Bella at Midnight by Diane Stanley

Bella at Midnight is a great story - part fairy tale, part adventure, part family conflict. It is written from the character's point of view. Each chapter is named for the character who is telling that part of the story.

Topics: royalty, incorrect beliefs about others, strength, best friends, magic ring, foster family

Genre: fairy tale with slight fantasy twist

Mrs. Beckwith's Rating: 5 of 5

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Shackleton's Stowaway by Victoria McKernan

WOW! I can't imagine what it must have been like to be stranded in the Antarctic region for nearly two years with the equipment they had in the early 1900s. Not only that, but many of their supplies were destroyed due to shipwreck and weather mishaps. Imagine having to melt snow to get water to drink and eating seals and penguins to stay alive.

This 2008-2009 Maud Hart Lovelace Book Award nominee title is an amazing story of survival based on the true account of Ernest Shackleton's Antarctic expedition in 1914. As a reader, you become involved with the lives of the men from the ship and cheer them on as they encounter one hardship after another. The attitudes they had were exemplary.

The book contains some harsh language as well as vivid descriptions of some of the bad things that happened which may be disturbing for some readers.

Topics: winter survival, well-researched historical fiction, shipwreck, dogs

Genre: historical fiction, survival/adventure fiction

Mrs. Beckwith's rating: 5 of 5

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Leepike Ridge by N. D. Wilson

Leepike Ridge is a great adventure story. A boy sneaks out of his home at night and begins an unexpected adventure that takes him beneath the mountain his home is built on. Imagine what it'd be like to find yourself in complete darkness and discover a dead body...and that's only the beginning.

Topics: murder, treasure, caves, survival, bad guys, single mom

Genre: adventure fiction

Mrs. Beckwith's rating 4.5 of 5

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The King of Mulberry Street by Donna Jo Napoli

The King of Mulberry Street is set in 1892, beginning in Italy and ending in America. A nine-year-old boy, Dom, stows away on a ship bound for America. The only thing of value he has is a pair of shoes his mother bought for him. The book is about Dom's struggle to survive alone in New York City, the friends he makes, and the dangers that surround him. The book also addresses ethnic issues that were prevalent in that time period.

Topics: immigration, Italians, street children, Jews, business ventures

Genre: historical fiction

Mrs. Beckwith's rating: 3.5 of 5

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So B. It by Sarah Weeks

In this 2008-2009 Maud Hart Lovelace Book Award nominee title, Heidi sets off on a cross-country adventure to find out who she is. She was raised by a mentally disabled mother and an agoraphobic neighbor. Her mom has limited verbal ability, so Heidi knows nothing about her extended family. However, she discovers a photo hidden in a drawer and uses clues from the photo to track down her family.

Topics: family, mysteries, family secrets, self-identity, mental disability, journey across U.S.

Genre: reality fiction

Mrs. Beckwith's rating? 5 of 5

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Lightning Thief by Rick Riordan

In this 2008-2009 Maud Hart Lovelace Book Award nominee title, Percy Jackson always seems to be getting in trouble. He finds out in this book that he's really a demigod - part human and part god. That's why some of the things happen that get him in trouble.

Percy is sent to a summer camp where he enters training with other kid demigods. He and a couple of other characters are sent off on a mission to find Zeus's missing lightning bolt which was stolen during the winter solstice. If he doesn't succeed in finding it, the next war of the gods will begin on the summer solstice.

Lots of adventure and action...never a dull moment in Percy's life!

Genre: fantasy fiction

Mrs. Beckwith's rating? 5 of 5

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Monsoon Summer by Mitali Perkins

In this 2008-2009 Maud Hart Lovelace Book Award nominee title, 15-year-old Jazz Gardner leaves behind California and Steve Morales, her best friend and co-owner of the biz, for a summer in India with her family. The problem is that she has secretly been in love with Steve for awhile, and she's afraid of what might happen when she's gone for so long.

When Jazz gets to India, she learns a lot about herself, life, friendship, and family. She finds herself rethinking things she believes about herself and others and making some changes.

This book includes detail about life and people in India.

Topics: India, small business owners, insecurity with self, first love, family, orphans, giving, self-perception, track

Genre: realistic fiction

Mrs. Beckwith's rating? 5 of 5

Amazon reviews

Jackie's Wild Seattle by Will Hobbs

In this 2008-2009 Maud Hart Lovelace Book Award nominee title, Shannon and her younger brother, Cody, go to Seattle to stay with their Uncle Neal. Uncle Neal is an animal rescuer for Jackie's Wild Seattle, a place where injured animals go to recover. Jackie is an older woman who runs the place with the help of lots of volunteers.

When Uncle Neal gets injured during a rescue operation, Shannon and Cody take over the job of rescuing animals with the help of Uncle Neal's dog, Sage.

Tyler is one of the volunteers at Jackie's Wild Seattle. He is serving time there because of something he did in the past.

Shannon, Cody, Tyler, and Uncle Neal all have hard issues to deal with in their lives. As the story unfolds, you learn about the issues and see how each character responds.

If you like animals, animal rescue and recovery, and books with strong characters, check this book out!

Topics: animals, animal rescue and recovery, brothers and sisters, September 11, cancer, Doctors without Borders, rock climbing, abusive fathers, juvenile probation, plight of animals due to housing and development growth

Genre: realistic fiction

Mrs. Beckwith's rating? 3.5 of 5

Amazon reviews

Heat by Mike Lupica

In this 2008-2009 Maud Hart Lovelace Book Award nominee title, Michael, 12-year-old immigrant from Cuba, is the star pitcher on a Little League team in the Bronx. When a group starts to question whether or not he is really twelve, he needs to show the Little League officials his birth certificate, which he doesn't have. His dad died a few months prior to the beginning of the book, and his 17-year-old brother is trying to keep the two of them together by working many jobs. It's a great story about baseball, family, and staying strong under pressure.

Topics: Little League baseball, New York Yankees, brothers, Cuban immigrants, family, friendship, social services

Genre: realistic fiction, sports fiction

Mrs. Beckwith's rating? 5 of 5

Amazon reviews

Maud Hart Lovelace Book Award

I'm currently reading through all of the Division II nominees for Minnesota's Maud Hart Lovelace Book Award. 6th through 8th graders from across the state are busy reading at least three of the books from the list in order to be eligible to vote for their favorite in March, 2009. I'll list summaries of each individually as I complete them.