This week I finished Three Black Swans by Caroline Cooney. Cooney's a great story teller and this one is no different. It's about two cousins who come to believe that they are actually identical twins. But neither of them think they were adopted. Things get really interesting when a video of the "twins" hits YouTube and a third girl contacts them believing she's related also.
I also read a ghost story by Richard Peck Three-Quarters Dead. I loved, loved, loved Richard Peck's ghost stories about Blossom Culp as a child. I read them all (more than once) and enjoyed every word. This one didn't quite capture me as much as Blossom Culp did. When socially invisible Kerry is invited to be part of the popular clique she's thrilled, but when her three new "best friends" die in a car accident she's devistated. Until she gets a text message from the dead girls and is able to visit them in New York City. Could this really be happening? Can she survive the next car ride with the girls? 
Charles and Emma: The Darwin's Leap of Faith by Deborah Heiligman was fantastic. Charles Darwin, a man of science, and his wife Emma were on opposite sides in matters of religion. Emma was deeply religious and wanted to be with her husband in this world - and in the afterlife. Charles though, had his doubts. The high infant and child mortality rates in England at the time were a very real threat to their ten children and a very good example of Charles' theory of survival of the fittest. This is a wonderful love story as well as a fascinating look at life in the Victorian Age. I'd recommend this one for both children and adults!
Since the holidays are coming up, I thought I'd recommend a few books as gifts for middle school readers.
Do you have a gamer in the family? Would you like them to read more? Try one of these books as a jumping-off point:
Ender’s Game by Orson Scott Card – Set in the future where kids are trained for battle by using video games, Ender quickly rises to the top of his class (past the bullies) to become a commander in the army.
Only You Can Save Mankind by Terry Pratchett – Johnny’s friend gives him an illegal copy of the computer game “Only You Can Save Mankind” and he is surprised when the captain of the alien air fleet he’s supposed to shoot up asks for Johnny’s help in getting back to their home-world. After he helps though, all the aliens in every copy of the game disappear and there are angry gamers around the world.
Heir Apparent by Vivian Vande Velde – Giannine goes to a virtual reality arcade looking to have a fun time. But the CEO of the arcade appears in her game and tells her if she doesn’t complete the game correctly she’ll risk “fatal overload.”
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