This is not the typical orphaned child story. Lucinda is very resourceful and she is determined to do the right thing when a very special gem she has been entrusted with is stolen. This action-packed fantasy is filled with memorable characters: a thief or is he really a friend, a goat named dog, a prince and of course, the princess he is betrothed to, an extraterrestial that everyone thinks is a witch, a mean step-aunt, a knight in a prison, and much more. Lucinda's adventure is quite the tale.

Reviewed by: adf

Date read: 7/21/2010

ISBN-10: 1599903342

ISBN-13: 9781599903347

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Intent on revenge, Nathaniel, a young magician's apprentice, summons up the djinni, Bartimaeus, and instructs him to steal the Amulet of Samarkand from ruthless master magician, Simon Lovelace. Thus, Nathaniel becomes caught up in a dangerous world of espionage, blackmail, murder, and conspiracy. Book one of The Bartimaeus Trilogy.

Reviewed by: sc

Date read: 3/27/2009

ISBN-10: 0786852550

ISBN-13: 9780786852550

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Are you in the mood for fantasy? Mystery? Historical fiction? How about adventure? The Apothecary has all of these things to offer, and more. The year is 1952. Fourteen year old Janie has spent her whole life in sunny Los Angeles, where her parents are writers for television. When the feds start questioning them about their Communist sympathies, they decide to move to London. Janie is sent to a private school, where she is sure she won't fit in. She meets a defiant classmate named Benjamin there, and he would rather be a spy than follow in his father's footsteps. His father is the neighborhood apothecary, but the two friends soon find out that he does far more than sell aspirin and hot water bottles. He is actually an alchemist, and in possession of a 700 year old book of formulas that can do everything from turn you invisible to transform you into a pile of salt. Janie and Benjamin are swept up into an adventure where scientists aren't just scientists and they must race to stop the Russians from setting off a nuclear bomb. This fast paced story gives a good picture of what life was like after WWII, and stirs the imagination as well.

Similar books: A Wrinkle in Time by Madeline L'Engle; The Alchemyst by Michael Scott

Awards nominated: Rebecca Caudill Award

Awards nominated: 2014 Rebecca Caudill Nominee

Reviewed by: lauraf

Date read: 10/4/2012

ISBN-10: 039925627X

ISBN-13: 9780399256271

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Artemis Fowl is desperately seeking to regain his family's fortune. The Fowl Estate was built entirely on criminal activity, and Artemis seems to be in no hurry to clear the family name. However, after kidnapping a fairy for fairy ransom money, and imprisoning her in his home, he has more than a few magic spells with which to contend. The fairy people enlist everything from time freezing devices, criminal dwarves, psychotic trolls, laser blasters, biological bombs, LEPrecon Unit teams (the fairies' elite fighting force), superior technology, and even their own, natural magic, to reclaim their lost soldier. Who will win in this deadly chess game? The skilled fairy armed forces, or the twelve-year old Artemis, criminal mastermind in the making? Need more- Read Artemis Fowl, the Arctic Incident.

Reviewed by: sc

Date read: 4/29/2009

ISBN-10: 0786817879

ISBN-13: 9780786817870

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This book is about a giant who takes a girl to where he lives and considers her to be his friend. They have an out-of-the-ordinary adventure.

Awards nominated: Bluestem 2011

Reviewed by: St. Charles Reader

Date read: 11/6/2009

ISBN-10: 0374304696

ISBN-13: 9780374304690

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Commenter: Kayla, grade 5

Commenter: Michelle, grade 5

Commenter: St. Charles Reader, grade 0