It’s a snow day today for my girls. As I look outside at the accumulation of snow with my coffee, I just want to curl up with a book in front of the fire. This got me thinking about all the books I enjoyed reading in 2016 and I thought I’d share some with you. Later today, I’ll be snuggled nice and warm on the couch, possibly with my two girls, my dog or cat, or maybe all four of them, enjoying my current reading-for-fun book. This will be after I go out, shovel a bit and just have some plain old fun in the snow and get nice and cold, though.
Middle-grade books
(I read these at bedtime to my oldest, but my youngest also listened.)
The Land of Stories series by Chris Colfer. I have to warn you, my youngest was scared by the last book and I had to read that one with my oldest when my youngest wasn’t around to hear. This series, if you haven’t heard of it, is based around a brother, Conner, and sister, Alex, who discover they can enter the Land of Stories, a real world where Fairy Tales and their characters actually live. In the first book, they need to figure out how to return back to their world and embark on a quest to retrieve all the items they need to be able to do that. As the books progress, Alex and Conner uncover things about their family and who they really are. If you love Fairy Tales, you’ll love what Chris Colfer has done with them in this series.
The Imaginary Veterinary series by Suzanne Selfors. This is a fun series about a boy, Ben, who visits his Grandpa for the summer. During the first book, The Sasquatch Escape, he meets a girl, Pearl, in the small town and ends up letting a sasquatch loose. The book is filled with their antics in trying to capture the sasquatch and return it to the secret magical creatures veterinary hospital. They do such a great job, that they are hired on as assistants and have a new adventure in each book. These have humor and are just a fun read.
Castle Glower series by Jessica Day George. As you’ll see from some of my other picks, I love Jessica Day George. Everything I’ve read by her has been amazing. She is one of my favorite authors. In Tuesdays at the Castle, you meet Princess Celie and her family, who live in a constantly changing castle. Princess Celie records all of the changes in her map book. She knows the castle inside and out. It’s a good thing too, as she’ll need all of this knowledge if she wants to save her family. Through the series, Princess Celie discovers an egg, ends up hatching out a griffin, uncovers plots against her family and ultimately must save the castle and griffins. The final book in the series is due to come out next month. I can’t wait!
Princess Academy series by Shannon Hale. I allowed my 8 year old to read the first two on her own, but not the third. It’s about a mining town foretold to have the next princess. The girls in the town are then forced to attend a princess academy to prepare them for meeting the prince, who will chose one of them to marry. Hale is another favorite author of mine. Everything I have picked up by her, I have loved. She also writes young children’s books, including the very popular The Princess in Black series, which my youngest loves.
Young Adult books
(Unless otherwise noted, these are ones I read but did not allow my, at the time, 8 year old to read.)
Echo by Pam Muñoz Ryan. I was enthralled on page one. This story follows a harmonica through different time periods and different struggles to weave together an amazing story. If you have not read this book, you need to. Now. Really. I loved it that much.
Silver in the Blood by Jessica Day George. Think Dracula, werewolves and shapeshifters mixed with two teenage debutantes sent to meet their extended family in Romania to find husbands. There’s mystery, romance, intrigue and adventure all wrapped into a story only Jessica Day George can tell. What makes the story even better in my eyes is that she went to Romania to research the book and actually got the blessing of the monk guarding the tomb of Vlad Dracula. You can read more about that here on her blog.
The Princesses of Westfalin Trilogy by Jessica Day George. (I did warn you.) These are retellings of some classic fairy tales. She does a wonderful job of weaving together the twelve dancing princesses, Cinderella and little red riding hood. Added bonus, there are knitting patterns at the end of the books. My 8 year old read the first one and both of us started knitting the shawl Rose wore in the Princess of the Midnight Ball.
Absolutely Truly by Heather Vogel Frederick. Truly moves into her grandparents’ home with her family after her dad is injured in Afghanistan and returns home. They take over the family bookstore, which is struggling. Truly finds a mysterious letter in an old book and follows clues that lead her on an adventure through town. This is listed as middle-grade. I have it under my Young Adult books though because I felt it was on the upper side of the middle-grade age range and did not let my 8 year old read it. Depending on your family and what you are comfortable with your middle grader reading though, this could be just fine for you.
The Toymaker’s Apprentice by Sherri L. Smith. Getting her inspiration from the Nutcracker ballet, Smith creates an interesting story with mystery, adventure, kidnapping and aspects that remind me a bit of Pinocchio. Again, this was one that is listed as middle-grade. I wavered on whether or not to allow my 8 year old to read it. I can’t remember exactly why I didn’t. Maybe she already had a stack of books to read when I finished this. The fact that she did not read it is why I have it under Young Adult books. If you have an older middle-grader or tween reader, then this would be fine for them.
Some of these are popular, so you may have seen them or even read them already. Hopefully, there are some new ones for you too. If you’ve read any of these, let me know what you thought. Did you enjoy them? If you think these books mesh well with your reading style, feel free to follow me on Goodreads to see all the books I read, as I read them.
Happy Tuesday!
