The Girl Who Threw Butterflies

Title: The Girl Who Threw Butterflies

 

Author: Mick Cochrane

 

Summary: 8th grader Molly Williams recently lost her father who died in a car accident. Now she has been left with her mother, who doesn't understand her at all - Molly has always been closest to her dad; especially her love of baseball. She misses playing catch and watching games with her dad; who taught her different baseball skills, such as how to throw a knuckleball - a skill that takes lots and lots of practice. At school, she doesn't want to continue to play on her usual softball team - girls softball just isn't the same as baseball.

So, she tries out for the baseball team; she wants to be known as the girl on the baseball team; rather than known as the girl who lost her dad. As she plays on the baseball team, she meets a new friend and begins to restart her life again and find a connection to her father as time goes on. The only problem is her mother, who may just ruin things for her.

 

Comments: I really enjoyed this book. Molly had feelings similar to mine - I much prefer baseball over girls softball and I've yet to find a character in a book that shares those feelings. I like Molly's bravery to try out for the boys team and it was refreshing to see a character who stood strong even when she was bullied at first by the boys on the team. Eventually, they accepted her; and this showed a good lesson that if one doesn't back down; things will turn out right.

Molly was likeable and relatable in many ways; her desire to be seen differently, to prove others wrong, her love of baseball, and just her overall character. 

This book doesn't really have any "iffy" content - there is a little detail on the night/morning of her father's death; but there is no descriptions or anything that any reader over 8 couldn't handle. Molly's grief and sorrow over the loss of her father is very strong, and her emotions seem very real. The book is pretty suitable for any reader 8+. There is one word, "crap" said once by Molly's friend Celia. While this book could be suitable for ages 8+, due to Molly's age, it would be best enjoyed by those who are 10+.  The word was not necessarily in a bad context, and while it is seen as an inappropriate word by a lot of families I know (including my own), however, just because it is written once in the book does not mean that you shouldn't read this amazing novel!While this book could be suitable for ages 8+, due to Molly's age, it would be best enjoyed by those who are 10+.  

 The book really spoke to me in a lot of ways; the love of baseball, the protagonist (Molly's) goal to follow her dreams...

 

Complaints: None.

 

Rating: 5 stars 

Franny Parker

Title: Franny Parker

 

Author: Hannah Roberts McKinnon

 

Summary: Franny Parker is a 13 year old living on a farm with her family in Oklahoma. She loves animals and decides to begin an animal rehabilitation/hospital center. As she is beginning to rescue the animals she finds and comes to love, a new family moves in next door to her; a boy and his mother. The boy, Lucas, is very interested in animals too and the two become friends.

However, Lucas's abusive father comes around, and things begin to change, and then, Lucas goes missing. As mystery and tragedy take over her summer, she learns how to help not only animals - but others - in need.

Comments: I LOVED this book. Franny was such a likeable character and her family was quite interesting too. I liked the friendship between Franny and Lucas; it was just two friends together - there was not really any romance or any other things like that that would turn me off the book. The book was beautifully written and I really, really enjoyed it. Just because of the details of the abusive father, I would rate this probably 10+ or maybe even 12+ - judge the maturity level of the child reading the book first.

Complaints: None. This is a favorite now!

 

Rating: 5 stars!

Strawberry Hill

Title: Strawberry Hill

 

Author: Mary Ann Hoberman

 

Summary: 10 year old Allie isn't very excited about moving to a new place - until she learns that the place is named "Strawberry Hill." She immediately becomes excited as she imagines moving to a magical strawberry field. However, she is disappointed when it turns out to be a boring street with no strawberries (or so she thinks at first). She meets two girls, Martha and Mimi, who live very close by. She likes both girls, but is more drawn to Martha at the beginning because Martha is more "normal" and not as "weird." However, at the end, she finds out that maybe she doesn't want to be friends with Martha. This book takes the reader through a year in the life of Allie in her new home on Strawberry Hill.

Comments: I liked this book. It confused me a bit on what age group it was supposed to be for. It was long and talked about some older things at times (religious prejudices), yet it talked about girls in much younger grades, so the age range for this book was hard to figure out. Allie was nice, and likeable for the most part, though she was easily swayed by her friend Martha, and also constantly challenged her friend over who her "best friend" was. I found that Allie could be a bit mean at parts, and then at other times was just unbelievably nice - which is definitely realistic.

 

Complaints: None. But I don't know if the religious stuff had to be in there; that could be a turn off for some younger children.

 

Rating; 5 stars!

 

 

Love, Aubrey

Title: Love, Aubrey

Author: Suzanne LaFleur

Summary: 11 year old Aubrey's dad and sister, Savannah have just recently died in a car crash and the book starts out with her living alone, as her mother just took off one day. After a week, her grandmother finds Aubrey and insists that she be her caregiver until Aubrey's mother can be found. Aubrey packs up to go live with her grandmother.

Things start out a little rough, and Aubrey still has obvious pain from the death of her family members and it comes in waves at the worst times. However, she meets her next door neighbors, two girls, and one is Aubrey's age. They become pretty fast friends and things begin to look up. Eventually, her mother is found and Aubrey is left to make a choice - and chooses what she probably would not have chosen in the beginning.

 

Comments: I loved this book. In fact, I read straight through it (It took me 2 hours, but I had the time, thankfully!). Aubrey is such a likeable character. It is easy to feel upset right along with her, and when she writes letters to her dad and sister and her sister's imaginary friend, I was nearly in tears. It was such a powerful book and everything was dealt with nicely. It was tragic, but there were boundaries that I did not see in another specific book (Nest).

I would recommend this for kids 10+ just because it is a little heavy.

Complaints: None!

 

Rating: 5 stars!

 

 

Luv Ya Bunches: A Flower Power Book!

Title: Luv Ya Bunches: A Flower Power Book

Author: Lauren Myracle

Summary: This book is about a group of girls, Milla, Katie Rose, Yasamin, and Violet. They all have pretty different personalities but are all close friends. This book tells the tale of their first few weeks in the new school and all the exciting and not so exciting challenges that await them. From being bullied to trying a new thing, these girls experience it all. 

Comments: I think this is a very unique book and the characters are well developed and each one has their own little thing going on and something they are particularly interested in. I also like how the group of girls is very diverse, unlike most books. The book is told through the girls instant messaging together, Katie Rose videotaping, and through regular narrative book format. However, I feel like it is a bit of an "iffy" book for younger girls because there are a few parts of it that I didn't find completely age appropriate. It's still a great book though, and is a good read that is fairly long. 

Complaints: This book has a few not so age appropriate lines in it, but I wouldn't completely rule it off the "read list" because of that, but just be careful (it's nothing super bad - it's just a little weird - nothing like, bad words or anything, though.) 

Rating: 4 stars! 

The Evolution of Calpurnia Tate!

Title: The Evolution of Calpurnia Tate

Author: Jacqueline Kelly

Summary: Calpurnia Tate (or Callie Vee as some people call her) is an 11 year old girl right at the turn of the century (1899). She is expected to learn proper cleaning, cooking, and other household chores that are proper for her to do, but instead, she enjoys spending time with her mysterious grandfather, who also love science. They become very close, and Calpurnia makes exciting new discoveries in science and experience growing up at the turn of a century.

Comments: This has remained one of my favorite books for a long time, and I still think it is. I love Callie Vee and her world is so interesting. From the silhouette of her on the cover, to the amazing story inside, The Evolution of Calpurnia Tate is, in my opinion, one of the greatest books ever.
There is a lot of science related stuff, which is appealing to lots of girls. Some of the science is a little Darwinism based, just to be warned. There are a few kind of "iffy" parts, so I'm going to rate this 10+.
 

Rating: 5 STARS!!!! MUST READ!

Smile!

Title: Smile

Author: Raina Telgemeier

Summary: Smile is a book about a girl named Raina (it is actually based off the author's real life story). Raina falls and knocks out her two front teeth (they are permanent teeth). She has to go through a lot of dental stuff, like fake front teeth, headgear, and a lot of other stuff. It also takes us through her life, and you are really taken inside her world and stay with her from sixth grade until she graduates from high school. She learns that some of her friends aren't so nice, and she also learns to be herself.

Rating: 5 stars

Comments: I didn't even realize that it was based of Raina Telgemeier's life, until about a month after I actually read the book! It all made sense when I realized that! I thought the book was also interesting in the fact that it took us through many years of Raina's life, not just a few years, or even a few weeks or months like some books. Also, the book is in a comic strip/cartoonish form, which I found very interesting.

 

Dork Diaries Book #1: Tales from a Not So Fabulous Life

Title: Dork Diaries Book #1: Tales from a Not So Fabulous Life

 

Author: Rachel Renee Russell

 

Summary: 8th grader Nikki Maxwell ends up getting a stupid diary instead of the cell phone she has dreamed of, for like, forever! Nikki begins to like that diary though, and soon, she is writing and drawing the highlights from her days. She writes about her passion and love for art, mean girl Mackenzie, the embarrassing job her dad has, her crush, and her strange sister and family. She also writes about her two new friends Chloe and Zoe!

 

Comments: This is the book where the reader meets Nikki. This is the first Dork Diaries book I've read so far and I truly wanted to relate to Nikki (the main protagonist) and to like her. But I just couldn't like her. She spent too much time giving herself self-praise and putting down her poor parents who the reader can tell are just trying to do what is best for her. (I can already tell that Nikki would probably not be a good candidate for that cellphone she desires so bad - I doubt she'd ever get off it) She is extremely pessimistic at times when things aren't going her way and she is sometimes optimistic, but only when things aren't going wrong.

Nikki is not exactly the ideal character for a younger child to emulate - and with the crushes, middle school, and race to be cool and popular, I think that this book would be best for 10+, those who are about to enter that dangerous zone themselves.

Complaints: All said in comments...

Rating: 3 stars

Best Friends and Drama Queens!

Title: Allie Finkle Rules for Girls Series Book #3: Best Friends and Drama Queens
Author: Meg Cabot
Summary: Allie and her friends are excited when they find out a new girl from Canada will be coming to their class. The girl is Cheyenne, and she turns out be not so nice. Then things go from bad to worse. Cheyenne forms a clique where other girls help her case boys around the playground and then kiss them. She wants all the girls to start "going with" a boy, even though everyone is totally clueless as to what that means. Allie decides she isn't ready for this yet. Will Cheyenne do something to her, how will things turn out?
Rating: I really like the whole Allie Finkle Series, so I will be giving this one five stars!!! It is really good, and totally Allie!

11 Birthdays!

Title: 11 Birthdays

Author: Wendy Mass

Summary: 11 year old Amanda has always had her birthday party with her friend Leo. They are the same age and have the same birthdate. This year though, Amanda won't haver her party with him due to the mean thing he said behind her back last year. Amanda doesn't realize this is a mistake, and until she realizes that she must have her birthday with Leo, she will stay in the same day forever. Every day Amanda will wake up to her birthday but  one day when Leo and Amanda get back together. Will this stop the same day for repeating itself again? or will Amanda be stuck in the same day forever. Leo and Amanda go on an adventure discovering past secrets and things they never knew. 

Rating: Five Stars! I really like 12 Finally the second book in the series, but I've yet to read 13 Gifts! I will soon though!

Standing for Socks!

Title: Standing for Socks

Author: Elissa Brent Weissmen
 

Summary: One day Fara accidently wears mismatched socks to school one day. All her friends think it is cool, and Fara decides to keep doing it so she can make a statement. Then she gets a little upset that everyone cares about her socks and no longer pays much attention to her problems, or even her. She then runs for School President. She then learns she is running against her enemy Melodee Simon. Melodee's mother wants her to win, so she is doing everything she can to keep Fara from winning. Then, she takes it too far and gets Fara disqualified. What'll happen next?

 

Comments: I couldn't put this book down and I thought it was great and I loved the front cover. Fara is really just an average middle school girl trying to make a statement. I think it was a pretty light read, but it would be best enjoyed by those 10+.

Complaints: None.

Rating: 5 stars