Taylor

Clementine is the main character in a series of chapter books by author Sara Pennypacker that will delight young readers. One book in the series, Clementine, Friend of the Week, is a great book about school and friendship.

When Clementine gets picked for "Friend of the Week" she is very excited.  She will be the line leader, present her autobiography, feed the class fish and will get compliments written in a booklet by her classmates. Her best friend Margaret says it isn't a big deal, she was chosen in third grade. When Clementine tries to sneak a peek into Margaret's compliment book, she gets in trouble and is thrown out of her Margaret’s apartment. But that’s ok, Clementine can talk about her "Friend of the Week" activities with her kitty, Moisturizer. When her teacher announces a bike-a-thon for the weekend, Clementine tells everyone in her class that she will supply the decorations for everyone’s bike. Somehow, when she is looking for the decorations, her kitty goes missing. Sad about her missing cat, she lets her classmates down because she stays home to make "Missing Kitty" posters. Knowing that she didn't follow through with the decorations, and knowing she will most likely not get many compliments in her booklet, Clementine stays home from school. But, to her surprise, her classmates decorated their bikes with "Missing Kitty" posters, which leads to Moisturizer being found. They also write very nice compliments in her booklet and Margaret lets her read her own booklet, which is almost empty, but is soon full with compliments from Clementine.

Check out the Clementine book series, it will delight your young reader.

The Other Countess, a historical fiction piece for the Young Adult age group, follows the life of Lady Eleanor Rodriguez and her struggles to fit into society. She has a worthless title and a crazy alchemist as a father, and it seems as if Ellie cannot catch a break. After being kicked out of the Lacey household, she finds herself at court under the household of her father’s new client. Years pass and Ellie finds herself enjoying court life until the young Earl of Dorset, William Lacey, the one who kicked her and her father out, catches her eye. Will also begins to fancy Ellie, but his goal at court was to find a wealthy wife, not a poor alchemist’s daughter, to restore his family’s life and fortune. The two connect in a way they never expected, but know that the match cannot happen. Will the two accept the fact that they can never marry and move on or will they fight against all odds and make the match work? This was a fun and quick read that will be a favorite for readers who love historical fiction and romance.

The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants crew returns in the continuation of the series, Sisterhood Everlasting. The story takes place ten years later while each girl, Carmen, Tibby, Bridget and Lena, is in a new and different stage of her life. Thinking back when the series first started, I remember the carefree and adventurous girls who, after reading this book, seem to be less so in this newest installation. The story is mostly told by Carmen, who is now a television actress with a network executive fiancé, and follows each girl and their grown-up adventures and problems. With Tibby across the world providing little to no contact and the others dispersed across the U.S., what keeps these women so close together when in reality they are so far away? Also, that the pants have been missing for ten years and have yet to be found adds to the question of the existence of the sisterhood. Will the sisterhood survive the ever changing lives and times of Carmen, Tibby, Lena and Bridget? Those who have followed and grown up with the story of The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants, this is a fabulous continuation of the lives of the characters we all love and know so well.

To go along with the fad of Pride and Prejudice and Zombies and Little Women and Werewolves is the newest classic-turned-supernatural-novel. This is the story that Louisa wrote before her publisher told her to revise the story and delete the werewolves. A surprisingly great mix of the classic with new ideas, this was the perfect read for a fan of Little Women. The story closely follows the original tale, but also includes many twists and different versions of the most beloved characters. If you are a fan of Pride and Prejudice and Zombies or Sense and Sensibility and Sea Monsters this is one for you to try!

Here we go again, another novel about Pride and Prejudice! Claire Prescott has no idea why women fall head over heels for the infamous Mr. Darcy. She has a boyfriend, Neil, with whom she is in a very nice and comfortable relationship. But when her sister sends Claire to Oxford for a Jane Austen seminar, she finds herself her own version of a Mr. Darcy. To add to the mix, an unexpected lost version of Pride and Prejudice happens to fall into Claire's hands and leaves her more uncertain about her life. Will she know what to do with the lost manuscript and give Mr. Darcy a chance? A fun and new twist on Jane Austen.