Franny Billingsley

A friend recommended the book Chime by Franny Billingsley, so I read it on my solo flight across the country for Rachel's wedding.  Honestly, if she hadn't said it was worth reading, I might have given up after the first few dozen pages.  The narrator, Briony, is intense and the world the author creates is strange and bleak, but my friend was completely right.  It was so worth pressing on.  Briony grew on me and I adored her sister, Rose, with her "I prefer" and her paper cuttings.  And Eldric?  Well, let's just say I would have had a serious crush on him as a teenager. :)  (Note:  there are a few curse words in it :( )

So I found two of her other books at the library:  Well Wished and The Folk Keeper.  The latter is more like Chime, with a strong, almost abrasive main character who is struggling to figure out who she really is.  The former is for a slightly younger audience.  Nuria is only 12 and she is adorable.  She lives with her grandfather in a little village with a magic well. 

In all three, Billingsley uses the same mix of fantasy in a realistic setting which I loved.  All three were worth reading.

The Gemma Doyle series is for older girls who know a little about Victorian England but it is a trilogy about a highschool age girl facing problems both normal and non-normal.  I loved it!  The books are long but fun read.

The Magic Bicycle

John finds a bike at the dump. The bike was called Spirit Flyer. He fixes the bike and soon discovers it flies.
Sometimes he comes upon a black snake with a white circled X on it's chest. John visits his grandfather and learns more about the Spirit Flyer. My favorite part is when John rescues his family on the Spirit Flyer.

Ian

The Princess Academy : By Shannon Hale

It's about a girl that live in a small town on a hill, that is forced to go to a princess academy, meets new friends, and learns secrets that could change her live. I suggest it for people that like adventure books. There is also a squeal to it called : palace of stone.

Regan

Dump Trucks by Linda D. Williams

My book is non-fiction. One fact about dump trucks is that some have tires that are bigger than people! I like that dump trucks are mighty machines. One thing I learned is that some dump trucks are off-road dump trucks because they are bigger than the lines on a road. Dump trucks can drive on uneven ground. Dump trucks can carry the weight of many elephants. There are 21 pages.

Caleb

Trains by Matt Doeden

Trains drive on railroad tracks. Train engines and train cars have metal wheels. A locomotive is the engine of a train. Trains have very loud whistles to warn people that a train is coming. People can use a train to get to a place farther from your home than you can get to in a car in one day. They can eat and sleep on the train.

Levi

The Everafter War by Michael Buckley

The Everafter War is book 7 in 9 books. Everafters are fairy-tale characters, such as Snow White. In this book, Everafters are fighting. Bad Everafters are called the Scarlet Hand. Very few Everafters are good.
My favorite part is when the soldiers come back with Prince Charming on their shoulders, because they destoryed an important place for the Scarlet Hand. I would suggest starting at the begging with book one:
The Fairy-Tale Detectives.

Ian