SANDPIPER, by Ellen Wittlinger posted by Mrs. Schauer

SANDPIPER
by Ellen Wittlinger
AR: Yes
Interest Level: Upper Grades

Fifteen year old Sandpiper Ragsdale Hollow has made some mistakes with boys--with quite a few boys. It started as a way to get one certain boy to like her--and it worked, for a while. Then there was the next boy, and the next...and before she knew it, she had a reputation as a "bad girl." She's not sure why, but as soon as a boy really starts to like her, she tires of him, casts him aside and moves on to the next one. When one of her rejected suitors decides to get even with her, at first...it's just annoying. Then, he gets more and more violent and threatening, until his rage turns to violence. Can Sandpiper turn her life and reputation around? Why are some mistakes so much harder to live down than others? Why can some girls get away with certain behaviors, and she's judged for them? And what about the Walker, the mysterious loner she befriends...what secrets is he hiding? Could he be different than the other boys she's known? It would be easy for me to give away everything....but then what would be your incentive to read this fantastic book? I highly recommend it--it's a quick, page-turning read.

Book Trailer for THREE LITTLE WORDS, by Ashley Rhodes-Courter posted by Mrs. Schauer

This book trailer for THREE LITTLE WORDS, by Ashley Rhoades-Courter, was created by Mrs. Schauer. There is an AR quiz available and this book is appropriate for upper grades.

LIFE ON THE REFRIGERATOR DOOR, by Alice Kuipers posted by Mrs. Schauer

LIFE ON THE REFRIGERATOR DOOR
by Alice Kuipers
AR: Yes (Thanks, Samantha B, for writing the quiz! I made a 100 on it!)
Interest Level: Middle and Upper Grades

My daughter Hailee suggested I take this book with me on my flight to Ft. Worth yesterday, and I loved it! It is a quick read--I finished it in about an hour--and was sad when I was done. The entire book is made up of short notes between a mother and daughter, that they leave for one another daily, on the refrigerator door. The daughter is fifteen and the mom is a doctor, who is at work so much, that many times these notes are their only form of communication for days at a time. Their notes are full of all the normal things moms and daughters go through. There are shopping lists, requests for money, discussions about boyfriends, and tidbits about their days. The notes take on a more serious tone when the mom is diagnosed with breast cancer...I don't want to give away any more than that, because I'd rather people read the book to find out what happens...isnt' that typical of me?