Evening is Coming

Ok, I get it it's a bad pun.  And no this isn't a Game of Thrones post (those books are amazing but they are definitely not for this age range).  But with a title like Fablehaven: Rise of the Evening Star, I couldn't help myself.

This is the second installment in Brandon Mull's Fablehaven series.  A full year has passed since Kendra and Seth last visited their grandparents.  In that time the threat of the Evening Star (an evil group trying to conquer places like Fablehaven) has become stronger so the Sorenson's have invited three experts to help.

While these experts search for an extremely powerful magical artifact hidden somewhere on the vast property, they are also training Kendra and Seth.  If they are going to take over Fablehaven some day, they will need all the training they can get.  But can all three of these experts really be trusted?

Rise of the Evening Star takes us even deeper into the magical world of Fablehaven.  I just love learning more about this enchanted place and am very much enjoying this series. But, as with everything, there is a balance.  The more the children explore and get to know this hidden magical world, the more real and serious the danger becomes.

Learning who to trust...that's kids stuff.  

Isn't that a Movie

Today I started reading The Giver with my classes.  The number one comment, "Isn't that a movie?"  Yes, it is but the book is way better.  Now this post isn't about The Giver, it's about another book about to become a movie: Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children by Ransom Riggs.

This is a book I have wanted to read for a long time, it's been quite popular over the past few years here in 7th grade.  When I started seeing trailers for a movie adaptation I realized I had better read it quick.  Honestly, this book was worth the wait.  In a review John Green described Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children as 'wondrously strange," and that perfectly describes this book.

Jacob has always been fascinated by his grandfather's stories and it is a huge blow when he grows up and forces himself to admit that the stories are just that, stories-they're not real.  But something is suspicious about his grandfather's death and Jacob can't shake the feeling that things aren't what they seem.

Thanks to Jacob's persistence he is allowed to take a trip to the  mysterious island off the coast of Wales, home to all of his grandfather's stories.  Will he get the answers he is looking for?  Is there any chance the stories could actually be true?  Guess you'll have to read it and see.  And please, if you are going to see the movie make sure you read the book first!

Spotting the monsters...that's kids stuff.  

P.S. This book features vintage photography and the mix of photos with text is masterfully done.