Before Green Gables by Budge Wilson

In 1908 Lucy Maud Montgomery had her first book published, Anne of Green Gables, and 100 years later it is still a best seller! It was in this book that the world met a feisty, imaginative, red-headed orphan named Anne Shirley. Although by the time she passed away in 1942, Montgomery had written 20 books along with over 500 poems and short stories she is best known for her books about Anne.

I remember my mother reading me Anne of Green Gables as a child. I loved Anne's character from page one in all her humorous, imaginative, day dreaming glory. She was so passionate about everything, her imagination was wild and wonderful. I started pretending that I had imaginary friends in any glass surface in the house and started talking about kindred spirits and bosom friends. My speech was littered with descriptive words like exquisite and marvelous. When I was upset about something, I was not just upset but in the depths of despair.

For the 100th anniversary of the publication of Anne of Green Gables the Montgomery Estate in conjunction with Penguin books decided to produce a prequel to Anne of Green Gables. When I heard this I was a little incensed. How could anyone think that they could write like Lucy Maud Montgomery? How could anyone do the character of Anne justice? Then I heard who would be writing the book, Budge Wilson. Being from Nova Scotia, I have had the enormous pleasure of meeting Ms. Wilson on several occasions and I have read several of her books. She has received numerous awards for her writing and in 2004 was made a Member of the Order of Canada. I decided I would give this prequel a try.

Although I still felt a great deal of trepidation as I began reading Before Green Gables I was quickly pulled into the story of how Anne came to be Anne. Wilson did not try to write like Montgomery but instead used her own unique writing voice to tell the story of Anne's journey from birth in Nova Scotia to that train platform in Prince Edward Island. The book was exquisitely beautiful, heart wrenchingly sad and absolutely perfect in every way. Ms. Wilson did a marvelous job and I believe this is a must read for any one who has enjoyed the Anne books.

~ Beag

Pippi Longstocking by Astrid Lindgren

One of my all-time favorites from childhood now illustrated by Lauren Child! I can't think of an illustrator working today that could more ably capture the charm and quirkiness of Pippi. Even if your library already has multiple copies of Pippi Longstocking, don't miss out on this one!!

The Scarecrow and His Servant

The Scarecrow and His Servant by Phillip Pullman. Read by Graeme Malcolm

Phillip Pullman (The Golden Compass) turns to lighter fare in this quirky adventure story. A scarecrow is struck by lightening and comes to life, where he is found by a young homeless boy. The scarecrow turns out to have a wonderful personality, honorable, trusting, and entirely impractical, so that the more worldly-wise servant boy is left to manage the practical side of things. Lord Scarecrow's quest is to win a fortune and go back to claim his ancestral home of Spring Valley. He also believes himself and all humans to be at war with the Kingdom of the Birds. On their way to fame and fortune, Lord Scarecrow and his servant deal with brigands, actors and fortune-tellers. Unbeknownst to them, they are being pursued by a lawyer representing the powerful Buffaloni family, which wants to build poison factories in Spring Valley. The ending is gratifying and a little surprising, if not kind to lawyers or big businesses. Still, this is a delightful adventure story. The narrator was most excellent, doing voices for all the characters and especially the rich, sonorous voice of the scarecrow.

- Idun

The Strictest School in the World by Howard Whitehouse

The full title of this book is actually The Strictest School in the World: Being the Tale of a Clever Girl, a Rubber Boy and a Collection of Flying Machines, Mostly Broken (The Mad Misadventures of Emmaline and Rubberbones) by Howard Whitehouse. Quite a mouth-full, huh? Well worth the read, though! Even though some characters' dialogues are harder to read than others -- like Princess Purnah, who doesn't speak English very well -- the level of entertainment far outweighs any difficulties I had in reading this book. The thing I am actually having the most difficulty with is deciding on a favorite character. Was it Emmeline? She reminds me, a lot, of one of my former classmates -- clever enough to invent a flying machine, but too afraid of getting hurt to try and fly it herself. Was it Rab, a.k.a. Rubberbones? Just imagine being able to fall out of a tree or get hit by a brick and suffer no damage! Or was it crazy, old Aunt Lucy? Always cooking up something horrible, and supposedly healthy -- like earwig curry. Ewwww! If you want to read a comical story about the adventures of a girl trying to break out of a dreadful boarding school, this book is definitely for you! -- Hestia

Alice in Wonderland illustrated by Alison Jay

I love Alison Jay's picture books and was delighted to see that she has illustrated one of my all-time favorite books. (I own four different versions and will be adding this to my collection!) This is a lovely new addition and should be added to any library or home shelf! -Rhiannon

The Mysterious Benedict Society by Trenton Lee Stewart

Every now and then a new book is written for children that is so unique, it is difficult to reference against other writing for children and The Mysterious Benendict Society is one of them. I LOVED this book. Somehow managing to remind me of Phantom Tollbooth, The Westing Game and Harry Potter, this is a charming and engaging book that I would recommend to any kid looking for something a little "outside the box"

Here Be Monsters! by Alan Snow

529 p. Fantasy/Humor
2006©

Under cover of night Arthur uses mechanical wings to fly through the streets of Ratbridge foraging for food. One night, he surfaces from his Underworld home stumbling upon an illegal cheese hunt. A man called Snatcher and his associates are capturing cheese to make a nefarious fondue. Worse yet, Snatcher seals the holes that lead to the Underworld trapping Arthur in Ratbridge. Arthur then discovers that peaceful creatures from the Underworld are disappearing from their homes. Several rats have also gone missing from a former pirate ship in the harbor that now acts as a first-rate laundering service. Arthur teams up with the pirates on a rescue mission to save the captured rats and Underworld creatures and – hopefully – to find a way back home to his grandfather.

Snow is a fantastic creature creator. There are cabbageheads, green-thumbed critters who wear cabbages upon their heads. There are the boxtrolls, gentle fanged mechanical geniuses in box outfits. There are the rabbit women in their knitted rabbit suits. They were once girls who fell down rabbit holes to be raised by the rabbits.
Featuring a climactic cheese explosion and a butt shrinking machine, the humor here is perfectly pitched for 3rd & 4th grades, but the length and the Briticisms make it better for 5th & 6th grade readers or strong younger readers. There are over 500 illustrations throughout so you don’t need to guess what a rabbit woman looks like. Reminiscent of Roald Dahl and Quentin Blake’s work together, I’d recommend it to anyone who enjoyed Dahl and to readers who appreciate Daniel Pinkwater.