Sweep: The Story of a Girl and Her Monster by Jonathan Auxier

Publisher's Synopsis: "It's been five years since the Sweep disappeared. Orphaned and alone, Nan Sparrow had no other choice but to work for a ruthless chimney sweep named Wilkie Crudd. She spends her days sweeping out chimneys. The job is dangerous and thankless, but with her wits and will, Nan has managed to beat the deadly odds time and time again.

When Nan gets stuck in a chimney fire, she fears the end has come. Instead, she wakes to find herself unharmed in an abandoned attic. And she is not alone. Huddled in the corner is a mysterious creature—a golem—made from soot and ash. 

Sweep is the story of a girl and her monster. Together, these two outcasts carve out a new life—saving each other in the process. Lyrically told by one of today's most powerful storytellers, Sweep is a heartrending adventure about the everlasting gifts of friendship and wonder."

I'm just going to say it plain and simple...........  I LOVED Sweep: The Story of a Girl and Her Monster! There is just so much right about this tale: excellent writing, well-blended mix of history and fantasy, alternating perspective chapters, an endearing protagonist and her sweetly innocent monster. ALL of it is near perfection for the age range. I am even going to go out on a limb and name it a Newbery contender. 

The Kneebone Boy by Ellen Potter - book review

Magical Realism. My favorite. The ability to see the real world through a glimmering eye. I should have known this would be one of my favorite reads of 2010, just from that cover!

Look at the three Hardscrabble siblings. There's Otto. He's is the oldest and has not uttered a word since he was eight, around the time his mother disappeared. He wears a scarf and communicates through an invented sign-language. The middle Hardscrabble is Lucia. She's quick-witted, daring, a bit controlling and understands Otto's invented language. Max, the youngest, is a brainy boy, often deep in thought. One of them is the narrator of the tale, though we wonderfully never get to know which. Mr. Hardscrabble is a portrait painter who travels frequently, returning with glorious tales of the royalty he meets. Through a series of missteps, the siblings end up in the home of their maternal aunt. It is there that the real story begins. The children learn of a mysterious Kneebone Boy, locked away in a castle tower. They, of course, decide that they must rescue him. And in rescuing him, they solve the mystery of their missing mother.

One thing I especially liked was The Kneebone Boy's genre defying uniqueness. For the same reason I shun mainstream media, I embrace those stories (and tellers) who see the world in a different slant, those who are able to impart a bit of magic into the mundane without throwing us into a fantastical world of escapism (don’t get me wrong, I like a good fantasy occasionally too). It’s the ability to look at a situation of normalcy with a magical eye that fascinates me, makes me want to readjust my own lens.

Quirky, odd, charming, witty, affecting, weird: I’ll be waiting to hear more from the Hardscrabble children……

The Prince of Fenway Park by Julianna Baggot - Book Review

Ignoring my best reading advice, I didn't read the back cover before I began The Prince of Fenway Park. I noticed a small boy wearing a Red Sox jersey and the title having Fenway Park on the cover, so I figured it'd be a baseball novel about a boy. My knowledge of baseball is tiny, but I do know about baseball's most famous curse (how could any American not know about the curse of the Bambino?) and I was aware that a few years ago the Red Sox broke that curse. This was about the extent of my Red Sox knowledge.

The story begins with Oscar, a boy who feels cursed and abandoned. His adoptive parents have split and his mother needs to leave Oscar with his father while she pursues a relationship with the 'King of Condos,' promising Oscar that if all goes right he might just end up as the 'Prince of Condos.' The story was progressing nicely. I liked Oscar. He had a strong voice and a relatable situation. Then, BAM!

What I thought was a simple baseball story turned into a ........ FANTASY novel. It seems there are creatures living under Fenway Park. And they are cursed too. And they need Oscar's help because he might just be the one to lift the curse.

After I got past that suspension of disbelief bubble pop, I settled in to a good elementary-level novel geared toward engaging male readers. The characters were unique and delightful. Oscar's father took on a better persona, Oscar rose to the occasion and the fantasy characters were a humorous quirky lot. The inclusion of baseball trivia and, especially, the appearance of some of baseball's legends was fantastic. I did pause over the tidy ending, but concluded that there are enough realistic divorce stories for kids to read.

Advisory: It's important to note that The Prince of Fenway Park tackles racial prejudice head-on. The author provides an afterword explaining her handling of the subject, which I thought was a fantastic discussion topic, though possibly a sticky one for many educators.

Recommended for fantasy readers, sports themed story enthusiasts and elementary classrooms.