghost would never realize without him. He is a strong figure who has something to offer his team and a willingness to stick with these kids.

The storytelling is endearing and diversity takes center stage. Author Jason Reynolds deserves a victory lap. We’ll sit back and anxiously await the next book in this track and field series.

See the full set of winners on the Cybil’s site.

It was a fun experience interacting with the other four judges over the seven nominees. Email was the preferred mode of communication and for two weeks each book had its own email thread. My mailbox was overflowing. About a week ago an eighth thread asked the important question–Which books are on top of your list? I had two favorites and one of them appeared on every judges’ final list. No more discussion needed. I’m so pleased with the choice.

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Make a comment below if you have time. I enjoy reading all of them.

Check the links to other Middle Grade novels over at Shannon Messenger’s Marvelous Middle Grade Monday post.

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SHACKLES FROM THE DEEP

Posted on February 10, 2017 by Greg Pattridge

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Pulitzer Prize winning journalist Michael H. Cottman takes readers on a four-year odyssey across four continents for the purpose of discovering his ancestors and what it meant to be on a slave ship. Featured here is the Henrietta Marie.

It’s a bitter history but one vitally important for our future. Although the Henrietta Marie took only two voyages before succumbing to a storm off Key West, Florida at the turn of the 18th century, many other ships added to the staggering number of Africans taken from their homes and families.

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Men brought the highest money at auction, followed by women, boys, and girls. The conditions of transport were horrific and shackles of every size (even child size) were used to make sure you didn’t think about escaping. It’s an emotional journey for Mr. Cottman, an African-American and an accomplished scuba diver.

Travels to England, Jamaica, and Africa tell the story both above ground and in the ocean where these atrocities took place. No matter what your racial origin, you will have trouble understanding as to how anyone could treat another human being in this way. It’s a cry for all of us to stand up against prejudice and never have this happen in our future.

A thoughtful epilogue encourages youngsters to learn about our collective past through engaging in careers focused on our underwater ecosystem.  Four pages of color photographs, a timeline, map, and further reading resources provide a light to the history of this event.

The author previously wrote of this same topic in a book for adults, THE WRECK OF THE HENRIETTA MARIE. This new narrative is for middle grade readers and above. Heartbreaking and compelling, it’s a journey we should all take.

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Comment below for your chance to win a hardback copy of SHACKLES FROM THE DEEP and an ARC of CROSSING THE LINE. I revealed the cover for Bibi Belford’s upcoming historical novel last Wednesday.

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The winner will be drawn Valentine’s Day at 8 pm EST. Good luck to all.

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Cover Reveal for CROSSING THE LINE

Posted on February 8, 2017 by Greg Pattridge

I always smile at a cover reveal, knowing it’s the culmination of long hours writing the story that inspired the image. Today my smile is wider than ever as I’m proud to reveal the cover for Bibi Belford’s upcoming novel, CROSSING THE LINE. I just love it!

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The story line adds to my anticipation:

For readers of The Lions of Little Rock and P. S. Be  Eleven, Crossing the Line is a story set around the 1919 Chicago race riots.

Billy’s family has fallen on hard times, what with his da hospitalized after the war and his ma barely scraping by. But it’s no hardship for him when there’s not enough money to pay the tuition for Nativity of Our Lord, the private Catholic school everyone in his neighborhood attends. Billy’s not big on education.

When he transfers to James Ward, a Chicago public school, he finds out there’s a big difference at public school: the kids aren’t all Irish—in fact, they aren’t even all white. It isn’t long before Billy’s found a new best friend in Foster, another fifth grader who also doesn’t have any money, loves baseball, and just happens to be black.

Billy is pretty sure skin color doesn’t matter. Not when he and Foster are just horsing around, playing baseball, working on the docks of the canal, and building a raft at their secret hideout on Bridgeport’s Bubbly Creek. But in the Red Summer of 1919, it does matter.

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Bibi Belford is the author of Canned and Crushed and its digital short story companion, “The Gift.” She graduated with a BA in English from Westmont College and completed her master’s in bilingual literacy at Northern Illinois University. She’s been a classroom teacher, reading teacher, and literacy coach in East Aurora, Illinois’s elementary schools.

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You can win an ARC of CROSSING THE LINE and a hardback copy of a new compelling non-fiction book I’ll be reviewing this Friday, SHACKLES FROM THE DEEP. Make a comment on either post through Feb. 13th and I’ll draw the winner on Valentine’s Day. Good Luck!

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WELCOME TO THE WONDERLAND–HOME SWEET MOTEL for Marvelous Middle Grade Monday

Posted on February 6, 2017 by Greg Pattridge

Reluctant readers rejoice, I have the perfect book to answer your most pressing reading wonderlandquestion:

“Do you know of a book with short chapters? My mom forces me to read one chapter each night.”

Here it is in no less than 65 chapters. Even those of us who like to read will enjoy the story of P.T. (named after P.T. Barnum). He’s short in stature but his long tales get him out of many tight spots. He lives with his mother and grandfather at the world’s wackiest motel in St. Petersburg, Florida. It’s a great place to live, but in recent years the motel has come under too much competition and investors are looking to flatten it and build condos.

I spent many spring breaks as a kid in nearby Clearwater visiting my grandmother. I can attest to the strange attractions pulling in tourists. The Wonderland Motel (formerly Walt Wilkie’s Wonder World) is exactly the change of pace vacationers look for. At least until Walt Disney decided otherwise.

P.T. and his new friend, Gloria, try to find ways to raise the $100,000 to keep the place open. Bad guys with a past history to the motel return to interrupt their money making scheme. It is fast paced, funny, and the setting is perfect. Illustrations scattered throughout support the wackiness.

I’m looking forward to warmer weather and the chance to dive into Book 2-Beach Party Surf Monkey–to be released in May, 2017.

PUBLICATION DATE: 2016   PAGE COUNT: 304

FULL PLOT (From AMAZON)  Eleven-year-old P. T. Wilkie may be the greatest storyteller alive. But he knows one thing for a fact: the Wonderland Motel is the best place a kid could ever live! All-you-can-eat poolside ice cream! A snack machine in the living room! A frog slide! A giant rampaging alligator! (Okay, that last one may or may not be made up.) There’s only one thing the Wonderland doesn’t have, though—customers. And if the Wonderland doesn’t get them soon, P.T. and his friend Gloria may have to say goodbye to their beloved motel forever.

They need to think BIG. They need to think BOLD. They need an OUTRAGEOUS plan. Luckily for them, Gloria is a business GENIUS, and OUTRAGEOUS is practically P.T.’s middle name. With Gloria’s smarts and P.T.’s world-famous stories and schemes, there’s got to be a way to save the Wonderland!

FIVE THINGS TO LIKE ABOUT: WELCOME TO WONDERLAND by Chris Grabenstein

  1. The extras in the back of the book will keep readers amused until the next book. P.T. WILKIES OUTRAGEOUSLY RIDICULOUS AND OCCASIONAL USEFUL STUFF is where you will find how to say, “Help! The toilet is clogged!” in over twenty languages, and a recipe for Frozen Green Pond Scum Punch.
  2. Teachers also love these type of books because they can fill the five minutes before class changes with a fun chapter or two.
  3. The humor comes from P.T.’s wild made up tales he uses both in school and at home to keep himself out of trouble. Most of them actually work.
  4. His mom and grandfather are there for P.T. and seem to understand his unusual ways. I’m looking forward to see how they deal with P.T. in the next book. There’s also a dad who disappeared a long time ago who will probably surface in a future installment.
  5. After reading a half dozen emotional wrenching titles–boy, did I ever need this breath of fresh air.

FAVORITE LINES:

One thing’s for sure: The Wonderland Motel is the best place a kid could ever live.

There’s daily maid service. My toilet is sanitized for my protection.

We have more ice than Antarctica, plus free cable and HBO. Also, if you know how to bump the glass just right, you can score two bags of chips every time you buy one from the vending machine.

FROM Mr. Grabenstein’s WEBSITE:
Chris started writing a long time ago. He and his four brothers used to put on skits and puppet shows in the basement of their home in Buffalo, New York. Their mom and dad were the only paying customers. Admission was a nickel.

When he was ten, Chris moved to Signal Mountain Tennessee and had some great teachers in Junior High School and at Chattanooga’s Notre Dame High School who told him he would “make a living as a writer one day.”

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It’s Black History Month and to honor the occasion, I have two books to share later this week and a giveaway. First up on Wednesday is the cover reveal for Bibi Belford’s new historical novel set to debut this spring–CROSSING THE LINE.

On Friday I have a review of SHACKLES FROM THE DEEP, a non-fiction account of the slave ships from the 17th century.

Stop by and you might win both titles!

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Make a comment if you have time. I enjoy reading all of them. Click on the comments link below.

Check the links to other Middle Grade novels over at Shannon Messenger’s Marvelous Middle Grade Monday post.

MMGM2shannon

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JUBILEE for Marvelous Middle Grade EXTRA

Posted on February 3, 2017 by Greg Pattridge

I read JUBILEE after winning the book last year in one of Rosie Hollinbeck’s giveaways at THE WRITE STUFF. Rosie always has a compelling book to recommend along with some helpful writer links. Go check out her site!

Jubilee is a quiet, hopeful story in more ways than one. Judith is the main character and jubileehasn’t talked since her Mom left her with an aunt many years ago. Jubilee communicates through her drawings and friendships are hard to come by. That is until Mason, a boy in her class, and Dog come into her life.

Judith would like to see her mother again, to find out the reason for the abandonment. Judith feels it was her fault, but she’s glad to be with Aunt Cora who calls her Jubilee.

The result is a heartwarming novel about a girl trying to carve her own path to discover who she is and to get the voice back she hasn’t been able to find. Perfect for the quiet kids who also are trying to see where they fit in.

PUBLICATION DATE: 2016   PAGE COUNT: 208

FULL PLOT (From AMAZON) Judith lives with her beloved aunt Cora and her faithful Dog on a beautiful island. Years ago, when her mother left, Judith stopped talking. Now she communicates entirely through gestures and taps, and by drawing cartoons, speaking only when she’s alone—or with Dog.

This year, Judith faces a big change—leaving her small, special classroom for a regular fifth-grade class. She likes her new teacher, and finds a maybe-friend in a boy named Mason. But Jubilee’s wandering feet won’t stop until they find her mother. And now she discovers that her mother has moved back to the mainland, nearby. If Jubilee finds her, will her mother’s love be what she needs to speak again?
FIVE THINGS TO LIKE ABOUT: JUBILEE by Patricia Reilly Giff

  1. The friendship of Mason and Jubilee is sweet and a perfect balance to provide growth and change for both of them.
  2. Children in similar circumstances who’ve also been dropped at a relatives house for years will cheer at the elements brought forth. They truly aren’t alone.
  3. Jubilee’s cartoon drawings are interspersed throughout the story. They provide more understanding to her feelings and personality in a humorous way.
  4. The island setting adds to the charm and beauty of the story. It also deepens the divide between a mother and daughter.
  5. At the age of 81 this author, like Robert Newton Peck and Richard Peck, keep churning out great stories. We can be thankful writing has no retirement age.

FAVORITE LINES:  My mother had left on that ferry when I was a toddler, dropping me off at Aunt Cora’s as if I were a bundle of laundry.

She sent presents at Christmas and cards on my birthday, postmarked Oakdale, or Vista, or even Apple Valley. She signed them Mom, or Mother, or her name, Amber. She didn’t even know what to call herself.

AUTHOR QUOTE  (from RANDOM HOUSE KIDS)

“I want to see children curled up with books, finding an awareness of themselves as they discover other people’s thoughts. I want them to make the connection that books are people’s stories, that writing is talking on paper, and I want them to write their own stories. I’d like my books to provide that connection for them.”

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Make a comment if you have time. I enjoy reading all of them. Click on the comments link below.

Check the links to other Middle Grade novels over at Shannon Messenger’s Marvelous Middle Grade Monday post.

MMGM2

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