Children Ages 9-12
Timmy Failure is the 11-year-old CEO of the world's greatest Detective Agency. ...Well... "greatest" according to Timmy. He and his sidekick Total, a 1500-pound Polar Bear, are determined to find fame and fortune through fighting crime. For now, Timmy mostly solves mysteries for his classmates; but he dreams of riches and world domination. Author Stephan Pastis is best known for his comic strip "Pearls Before Swine," and he does a great job of bringing his deadpan humor to a young audience.
It begins, as the best superhero stories do, with a tragic accident that has unexpected consequences. The squirrel never saw the vacuum cleaner coming, but self-described cynic Flora Belle Buckman, who has read every issue of the comic book "Terrible Things Can Happen to You!, " is the just the right person to step in and save him. What neither can predict is that Ulysses (the squirrel) has been born anew, with powers of strength, flight, and misspelled poetry -- and that Flora will be changed too, as she discovers the possibility of hope and the promise of a capacious heart. From #1" New York Times" best-selling author Kate DiCamillo comes a laugh-out-loud story filled with eccentric, endearing characters and featuring an exciting new format -- a novel interspersed with comic-style graphic sequences and full-page illustrations, all rendered in black-and-white by up-and-coming artist K. G. Campbell.
Winner of The Caldecott Medal, Selznick imaginary opus became a huge hit last year with Martin Scorsese’s big screen adaptation of it in Hugo. While the movie was beyond amazing, the book proves to be its own unique blend of wonderment, childhood joy and mystery. Telling the story of Hugo, an orphan and thief who lives in a Paris train station the story includes with its imaginative prose, 284 original drawings that further outline Hugo’s adventures. The novel engrossingly unfolds thanks to the variety of intriguing characters Hugo encounters throughout his hidden life. A perfect gift for that slightly mischievous young boy or girl in the family.- Stephanie
Our Weekend Readers Book Club read Half Magic, and everyone liked it. It's a little dated, but no one seemed to mind. Half Magic remains a solid pick for readers who like silly adventure stories.