We’re starting a new segment on Central PA Live called Typh’s Picks. Each month, Typhanie Russo from the Altoona Area Public Library will share her top 10 book picks that center around a specific theme. This month’s theme is “Back to School.”
Book information and summaries courtesy of Good Reads.
1. Book: The Homework Machine, by Dan Gutman
Synopsis:
The unlikely foursome made up of a geek, a class clown, a teacher’s pet, and a slacker; Brenton, Sam “Snick,” Judy and Kelsey, respectively, are bound together by one very big secret: the homework machine. Because the machine, code named Belch, is doing their homework for them, they start spending a lot of time together, attracting a lot of attention. And attention is exactly what you don’t want when you are keeping a secret. Before long, members of the D Squad, as they are called at school, are getting strange Instant Messages from a shady guy named Milner. Their teacher, Miss Rasmussen, is calling private meetings with each of them and giving them pop tests that they are failing; and someone has leaked the possibility of a homework machine to the school newspaper. Just when the D Squad thinks things can’t get any more out of control, Belch becomes much more powerful than they ever imagined. Soon the kids are in a race against their own creation, and the loser could end up in jail…or worse!
2. Book: Ella the Elegant Elephant, by Carmela and Steve D’Amico
Synopsis:
Ella’s counting the days until the first day of school… but not because she’s eager to start! On the contrary, as the littlest elephant on Elephant Island, she’s terribly nervous about the other kids she’ll meet. Then she receives a beautiful red hat that belonged to her grandmother, her new lucky charm. Big mean Belinda at school teases her for it, calling her “Ella the Elegant Elephant.” But Ella’s brave enough to hold on to her hat, and in the end, the hat (and her heart) save the day.
With warm, rich pictures and a charming main character, ELLA is sure to be a new favorite.
3. Book: Thirteen Reasons Why, by Jay Asher
Synopsis:
Clay Jensen returns home from school to find a mysterious box with his name on it lying on his porch. Inside he discovers thirteen cassette tapes recorded by Hannah Baker, his classmate and crush who committed suicide two weeks earlier. On tape, Hannah explains that there are thirteen reasons why she decided to end her life. Clay is one of them. If he listens, he’ll find out how he made the list. Through Hannah and Clay’s dual narratives, debut author Jay Asher weaves an intricate and heartrending story of confusion and desperation that will deeply affect teen readers.
4. *READ IT BEFORE YOU SEE IT!
Book: Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children, by Ransom Riggs
Movie theater release date: September 30, 2016
Synopsis:
A mysterious island. An abandoned orphanage. A strange collection of curious photographs.
A horrific family tragedy sets sixteen-year-old Jacob journeying to a remote island off the coast of Wales, where he discovers the crumbling ruins of Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children. As Jacob explores its abandoned bedrooms and hallways, it becomes clear that the children were more than just peculiar. They may have been dangerous. They may have been quarantined on a deserted island for good reason. And somehow, impossible though it seems, they may still be alive.
A spine-tingling fantasy illustrated with haunting vintage photography, Miss Peregrine’s Home for Peculiar Children will delight adults, teens, and anyone who relishes an adventure in the shadows.
5. *READ IT BEFORE YOU SEE IT!
Book: The Girl on the Train, by Paula Hawkins
Movie theater release date: October 7, 2016
Synopsis:
Rachel takes the same commuter train every morning and night. Every day she rattles down the track, flashes past a stretch of cozy suburban homes, and stops at the signal that allows her to daily watch the same couple breakfasting on their deck. She’s even started to feel like she knows them. Jess and Jason, she calls them. Their life, as she sees it, is perfect. Not unlike the life she recently lost. Until today. Then she sees something shocking. It’s only a minute until the train moves on, but it’s enough. Now everything’s changed. Unable to keep it to herself, Rachel goes to the police. But is she really as unreliable as they say? Soon she is deeply entangled not only in the investigation but in the lives of everyone involved. Has she done more harm than good?
6. Book: No Talking, by Andrew Clements
Synopsis:
The fifth-grade girls and the fifth-grade boys at Laketon Elementary don’t get along very well. But the real problem is that these kids are loud and disorderly. That’s why the principal uses her red plastic bullhorn. A lot.
Then one day Dave Packer, a certified loudmouth, bumps into an idea…a big one that makes him try to keep quiet for a whole day. But what does Dave hear during lunch? A girl, Lynsey Burgess, jabbering away. So Dave breaks his silence and lobs an insult. And those words spark a contest: Which team can say the fewest words during two whole days? And it’s the boys against the girls.
This funny and surprising book is about language and thought, about words unspoken, words spoken in anger, and especially about the power of words spoken in kindness…with or without a bullhorn. It’s Andrew Clements at his best; thought-provoking, true-to-life, and very entertaining.
7. Book: Miss Mingo and the Fire Drill, by Jamie Harper
Synopsis:
Perfect for National Fire Prevention Week, October 4-10, 2009
It’s Fire Safety Week in Miss Mingo’s room, which means it’s time to learn what to do in case of a fire. Of course, this isn’t your typical classroom, and Miss Mingo isn’t your average teacher! Alligator, Panda, Octopus, and the others work hard to master the rules of fire safety and perform the perfect fire drill, but thinking about fire is a bit nerve-wracking, and each of them reacts differently, often with hilarious results. Sprinkled with fascinating facts about animal behaviors, this story about the characters in Miss Mingo’s one-of-a-kind class is sure to appeal to readers of all types.
Stop! Drop! Roll! Learning the rules of fire safety is a lot more fun (and less scary) when demonstrated by a charming and diverse group of animals.
8. Book: Anna and the French Kiss, by Stephanie Perkins
Synopsis:
Anna is looking forward to her senior year in Atlanta, where she has a great job, a loyal best friend, and a crush on the verge of becoming more. Which is why she is less than thrilled about being shipped off to boarding school in Paris…until she meets Étienne St. Clair; smart, charming, beautiful, Étienne has it all…including a serious girlfriend. But in the City of Light, wishes have a way of coming true. Will a year of romantic near-misses end with their long-awaited French
9. Book: The Little Paris Bookshop, by Nina George <https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/695300.Nina_George>
Synopsis:
Monsieur Perdu calls himself a literary apothecary. From his floating bookstore in a barge on the Seine, he prescribes novels for the hardships of life. Using his intuitive feel for the exact book a reader needs, Perdu mends broken hearts and souls. The only person he can’t seem to heal through literature is himself. He’s still haunted by heartbreak after his great love disappeared. She left him with only a letter, which he has never opened.
After Perdu is finally tempted to read the letter, he hauls anchor and departs on a mission to the south of France, hoping to make peace with his loss and discover the end of the story. Joined by a bestselling author and a lovelorn Italian chef, Perdu travels along the country’s rivers, dispensing his wisdom and his books, showing that the literary world can take the human soul on a journey to heal itself.
Internationally bestselling and filled with warmth and adventure, The Little Paris Bookshop is a love letter to books, meant for anyone who believes in the power of stories to shape people’s lives.
10. Book: The Husband’s Secret, by Liane <https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/695300.Nina_George> Moriarty
Synopsis:
Imagine that your husband wrote you a letter, to be opened after his death. Imagine, too, that the letter contains his deepest, darkest secret. Something with the potential to destroy not just the life you built together, but the lives of others as well. Imagine, then, that you stumble across that letter while your husband is still very much alive…
Cecilia Fitzpatrick has achieved it all-she’s an incredibly successful businesswoman, a pillar of her small community, and a devoted wife and mother. Her life is as orderly and spotless as her home. But that letter is about to change everything, and not just for her. Rachel and Tess barely know Cecilia, or each other, but they too are about to feel the earth-shattering repercussions of her husband’s secret. Acclaimed author Liane Moriarty has written a gripping, thought-provoking novel about how well it is really possible to know our spouses-and, ultimately, ourselves.
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