It is 1st century Rome. Flavia is a young girl living in Ostia, a Roman suburb. (Ostia was a real city.) Her world is good, but is about to be disrupted, when a magpie triggers a set of events that lead to saving a young slave girl, meeting Jewish children, who have secretly become Christians, and finding a mute boy in a graveyard. Flavia, and her friends, combine forces to solve the mystery of the decapitated dogs found around Flavia's house. In the process, they are chased by wild dogs, and escape from slave traders. In addition, someone is trying to steal gold hidden in Flavia's house. Are these mysteries related? Find out in this action-packed, and slightly gory, book. Book one in The Roman Mysteries series.

Similar books: Mystery of the Roman Ransom by Henry Winterfeld

Reviewed by: sc

Date read: 4/13/2009

ISBN-10: 0142401471

ISBN-13: 9780142401477

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In a small, Nebraska town, Ted Hammond finds a real life mystery, when he sees a face in the window of an abandoned farm house, while on his paper route. The sixth-grader, who loves mysteries, decides this is one that he can solve on his own, and resolves to get to the bottom of it. He finds a girl, and her family, who are hiding out. He agrees to help them, and promises not to give away their secret. When they disappear, he must figure out what happened to them, and whom can he trust.

Reviewed by: sc

Date read: 4/13/2009

ISBN-10: 0689866879

ISBN-13: 9780689866876

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After a humiliating play where Josh freezes when the ball comes towards him and his baseball team loses, his teammates start calling him 'Roots,' like he's a tree that's put down roots and cannot be moved. At the next game, they trick him into missing most of the game, and when he plays, he messes up again. At the end of the game, the team refuses to play again if Josh will be there, chanting 'Boot the Root!' When the chance to move to be with his father in Wisconsin for the year comes, Josh jumps at the chance to escape. He is just as miserable, though, with his new stepfamily at the lake. Then, he meets the mysterious man living next door, and he gets the chance to turn it all around.

Reviewed by: emc

Date read: 11/27/2009

ISBN-10: 0395451841

ISBN-13: 9780395451847

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Meet Rose (a vole) and Riley (a groundhog) who are best friends. Read along as these two buddies prepare for a rainy day, make plans to celebrate their un-birthdays, and discover how to sleep without worries. This book contains 3 easy-to-read stories and beautiful watercolor illustrations that will touch your heart!

Similar authors: Arnold Lobel

Similar books: Frog and Toad Together by Arnold Lobel

Reviewed by: mb

Date read: 7/29/2009

ISBN-10: 0374363404

ISBN-13: 9780374363406

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When Rosemary receives ten mysterious packages from her grandmother on her tenth birthday, she is excited. She is so excited that she doesn't heed her grandmother's warning to wait to open the last package, and she is whisked back in time to Germany in 1870. Will she ever make it home? What will happen when she meets her great-great-great grandmother Rosemarie as a girl her own age? Will she be able to decode a mysterious postcard Rosemarie receives?

Reviewed by: emc

Date read: 2/26/2010

ISBN-10: 1890817554

ISBN-13: 9781890817558

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