Leprechaun in Late Winter by Mary Pope Osborne

Age Range: 7-12 Lexile: 500L

“Leprechaun in Late Winter” by Mary Pope Osborne, is #43 in the Magic Treehouse series. In this story, the main characters Jack and his sister Annie are whisked away from their tree house in Frog Creek woods to Galway, Ireland. They are on a third Merlin mission to “help a creative person give their special gifts to the world”.

The person Jack and Annie help in Gallway is Miss Augusta (a real person in history officially named Isabella Augusta Persse who later became, as an adult, Lady Gregory, the wife of a knight named Sir William Henry Gregory). Miss Augusta’s special gift is her love of stories and her ability to remember the exact speech or dialect of the storytellers.

Later in her life, as Lady Gregory, she became known for the folklore she collected from the Irish. She was also a good friend of Ireland’s most famous poet, William Butler Yeats and together, in the year 1904, they founded Dublin’s Abbey Theatre, which is the national theater of Ireland.

I enjoyed this story. It was short but well written. It presented information on Lady Augusta and the fairies or, as they call them in Ireland, si (pronounced shee), in a fun way. There is also a Magic Treehouse Research Guide, you can read, with more information on the subject, called “Leprechauns and Irish Folklore”. This guide, also in our library system, is written by Mary Pope Osborne and Natalie Pope Boyce.

Submitted by Karin

The Summer I Shrank My Grandmother by Elvira Woodruff

Lexile Level: 740, Grade Level: 3-6

“The Summer I Shrank My Grandmother” by Elvira Woodruff, c1990, is a funny book. I really enjoyed it. Nelly Brown is a girl who wants to be a scientist when she grows up. Her parents are also scientists. Nelly is always performing science experiments. However, she sometimes gets into trouble when the experiments don’t go right. It is the summertime and Nelly’s parents are going on a work vacation to New York. Nelly, however, decides not to go with them but to instead join her grandmother, Emma Brown, at a rented cabin on the seashore. While there, Nelly discovers an ancient looking chemistry set called “McFinney’s Powerful Potions”. With this set, the experimenter is granted one powerful wish. Since Nelly’s grandmother is getting so old, Nelly decides that she will make her grandmother younger. She does but unfortunately her grandmother keeps getting younger and younger, so young that Nelly is afraid she may disappear and she won’t have a grandmother anymore! Read this story to find out what happens!

Submitted by Karin

“The Star Maker” by Lawrence Yep

Grade Level: 3 – 5, Ages 9-12, 112 pages

I just love The Star Maker by Laurence Yep, c 2011. I read one of his other books, Angel Fish, and felt the same way about it. There is something about the way Yep creates his characters and their relationships to one another that leaves me with a good feeling. Through Yep’s stories I have also learned a lot about Chinese customs and what it is like to live in China Town. I have visited the San Francisco, New York City, and Chicago China Towns and along with my family, have always liked Chinese food. So maybe that is why I have an affinity with or interest in China Town. Set in the 1950’s in the San Francisco China Town, “The Star Maker” is based upon Lawrence Yep’s childhood. The story is told from the viewpoint of Artie, an eleven year old boy, who is unpopular with his extended family and who is being bullied by his mean cousin Petey. In order to gain some respect, Artie says he will provide all of the fireworks for the Chinese New Year. Not having any money though, Artie’s Uncle Chester, with whom Artie has a close relationship, saves the day by agreeing to buy them. However, when Uncle Chester falls upon hard times, you wonder how or if he is going to be able to pull this off. Another theme running through the story is how Artie’s Uncle Chester, still single at an older age, meets a woman who becomes special to him. I definitely recommend this book and any of the many other books by Lawrence Yep.

Submitted by Karin

“Frindle” by Andrew Clements

Interest Level: Grades 4-6

Actual Grade Level: 4.8

Lexile Level: 830L

“Frindle” by Andrew Clements, c1996, is about a boy named Nick Allen, who enjoys making his school “more cool”. In his third grade classroom, Nick creates a tropical party, complete with sand, and in fourth grade, he initiates a bird peeping noise (to emulate his teacher’s beak-shaped nose), that other students join in with. The sound and the fact that she can’t pinpoint a certain student, annoys his teacher to no end.

Now Nick has reached fifth grade. It is time for preparation for middle school and he has a very serious teacher named Mrs. Granger. She is a dictionary fanatic. Nick, however, is the opposite! He likes words, but not dictionaries. Already, at the very beginning of the year, he feels like it is going to be a very long one! You’ll have to read this book to see what happens with Nick during this year in Mrs. Granger's classroom. A clue is that, again, it has to do with something Nick creates. Also, another clue is that Mrs. Granger does not like made-up words, whereas Nick does. At only 105 pages long, the story, a classic, is short, but a lot of fun. I had wanted to read “Frindle” for some time and I’m glad I did!

Submitted by Karin