'The worst day of Rita's life was the day she became a dolphin.' The Dolphins are the slower swim team, and all of Rita's friends made the team called the Sharks. They won't even swim at the same meets! Can Rita conquer the flip turn and win a place on the Sharks, or will she be stuck swimming with the Dolphins forever? This fun read makes a great pick for readers just beginning to read chapter books.

Reviewed by: emc

Date read: 9/29/2010

ISBN-10: 1596432454

ISBN-13: 9781596432451

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Can you imagine how you would feel if you were tricked into selling your most valuable baseball card by a mean collector? Griffin Bing had this happen to him and he is not about to stand still until he recaptures the card. He and two of his buddies, all misfits of some kind or other, try to recover the card, but must go through several challenges to do so. Griffin is known as 'The Man with a Plan' so through his various 'PLANS' you find out if he is able to retrieve the Babe Ruth baseball card which he found in an old dilapidated house that was being torn down.

Awards nominated: Bluestem Nominee 2012

Reviewed by: cjones

Date read: 4/18/2011

ISBN-10: 0439903459

ISBN-13: 9780439903455

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When Miu Miu turns fifteen, she learns the truth about her father's violent death and discovers that she must avenge his murder before she can marry the man to whom she is betrothed. Based on a story told to the author by a former prisoner during China's Cultural Revolution.

Reviewed by: caroll

Date read: 2/12/2010

ISBN-10: 0061447587

ISBN-13: 9780061447587

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When T. J. is sent to spend several weeks with her elderly Auntie Onion and Uncle Will in Santa Cruz, California, she is expecting a quiet, boring visit. If nothing else, she can work on the mystery novel she is writing with her friend. Then, on the first morning of her visit, she hears a fog horn calling her name! When her aunt and uncle tell her there is no fog horn any more, T.J. decides to go exploring. That is when she meets the boy. He is sitting on a rock, soaking wet, and speaks with an Australian accent. He tells her that he was in a shipwreck. As soon as the fog disappears, the boy disappears. The next time T.J. meets him, he tells her more of his story, and T.J. realizes that she is talking to a ghost. To return to where he belongs, he needs to find a gold ring he lost during the wreck. T.J. promises to help him. Will they find the ring? Will T.J. write the next great mystery novel?

Similar books: Cattail Moon by Jean Thesman; The Ghost Ship Mystery by Gertrude Chandler Warner

Reviewed by: sc

Date read: 4/13/2009

ISBN-10: 0690046898

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The book, T4, is named after the address which was the headquarters of a Nazi organization that tried to get rid of many people whom they felt were undesirable. T4 stands for Tiergartenstrasse 4. The facts of T4 are true, but the story and characters are fiction. Paula is forced into hiding and away from her family when the Germans decided that deaf individuals could not be part of the master race. The author is deaf so feels a closeness to Paula. The book is beautifully written. It is simple and yet profound.

Similar authors: Lois Lowry

Similar books: Number the Stars by Lois Lowry

Reviewed by: cjones

Date read: 7/11/2011

ISBN-13: 9780547046846

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