The Ghosts of Rose Hill is by R.M. Romero. A wonderful fantasy fiction in verse novel. Ilana is a Jewish Latina teen from American, who is sent to Prague to spend the summer with her aunt. While restoring an abandoned Jewish cemetery she meets a ghost boy and a man with no shadow. To save the boy she loves, and herself, she must defeat an ancient evil.
Ratings: 9th grade - 9 out of 10.
Let's Pretend This Never Happened is by Jenny Lawson. A charming memoir by The Bloggess. Jenny Lawson is nuts, and she admits it. A hilariously funny memoir that will have you laughing out loud even as you feel horrible for laughing.
Ratings: Adult - 9 out of 10 - P (profanity) - AC (mature thematic contents).
The Cask is by Freeman Wills Crofts. The classic historical fiction mystery from one of the members of the famous Golden Age Detective Club. When a man is sent a cask with a dead body in it, the police try to prove him guilty of murder. His lawyer hire a famous detective to prove him innocent - and the game's afoot. A wonderful Golden Age mystery. Fans of Sayers and Christie will love this one as well.
Ratings: 9th grade - 9 out of 10.
Back to the Garden is by Laurie R. King. A realistic fiction crime thriller, but not one that is bloody - just creepy. The Gardener Estate is a California mansion people come from all over to see. It was built by the Gardener family, in the 1960s headed by a tyrannical despot with two sons who refuse to toe the line. After his death, he leaves everything to the youngest of the two who is now living in a hippie commune in Oregon. Rob comes home and brings the commune with him - at least for four years. Fifty years later, as a stature by a famous artist is being moved, a skeleton is found under the base of the statue. Inspector Raquel Laing believes it might be another victim of a serial killer cold case she is working on. Raquel must discover the identity of the victim before her serial killer suspect dies of cancer and before another body turns up on the Gardener Estate.
Ratings: Adult - 8 out of 10 - P (profanity) - AC (mature thematic content).
On the Shoulders of Hobbits: The Road to Virtue with Tolkien and Lewis is by Louis Markos. A wonderful nonfiction examination of Christian virtues through the lens of Middle-Earth and Narnia. A must read book for all Christians, especially lovers of Lewis and Tolkien.
Ratings: 9th grade - 10 out of 10.
A Month in the Country is by J.L. Carr. A classic historical fiction character study, most people have never heard of, but should read. A quiet beautifully written novella of a WWI veteran who is hired to restore a medieval mural found in a small English countryside church. As Tom Birkin uncovers the painting, he also discovers himself and learns to understand and appreciate the people in the Yorkshire village of Oxgodby. There is little in the way of plot, but the novella is insightful and the writing is lyrical. A Reader's Corner Highly Recommended Read.
Ratings: 9th grade - 10 out of 10 - AC (mature thematic content).
C.S. Lewis: A Biography of Friendship is by Colin Duriez. A wonderful biography of Jack Lewis, by the imminently readable Duriez. Anything by Duriez is well worth the read. His work is always well-researched and easy to read for academics and non-academics alike. A Reader's Corner Highly Recommended Read.
Ratings: 9th grade - 9 out of 10.
Grimm's Fairy Tales is by Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm. This is the classic book of fairy tales edited by Barnes and Noble. It contains virtually every fairy tale collected by the magnificent Grimm Brothers. A Reader's Corner Highly Recommended Read. Caution: These are the original versions and not all are fit for children.
Ratings: 8th grade - 10 out of 10 - AC (some mature thematic content).
Undine: A Fairy Tale Novella is by Friedrich da la Motte Fouque. A classic fairy tale fantasy about a knight who stumbles on a poor farmer's household after wandering through a haunted forest. There he meets the farmer's adopted daughter, Undine, who has some strange qualities. The two fall in love and are married. The fairy tale then follows the tragic consequences of that marriage. A wonderful story, the ballet is wonderful as well. A Reader's Corner Highly Recommended Read.
Ratings: 7th grade - 9 out of 10.
