Marvelous Middle Grade Monday: Treasure Island

I hunger for adventure, maybe that's why I love middle grade fiction so much. For middle graders anything is possible. One of my favorite adventures as a child was Treasure Island and I just handed it to my daughter this week. She's an adventure girl as well. She's excited to start and that makes me smile. My once reluctant reader is reading Treasure Island.

Treasure Island by Robert L Stevenson

First published in 1881

The Hook: Jim Hawkins, a young teenager, finds himself on a ship overrun by mutinous pirates who go in search of treasure.

Why I love it: Characters and Adventure. This is the classic pirate story and who doesn't love Jim or Long John Silver? This peg-legged man haunted my dreams as a kid. While this story is great for boys it is not for reluctant readers. It takes a while before the ship sets sea and mutiny ensues.

What classic story did you love as a kid?

Other Fabulous MMGMers:

• Shannon Whitney Messenger
• Kid Lit Frenzy
• My Brain on Books
• My Comfy Chair
• Night Writer
• Book Dreaming
• Write About Now
• Just Deb
• Novel & Nouveau
• Anita Laydon Miller's MG Blog
• Literary Rambles
• Middle Grade Mafioso
• I'm So Fifty
• Books 4 Learning

Marvelous Middle Grade Monday: Books I'm Drooling Over

Right now I'm salivating to get

my hands on a bunch of middle grade new releases. So today I thought I would do something a bit different for MMGM, instead of doing a review, I thought I would fuel the hype around the 3 books on my wish list right now:

Diary of a Wimpy Kid #6: Cabin Fever by Jeff Kinney

Why I geek out over Wimpy Kid: Voice and Humor. Kinney is one of the best examples of middle grade voice (to me). If I need help channelling my 11 yr old boy, I read Wimpy Kid. Plus the books are always hilarious and seem to capture all the magic and awkwardness of being in middle school. My husband loves them for the sibling rivalry. He was the oldest of 4 boys. He completely relates to Roderick. This series is perfect for boys and reluctant readers, but I also recommend them to parents. They crack me up and I can't get enough of them.

Heroes of Olympus #2: The Son of Neptune by Rick Riordan

Why this is the best series Riordan has put out: Style and twisting what wasn't broken. Percy Jackson was a great series but the story ended. The Red Pyramid did not fill my Riordan-read-lust...while it was entertaining, I just couldn't get into the Egyptian confusion and I hated Sadie. I only read the first 80 pages of the ...second book in the series (I can't remember the name and don't care to look it up) because I have no love for it. But then he redeemed himself with the Heroes of Olympus series by merging it with the Percy Jackson cast. Love the twist, love the characters, and finally love the style. (Riordan's writing style bothered me in Percy but I forgave him because he writes tight action and plot.) Heroes has great style and action. And I love that Percy is back in the story. I need this book.

An Accidental Adventure #2: We Dine With Cannibals by C. Alexander London

Why my daughter is freaking out about this book: Adventure and age-appropriate. The Accidental Adventure has great characters and tons of non-stop action. Lauren ripped through the first book and has asked me every week since when the second would be coming out. Hurray, it is finally coming out. Now do I get it now or put it in her stocking?

Exciting times we live in. What middle grade book(s) are on your want list right now?

Other Fabulous MMGMers:

• Shannon Whitney Messenger
• Kid Lit Frenzy
• My Brain on Books
• My Comfy Chair
• Night Writer
• Book Dreaming
• Write About Now
• Just Deb
• Novel & Nouveau
• Anita Laydon Miller's MG Blog
• Literary Rambles
• Middle Grade Mafioso
• I'm So Fifty
• Books 4 Learning

My Fave Middle Grade Historical Fiction: Sounder

When Micheal asked what is my favorite middle grade historical fiction, it was an easy answer: Sounder by William H. Armstrong. The first book to make me cry (actual tears) as a kid. It won the Newberry Medal in 1970. I read the book in 5th grade and the story still affects me.

The Hook: The story follows a poor African American boy growing up in the South. His father is a sharecropper and struggling to provide for his family. The father and his dog, Sounder, go hunting every night but come home empty-handed until one morning the family wakes to the smell of ham. Unfortunately the father is arrested, convicted, and taken away from his family. The boy and a wounded Sounder try to find the father.

Why I loved it as a child: Growing up in California, I didn't really comprehend racism or the struggles of African Americans in the South. This book really opened my eyes to their hardships, inequalities, and illiteracy. Also I loved a bit with a dog. I cried when Sounder was shot, I cried when the dad and dog died.

Love this book. Not so much for reluctant readers but a book I think middle graders should all read.

Do you have a favorite MG historical fiction from your childhood?

Where have I been?

on vacation (Mt Rushmore--it's a right of passage for people who live in Colorado)...fall break. The kids are starting to wear on my last nerve and Denver just got snow. I guess it's a sled day tomorrow.

Plus, all kinds of exciting is happening in the blog world and I'm having trouble catching up.

On the upside, I'm 25 K into my first draft of my new story and I had a stroke of brilliance on a new story idea. I'm gathering my characters for that story now.

So the question is: do I write my draft that's zooming, start a new story, polish an old or just read the blogs and go to bed?

How's your week?

She's Crafty: First Lines

I do not hinge my interest in a story based on the first line, but I do notice when it is done well. A great book should hook the reader from the first line, first paragraph, and first page (and really till the end of chapter one) pulling the reader deeper into the characters and the plot.

I've even read somewhere that a debut author should treat each chapter like a chapter one.

This makes sense for middle grade, when readers can be reluctant and will easily put the book down if it doesn't hold their interest.

So I decided to do an experiment. I took the top five middle grade books in my To-Read pile and picked my next book based only on the first line.

Here are the first lines, which would you pick?

• "Take good care of this girl," Miss Beatty told the coachman. --The Ghost of Crutchfield Hall
• Ms. McMartin was definitely dead. --The Books of Elsewhere: The Shadows
• The house was a mansion, the lake was a pool, Kitty was a dog, and Juniper Berry was an eleven-year-old girl. --Juniper Berry.
• I was fairly sure I would not leave the meeting alive. --The 39 Clues: The Black Book of Buried Secrets #1
• The hat in question was owned by Mrs. Constance Lovestock. --The Emerald Atlas

It actually took me awhile to decide. The Ghost of C Hall didn't cut it, neither did The Emerald Atlas which is funny because I've heard amazing things about both books and The Emerald Atlas was at the top of my pile. (The only reason I haven't read it is because Lauren and her friends have been passing it around--swearing that it is their new favorite book.)

So that leaves the other three, and all three first-lines are good for different reasons. The Shadows tells me it is a spooky mystery (plot reveal), Juniper Berry is a rich and quirky girl (character reveal), and The 39 Clues is a dangerous adventure (plot reveal).

In the end, I chose The Shadows because it's October and I wanted a spooky mystery but normally I would lean adventure. Juniper Berry (which is actually a spooky story) got cut.

Which leads to my next question: in middle grade, should your first line be a character reveal or plot reveal?

I know, it depends on the story.

My current MG story that I'm querying is a fantasy adventure which means I should lead with a plot reveal because the first 18 pages are character building till I get to the inciting incident. I realize now, my readers need to know where the story is going before they invest the time in my characters.

Of course I queried with a character reveal, only to wait months to hear it wasn't a strong enough hook. In my revision, I've decided to change my first page and lead with a plot reveal. I hope it's stronger. (We'll find out next week when I send out more queries.)

Need help crafting your first line?

It's a Start: The First Line @ The Other Side of the Story.

First Lines, Part 1 @ Kidlit.

Marvelous Middle Grade Monday: A Tale Dark and Grimm

I found my MMGM pick A Tale Dark and Grimm from the 2010 Cybil's Middle Grade Fantasy list. I love The Grimm Fairytales so I was intrigued by the story. I also loved the first line of the story: Once upon a time, fairytales were awesome. I couldn't agree more.

A Tale Dark an Grimm by Adam Gidwitz

Published 2010

The Hook: When Hansel and Gretzel's father cuts off their heads, they are healed by magic but decide to run away to find parents who won't hurt them. The children weave through several Grimm fairytales and find under-standing.

Why I loved it: A new story woven through classic fairytales and an incredible moral. Seriously, I can't say enough about how much I loved this story and the woven Grimm. And the moral of under-standing isn't preachy but essential to the fairytale. The writing is also amazing, the balance between the story and the narrator insight (to diffuse scary parts) is well done. This is a great story for tweens who love scary stories BUT let me emphasize that this story is very scary. There is tons of blood, guts, and a staggering body count. This is NOT for younger middle graders and I wouldn't recommend it to children under the age of 12.

Parent Heads Up: A particular chapter in the story where Gretel meets a warlock is particularly disturbing. The warlock is a charming young man who happens to be a serial killer and Gretel watches him rip the soul out of a young girl and then he chops the dead girl to eat her. See Exhibit C to read the most disturbing passage from the book.

I'm just say'n, the book is great but you've been warned.

Want More? Go to Adam Gidwitz's website.

Have you read a middle grade book you felt was too mature for its audience?

Time to Nominate for your Fave 2011 Middle Grade Book

The Cybils are asking for nominations. You have till Oct 15 to nominate your favorite children's books from 2011.

I'm excited. I love the books they pick. So I'll have to put in my 2 cents.

What 2011 middle grade books would you nominate?