The Wolf and Me by Richard Scrimger

Things don't come easy for Bunny O'Toole.  He has a hard time understanding things that people say and  he takes everything quite literally.  He tries so hard though and he has a good heart.  But the bad guys are always attracted to him and trouble is like a magnet to poor Bunny.  

In The Wolf and Me, Bunny is out on parole for Christmas vacation.  Him and his brother Spencer decide to go skating.  Sounds innocent enough.  His brother turns his back for a minute and Bunny is kidnapped.  This sets off quite the chain of events.  All Bunny wants to do is get back to the safety of his jail.  

The Wolf and Me is written as though Bunny himself is writing the story.  Bunny's not a great speller but he's working on it.  It can be a bit tough to read at first but if you give it a chance and stick with it you will quickly catch on to reading through the spelling errors and be caught up in all Bunny's misadventures.

Readers may remember Bunny from reading Ink Me by Richard Scrimger.  The Wolf and Me is part of the Seven Sequels.  I love Seven the series and was so excited to get an advance reader copy of The Wolf and Me.  This will definitely be on my fall shopping list for my school library.  If I can get the kids to read one, they'll read them all.

One Plus One by Jojo Moyes

In One Plus One nothing comes easy for Jess Thomas.  She works really hard at two different jobs but she still can't stay on top of all her bills, never mind get ahead.  Her husband has moved back home with his mother because he’s depressed.  She’s claimed responsibility for a teenage boy, Nicky, that she loves like her own son.  Nicky’s a little bit quirky and the neighbourhood kids take every opportunity to pick on him.  Jess also has a daughter, Tanzi, that is bordering on the genius scale. 

Jess sees an opportunity to get ahead when Tanzi is invited to compete in a math competition with a cash prize.  Jess, Nicky, Tanzi and their dog Norman pack up the car for a road trip to race to get to the competition on time.  They don’t get very far when trouble ensues.  Thankfully their knight in shining armour arrives to the rescue.  Unfortunately, Mr. Nicholls, their knight, has troubles of his own. 

If you haven't yet read anything by Jojo Moyes I would recommend reading One Plus One first to set the bar for your expectations and then Me Before You.  One Plus One is a great book but Me Before You is just a bit better in my opinion.  Jojo Moyes is one of my new favourite authors that I will continue to look for new books from.

The Angry Little Puffin by Timothy Young

The Angry Little Puffin book is a cute story about a puffin that lives in the zoo.  He's pretty angry because everyone mistakes him for a penguin and he is NOT a penguin!  This short picture book is a great way to teach a young child about a new animal.  It can also be the beginning of a conversation on what other animals look alike and are often mistaken for something else such as moose and deer.  I think this would be a great book for a JK to 2 class.

Abroad by Katie Crouch

Abroad was a truly twisted book.  The story is about Tabitha, known by her friends as Taz.  She is on a year abroad studying at a University in Italy.  She arrives in Italy alone and eager for new friendships and experiences.  Both friends and experiences quickly come her way but neither exactly what she had in mind.  Everyone has secrets.  Everyone is telling lies.  Taz experiments with alcohol and drugs and sometimes doesn't remember the experiences that she's had.

I know this book has been compared to the real life events of the Amanda Knox story.  I haven't followed the reports in the news to make comparisons myself.  

I would expect that Abroad might make quite an interesting movie.  Abroad could serve as a good warning to any young students travelling abroad.

I received a free copy of this book from Goodreads.  

Skink on the Brink by Lisa Dalrymple

Skink on the Brink tells the story of a little lizard that is on the brink of extinction.  The book is full of interesting facts about the Skink such as habitat, life-cycle and more.

Skink on the Brink is illustrated by Suzanne Del Rizzo.  The pictures in this book are absolutely amazing!  They are stunning.  

The cover says the book is 'A Tell-Me-More! Storybook'.  The books are published in Ontario, Canada in 2013 which means lots of up to date Canadian content - something I look for when purchasing library books.  If I remember correctly, grade 4 has a unit on extinct animals in the curriculum.  This would be a great book for that unit.

I read this book with my son who is starting grade 4 in the fall and he really enjoyed it.  I will definitely look for more books in this series and be adding this series to my fall shopping list.

Sleeper by Eric Walters

In October 2014, seven of the best Canadian children authors will release seven sequels to their popular Seven series published in 2012.  I can't say enough about how much I love this series.  I was very fortunate to receive an ARC of Sleeper by Eric Walters from Orca Book Publishers.

Sleeper begins with some of the cousins meeting at their deceased grandfather's cottage.  Within the first few pages a mystery is uncovered and the action begins.  With a puzzle to solve, the cousins don't even have time to get settled at the cottage, before they each grab a pile of the hidden cash they've discovered and jet off to locations all around the world.  In Sleeper, DJ, now known as David, heads off to England to visit his friend, Doris, from his Mount Kilimanjaro climb.  While he is there, he also hopes to figure out the truth about who is grandfather really was.

Sleeper will be the answer to all 'Which book should I read next?' questions this upcoming school year.  It has something for everyone - strong male character, strong female character, mystery, spies, action, travel, fast cars, good role models, history and, yes, even a touch of a love story.  Everyone should read Sleeper and when you read one, you'll be sure to read them all!

The Matchmaker by Elin Hilderbrand

Dabney Kimball Beech works for the Nantucket Chamber of Commerce and she loves everything about the island.  The residents of Nantucket all think quite highly of Dabney too.  Dabney is responsible for matching 42 couples which gives her the well deserved title of matchmaker.  Sadly, as great a matchmaker as Dabney is, she let her own true love match slip away.  Clendenin Hughes was Dabney's true love match but he left the island to pursue a journalism career 27 years ago.  Although Dabney has moved on with her life Clen still holds a large piece of her heart.  

After years of silence between the two, the story begins with Clen emailing Dabney to let her know that he's decided to move back to Nantucket.  The moment Clen arrives back on the island Dabney begins to feel unwell and she is convinced it’s simply heartache.  To complicate matters, she is terrified of leaving the island and can’t get the courage to go to Boston for the medical tests to confirm her self diagnosis.  Her fear of leaving Nantucket is what cost her to lose Clen in the first place.  Between not feeling well and all the lies she is telling Dabney is having a hard time keeping it all together.  As Dabney begins to unravel she continues to keep matching friends and family with their true loves.

The Matchmaker by Elin Hilderbrand is a story filled with true love but a fair amount of heartache as well.  Like most, if not all, Elin Hildebrand novels, the setting for The Matchmaker is once again the beautiful island of Nantucket.  The setting descriptions will make you wish you were lying on a beach.  The Matchmaker is a perfect summer read.