Generally speaking, books don’t cause much harm. Except when you read them, that is. Then they cause all kinds of problems.        Pseudonymous Bosch

During the summer months, children and adults have more time to read for pleasure. Having unlimited choices can sometimes be daunting though. I’ve gone back through my archives to find some of the best books that I’ve reviewed over the years. These recommendations are all novels that were published a while ago, and since they aren’t new, readers might not find them on their own. I’ve looked to include series and authors who have written multiple books. I know that when I find a book that I enjoy, I’m thrilled when the author has other books because I usually will enjoy them also. It would be easy to just recommend J.K. Rowling and the Harry Potter Series or Rick Riordan and his Olympians Series, and these are super, but do check out some of these other “Hidden Gems”.

The Secret Series by Pseudonymous Bosch: Readers know that a pseudonym is a fictitious name (or when an author doesn’t want to reveal his/her own name). From the beginning, the reader wonders what kind of author has written the first book in the series, The Name of This Book Is Secret. The answer comes in the first pages, even before the first chapter, when the author writes, “Generally speaking, books don’t cause much harm. Except when you read them, that is. Then they cause all kinds of problems.” Pseudonymous Bosch talks directly to the readers, similar to the way that Lemony Snicket does in The Series of Unfortunate Events. He gives warnings, tells the reader that he isn’t going to tell everything (hmm..), and displays a great deal of humor by teasing the readers with just enough information to keep them wondering where he is heading with the story.

One of my favorite series is The Unwanteds by Lisa McMann. When I first read about the series in my professional journals, it seemed that the reviews contained a bit of hyperbole. The Unwanteds was described as “The Hunger Games meet Harry Potter”. When I began to read the first book, I was hooked. I continue to recommend these books to children in the intermediate grades and middle school. Fast forward through the seven books in the series, and Lisa McMann has written a companion series, The Unwanteds Quests.

Before she became an author of young adult books, Sharon Draper taught in middle schools and high schools. Her plots and characters demonstrate that she understands and remembers a child’s and young adult’s experiences. Ms. Draper has a talent that takes her readers into her character’s thoughts and experiences. Sharon Draper’s newest book is Blended, and I highly recommend it for readers in grades 5 and higher. Eleven-year-old Isabella is bi-racial and a gifted pianist who is struggling with her parents’ divorce. Some of the events are very pertinent to events occurring in our nation today.

Richard Peck’s novels for children and young adults have received many awards and commendations: the Newbery Medal, Edgar Allan Poe Award, Scott O’Dell Award for Historical Fiction, Edgar Award, and as National Book Award finalists. All of this recognition means nothing to a fifth, sixth, seventh, or eighth-grade reader. They aren’t impressed. They want to read books that speak to them where they are. Richard Peck does just that. The main character in The Best Man is Archer, and his family members help him navigate the daily decisions that he makes that define him as a person. There is a great deal of humor in the author’s sensitive descriptions of bullying, homosexuality, divorce, and the hierarchy in middle school. Even though the author is addressing these weighty topics, he does so in a highly entertaining way, recognizing them as aspects of everyday life.

Bliss, by Kathryn Littlewood (HarperCollins), introduces a delightful family who own a bakery that is beloved in their town. The protagonist, Rose, suspects that her parents employ magic when baking some of their special foods. When her parents go out of town, Rose and her siblings are supposed to protect the family’s Cookery Booke, which is kept under lock and key. They are surprised when a flashy aunt, whom they never knew before, rides into town on her motorcycle. Rose is drawn in by her new-found aunt, and she begins playing with powerful magic. This is the first book in the Bliss Bakery Trilogy. The other books are A Dash of Magic and Bite-Sized Magic.

Jennifer Holm’s book, The Fourteenth Goldfish, is a humorous book that tackles the subject of immortality. Humor and immortality? Yes, the main character, Ellie, is a sixth-grader who is struggling to navigate middle school. She misses her best friend, and she learns that her mother had been replacing her goldfish every time it died without her knowledge. When a new, weird boy approaches her, he reminds Ellie a lot of her grandfather who is a scientist obsessed with immortality.

In The Land of Stories: The Wishing Well by Chris Colfer, twins enter a magical world of fairy tale characters through a special book. The characters are real, and their lives have continued past the stories told to children. This is the first of The Land of Stories Series, and it is filled with adventure and humor. Colfer has written another series that starts with A Tale of Magic.

A series that uses the same fairy tale concept is The Sisters Grimm by Michael Buckley. The first book is The Fairy Tale Detectives. This series is a must read for any child who enjoys fairy tales, adventure, humor, and magic. There is a richness to the series because readers are introduced to fairy tale characters of whom they may never have heard. Even a reader with a solid literature background will be intrigued to learn more information about Mordred, Morgan le Fay, and Excalibur from Arthurian legend, Puck from Shakespeare, and Baba Yaga, from Russian folklore. Buckley does not limit himself from using only characters from the Brothers Grimm, but he entwines their lives with stories from Hans Christian Andersen, Andrew Lang, Washington Irving, Charles Perrault, L. Frank Baum, Lewis Carroll, Carlo Collodi, and American tall tales.

Chris Grabenstein entertains readers with his series that begins with Escape from Mr. Lemoncello’s Library. He tells the story of a group of children who stay overnight in the new town library designed by Luigi Lemoncello, a master puzzle maker. They form teams to solve his master puzzle.

Echo by Pam Munoz Ryan is a difficult book to describe because it shifts back and forth from fantasy to reality. In a mysterious and forbidden forest, a man meets three strange sisters who deliver a prophecy, a promise, and a harmonica. That harmonica is intertwined within three other stories. Readers will be drawn to the challenges that Friedrich in Germany, Mike in Pennsylvania, and Ivy in California face during different time periods. This is a long book with 592 pages, and readers will be so engrossed in the plot that they will be disappointed to have it end.

The Lions of Little Rock by Kristin Levine is historical fiction that chronicles the racism and discrimination that existed in our society, especially in Little Rock, Arkansas in 1958. Marlee, an extremely shy girl watches as her city, and even her family, are divided in their opinions over school integration. Marlee becomes friends with Liz, a new student who is everything that she isn’t. Marlee is so quiet that she borders on being mute, and Liz is outgoing and brave. Through Liz’s friendship, Marlee gains self-confidence. When Liz suddenly stops coming to school, her friend discovers that it is because Liz was actually a light-skinned African American who had been passing for white. Even though there was a federal school integration order, the local
authorities were still maintaining all-white schools.

Counting by 7s by Holly Goldberg Sloan has an unforgettable protagonist who narrates the novel. Sloan’s protagonist, Willow has a unique and profound voice that resonates throughout the story. Depending on your point of view, you will want to be her friend, or teacher, or parent. Her world falls apart when she is in middle school. It’s no spoiler to tell you that in the opening chapter, the reader learns that Willow’s parents die. While this shatters Willow’s world, a diverse group of individuals reaches out to save her. It is Willow who saves them and brings out each one’s “giftedness” (my term). Do share this book with a fifth, sixth, or seventh grader, but be sure to read it yourself too.

In year’s past, our fourth, fifth, and sixth graders enjoyed Because of Mr. Terupt by Rob Buyea. The chapters of the novel are told through the voices of various students, and readers gain insight into an event through different perspectives. A review in Booklist described Mr. Terupt, the protagonist of the novel as one of those teachers “who encourage their students to think for themselves, question the conventions they understand about school, and become better people.” This is the first in a series.

Obi-Wan Kenobi used the phrase, “May the force be with you”, when he wished Luke Skywalker luck when they were saying good-bye to each other. Tom Angleberger’s Origami Yoda Series starts with The Strange Case of Origami Yoda. This is written in a notebook or journal form with short chapters that are narrated by different characters. It seems that Dwight, probably the nerdiest student in McQuarrie Middle School, has begun carrying around his origami creation of Yoda. When he puts Origami Yoda on his finger and answers his classmates’ questions, Yoda is much wiser than Dwight could ever be. Tommy and his friends struggle to decipher whether Origami Yoda truly does have power. He must because that’s the only way to explain how someone as clueless as Dwight could offer such sensible advice.

“And now, the stories are yours…”      – Mrs. Farquharson

I was exploring my blog and reading posts that I wrote when I first started writing it. I was interested to see which of my recommendations had withstood the test of time. My third entry in April 2009 was about a novel, Masterpiece by Elise Broach. Yes! I still love this book, and I still recommend it for our intermediate readers. This led me off on a tangent to immerse myself in Broach’s work. Check out her website to see the variety of books that she has written – more intermediate level novels as well as some for middle school readers, an early reader series based on Masterpiece, picture books, and board books. As you are looking for summer reading for all ages, do check out Elise Broach.

Here’s my “vintage” review with a wee bit of editing:

Elise Broach has written her own masterpiece and given it that title. Masterpiece is one of the best books for our middle elementary school children (students in grades three, four, and five) that I’ve read this year. I couldn’t put the book down, as I cheered on the main character, Marvin, a young beetle who lives with his family in a New York City apartment. His beetle family resides under the kitchen sink, and they keenly observe the daily events in the lives of the human family who live in the apartment. The beetles are especially sympathetic to James, whose feelings and interests his mother and stepfather often overlook. When James’s birthday is definitely not a happy event, Marvin decides that he must give James a special gift, and he sketches a drawing using an ink set that James’s artist father gave him as a gift. When his family members believe that James created the tiny detailed painting, he is overwhelmed by the attention and doesn’t deny it. James learns about Marvin’s skill, and although they can’t speak to each other, they learn to communicate in other ways. As I read this book, I became interested in learning more about the German artist, Albrecht Durer, since he is featured in an important exhibit that the characters visit at the Metropolitan Museum of Art.

All of the details that I’ve described only set up the main plotline which involves a famous painting, an art heist, but most of all true friendship.

Masterpiece reminds me of George Selden’s beloved classic, The Cricket in Times Square. The books exhibit the same suspension of reality, as the reader believes in the fantasy worlds that bring insects to life. On the flap of The Cricket in Times Square, one reviewer describes Selden’s book in a way that is fitting to write of Broach’s Masterpiece. “Every once in a while a story is told, ostensibly for children, which captures so perfectly the imaginative realm in which even children are permitted to dwell only for a time, that the adult world must stop and listen too.” These words perfectly describe the experience that I enjoyed reading both of these books.

Some of our fourth and fifth graders have also enjoyed Elise Broach’s novel, Shakespeare’s Secret. While the plot of this book is current and realistic, the author interested a few of us enough to look for more information about William Shakespeare. Elise Broach’s writing tends to do that to you.

Being an artist, I had an artist’s instincts. You can see the picture before it’s taken; then it’s up to you to get the camera to see. James VanDerZee

Take a Picture of Me, James VanDerZee by Andrea J. Loney, illustrated by Keith Mallett (Lee & Low Books)

The Harlem Renaissance is an important era in our artistic, intellectual, and social history. The era is primarily recognized as taking place in Harlem in New York City. Some describe it as spanning from 1918 through the mid 1930s and also occurring in other areas of the United States as well as Paris, France. However, it was the African-American culture in Harlem that spawned this rich movement. One of the leading figures in the Harlem Renaissance was James VanDerZee, a musician and photographer who chronicled the era through his lens.

James was born and raised in Lenox, Massachusetts which even then was a summer vacation destination for the wealthy. More importantly, it was a multicultural town that James’ parents had purposely chosen to raise their family. As he grew up, James played the violin and piano and he painted. When a professional photographer passed through town and took family portraits, James became intrigued and got his first camera. He not only learned how to take pictures, but he also developed them in a darkroom in his home. When he was in fifth grade, he became his school’s photographer. Visiting aristocrats enlisted him to take their pictures.

In 1906, when he moved to the New York City area, James used his musical talent to play with two well-known orchestras. He began his own group, the Harlem Orchestra. At the beginning of those years, he was an assistant in a portrait studio. James went on to establish his own successful studio, and he took photographs of daily life in Harlem as well as those of prominent African Americans.

In the Afterword of her book, Andrea Loney describes James VanDerZee eloquently:

During his lifetime James VanDerZee created thousands of portraits, took more than 75,000 photographs, and created more than 125,000 plates, negatives, transparencies, and prints. Each image shared an extraordinary story about the people of Harlem, the quiet beauty of their everyday lives, the grandeur of their hopes and dreams, and most of all, their inherent dignity and pride.

James VanDerZee was truly a Renaissance man.

(Credit: Wikipedia – Photo of James VanDerZee)

Chef Roy Choi and the Street Food Remix by Jacqueline Briggs Martin and June Jo Lee, illustrated by Man One (Readers to Eaters)

It’s not uncommon to visit certain neighborhoods in Boston and enjoy purchases from a food truck. Roy Choi’s name is synonymous with the founding of gourmet food trucks in Los Angeles.

Born in South Korea, Roy’s family moved permanently to the United States when he was a young child. Choi’s parents tried their hands at a variety of businesses. The one that made the biggest impression on him, and foreshadowed his future career, was when they owned a Korean restaurant.

After struggling to find his way, Roy became inspired by Emeril Lagasse’s cooking show, Essence of Emeril. He became so obsessed that he enrolled in culinary school. Roy went on to cook in top restaurants, especially in Los Angeles. In 2008, Choi and a partner established their own company, Kogi, and they launched their food truck business.

Roy Choi calls himself a “street cook”. In Chef Roy Choi and the Street Food Remix, Jacqueline Briggs Martin and June Jo Lee describe his cooking style.
Sohn maash is the flavors in our fingertips. It is the love and cooking talent that Korean mothers and grandmothers mix into their handmade foods.

The Illustrator, Man One, is a pioneer in the graffiti art movement. He has exhibited his art all over the world. This is the first children’s book that he has illustrated, and the pages are full of color and images that represent Choi and Los Angeles.

Mary Blair’s Unique Flair: The Girl Who Became One of the Disney Legends by Amy Novesky, illustrated by Amy Novesky (Disney Press)

Pocket Full of Colors: The Magical World of Mary Blair, Disney Artist Extraordinaire by Amy Guglielmo and Jacqueline Tourville, illustrated by Brigette Barrager (Atheneum)

We are artists, dear, in love with art and each other. We must make these loves coincide and melt into a beautiful, happy and rich life – that is our future…we’ll live to be happy and paint to express our happiness.                                 Mary Blair

Mary wrote those words in a letter to her husband, Lee, in 1933. How prophetic they were because she went on to become one of the most influential artists for Walt Disney and his enterprises.

Mary Browne Robinson loved art as a child, and her parents supported her interest and budding talent. When the family moved from Texas to California, she kept her sketchbook with her during the journey. When she was in school, Mary drew all over her textbooks. After college and art school, she married Lee Blair and began to work at the Walt Disney Studios. There, she worked on some of the classic movies including Dumbo and Lady and the Tramp. Mary’s greatest contributions to the Disney movies were when she was responsible for the color styling for Cinderella, Alice in Wonderland, and Peter Pan.

After resigning from Disney and working on projects for many other companies, Walt Disney sought her out to help him with his newest attraction, “It’s a Small World”. This attraction was one of Mary’s ultimate artistic accomplishments as she shared her colorful world.

Mary Blair’s favorite color was white, the color of possibility.

Check out the website, Magic of Mary Blair, which is owned by Mary’s nieces.

When the Beat Was Born: DJ Kool Herc and the Evolution of Hip Hop by Laban Carrick Hill, illustrated by Theodore Taylor III (Roaring Brook Press)

Hip hop is the voice of this generation. Even if you didn’t grow up in the Bronx in the ‘70s, hip hop is there for you. It has become a powerful force. Hip hop binds all of these people, all of these nationalities, all over the world together.   Kool Herc


Clive Campbell was born in Kingston, Jamaica. Growing up, he heard the sounds of dance parties in the streets. Even though he was too young to go to the evening parties, he liked to hang around the DJs when they were setting up their equipment. That’s when his fascination with music began. He never formed a band, but he became a very different kind of performer.

When he was 12 years old, his parents moved to the Bronx in New York City. In high school, he was good at basketball, and his friends called him Hercules. Eventually, he became known as Kool Herc. He and his sister began hosting parties in the recreation room of their apartment building. They charged people to come, and Kool Herc especially liked to play albums by James Brown.

Before one of Kool Herc’s dance parties, he came up with the idea of using two turntables to play with the instrumentals of the albums. He created longer breaks for dancing. His friends and other party attendees enjoyed it when he began calling them out in ways that went with the music. Soon his parties became so large that he took them to the streets. That’s when his fans began to breakdance in the street.

Kool Herc is credited as a pioneer of hip hop. He influenced many DJs and performers who emulated his style.

Author Laban Carrick Hill and illustrator Theodore Taylor III produced a picture book biography that introduces this musical innovator to readers of all ages.

Our Earth is only one polka dot among a million stars in the cosmos. Polka dots are a way to infinity.                                                Yayoi Kusama

Yayoi Kusama: From Here to Infinity by Sarah Suzuki, illustrated by Ellen Weinstein with reproductions of works by Yayoi Kusama (Museum of Modern Art)

Yayoi Kusama is a fascinating Japanese contemporary artist. At the age of 91, she continues to create and exhibit her work worldwide. Throughout the years, she has experimented with her avant-garde style in many mediums in the world of art, writing, and fashion. Some of her work, especially her performing art, has pushed boundaries. Author Sarah Suzuki has written a fascinating picture book biography that describes Yayoi Kusama’s life and work without including details that would be difficult for young readers to grasp. Suzuki is a Curator in the Department of Drawings and Prints at The Museum of Modern Art in New York City. Ellen Weinstein’s accompanying illustrations are playful and colorful.

Yayoi Kusama recently wrote a poem about Covid-19.

Revolutionist of the world by the Art From Yayoi Kusama

April is poetry month, and what better way to celebrate than with a picture book biography about e.e.cummings? enormous SMALLNESS: A Story of E. E. Cummings is written by Matthew Burgess (Enchanted Lion Books).

Edward Estlin Cummings enjoyed a childhood where he was nurtured and praised for his keen observation and love of words. Growing up in Cambridge, MA, his mother wrote down his poetry, even before he could write his poems himself. Called Estlin by his family, as a student, he always remembered his favorite teacher, Miss Maria Baldwin, who taught him
 anything is possible,
    as long as you are true to yourself
and never give up, even when the world
    seems to say, stop!

When Estlin graduated from Harvard, he spoke to the audience about “The New Art” of Gertude Stein, Paul Cezanne, and Igor Stravinsky. He moved to New York City, served as an ambulance driver in France in WWI, was imprisoned as a spy, and finally returned to the United States. Then, Cummings wrote and wrote, and he developed a style all his own. He put lowercase letters in place of capitals and played with punctuation. His name began to appear with little e’s. When he first began to break rules, readers didn’t know what to make of it, but they soon became enthralled with his images. e.e.cummings has become one of our premier American poets.

The Sky Was

the
sky
was
can    dy    lu
minous
edible
spry
pinks shy
lemons
greens    coo    1 choc
olate
s.

un    der,
a    lo
co
mo
tive        s  pout
ing
vi
o
lets

Enjoy his descriptive language as the poet himself reads “in Just spring”.

Reading is important because if you can read, you can learn anything about everything and everything about anything.        – Tomie dePaola

Strega Nona – How many children and adults smile with instant recognition when they read or hear that name! Tomie dePaola created this magical character in 1975, and she is still a Grandma Witch whom millions enjoy today. Big Anthony, Strega Nona’s helper, thinks he knows the secret to her pasta pot when he watches her sing. He fails to see that she blows three kisses to stop the pasta from multiplying. When Strega Nona goes out of town, Big Anthony uses her pot, but he can’t stop the pasta from expanding and taking over the town. Fortunately, Strega Nona returns and uses her magic. She tells the townsfolk and Big Anthony that “The punishment must fit the crime…So, start eating.”

This talented author/illustrator went on to write many more tales about Strega Nona and Big Anthony. He wrote board books, big books, picture books, chapter books, and fact books. He wrote about families, magic, holidays, legends, folktales, and non-fiction topics. He not only created Strega Nona, Big Anthony, and Bambolina, but also Bill and Pete, the Barkers, and many folklore characters. He even collaborated with the Jim Henson workshop and produced some delightful tales with them. Some of dePaola’s finest books are his memoir series where he describes growing up. Children and adults alike are entertained with his vivid and endearing descriptions. (Photo from the New York Times)

Tomie began doing art when he was four years old. Growing up in an Irish/Italian family in Meriden, CT, his family encouraged his talent. In interviews, Tomie often said that his family’s stories became such a part of the themes of his books. After earning a Master’s Degree in Fine Art and then a doctoral equivalency, this talented artist was a college professor at a number of California and New England Schools. In the 1970s, he retired from his formal teaching responsibilities and concentrated solely on writing and illustrating children’s books.

During an interview with the Boston Globe in 2007, Tomie was asked about having studied the master artists. He answered, “Matisse is my favorite because he didn’t want the viewer to see the hard work that went into his painting. He would start out with a rendering, then simplify and simplify. I try to be as clear and simple as I can be in my illustrations so that the child can tell what is going on and what the emotions are.” For me, Tomie even resembled Matisse a bit, both physically and in the sophisticated simplicity of his art.

Tomie dePaola was a master.

Do check out his website to learn more about his books.

People seem to think because I have a pretty face I’m stupid…I have to work twice as hard as anyone else to convince people I have something resembling a brain.                    – Hedy Lamarr

Hedy Lamarr’s Double Life: Hollywood Legend and Brilliant Inventor by Laurie Wallmark, illustrated by Katy Wu (Sterling Children’s Books)

During the 1940s and 1950s, Hedy Lamarr was known as one of the world’s most beautiful women. She was in many movies as the glamorous leading lady. Few people had any idea that this attractive star was also a self-educated scientist and inventor.

Born in Austria to Jewish parents, Hedwig Eva Maria Kiesler was curious about science as a child. When she was five years old, she wanted to understand the mechanism of her music box, so she took it apart. Another interest that turned into a passion was her desire to act, and Hedy had her first minor role in a movie as a teenager.

Hedy’s first husband was a Viennese arms and munitions dealer who had ties to Adolph Hitler. She attended many science and military conferences with him, and those events reignited her interest in science. In 1937, Hedy left her marriage and her fears of Germany’s rise to power in Europe. She met Louis B. Mayer, the head of MGM Studios, and she was signed to an acting contract in the U.S. where she soon became a star. Mayer suggested changing her name, and from then on, she became Hedy Lamarr.

While Hedy’s vocation was acting, her avocation was inventing. She devoted an entire room in her home to be used for experiments, and she had a wall of engineering and science reference books. After meeting George Antheil, a music composer and former weapons inspector, Hedy investigated the problem that the military was having with torpedo guidance systems. The two friends came up with the concept of frequency hopping, and they were awarded a patent for their invention. The navy didn’t put any resources into building the system but they classified it top secret. When it was declassified years later, the patent had run out. The basis for the technology is used today as a means of securing wireless communications for cell phones and computers.

https://youtu.be/35-KOR-x94g