Book Review: The Prince Who Fell From the Sky by John Claude Bemis

Title: The Prince Who Fell From the Sky

Author: John Claude Bemis

Genre: Middle Grade, Post-apocalyptic 

Publisher: Random House 

Release date: May 22, 2012

Source: NetGalley

Summary: In Casseomae’s world, the wolves rule the Forest, and the Forest is everywhere. The animals tell stories of the Skinless Ones, whose cities and roads once covered the earth, but the Skinless disappeared long ago. 

Casseomae is content to live alone, apart from the other bears in her tribe, until one of the ancients’ sky vehicles crashes to the ground, and from it emerges a Skinless One, a child. Rather than turn him over to the wolves, Casseomae chooses to protect this human cub, to find someplace safe for him to live. But where among the animals will a human child be safe? And is Casseomae threatening the safety of the Forest and all its tribes by protecting him?

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Five-Star Friday: The Penderwicks

Five-Star Friday is a periodically regular (say what?!) feature that I’m planning on running on Fridays (but not every Friday) in which I talk about (or verbally drool over) a book that I’ve read and ADORED (sometimes they’ll be recent releases and other times they might be older…my piles are tall and the bottoms are old). Yay! I always feel so happy and light and wonderful when I am beside myself with delight over a book, and I want to share the love with you all in the hopes that we can all get together and have an embarrassing, squeal-filled love-fest full of lots of high-pitched “Ohmygod, I KNOW!s” and chest-clutching sighs of contentedness. Huzzah!^*

Well, HELLO THERE, Five-Star Friday! Been a while, friend! Hopefully I’ll be able to make up for my long absence by talking up one of my very favorite middle grades, THE PENDERWICKS: A SUMMER TALE OF FOUR SISTERS, TWO RABBITS, AND A VERY INTERESTING BOY. Sigh. I love me some Penderwicks, guys. 

Moonlighting!

No, not the TV show, guys. (So, ok. I just realized that it’s very likely LOTS of you are too young to even know what I’m talking about just there. I am filled with ALL THE SADNESS.) I’m talking about something infinitely cooler: 

I’m going to be reviewing middle grade books over at Bookalicious.org! HUZZAH! 

This website is going to be chock full of bookish goodness, friends. TONS of columns, lots of reviews for all levels of children’s literature–including picture books, which ROCKS, publishing news, issues, giveaways. There’s literally NOTHING bad going on over there. I can’t stress how excited I am to be a part of this site with so many incredible bloggers!! Please go and check things out! 

My reviews will be posted every other Wednesday, with my first one going up THIS WEEK, and I can’t wait to spread some middle grade love all over the place! But seriously, don’t sleep on Bookalicious.org ever. There’s great stuff going up every day. See you guys over there! 🙂

Book Review: The Humming Room by Ellen Potter

Title: The Humming Room

Author: Ellen Potter

Genre: Middle Grade/Children’s

Publisher: Feiwel & Friends

Published on: February 28, 2012

Source: NetGalley

Summary: Hiding is Roo Fanshaw’s special skill. Living in a frighteningly unstable family, she often needs to disappear at a moment’s notice. When her parents are murdered, it’s her special hiding place under the trailer that saves her life.

As it turns out, Roo, much to her surprise, has a wealthy if eccentric uncle, who has agreed to take her into his home on Cough Rock Island. Once a tuberculosis sanitarium for children of the rich, the strange house is teeming with ghost stories and secrets. Roo doesn’t believe in ghosts or fairy stories, but what are those eerie noises she keeps hearing? And who is that strange wild boy who lives on the river? People are lying to her, and Roo becomes determined to find the truth.

Despite the best efforts of her uncle’s assistants, Roo discovers the house’s hidden room–a garden with a tragic secret.

Top Ten Tuesday (18)

Top Ten Tuesday: Top Ten Middle Grade Books

Top Ten Tuesday is a weekly meme hosted by The Broke and the Bookish. It’s awesome. Every Tuesday, the lovely folks over at The Broke and the Bookish post a top ten list topic so that book lovers like you and me can pour over our shelves and make our own lists. You can check out all the other Top Ten Tuesday‘s on their site!

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