So many books so little time would have to be my motto lately. There are so many books I want to read that as soon as I finish one book, I start to read the next without writing a post. Shame on me is all I can say, but I do intend to make up for it by writing three reviews for the price of one today.
Smiles to Go by Jerry Spinelli
"Beware of solipsism." What an amazing line for a 10+ intermediate novel. It does seem to me that at about age 10 is when the selfish phase starts. That we have this sense of "the self is the only reality." This is certainly what is happening to Will Tuppence. Will begins his 9th grade year with varied interests. He's a champ chess player. He's a decent skateboarder. He has two really great friends, Mi-Su and BT, and they all play Monopoly every Saturday night. His way younger sister, Tabby, pesters and worships him simultaneously. He lives the rationale life of a Physics geek, but then it is discovered that protons actually die. Nothing will ever be the same in the world of science or in Will's life. His reality is changing. For one, BT made it down Dead Man's Hill. No one has ever been able to do it before, and Will is truly afraid to even try. Then, he sees BT and Mi-Su kiss at a stargazing party. Will likes Mi-Su, and what is BT doing kissing her? As Will becomes obsessed with how to get Mi-Su to like him, he stops playing chess, he can't keep his cool at the weekly Monopoly games, and dealing with his little sister just becomes too much of a pain. But then Tabby gets hurt, and Will discovers there is more to life than just worrying about a girl. It's okay that BT kissed her first. It's okay that he can skateboard down Dead Man's Hill. Will needs to live in the here and now, and appreciate what he has even if it comes in the form of a 5-year-old little sister. If the laws of Physics can change, so can Will.
Hummingbird by Kimberly Greene Angle
In the vein of great coming-of-age stories like Up a Road Slowly by Irene Hunt or The Higher Power of Lucky by Susan Patron, first-time novelist Kimberly Greene Angle has given readers a poignant tale about loss from the perspective of a 12-year-old girl. March Anne Tanner is confused about a few things in her life. Like what's up with her name? How can she be named March if she was born in August? Then, there's that chocolate-eyed boy who lives near by. But one thing March Anne is not confused about is how her life on her Georgia watermelon farm is always the same. She lives there with her father, trying little brother and her grandmother, Grenna. Grenna has taken care of most things, domestic and emotional, since March's mother passed away, but now Grenna is sick. Life is changing for March Anne, and she doesn't think she's ready to handle it, but then a gorgeous scarlet hummingbird freakishly decides to spend Winter on the farm. Even in Georgia, Winter is not warm enough for a hummingbird to survive. As the family works together to keep this beautiful creature alive, March Anne realizes that maybe with the help of her family and friends, she too can survive the changes occurring in her life.
The Crossroads by Chris Grabenstein
Zack Jennings is a fairly average kid. He's just moved from the city to Connecticut with his Dad and a fabulous new stepmom. Now he can even have a dog. It's a chance to start over after the death of his mother, except there is this mean, nasty ghost who has been waiting for fifty years to get revenge on those who played a roll in his death, and the Jennings family happens to be on his list.
While there is nothing particularly special about this horror novel, I found I enjoyed it much the way I enjoyed the movie, The Frighteners. That's the one where Michael J. Fox has developed psychic abilities after his wife is killed in a car accident. The movie is not exactly a comedy, but comedic moments are skillfully thrown in to mitigate any scene being too scary, and Grabenstein has applied this same device to The Crossroads. Whether it be the over-the-top country-boy accent applied to Zack's friend Davy, the freakish burger cravings of a possessed plumber, or the crazy, dangerous antics of a lady too old to physically hurt a fly, The Crossroads makes for a fun summer read. Oh, and the best part is that the stepmom and a librarian provide the key clues to solving the mystery of this ghost. Who says stepmoms are evil and librarians are boring?
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