The Resting Place

The Resting Place by Camilla Sten. A realistic fiction suspense thriller set in Sweden. Eleanor has face blindness. When she walks in on her grandmother's murder, she can't recognize the killer, but he can recognize her. This sends her into a spiral of fear that leads to a stay in a sanitorium and extensive therapy. Now she must travel to an isolated house owned by her deceased grandmother to assist her aunt and a lawyer to catalogue the contents of the house to prepare for its sale. But is the killer there waiting for her? What secrets was her grandmother hiding? Did those secrets lead to her death? A nail biter of a book, Nordic mysteries are always so dark - but fun. 

Ratings: 11th grade - 7 out of 10 - P (profanity) - V (violence) - AC (mature thematic content). 

A Carrion Death

A Carrion Death is by Michael Stanley. The first in the realistic fiction Detective Kubu mysteries. Set in Botswana, Detective Kubu is called in when a hyena is found eating what's left of a man's body near a water hole. His attempt to discover the identity of the man and arrest his killer leads him into the midst of some very powerful people with some very dangerous secrets. A very good crime novel with characters and a setting you will want to visit again. 

Ratings: 9th grade - 8 out of 10 - P (profanity) - V (violence) - AC (mature thematic content). 

Escape from Mr. Lemoncello's Library

Escape from Mr. Lemoncello's Library by Chris Grabenstein. A charming realistic fiction children's mystery. A group of students are chosen to spend the night in the new library designed and built by the famous game maker, Luigi Lemoncello. Once the children arrive at the library, they discover things are not what they seem and they must win Mr. Lemoncello's game to get out of the library and win the grand prize. Young kids will enjoy this fast paced book. 

Ratings: 6th grade - 6 out of 10. 

The Unexpected Mrs. Pollifax

The Unexpected Mrs. Pollifax by Dorothy Gilman. The first in a charming historical fiction mystery series. Mrs. Pollifax is an elderly New Jersey widow who is bored to death with her Garden Club. Her children are grown and moved away and now she has nothing to live for, no excitement in her life. So she travels to Washington, D.C. and visits the CIA to volunteer as a spy - like we all do. Due to a case of mistaken identity, she ends up with a mission in Mexico. When everything goes wrong and she is captured and taken to a remote castle in Albania, she finds all the adventure she could ever have hoped for. A delightful series, even if you need to suspend your disbelief a little. 

Ratings: 9th grade - 8 out of 10 - P (profanity) - V (violence). 

The Escape Artist: The Man Who Broke Out of Auschwitz to Warn the World

The Escape Artist: The Man Who Broke Out of Auschwitz to Warn the World by Jonathan Freedland. A thrilling biography of one of the first men to escape from Auschwitz. Rudolf Vrba was a Jew who was deported to Auschwitz. After what he saw there he was determined to escape and warn the Jews of what awaited them. He believed if they knew they would resist. He and his friend Fred Wetzler escaped and wrote a report that reached all the major powers, and even the remaining Jewish rulers, and yet nothing was done. Rudolf, haunted by his past, never forgave those he held responsible among the Jewish leaders for not warning the other Jews. A powerful story of heroism and horror. 

Ratings: 10th grade - 8 out of 10 - P (profanity) - V (violence) - AC (mature thematic content). 

Further Up and Further In: Understanding Narnia

Further Up and Further In: Understanding Narnia is by Joseph Pearce. A wonderful nonfiction look at Christianity in Narnia. This is a must read for all Narnia fans, and indeed for all fans of Lewis. A Reader's Corner Highly Recommended Read. 

Ratings: 9th grade - 10 out of 10. 

Two Gentlemen of Verona

Two Gentlemen of Verona by William Shakespeare. Classic historical fiction drama by the Bard. One of Shakespeare's earlier plays, maybe his first. You can see his greatness and genius, but in a nascent state. Two friends fall in love, but one deserts his first love to try and win the love of his best friend - because nothing will go wrong there! He betrays his friend, to get a girl who doesn't love him and spurns the girl who does, but it's Shakespeare, so all's well in the end.

Ratings: 10th grade - 8 out of 10. 

The Tempest

The Tempest by William Shakespeare. The classic historical fiction drama by the master of English literature. Prospero and his daughter Miranda are abandoned on a magical island by his wicked brother who assumes his dukeship. This is story of their rescue and their return to Milan. Possibly Shakespeare's last play, and definitely one of his best. 

Ratings: 10th grade - 10 out of 10. 

If I Understood You, Would I Have This Look on My Face?: My Adventures in the Art & Science of Relating and Communicating

If I Understood You, Would I Have This Look on My Face?: My Adventures in the Art & Science of Relating and Communicating is by Alan Alda. A humorous, yet insightful, look at the ways we do, and don't, communicate with each other. There is much here to think on. A really good and fast read. 

Ratings: 9th grade - 7 out of 10.