I absolutely love this book! It is one of my all-time favorites. You know those "ponds" that show up only in the spring? This story spans 2 generations of friends who find and care for the bog babies found there. So special and unpredictable!

Is the lunch lady really a super hero? Kids will love this wild and funny adventure story. Think your lunch lady is just a lunch lady? Maybe, and maybe not!

Jake's family is moving to the Soviet Union. The Great Depression has hit northern Minnesota mining towns hard, and father hears of an opportunity to help establish a Utopian community of Finnish immigrants in the Soviet Union where all will work and all will share in the rewards. What starts out as a difficult adjustment becomes a family nightmare as Stalin takes over and begins to do away with anyone bold enough to disagree with his mandates. William Durbin is a Minnesota author, and often writes about Minnesota history. This story is set in the early 1900's in the Finnish communities of northern Minnesota, and northern Russia. It is based on real events that didn't come to light until the 1990's and the breakup of the former Soviet Union. A fascinating read.

This book will be one of my best summer-reading suggestions! Set in a small town, the story reminds me of growing up without every hour of my little-kid day scheduled with play dates and camps and organized activities. These 2 oddly named boys break the rules of "staying close to home" and find marvelous adventures. I hope the same for all kids this summer!

Keepers of the School is a new series by Andrew Clements, author of many books, inlcuding Frindle, A Week in the Woods, and No Talking. The first book in the series is We the Children. This is a mystery/adventure book about an elementary school that dates back to the 1790's. The school and surrounding property has just been sold to a big company that is planning to tear it down and build an amusement park on the site. Ben is given a gold coin by the school custodian who is dying, along with an ominous message to defend the school at all costs. Ben first has to find out who he is defending the school against, and then figure out how to actually save it. A spellbinding read, with a side story about learning how to sail.

One of my favorite books this year is The Strange Case of Origami Yoda. It is about a group of students just starting middle school. They are trying to fit in amd make new friends. Dwight is doing well in his classes, but stands out as an oddball. The other students are curious, though, when Dwight makes an origami Yoda, wears it on his finger, and starts giving advice in the strange voice of Yoda. Can Origami Yoda really predict the future? Will his advice about tricky situations (like how to talk to girls) really work? Is he tapping into the Force, or is Dwight much smarter than anyone suspects? Read this fun book and decide for yourself!

I read The Last Notebook of Leonardo and laughed out loud! It was so silly, I couldn't put it down. Jem is only slightly surprised when his scientist dad comes home one day, explaining that he has turned himself into an orangutan! But Jem is worried when his dad says he's not interested in returning to his normal self, but instead tells Jem that they are going to set out on the quest of a life time: to find the last notebook of Leonardo da Vinci! You won't believe what they find. Set aside reality and get lost in this wild adventure! I love stories about Leonardo da Vinci. His genius spans the limits of art and science, and I think he would have laughed himself at this outrageous story.