A Whole Nother Story, by Dr. Cuthbert Soup

Mr. Cheeseman (not his real name) is perfecting his Luminal Velocity Regulator (LVR) which, when complete, will bring his wife Olivia back to life. Until it is complete, though, Mr. Cheeseman and his three children must outrun the "coats" who want to steal the invention for evildoing. Along the way, readers meet many interesting characters like Mr. Cheeseman's son, Crandall, who is never without his one-eyed sock puppet named Steve. Interestingly, Dr. Cuthbert Soup is both the author and the narrator of A Whole Nother Story.

Because this a book full of "suspense, danger, adventure, mystery, simple yet delicious recipes for squash, and, of course, paper" it is recommended to tweens with all sorts of interests. This is one of the most creative and inventive (some pun intended) books I have picked up this semester. Warning: sense of humor required!

Cuthbert, S. (2009). A Whole Nother Story. New York: Bloomsbury USA Children's Books. ISBN 978-1599904351

The Same Stuff as Stars, by Katherine Patterson

Stars backlight the story of eleven year old Angel, who lives with her seven year old brother Bernie at her grandmother’s house. Angel takes on much of the responsibility for Bernie as Grandma simply sits by the fire most of the day and wraps herself in poverty and despair. Angel is thrust into the adult world by having to keep a constant watchful eye on her little brother and help out her old grandmother, when she just needs to still be a little girl.

The butt of mean girls at school, Angel keeps to herself and sometimes talks to the stars… or even to the entire universe or any power out there; she just wants to be heard. Fortunately, she is befriended by her uncle who lives on the property and he teaches her about the stars in which she takes her only solace.

The drama takes a twist when Bernie is unannouncedly picked up from school by her low-life mother, and Angel finally makes grandma face all the hard facts from which she has been hiding. Guided by her faith in the stars and belief that someone is listening, Angel rises to her challenges and teaches the adults in her life that they must move past obstacles and hurtfulness and find the positives in their given lot.

Entertaining and gripping, The Same Stuff as Stars is a great book for any tween and most meaningful for any older sibling responsibly caring for and loving a younger brother or sister.

Patteron, K. (2002). The Same Stuff as Stars. New York: Clarion Books. ISBN 978-0618247448

Harry Sue, by Sue Stauffacher

Harry Sue has a plan at eleven years old to toughen up and become a criminal. She ultimately hopes the calculated moves will land her far away from her grandmother’s home, granny’s disturbing in-home day care and into jail where her mom is serving hard time for cooking and selling crystal meth. Harry Sue knows Mom was only trying to do the right thing and help them get by.

Harry Sue has a tough name, and with humor, sassiness and urban grittiness, she tries to make a tough way for herself. But Harry Sue really does have a kind heart and learns many lessons about love and helping other people in unlikely places.

Stauffacher vividly describes in jive language the various settings, layered characters and meanings of everyday life. This novel does include a lot of mature content but it is mentioned in a manner that keeps it appropriate for tweens, and Harry Sue is definitely a story worth reading again and again.

Stauffacher, S. (2005). Harry Sue. New York: Random House. ISBN 9780375932748

Ida B… and her plans to maximize fun, avoid disaster, and (possibly) save the world.

Ida B’s enthusiasm and love for life are contagious! This is not your typical paperback heroine who spends all day daydreaming about a boy asking her to a dance or worrying if her wardrobe is keeping her from being popular. Ida B. (and yes, the “B” is mandatory) embraces everyday to the fullest and takes charge of any problems she sees in her life.

Ida B. has been home-schooled since the second week of kindergarten, when both her and her parents decided she would be much happier at home with mama and daddy and the orchard and their dog, Rufus. She balances her time between her studies, listening to the wisdom of the trees (whom she affectionately gives names like Philomena and Jacques Cousteau), and sending messages on homemade sailboats down the brook on her family’s property, hoping to hear from people in Canada. Overall, it is a great life.

But when mama is diagnosed with cancer, Ida B.’s carefree spirit is crushed. It is extremely difficult for her to hear mama and daddy talking in hushed voices. Mama no longer has the energy to quiz on her spelling or to give her difficult word problems. Ida B. notices that no one in the family, even the dog, looks each other in the eye anymore.

And just when Ida B. doesn’t think life can get any more difficult, her parents decide they can no longer home school her. In the fourth grade, Ida B. must return to a brick and mortar school, which she refers to as the “Place of Slow but Sure Body-Cramping, Mind-Numbing, Fun-Killing Torture.” Although it is tough for the reader to watch their heroine navigate difficult family changes while facing a new school, classmates, and teacher, we always suspect that Ida B. always has “plans to maximize fun, avoid disaster, and (possibly) save the world.”

Recommending this book to children who have experienced terminal illness in their family and area dealing with the questions, anger and sadness that accompanies such life events could be tricky business. (I'll admit I shed tears thinking about a family member who battled leukemia.) But with that "warning," Katherine Hannigan’s novel is a true gem. This novel carries the timely theme of environmental awareness, with the Southern landscape becoming a character in itself. It is also great for librarians to have literature featuring a home-schooled child on-hand.

Hannigan, Katherine. (2004). Ida B… and her plans to maximize fun, avoid disaster, and (possibly) save the world. New York: Greenwillow Books. ISBN: 0-06-073024-2

Sideways Stories From Wayside School, by Louis Sachar

In this first installment of the Wayside School series, the reader is introduced to the quirky building and its quirkier students through thirty vignettes, one for each of the school's thirty stories (except for the missing nineteenth floor of course). We meet stinky Sammy, John who can only read upside down, and Mrs. Jewls, who has very unconventional ways of teaching her students. Sachar's Wayside School series continues to be a favorite even after three decades. I am always seeing this book on reading lists of funny stories and I would highly recommend it for those on the younger end of the tween spectrum.

Sachar, L. (1978). Sideways Stories From Wayside School. New York: harper trophy. ISBN 978-0380731480

Loser, by Jerry Spinelli

Donald Zinkoff is that kid. The awkward, sometimes loud and different kid who never fits in the neighborhood or at John W. Satterfield Elementary School. In a naive Junie B. Jones sort of way, Zincoff bumbles through life not noticing all the eyes cast his way with lids in widened amazement. We all know one of these stand-out kids who “just doesn’t get it.” One thing Zincoff does get is the freshness and excitement of a snow which is “sticking” and beacons to him one evening after supper. As he envelopes himself in visions of a forthcoming snow day and glances up and down his street, he spies some reflecting red lights which draw him to the next street and upon a crisis involving what he perceives to be to a search for a missing toddler named Claudia.

Zincoff uses his laser focus and takes off in a childlike search for the little one. In only Spinelli fashion is the reader drawn into Zincoff’s world and realizes only in the end what has happened. Perception becomes reality with OMG moments as young readers will learn to build empathy with those amongst us challenged cognitively and or socially.

Spinelli, J. (2002). Loser. New York: Harper Trophy. ISBN 978-0060540746

Confetti Girl, by Diana López

Apolonia Flores (or “Lina”) is a star volleyball player who believes her choice of socks can affect her day. A year ago, Lina unexpectedly lost her mother from a blood infection. Her best friend, Vanessa Cantu, is dealing with the divorce of her parents. Both girls have just entered middle school in the prominently Latino community of Corpus Christi, Texas. As the girls each deal with the absence of a parent, they realize that their remaining parents’ lives have also been fractured. Lina’s dad, an English teacher, absorbs himself in his huge collection books. Ms. Cantu obsesses over making endless numbers of cascarones, hollowed out eggs filled with confetti, even when Easter has long past. Lina and Vanessa try to survive the usual middle school craziness while also helping mend their families.

I especially loved the Spanish phrases and influence within López’s novel. Mr. Flores conveys fatherly wisdom through dichos (Spanish proverbs), like Lo mismo el chile que aguja, a todos pican igual (“both the chile and the needle sting”) On El Día de los Muertos, Lina and her father visit Mrs. Flores’ grave. Corpus Christi and the Latino community essentially become characters themselves.

It is immediately evident that Lina is in the transition from child to adult – she openly admits that her sock collection is a bit immature, but makes no attempt to get rid of it- making Confetti Girl an excellent pick for tween girls who are likewise experiencing that “in between” feeling.

López, D. (2009). Confetti Girl. New York: Little, Brown & Company. ISBN 978-0-316-02955-1