Summer Reading Programs!

Hey readers!  Summer is here (thankfully), and now is a great time to get signed up for the summer reading program in your area.  There are free summer reading programs offered through the City of St. Louis library system, the St. Louis County library system, and the St. Charles City-County Library district.

Happy reading!

The Year We Sailed the Sun by Theresa Nelson

The Year We Sailed the Sum
Author: Theresa Nelson
Lexile: 940
Length: 417 Pages
Genre: Historical Fiction
Awards: None
Reading Ram Star Rating: 4.9 out of 5 Stars


         Eleven year old Julia Delaney thinks everything has finally calmed down somewhat, after her father dying and whatnot. She lives with her older sister Mary at her aunt's house. Then, of course, Julia and her sister are taken by some Nuns to the House of Mercy. It is a girl's orphanage/school. Julia is constantly trying to get out and escape.Her older brother Bill keeps telling her to wait for the signal to leave, but she can't. Besides, going back means going into the Sin Room. Where the head Nun, Sister Maclovius, will be able to tighten her iron grip on Julia. But where would Julia go? She has nowhere, no family to go too. But Julia can dream, oh boy she can dream. She has dreamed of having her father and mother back, and her whole family moving to New York, or another place outside of St. Louis. She has never dreamed of going anywhere truly amazing. But will her life take a different path all on its own?
         I absolutely adored this book! It was so good! The story had so many twists and turns, it was amazing! It takes a little getting into, like maybe the first 100 pages, but it is still awesome! The way Julia changes in this book is incredible! It is probably my favorite historical fiction book of all time! Julia is named after a fiddle tune, which I think is cute. But she will not stand it if the person playing isn't her dad. since he's dead, she basically didn't want to hear it at all. This book is not inappropriate at all. I would recommend it to 5th grade through 7th grade. Just know that, as I said before, it is kind of hard to get into. The change in this book is so fast at the beginning, you're just thinking, what? But don't worry, I promise you will love it! You should definitely check this book out from the library, or even buy it, it's that good. I already want to read it again, so try it out!

Red Butterfly by A. L. Sonnichsen

Red Butterfly
Author: A. L. Sonnichsen
Illustrator: Amy June Bates
Lexile: 830
Length: 392 Pages
Genre: Realistic Fiction
Awards: None
Reading Ram Star Rating: 4 out of 5 Stars

 
           Kara lives in China, she's Chinese, but her "Mama" is not. Kara lives with an American woman in the Chinese province of Tianjin. She is an orphan, her parents left her out in the street one night to die. Then Mama took her in. Mama was very kind, but she didn't have very much money. She is also very old. Kara doesn't leave the apartment much, and she spends most of her time there. She has a few freedoms, a red bicycle, and she gets to occasionally go out to get groceries. Kara always wonders why they don't just move back to the U.S. with Mama's husband. Mama tells Kara not to want more, but she does anyway. Is it so wrong to want something even if you know it will never happen?
           I really liked this book, it was written very... interestingly. It was written in verse (Poetry)! So I kind of read it differently. For example, I read it with pauses between each of the lines. I still read it really fast, maybe in two hours. I also liked the illustrations, they were so cool! They were kind of blurry, but still pretty awesome. The reason I gave it 4 stars is because of the ending. It ended, well, I shouldn't say. But the ending was kind of strange. I don't think it should've ended that way! It was too much like a fairy tale I think. This book's lexile is only 830, so I guess that should be expected, but still. Books shouldn't always end like a fairy tale. It makes them boring. But other than that, it was awesome! I loved all the compassion and empathy Kara could feel throughout the book. I would recommend this book to kids 5th grade and up. Maybe not for High School though. I think adults would maybe like it. So it is a great book for book clubs, t has a lot of interesting discussion questions. You should definitely try it out in your free time!

The Expeditioners and the Treasure of Drowned Man's Canyon, by S. S. Taylor

The Expeditioners and the Treasure of Drowned Man's Canyon
Author: S. S. Taylor
Lexile: 880
Length: 375 Pages
Genre: Dystopia
Awards: None
Reading Ram Star Rating: 4.5 out of 5 Stars

 
         Kit, M.K., and Zander are all alone in the world. Their father just died under mysterious circumstances while exploring new lands. Everyone is trying to find new places to get goods from for the United States and it's allies. Their father was one of those people, called Explorers. He left his children one day to go and explore a new mountain range, then it was though he was wiped off the face of the planet. The BNDL, an organization that controls these explorations declared that he was dead. But Kit and his siblings aren't so sure. Their father also left them part of a hidden map, but what was it a map of? And why was it only half, where was the other half of the map?  Kit and his siblings, M.K. the engineer, Zander the courageous, and himself being the brain and expert map reader would have to figure this out for themselves. They would have to solve the intricate puzzle left by their father, all the while avoiding contact with the BNDL.
        I really liked this book, it is pretty awesome. It is fairly Dystopic, because it is about a time where there are lots of new things, like new countries and stuff, but also still the United States. And their are a lot of high tech things, like steam powered machines, and new fruits, foods, and clothing. It is a Dystopia book that is way less intense than say, The Hunger Games. It is very well written, and the first book in a series, the next book is The Expeditioners and the Secret of King Triton's lair. Sorry if I confused anyone about that, this book is the first one. I really liked how the author compacted words together to make the names of new technologies. For example, SteamCycles, IronSteeds, that kind of thing. I would recommend this book to 5th graders and up. It is not a very challenging read, and I think that once you get into it, it is very hard to put it down. You should definitely try it out.

Michael Vey; Prisoner of Cell 25 by Richard Paul Evans

Michael Vey; Prisoner of Cell 25

Author: Richard Paul Evans

Lexile: 500

Length: 336 Pages

Genre: Science Fiction, Young Adult

Awards: 2013 Truman Award

Reading Ram Star Rating: 5 out of 5 Stars

         Michael Vey appears to be your ordinary teen at Meridian High School, in Meridian, Idaho. But in fact he's not. He is electric. Michael thinks he is the only one of his kind, he can shock people at will. But he isn't. And something, or someone is looking for all the people like him. All the people who have powers... like him. The something hunting them will stop at nothing to find it's prey. Michael has to figure out how to beat it, but how do you beat a multibillion dollar company? You don't. He has to find a way to stop them and get back what they took. But what can a 15 year old do? Even a 15 year old with special powers. 

          I LOVED this book so much! It is seriously one of the best books I have ever read! I think it might be (Gasp!) my favorite book ever, which is saying a lot. The story was just so interesting, with so many plot twists, and surprises, I couldn't put it down for a second! I started it one school day because I had seen other kids reading it, and I was bored. But man, am I glad I did! As soon as I finished the first chapter, I couldn't even put it down. When I had to leave, I realized that I had the book at home, so I went and kept on reading it there. This book may have a low lexile, but it really isn't directed toward a younger crowd. I think that it is good for all ages, elementary, middle school, high school, and even adults! It is a fun, well written story, that any age will enjoy and appreciate. Thankfully, the story doesn't end at this book, it's a series! There are 3 more books out that I know of, and I believe the author is working on the 5th one. But really, this book was so awesome. If you don't try it, you will really regret it! Just pick it up at the library sometime, I promise you will love it! 

Under a Painted Sky by Stacey Lee

Under a Painted Sky

Author: Stacey Lee

Lexile: Unknown

Length: 374 Pages

Genre: Historical Fiction

Awards: None

Reading Ram Star Rating: 4 out of 5 Stars

     

           Samantha's dream is to one day be a professional musician and play in New York City. A hard dream to accomplish. Harder if you're a girl, even harder if you're Chinese and it's 1849. So Samantha is stuck in St. Joe, Missouri, living with her father who runs a store with supplies for the Gold Diggers headed to California.  But one day a tragic accident ensures that she will never see her dream to its end. Samantha has to team up with a runaway slave named Annamae, and together they brave the Oregon Trail. Life on the trail is hard for two girls, so they pretend to be Sammy and Andy, just another pair of boys looking to get rich off of gold. The girls get closer and closer as they form a powerful friendship between them. With the help of some extremely kind cowboys, they set off, trying to avoid law and keep a low profile. They soon learn that life on the open field, may seem free and cheerful, but is full of more dangers then either of them ever imagined. 

         I really liked this book a lot, it was written so nicely. It was almost like poetry! I also loved all the references to the Chinese calender. Like Year of the Dragon, Year of the Rabbit, that kind of thing. Samantha judged people by the characteristics, and the most surprising part, she was right! Like a person who was born in the Year of the Rabbit actually had those characteristics. It was freaky! I would recommend this book to 6th graders and up, it had a little bit of inappropriate stuff in it. You should really try it out in your free time.  

Shadow and Bone by Leigh Bardugo

Shadow and Bone
Author: Leigh Bardugo
Lexile: 800
Length: 358 Pages
Genre: Dystopia
Awards: None
Reading Ram Star Rating: 4.9 out of 5

        Alina Starkov is an orphan from the Border Wars. She and her friend Mal have recently been drafted into the First Army. Immediately, they are sent into the most dangerous part of their kingdom, the Fold. Almost nobody survives the Fold, it's filled with monsters who feast on humans. The convoy they are in is attacked, and Alina accidentally uses a power even she never knew about. Alina's world is turned upside down, and she is whisked away to the royal court. Can she beat the unknown evil that has been penetrating Ravka for centuries?
       Oh my gosh, this book was amazing!!!!!! I finished it in 1 day. Literally. It was just so good, I couldn't even put it down for a second! The story was so well written, it has so many twists and plot changes! This book is seriously competing to be my favorite book ever, which is a huge deal! One of my teachers recommended it to me, and I finally got around to reading it. Boy am I glad I did! I really hope you take my advice into consideration, this book is awesome! You have to make sure you read it sometime. The only reason I gave it 4.9 stars instead of 5 though, was that I am still waiting to see if another, better book is gonna come out. I am still pretty sure that the Rick Riordan "Heroes of Olympus" books are my favorite. But it is definitely a close call. I have already read the second book of this series too, and I'm waiting to get the third book from the library. But seriously, read it. I would recommend this book to 6th grade and up. Possibly mature 5th graders, but they would have to be really mature. So you should definitely check this book out, give it a try. The cover is a little strange, but trust me, you will thank me later.

Drizzle by Kathleen Van Cleve

Drizzle
Author: Kathleen Van Cleve
Lexile: 650
Length: 358 Pages
Genre: Fantasy
Awards: Mark Twaine Nominee 2012-2013
Reading Ram Star Rating: 3 out of 5 Stars

                  Polly Peabody lives on a rhubarb farm. But not just any rhubarb farm, the amazing Rupert's Rhubarb farm! Polly has a pretty exciting life, this farm is not in any way boring! Polly lives with her mother, brother, father, and a few other people to help out with the farm. This farm is very special, for some reason, every Monday, it rains! Also, they grow chocolate rhubarb, a vegetable that tastes exactly like chocolate! And to top it off, no one has ever drowned in the lake! So you can imagine how fun it would be to live there, right? But then, out of the blue, it stops raining! And Polly's life is turned upside down. Press everywhere, and all the rhubarb plants are dying. They're so desperate enough, they might even sell the farm! Now it's up to Polly to find out what's wrong with the farm and stop before it's too late.
                  I did like this book, it wasn't wonderfully amazing, but it was still okay. It was written towards a younger audience, which is why I think I didn't like as much as I would have. Also, it was kind of a predictable story, like I could tell what the basic plot was. And I could tell when Polly was going to find something important, like a possible solution to the rain problem. But in general, this book is a pretty good book. It has a really fun story, who doesn't love a farm with magical rain and a magical lake? I loved all the parts about talking plants and bugs and such. If you like fun Fantasy books, then maybe try this one. I would say this book is good for 4th graders to 6th graders, not really much older, but third graders would like it too. The main reasons I gave this book 3 out of 5 stars though, was how it was too young for me, and it was kind of predictable if you are older. But I would definitely try it out if Fantasy is your thing and you love books about the outdoors.