Tag Archives: Friendship

Jun19

Trackers

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Trackers

Trackers

Adam, Lewis, Finn & Emily (The Trackers) are four smart kids who spend their time inventing, building and testing technological gadgets. They work out of Adam’s workshop located at the back of his Dad’s computer repair shop. The kids are smart, but one particular day they aren’t quite smart enough. A hacker manages to infiltrate their carefully (they thought!) encrypted & secure computer files. The hacker wants something and is willing to blackmail the kids to get it. He wants the Trackers to solve a puzzle and in return, their files will be returned.

Should they go to the police? Should they tell Adam’s Dad? Or would it be better…a challenge…and more FUN to beat this guy at his own game? Author: Patrick Carman

If you like technology and gadgets in the hands of smart kids try these:
STORM The Infinity Code Stormbreaker Steel Trapp The Academy Max Cassidy Escape from Shadow Island

Spy movies playing at branch libraries this summer:

G-Force (PG) animated, 88 minutes
In this hilarious animated feature, a team of trained secret agent guinea pigs work for a government agency. The team is asked to prevent a diabolical billionaire from taking over the world. Schedule

The Spy Next Door (PG) 94 minutes
Bob Ho is an undercover CIA superspy who decides to give up his career in espionage to settle down with his next-door neighbor and girlfriend, Gillian. But Bob has one more mission to complete before Gillian agrees to marry him: winning over her three opinionated kids. Schedule

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Jun17

Zebrafish

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Zebrafish

Zebrafish

Vita buys a used guitar, thinks up a great band name - The Vita-mins - and then puts up flyers at school to hold auditions to find some bandmates. Some kids show up but none of them play an instrument. They meet again anyway and a plan starts to come together. Plinko and Jay have video skills, Tanya writes songs, Walt’s an artist and Vita can sing. It’s not a band, but it IS something special. The kids put together a show – see for yourself at  http://www.zebrafish.com/. You can even download Vita’s song that Tanya wrote.

Read Part of Zebrafish

Zebrafish is a graphic novel with great pictures and a great story. The kids are real – not comic book superheroes. If you like lots of illustrations and stories that show true-to life kids dealing with real life problems, try these:
The Lasts Invisible Boy Smile Amelia Rules The Strange Case of Origami Yoda
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Jun13

The Strange Case of Origami Yoda

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The Strange Case of Origami Yoda

The Strange Case of Origami Yoda

Tommy has a question that every kid asks himself eventually. Does that cute girl like me, or not? Should I ask her to the dance? Tommy is looking for answers and he thinks he may have found a way to avoid total humiliation by asking Origami Yoda what to do. What is Origami Yoda? He’s Yoda. Made out of paper. A puppet.

Is he REAL? Does he really know things? Can he see the future? Does he use the Force? Or is he just a hoax that fooled a whole bunch of us at Mcquarrie Middle School? (page 1)

To find out of Origami Yoda is the real deal Tommy has compiled a case file that is this book. He interviews each kid in his class who received advice from Origami Yoda and then he comments on each case trying to decide if the advice was good, proving that Origami Yoda is real. His friend Harvey comments too. Harvey definitely doesn’t believe in Origami Yoda. He thinks Origami Yoda is just a green paperwad. He likes to point out that even the “real” Yoda was just a puppet.

How does Origami Yoda speak you ask? Well, the kid who folded him does the talking. Dwight is the kid who walks around school with Origami Yoda stuck on the end of his finger.

The strangest thing about Origami Yoda is that he is so wise even though Dwight is a total loser. (page 4)

You want to know what Dwight is like? His kindred spirit would be Greg Heffley’s friend Rawley (from Diary of a Wimpy Kid). He barfs in class. He picks his nose. He wears knee socks with shorts. And then he goes around school asking people to talk to his finger puppet. When Origami Yoda saves one of the boys from making a total fool of himself in front of a girl he likes, it makes Tommy think. The advice COULDN’T have come from Dwight. He’s a total loser. It HAD to come from Yoda. And this begins Tommy’s collection of evidence about Origami Yoda’s advice. Because he really, really needs to know, does Sara like him. Or not? I laughed all the way through this one! Author: Tom Angleberger

This book has an interesting pre-publication story. The author, Tom Angleberger, had to get permission to use Yoda in his story. Yoda is owned by Lucasfilms and George Lucas. Ater Tom wrote the story he had to ask Lucasfilms for permission to publish a book that has Yoda in it. As Tom shares in this interview, he heard that the person in charge of approving books at Lucasfilms took the book home and had her son read it. The son liked and said, “Let them do it.” Sometimes, kids DO get to make big time decisions! Read the Full Interview.

The Strange Case of Origami Yoda Web Comic Used With Permission:

yoda-web-comic

If you like Tommy and his friends try some of these:
Dog Days Bobby vs. the Girls Big Nate Zoobreak
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Apr26

Allie Finkle: Glitter Girls and the Great Fake Out

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Allie Finkle: Glitter Girls and the Great Fake Out

Allie Finkle's Rules for Girls: Girls and the Great Fake Out

When Allie’s friend’s big sister enters the regional Twirltacular baton twirling competition, Allie can’t wait to go see the spectacle of so many talented girls in glittery costumes.

But then her mom goes and ruins her plans be promising that she will attend her arch enemy Brittany Hauser’s birthday party. How could she make these plans without asking Allie first!

Allie’s pretty mad until she finds out the party is at Glitterati, a store that hosts birthday parties where girls can dress up and act like a model. And a stretch limo is taking the girls there. And they get to eat at a fancy restaurant. And they get to spend the night at a fancy hotel! Allie decides she can put up with Brittany just long enough to enjoy the benefits of her ooh lah lah once-in-a-lifetime party.

The problem…how to tell her friends that she is choosing the fancy party over them. Blame Mom! Problem solved! Except Allie tells a little white lie to cover up her real desire to go to the party and boy does she make a mess for herself in true Allie Finkle style. Another fun week in the life of Allie Finkle! Author: Meg Cabot

And here’s a book Allie would love – full of all kinds of glamourous advice like how to have the flutteriest eyelashes and how to make your own body glitter.

Girls' Book of Glamour

#1 Allie Finkle’s Rules for Girls: Moving Day
#2 Allie Finkle’s Rules for Girls: The New Girl
#3 Allie Finkle’s Rules for Girls: Best Friends and Drama Queens
#4 Allie Finkle’s Rules for Girls: Stage Fright
#5 Allie Finkle’s Rules for Girls: Glitter Girls and the Great Fake Out

More girls like Allie figuring out life and friends with a good sense of humor:
Are You There God? It's Me, Margaret Smile Dear Dumb Diary That's What Friends Aren't For The Beef Princess of Practical County
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Mar28

Dreamdark: Silksinger

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Dreamdark: Silksinger

Silksinger

Dreamdark is a wonderful, imagined place full of faeries and hobgoblins and dragons and imps and dragonflies and moths and other creatures. Look at the cover. Check out that sword, and the facial tattoos. It worked perfectly for my imagination. The picture brings to vivid life this tale of a battle against the forces of evil fought by some faeries that can really “bring it”!

The heroes in this story are faeries; small enough to ride on the back of a bird but gifted with magic as well as passionate loyalty. These faeries are not fairies; they are not pixies or Tinkerbells or the little creatures in The Spiderwick Chronicles. These faeries are warriors. Meet them:

Magpie Windwitch: Tough, loyal, experienced warrior, possesses special magical powers she is just learning to control. She doesn’t like to brush her hair, that’s not her thing. Magpie is all action. She’s also champion to the Djinn King who has given her a task to collect five hidden Djinn that can help him save her world.

Talon: Magpie’s right hand. He’s a Scamperer Faerie. He doesn’t have his own wings but has crafted himself magic wings out of spidersilk. He’s strong and fast with good instincts. He’s the guy you want to watch your back – he’s got Magpie’s at all times.

Whisper Silksinger: A quiet girl from a family of weavers. She’s small and fragile. She can’t fly, but she can weave a magic carpet and fly on that. She can conjure and do spells. Her clan lives in secrecy on an island she has never been away from. She thinks she’s not a warrior, but oh, she’s a warrior all right.

Hirik: Determined to become a champion even though his clan has been exhiled for a betrayal that occurred long before he was born. Hirik knows what it is to be the ousider and will fight to protect the weak, the underdog and the fragile little faerie named Whisper.

These four share devotion to family, friends & to a cause. Their stories begin separately, but they eventually meet to take on the very worst kind of evil, the kind that passes itself off as a friend. Dreamdark is an exotic place, where powerful Devils hide in bottles & where singing makes silk weave itself into flying carpets. Author: Laini Taylor

Dreamdark #1: Blackbringer
Dreamdark #2: Silksinger

The setting of Silksinger is exotic and interesting but the real appeal to me is the four friends and how they make up a team. They have the same appeal as Percy, Anabelle, Grover & Tyson or Harry, Ron & Hermione. If you like that kind of tight friendship where each person makes the group stronger, try some of these out. These stories are also set in fantastic places:
Ruins of Gorlan The Lost Conspiracy The Nine Pound Hammer Dragon Games
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