My reading pile

I visited a local book shop near my school this week and picked up a huge pile of middle grade novels which I will read in preparation for a Christmas talk I am doing there in a few weeks.

I will be talking about many of these on this blog over the coming weeks but here is a sneak peek. Click the titles and you can read my thoughts.

The Extremely Inconvenient adventures of Bronte Mettlestone by Jaclyn Moriarty

From the blurb : "... armed with only her parents instructions, a chest full of strange gifts and her own strong will, Bronte must journey forth to face dragons, Chief Detectives and pirates ..."
I have actually finished this and it is a splendid book with interesting characters, a hero you want to help and encourage and lots of excellent problems to solve.



The Wonderling by Mira Bartok

From the blurb : "Welcome to the home for wayward and misbegotten creatures, run by the evil Miss Carbukle, a cunning villainess, who believes her terrified young charges exist only to serve and suffer."







The Rogues by Lian Tanner

From the blurb "The devious Lord Rump and his granddaughter Duckling need a disposable boy, and Pummel, a farmboy looking for work int he city, fits the bill perfectly. Duckling is happy to tangle him in her grandpa's web as long as Grandpa keeps his promise - that this will be his very last Scheme."

Whimsy and Woe by Rebecca McRitchie

From the blurb : "After being abandoned by their thespian parents, Whimsy and woe Morduant are left in the care of their austere Aunt Apoline.  Forced to work in Apoline's boarding house, slaving at the beck and call of outlandish and demanding guests, and sharpening the thorns of every plant in the poisonous plant garden, Whimsy and woe lose all hope that their parents will ever return. Until one day, quite by accident, the siblings stumble upon a half-charred letter that sets them on a course to freedom and finding their parents."


Prisoner of ice and snow by Ruth Lauren

From the blurb : "Valor is under arrest for the attempted murder of the crown prince. Her parents were cast out from the royal court. Her sister was banished for theft of a national treasure. Now Valor has been sentenced to life at Tyur'ma a brutal prison built form stone and ice."

Diego and the rangers of the Vastlantic by Armand Baltazar  Book One in the series Timeless

From the blurb : "In New Chicago, Diego's middle school hall ways buzz with kids form all eras of history ad from cultures all over the world. The pieces do not always fit together neatly, but this is the world he loves. There are those, however, who do not share his affection."