Books, Brownies, and Beyond - 2nd Summer Meeting, August 6th

I arrive fifteen minutes before start time.  I lug my bins of books and cookie bars into our small meeting room.  I push the table back and begin set-up.  I meet Avery, a first timer, who loves to read.  I rejoice when fellow book club sponsor and King County librarian, Carrie Bowman, arrives with book stacks in hand.  I thrill when three members - Disha, Elsa, and Katie - arrive bubbling over with book energy.  I meet Mia, friend to all three, and another voracious reader.  I point out the notepads and pens, perfect for adding to one's ever growing Want to Read list.  I struggle to be heard over the book babble.  I mention that we'll get started in three more minutes.  I hesitate to break the spell, so I savor a room filled with book love and wait fifteen more minutes before we settle into our seats to begin our formal book sharing time.

Everyone takes a turn to share a book they've read this summer.  In the middle of this frenzy of book sharing, two intrepid young men, Varuzhan and Austin join our small band of book enthusiasts.  We pose, books in hand, for a quick picture.  Students begin pleading to check out books from today's display.  We send them to the circulation desk, hoping for "no holds" on the title(s) so they can check the book(s) out right now.   Our August meeting ends with hopes for one more meeting before school starts, perhaps at Island Books, our beloved independent community bookstore.

I head to the car, book bin in hand, smiling with satisfaction as small groups spill into the library scanning shelves for the next perfect summer read.

                                                                                                       Featured Titles

Lost in the Sun
by Lisa Graff

Echo
by Pam Munoz Ryan

I Lived on Butterfly Hill
by Marjorie Agosin

Coaltown Jesus
by Ron Koertge

Summer at Forsaken Lake by Michael D. Beil

The War that Saved my Life by Kimberly Bradley

Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children
by Ransom Riggs

Long Shot 
by Mike Lupica

August Book Reviews

Katie recently submitted the following book reviews for books she's read since our last book club meeting in July:

Summer at Forsaken Lake by Michael D. Beil

Summer at Forsaken Lake is one of the best books I've read this summer! Nicholas Mettleson lives in New York City and must go to Deming, Ohio for the summer with his two little twin sisters. There they stay with their Great Uncle Nick. Nicholas meets Charlie, a girl with a really good curveball, and they work together to solve a mystery from when Charlie's mom and Nicholas's dad were 14. With sailing, filming and the Seaweed Strangler involved it's bound to be one adventurous summer! I'm not sure if there is a sequel to it, but I wish there was. I looked forward to reading it every night. It's an awesome book that has lots of parts where it could finish, but then something happens. I would recommend this to almost every person I know. I hope whoever reads it loves it as much as I did!
-Katie

Middle School: Ultimate Showdown

The 2 Katchadorian kids are going head to head in a battle of the book! Each child argues their point in a hilarious story of two middle-school aged kids. Topics such as schedules, bullying and holidays are covered.

-Katie

Unusual Chickens for the Exceptional Poultry Farmer

Sophie Brown, age 12, writes letters to her deceased grandmother and great uncle, telling the story of her move from LA to her Great Uncle Jim's farm. She finds a mess of a farm, metal contraptions piled high and very sad little grapevines cover the property along with a few odd creatures. Her mom and dad are kept busy with writing and finding a job, so Sophie has lots of time to herself. That’s when she discovers something crazy.

-Katie

Circus Mirandus

Micah Tuttle's parents had died when he was little, so now he lived with his grandfather. His grandfather was getting sick, and about to die, so Micah's great aunt Gertrudis came to stay. Aunt Gertrudis is a bitter old (but younger than Micah's grandpa) lady who hates her brother's Circus Mirandus stories. Micah however loves them. The stories his grandpa tells him, seem unreal and magical. Then one day Micah decides to go looking for the Circus. With help from his new friend Jenny, the Man Who Bends Light and an annoying parrot, Micah finds someone who might be able to help his grandfather.

-Katie

I Kill the Mockingbird

They  never meant for it to get this big. They just wanted to make people excited about summer reading. Lucy, Alena and Michael get their summer reading lists and were thrilled to see the classic, To Kill a Mockingbird By: Harper Lee, on the list. Their classmates, not so much. So to get them excited about summer reading, they plan on how to make the entire town get excited about the already famous book.

-Katie