"Tell me how you survived the whale attack," the reporter said.

- opening lines

 

Could you survive if the whale watching boat you were on capsized and you were left floating in the cold ocean? Travis and Marina are in just such a situation. Luckily, Travis is wearing an immersion suit, and Mariana has survival supplies in her vest (and a lot of knowledge). All they have to do is stay out of the water, find land, and get rescued. Simple, right?

So, this is a good book, but the plot is a little thin. Things resolve a bit too easily for me, but I don't think kids will mind. At the end of the book, there is a section with "U.S. Coast Guard-Approved Cold Water Survival Tips" which kids will probably find very cool and informative.

It's about 100 pages, easy to read and about survival, kids will love it.

Recommended to: Grades 3-5 (and some second graders), fans of the I Survived series, adventure fans, reluctant readers

I know most of you are interested in adult books, but I have a question that maybe a few of you could help out with regarding our elementary school library. We have a lot of reluctant readers (as I'm sure all elementary schools do). Many of them love the "I Survived" series by Lauren Tarshis. I'm looking for another series similar to this that might interest them as well. If you have any ideas.... Please let me know. 

The books are historical fiction, about 4th grade level and around 100 pages.

Thanks in advance for any suggestions!!

Katherine and Michael's love feels like it will be "forever", until she is forced to spend the summer at camp, separated from him. Her world is shaken up when she begins to have feelings for someone else, despite still loving Michael. This piece of realistic fiction addressed first love and sex through the eyes of a teenager.

Lexile: HL590
Recommended for: teens
*sexual content

The mystery starts when Sunny gets a letter in the mail from her older sister, Jazz... her sister who was presumed dead when her apartment building burned down months ago. Sunny's family has had a difficult time since Jazz's death-- her father is drinking more and her mother can barely get out of bed. A visit from Jazz could be just what is needed to pull the family back together. While Sunny has always been a bit jealous of Jazz, she knows immediately that something is wrong when a "too perfect" Jazz shows up at the door. Taller and maybe a little too well rehearsed. Who is this girl really, and why is she there?

AR BL: 4.0 UG

Lexile: 550

Recommended for: Teens 

This book makes me wish I had a classroom full of 7th graders with plenty of rowdy boys. I'd have them spotting and then spouting similes in one class period. Forget CCSS and stupid crappy reading passages. This is a fast-moving story with plenty of action and suspense. The 15 year old narrator tells his story in lingo that sounds authentic and does have those similes I mentioned, but in realistic kidspeak. What I really like is that the family in the story lives in tough Brooklyn Bed Stuy and manages to have a close and caring home with a few tough passages, just like everybody else. It does a bit to make suburban kids understand that urban dwellers are not all gangsta types and that lots of folks in tough neighborhoods are just trying to work hard and make the best of their lives possible. The kids are all likeable and decent, and the parents are doing their best, even if the dad has a few rough edges. I would target 7th graders and up, from urban settings and beyond. So what's the deal with the knitted gun cover on the jacket? Read to find out. I ain't telling. And I think I have another author to follow in Jayson Reynolds.