The Community Reads a Very Cool Book

That's right, guys, the library system will hold a Community Read from September 27--October 17. That means we'll try to get as many people as possible to read the same book. This year we've got a really fun book for all of us reader guys--it's Escape From Mr. Lemoncello's Library by Chris Grabenstein.

So what's the purpose of a Community Read? The grownups say, in fancy grownup language, "A Community Read is designed to bring people together to talk about a single book and to establish a community of readers and learners." In other words, we want to get a whole lot of people in the Charlotte area to read a particular book, talk about it, have fun talking about it and even get into some interesting discussions. That's what I'd like to do with Escape from Mr. Lemoncello's Library. I'll write a review soon (I'm about halfway through the book) and it would be great if a lot of boys sent me reviews on this book. I will also, later on, post some questions related to this book and you could answer them. That could make for some fun and lively discussions! Remember that the instructions for sending in reviews are on the left-hand side of this page.

By the way, if you haven't already noticed, the library has redesigned its website. It's very cool and a lot easier to use. If you go to the site, www.cmlibrary.org, click on the Services box, then click on the Children's Services box and scroll down, you'll see a section of eight resources for kids and adults. Included in that section is this blog! Pretty neat, huh? I owe a great debt of thanks to Jessica Davis and Katy Rust, two of the library's technical magicians, who worked long and hard to get it there. (and don't mind that this blog is located in the Children's section--the library didn't have room to create a MANLY MAN section to put our blog)

Thrills, Adventure and Big International Conspiracies

Listen up , guys, and look at this blog's mission statement up in the upper left-hand corner. What does it say? "A place for boys to find terrific books and tell other boys about great reading." Got that? Well, I recently finished one of the most terrific reads of this year or for the last couple of years, for that matter. It was the second book in the unbelievably good, exciting and utterly absorbing Copernicus Legacy series by the terrifically talented Tony Abbott. Which book was it? The Serpent's Curse. Wow. What a great time I had reading this book!

To give you a little backstory, let me repeat the synopsis from another review:

"Wade Kaplan's father, astronomer Roald Kaplan, gets a mysterious message from Uncle Henry in Germany. When the family goes to investigate, they find Uncle Henry murdered! Then they find out that they are involved in something they couldn't have imagined--a world -wide search for hidden artifacts that could determine the destiny of the world. They learn that famous scientist Nicholas Copernicus invented a time-traveling device 400 years ago but the thoroughly evil Teutonic Order of Knights tried to get hold of it. To stop them, Copernicus dismantled the device and gave the twelve key components to Guardians to hide around the world. Wade and family and friends must travel the world to solve puzzles and clues to find the relics before the Order does."

So, at the beginning of this book, we find out that Wade's mom, Sara, has been kidnapped by the tremendously evil  Galina Krausse, head of  the Teutonic Order. It turns out that the Order created their own time machine and Galina wants to send the Sara back in time to spy on Copernicus! So not only do the Kaplans have to find Serpens, the next Relic, but they have to rescue Sara before she's sent on a one-way trip back in time! Is it possible?  Against the world-wide and incredibly powerful Teutonic Kinghts?

Wow, wow, wow! What a great thrill ride this book was! There's a car chase in Manhattan, a narrow escape from an exploding apartment in Moscow, a speedboat chase in Vienna and a pulse-pounding finale in an abandoned fortress. Do you guys want mystery? It's here--what's the background on Galina Krausse? Why does she seem to have vivid memories of Copernicus? Why does she have such a strong reaction to the name "Rubashov?" What is it about creepy Bartolo Cassa that "is simply not quite right"? Do you want humor? It's here--just listen to Dr. Rosemary Billinng...ham talk!

In other words, boys---CHECK THIS BOOK OUT! And if you haven't started the series, go get The Forbidden Stone (see my review) and READ THESE FANTASTIC BOOKS!!

This gets the Iron Guy Seal of Approval as One REALLY Terrific Book!