The Book of Blood and Shadow

THE BOOK OF BLOOD AND SHADOW by Robin Wasserman. Knopf, 2012.

Nora has been taking a college class where she and some others are charged with translating a series of letters between a sister and her brother. Buried within these letters is a dark secret: the secret of the Lumen Dei. Now, Chris is dead and his girlfriend Adriane is catatonic. Worst still, Max is missing. All those who had an association to the letters and the Lumen Dei are affected. Nora follows the trail from the letters to Prague where she hopes to find max and some answers to her questions about the Lumen Dei. She has no idea what to expect, but danger does lurk around every corner. Wasserman combines ancient lore, murder, mystery and more in this daVinci Code type story for young adults. Nora is a compelling and complex character. The plot with its twists and turns will keep readers turning the pages (sometimes peering warily). <415>

Little Pig

LITTLE PIG JOINS THE BAND by David Hyde Costello. Charlesbridge, 2012.

Little Pig wants to play an instrument and join in the band with the rest of his family. However, he fails at the instruments that are left since they tend to be too big for him. Just when he thinks he will be left out of the musical adventure, Little Pig discovers his real talent: drum major! What a terrific book to show kids that even the youngest and smallest can make an important contribution. <414>

Eagle Song

EAGLE SONG by Joseph Bruchac. Puffin, 1999.

Moving from the reservation to New York takes a lot of adjustment for Danny Bigtree. He is the target of taunts from his 4th grade classmates. However, when Danny's father comes for a classroom visit, slowly attitudes begin to change. Danny takes it upon himself to make peace with the school bully and try to model his behavior after the great peacemaker of his Iroquois ancestor. <413>

The Christmas Wombat

THE CHRISTMAS WOMBAT by Jackie French with illustrations by Bruce Whatley. Clarion Books, 2012.

Wombat loves carrots. One winter, his sensitive nose (and powerful hunger) leads him in search of carrots only to discover some other strange animal (reindeer, in this case) eating them. Wombat manages to get his fill of carrots and then curls up in the rungs of Santa's sleigh. He is delighted to discover that there are plenty of carrots to be had when he teams up with Santa and the reindeer. <412>

Making the Familiar Strange

Today, we take a look at two books that start with a familiar premise or story and then take off in a different direction. Bear in mind that kids will not see these as parodies or retellings unless they are familiar with the "original." Never assume (you know what you make when you assume, right?0

RUDYARD KIPLING'S HOW THE CAMEL GOT HIS HUMP, THE GRAPHIC NOVEL by Simonson and Rodriguez. CAPSTONE books, 2012

The GN format and humorous approach to the telling of the story about how the camel got his hump make this a standout. The story unfolds as a traditional por quois tale with diagrams and charts about the camel before and after getting his humps. The book ends with the poem by Kipling (who makes an appearance in the book as a scientific observer. Three other stories are available from Capstone. <410>

JACK AND THE BAKED BEANSTALK by Colin Stimpson. Templar Books, 2012.

Once upon a time, Jack and his mother ran a diner. For a while all was wonderful, and then the highway overpass was completed, and the diner had no customers. When Jack trades his last few pennies for a can of magic baked beans, the story takes off up the baked beanstalk and into the sky. Endpapers look like a flood of baked beans, and there are some funny twists on this old tale. <411>

Shark Wars

SHARK WARS 3: INTO THE ABYSS. Razorbill 2011.

Billed as "Star Wars beneath the seas," this third installment in the series centers on an alliance of Shivers (clans of sharks) preparing to battle the crazed Finnivus, a leader who uses any means necessary to obliterate his enemies (including using "pups: to lure opposing armies of sharks to their deaths). Sly humor and lots of gory battle makes this a good choice for readers who enjoy adventure and survival stories. <409>

Camp Secrets

SECRETS FROM THE SLEEPING BAG: A BLOGTASTIC NOVEL by Rose Cooper. Delacorte, 2012.

Sofia and her best friend Nona are headed off, reluctantly, to summer camp. Once Sofia gets over her pique at having to attend a lame thing like summer camp, she is determined to make the best of things. After all, she can spend the summer reinventing herself: no one at the camp except for Nona knows the real Sofia anyway. Best laid plans go awry, of course, with sometimes funny and sometimes tragic (at least as far as Sofia is concerned) results. Romance, friendships, crafts, mean counselors: it is all here in this diary format novel sure to please middle grade girls to the core. <408>