The Book Search

It's spring break at my school so my husband and I went on a little trip to Las Vegas.  We'd never been before so we had a good time trying to figure out where things were, the best way to get there, and where the best places were to get something to eat.  The eating part is actually one of our favorites-my husband is a pastry chef and now teaches culinary at a local high school.  We had a great time and due to some flight delays, I had time to read!  Here are a few of the high spots. The first one is called "A Bandit's Tale" by Deborah Hopkinson.  It's about a boy named Rocco who lives in a small village in Italy with his big family.  Rocco makes a bit of a mistake involving a donkey and some money and his parents decide that the best way to "help" Rocco would be to send him to America with a local man who promises that he will take care of Rocco and help him get work.  It turns out this "padrone" has a group of boys that he expects to e...

The books I picked this week seem all have very strong, modern girl main characters.  I worry that these will not be appealing to boys, but their voices are very fresh and very fun. This first one was just adorable.  It's called "Dream On Amber" by Emma Shevah.  It's about 11 year old Amber who lives with her mother and little sister Bella.  Her nonna lives close by but her dad is just gone (and without an explanation, Amber makes up her own stories about why he isn't there).  As they are walking home through the park, Amber and Bella see a dad and his daughter and Bella is reminded how much SHE misses their dad.  So when Bella writes a letter to her dad inviting him to her birthday party, Amber knows how sad it will make her mom, so she writes back to Bella.  But Bella either misinterprets the letter or doesn't read it properly, because she believes their dad is coming to the party.  Additionally, Amber is starting middle school and doesn't rea...