Home Away From Home by Cynthia Lord

 

Home Away From Home by Cynthia Lord was a fantastic read! Cynthia Lord won a Newbery award for her book, Rules, and I predict this book will win its own awards. It is about a young girl named Mia who stays in Maine with her grandmother while her mother and new stepfather try to sell the family home. Mia is not comfortable with how much change is happening in her life, but she thinks a summer with her grandmother is just what she needs.

From the moment Mia arrives, she finds things have changed here too. There is a new neighbor boy hanging around with her grandmother, and when she goes to see the yearly eagle's nest on the point, there is a strange white bird bothering the eaglets. Nothing stays the same!

The characters in this book come alive to the reader. Mia has struggles with social media and limiting her phone time. She is jealous of Cayman the new boy who seems to be very good friends with her grandmother. She worries about having to leave her childhood home behind and about how she will fit into the new living arrangements that her mom is making without her. Pick up this Rhode Island Children's Book Nominee and enjoy reading along as Mia faces each new challenge.

By Mrs. Castro

A Handful of Stars by Cynthia Lord

A Handful of Stars by Cynthia Lord is a book about friendship. Lily is a young girl in a small town in Maine, living with her grandparents and her blind dog Lucky. Salma is a migrant worker, in Maine with her family to pick blueberries for the season. The two girls don't seem to have much in common, but they both have things to learn from each other about standing up to prejudice and about the loyalty of a good friend.

Cynthia Lord is the author of Rules, which is one of my favorite books. I really liked this one too. I think the author is excellent at understanding friendships and sometimes the difficulties that come with them. I especially liked the character of Lucky the dog. He is so sweet and Lily and Salma bond over their love for him and their worries about his loss of sight. Good dog, good book.

Mrs. Castro

Navigating Early by Clare Vanderpool

Navigating Early by Clare Vanderpool is one of the 2015 Rhode Island Children Book Award Nominees.  Vanderpool has also written Moon Over Manifest, a Newbery Award book.   Navigating Early is a true adventure story that takes place in the mountains of Maine.  In Vanderpool's story, her character, Early Auden is fascinated with the story that the number pi (3.14...) tells him, about a boy named Pi.  When Jack Baker moves to Maine from Kansas, to attend a boarding school for boys after his mother's death, Early and Jack become friends.  Both of the boys have had to face the loss of beloved family members, Jack's mother, and Early's brother.  The story of Pi is set within the story of Early and Jack.  Early and Jack set out on a quest together to search for Pi, who is missing.  The quest is a dangerous one.  The boys will be threatened by frightening gun-toting men, hunted by dogs,  and faced with a huge bear.  Can the boys survive the wilderness and find what they have lost?  Read Navigating Early to decide if you want to vote for it in February of 2015.

At the end of the story the author references Born on a Blue Day: Inside the Extraordinary Mind of an Autistic Savant: A Memoir by Daniel Tammet.  I was glad that I had already read this book and remember how fascinated I was by the author, who saw numbers in colors and sizes and shapes, just like Early Auden.   If you are interested in understanding someone who thinks differently than you, you can listen to Daniel Tammet giving a talk about how he sees numbers and words.  He shows paintings that express how numbers, including pi, look to him.

Reviewed by Mrs. Castro

Romeo and Juliet Code by Phoebe Stone

Romeo and Juliet Code by Phoebe Stone is truly breathtaking.  Some of the main characters are Felicity, or Flissy and Captain Derek.  Felicity is a young girl when her parents leave her in Maine with her uncle, aunt, and Gram.  Flissy is simply devastated.  When Flissy and Derek become close friends, Flissy falls in love with Derek.  When Derek and Flissy follow Uncle Gideon to a small light house on Peace Island, they see a shocking sight that has been happening the whole time…….  I personally love this book, and if you’re into adventurous, realistic fiction, then this is the book for you.   

Reviewed by Fluffy_PANDA101