Jon Scieszka has put together a collection of guys writing for guys about being guys. The entries a short and “sweet” to borrow a term from Napoleon Dynamite. Each includes a biography and bibliography about the author. So you guys will enjoy pieces by Chris Crutcher, James Howe, Anthony Horowitz, Gordon Korman, Walter Dean Myers, Kenneth Oppell, Darren Shan and other favorite authors. It’s an entertaining read. Check it out!
The smallest pup born into a wolf pack that lives in the Minnesota woods is given the name Runt by his father King. “He may be Runt for now,” Silver (his mother) said, laying her chin across this lastest arrival, “but who knows what gift he may bring to the pack?”
Runt, his brothers and sisters, Leader, Sniffer, Runner and Thinker, learn the ways of the pack. Their parents, Silver and King, with the help of Bider, Hunter, and Helper raise the pups and teach them to hunt. Runt continually strives to earn King’s approval and to find out what will be his talent to contribute to the pack.
Despereaux Tilling is a small, sickly mouse with big ears who breaks all the Mouse Council rules by interacting with humans. Interacting with humans is potentially dangerous for mice that live in castles, so when Despereaux falls in love with Princess Pea, the Mouse Council sentences him to death by the rats that live in the castle’s dungeon. Despereaux is a brave and special mouse. Will his love of the princess conquer the obstacles he must face?
When Molly and Michael’s mom remarries and they have to move with her new husband, Dave and his daughter Heather to the country, they are not overjoyed. This has spoiled their summer plans with friends. Living in the country is boring compared to the big city but they try to make the best of the situation by exploring their new environment. The family’s new home is an old coverted church which comes with its own graveyard. Molly notices a change in Heather’s behavior after a visit to the graveyard and the discovery of a small tombstone. Strange things begin to happen around the house and Heather blames both Michael and Molly. Tensions begin to rip the family apart. Heather continues to manipulate the adults and threaten her new siblings with “Wait till Helen comes!”
The final book of the Inkheart trilogy, finds Meggie and her family still in Ink World. Mo is being hunted by the Adderhead, who wants Mo to rebind the book that has given him immortality. The Adderhead is furious over the trick that Mo and Meggie played in Inkspell and is wreaking havoc in Ink World. Fenoglio has lost his control over the story. Mo, as the Bluejay, and the Black Prince try to fend off attacks by the Piper and others sent by Adderhead to capture Mo, Meggie and Resa. Meanwhile, Elinor is stuck in our world wondering what is happening to her loved ones. This is an exciting end to Funke’s extraordinary fantasy
Quince’s parents died in a car accident three winters ago. The most important thing she has left of them is the Italian restaurant that the family owns, which is now being run by her Uncle Davidson until Quincie turns twenty-one. Business has been slow in the downtown Austin restaurant, so Uncle D has decided to change Fat Lorenzo’s into a vampire-themed restaurant. Sanguini’s seems cursed from the start when Vaggio, the head chef, is violently murdered in the kitchen and the police begin to suspect Quincie’s best friend and love interest, Kieren, as the murder. It doesn’t help that Kieren actually is a hybrid-werewolf. When the new chef arrives and murders in the downtown area continue, Quincie finds her life taking a very unsettling turn.
Capricorn Anderson has lived a very sheltered life at Garland Farm with his grandmother, Rain. Garland Farms was once a thriving commune in the 1960s but now just Cap and Rain work the farm. Cap is homeschooled and hasn’t had much contact with people. When Rain breaks her hip from a fall off a ladder in the orchard, Cap finds himself living in foster care with the Donnelly family and attending Claverage Middle School. He might as well be living on another planet! With his long blonde hair, tie-dyed clothes and woven sandles and his non-violent, trusting and naive personality, Cap is the perfect specimen for Zach Powers eighth grade prank. But Capricorn Anderson may have a few surprises in store for Zach and the other 1,099 students at C average Middle School.
The Cahill family has gathered in the Great Hall for the reading of the will of its matriarch, Grace Cahill. Grace gives her last instructions to her family via a previously taped video. She offers them each a million dollars or 39 clues which lead to a secret that will make the individual or team that finds it the “most powerful and influential human beings on the planet”. Dan and Amy Cahill loved their grandmother Grace and miss her greatly. They know that she was secretly training them for this mission but they must pit their wits against other more savvy members of their family to find the clues.
Vladimir Tod lives with his Aunt Nelly since his parents were killed in a house fire. Vlad has a secret. He’s a vampire. His father was a vampire and his mom was human. Vlad is the first known case of a vampire actually being born and not “created” through a vampire bite. So some consider Vlad special while others detest his existence.
Nelly, a nightshift nurse, keeps Vlad stocked in packets of blood from the hospital. She only takes the ones that will be destroyed because the packets are about to expire. Vlad has never killed anyone to feed. Vlad’s best friend, Henry, knows his secret, too. But odd things soon start happening in Vlad’s town. Mr. Craig, a favorite middle school teacher, is missing. His substitute, Mr. Otis is very different and Vlad believes Mr. Otis is on to his secret. The vice principal watches Vlad like a hawk just waiting for him to mess up so he can administer a severe punishiment. Mark and Todd, the school bullies, continually pick on Vlad for his “goth” appearance, while Vlad longs to have the courage to speak to his crush, Meredith. And, as his vampire powers become more prominent, he longs to know more about his father and his background. Check out Eighth Grade Bites to find out how Vlad handles it all!
Duncan works in the lost and found at the Toronto Transit Commission. Items that are lost on buses and the subways are brought to the subbasement of the Bay subway station, and it is Duncan’s job to retrieve them from the bins when a person comes to request their lost item. Sometimes when work is slow, Duncan sets a lawn chair up in front of the book bin and searches for an entertaining book. A plain brown leather journal catches his eye. As he flips through the journal, he finds newspaper clippings and very disturbing journal enteries. Duncan believes the journal writer is just one step away from committing murder but because he has a juvenile record Duncan thinks the police will not believe him if he brings the journal forward. But Duncan has a plan.