Ty has lived under the ocean for his entire life. Following global warming and the rise of the seas, his family joined an underwater community in hopes of living in the new frontier of the ocean floor, 2 miles deep. But then Ty meets Gemma, a girl from "topside", who is searching the seas for her brother; she quickly makes his life very complicated. Together Ty and Gemma face dangerous sea creatures and venture into the frontier town's rough underworld as they search for her missing brother. But the deeper they dig, the more attention they attract, and soon Ty and Gemma find themselves being hunted by a gang of outlaws who roam the underwater territories causing havoc, and who seem to have eerie abilities. But Ty has a secret of his own, living underwater for his entire life has meant he has also developed a "special" power. Can he keep it a secret from Gemma and his family or is it time for him to finally tell everyone the truth?
Ty has lived under the ocean for his entire life. Following global warming and the rise of the seas, his family joined an underwater community in hopes of living in the new frontier of the ocean floor, 2 miles deep. But then Ty meets Gemma, a girl from "topside", who is searching the seas for her brother; she quickly makes his life very complicated. Together Ty and Gemma face dangerous sea creatures and venture into the frontier town's rough underworld as they search for her missing brother. But the deeper they dig, the more attention they attract, and soon Ty and Gemma find themselves being hunted by a gang of outlaws who roam the underwater territories causing havoc, and who seem to have eerie abilities. But Ty has a secret of his own, living underwater for his entire life has meant he has also developed a "special" power. Can he keep it a secret from Gemma and his family or is it time for him to finally tell everyone the truth?
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_Submarines...
Ah, lazy summer days... when summer stretches out in front of you, full of possibility. Just the time to read The Fantastic Secret of Own Jester by Barbara O'Connor. An amazing secret has tumbled off a freight train into Carter, Georgia, and Owen Jester is the only person who knows about it. If he can simply manage to evade his grandfather’s snappish housekeeper, organize his two best friends, and keep his nosy neighbor, Viola, at bay, he just might be in for the summer of a lifetime. A great read for any time of the year. If you liked The Secret Adventures of the Mad Scientists Club (I did!), you'll like this one! Alien Snails... Stuck on Earth by David Klass is identified as a middle school read, but I can see some intrepid C. P. Smith readers enjoying it. Here's the book description from the dust jacket: Ketchvar III’s mission is simple: travel to Planet Earth, inhabit the body of an average teenager, and determine if the human race should be annihilated. And so Ketchvar—who, to human eyes, looks just like a common snail—crawls into the brain of one Tom Filber and attempts to do his analysis. At first glance, Tom appears to be the perfect specimen—fourteen years old, good health, above average intelligence. But it soon becomes apparent that Tom Filber may be a little too average—gawky, awkward, and utterly abhorred by his peers. An alien within an alien’s skin, Ketchvar quickly finds himself wrapped up in the daily drama of teenage life—infuriating family members, raging bullies, and undeniably beautiful next-door neighbors. And the more entangled Ketchvar becomes, the harder it is to answer the question he was sent to Earth to resolve: Should the Sandovinians release the Gagnerian Death Ray and erase the human species for good? Or is it possible that Homo sapiens really are worth saving? Chimp Brother? Half Brother by Kenneth Oppel. For thirteen years, Ben Tomlin was an only child. But all that changes when his mother brings home Zan -- an eight-day-old chimpanzee. Ben's father, a famous behavioral scientist, has uprooted the family to pursue his latest research project: a high-profile experiment to determine whether chimpanzees can learn to speak. Ben's parents tell him to treat Zan like a little brother. Ben reluctantly agrees. But when Ben starts to see Zan as more than just an experiment, his father disagrees. To him, Zan is only a specimen, no more, no less. A compelling read for mature readers- about what makes a family and what makes us human. First night at Mount Norris Boy Scout Camp with my son and his troop. Finally snuggled up in my sleeping bag, I have a stack of books to read. In my "to read" pile are: Belly Up, about a hippo murdered at a zoo; Stuck on Earth, about a snail-like alien who takes control of a human to experience "typical human behavior;" and Star in the Forest, about a girl who befriends a stray dog while waiting to see if her dad will make it back to the US from Mexico. After setting up camp today, hiking all over the scout reservation to meet all the merit badge teachers and taking a swimming test, I'm pretty tired; but I am still enjoying the delicious possibilities of a stack of good books. Since it's summer camp, I think I'll start with a summer book: Touch Blue, about Tess, who lives on a small island in Maine struggling to keep its doors open after a family moves away. If the school closes, Tess will have to move to- and leave everything she loves behind. But the islanders have a plan: increase the numbers of students by having several families take in foster children. So now Tess and her family are taking a chance on Aaron, a thirteen-year-old trumpet player who has been bounced from home to home. Will things work out for Tess, Aaron and the island school? I'll let you know what I think of the book when I'm done- but I won't tell what happens!
Wondering what books my students are reading- and what fun places they've found to read? What's your favorite place to read in the summer? Post a comment below and let me know... Yoda is a pretty smart guy. Check out his advice to Luke Skywalker in Episode IV, A New Hope: "Do, or do not. There is no try." So, my goal for this summer is to read through all of the DCF titles on this year's list, and plan related activities for them. First up is rereading The Strange Case of Origami Yoda by Tom Angleberger. The Strange Case of Origami Yoda is a novel about a weird kid who makes a Yoda finger puppet out of paper. The kid seems completely clueless, but Origami Yoda is totally Jedi-wise. Some kids believe in Origami Yoda. Some think he's just a piece of paper. One kid, Tommy, decides to find out the truth... This is a great read, and I can't wait for the author's next book, Darth Paper Strikes Back, due out in August. For certain, we'll be folding origami Yodas and Darth Vaders and I'm hoping the PTO will consider funding a skype visit with the author, Tom Angleberger. Learn more about the author at his website. Other ideas:
Want to get a head start on folding your own Origami Yoda? Watch above or click here.
P.S. Did you know I have a son named Luke? We considered "Sky" as a middle name, in honor of George Lucas' Star Wars. Think about it... "Luke Sky Walters"! If you could be named after any book character- who would it be? |
Shannon Walters
Teacher Librarian at C. P. Smith School. Passionate about sharing books, information and ideas! Guest blogging by C. P. smith students. Archives
March 2012
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