LIFERS, by M.A. Griffin

The story: Preston's best friend Alice has disappeared. Using clues from her notebook, he follows her trail to MIST, a secretive technology corporation development a "correctional system" for the government. Preston soon becomes The Valve's next victim, and if he and his friends don't act fast, every teen who's been jailed in this alternative reality is going to die. He's up against a powerful government minister and his scientific minions, and he's just a kid--and it's possible that no one will even notice they're all gone.

June Cleaver's ratings: Language PG-13; Violence PG-13; Sexual content PG; Nudity G; Substance abuse PG; Magic & the occult G; GLBT content G; adult themes (cruel & unusual punishment, government corruption) PG-13; overall rating PG-13.

Liz's comments: Hand this one to fans of James Dashner's "Maze Runner" books, or Alexander Gordon Smith's "Escape From Furnace" series. Although "Lifers" isn't dystopian in the same way that these are, it will appeal to the same group of readers.

THE BOY AT THE TOP OF THE MOUNTAIN, by John Boyle

The story: Orphaned French boy Pierrot is sent to live with his aunt, who just happens to be the housekeeper at the Berghof, Adolf Hitler's country home. As he comes into repeated contact with Der Fuhrer, "Pieter" gradually loses his innocence and become a mini Hitler himself. What will it take for him to regain his humanity?

June Cleaver's ratings: Language G; Violence PG-13; Sexual content PG-13 (a foiled assault attempt); Nudity G; Substance abuse PG; Magic & the occult G; GLBT content G; adult themes (exposure to barbaric acts; Nazism) PG-13; overall rating PG-13.

Liz's comments: While a 5th grader could read the text of this story, its underlying themes are really for older audiences--at least 7th grade and up. Pierrot starts out as a likeable child but changes into a monster teen--showing that anyone can be corrupted if influenced by respected adults over the course of time. This was not a jolly story, although it was thought-provoking. However, don't expect MS kids to pick it up and read it for fun. Cuz. Not fun.

THE BIG DARK, by Rodman Philbrick

The story: Everyone in town is out watching the aurora borealis on New Year's Eve when a massive solar event causes power failures everywhere--and this time, the power never comes back on. A crazy survivalist tries to rule the town, food and firewood run short...and Charlie's mom is about to run out of medicine. Charlie hatches a daring plan to cross-country sky to the nearest town to find help. Will he make it? And will there by any help to be found?

June Cleaver's ratings: Language G; Violence PG; Sexual content G; Nudity G; Substance abuse G; Magic & the occult G; GLBT content G; adult themes (survivalists turned dictator; death related to natural disaster) PG; overall rating PG.

Liz's comments: An interesting boy-against-nature story that might encourage a wide variety of readers to store a little food and fuel in the pantry just in case the lights go out!

MS. BIXBY'S LAST DAY, by John David Anderson

The story: When their teacher disappears unexpectedly, three 6th grade boys don't get a chance to say goodbye. And when they find out she has cancer, Steve, Topher, and Brand set out to visit Ms. Bixby one last time, determined to re-create the exact conditions their teacher had once described as how she'd spend her last day on earth. Of course, circumstances combine to get in the way. Will the boys ever actually make it to the hospital, much less bust their teacher out?

June Cleaver's ratings: Language PG, Violence G; Sexual context G; Nudity G; substance abuse PG; magic & the occult G; LGBT content G; adult themes (death of a teacher, parental disability, pressure to perform, difficult lives) PG; overall rating PG.

Liz's comments: A great story for boys, 4th-6th. (Girls and older would like it too if they were willing to give it a chance.) Here's a story that's full of heart, with three boys trying to find their place in an increasingly demanding world where one of their mentors is going out of it. Funny, sad, and encouraging all at the same time--good stuff, as long as you're not put off by talk of farts and boogers. Cuz, sixth grade boys.

A WEEK OF MONDAYS, by Jessica Brody

The story: It was the worst Monday ever--school pictures were terrible, she bombed her election speech and softball tryouts, and her rocker boyfriend Tristan broke up with her. Ellie just wishes there was a chance for a do-over. Little does she know that she'll get the do-over...and she'll have to keep on repeating that awful Monday until she gets it right.

June Cleaver's ratings: Language PG; Violence G; Sexual content PG-13; Nudity PG; substance abuse PG; Magic & the occult PG; GLBT content G; adult themes G; overall rating PG.

Liz's comments: Here's a really fun go-back to "Groundhog's Day". Perfectly acceptable for MS readers.

ROCKS FALL, EVERYONE DIES, by Lindsey Ribar

The story: Aspen Quick's family uses their Magic to keep the Cliff from falling and destroying the town--but they have to steal to do it. Oh, nothing big--maybe just your love of the water, or your fear of flying. Aspen uses the magic to help himself out too...what's the harm? It's not until he finds out how it feels to have someone else sneak into your soul without permission that he realizes this is wrong. But if he doesn't do his part, everyone in the town will die... Right?

June Cleaver's ratings: Language PG-13; Violence PG; Sexual content R, Nudity PG-13; Substance abuse R; Magic & the occult PG; GLBT content PG; adult themes (violation of privacy, extended sexual content and scenes of underage drinking) R; overall rating R.

Liz's comments: Not for MS readers. SLJ got it wrong on this one. :(

MAX HELSING AND THE 13TH CURSE, by Curtis Jobling

The story: Max Helsing is the last in the line of (Van) Helsings, famed monster hunters. He feels like he's got things down pretty well...but what Max doesn't realize is that a long-dormant curse is about to fall on the 13th descendant of Liesbeth Van Helsing on his/her 13th birthday. It's the 13th Curse--and it just so happens that Max is the 13th descendant. Oh well. How bad could it be? Max is about to find out.

June Cleaver's ratings: Language PG-13; Violence PG-13; Sexual content G; Nudity G; Substance abuse G; Magic & the occult PG-13; GLBT content G; adult themes (gory monster battles) PG; overall rating PG-13.

Liz's comments: Max is a funny, snarky character, and there's plenty of action here to lure in anyone who likes monsters with a side of butt-kicking. A sure hit with boys!

MOSQUITOLAND, by David Arnold

The story: Convinced that her mother has a terminal illness, Mim runs away from her dad and stepmother and hops a Greyhound bus for Cleveland. Over the next 947 miles, she meets a creepy pervert, an amazing old lady, a gas-station owner named Ahab, and the guy of her dreams. She makes new friends, goes off her meds, rescues Walt from a homeless life shared with a mentally ill slasher, and makes peace with the voices in her head. She also finds out that things (and people) are never quite what you expect, either bad or good.

June Cleaver's ratings: Langauge R; Violence PG; Sexual content PG; Nudity G: Substance abuse PG-13; Magic & the occult G; GLBT content G; adult themes (mental illness and corresponding societal misbehavior) PG-13; overall rating PG-13.

Liz's comments: Mim is a strong, quirky narrator, but not always completely reliable. (Could be those meds.) Additionally, the language is graphic throughout, rendering this read better for the high school crowd than for MS.

THE PASSION OF DOLSSA, by Julie Berry

The story: This is the tale of two girls: Catholic mystic Dolssa de Stigata, who barely escapes being burned as a heretic in 1241 Toulouse, France; and 17-year-old Botille, a matchmaker from a tiny fishing village who rescues Dolssa from starvation and detection, and by so doing puts herself and her village in mortal danger.

June Cleaver's ratings: Language PG; Violence R; Sexual content PG; Nudity PG; Substance abuse PG; Magic & the occult PG; GLBT content G; adult themes (the Catholic church's persecution of heretics; Christian mysticism) PG-13; overall rating PG-13.

Liz's comments: I found this book to be fascinating, but it certainly isn't for middle school readers. Not that they couldn't understand it if they put their minds to it, but I can't think of a single girl at my middle school who would slog through a story like this just to come up against an unhappy ending. Save this one for the high school crowd.

THE KEY TO EXTRAORDINARY, by Natalie Lloyd

The story: Emma is afraid Granny Blue will sell their cafe next to the Graveyard. She's also waiting for the Destiny Dream, which comes to girls in their family to point them to their life's most important task. Could it be possible that saving the Boneyard Cafe will be her life's greatest challenge? She could also figure out a way to get Earl Chance to talk...or fix her brother's broken romance...or even just figure out a way to deal with mean girl Beretta Simmons. Just about any of those things would appear to require some kind of magic--but luckily, in this part of Tennessee, there's magic and to spare: enough to help Emma figure out how to become extraordinary.

June Cleaver's ratings: Language PG; Violence G; Sexual content G; Nudity G; Substance abuse G; Magic & the occult PG; adult themes (death of a parent, mild bullying scenes) PG; overall rating PG.

Liz's comments: I thought this one was charming--but too young for most MS readers, as Emma is just going into 6th grade. Give it girls in grades 4-5.

THE LOONEY EXPERIMENT, by Luke Reynolds

The story: Seems like Atticus's life couldn't get much worse: he's routinely bullied by Danny Mills, his father has just left the family, and he's got the worst name in the world. But when Mr. Looney, a 77-year-old substitute teacher, appears in ILA class, things subtly begin to change. Atticus begins to gain the courage he'll need to stand up for Mr. Looney when things get really, really bad.

June Cleaver's ratings: Language PG; Violence PG-13; Sexual content G; Nudity G; Substance abuse G; Magic & the occult G; GLBT content G: adult themes (bullying, parental separation, unwarranted feelings of guilt) PG; overall rating PG.

Liz's comments: Atticus is a likeable dork, and many kids will relate (although when he starts out in his capital-I "Imagination" on page 2, you initially wonder if this is about a fourth grader, rather than an older kid). Nonetheless, as Atticus learns to move out of the shadows and stand up, he makes a notable journey. And the idea that a really senior senior citizen could be part of such a journey was one a lot of MS kids may not have had before. There are no magical endings here, but there are believable ones.

KALAHARI, by Jessica Khoury

The story: Six teens, stranded in the Kalahari desert, must fight to stay alive, to avoid the poachers who killed Sarah's Bushman friend Theo, and stay clear of the freakish silver lion that seems to be stalking them. But even as they draw closer to a stunning answer to their questions, they're just as far as ever from being rescued. The secrets of the Corpus company may just die with them.

June Cleaver's ratings: Language PG-13; violence PG-13; Sexual content PG; Nudity G; Substance abuse G; Magic & the occult G; adult themes (death of a parent, corporate evil-doing) PG-13; overall rating PG-13.

Liz's comments: I read this one because I'd just finished Khoury's "The Forbidden Wish" and really liked it. This was completely different, but I thought this one was really good, too. And strangely, I didn't realize it was the third in the Corpus series (after "Origin" and "Vitro") until I started this review--it totally stands alone. Even though the main character is a girl, I think boys would like this book too: there's plenty of adventure, shooting, running and hiding, and lots of weird sci-fi type science.

THE FORBIDDEN WISH, by Jessica Khoury

The story: Aladdin, in search of revenge, has found the lamp. He plans to use the jinni's power and his three wishes to get revenge for his parents' deaths. Instead, he finds Zahra: jinni of the lamp, doomed to grant wishes to humans, yet forbidden to love them. But she must accompany Aladdin to the palace in order to find and free another Shaitan jinni, or the jinn overlord will destroy her. Thirty days seems like plenty of time...but she never expected all these complications--especially the one that comes when she really does fall in love with a human.

June Cleaver's ratings: Language PG-13; Violence PG-13; Sexual content PG-13; Nudity PG, Substance abuse PG; Magic & the occult PG-13; adult themes PG; overall rating PG-13.

Liz's comments: Here's a new take on the Aladdin story with a genie as unlike Robin Williams as possible, and a romantic, hunky Aladdin that will have every girl wishing she were the jinni in his lamp! Any girl who likes fantasy along with her romance will like this one, as long as she's a strong reader. Booklist rates it for grades 7-10. First in a series.

THE MAGIC MIRROR, by Susan Hill Long

The story: Margaret has always been the orphan girl with a crippled foot. Her future isn't exactly rosy, but it takes a turn for the worse on the day her caregiver, Minka, makes a deal to marry her off to the local hunchback. But that's also the day Margaret trades her crutch for a magic mirror and gets far more than she bargained for: what she sees in the mirror sends her on a journey that helps her find adventure, love, and even a most unexpected family--as well as a squirrel that picks pockets. She certainly never saw that coming!

June Cleaver's ratings: Language G; Violence PG; Sexual content G; Nudity G; Substance abuse PG; Magic & the occult PG; GLBT content G; adult themes (general evil-doing) PG; overall rating PG (but too hard for ES readers--I disagree with the review sources on this one. I'd say grades 6-9).

Liz's comments: Here's a charming story, probably good for girls 7th grade and up. Long does a good job of weaving together all the story threads, and although there are never any real surprises, there are a few twists before the happy ending--and I'm always in favor of that!

WOLF HOLLOW, by Lauren Wolk

The story: New girl in town Betty is a bully, and Annabelle is her chosen victim. Annabelle and--when blame starts to circle around for Betty's almost criminal meanness--the shell-shocked vagabond everyone calls Toby. No matter how Annabelle tries, she can't convince the people around her of the truth...not even when Betty goes missing, and Toby is blamed. If she tries to help Toby, does she really become an accessory to a crie?

June Cleaver's ratings: Language G; Violence PG-13; Sexual content G; Nudity G; Substance abuse G; Magic & the occult G; GLBT content G; adult themes (mental illness/PTSD, bullying, mistaken blame) PG, overall rating PG.

Liz's comments: I liked this story a lot, and I think the comparisons of it to Harper Lee's "To Kill A Mockingbird" are apt. However, I think getting kids to read it will be extremely hard work--it's not fun, and the good guys don't win. I think most kids who make it all the way through will be reading it as an assignment for English class--which is certainly not the worst fate a book could enjoy. It could easily end up on this year's Newbery short list.

RANDOMS, by David Liss

The story: Zeke Reynolds, sci-fi dork extraordinaire, is chosen as one of four teens in a delegation that will compete with kids from three other planets to see which homeworlds will be admitted into the Confederation of United Planets. The other three have amazing skills, but not Zeke--he's a Random. It's only when he teams up with the other Randoms to outwit the system that they discover there's a much bigger plan at work here...one that could end up destroying the earth, and even worse--let the bad guys win. Not if the Randoms have anything to say about it!

June Cleaver's ratings: Language PG; Violence PG-13; Sexual content G; Nudity G; Substance abuse G; Magic & the occult G; GLBT content G; adult themes (betrayal, intergalactic warfare, fighting) PG; overall rating PG.

Liz's comments: I have to confess that I'm a dork--obvious, when I admit I got all the Star Trek, Stars Wars, and Firefly references in this book. But even if MS readers (especially boys) don't get all the in jokes, they'll still enjoy Zeke's funny, snarky voice and the non-stop action. This book gets a "live long and prosper" nod from me! (If you like this one, you should also take a look at "The Improbable Theory of Zak & Ana" by Brian Katchner. Equally fun, just more bad words.)

KALIFUS RISING (Legends of Orkney #2), by Alane Adams

The story: Stranded in the mythical world of Orkney, Sam is alone in his fight against the witch Catriona. Little does he know that his friends Howie, Keely, and Leo have been brought back to Orkney too, and given an assignment that they must complete, even if it means the death of Odin. A prophecy tells Sam that he must give in to the darkness in order to overcome it, but when has THAT ever worked out well?

June Cleaver's ratings: Language PG; Violence PG-13; Sexual content G; Nudity G; Substance abuse PG; Magic & the occult PG-13; GLBT content G; adult themes (murder and mayhem) PG; overall rating PG-13.

Liz's comments: This story is the sequel to Adams's "The Red Sun" (Legends of Orkney #1) and draws heavily on Norse mythology for its magical characters. Kids who have read through Rick Riordan's books will like this one, especially if they've been following Thor's adventures with Loki in the Avengers movies.

HALF A WORLD AWAY, by Cynthia Kadohata

The story: Jaden's family is traveling to Kazakhstan to adopt another baby, and Jaden knows why: it's because he's such a failure as a son. He's got a whole bunch of terrible habits, but the worst of them is that he can't bring himself to love his adoptive parents, even after all these years. It's only after he meets toddler Dimash at the orphanage, and realizes he's the only one who cares enough to ever make a difference in the boy's life, that Jaden suddenly learns what it's like to care about someone else. Problem is, it doesn't look like it's going to make any difference, which is the worst feeling of all.

June Cleaver's ratings: Language PG; Violence G; Sexual content G; Nudity G; Substance abuse PG; Magic & the occult G: GLBT content G: adult themes (parental abandonment, disability, third-world conditions) PG; overall rating PG.

Liz's comments: Here's a story that will give kids a look into several different worlds: what's it like in a crummy third-world country; what it's like to be adopted from a country like that, and what it's like to be a mystery to yourself and others. This is the kind of story that adults tend to like better than the target audience of kids, but given to the right readers, it will resonate.

HOLD ME LIKE A BREATH, by Tiffany Schmidt

The story: Penelope Landlow is the daughter of a crime family that deals in black-market organ sales. Need a heart? A new liver? No problem if you have the cash. She also has a disease that keeps her locked up at home. But when a rival "Family" in the business apparently brutally murders her parents and brothers, she stages a disappearance into the night. When she accidentally bumps into the son of one of the other organ-dealing families, she falls in love with him without realizing his true identity. Can Char keep her safe--or is he part of the plot that left her an orphan?

June Cleaver's ratings: Language PG; Violence R; Sexual content PG; Nudity G; Substance abuse PG; Magic & the occult G; GLBT content G; adult themes (murder, being orphaned, organized crime) PG-13; overall rating PG-13.

Liz's comments: This is, at heart, a fairy tale mash-up complete with romance and happy ending. However, it's not a fairy tale for the younger crowd: the gangland-style murder of Penelope's family is too chilling, and her being able to fall in love with a mystery guy so soon after such a terrible occurrence kind of pushes the limits on my Suspension-of-Disbelief-O-Meter. Not sure where a sequel would go, either--but for volume 1, go ahead and hand it to 7th or 8th grade girls. Astute reader will guess who Char is long before Penelope does, but romance lovers will find the love-at-first-sight part to be just right.

I'M GLAD I DID, by Cynthia Weil

The story: JJ Green has just cut a deal with her family of lawyers: working a summer job in the music industry, she must sell and get a song recorded before school starts, or she'll be doomed to join the family business. What she doesn't expect to find is a murder, a scandal, or a summer romance--but especially for the last thing, she'll be glad she did.

June Cleaver's ratings: Language PG; Violence PG; Sexual content PG; Nudity G; Substance abuse PG; Magic & the occult G; GLBT content G; adult themes (murder, interracial relationships in the 60s, fraud) PG.

Liz's comments: Fun story, with a lot going on--plus an interesting look at the music industry back at the dawn of the rock 'n' roll era.

RED MOON RISING, by K.A. Holt

The story: Stranded on a rock in space and trying to grub a living out of the desert, the humans hate and fight the native Kihuut. Nicknamed the Cheese, these aliens kidnap girls, who are never seen again. It's only when Rae and her sister Temple are snatched that the other side of the story comes into view: the settlers' diseases have decimated them, rendered them childless, and ruined their trade. No wondered there's such hatred on both sides. Even more amazing--the Cheese treat women like valuable team members, not like they're fit only for doing housework. After a while, Rae may not even want to go back...but she'll be forced to do so in order to prevent an all-out war. Even then, it might still be too late.

June Cleaver's ratings: Language PG; Violence PG-13; Sexual content G; Nudity G; Substance abuse PG; Magic & the occult G; GLBT content G; adult themes (oppression of women, racism) PG; overall rating PG.

Liz's comments: I liked this one a lot! Rae has a spunky voice and believably comes to see her own peoples' shortsightedness and prejudice, which leads her to make a series of difficult decisions in this sci-fi coming of age novel. A way is left open for a sequel, which is to be hoped for!

SOAR, by Joan Bauer

The story: Jeremiah has always loved baseball, but a heart transplant at age 10 is still keeping him on the sidelines. When he and his dad move to Hillcrest, Ohio, Jeremiah thinks he's going to baseball heaven--but he lands in the middle of a scandal, and finds the team demoralized and fading. Who would ever have expected a nerdy 6th grader to pull them back together and help them claim the biggest win of all?

June Cleaver's ratings: Language G; Violence G; Sexual content G; Nudity G; Substance abuse PG-13 (steroid use among athletes); Magic & the occult G; GLBT content G; adult themes (parental abandonment, chronic ill health, coach pressure to use PEDs) PG; overall rating PG.

Liz's comments: This one will be great for younger readers--say, grades 4-6--who are really into sports. (That would not be me. There was WAY too much baseball in this for my taste, and I'm skeptical that the game is a metaphor for life at large, but boys will still like it. That's the most important part.)

THE GIRL I USED TO BE, by April Henry

The story: When Ariel Benson was three years old, her parents were murdered before her eyes. She was the only witness. Now 17, and using her adopted name of Olivia Reinhart, she returns to the tiny town where the gruesome events took place, determined to find out who did it. Little does she expect that the person is still there, waiting to spring into action if the wrong person every shows up--specifically, the girl Olivia used to be.

June Cleaver's ratings: Language PG; Violence PG-13; Sexual content PG; Nudity G; Substance abuse PG; Magic & the occult G; BLGT content G; adult themes (murder) PG-13; overall rating PG-13.

Liz's comments: As a mystery fan, I'm always pleased to find a good YA story that I can recommend to middle school mystery readers. Although there's a little bit of romance that will skew this one toward girls (and of course, the main character is a girl) even boys will like this, as the emphasis is much more on the mystery and much less on the romance. Plus, it was surprisingly clean in terms of language--really happy about that! I get so tired of books loaded with the "F" bomb for no appreciable reason. This one gets the fourth star just because of that. Good plotting and pacing never hurt either! :)

GOING WILD, by Lisa McMann

The story: When Charlie receives a mysterious bracelet in the mail, she puts it on immediately, not knowing that it's going to give her special powers of healing, strenght, speed, climbing, and echo-location. She also doesn't realize that the bracelet wasn't meant for her, or that the bad guys who developed it are going to want it back. Charlie is just figuring out her new powers when the bad guys come to reclaim their property--but she can't get the bracelet off her arm, and her new friends are sucked in as they try to help her.

June Cleaver's ratings: Language G; Violence PG; Sexual content G; Nudity G; Substance abuse G; Magic & the occult (sci-fi weirdness) PG; adult themes (evil scientists) PG; overall rating PG.

Liz's comments: The author spends a little too much time having Charlie figure out her powers, and the book doesn't really move away from its new-kid-in-town beginning and off into its true sci-fi direction until the last few chapters. There's a total cliff-hanger ending, too--but kids who have kept reading until the interesting stuff happens will be ready for the inevitable sequel when it appears.

THESE VICIOUS MASKS, by Taran Shanker

The story: In Victorian London, a group of people with strange abilities is brought together when Miss Rosamond Wyndham disappears from her family estate and her sister Evelyn goes to London to find her. Rose is being sought by the nefarious Dr. Beck, who is determined to discover the secret of her power to heal. Evelyn find some unexpected allies (and unexpected beaux) in the persons of Nicholas Kent and Sebastian Braddock, not realizing that both of them--and in fact, she herself!--also have unexpected powers that might be of interest to Dr. Beck. It's a lot like the American Revolution: they all need to learn to hang together, or they'll end up hanging separately.

June Cleaver's ratings: Language PG-13; Violence PG-13; Sexual content PG-13; Nudity PG; Substance abuse PG; Magic & the occult PG-13; adult themes (kidnapping, coercion by use of magic) PG; overall rating PG-13.

Liz's comments: I thought this was all right, although if you're looking for an Austin-esque romance novel with magic, Garth Nix's "Newt's Emerald" is a better choice (in my humble opinion, good sirs and madams).

ALL RISE FOR THE HONORABLE PERRY T. COOK, by Leslie Connor

The story: Perry has lived in the Blue River Correctional Facility his entire life, juggling his routines on the inside with his life at school, and always waiting for the day when his mother will be paroled. Enter DA Thomas VanLeer, who's completely sure that prison is no place for a kid--so sure that he pulls Perry out and into foster care at his own home. It doesn't matter that VanLeer is Perry's best friend Zoey's stepdad: his house isn't Perry's home, and Perry's determined to get back to his mom, no matter what it takes.

June Cleaver's ratings: Language PG; Violence G; Sexual content PG; Nudity G; Substance abuse PG; Magic & the occult G; GLBT content G; adult themes (criminal lives) PG; overall rating PG.

Liz's comments: Life in the Blue River facility is pretty much Prison Lite--almost like a retreat, only you don't get to leave on Sunday night--but you never doubt Perry and mom Jessica's love for each other, or the fact that a family is a family, even in jail. Secondary characters are engaging and even though Perry is naive (really bugging his mom for the details of her crime, and then taken aback when he gets them) he's a likable narrator, and his persistence helps him solve not only the mystery of his mom's crime, but the mystery of what's going to happen next. I really liked it.

THE GIRL IN THE BLUE COAT, by Monica Hesse

The story: Hanneke spends her days "finding" scarce things and selling them on the black market in Nazi-controlled Amsterdam. So she shouldn't be surprised when Mrs. Janssen asks her to find a girl who's gone missing--a Jewish girl who was hiding in a secret room in Mrs. Janssen's house. Hanneke reluctantly agrees, not knowing that her search will lead her to far more than just the heart-breaking solution of this mystery: she'll find people being sent to camps, people being sent to their deaths, and maybe just a little of the courage that impels her friends in the Resistance.

June Cleaver's ratings: Language PG; Violence PG-13; Sexual content PG; Nudity G; Substance abuse PG; Magic & the occult G; GLBT content PG (the Nazis persecuted gays as well); adult themes PG-13 (the Holocaust); overall rating PG-13.

Liz's comments: Here's a more in-depth than usual look at what life was like in an occupied European city during WW2. There's plenty of action and suspense, and even the occasional good-hearted Nazi soldier--because nothing is quite as black-and-white as it seems, in fiction or in real life. This one is good enough to find a place in Holocaust classroom curriculum. Give it to readers 8th grade and up who are looking for a tie-in novel.

MAYDAY, by Karen Harrington

The story: Wayne Kovok survives the plane crash, but loses his voice. Literally--he was hit in the neck by a flying laptop and sustained damage to his throat and vocal cords. So Grandpa has come to stay with Wayne and his mom and help while they recuperate. Too bad Grandpa wants to run his grandson's life like Wayne was one of his boot camp recruits from back in the day. Too bad Wayne fills up the awkward silences in his life with random factoids--which is a lot harder to do when you have to write them on sticky notes. And too bad that life is about to change forever, with only limited warning.

June Cleaver's ratings: Language G; Violence G; Sexual content G; Nudity G; Substance abuse G; Magic & the occult G; GLBT content G; adult themes (terminal disease, difficult relationships with parents) PG; overall rating PG.

Liz's comments: Loved this one! Wayne's voice is spot-on for a nerdy 7th grader looking to find his way through middle school; his relationships with Grandpa, mom, and his kinda loser dad all feel real; his changes from beginning to end ring true. As he learns to accept and deal with the hard stuff, he realizes he truly is stronger than he knew, and that the hard stuff teaches you important life lessons. It's not often that the same book makes me laugh AND cry, but "Mayday" succeeded. Two thumbs way, way up!

THE VOYAGE TO MAGICAL NORTH, by Claire Fayers

The story: Brine is a girl without a past. Peter is a boy with a future: a magical future. But when fate throws them together aboard the pirate ship Onion, all that changes--or does it? Peter will need to use his magical abilities in order to help defeat the evil magician Marfak West; Brine will need to use her common sense to help the pirates get to the treasure that lies hidden at Magical North. Unless, of course, Marfak West betrays them, which he undoubtedly will.

June Cleaver's ratings: Language G; Violence PG (there is pirate fighting where people get killed, but it is remarkably non-graphic); Sexual content G; Nudity G; Substance abuse PG; Magic & the occult PG-13; GLBT content G; adult themes (betrayal) PG; overall rating PG.

Liz's comments: Here's another charming fantasy tale (most likely the first in a series) to hand to kids who liked "The Story Thieves" and "The Map to Everywhere." Brine is a girl looking for a home--and luckily, it's clear that home can be a ship full of good-hearted pirates--while Peter is looking for acceptance. Who knew? That would also appear to be available on the good ship Onion!