Kids Books - Trending Books

In Artemis Fowl by Eoin Colfer, twelve year old criminal mastermind Artemis Fowl discovers the existence of fairies living below the Earth's surface. Driven by a desire for the fairy peoples' gold, he hatches a dastardly plan to kidnap a fairy to exchange to said gold. However, the fairies, reluctant to part with their gold, are willing to go head to head with the teenage genius to save their friend, and protect their species from exposure. In this middle grade fantasy novel, Colfer spins together an exciting tale like never before. With insane plots, dastardly rescue missions, and youthful humor, the reader will be glued to the pages of this book until the end. (Which, as the series is eight novels long, may be quite some time.)

I have always loved the Harry Potter book series. It is not only full of magic, adventure, joy, creativity, and Voldemort, it is a timeless classic that everyone knows the story too. When I heard that they were creating a picture book version to it, I was blown away and had to get my hands on it. The book has the same plot and words as the original, except now add color and art to the long list of traits I mentioned in the beginning. In case you don't know the plot to the book this is a simple breakdown of what happens; Harry Potter is not a normal boy whose parents died when he was a baby. He has weird talents that are unexplained like how he has a lightning scar, can talk to snakes and can make random things happen just by thinking about it. He lives with his awful Aunt, Uncle, and cousin who gives him the Cinderella treatment and always are rude to him. For heaven's sake, they made him sleep under the stairs. One day, Harry Potter gets a letter addressed to him with his exact location(under the stairs and everything), but the Dursleys won't let him open it after they see a red crest seal on it. They toss it into the garbage. As the days pass hundreds of letters are being sent and owls are appearing at his door, but still, the Uncle is taking all of them and not allowing Harry to see any of them. To avoid any more letters reaching them, Uncle Dursley decides to send all of them to a shabby house on a small island in the middle of the sea. This day happens to be Harry's 11th birthday. All of a sudden, a giant knock hits the door and they all startle themselves awake. It turns out to be a giant named Hagrid who explains to Harry that he is a wizard and has been accepted into the Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. After that, he leaves his family, goes school supply shopping with Hagrid, and takes a train to the school. When he gets there he meets a lot of new people and makes best friends with Hermione Granger and Ron Weasely who are in the same house as himself. He also learns what truly happened to his parents and it turns out to be a villain named Voldemort. He killed them and tried to kill Harry too, but his mother sacrificed herself instead and made a bond that destroyed Voldemort. After that day, Harry Potter gained the title of The Boy who Lived. People think that Voldemort is still out there resting so he can come back for revenge. And like all foreshadowing is, the fact turns out to be true. But we don't know that yet. They start hearing noises coming from around the top floor of the school so Harry and the gang go there to check it out. They see a giant 3 headed dog whose name is Fluffy. After this day, they have Hermione do some research and figure out that the dog is guarding a magical stone called the Sorceror's Stone which can give someone youth and that the owner of the dog is Hagrid. Their only lead is the suspicious Potions teacher, Severus Snape who somehow is always seen at the wrong time, doing the wrong thing. During this time, they got more information, saved Hermione from a troll, and met a few ghosts. Back to the present. Now that they had figured out that the owner of the dog was Hagrid, they all go to HAgrid's hut and trick him into giving them valuable information. Then they venture back into the attic with Fluffy and play soft music that makes him fall asleep for as long as they need to get past him. Then they go through the little latch underneath Fluffy and find a mysterious room in which there are puzzles they have to solve in order to get to the stone before Voldemort does. They solve a key riddle, plays chess with themselves being hit if they fail, and finally come into the room in which they find the stone. In the room, Harry Potter comes face to face with Mr. Qiurell the Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher who is actually a reincarnated version of Voldemort. So he and Voldemort have an epic face-off . . . .

Great book to learn about history of America.

There's another time for another adventure with now grown 20 years old Vesper Holly with her guardian, Brinnie Garrett as they set out for an adventure initiated from President (former) General Ulysses S. Grant to try and foil the massive extortion and terrorism plot which was targeted the 1876 Centennial Exposition of Philadelphia. But what's the plot behind this story? Dr. Helvitius had risen once again, but this time, he kidnapped two children from the emperor of Brazil then threatened to kill other world leaders as another reason for this adventure was to try and stop him once again. Chaos, comedy, but also final adventure with Vesper Holly and Brinnie as we officially close this type of chapter with Vesper Holly. I truly do enjoy this series as I get into the depth, giving me the laughs, or even shaking my head when they said something amusing. - Happy Reading!

Reading the Bible is an excellent way to learn about yourself. Too much focus is on how others see you or view you. I recommend reading the Bible for self reflection and for the pure joy of reading.

The fourth book in the Lemonade Wars series follows the life of Evan, a fourth grader who wrestles with a secret crush, Valentines Day arts and crafts, and discovering his true self. His younger sister, Jessie is trying to make Evan's fourth grade year as miserable as possible. The precocious journalist believes everything should be publi; Evan however, believes in privacy. As these two siblings battle eaxh other, they first have to make it through fourth grade. Davies presents a true coming-of-age story of self-discovery, that is sure to entertain fans of the Lemonade Wars series. What I thought about it: I usually prefer first-person point pf views, but in this case I love the third person narrative. The author perfectly described every character's feelings exceedingly well. The hardships that the characters had to overcome were relatable to me, and the story was realistic. The book kind of reminds me of Andrew Clements' novels which I love. The short entries of poetry were very enlightening. I've noticed that the books have become more and more serious as the series progresses, and I hate to admit it, but that's just part of growing up. The added twist to the story was the mystery of the candy hearts and I think that it tied the story together very well. Overall I think that boys and girls alike would enjoy this story. ~ifeelbookish

Alexis Becker is exactly what everyone thinks she is: professional, business-oriented, excellent at math, and hardworking. But what no one knows is that Alexis a true romantic at heart. And when she finds herself falling for one of her best friend Emma Taylor's brothers, Matt, she is in a true tug-of-war with herself. She is too anxious to tell Emma about her crush; instead, like the true businesswoman she is, Alexis creates lists and collects data to get Matt to notice her. She listens in on her older sister's conversations and tries to weasel information out of a gradually-more-suspicious Emma. But when Alexis' older sister Dylan becomes crazed over her birthday party and possibly more, Alexis realizes that it is okay to take it slow. A wonderful book about the romance associated with teen years, this is the perfect novel for people coming of age.

Although the book progresses mostly on a lighter note, “Theodore Boone: Kid Lawyer” focuses the spotlight on many taboo subjects for young adult novels. With central topics like feminism, racism, illegal immigration, political outbreaks, drug abuse, and child abuse, John Grisham manages to effectively prod at touchy subjects with so much subtlety within each subplot, that even with lots of murder, smoking, and court cases scattered throughout the plot, through the eyes of thirteen-year-old Theodore Boone, “Kid Lawyer” is surprisingly appropriate. And with all of these dark themes, it comes as no surprise that there is indeed a lot to learn in this book. Each subplot takes the reader into a new and unexplored road, and although a suspenseful cliffhanger is presented towards the end of the book, the author still manages to quietly tie all of these themes up. This results in the reader feeling like they’ve actually read a complete book instead of a book with several different subplots, although that is precisely how it feels while reading it. John Grisham’s “Theodore Boone: Kid Lawyer” is many different things. Sometimes it’s a fight for justice, sometimes it’s a heart-wrenching story of family situation infused with drug and child abuse, sometimes it’s a guidebook on the court’s rules, and sometimes it’s about a murder-witnessing illegal immigrant’s unwillingness to provide the town with justice for fear of getting caught in the middle.

Ballet Shoes is an interesting book with well developed 3 main protagonists that will keep you reading for the many hours it has. Esecially with the different points of view from the characters, the way Noel Streatfeild portrays his characters and their different personalities is colorful an interesting.

This book reminds me why I always tell fellow readers to give young adult books a chance. The only complaint I have about The Candymakers is due to the fact that these books are unfortunately targeted towards young adult readers rather than adults that are young at heart. On that note, the only real problems I had were the same reasons this was not targeted to me. Again, unfortunately. The sentences were more concise and simple then I believe necessary for teens; there was a lot more telling than necessary, although there was notable detailed showing. Some of the plot was rather unbelievable; it all came together a little too easily. But, it is a fantasy world filled with candy, after all. How could I not fall in love with this book? The only other two fictional books that I have read set entirely in the Candy World are "True Confections" by Katherine Weber and, of course, "Charlie and The Chocolate Factory" by Roald Dahl. And now this one, which holds its own among them. My favorite thing about this novel is its structure. The author is able to successfully write from different points of view- something many adult books cannot get right. Furthermore, these accounts are sold separately, in different chapters- a difficult thing to do. With impeccable exactitude, no facts, no details, none if the timeline, not the characters are mismatched. Readers get the feeling that they are experiencing the event as they switch between the four childrens' minds, each with their own secrets. They all have their own reasons for being there and all eventually really want to win competition. At first a few are enemies, but, of course, they eventually grow to really care about one another and sincerely can each other friends as they learn each other's secrets and inner thoughts. **** Spoilers **** Logan, The Candymaker's son, feels the need to prove to his parents that he is worthy of inheriting his father's position. He has no other friends because his parents have kept him sheltered since he was a young boy. During the annual factory picnic, he met Philip, who was touring the area. This was one of the first boys had met and he was excited to find a new friend. After playing like boys do around the candy factory for most of the day, they were at the chocolate vat when Phillip lost his toy truck in it. Not wanting to upset his friend and wanting to return it, he crawled into it. He ended up not getting it in time and scarring his entire face. He is still a very happy boy; it seems that he notices his scars far less than anyone else does. In fact, he often forgets that they are there. Daisy, who grew up in a special family- spies with all the technology and ninja moves- is on an assigned mission. She is there for reasons that at first she does only because she was told; until certain events cause her to truly consider what she is doing. And what is right and wrong. Finding and taking Life Is Sweet's secret ingredient with the goal to shut down the factory? Certainly in the latter category. Miles, whom carries a life jacket around everywhere and has taken an interest in the afterlife ever since he was out boating and watched a girl drown. He eventually funds or that girl was actually Daisy, who of course never died because she was utilizing her super powers. Last but not least, there is Philip, whom is extremely negative, pretentious, rude, and full of animosity as soon as he meets the others. We eventually find out that he is the former boy with the toy truck. As expected, he typically is not this type of guy. But as an equally lonely child, when he was erroneously informed by his father that he had been banned from the Life Is Sweet candy factory (he was actually invited back by the family), he is there to win the competition; to take Logan's thunder. I also loved his secret violin talents and music genius. Looking forward to reading her other books!