The Tween Reads June 2016 Part 2

My 10 year old daughter is an avid reader.  She wanted to write posts for the blog and thought she could share book reviews of some of her summer reads.  This is the second part of The Tween Reads June 2016 book review post.  You can read part one here.

Ava and Taco Cat by Carol Weston –   Ava Elle Wren is a girl into palindromes.  She first hears about an injured cat from her mother who works at a vet. She really wants the cat and gets it for her birthday.  She names her new cat, Taco Cat. Get it? Taco Cat is a palindrome! For a school assignment Ava has to write a haiku on anything she wishes. She chooses Taco Cat!  In the meantime, Ava and her sister Pip are making a fish picture book. They try to send it to a reporter who is coming to Ava’s school, but he says no because they don’t want picture books.  He says that Ava should make a book on something she would want to write about, something that she is passionate about. Ava really wants to write a book about Taco Cat, so she does! I give this book about 3 and a half stars because I think that this book is a good sequel to Ava and Pip and the love between Ava and her cat.

*This book was borrowed from the library.

The Battle of Darcy Lane by Tara Altebrando – The Battle Of Darcy Lane is about a girl named Julia who has a friend named Taylor. When a new girl, Alyssa, moves in to the neighborhood, Taylor is all over her. Now, instead of hanging out with Julia, Taylor spends all her time with Alyssa playing a ball game called Russia. When Alyssa challenges Julia to a game of Russia that the whole neighborhood would see, Julia actually said yes. On top of having a first crush, secretly watching movies, losing her BFF, changing her room, playing Russia, and having her parents thinking about a new baby, Julia has to think about a cicada storm that comes every 17 years! I gave this book 4 out of 5 stars because this book was a big, huge adventure and friendship battle mixed into one!

*This book was borrowed from the library.

Falling In by Frances O’Roark Dowell  – Falling In is about a girl named Isabelle Bean who falls into a secret world that no one knows about.  In this world a witch is supposedly eating all the babies and the children think Isabelle is the witch.  Isabelle meets a girl named Hen and the two go on a quest to find the real witch. When Isabelle and Hen come across an old woman in the woods, they instantly like her. Isabelle finds out that the old woman’s name is Grete, and that she is a healer. Before you can say, “Abracadabra”, Grete is teaching Hen and Isabelle her ways of healing.  Isabelle eventually makes it back to the real world.  I give this book 4 stars because Frances O’Roark Dowell is a VERY good writer. I have also read another one of her books: The Second Life Of Abigail Walker. Also, I liked this book because of the adventures and the very startling facts.

*This book was borrowed from the library.

Some Kind of Happiness by Claire Legrand – Some Kind Of Happiness is about a girl named Finley who is forced to spend her summer at her grandparent’s house: The Hart House. Every week, Aunt Bridget and her kids stay, Aunt Dee and her kids stay, and Stick and her kids stay. When Finley arrives, everything changes. Finley has a journal that keeps the secrets of the Everwood. Gretchen, one of Finley’s cousins finds out about the Everwood and is now part of the story. Soon, one by one, all of Finley’s cousins finds out but they swear to help keep the secret of the Everwood from their parents. Finley has a lot on her hands now. Not only does she have to make sure everyone keeps the secret of the Everwood and not get herself and others in trouble, but she also has to worry about her parents getting a divorce.  She also wants to figure out the secret that the Hart family has been hiding for years and years that takes place in the “Bone House” in the Everwood.  Also, Grandma Hart may be old, but nobody but Grandpa, the aunts, and Avery knows that Grandma Hart has cancer and wears a wig. Read the book to find out the rest of the story! I gave this book 4 and a half stars because I think this is a heart-warming mystery for older kids.

*This book was borrowed from the library.

The Summer Before Boys by Nora Raleigh Baskin – The Summer Before Boys is about two girls named Eliza and Julia. Julia’s mom is deployed to Iraq and her dad is busy so she has to stay with her best friend Eliza for the summer. Things take an unexpected turn when  Julia meets a boy named Michael and decides to have a crush on him.  Julia and Eliza have a huge fight which causes Julia to leave Eliza on the mountain trail in the woods. This causes an uproar where the rangers and police come, and everything is chaotic.  I gave this book 4 stars.  This book is a good book for young adults or tweens that tells a lesson not to leave someone alone when they don’t exactly know where they are.

*This book was borrowed from the library.