CHAPTER BOOK: Love, Aubrey by Suzanne LaFleur

When the story starts, Aubrey is alone. Over time, the reader realizes that something tragic has happened, leaving Aubrey and her mother to pick up the pieces. But Aubrey's mom left - just disappeared. Aubrey's grandmother comes to check on them after her phone calls go unanswered and she finds Aubrey alone. She takes her home while the family tries to find Aubrey's mom. Through the rest of the story, Aubrey deals with her feelings about her mom and slowly comes to terms with the tragedy that changed her life forever.

This is an absolutely beautiful story - engrossing and heart-breaking. The author does an amazing job of letting the details of the story unfold slowly. I didn't even plan on reading this book - I was covering it in laminate to put it in the school library and I thought I'd just skim a smidge to see how it was. I couldn't put it down. I sniffled and brushed away tears through the whole thing. Beautiful.

4 out of 5 stars
AR level of 3.7

I would recommend this for readers in 4th grade and up, students looking for beautiful realistic fiction.

[note: Here's a link to another book by Suzanne LaFleur that I reviewed.]

COUNTING BY 7S by Holly Goldberg Sloan

I don't normally post here on Tuesdays, but I did so much reading this summer, I am already working on posts for October. This book was too good to wait two months to write about it.

[I received an advance reader copy of this book at the American Library Association Annual Conference this summer. The book will release on August 29th.]

Willow is a brilliant yet odd girl - she counts by 7s, is fascinated by medical conditions, and aces the standardized tests at school with a perfect score, which gets her sent to counseling for cheating. Through the counselor, Willow meets Mai, a high school student, and her brother Quang-ha. When Willow's parents are killed in a car accident, and she has no one to care for her, Mai insists Willow stay with her family. But Willow knows this can only be temporary. There's no where she truly "belongs" now.

This was lovely. So moving and engrossing. As odd as Willow is, readers will still relate to her. Her descriptions of her grief are stunning. She says things like, "I want to turn off the sun and live in darkness." {As I read an uncorrected proof of the book, this quote might change or be eliminated in the final product - but it is only one example of all sorts of beautiful statements in this book - if this one isn't there, you'll find plenty of others.} Having walked through my own grief experience in the last couple years, I completely identified with Willow's descriptions of her grief. Each of the other characters in this story - Mai; Quang-ha; their mother, Pattie; the school counselor; and a cab driver - evolves over time, just like Willow does, in completely reasonable and beautiful ways.

I would recommend this for readers in 5th grade and older. Any reader who loves material where he/she can really connect with a character emotionally will enjoy Counting by 7s. I will recommend this to my students who have loved books like Love, Aubrey.

5 out of 5 stars
AR reading level of 5.6

A MILLION WAYS HOME by Dianna Dorisi Winget

Poppy's been living in shelter care since her grandmother had a stroke and went to the hospital. But when she witnesses a crime, she's taken into protective custody with a local police officer and his mother. Poppy just wants life to go back to normal and to go back home with her grandmother, but she might never get back to that life again.

This was lovely! A touching story of family and friendship. Great animal story. Terrific realistic fiction, emotionally moving. I would recommend this to fans of books like Love, Aubrey; Eight Keys; or Counting by Sevens.

5 out of 5 stars
No AR reading level at the time of this writing.

* I received an electronic copy of this book from the publisher for free in the hope that I would review it honestly on my blog. Regardless, I only review books I enjoyed. I don’t believe in passing on negative reviews. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.

CHAPTER BOOK: Because of Mr. Terupt by Rob Buyea

Mr. Terupt is the rookie teacher for a group of fifth graders including the class clown, the genius, the kid who hates school, the mean girl, the new girl, the fat girl, and the outsider. These seven students share the story of their school year together with Mr. Terupt - their struggles, their triumphs, the times the grow, the times they fail, and the accident that changes things for all of them.

I loved this story! I loved how all the kids got to tell the story (in a sentence or in a couple pages) from their point of view. I loved seeing the why behind the behavior some of them exhibit at school and even more the change that happens to them as a group over the course of the year. This book is a winner! I am looking forward to reading the sequel, Mr. Terupt Falls Again.

AR Reading level of 3.7 (although the content works better for older elementary students)
5 out of 5 stars (I couldn't stop thinking about this one after I finished the story)

Recommended for: readers 4th grade and up, fans of stories with an emotional component like Eight Keys or Love, Aubrey, although this one might appeal to boys more than those two examples since the main characters are a mixture of boys and girls.