Marcus Vega doesnt speak Spanish by Pablo Cartaya

It is for good reason that Puerto Rico is known as the isla del encanto (isle of enchantment). It is lush, green and full of beautiful friendly people and delicious cuisine. It does have a complicated history though and many books have been written on that subject.

This middle grade novel isn't about any of that however. It's about a kid called Marcus Vega who is bigger than most of his peers and who is sometimes misunderstood by his middle school peers because of this. He isn't a bully however and chooses to use his powers for good, he is quite the entrepreneur. He's also a good big brother to his younger brother Charlie who has special needs. Still, something is missing and when a series of events make his mom decide to carry Marcus and his brother to Puerto Rico this turns out to be the adventure of a lifetime.

For Marcus, number one on his list is getting to meet his dad. He has mixed feelings about this since his dad returned to the island leaving Marcus, his mom and brother back in the US. The fact that Marcus only remembers small things about his father is very frustrating and as he meets various family members on the trip he discovers that there is so much more he didn't know about his dad, his mom and himself.

Pablo Cartaya's familiarity with the island is apparent and he includes various details here and there to give readers a cultural and historical context. Puerto Rico has been in the news a lot recently and people are still getting back to normal after last year's hurricane. Still, as someone who has a lot of friends living on the island I know that Boricuas are resilient people and will keep pushing on.

Dactyl Hill Squad by Daniel José Older

This book continues a trend I have noticed in Daniel José Older's books- they have some really eye catching covers.  This one in particular features several children of color on dinosaurs in a city.

We are thrown headlong into the story when we meet Margaret Rocheford (real name Magdalys Roca) as she and the fellow denizens of the Colored Orphan Asylum are being taken to a performance at the Zanzibar Savannah Theater. In this alternate reality, dinosaurs still exist and many of them are used as forms of transport and for other nefarious purposes.

When Magdalys discovers that she has a hitherto unknown power then life takes a surprising turn and she discovers things about herself and about her world that send her and her friends on a quest.

Older uses many facets of his native New York City as well as several historical events and figures to bring a real authenticity to the novel. I particularly liked how he used Caribbean Spanish words like bochinche. Further, there is an entire section in the back of the book in which he explains his thinking behind the book. I for one appreciated that.


So if you're looking for a slightly scary read for this time of year (or for any time of year for that matter) this one comes highly recommended. I can't wait to see what's next for the squad.  Some read alikes for this are Steven Brezenoff's The Case of the Missing Mom and The Great Shelby Holmes by Elizabeth Eulberg.

Halloween and Day of the Dead crafts

It was a crisp 46 degrees when I came into work this morning and the leaves are changing color so that means that fall is indeed on the way. Besides fall crafts, a big hit this time of the year is Halloween crafts and Day of the Dead crafts. For more information on the Day of the Dead celebration you can check this website.

Skeletons aren't scary when they're done with construction paper and q-tips such as the one below. This next one is a cute little skeleton that can be done by little ones ages.  For these and a host of other skeleton templates check here.

                            




Games for preschoolers and little ones are a fun part of Halloween as well.  This tic tac toe game is easy to use and if you laminate the pieces you can reuse it year after year.

                           



Crafts are an awesome way to help build motor skills and coordination and of course let kiddos express their creativity.  These pumpkins are simple to make and depending on the skill level of your kids you can either cut out the pieces beforehand or let them go to town.

                               

                      



Papel picado is an awesome decorated paper (it means perforated paper). I found some cute decorations online that would be wonderful in classrooms. This video shares how to make papel picado calveras.

Illegal by Eoin Colfer and Andrew Donkin

The phrase "illegal alien" and  "illegal immigrant" have shot to prominence of late not only here in the United States but overseas as well. Of course a person can't be illegal but by crossing national borders without the required documentation they will break laws and be in a country illegally.

Eoin Colfer and Andrew Donkin make clear that this is a work of fiction but that the various elements that make up the story are true.

Told in a flashback style, we meet Ebo a young by who is a gifted singer who follows his brother Kwame to Europe. The boys leave Ghana across rough terrain to arrive at Niger and then from there to Libya. They face untold hardships on the various stages of the trip. They face it all with humor and a strong brotherly bond.

I won't give away the end but it is bittersweet. needless to say I found myself thinking about the regions that these migrants come from. They leave various parts of Africa that are desperately poor, riddled with internal conflict (or perhaps both) and risk it all to journey to Europe. Of course with the numbers of migrants that have flooded Europe over the last decade, that has caused other problems in those countries as well. The problems seem to have no easy solution at all.

So the next time you hear a story about a boat full of migrants that sunk off the coast of Italy or Greece, spare a thought for these people who are fleeing conflicts that we here in North America cannot imagine not only in our wildest dreams. Some read alikes  are Nowhere Boy by Katherine Marsh and Refugee by Alan Gratz and Amal Unbound by Aisha Saeed.

That's the Spirit by Stacia Deutsch

A group of young friends who love to hang out.encounter a mystery when their friend claims that an unhappy ghost is scaring her family. That's the simple premise behind this installment of Stacia Deutsch's The Mysterious Makers of Shaker Street series. Comprised of  friends Liv, Michael and Leo the friends each bring a different skill set to the table and work together to get to the bottom of the mystery.




If you are looking for a high interest read for kids in grades 2 through 4 just in time for the scary season this one comes highly recommended. The book does use some scientific principles and the author provides some cool how-to guides at the back of the book for the intrepid young readers who may want to try the projects out. Stacia Deutsch seems to have this niche of earl chapter books that have a bit of mystery and sci-fi/STEM.  This is the fourth book in this series. See the others here.

If you are looking for a high interest read for kids in grades 2 through 4 just in time for the scary season this one comes highly recommended. Some read alikes are The Ride that was really haunted by Steven Brezenoff, Ugly Cat & Pablo and the missing brother by Isabel Quintero.

What Elephants Know by Eric Dinerstein

Eric Dinerstein is a researcher who has spent many years in Nepal and his fluency in the native tongues and the culture of the region (and love for it) is apparent. This book seems almost like  love letter to the people and culture of Nepal.

Nandu is a young apprentice who is trying to work his way up to mahout, an elephant jockey basically. his job entails feeding and cleaning up after the elephant. His father is a shuba sha, a very well respected mahout who has an uncanny connection with the great beasts and is a teacher and medicine man.

Then one day an order from the king threatens to turn their world upside down-their stable may close and if so their livelihood will be gone.  Nandu and his friends come up with an outrageous plan they they hope will save the table.

Their remote area is far from the law and bandits run wild. One group of them called the Maroons is rampant and deadly and Nandu and the other elephant trainers must always be on the lookout for these miscreants who can strike at any time .

Dinerstein's novel touches on a variety of topics such as conservation, gender relations, education but not in a heavy handed way. The topics remain accessible to young readers. I recommend this book for ages 9 and up. The publisher has also provided a handy discussion guide as well.

Books to ease the transition back to school

So the summer is over and the kiddos are about to go back to school. Books are a great way to ease the fears and anxieties little ones have about going to school. This week's blog has a few good ones that cover the topic of back to school.

Dinosaur vs School is another one in the Dinosaur vs series by Bob Shea. In this book, our favorite dinosaur hero finds himself in school. He can usually defeat most challenges but for this one he just may need a little help...

                                           

Teachers are in need of all the positive reinforcement they can get and Todd Parr does this with his wonderful book, Teachers Rock.

                                        

Adam Rex's School's First Day of School is a novel take on the beginning of the school year. A new school is built and it finds itself learning about exactly what goes on inside it when the school year starts. There's so much to learn!

                                        

For a good nonfiction look at those awesome folks who educate the next generation, try Meet the Teacher by Joyce Jeffries. Using big text, bright pictures and shirt sentences this is a quick read that does a wonderful job of describing what teachers are and what they do.
                          
                                        

For those of us whose school year is already underway there are some books which deal with some of the day to day happenings. Mike Thaler's The New Kid from the Black Lagoon shows us what occurs when the teacher announces that a new kid is about to join the class. The students' imaginations run wild as they try to figure out where the kid is from and what they look like.

                                  

Anica Mrose Rissi The Teacher's Pet introduces us to Mr. Stricter and his choice of a class pet which turns out to be a terrible idea and it is up to the students to help solve the problem.
                   
                               

These are just some of the many. many books out there. Feel free to suggest yours in the comments below. Have a wonderful school year!