The Crimson Thread by Suzanne Weyn

Weyn, Suzanne. The Crimson Thread: A Retelling of "Rumpelstiltskin." New York: Simon Pulse, 2008.

Weyn takes a classic fairy tale and gives it new life. The characters are not peasants but Irish immigrants. The setting is 1880s New York City.

Bridget finds herself torn between two men: the suave son of a rich man and the mysterious and magical Ray.

If you thought Rumpelstiltskin was about babies, you had it wrong. This story is about love.

To find out where Bridget's heart leads her, read The Crimson Thread by Suzanne Weyn.

The Not-So-Star-Spangled Life of Sunita Sen by Mitali Perkins

Perkins, Mitali. The Not-So-Star-Spangled Life of Sunita Sen. New York: Little, Brown, 1993

Until her grandparents come for a year long visit, Sunni’s life is perfect. She has friends. She even has a crush. But her grandparents change that. Overnight, Sunni’s mother transforms from a successful academic into the dutiful Indian daughter. She wears saris and cooks traditional Indian food. Sunni feels like she doesn’t know her own family any more. She certainly doesn’t know who she is.

She tells her Grandfather, “I wish Mom and Dad had stayed in India. Then I would be one hundred percent Indian, like those cousins Didu is always bragging about. Or if I had been born here and had been American—I mean really American—you know, born-in-the-U.S.A. and all that patriotic land-where-my-fathers-died stuff. Maybe then life would be less complicated” (87-88).

To see how Sunni reconciles the two parts of her identity, American and Indian, read The Not-So-Star-Spangled Life of Sunita Sen by Mitali Perkins.

The Girl, the Dragon, and the Wild Magic by Dave Luckett

Luckett, Dave. The Girl, the Dragon, and the Wild Magic. New York: Scholastic, 2000.

Rhianna has a logical nature. She would make a great mathematician or cook. The problem is Rhianna’s not studying math or cooking. She’s studying magic. Magic is imprecise. Magic doesn’t have rules. She tells her mother, “Mother…I tried. I studied, I really did. But it all gets mixed-up, somehow. It all comes out wrong. I get confused. There are no rules…nothing ever makes sense” (15). Rhianna is about to be expelled from magic school because she’s a dunce when she learns something very important about her self. She’s a Wild Talent. Her magic is very powerful and hard to control. It also drains all the other magic around it. To find out how Rhianna copes with her Wild magic, read The Girl, the Dragon, and the Wild Magic by Dave Luckett.

A Corner of the Universe by Ann M. Martin

Martin, Ann M. A Corner of the Universe. New York: Scholastic, 2002.

Hattie’s life changed forever the summer her uncle Adam came home. She didn’t even know she had an Uncle Adam. He’d always lived in a school for people with disabilities. Here’s what Hattie has to say about that summer.

“My father’s movies are great, but they don’t begin to tell the story of the summer. What’s left out is more important than what is there. Dad captured the good times, only the good times. The parts he left out are what changed my life” (xiii).

To find out what happened that summer, read A Corner of the Universe by Ann M. Martin.

The Coffin Quilt by Ann Rinaldi

Rinaldi, Ann. The Coffin Quilt: The Feud between the Hatfields and the McCoys. San Diego: Harcourt, 1999.

Fanny McCoy knows about hard times. She lives in the mountains of Kentucky. Fanny McCoy also knows about feuding and killing. That’s right. She’s part of that McCoy family of Hatfield and McCoy fame. She lived through the feud. Now Fanny McCoy wants to tell her story.

“My writing is kind of like Adelaide’s blood purifier that she’s always giving Ma. And besides, I don’t aim to be like our sheep, so shy that if a wild animal attacks, they just lie down and get ready to die. There’s been too much dying around these parts for my liking. I’m plumb sick of it. And I don’t even know if it’s all over yet. So I’m going to write what happened. The way it was for me, at least. The way it was all my life. Since I was a knee baby of seven” (6-7).

To hear Fanny McCoy’s story, read The Coffin Quilt by Ann Rinaldi.

Journey to the River Sea by Eva Ibbotson

Ibbotson, Eva. Journey to the River Sea. New York: Scholastic, 2001.

Maia wants a family more than anything. She’s delighted when her lawyer finds distant relations living in Brazil. They want Maia to live with them and they have twin daughters Maia’s age. So Maia travels to Brazil in the care of the new governess, Miss Minton.

“She was becoming more and more excited. The color, the friendly waving Indians, the flashing birds, all delighted her, and she was not troubled by the heat. But at the center of all her thoughts were the twins. She saw them in white dresses with colored sashes like pictures in a book, laughing and welcoming and friendly. She imagined them getting ready for bed, brushing each other’s hair, and lying in a hammock with a basketful of kittens on their laps, or picking flowers for the house” (26).

But life with her new relations is not what Maia imagined. They live as though they are still in England. They do not eat native food or embrace local customs. Mrs. Carter wages a never-ending war against insects. Mrs. Carter doesn’t believe in pets as they carry germs. They never go outside. The twins don’t like Maia. They are even cruel to her. Maia likens the Carter’s house to a prison for so it is to her. If it were not for Minty, such a life would stifle Maia. With Minty’s help, Maia continues her studies and even makes friends with the locals. To read more about Maia’s adventures in Brazil, check out Journey to the River Sea by Eva Ibbotson.

Everything on a Waffle by Polly Horvath

Horvath, Polly. Everything on a Waffle. New York: FSG, 2001.

“I live in Coal Harbor, British Columbia. I have never lived anyplace else. My name is Primrose Squarp. I am eleven years old. I have hair the color of carrots in apricot glaze (recipe to follow), skin fair and clear where it isn’t freckled, and eyes like summer storms” (3).

Primrose is satisfied with her life. She has a mother and a father. She’s happy, but things change one day in June. There’s a bad storm. Her dad’s out fishing. Her mom goes to find him. They don’t return.

“There was a memorial service for my parents but I wouldn’t go. I knew that my parents hadn’t drowned. I suspected that they had washed up on an island somewhere and were waiting to be rescued. Every morning I went down to the docks to watch the boats come in, sure that I would see my parents towed in, perhaps on the back of a whale” (4).

Primrose never doubts that her parents are still alive. She endures forgetful old ladies, careless uncles, and nosy guidance counselors. Is Primrose right about her parents being alive? To find out, read Everything on a Waffle by Polly Horvath.

Maggie's Door by Patricia Reilly Giff

Giff, Patricia Reilly. Maggie’s Door. New York: Yearling, 2003

People are starving in Ireland. Nory Ryan has no choice but to leave her home. Her destination is America. Nory says, “The blight had turned those potatoes to mush, to ooze, leaving everyone hungry. Starving. Still now over Patrick’s Well hung bits of cloth, prayers that people had left. There was one of her sister Celia’s shifts” (7-8). Nory sets out alone to find her family and reach her sister Maggie’s door in America. To discover more about her journey, read Maggie’s Door by Patricia Reilly Giff.

Nory Ryan’s Song by Patricia Reilly Giff

Giff, Patricia Reilly. Nory Ryan’s Song. New York: Scholastic, 2000.

Nory Ryan and her family depend on potatoes. If the crops fail, they starve. They’ve heard that a disease is killing the potatoes. Nory worries about what will happen to her family if blight strikes their potato crop.

“Think about green leaves, I told myself. Think about the sun in the sky and Da fishing on a big ship. Think about good things. What else? A red wedding dress. Number 416 Smith Street in Brooklyn. Think about… Stories of famine, people dying in their houses. Da’s little brother. A boy like Patch. Please let the potatoes be all right” (40-41).

To find out what happens to Nory and her family, read Nory Ryan’s Song by Patricia Reilly Giff.

Love, Ruby Lavender by Deborah Wiles

Wiles, Deborah. Love, Ruby Lavender. Orlando: Gulliver, 2001.

Who is Ruby Lavender? Let’s look at a few excerpts from the questionnaire Ruby’s soon-to-be fourth grade teacher sent her.

3. Tell me about your town or neighborhood.
There’s nothing to tell. Miss Eula Dapplevine was the only colorful thing about Halleluia, and she up and left for Hawaii, deserting her kin (me), not to mention her chickens.

5. Tell me about your self.
I am a chicken thief. And a housepainter. And a floor sweeper. I have red hair and freckles the color of new pennies. I am a good writer. I have three chickens: Ivy, Bemmie, and Bess. I am about to have three more because Ivy laid three eggs. I do not eat meat.

7. What are your favorite subjects in school?
I never think about school in the summer. It is bad luck. Ask me in September. (pp. 61-63)

Ruby Lavender’s summer started out just fine. Then her grandmother, Miss Eula, goes to Hawaii. Miss Eula leaves Ruby to deal with their stolen chickens and Ruby’s worst enemy Melba Jane. Can Ruby survive the summer without Miss Eula? To find out you’ll have to read Love, Ruby Lavender by Deborah Wiles.

Clementine by Sara Pennypacker

Pennypacker, Sara. Clementine. Illus. Marla Frazee. New York: Scholastic, 2006.

Someone’s always telling Clementine to pay attention. Clementine does pay attention just in her own way. Surely you can understand that the Pledge of Allegiance isn’t as interesting as watching the lunch lady and janitor kiss. Paying attention is the least of Clementine’s problems this week. It all starts with Margaret, Clementine’s sometimes friend. Clementine begins her story: “I have had not so good of a week” (1).

To find out why Clementine’s week was so bad and what Margaret has to do with it, you’ll have to read Clementine by Sara Pennypacker.

Your Own, Sylvia: A Verse Portrait of Sylvia Plath by Stephanie Hemphill

Hemphill, Stephanie. Your Own, Sylvia: A Verse Portrait of Sylvia Plath. New York: Knopf, 2007.

Sylvia Plath was a poet from age eight. She knew she was destined to be great. Stephanie Hemphill uses poetry to explore Plath’s life from birth to death. Here’s how Hemphill sees Plath:

Your Own, Sylvia

She could not help burning herself
From the inside out,
Consuming herself

Like the sun.
But the memory of her light blazes
Our dark ceiling.

She could not know how long
Her luminary would map the sky,
Or where her dying would lead the lost.

But for those who gaze heavenly
Or into the reflected pool of night,
She is fuel. She is dust. She is a guiding star. (246)

To find out more about Hemphill and her Sylvia Plath, you’ll have to read Your Own, Sylvia: A Verse Portrait of Sylvia Plath.

The Mouse of Amherst by Elizabeth Spires

Spires, Elizabeth. The Mouse of Amherst. Illus. Claire A. Nivola. New York: Sunburst, 1999.

“I am a mouse, a white mouse. My name is Emmaline. Before I met Emily, the great poet of Amherst, I was nothing more than a crumb gatherer, a cheese nibbler, a mouse-of-little-purpose. There was an emptiness in my life that nothing seemed to fill” (5).

When Emmaline moves into the Dickinson’s house, she discovers something to fill the emptiness—poetry. To find out more about the mouse who writes poetry and her friendship with Emily Dickinson, you’ll have to read The Mouse of Amherst by Elizabeth Spires.

The Rumpelstiltskin Problem by Vivian Vande Velde

Vande Velde, Vivian. The Rumpelstiltskin Problem. New York: Scholastic, 2001.

Have you ever asked yourself “Why?” after reading a fairy tale? That’s exactly what Vivian Vande Velde did when she read Rumpelstiltskin. The story just didn’t jive. So she came up with six alternate versions. To discover Vande Velde’s answers, you’ll have to read The Rumpelstilskin Problem.

Ida B by Katherine Hannigan

Hannigan, Katherine. Ida B…and Her Plans to Maximize Fun, Avoid Disaster, and (Possibly) Save the World. New York: Scholastic, 2004.

Ida B likes to talk to trees and look for fun. Most of her days “start right and just keep heading toward perfect until [she goes] to sleep” (1). Then Mama gets sick. Mama’s too tired to be Mama. Daddy’s too busy to be Daddy. They send Ida B to the most horrible place on earth: Ernest B. Lawson Elementary School. Daddy’s even sells part of the orchard to pay the hospital bills. Some of Ida B’s tree friends are cut down. Ida B is determined to change the terrible situation she finds herself in. She says, “I was working toward nothing less than the righting of wrongs, turning evil to good, and stopping the craziness that was steadily and surely taking over my valley” (123). To find out what happens, you’ll have to read Ida B by Katherine Hannigan.

The White Darkness by Geraldine McCaughrean

McCaughrean, Geraldine. The White Darkness. New York: Harper Tempest, 2005.

Sym lives and breathes Antarctica. She’s read all the books. She’s watched movies and documentaries. When a weekend trip to Paris becomes an expedition to Antarctica, Sym is thrilled. Sym has an unusual friend: Captain Lawrence Oates, otherwise known as Titus. He was part of a polar exploration at the turn of the twentieth century. Titus has been dead for almost ninety years, but he’s still alive and well in Sym’s head. Sym describes Titus:

“He is everything, everything, everything I ever admired and wanted and couldn’t have. He is everything I needed and couldn’t find in real life.
Of course he is.
That’s why I invented him” (294).

When her uncle’s obsession with discovering Symmes’s Hole becomes life threatening, it is Titus who urges Sym to meet the challenge and survive. To find out more about Sym’s adventures in Antarctica, you’ll have to read The White Darkness by Geraldine McCaughrean.

Twisted by Laurie Halse Anderson

Anderson, Laurie Halse. Twisted. New York: Viking, 2007.

Tyler Miller became a legend overnight. He defaced school property. He spent his summer doing community service, working to pay off the damages, and grounded within an inch of his life. Tyler knows his prank has changed the way other students view him.

He says, “People had ignored me when I was Nerd Boy, but that changed after I was arrested. A third of my fellow students kept their distance, like I might be wearing a bomb strapped to my waist. Another third looked down their noses at me because I had to work with the (gasp) custodial staff. The third third was all thumbs-up and ‘Yo, Tyler!’ because spray-painting a couple thousand dollars worth of damage to the school and getting my very own probation officer made me their hero” (45).

Given the different opinions these students have about Tyler, it’s no surprise that he doesn’t know how to handle his senior year. Tyler’s uncertainty only leads to more problems. To find out how he copes with his senior year, you’ll have to read Twisted by Laurie Halse Anderson.

Shakespeare's Secret by Elise Broach

Broach, Elise. Shakespeare's Secret. New York: Scholastic, 2005.

What would you do if someone told you a million dollar diamond disappeared in your house and was never found? That’s right. You’d try to solve the mystery. That’s exactly what Hero Netherfield does when her neighbor Mrs. Roth reveals the mystery of the diamond. If no one ever found it, then the diamond must still be in the house. Hero decides to find the diamond if she can. Finding the diamond turns out to be trickier than she thought. Soon Hero’s embroiled in a mystery involving Anne Boleyn, Elizabeth I, Edward de Vere, and Shakespeare. What do these historical figures have to do with the missing diamond? To find out and solve the mystery, you’ll have to read Shakespeare’s Secret by Elise Broach.

Saffy's Angel by Hilary McKay

McKay, Hilary. Saffy's Angel. New York: Aladdin, 2001.

Have you ever felt like you don’t belong? Like you’re different? Of course. Everyone feels like this at one time or another. Saffy Casson knows that feeling. The difference is that Saffy feels like an outsider in her own family.

Saffy has a happy, eccentric family with a mother, a father, two sisters and a brother. One day that changes. Saffy no longer knows who her family is, who she is. She’s adopted. Her mother is not her mother, but her aunt. Her sisters and brother are her cousins. A few excerpts illustrated how Saffy feels about her discovery:

“Everything seemed to change for Saffron after the day she deciphered the color chart and discovered that her name was not there and found out why this was. She never felt the same again. She felt lost” (9).

“It seemed that the whole pattern of her family was slipping and changing, like colors in water, into something she hardly recognized” (10).

Years pass and Saffy accepts the fact that she’s adopted, but she always feels like an outsider. When her grandfather dies, he leaves her a stone angel in his will. Saffy becomes obsessed with finding the angel. It’s part of her past, from the time when she belonged. Will finding the angel help Saffy belong again?

Dealing with Dragons by Patricia C. Wrede

Wrede, Patricia C. Dealing with Dragons. New York: Magic Carpet, 1990.

Being a dragon’s princess in hard on handkerchiefs, but a girl has to make sacrifices.
Cimorene is not your usual princess. She doesn’t look like a princess. She doesn’t act like a princess. She prefers fencing, magic, Latin, cooking, economics, and juggling to her princess lessons. Fed up with her parents’ attempts to make her conform to their idea of what a princess should be, Cimorene volunteers to be a dragon’s princess. This is not normal behavior for a princess. Even some of the dragons have objections.

“No proper princess would come out looking for dragons,” Woraug objected.
“Well, I’m not a proper princess, then,” Cimorene snapped. “I make cherries jubilee, and I volunteer for dragons, and I conjugate Latin verbs—or at least I would if anyone would let me. So there!” (19).

Luckily, one dragon, Kazul, doesn’t object to Cimorene’s interesting abilities. Kazul accepts Cimorene as her princess.

Cimorene has more freedom as a dragon’s princess, but her problems don’t end. Knights keep coming to rescue her. And the wizards are up to something. To find out how Cimorene deals with these problems, you’ll have to read Dealing with Dragons by Patricia C. Wrede.

Note: Dealing with Dragons is the 1st book in the Enchanted Forest Chronicles series.