The Ghost of Crutchfield Hall

The Ghost of Crutchfield Hall by Mary Downing Hahn is a historical fiction story. It has three main characters. They are Florence, Sophia, and James. This story is about a girl named Sophia who used to live with her uncle, but one day she died. It starts off a long time ago in the nineteenth century in London.  Florence is an orphan. Her uncle finally takes Florence to live with him. After she arrived she was walking around looking for her room, when suddenly in the hall she felt like someone was watching her…..! What comes next?!  After I finished this book I felt like I wanted to read it all over again and again! I hope you want to do the same. Mary Downing Hanhn is a great author.  She wrote other good books, like Deep, Dark and Dangerous. That’s my second favorite book! The reason why I chose this book is because I love ghost stories.  Even though they don’t frighten me this book might frighten you!!! My two favorite characters are Florence and Sophia. Who are yours!? Tell me what you think about this book by just reading my post on this blog! Remember this book might not be in your school library, but it should be in the public library. J

Written by, Bieber125

Sideways Stories from Wayside School by Louis Sachar

Sideways Stories from Wayside School by author Louis Sachar are about a school and it’s made differently than usual schools. The school is kind of strange because it is thirty stories high. The main characters are Louis and Mrs. Jewls, their teacher. Their old teacher Mrs. Gorf got eaten. So then they met their new teacher Mrs. Jewls. At first she thought that the students were monkeys and treated them like monkeys too. 

I really enjoyed and liked this book because it was really funny. I liked the book because each chapter is about a different student. Also I liked how the author described things too. I liked that because then the reader could imagine the school and that part of the book. I hope people that read this book liked this book as much as me. Or if you haven’t read it, I even hope that you could read this book to see how funny it is.

Review By: Sofia212 

Sideways Stories from Wayside School by Louis Sachar is an awesome book.  The main characters in this story are Louis and Mrs.Jewls.  I love these characters because they are the best characters in this book.  It is about strange children who have a strange and mean teacher and the mean teacher’s name is Mrs.Gorf.  Mrs. Gorf gets eaten by Louis and the children get a new teacher named Mrs.Jewls who thinks they are monkeys. This story takes place in a school thirty stories high. The author’s message is to get you interested, make you feel exited and funny.  It is so good.  I hope you will like this book as much as I did, because I love it. The kids are a weird bunch too, from Jason, to Sammy, to Maurecia who can beat up any boy in the class.  Read this book to find out how mean Mrs. Gorf came back to haunt the kids on the thirtieth floor.   

This book was reviewed by cupcake 21

Walk Two Moons by Sharon Creech

Walk Two Moons is my favorite book by Sharon Creech. If you like sad but humorous fiction stories, this is the right book for you. This book is about a girl named Salamanca, otherwise known as Sal. She is going on a road trip with her grandparents Hiddle to Lewiston, Idaho, to see Sal’s mother, Chanhassen, who is resting in Idaho after leaving her home in Bybanks, Kentucky. On the way to Idaho, Sal tells her grandparents the story of Phoebe (FEE-be) Winterbottom, Sal’s peculiar best friend, whose mother also ran away from home. Salamanca, of course, is my favorite character in Walk Two Moons. I love Salamanca because she is easygoing and unique. I hate the fact that her life is getting worse and worse, but I am glad that she meets a couple friends, like Phoebe Winterbottom, Mary Lou Finney, and Ben Finney. Every story has a setting. When Sal is traveling with her grandparents from Ohio to Idaho, the setting is obviously across the United States. You will notice they stop at tourist spots along the way. Why on Earth would they waste their time in the Badlands and Black Hills? Well, as Sal points out, her mother had been in those places. The grandparents had decided to follow Chanhassen.


This is a fiction story about family life. The message in this book is this: Even if you lose a loved one, they are not gone. I recommend this book to anyone who enjoys sad and humorous stories. Sharon Creech is a great author. Also read Heartbeat, Love That Dog, and the prequel to Walk Two Moons, Absolutely Normal Chaos.

This post was written by

~PurpleNeko18 Productions~

Hoot by Carl Hiaasen

The main characters in the story of Hoot by Carl Hiaasen are Roy Eberhardt a boy from Montana, the sassy Beatrice, and the running boy. Roy is a new kid in town. Dana the bully gave Roy the nickname "cowgirl". Roy is kind of shy he has no friends except for a kid named Garret. On his first day of school Roy spots a boy. The boy was running. Roy tries to catch him the next week. He finds out that the running boy is trying to save some owls where a pancake house is going to be built at Coconut Cove. Roy, Beatrice, and the running boy team up to save the owls. It is a great adventure full of friendship and action. Do you think they will save the owls in time?


This post was written by Ecto1

Surviving the Applewhites by Stephanie S. Tolan

Surviving the Applewhites by Stephanie S. Tolan was one of the 2003 Newbery Honor books.  At the start of school, a lot of students like to read books about school.  This book is about a boy from RI named Jake.  He has been kicked out of every school in the state because of his behavior.  His grandfather gets him into a school in North Carolina that is unlike any he has ever been in before.  Read this book and find out what happens when Jake meets the Applewhite family.

One Crazy Summer by Rita Williams-Garcia

One Crazy Summer by Rita Williams-Garcia is a Newbery Honor Book for 2010.  The story takes place in 1968 during a time in America's history when African Americans were demanding equal rights.  But the book is mostly about family.  Three young girls are put on a plane in New York by their father to go to California, where he wants them to get to know their mother.  She left them when they were very young and they have grown up without a mother.  Unfortunately when they get to California, their poet mother Cecile doesn't seem to have any interest in getting to know them.  She sends them off to a daily summer camp with Black Panthers, a revolutionary group that was active in the Civil Rights Movement.  You will have to read the book to find out how the summer brings about changes in the girls and their mother.

Moon Over Manifest by Clare Vanderpool

Moon Over Manifest by Clare Vanderpool is the Newbery award book of 2011 about a young girl named Abilene who lived in Kansas during the great Depression.  But the book is less about the Depression or history, and more about a young girl who is living in a strange place, without the comforting presence of her father.  Abilene misses her dad and looks for signs of him in the town where he grew up.  The story line jumps back and forth between Abilene's experiences meeting new friends and her search for a mysterious ghost-like character called the "Rattler", and the story of the people who lived during the town's past when her father was just a boy.

Zoobreak by Gordon Korman

Zoobreak by Gordon Korman is a sequel to Swindle, which I know some of you enjoyed a couple of years ago in 2007.  Here's a link to listen to Korman talking about Swindle and how he became a writer http://www.gordonkorman.com/.  In Zoobreak, the same children continue to take matters into their own hands.  Griffin, the planner of the group, jumps into action when his friend Savannah, spots her missing monkey at a sleazy small animal zoo.  I love how Griffin breaks down their problems and plans a solution.  Except of course, it's not that easy because the problems keep multiplying.

Reviewed by Mrs. Castro

Framed by Frank Cottrell Boyce

Framed by Frank Cottrell Boyce is a story that mixes family, cars and art.  The main character's name is Dylan and he lives in a small town that could be called a dead-end.  His family runs a gas station, but they run into financial trouble because the people that live in the town are moving away for more excitement and opportunities elsewhere.  Dylan's family is falling apart and things are looking bleak until almost by accident, Dylan manages to rejuvenate the town.  Read the book to find out how he does it.

Turtle in Paradise by Jennifer L. Holm

Turtle in Paradise is one of the 2011 Newbery honor winners.  The author also wrote two other books that received Newbery honors, Our Only May Amelia and Penny from Heaven.  The setting for the book is Key West in Florida during the depression.  Turtle's mom is a housekeeper and when she gets a job with a woman who doesn't like children, she chooses to send her daughter Turtle to stay with her sister, Turtle's aunt. 

I think I liked this book because of Turtle's character.  She's a tough little girl, who lives in a tough world.  But true to her name, she has a soft inside.  This is really a book about family; cousins, aunts and uncles, grandmothers, mothers and fathers.  Turtle has to deal with all of them, and all of the complications that stem from family relationships.  Read this book and I guarantee you'll find yourself cheering for Turtle.

If you would like to listen to a short excerpt from this book, click on the link for my podcast Podcast of Turtle in Paradise  hosted at Podomatic.