It’s Monday! What Are You Reading? 6/15/20

Beagles and Books is excited to share our latest reads in It’s Monday! What Are You Reading? #IMWAYR is a community of bloggers who link up to share what they are reading. Kellee Moye of Unleashing Readers and Jen Vincent of Teach Mentor Texts decided to give it a #kidlit focus and encourage everyone who participates to visit at least 3 of the other #kidlit book bloggers that link up and leave comments for them.

Seven Clues to Home by Gae Polisner and Nora Raleigh Baskin 

It’s been exactly one year since Joy’s best friend Lukas died   While Joy admits the pain got smaller, the grief did not. Today turning thirteen is not a happy occasion especially since every year Joy and Lukas celebrated their August birthdays together with a scavenger hunt.  For the past year, the unopened envelope with the first clue has remained in the bottom of her desk drawer.  Joy finally gets the courage to open the envelope and read and follow the first clue.

I really enjoy novels written from dual perspective and Polisner and Baskin have masterfully written a moving story that will tug at your heartstrings.  Joy’s chapters take place in the present as she pieces together the clues while Lukas is in the past recounting his day planting the clues all around their Long Island town.  You can feel Joy’s pain as she engages in the scavenger hunt but you can also feel her excitement in feeling connected once again to Lukas.

Losing someone you love is one of the hardest things to experience. Seven Clues to Home reminds us you can keep that people close to your heart through remembering and reminiscing and never really have to say goodbye. Thanks to the publisher Knopf Books for Young Reader/Penguin Random House for sharing an ARC with my #bookexcursion group.  Seven Clues to Home recently published on June 9, 2020.

The Amazing Life of Azaleah Lane by Nikki Shannon Smith Illustrated by Mari Lobo

Third grader Azaleah lives in Washington, DC with her chef mom, lawyer dad, older sister Nia, and younger sister Tiana.  In this first book in the series, Azaleah takes a class field trip to the National Zoo and is excited about a creative extra credit assignment.  She decides to focus on her project on a tiger’s habitat but her ability to begin the assignment is impacted by the disappearance of her Tiana’s stuffed frog, Greenie.  Tiana is devastated and very persistent in wanting Azaleah to help her in the search.  Azaleah is willing to help but is also concerned about completing her project in time.  Will Azaleah be successful in accomplishing both?

Written by #OwnVoices author who has worked in elementary education for over 25 years,  Nikki Shannon Smith has created an engaging new series for children transitioning to chapter books.  A blend of realistic fiction and mystery, the story has a lot of kid appeal with a fast-paced plot, about 100 pages in length, bright and lively illustrations, and an eager and smart main character.  Thanks to Capstone for sharing a copy with my #bookexcursion group.  The Amazing Life of Azaleah Lane published in January 2020.  Look for the second book in the series, The Dramatic Life of Azaleah Lane in Fall 2020.

The Camping Trip by Jennifer K. Mann

Ernestine who lives in the city is elated to be going on her first camping trip with her Aunt Jackie and cousin Samantha.   With a stuffed duffle bag which luckily zipped, Ernestine is ready.  During the long drive to the campground, Ernestine and Samantha pass the time together and once they arrive, they learn setting up a campsite is a lot of work.  As a first time camper, Ernestine is unsure about swimming in a fish filled pond,  packs way too much in her backpack for a hike and enjoys eating broccoli salad and making s’mores (tofu dogs are not her favorite). When night falls and Ernestine can’t sleep, she begins to miss her dad.  Fortunately, Aunt Jackie and Samantha are there to hold her hand and show her the beauty of a star filled sky.

The Camping Trip is simply delightful. Readers will identify with Ernestine’s range of feelings in trying something new and Mann does a wonderful job of capturing her emotions in both words and illustrations. I love the blend of graphic novel and picture book with panel illustrations, speech bubbles, and first person narration.  And don’t miss the gorgeous case cover or undies and the end papers.  The Camping Trip recently published in April 2020.

Bella’s Pick of the Week

Wanting to spread the dog love, Beagles and Books has a weekly feature of highlighting a literary selection with a canine main character.

Max Explains Everything Puppy Expert by Stacy McAnulty Illustrated by Deborah Hocking

Max Explains Everything Puppy Expert is full of good advice for welcoming a new dog of any age into your family. Max has wanted to dog for a long time and after his mom sees an adoption event in the local paper, they finally say yes to Max.  Choosing the right puppy is a tough decision but once Max does, he realizes it is even more difficult to choose the right house.  Do you pick a name based on personality or behavior?  Teaching his puppy the do’s and don’t of the house and commands is a lot of work hard work but Max realizes that puppies are also a lot of fun, cute, cuddle, and love which helps him choose the perfect name.

What I love about the Max is he talks directly to the reader.  McAnulty’s bouncy text reads like a conversation and along with Hocking’s charming full page illustrations, Max’s upbeat personality shines through. I also love that kids see that Max did the research before adopting a pet and his mom holds him accountable for taking care of his puppy.  And of course, the fact that Max adopted a puppy warms my heart.  Thanks to G.P. Putnam Sons/Penguin Random House and Edelweiss for sharing an e-copy. Max Explains Everything Puppy Expert publishes on July 7, 2020.

 

Bella & I thank you for visiting Beagles and Books. Happy Reading!