Liesl & Po by Lauren Oliver

Liesl & Po by Lauren Oliver is about Liesl, a little girl that lives a tough life.  After her father dies, Liesl's step-mother locks her in the attic.  She's been there for over a year!  But, one evening a strange little ghost named Po appears and they become instant friends.  This book is also about Will, an alchemist's apprentice who has secretly admired Liesl through her attic window for as long as she's been imprisoned there.  Will makes a terrible mistake one evening, unknowingly exchanging the box of powerful magic he was supposed to be delivering with a box full of Liesl's father's ashes.  Thus begins an adventure for Liesl, Po and Will that changes everything for them all!

This was an AWESOME story!  There were many different side stories that all came together by the end.  This is not your typical fairy tale/fantasy novel!  All in all, a fantastic middle grade novel.

Macbeth The Young Reader's Shakespeare by Adam McKeown

Macbeth (The Young Reader's Shakespeare) by Adam McKeown is a retelling of Shakespeare's famous play, Macbeth, using easier language and illustrated by Lynne Cannoy. The story is about general Macbeth. Returning from a victorious battle, Macbeth and his friend (and fellow general) Banquo are visited by three witches who tell their future. Macbeth, having been an honorable, trustworthy man before, turns into a vengeful tyrant as he seeks out his future. He kills the king of Scotland so he can be named king himself. He kills the other generals who had been his friends and companions. He becomes so paranoid, he seeks out the witches again. Again, they foretell a prophecy, which Macbeth misunderstands making him beileve he in invincible. It is this belief that eventually causes his downfall.

I had never read Macbeth before, so I didn't know the story before reading this version. This was an excellent, quick read and made me want to read Shakespeare's own version! It is a bit on the mature side due to violence, however. I would recommend this version of Macbeth to anyone who is nervous about tackling Shakespeare, but wants to know the story!

Deep and Dark and Dangerous by Mary Downing Hahn

Deep and Dark and Dangerous by Mary Downing Hahn is about Ali, a 13 year old girl who was hired by her aunt to spend the summer at a cottage in Maine and babysit her 4 year old cousin, Emma, while Aunt Dulcie works on her painting. Just before heading up to the family cottage, Ali stumbles upon a ripped photo of her mother and aunt. She can tell it was taken at the cottage in Maine, even though no one in their family has been there for 30 years. The strange things is, someone has been torn out of the photo and a name on the back, beginning with 'T' has been scratched out. When she asks her mother about it, she starts acting strangely and refuses to admit she knows anything about the other girl in the photo. Ali's mother doesn't want anyone going to the cottage for the summer, convinced it's too dangerous, but she won't say why. Once at the cottage, Ali and Emma meet Sissy, a young girl who seems to follow her own rules. She's not very nice, but Emma insists upon spending time with her. As Ali comes closer to discovering the secret about the girl in the photo, Sissy continues her erratic behavior, turning Emma against both Ali and Aunt Dulcie. Things come to a head on a foggy, stormy day when the mystery of what happened 30 years ago at the lake finally unravels for Ali, putting her and her family in a deep and dark and dangerous situation.

This was a great mystery! As a reader, the events unfold more quickly than they do for the characters in the book. This is one of those stories where you're practically shouting at the characters to, "Watch out!" and "Just go home and forget about the lake!". It was certainly eerie and definitely suspenseful. I'd recommend this book to anyone who wants a horror/mystery story that isn't too scary.

Ghost in the Machine by Patrick Carman

Ghost in the Machine by Patrick Carman is the sequel to Skeleton Creek. In this book Ryan and Sarah continue working together to solve the mystery of the dredge and the mysterious secret society, The Crossbones. Ryan is still recovering from his injury at the dredge that he sustained just before the first book takes place. He tells the story of his and Sarah's escapades through his journal, while Sarah tells it through videos she emails to Ryan, using secret codes. Between the two of them, they put together several different clues which lead them to a very secret meeting of the remaining members of The Crossbones. Of course, Sarah sneaks in to the meeting place and sets up a camera! What they learn sends them back into the dredge, one final time before the town burns it down. Little did they know, they wouldn't be the only ones visiting the dredge that night, seeking the secrets of The Crossbones.

I liked this book just as much as the first, Skeleton Creek. I love the way the author tells the story through Ryan's journal and Sarah's movies. I was able to download all of Sarah's videos from iTunes (for free!) so I could watch them on my iPod when it was time in the story. This helped my enjoyment of the book a lot. When I read Skeleton Creek, I'd have to stop reading and find a computer to watch the videos at http://sarahfincher.com. Having the videos on my iPod made it portable! It is definitely necessary to watch the videos as they appear in the book - they are vital to your understanding of the story.

The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman

The Graveyard Book by Neil Gaiman is the 2009 Newberry Award winner. The story is about Nobody Owens, Bod for short. As a toddler, Bod's family was murdered by an unknown man. Bod was the only survivor, escaping to a nearby graveyard. Upon arriving at the graveyard, the ghostly residents decided to take him in. Silas, Bod's self-appointed guardian, redirected "Jack", the man following Bod after murdering his family, to keep Bod safe. So, Bod was raised by Mr. and Mrs. Owens, two loving ghosts who had never had children of their own. Silas, not exactly living, but not exactly dead, was able to leave the graveyard to get food and clothing for Bod. Bod grew up learning the secrets of the graveyard, including how to "fade" and instill fear and even terror in others. Eventually, Bod was allowed to enroll in school. This did not go well for anyone! Bod got himself involved with some school bullies, trying to save their victims from needless beatings, and became a victim himself. Silas decided that Bod should remain in the graveyard until it was safe for him to be among the living. Silas knew that "Jack" was still after Bod, and wanted to protect him as long as possible. Unfortunately, a strange turn of events lead Bod straight into Jack's house!

This was an interesting book. I really liked the way Neil Gaiman developed the characters of Bod and Silas. In the author's note, the author describes some experiences he had as he wrote and researched this book, including a tour of an ancient graveyard in London. It makes me want to visit there, too!

Skeleton Creek by Patrick Carman

excerpt from pg. 179 - "It appears that I'll be sneaking out of the house tonight to see the one person my parents have forbidden me to associate with. The two of us will wander off into the woods at 1:00 in the morning and cut through a chain so we can break into a condemned structure before they born it down. And, meanwhile, her camera will be feeding the footage back to her website so that if we don't come back, the authorities can -- what was her phase? -- oh, yeah -- find our bodies."

Skeleton Creek by Patrick Carman is about Ryan and Sarah, best friends who have a history of getting into dangerous situations. Just recently, Ryan and Sarah were exploring an old, abandoned mining dredge near their small Oregon town, and Ryan was seriously injured. Sarah, an amateur videographer, continues going back to the dredge with her video camera, searching for the strange "thing" they saw the night they were there. Ryan is stuck in his hospital bed (then later his bed at home) with a shattered leg, so he begins recording his experiences in his journal. The story is told through Ryan's journal and Sarah's videos. Through the pages of the book and the videos available at sarahfincher.com (with passwords found throughout the book), the mystery of what really happened to them and why unfolds. The last part of the story is told entirely through Sarah's video camera as a "live feed" of their last visit to the dredge in the middle of the night.

I thought this was a really interesting concept - merging a book with videos to support the story. It was fun reading Ryan's thoughts and going to the computer to see Sarah's ideas. I enjoyed this book a lot! The ending was creepy! It definitely made me think about what would happen next. I would not recommend reading this book if you can't watch the videos along with it. The videos are an intregal part of the story and help the reader fill in the gaps of the story. The final video is vital. Cool idea - good book! The next book in this series comes out in October of 2009. Also, for you 39 Clues Series fans, this author (Patrick Carman) wrote the 5th book in that series, The Black Circle, coming out in August of 2009.

Wait Till Helen Comes by Mary Downing Hahn

Wait Till Helen Comes by Mary Downing Hahn is about Molly and Michael, siblings whose mother recently remarried. Their new step-sister, seven year old Heather, is determined to ruin their new family by telling lies about how Molly and Michael treat her. It is obvious to them that Heather is trying to break up their parents. The family moves to an abandoned church one summer, hoping the fresh air will do the kids some good. Heather just grows stranger and stranger, going out to visit the small graveyard behind their new "house" and pretending to visit a girl named Helen. Every time Molly and Michael try to stop her, she makes up a story about how mean they are being to her and Dave, her father, takes her side. Molly, however, is sure she's seen a ghost-like figure with Heather and is determined to get to the bottom of it. Michael and Molly do a little research at the local library and learn that the old, dilapidated house behind their own house used to belong to a family, 100 years ago, but every one of them died in a fire - including their seven year old daughter Helen. This is all the proof Molly needs. Michael doesn't believe in ghosts until strange things begin happening inside their own house and Heather claims it is Helen's doing. Meanwhile, their parents are being split further and further apart by the constant battles between Molly and Michael and Heather.

This books was an excellent ghost story! It was scary, but not so scary that I'll have nightmares. I was SO angry at Heather on behalf of Molly and Michael - that's how I know this is a good book! When an author is able to make me care so much about a character that I actually feel emotions, I know I'm hooked on the story!